Chapter 102: Artificial Soul 29
Kui Xin saw the footage sent back by the invisible drone, her expression serious as she stared at the two figures on the screen.
Only Red and Silverface were visible, with no sign of the others. Why?
The escort team distribution that Kui Haidong initially mentioned was not like this at all; Red was supposed to be teamed up with Thorn Rose and Ambereye, but now the team distribution was different.
Could it be that Kui Haidong changed the team composition at the last minute?
How much of that evacuation plan was real? Or was this matter a complete hoax from the beginning?
In the surveillance footage, Red suddenly drew his gun and turned around, raising his arm to shoot down the drone, and the screen became snowy.
“The target has detected and shot down the drone, and new drones are being deployed to track us,” Augus reported in real-time.
“That’s a marksman,” Wang Feichi commented.
Red’s extraordinary abilities were not combat-oriented, but that didn’t mean he lacked combat capability. Knowing the weaknesses of his abilities, he had never skimped on training, unlike the physically weak Night Cicada who couldn’t improve no matter how hard he practiced.
Meanwhile, a frantic Red was calling out to Night Cicada, “Come on, respond quickly! If you take any longer, Silverface and I are done for! Night Cicada!”
After a few seconds, there was finally movement on Night Cicada’s end; he weakly replied, “Hold on for a minute, I’m recovering from overextending my abilities. Give me five minutes.”
Red sensed something was off. “What mission did the boss assign you?”
“Don’t ask, I can’t say,” Night Cicada replied. “We’ve known each other for a long time, Red. I will save you, but the boss’s orders take priority. Don’t worry, you’ll be safe; there’s just a small unexpected issue to handle.”
“Damn it!” Red cursed.
“When they come to pursue you, confirm their identities. If they’re just ordinary security officers, then you should be able to take them down,” Night Cicada said. “If their identities are more than ordinary, then report it.”
Red’s mind raced.
Unlike Night Cicada, who played an irreplaceable role in the organization, Red’s status was lower; Night Cicada directly reported to “the boss,” while Red managed a part of the awakened within the organization.
In terms of value, Red believed he wasn’t as valuable as Night Cicada, but he wasn’t a pawn either. He had always adhered to the rules and never had thoughts about betraying the organization; how could he be a pawn?
If he were a pawn, it meant that, in the boss’s eyes, his value was less than whatever the boss desired.
“No… this doesn’t add up…” Red felt a chill run down his spine. “Could it be… it knows that I know of its existence? But how? I’ve never shown it, I’ve always played dumb. It shouldn’t have found out. There must be some other reason, but what?!”
Silverface asked, “When will they come to get us?”
“In an ideal situation, five minutes from now,” Red said darkly.
“And in a non-ideal situation?”
“In a non-ideal situation, we’ll all be going to hell.”
Silverface’s pink eyes were filled with determination: “I will commit suicide before they capture me; everything for the dawn.”
Red looked at Silverface in despair. “You idiot… forget it.”
Core members of Mechanized Dawn knew that “everything for the dawn” was just a hollow slogan. They repeated it at every meeting, and Kui Haidong often mentioned it, but no one took it to heart—except for Silverface.
Every member of the organization had their own hidden agendas.
Ambereye Black Obsidian was enigmatic; Red didn’t understand the background of the two twins. Thorn Rose had originally been a mercenary killer but was later recruited and had very little loyalty to Mechanized Dawn; she worked for the organization primarily for money. The Bartender was focused on his own interests; he met Red in a bar and had a decent relationship with him, having been recruited by Red into the organization. As for Night Cicada, his intentions were the most complex; he often referred to “the boss” and pretended to be loyal to Kui Haidong, but in reality, he only followed “its” orders.
Red felt fatigued. When people in the organization shouted “everything for the dawn,” it was to fit in; this phrase did not successfully brainwash anyone… except Silverface.
Silverface took that phrase seriously. He earnestly worked toward the goal, with his heart and eyes full of the organization’s grand plans. If the organization asked him to kill, he would kill; if they demanded his life, he would give it. He was just like a well-behaved dog; no matter how absurd or unrealistic the master’s words were, the dog would still follow commands.
Sometimes, Red felt a bit sorry for Silverface, this guy who was blissfully ignorant. However, he thought that perhaps being a fool might be a kind of happiness—being unaware and free from fear.
The waters in Mechanized Dawn were too deep, and everyone was a pawn on the chessboard, at risk of being discarded at any time. Being a fool might be great; one wouldn’t have to worry and wouldn’t lie awake at night.
Thunder rumbled in the sky, signaling that a storm was coming, and dark clouds covered the heavens.
The checkpoint ahead on the highway was locked down; no vehicles could pass through, and a radio broadcast was warning of evacuation procedures, clearing the highway. Vehicles on the highway were scarce anyway, and now it was completely empty. The left and right of the highway were open wastelands with no structures.
“No way out; no matter how fast we run, we can’t outrun a helicopter. Besides this checkpoint, there’s no cover around; they’ve locked on to us,” Red resignedly said. “Get ready to face them.”
Silverface nodded. “Okay.”
He and Red ran into the checkpoint building to find cover.
The helicopter had landed a bit further away, likely due to the fear that they might have heavy weapons capable of shooting it down.
Wang Feichi was the first to touch down, followed by Kui Xin and Wei Zhi.
“Can you directly restrain the targets so they don’t move?” Wang Feichi asked Wei Zhi.
Wei Zhi hesitated. “I can, but my ability has a range limit, and when I restrain a space, neither the enemy’s attacks nor our attacks can penetrate that area; our people are not immune to the restraint, not even myself.”
