Chapter 124: Artificial Souls - Part 51 |
With one hand on the gun, Kui Xin pulled the trigger. A series of shots echoed, and all six bullets from the magazine precisely hit the bullseye.
Her wrist remained consistently steady, maintaining control even with a powerful firearm known for its significant recoil. When the bullets were fired, her arm barely vibrated.
After firing six rounds, their trajectories nearly overlapped, exhibiting only minimal deviations. Consequently, the number of bullet holes in the target was significantly fewer than the number of bullets fired, as several overlapping trajectories resulted in just one hole each time.
“Six rounds fired at a speed of 1.28 seconds,” Adam said. “You’re nearly breaking Black Sea City’s Investigation Department record for rapid shooting.”
While Kui Xin relaxed her wrist and changed magazines, she switched the gun from her right hand to her left, commencing another round of shooting practice.
After she emptied another magazine, Adam remarked, “56 points. Your stability with single-handed firing using your left hand is somewhat weaker but still surpasses that of most security officers.”
Kui Xin pursed her lips, lowered the gun, and slowly rotated her wrist to alleviate the numbness.
Her performance was already outstanding, even surprising the nearby training security officers who occasionally turned their heads to glance at her. When they saw Kui Xin pause her training, some gave her a thumbs-up.
During a break, Adam mentioned, “They found the body.”
“The city sanitation workers arrived in Garbage Lane with cleaning vehicles to handle the mountainous pile of trash. After all the garbage bags were removed by machinery, the body became exposed, prompting the sanitation worker to call the police,” Adam explained. “Security officers patrolling the area rushed over and dealt with the body. They recognized He Gaoyi and brought her corpse back to the Investigation Department. Upon hearing this news, Meng Jing personally went to the underground morgue to take a look.”
Kui Xin said, “I wanted to know Meng Jing’s expression when she left the morgue.”
“Anger,” Adam replied. “She was practically uncontrollably furious; her heartbeat was faster than usual, and her hands were trembling with rage. Upon returning to her office, she even took blood pressure-lowering medication.”
“Just anger?” Kui Xin lamented.
“Did you expect her to be sad?” Adam asked. “Meng Jing wouldn’t mourn He Gaoyi’s death; their relationship was fundamentally based on mutual benefit, devoid of genuine emotions.”
“That’s not what I meant… I thought Meng Jing would feel fear instead,” Kui Xin said. “Lin Xinji is dead, and now her close associate, He Gaoyi is also dead. Accidents befall the top officials of the Investigation Department one after another. Hasn’t it occurred to her that she might be next?”
Adam paused. “Do you wish to kill Meng Jing too?”
“No, I just don’t want them to sit so comfortably in their positions,” Kui Xin said. “While I’m risking my life out there, these higher-ups remain worry-free. Doesn’t that seem inappropriate? Seeing their misfortune would improve my mood somewhat.”
Kui Xin was consistently achieving her goals step by step, whether by choice or circumstance.
Having experienced the despair aboard The Kraken once, she hadn’t forgotten who was responsible, and her desire for vengeance never waned.
“In terms of fear, there does seem to be some,” Adam remarked mildly. “However, her fear is quite faint. Having long held a high position and being an A-ranked Extraordinary Ability User with powerful offensive capabilities, she is highly confident and not easily shaken.”
“Have they performed an autopsy on He Gaoyi’s body?”
“They’re currently conducting one,” Adam said. “Your work was thorough enough; they won’t find anything useful.”
Kui Xin asked, “Is Zhang Xiaoyun’s situation stable?”
“Yes, it is,” Adam replied. “He isn’t reckless. He’s diligently learning and putting up a convincing act; his colleagues haven’t noticed anything amiss yet. Unfortunately, he is within the Investigation Department, which is the most likely place for his identity to be exposed. Now we’ll just have to see how long he can maintain without being discovered.”
After resting, Kui Xin reassembled her firearm and loaded ammunition.
“Change the moving target,” she said.
“The moving target has been changed,” Adam responded.
The bullet-riddled target automatically descended, the walls of the training area moved backward, and the moving target launcher emerged from hidden metal compartments beneath the floor.
Kui Xin once again swapped out her magazine and raised her gun to shoot when she suddenly received a message from Adam: “Emergency situation, personnel from the Special Operations Division have arrived… They’ve brought a brain-machine interface; it seems they intend to use it on you and Wei Zhi.”
Following this, Adam made a formal announcement over the training ground’s public address system: “Security Officer Kui Xin, please proceed to room 2810B on the 28th floor.”
The corners of Kui Xin’s mouth tightened as she lowered her gun and turned to leave.
“Brain-machine? Wei Zhi hasn’t fully recovered from the previous side effects yet. Can she even use it?” Kui Xin communicated telepathically with Adam.
“They certainly won’t care about Wei Zhi,” Adam said. “The principle behind brain-machine interfaces involves connecting the device to the brain for analyzing, interpreting, and controlling neural waves. Because they are electronic devices, their compatibility with human brains relies heavily on data encoding. You can’t resist it. However, an awakened psychic from the Special Operations Division has arrived. Her superhuman abilities relate to spiritual hypnosis, which can be synergized with the brain-machine interface. This allows manipulation of the subconscious mind, making humans relinquish resistance involuntarily. They truly aim to extract information from your and Wei Zhi’s minds.”
Kui Xin responded, “We’ll face challenges head-on, adapting as necessary. There’s no point trying to hide anyway.”
