Chapter 428 - 385: A Day of North Star (2)

Chapter 428: Chapter 385: A Day of North Star (2)

"Oh, by the way," Shi Jingyi suddenly brought something up. "North Star is organizing a group of Ascenders for a mission to Fahe Country. Did you know?"

"I do. I should be one of them." Guan Tong finished, then asked in return, "How did you know? Did the Strategy Research Room send you an invitation?"

"Not exactly. A student who graduated a while back mentioned it. They said they were questioned and put on a standby list... It’s just, I’m afraid the Fire Worship Cult won’t be that easy to deal with."

"I think so, too."

Guan Tong felt that although these Cultists were fanatical, their leadership weren’t mindless brutes. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have first plotted the Landing Site attack with the Parasites, then orchestrated the Soloma bombing.

Shi Jingyi said, "The Fire Worship Cult dared to claim responsibility right after the bombing. That means they were prepared to face retaliation from Soloma and sanctions from the Human Federation... The bombing might just be one part of a larger trap. If the Human Federation sends a team to strike them down, it would be playing right into their hands."

"That’s possible. So if I’m going, I need to be prepared."

"Right. Okay, I’ll teach you the method for Condensation. I’ll do my best to help you master it before you go to Fahe."

...

Strategy Research Room.

Zhang Minglu sat in front of his computer, the screen filled with personnel files.

Gao Liangwei had tasked him with drafting a list of personnel for the upcoming mission to Fahe Country. Since the team couldn’t be too large, he had to pick the best of the best.

’Li Meng will be the overall commander, and Guan Tong will be the team leader. Those two are set. Building on that, I should give Guan Tong some people he’s familiar with...’

Zhang Minglu selected the files for "Silver Fox" and "Chen Na" and added them to the list.

Both of them had been on missions with Guan Tong before. Chen Na, in particular, had known Guan Tong for a long time, making them a good fit to work together.

In addition, Zhang Minglu also pulled up Bai Xuewu’s file.

Bai Xuewu was currently with the coalition forces in Black Banner Country, responsible for dealing with the Parasites.

However, the Parasites had recently broken into smaller units and hidden in the mountains, waging a guerilla war against the coalition forces and creating a stalemate.

The Ascender corps on the front lines often had nothing to do all day. Rather than letting her waste time there, it would be better to transfer her back to participate in the operation against the Fire Worship Cult.

’With Guan Tong plus Bai Xuewu, the team will have two top-tier fighters... Add a few people from the officially trained Ascender teams and a few outstanding graduates from the academy, and that should be enough for a full squad.’

The goal of this operation wasn’t to eliminate all the Cultists, but to carry out a decapitation strike against the higher-ups, like the Bishops and the Pope. A larger team would actually be inconvenient.

Besides, this was a joint operation between the various nations of the Human Federation. Each country would contribute a few people, and the total number would be substantial.

Zhang Minglu spent over two hours finalizing a list of ten candidates, then contacted Guan Tong.

The video call connected.

"Dr. Zhang, hello."

"Hello, Guan Tong. Regarding the matter of you leading a team on a mission to Fahe Country, I’d like to discuss some details with you."

Guan Tong asked, "When does this operation start? I need to make some preparations; I can’t leave immediately."

"Of course," Zhang Minglu said. "This is just the preliminary deployment phase. The actual operation requires coordination between nations, so we won’t rush into it. At the earliest, we’ll wait until after the next rule is announced and make a decision based on what it is."

"That makes sense."

Guan Tong knew that even the most meticulously planned operation needed the rules to cooperate. If the seventeenth rule made it unsuitable for humans to go outside, they would have to wait until the rule ended to act. It was like the Battle of Red Cliffs—without the eastern wind, the fire attack wouldn’t have gone so smoothly.

"The preliminary selection of personnel is complete. You’ll lead the team, and Li Meng will be in charge of overall command. The team members you know include Chen Na and Silver Fox."

"Li Meng? The former police chief of Yunhua City, Li Meng?"

"Yes. I know you’re acquainted with him. He has been transferred to the Strategy Research Room."

"That’s good to hear."

Guan Tong’s few interactions with Li Meng back when he was in Yunhua had left him with the impression that Li was a very reliable person.

"As for the other members, you can get to know them later when there’s time. When you’re on a mission together, you should at least know their names and abilities," Zhang Minglu said. "However, we don’t plan on making your identity public."

"Not public?"

"That’s right. For this operation, I will register you under your real name, ’Guan Tong.’ As for your ’Shadow’ identity, even if people guess, we won’t confirm it."