“Then forget it; using it improperly could backfire,” Wang Feichi said. “I’ll handle it. You guys keep your distance and don’t get in the way.”
So Wei Zhi’s ability had this defect… Kui Xin silently noted.
All extraordinary abilities have their own usage rules. Even if it’s the same type of ability, the methods of usage will vary depending on the user. The Investigative Eye wouldn’t show all the details; the rules needed to be explored gradually.
Kui Xin silently scanned the surroundings, gun in hand, suspecting that Night Cicada might suddenly open a Spatial Vortex to launch a surprise attack.
However, the enemy still hadn’t taken Red and Silverface, which was enough to show something was off. Night Cicada might be tied up with something else, unable to assist his companions.
Red hid behind cover and suddenly popped up, aiming in Wang Feichi’s direction and pulling the trigger. The silenced gun emitted a faint sound, and the bullet flew silently.
Wang Feichi’s brow twitched as a layer of black flame appeared around him. As soon as the bullet touched the black flame, it melted into a puddle of liquid that dripped onto the ground, the process incredibly swift.
The road beneath him began to melt, the air slightly distorted from the intense heat, forcing Wei Zhi and Kui Xin to retreat several steps. Even through their high-performance thermal protective combat suits, they could feel the burning temperature.
With a crash of thunder, the densely clouded sky suddenly opened up to rain, with raindrops gradually increasing in size, causing the ground to become damp.
Wang Feichi’s palm pulsed with black flames as he calmly approached the checkpoint, even taking the time to chew gum.
Like a performer doing tricks, he formed the ball of fire in his palm and flicked it; the black fireball, resembling a heat-seeking missile, curved and floated into the building. With a loud boom, the entire structure was engulfed in black flames.
“I specifically lowered the temperature; at most, it’ll cause full-body burns but won’t kill anyone,” Wang Feichi said with a smile. “I can still bring back the suspect for interrogation…”
Before he could finish, two figures suddenly burst from the building engulfed in black flames, half-translucent water wrapping around Silverface and Red, leaving them unharmed.
Kui Xin reacted the fastest, dashing forward and raising her pistol to fire at them, only for the bullets to be wholly blocked by Silverface’s water wall.
Silverface lashed out with several water whips at Wang Feichi, only for the water to evaporate into steam before even getting close.
Suddenly, Silverface clapped his hands together; a thick white steam coalesced into a wall that obstructed their line of sight, while Red threw a bomb he had on him, which exploded in the white mist.
Flames turned the steam fog orange, but the orange mist solidified as Wei Zhi activated the space restraint again, containing the explosion’s shockwave and giving them a chance to retreat to safety.
“Wow, this ability has high versatility; if developed well, the potential is limitless. It actually can control even steam… Seems like a familiar extraordinary ability,” Wang Feichi frowned.
Silverface’s water control ability reminded him of a long-dead comrade who also possessed that highly versatile water control ability.
Red took a deep breath. “Night Cicada, the person on the opposite is using fire; it’s that S Rank. If you don’t respond, we’re really dead! If they get serious, killing us will be as simple as squishing ants!”
He recognized that one of the people on the other side was “Lady Fortune,” but he didn’t say anything, only exchanging a glance with Silverface, for at this distance, their words might be overheard by the other side, and Lady Fortune’s identity would be exposed.
Red had considered the possibility of Lady Fortune leaking information but ultimately ruled it out. First, she wasn’t aware of the specific plans for the organization’s evacuation, and second, Kui Haidong had said that Kui Xin was promoted to team leader’s secretary, so her presence here made sense.
“S Rank?” Night Cicada paused. “Looks like it’s your group.”
“Our group?” Red’s tone darkened. “A traitor is in our group?”
He turned sharply to glare at Silverface, who looked as confused as ever; he hadn’t expected the seemingly most honest one to be the traitor.
“What are you thinking? How could a traitor be that little fool?” Night Cicada said. “I mean you just happened to run into the S Rank. The boss’s plan can be put into action. Stay steady! The portal is opening.”
Black flames swept across the highway, forming a circular fire vortex that surrounded Red and Silverface, creating a circular prison.
The flames dissipated the white fog; the raindrops above evaporated before they could touch the ground, and the damp earth was baked dry, then began to melt, as asphalt ran like sticky syrup, even starting to bubble.
Wang Feichi emerged from the flames, smiling kindly. “That guy with the water, can you take off your mask so I can see what you look like?”
Silverface was about to defend himself, but the water mass couldn’t coalesce at all; cold sweat appeared on his forehead, quickly evaporated by the high temperature.
Silverface’s hood quickly turned to ash. He took a step back, as white hair curled from being scorched by the flames.
Wang Feichi was taken aback. “Wait, are you also an albino? My early-dead comrade couldn’t have produced a son this big!”
The metal mask absorbed heat, and Silverface had no choice but to remove it to avoid burning his skin off.
At the moment he saw Silverface’s face, Wang Feichi’s eyes widened in shock, mouth agape. “How can you look exactly the same? No son would look so similar!”
Wang Feichi was bewildered, stepping forward to grab Silverface.
At that moment, a deep blue vortex suddenly expanded, with several figures stepping out. Each wore silver masks, had the same white hair, and astonishingly similar height, gait, and combat stances.
More than ten “Silverfaces” emerged from the vortex!
Red was stunned. He nudged Silverface. “Are you also a multiple birth like Ambereye Black Obsidian?!”
Silverface scratched his head. “Yeah, I’m a multiple birth just like them… The boss told me not to say anything, so I didn’t.”
Deep apprehension surfaced in Red’s eyes. This “multiple birth” was different from the other “multiple births”…
Silverface and Ambereye Black Obsidian both had issues with their backgrounds!
