Chapter 26: Questioning and Passive Answering

YangZicang walked while experiencing the information about “Gravitational Space.”
[Gravitational Arc Light, Position Detection.]
With a mere thought, the location of the spear faintly appeared in his mind.
This ability wasn’t just about storage and retrieval; above all, it let him remotely store any weapon into the space, regardless of where it was.
Just this alone is envied by countless people, as it means this spear cannot truly be taken away—unless he himself dies.
Moreover, besides summoning the weapon directly into his palm, the Gravity Space can also be manifested within a certain range, making the gun appear.
However, for now, apart from the nine years of life he had just invested, he had no extra sequence left to increase the summoning range. The next investment would require ninety-nine years.
“There’s a rest area up ahead; we call it the anteroom.”
“We?”
“I’m back! I’ve brought a big shot back, hahahaha!” As Luo Bin shouted, several flashlight beams lit up in the dark space ahead.
A dozen or so ragged-looking elderly and frail people crowded around in a disorderly manner.
“Luo Bin, who is this?”
“Is this the person you found who can help us get through?”
“Hello, are you someone who can make a paraglider?”
“No, I’m not.”
At his reply, these people immediately shifted their attitude toward him. The way they looked at Luo Bin also became filled with distrust.
Yang Zicang leaned a step closer to Luo Bin, raised the back of his hand to block his mouth, and whispered, “Is this your so-called ‘solitary life’?”
“They’re just staying temporarily.”
Luo Bin cleared his throat and gestured for everyone to calm down.
Listening to their chaotic chatter, Yang Zicang mostly pieced together what was happening—these people wanted to get from one place to another. So was this why he had been chosen? Because he could accelerate and alter trajectories?
“Ah, that guy. Hey, you’re not dead?”
Just as the group shifted from greetings to murmurs, a young man walked out from behind the crowd.
“Yu’an, who is he?”
Among the old, sick, and disabled, a few still didn’t know who he was even after being prompted. Yang Zicang couldn’t help but curiously look at these elderly people. Could it be that they hadn’t yet conceived their models or received the financing images spreading everywhere?
“Ha! Y’all just discussed who was responsible for the regional disaster that happened a while ago, right? That’s right! It was him!”
The man opposite Luo Bin pointed at Yang Zicang.
“Wang Yu’an!” Luo Bin stared at him with a cold tone.
The crowd immediately burst into an uproar.
“Yelling at me? Damn, what the hell did you bring this guy here for? He nearly just died in a B-level nest not long ago!” Wang Yu’an yelled.
More people came over from behind; here, nearly twenty people were gathered.
“Alright, stop it. I said before, this man is the one I invited back,” Luo Bin cut them off.
“Bin, we trusted you and paid a hefty fee to handle this jobsite. What do you mean by bringing him here?” Someone from the crowd asked.
“Actually, stretching the time out for a few days might not be a bad thing.”
A seventeen or eighteen-year-old boy in the corner carried a black sword strapped on his back, sitting on a crate as he said, “Mr. Wang, let’s hear Luo Bin’s brother’s thoughts first before we discuss whether to continue this contract.”
Seeing this young man speak, Wang Yu’an finally stopped arguing and walked back with a cold snort.
Contract, hire…
Yang Zicang’s mind stirred—this was Luo Bin’s current job.
Luo Bin led the young man toward a wooden door ahead, beyond which lay a short path.
After closing the door, Yang Zicang chuckled.
“Are you handling this group of guests on your own?”
“Hoho, pretty sharp, kid. Don’t worry. There was an unexpected situation today—my other partner is still out gathering information and won’t be back for the next couple of days.”
Meaning he’s facing the pair alone.
leading the way, Luo Bin paid no mind to Yang Zicang walking behind him. This casual and unguarded demeanor felt to Yang Zicang like being back in the civilized society of Earth. He hadn’t realized when such an atmosphere had become a luxury.
Beyond the alleyway of less than seven meters was a slightly smaller hall.
In the hall, various wooden boxes of different sizes served as tables and stools. Stuck into the walls were several wooden sticks bound with magic stones, emitting a faint glow. The air was a bit damp.
“So? No danger, right?” Luo Bin patted a wooden box, sitting down with his somewhat stout figure casually.
He lifted a wooden lid and pulled out a few loaves of bread, bottles of water, and other supplies.
“And that contest right now is pretty terrifying! With monsters as contributors, strange supernatural ones too. Or maybe I am surviving because of a paradox.”
