Chapter 78: Hearing (2)

“The hearing will now begin.
First, codename ‘Gray Crystal.’
Please give your statement regarding your ‘loss of control’ during the Gamma District incident,
and your current mental stability after experiencing deep contamination from the S-rank pollutant ‘Myriad Transformations Demon Lord.’”

Lin Yu drew in a long breath.
The cold air stabbed into his lungs like needles.

(It’s here… the final judgment.)

He lifted his head and stared into the black one-way glass—
a surface that reflected only his own pale, ghostlike silhouette.

After that outburst in the interrogation room, he had strangely… calmed down.

Anger couldn’t solve anything.
Right now, the only bargaining chips he possessed were his cheap little life—and that possibly valuable “constitution” of his.

“I did not lose control.”

His voice wasn’t loud, but it was perfectly clear.

“Before Myriad Transformations Demon Lord appeared, every action I took strictly followed company combat protocol. After I was possessed, I lost consciousness. Everything that happened afterward did not come from my own will.”

“As for my mental state—”

He paused, pulling a self-mocking smile.

“I’m very stable right now. Because I know very clearly that no matter what I say, you’ve already made your decision.”

(Just like job interviews. No matter how I perform—
the power to decide is never in my hands.)

(Except this time, what’s at stake isn’t a job… it’s my life.)

The speakers fell silent for a moment, as if dissecting the defiant subtext in his calm tone.

“Then, codename ‘Nine-Tails.’”

The voice shifted toward Su Xiaoli.

“As the on-site B-rank Executor and proctor of this assessment, you failed to prevent escalation, and without authorization activated Ruikang Bio’s ‘Code Zero Biological Waste Emergency Disposal Protocol,’ resulting in the complete collapse of Gamma District and massive asset losses.
What do you have to say for yourself?”

Su Xiaoli was even paler than Lin Yu.
Clearly, the extended interrogation and the aftereffects of Soul Anchor Overload had left her utterly drained.

Yet even so, she held her back straight and replied with professional, unwavering clarity:

“I have nothing to defend.
My actions were taken while facing an unbeatable S-rank pollutant. In order to protect the key asset—namely, the ‘Void’ constitution of codename ‘Gray Crystal,’ and prevent it from falling into enemy control—my decision was the only and optimal tactical choice available at the time.”

“Activating the protocol was a calculated sacrifice—trading controllable asset loss to prevent a catastrophe that could have destroyed all of District D, or even the entire city.
All of my actions were recorded by the Contract Bracelet black box and follow the highest-authority emergency procedures outlined in Dawn Corporation’s manuals.”

(Amazing…)

Lin Yu glanced at her profile, a flicker of admiration crossing his heart.

(She’s this weak and exhausted, yet her thinking is so sharp. Truly a B-rank elite. She shifted the entire blame onto ‘protecting me’—
protecting herself while increasing my value.)

Manager Qian, who had been silent until now, stepped forward with his trademark humble-yet-calculating smile.

“Esteemed committee members, as our Xiao Su just said, when faced with forces far beyond expectation, our company’s employees displayed remarkable professionalism and self-sacrifice. This demonstrates the high quality of our Dawn Corpo—”

“Manager Qian.”

The amplifiers cut him off coldly.

“This is not your company boardroom. Put away those sales lines. What we are evaluating is not your employees’ professionalism, but their stability and risk as special assets.”

Manager Qian’s smile froze—but he quickly recovered and adopted a more serious expression.

“I understand, committee member. But the value of an asset lies in its ability to perform at critical moments. Gray Crystal’s ‘Void’ constitution holds enormous strategic significance—more than enough to offset every risk incurred during this incident.”

“Strategic value?”

A faint, derisive snort came through the speaker.

“An unquantifiable, unpredictable ‘potential’ versus an already deeply contaminated ticking bomb at constant risk of magical-girlization. The expert report has made the comparison very clear.”

The voice paused—
then announced a pre-prepared verdict in an icy, judicial tone.

“Regarding codename ‘Gray Crystal,’ the expert group has proposed three possible solutions, listed by severity:

Plan One: Purification.
Due to deep contamination by an S-rank pollutant and an extremely high risk of magical-girlization, execute the highest-level purification protocol to eliminate all potential threats.

