Chapter 245

Chapter 245 – Both Ends of the Scale 26

“Is this a test?” Wei Li looked at Kui Xin trying to ask.

“You can think of it that way,” Kui Xin replied.

The meeting room was abnormally quiet.

Jinhuan first excluded himself from being a traitor. Joking aside, if you have integrity, you won’t fear the shadow. He was a player, and he had already reported his identity and joined the Snake’s personal section in the First World. At the very least, he had decent origins.

There were seven people seated around this conference table, four of whom were players, and the remaining three were obviously official members of the Shadowless Organization.

Maotoufu was clearly the decision-maker, standing out above the rest. Two seats beside Maotoufu were occupied by two others. One seat was occupied by a dark shadow entity with barely any presence, almost undetectable, while the other was clearly a man who maintained silence throughout.

Jinhuan directed his attention to the interviewees.

A woman dressed in streetwear, a foreign-looking man, and another person who, like him, was East Asian.

“Allow me to introduce myself,” Jinhuan spoke first. “I am known as Jinhuan. Since we will likely work together in the future, it’s better for us to get to know each other.”

Following the flow of the Hidden Identity game, they needed to familiarize themselves with one another at the start. Without interaction, they wouldn’t know who the impostor was.

“Weili.” Wei Li immediately revealed his real name, carelessly adding, “A wanderer without work, nothing noteworthy to share.”

“Samantho, bounty hunter, wanted by the Federation.” Samantho glanced at the others.

Lian Daodao also chimed in: “Lian Daodao, also a bounty hunter.”

After introducing themselves, Jinhuan smiled and added, “The first task set by the examiners is to guess among us four who is the trainee traitor. Just lingering isn’t going to work; each of us should say something to prove our innocence lest we remain suspicious.”

Wei Li locked eyes with Jinhuan, “You should go first.”

“Sure,” Jinhuan replied. “I have a grudge against the Federation.”

One brow furrowing, “That’s all?”

“Just that,” Jinhuan shrugged.

“I’ll go next,” Wei Li said. “I have issues with a wealthy family.”

Following them, their gazes naturally turned toward Samantho.

“They’ve been chasing me for years. My escape has led me to offend many people. I won’t work for the Federation or a rich family.” Samantho shrugged.

Three answers given, the final gaze shifted to Lian Daodao.

Lian Daodao pondered for a moment and said, “I have compelling reasons to join the Shadowless Organization, but I’m not at liberty to disclose them to you. All I can say is, I’m not a traitor.”

“Everyone sitting here has compelling reasons to join the Shadowless Organization,” Wei Li stated. “Joining an organization like this implies either having grand ambitions or being cornered and left with no options.”

Samantho asked, curious, “Ms. Weili seems to have a rather negative view of the Shadowless?”

“You misunderstand. What I mean is that the Shadowless is our only choice here,” Wei Li replied steadily. “But had there been any other path, we would not be here now.”

Jinhuan felt strongly about this, and a similar implication was conveyed earlier by Lian Daodao.

Why would anyone choose a life on the edge?

But Samantho… he didn’t seem to be in desperate straits; his choice seemed purely out of interest.

“Hello, Samantho,” Jinhuan began thoughtfully before asking, “Can you tell me why you chose the Shadowless?”

“You’re taking me back to the interview question round,” Samantho remarked lightly. “Jinhuan, you don’t even seem to be a formal member of the Shadowless. So why are you asking questions like an examiner when you haven’t even joined?”

“Because I suspect you, hence my questioning,” Jinhuan replied honestly. “You’re free not to answer, but I’ll mark your suspicion level higher.”

“It seems you have something to hide,” Samantho shot back. “Those who betray others quickly blame others. As for joining the Shadowless, I’ve already made it clear, with no obligation to repeat it to you.”

Jinhuan slowly raised his eyes towards Maotoufu, who did not intervene but stood silently watching, perhaps implicitly acknowledging the situation.

Jinhuan concentrated on thinking.

Indeed, as Samantho had claimed, he already considered himself part of the Shadowless since he was a player, confirming that the organization is player-founded. But it’s clear that more than just players can join the Shadowless.

Jinhuan did not want a potential traitor in his future team.

“I think we should do a second round of self-introductions,” Jinhuan suggested. “After all, we will be working together… Understanding our teammates’ capabilities is essential, right?”

Wei Li laughed, agreeing eagerly, “I agree.”

“As you say, so will I,” said Samantho casually.

“Okay,” Lian Daodao simply replied.

“My ability is related to explosives with a B rating,” Jinhuan cautiously described, blurring specifics.

“I possess a mental extraordinary ability at C-level,” said Wei Li.

“Samantho: long-range offensive, C-level,” he continued.

Finally, Lian Daodao: “Body strengthening, C-level.”

After hearing each other’s abilities, Wei Li’s expression subtly changed, concealing it well.

Jinhuan, boasting a B-level ability, stood out significantly among the four.

At this moment, a crisp knocking sound echoed, and Maotoufu’s silver mechanical hand gently tapped the table. “You’ve exchanged quite a bit of conversation. Have you found your suspect?”

Each one nodded.

Lian Daodao turned slightly and whispered, “Maotoufu, you must have your suspicions lined up already. So why ask us? It doesn’t really matter what we say, does it?”

Maotoufu replied, “You could understand it that way.”

She said, “You can identify who you suspect.”

Lian Daodao’s expression subtly changed. In a soft voice, he murmured, “I abstain.”

A furrow forming between his brows, Jinhuan doubted his conclusions because of Lian Daodao’s actions.

“I choose Jinhuan,” Samantho asserted. “This guy is too active and might be hiding something.”

