Chapter 199: Dark Boundless Realm 54
Ghost could not sense Kui Xin’s mental coordinates nearby, indicating that he had not arrived at the scene at all.
She had gathered everyone undergoing “interviews” in the same building, which had now become a giant breeding ground for puppetry. The people inside the breeding ground each had their own thoughts and unusual identities. Everyone was extraordinarily vigilant, treating those in the room as imaginary enemies, as if a major brawl could break out at any moment.
Eden reported in Ghost’s ear, “…Samanto Miller, a level two wanted criminal of the Federation… Weimao, a level three wanted criminal…”
Eden announced the identities of those that could be scanned. Many were either wanted criminals or bounty hunters, and everyone’s gaze bore a deep intensity indicating they were not to be trifled with.
All present were there for the interview, hoping to join the Shadowless Organization. The recruitment post on the dark web stated that Awakened individuals would be prioritized… It was likely that some of the people present had Awakening abilities.
Ghost was unsure about what the Shadowless Organization really wanted.
There were a total of twelve people in the room. The space, which held twelve individuals, was silent, only the sound of everyone’s breathing could be heard, as it seemed no one intended to speak.
After a long while, as if confirming that those present would not strike easily, someone finally spoke.
“The interview starts at twelve o’clock; there are still ten minutes to go,” said a man with East Asian features.
Everyone turned their gaze towards him, but no one spoke.
Through Eden’s scan, Ghost recognized this man as the one with the codename “Scalpel,” a bounty hunter with some renown in the underground world.
“Don’t look at me like that; let’s chat a bit. We might be colleagues in the same organization in the future,” Scalpel said.
“This organization seems off,” said a woman standing against the wall in the corner. “What kind of recruitment involves a collective interview? Aren’t they afraid of leaks? Or is this organization playing us?”
“That’s unlikely,” said a nearby Caucasian man with a slight accent. “We’re all here because of this organization’s reputation; they pulled off a big operation, kidnapping the young master of the Popov Clan. An organization that can do such things wouldn’t go back on their word, right?”
“You guys are interesting,” said a dark-skinned person with a grin. “Some are hesitating, some are anxious, and some have distrust and skepticism written all over their faces, yet no one is leaving. Why?”
“Everyone wants to see what the Shadowless Organization is about, right?” Scalpel said, the first to speak. “Those who come to join the recruitment at this critical moment are quite brave to some extent. Just think about who the enemies of Shadowless are; they’ve offended all the top families of the Federation. Everyone is curious who would dare to take such a risk, are they not?”
Those willing to come here were all fearless individuals, and they possessed a certain level of confidence in their own abilities.
At this moment, the person Ghost was particularly attentive to, Samanto Miller, spoke with a playful tone: “Together, all the bounties of those present add up to over twenty million. Tsk tsk, that’s quite a sum.”
“The bounty on one member of the Shadowless Organization can reach twenty million,” someone chimed in.
“Could it be that agents from the Investigation Bureau or the Special Affairs Department are hidden among us, waiting for the right moment to act?” Weimao suggested.
“Most likely,” Samanto focused on the faces of everyone in the room; most had concealed their facial features. The voices they spoke with may not have been their real ones, and even their faces might not have been genuine.
“They wouldn’t pass up the chance to infiltrate the Shadowless Organization. If I were in their position, I’d want to take this opportunity to lurk inside…”
The individuals present grew even more vigilant.
The interview had yet to start, and before gaining qualification to join the organization, someone had already exposed the fact that there might be informants among them.
After a brief exchange, the scene fell silent once more.
Soon, Scalpel glanced at his electronic watch, stood upright, and said, “It’s twelve o’clock.”
People lifted their heads, beginning to scan their surroundings, curious to see who would be interviewing them.
After about half a minute, a dark shadow passed through the wall and coalesced into a pitch-black humanoid figure.
It was the Shadow Double.
As soon as the Shadow Double appeared, it became the focal point of the entire room, walking upright like a human and making its way to the center of the room. The interviewees regarded it with inquisitive eyes, creating a slow path for it as they maintained a safe distance.
