Dark Light Chaser.

Chapter 257 Engraving
Moose's mind was completely overwhelmed by the appearance of the person in front of him.

Just moments ago, a messenger was talking to me.

How could the messenger become a hermit just by lowering his head?

Could it be that I'm under too much stress lately and am hallucinating?
Mu Si rubbed his eyes and looked at Ai Liang's face again.

Ai Liang's appearance gradually overlapped with the face in her memory.

He would never forget that face in his entire life.

Mus chuckled dryly: "Old Li, don't joke with me like that, it's not funny at all..."

biu!

A bullet struck the stone steps behind Mus.

Ai Liang held up a silenced pistol and pointed the muzzle at Mu Si: "I don't mind using other methods to remind you who I am."

In an instant, a deafening wail echoed throughout the cemetery.

"Waaaaah! I've been looking for you for so long!"

Mus squatted on the ground, looking as if he had finally found his long-lost brother after going through countless hardships.

It was as if he wasn't the one who had been whispering and relentlessly criticizing the hermit in the car just moments before.

The cries carried on the wind for at least several dozen meters.

Anyway, this is a cemetery, so it's quite normal for someone to wail loudly.

The only thing that's not normal is.

That guy Musi is all talk and no action; he just yells and screams without shedding a single tear.

If there were ghosts in the cemetery, they would probably all crawl out of the urns to take a look and see which family's child was crying so happily.

Ai Liang did not speak to stop Mu Si, who was howling incessantly.

He simply placed his finger lightly on the trigger.

Sure enough, a small gesture is more effective than any words.

Mus immediately stopped crying and raised his hands.

Yes, that's the taste!

The familiar way they interacted confirmed the identity of the person in front of him.

Only a true hermit would be so unreasonable when faced with his cries.

嚎？
Keep howling, and when you've had enough, get going.

"Where did the engraving come from?"

Ai Liang pointed the gun at Mu Si's head: "No need to explain, just recall it in your mind."

So mind reading and brain reading are standard skills of the Apostles?
Upon hearing this, Mu Si subconsciously muttered a curse in his heart.

But the next moment, it immediately turned into flattery.

call out!
The bullet, accompanied by a gust of hot air, grazed the edge of Mus's hair.

It felt like a burning pain, like chili water being poured on a wound.

It made him shudder.

"You have five seconds to concentrate and recall how you received the imprint."

Mus dared not let his mind wander any further and immediately replayed the scene in his mind.

Following Mu Si's memories, Ai Liang successfully connected to the imprint.

The Apostles' strange objects related to the mind, whether it's mass-produced masks or the markings on the hands of Muslims.

They were all created by the Thousand Faces Man.

These things serve a purpose that goes far beyond simply imparting skills or mind-reading.

The Countermeasures Bureau arrested many mask users throughout Asia Union.

Through reverse engineering, the final conclusion was reached.

The mask acts as a relay, connecting the user to a peculiar and eerie entity.

From the moment the mask is put on, all memories related to the Apostles will be uploaded through the mask.

In short, the user still remembers these things and can recall them normally.

But the memories associated with it are no longer yours.

Each memory is equivalent to you retrieving a memory from the mask's memory bank.

Simply sever the connection between the user and the mask.

The user of the mask will instantly forget everything about the Apostles.

Even without severing the connection, when using methods such as mind reading on the mask's user.

All that can be seen are the normal memories that are automatically compiled.

Unless the mind reader's spiritual attainments surpass those of the Thousand-Faced Man.

Otherwise, no useful intelligence can be obtained at all.

Torture the user of the mask is tantamount to gambling.

We must act before the Thousand-Faced Man's spiritual tentacles delete the user's mask account.

Before the user completely forgets all their memories.

Use physical means to extract information from them.

Even so, the Countermeasures Bureau did not obtain much information about the Apostles Society.

The deeper one's entanglement with the Apostles, the faster one will forget their memories.

Many people remember nothing the moment they are arrested.

What's even more chilling is...

The Thousand-Faced Man can disregard distance limitations and can transfer a portion of his consciousness to the body using the mask at any time.

This forces the countermeasures bureau personnel to prepare their wills in advance, even when facing mask users who are just low-level henchmen.

Originally, everyone just came here to clear out the mobs.

As a result, the minions could transform into clones of the final boss at any moment.

One skill is enough to take down everyone within five kilometers; they can't even run away.

Who can bear this?
Any member who has encountered the Thousand-Faced Man will be locked up and subjected to rigorous investigation.

