Killing Rules

The more Han Su thought about the reasons behind it, the more excited he became. Although there were still many areas that needed verification, he already felt a vague sense of pleasant surprise.

Han Su slept very late that night. Even though he was woken up early the next morning, he was still in high spirits.

He changed into a piece of clothing resembling a combat suit and, after breakfast, was led to a spacious room where he met the other trainees who would be participating in the assessment with him.

As for himself, he had been dragged into a mysterious incident and had no choice but to be recruited by the Disaster Management Bureau. It was only now that he realized that many people had officially applied and were then notified by the Disaster Management Bureau to receive training.

There were over twenty people in this batch, both men and women of varying ages.

The oldest looked to be in his thirties, while the youngest was seventeen or eighteen. Their temperaments were varied: some seemed wild, some steady, some rational, and some carried an air of arrogance.

The staff member who led Han Su in turned and left without saying anything further.

Han Su, curious and trying to guess the identities of these people, heard a man with a buzz cut and flashy clothes laugh and say, "Are we the new recruits the Disaster Management Bureau is preparing to take in this time?"

Most people in the room were calm but wary, and no one immediately responded to his words.

He chuckled, "Don't be so tense. We're all people who will be cooperating together in the future, even entrusting our backs to each other. Since training hasn't started yet, why don't we introduce ourselves first?"

"I'll go first. My name is Xu Qingyi. I'm eighteen years old. I just returned from studying in the West Seventh District. I'm proficient in diving, rock climbing, wilderness trekking, and wingsuit flying. I also obtained a helicopter pilot's license. As for driving, there's no need to mention it; I drove myself to kindergarten."

"..."

The crowd listened and exchanged glances, with no one responding.

They could tell he was joking; no one would believe he drove to kindergarten. However, if he was truly proficient in all those skills, he would be a formidable individual.

Wilderness trekking, in particular, was extremely dangerous in today's world, with the super-metropolis structure already established.

It was said that one might encounter not only wilderness dwellers who refused to enter cities and enjoy modern conveniences, but also ferocious beasts. Moreover, inexplicable phenomena like "rainbowification" and "getting lost" frequently occurred.

However, because he broke the ice, the atmosphere was slightly less oppressive.

Beside him, a man wearing gold-rimmed glasses looked up and said, "Pastor Chen, I have dual doctoral degrees in Ruin Structures and Electronic Communications, and I've self-taught seven languages."

Behind him stood a dark-skinned, well-built man. Seeing everyone looking at him, he nodded slightly and said, "My name is Black Tiger. I'm proficient in firearms and combat. I just returned from serving in the Northern District military."

"I've received one second-class merit and one collective first-class merit. I've also carried out missions in the Northern District wilderness..."

"Apologies, my memory isn't great. I was shot once, and just remembered that mission is still classified!"

"..."

"Is this the 'social elite' Zhang Chiguo mentioned?"

As person after person introduced themselves, Han Su was slightly surprised.

If the new recruits the Disaster Management Bureau was recruiting were all at this level, it undoubtedly indicated an incredibly high threshold, attracting the cream of the crop from various industries. As for himself...

Lost in thought, he felt countless gazes fall upon him. Han Su looked up and, meeting everyone's expectant eyes, slowly began to speak:

"I have over a dozen lives on my conscience."

"..."

"..."

The conference room suddenly fell into dead silence.

Those who had introduced themselves with a hint of arrogance and those who were about to introduce themselves fell silent, feeling uncomfortable with Han Su's presence as such an anomaly in their midst.

Someone even muttered, "Weren't we told that those supercriminals from D7 wouldn't be training with us?"

In the crowd, a girl wearing a black hood, unusually quiet, turned and glanced at Han Su. Her hood was large, revealing only a pale and slender face.

The rhythm of self-introductions was broken, and everyone suddenly found it difficult to continue.

Just then, the stainless steel door opened, and a man in a black combat suit entered the room. He tossed a file in his hand onto the table and said coldly, "Self-introductions?"

"Do you think this is freshman orientation, where you need to get acquainted first?"

