US police: Plane crashes started with Homelander.

Chapter 6 The Battle of New York

Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, Queens, New York.

Inside a ward on the 7th floor.

Li Ang drew the curtains tight, locked the door, and pulled out a few sheets of paper from the bedside table.

Then I wiped my eyes...

Standing behind the windowsill, I pushed open the window, pulled back the curtains, and looked out at the blue sky and white clouds.

Last night he killed a mutant; in fact, he's already killed four people in less than two weeks since he started working there.

It didn't feel real at all. Whether it was the robbers I killed at the beginning or the mutant smugglers this time, it was always the other side that first revealed their murderous intent.

Li Ang was merely retaliating. Once you've killed someone with a gun, you'll understand that even a simple action like pulling the trigger can kill the person standing opposite you. No matter how many times you do it, killing with a gun always feels superficial.

He woke up in his hospital bed this morning and received an email from the police station. Although the evidence against the mutant was conclusive, the procedures would remain the same as always once someone died.

Investigations, interviews, leave...

Last time the holiday coincided with the weekend, but this time it's on a Wednesday. This can be considered Li Ang's first real major accident-related holiday, commonly known as an administrative leave.

Li Ang's back is already about a third better, and it should be almost completely healed by tomorrow morning.

Li Ang was quite certain that the superpower of "regeneration" already existed within him.

In fact, the first thing he felt when he woke up was that his eyes were itchy.

He could feel that his eyes had also changed, and next he was going to do a small test to verify his idea.

He blocked off any possible avenues for peeping and stood behind a crack in the window to make sure no one was looking in his direction.

I stared wide-eyed at the blue sky outside.

His pupils trembled, though Li Ang couldn't see it himself, but two cracks quietly appeared in his eyes, and the cracks continued to expand as he focused his mind and consciously controlled them.

Blue light spots scattered from the corners of his eyes, and a blue laser shot out from the gap. From a third-person perspective, Li Ang's eyes emitted blue rays as thick as a thumb that shot towards the sky.

But it only lasted for a moment. The emitted rays caused a strange stinging sensation in his eyes, instantly disrupting Li Ang's nerves, and the slit in his pupils disappeared in an instant.

Li Ang understood that there was still a long way to go before he could master laser vision.

As for the super laser that the person released yesterday that directly killed two police officers and a police car, it was most likely just a sudden outburst when the guy was near death.

After all, that guy only used it once, and a normal laser shot is equivalent to a continuous bullet that can penetrate most objects.

dong dong dong.

Someone was knocking on the door, and Li Ang suddenly felt like he was on an airplane, almost having a PTSD attack.

Li Ang drew back the curtains and went over to unlock the door.

The woman crossed her arms over her chest, dressed in a police uniform, black trousers with black stockings, and leather boots. A classic M1911 pistol was prominently displayed in the holster on her belt.

This gun has an 11.43mm caliber, and the bullet is commonly known as a .45 American-made large-caliber pistol.

The person who arrived was none other than Li Ang's immediate superior, Director Claire.

What are you doing?

Claire squinted and carefully scanned the room. Li Ang followed her gaze and found the crumpled paper he had casually tossed by the window while wiping his eyes.

Tsk, I should have known better than to go through all that trouble.

Claire coughed once and didn't say anything more. She walked over, picked up the crumpled paper, smelled it, and casually threw it into the trash can at the foot of the bed.

"Isn't this a bit too bland? Even when single, one should exercise restraint. What if you can't satisfy women later?"

You probably wouldn't believe me if I said it was a misunderstanding.

"I believe you. You were just wiping away your tears, weren't you?"

"Hey, how did you know? Even though it wasn't wiping away tears, it was still wiping my eyes. How did you tell?"

"Heh, I just made up a story and you just kept going. You could say it was about wiping your mouth, but you can't even cover up a lie."

Claire seemed to have already made up her mind, and Leon shook his head helplessly, too lazy to explain. Let her do whatever she wants.

He rolled over and lay down on the hospital bed, and Claire pulled over a stool and sat down beside him.

"Take off your clothes?"

"ha?"

"Take it off when I tell you to."

Li Ang subconsciously reached for his pants, and Claire quickly grabbed his arm and said...

"Take off your shirt, did you hurt your little brother besides your back?"

"Couldn't you have explained it clearly?"

Li Ang muttered as he lifted his clothes, turned over on the bed, sat cross-legged, and exposed his back.

Claire's hand gently traced her fingers from her cervical spine to her spine and tailbone. Her fingers were a little cool and not as soft as she had imagined, perhaps from years of holding a gun?

She withdrew her hand, and Li Ang put down his clothes and lay back down.

Claire said, "You seem to be in good spirits. The police said you were badly injured. I've been in a meeting in Atlanta for the past few days, and I came straight here after I got off the plane. Did you tell them to say that? To trick me into coming to see you?"

"No? What kind of logic is that? Why would I lie to you and make you come to me?"