Plan Two: Sealing.
Classify him as a high-risk research specimen and place him in indefinite isolation until the reaction mechanism between the ‘Void’ constitution and the S-rank pollutant is fully understood.

Plan Three: Retirement.
Perform deep memory erasure, sever all links to subspace, permanently prohibit any contact with psychic activity, and return him to society as an ordinary citizen.”

By the time the list ended, Lin Yu could barely breathe—
as though an invisible hand was crushing his throat.

“I object!”

Manager Qian’s voice shot up instantly.

“I object! Leaders, we cannot treat someone who just risked his life for this city with such cold, black-and-white measures! Comrade Lin Yu may be contaminated, but his intentions are good, and his nature is reliable!”

“We should adhere to the principle of ‘correct past mistakes and save those who can be saved.’ Give him a chance to redeem himself and make new contributions! That is the true embodiment of Xinhai City’s people-oriented values!”

“These three plans ignore Executor Lin Yu’s subjective initiative! He is the only person we have ever found who can perfectly bear the ‘Void’ trait—this alone proves his irreplaceability! We should give him trust and opportunity, not—”

“Opportunity?”

The voice in the speaker was openly impatient now.

“Manager Qian, please understand your place.
Dawn Labor Services is merely a government outsourcing contractor.
Cleaning staff.”

“You have no standing to lecture us on trust. Your only job is to provide stable, reliable, obedient tools. Now that this tool is contaminated, of course we must dispose of it at the lowest cost—rather than waste resources repairing it.”

“And as for your so-called ‘people-oriented values’?
Your corporate training has clearly been… very effective.”

“But Xinhai City’s ‘people’ refers to the twelve million citizens’ collective safety—not the personal fate of one asset marked as high-risk. We are indeed collectivists, but that ‘collective’ does not include tools deemed dangerous.”

“So spare us your business-school rhetoric, Manager Qian.
There is no ‘win-win’ here.
The flag of socialism may fly over this city, but what drives it is the coldest, purest capitalist efficiency.”

“That is the only reason we can sit here enjoying our order.”

These humiliating words drained all color from Manager Qian’s face.

“You—”

“Enough.”

The voice cut him off again.

“Your opinion has been recorded, but it has no effect on the verdict.
Security, ensure Manager Qian remains quiet.
The evaluation team will now begin its final vote.”

At that, the side door opened.
The two uniformed men from the interrogation room entered and stood behind Manager Qian. One already rested a hand on his shoulder.

“Mr. Qian, please calm down.”

And then—

Lin Yu saw it.

The eyes Manager Qian always kept half-closed… suddenly snapped open.

“Get away from me!”

The roar exploded like thunder.

The guard’s hand had barely touched his shoulder before Manager Qian bent backward—at a grotesque, unbelievable angle—

“BANG!”

A dull thud—
the sharp crack of an elbow smashing hard into a ribcage.

The guard staggered back with a strangled groan.

The second guard instantly reached for his stun baton—

But he was fast.
Manager Qian was faster.

Lin Yu didn’t even see the movement—
just a blur, like a wound-up spring releasing all at once.

Manager Qian twisted forward, pivoted—

A clean, brutal shoulder throw!

The guard trying to draw his weapon was lifted clear off the ground and slammed into the floor with a bone-rattling crash, instantly incapacitated.

The whole sequence lasted less than a heartbeat.
Smooth, explosive, vicious.

Lin Yu and Su Xiaoli stared, frozen.

(This… this is the same penny-grubbing boss who lectures me about performance bonuses?!)

Manager Qian didn’t even glance at the groaning guards.

He ripped off his tie and hurled it to the ground.
Then stabbed a finger at the one-way glass and unleashed a stream of profanity like a cannon blast:

“You pampered bureaucratic bastards sitting in your air-conditioned rooms—what the hell do you know?! Purification? Sealing? Retirement? What the f*ck do you think people are?!”

“QIAN YANZHI!”

For the first time, the committee chair’s voice carried genuine alarm.

“That is assaulting security personnel! You are defying the authority of the evaluation committee!”

“Authority?
f*ck your authority!”

All traces of the polished capitalist veneer were gone.
Every word came out like he was spitting blood.

