Morning sunlight bathed the slopes of the San Antonio Mountains, spilling softly across Rian's skin.
He frowned slightly as he slid a smooth, jade-toned leg off his waist.
Level 4 Reproduction Mastery—it had its perks, but not all were pleasant.
He suffered more than most from the "morning struggle" of men... and his couldn't be resolved with just a cold shower.
But fortunately, he had other methods.
A casual slap, and a sleepy Ō-chan—still dazed from last night—obediently turned over and presented herself.
As a reward, Rian decided to cook breakfast.
Thanks to his recent habit, the kitchen was now fully stocked with Chinese spices and ingredients.
With another few days of paid administrative leave ahead, he wasn't in a rush.
He took his time making soup dumplings—pork, beef, vegetarian, several flavors.
He even prepared mini wontons. No dried shrimp? No problem—he used Australian lobster meat for the filling instead.
When Ō-chan and Mei-mei finished their showers and stepped into the kitchen, they were greeted by the rich, aromatic warmth of a Chinese-style breakfast.
Even international superstars like them couldn't resist.
And like any normal person in the 21st century, they scrolled their phones while eating.
Suddenly, Mei-mei gasped.
"Oh my God! Something huge happened last night in Wilshire District!"
Rian and Ō-chan turned toward her in curiosity.
She read aloud from her screen:
"A drug cartel's headquarters caught fire out of nowhere!Over a ton of narcotics were incinerated, and toxic smoke spread across several blocks!The L.A. city government immediately activated emergency protocols—dozens of fire trucks and three helicopters were deployed to contain it!They managed to stop the contamination from spreading further!My God—when firefighters went in after the blaze, they found over thirty bodies!The corpses were so gruesome the hazmat team came out vomiting!The FBI and DEA have launched a joint investigation!"
Mei-mei's expression was still full of shock.
Even in a city like Los Angeles—hell, even across the West Coast—cases like this were unheard of.
If it had just been a regular drug bust, no one would've batted an eye.
But for a ton of cocaine to go up in flames, blanketing neighborhoods in a chemical cloud?
That was enough to stun all of America.
Rian's heart skipped.
Shit… I forgot. Burning it is one way to use the powder too!
Some dealers laced cigarettes with cocaine solution, dried them, and gave them away to new users—hooking them on their first puff.
(Public Service Announcement: Don't smoke found cigarettes. Ever.)
I forgot that Lin Zexu, during the Opium Destruction at Humen, used lime and seawater for a reason…
Rian sighed.
He genuinely hadn't intended for this to happen. He'd only wanted to destroy the stash—keep it out of DEA hands so it wouldn't be "recycled" back into the market.
Ō-chan and Mei-mei, meanwhile, were deep in debate.
They were convinced this had to be the work of a vigilante—a real-life superhero, like Batman.
There was no way the DEA or another cartel would torch a stash that big. And no way they'd leave the drugs behind to burn.
And they weren't alone.
Across American social media, the internet was exploding.
"FUCK! Last night was insane—I got so high with my girlfriend and her bestie, we were SCREAMING!"
"Wait, you're in L.A.? Bro, how did the bestie taste?"
"Man, I'm jealous. Free trip for the whole city."
"I heard the Blood Revolver cartel got wiped out? Anyone know who did it?"
"Probably the DEA or some cartel turf war."
"Nah. If it was them, they wouldn't burn the stash. You think a gang would waste product? Gotta be a vigilante."
"Bro, you read too many comics."
"I'm serious! Who else would torch literal tons of powder?!"
Only in the Ryūgoku did children grow up knowing the horrors of drugs.
The roots of a hundred years of national humiliation could be traced back to the opium invasions.
But elsewhere in the world?
Most people only knew drugs were "illegal" and "kinda fun," maybe "addictive."
They didn't understand what widespread addiction could do to a people, to a nation.
Which was why many countries—even parts of the U.S.—openly legalized certain drugs.
California, after all, was a legal cannabis state.
As daylight spread across Los Angeles, it was nighttime across the Pacific.
The internet was wide awake in Ryūgoku.
News of the L.A. firestorm was spreading fast—especially among Chinese international students and travelers.
"Holy crap, something huge just happened in Los Angeles!""Damn, over thirty cartel members dead? The DEA doesn't mess around.""Wait—what?! They burned TONS of coke? Which genius came up with that plan?!""LMAO! Even a hundred years ago, Lin Zexu knew you needed lime and seawater. These guys are stuck in the Stone Age.""Frfr—Ryūgoku's the only place that actually destroys drugs. Even the DEA sells their seizures through third parties!""Sheesh. America's playing with fire. You'd think they learned from the Opium Wars.""Yo guys! Check out this video! A Chinese-American cop went 1v5 and dropped five armed suspects!""Link, please! Who's this badass?!""No way that's real. U.S. cops don't go full John Wick unless they're in the movies.""Did he empty the mag? Were the perps Black?""HOLY—this guy's insane! He's a legend!""I hereby name him: Eagle-Yanzu!"
Rian's very first law enforcement footage had gone viral.
Back home, he was now trending on every platform.