Aint Translations

HUN Chapter 127: Three Tents on the Tundra

At dusk, when the sun began to tilt toward the northwestern horizon, stretching the shadows in the valley longer and longer, they finally reached their predetermined campsite, a relatively flat, sheltered spot below "Wind Shear Pass."

"This is it." Old George set down his heavy backpack, supporting his body with his trekking pole, breathing heavily.

"That's enough for today. Go any further, and we'll be close to our target area."

Lin Yu'an looked in the direction he pointed, seeing the mountain slope ahead becoming increasingly steep.

Massive rocks and twisted glacial traces intersected, indeed unsuitable for continuing with insufficient light.

"I'll set up the tents, you two rest first."

Lin Yu'an proactively took on the task. He was only breathing slightly heavily, forming a sharp contrast with the two old men who were too tired to move.

"Good kid, excellent stamina." Stan sat down heavily on the ground, pulling out his water bottle from his backpack's side pocket and taking several big gulps.

Just as he finished helping Stan and George set up their tents and was preparing to boil water and cook, Lin Yu'an's sixth sense had a clear perception, that was sensing small game!

Immediately he shouldered his Mossberg 590A1 and said to them, "I'll look around and see if I can add some flavor to our dinner."

Hearing this, Old George looked up at the sky and reminded, "Don't go far, it gets dark quickly, and don't make too much noise. We're already very close to the sheep's potential habitat."

"Don't worry, I promise to be quieter than a kitten."

Lin Yu'an made an OK gesture, then turned and walked toward the huge pile of rocks on the east side of the camp.

He didn't go very far, just moving slowly under the cover of the boulders, relying on his sixth sense perception.

Remembering Old George's instructions not to make too much noise, he couldn't use shotgun shells because they were too loud.

He pulled out a strange device made of metal that looked like a metal shotgun shell from a waterproof pocket close to his body.

This was a 12-gauge to .22 rifled adapter tube. He skillfully pressed a small .22 long rifle cartridge into the rear of the adapter.

Then with a click, he loaded this special cartridge into the chamber of the Mossberg 590A1.

He worked the pump, closing the action. At this moment, this mighty tactical shotgun had quietly transformed into a gun that could only fire single shots but was extremely quiet and could shoot .22 bullets.

He crawled behind a boulder, his body pressed tightly against the cold rock.

He patiently scanned the complex terrain ahead, composed of tundra, scree, and low shrubs.

Soon, he discovered some tiny traces, scattered willow leaf fragments on the ground and small comma-shaped bird droppings. These were signals left by ptarmigan after feeding!

He didn't rush forward but maintained absolute stillness, letting his silhouette completely merge with the evening shadows.

After about ten minutes, his patience was rewarded!

Not far away, a rock that was almost exactly the same color as the surrounding environment moved slightly, then extended a small head with a red comb.

It was a rock ptarmigan. Its feathers in August were mottled gray-brown, perfectly blending with the colors of lichen and rocks, a true master of camouflage.

If not for that little bit of bright red and occasional movement, it would be extremely difficult to spot with the naked eye.

Then the second, the third... a small group of ptarmigan emerged from their hiding places, began clucking and pecking at tender plant shoots on the ground.

Lin Yu'an slowly raised his gun, through the red dot sight on the gun, steadily placing that tiny red dot on the fattest ptarmigan.

He didn't choose the closest one, but selected one slightly farther away but in a more advantageous position.

Because the wind was strong at the moment, he had to assess wind direction, after all .22 bullets were easily affected by wind.

Lin Yu'an's index finger lightly rested on the trigger, adjusting his breathing.

When a long exhalation reached its end and his heartbeat reached its steadiest moment, "puff."

An extremely slight sound, like a dry branch breaking, broke the mountain valley's tranquility.

The targeted ptarmigan's head instantly exploded in a small cloud of feathers. Its body didn't even have time to struggle before it softly collapsed!

The other ptarmigan were startled by this sudden turn of events, then fluttered their wings, making panicked calls, scattering into rock crevices and disappearing instantly.

Lin Yu'an didn't fire a second shot.

He calmly ejected the adapter tube that still smelled of gunpowder, put it back in his pocket, then stood up and walked forward to pick up tonight's trophy.

This rock ptarmigan felt heavy in his hands, with thick feathers. Obviously it had stored enough fat during summer, sufficient for the three of them to have a satisfying meal.

When Lin Yu'an returned to camp, night had fallen. Below "Wind Shear Pass," three small orange high-altitude tents stood stubbornly against the wind.

The bitter mountain wind, like invisible knives, howled down from the ridge, scraping across the nylon surfaces of the tents, making "whooshing" sounds.

The temperature had dropped near freezing, and every breath of inhaled air was cold.

Stan had built a semicircular windbreak wall using some relatively flat large stones in the wind-sheltered triangle formed by their three tents.

This temporary stone wall wasn't tall, but it was enough to block most of the strong wind from the main direction.

The compact portable gas stove was placed in the center of this "shelter," and with protection from the stone wall and their bodies, the blue flame stubbornly stabilized.

In the small shelter formed by the tents, a cluster of bright flames danced on the portable gas stove, bringing the only light and warmth to this cold world.

Seeing the game in Lin Yu'an's hands, Stan's eyes immediately lit up.

"Well done, kid!"

He rubbed his red, frozen hands and came over, "I thought we'd have to gnaw on that damn beef jerky again tonight. Quick, let me see."

Lin Yu'an smiled and handed over the trophy. This was a perfect kill, with only a small bullet hole in the head, the rest of the body intact, the feathers even retaining their luster.

Old George, who was organizing his sleeping bag inside the tent, also poked his head out. He looked at the wound on the ptarmigan's head, then at the shotgun behind Lin Yu'an, his eyes full of confusion.

"How did you do it? Using this 12-gauge big guy and still keep the meat so intact?"

Lin Yu'an didn't explain much, just pulled out the still somewhat warm brass adapter tube from his pocket and handed it to Old George.

After receiving it, Old George instantly understood the secret. A flash of surprise crossed his eyes, which then turned to genuine approval.

"Ha! Using a bear-hunting cannon to shoot mosquitoes, and only hitting the mosquito's wings. Kid, you always surprise me."

"Alright, enough praising, we should think about how to eat it." Stan said impatiently.

"Let's make a stew. In this weather, nothing's better than a pot of hot soup with meat."

The two old men had no objections, they also thought the young man made sense.

Lin Yu'an began his operation, skillfully skinning the ptarmigan, then cleaning out the internal organs.

He didn't choose the time-consuming task of deboning, but used his sturdy hunting knife to chop the entire bird, bones and all, into fist-sized pieces, setting them aside.

He placed a medium-depth small pot on the stove head, first throwing in bacon to render the fat, which was also the practice of many Alaskan hunters.

"Sizzle, "

When enough fat had rendered, Lin Yu'an removed the bacon and immediately threw the ptarmigan pieces into the pot, quickly stir-frying.

The meat pieces contacted the hot bottom of the pot, their surfaces instantly contracting, color changing from pink to seared white, and a pure meat aroma began spreading in the cold air.

"Oh my God, just smelling this makes me feel warmer!" Stan leaned over, taking a deep breath, his face full of intoxication.

After the meat pieces were all seared to a light golden color, Lin Yu'an poured water into the pot, quickly covering all the meat pieces.

"Your turn, chef." Lin Yu'an said to Stan with a smile.

Stan chuckled and pulled out a package of high-altitude instant mashed potato powder and a small handful of dehydrated onion pieces from his food bag.

He skillfully scattered these two ingredients into the pot. The broth quickly boiled again and began thickening due to the addition of the potato powder.

Lin Yu'an lowered the heat, keeping it at a gentle "bubbling" simmer.

The fresh flavor of the ptarmigan, the richness of the mashed potatoes, and the mild sweetness of the onions slowly merged in the small pot, weaving together into a fragrance full of warmth.

Old George had been watching silently, and now he also pulled out a small flat metal flask from his pocket, unscrewed the cap, and poured a small capful of whiskey into the pot.

"George! You old drunk! Aren't you saving that for emergencies?" Stan said in surprise.

A rare smile appeared on Old George's face, "A little liquor removes the gamey taste and adds layers to the soup's flavor."

"This reminds me of when I was young, doing this with coworkers too. Not many of those old guys are still around."

Lin Yu'an watched the two old men contributing their treasures to this pot of soup, word by word, and warmth surged in his heart.

This was no longer just a dinner, but more like a warm ceremony belonging to the three of them.

After a long while, a pot of thick "whiskey ptarmigan potato chowder" was finally complete.

After Lin Yu'an made the final seasoning with salt, he served it in their three titanium bowls. The meat pieces were tender, almost falling off the bone, and emitted a faint potato fragrance.

Stan was the first to blow on it and impatiently took a big sip.

The scalding chowder slid down his throat, "Oh! God! So hot! But the taste is very good."

Old George was more refined. He used his spoon to scoop up a piece of well-stewed leg meat that easily separated from the bone and put it in his mouth.

The meat wasn't too dry, the broth was rich. He closed his eyes in satisfaction, taking a long breath, as if even his soul had been comforted, or perhaps he was thinking of his youthful days.

The three of them sat around that small flame, sipping the soup in small mouthfuls and eating the meat in big bites, none of them speaking anymore.

In this cold pass dominated by howling winds, words were unnecessary.

Only the scalding chowder in their bowls, the companions beside them, and the shared anticipation for tomorrow in their hearts were the most real existence at this moment!

[NEXT CHAPTER]

HUN Chapter 126: Hunting Season Begins

In early August Alaska, the frenzy of the midnight sun was slowly fading, the boundaries of night were beginning to regain their clarity, and precious twilight was reappearing.

The main structure of the house was complete, but the interior finishing and plumbing and electrical installations still had a long way to go.

However, Lin Yu'an had already moved into this log cabin to live, able to clearly smell the wood fragrance emanating from the wooden house.

He had a clear plan in his mind: he must turn this place into a warm and comfortable home before the first blizzard of deep autumn sealed off the Dalton Highway, then bring Aliya over.

He calculated his upcoming plans, his gaze turning to the calendar hanging on the wall.

August 10th, a day prominently marked with a red circle, with "Hunting Season Opens" written below in bold letters.

He sighed softly. As a "non-resident" who hadn't lived here for a full year yet, hunting was an extremely luxurious activity for him.

He had consulted in detail with his old neighbor Stan. To hunt during the open season, one needed to purchase an annual hunting license, which only cost $45 for Alaska residents.

But for Lin Yu'an as a non-resident, if he wanted to hunt large game, the annual hunting license would cost $630, a fourteen-fold difference.

Game tags, these were the real big expense.

For a black bear, the resident tag fee was $25, while non-residents had to pay $450.

As for Alaska's wilderness king, the brown bear, the resident tag was still a symbolic $25, while non-residents paid $1000.

Moreover, hunting Dall sheep and brown bears required entering a lottery, and for non-residents, winning was like hitting the jackpot.

Even if he purchased a hunting license, he could only hunt one moose per season.

But if he had bear tags, he could hunt black bears or brown bears.

"Looks like before getting resident status, I can only hunt some small game without restrictions," Lin Yu'an muttered to himself.

However, he had already made an agreement with Old George. Lin Yu'an promised to serve as his "legs and eyes," accompanying him to chase the Dall sheep on the mountain peaks one more time.

He might not hunt Dall sheep himself, but he could help carry gear, scout terrain, and use a shotgun to bag some ptarmigan and grouse, so Lin Yu'an was preparing to buy a shotgun.

Lin Yu'an drove his Ford Explorer and came to Fairbanks once again.

He walked familiarly into that largest outdoor sporting goods store, where the air was filled with the mixed scent of gun oil and leather.

On the long gun racks, various rifles and shotguns were quietly displayed, like fierce beasts waiting to be awakened.

A clerk with a name tag reading "Dave" came over, his beard thick, his eyes friendly and professional.

"Good afternoon, sir. Looking for something specific?"

Lin Yu'an got straight to the point, "I need a 12-gauge pump-action shotgun."

"It needs to be very reliable, versatile, mainly for bird hunting, but in critical moments, I hope it can help me deal with a bear, if I'm unlucky enough to encounter one."

Dave's face showed a knowing smile, "Of course, no problem sir. Multi-purpose and ultimate reliability, these are almost every Alaskan's requirements."

"We have eternal classics, like the Remington 870 and Mossberg 500. They're like the Ford F-150 of the pickup world, absolutely won't let you down."

He showed Lin Yu'an several basic models. Although well-built, Lin Yu'an felt something was missing.

He needed a gun that would be perfect from the start, capable of handling any extreme situation.

Dave seemed to read Lin Yu'an's thoughts, and he smiled mysteriously, "However, if you want something that'll let you graduate immediately, follow me."

He led Lin Yu'an to an independent tactical equipment display case and took out a shotgun that was entirely black with an extremely aggressive design.

Lin Yu'an's eyes were immediately drawn to it.

This was exactly that Mossberg 590A1, but it had obviously undergone deep tactical modifications, completely different from those plain relatives on the shelves.

Dave handed the gun to Lin Yu'an, and that hefty weight immediately conveyed a reassuring sense of solidity.

"This is the law enforcement version of the Mossberg 590A1." Dave began to introduce it like counting treasures, his fingers sequentially sliding over each component of the gun.

"First, look at this stock. It's not a traditional fixed stock, but an M4 carbine-style collapsible tactical stock."

"In summer you wear a T-shirt, in winter you wear a heavy parka. Just press a button and you can adjust it to the length that fits you best."

"On top of the receiver is a full Picatinny rail, pre-installed with a tube-style red dot sight."

"Its function is to let you capture targets at the fastest speed during close-range engagements or moving shots, using both eyes open aiming with an extremely wide field of view."

He pointed to the perforated metal shroud on the barrel, "This is a heat shield. After you quickly empty a magazine, it ensures your hands won't get burned by the scalding barrel."

Lin Yu'an's gaze fell on the muzzle, which had a serrated, extremely aggressive-looking device.

"This is...?"

"A breaching brake." Dave grinned.

"In tactical applications, it can be used to push against door locks or hinges, preventing the muzzle from slipping."

"But around here, it's more of a style, a 'don't mess with me' warning! Of course, it also effectively suppresses muzzle rise."

Lin Yu'an worked the pump once, and that crisp, smooth "ka-chunk" mechanical sound was full of power!

This forend was also unusual, with an integrated rail system underneath, already equipped with a tactical light and a vertical front grip.

Finally, Dave pointed to an inconspicuous attachment on the side of the receiver, with six blue shotgun shells neatly held in place.

"Side-saddle shell carrier, allowing you to reload at maximum speed after emptying the magazine. Six backup rounds, right where your fingers can reach them."

Lin Yu'an stroked the cold metal of the gun body, his mind already made up.

Every detail of this gun seemed to speak of "one step to perfection."

"I'll take it."

"Wise choice."

The next process entered legal procedures.

Lin Yu'an presented his green card and Alaska temporary driver's license, meticulously filled out the federal ATF Form 4473.

Dave entered his information into the computer and ran a background check through the NICS system.

During the few minutes of waiting, Lin Yu'an also selected plenty of #7.5 birdshot and powerful 1-ounce slugs.

"Alright, background check passed!"

Dave smiled as he printed out the receipt, "This beast is now yours."

After paying $860, Lin Yu'an legally owned his first long gun in Alaska.

It was still the heavily modified Mossberg 590A1. Although expensive, Lin Yu'an felt this investment was very worthwhile.

Returning to Wiseman, a professional high-altitude hunting plan had entered its final preparation phase.

David and Mike were carefully checking and packing their photography equipment, with barely concealed disappointment on their faces.

"Lin, are you really sure you won't let us come along?" David asked, shouldering his heavy Sony camera, making one last attempt.

"This is Dall sheep hunting! Think of those shots, snow mountains, cliffs, white spirits... This would absolutely be top-tier material to drive viewers crazy!"

Lin Yu'an was stuffing a pack of high-calorie beef jerky into his enormous mountaineering backpack. Hearing this, he laughed and shook his head.

"David, I understand how you feel, but this time is different. Where we're going has no roads at all, completely on foot, and we'll be walking for several days."

"Equipment and supplies weight is calculated by the gram, and more people might alert those cunning Dall sheep, so the fewer people the better."

He paused his work and picked up a matchbox-sized, black metallic square device from the table nearby, tossing it in his hand.

"But don't worry, I won't miss any material."

He clicked the small square device and magnetically attached it to a magnetic mount on his chest.

"What's that? A new GoPro?" Mike asked curiously, leaning in.

"No, this is something I picked up in Fairbanks when buying the gun, a DJI Action 2."

Lin Yu'an demonstrated it to them, "I think it's much more user-friendly than GoPro. Look, magnetic design, can switch between chest mount and barrel mount in one second."

"And its stabilization... how should I put it, its horizon leveling function is very powerful. No matter how much I shake, the footage always comes out level."

He patted David's shoulder and said seriously, "This hunt has great significance for George. We can't afford any mistakes."

"So you two can consider this a short vacation, rest well at camp, or explore the surroundings."

"If we return with trophies, I promise to bring you the most spectacular footage."

Seeing Lin Yu'an's determined attitude and confident assurance, David and Mike, though disappointed, could only nod in agreement.

After seeing off the two photographers, the log cabin became completely quiet.

When departure time came, Lin Yu'an arrived at Old George's log cabin living room, which had now become a temporary command center.

A huge topographical map of the Brooks Range was spread on a makeshift wooden table, with contour lines, rivers, and ridge markings densely packed.

Old George, Stan, and Lin Yu'an, like a military special operations team about to deploy, gathered around the map, carefully planning every detail.

"Our entry point is here." Old George pointed with his calloused finger to a place on the map called "Weeping Creek Valley."

"Going in from here, on the first day we need to hike at least fifteen kilometers, cross over this saddle, and camp below 'Wind Shear Pass.'"

"There the view is open, the best spot for observing sheep activity on the opposite slope."

Lin Yu'an looked at that vast expanse of map on the table and couldn't help asking, "George, aren't we taking ATVs in? I see many people in Alaska use those."

Stan laughed and shook his head, "Kid, where we're going is God's territory. There are no roads there."

"More importantly, in those areas designated as wilderness protection zones, anything with wheels is prohibited by law."

"The white ghosts we're looking for live in those treacherous places."

"You know what, kid, Old George's stubborn persistence, he applies for Dall sheep lottery tags in this area every single year, for ten whole years!"

"In ten years he's drawn Dall sheep tags 4 times, but came back empty-handed every time."

"Fortunately, George drew a tag again this year. Hopefully with your addition, we can bring this old guy some more luck."

"This might be one of his few remaining chances in this lifetime. We must help him fulfill this dream!"

Stan then took a pen and drew another backup route on the map.

"If the water level in Weeping Creek Valley is too high, we'll have to take this route, around the scree slope. Although it's five more kilometers, it's safer. We need to be prepared for all scenarios."

Lin Yu'an listened silently, memorizing every word of the two old men's rich experience. His main role was logistics support and medium-range defense.

He went through their equipment list item by item. The list itself was a professional benchmark.

Three lightweight high-altitude tents, three down sleeping bags rated to negative fifteen degrees, a high-magnification Leica spotting scope that could see the annual rings on horns from a kilometer away.

Plus a portable water purifier, a small iron pot, satellite phone, high-calorie dehydrated food, and a professional first aid kit sufficient for any emergency trauma.

"Did we bring enough food? At high altitude, the body consumes twice the normal calories," Stan checked the food bag Lin Yu'an had packed, filled with energy bars, beef jerky, and freeze-dried meals designed for high altitude.

"Don't worry, Stan. Enough for seven days, and I brought coffee too. I guarantee you'll have hot coffee even on the mountaintop," Lin Yu'an replied with a laugh.

After the equipment check, the three men's weapon configuration perfectly reflected their respective roles and personalities.

Old George carefully took his beloved Remington 700 rifle from its gun case.

This was a true old companion. The walnut stock had been worn to an oily shine by the years, with small V-shaped marks carved with a knife, each mark representing a successful hunt.

He mounted a top-tier Swarovski scope on this Remington 700, then repeatedly polished it with a piece of deerskin, his eyes as gentle as if caressing his own child.

Stan's style was completely different, full of Alaskan roughness and pragmatism.

With a click, he opened the clasp of the huge leather holster hanging on his chest, revealing the gleaming hand cannon inside, a Ruger Super Redhawk "Alaskan."

Although its barrel was extremely short, making it appear unusually compact, the massive frame and thick cylinder silently announced its ability to contain the terrifying .44 Magnum cartridge.

This wasn't a gun for long-distance hunting, but a purely close-range bear defense weapon.

As Stan loaded six heavy hollow-point rounds into the cylinder, he said grimly, "In the brush, this guy is more useful than a rifle."

Lin Yu'an had his newly purchased Mossberg 590A1, entirely black and full of modern tactical style, forming a sharp contrast with Old George's classic wood-grain gun.

"Hey kid, your big guy looks beautiful, just not light on weight," Stan said, pointing at Lin Yu'an's shotgun.

Lin Yu'an patted the gun body, "George handles long distance, you handle the big guys up close, I'll handle the little guys in the sky, add some wild game to our dinner!"

His words drew good-natured laughter from both old men.

Old George came over and firmly patted Lin Yu'an's shoulder, his eyes full of anticipation and relief, "Kid, ready to experience the real Alaska?"

"That's not the scenery you see on TV, but land that needs to be measured with your feet, felt with your breathing, and even... revered with your life."

Lin Yu'an expressed that this was truly the life he looked forward to! The two old men laughed heartily again, seeming to anticipate his performance as well.

Two days later, they penetrated deep into the treacherous heart of the Brooks Range.

Everything here was completely different from the civilized world. No roads, no signal, only endless mountains, rushing glacial rivers, and slippery tundra underfoot.

The first day's fifteen-kilometer hike gave Lin Yu'an a rude awakening.

Carrying a twenty-five-kilogram pack, walking on tundra that appeared gentle but concealed hidden pitfalls, every step required enormous physical effort.

But Lin Yu'an's enhanced physique not only allowed him to keep up with the pace, he even had energy left to scout ahead for the team.

This completely put to rest the concerns that Stan and George had initially harbored.

[NEXT CHAPTER]

HUN Chapter 125: Log Cabin Main Structure Topped Out!

Lin Yu'an and Cody immediately grabbed long-handled heavy-duty drilling machines, one left and one right, kneeling on the newly laid second layer of logs.

Accompanied by "buzzing" sounds, they drilled deep holes from top to bottom, penetrating both layers of wood.

"Stan! Patton! Thread the rods!"

Stan and Patton worked together to thread massive all-thread rods through the holes, then used impact wrenches with "rat-a-tat-tat" sounds for preliminary securing.

Layer one, layer two, layer three... the walls kept growing upward under the efficient cooperation of the six men.

The entire construction site formed a picture with tremendous rhythm.

In the air was Patton operating the loader, slowly moving massive logs suspended from it.

On the walls were Hank and Cody rapidly laying seal strips.

At the lumber area was Lin Yu'an focused on carving perfect saddle notches with his chainsaw and bent chisel.

Whenever a layer of wood was laid, Cody would pick up the drilling machine while others immediately prepared rods and impact wrenches.

Every corner was personally carved by Lin Yu'an into perfect saddle notches.

Every log was tightly connected by sturdy all-thread rods and seal strips.

When the walls stacked to the fifth layer, exceeding 1.2 meters in height, they stopped to create door and window openings.

They strictly reserved fifteen centimeters of "settling space" above all openings.

Finally, after approximately five days total, the entire first floor's main wall structure reaching three meters high was completely built!

A log cabin framework wall full of weight and security officially stood upon Timber Forest.

When the first floor walls stood completely on the massive platform, the entire construction site erupted in cheers.

Old George pointed to the three-meter-high wall top and shouted loudly, "Alright, boys! Don't stand there gawking like tourists! We're about to start working at height now! Everyone stay sharp!"

The next task was building the second floor.

The first step was lifting the second floor main beams that spanned the entire house.

This work was challenging because the lifting height and precision requirements far exceeded previous work.

Before formal lifting, Lin Yu'an and Old George performed extremely important preparatory work.

They used chainsaws and massive wood chisels to precisely cut several beam pockets in the top layer wall logs of the first floor.

"What's this for, Lin?" David asked curiously, looking up.

Lin Yu'an explained, "This allows the main beam ends to embed into the walls rather than simply rest on top, forming a more stable interlocking structure."

After experiencing the first floor construction work, the six-man team's coordination had reached perfection.

Lin Yu'an operated the XCMG loader to lift heavy beams one by one.

Old George handled command and positioning from the wall top, while Hank, Stan, and Cody controlled the beam's attitude in the air with guide ropes from the ground. Patton provided final guidance on the log wall.

"Higher... good! Move right... that's it... lower slowly!" Old George's voice was loud and steady.

Lin Yu'an's movements were precise as he slowly lowered that massive main beam into the two "beam pockets" already prepared at the wall top.

Using just one day, they steadily erected all main beams in the grooves at the log wall tops.

Then they installed all joists in assembly-line fashion.

Stan and Patton handled installing joist hangers between main beams, Lin Yu'an and Cody processed joists with the bandsaw mill, while Hank operated the loader to lift batches of joists up.

Finally came laying the tongue-and-groove plywood.

All six men climbed onto the second floor beam framework and began their final sprint on this battlefield suspended three meters high.

Amid "pop! pop! pop!" sounds from nail guns, a brand new second floor platform hung suspended three meters in the air.

Standing on the second floor platform, they didn't pause for a moment before immediately beginning second floor wall construction.

Since the second floor walls only needed to be 2.4 meters high, their progress was very fast.

Using just a day and a half, they completed all wall stacking and door/window opening reservations.

Next came installing the attic floor joists.

These massive wooden beams spanned across the second floor wall tops, serving as both the second floor ceiling and future attic flooring.

When all attic joists were installed, the building's rectangular skeleton was basically formed.

Lin Yu'an held the blueprints and told everyone, "Now we need to build two massive triangles upward at the front and back ends of the house, the gable walls, which will be the backbone supporting our roof."

Building gable walls required extremely precise calculations and cutting, because each upward-stacked log had to be accurately shortened according to a fixed slope.

Meanwhile, both end cuts had to be precise angles to perfectly match the future roof slope.

This became the power period for Lin Yu'an and Old George, the two engineering supervisors.

Old George used professional angle rulers to calculate the angle and length each gable wall log needed to be cut.

Lin Yu'an used his Stihl chainsaw for precise cutting.

Others handled lifting these cut, progressively shorter logs with the XCMG loader and performing stacking installation.

After two more days of intensive work, two massive, perfect triangular gable walls finally rose at both ends of the house!

At the gable tops, they reserved a solid V-shaped notch for placing the ridge beam.

With gable construction complete, they would face the most challenging and ceremonial aspect of the entire building process: lifting the ridge beam.

Old George pointed to that tree king that Lin Yu'an had specially selected, thirteen meters long with the largest diameter, and told everyone, "Alright, good lads! Today we'll hold the 'coronation ceremony' for this house!"

This lift exceeded seven meters in height, beyond the direct reach of the loader's mechanical arm.

They spent an entire morning studying blueprints and building a scaffolding crane tower assembled from logs, plus constructing a compound lifting system made of multiple pulley blocks and winches.

In the afternoon, Lin Yu'an operated the loader to first lift one end of the ridge beam, mounting it on the scaffolding.

Then Stan and Cody operated two gasoline winches through pulley blocks, beginning to slowly and synchronously lift this massive "backbone" upward.

Old George, Hank, and Patton controlled its balance from below with three guide ropes from different directions.

Under the perfect coordination of all six men, that massive ridge beam traced a beautiful arc through the air, finally landing with a "clang" firmly in the V-shaped notches at both gable tops!

"Yeah!!!"

Everyone erupted in earth-shaking cheers!

"Alright, boys, main framework done! Next, we start the 'face work' to make this house beautiful!"

Face work referred to building the wide front porch spanning the main house, second floor balcony, and all doors and windows.

Lin Yu'an and Old George took out blueprints and used chalk lines to mark eight precise spots for support columns on the solid platform.

They erected eight massive log columns precisely on the platform.

Lin Yu'an had pre-ordered triple-pane insulated glass windows and solid wood insulated doors meeting Alaska's highest insulation standards.

They first removed temporary wooden frames previously used to secure openings, exposing reserved openings with "lock grooves."

Then they placed window frames in openings, using levels and wooden wedges to adjust them to absolute vertical and horizontal positions.

Finally, they stuffed high-elasticity insulation batting into the settling spaces at the top and sealed with expandable decorative trim.

They spent an entire day installing all sixteen windows and three doors throughout the house using this professional method.

Two days later, when porch and balcony railings were also installed, the entire log cabin's exterior perfectly matched that rendering for the first time!

It was no longer just a square log box, but a log cabin full of dimensional layers!

With doors and windows installed and porch and balcony built, they began using the ridge beam as center to lay rafters at fixed angles sloping down, forming a steep A-frame roof structure.

After completing the roof framework, they entered the final topping-out phase.

They first laid a thick layer of tongue-and-groove boards over all rafters as the roof base layer.

Then they began complete roof insulation and waterproofing operations.

They first carefully laid a layer of self-adhesive polymer waterproof membrane over all tongue-and-groove boards, using heat guns to weld all seams together, forming the first impenetrable waterproof layer.

Then they erected purlins to form small grid squares.

Next came insulation. Lin Yu'an didn't use traditional foam board or fiberglass batting, but brought out more professional equipment: a two-component closed-cell spray polyurethane foam system!

"What is this? Chemical weapons?"

David looked curiously at the two huge pressure tanks containing different colored liquids and an oddly-shaped spray gun.

"More powerful than chemical weapons."

Lin Yu'an smiled. He put on a full protective suit and professional full-face respirator.

"This is the roof's ultimate armor. Its insulation effect exceeds foam board of the same thickness by more than double, and it forms a completely seamless seal layer, eliminating any cold air penetration."

He started the air compressor connected to the pressure tanks, held the spray gun, and began spraying into the gaps between rafters.

"Hiss, "

Accompanied by slight air flow sounds, two liquids mixed at the gun tip and underwent magical chemical reaction the moment they sprayed out.

Light yellow liquid foam expanded rapidly like freshly whipped cream, increasing in volume twenty to thirty times within seconds, perfectly filling all irregular gaps between rafters.

Lin Yu'an covered the entire roof's interior from one end to the other with a uniform fifteen-centimeter-thick layer of rigid foam.

Hours later, when the foam fully cured, the entire roof interior had become a seamless light yellow space.

Then everyone first fixed rows of wooden battens at precise intervals on the roof that already had waterproof insulation layers.

Next, they began installing the pre-delivered dark gray corrugated metal roofing panels.

This was also high-altitude work requiring tremendous patience and precision.

Lin Yu'an and Hank handled the high positions, carefully sliding long metal panels from the ridge downward for alignment.

Cody and Patton handled securing from below.

