Chapter 45

Chapter 45: Sea Without Light 45

“Good morning.” Silverface squatted in the living room, slurping instant noodles.

“Morning.” Kui Xin said as she changed her shoes and entered.

“Where are you hurt?” Silverface put down his fork and scrutinized Kui Xin.

“I got some of the Scythe Demon’s bl**d on me,” Kui Xin replied.

“That thing is not easy to deal with. I got hurt last time because of it. It’s small, moves silently, and is really fast. Mature individuals have four scythe-like bone blades,” Silverface said. “Did you guys encounter it? No one died in the patrol team?”

“No, I encountered a couple of individuals with two bone blades,” Kui Xin said, leaning back on the sofa to rest.

Silverface had been sleeping on the sofa for a long time, and over time, he had created a little groove in the cushions, causing them to sag and lose their bounce.

Kui Xin scanned the room’s decor. The white walls were mottled with cracks, the ceiling had some water stains, and the room was exceptionally plain with no extra decorations—just some necessary furniture, most of which was quite worn out.

For example, the sofa she was sitting on was hard and uncomfortable after sitting for a while.

“Don’t lie on the sofa anymore; you’ve ruined the cushions,” Kui Xin said. “There’s a folding bed in the storage room. Wipe it clean and put it in the living room as your sleeping place.”

“I can actually have my own bed?” Silverface exclaimed.

His first concern wasn’t Kui Xin’s disdain but rather the prospect of having a bed.

Kui Xin nodded generously: “Just make sure to store the folding bed in the storage room after sleeping each day, don’t leave it out in the way.”

“Okay.” Silverface slurped up the noodles and went to the storage room to move the folding bed.

He cleaned the dust off the folding bed with water and then placed it in the empty spot in the living room to try it out.

“It’s a bit short,” Silverface said, his feet sticking out from the end of the bed. He rolled over. “Lying on my side with my legs curled up is just right.”

He bounced on the bed a couple of times, happily putting away the folding bed.

“You’re too old for this, acting like a child,” Kui Xin teased.

“I’m seventeen, not an adult yet,” Silverface whispered.

Kui Xin: …What?

She really didn’t see Silverface as a minor. First, he was too tall—tall enough to match adult men, and he was muscular. Second, Silverface’s killing methods were very proficient, suggesting he had undergone extensive training, and he executed tasks reliably and efficiently. Silverface wasn’t very thoughtful; he was an exceptionally competent tool.

How did Mechanized Dawn cultivate someone like Silverface? Did they start training him from a young age?

And Red, Thorn Rose, Ambereye Black Obsidian… Were they recruited, or were they specifically chosen individuals who underwent brainwashing and training, or were orphans specifically selected to ensure absolute loyalty?

Kui Xin had limited contact with the Ambereye Black Obsidian twins, and judging by their appearance, they didn’t seem very old; their stature was similar to that of young men, likely close in age to Silverface. Among Thorn Rose and Red, Kui Xin was most wary of Red, who held high authority, understood the original identity, and was a dangerous ticking time bomb.

“What kind of expression is that? Is there a problem with me being seventeen?” Silverface asked. “The boss says I’m one of the organization’s most promising young people…”

“One of?” Kui Xin echoed.

“Don’t you believe me?” Silverface’s light pink eyes fixated on Kui Xin.

Kui Xin smiled and said, “I believe you.”

If what Silverface said was true, it indicated that he was an exceptionally talented prospect within Mechanized Dawn and was a key individual for training. After all, the top boss usually wouldn’t speak carelessly. In a brutal organization like Mechanized Dawn, it was sufficient for a leader to encourage followers with a simple “You did well, you have my acknowledgment,” but specifically stating that someone was their favorite… This carried a heavier tone of praise and felt a bit off.

“I awakened my Extraordinary Abilities,” Kui Xin suddenly said.

Silverface immediately looked up with wide eyes. “What? You awakened? What type of Extraordinary Ability? Can you tell me?”

“The effect is super speed healing,” Kui Xin said. “I was injured by the Scythe Demon last night, and thanks to this Extraordinary Ability, I managed to survive.”

“That’s too dangerous!” Silverface exclaimed. “This Extraordinary Ability is really useful; it suits you well.” He pondered for a moment. “What if… I mean, if your identity gets exposed and someone tortures you, wouldn’t you be hard to k*ll no matter how they tried?”

“What kind of ‘what if’ is that?” Kui Xin raised her eyebrow. “There won’t be such a ‘what if.’ Even if there is, I’ll find a chance to end it myself.”

After ending it, she would use d*ath Rebirth to return to before she got captured, trying to create a different outcome.

However, this statement held a different meaning for Silverface: “That’s right. If it were me, I would do the same. They shouldn’t expect to extract any information from me.”

