Chapter Two: The Question of Ability

As evening fell, Tang Yi returned to the room where he was currently living and collapsed onto the bed, closing his eyes as his mind raced with relentless thoughts. There was simply too much information to digest all at once. From Professor Feng, he had learned that in this world, characters like Peter and Sylar truly existed, though the storyline differed somewhat from the American TV series.

Three years ago, a group of scientists, dubbed "scientific monsters," developed an equation. During clinical trials, the confidentiality measures failed, and various international espionage agencies managed to steal it. Once the equation leaked, nations began mass-producing the serum and administering it to their citizens—even African countries started buying it in bulk. The result: a world full of superhumans, a world that could rightly be called "the world of superhumans." The widespread emergence of superpowers brought about earth-shattering changes. Technology developed at a breakneck pace, and the world shrank once more. Yet, humanity's darker nature also became ever more pronounced. Violent incidents and crimes multiplied, prompting the formation of an international superpower peacekeeping force dedicated to maintaining global order. China's Special Abilities Headquarters was a key member, thanks to the sheer number of Chinese citizens, which meant a vast diversity of superpowers.

The theory of human evolution had been confirmed, though natural evolution produced superpowered individuals at a minuscule rate. Out of the world’s six billion people, those who naturally evolved superpowers numbered less than three thousand. The serum changed those odds, accelerating human evolution. Professor Feng also mentioned another point: there had always been more superpowered individuals than people realized, but they were misunderstood and never recognized. For instance, those rare individuals with a "doomed lone star" fate, whose very presence seemed to bring misfortune upon their parents, wives, and children—they were actually nuclear-powered superhumans. Undetected, their constant emission of nuclear radiation shortened the lives of those around them. There were also legends of "demon babies," infants whose mothers and attending midwives died at birth—these might well have been dual-direction healers.

Tang Yi was troubled by another discovery: the original Tang Yi in this world possessed the same sponge-like absorption ability, but lacked control. He would unconsciously absorb others' powers, and once he exceeded the body's limits, he would explode and perish. Three months ago, the other Tang Yi participated in a peacekeeping operation. The violent gang involved had nearly a hundred members with diverse abilities. As he approached, Tang Yi’s power absorbed theirs in a frenzy. The result: the gang was almost entirely obliterated, and the peacekeeping force suffered heavy casualties. Without a self-healing ability, Tang Yi was reduced to ashes.

“Sigh! Will I explode one day too? Depressing. But if I could absorb a self-healing power, maybe I could resurrect like Peter. If only I could control whether I absorb others’ abilities—I wouldn’t have to fear exploding! What am I supposed to do now?” Tang Yi muttered in despair. Suddenly, his heart clenched and he felt like crying; he’d been brought to this world by a black hole, with little hope of returning. He wondered how his parents were doing—perhaps they’d seen the news on TV. He sighed; he hadn’t amounted to much, graduating from a third-rate university and failing to find a job for over a year, living as a layabout at home, endlessly watching TV, surfing the internet, and playing games. Leaving wasn’t so bad—at least his younger brother was far more accomplished, attending a top university and already attracting headhunters and companies in his junior year.

“Hmph, Zhang Cheng! Damn creator of the black hole! Even though you’re now in solitary confinement, when you get out, I’ll settle accounts with you!” Zhang Cheng, it turned out, was a member of Shanghai’s Special Abilities Headquarters, captain of Team One, responsible for the city’s safety. In the pursuit of Lin San, the illusion-maker, Zhang Cheng became so vexed by Lin’s illusions and the destruction in Shanghai’s southern suburbs that he unleashed a massive black hole, absorbing countless objects and pulverizing Lin San. Tang Yi was sucked in as well. But Zhang Cheng wouldn’t recover for three months; the black hole had drained much of his potential.

“I’ve absorbed six abilities so far: flight, electricity discharge, phasing, object levitation, rapid movement, and object fusion! I wonder how many I can contain now? Hmm, let’s see if the original Tang Yi left anything useful in this room—yes, let’s look around.” Tang Yi began searching, at first moving slowly, but gradually speeding up until only fleeting afterimages remained. Suddenly, a figure appeared at the center of the room while the afterimages slowly faded. Tang Yi exhaled and sat at the semicircular table, examining the items he'd found.

