Blind Box World - SSS-Rank Eye of Truth

The black wooden ship continued drifting through the green sky.

Xue Ji stood beside the railing, watching the three figures gradually shrink into tiny dots in the distance. Laira held Ruo Yan in her arms, while Ethan stood on her back. Her dragon wings spread wide, carrying all three of them away from the ship without looking back a second time.

Only after they had completely vanished behind the pyramids of bone did Xue Ji slowly withdraw her gaze.

She turned around.

The people remaining on the deck were still standing exactly where they had been. No one dared to speak. The young man who had just questioned Ethan lowered his head. His eyes were still red, but the anger from before had been replaced by unease.

Xue Ji looked at them one by one.

"Stand up straight."

Her voice was not loud.

But everyone immediately obeyed.

Even the older subordinates did not dare hesitate. They had followed Xue Ji long enough to understand that her current icy expression was even more dangerous than when she was openly furious.

Xue Ji looked at the young man before her.

"Your name is Kian, correct?"

Kian nodded slightly.

Kian replied: "Yes, City Lord."

Xue Ji asked: "Do you believe Ethan could have saved Rin and Tolan?"

Kian clenched both hands.

Kian replied: "He is very powerful. If he had acted sooner..."

Xue Ji interrupted: "I did not ask whether he was powerful. I asked whether he could have guaranteed that he would save both of them."

Kian fell silent.

None of them could answer.

When the puppet swarm attacked, the entire area had descended into chaos. The ship had been damaged, Xue Ji had been held back by the four-armed puppet, and the remaining youths had been driven back again and again. Ethan had been high above them, but he was not a god capable of appearing everywhere at once.

Xue Ji continued asking: "Do you know how long he had been standing up there?"

Kian shook his head.

"Do you know what he was doing?"

Kian still could not answer.

Xue Ji said: "Perhaps he was observing. Perhaps he was searching for a weakness. Perhaps he was considering whether he should reveal his strength. Or perhaps he simply did not want to risk his life for a group of people he had known for less than a day."

She looked straight at Kian.

"Whatever the reason, he owed none of you anything."

Kian’s body trembled slightly.

Kian said: "But Rin and Tolan are dead."

"I know."

Xue Ji’s voice grew deeper.

She was the one who had brought these youths into the challenge space. She was also the one who had assured them that she could protect them. Those two deaths did not weigh only on the friends who had survived. They weighed on her as well.

However, she would not allow their grief to become a blade aimed at an innocent person.

Xue Ji said: "Rin and Tolan died during a mission under my command. If someone must be held responsible, then I should be the first."

Kian hurriedly raised his head.

"City Lord, that was not what I meant."

Xue Ji replied: "Of course it was not. You do not dare blame me, so you chose to blame an outsider."

Kian’s face turned pale.

The people around him also lowered their heads.

Xue Ji did not stop.

"You saw that Ethan was stronger than you. You saw that he survived while two of your friends died. So a very simple thought appeared in your mind. If he was that powerful, then he should have saved everyone."

She walked up to Kian.

"But on what grounds?"

Kian opened his mouth, yet no sound came out.

"Because he was stronger than you? Because he might have been capable of doing it? Or simply because you wanted someone else to carry the burden of your helplessness?"

The deck was completely silent.

Xue Ji looked toward the others.

"You thought the same thing, did you not?"

No one spoke.

But their silence was already an answer.

Xue Ji let out a quiet laugh.

There was no joy in it.

"Ethan saved all of you today. He did not ask for crystals, did not demand any items, and did not force anyone to repay him. Yet the moment he turned his back, you began blaming him for not saving more people."

A middle-aged subordinate finally gathered the courage to speak.

"The subordinate said: My Lady, everyone has just lost their companions, so their emotions are unstable. Please do not judge them too harshly."

Xue Ji turned to look at him.

"You are asking me to be understanding toward them?"

The man hurriedly lowered his head.

The subordinate replied: "Yes."

Xue Ji asked: "Then when two of our people tried to drug a guest with Soul-Bewitching Incense and rob him, why did you not ask them to be understanding toward Ethan?"

The man stiffened.

Xue Ji continued: "Those two said they had done it many times before. I refuse to believe that no one aboard this ship knew."

Several people’s expressions immediately changed.

She saw every reaction.

"Some participated directly. Some stood watch. Some took a share. Others received nothing but still remained silent because the person being robbed was merely a guest catching a ride and had nothing to do with them."

Xue Ji slowly walked past each person.

"I gave you shelter. I gave you resources. I gave you the right to use this ship to enter hunting grounds ordinary people could never reach. I did so because I believed you were people of Silver Moon City, people who could help me build a place different from the Safe Zones outside."