"...It doesn’t matter to me. If Dr. Zhang thinks it’s necessary, then go ahead."

"Then let’s talk about your requirements," Zhang Minglu said.

He hadn’t forgotten that Guan Tong was a collaborator with the Strategy Research Room, not a subordinate. From the very beginning, when Gao Liangwei first contacted Guan Tong, he had made it clear that Guan Tong could state his conditions.

"I need items that can store Psychic Power," Guan Tong didn’t stand on ceremony. "The more, the better."

"You want to accumulate Psychic Power?"

After experiencing the earthquake rule, Zhang Minglu naturally knew what Guan Tong’s request was about.

"Yes. This mission won’t be simple. The higher-ups in the Fire Worship Cult will definitely set traps; they might be waiting for us to walk right in. If I don’t prepare enough Psychic Power, I won’t risk it lightly."

"That... shouldn’t be a problem. However, while we can provide the container items, I’m afraid you’ll have to handle the collection of Psychic Power yourself."

During the last earthquake rule, North Star was able to mobilize millions of Ascenders to transfer Psychic Power to Guan Tong because by doing so, they were saving themselves.

Now, without a proper reason, asking Ascenders to inject their Psychic Power into containers out of the blue—even if it’s just Flowing Psychic Power—would arouse widespread suspicion.

"I know," Guan Tong said. "I’ll find people to collect it myself. You just need to provide the containers."

"Do you have any other requests?"

Hearing this, Guan Tong thought for a moment and asked, "Dr. Zhang, is there still no official cure for spore addicts?"

"Unfortunately, no. The brain neurons of spore addicts are damaged and mutated. With humanity’s current medical technology, we’re completely helpless... Besides, the experts in that field are all engrossed in researching the advanced technology provided by the Alien Intelligence."

"Is that the digital life project?"

"To be precise, it’s ’digital memory backup,’" Zhang Minglu said. "For humanity to achieve ’digital life’ in the true sense of the term is likely still a very distant prospect."

"..."

Guan Tong couldn’t help but feel that this whole thing wasn’t very reliable.

’Even if this project succeeds in the end, does that mean humanity can just sit back and relax?’

’Digital memories also need physical carriers like large servers. And anything physical can be destroyed... Not to mention man-made disasters, what if a Fire Thief releases a natural disaster rule like the earthquake one before? How many servers would be destroyed? Humanity would still have to do everything in its power to protect them.’

"Speaking of the Alien Intelligence..." Zhang Minglu asked hesitantly, "Although no one saw, we speculate that you asked it a question... Out of my own personal curiosity, the question you asked..."

"That question only concerned me personally."

"Alright, I understand. I’ll go prepare the Psychic Power container items for you now. I’ll be in touch."

Zhang Minglu knew Guan Tong’s words meant it was inconvenient to disclose, so he didn’t press the matter further.

After Guan Tong hung up, he thought for a moment and then called Xu Xiaotian, who picked up quickly.

"Hey, Tong."

"Xiaotian, I’m back in Pinglu. You free to meet up?"

"Sure! Hey, you—Li, I’m stepping out for a bit. Keep an eye on the supply dispatch for these two districts, and don’t mess it up!"

Listening to Xu Xiaotian giving orders, Guan Tong was a little curious. It seemed the kid had gotten a promotion.

The two arranged to meet at a park. When they met up, Xu Xiaotian was thrilled. "Tong, how have you been lately?"

"I’m fine. What about you? I heard you ordering people around on the phone?"

"Er..." Xu Xiaotian scratched his head. "I just got promoted a while ago. I’m now in charge of supply dispatch for three small districts."

Hearing this, Guan Tong couldn’t help but see him in a new light. "Nice. You have a bright future."

"Ayo, Tong, stop teasing me. You’re the one with the bright future! When did you get back?"

"Just got back yesterday. What’s up?"

Guan Tong saw Xu Xiaotian had a strange expression, as if something had happened.

Xu Xiaotian said, "Last time, at your birthday, remember how I met Chen Na and Wang? Well, Wang called me later. It sounded like she was complaining a bit, like she’s having some trouble with her daughter."

"Trouble? What kind of trouble?"

Guan Tong knew that Wang Yan and Chen Na had always relied on each other to survive. They had made it through the harsh snowstorm rule, so how could they be fighting over something trivial?

"I don’t know the specifics; Wang didn’t explain it clearly. Why don’t you go ask, Tong? You know Wang better, she’ll probably tell you if you ask."