“Photos—oh, so he and Xiao Yao were lovers. No wonder she looked at me strangely!” …

“Ah, a notebook! Found it at last—persistence pays off!” Tang Yi laughed in delight.

After a while, Tang Yi sat at his laptop, letting out a long sigh, then pulled out the communicator Professor Feng had given him and called the professor…

The next day, Tang Yi arrived at the basement of the eastern building. Led by Da A Fu, he took the elevator down—a depth equivalent to ten stories—into an underground plaza, surrounded by several individual rooms. He chose Room 33, entered, and closed the door behind him. He didn’t emerge until lunchtime, and after eating, returned to Room 33, staying there until evening. This routine continued for months, even through the New Year—apart from meals, which A Fu delivered to the underground plaza, Tang Yi spent almost all his time in Room 33. Until one day, he burst excitedly into the hall, rushing up to Professor Feng’s desk and startling the professor so badly he spat tea everywhere.

“What’s got you so excited? Didn’t you see I was enjoying my tea? Sigh! Now my precious tea is wasted—this stuff is expensive! Hmm, I’ll deduct it from your salary.”

“What? Boss Feng, you’re so stingy, counting even a bit of tea against me!” Tang Yi shouted.

“Alright, enough shouting. Joking aside, do you have good news for me?” Professor Feng waved his hand.

“Of course! According to the notes, I’ve mastered all six abilities to perfection. This means I can absorb thirty more abilities now!” Tang Yi exclaimed, spittle flying in excitement.

Professor Feng wiped his face with a tissue and grumbled, “Can you turn off your saliva valve first?”

“Oh, sorry!” Tang Yi apologized sheepishly. “I finally understand these six abilities. In America, Sylar can absorb hundreds of abilities and remain unharmed, probably thanks to his own understanding. Here, Sylar has hunted hundreds of people. Only Peter, with an absorption ability like mine, has managed to contend with him. Otherwise, with nations scrambling to spread superpowers, Sylar might have gained even more abilities and killed more people.”

“Professor Feng, besides America’s Claire and Sylar, are there no other self-healers?” Tang Yi asked.

“No, heaven is fair. Such rare abilities are extremely scarce—like yours, only two in sixty billion, and yours came from the serum. Parallel worlds don’t count.” Professor Feng blew tea leaves off his cup and sipped.

“Is there any way to meet Claire? If I could, my problem would be solved!”

“Not now. Even though Claire is in the international peacekeeping force, she’s never left America. Never mind the restrictions on superpowered individuals traveling abroad—even if you knew where she was, flying there would be suicidal. The world is full of superhumans; even though America has fewer people than us, the population density in the cities could make you explode countless times.”

“Well… never mind. Could you introduce me to others so I can absorb new abilities?”

“Too bad! You’re not ready for field missions yet. Come with me; Team Three should be in the lounge.” Professor Feng rose and walked toward the lounge.

Tang Yi was excited, but suppressed it. In the original Tang Yi’s notes, there was a hypothesis: as the absorption ability advanced, one could control whether to absorb others’ abilities, and even select specific abilities from those with multiple powers. The original Tang Yi guessed this but never achieved it.

Following Professor Feng into Team Three’s lounge, Tang Yi tried not to absorb others’ abilities, and fortunately, he didn’t experience the previous sudden flashes. In fact, Tang Yi had, unconsciously, reached the state hypothesized in the notes. Due to his extended solitary training, his abilities had undergone a qualitative leap, enhancing his absorption power. He wasn’t yet at Sylar’s level—able to absorb others’ abilities without side effects—but now he could control whether to absorb powers, avoiding the risk of exploding from excessive absorption. Tang Yi realized this upon entering the lounge and was momentarily stunned. The others were curious and stared at him, while Professor Feng regarded him with surprise. Team Three’s members had heard about Tang Yi from a parallel world, and that he possessed similar abilities, so they scrutinized him from head to toe.

Suddenly, Tang Yi shouted, “Wahaha!” and lunged at Professor Feng, hugging him and slapping his back, exclaiming, “I did it! I did it!”

