Welcome to Ability Store-Chapter 70 - 69: The New Leader

Jiang City Center, Black Swan Building.

Honglian passed through the entrance security machine as usual, boarding the elevator bound for the fifteenth floor. The suited office workers around her eyed her with their usual strange glances.

When she first started working here, she used to wear a black suit, cut her hair short, and hide it under a hat, but now she had given up.

Let them look all they want.

Who asked her to activate her ability and have her hair mutate at the same time?

The fifteenth floor was entirely occupied by the Dimensional Limit Mechanism. As soon as Honglian exited the elevator, she felt something was amiss. The hallway was unusually quiet, with no one chatting or slacking off, and the smoking room was empty.

Even though their job was to protect the world from harm, slacking off was part of the norm... Even if the end of the world was approaching, reversing the nature of the workers wasn’t possible.

Unless...

Honglian hurried her pace and rushed into the Execution Team office.

Unexpectedly, all her colleagues were present, standing upright at their desks. As she walked in, they all turned their heads in unison, their gazes surprisingly uniform.

"Sorry, I got held up on the way..."

"You’re Honglian, right? You’ve missed the normal clock-in time by 15 minutes and 28 seconds, and I’ve checked traffic conditions; there are no jams on the main city roads." A strange voice interrupted her.

Ah... damn it. Upon seeing the man in a high-end suit with a bright yellow tie, Honglian sighed inwardly. Workers can’t refuse slacking off unless the boss is present, and this person was most likely the new leader sent by the Dimensional Limit Mechanism.

"Sorry, I woke up late."

"Hahaha..." Unexpectedly, the other person laughed heartily, showing no sign of blame, "That’s understandable. A lot of major events have happened recently, and it’s normal for everyone to lose sleep. If there’s overtime, don’t forget to report it to finance; overtime pay is triple."

Clap, clap, clap!

The employees rarely applauded.

"Honglian, please return to your desk." The man said amiably, "Since everyone is here, let me start with a brief introduction. My name is Xiao Canong, like the Canon in music. The headquarters has appointed me to replace Captain Wan, Captain Liu, and Captain Tian’s roles. From today onwards, I am the full manager of this district’s mechanism."

The three captains he mentioned were the leaders of the Execution, Logistics, and Intelligence departments.

Honglian was surprised. She knew the Intelligence Team would be punished after such a big mistake in the jurisdiction, but she didn’t expect headquarters to dismiss all three.

The Execution Team was led by the nose from start to finish; surely Captain Wan shouldn’t be blamed.

She raised her hand in dissatisfaction, "Where’s Captain Wan going now?"

"I guess he’s on vacation, but his exact location involves personal privacy," replied Xiao Canong, not ignoring Honglian. "He received a large severance package from headquarters, with the only requirement being that he doesn’t use his ability for two years and accepts the mechanism’s confidentiality monitoring."

"Does changing the head of the branch prevent similar incidents from happening?"

Once Honglian said this, the office fell silent.

Little Pigeon turned pale.

Xiao Canong looked at her cheerfully, "Maybe. But if I neglect my duties, I would certainly have no complaints about being dismissed."

With that, Honglian could no longer defend the captain, so she remained silent.

"Since you have no questions, let’s continue the meeting. Let me introduce the two new members of the branch." Xiao Canong turned to point at two people behind him, "The male is Wang Qianduan, and the female is Zhang Yingzi. They’re my capable aides transferred from other branches, and they’ll belong to the Execution Team from now on."

"Hello, colleagues." The woman waved to everyone with a smile, "Please take care of us in the future!"

The man merely nodded slightly.

Honglian looked at the two of them several times. The employee named Wang Qianduan seemed at least over forty, with an unremarkable square face and a cold gaze that seemed to keep people at a distance. Zhang Yingzi, on the other hand, looked different; she was barely in her twenties, with short hair and a round face, her smile sweet as if she had just stepped out of campus into the workplace, giving off a refreshing feeling.

"Yay, welcome you both!" Wang Baihu was the first to applaud.

Shallow. Honglian silently rolled her eyes.