They used specialized roofing screws with EPDM waterproof sealing washers.

When screws were tightened, the sealing washers compressed to perfectly wrap around screw holes, eliminating any leak possibility.

"Rat-a-tat-tat..."

Crisp impact driver sounds rang rhythmically on the roof.

Starting from one side of the roof, they advanced systematically with each panel overlapping the next.

Finally, at the roof's highest point, they installed custom ridge caps, perfectly connecting both roof faces!

When the last washer-sealed screw was tightened, the entire log cabin's external main structure was finally completely topped out!

Meanwhile, during these twenty-plus days of external main construction, internal "threading the needle" work proceeded simultaneously.

Mechanic Cody, with his professional knowledge, became the team's chief electrical and plumbing engineer.

He handled reserving and installing all utility lines between walls and floors.

When building each wall layer, they used special tools to drill hidden electrical channels in the logs.

Cody would immediately thread PEX electrical conduit through them, extending from the electrical panel location to every future outlet, switch, and fixture location.

Similarly, PEX hot and cold water pipes connecting kitchen, bathroom, and laundry, plus ABS sewer pipes leading to the septic system, were all installed at proper gradients within wall and floor cavities.

The most important heating system also had corresponding pipe reservations, especially spatial planning for the large fireplace location.

They even pre-embedded and secured bases for future bathtub and toilet installations.

With main structure complete, the log cabin's vertical circulation became a new challenge. Lin Yu'an decided to build a log staircase to replace the current simple wooden ladder.

He first used the bandsaw mill to split two massive, straight logs down the middle, forming the main staircase's two semicircular stringers.

Next, he precisely cut tread placement groove outlines in both massive stringers.

While he processed stringers, Stan, Patton and others handled processing slightly smaller logs into rectangular treads.

When all components were finished, assembly began.

They embedded treads into stringer grooves and secured them firmly with screws from the outside.

Soon, a massive log staircase was assembled in the reserved space between first and second floors.

They used the same method to create and install a more refined "L"-shaped log staircase connecting the second floor and attic.

With both staircases installed, everyone walked from first to second floor for the first time without any ladder assistance, stepping on those solid log treads, then easily ascending to the attic!

Finally, from platform construction to log cabin topping out took approximately twenty-nine days total.

A shell log cabin with solid foundation, heavy walls, magnificent roof, and all core utilities pre-installed was complete!

Old George looked at this masterpiece crystallizing everyone's sweat and patted Lin Yu'an's shoulder with satisfaction.

"Kid, we've finished the hardest, heaviest work for you. What's left is fine finishing and filling. That you'll have to do slowly on your own."

Lin Yu'an looked at this building that would become his home, his heart filled with indescribable excitement and gratitude.

"Thank you, George, Stan, and everyone."

He said sincerely, "I hope whenever you need help in the future, you'll definitely call me! I'll absolutely come whenever called!"

After seeing off all his partners, Lin Yu'an stood alone before his log cabin, as if in a dream.

He couldn't believe he had actually built his own log cabin in Alaska!

Next would be his solo work.

He needed to fill wall sealing materials, build interior partition walls, and undertake the major project of constructing an interior fireplace chimney passing through the roof.

[NEXT CHAPTER]

HUN Chapter 124: Erecting Wooden Walls

The next morning, the sound of ATV engines came from the distance once again.

This time, it was Hank, Patton, and Cody arriving as agreed, along with Old George and Stan.

A construction crew of six tough men from Wiseman was now formed!

They didn't rush to start work, but instead conducted a crucial pre-construction inspection.

"Kid, come take a look."

Old George beckoned Lin Yu'an over. He pulled out a pistol-shaped instrument with two metal probes at the front from his toolbox.

"This is a wood moisture meter. Before we build a house, we need to make sure our lumber is up to standard."

He walked over to a processed log with flat top and bottom surfaces and forcefully inserted the two probes into the wood's cross-section. The LCD screen on the instrument immediately displayed a number.

"22.4%."

Old George read out the measurement, then tested several more times at the other end and middle of the lumber. The readings all fluctuated between 22% and 24%.

David asked curiously, "What does this number mean? Can we use this wood now?"

Old George patted the massive log with satisfaction and laughed, "This summer's sun has been harsh enough, plus you've planed them all flat and provided good ventilation."

"Getting the moisture content down from over 50% when freshly cut to below 25% means we've passed the most troublesome initial shrinkage period, so we can start building!"

He turned to explain to David, "We can't wait for it to completely dry out, that would take several years. In this current state, we can build while letting it continue to slowly air-dry naturally."

"We can handle the remaining settling by leaving enough allowance in the doors, windows, and all-thread rod systems. This is a common method in modern log home construction."

"Before we lift any piece of timber, we need to prepare all the bones first."

Old George announced the first task, "Lin, you and Cody will operate that bandsaw mill. Your job over the next three days is to process all the main beams and joists we need from the raw logs!"

Over the next three days, amid the roar of the bandsaw mill, Lin Yu'an and mechanic Cody formed a perfect combination.

Lin Yu'an handled the main operation, using his precise judgment to determine each cut's position and thickness.

Meanwhile, Cody used his mechanical knowledge to constantly tune, oil, and replace blades for this intensively operating machine, ensuring it remained in optimal condition.

Stan, Hank, and Patton used the XCMG loader to transport massive round logs to the bandsaw mill one by one, then move the cut heavy beams and joists to the other side, separating them with blocking wood and stacking them neatly in piles.

This process was filled with sweat and sawdust. Six men worked over ten hours daily under the polar daylight.

"Lin, down another half inch!" Cody steadied a log about to be cut, shouting to Lin Yu'an who was adjusting the saw head.

Lin Yu'an nodded and turned the dial, precisely lowering the blade's height.

"Good!"

He started the blade, and with a long "hum," the saw head slowly pushed forward while golden wood chips cascaded down like a waterfall.

"Hey! Patton! Don't slack off! Is the next one ready?" Stan commanded from nearby, directing hunter Patton to operate the loader and lift another log to the staging area.

After three full days of hard labor, they finally finished processing all the lumber needed to build the platform, including over a dozen massive main beams and hundreds of joists.

A new "lumber mountain" of standardized building materials appeared beside the camp.

"Everyone listen up!" Old George gathered everyone for a brief pre-battle meeting.

"Lifting the main beams, especially that twelve-meter monster, is one of the most dangerous parts of this entire project."

"It's heavy and very unstable! I need everyone to be one hundred percent focused and follow commands in unison. Understood?"

"Understood!" everyone replied in chorus.

Lin Yu'an operated the XCMG loader, using wide lifting straps to steadily hoist that longest twelve-meter main beam.

The massive main beam moved extremely slowly, inch by inch, toward its throne.

When the main beam was just a few centimeters from the steel bracket, Hank and Cody immediately used pry bars to lock the position.

"Lower!" Old George commanded.

Lin Yu'an slowly lowered the mechanical arm.

"Clang!"

Finally, after a dull sound of metal meeting wood, the first main beam settled firmly onto two "steel components"!

"Oh yeah!!!"

The tough guys simultaneously erupted in victorious roars! David behind the camera also excitedly pumped his fist.

This scene was filled with North American machismo and the supreme charm of teamwork!

They spent another full day and a half installing all the perimeter and centerline main beams, connecting them into place to form a massive hollow framework.

After completing the main beam framework, they didn't immediately lay the joists.

"Now it's time to install all the drain pipes," Old George said.

The next two days belonged to the detailed work of utility installation and insulation.

Lin Yu'an took out his design drawings and, together with Cody, began laying various utility lines between this wooden grid.

They installed the main sewage line, red and blue PEX water supply pipes, and wrapped all pipes with thick insulation sleeves.

Meanwhile, Old George, Stan, Hank, and Patton were responsible for filling all the gaps between beam frames with bundles of 30-centimeter-thick rock wool insulation, fitting them seamlessly.

Only after completing all this did they begin installing the joists.

Old George and Stan were responsible for fixing U-shaped joist hangers to the inside of the main beams at 40-centimeter intervals using impact drivers.

Lin Yu'an, Cody, and the other two were responsible for precisely placing the processed joists into the hangers one by one and securing them with structural screws.

The entire platform's skeleton became full and solid at a visible rate!

Soon all six men were kneeling on the beam framework, beginning to lay those heavy tongue-and-groove plywood sheets.

Lin Yu'an and Cody operated professional nail guns connected to air compressors.

"Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop!..."

Accompanied by rhythmic, powerful nailing sounds, the other four men were responsible for moving, aligning, and tightening the plywood.

After two more polar daylight workdays lasting over ten hours each, when the last nail was driven in, a solid, level, completely elevated massive "L"-shaped platform was declared complete!

From beginning to process the first main beam to the platform's final completion, the entire process took over a full week.

Standing on this platform they had built with their own hands, although everyone was exhausted, their faces glowed with tremendous accomplishment!

Old George's voice echoed across the open construction site, "Guys, although we've tackled the first tough bone, there are still several more bones to chew."

"For the work ahead, before we lay any piece of timber, we have two preparations to make."

"First, platform waterproofing. Second, sill plate preservation treatment."

Everyone immediately sprang into action. Pilot Hank and mechanic Cody handled the more delicate work.

They opened a huge roll of black carpet-like waterproof membrane and cut it with sharp utility knives.

Then, under Old George's guidance, they used scrapers to evenly spread a bucket of viscous, pungent-smelling asphalt adhesive along the outer edges of the foundation platform.

Next, they carefully laid the waterproof membrane over it and repeatedly rolled it with rubber rollers, ensuring no air bubbles existed between the membrane and plywood, forming a roughly 40-centimeter-wide "waterproof isolation strip."

On the other side, Stan and hunter Patton, these two tough guys, were responsible for treating those heavy "sill plates."

They lifted the planed logs onto sawhorses, then used wide wool brushes dipped in another bucket of asphalt preservative coating to begin careful application.

They painted extremely carefully, penetrating and wrapping every inch of the wood grain with coating.

Lin Yu'an and Old George worked together on the most critical "layout" work.

They didn't draw lines directly on the waterproof membrane because those would easily rub off.

Old George took out a chalk line reel. After the chalk line was saturated with ink, he stood at one end of the platform while Lin Yu'an walked to the other end. They pulled the line taut, pressing it tight against the inner edge of the waterproof membrane.

"Good! Release!" Old George commanded.

Lin Yu'an's finger gave a light flick.

"Snap!" With a crisp sound, a straight, jet-black chalk line instantly appeared on the waterproof membrane.

This line was the lifeline ensuring the first wall layer would be absolutely square.

Half a day later, all preparatory work was complete, and lifting work could begin.

Lin Yu'an started the XCMG XC760K loader and steadily lifted the first treated twelve-meter sill plate.

At both ends of the platform, Old George and Stan handled guidance and positioning.

"Come left another half inch!... Good! Stop!... Forward just a little bit... just a little bit!"

Hank, Patton, and Cody assisted in the middle with pry bars and hands, preventing any unnecessary movement of this massive timber.

When the massive log's inner edge perfectly aligned with that jet-black chalk line through the coordination of all six men, Lin Yu'an slowly lowered it.

With a dull "thump," the entire platform seemed to tremble slightly.

The first sill plate had found its home!

With the first and longest sill plate perfectly secured, the entire team's morale soared.

"Good! The first timber is down!" Old George shouted, "Guys, don't stop! Use this standard and get all the sill plates laid for me!"

Over the next half day, they used the same method to lift and secure all sill plates in direct contact with the platform, forming a complete "L"-shaped bottom layer outline.

"Lin, second layer corner log!" Old George directed.

Lin Yu'an operated the XCMG loader to lift a processed wall log.

But before placing it in position, he first performed a precision operation: creating a saddle notch.

He steadily mounted the log on sawhorses, then took out that compass-like scribe tool and set its span to the length of the bottom sill plate's radius.

He first used the scribe to precisely draw a perfect semicircle at the bottom end of the log, then started up his Stihl chainsaw.

In an almost sculptural manner, he used the chainsaw's tip to carefully cut along the drawn line, creating the rough outline of the notch.

Next, he switched to a bent chisel specifically for woodworking shaping and a wooden mallet, beginning hand finishing.

"Clang! Clang! Clang!"

Accompanied by crisp striking sounds, curved wood chips were chiseled away. Under his skilled hands, that originally rough cut gradually became an extremely smooth and perfectly rounded notch.

When he lifted this processed corner log to the corner of the sill plate, it fit perfectly as expected!

That saddle notch made a light "click" sound as it perfectly straddled the perpendicular sill plate below, forming a strong and beautiful interlocking structure.

"Beautiful!"

Old George couldn't help but cheer loudly upon seeing this perfect joint, "Beautiful! Kid, your handiwork is just like a logger with several years of experience!"

"Good! The first corner is up! Patton, Cody! Second layer long wall timber, lift it over! Hank, lay the seal strips!"

Hunter Patton immediately jumped on the loader and, under Lin Yu'an's guidance, could now perform some simple lifting operations.

He lifted a twelve-meter log and slowly moved it toward the wall.

Below on the sill plate, Hank and Cody had already laid two parallel professional log seal strips along the chalk line.

"A little more left! Line it up!" Stan commanded loudly from the other end.

"Thump!"

With a dull crash, the second layer's long wall log settled firmly on the sill plate, compressing the soft seal strips!

Next, they began laying the second layer of wall logs.

Before placing each timber, Hank and Cody would first lay two parallel professional log seal strips on the lower log layer.

After the second layer log was positioned, David raised a key question, "George, I've always wondered, you say the wood will shrink, so after this house is built and the walls get shorter, won't there be gaps everywhere?"

Old George laughed and pointed to a massive threaded rod they were installing, "Good question, son! The secret lies in this thing: the all-thread rod system."

He picked up an uninstalled rod and showed David its special construction at the bottom.

"See, here there's a special washer with a powerful spring."

"We'll use this to string together all the wall logs from top to bottom."

"Over the coming years, when the lumber shrinks due to drying and the wall height might drop by over ten centimeters."

"At that time, the pressure from these springs will automatically and continuously compress the nuts above downward, ensuring the entire wall from top to bottom always remains compressed, never developing gaps."

"We only need to check and appropriately tighten these nuts annually to complete all settling maintenance."

This ingenious mechanical structure made David suddenly understand and once again be impressed by this professional construction technique.

"Alright! Stop chatting!" Old George's urging voice rang out, "Lin! Cody! Drill holes! Lock these two layers tight for me!"

[NEXT CHAPTER]

HUN Chapter 123: Platform Construction Complete

When he returned once again to that familiar construction site piled high with lumber and building materials, looking at the massive foundation platform that had already taken initial shape, his heart finally truly settled down.

For two consecutive days, Lin Yu'an worked like a tireless machine, completely immersed in his work.

He tended to the vibrant seedlings in the greenhouse, his heart filled with pastoral tranquility.

During the endless white days of the polar summer, he fired up his portable chain saw, processing one massive log after another into standardized building materials suitable for construction.

He deliberately avoided thinking about Emily, avoided thinking about everything that had happened in that cabin.

The twenty-day curing period flew by amid his busyness.

Time arrived at early July.

These twenty-plus days that Lin Yu'an had experienced felt longer than a year's worth of experiences.

When the helicopter carrying David and Mike once again landed on Wiseman's helipad, the one who came to meet them was still Lin Yu'an and his stylish Zongshen three-wheeler.

"Hey, Lin! Vacation's over!" David gave him a big hug.

"How did you spend these twenty days?"

"Made some interesting little things." Lin Yu'an smiled mysteriously.

When the Ford Raptor drove into the Timber Forest site again, David and Mike were completely stunned by the scene before their eyes.

Before they left, this place had been just a construction site with freshly poured concrete pile foundations.

But now, in the southeast corner of the site, a massive modern greenhouse made of plastic film material had risen from the ground! Through the bright greenhouse covering, they could even see vibrant green life inside!

But that wasn't the most shocking part.

On the other side of the camp, the originally chaotic "white wood mountain" had disappeared by more than half.

In its place were several piles of lumber made from standardized building materials with tops and bottoms planed flat!

Each pile was elevated on blocking wood, allowing air to circulate freely through them. The entire construction site looked like a professional lumber processing facility!

"My God... Lin!"

David pointed at the greenhouse, then at the mountain of building materials, his mouth gaping wide enough to fit an egg. He even rubbed his eyes, thinking the polar daylight was making him hallucinate!

"This... what is this? In the twenty days we were gone, you not only built a greenhouse but also processed half the wood?"

Lin Yu'an smiled and led them into the warm, humid greenhouse, looking at the cucumber and tomato seedlings that had already begun climbing their trellises, saying calmly.

"I just did some preparatory work."

Everyone quickly got into their rhythm and began filming.

At David's strong insistence, Lin Yu'an removed his shirt, revealing his bronze-colored, well-defined muscles, then grabbed that Stihl chainsaw and pulled the starter cord.

"Vroom, vroom, vroom!"

The deafening roar once again echoed throughout the entire valley.

After filming just a few shots, he put his shirt back on. There were simply too many mosquitoes.

Alaska's summer was finally beginning to show its generous and wild side.

The polar daylight sun blazed like a furnace, scorching the earth.

The dirt road from Timber Forest to the Dalton Highway, once muddy and impassable, had now become solid and hard after weeks of continuous baking and evaporation, capable of supporting heavy vehicle traffic.

On this day, the long-absent rumble of diesel engines came from the distance, breaking the tranquility of "Timber Forest."

A massive heavy-duty flatbed truck, like a steel dragon, carefully made its way along that narrow dirt road, slowly driving into Lin Yu'an's camp.

This was precisely the "Arctic Star Logistics" company he had contacted earlier. After confirming the road was passable, they immediately delivered all the modern building materials he had pre-ordered to this wilderness heartland.

Lin Yu'an called over Old George and Stan. The group had been waiting here early, and seeing the truck arrive safely, everyone immediately got busy with inspection work.

Old George excitedly rubbed his hands together, "Lin, the ammunition finally arrived!"

His weathered face was filled with excitement about the upcoming major undertaking.

David and Mike also shouldered their cameras, excitedly recording this important moment.

For reality shows, scenes like this where everything was ready always carried the ceremonial feeling of opening a new chapter.

Lin Yu'an started up the XCMG XC760K loader and began methodically unloading cargo.

David's camera faithfully recorded these key materials that would be used to build the homestead, using voice-over-style questions to guide Lin Yu'an's explanations.

"Lin, what are these saddle-looking things?"

David pointed to a pile of heavy-duty hardware gleaming with silver metallic luster.

Lin Yu'an carefully lifted a stack of brackets while explaining, "These are heavy-duty galvanized steel pile cap brackets, also called column head connectors. They're the bridge connecting concrete and timber, and they're key to ensuring the wood structure stays moisture and rot-resistant."

Next, he lifted stack after stack of neatly arranged heavy wooden boards.

"These are three-centimeter-thick tongue-and-groove plywood sheets. See the interlocking grooves and ridges on the edges? This allows the boards to perfectly mesh together, forming a unified whole with strength far superior to regular plywood. We'll use these to lay the first floor."

Besides these, there were bundles of galvanized square-head bolts in different specifications, plus several huge wooden crates filled with tens of thousands of screws.

Finally, there was an entire roll of black carpet-like waterproof moisture barrier material and several large buckets of viscous asphalt adhesive.

After all building materials were neatly unloaded beside the construction site and properly categorized and stacked,

Old George's gaze turned to those twenty-one quietly standing concrete pile columns, "It's time to put them to good use."

"Before we erect any piece of timber, we must ensure all pile tops are on the same absolute horizontal plane."

Old George dragged a neatly coiled transparent hose from his old Ford's toolbox. Both ends of the hose had clear graduated glass tubes attached.

David asked curiously, "George, is this just an ordinary water hose?"

Old George snorted dismissively, looking at him like an amateur, speaking in his Texas-accented drawl, "Ordinary water hose? Son, this thing is way more accurate than those fancy laser instruments of yours, and it never runs out of battery!"

He handed one end of the hose to Stan and held the other end himself, beginning to fill it with water from a large bucket.

As he filled it, he constantly raised and lowered the tube, muttering, "Get all the air bubbles out. Any bubble will affect the final accuracy."

When the hose was filled with water and confirmed to have no air bubbles, the measurement began.

Old George selected a concrete pile column located at the center of the foundation, in the most appropriate position, as the "elevation reference point."

He took out a tape measure and, from the top of this pile column downward, measured a distance of 10 centimeters on its side, using a red marker to draw a clear cross mark.

"Why not use the pile top directly as reference?" David asked again.

"Because the pile top itself has errors. Our purpose is to eliminate that error," Lin Yu'an explained on Old George's behalf.

Old George shouted loudly to Stan, who held the other end of the hose, "Stan! Your turn! Take your end to the reference point!"

Stan stepped forward and pressed the glass tube in his hand tightly against the side of the reference pile column.

He carefully moved it up and down while having Old George continue adding water to the glass tube, until the top of the water level was perfectly aligned with the center of that red cross mark.

"Okay George! This side is good! Hit the water line!"

"Good! Hold steady! Don't move!" Old George commanded loudly after confirming Stan's side was aligned.

Then Old George, holding the other end of the hose, walked toward the corner pile farthest from the reference point.

He similarly pressed the glass tube in his hand against the side of the corner pile.

Due to the principle of communicating vessels, the water level on his side would automatically maintain the same absolute horizontal height as the water level on Stan's side, regardless of the tube's height.

He waited for the water surface to completely stop fluctuating, then squinted his eyes and used that red marker to draw a cross mark at the position of the water level line in his glass tube.

"First point complete!"

Old George straightened up and told everyone, "Now, the mark on this corner pile and the mark on our center reference pile are at exactly the same height, with an error of no more than one millimeter!"

Next, everyone began standardized assembly line work.

Stan served as the reference point controller, always keeping his end of the hose in the same position.

Meanwhile, Old George and Lin Yu'an took the other end of the hose and went to each of the remaining nineteen pile columns in turn.

At each location, they repeated the same operation: press the glass tube against the pile column, wait for the water level to stabilize, make precise marks at the water level line.

After nearly an hour, when all twenty-one pile columns had red marks at absolute horizontal positions, the first step of work was finally complete.

"Alright, now we have an invisible horizontal line," Old George said, pointing to those marked points. "Next job is to grind off all the concrete bumps above this line!"

Old George walked to the bed of his old Ford and dragged out an extremely formidable-looking orange Stihl TS800 gas-powered cut-off saw.

"My God, George! You even have this thing?" David's eyes went straight when he saw this machine.

He recognized this beast, it was professional equipment that only road rescue and construction crews would have.

Old George proudly patted the machine's housing and laughed, "To make a living in this damned beautiful place called Alaska, you can't do without a few handy tools!"

"I used this machine to cut through frozen pipelines in the oil fields back in the day. Today, using it on these little concrete piles will be easy as pie."

Old George directed, "Kid, you're young and strong, this physical work is yours! I'll supervise, Stan will handle water cooling!"

Lin Yu'an put on the heaviest 3M dust mask, safety goggles, and noise-reducing ear protection, taking over this fierce weapon.

He pulled the starter cord, and that massive diamond blade nearly 400 millimeters in diameter began spinning at high speed.

Lin Yu'an gripped the machine tightly with both hands, precisely aiming the high-speed rotating blade at the red mark line on the first pile column.

"Zzzzz!!!"

The moment the blade contacted the hard concrete, it shot out brilliant sparks!

Stan immediately sprang into action, holding a hose connected to a bucket and small pump, aiming at the cutting area and spraying a fine stream of water.

With the water's assistance, what should have been billowing dust became streams of gray slurry flowing down the pile column.

Lin Yu'an concentrated intently. He first cut along the red line around the pile column's perimeter, creating a deep groove reaching more than ten centimeters deep.

After cutting the groove, Old George took out a high-powered electric demolition hammer from his toolbox.

"Thud thud thud thud thud!"

Accompanied by a series of dense, powerful impact sounds, large chunks of concrete were easily chiseled away, exposing the internal steel reinforcement cage.

Finally, Lin Yu'an took out his own compact angle grinder, fitted with a grinding disc, and performed final detailed polishing on the rough surface after cutting, until the entire pile top's cut surface became smooth and even.

When all twenty-one pile tops were finished, Old George took out a 1.2-meter-long German Stabila high-precision level and performed final verification between any two pile tops.

When he saw the bubble in the level staying perfectly centered between the center graduations no matter where he placed it, he burst out with a satisfied exclamation.

"Beautiful! Boys, very level!"

The leveling work was perfectly completed. Next came installing those twenty-one "steel thrones" on these solid concrete foundations.

Old George opened a heavy wooden crate from the delivered materials, revealing neatly arranged galvanized steel pile cap brackets inside.

"Lin, these little things sure look sturdy," David came over and picked one up to weigh it, finding it much heavier than it looked.

Old George explained on the side, "Of course, this is called hot-dip galvanizing. It guarantees they won't rust for a hundred years through Alaska's humid summers and frozen winters."

"It's the 'isolation barrier' between wood and concrete, preventing underground moisture from passing through the concrete to the wooden beams, causing the wood to mold and rot."

"Alright, Lin, time for your impact drill performance," Old George said.

Lin Yu'an switched to a high-powered Bosch impact drill and fitted it with a 20-millimeter diameter four-flute carbide bit designed specifically for drilling concrete.

"Thud thud thud thud!"

Accompanied by strong, powerful impact sounds, the hard concrete was rapidly pulverized under the carbide bit.

Lin Yu'an's body vibrated slightly with the impact drill's rhythm, but his stance remained extremely stable, always maintaining the bit's absolute vertical position.

Stan held a tape measure, constantly measuring the hole's depth.

"Good! Fifteen centimeters! That's enough!"

When Stan gave the command, Lin Yu'an immediately stopped.

Next came Old George's turn for anchor installation.

He first took out a high-pressure air gun, inserted the long nozzle into the bottom of the hole, and blew vigorously several times to completely clear the dust from the hole.

After confirming the hole was clean, he aimed his syringe-like anchor adhesive gun at the hole and filled it to two-thirds capacity.

Then he slowly inserted an M20 L-shaped anchor bolt into the adhesive-filled hole with a rotating motion until it reached the predetermined depth.

"After this structural adhesive fully cures, it will chemically bond this bolt rod and the entire concrete pile together permanently."

Over the next few days.

The three of them worked in division: Lin Yu'an handled drilling, Stan handled hole cleaning, and Old George handled adhesive injection and bolt placement. This assembly line work greatly improved efficiency.

When the anchor adhesive reached initial curing strength, they prepared to begin final installation.

For work requiring more manpower, Lin Yu'an actively invited Patton, Cody and others to help. Everyone fitted the saddle-shaped heavy steel brackets over the firmly "rooted" bolt rods, adding large washers.

Then they used torque wrenches capable of setting specific torque values to begin tightening the nuts.

"Alright, set to 300 newton-meters," Old George told Lin Yu'an.

When the wrench made a crisp "click" sound, it meant the nut had been tightened to the preset perfect torque value.

They used the same method to install all twenty-one steel thrones one by one.

When the last nut was tightened, twenty-one steel brackets gleaming with metallic luster stood neatly atop the twenty-one gray concrete foundation stones.

"Perfect!" Old George looked at his contractor's masterpiece and clapped his hands with satisfaction.

"Now, Lin, you have a foundation that can last a hundred years. Next, tomorrow it's time for those big guys to take the stage!"

Old George's gaze turned toward the mountain of log building materials in the distance.

[NEXT CHAPTER]

HUN Chapter 122: Gold Mine Map?

The sound of rushing water stopped, and Lin Yu'an walked out of the bathroom wrapped in a towel.

His hair was still dripping, and his bare upper body showed distinct muscle lines, full of power.

Without looking at Emily on the bed, he walked straight to the window and pulled open the heavy curtains.

The midnight sun's light instantly flooded in, illuminating the entire room and also lighting up the calm and rational expression that had returned to his face.

Emily also sat up and went into the bathroom for a shower. In the bathroom, she remembered that article again, "Want to Make a Man Care About You? Acting Cute Is Just a Lower Strategy, This Mind Game Works Better." The first point it mentioned was: enhance attractiveness, grasp his needs!

She looked down and confirmed she couldn't see her own feet. The attractiveness aspect should be okay, no need for further enhancement.

So what were this man's needs? Right! Vigorous hormones! She had found his needs too!

Emily wrapped herself in a towel and confidently walked out of the bathroom. Looking at Lin Yu'an still by the window, she broke the silence, "Little man, what are you thinking about?"

Lin Yu'an didn't turn around, just looked at the forest outside the window and calmly said "Hmm?"

"Whether I'm a little man or not, don't you know? I wouldn't dare claim to match black men, but I dare say it's hard to tell who's better."

Emily was amused by his words and laughed, then continued staring at him silently, seemingly waiting for Lin Yu'an to say something.

After a long silence, Lin Yu'an continued, "The 300 Bitcoins in that hard drive, I'll help you keep them for now. I'll only take one-third as the price for you shooting at me. The other two-thirds still belong to you."

"I'll wait until the price rises to around ninety thousand dollars, then sell them in batches."

Lin Yu'an had thought about many things during the night. First, he gained a clearer understanding of his strength enhanced by the golden finger and decided he must control his power better in the future. He also figured out how to handle his relationship with Emily.

Since Lin Yu'an decided not to kill her, he didn't want to push her too hard. The combination of carrots and sticks was the safest approach, because this woman was definitely not as harmless as her sexy figure might suggest.

Then he could only gradually cool things down. If she didn't provoke him, he wouldn't threaten her to do anything.

Anyway, he had video that could threaten her, and according to America's twisted laws, she would never voluntarily go to the police.

Emily was very surprised by his decision to only take one-third of the Bitcoins. She had thought this man would naturally claim that huge fortune as his own.

She had prepared herself for losing both person and money.

A strange, complex emotion suddenly surged in her heart. She guessed this man didn't know the current value of Bitcoin, after all, no one doesn't love money! Especially windfall profits.

But that didn't make sense either, he had just estimated Bitcoin's future potential rise to ninety thousand dollars.

"Do you know the current value of these Bitcoins?" Emily's voice was somewhat hoarse.

"There are private keys for 300 Bitcoins in there! At current prices, that's over fifteen million dollars! Are you sure you don't want to take it all now?"

Lin Yu'an's heart stirred for a moment, but he still suppressed his greed. This amount of money wasn't worth committing murder and robbery for.

The NVIDIA stock he had purchased had completed a split in July, and his 3,333 shares had become 13,332 shares.

In just two months, the value had skyrocketed from 1.8 million dollars to 2.64 million dollars, and this was just the beginning!

Lin Yu'an turned around and looked at her, saying, "My reason for helping you is just neighborly mutual assistance, just like how Stan and George spare no effort to help me."

"Besides, last night you already offered your pledge of allegiance, didn't you?"

This sentence was like a knife, cutting through the veil between them and revealing the most naked transactional nature underneath.

Emily liked this directness, then remembered the tutorial: grasp his needs! The complex inner motivation driven by "grasping needs" compelled her to walk toward Lin Yu'an.