The brainwashing by Mechanized Dawn on Silverface was thoroughly effective; loyalty was a deep imprint in his mind, something that couldn’t be eradicated no matter what.

“I’m going back to my room to work,” Kui Xin stood up from the sofa. “Red said to finish installing the port bombs within three days; you need to get to work.”

Silverface replied, “Red instructed me. I’ll go get the explosives from the port’s arsenal shortly, and tonight Thorn Rose and I will go dive at Port Number Five to plant the bombs on the underwater support pillars.”

“I’ll sort out the Coastal Security Team’s patrol routes and timings and send them to you later,” Kui Xin said.

Most of the work didn’t require Kui Xin to handle it personally. As an undercover agent, her main task was to provide intelligence to assist her teammates, as well as command actions during critical moments.

Earlier, when Red tasked her with killing the Python Sphere, it wasn’t because he genuinely wanted her to execute the task of killing the traitor, but because Kui Xin had mentioned wanting Red to bring as many living people as possible before her so she could identify who the traitor was.

Red found out, informed her, and naturally assumed that Kui Xin wanted to deal with the traitor personally, which led to the task falling on her shoulders.

Some things, when analyzed and reflected upon, reveal different layers of meaning.

Red often prioritized Kui Xin in many matters, but this attitude was not overtly apparent—one might even say it was extremely subtle… Even someone as perceptive as Kui Xin only officially confirmed Red’s unusual attitude after a series of events.

Previously, she had some suspicions, but Red’s attitude was elusive and difficult to pinpoint.

Not just Red; Thorn Rose seemed to feel the same. Thorn Rose appeared to have had some prior contact with the original identity; her attitude towards Kui Xin was one of obedience and trust. Kui Xin’s directions were never questioned by her. When Red mentioned in a team meeting that Kui Xin was the vice commander for the Port demolition task, Thorn Rose was the first to respond, acknowledging Kui Xin’s vice commander role.

And Silverface.

Silverface deliberately protected Kui Xin. When she was shot, Silverface stood in front of her. Although he could have gone straight to pursue the enemy after confirming their position, he didn’t. Instead, he stood there, creating a water curtain, waiting for Kui Xin to recover from the slight concussion caused by the b*llet and for them to track the enemy together.

This indicated that dealing with the enemy took a backseat to Kui Xin’s safety; in his heart, her safety was more important—this somewhat contradicted Silverface’s character of wholeheartedly completing tasks and being loyal to the organization.

“Am I overthinking this?” Kui Xin pondered carefully at her bedroom desk.

No, her sixth sense was warning her that she wasn’t overshooting; something indeed felt off.

All the anomalies pointed towards the core issue—original identity.

The identity of this body was the key.

Kui Xin had to understand the original identity’s exact position and role within Mechanized Dawn, as it was crucial to her future survival.

In fact, Kui Xin had a subtle premonition—if the leader of Mechanized Dawn learned about her awakening, he would definitely want to see her.

This premonition was extremely strong, even causing her heart to skip slightly when the thought crossed her mind, and her temples jumped a few times.

The activation timing of her inherent talent, “Absolute Prediction,” was quite mystical. When it took effect, Kui Xin found it challenging to determine whether her heart rate was spiked due to her own overthinking or if the talent was indeed triggered. However, during life-and-d*ath moments, “Absolute Prediction” proved reliable.

Unfortunately, Kui Xin found it hard to conceal her Extraordinary Ability, bl**d Flesh Rebirth; it was a passive skill that activated whenever she got injured, and she couldn’t control the timing or speed of healing. It was easy to reveal her secret among her teammates in the Investigation Bureau, and if that happened, Mechanized Dawn would undoubtedly find out too.

Pretending her awakening was just a natural response to last night’s xenomorph attack seemed plausible. Instead of hiding carefully, it would be better to proactively show a trump card.

Her wristband vibrated slightly; Kui Xin looked down and found a message from Red.

Red: “Have you reported your awakening?”

Kui Xin: “Just came back. Didn’t have the chance to report yet.”

Red: “I figured. I’ve already reported it for you.”

A few seconds later, Red sent another message: “The boss wants to see you.”

Kui Xin’s heart raced, and her finger twitched reflexively as she was about to reply with a casual “Okay.” But then Red called her via communication.

She sensed something was off and pressed the answer button, remaining silent to listen to what Red had to say.

“Ugh.” Red surprisingly sighed first. “Go on, Lady Fortune, stop avoiding the boss. The boss is quite happy to hear about your awakening; it’s a great opportunity to mend your relationship, right? Always being in conflict isn’t a good thing.”

“…Did he ask you to convey this?” Kui Xin carefully worded her question.

