Chapter 698 - 49: Inspection

In the plaza before the Lianwei Zhongyu Company Building, a convoy of vehicles from the Processing Bureau came to a halt. Over a hundred of its members disembarked.

They were all armed personnel fitted with monitoring and Combat Implants, boasting considerable fighting strength. Led by the bureau’s own Executioners, they carried a large number of light and heavy weapons and assumed combat stances.

Had it not been for the prior notice of inspection, one might have thought they were about to launch an attack at any moment.

The female assistant emerged with several security guards. The company’s convoy had just arrived, and the people from the Processing Bureau were already at their door to conduct an inspection. This clearly demonstrated Central City’s hostility toward them.

However, the company had anticipated this situation before their arrival and was well-prepared. Instead of opting for confrontation, she calmly stepped forward to speak with the Processing Bureau’s person-in-charge for this operation.

The two sides exchanged a few words. After the Processing Bureau presented its inspection warrant, the female assistant stated that she would cooperate with their search. However, she also stipulated that the company’s legal team would accompany them at all times to ensure legal protections were upheld.

The man leading the Processing Bureau’s team was Captain Bao, a Third Limit Fighter. He had been in charge of investigating Lianwei Zhongyu under the previous Investigation Chief, earning his trust as an experienced and reliable confidant. After Chen Chuan took office, he left Captain Bao in his position, still responsible for leading the team.

Once inside the company building, Captain Bao scanned his surroundings and used his Realm Token to send a message, following standard procedure. "Manager Chen, we have entered the building. The inspection is now underway."

He then gave a hand signal, and the team members flooding in behind him immediately broke off into their combat groups and fanned out.

They had inspected the Lianwei Zhongyu Building several times before and were very familiar with the layout. They had previously confiscated many items, though some of the less important ones had been returned after Lianwei Zhongyu paid the corresponding fines.

This time, their main targets were the various Domain devices and the items brought in by the convoy.

After inspecting the other items, a team made its way to the basement, where they found a ceramic container taller than a man.

Captain Bao asked, "What is this?"

The female assistant answered calmly, "An active Consciousness Body embryo."

She made no attempt to hide it. The transport of an active Consciousness Body into Central City had been approved by the City Council, with the promise that all High-Energy Nutrient Supplements would be procured through channels provided by the council.

Furthermore, the very existence of the active Consciousness Body served as a deterrent to outsiders, so they had no fear of the Processing Bureau finding out about it.

Captain Bao’s expression turned serious. He ordered his men to check it with Domain detection equipment. Even though the City Council had granted approval, the Administrative Affairs Hall still retained the authority to retrieve information and conduct oversight.

Chen Chuan watched from afar. Through the An Shield’s Domain information link and the feeds from his personnel on-site, he could observe the entire inspection process.

However, he noticed that Captain Bao only ordered his team to scan the container with their equipment; he didn’t demand that Lianwei Zhongyu open it. On its face, there was nothing wrong with this action.

But this inspection was meant to be more than just applying pressure; it was a warning, a show of force. ’If he understood my intent,’ Chen Chuan thought, ’he would have acted more aggressively instead of taking this by-the-book approach. This won’t put any real pressure on a company as well-prepared as Lianwei Zhongyu.’ He was already considering reassigning Captain Bao as soon as the team returned.

Once the inspection of all items was complete, the team began verifying personnel records.

The check revealed that most of the personnel matched the filed records. However, when they inspected a security captain who was a Third Limit Fighter, they discovered he was not on the list and immediately questioned him.

"According to the agreements between the various governments and corporations, every Third Limit Fighter operating in the field must maintain a detailed travel log. Why is yours for the past three days completely blank?"

The security captain replied, "I was hired by the company midway through their journey. I only arrived in Central City today and haven’t had a chance to register with the Administrative Affairs Hall yet."

A Processing Bureau inspector said sternly, "You’ve been in Central City for three hours. You should have registered immediately."

The security captain retorted, "I was protecting my client. As a mercenary, I must prioritize my client’s safety."

Captain Bao gestured, and several Processing Bureau members immediately surrounded the man, guns drawn, while clearing other personnel away to a safe distance.

He addressed the security captain grimly, "Drop all your weapons. You’re under arrest."

"What?"

The security captain instinctively reached for the sword at his waist, but several guns were instantly trained on him. He immediately looked toward his client.

The female assistant, who was standing outside the cordon, spoke up. "Captain Bao, my apologies. This was our oversight." She then turned to the security captain and said sternly, "Please put down your weapon and go with the gentlemen from the Processing Bureau. This isn’t entirely your fault. We will pay your commission in full and provide you with additional compensation."

