### Chapter 5: Modern Small World (6)
“Crash!”
The Tiger Demon unceremoniously tossed Patient 22 onto the ground, and the metallic form didn’t magically disappear. It landed with a thud, akin to a hefty iron weight crashing down, making everyone feel a tremor beneath their feet.
“Esteemed protectors, this is the spy I encountered during my patrol at the outskirts,” the Tiger Demon announced.
Fu Yetian nodded, “Well done.”
Patient 22 struggled to lift his head. After lingering in a daze, his vision finally started to focus.
Standing before him was a cool, dashing swordsman dressed in a black long coat, a long sword slung across his back like a fashionable accessory.
To his right stood a classically dressed woman, who was deeply engrossed in some electronic device. She only lifted her head slightly to glance at him before quickly losing interest.
Her outfit was equally strikingly traditional—a purple mini skirt covering her thighs, with her calves shimmering white even in the dim light. Even from the side, she was a sight to behold.
“22, remember to adjust your speaking style. Try to extract as much insider info as possible,” the Deputy Bureau Director whispered.
Only the elite, specially trained experts could enter the Special Operations Bureau, and though the Deputy knew this, he couldn’t help but offer some advice.
“Ahem…”
This wasn’t an intentional display by Patient 22. He was still feeling pretty shaken from the Tiger Demon’s earlier treatment; it felt like his insides had only just settled.
He temporarily fell silent, his gaze drifting downward.
A little show of weakness could make the enemy feel like they were in control, and sometimes, before they even realized it, they would spill the beans.
“Who are you? Why are you spying on us?”
Fu Yetian raised an eyebrow when he saw Patient 22 transition from a fully metallic form back to a regular human shape.
With gritted teeth, Patient 22 shot back, “Who I am doesn’t matter. The important question is where you come from and how you suddenly appeared in Ocean City. What’s your purpose here?”
Rong Ji momentarily set down her pad and exchanged a glance with Fu Yetian.
“Brother Fu, should I give him some of the good stuff too? That way, he’ll spill everything, saving us from wasting time interrogating him.”
“No, no, no. The night is long; we need something to keep us entertained. I think this little brother is quite interesting. If you dumb him down, it’d be way too boring.”
Rong Ji scoffed and ignored him.
She turned to the otaku, who was standing nearby like a robot in sleep mode, and waved him over. “Where can I buy these clothes?”
The otaku sprang forward, ready to lead her into the wondrous world of Taobao.
Fu Yetian ignored her and refocused on Patient 22.
“How about this? Our back-and-forth hasn’t gotten us anywhere. Let’s do a question-and-answer format: you ask a question, I answer, then I ask, and you answer. It’ll be even-steven.”
Patient 22 hesitated for a moment.
New instructions came through his earpiece, “Agree to him.”
Patient 22 pretended to ponder for a while before nodding solemnly.
Fu Yetian cheerfully opened his palm, “Since it was my idea, you go first.”
Patient 22 inquired, “Where do you come from, and what’s your purpose here?”
“Good question.” Fu Yetian strolled in front of Patient 22, hands behind his back, seemingly contemplating the response.
“To put it simply, we come from a completely different world than Ocean City. We’re here to complete a mission, but I can’t share the details at this moment.”
Fu Yetian fixed his gaze on Patient 22, “Now it’s my turn. So where do you come from, and what’s your aim?”
Patient 22 mulled it over for a second before answering, “We are affiliated with the Special Operations Bureau. Since you guys seemed sketchy and numerous, we were ordered to investigate you to confirm your identities.”
Fu Yetian, having picked up a new phrase from the otaku, said, “So you guys are police?”
Patient 22 shook his head, “Not exactly. We handle super criminals, so our rank is above that of regular police.”
……
As the Q&A progressed, their exchange got progressively more intense.
The Deputy Bureau Director, listening from the sidelines, felt his heart race. Even a seasoned veteran like him couldn’t help but tremble slightly, his worldview having just been shattered.
The absurd characters before him were from something akin to an ancient legendary realm filled with immortals—humans, demons, and monsters all vying for power!
And they had come to Ocean City because they stumbled into a maze located within the Monster Race territory. The maze’s guardian directed them here.
To them, the sprawling Ocean City was merely a Small Cave Heaven—not surprising at all.
According to the guy named Fu Yetian, small worlds were ordinary back where they came from, but they were surprised to find such a developed place nestled within a Small Cave Heaven.
If it weren’t for the awe Ocean City inspired and the sense that it might not be an ordinary place, they would have long since kicked off a massacre as was their usual style.
The information Fu Yetian had skillfully provided in turn yielded some satisfying insights.
For instance, if they unleashed a full-scale attack on the city with their 3,000-strong force, each detail about Ocean City’s defensive capabilities and its fastest response times—including Fu Yetian’s greatest fear, the army situation—were thoroughly explained by Patient 22.
After all, the task information they received had been too vague.
Conquer Ocean City! What does that even mean?
Cut off all ties between Ocean City and the outside world and declare it as belonging to another entity?
The system’s mission details seemed incomplete.
It merely stated that they had to capture Ocean City within 48 hours. Even if they succeeded by chance, they would face an onslaught from nearly all the armies of the small world afterward.
Given their current capabilities, Fu Yetian couldn’t be sure they could withstand the task till the end.
But after Patient 22’s explanation, he finally gained a clearer understanding of the mission.
It appeared that capturing and holding Ocean City would be anything but easy.
Once their dialogue wrapped up, Fu Yetian smiled at Patient 22, “I’m glad we could have an open conversation. You’ve got the information you wanted. As the saying goes, it’s better to have heard the truth on the road to the gallows, so you can now take your leave.”
Patient 22 fell silent, closing his eyes as if resigned to his fate.
Fu Yetian shot a glance at the Tiger Demon, who raised his hand high, then suddenly slammed it down—the claws flashed like shooting stars across Patient 22’s neck.
One would expect a vast splatter of bl**d upon separation of the head from the body.
But in that instant, as the head fell, the person disintegrated into ashes and vanished.
Fu Yetian abruptly looked up, “Someone’s on the roof!”
The Tiger Demon was about to leap up but was stopped by Fu Yetian.
“No need to chase; they’ve already left.”
Fu Yetian looked at Rong Ji, “Rong Protector, are you ready?”
Rong Ji lazily stretched and nodded with a mischievous smile, “Of course.”
