My Avatar is Becoming the Ultimate BOSS-Chapter 226 - 148: Joining the Squad, Su Ying, and No. 4

"The other new member the leader found... couldn’t be that ’Black Cocoon,’ right? I just heard that Black Cocoon also returned to Li Jing, and I just came across surveillance footage of him and Swallowing Silver dueling one-on-one."

As Xia Pingzhou finished speaking, the other members’ gazes immediately landed on him. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

The entire booth fell silent for a moment. Except for Bernardo and Bai Tanlang, who were unaware, it seemed no one else was eager to recall that lunatic hopping around and singing at the auction house.

Seeing them remain silent, Xia Pingzhou continued, "Since the leader specifically went to Li Jing, I think this possibility is quite high. Didn’t the leader also say before that he was very interested in Black Cocoon’s abilities?"

With his words hanging in the air, the group of members in the booth, including Ayase Origami, replied in unison, decisively:

"Impossible."

"Who is Black Cocoon?" Bernardo asked. By this time, he finally assumed the demeanor expected of a newcomer, not understanding things everyone else was already aware of.

Bai Tanlang crossed his arms and said coldly, "I heard he’s a rather peculiar small fry. I was dueling with the Red Dragon at the time and didn’t notice such a person."

Bloodline smiled and said, "But, despite saying that, given the leader’s personality, he might really let him join."

"I think what Brother Xia and Vampire lady said is unlikely," Andrew rubbed his temples, "Hmm... The leader has always been cautious. Black Cocoon has already teamed up with those chaotic Mutants. If he joins the brigade, it’s likely to be as an undercover agent."

"If he joins... I quit." Ayase Origami said while flipping through a haiku collection.

"Why?" Xia Pingzhou asked.

"Hate black moths."

Xia Pingzhou turned his head, giving her an annoyed look, thinking to himself that if she knew the black moth she’s referring to is actually him, wouldn’t she have an existential crisis?

But more than this, Ji Minghuan thought that if Ayase Origami knew his true form is only twelve years old and is currently being held in a lab for research, her reaction would surely be interesting. She might even actually start treating him like a pet cat.

Nonetheless, Ji Minghuan planned to vanish without a trace and temporarily retrieve all entities after rescuing the true form from the Salvation Society, to travel the world with Kong Youling.

Therefore, he wasn’t worried about how the social connections these entities made would perceive him. Even if Ayase Origami, joined by Su Zimai and Gu Qiye’s family, searched the world for him, Ji Minghuan had full confidence that they wouldn’t find him.

Because once he broke free from the Salvation Society’s control, he would become an unstoppable existence, and the only one in the world capable of capturing him would be himself.

Of course... taking a step back, assuming they do find him, he might just take them along for the world tour. Anyway, Kong Youling wouldn’t mind bringing one or two more people on their journey.

Bernardo shook his head, his voice pulling Xia Pingzhou back to reality, "It’s a pity, I originally had something important to mention to the leader... but since he’s in China, it’ll have to wait for now."

"What’s the matter?" Jack the Ripper asked expressionlessly, "You can just relay it to him through the hacker."

"Hacker?" Bernardo glanced sideways.

Xia Pingzhou explained, "Our member number 8, a genius from China, considered one of the world’s strongest hackers, so his codename within the brigade is ’Hacker.’"

"I see..." Bernardo murmured, raising his head to smile, the corners of his eyes wrinkling like fish scales, "So how do I contact this Hacker?"

Right after he spoke, the phone in his pocket suddenly rang, emitting a "beep beep" sound.

Bernardo took out his phone and saw a message pop up on the lock screen.

[Hacker: Looking for me?]

Apart from the newcomer, every member present understood the whimsical nature of the Hacker. It was an unspoken rule within the White Crow Travel Brigade that every new member would have to endure a couple of trials:

The first was to hand over their heart to Jack the Ripper for a while to ensure they weren’t a traitor;

The second was the hidden rule, that the Hacker would monitor your phone 24/7, with every text you send and every website you visit recorded in his eyes.

At the same time, the Hacker would also use the phone’s camera and microphone function to listen to your every move, something Xia Pingzhou had gone through before.

Bernardo glanced at the message, then looked around at the members in the booth, and finally smiled and said, "So this is the Hacker you were talking about?"

"Of course," Jack the Ripper girl said, "Aside from the Hacker, it’s basically impossible to contact any member during downtime. You can have him relay your message to the leader."

"I understand."

Bernardo raised his single-sided mirror, looking at the phone screen through the lens.

Xia Pingzhou quietly observed him from the corner of his eye, thinking, "Around this time, he should bring up the plan to infiltrate the Whale Terrarium to the leader. I need to wait for Bernardo to speak first, then have Black Cocoon negotiate with the leader. Otherwise, just with words, it’s hard to convince the leader my words are true."

"By the way, newcomer, this is a gift from the leader for you, for me to hand over." Jack the Ripper spoke, as a dark crow suddenly appeared on the back of her right hand.

"A crow?" Bernardo raised an eyebrow.

Just after he finished speaking, the dark crow flapped its wings, slowly flying onto Bernardo’s shoulder.

He tilted his head, looking at the crow with confusion.

"The entry mark," Jack the Ripper said expressionlessly, "Everyone has one, unlike someone who intentionally tattooed it in a conspicuous place." As she spoke, she gave a signal with her eyes towards Xia Pingzhou.

Following Jack the Ripper’s gaze, Bernardo looked over to where Xia Pingzhou was sitting across from him.

Xia Pingzhou sighed, quietly taking off the glove on his right hand, revealing a crow tattoo - a black crow illustration, with a red number "12," and a white cross through the design.

He said, "Choose a location."

....

...

A few hours ago, in China Li Jing, on the rooftop of an abandoned school.

The night was like a curtain, dark clouds pressed down on the city, yet they couldn’t dim the bright neon lights.

Urushibara Osamu wore a black turtleneck coat, leaning against the railing, quietly observing the brightly lit city with a side glance. After a while, he took out a phone from his coat pocket, opening a video sent by the Hacker.

[Hacker: The person you wanted me to find, he’s already back in China, just had a one-on-one with a Mutant.]

Urushibara Osamu lowered his eyes, seeing the video showcasing a street surveillance camera’s perspective.

A black figure extended a restraint belt, using the tensioned restraint belt like a spring to propel himself.

Then his whole body suddenly exploded in a blaze of deep blue electrical light, the light flowed through every restraint belt rising behind him, attacking the enemy like electrified jellyfish tentacles.

[Hacker: Invisibility ability... suppression of superpowers... stealing superpowers, and possibly some intelligence-gathering ability, not only that, his restraint belt is evolving, already developing blades.]

[Hacker: Bringing him into the brigade would indeed be a great choice, capable of helping us defeat many troublesome opponents. But leader, do you really think someone as erratic as him can be trusted?]

[Hacker: No one knows what he wants.]

[Urushibara Osamu: The person I’m looking for isn’t him. But coming here is also to make contact with him and uncover his secrets.]

[Hacker: Huh? I thought the new member you mentioned was this Black Cocoon?]

[Urushibara Osamu: She’s arrived.]

After sending the message, Urushibara Osamu slowly raised his eyes from the phone, turning around with deep, profound eyes looking ahead.

The iron door to the rooftop was opened from the inside, followed by a tall figure slowly emerging from the shadows. She wore a long black coat, glasses, and had slightly curled black short hair.

"Hello, I’m the new member replacing position 4. You can call me ’Su Ying.’ Of course, I have another name..." She paused, "’Faceless Ghost.’"