Chapter 109: Chapter 20: Willful Quibbling
Inside a quiet, soundproof room in the Hunter’s Guild Building.
Four people sat facing each other in pairs, with a table between them.
The two examiners, a man and a woman, sitting opposite Yan Luo and Li Xinyue, occasionally glanced at them, feeling a great deal of pressure.
The staff of the Scarlet No. 2 Hunter’s Guild all knew that Yan Luo had an unparalleled grasp of the rules and regulations of the hunter profession, possibly understanding how to interpret them even better than those who created them.
If possible, it would be best not to let Yan Luo enter this place. The problem was that Yan Luo, as a ’witness,’ was participating in Li Xinyue’s hearing regarding the issues with her hunter license, and in this respect, they had no reason to expel him.
Yan Luo’s expression was calm, so much so that Li Xinyue had no worries about this hearing.
A few minutes later, the two examiners realized that silence and staring could not impose any psychological pressure on Li Xinyue, so they gave up on this method of applying pressure.
The male examiner spoke up: "Ms. Li Xinyue, we summoned you here today to confirm some issues regarding your hunter license. According to our review, your license has several problems, and you need to explain them to us."
Li Xinyue glanced at Yan Luo beside her, and seeing his calm demeanor, she relaxed and nodded, "What problems do you have? Feel free to ask."
Then, the female examiner asked, "We contacted the Celestial Sea University Military Academy, and according to a teacher from the Abyssal Hunting Program, we found your process of obtaining a [Hunter License] suspicious—did you personally hunt all three dangerous-level mutant creatures you captured when obtaining the license?"
"Yes!" Li Xinyue replied immediately, "I hunted under the supervision of Teacher Guo Haoming from the Abyssal Hunting Program at Celestial Sea University, and all three hunts are recorded in the university’s archives."
The male examiner said softly, "But to our knowledge, you used excessive armed force in your hunts."
Before he had finished speaking, the male examiner opened a video, projecting it into the air.
In the video, Li Xinyue held a sniper rifle, lying hidden in grass, with only the gun barrel and scope protruding.
When a mutant creature appeared in the scope, Li Xinyue pulled the trigger, shooting and killing the creature.
The video stopped there, and the male examiner looked at Li Xinyue, saying, "For a [Hunter License], a sniper rifle is considered excessive armed force, especially since you used 14.5 mm caliber sniper bullets. Such ammunition can easily kill not only dangerous-level mutant creatures but also lethal-level ones."
Li Xinyue was speechless and instinctively looked toward Yan Luo sitting beside her.
The two examiners followed her gaze, eagerly anticipating that Yan Luo would speak.
This matter had nothing to do with Yan Luo; he was not a ’witness.’ If he spoke now, it would be equivalent to disturbing the hearing, and they would have the right to expel him from the room.
But could they think of this and Yan Luo not?
His fingers moved slightly under the table, and the information transfer interface attached to his fingertip made contact with the back of Li Xinyue’s hand, transmitting a string of information to Li Xinyue’s visor through the interface on her hand.
Li Xinyue’s spirits lifted, and she smiled confidently, turning to look at the two examiners.
The examiners’ hearts sank.
It was obvious that Yan Luo had given Li Xinyue guidance, showing her how to resolve this issue.
But with the signal jammer activated, how did they communicate?
"I did use a shortcut to obtain my [Hunter License], but there are precedents for similar cases. My performance in the Abyss is enough to offset these doubts."
The two examiners fell into silence.
Of course, they knew such things happened before; after all, this was not particularly severe. Even if they wanted to use this to force Li Xinyue out of the hunter profession, they would not receive anyone’s support.
Fortunately, this was not their only plan; they had backup plans.
"Before this, did you know that a sniper rifle exceeds the weapon limits for obtaining a [Hunter License]?" the female examiner continued to ask.
Li Xinyue shook her head, "No, I didn’t."
The female examiner pressed, "Then when did you find out about this?"
"Before today." Li Xinyue lied through her teeth, "I specifically investigated to find a way through this hearing and discovered that the biggest issue might be that I took shortcuts when obtaining my [Hunter License]."
Of course, Li Xinyue couldn’t say she had just found out; otherwise, Yan Luo would be kicked out.
The two examiners remained silent, exchanging a glance.
Taking a deep breath, the male examiner said with some reluctance, "Ms. Li, we believe you committed violations during your hunter examination."
Upon hearing this, the corners of Li Xinyue’s mouth lifted, "Oh? Really? Can you tell me which part of my examination you believe was in violation?"
At this point, Yan Luo could speak.
"The practical exam," the male examiner said, "During your practical examination, while fighting the simulated demon, you may have used some method to cause the demon’s actions to malfunction. As for evidence—please watch the surveillance video."
"That’s the ability of the [Breeze] Engraving," Yan Luo said before the video began, "I was a candidate along with Li Xinyue, and I watched almost the entire practical examination process. I can determine that was the ability of the [Breeze] Engraving."
The examiners fell silent, staring at Yan Luo in disbelief.
Yan Luo continued, "As a friend of Li Xinyue’s, I am also a hunter who once fought alongside her to hunt a lethal-level demon. I have witnessed her combat skills. The video you are showing is insufficient to prove Li Xinyue cheated during the practical exam unless you can produce records showing modifications to the simulated demon’s chip."
Yan Luo all but said that the examiners were being unprofessional and ridiculously obstinate.
The two examiners were equally exasperated.
They felt like they were making a fuss, but they had no choice; it was an order from their superiors.
They knew Li Xinyue’s record had no issues, so they could only try to trick her into admitting a problem with her record.
But with Yan Luo sitting beside her, they had no way at all.
The male examiner discreetly tapped the table with his right index finger, then subtly raised it to point upwards.
Yan Luo noticed and put his right hand on the table, extending three fingers.
The English word ’three,’ sounding like ’who.’
The male examiner clenched his fist, leaving only his thumb visible.
Seeing this, Yan Luo raised an eyebrow.
The male examiner did not wish to oppose them and acted this way to indicate he was merely following orders from his superior and did not actually intend to clash with them.
Yan Luo understood this; the examiner’s visible thumb represented the person targeting Li Xinyue as their immediate superior, the president of the Scarlet No. 2 Hunter’s Guild.
Why would Daoist Li target Li Xinyue without any reason? They held no grudge against each other.
"Alright, Ms. Li, the hearing is over. Thank you for your cooperation."
The male examiner stood up and shook hands with Li Xinyue in reconciliation.
His actions took the female examiner by surprise, but after a couple of seconds of hesitation, she also stood up and shook hands with Li Xinyue.
Given the current situation, they had no way to frame Li Xinyue. It was better to end it this way to avoid wasting everyone’s time.
Li Xinyue left the interrogation room with Yan Luo, still somewhat perplexed, looking back once as they exited the building.
"What kind of charades were you playing just now?" Li Xinyue asked Yan Luo.
Despite Yan Luo and the male examiner’s stealthy actions, Li Xinyue had noticed their little gestures.
When asked, Yan Luo glanced around at the cameras, pursed his lips, and spoke with a vague voice from his throat: "He told me who’s targeting you."
Li Xinyue paused, trying to understand what Yan Luo was saying, and couldn’t help asking, "Who?"
"Daoist Li." Yan Luo directly stated the name and then questioned, "Do you have any conflict with Daoist Li?"
Isn’t that the guild president?
Li Xinyue seemed utterly confused by this, shaking her head slightly, "No..."
How strange. Why would Daoist Li target her?