"Now that you've mingled and built rapport, when the time comes that you need to be an emergency containment unit, are you going to let your colleagues hesitate to act because they're reluctant to harm you, leading to a major disaster?"

"..."

His words stunned everyone present, and they all sat up straighter.

Unfamiliar environment, brutal instructors, the same old routine, they were all used to it.

But as he met their gazes, the instructor remained silent for a long time. Only when the atmosphere had become somewhat stiff did he suddenly let out a scoff, "What are you waiting for?"

"Waiting for me to give you a lecture, to tell you that the truth of the world is about to unfold before you, that you will become the saviors of the world, carrying the burden on your shoulders?"

"That you are destined to sacrifice yourselves for this world, but that someone will remember your contributions?"

"..."

Han Su was inwardly astonished by his words. "Aren't opening speeches always like this?"

The instructor sneered, "We're not that bored. I'll only tell you two things: First, our benefits and treatment are excellent. Second, our work is very dangerous."

"I believe many of you already knew about the existence of our department before you joined."

"And many of you applied to join in pursuit of the so-called 'truth of the world'."

"But what I want to tell you is that entering our department is very difficult. Countless people have tried their best to join."

"But more importantly, once you join our department, leaving becomes much harder."

"For the next few days, I will be conducting your training."

"But rest assured, although our training is rigorous, we won't eliminate anyone based on their performance. We won't even force you to accept the training if you don't want to."

"Whether you're just here to slack off, sleep, or spend your days staring at the female trainees' butts, it's all fine as long as you don't affect hygiene. You just need to stay here for the required amount of time, and then you can leave."

"After all, even if you don't have the ability to become an excellent executive officer, you can at least become suitable cannon fodder."

"..."

What he said made many in the audience feel surprised and uncomfortable.

The instructor then chuckled as his gaze swept across the trainees' expressions and said, "However, your performance during this period will be assessed by professionals."

"This will determine which group you are assigned to, and once the groups are formed, your fate will be difficult to change. In other words, your performance during this time will decide your fate."

"..."

The crowd exchanged glances. Just as someone couldn't resist asking what exactly they would be trained on, staff members outside began carrying in boxes and distributing them to everyone.

It turned out to be a book, dozens of pages thick, with no text on the cover.

The instructor coldly scanned the crowd and said, "This is the first lesson you will be trained on, but it is also the final assessment."

"Inside are the rules that executive officers of our Bureau of Abnormal Disaster Assessment must follow when carrying out their missions."

"If you have brains and good memory, memorize all of this content."

"You have only one week."

"After one week, your training will end. The security level of this manual is higher than your current files; it cannot be leaked. It must be returned before you leave."

"..."

Those listening below were greatly surprised: "How can we possibly memorize so much content?"

"What if we can't memorize it?"

The instructor above simply sneered at these overly earnest questions and said, "If you can't memorize it, then remembering two words is enough:"

"Obey!"

"..."

Many below looked bewildered, unsure if the words "Obey!" were meant sarcastically or seriously.

Han Su, however, inexplicably thought of his instructions to the other children when he tried to escape the dark bunker, and his heart stirred slightly: Interesting!

As he thought this, he opened the thick rulebook.

He found that not only was there no cover, but there wasn't even a preface. Only at the beginning was a sentence written:

In the face of the abnormal, all investigators and executive officers must believe: this world is logical and follows scientific principles.

Reading further, he found the first rule of the manual:

Please make any witnesses and contacts of abnormal phenomena believe that everything they saw was merely illusion and delusion.

If they do not believe, please make them disappear from this world.

Rule Two:

Those who believe in the existence of supernatural powers and the grotesque are lunatics, but a group of such lunatics can bring terrible threats to this world. Please make them disappear from this world in a timely manner.

Rule Three:

Any historical relics and related records, books, hard drives, or data from before the Reconstruction Era (including the Radiation Era, Chaos Era, and Pre-civilization Era) must be immediately sealed and reported. Without the order of a superior (Minister-level), do not view them privately.