Wei Li stated outright, “I have two choices—Samantho and Lian Daodao.”

Jinhuan said, “Between Samantho and Lian Daodao… I find Samantho more suspicious.”

Samantho’s gaze darkened. “Without evidence, you can’t just accuse people…”

Wei Li sneered, glancing between Samantho and Lian Daodao before uttering, “Two liars!”

“Hmm,” Maotoufu calmly declared, “bring Samantho down.”

Samantho’s face paled dramatically. He no longer maintained composure, leaping up and squeezing air into a translucent projectile, shooting it directly at Kui Xin.

Upon entering the venue, they had been disarmed and were left only with physical prowess and extraordinary abilities for combat.

Maotoufu, who remained in the room, was clearly the strongest. Samantho focused his primary attack on her but aimed for disruption rather than harm, quickly turning to flee at the moment of launching his attack.

Su Rong’s Shadow Duplicate instantly expanded like a curtain, shielding Kui Xin from the air projectile. The black curtain shook violently upon impact, nearly tearing apart.

Wei Li lunged forward with a chair, smashing it into Samantho, who staggered and fell. At the same time, Amber’s eyes glowed a glowing blue, momentarily disorienting Samantho.

Abstaining from the decision, Lian Daodao decisively struck Samantho, fracturing his jaw, leaving a cracking sound echoing.

Samantho collapsed.

Jinhuan had already risen from his seat, despite not joining the fray.

“I’m sorry; my ability is hard to control and often causes entire rooms to explode. You had to deal with it unassisted,” Jinhuan said sheepishly.

“Amber,” said Kui Xin. “Take him away.”

As she spoke, she retrieved a tranquilizer from her gear, signaling Amber to administer it.

Amber immediately stood and injected Samantho, hoisting him over her shoulder and stepping into the spatial vortex created by Kui Xin, disappearing in a blink.

“Now the unstable element has been eliminated,” Kui Xin announced.

“But…” Wei Li’s gaze fixed on Lian Daodao.

“Fear not,” Kui Xin reassured. “Understand?”

Wei Li returned his gaze. “Yes, I understand.”

Jinhuan looked at Lian Daodao before turning back, his face showing contemplation.

“You all passed the interview,” Kui Xin said. “The Shadowless recruits based on two simple criteria: capability and loyalty. Extraordinary abilities aren’t paramount—personal qualities are far more significant. From today, you become members of the Shadowless Organization.”

Finally, the dust settled. Even though Jinhuan was expecting this, he exhaled a sigh of relief, smiling involuntarily.

Kui Xin raised a hand, creating another spatial vortex. “Weili, Jinhuan, stay put here. Ashes, follow them.”

“Alright,” Jinhuan rose.

With no objections, Wei Li also stood up.

Su Rong’s Shadow Duplicate followed them both into the spatial vortex.

Once the vortex closed, only Kui Xin and Lian Daodao remained in the room.

Lian Daodao’s eyes remained calm, unperturbed.

“How did Weili detect a problem with me and Samantho? Her mind-reading ability…” Lian Daodao’s voice low.

Wei Li’s ability had level restrictions, her mind-reading couldn’t reach higher-level extraordinary beings.

When Samantho and Lian Daodao first declared themselves as C-level, Wei Li detected something was off; normally, if they were truly C-level, her ability wouldn’t fail on them. Jinhuan was honest, having a B-level ability, which Wei Li couldn’t read. Thus, Lian Daodao and Samantho must have lied; their abilities were not merely C-level.

“None of you voluntarily disclosed your true ability levels,” Kui Xin slowly stated. “Is this some kind of camaraderie among those with guilt? Trying to play dumb needs actual skills, but you weren’t convincing enough, caught off-guard.”

Playing games with extraordinary abilities, it’s difficult to hide from Kui Xin’s Investigative Eye.

“I wasn’t trying to play dumb. No, I wanted to appear harmless, but I never intended to do anything harmful,” Lian Daodao said. “Sorry, I didn’t fully disclose some things because I wanted to protect myself.”

Lian Daodao’s claim to have rapid healing abilities—he hadn’t realized it was old news to Kui Xin, who had previously faked having super-speed healing to mask her depriving ability.

“What is your number?” Kui Xin’s metal fingers tapping the table.

“Depriver, 5116.” Lian Daodao responded.

Kui Xin then asked, “Why did you vote to abstain earlier?”

“I feared you meant the ‘traitor reserve’ as me, this Depriver. Like you said, I’ve got something to hide, accusing someone else of betrayal in such a scenario feels like self-exoneration,” Lian Daodao said. “I heard that Depriver 233 has ties with the Snake. Though I’m uneasy about the Shadowless Organization’s stance on Deprivers, I decided to take a chance.”

“Taking chances can cost you your life,” Kui Xin said.

Lian Daodao responded, “At present, it seems my chance came through.”

“What I said before, we only have two standards for recruitment. If you meet both, whether you’re a Depriver doesn’t matter.” Kui Xin paused, “Tell me what abilities you possess.”

“I killed a Heterogeneous Blooded and gained flesh regeneration. Later, I obtained a disguise ability by chance. The disguise ability is B-level, sheer luck. Aside from that, I have an E-level skin hardening ability, but it’s not particularly useful since it can’t block blades. I do have basic fighting skills and am proficient with firearms…”

“What do you do for work in the real world?” Kui Xin specifically asked about this, knowing Lian Daodao had linked to the Snake’s personal section.

Lian Daodao hesitated, “I’m a small company boss. I started from scratch, founded after college…”

Kui Xin stared at him intently. “Lian Daodao… Our organization needs talents like you!”