Her gaze gradually grew colder.

"But it appears I have been far too generous."

Someone hurriedly said: "My Lady, only a small number of people were responsible for this."

Xue Ji nodded.

"Correct. That is why I will not punish everyone equally."

Quite a few people secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

But her next words immediately made them tense again.

"Starting today, the entire resource distribution system aboard this ship and within Silver Moon City will be reviewed."

Xue Ji raised one finger.

"First, basic survival rations will remain unchanged. I will not allow anyone to starve merely because they are weaker than others."

She raised a second finger.

"Second, cultivation crystals, high-grade medicines, equipment, and the right to enter hunting grounds will no longer be distributed equally. Everything will be determined by contribution, discipline, and the level of danger each person truly bears."

Several people unconsciously clenched their fists.

In the past, Xue Ji had distributed most resources relatively fairly. The strong received a little more, but those who were weak or incapable of fighting were still given a considerable portion so they could grow.

That approach had earned her the loyalty of many.

But it had also caused some people to grow accustomed to receiving without paying a price.

Xue Ji raised a third finger.

"Third, anyone who knew about the robberies targeting passengers but deliberately concealed them will have half their resources cut for three months. The deducted portion will be transferred into a compensation and recruit training fund."

One subordinate could no longer hold himself back.

"The subordinate said: My Lady, we have risked our lives for the city. Is cutting half our resources merely because we remained silent about one minor incident not too severe?"

Xue Ji stopped in front of him.

"A minor incident?"

The man immediately regretted speaking.

Xue Ji asked: "If Ethan had not remained alert, if Laira had truly been incapacitated by the Soul-Bewitching Incense, what do you think would have happened?"

No one answered.

"Those two would have searched through their belongings. If Ethan woke up halfway through, what would they have done? Apologized and walked away? Or killed him to silence him?"

The man lowered his head even further.

Xue Ji said: "Corruption does not begin with murder. It begins when everyone agrees that a little robbery is not worth speaking out against."

She turned around.

"I know you are unhappy with this decision."

Many people’s expressions changed, but none dared object.

"Then be unhappy."

Xue Ji said coldly: "I do not need you to be pleased. I only need you to remember that the resources in your hands did not fall from the sky. For every crystal you receive, someone must enter a dangerous place to obtain it. Anyone who wants more must prove that they deserve it."

She looked at the five surviving youths.

"As for you."

Kian and the other four immediately stood straight.

"I will not reduce your basic resources. However, for the next month, all supplementary cultivation resources will be temporarily frozen. You will undergo psychological training, retreat tactics, and formation coordination exercises."

Kian bit his lip.

Kian asked: "Is it because of what I said?"

"No."

Xue Ji answered immediately.

"Two people died in your team, yet all you know how to do is find someone else to blame. If you continue carrying that mentality onto the battlefield, more people will die next time."

She paused for a moment.

"Rin and Tolan were your friends. Do not use their names as chains to bind someone who saved your lives."

Tears welled up in Kian’s eyes again.

But this time, he did not shout.

He bowed his head deeply.

"Kian said: I understand."

Xue Ji did not know whether he truly understood or was merely submitting to her authority. But at the very least, the seed had been planted.

The rest would require time.

She turned to the person responsible for logistics.

"Xue Ji ordered: Inspect every distribution record from the past six months. Record everyone who accompanied the two prisoners, everyone who received items of unknown origin, and everyone who concealed the truth."

The person in charge of logistics immediately replied: "Yes, My Lady."

"Inspect your own people as well."

The man froze.

Then he lowered his head even further.

"This subordinate understands."

Xue Ji waved her hand.

"Dismissed. Repair the ship, then continue onward. We are still inside the challenge space. Do not assume the danger has ended."

Everyone quickly left the deck.

Only when she was alone did Xue Ji turn toward the direction where Ethan had disappeared.

The wind blew through her silver-white hair.

She sighed.

"What a bunch of fools."

Keeping Ethan aboard the ship had been her best opportunity to continue observing him. A young man capable of breaking rules, coordinating with a Crimson Dragon almost without words, and remaining calm even while an entire crowd blamed him.

People like him were far too rare.

Unfortunately, her own people had driven him away with their own hands.

Xue Ji took out her communication device. The frequency she had given Ethan was still saved within it, but there was no signal.

She did not attempt to call him.

Calling him back now would only make everything more awkward.

"Go, then."

Xue Ji spoke softly into the empty air.

"I hope you are still alive the next time we meet."

Afterward, she turned and returned to the ship’s cabin.

She did not know that their next meeting would come sooner than she expected.

Nor did she know that by then, the young man who had just departed would carry a power capable of astonishing even her.