"If anyone is unclear about the aforementioned situation, you may speak up and ask questions now. The leadership will issue precise action instructions within three days at most after the meeting concludes."
The Zodiac Pig looked intently at the leaders attending the meeting through virtual projections at the front row.
A few of them nodded slightly in response.
It must be said, the task of eradicating the "Promised Land" back then was led by the Zodiac Pig for a reason.
He managed to convince the leadership to hold this meeting within just one night, which is a testament to his capability.
However, as soon as he finished speaking, people behind him started raising their hands to ask questions, almost half at a glance.
The Zodiac Pig picked one of them to speak.
This was a bespectacled person with a very scholarly appearance, a rare talent with Awakened Ability in data analysis, serving as a strategist in the team.
"Hello, I would like to ask, according to the report, the final results and cause determination of the 'Pioneer' incident were completed solely by the Monkey, meaning that no one else can verify whether the consciousness avatars have been completely eradicated. Wouldn't it be too arbitrary to take this as a precondition in our next actions?"
"Is the information he provided truly reliable?"
"Or rather, if the leaders are willing to trust his judgment so much, would it be possible to disclose this Zodiac member's identity so that we can also be convinced?"
The question immediately pointed to Wu Liang, who was yawning and wearing a mask, his mind preoccupied with what he would have for lunch later.
Upon hearing this statement, most of those who had just raised their hands quietly withdrew them.
This was also the question they wanted to ask—
What is the true identity of the Monkey?
It's just that the bespectacled man raised this question in a more ingenious way.
After all, his questioning was reasonable, but answering this question inevitably involves revealing the true identity of the Monkey.
"Ahem, let me express my thoughts on this."
Just as the Zodiac Pig was frowning, contemplating how to answer the question without exposing the Shadow's identity, Wu Liang spoke up.
Everyone turned their gaze to him, hoping for satisfactory identity information to be revealed.
Instead, he put away his earlier nonchalant demeanor, stood tall like a pine tree, and answered powerfully, "You all heard the report from the Zodiac Pig just now. I don't know how many of you can understand the dangers of 'Pioneer' consciousness infiltration. Let me describe it in detail."
With that said, Wu Liang pointed to the bespectacled man and continued in a calm tone:
"You are an analyst in the Supernatural Handling Team Two headquarters. Within a year, three members of your team were recruited from civilians, including your girlfriend, who you are currently dating. Imagine them suddenly getting their consciousness seized to stab you in the back when you're least on guard."
As the bespectacled man's expression gradually grew more serious, Wu Liang remained unfazed. ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ NoveI~Fire.net
He continued to point to another woman who had just raised her hand, his tone unchanged:
"You are the captain of Investigation Team Three, the only team with all female members, with approximately ten civilians among them. Imagine how terrifying it would be if the information provided by your teammates at a critical moment was entirely false?"
The suddenly pointed out female captain wanted to say something but chose to remain silent after opening her mouth slightly.
She carefully considered the scenario described by the Monkey, and indeed, it made her shiver with unease.
But this was not over yet; the Monkey, wearing a "Sun Wukong" mask and looking somewhat comical, began pointing at the people seated one by one.
"You are a Symbiont with no specific department, but think about your eight-year-old son..."
"You are the overall commander of the Aftermath Unit Team One, with almost all subordinates being ordinary people..."
"You are the head of network security in the technical department, unfortunately not an Awakened..."
"You are an investigator monitoring the movement of civilian Awakened individuals, with almost all informants being Awakened from various civilian organizations..."
For the next fifteen minutes, Wu Liang spoke in a voice akin to a news broadcast.
He described the current situation of everyone who had raised their hands earlier and the consequences if some people around them, or even themselves, were infiltrated by 'Pioneer' consciousness.
These people went from being silent at the start to gradually feeling greatly shocked, and eventually most of them showed a trace of fear in their eyes due to the Monkey's vast information repository reminiscent of an archive room.
Wu Liang suddenly slammed the table in front of him, the loud noise startling everyone deep in the scenes he had just painted.
He then said, with a trace of anger intertwined in his voice, "Have you realized? If the 'Pioneer' plan truly succeeds, you will all have unreliable and dangerous people around you! Even if they are the ones closest to you!"
"In moments when trust crises could erupt at any time, what bullshit about true or reliable judgment are you bringing up with me?!"
At this moment, Wu Liang's voice was as terrifying as a roaring Hellish Evil Ghost.
But in the next second, his tone turned just and upright, his presence as commanding as a general inspiring troops before battle, as he delivered his final remarks with great authority:
"So, I implore all my brothers and sisters, in such critical times, to place complete trust in your comrades! The special nature of my identity makes it inconvenient to disclose, but it does not mean my beliefs differ from yours!"
"Please believe in my judgment and capability! Fellow comrades!"
After saying that, Wu Liang casually tossed the microphone back to the Zodiac Pig, whose jaw had dropped in shock, utterly speechless and unable to respond at all.
As he sat back in his chair, the first crisp sound of clapping came from Fu Juan's hands.
Soon after, a tidal wave of applause accompanied Fu Juan's vigorous enthusiasm.
In an instant, no one questioned the appearance of this Monkey as if they were parachuted leaders anymore.
They also realized that without the previous hard-fought battle with the 'Pioneer,' they might already be in a state of utter suspicion and anxiety!
The bespectacled man took a deep breath, adjusting his glasses on the bridge of his nose, and declared confidently, "I apologize, comrade Monkey, I apologize for my earlier doubts. You are right; at times , maintaining trust in our companions is what's most important."
Seeing this once stubborn mule-like person bowing his head to apologize, the Zodiac Pig was left utterly numb.
He turned to look at the Shadow beside him, suddenly feeling like he didn't recognize the man anymore.
Slipping the microphone aside, he whispered to Wu Liang, "Kid, were you involved in pyramid schemes before? It's my first time seeing this group of people not arguing during a meeting!"
"Haha, maybe it's due to personal charisma; after all, your scruffy beard doesn't quite give you the appearance of a bona fide person," Wu Liang joked.
When he was informed by Professor Guo earlier in the morning that he would attend the meeting as the Monkey, he had already anticipated that some would question his identity.
This is actually quite normal; there isn't really any internal backstabbing issue.
If you were a senior employee in a company, overseeing an important project for years, and suddenly an unknown person parachutes in and takes over the project, and the leaders shower him with praise—
You might also feel somewhat unbalanced; it's just human nature.
So Wu Liang temporarily scrutinized all the participants' information from the archive room.
Of course, memorizing all that information in such a short time would be wishful thinking.
Therefore, he stored all the data on the computer in his room.
Nightmare was hidden in the room earlier, flipping through the information while complaining, pointing out people one after another through the consciousness of the Ghost Compendium, transmitting the information to him.
The final thought Nightmare transmitted was—
Boss, next time, I demand to split two more Fierce Ghost Fragments...