She gently embraced Lin Yu'an from behind, her face and softness pressing against Lin Yu'an's broad and warm back, whispering, "Thank you."

Lin Yu'an's body stiffened for a moment, but he didn't push her away.

Emily pulled him to the bedside. After she sat down first, her slender legs hooked around his waist from the side.

Lin Yu'an fell onto the bed, and her legs wrapped around him like vines, restraining and controlling him again.

Her breathing became scorching, whispering in his ear like orchid breath, "Since you're so generous, I don't mind paying another pledge of allegiance."

Lin Yu'an's just-established rational defenses crumbled again under the mature woman's active, skillful offensive.

Emily was at the prime age of a tigress, while Lin Yu'an had also abstained for nearly three months.

At this moment, they were evenly matched opponents meeting their match.

...

After the passion subsided again, both seemed much more relaxed. The tension and estrangement brought by the murder case seemed to have dissolved considerably in their sweat.

Emily lazily leaned against the headboard, took out a pack of women's cigarettes from the nightstand, lit one, and then slowly spoke, dropping an even bigger bombshell.

"Lin, actually, there's more than just Bitcoins in that hard drive."

Lin Yu'an's gaze was drawn by her words. He looked at Emily, waiting for her to continue.

"There's also a map." Emily exhaled a light blue smoke ring, her eyes becoming distant.

"An encrypted map that I can't fully decrypt, but I know the final location on the map must be near Wiseman. Behind it, there should be a gold mine."

"Gold mine?" Lin Yu'an's brow furrowed.

This word always carried legends of blood and wealth on Alaska's land.

Emily continued, "Yes, it was accidentally discovered by my ex-boyfriend's father during Alaska's great gold rush period, a placer gold deposit with supposedly very high gold content."

"After his father died, he had been preparing to mine this gold deposit, coming to Alaska multiple times to scout. He also found that guy you killed as a partner, planning to mine it together."

"Initially investing in Bitcoin was to avoid taxes and raise funds for initial equipment. Unexpectedly, Bitcoin kept soaring, and both men's hearts changed, turning from cooperation to mutual wariness."

"One thought they should sell the Bitcoin to buy mining equipment, the other thought they should continue adding positions... You know the rest of the story."

She extinguished her cigarette, "The reason I've been staying in Wiseman, ostensibly running a veterinary clinic, is actually to continue searching for that gold mine."

After hearing all this, Lin Yu'an felt somewhat absurd.

Bitcoin, gold mines, murder, treasure hunting... He seriously suspected he had been reborn into a parallel world and accidentally triggered some melodramatic American TV series plot.

This entire incident, from occurrence to conclusion, was filled with ridiculous elements, yet upon closer thought, had some damned reasonableness to it.

"After all this time, do you have any clues?" Lin Yu'an asked.

"Nothing at all." Emily shook her head helplessly.

"I've been trying to decrypt the map, but I can't do it. I don't dare find password decryption experts, so I can only keep exploring around Wiseman."

"The only clue now is a selfie photo of my ex-boyfriend, with background scenery that must be near the gold mine!"

Lin Yu'an decided not to think about these complex matters for now.

"Alright, let's talk about this later."

He looked at Emily, his expression becoming serious and earnest, "Now, we need to discuss our relationship."

He said solemnly, "Emily, I'm already married and have two newborn children."

"So everything that happened last night was just an accident, a means to solve a problem."

Upon hearing this, Emily unexpectedly laughed, laughing with captivating charm.

"Don't worry, Lin."

She stretched lazily, carelessly displaying her perfect curves.

"I never planned to fall in love with you. I'm just a mistress whose secrets you control, who can't betray you. My only goal now is to find that gold mine!"

"To achieve true financial freedom! By then, maybe I'll be the one throwing money at you to free myself from your threatening control."

Her words were half-joking, half-serious.

Lin Yu'an immediately understood her meaning.

Between them, they were secret lovers, a relationship bound together by a murder case, or rather "accomplice allies."

Lin Yu'an secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He liked dealing with intelligent women.

He then dropped an even more shocking decision on Emily.

"Very well, then I need to introduce you to my wife."

"WTF? Are you crazy?" Emily was completely stunned. She sat up abruptly from the bed, looking at Lin Yu'an in disbelief.

"You want to introduce your... accomplice mistress to your wife? What are you thinking?"

Lin Yu'an's expression remained unusually calm, "Calm down, Emily. My wife grew up in a large Mormon family. Her concepts are completely different from the worldly concepts we understand."

He looked into Emily's eyes and said seriously, "I don't want any lies or secrets from her. Rather than making you a hidden accomplice mistress, I'd rather put everything on the table."

"I trust my wife. She has enough rationality and magnanimity to understand and handle all this! This is the best way to avoid bigger misunderstandings and troubles in the future."

Emily looked at Lin Yu'an's sincere eyes and fell into long silence.

After thinking for a long time, she finally nodded.

"Alright, Lin. You really are crazy."

She laughed self-mockingly, "But I don't seem to hate your crazy plan. At least I don't have to really become that kind of bitch who destroys other people's families, right?"

This definition again stirred a strange feeling in Emily's heart.

"Alright, I have to go."

Lin Yu'an glanced outside the window. The midnight sun had risen higher, and he knew he had already wasted too much work time.

He put on his jacket, preparing to leave.

"Leaving already?" Emily's voice carried a trace of barely perceptible laziness and reluctance to let him go.

"I still have over a hundred logs waiting for me to process, and a home waiting for me to build."

Lin Yu'an's answer was calm. He walked to the door and turned back to Emily, saying, "These next few days, just live normally, don't act abnormally in any way. Contact me immediately if anything happens. You know my number."

Emily didn't say anything more. She just walked barefoot from the bed to stand in front of him.

She reached out with both arms, wrapped them around his neck, stood on her tiptoes, and pressed a gentle, lingering kiss with coffee fragrance onto his lips.

This kiss no longer carried the probing and transactional nature of last night, but had a trace of a woman's attachment to a man.

After the kiss ended, she pressed against his ear and whispered in an alluring voice only the two of them could hear:

"I hope... to see you on this bed again tonight."

Lin Yu'an's body stiffened again, and the desire that had just calmed down was stirred up again by her soft words.

He could clearly feel the softness and warmth of the body in his arms.

He took a deep breath and, with strong willpower, forcibly drove away those romantic images from his mind.

Lin Yu'an felt this woman was sick, her mental state seemed somewhat abnormal, very much like someone with Stockholm syndrome who had developed dependence on their captor.

He gently pushed Emily away, his eyes regaining clarity.

"We'll see how things go. I have a lot of work to do." He just repeated this sentence, then resolutely turned around, opened the door, and quickly walked out.

Listening to the footsteps outside the door, Emily looked at her empty hands, the corners of her mouth curving into a meaningful smile again.

This man was like the most unruly wild horse, but she seemed to have found the reins that could control him.

The Chinese internet really had things that Google couldn't find! This Lily Emotional Network was a treasure trove of a website!

Lin Yu'an didn't know what strange websites Emily had found. He quickly walked out of the cabin, his somewhat heated mind gradually cooling down.

"Roar!"

Accompanied by the familiar engine roar, he drove his Zongshen three-wheeler, speeding toward his own forest land.

[NEXT CHAPTER]

HUN Chapter 121: The Covenant Forged by Desire

He folded the four corners of the plastic sheet, wrapping the body and all traces of blood tightly inside like packaging a giant garbage bag.

Then, he dragged this enormous package out of the cabin and threw it into the trunk of Emily's Subaru Outback.

Lin Yu'an was originally an atheist, but having experienced rebirth, he began to develop some trust in such matters.

He decided to say something to the motorcycle man.

"Brother, I don't even know your name. Though I'm somewhat sorry to you, I still can't go to prison. The law might not be able to give you justice."

"So I can only apologize. Perhaps after I die, God will help you collect what's owed, and maybe he won't let me enter heaven as punishment."

"I hope this can make you feel a little better, though I don't believe in God."

He returned to the house and glanced at Emily, who was still sitting paralyzed on the ground, lost and bewildered.

"Get up." His voice remained ice-cold.

"Clean this place up, don't leave any traces, then come out with me to dispose of this thing."

Emily looked at the empty living room, then at the large hole smashed beneath the fireplace, her body feeling as though it had plunged into an abyss!

She knew that from the moment she fired that shot, she had been completely bound together with that devil-like man who was so calm and powerful.

The house was quickly cleaned up by the two of them. Except for the large hole beneath the fireplace, there were almost no traces that any fierce struggle had occurred.

Emily had now changed into clean clothes and sat on the sofa, looking at him with complex eyes.

"Stop looking, let's go. This is the last thing." Lin Yu'an said still calmly.

He drove the Subaru Outback with Emily toward the upper reaches of the Koyukuk River.

They needed to find a place sufficiently remote with rapids strong enough.

After driving more than ten kilometers, he found an ideal location.

This was a treacherous river valley where the water rushed between scattered rocks, producing a tremendous roar.

He stopped the car and first dragged the wrapped body down from the vehicle.

He used thick chains to bind some rocks together with the body package, tying them tightly together.

Then he dragged this incredibly heavy "package" to the bank of the rushing river.

"Emily, you push him down." Lin Yu'an turned on his phone camera again.

With Emily's effort, there was a loud "splash," and the package was instantly swallowed by the rushing water, sinking into the pitch-black riverbed.

Under the powerful scouring of this river, it wouldn't be long before all traces here would be erased.

As for the motorcycle man's bike, Lin Yu'an felt it should continue staying in the space, to be sunk in the ocean when he found an opportunity.

After completing all this, he and Emily returned to the cabin.

Lin Yu'an brought over the metal box, placed it on the coffee table, and pried it open with tools in front of Emily.

Inside the box lay quietly a small military-grade encrypted solid-state drive.

"The private key is inside." Emily said softly.

Lin Yu'an nodded and put the drive into his pocket.

"Now, let's talk about our situation." Lin Yu'an sat across from her.

"First, everything that happened today ends here. That man was just a motorcyclist who disappeared on the Dalton Highway and has no connection to us whatsoever, right?"

Emily nodded.

"Second, what's in this drive now belongs to me."

"Because you almost killed me, this is what I deserve! You have no objections, right?"

Emily shook her head again.

"Good. When dealing with the motorcycle man just now, I got blood on my body and clothes."

"Let me use your bathroom. Dead man's blood is unlucky, I need to wash it off."

Lin Yu'an stood up and walked toward the bathroom, his back still straight but his steps carrying a hint of heaviness.

Emily watched him enter the bathroom, listening to the "whooshing" sound of the shower inside. In her vacant eyes, a trace of spirit gradually returned.

She knew she had to do something to break this deadlock, to change her position in this man's mind.

From a troublesome witness to a valuable ally, or even... more.

Emily was very clever. She clearly knew that if she couldn't provide anything of value beyond those 300 Bitcoins, she might continue living in fear! Worrying that one day this man might silence her! So she had to offer more!

But besides that undeciphered map, she had no other valuable items.

She opened a Chinese search engine and searched for what Chinese men valued most besides money.

Fishing, prayer beads, cars, computers, phones, Hatsune Miku... Emily became more confused the more she read these results.

Finally, she saw a reliable answer: "Besides money, Chinese men value family, children, wives, promises, and women they've had relations with the most. I am Wang Jingzhe, and on the day I was born, a fortune teller..." (Source: Biquge)

Emily seemed to have found her answer.

In the bathroom, steam filled the air.

Lin Yu'an stood under the shower, scalding hot water enveloping his body, trying to dispel that unique discomfort that comes after taking a life.

He closed his eyes, his mind constantly replaying everything that had just happened, from the speeding motorcycle to the fight, and finally to that last punch.

But he wasn't a natural executioner after all. That feeling of forcibly erasing all traces of a life's existence still left his nerves in a state of exhaustion after being tense.

He felt it was necessary to undergo some combat training after this, to gain control over his ever-increasing strength.

This time it was the motorcycle man, but what if one day he accidentally hurt someone close to him?

Just then, there was a soft "click" as the bathroom door lock was opened from outside.

Lin Yu'an's body instantly tensed like a coiled cheetah, his eyes snapping open!

He had already taken out his Glock from the space, aiming at the door, ready to shoot at any moment!

He saw Emily wearing only a set of black lace lingerie, her voluptuous and powerfully curved body looming through the misty vapor.

She showed no shyness whatsoever. Those clear blue eyes were calmly yet boldly gazing directly at Lin Yu'an holding the gun through the hazy steam.

She slowly walked into the bathroom and casually closed the door behind her.

"What are you doing?" Lin Yu'an's voice was low, carrying a hint of wariness.

Emily didn't answer but walked straight to the bathtub edge. She didn't immediately get in but extended her slender fingers, gently dipping them into the warm water, as if testing the temperature or perhaps testing his boundaries.

"You still don't trust me, do you?" Her voice was very soft.

"What do you think? Should I trust you?" Lin Yu'an stood under the shower holding his gun, calmly watching Emily.

Emily continued, "You're always thinking about how to deal with me as a problem, always on guard against me shooting you in the back."

"Shouldn't I be? Emily, I don't have time to play riddles with you. You can tell me what exactly you want to do, what you're prepared to discuss with me."

Emily fell silent, and Lin Yu'an didn't continue speaking either, just coldly watching her.

"Our fates have been completely bound together from the moment you made me fire that finishing shot."

Emily slowly approached, her body gradually getting closer to Lin Yu'an.

"I need you to trust me. I need to prove to you that I'm not your enemy, but an ally you can completely possess! I don't want to live in fear of being silenced by you at any moment!"

She paused, a flash of determination and allure in her eyes, speaking in an almost whispered voice, "And the fastest, most thorough way for a man to trust a woman is..."

Before she finished speaking, she brought with her the moist vapor and the fragrance of body wash, unhesitatingly kissing him!

It was a kiss full of probing and provocation, yet carrying a hint of submission.

Lin Yu'an's mind went blank for an instant! Then he immediately pushed her away!

This woman, her madness and boldness completely exceeded Lin Yu'an's expectations!

The killing intent he had just calmed down after killing the motorcycle man, and that unnatural feeling after taking a life, was instantly reignited by Emily in this more primitive way and transformed into an entirely different kind of desire!

After confirming she carried no weapons, his reason, vigilance, and calculations began to be gradually consumed by that primitive urge to conquer!

"Splash!"

The pushed-away Emily let out a short cry of surprise, but she threw herself at him again, heavily colliding with Lin Yu'an's rock-hard chest.

The black lace lingerie on her body had become nearly transparent when wet, clinging tightly to her healthy and beautiful form.

Water continued flowing from the shower, and the temperature in the bathroom rose sharply under the combined effect of steam and hormones.

Emily's breathing was rapid, her hands tightly gripping Lin Yu'an, her nails nearly digging into his hair.

Lin Yu'an held her entire body in his arms, pressed tightly against himself.

Passively accepting the gentle baptism of the shower's soft flow.

Outside the window, Alaska's midnight sun was painting the sky a rose color.

And in this cabin bathroom, the most primitive covenant was being thoroughly forged in the gradually cooling hot water.

When the midnight sun period ended.

Lin Yu'an didn't immediately get up but lay quietly in bed, feeling the steady breathing beside him.

Emily was exhaustedly curled up on her side in his arms, sleeping deeply.

Last night's covenant had drained all her strength and seemed to have dropped all her defenses.

The sound of water in the cabin bathroom, the intermingled breathing, and the suppressed gasps... the scenes from last night replayed clearly in his mind like movie frames.

As his body cooled, Lin Yu'an's reason had completely returned.

He looked down at this mature, sexy, and wildly spirited woman in his arms, but his heart held no particularly romantic thoughts.

He was very clear that last night's madness, rather than being passionate love, was more like a covenant shackle forged in the most primitive way.

Emily had used her body to offer her final pledge of allegiance, completely making herself his possession in exchange for trust and protection.

And he had accepted this pledge, but that didn't mean unconditional trust in her.

Just then, another face clearly emerged in his mind, Aliya's face that always carried a gentle smile, and those light green eyes.

An extremely complex emotion surged in his heart.

This accidental killing incident, he couldn't hide from Aliya.

At the same time, Emily's situation couldn't be hidden from Aliya either, even if he could keep this relationship forever buried in darkness.

But Aliya was his wife. It wasn't terrible for a man to make mistakes toward his wife, but if he didn't dare bear the consequences of those mistakes, he'd be no different from a eunuch without balls.

When he found the right opportunity, he would confess everything to Aliya.

He understood Aliya. That girl who grew up in a large Mormon family had concepts far beyond worldly conventions.

He believed Aliya would understand that encountering this uncontrollable incident and the resulting consequences were not his intention.

Thinking of this, Lin Yu'an's mood settled somewhat.

He carefully extracted his arm from under Emily's neck, then quietly got out of bed.

After Lin Yu'an entered the bathroom, Emily also opened her eyes.

She lay on her side in bed, feeling the long-missed soreness and satisfaction coming from various parts of her body, looking at the ceiling with complex eyes.

Everything from last night felt both like a desperate gamble for survival and like an indulgence after long suppression.

She didn't know what direction her fate would take in the future, but she knew that at least today, she was safe.

Emily turned to look toward the bathroom, contemplating something unknown.

Then she took out her phone, opened a Chinese search engine, and continued searching for how to make a Chinese man care more about you.

One article caught her attention.

"Want to Make a Man Care About You? Acting Cute Is Just a Lower Strategy, This Mind Game Works Better" (Lily Emotional Network)

[NEXT CHAPTER]

WIZ Chapter 130: Sophia's Teacher

"Second sequence, so this Sevlin in the Blood Curse Court is only below Hussein." Locke pondered. "The curse this guy developed is a big trouble."

"Forget it, I'll deal with it later."

Speaking of which, the patient who had been affected by the Mother-Child Giant Corpse Blood Curse that Hussein developed earlier still hasn't been cured to this day.

Currently, they're just keeping him alive.

Because the academy's higher-ups, rather than having formal wizards solve this problem, prefer to have first-class wizard apprentices within the academy handle it.

So during this period, quite a few excellent potion master assistants from Lilith's Cottage have been continuously coming to this treatment center, attempting to solve the Mother-Child Giant Corpse Blood Curse problem.

Locke had also considered methods to break the curse, but since he had no leads, he could only temporarily give up.

His development in potion studies wasn't as deep as his progress in breeding studies yet.

Currently, he was still learning at this treatment center, and his personal pharmaceutical laboratory was also developing.

On the third floor of the treatment center, Witch Sophia and Wizard Edwin were actually observing the treatment results of the three students all along.

Wizard Edwin smiled at Witch Sophia, "Your student and my two students, one dares to think and act, and the other two are also quite bold. I didn't expect them to actually solve it using such an unconventional method."

"Sophia, your student is quite good. Although he's still somewhat inexperienced in potion studies."

"I think we should let them freely form a small team at this treatment center. This team is quite good, it reminds me of my younger days."

Sophia's lips curved slightly. "We still need to have the students quickly find a method to solve these new types of curses using pure potions. Otherwise, this would consume too many resources from Lilith's Cottage."

"We can't always have a breeder come over to assist the potion master assistants in treatment."

Sophia asked Wizard Edwin, "That patient who was afflicted with the Mother-Child Giant Corpse Blood Curse hasn't been resolved yet? This morning in my office, I actually saw the approval form for his potion formula."

Wizard Edwin seemed somewhat helpless. "The academy's higher-ups have forbidden formal wizards from solving this curse. However, recently, first-class wizard apprentice Anglon, first-class wizard apprentice Astrid, and first-class wizard apprentice Miranda will all be coming over."

"These few are almost considered the most outstanding young potion master assistants of this generation at Lilith's Cottage."

"We always need to give young people some opportunities to practice, don't we? You and I both came through this way."

Wizard Edwin was quite gossipy, and he smiled, "Although other potion master assistants in our academy are also excellent, these three have the highest probability of solving Hussein's Mother-Child Giant Corpse Blood Curse."

"Among these three, I'm most optimistic about Astrid, because she's best at making curse-breaking potions. That child Anglon is too obsessed with his mental strength enhancement potion research, being somewhat single-minded, which isn't necessarily a good thing."

"As for Miranda, she's also good and very likely capable of breaking the black wizard Hussein's curse."

Witch Sophia asked, "First-class wizard apprentice Albert, isn't he coming?"

Wizard Edwin looked at Witch Sophia with surprise. "Sophia, don't you know? Albert is your classmate from the same period, you're both under the same wizard mentor, yet you're asking me about his schedule."

"Haven't you made up with your wizard mentor Lady Morgana yet?"

Witch Sophia's expression didn't look very good.

Wizard Edwin's eyes flickered as he began to persuade her. "Actually, you and your mentor just have slight disagreements. She still considers you one of her excellent students. I heard she still pays attention to you."

"Lady Morgana is extremely stubborn and old-fashioned. She always likes to criticize anything that doesn't conform to her values. Regarding that incident back then, I heard some of it too, and I actually think you did the right thing."

"That was just your improvised response under desperate circumstances, but Lady Morgana thought you were being heretical and doing something very dangerous."

Wizard Edwin said, "In Lady Morgana's eyes, your behavior of temporarily modifying potion formulas was too radical, so she publicly criticized you and broke off with you. Sophia, if you ask me, just swallow your pride and apologize."

Sophia remained silent.

Wizard Edwin, probably sensing Sophia's anger, awkwardly changed the topic. "By the way, I see your student's Mana Co-frequency Cultivation Method has reached a certain level, he can even improvise and use it to treat patients."

"To some extent, his personality is quite similar to yours, Sophia. He's almost at the level where he can take the breeder certification exam, isn't he?"

Only then did Sophia's expression lighten slightly, showing a hint of smile, "Yes, that child has many similarities with me. He's really very bold, and I like him very much."

"His progress in breeding studies is much faster than I imagined. This year he even signed a bulk procurement contract with the academy. Edwin, you're not a breeder, so you haven't paid attention to this, which is why you don't know."

Wizard Edwin looked at Sophia with surprise. "Academy bulk procurement contract?"

"He actually has this level of talent in the breeding field, signing a bulk procurement contract with the academy while still at the breeder assistant stage." Wizard Edwin said, "Then he must be preparing to take the breeder certification exam this year?"

Wizard Edwin's expression showed some gloom. "Then I advise you, it's better not to let that child take the exam this year."

On the third floor, in the formal wizard's office, Witch Sophia looked at Wizard Edwin with confusion. "Why? If his level is sufficient, he can participate. Even if he fails, he can accumulate experience and take it again next year."

Wizard Edwin spoke in a slightly lower voice, "The main issue is that this year is different. If he goes this year, I'm afraid he'll suffer too great a blow."

"Do you know who the chief examiner for this year's breeder certification exam is?"

"It's your wizard mentor, Lady Morgana. Your relationship with her isn't good. Given Lady Morgana's personality, she won't stop until she scolds your student bloody."

"You also said that Locke's personality is very similar to yours. I guess what Lady Morgana can't stand most is probably exactly this."

Wizard Edwin said in a low voice, "Now Lady Morgana flies into a rage whenever anyone mentions anything related to you. Others don't dare bring you up in front of her. Last time Senior Advisor Francis wanted Lady Morgana to contact you, but he was thoroughly scolded by Lady Morgana. Anyway, it was quite ugly."

"Or you could take the initiative to apologize and make up with your wizard mentor?"

[NEXT CHAPTER]

WIZ Chapter 129: Second Sequence - Sephilin Sagamor

After formulating the treatment plan, things became much simpler.

Three hours later, Locke applied for a separate isolation room at the treatment center, then placed Ruxin and the Radiation Cauldron inside the isolation room.

Axi and Andrew were responsible for administering all the potions to Ruxin as well as setting up a blood transfusion device.

After the preparations were complete, the two left the isolation room, and Locke operated the Radiation Cauldron to release high-concentration magical radiation.

Immediately, all the small objects in the isolation room floated up in the high-concentration magical pressure radiation, suspended in mid-air, rising and falling alternately as the magical pressure and power converted, sometimes floating up, sometimes falling down.

This demonstrated that there was a rapidly switching magical field within the isolation room.

"Using 10HZ, 50HZ, and 35HZ mixed radiation frequencies, this mixed universal frequency can minimize magical plant activity to the greatest extent," Locke thought quickly in his mind. "And it can also reduce harm to the human body."

"This is my first time using this mixed radiation frequency to weaken magical plants."

Perfect opportunity to use Ruxin to fill in his knowledge gaps in practical application in this area.

Inside the isolation room, Ruxin on the hospital bed immediately turned extremely pale, cold sweat pouring down. She wanted to sit up from the pain but was cut and bloodied by the barbs on the surface of the three deteriorated Tiflo Root Vines, which had become even more violent.

Inside the isolation room, Ruxin continuously let out screams, her voice going from initial restraint to complete lack of control later.

"Save... save me..."

"Stop quickly..."

The three deteriorated Tiflo Root Vines seemed stimulated. Not only did they show no signs of decline, but they became more aggressive, constantly trying to attack everything around them.

They grabbed nearby hospital beds, tables, and chairs, lifted them into the air, then smashed them hard against the ground, breaking them to pieces.

Then they continuously attacked toward areas where people were present.

Outside the isolation room at the observation window, besides Locke, Andrew, and Axi, many other first-class wizard apprentices and potion master's assistants were attracted and came to observe at the isolation window.

They were purely attracted by the strange scene. After all, this was a treatment center, not a botanical garden.

Breeding and potionology would later create very deep knowledge barriers, so many of them were seeing a Radiation Cauldron for the first time.

It was also their first time seeing a breeder use the Mana Co-frequency Cultivation Method in front of them.

Through magical connection, Locke continuously adjusted the Radiation Cauldron's frequency, finally stabilizing it precisely within three radiation frequencies.

Axi was somewhat uneasy. "Locke, is there really no problem? I see that girl can barely hold on."

Andrew reminded, "Axi, don't disturb Locke. Otherwise, what other methods are there? Besides this method, we can only risk forced removal, which could easily destroy her mental power along with it, making her unable to advance ever again, or even causing magical level regression."

Among the team, the calmest was actually Locke. His eyes were extremely calm. 'This seems different from what the books say. Those magical vines not only show no signs of weakening but have become frenzied. This might also be a chain reaction caused by the curse.'

'Just as Teacher Sophia taught me, no magic book is absolute. Only practice is the best way to verify truth.'

The time lasted a total of twenty minutes.

When the twenty-first minute arrived, suddenly, the three frenzied Tiflo Root Vines instantly went limp, as if experiencing dehydration, drooping limply on the ground. Their branches and leaves began to wither, and the barbs fell off one by one.

This somewhat improved Ruxin's condition in her suffering.

Some Ogham script appeared on the surface of the three Tiflo Root Vines, which were cantrip models left by Ruxin.

This indicated that under Locke's Mana Co-frequency Cultivation Method, the cantrip models Vine Hand and Multiple Manipulation in Ruxin's consciousness sea were trending toward collapse.

Seeing this scene, Locke nodded, "Everything is within expectations. It seems the previous frenzy was just a final burst of energy."

Andrew and Axi were truly eye-opened this time.

Andrew said, "So this is how breeders change magical plants. Amazing. Although I didn't quite understand it, as long as those magical plants decline, it becomes much easier to handle."

Thirty minutes later, Locke said to the two, "Let's go, let's quickly go in and take this opportunity to perform magical plant replacement on her."

"I'm planning to use three Super Mandrake Vines to replace her three Tiflo Root Vines, but she's almost unconscious, so we three need to assist her in completing this work. But once we pass the first step, the rest will be much easier."

Both Axi and Andrew nodded in agreement.

Axi said, "Locke, remember to record the cost of the three Super Mandrake Vines and the cost of using the Radiation Cauldron in her medical records."

"She still has to pay this money herself."

The subsequent treatment lasted a total of two hours.

Two hours later, Ruxin had fallen into complete unconsciousness due to extreme weakness.

But on the hospital bed in the isolation room, what was wrapped around Ruxin's right arm was no longer the three malignantly deteriorated Tiflo Root Vines, but three Super Mandrake Vines cultivated by Locke.

The curse on her body was also completely lifted. Now she just needed to recover well, eliminate the remaining curse and radiation from her body, and help her restore her physical condition.

Although, to save her, they used a total of forty-five bottles of Bear Spirit Bile Detoxification Potion, one bottle of Royal Jelly Potion, one bottle of Bleeding Curse antidote, three Super Mandrake Vines, and even invited a breeder to use the Mana Co-frequency Cultivation Method to help treat her.

There would also be a series of subsequent treatment costs.

The money owed from this treatment would probably take her many years to pay off.

But at least they saved her life.

After successfully completing the treatment, Locke, Axi, and Andrew simply high-fived each other in celebration.

Being able to solve this tricky new type of curse meant their treatment plan could be recorded as reference material for other potion master's assistants in the treatment center when encountering similar situations in the future.

So this could actually add considerable experience to their resumes.

After all, not every time a new curse appeared could they successfully save the first victim.

Otherwise, the curse masters of Blood Curse Court would be somewhat laughable.

Andrew thanked Locke and Axi, "Thank you, Locke, Axi. Without you, I really would have been at a loss with this patient."

"Now I can report to Teacher Edwin."

Locke nodded, "This counts as mutual assistance. Next time if I encounter tricky problems I can't solve, I can also consult you two."

Locke turned to look at the three half-withered deteriorated magical vines still struggling on the ground, "I'll take these with me."

"Is that okay?"

Neither Axi nor Andrew were breeders, so they wouldn't have any interest in such things. Among those present, only Locke would have research interest in this type of magical plant.

Axi and Andrew immediately indicated he could dispose of them as he wished.

Locke magically sealed these three magical vines, then held them in his hands for careful observation. Sure enough, on the main stem of one vine, he found a string of names written with an enchanter's inscription knife: [Second Sequence: Sephilin Sagamor].

Inscription knives could make these words not easily disappear, and the reason the other party wanted to leave this name on the magical vines was simple.

It was to let others know who developed this new curse.

Some black wizards of Blood Curse Court had rather flamboyant personalities and might do such things. Locke tried searching and indeed found this line of names.

[NEXT CHAPTER]

WIZ Chapter 128: Magical Plant Curses and Treatment Plans

At that moment, Locke glanced at Ruxin on the hospital bed, with no intention of reminding her of anything.

Because now, the two had vastly different statuses and positions, completely different from their situation on the wizard ship.

Now she was a second-class wizard apprentice, while he was a first-class wizard apprentice and also a potion master's assistant.

Looking at her current condition, even if he and Andrew and the others cured her, she would probably be severely weakened by this curse and wouldn't be able to advance for at least three to four years.

Even if her future wasn't completely ruined, she would be set back for a long time.

It was meaningless for him to argue with such a nobody over the account from the wizard ship.

At most, after becoming a formal wizard, he would settle accounts with Gregor and Virdantia University behind her.

For now, Locke was just helping his friends, Andrew and Axi, complete the academy task assigned to them by their wizard mentors.

