The date is July 9, 2020, at 10:20 PM, city center, Li Jing Square.
From the entrance of the square, what meets the eye is a steel jungle formed by towering skyscrapers.
The surroundings are submerged in a sea of light formed by neon lights, with various electronic signs densely packed like cards spread casually on a poker table.
However, at this moment, every billboard embedded on the building surfaces plays an emergency evacuation notice, the neon lights transforming into dazzling and dangerous warning lights, sweeping across the entire square like a tide.
Amidst this, a few exceptional LED displays focus like cameras on the same scene - the center of the square where a green-skinned freak stands proudly shouting at the crowd, with five hostages kneeling behind him.
"Blue Arc, how long do you plan to hide? In ten seconds, we'll execute the first hostage!" The green-skinned monster growled, then began a one-sided countdown: "Ten... nine... eight... seven... six... five... four... three..." His eyes rolled around, scanning the surroundings as his words became increasingly sinister and clear, yet slower, "two... one."
Just as the countdown hit "one," a smile suddenly appeared on the face of the green-skinned monster, his dilated pupils bloodshot.
Gu Qiye, or more precisely, as he should be called "Blue Arc" at this moment, arrived right on cue like a deep blue bolt of lightning.
He slowly halted in the center of the square, the deep blue arcs of electricity around him spreading outward in all directions, then dispersing like embers.
Blue Arc stood up straight, looking through the electronic lenses embedded in his helmet at a man wearing a vest and black pants. The man's appearance was wild, with exposed skin that was green, a massive pair of green wings on his back, giving the appearance of a hybrid between an animal and a human.
The electronic lens popped up with an identity analysis for this criminal: "Number 509, a superpower user criminal frequently active in Li Jing - 'Green Wing'."
Blue Arc took a deep breath and turned his head to look at the masked bandits behind Green Wing, as well as the hostages kneeling in front of the bandits - their hands and feet bound in hemp ropes, and a rag in their mouths.
The bandits held guns to the back of their heads, the gun barrels seemingly ready to burst into flames at any moment.
He also noticed that each hostage had a timed explosive strapped to their bodies. The red countdown on the device was ticking away, with each bomb set for 10 minutes; these meager 10 minutes were slipping away by the second.
"Oh... look who has arrived, isn't it our 'Blue Arc'?" Green Wing stared at Blue Arc, his voice hoarse, delivering his lines with theatrical flair: "The prince of Li Jing, always the center of attention, always adored..."
Blue Arc met his gaze, casually teasing, "Am I supposed to say 'let them go, and take it out on me' now?"
"A cliché line," Green Wing laughed.
"Indeed quite cliché." Blue Arc also laughed, "So, what do you want this time?"
The two locked eyes.
"Surrender and come with me now, and I'll let them go; how does that sound?" Green Wing asked, emphasizing each word.
"Honestly, isn't your line even more cliché than mine?" Blue Arc sighed, then countered, "Why don't I rescue them first, then catch you?"
Green Wing scoffed coldly, "Because they have timed explosives attached. Never mind whether you can reach them before my people pull the trigger... even if somehow, you managed, another group of my people is hiding with the detonator in the crowd. If they see you make a move, they'll detonate the bombs instantly, killing you along with the hostages."
Blue Arc raised an eyebrow, "Wow... that's quite meticulously planned."
At that moment, a voice came through the helmet's internal earpiece:
"He's lying to us. Green Wing's accomplices aren't among the crowd; the bomb detonator signals are elsewhere. Our team has already started searching inside the nearby mall for Green Wing's accomplices, and once all five bandits are found, we'll take them down simultaneously and seize the detonators from them. In the meantime, keep Green Wing distracted."
"Understood," Blue Arc replied softly.
"So what do you plan to do?" Green Wing tilted his head, spreading his green wings like a bat and flamboyantly opening his arms as if to embrace his enemy, "Are you going to take me down? It's just a few hostages dying, nothing much to you, right? You've seen plenty of dead people, what's a few more?"