“You idiots know f*cking nothing! All you see are numbers on a report! ‘Contamination’ and ‘risk’—that’s all you know! Which one of you saw how these two kids fought their way through that hell on earth?!”

He grabbed a chair, flipped it around, straddled it backward, and jabbed a finger against the table—each tap like a hammer strike.

“Let me tell you spineless cowards something.
Back when I fought in the unification war on Baodao—fought NATO soldiers street by street—when deciding whether a comrade could be saved, we didn’t look at f*cking risk reports!
We looked at whether he still had breath in him—
and whether there was still light in his eyes!”

The sudden ferocity in his voice froze the entire room.

Lin Yu stared at him, stunned.

He could not reconcile this iron-blooded veteran with the petty, stingy boss who forced him to practice humiliating skills every day.

“These two kids—
One nearly burned herself out to protect company assets.
The other—a rookie who just passed probation—walked into an S-rank meat grinder and crawled out alive.
And the first thing you do is throw him out like scrap?!”

Manager Qian let out a cold, contemptuous laugh.

“I’m telling you right now—Gray Crystal is not to be touched.
His ‘Void’ constitution is a treasure we bled to find.
A strategic trump card against future disasters.”

“The last Great Cataclysm already cost us our strongest chief. If you ‘purify’ him now—
when the next one hits, who the hell are you going to send?
You?!”

“As for Nine-Tails, she made no mistake. She—”

Static crackled—
as if the speakers refused to carry the rest of his shouting.

The room fell to a dead silence.

Even the shadowy silhouettes behind the glass seemed shaken.

Then—

“Beep— Beep—”

A sharp, urgent electronic tone cut through the stillness.

It came from behind the glass.

Lin Yu saw the central silhouette lift a hand, as if answering a call.

The room grew even quieter.
Only Manager Qian’s ragged breathing and the groans of the injured guards filled the background.

“…Yes…”
A faint reply came from the chair.

“…Understood. But the risk assessment indicates—”

“…I understand its strategic value. However, procedurally—”

“…Yes. I understand.”
“…Yes. I understand.”

The short call ended.

The figure behind the glass leaned back slowly.

When the amplified voice returned, all anger and impatience were gone—
replaced by bureaucratic fatigue.

“…The evaluation committee will recess for ten minutes.”

…

Ten minutes felt like an eternity.

When the speakers finally came alive again, Lin Yu’s heartbeat nearly stopped.

“The hearing will resume.
The committee has reached a unanimous decision.”

“Codename ‘Nine-Tails,’ Su Xiaoli.
Given your decisive actions during the mission and your success in protecting Gray Crystal, your merits neutralize your faults.
However, because you did violate protocol and sustained minor contamination, the following judgment is issued:

Effective immediately, you will undergo one month of mandatory paid leave and spiritual purification therapy.
All frontline duties are suspended.
Additionally, three months of performance bonuses will be deducted.”

Su Xiaoli’s rigid posture softened slightly.
She exhaled—relief and exhaustion intertwined.

This was the best outcome she could have hoped for.

“As for codename **‘Gray Crystal,’ Lin Yu…’”

The voice paused.

Lin Yu felt his heart leap to his throat.

“…In consideration of the uniqueness of his ‘Void’ constitution and certain special factors, Plans One and Two—‘Purification’ and ‘Sealing’—are hereby rejected.”

Lin Yu’s hand clenched involuntarily.

(I… survived.)

“However—”

His breath hitched.

“—the fact of deep contamination by an S-rank pollutant cannot be denied, and his mental stability cannot yet be guaranteed. Therefore, the final ruling is as follows:

First: Effective immediately, codename ‘Gray Crystal’ will wear the Psyonic Suppression Collar developed by Huaxia Heavy Industries, subjecting all psychic fluctuations to uninterrupted 24-hour monitoring.

Second: All permissions to activate the Persona Mask Protocol are revoked.
He is forbidden from accessing or using any psychic abilities until the committee confirms that all mental contamination has been fully cleared.
Reactivation date: pending.

Third: During this period, his personal affiliation remains under the management of Dawn Labor Services Co., but he must comply with all summonses and inspections from Division Zero at any time.

The verdict is complete.
This hearing is adjourned.”