The Shadow Double pulled out a fist-sized recording device from its dark body and pressed a button on the recorder.
A specially treated voice emanated from the device: “You need to draw lots to decide the order of the interviews.”
After this sentence, the Shadow Double retrieved a specially designed die from its body. The die was electronic, a common toy in bars; after rolling, it displayed a number on its electronic screen, which was completely random.
“Who wants to roll the die first?” the voice from the device sounded again.
Scalpel stepped up first, and the Shadow Double casually shook the die in its hand and dropped it onto the floor, revealing a number 3 on top.
“I guess I’ll have to wait a while before it’s my turn,” Scalpel stepped back.
Someone took the plunge first, and the lot-drawing proceeded smoothly.
Samanto was the second to step forward; he rolled the die, and the number showed was 1. He was the first to interview!
“Not bad luck; I can see things a bit earlier,” Samanto smiled.
The remaining individuals rolled the die in order, and Ghost, not wanting to be the last to roll, went up when he felt the timing was right.
The die tumbled, showing a 12; Ghost was the last to be interviewed.
He stared at the number displayed on the electronic die, puzzlingly thinking: “Using such an unrigorous electronic toy to draw lots is obviously to cheat, right? Shadowless must have intentionally arranged Reset to be interviewed last.”
Everyone finished rolling the die and turned their gazes toward the Shadow Double standing in the center of the crowd.
The Shadow Double pressed the recording device again: “Please follow me if you drew number one.”
Samanto stepped forward and asked, “Where to?”
“To the final interview location; the others please wait patiently. Rest assured, you won’t be kept waiting too long.”
The Shadow Double elegantly gestured for him to proceed and walked ahead. Samanto deliberated for a few moments but eventually followed suit.
He trailed the Shadow Double through a dim alley, turning at various corners, until the Shadow Double stopped.
“You need to blindfold yourself and remove all your personal devices,” another command was issued.
“How can I ensure my safety then?” Samanto replied, “I refuse.”
“Then please leave. We are recruiting members to work for the organization, subordinates who obey orders, not a lord to be served.”
Samanto twitched his mouth but remained motionless, “You want me to do your bidding, but what can you offer me in return?”
“You need to show contribution before we can reciprocate to you.” The voice from the recording device was infuriating, “If you disagree on this point, you may leave. Please correct your position and understand why you are here.”
Samanto held back his anger and weighed his options for a moment before gradually removing his gear, then accepted the special black cloth the Shadow Double offered to blindfold himself.
“If you feel unwell later, please don’t panic; you are in a safe environment.”
As soon as Samanto heard this, he suddenly felt weightless, as if he was falling from a height. The fall lasted less than a second before his feet landed on solid ground, and he stumbled a bit due to the inability to see what was around him.
It was the same voice again, this time saying: “You can remove your blindfold now.”
Samanto took off the black cloth and found himself in a pitch-black space, surrounded by walls, with no light or people in sight.
However, there was another recording device on the floor.
“Spatial jump?!” Samanto exclaimed in shock.
“Hello.” The familiar voice from the recording device spoke, “I ask, you answer.”
Samanto shook off his shock, clenched his fists to control his racing heart, and said: “Okay.”
“What is your reason for choosing our organization?”
Without hesitation, Samanto replied: “Because your reputation is significant enough!”
“You could be more sincere and truthful.”
Samanto paused and cautiously thought for a moment before saying: “Because I am a wanted criminal seeking a strong organization to provide me protection, and in return, I can use my powers to work for you… I’m an Awakened, a Class C Awakened.”
“Is there any other reason?”
“I look down on the top families; you did what I wouldn’t dare to do,” Samanto said. “It’s that simple.”
“What do you want to gain from us? Besides protection.”
“Money, weapons, equipment.” Samanto replied, “I’m someone who pursues material gain.”
“Do you have enemies?”
“Yes, the Investigation Bureau, the Special Affairs Department… After so many years, I’ve made quite a few enemies, including some gangs, but compared to organizations like yours, the Midnight District gangs are nothing.”
“Do you have principles?”