The security captain raised his hands, allowing the Processing Bureau members to disarm him. They placed him in special restraints and led him out of the building.

Chen Chuan watched it all unfold clearly through his Realm Token.

On the surface, it appeared they had found a loophole in Lianwei Zhongyu’s compliance, which served as the intended warning.

He could tell, however, that this was a vulnerability Lianwei Zhongyu had deliberately left open.

They knew full well that if the inspection yielded nothing, the Processing Bureau would be left empty-handed and might start looking for trouble elsewhere.

This was a way of "appeasing" the Processing Bureau.

The inspection continued. They then noted two private security personnel with special clearance: a man and a woman code-named "Raptor" and "Eel," respectively.

Both were security operatives with a Black Steel Level rating.

Black Steel Level was a common rating in the private security field, indicating that these two were Fighters with experience confronting Duty Samurai from the Merging Land.

In Processing Bureau terms, this was equivalent to a First to Third Level Executor. Their exact capabilities couldn’t be assessed on the spot. Lianwei Zhongyu had never before dispatched Fighters of this caliber to Jibei Dao Central City, and the records showed these two were assigned to protect Lianwei Zhongyu’s chief representative for this trip.

After verifying the information for all armed personnel, Captain Bao said to the female assistant, "If Lianwei Zhongyu makes any changes to its weapons or biological assets, the information must be reported promptly. The same applies to its armed personnel."

The female assistant replied, "Of course. We will abide by the laws of Central City." She glanced to the side. "We have a first-rate legal team."

Captain Bao glanced at the team of Litigation Masters standing by, then stepped aside and spoke into his Realm Token. "Report. All items have been inspected. No contraband found. All armed personnel have been verified. Requesting permission to withdraw the team."

Chen Chuan’s voice came back, "Captain Bao, ask for their director. I need to confirm their director’s identity."

A flicker of hesitation crossed Captain Bao’s eyes, but he looked up and said, "Where is your director? We need to see her. There are a few things we need to confirm."

The female assistant replied, "Our director is not an armed operative, nor is she carrying any weapons. She has a special transit pass issued by the City Council and is under no obligation to submit to your inspection."

Captain Bao said, "Nevertheless, I hope you will cooperate."

The assistant’s tone became stern. "This is not standard procedure. If you insist, I will be forced to file a formal legal complaint against your team."

As she spoke, the legal team behind her, though silent, was already busy recording events and sending messages.

Captain Bao frowned.

Just then, a man who appeared to be a squad leader strode over and said sternly, "We are in a special alert period. All departments are authorized to enforce the Administrative Affairs Hall’s emergency ordinances. If you wish to file a complaint, you may do so at the Administrative Affairs Hall after the fact. But for now, you will comply with our request. Otherwise, we can deem you non-compliant."

Captain Bao glanced at him, a flicker of displeasure in his eyes, but he said nothing.

The female assistant raised a hand to her Realm Token, as if listening to something. After a moment, she looked up. "Please follow me." She added, "Just you, Captain Bao."

Captain Bao nodded. In a low voice, he commanded, "No one is to act without my direct order." With that, he followed the assistant into an elevator and ascended to the top-floor office.

The other Processing Bureau members waited below. About twenty minutes later, he came back down and spoke into his Realm Token. "Manager Chen, there’s a creature upstairs that interferes with the Domain. I was unable to transmit messages. I met with their director. I’ll give you a full in-person report upon my return."

A voice came from the Realm Token: "Come back."

"Yes, sir!"

Captain Bao shouted to the rest of his team, "Pull out!" All personnel immediately and orderly withdrew from the company building. Once everyone was back in the vehicles, the convoy headed back to the Processing Bureau.

Chen Chuan switched off the Domain screen. ’The operation showed me what I already suspected,’ he thought. ’Most of the men just follow orders and complete their tasks by the book. Unless explicitly told otherwise, they won’t take initiative or go the extra mile.’

’It’s understandable, really. The rank-and-file just need to follow regulations; at least that way, they won’t make mistakes. But Captain Bao’s performance was unacceptable. As an experienced captain, he knew exactly what was at stake and didn’t need a subordinate to speak up for him. His inaction was just a way to avoid trouble.’

’That squad leader, on the other hand...’ Chen Chuan glanced at the man’s name on the file.

Xu Changfeng.

’He’s only a Second Limit Fighter, but that’s normal. Most of the junior officers haven’t even reached a limit. Second Limit is actually quite good.’

’This man is useful. He earned this opportunity himself.’

’I’m willing to give him that chance.’

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