Chapter 499 - 357: Breaking Through to Level Four

Beijing Headquarters, top-floor office.

Li Yan stood before the floor-to-ceiling windows, clutching a newly delivered intelligence report. The words on it were brief, yet their implications were profound.

"Fallout from the Indian incident continues to grow. Fifty-seven nations, including Kabul and Baghdad, have unilaterally withdrawn their subsequent requests for aid."

"The White-headed Eagle Federation calls daily to inquire about Mr. Yin’s schedule, their tone urgent."

"Internal meeting records from the European Union show that some member states have proposed approaching Advisor Yin under the guise of ’technology sharing.’"

Li Yan’s gaze swept over the final line, which contained the intelligence analyst’s conclusion.

"Advisor Yin now possesses global strategic deterrence capabilities. It is recommended that his position within the Great Yan system be re-evaluated."

"Strategic deterrence..." he repeated the two words under his breath, a bitter smile touching his lips.

KNOCK, KNOCK! A gentle rap sounded at the office door.

His secretary entered with a tea tray, her movements cautious. "Mr. Li, your tea."

Li Yan didn’t turn around. His gaze remained fixed on the world outside the window, as if piercing through the thick clouds to see that small city in Jiangnan thousands of kilometers away.

"What’s the weather like in Jiangzhou City right now?" he asked suddenly, his voice calm.

The secretary paused for a moment, then glanced down at the tablet on the desk and quickly pulled up the weather data.

"The forecast shows... Jiangzhou will be cloudy turning to clear today, with temperatures between twenty-two and twenty-eight degrees."

"Twenty-eight degrees," Li Yan repeated the number.

He picked up his teacup, the scalding tea sending ripples across its surface.

"So warm."

The secretary dared not reply. She stood by the desk, her hands hanging at her sides.

Li Yan took a sip of the tea. It was boiling hot, but he didn’t stop, taking another large gulp.

The heat slid down his throat and into his stomach, dispelling a strange chill from within his body.

"The rumor out there is that Advisor Yin made out like a bandit on this trip."

He set the cup down hard, the porcelain making a sharp sound as it hit the wooden desk.

The secretary’s head dipped lower. "Mr. Li, those are just rumors and gossip. You shouldn’t pay them any mind..."

"Just rumors?" Li Yan’s cold laugh made the hairs on the back of his secretary’s neck stand on end.

"Three of the Indian Legends fell, half their capital was reduced to ruins, and their national treasury was emptied. That’s not a rumor."

"The King of Kabul offered up extra Source Crystals as a ’tribute,’ and the chieftain of Baghdad knelt to welcome them from ten miles out. That’s not a rumor either."

He turned, his gaze falling on his secretary’s pale face. "Tell me, should I call them and ask?"

The secretary’s lips trembled. "Ask... ask what?"

"Ask that master and disciple duo how much loot they raked in this time."

Li Yan took two steps forward, his leather shoes silent on the carpet.

"Or perhaps I should ask General Wei if he’s willing to part with some of those Source Crystals to replenish the national treasury?"

The secretary’s face turned deathly white. "I... I wouldn’t dare!"

"That’s right, you don’t dare. So drop your little schemes and stop spreading gossip. Get out."

As if granted amnesty, the secretary bowed and backed out of the room.

The moment the door closed, she heard Mr. Li’s final words.

"Tell the intelligence department to seal all future reports on Advisor Yin. They no longer need to be submitted."

After his secretary left, Li Yan looked out the window again. ’Even Great Yan wouldn’t dare provoke such a demon.’

His voice was soft, almost a whisper to himself.

’So just let them be. The fact that they’re willing to stay in Great Yan is a blessing in itself.’

「Three hundred meters beneath the Capital City.」

There were no windows and no light, only Luminous Pearls embedded in the walls, casting a cold, ethereal blue glow.

Two figures sat cross-legged facing each other, seated on meditation cushions carved from whole Source Crystals, their surfaces worn smooth and lustrous.

The person on the left had white eyebrows that hung to his shoulders, and the wrinkles on his face were as deep as if carved by a knife.

His eyes were closed, his breathing long and slow, his chest barely rising or falling.

The person on the right had hair as black as ink, but his face was just as ancient. He held a bronze coin, his fingertip slowly tracing its edge.

"Brother Hao, what do you make of this Mr. Yin?"

The black-haired old man spoke, his voice as hoarse as sandpaper.

The white-browed old man slowly opened his eyes, revealing pale gray pupils.

"He’s unfathomable. The three Indian Legends couldn’t withstand a single blow from him. I had the Secret Guard check the Black Abyss Rift; there’s no record of him ever standing guard there."

The black-haired old man’s fingers paused their rubbing of the coin. "And so?"

"So there are two possibilities." The white-browed old man raised his right hand, extending two withered fingers.

"First, he’s some old monster who has been in seclusion for centuries, his records completely expunged. Second..."

He didn’t continue. At their Realm, they both had a vague inkling of certain truths.

The black-haired old man grinned, the smile pulling at the wrinkles on his face and making his expression look somewhat unsettling.

"Second, he’s not from this world at all."

The white-browed old man’s fingers froze in mid-air. "You guessed it too?"

The black-haired old man tossed the bronze coin into the air. It flipped, tracing an arc before landing back in his palm, "heads" up.

"His method for the Rift Purification... in all my two hundred and seventy years, I’ve never heard of such a thing. And that black bird on his shoulder..."

His voice dropped lower.

"The aura on that thing... it reminds me of an... Ancient Demon I saw deep in the Kunlun mountains when I was young."

The air grew heavy. Only the light from the Luminous Pearls flickered softly.

"Then what are you suggesting?" the white-browed old man asked.

"I’m not suggesting anything," the black-haired old man said, getting to his feet.

His movements were slow, like a long-dormant machine, his joints emitting a faint CREAK.

"As long as he doesn’t bring disaster to Great Yan, we pretend we don’t know." He walked to the wall and caressed the cold bluestone.

"Brother Hao, you’ve lived for two hundred and fifty years. I’ve clung to life for twenty years more than you. I’ve seen too much."