Chapter 39: Talented at Assessments
‘So this is the ability of my left hand?’
‘But clearly there’s no Spiritual Penetration, why does it feel like I suddenly gained some strength beyond normal?’
‘No, the spiritual power was still consumed, just much less than when directly infiltrating into reality. Moreover, it’s more concealed...’
At that moment, Han Su sensed the anomaly in his left hand. Although he had quietly tested it before, there was never an opportunity to use it. Now that he had, it turned out to be unexpectedly convenient.
If he used the ability of his right eye, it would certainly cause a big stir and be quickly noticed. But the power in his left hand, once activated, couldn’t be detected by others.
Perhaps the only strange thing was that Han Su seemed a bit too strong, but as long as he controlled it, it wouldn’t be too outrageous.
Even the Camouflage Man who had been pulled out by him flipped over using the momentum and landed steadily on the ground, only to see five white marks left on his palm from Han Su’s grip.
He rubbed his arm, nodded at Han Su, and said, “You’re quite skinny, but you’ve got some real strength.”
‘……’
“These things are too fierce, fall back, fall back.”
At this time, the little chubby guy, seeing the Camouflage Man had also been rescued, shouted loudly and was the first to charge toward the stairwell.
But after reaching the stairwell, he suddenly turned back and stood firm, shouting, “Guard this place. We absolutely can’t let the impostors out. If they get into society, they’ll evolve into humans!”
However, just as he was shouting to retreat, the panicked trainees all rushed out in a frenzy. But when he stood still, the invisible fear that had engulfed them left none willing to stop.
They desperately squeezed into the stairwell.
Some were even shoving and pushing, tumbling down the stairs in a mess.
Only Han Su and the Camouflage Man stopped beside the little chubby guy, one on each side, raising their guns.
The Camouflage Man’s gun was already out of bullets, but Han Su picked one up from the floor nearby and handed it to him.
In front of them stood countless Doughmen, emerging one after another from the elevator, stepping in unison, steadily approaching them.
As they moved away from the elevator, a faint change in their bodies became visible.
From their initial dough-like softness and eerie wax-white skin, black began to appear on their bodies, and facial features emerged on their heads.
At a glance, they now resembled a group of humans in black suits.
The closer they got, the more human they appeared.
That formless eeriness and pressure pressed down layer by layer, even causing Han Su’s spiritual power to stir without him chanting a spell.
But he forcefully endured it, silently thinking, “So, this is still part of the assessment?”
“This little chubby team leader is a terrible actor. He was very convincing at first—probably because he didn’t know this part was planned—but later, when these impostors appeared, he didn’t even use the walkie-talkie to ask anything. Instead, he stood there dazed, like he was listening to something in his earpiece.”
“So this whole thing, from beginning to end, is an assessment!”
“……”
Since it was an assessment, he naturally couldn’t use the ability of his right eye.
Han Su clenched his teeth silently and acted fearlessly, raising his gun and aiming at the impostors in a professional stance.
Only, just as he was about to raise the gun with his right hand, he had a sudden thought and switched to his left hand.
He was not left-handed, so holding the gun in his left hand felt very unnatural. But his left hand had an extraordinary sense of steadiness and strength.
As he aimed at the impostors, bullets poured out one by one, the recoil astonishingly nullified completely.
‘I’m a damn natural at shooting?’
Han Su was unexpectedly thrilled. He felt his left hand gripping the gun with uncanny stability, as if he were firing a mechanical weapon.
Although his aim and shooting experience were still lacking, he could already predict that once he got used to it, this hand could greatly boost his shooting talent.
Amidst his excitement, he was still calmly thinking, “If this is an assessment, then are we done now, or is there more waiting?”
……
……
“Such good Innate Ability?”
Meanwhile, inside the Disaster Management Bureau base, Zhang Zhiguo and a group of staff watched the footage on the monitor, all of them visibly surprised.
They hadn’t expected Han Su to perform so well.
“These people, even those who already knew about Surreal Application Force before joining the Disaster Management Bureau, most of them are just dragon-lovers who fear the real thing. When they actually face it, the impact alone can make their legs go weak.”
“Normally, if someone encounters these things and doesn’t panic or wet themselves, they can be rated a C-rank.”
“If they can also understand the team leader’s orders and execute them smoothly, then that’s already a B-rank.”
“And these two right now, not only avoided all potential risks but even stepped in to rescue other trainees, maintaining their rationality from beginning to end despite the absurdity — this is practically, practically the Holy Physique of an Innate Investigator…”
“Yes, good physical skills, and surprisingly good shooting talent as well…”
“……”
Among the group expressing admiration, one bald man spoke from the heart: “This one, this young man, truly lives up to Director Zhang’s expectations!”
