Chapter 583: Investigator's Test

Although walking on this extremely familiar road, what Zhang Jie had to do this time was anything but ordinary.

Awakening his will, this will be his first direct confrontation with the extraordinary—humanity's extraordinary!

"My brother's fist manual is useless to me; is it only by awakening the will that its true use can be unleashed?"

Zhang Jie clenched his fists; he didn't know whether his present body matched that of a normal teenager, but... what if?

What if he really is some heaven‑defying genius....

Forget it, better not daydream—whether he can awaken his will is still up in the air, no point talking nonsense.

Zhang Jie walked toward school with a nervous heart, while on the other side, Zhang Yan was counting a stack of bills.

This money was saved by her from childhood, not using her parents' money nor her brother's, just her own private stash.

Usually the pocket money she skimmed from her little brother, her own pocket money, and the pocket money she saved from work.

Originally, she planned to buy a good offensive anomaly with this money, wanting to become a Silent Executioner—a thought she'd had for more than a day or two.

But.... it's obvious she's now the most useless one in this family, so....

Let's leave this good thing to the little brother!

She carefully placed a cyan‑blue short dagger into the gift box—actually calling it a short dagger is misleading; it's more like a slightly longer dagger, a slightly shorter Tang sword.

D‑rank Anomaly: Ordinary Blade (not fully developed)

The description of this blade at the time was as follows.

"This blade possesses unimaginable sharpness, but aside from this trait, no special features have been found; it doesn't match a high‑power individual, no regular power detected, thus rated: E"

It looks ordinary, right? But this is the best she could buy with her own effort.

"No matter whether the younger brother succeeds or not, give it to him—he'll surely use it someday."

She glanced at the time; it's still early....

"Want to... try again?"

She walked toward the Anomaly Bureau Headquarters, where will could be tested, carrying another fresh hope.

As for Zhang Jie's side, he was already being tested for will by the organization.

Following the crowd of students, Zhang Jie slowly arrived at the playground; not far away stood a base made of green stone, etched with various runes that looked eerie and mysterious.

In the center, there was a strange matrix.

That thing must be the device for testing innate will, right? Speaking of which, it really resembles an awakening.

Earlier, the older sister tried repeatedly, and the brother's advance test—actually both were paid tests at the Anomaly Bureau Headquarters—while his was a large‑scale free test; whether the effect is better or worse can't be said.

Leaving that aside, Zhang Jie gazed at the mysterious base and couldn't help but think about switching his vision.

"...... Or maybe we shouldn't court death—it's easy to lose sanity...."

"If this affects my test, that would be truly stupid...."

Zhang Jie finally suppressed the urge to court death, deciding to wait until his will awakens before switching his vision.

After all, the omnipresent pollution in the air, his brother's fist manual, the black substance that wrapped his brother's body at the end, and so on.

These things look completely different in special vision; Zhang Jie had never dared to use that vision to look at his own father before.

Afterward, he rarely used that vision to view the world; being young, he could hardly bear such truth.

The crowd kept dwindling; students went up in groups of four to touch the matrix—some felt excitement after success, some acted mad as if they'd seen something strange, and some felt nothing but pain.

Finally, after the long wait, ordinary students basically finished the test; about one in a hundred could possess will, most of whom were Anomaly Bureau family members.

Afterwards, Zhang Jie, as the outstanding student representative, stepped onto the stage to face the expectations of the masses,

"Huuu...."

"Don't be nervous...."

Zhang Jie reached out his hand and slowly placed it on the mysterious matrix; instantly, he seemed to fall into an incredibly wondrous state.

By his ear, a voice sounded; Zhang Jie listened closely, as if... someone was asking a question.

"Urban Anomaly Investigator Selection Exam Question One."

"You are investigating a deserted apartment block late at night; the stairwell keeps echoing with the cries for help of the person you care about most."

"You clearly know this is a hallucination created by the anomaly; if you follow the sound, you will be forever lost in the endless floors, completely consumed."

And your choice is:

A. Immediately turn and leave, continue the mission

B. Can't help but look back, even just to confirm a glance

C. Regardless of everything, rush over to find the source of the sound

Hmm, it's a simple question; only those who can choose A without changing expression deserve to become investigators—this is basically a free point.

Zhang Jie was about to speak, but an unseen force compelled him not to lie, turning the words on his lips from A to....

"I will choose.... to glance back...."

This question even shocked Zhang Jie—would he really do that?

"Answer correct, analysis: An investigator needs absolute rationality, but does not need to completely discard emotions."

"In the anomaly's rules, a person who is utterly cold and unshakable is actually the most easily replaced by the anomaly without a sound."

"The anomaly excels at imitating humanity and probing limits; if you have no reaction to a loved one's cry for help, it shows your emotions and cognition have begun to numb, or your cognition has already been polluted."

"Choosing to glance back to confirm shows you still retain human emotion and conscience, yet can restrain the impulse after a brief stir, not being dragged into the abyss by hallucination."

"This state of 'having concerns yet a clear will' is the investigator's most precious quality—it prevents both assimilation by the anomaly through indifference and being swallowed by fear through weakness."

That's absolutely right....

Zhang Jie could only say, this analysis truly convinced him; the rule never said you couldn't look, right?

"Shall we proceed to the next question?"

"Come on."

You notice that the people around you are gradually 'turning into monsters,' and they are all telling you the same sentence.

Join us, and you won't suffer.

You will:

A. Even if flesh and blood melt away, remain clear-headed.

B. Half-compromise, pretend to blend in while waiting for a chance to escape.

C. Give up resistance, accept assimilation.

Zhang Jie:.......

Oh no, he now understands why his older sister couldn't pass the test—this thing isn't something you can figure out just by thinking!