Blue Arc remained silent.
If his body wasn't injured, he would be confident in taking down those bandits in a flash, rescuing the hostages, and disarming the bombs on them before Green Wing's accomplices could detonate them.
But tonight was different; he had just come through a bloody battle, his body covered in wounds.
The wounds are very serious. Unable to wait for the association's logistics personnel to arrive, he must return home to catch his breath.
But due to the lack of time, he only briefly bandaged the wounds at home. At this time, using full strength might cause the wounds to open instantly, even severely worsen, and he couldn't guarantee his survival then.
"No." Blue Arc shook his head, slowly raising his hands, "As you wish... I'll go with you, just release the hostages."
"Deal." Green Wing lowered his face and made a request, "Then wear this." With that, he tossed a pair of metal handcuffs, linked with chains, toward Blue Arc, which landed on the ground.
"What is this?" Blue Arc asked, puzzled.
"A means to control you," Green Wing grabbed the other end of the chain, "If you try to escape, the handcuffs will explode immediately."
Blue Arc tilted his head, hesitated for a while, then said, "Uh... I understand the theory, but do you really have to add a dog chain to this thing? It makes it seem like I'm playing some bondage game with you. Everyone's watching, this isn't good for educating the kids."
As he spoke, he gestured to the LED display on the right side of the square, the massive screen was like a camera, enlarging the figures of the two in real-time, focusing on their faces.
"Stop the nonsense," Green Wing coldly stared at him, evidently not in the mood for banter, "If you don't put it on, I'll have them shoot."
"Alright, alright... don't rush, I'll put it on."
Blue Arc sighed as he spoke, slowly bending down, hands still raised in a surrender position.
"Aren't you ready yet... can't you move a little faster?" He thought to himself, glancing at a tall building in the square.
At this moment, his comrades were disguised as ordinary people in the nearby skyscrapers, searching for Green Wing's associates to disarm their detonation devices.
Gu Qiye didn't want to wear the handcuffs, but the situation forced him, even with a million reluctances in his heart, he had to delay as much as possible to ensure that during this period, Green Wing would not massacre the hostages.
At this moment, the attention of the onlookers was entirely on Blue Arc, including the hostages and bandits behind Green Wing.
Everyone questioned whether Blue Arc would put on the handcuffs, wasn't this equivalent to surrendering to the villains?
A child in the crowd stood up, tremblingly shouted, "Don't... don't surrender to him Blue Arc!"
"Shut up!" Green Wing turned and yelled at him. The boy's legs turned weak, immediately collapsing to the ground tremblingly.
However, within this brief, silent second, five bandits standing behind the hostages were suddenly bound by pitch black restraint belts, like black snakes choking their throats with their tails.
Following this, the restraint belts dragged their figures upward, some were hung on billboards, while others were hung on traffic lights.
The bandits shouted, struggled, and their guns fell to the ground.
Hearing the commotion, Blue Arc and Green Wing were both stunned for a moment, then turned to look.
Below the fashion billboard, there was a gigantic, pitch-black "pupa" hanging upside down.
Under the moonlight, this bizarre thing stood quietly in mid-air, close up like a pupa, from afar it looked like a spider; from it, a black web spread out, entangling all five bandits within.
They were like prey trapped in a snare, hung by pitch black restraint belts in the air, powerless to escape; at first, they still had the strength to curse, but the more they struggled, the tighter the restraint belts coiled.
Later, only a series of low moans and shrill screams came from their mouths, intermixed with their curses, now completely absent.
Witnessing this scene, Green Wing was stunned for a moment, then belatedly raised his right hand, angrily pointing at the black "pupa."
He turned his head and shouted at Blue Arc, "Is this yours?! I should have warned, if you act rashly, I'll immediately have the bombs on the hostages detonated!"
"No..." Blue Arc frowned, slowly shaking his head, "He's not with us."