"Don't you like me?"

Claire said it as if it were the obvious truth.

Li Ang tried hard to think about the logic of that sentence, but still gave up trying to understand women, and said...

How did you come to that conclusion?

"Didn't you ask me last time if I'd ever been in a relationship? Doesn't that mean you're interested in me? Doesn't that mean you like me?"

"Okay, okay, I'll admit it first, I really like your face, it's very pretty. Apart from that day, we haven't seen each other, and we're not even familiar with each other, so how could I possibly like you?"

Liking someone's appearance and liking a person are not the same thing. I watch videos every day, and I like and comment on all the beautiful women I see, but that doesn't mean I actually like them.

"I think I understand what you mean now. I guess I misunderstood. Okay?"

Claire remained calm and composed, seemingly unconcerned about whether Leon liked her or not.

Although Li Ang couldn't really say he liked her, her indifference still stung his heart a little.

"Did you just come to see me? You didn't even bring anything?"

"Why are you carrying anything? Is there anything the hospital lacks that you need me to bring? Well, besides seeing you, I also wanted to praise you."

"Will you praise me?"

"Yes, although most mutants in reality are not that strong, according to statistics, 95 percent of mutants in the world still die at the hands of other mutants."

Because ordinary people, once they realize they've encountered mutants, will choose to run away; they don't resist, and most ordinary people die while running away.

Objectively speaking, when facing someone significantly stronger than oneself, running away is the wiser choice than charging in. But this time you didn't, and you even killed "Blue Light."

Li Ang only now learned that guy's name. Sure enough, someone like Claire, who is a rank higher in the system, has a lot of information.

"Being a police officer is just a job. Most police officers these days are in it for money or green cards. Even if they have received training, they are no different from ordinary people when faced with real danger. They always run away and wait for a superhero to save the day."

No one will save them; they'll just wait to die, living like cannon fodder in a movie. I hate this phenomenon, I hate this kind of existence.

I've fought many wars, and now the world is at peace. I should be able to find a resort island and enjoy a life I've never experienced before, but I can't stand America as it is now, so I came to a place like this to become a policeman. Can you understand?

Li Ang listened attentively to Claire's long speech. She was very responsible, not to any one person or group, but to everyone in the world.

This is evident in her desire to correct the entire police culture in the United States.

She is truly righteous.

"I understand." Li Ang replied with just this simple sentence. Li Ang became a policeman not only to make a living but also to obtain a green card.

Now that they know they can steal a mutant's superpowers by killing them, they have another reason to do so.

After all, only by working as a police officer, a profession that deals specifically with criminals, can he legally commit murder.

Claire smiled and stood up after hearing Leon's reply, seemingly quite satisfied.

She was actually just expressing her stance to this newly recruited subordinate.

The other party neither questioned nor refuted, nor offered any further suggestions; they simply understood silently.

Although modern people have various platforms and tools for communication, the gap between people has not decreased but has become more serious due to the abundance of material life.

Finding someone who understands your beliefs is still not easy.

She opened her arms and hugged Li Ang. In those few seconds of closeness, she whispered "Thank you" in his ear.

It was just a simple hug, a bit inexplicable, a bit unexpected.

However, Li Ang didn't find anything strange about it.

After all, the atmosphere had reached this point.

Claire turned and left, closing the door behind her, leaving Leon alone in the room.

His phone beeped with a text message notification, which was quite unusual, since he hadn't given his number to more than a few people.

The screen displayed a message from Claire.

"What are you having for lunch? I'll bring it to you."

Li Ang sat on the hospital bed and tapped his finger to send a message.

"It must be Chinese food, no dumplings, rice bowls are preferred."

Leon didn't tell Claire or anyone else about his laser eyes and regenerative abilities.

Governments in the United States and around the world impose additional controls on mutants.

Especially those like Li Ang, who were originally ordinary people but suddenly became mutants.

They will almost always be thoroughly investigated to prevent them from being artificial mutants created using experimental mutagens.

Even if the investigation is successful, they will still be subject to a year of surveillance by the Mutant Affairs Center.

If the assessment by the relevant agency determines that his abilities are at a high risk level, or that he has mental health issues, he will almost certainly be unable to live in major cities like New York or Washington, D.C., nor will he be able to travel abroad, fly, or visit important public landmarks for the rest of his life.

Although he didn't want to fly in the first place, it would be troublesome if he could never fly again for the rest of his life.

Both his current police job and the apartment he rents have additional requirements regarding mutants, so he'll most likely lose his job.

The difference between humans and mutants is definitely not just about superpowers.

The world's attitude is that mutants are more like an additional race besides humans.

Once his superpowers are revealed, his entire life will be disrupted. Although it won't be a life-or-death crisis, it will be extremely troublesome, and the impact will last a lifetime.

He doesn't want others to know he has superpowers unless absolutely necessary, let alone that he can take over the powers of the dead.