Deviant: No Longer Human

"Just a person who would have died eventually. I merely fastened the process," he continued nonchalantly, attempting to dismiss the gravity of what he had done. His words, however, seemed to bounce off the walls, leaving Anran\'s spirit untouched, her posture unchanged.

Wang Xiao\'s eyes narrowed slightly as he observed her.

He was accustomed to evoking fear and obedience, not this silent, despondent defiance.

\'So troublesome...\' Wang Xiao shook his head in mild annoyance, muttering to himself about the troublesome nature of the situation. Standing up, he decided to take a stroll to the kitchen, perhaps to clear his mind or simply change the scenery

Yin Yue\'s voice echoed in his mind, curious and probing. [Do you plan to extract more information from her?]

Opening the refrigerator, Wang Xiao grabbed a bottle of water, his thoughts focused. \'She\'s more valuable than just a source of information,\' he contemplated, taking a long gulp.

Yin Yue, ever the provocateur, teased, [More use... Are you interested in her body, hehe...? Wang Xiao, so you are indeed a man!]

A shadow of annoyance crossed Wang Xiao\'s face. \'No, it\'s not like that. The tone of her leader during the call... it wasn\'t strictly professional. He said, "Be cautious." That conversation was too casual, too familiar for a mere spy and her commander.\'

Yin Yue, catching on, questioned further, [You mean, she tricked us?]

Wang Xiao closed the refrigerator, his mind now racing with this new angle. \'Perhaps,\' he thought, \'there\'s a deeper connection between them. This isn\'t just about extracting information or locating the Fairy Island.

There\'s a personal element at play here, and that could change everything.\' His gaze hardened as he considered the implications, understanding that the situation was far more complex than he initially assumed.

His eyes narrowed as he pieced together the puzzle. \'If she spoke the truth, then there was an extraordinary effort to secure her retrieval. It implies a standby team was ready to act if she didn\'t return. She\'s clearly more valuable than a regular spy.\'

Yin Yue, puzzled, [??]

A sly smile crept across Wang Xiao\'s face. \'No matter her true identity, she\'s invaluable to her organization. A perfect bargaining chip for future negotiations. And about Adam... he was an anomaly. Why did it take longer to destroy his body?

Normally, it should\'ve been instantaneous.\'

Yin Yue responded, [His body exhibited signs of supernatural powers. I neglected to mention it earlier, as he didn\'t seem particularly strong.]

\'Supernatural powers, huh? Another entity from hell?\' Wang Xiao mused.

Yin Yue corrected, [Not exactly. We spirits are far stronger. He likely had ties to that place you humans mention—the tunnel to the heavens.]

Wang Xiao nodded, the pieces of the puzzle starting to align in his mind. The situation was more complex than he initially thought, involving elements beyond mere human espionage.

The information about the tunnel to the heavens added another layer of intrigue and potential power plays.

Wang Xiao pondered, his curiosity piqued by the mysteries surrounding the tunnel to the heavens. \'What exactly are you...?\' he wondered. Despite the option to retreat into the simplicity of village life, his desire to uncover the truth was growing stronger.

Convinced that there was more to gain from further exploration, Wang Xiao re-entered the living room where Yuexiu Anran was still recovering from the shock. "So, are you done crying?" he asked, his tone somewhat indifferent yet probing.

!!

Anran, hastily wiping her eyes, retorted with a feigned bravado, "W-who is crying?" She forced a smile, trying to project strength. "Just a person who met an early end! Nothing to cry over!"

Wang Xiao blinked, taken aback by her sudden show of resilience. He observed her for a moment, her eyes glistening like crystals, not from sadness, but from a stubborn refusal to show weakness.

"Is this your first time witnessing death?" he asked, his voice softer, but with an underlying sharpness, as if trying to peel back the layers of her facade.

Anran met Wang Xiao\'s gaze, her eyes still shining with unshed tears, yet her voice was steady. "No, it\'s not the first time. But it doesn\'t get any easier with time, do they?"

Wang Xiao leaned against the doorway, studying her. "You\'re stronger than you look," he observed, his tone a mix of amusement and curiosity. "Most would have crumbled by now."

