Chapter 426 - 384: Return and Visit, Part 2

Chapter 426: Chapter 384: Return and Visit, Part 2

The Human Federation issued a statement just hours after the bombing attacks, declaring zero tolerance and vowing to swiftly crack down hard on the cultists entrenched in the Fahe Country.

"This time, all nations will dispatch elite Ascenders to form a joint operation team, and the smaller nations are no exception. In fact, several of the small nations are the most eager."

In Gao Liangwei’s office at the Strategy Research Room, he was discussing this matter with Zhang Minglu.

"They certainly have reason to be eager," Zhang Minglu said. "Compared to the major powers, smaller nations are more easily infiltrated by the Fire Worship Cult, and even attacked on a large scale."

"If not for geographical constraints, the Fire Worship Cult would have likely already made a move on these smaller nations. It’s only because the Fahe Country and the Soloma Empire share the same continent that they’ve been somewhat contained."

Gao Liangwei then asked, "Do you have any candidates in mind for the team North Star is sending this time?"

"We should settle on the team leader first. I already finalized this with Guan Tong during our last communication. I say we proceed as planned and have him lead the team."

"’Shadow’s’ strength is beyond doubt, but his recent actions in Sisiya..."

Seeing Gao Liangwei’s serious expression, Zhang Minglu had a good idea why.

North Star had been conducting intelligence-gathering operations in Sisiya. In the past few days, Sisiya’s new Governor, Yelena, had been making sweeping moves—arresting, trying, and executing people. The speed and sheer number of people involved were astonishing.

And according to their intelligence, the reason she could push all this through so quickly was the backing of a powerful Ascender—that person being "Shadow."

In their last communication, Guan Tong had mentioned he had things to do in Sisiya. Piecing together subsequent intelligence reports, it was clear that one of those things was helping Yelena seize control of the country.

This was the kind of issue that seemed insignificant if ignored, but became impossibly weighty once scrutinized.

A North Star operative going to Sisiya to help its Governor eliminate political rivals was questionable, to say the least. Especially since this incident once again demonstrated that a single top-tier Ascender had the power to change a nation’s political landscape—a reality some people were unwilling to accept.

Zhang Minglu hesitated for a moment before saying, "Director, I agree his actions were somewhat inappropriate. But in this era, everything is changing so fast. Perhaps we all need to learn to accept these changes... If I may speak out of turn, alienating a top-tier Ascender like Guan Tong over these misgivings would be an absolutely massive loss for us."

Gao Liangwei said, "Rest assured, Dr. Zhang. The top leadership is well aware of this. Otherwise, why do you think the investigation into the ’Luoying Plan’ has been frozen?"

Zhang Minglu was taken aback; he had forgotten about that case. Indeed, if the "Luoying Plan" investigation were still active, there is no way they wouldn’t have taken action against Guan Tong.

"The leadership’s stance is now very clear, and it applies not just to Guan Tong, but to all other Ascenders in the country. As long as they don’t commit any major, heinous crimes, we won’t look too closely even if their actions are a bit out of line."

Gao Liangwei added, "Right, there’s one more thing. Do you remember Li Meng?"

Zhang Minglu nodded. "The former Chief of the Yunhua City Public Security Bureau, the one who later took charge of the Qingmei Association kidnapping case. Of course I remember him."

"I’ve submitted a request to the higher-ups and had him transferred to the Strategy Research Room. For this operation against the Fire Worship Cult, I plan to have him coordinate the command of the North Star Sub-Team."

Zhang Minglu agreed. "I support that. He was a public security chief, and I hear he worked his way up from the bottom, earning many commendations along the way. He must have a good grasp of this kind of urban security operation. Plus, he’s fairly familiar with Guan Tong, so their collaboration should be much smoother."

"That’s precisely why I brought him in," Gao Liangwei said. "Go and draft a team roster for me. Also, find out what requirements Guan Tong has."

"Understood, Director."

...

Pinglu City Comprehensive Treatment Center.

In the hallway, a young doctor in a white coat led Shangyuan Zi along, speaking as they walked. "Her mood is usually stable, but she has a rather intense episode every few days. We’re afraid she might self-harm, so when it gets serious, our only option is to use sedatives."

"Frequent use of sedatives... that can’t be good for her body, can it?" Shangyuan Zi said.

