Chapter 194
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Chapter 194: Spicy and Hot!
Just as the soldiers led by the "Shadow Master" were about to "return in defeat," the superpowered individual responsible for guarding the front door and investigating Lin Qingliu’s background with a communicator found the Captain on the second floor.
"What’s going on?"
The Shadow Master frowned, sensing something strange in his team member’s expression.
"We’ve found the information about that young doctor."
"Bring it to me."
As the Shadow Master issued the command, another soldier nearby seemed to make an odd discovery by the cabinet:
"Hey, what’s this? An appointment letter?"
"Let me see that one below, a commendation order. Why is this signature so messy? Do you recognize it?"
"Forget the signature for now; check the content: ‘… appointing Mr. Lin Qingliu as an external psychological consultant for the General Staff Headquarters, directly reporting to…’"
The soldier’s voice, initially filled with excitement, grew cautious and even hesitant, as if doubting his own eyes.
"To whom? To the south or to the north?"
Beside him, a carefree soldier, still unaware of the situation’s seriousness, snatched the appointment letter and continued reading:
"During the special mission, all actions report directly to General Wencheng."
His voice abruptly stopped.
At the same time, the "Shadow Master" also saw Lin Qingliu’s resume on the communicator handed to him by his team member.
The second floor fell into a long-forgotten silence.
Just moments ago, it had been quite noisy, and many soldiers hadn’t heard what happened.
But seeing their comrades and superiors tense and serious, they all understood that silence was necessary now.
The Shadow Master felt his eyelids twitching uncontrollably:
"This kid really has something…
“Why didn’t ‘Nian’ and ‘Flowing Sand’ mention those connections earlier? That’s also influential!"
His eyes narrowed slightly; Wencheng might not be a superpowered individual, but the general was the highest commander of all official armed forces within Hope City.
This meant that, although the Shadow Master was confident that he could defeat no more than ten people in the entire city one-on-one, he still held sufficient respect for that general.
Even a strong individual must adhere to certain rules, unless they are strong enough to control everything around them.
In the quiet atmosphere, just as the Shadow Master planned to give both himself and the general a way out for today, pretending nothing had happened—
"Clang! Ding!"
The sharp sound of metal clashing came from the nearby room.
"What’s going on?"
The Shadow Master struggled to contain his anger, the young man couldn’t be touched, but he could still curse at the others.
"Report: a plate has fallen."
The Shadow Master raised a hand to his forehead.
"Just pay for the damage."
"Report, it’s made of stainless steel; it’s very durable."
"I said pay!"
The Shadow Master said with a stern face, spitting out the words through clenched teeth.
A few soldiers dared not delay; they placed the stainless steel plate back on the table and added twenty information coins underneath.
"Restore the scene; no need for a search."
"Make sure to restore it meticulously."
After issuing the new order, the Shadow Master nonchalantly left the second floor and began to survey the situation on the first floor.
This time, he refrained from touching the seemingly ordinary objects, instead lowering his head to observe closely.
Soon, the soldiers scattered in various rooms began to withdraw.
After a brief inquiry, the Shadow Master confirmed they hadn’t found anything.
In fact, after learning about Lin Qingliu’s official title, even if they uncovered something, the Shadow Master planned to turn a blind eye.
As superpowered individuals, they had access to professional psychologists, but there are always exceptions. If he ever needed a doctor, having a psychologist with a semi-official background would certainly be a reassuring choice.
After clarifying his thoughts, the Shadow Master decided not to dwell too much on this matter; he would just offer a smile later to ensure no one lost face.
Thinking about this, he suddenly glanced at the wall clock by the door:
"Who’s in the examination room now?"
"Report, it’s Captain Nian."
"He hasn’t come out yet?"
Before his subordinate could answer, the Shadow Master turned partially away, clearly not expecting a reply.
He found a swivel stool without a backrest and sat down, gradually calming his mood.
Since there was nothing else to do, he might as well wait and see.
—
Inside the innermost examination room, it felt like a narrow space in another world.
Nian’s disguise gradually peeled away.
The human features were quickly disappearing; the skin-like structures began to loosen and darken, ultimately turning into flakes that dissolved into the air.
Beneath the decaying skin emerged a scarecrow woven from brittle, yellow, long grass leaves.
This scarecrow did not look like it had been tied into a human shape; rather, it resembled a living person entangled inside.
There were no features on its face, only layers of intertwined, long grass leaves covering each other, resembling a mummy from another world.
Facing the intense light, which felt like a hurricane that made it difficult to move, it gradually shifted to the chair that belonged to it, but appeared unwilling.
"Hehe, surprise! Unexpected?"
Lin Qingliu had never worn such an infuriating expression, but it was inevitable. He had initially thought these Dummies were merely minions sent by some unknown existence outside the city.
But now, it seemed these Dummies resembled weakened versions of himself more than minions.
Although they were pitifully weak in spirit and biological field, the Dummies and the original should share a significant portion of overlapping memories.
This counted as a gain for him.
Lin Qingliu’s lips curled into a smirk; surely, that so-called Supreme Will hadn’t anticipated such a development…
Unfortunately, for the Dummies, the pain that would make normal humans wish for death only felt like a slight itch to them, and…
If Lin Qingliu remembered correctly, the Nian team should have five members, but now there were only three. Even those three could not be casually disposed of, considering there was a medal ceremony tomorrow morning.
Even if he had a way to prove these individuals were not legitimate humans, he would still face the suspicion of shooting first and drawing the target later.
With that thought, Lin Qingliu’s choice narrowed down to one—
Utilizing his powerful biological field to forcefully shock the spirits of these artificial beings into a semi-comatose state, then entering their consciousness to see if they would dream.
He smiled and reached out his hand toward the Dummy in front of him, a smile that filled the Dummy with dread, just like the standard smile he once flashed with eight exposed teeth:
"I’ll check your pulse for you."
