The Test

"All right, time to get down to business!"

The man took off his coat, and everyone else reacted at once, each bracing as though facing a formidable enemy.

But the man spread his coat on the ground and sat down on it with a thump. "Relax. I'm not much for fighting and killing. If we can avoid violence, all the better. Now you have a chance: every one of you can try to persuade me. If you can convince me to admit defeat, you win."

"Sir, humanity has suffered so much! You have no idea. A Mutated Beast called the Heavenly Fox has infiltrated us, and countless people have been eaten without anyone realizing it. This place is our last hope. If we can't get a weapon or power here that can stand against the Heavenly Fox, humanity is finished." Cheng Xuejie rose and went to the man's side. The next moment, she threw herself to the ground, tears streaming down her face as she spoke to him in a voice full of misery.

The man edged back a little, afraid she might get snot on him, but his expression darkened. Cheng Xuejie hadn't lied.

He could tell with absolute certainty whether someone was lying.

Her pitiful display wasn't nearly enough to move him. What truly troubled him was that every word she had said was true.

"Sir, we need power. We want to save more people!"

Zhang Shouzhong walked up to the man and knelt, his enormous frame looming as he fixed him with a burning gaze.

He respected this man deeply. The man's knowledge was astonishing; without his guidance, Zhang Shouzhong could never have built a robot of this caliber.

"You opened with your trump cards. That's hardly fair. Fine... change of rules. Come at me one at