Samanto said seriously: “Yes, don’t kill children, don’t kill dogs and cats.”
“What is your extraordinary ability?”
“Air bullets, compressing air into a sphere and launching it.”
There was a pause of several seconds from the other end of the recording device: “Alright, the interview is over. You can return and wait for further notice.”
“That’s it? It’s over?” Samanto asked in astonishment.
“Please blindfold yourself again.”
Samanto wanted to ask a few more questions, but at that moment, he could only swallow his words and blindfold himself again. A sense of weightlessness hit him once more, but this time he managed to steady himself.
He removed the black cloth and saw his gear scattered at his feet, and that dark figure standing at a distance, watching him.
Samanto put his gear back on and left in a daze.
The second person to interview was a street thug, dressed in hip-hop style. Upon hearing the request to remove his gear and blindfold himself, he immediately refused to participate in the interview, walking away under the watchful gaze of the Shadow Double.
The third person to be interviewed was the bounty hunter known as Scalpel.
He was very decisive; upon hearing the requirement, he did not hesitate to remove all his gear and blindfold himself.
When the sensation of weightlessness hit, he quickly steadied himself and removed the black cloth according to the voice’s guidance.
“State your reason for coming here.”
Upon hearing this question, Scalpel raised his head earnestly and said: “Because of Black Snake.”
“Is that just because of the codename that appeared in media reports?”
“Yes,” Scalpel replied quietly, “but I can’t be sure if that Black Snake is the one I know, so I came here to confirm. If I lose this bet, I’ll die, but I usually have good luck; I should be right.”
“What do you wish to gain from the Shadowless Organization?”
“I don’t wish to gain anything; I want to do something meaningful with like-minded friends. My strength is too small, but I want to make some contribution.”
“What are your principles?”
“Defending my home is my principle.”
“What is your extraordinary ability?”
“Rapid healing,” Scalpel said.
After a moment of silence, the voice from the recording device said: “Please blindfold yourself with the black cloth; you can leave now.”
Scalpel breathed a sigh of relief and tied the blindfold.
The sensation of weightlessness appeared and then disappeared, and he returned to his previous location. He cautiously looked around before leaving.
Although the interview questions were very brief, the process still took considerable time with so many people involved.
Kui Xin rested his chin on his hand while reviewing the recorded information, focusing on the few problematic files.
Beside him, Su Rong said, “Maotoufu, it’s time for the twelfth person.”
“Yeah,” Kui Xin replied. “Let’s start the plan.”
…
Finally, it was Ghost’s turn.
Ghost suspected that the Shadowless Organization was targeting Mechanized Dawn; rolling the die and coming out last was certainly not a coincidence— they might be looking to pull something.
Teammates from Mechanized Dawn kept a distance, neither too close nor too far, avoiding detection by the Shadow Double while ensuring they could provide timely rescue.
He followed the Shadow Double forward with extreme vigilance, reaching a dead end where the Shadow Double came to a halt, then abruptly turned and lunged at him with its arms transformed into daggers aimed at his neck!
Ghost was ready for it; he immediately stepped back, but the Shadow Double was incredibly flexible, its arms extending automatically, the spikes about to pierce his eyes!
In a critical moment, Ghost had no time to think and instantly unleashed the extraordinary ability of Reset.
An invisible barrier descended! The Shadow Double’s spikes disintegrated inch by inch, and then its body began to dissolve; in less than a second, it turned into nothingness, dispersing into the air.
Within a secret base less than a kilometer away, Su Rong suddenly jumped up: “It disappeared! My shadow disappeared! Maotoufu, that person didn’t attack me, but his ability… What is this ability?”
“Invalidation. I thought his ability would only invalidate ‘people,’ but I didn’t expect it could also target creations of extraordinary abilities, even if the essence of the creation is out of his ability range,” Kui Xin said. “Let’s see if your Shadow Double can still be summoned.”
Su Rong immediately created a new Shadow Double, “It can!”
“This is troublesome…” Kui Xin murmured. “Even if my essence is far from him, if my Spatial Vortex is opened within the range of his ability, it could still dissolve…”