Anran shrugged, a forced casualness in her posture. "In our line of work, strength is a necessity, not a choice. You learn to deal with death, or it deals with you." Her words were spoken with a cold, hard truth that belied her youthful appearance.

Wang Xiao nodded slowly. "And yet, Adam\'s death affected you. Why?"

Anran\'s facade cracked slightly, a flicker of pain crossing her features. "Adam... he was just a kid. He shouldn\'t have been part of this, he was normal... Before he entered that place..."

"There\'s no room for sentimentality in this world," Wang Xiao interjected sharply, cutting through her words with a voice cold and void of feeling. "You know that as well as I do."

Anran\'s gaze shifted away, her jaw clenching as a wave of emotions threatened to surface. "Yes, I know," she murmured, her voice a low blend of resignation and pain. "But understanding the brutality of our world doesn\'t make it any easier to stomach."

Wang Xiao pushed off from the doorway, his movements deliberate and measured. He closed the distance between them, each step echoing in the tense air. "You\'re right," he conceded, his voice slightly softer yet laced with an underlying firmness.

"...But there\'s something you\'ve yet to clarify. How did you know about the change in Adam after he entered the tunnel to heaven? You claimed you\'d never seen it yourself. Were you lying to me?" His eyes, previously distant, now bore into her with an incisive sharpness, dissecting her response before it even left her lips.

Anran\'s eyes flickered back to him, a flash of surprise crossing her features before settling into a guarded expression.

Caught off guard by his question, she weighed her words carefully, aware that any slip could turn her precarious situation even more dangerous.

"I... I\'ve heard stories," she stammered, her mind racing to piece together a convincing explanation. "From others who\'ve been there. I\'ve never seen it myself, but the tales... they\'re consistent. That\'s how I knew."

Wang Xiao\'s scrutinizing gaze didn\'t waver as he abruptly called out her lie. "Lie!" His voice was firm, brooking no room for doubt.

"What?... But I didn\'t lie," Anran protested, her voice a mix of confusion and defensiveness.

"I can read the movement of your eyebrows," Wang Xiao replied calmly, leaning against the edge of the couch opposite hers. His demeanor was relaxed, yet his eyes betrayed a keen alertness.

Anran fell silent, her mind racing. The sudden realization that Adam had exploded sent her thoughts spiraling into various possibilities. Finally, a suspicion surfaced. "Are you also a... Deviant?" she asked, her voice tinged with a newfound wariness.

Wang Xiao, momentarily taken aback, nodded to himself, murmuring, "So that\'s what they call people with superpowers." His gaze then sharpened, piercing through her. "You know far more than you\'ve let on. Did you think my warnings were a joke? That I wouldn\'t dare harm you since you\'re a bargaining chip?"

"..." Anran remained silent, her response evident in her eyes, which flickered with a mixture of fear and defiance.

Wang Xiao\'s frown deepened. He stepped forward, his shadow looming over her small figure. "Let me show you the consequences of lying to me." His voice was low and threatening. Firmly gripping her hand, he began leading her towards the stairs.

Anran\'s frown mirrored his as she felt the tight grip on her hand. Biting her lip unconsciously, she braced herself for what she feared would be a harsh lesson in the consequences of deceit at the hands of this unpredictable and dangerous man.

_____

As they approached the stairs, Anran\'s heart pounded in her chest, her mind a whirlwind of fear and regret. \'How did it come to this?\' she thought, her eyes fixed on the floor, unwilling to meet Wang Xiao\'s piercing gaze.

"You think this is a game, don\'t you?" Wang Xiao\'s voice broke the tense silence, his tone laced with a cold reprimand. "That you can dance around the truth and play the innocent?"

Anran\'s grip on her own arm tightened, her nails digging into her skin. "I told you what I knew," she whispered, her voice strained. "I didn\'t think you\'d believe me anyway."

Wang Xiao halted at the top of the stairs, turning to face her. "It\'s not about belief, Anran. It\'s about following through your words, I hate people who lie to me. You\'re in my world now, and here, I set the rules." His eyes bore into hers, a stern warning in their depths.