“At first, when Director Zhang wanted to give him an A-rank evaluation, I thought he was playing favorites!”
“Turns out, it was my judgment that was lacking. Even though his Spiritual Sensitivity is low, placed in a task like this, he’s absolutely perfect for it. As expected, as expected, Director Zhang really is on another level…”
“……”
Hearing his sigh, Zhang Zhiguo’s eyebrows couldn’t help but twitch.
……
……
“Calling, calling……”
“Yes, yes, received, received……”
Meanwhile, during the overall engagement with the impostors, the little chubby team leader continued to yell and act with great enthusiasm.
Though he was loud, he moved very little, focusing his attention more on Han Su and the Camouflage Man.
Occasionally, if an impostor came too close, he would casually fire a shot — always managing to accurately bring it down.
Watching the two of them calmly and decisively firing their guns, he was impressed, but also slightly horrified:
‘That soldier guy is understandable — it’s professional training. But the other one…’
‘Who fires like that the first time they touch a gun, especially at things that are looking more and more human, bang bang bang nonstop…’
‘He… he even smiled, his smirk harder to suppress than the recoil…’
‘…Everyone’s been saying this batch of newcomers includes a psycho with a dozen bodies on him — could it be him?’
‘……’
This line of thought continued until he suddenly heard something through his earpiece.
He snapped out of it, shook his head hard, and shouted toward Han Su and the Camouflage Man, “Stop, stay alert!”
Han Su and the Camouflage Man immediately ceased fire, even as the “impostors” drew closer and closer — some even opened their eyes.
The color on their bodies was growing more distinct, faintly forming suit creases and pinstripes.
Their heads were no longer ghostly pale, strange black threads appearing, gradually forming hair.
Just like the little chubby guy had said — they seemed to be evolving into “humans.”
Clothes began to appear on their bodies, hair on their heads, and some even developed glasses, leather shoes, and pink socks.
The little chubby guy stepped forward, pulled out a dagger with one hand and raised the other.
He slashed his palm with the knife — fresh blood instantly oozed out. Then, using the blood as ink, he drew a straight line across the floor.
The impostors approached rapidly, seemingly about to cross the bloodline, but suddenly halted.
That bloodline seemed to exert some kind of pressure on them.
Then, standing before the line, the little chubby guy silently recited something.
It was brief, yet mysteriously resonant, as if the surrounding air trembled slightly in response.
A bizarre scene followed.
The bloodline drawn on the ground seemed to come alive.
It wriggled faintly and twisted.
The entire blood-drawn line now resembled a swarm of red ants, and as the little chubby guy took a step forward, it slowly crawled forward as well.
As the bloodline advanced, the impostors retreated.
It seemed the little chubby guy was trying to use this method to push the impostors back into the elevator — but just then, the elevator chimed.
Dingdong—
Suddenly, countless wax figures burst from the elevator, like a white tidal wave, overwhelming everything. They engulfed the impostors ahead and surged wildly forward.
The bloodline the little chubby guy had laid down was instantly crushed and shattered.
“This is bad, I can’t hold them!”
The little chubby guy cried out, waving his still-bleeding hand and stepping to the side, as if shielding himself from the charging wax figures.
The Camouflage Man, seeing this, immediately stepped forward to rescue the little chubby guy who looked about to be trapped.
‘So that’s it…’
But Han Su instantly realized: ‘The final step of the assessment is to see — when the “defense line” falls, what will the trainees do?’
He grabbed the Camouflage Man in a flash and shouted, “Fall back!”
The Camouflage Man let out a sharp noise, his face confused.
Just earlier, Han Su had saved his life amidst the chaos, earning a level of trust not extended to others — but this decision still left him puzzled.
Yet Han Su had no time to explain.
Using his left hand, he yanked the Camouflage Man backward with force.
About four or five meters behind them, along the corridor, there was a row of pull-down stainless steel grilles embedded in the ceiling — Han Su had noticed them upon arrival.
For someone like him, who often explored old castles, this was basic protocol.
Now, seeing more and more impostors pouring out, Han Su dragged the Camouflage Man over to the grille.
With a leap, he pulled it down with force — the grille slammed down solidly, sealing the hallway.
Bang bang bang!
The impostors were instantly trapped behind the metal grille — and trapped with them was the dazed-looking little chubby guy.
“What are you guys doing?”
“I’m still in here…”