While earning some magic stones on the side.

Usually, Andrew and Axi were very helpful to him at the treatment center.

Especially since he hadn't mastered Minor Viridian Potion yet and severely lacked potionology experience, he often needed Andrew and Axi's help in daily situations.

Therefore, their friendship grew stronger.

Locke shared his thoughts with Andrew and Axi. "First, we definitely need to give her intravenous Bear Spirit Bile Detoxification Potion. I think at least 15 bottles."

Andrew and Axi both nodded slightly.

This was standard procedure. Bear Spirit Bile Detoxification Potion had a wide range of uses. Even healthy people could use it.

Its effect was simply to increase one's magical resistance.

Some wizards would even drink a bottle of Bear Spirit Bile Detoxification Potion before entering areas with high energy radiation.

This stuff was almost like a health supplement, whether useful or not, they'd take some.

Axi hesitated, then reminded Locke, "Locke, 15 bottles is based on first-class wizard apprentices who have magical pressure. You need to consider that second-class wizard apprentices' souls have no protective shell and are very fragile, requiring stronger magical resistance to protect her. So I think we need at least 45 bottles of intravenous treatment."

Andrew looked at her, somewhat shocked by the 45 bottles. "Axi, you're being too extreme. 45 bottles, do you want to turn this Virdantia University second-class wizard apprentice into a water balloon?"

"Thirty bottles would be about right. More than that wouldn't be realistic." Locke coughed.

Andrew immediately stopped Axi, who wanted to argue back, saying, "Alright, let's not disturb Locke. Let him continue."

Axi glared at him.

Locke continued, "The first plan is to directly sever the connection between her magical plants and her magical power, that is, immediately replace the magical vines."

"Using the opportunity of replacing the magical vines, we remove the three Tiflo Root Vines that have undergone malignant deterioration. However, the difficulty lies in the fact that these three malignantly deteriorated Tiflo Root Vines are like vampires, tightly wrapped around their original owner. It doesn't look easy to separate them."

Andrew nodded repeatedly. "Indeed risky. These three magical plants have already become parasitic types. I'm afraid it would be very difficult to separate them."

Locke continued, "The second plan is to find a way to restore these three magical plants to their original state. This would be the ideal situation. The curse she's under should be the Bleeding Curse."

"Use a specialized curse-breaking potion for the Bleeding Curse, and have both her and the three magical plants take it."

"Of course, specialized curse-breaking potions can break curses on wizard apprentices, but mutated magical plants can at most be weakened and won't return to their original state. So we can use the Mana Co-frequency Cultivation Method for targeted mutation, reverse mutation."

"That is, use curse-breaking potions to restore her to normal, and use the Radiation Cauldron to restore her magical plants to at least a harmless state."

Light flashed in Locke's eyes. Ruxin's situation was so rare that he really had the intention to try this.

This would be very useful for improving his Mana Co-frequency Cultivation Method skills and would be beneficial for quickly passing the breeder certification exam.

The only downside was that it would be very bad for Ruxin herself.

This would basically treat her completely like a lab mouse. Saying she could fully recover was just the ideal scenario, but in reality, it would likely make her condition even worse.

But such a radical treatment plan was indeed the one most likely to completely not affect her future.

After all, imagination had no limits.

Locke's thoughts returned to reality as he stated what he considered the most realistic third plan. "The third plan still focuses on replacing her magical plants."

"Replacing the magical plants is the method most likely to solve her current problems."

"Only while replacing the magical plants, I can use special breeder methods, using the Radiation Cauldron to weaken her magical plants while using a more dominant higher-level magical plant from the same ecological niche for forced replacement."

"Using the ecological competitive relationship between higher and lower-level magical plants from the same ecological niche, we forcibly replace the three deteriorated magical plants. During this process, Andrew and Axi, you two will be responsible for breaking the curse on this Virdantia University second-class wizard apprentice."

"Of course, the third plan still has risks. The Radiation Cauldron should cause some effects on her body, as she'll need to be in a high magical radiation state for at least half an hour."

Andrew and Axi looked at each other and quickly discussed the three plans Locke proposed and their implementation possibilities.

The second plan was the first they eliminated. Although the ideal was good, trying to mutate already-mutated magical plants back was too difficult.

Even advanced breeders might not have this ability.

Otherwise, there wouldn't be so many ecological disasters caused by magical plants in the wild.

The difference between the first and third plans was whether to use the Radiation Cauldron. Finally, Andrew nodded to Locke, "Locke, Axi and I discussed it. We can try using your third plan."

"The first plan of directly replacing magical plants is too difficult. We don't mind, but this second-class wizard apprentice is too fragile. If we're even slightly rough, her body and magical power will be completely torn apart by these three magical plants."

"Direct replacement without weakening won't work."

Axi added, "We can give her Royal Jelly Potion to increase her vitality, and give her 45 bottles of Bear Spirit Bile Detoxification Potion. If she can't drink it, we'll inject it directly."

"We can also set up blood exchange equipment for her, forcibly injecting the potions. This should minimize the effects of the Radiation Cauldron on her body."

Axi looked somewhat regretfully at Ruxin lying on the hospital bed. "Such a pity. A good wizard seed, a young girl, ruined like this by those black wizards."

"If she were even a first-class wizard apprentice, it wouldn't be this difficult. Now we can only patch things together and forcibly restore her."

Ruxin's eyelashes moved slightly on the hospital bed, seemingly hearing Axi's pity for her.

And indeed that was the case.

If any of the three, Locke, Andrew, or Axi, were hit with this curse, they could simply forcibly replace their magical plants before the curse became further entangled with their magical power and soul, making the situation complex.

Even if it became as serious and complex as now, they could rely on their magical pressure structure to forcibly replace the magical plants, at most being weakened for a few months.

But Ruxin was only a second-class wizard apprentice with no magical pressure structure on her soul surface. She was like fragile tofu, and Locke and the others had to carve flowers on this tofu.

Without damaging the tofu.

Treating powerful wizards, even if they had very complex curses, was much simpler than treating weak wizards with special malicious curses.

At least they could perform several experiments on powerful wizards without worrying about the wizard dying.

Locke said, "Then let's begin. I'll have my servant fetch the Radiation Cauldron."

Andrew reminded Locke, "Tell your servant to be careful not to damage the Radiation Cauldron during transport."

Although Andrew wasn't a breeder, he knew this thing was expensive.

[NEXT CHAPTER]

WIZ Chapter 127: Meeting Ruxin Again

On the second floor, inside a separate compartment.

Locke walked in with Axi and Andrew. With just one glance, Locke understood why Axi and Andrew, these two experienced potion master's assistants, were at a loss with the current situation.

The second-class wizard apprentice from Virdantia University was lying on the hospital bed, her right side covered with extremely rough-looking vines. Each vine had purple-red roots and stems, with barbs growing from the surface. These barbs had pierced into Ruxin's skin, and the slightest movement would tear her skin, causing her blood to flow freely.

These three vines covered the entire bed, making Ruxin lie there like Sleeping Beauty, unable to move, only able to move her eyes.

The blood flowing from her wounds would also be absorbed by these three magical vines.

These three magical vines were so thirsty for blood that they had grown branches, trying to explore whether there were other living people nearby.

Although the three magical vines were now completely transformed, Locke still recognized their original identity: Tiflo Root Vines.

These three Tiflo Root Vines had long been magically transplanted into Ruxin's magical power and could be said to be connected to her soul to some degree.

Now that the three magical plants had betrayed and become corrupted, the situation naturally became very complex.

The three magical plants had formed a special magical symbiotic relationship with Ruxin. To treat the curse on her body, they needed to simultaneously solve her problems, the magical plants' problems, and the curse problems on them.

Solving the curse on her body wasn't difficult, and solving her three magical plants wasn't difficult either, but solving both problems simultaneously without harming Ruxin or causing her magical power to decline and ruining her future was too difficult.

But if they let Virdantia University's excellent student have her future ruined after treatment at Lilith's Cottage, that wouldn't be good for Lilith's Cottage's potionology reputation.

Lilith's Cottage and Virdantia University's potion studies departments were in competition for quality students.

Reputation was very important for enrollment.

No wonder Andrew and Axi remained cautious and sought the opinion of their friend.

"The magical plants have undergone malignant deterioration." Locke quickly made his judgment as both a breeder's assistant and potion master's assistant. "This situation is indeed rare. I've been at the Healing Hand Treatment Center for so long and read through all the case files, but this is my first time seeing such a situation."

"Curse energy and magical plants are intertwined, causing the Tiflo Root Vines to undergo malignant inferior degradation."

Locke pondered for a moment, his expression becoming slightly grave.

"This should be a new type of curse magic invented by Blood Curse Court, specifically targeting our Lilith's Cottage. Lilith's Cottage has many wizards and wizard apprentices who use magical plants."

Locke's expression wasn't pleasant as he pursed his lips.

After all, as a breeder, seeing this scene would definitely cause some emotional fluctuation.

To some extent, the other side was here to wreck things.

Curse magic targeting magical plants?

That would affect the sales of his magical plant products.

Andrew quickly nodded, "Indeed so. This is also my first time seeing such a situation. In the past, Blood Curse Court people at most tried to use curses to disrupt the elemental balance of plant magic on us, reducing our spell power and reaction speed. This is the first time such a situation has appeared."

"I don't know which wizard seed from Blood Curse Court newly invented this. Those guys don't know anything else, but they're fully proficient in how to harm people."

Andrew asked, "Locke, do you have ideas for solving this problem? This person's treatment fee will be paid half by Virdantia University and half by the academy's higher-ups. After being distributed to us and subtracting costs, we can get about three hundred magic stones."

"If you can help me cure her, I'll give you half the magic stones."

Locke nodded with surprise. Actually, patients with serious curses on the second floor generally needed to pay two to three thousand magic stones to be cured.

But the academy and wizard mentors would take the major share, and after subtracting cost expenses, potion master's assistants could only earn less than one hundred magic stones per patient.

But this Ruxin guy could actually contribute three hundred magic stones in fees to them. Her treatment fee was probably quite sufficient, or the academy's higher-ups had special policy care for her, taking much less commission.

Locke nodded, "Alright, but let's also give Axi some. We three will split it equally. This patient counts as the three of us treating together."

"Anyway, this patient is paying fees equivalent to three people. The three of us splitting it together won't be a loss, and it saves a lot of effort."

He still wasn't as experienced as the two of them in the potionology field, just that they lacked breeding-related knowledge.

So Locke would still need Axi and Andrew to help together later.

Andrew had no objections.

Axi showed a slight smile and said to Locke and Andrew, "Andrew, I told you Locke would be more conscientious than you. I've been helping you for free for so long. Though I haven't helped you much either."

"Locke, thank you."

Andrew spread his hands, shrugged, and showed a helpless expression. "I also helped you with that patient who was hit with the Multiple Self Curse last time."

Axi's expression soured when she thought of this. Last time, Andrew's seemingly reasonable but chaotic analysis nearly caused problems. "You still have the nerve to mention that. I actually thought what you said was right at the time."

"Fortunately, that guy didn't end up drinking the Twin Flower Soul Condensing Potion."

Locke, after thinking on the side, then spoke, "I've thought of three treatment plans, but since these are all plans I just thought up and have never tried on others, I want you two to help me analyze whether they're feasible."

"Or whether they can be improved and optimized."

New curses were troublesome in this way, all treatment plans had to be thought up from scratch, so patients were both patients and test subjects.

The most troublesome thing was that if Ruxin were a first-class wizard apprentice, it would be much easier to handle.

First-class wizard apprentices had a layer of magical pressure on their soul surface, so the margin for error would be high. Second-class wizard apprentices were too easy to kill, so Locke and the others had to carefully control the measure, lest they kill her with their treatment plan before the curse did.

Ruxin on the hospital bed was in very poor condition. Blood loss, out-of-control magical plants, plus chaotic magical power had made her mind somewhat confused, and she dared not move carelessly.

Her blue hair now appeared very dry.

Ruxin opened her eyes, feeling very panicked. She had originally come to Lilith's Cottage with her wizard mentor and Senior Gregor to gain experience and learn.

But who knew that when she went out alone halfway through, she would be ambushed by Blood Curse Court.

At this moment, Ruxin's heart was filled with regret. She really shouldn't have ignored Senior Gregor's warnings and gone out alone. Now she had caused big trouble and was lying on a hospital bed.

She didn't know what fate awaited her.

Ruxin looked at the three first-class wizard apprentice seniors before her, and her heart calmed slightly. At least she now had three first-class wizard seniors thinking of ways to treat her.

At the same time, Ruxin looked at Locke, and a flash of familiarity crossed her mind.

She felt strange. This was her first time at Lilith's Cottage. How could she possibly know a first-class wizard apprentice senior from Lilith's Cottage?

But at the same time, Ruxin felt like she had seen this first-class wizard apprentice senior somewhere before.

But no matter how hard Ruxin racked her brains, she couldn't remember where.

'I must be confused from illness,' Ruxin thought weakly as she lay on the hospital bed. 'How could I have possibly seen a first-class wizard apprentice from Lilith's Cottage?'

'It must be an illusion caused by my confused mind from the curse.'

[NEXT CHAPTER]

WIZ Chapter 126: Encountering Virdantia University Again

Locke said to Terry, "I'm assigning you a task. This afternoon, a third-class wizard apprentice named Pierre will come. He's my friend, so try to ensure his safety when using him for experiments."

"You'll be responsible for conducting Memory Ointment effect experiments on wizard apprentices with him, and record his memory improvement effects daily in table form, as well as document all suspected side effects."

"For three months."

Terry, holding her materials, said, "Yes, boss."

"I understand everything."

She undoubtedly treasured this job very much, so she was very serious, even silently repeating Locke's requirements to completely remember his instructions.

Locke looked at the three wizard seeds he was teaching, his tone becoming somewhat gentler. After all, these people weren't his employees or his students, just borrowed from Teacher Sophia for a period of time.

He had to accurately gauge his attitude toward them.

Locke spoke more gently to the three, "I'll give you a learning opportunity. You'll be responsible for conducting control group experiments with Memory Ointment using lab mice, also recording the status of three control groups daily."

"One group won't use Memory Ointment, one group will use Memory Ointment but only half the dosage, and one group will use the daily standard dosage of Memory Ointment. You three supervise each other, don't fabricate data. This is a rare learning opportunity for you."

"If there's anything you don't understand, you can ask Terry."

"She's a second-class wizard apprentice, fully capable of guiding you. You should seize this rare learning opportunity well, as it will be very useful for you in the future."

All three wizard seeds bowed to Locke and expressed that they would study seriously.

Locke wasn't completely deceiving them. This was indeed a form of work experience and learning process for them.

In the future, when they became second-class wizard apprentices and looked for jobs, this experience would be one of their most presentable qualifications, adding much core competitiveness for them.

In principle, if Witch Sophia didn't have so few students, Locke would even need to arrange an exam, and only those who passed could get such opportunities.

So now, these two locally-born wizard seeds and the wizard seed Leo Sis from the overseas mundane world not only had no objections but were even very enthusiastic.

Leo hesitated, then said to Locke, "Senior, I've been learning Green Grasp recently, using your work, Super Mandrake Vines, but there are several things I don't understand. May I ask you?"

"I asked Senior Terry, but Senior Terry said she didn't quite understand either. Mainly, I have some confusion about understanding Ogham script."

The two locally-born wizard apprentices looked at Leo with surprise. They were so nervous they could barely speak whenever they saw Locke, so they hadn't thought that Leo would dare seize this free time to ask Locke questions.

Locke was momentarily stunned, then smiled.

Leo came from the overseas mundane world and was born a gladiator slave. This had greatly influenced his character, with both good and bad aspects.

But the good aspect was that he indeed had more courage than many greenhouse flowers.

He possessed some qualities that ordinary white wizards lacked.

In this regard, Locke felt he had some similarities with himself.

Locke nodded slightly. "I'm about to go to the Healing Hand Treatment Center, so I'll only give you five minutes. Go ahead and ask."

Leo breathed a sigh of relief. He had recently contacted other wizard seeds living on Dwarf Street and learned that not all seniors didn't charge "miscellaneous fees."

Some seniors under certain wizard mentors not only charged "miscellaneous fees" but also demanded that wizard seeds share the magic stones they earned working outside.

The reason was that their skills were all taught by the seniors, so the seniors had the right to share the magic stones they earned.

When Leo learned this, he realized how good Locke was to them.

For him, coming from a gladiator slave background, this made him feel an unusual warmth.

Leo immediately stated his questions, and Locke answered concisely and quickly.

Five minutes later, Locke said to Leo, who was still deep in thought, "Hmm, you already have some understanding of Green Grasp. That's quite good."

"Although your talent is only level 3, as long as you maintain this habit of thinking diligently, you'll one day reap the rewards that effort brings. Talent doesn't determine everything."

Leo, encouraged, nodded excitedly and said, "Senior, thank you for your encouragement."

"I'll take you as my goal and work toward becoming a potion master's assistant. I will work very seriously for you."

Locke chatted with him casually for a few sentences, then turned and mounted the Engel Swift Snail.

The snail quickly left the city and headed toward the valley where the Healing Hand Treatment Center was located.

"Both my botanical garden and pharmacy are developing rapidly. This is good." Locke jumped off the snail and entered the Healing Hand Treatment Center. "I've also made some progress recently in learning Minor Viridian Potion. Once I fully master it, the money I can earn at this treatment center will be quite considerable."

Locke entered the second floor, where Andrew and Axi, who had become friends, quickly came over to greet him.

Axi said, "Locke, you're finally here. Today we have a particularly troublesome second-class wizard apprentice. She's been cursed with something related to magical plants. Among the three of us, only you are a breeder. Come quickly and help us take a look."

"Oh right, this is Andrew's patient. Andrew couldn't handle it himself and asked me for help, but what can I do?"

Andrew looked somewhat embarrassed, coughed, then said to Locke, "Locke, this patient's situation is very troublesome. Come quickly and take a look. My wizard mentor told me I must cure her."

Locke looked at the two with confusion. "A second-class wizard apprentice? Can she afford the payment? Shouldn't this person be treated on the first floor?"

Axi quickly explained for Andrew, "This patient is a second-class wizard apprentice from Virdantia University who came for potionology research exchange, with level 6 qualifications, accompanying her mentor."

"But she was ambushed by Blood Curse Court on the way here. So the academy's higher-ups require us to treat her for free, otherwise it would somewhat embarrass our academy. Virdantia University seems to value her quite highly. I think her name is something like Ruxin."

"She also studies potionology, but since only first-class wizard apprentices can take the potion master assistant certification exam, she hasn't obtained any certificates yet."

Locke blinked. This name seemed familiar.

Wait...

Virdantia University...

Locke showed an expression indicating this was amusing. "The person you're talking about, I might have met before."

Andrew and Axi were puzzled. Axi asked, "Locke, I remember you haven't really left Lilith's Cottage much, have you?"

[NEXT CHAPTER]

WIZ Chapter 125: Establishing an Upstream and Downstream Industrial Chain

Locke went to the location where the academy's higher-ups had approved his pharmaceutical laboratory.

Strangely, this time the academy, for some unknown reason, did not provide him with a new alchemy hut, but instead gave him a pharmaceutical laboratory and alchemy hut that had been mortgaged by a former first-class wizard apprentice.

This way, his pharmacy would not be near Witch Sophia's residence, but in a city on another mountain range far from the port city.

However, such a short distance was nothing as long as he rented an Engel Swift Snail mount from Chimera Market, and the rental fee wasn't expensive either.

For one month, he only needed to pay 5 magic stones to get a long-term exclusive Engel Swift Snail.

"The academy seems to want me to have more contact with people other than Witch Sophia." Locke sat on the snail's back, thinking, "However, this arrangement has caused me some inconvenience."

The snail beneath him was rapidly climbing the mountain rocks, its soft tissue leaving a trail of transparent mucus on the peak's rock walls. When sunlight shone on this transparent mucus, in just thirty seconds, the mucus would automatically begin to dissipate.

About twelve minutes later, Locke crossed from near Witch Sophia's residence, spanning a city and a mountain range, to reach the location of his pharmacy.

Near this pharmacy, seven or eight similar pharmacies had also opened.

It was quite normal for similar shops to like clustering together, as this made it easier to attract partners who were looking to cooperate with pharmacies.

Since Locke was still an unknown newcomer in potionology, his arrival did not attract anyone's attention.

Locke found his pharmacy, where the second-class wizard apprentice Terry Calvin, whom he had hired, had already arrived.

She was supervising the shop renovation team from Chimera Market as they transformed Locke's personal pharmaceutical laboratory.

At the same time, the three third-class wizard apprentices who Locke was substitute teaching for Witch Sophia were also inside this personal pharmaceutical laboratory.

Two female wizard seeds and Leo Sis all bowed to Locke simultaneously. "Senior Augustine, hello, we are helping you renovate your personal laboratory here according to Senior Terry's instructions."

Locke glanced over them and nodded slightly.

Since he had been teaching them for some time, these three now held him in great respect, almost treating him as half their wizard mentor.

Terry stepped forward and handed the materials to Locke. "Boss, this personal pharmaceutical laboratory has almost nothing left behind, so all equipment needs to be reinstalled."

"We're essentially starting the renovation from scratch."

"But don't worry, I have experience in this area."

Terry looked at Locke with admiration.

Even though Locke currently didn't even have a single set of equipment, the academy's higher-ups had actually approved this pharmacy.

This wasn't something just anyone could achieve.

Having worked at Anglon's personal pharmaceutical laboratory, Terry naturally had insight in this area.

She knew that if the academy didn't value Locke highly, it would be impossible for them to readily approve Locke's personal pharmaceutical laboratory audit under such circumstances.

Locke was not surprised about having to renovate from scratch.

Since the former owner owed a lot of money and could only mortgage the pharmacy in the end, all equipment inside this pharmacy that could be dismantled and sold had probably already been removed.

Locke asked, "Terry, how many magic stones will the renovation cost in total?"

Terry Calvin quickly took out two sets of materials and handed them to Locke, respectfully saying, "Boss, if we go with the more expensive plan, the renovation cost will reach 4000 magic stones. This is the renovation standard benchmarked against standard personal pharmacies."

"The renovation projects include various equipment for obtaining raw materials, potion brewing equipment, and equipment that should be in a pharmacy."

Seeing Locke frown slightly, Terry quickly said, "The other renovation plan is more economical. We only need to first install one set of potion brewing equipment, one set of raw material extraction equipment, and then install one batch production potion equipment line. We only need to spend 1500 magic stones to complete it. And the major expense here is that batch production potion assembly line."

"One batch production potion assembly line requires at least one potion master's assistant, one second-class wizard apprentice, and three third-class wizard apprentices to operate. We can just meet this headcount."

Terry, holding the materials in her hands, said to Locke, "Boss, I previously handled external procurement for Senior Anglon's pharmacy, so I know which shop has the best quality and most cost-effective batch production potion assembly line equipment, so please rest assured."

Locke nodded and returned all the materials to Terry. "Then let's go with the 1500 magic stone plan first."

He shouldn't invest too many resources in this personal pharmaceutical laboratory in the early stages.

Too many first-class wizard apprentices had gone bankrupt because they invested too many resources early on and couldn't earn them back later.

Although he had the golden finger Synthesis Cube, for safety's sake, it was better to first buy the most basic equipment.

He hadn't made any reputation in potionology yet. It would be better to wait until he had some confidence later, then like with the botanical garden, directly open up a hundred acres of magical fields at once and rent expensive air control devices and Radiation Cauldrons.

This personal pharmaceutical laboratory currently only needed the technology to mass-produce Advanced Growth Gel, Advanced Nutrient Soil, and Advanced Nutrient Solution, as well as the ability to produce Memory Ointment, conduct human experiments, and produce Minor Viridian Potion.

After this pharmacy could brew large quantities of Advanced Growth Gel and other necessities needed by breeders, it could save him a lot of investment in the botanical garden.

Moreover, Locke had already thought through what his fourth magical plant would be. Unlike the previous three, the fourth was specifically prepared for potion masters.

Or rather, it was prepared for his own personal pharmaceutical laboratory.

The core materials of Bear Spirit Bile Detoxification Potion were Jade Lichen and bear bile.

Jade Lichen was a magical plant that was entirely emerald green and naturally had various detoxification effects.

So his fourth magical plant to develop would be Jade Lichen. Through Jade Lichen, he would strengthen the effects of Bear Spirit Bile Detoxification Potion, then through synthesizing Bear Spirit Bile Detoxification Potion, enhance the potion's effects once more.

That is, conducting one synthesis each in the botanical garden and pharmacy stages, equivalent to synthesizing the final result twice.

This way, he could have his botanical garden sell Jade Lichen externally, while Bear Spirit Bile Detoxification Potion had a very wide range of uses and belonged to a category of basic potions.

Many potion masters would buy the synthetic magical plants he developed.

And he could also cooperate with shops again to sell the enhanced Bear Spirit Bile Detoxification Potion to the market, earning money twice.

And improve the final quality of Bear Spirit Bile Detoxification Potion twice.

This had another benefit: after Bear Spirit Bile Detoxification Potion was enhanced twice by him, its curse-dispelling ability would be further strengthened. The people who would have the biggest headaches then would probably be those from Blood Curse Court.

Thinking of this, a slight smile appeared on Locke's face. The Blood Curse Court people had continuously provoked him twice before, which had already made him quite displeased.

As a white wizard, to take revenge on people, he didn't necessarily need to kill them personally. Sometimes, killing didn't need to be so direct; killing could be bloodless.

As a talented breeder who would soon become a talented potion master, he had plenty of ways to make Blood Curse Court and Hussein pay the price they deserved.

For now, let them jump around for a while.

Similarly, doing this could also make the academy's higher-ups value him even more.

He had already experienced the benefits of being valued by the academy's higher-ups.

The speed of going through the same approval process without attention versus with attention was completely different!

[NEXT CHAPTER]

WIZ Chapter 124: Halen Vera's Attention

At Lilith's Cottage, in Halen Vera's office.

Halen Vera looked like a shrewd and capable middle-aged man from his appearance. He asked the three breeder students in his office, "Your competition results this time were acceptable, you all made it to the finals. But I'm somewhat dissatisfied with your rankings. Although it was the preliminaries, you still can't relax."

"Competition is about momentum. If you lack momentum from the start, it might affect your later performance."

"In the next three months, I will find time to arrange a seven-day intensive training session for you three, temporarily adding extra breeding experience and familiarity with competition rules, maximizing your ranking performance in the finals."

Halen Vera's eyes behind his flat glasses flashed with shrewd light. "I hope you won't disappoint me."

The three first-class wizard apprentices all gratefully bowed to Halen Vera.

"Thank you, teacher."

"With the teacher's help, our ranking in the finals should improve significantly."

Halen Vera tapped the desk with his finger and said, "The results of the breeder competition can still greatly influence how the academy's higher-ups evaluate you, and affect your later magical resource allocation."

"This is not just a competition, but also an occasion to showcase personal talent and comprehensive ability."

Halen Vera said, "Of course I hope your results can be higher. Although the breeding field is not where I mainly invest my energy, I still hope your results can be the best in the entire academy."

Halen Vera instructed these three students, "I'll give you a goal: catch up to Mary on the ranking list. She is a wizard seed of our academy, but perhaps you can catch up to her ranking in the breeding field. Even if you just follow behind her, that would provide some additional help for your image in the minds of the academy's higher-ups."

The three first-class wizard apprentices all looked at Halen Vera with immense gratitude.

A single piece of guidance from Halen Vera could often save them from taking many detours.

Take this competition for example, if they could receive Halen Vera's special pre-competition training, they might be able to generally improve their ranking achievements by one level.

This would be very beneficial for their future development.

Of course, the price was that Halen Vera's requirements for them were extremely high.

Such high demands often drove some students who couldn't keep up with the pace and goals to madness. It was said that there was once a first-class wizard apprentice named Yuri Burns who, in order to keep up with Halen Vera's progress requirements, conducted very dangerous human experiments on herself, resulting in terrible consequences.

Halen Vera casually asked, "By the way, do any of you know who this wizard apprentice named Locke Augustine is?"

"Does anyone have good personal relations with him?"

The three first-class wizard apprentices looked at each other, but none of them spoke.

Halen Vera frowned with dissatisfaction, his words becoming slightly stern. "As breeders, do you not pay attention to your competitors at all?"

One first-class wizard apprentice hesitated, then still said, "Teacher, I think I've heard of him. He's a first-class wizard apprentice who was only promoted this year."

"I once saw him at the public botanical garden."

"Hughes Coffman even invited him to join his society. He should be a student of Witch Sophia."

"Teacher, do you want to meet him? Should I help notify him?"

Halen Vera's eyes showed amusement upon hearing Sophia's name. "Ah, Sophia. That child advanced so quickly, now she even has her own students."

"Sophia's relationship with her wizard mentor is quite poor, isn't it? If only she had entered under my tutelage back then. I don't really like her wizard mentor either."

Halen Vera waved his hand, "I was just asking casually. Preliminary results don't have much significance."

Halen Vera looked at the fifth place name on the ranking list. "However, if he's a newly promoted first-class wizard apprentice this year, that's indeed quite good."

"This should be his first time participating in the competition. Such good results on his first try. Let's see what his performance will be in the finals." Halen Vera glanced over the three students before him and said, "Alright, that's all for now. You may go rest."

"The day after tomorrow afternoon, we need to attend the exchange meeting at Virdantia University. Darryl, you go notify Danny to prepare a potionology lecture script for me."

...

On the third day after the preliminary results came out.

Locke was in his own botanical garden, directing over a hundred minotaur slaves to cultivate fields and irrigate with nutrient soil and nutrient solution.

He needed to complete the botanical garden's expansion as soon as possible and deliver the academy's bulk procurement orders. But at this moment, Locke also received a letter from the academy's higher-ups.

"Hmm? After dragging on for several months, the small to medium-scale botanical garden approval was actually granted at this time, and the personal pharmaceutical laboratory application came through as well."

Locke's expression was peculiar. "When did the academy become so decisive and straightforward? Well, this only benefits me."

"It should be because I passed the preliminaries."

"Since the personal pharmaceutical laboratory was approved, I can intensify the Memory Ointment experiments. It would be best to produce a report within three months, then find potion shops to establish cooperation." Locke thought, "I also need to decide early what to do for the fourth magical plant."

The fourth magical plant needed to be for the breeder association competition finals, and after completing the delivery of this batch of Crystal Palm Fire Lotus orders, he needed to find new magical plants that could generate quick profits.

Although he had temporarily solved the funding problem for the one-month novice benefit period, he certainly wanted to maximize his meditation method cultivation resources every month going forward.

Then he would need much more income.

There was still a pile of things at Chimera Trading Market that he needed but temporarily couldn't afford.

Previously, he had only bought a batch of magical resources that he urgently needed.

Inside the botanical garden.

Ten minotaur noble slaves were carrying the weather control device into the botanical garden, placing it in the center position of the magical fields.

