Chapter 22: Special Department

The man appeared to be quite young, dressed in a dark gray combat suit with a worn mercenary badge pinned to his collar. He had light wheat-colored skin and a sturdy, muscular frame. A faint, thin scar traced a path from behind his ear down to his collarbone.

Xu Rui remained where she was, watching them with a wary gaze. After the ordeal with that couple, she no longer trusted any human being.

The man smiled, his handsome face revealing a hint of youthful, defiant rebelliousness. "Use your eyes and look—see if we are Zergs."

Xu Rui's pupils shifted to red once more, and the world in her vision turned a deep crimson. Through her night-vision lens, the three human skeletons were clearly visible.

Xu Rui let out a sigh of relief, her voice raspy. "You are human."

The man laughed. "Come on up. While we don't necessarily need to wear protective gear, the air here still makes us uncomfortable."

Xu Rui nodded and took a shaky step forward.

Outside in the plaza, the crowd finally realized where the sense of dissonance had come from. Neither Xu Rui nor the man were wearing protective suits; their skin was completely exposed to the atmosphere. Those who had looked up the data on this planet exclaimed in shock.

"The oxygen content on this planet is extremely low. It's completely unsuitable for human survival; you'd suffocate in minutes."

"And yet, Xu Rui has been here for seven days!"

"No wonder there isn't a single plant on the surface."

Once Xu Rui entered the ship, the man led her through a decontamination zone and conducted a comprehensive physical examination before providing her with food and water. Famished, Xu Rui drank her nutrient solution while watching through the window as several people in protective suits gathered data in the ruins. They were lifting Sana's body from the debris.

The man stood beside her, holding a tablet to review the scanned data. "My rank in the organization is eleven; you can just call me Eleven. Like you, I am an SSSS-rank gene carrier, which is why we can move freely on such a barren planet with such low oxygen levels."

Xu Rui's eyes suddenly lit up. "You can see those Zergs, too?"

Eleven nodded. "Yes. It seems that only those of us with sufficiently powerful genes—the elite among humans—can perceive them." He added, "Rest for a moment. I’ll use the data they’ve sent over to simulate the appearance of the Zergs."

Xu Rui leaned in close, watching his fingers fly across the screen with dazzling speed. Though her spirit was exhausted, she had to keep her guard up in a place filled with strangers.

There were seven people on the ship, along with two robots, each with their own specialized roles. Since boarding, she hadn't seen anyone else, remaining only with Eleven in the lounge. Eleven used the screen to communicate with those outside, asking them for specific details. Once they finished gathering data, Eleven successfully reconstructed the original forms of the two Zergs.

He projected the forms. "Take a look. Are these the two creatures you saw?"

Xu Rui observed them carefully and nodded. "That's them."

"They’re becoming increasingly professional; the data they’ve collected is very accurate." Eleven smiled as he sent a message back. Having done that, he stretched his shoulders and gave her a raised-brow grin. "Now, allow me to introduce our organization. We are the Special Division!"

A wave of whispers broke out in the plaza. No one had ever heard of this organization. Over the years, many private groups had cropped up, claiming to be established to counter the Zergs and fight for human survival, but most were just after money. They would extort funds from wealthy merchants and then quickly vanish. A few had truly fought for humanity and received honors from the Imperial family.

"The name of this organization is so sloppy. Xu Rui must have been conned."

"First she was brutalized by two bugs, and now she’s being swindled by this group. No wonder she might turn dark."

"Xu Rui has been locked in that lounge since she arrived and isn't allowed to leave. Just from that, you can tell this organization isn't professional."

Xu Rui murmured blankly, "Special Division? What is that?"

Eleven manipulated his screen, initiating a call and waiting for it to be answered. "I’ll let the leader explain it to you personally."

The connection was established, and an image appeared. The man had a very short black crew cut, a sharp, chiseled jawline, and a dusting of stubble, giving him an icy and rigid aura. Upon seeing him, First Commander Shi Qiyuan’s pupils constricted violently. His nostrils flared, and he pressed his lips into a thin line, remaining silent.

The man said, "Hello, Miss. I am the acting leader of the Special Division, codenamed 'Sword Edge'."

"Since Eleven has already contacted me, I will provide you with a brief introduction to our organization."

"You have likely discovered that there are Zergs among humans capable of completely replacing them."

"They are extremely stealthy. They devour their hosts and gain all of their memories. As long as they wish to hide, ordinary people cannot detect them."

"More importantly, we have confirmed that with current human technology, they cannot be detected by scanning equipment."

"We have already eliminated several such Zergs."

Sword Edge tapped his screen, and several small windows popped up. Each showed footage of Zergs disguised as humans committing assassinations.

Sword Edge continued, "Before receiving your signal, we had already identified seventeen of these creatures. They were hiding among the population, disguised as humans, and were systematically assassinating people who had made significant contributions to humanity."

With a wave of his hand, news reports appeared on the smaller screens.

*A certain scientist found dead in his home by suicide.*
*A certain mechanical engineer died in an accidental bomb explosion during research.*
*A certain general died after falling off a cliff during training...*

The massive screen magnified these news reports for everyone in the plaza to see clearly.

"No way! These news reports are all real!"
"These are from over twenty years ago!"
"Weren't these all just accidents? Things like this happen every year."

Sword Edge went on, "Although many claimed these were accidents, I sensed something was wrong. The rate of such accidents in recent years was three hundred and fifty times higher than in previous years."

"I arranged for an investigation, and sure enough, we found the truth. It was a 3S-rank gene warrior who first discovered the existence of the Zergs."

"According to our investigation, these Zergs are purposeful. They target and replace our leaders and people of exceptional contribution. Our 'Special Division' was founded specifically to deal with this situation."

"Currently, only 3S and 4S gene warriors can see through the Zerg disguises, and they cannot be devoured by them. Your genes are too powerful for the Zergs to replicate. This is the primary reason I have gathered all of you together."