Master Tian smiled wryly, "During those days of recovery, I unexpectedly found something I had always wanted and stepped into the Unity of Heaven and Man Realm."

"Strangely enough, my belief as an assassin turned out to be... freedom!"

"Freedom?" Cheng Ye was surprised; he originally thought Master Tian’s belief would be linked to ’order’ or ’stability’.

"Yes, my belief was originally used to counter the inner demons brought by power. After my special genetic talent awakened, I was briefly obsessed with the power to control life and death, resolving issues through killing. It was the belief in freedom that made me realize there are more important things in this world than killing, like living peacefully, like protecting those I wish to protect. It was like a shackle, locking away my desire for power, and also my instinct to solve problems through violence, turning me completely back into an ordinary person."

"So, you think my recruiting you is restricting your freedom? Afraid I’ll make you pick up power again, returning to those days of living by the sword?"

Cheng Ye was thoughtful.

If this is true, then there’s basically no hope for this matter.

After all, belief is the foundation that supports a person’s life, without belief, a person falls apart.

"No, Inspector Cheng, you misunderstood..."

Master Tian quickly shook his head, pressing his hand against his chest, "The ’belief’ I mentioned just now wasn’t condensed by myself, it was forcibly imposed by that Guardian Extraordinary back then, using his ability to twist my cognition and putting that ’shackle’ on me. In other words, I never truly gathered my own belief. That power of freedom just happened to enable me to have a peaceful life I wanted, so I chose to let it exist, even deliberately maintaining it."

Speaking of this, his voice gained a few shades of fear: "I dare not break it, because I’m scared, afraid that without this shackle, the crazy beast suppressed in my heart for decades... might emerge again, devouring me, and anyone I care about."

"No personal belief?"

Cheng Ye was completely stunned; this was entirely beyond his expectations.

He originally thought Master Tian condensed belief through his own will, choosing to retire.

Yet didn’t expect it was by borrowing the Guardian Extraordinary’s ability, forcibly locking away his power, and turning round to Happiness City as a regular person.

No wonder during their first meeting, Master Tian said he had put on shackles.

Also fearing such a person.

Afraid of what?

Afraid of reckless actions, trying to solve all problems through power.

Afraid of that "beast personality" sealed away by the belief in freedom.

Cheng Ye momentarily couldn’t recover his senses, but then a figure flashed into the doorway.

"Hmm? Smells so good!"

Matthew Lee could smell the scent of salted fish and sour fish soup drifting in the air from afar, unable to conceal a smile on his face.

But soon, as his gaze swept over Master Tian sitting next to Cheng Ye, his smile suddenly froze, brows furrowing.

The overhead lamp cast a dim light, Cheng Ye’s shadow clearly reflected on the wall behind him, gently swaying with his movements.

Yet Master Tian sat there, with the light falling on him, but not casting even a single shadow.

As if his whole being was "merged" with the light.

"Inspector Li?"

Seeing Matthew Lee walk in with a stern face, Cheng Ye quickly stood up to greet him.

Matthew Lee waved his hand, eyes locked firmly onto Master Tian, his tone carrying a bit of gravity: "Dominant Mutant Ability User?"

Master Tian raised his head, calmly nodded: "Yes."

"Incredible, truly incredible!" Matthew Lee’s expression suddenly changed, the previous gravity disappeared, replaced by a curious smile, "The last time I saw a Dominant Mutant Ability User was seven years ago during a mission in the eastern wilderness. Didn’t expect to encounter one in the Buffer Zone of Happiness City." 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

"Inspector Cheng, care to introduce?"

"Oh, this is Master Tian, a bus driver for the Public Works Bureau."

Cheng Ye briefly introduced Master Tian’s background, pointing to Matthew Lee, "This is Inspector Matthew Lee, my friend and also an investor preparing the caravan."

Even more surprisingly, Matthew Lee actually reached out to shake hands with Master Tian.

The three sat around the table again, the sour fish soup in the pot still bubbling, the aroma growing stronger.

Matthew Lee didn’t hurry to eat, he couldn’t resist asking, "Dominant mutant ability users generally have very short lives, rarely living beyond fifty-five years, how old are you this year?"

"I..." Master Tian opened his mouth, face complex, "This September, I’ll be 46."

46, tracing back with this timeframe, the birth year would be... 2059.

And the S4 Virus appeared just in the autumn of 2063, Master Tian truly belongs to the very last batch of the Extraordinary era.

"You do look somewhat old, I thought you were in your fifties."

Matthew Lee, seemingly lacking emotional intelligence towards ordinary people, bluntly said, "I advise you not to use your superpower anymore, every use of a dominant mutant ability strains the body, the more you use it, the faster you’ll die."

"I know." Master Tian’s voice was faint, carrying a barely discernible bitterness.

Sitting to the side, Cheng Ye listened to the conversation between the two and couldn’t help but interject, "What’s going on, is there any explanation?"

"It’s no secret." Matthew Lee picked up a bag of beer, tore open the package, took a sip, then slowly explained, "Although the previous generation of Extraordinary are gone, most of their offspring lived into the New Era. Extraordinary genes undergo special mutations, and these mutations may be inherited by the offspring, forming special superpowers, categorized as dominant and recessive."