The next day, Mo Xuan reported to the Public Security Bureau as planned. Due to the series of accidents yesterday, he was assigned to Zhu Yuan's Criminal Investigation Special Operations Unit as he had wished, becoming a temporary worker who had just entered the field. He was not yet qualified to enter a Hollow and needed to be guided by the seniors first. Zhu Yuan was very suitable for guiding new recruits.
"Yo, little Mo Xuan, is your head okay?"
Qingyi was already in the office at this time. Seeing Mo Xuan push the door open, she walked up to him with a smile and said, her expression turning into a cute emoticon =ω=.
"Thank you for your concern, Senior. I'm fine."
Mo Xuan smiled and responded to Qingyi's concern. Although this girl didn't look human, Mo Xuan was already used to getting along with strange things. In this world, it wasn't just androids, but also the demi-humans common in sci-fi settings, mostly humans with beast ears and tails, all of whom were quite cute.
"As expected of the Durable King. With you here, we'll have a meat shield to use."
Qingyi affirmed Mo Xuan's title. Zhu Yuan's side kick was not something anyone could block. The last person who was side-kicked by her lost a mouthful of teeth and lay in the hospital for several days before waking up. Her brain was almost scrambled. Zhu Yuan was the type who either didn't kick, or kicked with all her might.
"The Criminal Investigation Special Operations Unit... is it just the three of us?"
Mo Xuan looked around and found that this office was quite large, but there were very few desks, and even fewer people.
"Actually, there are four. You count as a temp. There's also Jane and Seth, but they're out on a mission."
Qingyi explained the structure of the Special Ops Unit. Other than Zhu Yuan, the captain, there were only three people, each with different duties and tasks. Someone like Zhu Yuan, in addition to her Special Ops tasks, also had to deal with traffic, counter-terrorism, robbery, and all the other things police officers do. It was like doing the work of five or six people for one person's salary. Even a millstone-turning donkey would cry at the sight.
"Alright, I hope I can become a full-time member soon."
Mo Xuan responded with a smile. Soon, he and Qingyi were called by Zhu Yuan to the unit's meeting room for their daily routine work.
"It's morning briefing time. Before we start work, let's go over the recent events."
Zhu Yuan placed several files on the table with a serious expression. Because Mo Xuan was a new recruit, she took special care to mention some precautions that were not usually mentioned.
"You've probably already learned the common knowledge about Hollows and associated Hollows. They're like the relationship between an earthquake and its aftershocks. Associated Hollows always appear next to the existing six major Hollows. What we have to do is to prevent the disaster from spreading."
"Research has already shown that lowering the activity of the Ethereals within a Hollow will also lower the activity of the Hollow itself. This means we have to periodically enter them to clean up the Ethereals, to prevent the Hollow from becoming active and expanding outwards."
Zhu Yuan got straight to the point, telling Mo Xuan about the dangers he would face in the future. It wasn't that they could sit in the Bureau and drink tea just because no one was committing crimes in a Hollow. Instead, they had to risk their lives in the Hollows from time to time to prevent them from continuously expanding. This was also one of a reason why the mortality rate for new recruits at the Bureau was extremely high.
"Question. If all the Ethereals in an associated Hollow are eliminated, will the associated Hollow disappear?"
Mo Xuan raised his hand and asked. If cleaning up the Ethereals could stop the Hollow from expanding, then by extension, if all the Ethereals were killed and there was no longer enough power to support the Hollow inside, perhaps it could no longer exist.
"Theoretically, yes. But the manpower, resources, and casualties required are something the Public Security Bureau cannot afford. For a single person, probably only the legendary seven 'Hollow Hunters' could do it."
Zhu Yuan gave Mo Xuan a strange look. It could be done, but no one was willing to do it. The harm from an associated Hollow wasn't actually that great, but the effort required to make it disappear was not as simple as just containing it. Anyway, the Special Ops Unit couldn't do it.
What Zhu Yuan found strange was why a new recruit like Mo Xuan was asking about these things. At most, he could spar with a few Ethereals. Thinking about cleaning up all the Ethereals in a Hollow was really not very realistic. It was like trying to run before you could even walk.
Here, Zhu Yuan introduced the concept of the seven 'Hollow Hunters.' Mo Xuan was a newbie and didn't quite understand, so he looked at Senior Qingyi, who was slacking off in the meeting room.
"Ah, those powerhouses. The legendary 'Hollow Hunters.' You might not have heard of one of them named Wanzhou, but you've definitely used the Bangboo she invented."
Qingyi said listlessly, lying on the table. This was actually her entering energy-saving mode. Because there was no need to waste energy, she looked lazy.
"So she's an inventor? I'm interested," Mo Xuan said.
"She once successfully neutralized a Hollow. A named Hollow."
Qingyi looked up and smiled at Mo Xuan. Mo was filled with respect. An associated Hollow was just called an associated Hollow, or usually referred to as the associated Hollow of a certain primary Hollow. Otherwise, with dozens of these things popping up every day, the experts in charge of naming them would be annoyed to death. So only those powerful Hollows that were ranked could be given a name.
"Amazing."
Mo Xuan felt that the seven 'Hollow Hunters' were probably the ceiling of this world's power level. If one day humanity could conquer the Hollows, it would be thanks to the efforts of these people. And perhaps himself.
"Our Public Security Bureau's work also includes preventing ordinary people from entering the Hollows. People without adaptability will only turn into Ethereals over time if they go inside."
Zhu Yuan continued, not showing any displeasure just because Mo Xuan's question had interrupted her meeting. She was a very good-natured supervisor.
"Do people actually go in?"
Mo Xuan asked with confusion. The dangers of the Hollows were publicized on TV every day, becoming a daily staple. For someone to still want to go in under these circumstances, they must really be looking for death.
"Don't underestimate desperate people. Criminals love to run in there. They'd rather bet on their own adaptability than be caught by us and thrown in jail."
Qingyi pouted with dissatisfaction. She and Zhu Yuan often entered Hollows to capture criminals. Every time they went in, they didn't know what would happen. They had survived until now based on luck and strength.
"So we usually follow criminals into the Hollows. On one hand, to catch them. On the other, if they turn into Ethereals, they will accelerate the expansion of the Hollow."
Zhu Yuan continued. If a criminal ran in, they had to chase them. If the criminal was lucky and got out, they would cause damage. If they couldn't get out, they would also cause damage.
"That feels a bit... subtle."
Mo Xuan was speechless. The desperados of this world were really something else. For something that would just get them a few years of treading on a sewing machine, they were willing to risk their lives. They were all ruthless characters with their heads on the line.
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