Chapter 699 - 50: Direction

After the personnel from the Processing Bureau left, the young girl reentered the basement and once again stood before the active Consciousness Body.

Although this active Consciousness Body was merely an embryo with no combat capabilities, as a Consciousness Body that had made contact with the Fumu Domain and received information from Central City, it could already offer the company a degree of strategic advice.

This Consciousness Body also represented the will of the head office.

Their arrival in Jibei Dao, with its overt commercial activities, was merely a front. Underneath it all, she had other tasks that she was required to carry out.

As she reached out and laid her hand on it, a faint, rustling sound, like whispers from an immense distance, instantly echoed in her ears.

After a moment, she pulled back, her breathing slightly ragged.

The directives had now been imprinted upon her consciousness.

She composed herself, then began to sort through and review the memories.

First, the Lianwei Zhongyu head office had reached an agreement with the Jibei Dao City Council. The council would permit the company to establish a passage to the Merging Land. In return, the company would provide Central City with personnel to help defend against the Old Imperial Family.

In truth, however, the company required her to take advantage of this opportunity. She was to organize a team to enter the Merging Land and search for Lost Objects—a matter of critical importance to the company.

The World Ring had ruptured here, meaning the probability of Lost Objects appearing had increased dramatically. Acknowledging that the branch would face competition from other corporations and state-owned enterprises, the head office would be sending her capable reinforcements.

Second, the development of Implant technology could not be halted. The company needed more test subjects. Suitable candidates could be supplied or found through various channels, such as gangs, mercenary groups, and fighting tournaments. If conditions permitted, they were to establish a viable testing area in the Lower City District of Jibei Dao Central City.

Finally, finding Lost Objects was the top priority. If she found one, she was to protect it at all costs. She was authorized to use any means necessary, even as a last resort.

After processing all this, she took a few deep breaths and walked out of the basement.

Her female assistant was waiting for her. Seeing her emerge, the assistant gave a slight bow. "Miss, we’ve been running crisis management for months, but we cannot ignore the hostile attitude from the Processing Bureau. I request authorization to contact several friendly city councilors and find a way to apply pressure on the Bureau."

The girl’s expression was now calm. "Go ahead," she said.

Inside his apartment, Chen Chuan was reviewing the mission report. Lianwei Zhongyu had brought an active Consciousness Body this time. Their intentions were perfectly clear: they were preparing to establish a formal foothold in Central City.

Lianwei Zhongyu’s primary businesses were transport and security contracting, and they employed a large number of armed personnel and powerful Fighters. The force he saw today was only large enough for self-defense, so it certainly wasn’t their full strength.

And as for Lianwei Zhongyu’s person-in-charge this time...

He looked at the photo sent over by the information department. It was a girl of about fifteen or sixteen, identified as Yang Ling, the adopted daughter of one of Lianwei Zhongyu’s directors. Aside from her name, no other information existed. It was as if her background had been intentionally concealed.

But the contours of her face were somehow familiar, strongly resembling someone in a photograph he had once seen.

He stared intently at the photo.

’Could it be her?’

Zhao Qian had said back then that they would never find her.

If she were dead, that would be the worst-case scenario, but he could sense that wasn’t what Zhao Qian had meant at the time.

According to the investigation, after Zhao Qian arrived in Central City, he had experienced a meteoric promotion.

It wasn’t entirely surprising for a Wuyi graduate to reach such a position—Senior Brother Sun from Canglong Company was a prime example. But he had relied on his own experience and ability. Zhao Qian’s ascent, however, was far too rapid. He had reached that position almost overnight.

That is, unless he had performed some great service, but nothing of the sort could be found in his records.

’If that’s the case...’

He considered a certain possibility.

He thought about how some people born with special talents are highly valued by corporations. ’If that senior’s sister was one of them, it would all make sense.’

This would also explain Zhao Qian’s promotion. It was likely his reward for finding an important talent for Lianwei Zhongyu.

’But...’ He looked at the photo. ’Why send her here this time? Is it because her talents are instrumental to Lianwei Zhongyu establishing a foothold?’

Zhao Qian had said he would never find her. And at his level back then, the adopted daughter of a corporate director was indeed beyond his reach. A company that large wasn’t something a lone Fighter could challenge, which was why he had told Lu Fang to halt the investigation.

But now, things were different.

Lianwei Zhongyu’s return must have been permitted by the City Council.

But the Administrative Affairs Hall was very dissatisfied with this move.

A transport company that attempted to smuggle fissioning entities was somehow allowed to continue operating in Central City. Such an outcome would only encourage others to flout the city’s laws and order, leading to more chaos and violence.