Professor Feng, winded by Tang Yi’s enthusiastic slaps, finally grabbed Tang Yi’s shoulders and, with a flash of blue light, bounced him off the wall. Tang Yi slid down to the floor. Professor Feng gave him a look that said, “You’re my comrade, but let’s not get too close,” and remarked, “Don’t get so friendly, or my wife will misunderstand.” The team laughed heartily.

Tang Yi climbed to his feet, huffed, “I’m in a good mood today, so I won’t argue with you!” He habitually brushed off his clothes, though there was no dust. He still hadn’t figured out what material this building was made of—there wasn’t a speck of dust anywhere.

“Let me introduce you to the members of Team Three. This is Captain Wu Datou, who controls wind and water. This is Vice-Captain Wang Siying; she possesses healing abilities, and they’re dual-directional. Don’t cross her—she can save your life or end it! These two are twins, Guo Yi and Guo Er; their ability is duplication, and together they can create up to sixty clones at once. This is Chen Wen, whose power is fire manipulation. And finally, Huang Lei, who controls objects—not just simple levitation, but as a powerful main attacker.” Professor Feng gestured to Tang Yi, “This is our new Tang Yi; I’m sure you’ve all heard of him.”

After the introductions, the members of Team Three each demonstrated their abilities. Captain Wu raised his left hand, summoning a miniature tornado in the room that vanished as soon as he released it. With his right index finger, he pointed at a glass of water; the liquid rose like a dragon, swirling in the air before gently flying into Wu’s open mouth. The twins, Guo Yi and Guo Er, swiftly created six clones, which disappeared in a flash. Chen Wen spread the fingers of his right hand, summoning a reddish-yellow flame that disappeared when he clenched his fist. Huang Lei made a commotion; with a gesture, tables, chairs, and cups flew wildly about, causing everyone to move toward the walls. Professor Feng intervened, “Alright, Huang, you just love to stir things up.” Huang Lei laughed and returned the objects to their places. Vice-Captain Wang pressed a finger to a large potted plant; its leaves quickly yellowed, then turned green again.

Tang Yi observed the members carefully. From his earlier conversations with Professor Feng, he knew that Shanghai Special Abilities Headquarters had eight patrol teams, each with six members: a captain, vice-captain, and four team members. Each team had different strengths and specialties, dispatched according to the situation. Tang Yi noted that Team Three’s members were all young, around twenty-four years old, like himself. Their uniforms were standardized: black tops, fitted but not tight, resembling T-shirts yet distinct, paired with black athletic pants, suitable for action.

Wu Datou had regular features, but an unremarkable face—someone easily lost in a crowd. He was about Tang Yi’s height, roughly one meter seventy-five. The twins were strikingly handsome, fair-skinned with delicate features—so much so that their skin was softer than most girls’. Chen Wen was short, about one meter sixty, and a bit dark-skinned; Tang Yi wondered maliciously if it was from being scorched by his own flames. Huang Lei was tall, over one meter ninety, with thick eyebrows and large eyes. Finally, Tang Yi noticed Wang Siying, who was graceful and fresh-faced, her long, shiny black hair reaching her waist, casually brushed over her right shoulder. Watching her idly comb her hair, Tang Yi thought she seemed the picture of innocence—but the memory of her devilish abilities made him break out in a cold sweat.

“Everyone, take a seat!” Professor Feng called out, and the group gathered around the table. He was, after all, the head of the Shanghai Headquarters. “So, what was all that shouting about—what did you accomplish?” Professor Feng asked.

“Don’t you find it odd that I haven’t fainted since I arrived?” Tang Yi replied.

“Oh? Why?” Professor Feng asked calmly.

“Hehe, I’m not sure why, but I can now control my absorption ability!”

“Well, in that case, you can start going on missions tomorrow, instead of being a layabout all day.”

“Stingy old Feng!” Tang Yi grumbled inwardly, secretly despising Professor Feng. He went on, “I want to test whether I can control absorbing their abilities. Watch—don’t let me faint again.” Everyone laughed.

Tang Yi focused, closing his eyes to sense whether he could absorb others’ abilities, and discovered something entirely new…