Yang Zicang had learned from Liang Xi what happened during the fight with the ratmen and smiled. “So, that’s when you started keeping an eye on me.”
“N No, not me—it was my partner who recommended you. Otherwise, I wouldn’t let anyone I’d just met get this close.”
Luo Bin lied, then pried open a can of beer.
“He stayed near Zuoming Street all through last night.”
Saying this, Luo Bin asked, “Your acceleration ability isn’t limited to just one person, right?”
“Of course not.”
“Good.” Luo Bin smiled and pushed a folded piece of letter paper over.
Yang Zicang glanced at him, then unfolded the paper.
—Name: Yang Zicang, height about 180 cm, athletic build, age approximately 18-21.
—Personality: Cautious, rational, prone to impulsiveness and irritability (highly likely influenced by the model)… has a certain degree of empathy, carries a slightly above-average sense of justice.
—Model Ability: Long-range temporal strike. Note: less than 30 meters… acceleration, trajectory alteration, and applicable to up to two individuals simultaneously… suspected wind-field ability (to be determined)…
—Estimated to have attained temporal attributes on the first day with over a millennium, likely qualified for consciousness training. Update note: Acquired additional ability today, confirmed to be a long-range jump skill gained from the consciousness space…
—Target changed to ordinary shoes and jacket on the second day, removed earrings, and does not wear a watch or carry a phone; he seems to know certain basic information, inferred from this that he received a warning.
—Area of activity is…
Yang Zicang gasped sharply: “What does this mean? You’re tailing me?”
“That’s right, you’ve been under watch the whole day, but not just by my friend.”
For someone facing this for the first time, it’s hard not to be angry. But the man in front of him had an unknown amount of time sequence, and outside, there were all those people threatening him.
Yang Zicang sensed his gravitic space ability; as long as he was willing, the long spear could appear at any time.
Luo Bin placed his half-empty can of beer on the wooden crate, smiling at Yang Zicang, who didn’t look too happy: “Don’t get worked up. I have thousands of similar files here, but I won’t show them to you, heh heh.”
“If it weren’t for the fact that I still owe you thirteen hundred years of temporal sequence.”
Yang Zicang crushed the beer can in his hand with a screech, spilling beer everywhere.
“In this world, isn’t gathering intelligence the most correct thing to do?”
Yang Zicang wished he could punch him.
“Alright, fine, I’ll be more careful next time. Careful not to let you notice.”
Watching the offered bag of barbecue-flavored potato chips, Yang Zicang angrily tore open the packaging and glanced inside.
“When you’re under someone’s roof…”
The experiences of the past two days had left him mentally unstable, and just holding back now was the best he could do.
“So, no issues with these materials?” Luo Bin looked at Yang Zicang across the wooden crate.
“Mostly no issues. Why do you even have these things?”
“Ah, you’ll understand once you manage to stabilize a Crimson-Moon-level intersecting space.”
Luo Bin smacked his lips, waited about two seconds, and then whispered with a grin: “Is your streamlined spatial ability a model ability?”
“No.” Yang Zicang answered reflexively.
The word had barely left his throat before he realized it, but he still blurted it out.
“You’re using your ability again!” This time, Yang Zicang was genuinely furious.
But the other party was unshaken.
Frustrated, Yang Zicang felt an internal injury deeper than the skin beneath his chest. Now, it was he who was in danger. But in this world, it was no longer possible to dream of a comfortable life free from risk.
Serves you right for getting your head cracked open, Yang Zicang thought maliciously.
Luo Bin looked smilingly at Yang Zicang, whose expression shifted several times.
“Seems like their evaluation of you was a bit off, huh? Heh, wind-field ability—you almost fooled even me with that.”
“Ha~”
“So at that time, you weren’t using your wind-field ability. But what was it? Some extra skill or item?”
After two seconds, Luo Bin frowned slightly, as if he had come up with an additional guess.
Yang Zicang suppressed the urge to answer, staring into the middle-aged man’s eyes.
“What are you doing? Investigating my model ability?”
Luo Bin paused briefly, then chuckled:
“Whoa, I was too obvious about it. To be honest, since I got this model, I’ve regressed a lot over the years. I rely on it too much. Most people answer when asked, so I’ve lost the habit of beating around the bush in investigations.”
“Investigation?”
“My model came from the interrogation room. You should know what that means by now. Don’t worry, I’m not a bad guy.”