"It can’t be helped." The young doctor looked helpless. "The medical community hasn’t developed any drugs for her condition yet, so our hands are tied. However, she’s an Ascender. Her body is much stronger than an ordinary person’s, so the sedatives won’t cause her too much harm."

Shangyuan Zi nodded and followed the doctor to a room with a sign that read "Special Withdrawal Room." A nurse was just coming out.

"How is she doing today?" the doctor asked.

"Not bad," the nurse replied. She looked at Shangyuan Zi, who was wearing a mask and sunglasses, her expression puzzled. "And this is?"

"She’s here to see the patient. She has a visitor’s pass issued by a higher department."

"Oh, please, come in then."

The nurse pushed the door open, and Shangyuan Zi walked in.

The room was spacious and bright, but what dominated Shangyuan Zi’s vision were the strange sketches covering the walls and the drawing paper scattered all over the floor.

A woman in a white hospital gown was sitting on the edge of the bed, staring blankly outside.

"Suzuki, you have a visitor."

The nurse called out softly. Suzuki’s body stiffened, and she turned her head.

"Well, we’ll leave you to talk." The nurse and the doctor left the room.

Shangyuan Zi met Suzuki’s searching gaze and took off her sunglasses and mask. The moment Suzuki saw her face and her eyes, she stood up in delighted surprise. "You’re—Shangyuan!"

"Suzuki," Shangyuan Zi said. "How have you been?"

"I..."

Suzuki looked at Shangyuan Zi, her eyes quickly welling up with tears.

"I’m okay, I’m okay... Thank you, thank you for coming to see me..."

Shangyuan Zi knew Suzuki had no friends here, so naturally, no one would ever come to visit. A pang of sympathy went through her.

"Guan Tong sent me," she said. "He had some business to attend to, so he couldn’t come with me. But he’ll come see you in the next few days."

"Really?" Hearing this, Suzuki looked like she was about to cry again. "He still remembers me... I thought, I thought you had all forgotten about me..."

"..."

Shangyuan Zi walked over to her and, somewhat awkwardly, gave her a hug to calm her down.

After a moment, Suzuki calmed down considerably. She took a tissue and wiped her cheeks, her tone full of shame. "I’m sorry, Shangyuan. I think I’m going to disappoint you all..."

"You mean... you haven’t been able to quit?"

After Suzuki admitted her spore addiction, Guan Tong had used his connections in the Strategy Research Room to send her to this rehabilitation center in Pinglu. The goal was to help her kick the addiction.

But now, based on what the doctor had said earlier and Suzuki’s own words, Shangyuan Zi felt that they had likely failed.

Suzuki nodded, her expression pained. "Every few days, that intense craving for spores comes back. I try my best to control it, but I can’t. I can only try to distract myself by sketching... When it gets really bad, the doctors give me sedatives... But lately, the sedatives are getting less and less effective. I’m worried that..."

Shangyuan Zi listened intently, then soothed, "Suzuki, don’t overthink it. There must be a way."

Suzuki shook her head. "Thank you, Shangyuan, but I know you’re just comforting me... I heard from the nurses that spore addiction is incurable. There have already been cases of severely addicted patients dying in the withdrawal center."

"..."

"Shangyuan, I only have one wish now. I hope I can go back to Sakura Prayer, to see my old colleagues from the public security bureau... and say goodbye. Is that possible?"

For Suzuki, those colleagues and superiors from the Public Security Bureau were probably some of the only familiar people she had left.

"...Of course you can. I’ll tell Guan Tong... No, when he comes to see you, you should just tell him yourself."

"Okay. Thank you, Shangyuan."

Shangyuan Zi stayed with Suzuki for a few hours before leaving. The first thing she did after walking out of the withdrawal center was call Guan Tong.

"How is she?" Guan Tong asked.

"Suzuki’s condition is very bad," Shangyuan Zi said, her tone heavy. "It seems willpower alone is completely useless for breaking a spore addiction. Without any targeted medication, the doctors can’t do anything but use sedatives... There are already cases of severely addicted patients dying. If we don’t find a solution soon, Suzuki will definitely suffer the same fate."

"...I understand. I’ll find a way as soon as possible, and try to save Suzuki’s life... No, to save all spore addicts."