Under Locke's direction, a massive machine was situated in the central position of the botanical garden. Magical radiance surrounded the weather control device, beginning to establish magical power connections with the botanical garden's sky and starting to influence the weather in this area.

Through controlling the weather control device, Locke gradually began maintaining the temperature of this enclosed space at forty degrees. After confirming there were no problems for now, he immediately went to the current site selection for his personal pharmaceutical laboratory to supervise the construction progress there.

Although the personal pharmaceutical laboratory wasn't finished yet, since it had already passed academy approval, this meant his personal pharmaceutical laboratory had entered the academy's records and was an established pharmacy, so he could directly proceed with human experimentation procedures.

[NEXT CHAPTER]

WIZ Chapter 123: Francis's Regret

In the semi-basement, vampire Howard spoke to the other vampires, "The Vampire Transformation Curse is itself the most powerful blood curse system of our Blood Curse Court."

"From the lowest level vampire servants to vampire barons, and the vampire grand dukes who stand at the very pinnacle, the hierarchy is strict with orderly advancement."

"This is a high-level blood curse personally cast by the formal wizards of the Blood Curse Court."

"Most of us were transformed into vampires not just for combat power, but to compensate for our insufficient wizard talent through vampire transformation."

"But previously, the blood curse systems on us had some core parts sealed by the Blood Curse Court's higher-ups. Now they have unlocked some of the blood curse functions on us."

Howard twisted his neck and laughed loudly, "We have been granted the new ability of blood devouring. We can capture excellent white wizard apprentices, dig out their hearts, drink their heart's blood, and obtain part of their magical power."

"As long as we eat enough, the more likely we are to become first-class wizard apprentices. Of course, the white wizards we eat must have somewhat higher qualifications than ourselves for this to be effective."

"The higher the qualifications of the white wizard apprentices we eat, the more magical power we obtain."

"So we must especially target those geniuses among the white wizards."

The vampire apprentices all had their expressions change at once, becoming extremely fanatical, excited, and thrilled.

Originally, with their qualifications, they certainly had no connection to becoming first-class wizard apprentices, but now, because of this war, they actually had a chance to change their fate.

This wizard war had already changed too many people's destinies, and would change even more people's destinies in the future.

The blood devouring ability would allow them to challenge the threshold of first-class wizard apprentices with their inferior qualifications.

Although the side effects would certainly be enormous, just like other shortcut black magic, the side effects were usually equivalent to the effects, or even greater!

But this group of Blood Curse Court wizard apprentices couldn't care about all that.

Howard took out a blood-colored pendant shaped like a dagger, "Come over one by one, I need to pierce your hearts with the blood key to unlock this ability permission for you."

"Let us begin our hunt for the white wizard apprentice geniuses!"

Immediately, nine Blood Curse Court vampire apprentices all walked toward Howard.

...

At Lilith's Cottage.

The White Wizard Association Breeder Competition was a competition spanning the entire southeastern quadrant, so after the preliminary ranking results came out, they attracted many people's attention.

Many breeders, and even some formal wizards, were all curious about who this Locke Augustine who suddenly appeared on the ranking list was, and even began inquiring about who his formal wizard mentor was.

Locke's fifth place ranking in the preliminaries undoubtedly brought him into the sight of the first-class wizard apprentices' core circle for the first time.

In the wooden house.

First-class wizard apprentice and breeder Mary, in her own laboratory, glanced over the list placed on her work table.

She saw her name positioned after eleventh place in the preliminaries and immediately curved her lips into a smile. "Passed. This is my third time participating in the preliminaries, and the results aren't bad."

"Under the premise that I held back some of my strength, I could still achieve such a high score."

Then, Mary placed her gaze on the fifth place in the rankings. "Locke Augustine, breeder's assistant? His work's ranking in the preliminaries is actually this high!"

"I remember now, when I was at the public botanical garden, I seemed to have seen him several times." Mary carefully pondered all the memories related to Locke in her mind.

Unfortunately, at that time, Locke still looked so unremarkable that she seemed to have never spoken to Locke even once, so the related memories were also very few.

"That should be a newly promoted first-class wizard apprentice."

Mary's eyes flashed with a trace of surprise. "He participated in this kind of competition for the first time and could actually have this kind of performance. Did his wizard mentor guide him?"

"Forget it." Mary stopped delving deeper. "Whether he's truly a genius or not, we'll know from the finals results. During the preliminaries, everyone didn't use their full strength, so the results don't have too much reference value."

"However, for him to achieve such a high ranking in the preliminaries, I suppose he has already mastered the Mana Co-frequency Cultivation Method and should soon be able to pass the breeder certificate assessment."

Mary put away the ranking materials and continued to start her experiments.

...

At the same time, in the First Circle wizard area of Lilith's Cottage, in Francis's office, Francis looked at the ranking in his hands.

As a Senior Advisor and Dean who devoted himself wholeheartedly to Lilith's Cottage, he would pay attention to the White Wizard Association breeder competition ranking results every time.

After all, these competitions related to Lilith's Cottage's external reputation.

Powerful wizard academies would easily have more wizard apprentices on the ranking lists, even ranking highly, while those weaker wizard academies often had very few wizard apprentices who could make the lists.

This itself was a manifestation of the wizard academies' strength, and also a way to display their power externally.

For Francis, Lilith's Cottage students participating in competitions was not just their own personal matter.

From his perspective, this was also the academy's matter.

At this time, Francis was scanning through the rankings from bottom to top, missing not a single one.

He nodded with satisfaction. "This time Lilith's Cottage students' performance was all quite good. Among the top fifty, seven are actually our own students."

"In the future, perhaps our Lilith's Cottage's breeder magic category can also rank among the top, becoming one of the most elite subjects."

"However..."

Francis placed his gaze on the front of the list, seeing Locke Augustine ranked fifth, and flashed with contemplation and surprise. "This child's potential is even greater than I thought."

"He's not just an ordinary, rapidly advancing first-class wizard apprentice."

"I really regret now that I actually allocated this kind of student to Sophia." Senior Advisor Francis's eyes flashed with regret.

"Although preliminary results can't be taken too seriously, this can also prove his potential in breeding studies from the side."

"Regardless of the finals results, being able to rank this high in the preliminaries already explains the problem."

Francis thought for a moment, "Although a medium-scale plant garden can't be approved for him, other benefits should still be expedited."

"For example, quickly approve a small to medium-scale plant garden for him."

"Following this development trend, this student clearly has the hope of becoming the successor to people like Mary and Anglon, becoming one of our next generation wizard seeds."

"So it's best to have Sophia sign a contract. As long as she stays at the academy, we won't need to worry about other issues."

[NEXT CHAPTER]

WIZ Chapter 122: Initial Fame

After purchasing a pile of magical resources, Locke left Chimera Trading Market with satisfaction.

By the time he returned to his residence, it was already dark.

But Witch Sophia had sent one of her elf servants to wait at his door and deliver a letter to him.

Locke took the letter, ignoring the elf servant who bowed to him, and opened the letter, only to find it was a reply from the White Wizard Association's breeder competition department.

"Hmm? I did indeed pass the preliminaries."

Locke saw the standard letter written by the competition committee, congratulating him on being selected for the finals and inviting him to submit his second magical plant work along with the file report for his second magical plant work to continue participating in the White Wizard Association breeder competition finals.

"Only the top three hundred works from the entire southeastern quadrant can enter the finals." Locke said, "This is an established competition organized by the entire southeastern quadrant white wizard society. Basically, all breeder assistants who are qualified to participate will join to compete for resources."

"So the number of preliminary entries will reach thousands."

"But my work fought its way out among these thousands of works." Locke looked at the ranking table for the top three hundred that came with the letter, showing an inexplicable emotion in his eyes.

If before he was just gradually exploring the southeastern quadrant wizard world within Lilith's Cottage, now he was finally making his mark in this region for the first time, participating in a competition covering the entire southeastern quadrant and achieving victory.

Locke looked at the ranking table and began searching for his work's ranking. "My work is ranked... number... fifth!"

"My work actually ranked directly at fifth place."

Locke looked at the brief winning reason on the leaderboard: 'Very excellent work that perfectly enhanced the power of Palm Fire Lotus. The committee unanimously believes that if Palm Fire Lotus weren't relatively simple, the ranking could even be two places higher.'

Locke's expression was subtle, his mood slightly excited. In the entire southeastern quadrant, his work not only won the preliminary round but also achieved fifth place in the preliminaries.

He had outperformed numerous breeders in the southeastern quadrant.

"However, what kind of monsters are the top four to rank even higher than my Crystal Palm Fire Lotus?"

Locke quickly scanned the top four and found that the authors of the top four works were all first-class wizard apprentices, and not newly promoted first-class wizard apprentices either.

They had participated in this competition over ten times, relying on such competitions to win magical resources for themselves.

Therefore, they were well-versed in the competition's scoring standards and were experienced veterans.

The top four works indeed all looked somewhat better than his Crystal Palm Fire Lotus.

"There are still many expert breeders in the southeastern quadrant, I still can't be careless." Locke thought, "I heard from Teacher Sophia that in the White Wizard Association breeder competition, everyone definitely won't show their full strength during the preliminaries."

"Because the purpose of the preliminaries is just to enter the finals."

"So many breeders with strong capabilities won't exert their full strength in the preliminaries. Many who can often enter the top hundred in preliminaries might not even make it into the top hundred in the finals."

"So I need to continue working hard." Locke clenched his fist, "Even in the preliminaries, people ranked higher than me. In the finals, there will only be more and more experts."

"It seems I must put in certain efforts in this regard, otherwise I might not be able to enter the top fifty and receive large magic stone rewards."

Locke's purpose in participating in this competition was to obtain large amounts of magical resources from the beginning. All other purposes were incidental.

Of course, if he could win a good result in this competition, applying for various things from the academy in the future would be much simpler.

Locke's expression became serious. He walked back to his room to conduct tonight's meditation.

Every major leap was accumulated bit by bit through those small improvements.

...

Lilith's Cottage, port city, in an inconspicuous semi-basement in a commoner's alley. This semi-basement only had one window exposed above ground level.

The remaining larger half of the room was below ground level.

This was a house where the poor among commoners lived.

On rainy days, rainwater would flow back into this semi-basement. When the rainwater receded, this semi-basement house would have moldy corners emitting pungent odors that ordinary people simply couldn't live in.

Yet in such a filthy living environment, there were ten black wizards wearing black wizard robes sneaking around here, discussing their private plans.

These black wizards' eyes emitted red blood light in the dim environment. When they spoke, they revealed terrifying fangs. These black wizards were all vampires from the Blood Curse Court who had accepted blood curse transformations.

"Damn white wizards, their combat power isn't strong, but they have many other cunning tricks. Their weather masters have semi-permanently changed the climate environment in our Blood Curse Court's heartland, striking at our school's resource reserves."

"Those stupid potions of theirs have also polluted our water sources and land. When commoners eat food contaminated by those potions, their constitution develops resistance to our curses, which becomes very troublesome."

Vampire Howard twisted his neck in the darkness as if there was something wrong with his neck, constantly twisting it, and he was somewhat neurotic.

"The academy higher-ups have forbidden us from randomly casting curses on the commoners within our territory anymore. Casting curses on them during this period easily makes them develop targeted curse resistance."

"The academy higher-ups worry that this is a massive experiment conducted by those sanctimonious white wizards, using the commoners in our territory to test out constitutional bloodlines that specifically produce resistance to our school's existing curses..."

"White wizards are always so hypocritical!"

"We must retaliate, we must kill." Howard's eyes flashed with a mixture of bloodthirst and neurotic anger, "The academy higher-ups have issued the highest level revenge directive, requiring us apprentices lurking in Lilith's Cottage to begin targeted hunting of breeder and potion master geniuses from Lilith's Cottage."

"This is the response to those drug-selling provocative actions."

"Recently those false saints released the breeder competition preliminary rankings, didn't they? The academy higher-ups require us to conduct targeted hunting according to that list's rankings."

"We must hurt them, make them feel fear!"

"Hunting according to that list is definitely correct." Howard said neurotically, "As long as we hunt one of their geniuses, the academy will give us massive magical resource rewards."

"Don't say the academy never gave you opportunities before. Now the opportunity is right in front of you. If you want to become first-class wizard apprentices or even formal wizards, with just our little talent, can we succeed without risking our lives?!"

Most of the black wizards present only had 1st and 2nd level aptitude.

Only Howard had 3rd level aptitude.

Unlike white wizard society's extreme pursuit of geniuses, black wizard society, while also pursuing geniuses, was relatively less focused on it.

That was because in black wizard society, resources were the most important.

Black wizard society wasn't like white wizard society with relatively reasonable resource distribution. Without resources, even geniuses would have very limited development.

More importantly, black wizards had many shortcuts available. Many people's greatest motivation for learning black magic was because they were destined to be mediocre for life learning white magic, and only by learning extremely radical black magic could they achieve breakthroughs.

Although these hopes were largely self-deception.

The other Blood Curse Court wizard apprentices looked at each other. Upon hearing that the academy would give them huge rewards, their eyes all showed excitement. Of course they wanted to obtain these massive rewards.

But when they thought of the current situation, they felt somewhat afraid.

"But Howard, with just us second-class and third-class wizard apprentices acting as spies here, what we can do is very limited."

"Those white wizard weaklings always hide in their greenhouse-like homes and rarely come out..."

"Our strength isn't enough..."

A powerful magical pressure burst from vampire Howard, pressing down on every Blood Curse Court apprentice present.

These Blood Curse Court wizard apprentices were all shocked.

"Howard, you've become a first-class wizard apprentice? You broke through here? How is that possible?"

"My god, although you have 3rd level aptitude, you're only 25 years old now. You couldn't possibly reach first-class wizard apprentice so quickly. Moreover, half a year ago, you were still a second-class wizard apprentice!"

A second-class wizard apprentice vampire, with intense jealousy and greed flashing in his eyes, said, "How did you do it? Can you tell me this method too?"

Vampire Howard smiled proudly, "I was just about to mention that."

"I was able to become a first-class wizard apprentice because the academy higher-ups conducted an experiment on me. Also, the academy will give us special support. Because the academy's prohibition on commoners eating food has already caused large-scale famine."

"The academy higher-ups simply used this famine to create an undead creature wave. Soon there will be undead creature waves divided into three waves attacking Lilith's Cottage's territory, which will create chaos."

"And chaos is the best opportunity for us Blood Curse Court people to fish in troubled waters."

"As for the first-class wizard apprentice matter..." Howard chuckled, "This is exactly what the academy higher-ups want me to make public to all of you."

The nine Blood Curse Court vampires immediately showed amazing greed in their eyes, along with jealousy toward Howard.

They all stretched their necks, preparing to hear Howard tell them the secret of how he could become a first-class wizard apprentice in Lilith's Cottage's territory.

[NEXT CHAPTER]

WIZ Chapter 121: Night Walker Cloak and Agility Bracelet

Kentri Furnace Workshop.

In front of the flame furnace alchemy circle, alchemist assistant Tyne wiped the sweat from his face with a towel, only to smear a patch of charcoal-like black across it. "I recommend you spend five hundred magic stones to purchase this Night Walker Cloak."

"Because this enchanted item best meets your requirements - it has sufficient defensive power, can resist apprentice-level spells, and is light enough that it won't affect your movement."

"It even has a certain invisibility ability. At night it will be in a semi-invisible state, moving like a blur of air. If you need to escape or track someone at night, it will be of great assistance."

Tyne enthusiastically introduced his work. "The Night Walker Cloak is made from Shadow Nightingale feathers."

"I used a three-phase transmutation circle, employing shadow stones and the magical alloy mithril to strengthen its original material, making it more lightweight, harder, and enhancing the feathers' invisibility ability to the next level."

"Its surface is combined with a layer of magical alloy - mithril, which can provide certain defensive capabilities. Of course, there are also some necessary enchantment runes on it, mainly used to enhance defense, which is the most insignificant small part of the entire enchanted item's ingenious design."

Tyne excitedly said, "I've tested it before. When hit by a 0.3-ring spell, it had no effect at all."

"It can even let a 0.8-ring spell hit you and you'd only suffer minor injuries. Of course, it would be easily damaged then." Tyne said, "At that time you can come to me for repairs."

"My principle here is that within one year, there is warranty service, and I can give you half-price repair costs."

Locke looked at the Night Walker Cloak in Tyne's hands. This garment claimed it could block spells for him, but it wasn't actually thick or heavy. On the contrary, it was very light, just like a thin undergarment that could be worn beneath outer clothing.

This was the skill of alchemists.

They strengthened and modified materials. In their hands, enchanted items often balanced performance with convenience.

Locke nodded satisfactorily and paid five hundred magic stones. "Not bad, I'll take it."

Currently, the wizard wars were very intense, so of course he needed to buy some things as life-saving measures.

A defensive enchanted item could provide great assistance in this regard.

Locke took off his white wizard robe outer garment, directly put on the Night Walker Cloak, then put his wizard robe back on.

Locke said, "Besides that, sell me an Agility Bracelet as well."

"I remember it's about three hundred magic stones each. You throw in three free recharging sessions, how about that?"

Tyne hesitated for a moment, but still nodded, "Alright, since you bought my magical alloy work last time and are buying my new work Night Walker Cloak this time, I'll sell this at a loss and give you three free recharging opportunities."

Locke smiled satisfactorily, saving a bit more money.

Agility Bracelets were also common alchemical items. These things were actually consumables, containing a hidden 0.7-ring Enchantment School spell [Light Body Wind Walk], but could only be activated once.

To use it again next time, one would have to ask an alchemist to recharge it.

The Light Body Wind Walk enchantment spell could change a wizard's body structure, making the wizard's body structure more lightweight. The bones would become similar to magical bird creature bones for 30 seconds, gaining wind elemental enhancement and instant speed improvement.

Locke's purpose in buying the Agility Bracelet was mainly for saving his life.

In critical moments, the most important thing wasn't defensive items that increased defense, but abilities that increased escape speed.

This Agility Bracelet was, to some extent, a common hot-selling product among alchemists, so all major alchemical workshops would sell them.

Tyne actively promoted his products, wiping sweat again with the towel, leaving a long black charcoal mark on his face. "I can see you've made a fortune recently, Augustine."

"How about buying a Kenreth Wizard Sword from me. This is a weapon I forged using a three-phase transmutation circle and high-temperature furnace transmutation circle. The design was created by my teacher during his first-class wizard apprentice stage..."

"If you buy it, I can give you a discount. It's very useful. Once it pierces an enemy, the wound it causes cannot heal... The blade is indestructible and cannot be broken..."

Locke shook his head, decisively paid three hundred magic stones, took the Agility Bracelet, then prepared to leave the shop.

He didn't need wizard swords at all. Magical plants were his best weapons.

Wizard swords were for wizard apprentices in magical categories that excelled at medium and long-range spell attacks but weren't good at close combat, such as the Evocation, Conjuration, Illusion, and Enchantment Schools.

But as a Life School plant magic sub-direction wizard, he had no need to use wizard swords.

Besides, he didn't have much money, so he needed to spend it wisely. There was no need to buy unnecessary things.

Buying them would just leave them gathering dust in his spatial ring.

Locke bid farewell to Tyne. Tyne couldn't stop loudly introducing his products at the door, but Locke was already walking toward the slave warehouse.

He found the previous trader, the dark elf Benny, then opened with a big deal, "This transaction is quite large. I need 80 minotaur noble slaves."

"Is the price still 10 magic stones each?"

Dark elf Benny was stunned. His brain felt like it had been hammered hard as he muttered, "Eighty? Eighty!"

"This is a bulk transaction. My qualifications might not be sufficient..."

He looked at the badges on Locke's body with awe. The dazzling first-class wizard apprentice badge and potion master's assistant badge made his speech somewhat breathless.

But just recently, this wizard before him was clearly only a second-class wizard apprentice.

Locke said coldly, "Then immediately find me someone who can handle this transaction. Benny."

Dark elf Benny tremblingly bowed to Locke. Those cold words made him shiver, and he quickly apologized, "Yes, respected Potion Master Augustine."

He turned and hurried into the shop. Soon he came out with a male blood elf wearing elaborate expensive clothing, tall in stature with pale skin.

This male blood elf was a first-class wizard apprentice.

He briefly sized up Locke, then smiled, "I am Manager Shelray of the slave warehouse."

"Respected customer, you must be expanding your botanical garden on a large scale or adding a new potion mass production line."

"Minotaurs are indeed relatively honest slaves with clean backgrounds. It's just that recently, due to too many buyers, minotaur noble slaves have experienced some price increases, rising from 10 magic stones per person to 15 magic stones per person."

Locke frowned in dissatisfaction upon hearing this.

For individual purchases, this price increase didn't make much difference, but with large quantities, it was a difference of four hundred magic stones.

Yet to fulfill his orders, he couldn't possibly buy inferior slaves, as that would only doom himself.

If those inferior slaves had problems, it would likely delay the botanical garden's production schedule.

Blood elf Shelray secretly observed Locke's expression, then immediately decided to lower the price.

Joking aside, a customer buying 80 slaves at once couldn't be allowed to just turn around and walk out.

That would be his absolute dereliction of duty.

What if the customer felt it was too expensive and didn't want to buy?

Then just lower the price.

For this kind of bulk transaction, even with a price reduction, he could still make a decent profit through volume sales, so there was no need to stubbornly stick to the original price.

Blood elf Shelray smiled, "But since you're purchasing such a large quantity at once, we'll still maintain the price at 10 magic stones per minotaur noble slave. That is, 80 minotaur slaves for a total of 800 magic stones."

"For volume sales, we still have profit to make."

Only then did Locke nod slightly, showing agreement. This price was acceptable to him.

If it had been the previous price, he might as well have switched to buying a different type of slave.

Locke said, "Then let's sign the contract. However, I need to inspect this batch of slaves first. You have stock in the store now, right?"

Blood elf Shelray said, "Of course. Although we don't have much inventory in the store, I can immediately transfer a batch from nearby regional stock and even let you choose from among them. Don't worry about this. We'll transfer them over tomorrow and let you select at will."

"Since we dare to sell these mortal slaves at such high prices, we naturally provide attentive service. These slaves have all been transformed by enchantment spells into perfect slaves."

Blood elf Shelray said proudly, "This is our professional ethics. Potion Master Augustine, you know that society always has many people who have unnecessary misunderstandings about those of us in this business."

"But those are all stereotypes."

"We are conscientious, moral, and principled... slave traders."

[NEXT CHAPTER]

📅 August 18 (UTC +8) - Chapter Releases

For Pledged Members:
Necromancer, What the Hell Is A Type 055 Summon? — Chapters 121 to 130
Wasteland Border Inspector — Chapters 107 to 112
My Father Is Superman, But I'm Just An NPC? — Chapters 97 to 100

For Free Members:
Necromancer, What the Hell Is A Type 055 Summon? — Chapters 73 & 74
Wasteland Border Inspector — Chapters 73 & 74

My Father Is Superman, But I'm Just An NPC? — Chapters 63 & 64
Wizard: Starting With Synthesized Gems — Chapters 63 & 64
American Hunting: Starting From Alone In The Wilderness — Chapters 63 & 64

We Agreed On Experiencing Life, So Why Did You Immortals Become Real? — Chapters 39 & 40
God's Imitator — Chapters 39 & 40

Daily Divination: From Market Rogue Cultivator To Immortal Venerable — Chapters 25 & 26
I Run A Prison In America — Chapters 19 to 22

SUP Chapter 100: Superman's Corruption? Returning to Marvel! (Part Two)

Clark immediately went forward with concern.

"That car outside... whose is it? It's the car I said I really liked when I was young, you said you couldn't afford it, and I thought you were honest, so I decided to marry you!"

Lois was somewhat linguistically confused, letting the children hear some old stories. Her face was full of disbelief, showing that her inner emotions were truly fluctuating greatly.

"Hellcat! Yes, that's it! Where did this car come from?"

Lois's voice was several degrees higher than usual.

"It's Ian's car."

Clark sighed wearily in response.

"I knew it was his!" Lois rushed toward the liquor cabinet, pulled out a bottle of red wine, opened the cap, and started guzzling it directly down her throat.

"Well, that car is quite strange."

Clark didn't know how to respond either, only managing a dry, awkward laugh. Due to letting Ian take the blame during dinner, the guilty father felt he should try to help Ian keep this car.

"Can you believe it? That car actually asked me to bring it two blankets, and it even played tonight's cold weather forecast for me. I've never encountered anything so bizarre in my life!"

Lois drank an entire bottle of red wine in one go, her mood slightly calming.

Upon hearing this, Jonathan and Jordan simultaneously turned their heads, their eyes bright as if they had discovered a new world.

"What!?"

"A talking car!? That's so cool?!" Boys were always attracted to these strange and wonderful things, as if they didn't even think it was weird for a car to need blankets.

That was normal.

After all, most American boys would let the car sleep on the bed while they slept on the floor if they had such a car.

"Uh..."

Lois leaned against the liquor cabinet and reached for a second bottle of red wine, "It's not directly talking, but it can play radio broadcasts, you know, like... Transformers?"

Saying this, Mom gulped down another bottle of red wine.

"What! Transformers! Isn't that even cooler?!" The brothers exclaimed in unison, instantly jumping up from the sofa and rushing to the window, pressing their noses almost against the glass to look outside.

"Ian and I have the best relationship. He'll definitely let me drive it!"

"Damn, I need to get my driver's license tomorrow!"

"You're still young. You can't handle it. Let big brother... I didn't even awaken the Superman gene. I need comfort!"

...

The two brothers were arguing.

And Lois, after drinking two bottles of red wine, had a slightly flushed face.

She swayed as she walked toward the storage room.

"Honey, what are you going to do?"

Clark quickly followed, his tone slightly nervous. He was very worried that Lois wanted to go smash Ian's car, feeling this would surely cause a new wave of family conflict.

"Of course, I'm getting blankets for the Transformer." Lois's tone paused, and she took another sip from the wine in her hand, "Mm, indeed everything feels reasonable after drinking."

"That car said it can also fly. If I cover it with blankets and praise it a few times in front of Ian, it's willing to take me flying once." Lois was busying herself without looking back.

"..."

Clark watched his wife rush toward the backyard with two down comforters in her arms.

Leaving him alone looking helpless.

The father had originally wanted to talk to his two sons, but unexpectedly, Jonathan and Jordan also ran from the window toward the front door, looking like they wanted to go take care of Ian's little car together with Mom.

"What! It can fly too!"

"I've only seen cars like this in movies!"

Jonathan and Jordan's voices were full of amazement and longing. Seeing his two sons also run into the small yard, Clark suddenly felt that he, "the world's most powerful superhero," was a bit redundant.

"Actually, I can fly too. Does anyone want to go for a ride with Superman?" Clark leaned against the door frame and even used his super voice a little.

Even using his supreme bubble voice, no one responded.

No one even looked back.

The only thing that answered him was the car radio from the yard playing "I Believe I Can Fly."

"..."

Clark suddenly didn't want to keep his youngest son's car so much anymore.

He looked somewhat lonely.

He could only pick up the cat that had run to the door to comfort himself.

"Let me think, what should you be called, lucky little guy."

Clark looked toward the second floor while the cat trembled, the culprit's room still had its lights on. In the second-floor bedroom, Ian was sitting cross-legged in front of the computer reading today's news.

The screen had more than ten news web pages open.

《Shocking! Mysterious Street Fainting Incident, Experts Say It May Be Mass Hysteria》

《Aliens or Government Experiment? All Fainted Citizens Recover, Raising Questions》

《Eyewitness Claims to Have Seen Two Aliens Fighting to the Death, Is It New Drugs Causing Hallucinations?》

《Perhaps Silently, an Unknown Hero Saved 8,650 People in a Mysterious Crisis!》

...

The initial news wasn't much.

But seeing the last article full of positive energy and praise, Ian really didn't know whether to be happy or sad. Actually, no one knew it was the Ancestor who had created so much merit!

"If I had known no one would claim compensation, I would have left the Ancestor's name behind." Ian suspected that in this world full of superheroes, the government might have a special fund for superhero cleanup.

Looking at the continued browsing, there were many more news articles praising unknown heroes, but no one knew who it was. Ian couldn't help but sneak into Jordan's room to retrieve his "lost" phone.

"Did any reporters find you?" Ian sent all those pretentious photos to little delinquent Madison and also sent a text message to test the situation.

The little delinquent wasn't sleeping late at night, and her new phone replied super fast.

[Yes yes! But I said I didn't remember anything and drove away all the reporters. My acting was super amazing!] The little delinquent's reply didn't earn Ian's praise.

Instead, it made Ian confirm that he was indeed slightly upset.

"Although I'm not Homelander, I'm superstitious. I'm afraid the merit won't fall on my head." Ian knew that the structure of this world truly had the saying that good people go to heaven.

And he also knew that the angels in heaven were all slacking off. What if they really miscalculated his merit? Who would he complain to? This subtle worry in Ian's heart made him decide to do something.

Thinking of this, Ian's eyes immediately lit up.

"Clatter~"

For the next several hours, Ian began using his hand speed to register hundreds of accounts on major forums, frantically playing the role of [survivor] to educate the public about who saved the world, after all, stopping the demon prince's plot to descend to the human world could indeed be considered saving the world.

His computer's virus king.

A 2D girl's icon popped up at this time. It was a Q-version little figure with hair colored like sky-blue gradients that would bounce like little wings when tied in twin tails during movement. It had impossible 2.5-head-to-body proportions that couldn't exist in reality, with small hands and feet as round as marshmallows.

There was faint pink shading at the knees and elbows exquisitely crafted.

Clearly the product of high-level artwork.

"When did you start chasing superhero stars?" A small bubble with text appeared above the blue-haired girl's icon. It was the greatest contributor to the peaceful coexistence of viruses in Ian's computer.

"Of course, since I realized heroes deserve to be praised." Ian replied quickly, then locked this virus that had been stubbornly staying for many years into the locked folder in the bottom right corner.

Nothing much to chat about.

He always felt that on the other side of the icon must be some foot-picking big guy.

The kind with masochistic tendencies.

Because the locked folder was also something this virus had stuffed into Ian's computer. Since he had just been to his second brother's room, Ian also thought of the [Superhero Popularity Center] website that his second brother had mentioned before.

With such a website, how could he be absent?

A flash of inspiration, Ian began frantically creating new hero profiles.

[Stocking Superman (Feature: Stockings that never break)]

[Ancestor (Feature: Likes to make everyone call him daddy)]

[Second Uncle's Grandfather Immortal Venerable (Feature: Good at using "generational suppression," likes to force enemies to kowtow for New Year greetings)]

[Dance God Warrior (Feature: Unstoppable dance steps)]

...

[Bald Immeasurable Buddha]

When Ian created the twenty-fifth profile, he thought about it and still deleted this hero profile. The cost was too great. Even in the most coincidental circumstances, he definitely wouldn't be willing to put on such a mask.

"This is the deep thinking that Batman brought me. Whether I use it or not, I must have enough backup masks." Just when Ian was preparing to create another hundred profiles.