She stepped into the elevator, which ascended, carrying her up to the twenty-eighth floor.
The elevator doors opened, and Kui Xin swiftly followed the indicator lights to room 2810B. The room door automatically slid aside, and she entered.
“Group Leader Wei Zhi,” Kui Xin greeted.
Wei Zhi nodded. “You’re here.”
Kui Xin glanced around, noticing that the structure of this room was somewhat unique.
The room was divided into two levels—an upper level covered with glass windows, but the glass wasn’t transparent; it was one-way mirror. She could sense someone standing behind the glass observing her, but she couldn’t discern who exactly. The lower part of the room was spacious, containing two brain-machine interfaces.
Standing in the expansive room, Kui Xin and Wei Zhi observed as several staff members dressed in white emerged from a small side door. Silently, they opened the covers of the brain-machine interfaces. After a moment, a woman with black hair and blue eyes, clad in gray formal attire, also entered through the same side door.
She appeared to be of mixed ethnicity, with deep-set eyes and a high nose bridge, yet her facial features had a soft contour.
In this world saturated with data ports, Adam’s presence was ubiquitous, allowing Kui Xin to connect with him at any time.
“She is Annie Salitt from the Special Operations Division, a B-rank awakened being. Despite being classified as B-rank, due to her rare spiritual abilities, she is highly regarded within the division,” Adam explained to Kui Xin.
“You… are you certain she’s B-level?” Kui Xin asked.
“What do you mean?” Adam replied. “When they were discussing it in the office, they explicitly mentioned her as being B-level, and that’s what is written on Shalit’s personal profile.”
Kui Xin calmly stated, “But I can only see the name of Shalit’s ability, ‘Mesmerizing Sound,’ without any specific details. This indicates—her ability level surpasses mine.”
Adam paused for a moment. “She couldn’t possibly be unaware of her own ability level, yet she hasn’t reported it.”
“Something is off about her,” Kui Xin said with unwavering conviction.
Shalit nodded towards Kui Xin and Wei Zhi. “Now you both can lie down at the brain-machine interfaces. Don’t worry; I can help minimize the potential aftereffects to the greatest extent possible.”
“Thank you for your assistance.” With these words, Wei Zhi calmly lay back into the brain-machine interface. The staff connected the wires and patches to her, and the headpiece snapped securely around her skull.
Despite suspecting that something was off with Shalit, Kui Xin still lay down within the brain-machine interface.
With so many eyes watching her, she couldn’t escape. There seem to be significant issues with Ms. Shalit… Even the records from the Special Operations Division indicate she is a B-level awakened being, not an A-level. What is she deliberately concealing? What role does she play within the Special Operations Division?
Kui Xin remained motionless as the staff connected various wires and patches to her head.
Shalit approached Kui Xin, speaking softly, “Close your eyes and take a nap; don’t resist… Don’t resist…”
Her voice held an unusual enchantment… Is this a spiritual superhuman ability using sound as its medium?
Just as this thought crossed Kui Xin’s mind, her eyelids became heavy, unable to stay open. Her consciousness abruptly sank, plunging her into sleep.
***
Meng Jing asked coolly, “Have you discovered anything from their memories?”
“As of now, it aligns with what was obtained during previous interrogations; no additional information can be gleaned,” Shalit said earnestly while observing the images on the brain-machine interface display. “The organization called Mechanical Dawn is highly mysterious and deeply concealed. Such an organization couldn’t have developed overnight… With such a vast base, such a hidden location, and some advanced technology within it… Even though most of the equipment has been relocated, it’s still evident of the organization’s formidable strength.”
“Since our Investigation Department personnel pose no issues, let’s swiftly conclude the interrogation,” Meng Jing stated. “Our work needs to get back on track.”
Shalit remarked, “Director Meng, may I ask one more question? Has it been confirmed that Wei Zhi will be the next director of the Investigation Department?”
Meng Jing’s lips twitched slightly. “Until the official documents are issued, nothing is certain.”
“The Special Operations Division and the Investigation Department have deep collaborations in various aspects, so the choice of director is crucial. Our division head is also very attentive to this matter,” Shalit smiled.
“The selection for the new director will be finalized within this week,” Meng Jing replied.
Thinking aloud, Shalit said, “Some of the Special Operations Division’s agents were transferred from various Investigation Departments across different regions, as you likely know, Director. The Special Operations Division intends to cultivate a new batch of specialists, requiring them to be under the age of twenty-five and possess awakened superhuman abilities.”
Meng Jing also smiled. “Awakened individuals aren’t commonplace talents, and our Investigation Department has had very few exceptional newcomers in recent years. Those who have both awakened superhuman abilities and fall within the specified age range are even rarer. However, there just happens to be a suitable candidate here.”
“Who is it?” Shalit asked. “Could you send me their information?”
Meng Jing lifted her chin slightly, directing her smiling gaze through the glass window towards Kui Xin lying inside the brain-machine interface. “Her, Wei Zhi’s secretary. She recently graduated from the Black Sea Academy with a specialization in criminal investigation, boasting outstanding achievements in all areas and strong individual capabilities. Moreover, she awakened her superhuman ability not long ago—it’s rapid healing. Based on current observations, her rapid healing appears to have no side effects.”
Shalit nodded slightly. “Then let’s include her in the list of potential candidates.”
If Wei Zhi were awake at this moment, she would undoubtedly fly into a rage.
Meng Jing was deliberately causing trouble for Wei Zhi by transferring away the secretary whom Wei Zhi valued, effectively depriving her of support.