As the applause died down, Xiao Canong continued, "Everyone is aware, recently the Dimensional Limit Mechanism has faced malicious provocations from unknown sources, and the situation and risks we face are changing significantly. But in my view, this may not be a bad thing. The more our reputation spreads, the wider the scope in which we can play a role."

"Before coming here, headquarters had reached an agreement with the local government to include Ability Users in the talent management system. So from now on, this mechanism will serve as an interface for the public, and everyone’s work will become more challenging. In the short-term plan, I intend to set up multiple ability check points in Jiang City, as well as an Ability User training class, and promote knowledge related to abilities throughout society... This also responds to the content the Doctor mentioned at the public press conference."

Here, he specifically glanced at Honglian, "So you should pay more attention to your image, don’t see yourself as a mysterious agent hidden in the shadows, but as an idol warrior under public scrutiny, a popular hero maintaining social stability! The mechanism will spend considerable effort promoting all of you, you are the first batch of mechanism ambassadors!"

The office was suddenly abuzz.

This news was too shocking; people couldn’t help but whisper to those around them.

"Whoa, am I going to be a celebrity?" Wang Baihu said joyfully, "This is too thrilling."

Little Pigeon looked quite worried, "If we’re recognized as soon as we leave, how can we catch ability criminals?"

Honglian loudly voiced her concerns, "Mr. Xiao—"

"You can call me Captain Xiao, or Xiao Canong. Don’t mind my formal attire; it’s to adapt to the mechanism’s future strategy," Xiao Canong interrupted amicably.

"Captain Xiao... Won’t this deviate from the mechanism’s mission?" The Doctor said our abilities are not something to be proud of; they’re a curse brought by Otherworld’s erosion. Most who join the Dimensional Limit Mechanism are victims of invasion incidents. But your mechanism strategy creates an illusion that abilities are good things, they can draw attention and create wealth."

Honglian’s words earned the agreement of several colleagues.

"Indeed... My sole purpose for being here is hoping fewer people are harmed by Ability Users."

"If the publicity goes on like this, won’t those who acquire abilities think they’re the privileged class?"

Xiao Canong maintained his cheerful expression, seemingly aware of their concerns, "You’re right, but let me ask, if we don’t promote this, will the facts change? Over the past five years, invasion points have steadily increased, and more people are gaining abilities. The Dimensional Limit Mechanism isn’t omnipotent; there’ll come a day when suppressing messages will fail."

Honglian was silent.

He was indeed addressing a issue they’ve faced for some time.

The mechanism has been discussing endlessly internally—when will this constantly mending basket completely burst open?

"If we’re destined to face a change, then why not embrace it more actively?" Xiao Canong spread his hands, "In a sense, the enemy’s provocation provides us an opportunity. Imagine, if each of you presents a positive image, newcomers will inevitably want to emulate. That’s the power of example! The more people you inspire to join the mechanism, the smoother the Execution Team’s mending work will be, ultimately creating a virtuous cycle."

"As for concerns about ability class... First, the invasion-induced mutations aren’t controlled manually; new Ability Users will continuously emerge, so suppression has limited effect, and it’s not directly related to whether messages are open. Additionally, headquarters is attempting to fundamentally solve this issue, and I can reveal a little: the project’s progress is quite promising. It may not be long before we can truly seal abilities, eradicating ability privilege and class altogether."

"Seal... abilities?"

"For everyone?" Everyone exclaimed.

"Exactly." Xiao Canong nodded with a smile, "I assure you all, the original purpose of the Dimensional Limit Mechanism has never changed. To protect this world, I’ll fight alongside all of you to the end."

"Oh, right." He remembered something, "There’s one more thing. Guagua is considered a local native; the mechanism has checked it, found no harm, so I’ll leave it with you to care for."

Guagua? Honglian was bewildered, who is that?

Only to see Zhang Yingzi toss out a cube the size of a mahjong tile, which landed on the empty space among the workstations and transformed into a cabinet-sized box.

Then the box door swung open, revealing a dinosaur-sized face.

"Gua?"