He found that he had been restricted from uploading information by the website.

 [I'm Really Not Batman: ????]

A private message popped up.

Ian clicked block without hesitation and found he couldn't block it.

He immediately picked up his phone.

"Beep beep beep~"

This time it wasn't the mentally challenged voicemail.

"What are you doing?"

The familiar voice, familiar questioning, could only be the familiar Batman.

"Unblock it, just once." Ian had already guessed the truth. This website was probably Batman's phishing website used to collect information from the public.

"Beep beep beep~"

The other party directly hung up Ian's call.

Ian soon discovered that although he couldn't continue creating new profiles, he could still edit the profiles he had already created. Presumably, Bruce had thoughtfully given him partial permissions after careful consideration.

[His great-great-grandfather was a slave hanged by a plantation owner on an oak tree in 1863.]

[His great-grandmother was a Chinese laundry woman born during Prohibition, who had half her face burned by fire due to the "Yellow Peril theory." His mother was a Latin American illegal immigrant fleeing famine.]

[When his mother gave birth to him at the US-Mexico border, he discovered he also had a little bit of Native American blood...]

Heroes needed origins.

And Ian chose the origin most suitable for the American stage for the Ancestor.

After all, Ian was fragile.

He couldn't bear to see people criticizing him online.

So giving the Ancestor the correct buffs was very important, this wasn't difficult for an excellent writer, and even made Ian's [Writer] profession level up due to deep thinking.

[Writer LV2 (1/20)]

Successfully gained general skill points, but as an ordinary profession, it didn't have a dedicated skill tree. Ian didn't have urgent needs, so he didn't bother with it for now.

He fully utilized his talent.

[His battle suit isn't fabric, but a thousand years of heritage!]Ian even found the most suitable excuse for possibly continuing to use disposable cheap battle suits in the future.

[He delivers food and washes dishes during the day, only practicing being a superhero at night. He was once homeless, sleeping in cars, but it was the dream of becoming a superhero that gave him hope.]

[Depression and cancer didn't defeat the Ancestor. The Ancestor was denied by Superman and denied by Batman, but all of this didn't shatter his heart that protects the world.]

Ian was writing and even became somewhat moved.

Then, he saw that in his edited document, the name [Batman] had been mysteriously deleted and refilled with the name [Green Arrow].

"????"

Ian was greatly shocked by such an operation.

Business warfare tactics.

Batman even used them in the superhero track?

What a terrifying capitalist!

"What a dirty heart."

Ian found that he couldn't modify the entry no matter what. Helplessly, he could only choose to give up. He had tinkered enough today, and his mask background was already full enough.

"This will be the Ancestor's defense even stronger than the Man of Steel!" Ian was in a great mood. Looking at the time, it was about right. He got up and pulled the demon skull out of his backpack.

"Oh, great Ian Kent, I feel I'm about to evolve. I just need a few more demons..." The demon skull issued crazy praise for Ian.

However, it didn't achieve very good results.

Ian's mood remained unmoved.

Before the other party finished speaking, he stuffed this head into new furniture in the room, it was an alloy cabinet with many things carved on the surface that Ian couldn't understand.

However, regarding the security of this cabinet for storing items, Ian had no doubt even though he didn't understand it. After all, this was a cabinet his father had brought back from Uncle Bruce's house tonight. Although the bat logo on it hadn't been completely scraped off, it didn't prevent Ian from pretending not to see it.

He knew, father's old friend Uncle Bruce had everything at his house.

Like Doraemon Bruce, much more loyal than that [I'm Really Not Batman] on the forum.

"Oh, these are traces of magic and technology, used to imprison magical creatures like me. What a powerful tool. Great Ian can indeed create anything."

Even though locked in a new cage, the demon skull was still praising frantically. This chattering head had figured out some things during these few hours of silence.

Serving the Three Palace Demon certainly had broad prospect but changing allegiance might not be less promising.

It also wanted to maintain firm faith.

But having eaten the demon prince, the bull-headed demon felt it really couldn't go back... It had no way to personally apologize to the Three Palace Demon, mainly because demons' nature of being good at betrayal made it unable to refuse.

"Praise Ian God!"

Who said hell couldn't have a new master.

The bull-headed demon now only felt it must be bootlicker enough.

In this way, its family should also prosper in hell starting from its generation. Although Ian abused it, scared it, and tested it, it felt Ian's nature could definitely be a good hell king.

"Shut up!"

Ian stuffed Jordan's used socks into the bull-headed demon's mouth.

Tasting that disgusting flavor.

The bull-headed demon was even more convinced of its choice.

Being like this at just over ten years old.

What would it be like after more than ten thousand years?

Under the bull-headed demon's "affectionate" gaze, Ian felt the other party had some serious brain problems. He fiercely closed the cabinet door and lay on the bed holding the [Ian's Magic Book].

Time was approaching.

Seeing that Lady Death still hadn't come to find him, Ian certainly couldn't wait any longer. He also didn't have the right to wait. The Marvel Universe's call for him would come as scheduled every day.

"Tonight, I need to change to a mage class."

Ian wanted to study the magical book in his hands clearly.

However, a world-shaking person should only study their own world-shaking magic. So Ian was also trying to find a way to make himself the source of magic. He knew that the almighty Tony God in the Marvel Universe could definitely help him.

"I just don't know what the price will be."

With anticipation, Ian fell into a deep sleep as the clock struck midnight.

...

At the same time.

The night was deep.

The hallway at midnight was empty. In the room near the parents' room on the second floor, the young man on the bed had his brow furrowed, with fine beads of sweat on his forehead.

Jonathan Kent's fingers unconsciously gripped the bed sheets, his knuckles white from exertion.

As if having a nightmare.

"Power..."

Perhaps it was indeed a kind of nightmare.

In the dream, Jonathan stood in a void, with a shattered galaxy beneath his feet and a twisted black sun overhead. The whispers in his ears were like cold snakes, crawling from his spine all the way to the back of his neck.

"We can give you power"

The voices seemed to come from all directions.

Jonathan looked around blankly but only saw countless "selves" floating in the void, some wearing Kryptonian battle suits, some covered in blood, some with only two black holes where their eye sockets should be.

"Are you willing?"

The strange, low voice suddenly seemed very close.

"Damn! What is this place?" Jonathan looked around, unable to see any source of the voice. Even when he covered his ears, those words drilled directly into his brain.

"Jordan, Ian, they have both become members of that supreme race."

"And you?"

"Mediocre and wasting your life? Even training accidents that could happen anytime on the field have left you with irreversible injuries. Do you really think you can avoid your destined tragic fate?"

The voice entered his ears.

Tempting and seductive.

Images of family portraits appeared in the void, Clark and Jordan laughing in the clouds, Ian making faces while holding a talking car, Lois holding a Pulitzer Prize trophy in the spotlight.

And him.

Jonathan.

Standing at the very edge like a background actor who had mistakenly wandered into a superhero movie.

"No!"

Jonathan unconsciously shook his head.

"You... or all of you! Who exactly are you! What are you trying to do?" His attitude was extremely firm, but no matter how he ran, he seemed unable to escape this illusory dreamscape.

"We are like you, once failures."

That voice sounded again.

"However, if you can help us... we can climb to new heights in this world together!" The demonic voice entered his ears, as if it wanted to seep into Jonathan's soul word by word.

"Get lost!"

Jonathan roared in anger.

Thunder flashed, as if illuminating countless shadows in the darkness.

Those things that didn't belong to this universe.

[NEXT CHAPTER]

SUP Chapter 100: Superman's Corruption? Returning to Marvel! (Part One)

Under normal circumstances, Ian couldn't keep his mouth shut at all.

However, to avoid having two red eyes that had been interrogated to the point of collapse quietly appearing by his bedside tonight, he could only immediately bury his head and stuff his mouth full of food.

This was too difficult!

Who said Superman couldn't be used as a scary story for children? Feeling the mountain-like weight of his father's paternal love on his shoulders, Ian chose to follow his heart and made an expression as if he had also figured something out.

To be honest, he didn't think those so-called Superman serums could actually create Superman. After all, he didn't gain much experience after drinking them, which clearly showed that the technology and ingredients inside were completely inadequate.

Of course, Lois and the others present obviously didn't know this.

"I see."

The doubts and confusion in Lois's heart vanished like smoke, leaving only amazement at the wonderful fate between Ian and Clark. She indeed believed Clark's seemingly logical explanation.

Seeing this, Clark also breathed a sigh of relief inwardly. He knew that his super brain was meant to be used for things like this, and he must use every means to maintain the harmony and stability of this family.

Was it despicable?

Clark felt somewhat despicable.

If Ian was wronged a little, this family would win. Clark somewhat understood some of Batman's past calculations of pros and cons. After today, he felt he could forgive Batman's past actions a little bit.

It was indeed unavoidable. After all, Clark couldn't very well say that Batman had previously told him that Ian was suspected of being able to draw power from writing, could he? Never mind Lois not believing it, even having seen it with his own eyes, Clark was still skeptical now. He bet that if he dared to say this, Lois would dare to make a pair of scissors out of kryptonite.

"Darling, which part would you like to cut first?"

His super brain could even make Clark think in detail about what would happen after choosing various possibilities.

Precisely because of this, the invincible Superman couldn't afford to gamble. And Ian's stable reputation provided him with good cover. In fact, no one really doubted whether it was reasonable for Ian to eat things randomly.

After all, this was indeed very reasonable when it came to Ian.

There were even doctors who had issued diagnostic certificates.

"This is fantastic."

Jonathan couldn't help but speak up upon seeing this.

"With such amazing superhuman baby formula, why don't you let me have a sip? I think I can still be saved..." If there was a chance, he certainly wanted to be a second-generation Superman too.

Although it was a bit regrettable.

However, inheriting the family business was obviously more attractive and cost-effective than playing football.

"We still can't confirm whether that serum truly has the effect of helping you awaken dormant genes. We can't let you risk your life for testing."

Sam's serious reminder saved Clark some brain cells.

"Yes, dear, Ian might be an exception." Lois also hurriedly began persuading Jonathan. She also knew that Ian's ability to gain Kryptonian power was most likely just an exception.

Perhaps it was Ian's pica that gave him an overly powerful digestive system.

Aliens, after all.

Each was different.

Who knows, Ian's body might have corresponding special organs.

Deep down, Lois was unwilling to believe Ian was sick, so she had long found a reasonable explanation for Ian's pica, one couldn't impose Earth people's diet on aliens' diets.

"Alright."

Jonathan was somewhat disappointed upon hearing this.

This was also what Clark least wanted to see. He had previously hidden his situation because he was afraid of seeing such a situation. As Superman, he now didn't know how to comfort his eldest son.

The Kryptonian gene thing.

If it awakened, it awakened. If it didn't awaken, no one could do anything about it. Using other means to awaken it would only lead to endless troubles. Clark had seen many humans lose control after being contaminated by Kryptonian genes.

Just when Clark was in a dilemma.

"I'll just go back to playing my football. Maybe my son will have a chance to awaken in the future? That would be pretty good too." As the eldest son in the family, Jonathan was very considerate of his family.

He didn't continue to make things difficult for Clark, and even joked lightly, "Of course, just like Ian always says, poor people rely on mutation, rich people rely on technology."

"Dad, Mom, when can you two go bankrupt so I can gamble on it?" It had to be said that Jonathan truly had a talent for humor. The atmosphere at the dinner table immediately relaxed considerably.

At this time, Ian had also cleared his plate.

"It's okay, Jonathan. I've been studying magic recently. Once I figure it out, I'll teach you the supreme Ian divine arts. I guarantee I won't charge you a penny in interest or tuition."

No one believed Ian's words. Everyone thought he was livening up the atmosphere. Everyone kept laughing. He didn't mind, and just took the opportunity to steal the grilled beef ribs from Jonathan's plate.

The dinner atmosphere became much better.

Family warmth was overflowing.

After eating and drinking their fill, General Sam Lane also prepared to leave.

"Regarding the investigation into Luthor, I will continue to follow up." His military uniform was crisp, his tone steady, "Any news, I'll notify Clark directly, Clark indeed needs to know about Kryptonian matters."

This made a lot of sense, it reduced the resentment in Clark's heart a little bit.

"Perhaps you can investigate this place." Ian rummaged around under the table, threw away the cat that was hidden in the drawer, and marked some circles on a map.

"Very good. If any big case is cracked, I'll apply to the military for informant rewards for you." Sam smiled as he took the map, not asking where Ian got the intelligence. After all, the person who "reported" the case at the beginning was his little grandson in front of him. General Sam thought it must be Clark accompanying the awakened little cub in training his abilities.

A reasonable judgment.

A beautiful misunderstanding.

Clark had no intention of explaining this. Sam looked at his watch and hugged each of the three grandsons in turn. When it was Ian's turn, Ian also timely asked in a low voice.

"As for the reward, after the military gentlemen finish taking their kickbacks, can I still get one percent of the full amount?" This was important. Ian was mainly afraid that the military would tax him based on the amount before taking kickbacks, the U.S. military was really capable of doing such things, and Ian didn't want to have to pay additional taxes without getting any benefits.

"..."

Sam was rendered speechless by Ian's rigorous attitude.

"Don't worry, not a penny less will be paid to you. There are relevant standards for all this." Sam made a guarantee to Ian. He also couldn't very well mention in front of the younger generation that he was one of those gentlemen who took kickbacks.

"Thank you, Grandpa."

Only then did Ian finally hug old Sam.

"I'll see you out."

Lois saw her father to the door.

The night was deep, and the streets were completely silent.

"Lucy, our project mainly uses Kryptonian genes to create human super soldiers. If it's proven safe... I'll fight for an opportunity for you."

Old Sam looked at the lights in the house and lowered his voice to speak quietly to his daughter.

"I don't need it."

Lois refused decisively.

However, Old Sam's attitude was very determined, "No, you need it. Look at this family of yours. You married a god, at least from the perspective of the power he possesses, Clark is that living god."

"And you? You're just an ordinary person. Fragile and delicate as when you were little. In this increasingly dangerous world, no one can say what will happen the next second."

He gripped Lois's hand, his eyes were particularly complex.

Lois opened her mouth but couldn't refute.

"Even so, I still don't need it."

She just insisted on her attitude.

Seeing this, Old Sam didn't continue persuading. He knew how stubborn his daughter was. This was the reason Lois became an excellent reporter, and also a personality trait that always gave him headaches.

"Dear, let's just see you off to here." Old Sam led Lois to outside the small yard, preparing to walk toward his top-configured Hummer that he had obtained through kickbacks.

"Wait a minute, Dad. I'm still not at ease. You have to swear by Grandma's name that I really won't see my cloned husband or cloned sons on the street."

Lois stopped old Sam, her expression still showing some unease.

"..."

Sam somewhat understood why he had been rendered speechless by Ian earlier. These were all stereotypical impressions of the military. Such suspicion that left no dignity for the military made him not know how to refute at all.

After all, he lacked confidence.

"With just a few Kryptonian corpses, we can't clone living Kryptonians. You think too highly of our scientists. I really regret not forcing you to study more back then."

"Only by studying enough would you understand that truly capable scientists look down on the little salary we give them, even though their full salary isn't actually that much." Sam spoke quietly with a heavy sigh. It was unclear whether he was worrying about Lois's education or the military's future research path.

"..."

Lois wanted to find alcohol to drink, but unfortunately couldn't find any in her pockets. She had heard how serious the military's corruption problem was, so as a reporter, she was now somewhat troubled by professional ethics.

Investigate?

What if she found out her own father was the number one corrupt official?

"I think you definitely drank a bit too much tonight. Go back quickly." Lois hugged her father, and Sam kissed her forehead before turning and getting into his Hummer.

He took one last look at Lois's family's small yard.

"Your new car is nice."

Old Sam left a meaningful sentence, then, relying on his military plates, ignored the community's speed limits and drove the Hummer directly out at full speed.

"Huh?"

Watching her father disappear.

Lois was very confused as she walked back into the yard. Sure enough, she saw a new car by her planted roses... Where did this shiny Hellcat come from?

"Who could refuse this car?"

Lois's gaze was extremely surprised, and she couldn't help but curiously approach it.

...

Inside the house.

Jonathan and Jordan were watching TV again. A baseball game replay was on, and the pitcher's beautiful curveball made Jonathan whistle.

"That ball was indeed thrown well."

Clark was washing dishes, not forgetting to watch the game through the wall.

Ian didn't particularly like watching these sports.

"Spit it out! It's you, isn't it? If it's not you, you definitely saw it!" He sat on the carpet vigorously rubbing the little orange cat's belly, wanting to feel if there were two vials of serum he hadn't gotten to drink inside.

"Ian, tell me how I should expose Mom." Jordan was multitasking, still planning his grand scheme. He truly believed from the bottom of his heart that Lois must be Superwoman.

"I suggest you hang Superwoman posters all over your room, buy a bunch of Superwoman merchandise, and pretend to be infatuated with her. I think someone will tell you the answer then."

Ian gave his suggestion.

"Isn't that too obvious?"

Jordan frowned, as if thinking about whether the plan was feasible.

"To be honest, I don't think Mom would run that far to be Superwoman. She cut her hand last week." Jonathan was the most normal person in logical thinking in this family.

"Then who do you think Superwoman is?"

Jordan looked at his big brother.

Jonathan leaned his hands against the back of the sofa.

"Obviously."

The older brother just chuckled softly.

"Look at the body type, look at the height, and that unreliable behavior... I think the answer is obvious." His gaze locked onto Ian sitting on the carpet.

"Ah!"

Jordan's pupils contracted, he had a sudden realization.

"You're saying Superwoman is Ian!?"

Jordan thought this speculation was very reasonable. After all, he knew Ian's secret. The high heels and stockings from that day were the psychological shadow that made him lose interest in these two things for life.

Ian's love for cross-dressing was something he knew, or at least he thought he knew.

"Someone's mouth is spewing shit." Ian was furious. His ears didn't need super hearing to catch Jordan's slander, so he directly grabbed a baseball and threw it hard at Jordan.

Jordan wanted to dodge but he soon discovered he didn't need to move.

"Damn!"

Jonathan, sitting next to Jordan, was hit right on the forehead, "Jordan was talking nonsense, but I wasn't talking nonsense. I meant you know who Superwoman is."

Saying this, he pulled out his phone.

He brought up a video of a reporter interviewing Superwoman with a stockings-wearing man charging for photos in the background, seeing this scene, Ian also knew he had wronged his big brother.

"Bang Bang"

He stood up, picked up the baseball that had rolled back, walked to the sofa, and hit Jordan on the forehead twice. Under Jordan's bewildered gaze, he secured justice for Jonathan.

"Do you know who Superwoman is?"

Jordan wanted to complain, but he was more concerned about this question. And just when Ian wanted to continue giving advice to get Jordan to go bother his father Clark.

"Ian, come here."

Clark appeared silently behind him.

The guilty Ian's hair stood on end.

"Dad, what's the matter? Do you need me to help you clean the living room, right?" Ian turned around and blinked, his eyes particularly clear.

"No, it's about that serum. I always feel uneasy in my heart. You need to let me find a place to study it." Clark held an empty plastic bottle in his hand.

"..."

Ian somewhat understood what Clark meant.

He hated his own supreme wisdom.

"Cautious people know they shouldn't reveal biological information to anyone. Dad, I need to practice this caution from a young age." Ian chose to politely decline such a request.

"Hmm?"

Clark looked speechless, "I haven't seen you go somewhere alone to pee and poop every day. The excrement in our neighborhood is collected by your grandfather's people every day."

His words made Ian's eyes widen.

"That's because I can't fly. Conditions are limited. If I could fly, I would definitely go to Mars to poop and pee every day." Ian wasn't too worried about others using his biological information for anything.

He grew stronger through professional traits.

Who knows how mixed up his excrement was. If someone really wanted to analyze his biological information from this, America's scientists would probably face a real test.

"Go to the bathroom, pee."

Clark issued a stern father's command, not wanting to argue with Ian.

"Sure thing."

Ian very soulfully caught the plastic bottle and went into the bathroom under his two brothers' laughter. Five minutes later, Ian came out of the bathroom without the plastic bottle in his hand.

He was carrying Clark's washbasin.

Inside it sloshed a full basin of suspicious yellow liquid.

"Slap~"

Clark slapped his own forehead very loudly.

"You gave me too small a plastic bottle. You might not know, but next time I go to the bathroom, Dad can secretly watch and know I'm definitely not lying."

Ian hurriedly explained, he had also looked for other containers.

However, if it was something convenient, who could refuse Superman's washbasin?

In the living room, the two brothers laughed even louder.

"I can testify for Ian. He tells the truth at least twenty percent of the time every day." Jordan always liked to stir up trouble. He acted serious, while Jonathan marveled at Ian's super bladder.

That was a whole basin.

"That'll be three hundred dollars."

Ian handed the washbasin to Clark.

"Three hundred dollars for one pee? What, is your grandfather planning to make you join the army and you're starting to learn traditional skills now?" Clark helplessly took his washbasin.

The corner of his eye twitched slightly.

He naturally knew about those things within the military.

"This is market price, okay." Ian's voice was righteous. He indeed had this confidence, "Do you know how much technological content is in this pee of mine?"

"Speaking of it would scare... although it probably can't scare Dad, it could scare many other people to death." Ian was truly honest in his dealings, leaving Clark and his two brothers stunned.

"Protein powder isn't technology."

Jonathan thought Ian was talking about previously stealing a lot of his protein powder.

"How do you know I only drank protein powder?" Ian's counter-question made Jonathan look directly at his head, but Jonathan didn't discover any possible horns.

"Alright, alright, I'll give you three hundred dollars." Clark was also extremely helpless. He slapped down three hundred dollars and put it in Ian's hand, then after thinking about it, added another two hundred dollars. He was mainly worried that if he didn't show some appreciation for dinner, who knows if his toothbrush cup would also suffer.

Indeed, people still shouldn't do bad things.

"Thank you, Dad."

Ian took the money and immediately fled, leaving his two brothers and Clark holding the basin standing in place, after a whoosh, Clark, who had disappeared and reappeared, had already put the basin somewhere unknown.

Suddenly, the front door was pushed open forcefully. Lois almost stumbled as she rushed in, looking completely shaken, immediately attracting the attention of the three men in the living room.

"What happened to you?"

[NEXT CHAPTER]

SUP Chapter 99: Change of Situation! Despicable Superman!

The kitchen filled with the aroma of baked bread and stewed beef.

Night was deepening but the Kent family's dinner was not going pleasantly.

It wasn't that Ian's second brother Jordan Kent was already implementing some plan more shocking than shocking itself, but Lois's anger tonight was definitely not just because of the suspicious Clark and the suspicious second son.

The main outbreak point of family conflicts came from Lois's father, also Ian's grandfather, General Sam Lane, who held certain power in this country.

Warm yellow light spilled onto the wooden dining table.

Clark, Lois, Jonathan, Jordan, and Ian sat around together, while at the head of the table, gray-haired Sam Lane was facing accusations from his own daughter.

"So, you've been studying him all along?" Lois's voice was kept very low, yet sharp as an ice pick, "Studying my husband? As if he were some kind of... test subject?"

Such questioning made General Sam's expression helpless. Clark sat beside him with a calm face, but his fingertips unconsciously rubbed the edge of his water glass, causing several tiny cracks to faintly appear on the glass wall.

But obviously very bothered. After all, according to Superman's control ability, he could easily catch a living mosquito in his hand and play with it repeatedly without damaging a single hair on the living mosquito.

Seeing this, old Sam quickly moved his chair closer to his daughter.

"Lucy, don't speculate about me like that. I'm not studying Clark." Sam Lane sighed, put down his dinner knife, and placed his hands folded on the table.

His gaze was steady yet carried a certain coldness unique to military men, "I'm doing this entirely to protect you and your husband, to protect this most special family on Earth."

The heartfelt words carried some seriousness.

"Protection? What kind of protection is this?" Lois sneered, "Secretly collecting his DNA, analyzing his weaknesses? Do you know what this sounds like?"

"This sounds like you're ready to kill my husband at any time! Maybe even my sons!" The hostess of this home sounded very annoyed, so the atmosphere at the dining table suddenly became tense.

Seeing this, big brother Jonathan tried to lighten the mood.

"So, am I the only one still shocked that my dad is actually Superman?" He looked toward Ian and Jordan, "It seems I'm the only one who was kept in the dark until tonight!"

His words immediately drew Jordan's response, both wanting to ease the family atmosphere.

"Actually, I only found out today that dad is Superman too. If I hadn't awakened abilities myself, I think they would have continued hiding it from me." Jordan showed a rather sentimental expression.

"Believe me, Jonathan, knowing is scarier than not knowing. I'm already starting to regret it." Jordan recalled the problem he suddenly realized during his routine business earlier.

If his old dad was Superman.

Then all along, wouldn't Clark know everything that happened in this house like the back of his hand?

Halfway through his routine business, using special methods to activate his incompletely developed super brain, Jordan was practically breaking out in cold sweat, very rarely becoming someone who gave up halfway.

"Sigh, indeed, after all I'm probably the only guy in this family who's just an ordinary person despite being Superman's son. I feel like I'm definitely going to be too upset to sleep tonight."

Jonathan kept picking at his food with his fork without eating, somewhat heavy-hearted as he sighed. Seeing this, Clark wanted to comfort his eldest son but didn't know how to speak.

His gaze showed some worry.

After all, he had seen many classmates in his childhood who developed psychological problems due to mental imbalance. Even classmates were like this, so Jonathan as the only ordinary person in the family would obviously be more prone to mental imbalance.

"Maybe I should see a psychologist too?" Jonathan noticed his father's gaze and gave his father a reassuring look, looking toward Ian with a slightly humorous expression.

"How about introducing me to your psychologist?"

He seemed quite optimistic, and also teased Ian a bit.

"I don't think that's a good idea. Dr. Hannibal is indeed very professionally capable, but if you trigger some of his mechanisms, the medicine he prescribes for you might only be rosemary, lemongrass, cinnamon powder, and chopped parsley." Ian secretly glanced at Clark, but Clark was just occasionally staring at grandfather.

He had no reaction to his words whatsoever.

"..."

Ian was somewhat confused. Logically, Hannibal's matter should be impossible to hide from his father. He sensed something was wrong, but couldn't activate his super brain for the moment.

"Your sense of humor is pretty strong too."

Jonathan thought Ian was also trying to lighten the mood like himself, "I still have to thank you for letting it slip, otherwise I wouldn't know when I'd become privy to this matter."

He looked at his mother with a somewhat resentful gaze.

"Don't blame your mom either, she was also considering that you're in a critical period of competition preparation." Clark quickly came out to smooth things over for Lois for family harmony.

Even temporarily putting aside the matter of Sam studying him.

"Don't worry, dad, my mentality isn't that fragile." Jonathan didn't really blame anyone, instead he spoke quite open-mindedly with a light laugh, "I'm an ordinary person, which at least lets me know that I really do have talent in football, rather than relying on super genes inherited from you?"

It must be said, Jonathan's self-adjustment ability might really be quite good.

"It's really great that you can think this way, dear." Lois quickly praised Jonathan, but because she was still in the midst of anger, she quickly changed expression to look at Ian.

"He better really have just let it slip!" Lois knew her youngest son too well, so she glared fiercely at Ian, but Ian pretended not to see and kept his head down eating.

How to put it, actually, his outstanding family wisdom wasn't without people who could understand it.

"Ian is what you call a truly smart person. Lucy, concealment isn't protection, that's harm." Old Sam, this convenient grandfather, gave Ian a thumbs-up in praise.

Old people become shrewd.

He indeed understood how to avoid real family conflicts.

"Shut up! I haven't settled accounts with you yet! Do you know what protection means? Don't study my husband and children! That's real protection for family!"

Because Sam spoke up, Lois became somewhat heated in her words again. The topic returned to the original issue, and Jonathan felt a sense of powerlessness at sacrificing himself for nothing.

"Grandfather indeed did wrong."

Jordan didn't know if he was fanning flames or mediating.

Ian continued eating in silence.

"My dear grandson, you can't learn your mother's immaturity. She should really think about it, even if I don't participate, won't national institutions want to study Superman?"

"Any country, any organization, any institution, as long as they have the opportunity, they would want to control the power your father possesses. No one can refuse such temptation of power."

"That's godlike great power. Whoever controls this power has the qualification to unify this world, even without me, the military and the nation would spare no effort in conducting research in this area."

General Sam seemed to be talking to Jordan, but actually these words were for Clark and Lois to hear, "Precisely because of this, I must position myself within it."

"Only this way can I protect you. I can know what progress similar research is making, what direction it's heading toward, and I can even interfere to a certain extent."

"This is much more beneficial for your special family than your mother's thinking of pretending everything is always fine and nothing will ever happen."

Old Sam spoke earnestly.

Jordan seemed to understand but not quite.

But these words weren't mainly for the three little ones in the family to hear. Whether he understood or not didn't matter, Clark's furrowed brow relaxing somewhat was the most important thing.

"Who knows if what you're saying is true? What if you also have ulterior motives." Lois's tone had softened considerably, but she still didn't quite trust her politician father.

"I don't deny that I'm a profit-seeking person, and I've always disliked alien species, but this doesn't mean I would harm my daughter and her family."

Old Sam seemed quite frank. He looked around at everyone at the dining table, even including Ian, because in the story he understood, Ian was born after Lois and Clark traveled for a year. The information Bruce Wayne had created was flawless, even the general couldn't find any loopholes.

"Really? I don't believe it."

Lois was extremely wary of her old father. After all, she had grown up by his side since childhood, which was also why she and Clark had to create perfect information for Ian back then.

"Lucy, when you reach my age you'll understand that the greatest benefit in this world is family inheritance and bloodline continuation, from all angles this is so."

"I dislike aliens, but that doesn't mean I dislike aliens who can make my descendants stand in the sky." Old Sam explained the contradictory psychology of vested interests from another angle.

"Grandfather, you really won't take us away for research?"

Jordan also had concerns in this regard.

"As long as I'm still here, that won't happen."

Old Sam responded seriously.

"I hope you remember your promise, Sam."

Clark also spoke up after a mental struggle. After all, he was the research subject being targeted, so naturally only he could make the final determination on this matter.

"Don't disappoint the children's trust."

This statement could be considered announcing that he wouldn't pursue the matter further. Clark also knew that secretly studying Kryptonian genes was definitely not something only the US government was doing.

Back then, quite a few Kryptonian corpses had mysteriously disappeared.

"Don't worry, in fact, if this little guy hadn't discovered this matter, I really didn't plan to let you know about the government's research. We did want to artificially create warriors comparable to you."

"However..." Seeing the atmosphere ease, Sam could finally start changing the subject. He took out a metal box, one that Ian found extremely familiar.

"Our experiments made no progress at all, and no finished products would leak outside." Saying this, Sam opened the metal box, revealing the empty interior space.

"Huh?"

Ian was somewhat surprised.