The observation period must last at least six months, and various tests must be conducted every day.

This is still the treatment given to a pillar of the Countermeasures Bureau who possesses a bizarre adaptive constitution.

Like a regular special operations team member.

To put it nicely, it's early retirement, going to a sanatorium for recuperation.

To put it bluntly, it's like being imprisoned for life in a sanatorium, with no chance of ever leaving.

Even their ashes were placed in the underground warehouse of the sanatorium after they died.

Fortunately, in the last twenty years or so, the number of times the Thousand-Faced Man has descended into consciousness can be counted on one hand.

The countermeasures bureau finally breathed a sigh of relief.

The markings on Mus's hands serve a similar function to the mask.

In addition to the added ability to read minds, it also improves the degree of stealth.

In any case, this engraving was made by the Thousand-Faced Man himself and given to the members of the Apostles.

How could the things used by members of the Apostles be of poor quality?

Ordinary strange objects and mass-produced masks are not even in the same league as the engravings.

Even if Janus doesn't care, it can't hide its special nature.

If Mu Si hadn't taken the initiative to pat Ai Liang's shoulder with his hand bearing the mark...

Even though the mark was right in front of him, Ai Liang couldn't sense its presence.

But if it were someone else, like the director of the countermeasures bureau...

I reckon if it were stuck to his face, he wouldn't even realize it.

This engraving is so well concealed.

Ai Liang couldn't help but click her tongue: "Tsk... Disciple Janus."

After reviewing the memory of Mus and Janus meeting.

Ai Liang wanted to follow the engravings and see if she could infiltrate the mask's database.

As a result, halfway down the dive, something was detected and the attempt was abruptly cut off.

At this moment, Ai Liang, who is invincible in reading minds, is at the forefront of his abilities.

This was the first time I truly understood just how important Gao Bin and Jin Ping'an's abilities were.

He could only hack into the seal first, erasing the connection between the seal and the Thousand-Faced Man, completely detaching it from the system and turning it into a single-player mode.

After doing all this, Ai Liang put away her pistol.

Mus asked anxiously, "Is everything alright? What exactly is this mark?"

"A cheat program."

Ai Liang said calmly, "It can instill in you all the knowledge that humans possess."

It can instantly transform you into a fighting master, a sharpshooter with perfect aim, a sculptor, a calligrapher, a musician, a painter… and so on. Incidentally, it can also grant you mind-reading abilities and comprehensively enhance your physical fitness.

Mus's lips twitched involuntarily.

What do you mean by "by the way"? Is mind reading so worthless in your eyes?

Mus was not blinded by the benefits of the inscription.

He took a deep breath and continued, "So, what is the price?"

If an ordinary person were to gain superpowers, they would definitely try to use them.

Not to mention an intelligence broker who acquired the superpower of mind reading, a perfect fit for his profession.

It's like a harlot meeting a widower; it's like lightning striking the earth, and nothing can stop it.

But Mus is different.

If a Muslim isn't cautious, then what kind of Muslim is he?
He knew that to get something, you had to pay a price, no matter what that thing was.

Even if there is no penalty, it must have been paid in advance without my knowledge.

It was this caution that saved him from disaster.

If Mus had used the power of the mark, just to give it a try...

Then Ai Liang could only apologize, then grind him into mincemeat, burn him to ashes, and bury him on the spot.

At most, it would allow Muslims to choose a grave they find pleasing to the eye and share it with someone before they die.

Who can blame them when this place happens to be a cemetery?

"cost?"

Ai Liang chuckled: "If you don't have the right constitution, the more you use it, the more likely you are to have a mental breakdown. And once you've used it, your mind can be taken over by someone else at any time."

"So once I've used it, my life is no longer my own?"

Mus's face turned green after hearing this: "Bro, can you help me get this thing off?"

"I have already cleared the mental link. As long as you can withstand the negative effects, you can use the power of the imprint at will to read minds or strengthen yourself."

Ai Liang asked casually, "Even so, you still want to remove the mark?"

Mus said firmly, "No need! I'm not worthy of it."

His attitude towards removing the imprint was resolute: "I'm doing just fine without this thing. What if some apostle has a way to locate it..."

Ahem, it's not that I don't believe in your abilities, it's just out of caution, caution, hahaha..."

Mus chuckled, looking nonchalant.

But the implication was that Ai Liang should get rid of this thing.

He does not have Ai Liang's ability to change bodies.

The reason they've been able to evade Nevada's crackdowns over the years is precisely because of this caution.

(End of this chapter)