If the original identity enjoyed the boss’s trust in Mechanized Dawn, the boss should have contacted her directly instead of having Red convey the message, which felt redundant.

Red mentioning “mend your relationship” made it sound like the original identity had a close enough relationship with the leader to have prolonged conflicts, and even after conflicts, they could still reconcile?

Kui Xin felt a wave of dread.

“Well, otherwise? The boss might find it hard to face you, so he sends me to relay his request to meet with you. I said you guys haven’t been in touch during this time, right?” Red said. “Based on my years of experience working under the boss, he definitely wants to reconcile with you; otherwise, he wouldn’t be so indirect in asking me to inform you.”

Kui Xin: “???”

She felt goosebumps rising on her skin, trying to extract more information: “Do you really think he finds it hard to face you?”

“Otherwise, what do you think?” Red countered once more. “I’ve delivered the message; you should return to headquarters. This is important; you need to prioritize.”

Seeing that Kui Xin wasn’t speaking, Red added, “The Night Cicada just returned from a mission in White Whale City this morning. If all goes well, he’ll come pick you up to return to headquarters shortly. Night Cicada’s return is just in time; having him on the Port demolition task will make it much easier.”

Kui Xin: Who is this Night Cicada?

Red hung up the call.

Kui Xin wearily set down her wristband.

Great, now she had to deal with a large group of complicated people.

The moment she set down her wristband, an unusual wave came from behind her. Kui Xin’s hair stood on end, and reflexively, she drew a g*n from her desk and aimed it behind her while shouting, “Silverface!”

This g*n was something she had specifically hidden; apart from under her bedroom desk, she had concealed guns and knives under her pillow, in the bedside table, under the bed, in the kitchen, in the refrigerator, in the shoe cabinet, and even in the bathroom. Kui Xin took caution to the extreme, hiding weapons in all covert locations to avoid being attacked at her home.

In the open space of Kui Xin’s bedroom, a deep blue vortex suddenly expanded from the size of a fist to the size of a full-length mirror.

A foot clad in tactical boots stepped out from the deep blue vortex, and Silverface kicked open the door to Kui Xin’s bedroom and darted in, water curtain on alert. “Is it an enemy attack? Get behind me!”

“Don’t sh**t; it’s a comrade.” A man dressed in a pitch-black combat suit and wearing a black mask stepped out of the vortex.

His eyes, visible beneath the mask, were fixed on Kui Xin. “Sorry, I forgot you don’t like people standing behind you; Red should’ve told you about my return.”

“Night Cicada!” Silverface relaxed his shoulders, dissipating the water curtain. “I thought it was someone else; you scared me…”

Kui Xin slowly lowered her g*n and read the black-clad man’s codename: “Night Cicada.”

Night Cicada possessed space-type Extraordinary Abilities; he had actually opened a spatial tunnel in Kui Xin’s room!

“Let’s go; the boss wants to see you.” Night Cicada paused, “What’s your new codename again? Red mentioned it to me… I think it’s Lady Fortune?” He chuckled. “What a mismatched codename for you.”

“Mind your own business,” Kui Xin said expressionlessly.

“Okay, I’ll keep my mouth shut… It’s been a while since we last met, and you still look so irritable.” Night Cicada stepped aside, turning to make a gentlemanly gesture towards Kui Xin. “Please, ‘Lady Fortune.’”

He was signaling Kui Xin to step into the deep blue vortex.

“Are we heading back to headquarters?” Silverface glanced at Kui Xin, waving goodbye to her. “See you later.”

…No time to hesitate; hesitation would only show weakness.

There wasn’t much time for her to think. She could only move forward, step by step.

Kui Xin straightened her back, walking towards the deep blue vortex under the gazes of Silverface and Night Cicada.

She was like a fish entering the water, passing through a thin barrier, momentarily plunging into darkness. But as she stepped forward, the scenery in front of her became bright again.

She left her small bedroom and entered a spacious, well-lit room.

The main color of the room was silver, and a ten-meter-long metal table was placed in the center, at the far end of which sat a middle-aged man in a suit.

Kui Xin spotted him instantly; Night Cicada had opened the spatial passage directly facing the middle-aged man.

At the moment she saw this man, Kui Xin halted in her tracks, her chest rising and falling rapidly, and she blurted out a name—

“Kui Haidong???!”

Upon hearing that name, the middle-aged man’s skin twitched, and he stood up angrily from his chair. “I’m your dad, and you’re talking to your dad like this? You don’t even call me dad anymore, just my name?! How nice of you!”

Kui Xin’s pupils trembled.

The leader of Mechanized Dawn looked exactly like her Unworthy Father from the First World, and they even shared the same name!