Chapter 132
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Chapter 132: Spreading the Net
Nia sat in the corner of the second floor of the Wager Chemical Factory, enveloped in the desolate atmosphere of the night, reminiscing about the girl who had approached her to exchange gold the previous evening.
Indeed, despite the mask and the deliberately husky voice, Nia had discerned the girl’s true nature in less than five seconds.
The reason was clear: the girl was almost a mirror image of Nia from a decade ago.
Upon returning to the Tower yesterday, Nia swiftly utilized her authority to delve into a trove of information.
From her vantage point at the top, it was easier to observe the events unfolding below.
Within just one afternoon, she had largely confirmed the girl’s identity.
Fake gold, signs of processing, theft cases…
The girl who had come to sell stolen goods was undoubtedly "Master Hand."
As for why she couldn’t be a pawn or an accomplice, Nia doubted that a lone thief would place such trust in others.
Moreover, the records from previous cases clearly indicated that "Master Hand" avoided unnecessary contact and harm with others.
Unbeknownst to Shi Jin, two groups had already gathered clues about her identity.
Had she foreseen this day, she would surely regret exchanging gold with that black market merchant she had encountered once.
At this thought, Nia couldn’t help but chuckle. If the girl could evade capture this time, Nia might consider adding her to the candidate list.
Having lived as Nia for seven years, she had no intention of meeting the same fate as her predecessors.
At least before her end, she wished to reclaim her true self.
To this end, it was imperative to begin the selection process for the next "Nia" in advance.
As time slipped by, the day was nearing its end.
The peculiar atmosphere of the previous night had already caught Luke’s attention.
For today’s setup, he deliberately reduced the number of personnel and selected more outgoing subordinates.
Zhuang Mian followed a similar strategy, as the second night of their infiltration into the black market approached.
The dense shadows of the city walls fell over the Wager Chemical Factory, plunging it into darkness earlier than most places.
One by one, black market merchants, their burdens clinking, converged like ants from all directions.
Many exchanged fleeting glances as they brushed past each other.
At that moment, Zhuang Mian, her face smeared with grime and clad in a tattered coat, lounged diagonally at the entrance on the first floor.
Luke stood by a window devoid of glass, several old-fashioned guns laid out before him.
Above him, on the factory roof, a cat observed the scene below, its eyes emitting an eerie green light as the daylight faded.
Fulan had already sought Lin Qingliu’s approval regarding the potential events of the night.
The existence of Master Hand was no secret in the outer city; this figure had risen to prominence even before Lin Qingliu and the [Believers] organization.
However, since Master Hand had previously confined her activities to the outer city, no serious contenders had taken her seriously.
But this time, Master Hand had ventured into the inner city, displeasing certain individuals and prompting the deployment of a large net.
Fulan reported her recent observations of Shi Jin to her master. After evaluation, Lin Qingliu concluded that she met the special recruitment criteria for "talent."
As a young man with two specialized skills—thievery and repair—who could hardly be called bad but neither good, Lin Qingliu believed he had a certain training value.
Of course, his premise for selecting candidates was the same as Nia’s: they must first survive the large net targeted at her.
—
Inner city, superhero team lounge.
Wang Xiao looked at the notice in front of him and exchanged glances with his two teammates.
He read the wording again, pondering aloud:
"This is… psychological treatment? And it’s in half an hour?"
"I don’t think I’m sick."
Puppet Master spoke in a tone that suggested he was at the end of his rope, burying himself deep into the couch.
"Ten hours of training! Ten hours! My soul can’t even adjust to this body, and now I have to go see a psychologist?
"Just dealing with this is enough to give me depression."
"If Puppet Master isn’t going, then I’m not going either."
Beacon’s cold attitude left no room for argument.
Wang Xiao looked at the notice in his hand and said, "I think this matter is not so simple. Think about it, why didn’t the other teams tell us about this?"
"Bang!"
The door to Team 25’s lounge was suddenly thrown open, revealing Fresnel’s cheerful face.
With just a glance, Puppet Master sensed a wave of Death Energy, the aura of a lively person suppressing that of an exhausted one.
She understood why.
Sure enough, as if to confirm her thoughts, Fresnel bounced into the center of the lounge with an air of self-importance, waving the flyer in his hand.
"Aha! Of course, this treatment is a benefit I fought for everyone!
“Recently, many soldiers in the city defense army have been experiencing psychological issues, so headquarters has recruited a team of psychologists to provide them with professional support.
“That team is currently passing through the inner city center to the western city wall, so they were invited to stay for two days to offer psychological relief to the superpowered individuals."
"But why didn’t the other squads…?"
"Haha, that’s my talent! I know that everyone has been unhappy since Obscure left, so I specially requested that our team be the first to receive treatment.
"Our team has performed very well among the teams that signed up to go out, plus there was that previous incident, so of course they approved!"
“So after training for ten hours, we have to go listen to the psychologist ramble?”
Puppet Master’s rebuttal was weak but full of biting sarcasm.
Fresnel was unbothered; he continued in his cheerful tone:
“What are you talking about? I have to tell you, the Captain of this psychological team is quite impressive; it’s said that soldiers who have spent time alone with him, regardless of how much pressure they faced before, ultimately emerged successfully from their mental turmoil.”
“Really?”
Beacon looked at Fresnel with disbelief, trying to catch any signs of exaggeration in his expression.
“Isn’t he some expert who came out of a research institute?”
“No, he’s a young man. I remember his last name is… Lin or something…”
Wang Xiao’s ears perked up, feeling like things were not that simple.
Young, psychologist, last name Lin…
No…
Fresnel flipped through the flyer he had noted on:
“Ah, found it! Let me see… the attending physician is named…
“Lin Qingliu!”
