"Of course."
Seeing Han Su looking thoughtful, Secretary Cui smiled again. "For Chief Zhang's sake, I should also remind you: once you've come to work here, you should be prepared."
"You'll undergo our special training here, then be assigned to different operational teams."
"We'll arrange for you to take leave from school. If you have other matters to deal with, you'll have to figure out how to handle them when you go out."
Han Su was a little surprised by what she said.
Seeing how Zhang Chiguo had acted as if the sky were falling at the Public Security Bureau, he'd thought he'd be locked away somewhere out of sight for the rest of his life!
His interest piqued, he asked, "What kind of training is it? Can a few days really be enough?"
"The training isn't the point."
The secretary in the black suit glanced at Han Su and said coolly, "We don't have time to train suitable talent from scratch, so we're more accustomed to recruiting capable, experienced people from all walks of life."
"You could call this period training, since you'll indeed be exposed to information that people outside can't access. But the most important thing..."
She paused. Thinking of Zhang Chiguo's relationship with this young man, she finally continued, "is to do your best to get assigned to a higher-ranking team."
"Given Chief Zhang's expectations of you, you'd best try to get into Group D1D2."
"But I know those two teams are especially hard to get into. You'd need at least three A-rank evaluations to have a chance. It's probably unfair of me to put so much pressure on you."
"Still, even if you can't get into Group D1D2, do your best. Whatever you do, don't end up in Group D5D6!"
Han Su asked, "Why?"
Secretary Cui Qiao said, "Because people die easily there."
"Group D1D2 is the training team for prospective investigators."
"It's the team with a real chance of encountering supernatural powers and gaining the authority to investigate the grotesque, along with access to classified texts."
"You said you were interested in classified texts, didn't you? You can only access them if you join Group D1D2. It's also a chance to prepare for work as an investigator."
"Group D3D4 is just an ordinary team of workhorses. You come in and do the job. The benefits are decent, though—it's a good job, if a little risky."
"As for Group D5D6, you can think of them as..."
"...cannon fodder!"
"..."
No wonder Zhang Chiguo had tried so hard to talk him out of getting involved. This really was a dangerous line of work.
But did Young Master Zhang, who had spent his entire fortune—and even paid with his life—know that what he'd gained was such a crooked path?
Han Su had gained a general impression of the Disaster Management Bureau.
But if Group D1D2, the team Zhang Chiguo wanted him to join, was really that good, then the competition must be fierce.
Still, he had no other choice. He had to get access to those classified texts. And the secrets hidden inside the Disaster Management Bureau were also immensely alluring to him.
Han Su had been kept busy until late that day, filling out a mountain of forms about his education, skills, physical fitness, and more. Only after he'd provided a sufficiently detailed file did the secretary in the black suit escort him to a metal-themed room.
Before he entered, his belongings were searched. After one night there, even the underwear Han Su wore wasn't his own.
He'd been scheduled to attend training the next day. At last, he had time to calm down and think through his situation.
Can I still use the ability in my right eye on this Life Path?
He reached up and touched his right eye. It was intact now, with no scar, and it didn't feel strange.
His experience in the Ancient Castle and his memories from this Life Path both indicated that the ability was still there, but he couldn't help feeling uneasy.
As he thought, he silently raised his left hand.
An ugly Cross Scar marked the back of his hand.
The whole hand seemed affected. It curled slightly, capable only of simple opening, closing, and gripping motions. It was sluggish, stiff as if rusted.
Would this hand awaken a new monster ability too?
He'd escaped the Ancient Castle this time thanks to the power of the Spell. He'd even rescued a girl. Han Su suddenly found himself yearning endlessly for this mysterious power.
He should be cautious now that he was at the Disaster Management Bureau. But he'd be staying there for several days. Was he really going to go the whole time without even trying?
His life was already hanging by a thread. He didn't want to waste a few days, or even a few hours.
He'd just have to be careful.
Thinking it over, he slowly raised his left hand.
"God, grant me a revelation!"
Han Su didn't say the words aloud. He only recited them silently in his mind as he observed his surroundings.