Clark's expression was also slightly surprised.

"What do you mean?"

He touched this box that Ian had abandoned at the scene where the dealers were tied up, asking, "Ian said he personally heard those people say they were military personnel."

As soon as these words came out.

Before others could react, Ian was already staring wide-eyed at Clark. He had caught Clark lying again, he had never said such things to Clark!

So, who exactly personally heard it!

"This is where the problem lies, someone is impersonating the military, trying to sell this kind of drug worldwide. However, it's not our military's research achievement."

Sam hesitated for a moment but still leaked the information, "In fact, even those people you caught didn't even know they weren't actually serving the military."

As soon as these words came out.

Ian was also somewhat confused.

Clark frowned even more.

"Lex Luthor."

He suddenly spoke, his gaze profound.

Perhaps it was special intuition, but the old father really guessed correctly. Sure enough, Sam slowly nodded, "When I investigated deeply, I did find that this batch of goods was related to Lex Luthor."

"From several batches of reagents we subsequently raided, those drugs contained quite a lot of blood products from Kryptonians. We currently have no way to determine whether that came from you."

Sam spoke in a deep voice, making Ian even more shocked.

He still remembered that those [Simulated Superman Drugs] were labeled as 100% free of Kryptonian genes.

Damn!

At this moment, Ian's thoughts were also spinning rapidly. He finally realized why the second place the Hellcat took him to was one of Luthor's suburban factories because the first raid site was too!

"Luthor did once collect some of my blood, but... you said every bottle contains quite a lot?" Clark looked at Ian then frowned at Sam again.

"Yes."

Sam nodded.

"The users didn't die?"

Clark's gaze flickered.

"The reason I can still sit here leisurely having dinner with you is naturally because those drugs were unsuccessful, the drugs we confiscated, without exception, could only be called failures."

"All users would die instantly. Obviously, it's not a successful product, so I think Lex Luthor hopes to cast a wide net to find a suitable user for the drug."

Sam didn't hide anything.

He revealed the official investigation results.

"Perhaps only a half-grown Kryptonian could still be lively after drinking those twelve bottles of drugs?" Saying this, Sam turned to look at Ian, Clark and Lois also looked over with strange expressions.

Jonathan and Jordan didn't know why this was, but to fit in, they immediately chose to follow the crowd. For a moment, everyone's gaze focused on Ian.

"It was clearly only ten bottles!"

Ian was stunned at first.

Then immediately gasped. He suspected that grandfather had spent too many years in the military, old habits die hard, and even used embezzlement tactics on his own descendant.

"Twelve bottles, those people have already confessed. Don't worry, I won't demand you spit them out. Keep this matter to yourself." Sam was very certain of his information source.

"But I really only drank ten bottles."

Ian felt quite wronged.

He and the people around him didn't notice.

A small cat that was trying to sneak into the dining room for food had now secretly retreated back to the living room.

It even found a dark corner to hide.

"Ian drank those terrible drugs that could kill people instantly?" Jordan and Jonathan only now realized what had happened. Not being great students, they just thought Ian was incredibly bold.

They all gathered around to check if Ian had mutated.

"Ian won't have problems, right?"

Lois was also very worried that Ian's pica would cause irreversible consequences.

"Well..."

Clark was just about to say something.

And at this moment, the truly super brain on Earth suddenly came into play. The inspiration from the Big Bang to Earth developing civilization all flashed in his mind at this moment.

Super intelligence! Activated!

"Hard to say."

Clark with a low voice silently came behind Ian.

"However, I think the reason he awakened Kryptonian abilities so quickly lies in this." The old father spoke seriously, gazing at his wife who had developed certain suspicions about him tonight.

His hands were now pressing on Ian's shoulders, and he emphasized the phrase "Kryptonian abilities," as if hinting at some information to Lois.

Lois was stunned at first, then she suddenly understood.

"..."

Ian didn't dare speak.

His old father's hands were large and warm.

He could feel it, the meaning of warning him to shut up was also very strong.

[NEXT CHAPTER]

SUP Chapter 98: Angel Descends, Iron-Headed Bat

Inside the Batcave.

The cold light from hundreds of screens flickered, and the mechanical humming echoed between the rock walls. The sudden appearance of thunder in the underground base truly startled Bruce Wayne greatly.

The burning sacred flame text reflected in Bruce's violently shaking pupils. However, after his body briefly entered a stress response and tensed up in alertness for several seconds, he also calmed down.

"Click Click"

The armor on his body was directly removed under Bruce's autonomous control, scattered all over the ground. He straightened his collar, rolled up his sleeves, and walked toward another sealed chamber again.

With identity verification unlocking, the sealed chamber slowly opened. Inside still contained a vial filled with brilliant golden Speed Force. The Batman who never gave up easily unsealed his backup Speed Force.

He didn't have super speed, but he had peak human physical condition. However, even though he immediately protected the Speed Force with his body and ran toward a certain device located within the Batcave.

"Rumble!"

But this behavior obviously couldn't stop some special attention.

As if some existence had completely locked onto him, thunder appeared again out of thin air. At this moment, the entire Batcave's defense system ran at full power.

Energy barriers formed visible blue ripples in the air, and even the air was slightly distorted by static electricity. However, the thunder still broke through all the protective measures Bruce had activated and struck directly into his arms. All protective measures were torn apart like paper, and the shockwave knocked Bruce to the ground.

His back hit the control console heavily.

"Bang~"

The container naturally shattered into powder again, and all the Speed Force stored within still completely escaped, dispersing into tiny golden light points in the air.

"Mm~"

Being struck by white lightning, even Bruce himself felt a soul-piercing agony that far exceeded any physical trauma, causing him, who always had extremely strong pain tolerance, to involuntarily groan. He moved his fingers that had been paralyzed by the electric shock, his voice hoarse yet firm as he looked toward the ground with determination.

"This will only increase my curiosity."

Bruce's eyes reflected familiar text.

[Second Warning]

The words with remaining sacred flames still burned on the ground, edges glowing with eerie holy white light, extremely conspicuous. To this, Bruce didn't even show any surprise anymore.

He just stood up and checked his very painful but completely unharmed body. The third vial, the fourth vial, drone air transport, mechanical pangolin ground transport.

Backup of the backup Speed Force, backup of the backup of the backup Speed Force... Five or six Speed Force vials were consecutively transported by Bruce using different methods, attempting to deliver them to his machine that could use Speed Force to observe the past.

However, without exception, thunder would always appear immediately, destroying Speed Force that wasn't even in his field of vision or even within his physical range anymore. And when Bruce returned to the Batcave.

All he saw was a ground covered with broken containers.

Even though Bruce didn't take any further action this time, he still saw white lightning appear out of thin air, carrying incomparable power and impact. Instantly, the entire Batcave was illuminated as bright as daylight, followed by a deafening roar echoing through the cave, as if it would collapse the entire cavern.

Three machines that could be used to utilize Speed Force instantly turned into a pile of scrap metal under this thunder's attack. Rolling thick smoke emerged, and the pungent smell of burning filled the air.

[This is the final warning!!]

On the ground, sacred flames burned.

White flames emitted warm, non-glaring radiance.

As if possessing the power to purify everything.

Initially, the flames were just scattered dots on the Batcave floor, like twinkling stars in the night sky. But soon, these light points began to gather and expand, gradually forming an endless sea of fire.

The mysterious existence seemed to be enraged.

"Mm."

Watching this scene expressionlessly.

Bruce took out a monitoring device. As expected, his Speed Force storage bases hidden in five other different locations, as well as six machines capable of utilizing Speed Force, were all destroyed at the same time.

At the same time, under Bruce's upward gaze.

Those burning flames didn't burn down the entire Batcave, but rapidly regrouped. English, Chinese, Spanish, Arabic, French, Russian, and even Hindi.

Lines of sacred flame text rose from the spacious ground, using different languages that almost covered all known language types on Earth.

However, they all expressed the same meaning.

[This really is the final warning already!]

Obviously, Bruce's behavior perhaps made the mysterious existence wonder if Bruce couldn't understand English, making this high-level voyeur somewhat lose confidence in His own English proficiency.

"Heh."

Bruce sneered.

He placed the portable briefcase in his hand on the table, took out a crystal ball flashing with magical luster from inside, and directly placed it into a strangely shaped peculiar machine.

[Verification passed, calculation core discovered]

A mechanical female voice echoed in the spacious cave.

"Begin simulation."

Bruce obviously switched strategies.

Using his extensive knowledge and outstanding wisdom, he prepared to utilize his magical collection and special computer to attempt to simulate Superman Clark's day during that special time. His fingers danced rapidly on the keyboard, inputting various complex commands, his face focused and serious under the reflection of blue screen light.

"Bang~"

The computer's sudden power failure and explosion were within Bruce's predictions.

"Whoosh~"

Bruce suddenly heard the sound of wings flapping near his ear.

This sound seemed particularly abrupt and loud in the silent Batcave. He turned around without surprise and saw a figure slowly walking out from the darkness.

This was actually Bruce's persistent purpose.

"Bruce Wayne, can't you read? Are you going to keep this up endlessly? If your brain is sick, I suggest you can lock yourself in your beloved Arkham."

The figure emerging from the darkness had slightly dark skin, a more robust black angel. The angel wore a black robe that fluttered in the wind like a piece of black flame.

Complementing His pitch-black wings behind Him. The angel's wings spread out, and though black, they also emitted a kind of sacred radiance that gave people a terrifying oppressive force they dared not look directly at.

"God's eldest son, Amenadiel. It seems I found the right direction." Bruce seemed to have done his homework long ago, not shocked by the angel's sudden descent.

He obviously had long realized this would happen, even calling out the other's name in a low voice.

"Think you're very smart, don't you? Bruce Wayne, do you think you can be smarter than us?" Angel Amenadiel vigorously poked his own temple.

His voice was full of annoyance and helplessness, "Bruce Wayne, you shouldn't try to spy on things you shouldn't know. That's not good for you or this world."

Amenadiel walked forward a few steps, positioning himself in the center of the Batcave. Each of His steps left burning footprints, golden pupils filled with serious emotion.

Bruce imperceptibly glanced at the wings behind the angel.

"I can't sit idly by regarding unknown threats. If there's something I should know, I must figure it out." Bruce looked directly at this world's most advanced life form before him without fear.

"That's you, isn't it? Severe persecution complex, thinking this world can't function without you? That it would be destroyed? If you're really that smart, you should realize why I'm stopping you."

"Continue your investigation, and you'll become an aid to destroying this world!"

Angel Amenadiel's tone carried stern warning. His wings suddenly spread wide, immediately stirring up a gale in the cave, extinguishing the sacred flames remaining on the ground and those damaged machines.

"If it's so important, why don't you kill me to stop me." Bruce wasn't frightened, but put his hands behind his back, secretly pressing a hidden activation key.

At the same time, an instrument placed in some mysterious area slowly lit up.

[Data scanning and recording in progress, classified under established file: Angel.]

[New information being recorded...]

[This scanning record behavior was not detected, generating judgment information: Angels will lose omniscient-like abilities after leaving Heaven.] This mysterious instrument was operating frantically.

Bruce in the Batcave acted as if nothing had happened.

"Don't ask obvious questions."

Angel Amenadiel stared at the man before him, "If you weren't still somewhat important to us, believe me, your provocation would absolutely make you pay a painful price."

His voice carried full helplessness, "Do you think you can control everything? You're just a mortal, there are forces you cannot understand or control."

"Just like there's information you really shouldn't know. You think this is just about Superman and his child? Any observation you make of that day will tear at the fabric of our reality." Angel Amenadiel knew he had to inform Bruce of the seriousness, otherwise words alone couldn't convince this man.

"So what exactly happened that day, and what does it have to do with Ian Kent's background?" Bruce frowned. He actually already realized things were more complex than he had imagined.

"What is it that makes an angel so afraid?"

He was obviously analyzing Amenadiel.

"Damn bat!"

Amenadiel gritted his teeth but was helpless.

"I cannot tell you anything, and you don't need to try to get answers from Superman either. No one in this world can answer this question for you."

"You just need to remember... if you don't want things neither you nor I want to see to happen, then put away your curiosity." Angel Amenadiel finished speaking and turned to leave.

"Wait."

Bruce called out to the angel. This series of operations he conducted, destroying quite a lot of equipment, including treasured trump cards, wasn't just to verify his suspicions.

"How about making a deal? You answer one question for me, and I'll give up seeking the truth about this matter." Bruce's voice was unusually low, carrying an extremely rare emotional fluctuation.

Angel Amenadiel didn't turn around.

"I know what you want to ask, and you know what I'll answer. Bruce, Heaven cannot bear Gotham's king. You already know where he'll go."

His steps toward the gate didn't slow.

"Mm."

Batman's expression showed no emotional fluctuation. Actually, this absolutely wasn't the worst possible answer, because he read another piece of information from the angel's words: he had asked about two people, but the angel only gave him one answer.

"Remember, really don't continue investigating."

Angel Amenadiel stopped at the gate. He knew that once Bruce Wayne decided on something, it was very difficult to change, so he really hoped the other party understood the seriousness of this matter.

After all, if Bruce continued, the consequences would be unthinkable. After pondering for a moment, finally, Angel Amenadiel decided to reveal some information he could reveal to Batman.

"Bruce, there are some truths that even our Lord chooses to forget." He spoke in a voice only he and Bruce could hear, turning to look deeply at Bruce again.

"Whoosh~"

That sound again, accompanied by the sound of wings flapping.

In just the blink of an eye, the gate remained unopened.

But Angel Amenadiel's figure had already disappeared from the mortal world.

The Batcave returned to silence, with only the humming of terminal operations echoing. Bruce turned to look at the equipment that had regained power. His fingertip hovered over the keyboard for a long time.

Finally, he still pressed the delete key for the [Ian Kent] file.

Computers were shut down one by one.

The Batcave was deathly quiet.

The air still carried the smell of ozone and scorched metal. Scattered across the ground were the remains of equipment shattered by lightning. Glass fragments from the containers that previously held Speed Force made tiny sounds under Bruce's boots.

"Alfred."

He called softly.

The sound created weak echoes in the spacious cave.

"I'm here, Master."

The old butler's voice immediately came from the communicator.

"Damian's plane..." Bruce said, his gaze still fixed on the black screen, not knowing what he was truly thinking about, "When will it arrive?"

He just asked with normal tone.

"It's already arranged. It will arrive in Gotham in thirty minutes." Alfred answered from the other end, with background sounds of passersby, as if he was walking on the street.

Bruce was silent for two seconds.

"I need some free time to think, so I'll drive the pickup vehicle myself." He made arrangements, and after hesitating for a moment, still gave instructions.

"You need to arrange during this time to withdraw the surveillance personnel stationed at the schools of the three Kent family sons." Bruce's eyes swept around the devastated Batcave.

"Are you reducing attention on the Kent family?"

Alfred's voice sounded somewhat surprised.

"No."

Bruce began changing his clothes.

"Quite the opposite actually."

He sprayed some cologne on himself after putting on his suit.

"I need to increase attention on their family, but participants and recorders, from now on... will be limited to myself only." Bruce spoke in a deep voice.

This was a decision made after deep consideration.

The information Angel Amenadiel revealed was too shocking.

For safety's sake, he decided to put some pressure on his own brain.

[NEXT CHAPTER]

SUP Chapter 97: Ian's Origins! The Bat's Sorrow! (Part Two)

"It doesn't matter, I love showing off anyway, not pretending to be weak." Ian's completely honest answer left Clark not knowing how to respond for a moment.

"I'm glad you can think that way, sigh, if only you had come back earlier." Clark's voice lowered, carrying a somewhat wistful feeling.

"What does that mean?" Ian blinked.

He couldn't understand his father's expression.

"It's nothing, forget it, you should go back first... give me your finished manuscript, they're urging me to deliver your manuscript over there." Clark didn't give Ian a detailed explanation.

He seemed to temporarily put his worries behind him and looked at Ian's magical Hellcat, "I'll make this trip now, we can't break promises we've made to others."

Clark perhaps communicated with Batman from time to time.

He even knew to help Batman chase manuscripts.

"Here it is."

Ian opened the Hellcat and took out a small portion of the manuscript he had written during the flight. Looking at his father who flew up to the sky and had to escort express delivery to Gotham even at night.

"No wonder my upbringing is so good! Family influence is really important!" Ian couldn't help but sigh, giving his father a thumbs up. His father was truly the most perfect man on Earth.

His personal qualities were impeccable.

"At most I'll wait until tomorrow, I should probably be able to learn to fly too." Retracting his gaze that could see nothing in just an instant, Ian turned and took out the already stuffed demon skull from the trunk.

"You didn't eat it clean!"

Ian was somewhat annoyed about being questioned by his father just now.

The demon skull blinked its cloudy eyes pitifully. It was really powerless about the demon flesh Clark had discovered, "I can't lick things outside the cabin from inside the cabin!"

That made sense but the logic wasn't big enough.

"You ate so many demons and still haven't evolved a void tongue? Forget it, forget it, help me keep this first." Ian took the magic toad out of his pocket and stuffed it into the demon skull's mouth.

Charging straight toward its stomach.

The oral cavity of the demon with only a skull left indeed seemed to contain another space.

"When I need it, if you can't spit it out, don't blame me for being ruthless." Ian issued a threat. He did this entirely to avoid the risk of his family members potentially being poisoned by the toad.

No choice, too little magical knowledge.

Ian felt he needed a magic teacher who didn't like to lie, he thought of the purple girl he had met once before, wondering how he could lure her home to be his tutor.

Humming a little tune as he walked home.

Pushing open the door, warm lights and television sounds immediately surrounded Ian. In the living room, big brother Jonathan and second brother Jordan were sitting on the sofa watching the news.

On the screen, chaotic scenes from Gotham City were being broadcast live, with Batman's figure flashing by. The news said Batman had lost something, and Ian roughly knew what Batman had lost.

No wonder he was told to hurry up and send the remaining manuscript over.

It seemed like fishing for Joker had failed.

"Joker is really crazy, actually using thirty incidents simultaneously to attract Batman's attention." Ian watched the news on TV and couldn't help but sigh.

"Batman didn't stay in Metropolis, I wasted a whole night writing manuscripts, completely worthless." Lois's voice came from the kitchen, carrying obvious resentment.

Ian's scalp tingled. He quickly held up the kitten gift box and used the flattering tone he learned from TV dramas, "Dear mother, your most beloved son brought you a gift!"

Hearing this, Lois poked her head out from the kitchen. Her eyes obviously lit up when she saw the kitten, and she quickly came out to take the kitten, carefully holding the well-behaved orange cat.

This cat really didn't have any particularly stressed reactions.

Instead, it curiously looked around.

"Cats of this quality are usually expensive, right?" Lois stroked the cat's chin, her tone much softer. After receiving a gift from her son, even the biggest resentment would naturally disappear.

Even a gold medal reporter couldn't resist the temptation of something fluffy.

"Not expensive, not expensive, I directly bypassed the middleman and even bypassed the manufacturer, so it was very affordable." Ian seriously stated the modified truth.

The little cat in Lois's arms stared at him for several moments.

He stared back.

"You snatched it from the cat mother?" Lois sorted through Ian's logic.

"No, the cat mother deliberately abandoned it, then deliberately let me find it, it must have prayed to God, knowing I would give this cat to my most gentle mother."

Ian was also masterful when it came to flattering words.

Lois immediately beamed with joy.

"What's wrong with Jordan?"

Ian asked at the right time.

He had noticed since entering that Jordan kept stealing glances this way, more precisely, at Lois. When Lois glared back, Jordan reluctantly turned his head back.

"It's nothing, since you're so free... why don't you come help me cook dinner?" Lois pulled Ian into the kitchen, and being cautious, she peeked toward the living room again before walking back.

"Your big brother is the oldest, but he hasn't awakened his abilities yet. To prevent him from becoming psychologically unbalanced, don't let him know about you and Jordan's situation for now."

It had to be said.

This was also absolutely the most classic "protective" thinking in American families. Ian felt this wasn't actually right, but he didn't dare contradict the most powerful person in the house at this moment. Yes, there were indeed four superhumans in this house, even if Jonathan hadn't awakened yet, but only Lois could be considered an ordinary person.

But this ordinary person happened to have the most power in the house.

"Alright."

Ian nodded.

Lois smiled satisfactorily and kept teasing the kitten in her arms. Seeing the refrigerator, Ian also felt quite hungry and went forward to take out milk and bread to pad his stomach first.

"Oh, right." Lois saw Ian eating heartily and seemed to suddenly think of something, while lowering her head to play with the cat, she asked in a seemingly casual manner.

"Jordan said he glimpsed some comics you drew, said your understanding of Superman's abilities was too detailed, abnormal. He just kept asking me whether you had also awakened heat vision and steel body?"

A gentle inquiry.

Without any particular emotion.

"What!?" Ian's brain became extremely clear in an instant, his hand holding the milk froze in mid-air. He slowly turned his head and saw his mother's somewhat deliberate way of playing with the cat.

At this moment, Ian seemed to know why his father hadn't dared to enter the house earlier. Perhaps Superman's morals and personal qualities weren't so perfect either. His father also had times when he liked to lie to children.

What about keeping promises?

This was probably going out to avoid disaster!

And conveniently finding his external brain to figure out how to handle the family crisis, right?

"Cunning evil father!"

Ian was deeply shocked.

He felt he had left an indelible childhood trauma.

"Hmm? So it's true?"

Lois, seeing Ian not responding for a long time, also murmured softly with some confusion, then she saw Ian close the refrigerator door and throw away the empty milk bottle in his hand.

"Aba, aba, aba~"

Ian seemed to have become mute, moving his mouth as he walked outside.

"??????"

Lois was stunned.

"Aba, aba, aba~!"

Ian walked all the way to the living room, squeezed between his two brothers, and only then stopped his performance, of course he could explain everything clearly, but he didn't plan to explain now.

After all, his father could also help him explain together, but Clark still threw the poor little boy aside, letting the poor little boy face such a situation alone while going to find his external brain.

Shouldn't this be a little blackened?

With a cunning evil father, of course there should be a cunning evil child!

"What's wrong with you? Did you choke on something?" Jonathan indeed still didn't know anything. He vigorously rubbed Ian's head, quite puzzled by Ian's strange behavior just now.

"No, it's..."

Ian was just about to continue digging holes for his father when Jordan, who kept looking back toward the kitchen, directly grabbed him, under Jonathan's strange gaze, Jordan pulled Ian all the way to the second floor.

"Click~"

After locking his room, Jordan also went to close the curtains. Ian stood in the center of the room. In this unventilated bedroom, the strange mixed odors made him somewhat hate why he had such exceptional smell.

"Jordan, in your bedroom, I smell the breath of billions of lives perishing." Ian couldn't help but speak. He estimated that there was no place more sinful than this on Earth.

"Hehe." Jordan didn't pay attention to his brother's complaints. He even put some sound-absorbing cotton under the door, moving so fast that it could leave afterimages in ordinary people's eyes.

How to put it, a super speed.

This really wasn't surprising at all. After smartly but not too smartly doing anti-eavesdropping work, Jordan turned around, those blue eyes identical to Clark's staring intently at Ian.

"You awakened too, I know."

Jordan spoke with conviction, his voice extremely low, as if discussing state secrets.

"Ah? Yes, that's right." Ian blinked. This time he readily admitted it, mainly because he was really curious about what Jordan was being so secretive about.

And getting a positive answer, Jordan's eyes lit up.

"Listen, I've been analyzing this for a long time."

Jordan licked his lips, his voice carrying some certainty, "Dad is Superman, you're also Superman, I'm also Superman, Jonathan is an unawakened Superman, so..."

He paused slightly, immediately reaching a major conclusion.

"Mom must be the Superwoman who's been active in recent years!" Yes, this was the conclusion reached by Jordan's underdeveloped super brain based on logical reasoning.

Ian's jaw almost dropped.

Jordan seemed to take this as agreement and continued eloquently: "But I asked Mom several times and she wouldn't admit it, even slapped me, right here."

He also showed the back where Lois had hit him, completely unharmed.

"I feel like she must be disguising herself, wanting to make Jonathan, who hasn't awakened yet, feel better." This "shocking yet reasonable" imagination made Ian couldn't help but praise highly.

"Jordan, your talent is above mine!"

This was heartfelt admiration.

Jordan took this as encouragement and excitedly rushed to his computer. After 300 seconds of the main unit fan running frantically during startup, he directly logged into a forum called "Superhero Popularity Center."

"Look, it says here that only Superwoman can live together with Superman." Ian leaned in to look. The post title clearly read "Superman and His Earth-Shattering Fertility."

The author was "Superman Must Die."

Before Ian could ask Jordan to click in and see the author's other posts.

"There's also this early news." Jordan had already switched to website information. He had bookmarked dozens of netizens, many of which were news about Lois encountering danger when she was young.

"Every time Mom encountered danger, she could turn danger into safety. She wasn't together with Dad then. Is this normal?" Jordan's criticism was well-reasoned and evidence-based.

"..."

Ian didn't want to play with his second brother who had never been in love.

He turned to leave.

"Ian, you have to work with me to find the answer. Maybe we can make a plan to make Mom show her true form." Jordan grabbed Ian's arm.

Ian shook off his second brother's hand.

"If you really make any plan, I feel like we'll only get beaten into showing our true forms..." Seeing Jordan still stubbornly holding his opinion, Ian quickly chose to escape.

"Damn! I can make a good plan myself! Ian! You'll see that I'm also very smart!" In the bedroom, Jordan was obviously planning to activate his super brain.

Knowing his second brother's superpower characteristics, Ian thoughtfully helped him close the door.

...

Meanwhile.

Gotham.

The Batcave.

"Motherfucker!"

Bruce Wayne yanked off his headphones.

As if they were some toxic item. On the monitoring screen in front of him, audio waveforms were still jumping violently, accompanied by sounds that shouldn't be played in public.

Alfred came in carrying a tea tray. Seeing his master's rare loss of composure, he raised an eyebrow, "What shocking thing has the youngest Kent boy done now?"

He obviously knew what Bruce was monitoring.

"It's the pubescent restlessness of the Kent family's second son." Bruce rubbed his brow. He felt this was Ian's way of retaliating against him for blacklisting Ian.

Actually throwing his phone under Jordan's bed.

"This shouldn't warrant your alarm, should it?"

The butler was slightly confused.

After a moment of silence, Bruce used Batman's low voice.

"I heard the roar of beasts~" He rubbed his brow again, using very literary words. After all, Master Wayne still needed to maintain some personal cultivation.

"??????"

Alfred's smile froze on his face.

"That's really..."

The butler couldn't find any way to comment either.

"Alfred, please bring Damian back." After thinking for a moment, Bruce seemed to make a decision, and this decision also surprised Alfred greatly.

"Didn't you say you wanted to temper the young master?"

The elderly butler sounded extremely surprised.

"Look at the Kent family... I suddenly realized that Damian could actually be a good child, I can't be too harsh on him." Bruce directly turned off the monitoring function for Ian's phone.

Hearing this, Alfred's eyes widened slightly.

This was probably the most tender thing he had heard Bruce say in decades.

"I'll arrange the plane right away."

The old butler nodded imperceptibly and left. Bruce threw himself back into work, his hands switching rapidly between multiple keyboards. The dozens of fake riot incidents today had left him somewhat tired.

However, with more than ten screens running simultaneously, Bruce remained methodical. Suddenly, his movements paused because he saw a tall figure reflected in the briefly black screen behind him.

"Where's the manuscript?"

Bruce didn't turn around.

Clark emerged from the shadows and placed several sheets of paper on the desk.

"How long have you been here?" Bruce asked.

"I've been here all along."

Clark's voice carried some annoyance.

"..."

Bruce's typing speed had the slightest stutter. The air was filled with a subtle awkwardness, and the entire Batcave seemed to only echo with the sound of machines running.

Quiet.

Still quiet.

Bruce felt he needed to break this atmosphere.

"I have to say, your speed of becoming stronger somewhat exceeded my estimates, and not just by a little... Based on my current assessment, you have at least doubled in strength."

Saying this, he displayed an abnormally curved chart for Clark.

This indeed successfully changed the topic.

"Your judgment is correct, as precise as always... Ever since that incident, I discovered power growing within my body. It belongs to me, yet doesn't belong to me."

Clark raised his arm that had long since recovered.

His eyes were confused.

"I remember that time Ian and Kara helped you together." Bruce didn't need to consult his files, since this was something that had happened just a few days ago.

As long as it didn't exceed twenty years, all event details he could find afterward were in his brain.

Not temporarily removed.

"Well, I suppose it was the two of them together?" Clark's tone suddenly became uncertain. He seemed to recall the scene of Ian holding Kara, looking like he was about to duel with evil creatures.

Bruce didn't pursue the matter, just looked deeply at Clark, then brought up a satellite video.

"Clark, we need to be completely honest."

Saying this, he began playing the satellite video. In the footage, Madison was leading Ian running down the street, and then Ian stopped, closed his eyes as if praying.

"Crash~"

The video was suddenly interrupted, showing a snow screen.

"This..."

Clark realized that the scene shown in this video might be the one demon-related incident he hadn't noticed when Ian went out today.

"What happened?"

He looked at his omniscient external brain.

"My satellite turned to ash in an instant. That's not the power of you Kryptonians." Bruce's voice was low as he switched the computer screen to another image.

That was footage from another satellite.

It was filming the satellite that was filming Ian. In just one frame of the image, you could clearly see the satellite filming Ian being instantly disintegrated by some invisible force.

No process of collapse.

The satellite directly became dust in space.

"What do you mean? What are you trying to express?" Clark's pupils contracted slightly. He knew how high-frame Bruce's videos were, yet they still couldn't capture the satellite's destruction process.

This was indeed very unbelievable.

"Of course I hope you can be more honest with me about that baby from back then, the current Ian Kent." Bruce stood up, facing Clark who was slightly taller than him.

The two looked at each other.

The lights in the Batcave cast long shadows between them.

"What exactly is he?"

After a brief pause, Bruce asked without reservation.

"Are you sure you found him in a spaceship, and not at some evil magic ritual?" Being able to ask this question already proved Bruce didn't believe Ian was also brought by spaceship.

In fact, this was indeed a lie.

Clark's expression became complex.

"This is something I cannot tell you."

He spoke in a deep voice, his momentum also weakening somewhat.

"Why?"

Bruce continued to press aggressively.

Clark opened his mouth but in the end, he just shook his head.

"This is a secret that cannot be mentioned... And I also need to protect my child." Clark's voice suddenly became ethereal, as if coming from very far away.

"A secret?" Bruce's eyes narrowed slightly.

"You know I'll find out, right?" He spoke in a low voice.

"You can try, but I think you'll taste failure once again."

Clark was quite certain. He didn't even plan to let Bruce strategize anymore and directly chose to leave, his figure quickly disappearing from the Batcave.

And watching Superman's departing figure, Bruce didn't withdraw his gaze until long after.