Therefore, the Processing Bureau’s stance was that even if they couldn’t expel the company, they had to place it under strict supervision and control to ensure its activities no longer threatened the security of Central City.

However, with the need to handle the Federation delegation and the diplomatic team from the Lynx Federation, the Processing Bureau didn’t have much manpower to spare for this. How much could be accomplished would depend entirely on his own capabilities.

He considered this for a moment. This matter required patience. First, he had to ascertain Lianwei Zhongyu Company’s next move and find a way to gather more intelligence before proceeding.

He tapped his Realm Token and called for An Shield.

An Shield’s voice then sounded: "Manager Chen, An Shield at your service. What are your orders?"

Chen Chuan said, "I need you to monitor the domain information of Lianwei Zhongyu Company’s branch office twenty-four hours a day. Report any unusual activity to me immediately."

"An Shield understands... Manager Chen, as per your instructions, this directive has been scheduled and added to the high-priority task list."

Chen Chuan grunted in acknowledgment, then contacted Wubei. "Brother Wu, take your Resonator team and closely monitor Lianwei Zhongyu Company’s communications. I need to know the destination of every single one of their messages."

Wubei’s excited voice came back. "Alright, got it!"

Chen Chuan then contacted someone inside the Processing Bureau. "I need to adjust Captain Bao’s duties... Good. Send the list of replacements to my Realm Token later."

He then arranged a few other noteworthy matters. Once everything was taken care of, he took a sip from a nearby hot drink and began his daily training.

「The next day」

He emerged from his Meditation, washed up, and ate a pre-ordered meal of Merging Land cuisine in the faculty dining hall. Afterward, he returned to his apartment and changed his clothes. He first opened a window to let Chaoming fly out, then went to a storage cabinet and took out a long, rectangular bag.

Then, carrying this item, he picked up the Snow Monarch Blade, left the apartment, and took the elevator downstairs.

Ten minutes later, a Gard Car drove out of the Profound Palace Building, heading towards the National Path to the north.

Yesterday he had tried to cut open a Rift on the western National Path, but he felt it was not advisable to repeatedly open Rifts in the same place, so he decided to head north this time.

Once outside the city, he veered off into the wilderness. He drove for over half an hour before finally stopping near a mound of earth that offered cover from the wind.

Getting out of the car, he set up a large light-blocking tent he had purchased from Wuyi Academy. By training inside the light-blocking tent, he wouldn’t have to worry about being discovered by others.

After setting up the tent effortlessly, he had Chaoming, who had followed him all the way, go out to stand guard. Chaoming’s field of vision was much larger than his, and it could spot people from a great distance, providing an early warning if there was trouble.

Then he walked into the tent. Instead of rushing to cut open a Rift, he brought over the duffel bag, opened it, and took out a long bone with sharp, serrated edges. It looked like a spine.

This was the Lost Object that Tarlu had given him as a parting gift.

After he returned yesterday, a thought had suddenly occurred to him. ’Lost Objects also come from that other world. When I maintain mental contact with one, some kind of entity also appears there. Could something like that serve as nourishment for the Snow Monarch Blade?’

He didn’t know, but he could give it a try.

SHING! He drew the Snow Monarch Blade. Then he reached out and placed his hand on the Lost Object. Just as he was about to begin the experiment, a sharp CHIRP suddenly sounded from the sky. He couldn’t help but frown.

Holding the blade, he walked out of the tent and saw vehicles several kilometers away driving towards him. There were about seven vehicles: five armed combat vehicles, one fuel truck, and one Fenghai Company all-terrain transport.

Judging by their direction, they were heading straight for him.

These hyenas of the wasteland have sharp noses. They must have seen his tent and car.

As the vehicles approached, their rumbling grew clearer. They soon entered a one-kilometer radius and were still advancing. When they were two to three hundred meters away, gunshots suddenly rang out.

Apparently, these people thought he was trouble. Even though they only saw one person, they decided to solve the problem with guns first.

Bullets WHIZZED past him. The occasional one or two that were on target, he casually slapped away with his hand.

Seeing his performance, the wasteland bandits all showed looks of terror. They knew they had run into a hard target. The vehicles suddenly began to turn around.

But in the next moment, an invisible force swept over them. Inside the vehicles, the eyes of every person rolled back into their heads as they all lost consciousness on the spot and simultaneously became incontinent. A moment later, even their breathing stopped. The now-uncontrolled vehicles swerved and careened away.

The light in Chen Chuan’s eyes slowly faded. He returned to the tent, then once again came before the long bone with the Snow Monarch Blade in hand. He reached out and placed his hand on it. The moment his mind made contact, his body sank, and then he saw his hand resting on the gray, wrinkled hide of a behemoth.

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