Chapter 2645: Yuan’s Testimony(2)

"Please state your identity for us."

"Yuan. Corporal Yuan."

"We’ll start from the very beginning of your encounter with the Scorpion Squad. Tell us when you first encountered them and how it happened."

"I was waiting to accept a mission in the mission hall when they approached me. That was also the first time I’ve met them."

"What did you talk about?"

"They said they had an offer for me that I wouldn’t be able to refuse and wished to speak with me in private."

"Then what happened?"

"I went with them, and that’s when they said they wanted to verify the rumors of me being able to clear tunnels and defeat Void Guardians by myself, asking me if I wanted to go on a gathering mission with them."

"Did they specify which danger zone they planned on going?"

"They did say that we’d be doing the mission in the Purple Zone."

"And you agreed to it?"

"I did." ℯℯ𝑙.

The interviewer paused for a bit before asking, "Why did you agree to going to a place you don’t qualify to enter? Aren’t you aware of the risks?"

A smile tugged at Yuan’s lips, and he glared at the interviewer in the eyes as he responded, "I don’t qualify? Says who? Just because I didn’t have time to take some test doesn’t mean I am not qualified."

"Also, the Scorpion Squad said I don’t need any permits to enter the Purple Zone if there were at least three captains with me. I was curious about the Purple Zone, so I went. It’s as simple as that."

"..."

The interviewer was stunned by Yuan’s arrogance, but he quickly snapped out of his daze and asked, "Did you have any worries at that time?"

"No, I did not."

"So what happened after you agreed to go on a mission with the Scorpion Squad?"

"We left the city immediately."

"How did you leave?"

"Through the front entrance."

"Did you have any interactions with the guards on duty on that day?"

"None at all. They let us leave without even speaking to us, which I found weird at the time but didn’t think much of since I thought officers were treated differently. After that, we left the city and went straight to the Purple Zone."

Everything Yuan said so far wasn’t new; it only confirmed what everyone already knew.

"Tell us what happened outside the city."

"Nothing eventful happened until we reached the Purple Zone, where the Scorpion Squad brought me to a tunnel they had discovered beforehand. We went inside, and I cleared the tunnel by myself."

"Y-You cleared a tunnel in the Purple Zone by yourself...?" The interviewer’s eyes widened at Yuan’s seemingly outrageous claim.

"Is it really that surprising? I survived alone in the Black Zone for several months, you know?" Yuan remarked.

"Anyway, nothing particularly noteworthy happened while I was clearing the tunnel. It was only at the end—when I defeated the Void Guardian—that things started to get interesting, as that was when the Scorpion Squad admitted that their true reason for bringing me outside the city was to kill me."

The interviewer narrowed his eyes and inquired, "Did they admit that to you of their own accord? Why would they expose themselves?"

"Because I revealed to them that I already know their intentions."

"That doesn’t make sense. How would you know in the first place? We can assume that you followed them because you had no reason to suspect them."

"Well, it’s not the first time my life has been targeted by the person behind them. And what can I say? Their killing intent was too obvious."

"Who is this person you speak of?"

Yuan smiled and said, "Do I really need to spell it out for you? However, since I don’t have evidence, I won’t say anything more on this matter."

"Then do you have any evidence that the Scorpion Squad admitted they intended to kill you?"

"No, I don’t," Yuan replied calmly.

Even before returning to the city, Yuan had already considered the possibility that his testimony might actually end up helping the Scorpion Squad rather than condemning them. After all, the opposing side could simply demand proof.

They had never possessed any evidence that the Scorpion Squad had killed him, and now that Yuan had returned alive, proving that they had intended to kill him would be even more difficult.

Meanwhile, the officers on Mei Feng’s side turned to look at her with worried expressions. None of them said anything, but the implications were obvious.

If things continued this way, not just the Scorpion Squad, but even General Gu could get away scot-free from this incident.

Mei Feng didn’t say anything and continued to watch in silence. As for General Gu, he had a hand over his mouth, hiding the wide smile behind it.

"You can continue with your testimony," said the interviewer.

"Is this really a testimony? It feels more like an interrogation," Yuan remarked with a cold smile.

"You—"

"Not that I care." Yuan interrupted the interviewer and continued speaking, "Anyway, after I confronted them and they revealed their intentions, I decided to run away."

"Fortunately for me, my Void Control was superior, allowing me to barely escape them. However, I knew that I wouldn’t have enough energy to completely get away and return to the city safely, so I took a gamble and entered the Black Zone, hoping they wouldn’t chase after me."

"And sure enough, they gave up chasing me shortly after I entered the Black Zone. But alas, I was not familiar with the Black Zone and quickly became lost after trying to avoid getting killed by the Void Specters there."

"It was quite terrifying at first, but I eventually stopped running away and fought them, and to my surprise, they were easier to deal with than I expected, so I spent the next several months trying to find my way home and defeating every Void Specter in my path."

Yuan’s story left pretty much everyone present speechless.