Nothing else changed. Yet the moment the Spell sounded in his mind, the unspoken syllables still stirred ripples across his calm sea of consciousness.
Once again, Han Su felt his spirit flowing.
Perhaps because he'd only recited the words silently, the flow of Mental Power was unusually gentle this time.
He could clearly feel that, in this gentler state, his Mental Power was much easier to control than when he'd said the words aloud. It was as if wherever he focused his attention, his Mental Power flowed there too.
Even more strangely, before he consciously tried to direct it, his Mental Power seemed to have a momentum of its own.
At first, it flowed toward his right eye. Then something seemed to tug at it, changing its course and drawing it toward his left hand.
That familiar pain immediately returned.
Perhaps because his attention was focused on the back of his left hand, this stream of Mental Power flowed toward it too.
The flesh around the Cross Scar seemed to split open again, bringing a sharp, unmistakable pain. As Han Su stared at the back of his hand, he even began to hallucinate.
It was as if the Cross Scar were changing color, a coppery sheen faintly seeping out from deep within it.
"Is this... a new Mysterious Power?"
Han Su suddenly clenched his left hand. The clear pain filled him with an indescribable excitement.
If Song Chushi's earlier theory was right—that the Spell only activated the mysterious power remaining in his body—then it made sense that an injury to his left hand this time had left a new Mysterious Power behind.
But why had his Mental Power unconsciously flowed toward his right eye?
He tried again silently. Han Su found that when he deliberately controlled it, his Mental Power did flow smoothly toward his right eye. He could even imagine the feeling of it "seeping" out more smoothly than before when his eye opened.
He could use the ability in his right eye more easily than before...
Could it be...
A vague idea took shape. His heart gave a sudden, faint thump of excitement. As he analyzed and guessed, he felt as if he were gradually touching the truth:
"When Mental Power is activated, it needs an outlet through which to seep into reality."
"If it seeps out through my right eye, then I use the Pallor monster's melting ability."
"If it seeps out through the Cross Scar on my left hand, then I seem to use the ability of the monster inside the coffin on the fifth floor..."
"No, it hasn't reached the point of seeping out yet. That's why my Mental Power only flows toward my right eye on its own, activating the Pallor monster's ability. It only gathers here when I focus my attention on the back of my left hand..."
"Because the ability in my left hand hasn't opened yet, it can't seep out. That's why all I feel is intense pain. But along with the pain, this hand seems a little more nimble, and maybe stronger too?"
"Still, I can't fully release my Mental Power, so I can't really test it..."
"..."
"Anyway, I have both abilities!"
"As long as I recite this Spell again—even silently—it activates my Mental Power, and I can use whichever ability it flows toward?"
That ineffable feeling kept Han Su from drawing a firm conclusion just yet. But he'd keenly picked up on one key point.
More important than his left hand or his right eye was the Spell.
This Spell was far more powerful than he'd imagined!
On this Life Path, his right eye hadn't been injured, which meant the Pallor monster hadn't left its power inside it. Yet the Spell still let him use the ability to "melt."
Did that mean that when he'd recited the Spell on the previous Life Path, it had already recorded the "melting" power in his right eye?
Because the Spell had "recorded" the mysterious power in his right eye on the previous Life Path,
not only could he use the power of his right eye when he returned to the Ancient Castle, but the Spell had also helped him drive off the Ghost Truck on this different Life Path?
As unbelievable as it was, that seemed to be the only answer.
For some reason, a sentence Black Rose had once said to him flashed through his mind. Han Su couldn't help feeling his heart race.
"Some Mysterious Powers can transcend time and space!"
"..."
Perhaps this Spell could follow his consciousness as it traveled between the present and the past, appearing on different Life Paths and recording all sorts of different things.
Damn it, who exactly was Song Chushi? Why was the Spell he'd given him so damn powerful?
And he'd called it a Fishing Horn?
Were fishermen these days really that powerful?
More importantly, who exactly was Song Chushi? Where had he found this Spell, and why had he given it to Han Su so casually?
And on this Life Path, even the fact that he'd given Han Su the Spell no longer existed?
Before you continue