He turned and walked toward the depths of the Batcave. The cold light reflected bluish shadows on the metal walls, and finally the man's footsteps stopped in front of a huge sealed chamber.

The sound of unlocking mechanisms was particularly clear in the silence.

The chamber door slid open, revealing a transparent container preserved at constant temperature inside, a jar of flowing golden energy, like imprisoned lightning, restlessly agitating within the glass.

It was the Speed Force!

"I need to see that day."

Bruce weighed the pros and cons, murmuring softly. And just then, in what should have been just an underground laboratory Batcave, a pale lightning bolt appeared out of nowhere and struck the bottle in Bruce's hand.

The container shattered to powder.

All the Speed Force escaped.

Bruce, startled and uncertain, retreated several steps. Super-alloy armor directly covered his entire body. He looked toward where he had been standing. On the scorched ground, a line of burning holy flame had been left.

"This is a warning."

The words were clear.

The edges even glowed with light not of this world.

As his pupils contracted violently, Batman's low, hoarse voice softly read the text on the ground.

[NEXT CHAPTER]

SUP Chapter 97: Ian's Origins! The Bat's Sorrow! (Part One)

A Boeing 787 passenger jet glided smoothly above the cloud layer. Seated in first class, the wealthy and famous writer Richard Castle was boredly stirring his coffee while contemplating the plot of his new book.

As a classic mystery novelist, writer's block was also very classic daily routine for Castle. Just as he was racking his brains without results and beginning to weigh whether he should abandon the project and start a new series under a different pen name, suddenly Castle's gaze was drawn to something outside the window, it was a bright black Dodge Hellcat!

Yes!

Castle knew this car because he had bought one himself, but at this moment he felt like he might have purchased a counterfeit, because the Hellcat that came into his view was racing through the clouds at a speed of at least 300 miles per hour!

"Am I still asleep!?"

Writer Castle couldn't help but rub his eyes. He wasn't seeing things, there really was a small car flying in the clouds outside the plane, and he could even see two passengers sitting inside.

A man and a woman, who looked even younger than his own daughter!

"This..." Castle's eyes widened, unable to speak. He grabbed a passing flight attendant wanting to inquire, but was afraid he'd be taken for a mental patient and make tomorrow's news headlines.

Castle hesitated, sending away the flight attendant with her strange look using a forced smile. Then this famous American writer suddenly pressed himself against the window, almost wishing he could squeeze his entire face outside.

"I knew 'Back to the Future' was still too conservative!!"

After getting over his initial shock, Castle was extremely excited and hurriedly fumbled for his phone.

Due to his clumsiness, the phone almost fell to the ground. After his hands wrestled with the phone for quite a while, he finally breathed a sigh of relief and gripped it firmly.

He was about to praise himself a few words, but then Castle remembered why he had taken out his phone in the first place. He suddenly turned and pressed against the window again, raising his phone.

This was an attempt to take a photo.

However, he discovered that the young passengers in that driverless car seemed to have noticed him, and the small car had already accelerated and directly overtaken the plane flying alongside it.

"No!! Fly back! Please fly back!"

Castle's face was almost pressed flat against the glass. Failing to successfully photograph this supernatural experience to use as an excuse for his procrastination, he might not sleep well for a week.

"Tell the captain to speed up!"

Castle, always full of absurd and fantastic ideas, pressed the call button. Because of his urgency, he no longer worried about being considered crazy and began describing what he saw to the flight attendant without reservation. The attendant just smiled and handed him a glass of red wine, "Sir, long-distance flights can indeed cause hallucinations."

"There won't be flying cars in the sky over Metropolis, only flying Superman and the villains he chases, this is common knowledge." The attendant's words immediately left Castle dumbfounded.

"Is that so... this is common knowledge?"

New Yorker Castle really didn't understand Metropolis's local customs.

"Yes, perhaps you could visit the 'Superhero Popularity Center' website to read the detailed analysis by forum expert 'I'm Really Not Batman' on this topic."

"Oh, and the articles by expert 'Superman Must Die' are also quite good. The sky over Metropolis is Superman's domain, he won't allow anyone other than him and his little cubs to interfere, I'm quoting directly, actually I love Superman." The beautiful attendant was obviously also a senior superhero fan.

"Superman has children?"

Castle looked somewhat surprised.

"Forum experts, you know, keyboard warriors online, what they say isn't always correct. Most people still think it's impossible for Superman to find a spouse, unless that spouse is Superwoman."

The beautiful attendant continued to maintain her smile.

"Makes sense."

Castle nodded thoughtfully.

The attendant he had called over obviously recognized his identity.

"Mr. Castle, I remember your new work is about to be released soon? You actually have time to travel to Metropolis?" The beautiful flight attendant might also enjoy reading this writer's books.

"Uh..."

Upon hearing this, Castle's expression stiffened slightly. He was unwilling to reveal the fact that his new book only existed as a file folder, so he immediately displayed his talent.

"The new book is actually already finished, so I wanted to go out and relax to change my mood." Perhaps being able to lie confidently is a required course for every writer.

Castle's smiling expression showed no sign of guilt.

"I see."

The beautiful flight attendant had no doubts.

"Then I wish you a pleasant time in Metropolis."

She offered her blessing.

Seeing this, Castle secretly breathed a sigh of relief while also revealing why he had chosen to travel to Metropolis, "I believe my journey will definitely be pleasant."

"Because I'm not just traveling, I'm also trying to solve an interesting puzzle." Saying this, Castle lifted his coat, revealing a letter in the lining of his suit.

"A mysterious detective from the detective association seemed to know that I was investigating a book that stole my promotional resources, so he gave me some city photos of Metropolis."

Castle put the envelope back into his clothes.

"Such a thing? What does he want you to do?"

The beautiful flight attendant looked amazed.

"Indeed such a thing happened, quite interesting isn't it. I think this is a commission, and that mysterious detective also wanted me to know this is a commission."

"Perhaps he needs me to find someone in Metropolis, that person must be the one who stole my book's promotional resources." Castle spoke with conviction, still thinking about why the mysterious detective hoped he would do this.

Beat the guy up?

Or some other reason?

"It can't be that he hopes I'll go teach this well-connected person how to write books, right?" Castle fell into his anytime-anywhere thinking storm mode.

Seeing this situation, the flight attendant didn't want to disturb him.

"If you need some other ideas and inspiration, I think I'll definitely be free after work tonight." The flight attendant said this while slipping her phone number to Castle.

She hadn't been chatting with Castle for so long because she was really idle.

Castle was a very famous multimillionaire and handsome too.

Which flight attendant wouldn't want to have some story with such a person?

"Oh, is that so, I think I'll definitely need some inspiration too." Castle was temporarily interrupted from his thinking, and he quickly smiled and gentlemanly gave the beautiful flight attendant a definite response.

Such things happened often, Castle certainly knew what the other party wanted, a few babies, or luxury goods and sports cars. Anyway, as long as it wasn't the former, he could afford it all. Everyone getting what they needed would be truly happy.

"See you later."

The beautiful flight attendant left with an overly affected posture.

Castle didn't withdraw his gaze for a long time.

"That car! Where on earth can you buy that car!" The writer's thinking was indeed jumpy. After a series of interruptions, he still couldn't forget the flying sedan he had seen.

Castle pressed his face hard against the window looking outside.

However, the flying Hellcat was nowhere to be seen.

"Did the kid inside notice I was trying to take a sneak photo?" Castle was unwilling to give up and couldn't help but suspect that the Hellcat's passengers had superpowers and could sense others' gazes.

However, was this really the case?

"Damn! Boeing! Bad luck!" Ian actually hadn't sensed anything, he had just accidentally glimpsed the airplane's production logo and made the Hellcat accelerate frantically out of emergency risk avoidance.

"Stay away from this type of plane in the future, don't get scammed... it's the kind that crashes when it crashes, without any warning." Ian imparted his life experience to the young car.

"Beep beep beep~"

The small car responded with its horn.

"Ian! Close your window quickly! My Dior sunglasses are about to fly out..." Madison's long hair was fluttering wildly like a female ghost due to the car's sudden acceleration.

"They already flew out."

Madison hadn't caught her sunglasses.

"No problem, I'll go to a magical place tonight and get you a new one."

Ian was very good at managing household expenses.

He could take as many luxury goods as he wanted from the Marvel world without paying.

"I don't use knockoffs."

Madison's eyes were full of suspicion.

"Knockoffs? Ian doesn't have time to look for knockoffs! Do you know how valuable my time is?" Ian directly showed his wealthy miser face.

"Oh~ I understand, I was wondering when Superman fights crime, he must take some things along the way... otherwise spending all day maintaining justice outside, he'd have no money to buy food when he gets home!"

Madison's imagination was always so peculiar.

"Get me more stuff, what black guys rob, you taking it is also justice, I'll pay." She took out her wallet, only to find there were only a few bills left.

So, this girl whose moral bottom line might be even lower than Ian's began to hastily defend her financial situation.

"I still have forty-five hundred dollars in my bedside drawer, originally planned as travel funds for next week's vacation." Madison was always most afraid of people thinking she was poor.

However, to Ian, of course he wouldn't look down on his desk mate, four thousand, five thousand, six thousand, there was no difference. To Ian, who had huge rewards lying in his account, they were all poor. Of course, even mosquitoes are meat, Ian claimed he wasn't interested in money, but he still wouldn't pass up such a money-making opportunity.

Capitalists all love to haggle.

Ian just kept this in mind.

"Give me the money on Monday, I'll bring you goods, then next Saturday and Sunday don't go out, I'll tell everyone you went to the Hamptons for vacation."

Ian could not only create win-win situations for himself, he could also advise others and let others have win-win lives too, after hearing this, Madison only paused for about five seconds.

"Good idea!"

She clapped her hands and happily settled on this plan. Madison also had her own way of thinking. Others could tell if luxury goods were fake or not, but whether she went to the Hamptons or not, who could fact-check that?

So cost-effective!

Girl Madison felt her thinking and perspective had broadened. The growth of a green tea girl is like this, on life's path, she'll always meet people who lead her to become more green tea-flavored.

"Very good, I'll take you home first, then I have to handle serious business."

Ian liked playing with people like Madison. Ordinary people couldn't understand his wisdom and weren't willing to acknowledge his wisdom, but his good desk mate clearly knew how smart he was.

"Hiss~ the speed increased again!"

Madison had just adapted to the previous speed, but after Ian finished speaking, the car beneath her accelerated again. The surrounding clouds seemed to be rapidly retreating.

"Driving so fast, if we flip over, the airbags probably can't save us, right?" She actually still had such concerns. It could only be said that her grades in natural science courses were still a bit too high.

"Don't panic, we'll reach your home soon."

As soon as Ian finished speaking, the Hellcat began rapidly descending from above the clouds. Madison, whose lips were trembling, finally saw the luxurious community where her family lived.

"There! There!"

Madison raised her finger, trying to navigate.

"I remember where your house is, no need to give me directions." Ian pulled the girl, who was lying on the window and almost fell out, back into the relatively safe interior of the car in time.

"Ah? I don't remember you coming over..."

Madison was somewhat puzzled.

"Of course you wouldn't remember, that was on the first day of school. I investigated everyone suspected of having school bully tendencies, by the way, your mother should really love your father very much."

"She didn't even let me into your house to eat an orange." Ian couldn't help but sigh heartfeltly. After hearing this, Madison frowned, completely unable to understand what he meant.

"Buzz buzz~"

The engine was making sounds.

The Hellcat hovered at a height of more than ten meters from the ground.

"I've read a few books about driving before. Starting and stopping the car consumes the most fuel... so let's get off here." After Ian finished speaking, he directly grabbed Madison.

He leaped down, scaring Madison greatly.

"Don't grab my neck and collar! This outfit is expensive! Grab my hair, I've fought with so many people that my hair is really very grab-resistant!"

Madison screamed while speaking.

"Your clothes were already torn earlier, don't think that because Ian has money now, you can just extort me." Ian landed steadily with Madison.

No accidents occurred.

He gently set Madison down.

"Earlier it was decadent-style torn, now it's violently-torn style, how is that the same?" Madison speechlessly straightened her clothes, then blew at her golden hair that covered her face like a bird's nest.

"Also, normal people carrying others while flying and landing shouldn't put someone on a mailbox, right? Although I don't have much common sense, I'm still very clear about this point!"

After saying this, Madison also patted hard the mailbox she was sitting on under her bottom.

The mailbox made a clanging metal sound.

"Hmm? If I didn't find somewhere for your butt to sit, your trembling legs would probably keep clamping around my waist, indeed, little delinquent, you're quite scheming."

"You finally found a chance to take advantage of me."

Ian showed a disdainful expression.

"..."

Madison rolled her eyes frantically.

"Don't I still need to thank you for not going to tell your little lapdog Emily?" The green tea girl gritted her teeth. She finally knew how difficult it was to deal with boys when they became bitchy.

"Yes, so what do you need to say to me?"

Ian listened attentively.

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"

Madison said it three times through gritted teeth.

She was taking deep breaths and Ian immediately felt comfortable.

"What a virtuous little delinquent. I still have things to do, see you next week, oh, and don't think about stealing my mom's cat." Ian nodded with satisfaction, then reached out and grabbed the orange cat from Madison's stomach area.

"Damn!"

Madison was somewhat unwilling.

"Then at least let me raise that toad!"

Her fallback option still didn't get Ian's response.

Then, Ian bounced up like a spring and jumped directly back into the Hellcat still floating in the air, the Hellcat's engine roared, the exhaust pipe spewed a string of purple flames, and the car "whooshed" toward the clouds.

Watching Ian and his war chariot depart, "So that's how Superman flies? Pure bouncing?" Madison, who had been sulking, was stunned. She felt she had discovered a fact that no one else in Metropolis had noticed all these years.

Her anger was gone too.

This little delinquent now had her head full of thoughts about whether Ian's pants hid two super rabbit legs.

"This is big news! There's no flying Superman in the world at all!"

Madison, somewhat unable to shake off her imagination, jumped down from the mailbox and pushed open her family's villa door. Her mother, who had once been a third-rate Hollywood actress, excitedly rushed over.

"I knew it! I knew it! My precious daughter's abilities must be greater than mine! I only managed to latch onto your wealthy father, but you actually managed to latch onto such a handsome alien!"

Linda, with some noble lady temperament, spoke excitedly and very happily grabbed her daughter's shoulders and shook her vigorously, her face showing an expression more joyful than winning the lottery.

Madison was shaken dizzy.

"What alien? Mom, what strange TV drama are you watching again?" Her brain was already confused from today's events, and now being shaken a few times made it even more blank.

"Stop pretending! I saw it all! The alien drove a UFO to bring you back!"

Linda had an expression of having seen through everything, "When I acted in 'Mars Princess vs. Lizard People' I already knew, aliens just love blonde beauties!!"

Her tone was full of wisdom.

Madison didn't dare ask either.

She was afraid that if she asked, she'd hear that this film was rated R.

"That's UFO, not KFO, no wait, Ian wasn't driving a UFO either..." Madison was almost confusing herself, she grabbed her hair somewhat collapsed.

"I finally understand why Ian always says my IQ is overdue... turns out the source is with you!" Madison, who had only discovered this fact after living so many years, once again felt that Ian's great truths probably really made sense.

"Silly child, come let mommy hug you, girls should be a bit dumber, that makes it easier to get lucky." Linda, who still retained her charm and some beauty, smiled so wide she couldn't close her mouth.

She was also very proud.

Madison was expressionless, pressed against the turbulent waves by her mom. She rolled her eyes lifelessly, and regarding what her mom said, she didn't want to believe even a single punctuation mark.

Maybe even mom saying she was suitable for Hollywood was fake? At this moment, Madison had an epiphany. She thought she had found the reason for her constant audition failures.

Indeed, Ian said that breathing the air he had breathed could infect others with his intelligent aura.

It was true!

...

Dusk was falling.

A bright black Dodge Hellcat cut through the sky, shuttling between clouds. Ian followed the direction the pointer indicated, trying to find the location that Lady Death hoped he would seek.

It wasn't particularly difficult.

Soon the Hellcat came above an ancient monastery-style building. The pointer in his hand directly twisted and pointed downward. Obviously this was the clue Lady Death had given.

This building was surrounded by lush trees, making it particularly hidden and mysterious. Perhaps it was also the headquarters of that witch church Madison had mentioned?

After thinking for a while, Ian still patted the Hellcat and had the Hellcat take him away first, choosing not to act rashly, mainly because he didn't quite understand what level this so-called Supreme Witch was.

"Lady Death's level is too high, dungeons involving her are definitely high difficulty, not places I can solo." Ian believed that as long as he wasn't anxious, someone else would be anxious.

Information gathering was key.

So if Ian wasn't anxious, Lady Death might jump out herself to provide information, also avoiding Ian having to do the information gathering work himself, after all, starting up the Batman search engine was quite troublesome.

"Right, that's what I'll do!"

Ian's super brain once again told him to use his super connections. The Hellcat took him flying toward the clouds again, speeding through the city's noise and bustle toward home.

"The number you have dialed has completely blacklisted you. Please call this number again when you encounter difficulties. Thank you for your cooperation." Ian wanted to take advantage of his free time to build relationships with Batman.

He didn't expect to only hear the heartless electronic synthesized voice.

"How can this be!"

Ian was extremely hurt.

He hadn't even gotten the ring yet.

"Sigh, I'll go back and plan for the long term."

Ian's Hellcat ran very fast and soon arrived at home.

This was a community where elite families lived.

Although it was still detached houses, there were still a few neighbors around. There was no need for special avoidance. Under cover of night, Ian had the Hellcat slowly descend.

Someone was watching from behind curtains, but no photos were taken, no need to make a big fuss. After all, the neighbors around all had quite sharp ears and coincidentally all worked for the same department as professional agents.

After so many years, Superman's identity was still known to very few officials.

The car stopped on the lawn of his own small courtyard with a "creak," just three inches away from Lois's most beloved rose garden.

"Jesus couldn't save you if it had been any closer." Ian patted the Hellcat, giving his new partner a reminder. He had just grabbed his backpack and pushed open the car door when he felt a shadow looming over him.

It was his father Clark Kent.

This invincible Superman was standing in front of him with his arms crossed, blocking Ian's path.

"Where did you get this car?"

Clark's voice mixed with helplessness that he was almost accustomed to. He really couldn't understand why Ian could always pick up strange and bizarre things whenever he went out.

"Is it special fate that let me and it meet? I love it, it loves me... we're sweet together?" Ian felt a bit embarrassed to say he had used super negotiation skills to get someone to pay for the car delivery.

He gave a response, but also seemed like he didn't completely give one.

No choice.

Ian didn't dare say his beloved car occasionally killed a few owners. That way, no matter how he portrayed himself as someone who sacrificed himself for the public good, this Hellcat would probably be sent directly to be scrapped.

"You two are sweet together?"

Clark, who had been watching Ian land from beginning to end, now only had his temples twitching slightly. The old father circled around this black muscle car that emitted a faint sulfur smell.

"Don't tell me this is car maintenance product?" Clark picked up a piece of dark red tissue from the trunk lid. The sticky substance gleamed ominously in the setting sun.

"From a biological perspective, this should belong to flesh tissue, but it probably isn't on the protection list." Ian answered honestly while secretly observing his adoptive father's reaction.

"I'm asking you where the flesh came from..."

The old father, who rarely wanted to show some humor, sighed helplessly. His not-so-stern attitude was actually because his super sense of smell had already told him the answer.

Superman really did have super smell. Good news: he knew this wasn't human flesh. Bad news: he hadn't realized what Ian had done after leaving those traffickers.

"Is it love? Love made my little car grow flesh." Ian seemed to be joking around, but actually he was also testing whether his old dad knew about what happened on that street.

"..."

Looking at Clark's twitching eye corners, the old father perhaps really hadn't noticed the abnormality on that street, Ian thoughtfully touched the magic book hidden under his shirt.

Respectable old father.

He hadn't even used X-ray vision to observe him.

"Should we go home first?" Ian also wanted to talk to Clark about the Supreme Witch and the big sister's new mission. He hoped Clark could use his super connections to find him a super mage to be his coach.

"Uh..."

Clark, who had originally wanted to ask Ian about some things, showed some change in his expression. Ian had just taken a step when he noticed that his father hadn't moved from his original position.

The setting sun stretched Clark's shadow very long.

"What's wrong? Dad?"

Ian felt Clark was hesitating.

He noticed the unnatural expression on Clark's face.

"Were you kicked out by Mom?"

Ian made a guess.

"..."

Clark shook his head speechlessly. To prevent Ian from making even more outrageous guesses, he pondered for a moment and slowly spoke, "I talked with Jordan about his ability issues."

"He's now in the ability awakening stage... well, just like you were before, but Jordan's awakening is later, so your abilities might be different because of this." Clark spoke in a deep voice. He still didn't know Ian had already discovered he was adopted, so he specifically emphasized to Ian that their abilities would be different.

This was trying to fool Ian about not understanding Krypton.

Ian pretended to believe it.

"And then?" Ian guessed that his old dad had probably already talked with Jordan, and perhaps the talk hadn't gone well. The classic drama of father-son communication problems leading to escalating conflicts would always play out in many American families.

Clark grabbed his hair in frustration: "I let something slip, so Jordan, combined with your recent strange behavior, guessed that your awakening was earlier than his awakening."

This was real frustration.

Even Kryptonian hair was pulled out a few strands.

[NEXT CHAPTER]

INS Chapter 112: Wing Assault Units, Xinghuo's Black Technology!

Xinghuo Sanctuary City?

Those five words exploded in Cheng Ye's ears, making him unable to help but be dazed for several seconds.

As the currently recognized strongest sanctuary city in the entire wasteland, Xinghuo's name was mentioned by thousands upon thousands of people every minute and second. It was the dream city of countless people and the place where countless dreams originated.

Its construction began in the first year of the New Era, making it the super sanctuary city with the most solid foundation and the longest history.

How did that saying go? When gathered, it's a blazing fire; when scattered, it fills the sky with stars!

Countless founders of sanctuary cities had walked out from Xinghuo Sanctuary City.

Taking with them the ideals and talents from here.

Taking with them the supplies, technology, and techniques from here, they went to various places in the wasteland to resow the seeds of human civilization!

It was no exaggeration to say that in all the books Cheng Ye had read since coming to the wasteland, as long as they involved the New Era, they would definitely mention Xinghuo, and at least half of the authors were singing high praises of Xinghuo.

Liu Bi had also once said that if one day Xinghuo requested aid, at least two-thirds of the sanctuary cities on Blue Star would mobilize manpower and resources to support them.

Because in a certain sense, Xinghuo represented the foundation of human civilization.

"Is there any way to prove that you're from Xinghuo Sanctuary City?" Cheng Ye stepped forward and asked loudly.

The several people across from him obviously hadn't expected him to be so direct, and for a moment they were somewhat at a loss.

"This is Inspector from our Happiness City!" Second Dragon sternly shouted from the side, "Do you understand what an inspector means?"

"Understood, understood!"

The people on the other side of the fog passage immediately came to their senses as if awakening from a dream. Not bothering with curiosity, they quickly straightened their backs and assumed respectful postures.

Any settlement that reached sanctuary city scale would establish checkpoints.

Xinghuo Sanctuary City would naturally be no exception, though many people could go in and out a hundred or two hundred times and still rarely see an inspector.

Most just walked through automatic instruments, and after confirming no problems, they would leave directly.

However, Happiness City's inspector was actually this young?

"Do you have identity badges? If convenient, just let me verify them."

Seeing the several people stunned, Cheng Ye changed his phrasing.

"Yes! Yes!"

The leading man quickly pulled out a metal badge from his pocket and held it up toward the fog passage.

That badge's design was somewhat similar to Happiness City's, but the patterns on both sides were completely different.

The front showed the silhouette of a towering mountain peak with sharp lines, the summit covered with white snow.

The moment he saw it clearly, Cheng Ye couldn't help but raise his eyebrows.

It wasn't unfamiliarity or surprise.

Rather, for every person from East Asia, this pattern was simply too familiar.

It was actually Mount Everest, honored as the roof of the world!

After Cheng Ye nodded slightly, the man flipped the badge over. The back showed a blazing fire with flames radiating outward, and small characters "Xinghuo" were carved around the edges.

"Wait, let me photograph this."

Cheng Ye quickly pulled out his defense communicator. Fortunately, he had activated field mode in the afternoon, so even now inside the fog passage, he wouldn't lose signal and be locked down.

The people across from him looked at the big brick in his hand with curious expressions.

Especially when they saw the brick split open a crack, revealing a camera lens, they couldn't help but marvel.

Opening the identity authentication function, he aimed the lens at the badge across the fog passage and took photos of both the front and back.

The light was somewhat dim and the photos weren't very clear, but the authentication system seemed to have considered this situation.

After following prompts to take supplementary photos from two more angles, after a few seconds, lines of information appeared on the defense communicator screen:

[Identity verification passed, Xinjiang Province Xinghuo Sanctuary City]

[Identity classification: Ordinary resident]

[Identity level: None]

"It really is Xinghuo Sanctuary City!"

Staring at the three lines of text displayed on the defense communicator, Cheng Ye's whole body trembled with an indescribable sense of bewilderment.

Calamity fog, mysterious fog passage.

Just when everyone was worried about whether monsters might suddenly rush out from the fog passage, whether mother source infectees might descend.

No one would have thought that this fog passage would first connect to that super sanctuary city five thousand kilometers away, hailed as the lighthouse of wasteland civilization!

Should he go over and take a look?

Separated by just a wall, he only needed to step lightly to cross space and arrive at that strongest sanctuary city that countless people yearned for.

Cheng Ye was somewhat restless.

Although after understanding quite a bit of the situation, he didn't think Xinghuo Sanctuary City was really that much better than Happiness City, the human instinct of curiosity about the unknown still drove him to want to go see for himself.

This wasteland.

This world.

To see what the strongest human sanctuary city actually looked like, what form it took!

However, after struggling for several seconds, reason was like a taut string, firmly pulling him back and keeping him rooted in place.

He couldn't be impulsive.

Though this fog passage seemed stable, who knew if it might suddenly disappear?

Once left in Xinghuo, returning to Happiness City in the short term would be basically impossible.

And over there, his identity as Happiness City inspector probably wouldn't have any effect.

Although with his current strength he might not necessarily become cannon fodder, his days would definitely be far less comfortable than in Happiness City.

However, just as Cheng Ye was hesitating, the crowd on the other side of the fog passage showed no fear at all.

Each one stretched their head to look inside, inhaling the lingering aroma of meat in the air, their eyes full of envy.

At the same time, though it was already late at night, more and more people were squeezing over.

With more people, courage grew as well.

Someone couldn't help but move forward a bit and tentatively asked, "Inspector sir, can we come over and take a look? Just stand at the entrance, absolutely won't wander around."

Looking at that eager expression, they obviously weren't afraid of being forcibly kept in Happiness City.

Cheng Ye could even sense that this guy wasn't just unafraid, but actually had some inexplicable expectation.

"That's temporarily not possible."

Cheng Ye snapped back to attention and quickly suppressed all distracting thoughts, "The fog passage might disappear at any time. If you come over and can't get back, that would be a big problem."

After pausing, he added, "If convenient, please contact Xinghuo's officials as soon as possible and explain the situation here clearly."

"We've already sent someone. In a few more minutes at most, someone will definitely come." someone immediately replied.

The fog hadn't enveloped Xinghuo Sanctuary City, yet the fog passage had connected to here.

Being able to converse with an inspector from a sanctuary city thousands of kilometers away was enough for them to boast about for half a lifetime.

"That's good."

Cheng Ye nodded lightly, considering whether to have Second Dragon go out to notify Happiness City officials.

However, the thought flashed by and was suppressed.

With the Works Department wrapped in such a large fog passage, the buffer zone's monitoring system couldn't possibly have no reaction.

Rather than having Second Dragon risk passing through the thick fog to report, it was better to wait for officials to react and send personnel to investigate.

What he needed to do now was guard this fog passage and not let anyone rashly cross through.

"Sir, what you just used in your hand, was that called a defense communicator?"

Seeing Cheng Ye no longer speaking, someone across couldn't help but ask curiously, pointing at the big brick he held in his hand, "I heard on the radio that Happiness City gives one of these things to every resident. Don't know if that's true or false?"

"Of course it's true, each of us has one!"

Before Cheng Ye could speak, Second Dragon puffed out his chest first and pulled out his own defense communicator to show off.

How could such a small matter be directly asked to Cheng Ye? These Xinghuo Sanctuary City people really had no sense.

"As long as you join our sanctuary city for over sixty days, you can receive one, and it's free."

"My heavens, it's actually true." That person exclaimed, his eyes full of envy.

"What, you don't have them?" Cheng Ye was stunned.

"We do have them, but you need to use contribution points to exchange for them. Even the most ordinary resident version costs 20 points, and you have to pay a 2-point usage fee every month. Too expensive."

That person gestured as he spoke, looking quite similar to modern smartphones.

"Besides, we don't need to go outside. Just staying in the city, we basically don't need this thing."

Xinghuo Sanctuary City's defense communicators charged fees?

And apparently had multiple versions?

Cheng Ye pondered thoughtfully, suddenly remembering Master Tian's earlier words, and pursued the question, "Which district of Xinghuo are you from?"

"We're from B4 district. Um, you need to accumulate 399 contribution points to move to this area."

Speaking of this, that person proudly raised his head.

But after speaking, he seemed to remember something and quickly lowered his head, appearing somewhat embarrassed.

The other person was a Happiness City inspector, and here he was showing off a district's entry threshold. That was really looking down on people.

"B4 district, isn't it the former industrial district, scavenging district, residential district system?"

"Sir, the system you mentioned is a very old system that was reformed over ten years ago. We don't divide districts like that anymore."

The leading man took up the conversation, not hiding anything, "Before, it was because productivity couldn't keep up, so to facilitate management, districts were divided so specifically. Now each district is an independent small loop with everything inside, scavenging points, residential areas, small factories all complete. We don't do that kind of one-size-fits-all division anymore."

"Already reformed?"

Cheng Ye was secretly shocked. This change was bigger than he had imagined, "So how many people are in your B4 district?"

"About five hundred thousand?" The man scratched his head, not too certain, "Maybe more. Recently there are always people upgrading from C district."

"Five hundred thousand."

Cheng Ye calculated silently, his heart shaking again.

Xinghuo Sanctuary City had nearly ten million people. If divided into districts of five hundred thousand each, wouldn't that be twenty districts?

Each district equaled the scale of a super sanctuary city. Such magnitude was simply astoundingly large.

However, just as Cheng Ye wanted to continue inquiring about the details of this system, there was finally movement on the other side of the fog passage.

Several bright light beams suddenly flashed at the end of the street.

Then, amid engine roars, over ten motorcycles drove up in formation, their tails flashing alternating red and blue lights, the black and white paint scheme particularly striking under the illumination.

The motorcycle riders wore fluorescent yellow reflective vests with tightened sleeves and trouser cuffs, full-coverage helmets on their heads, revealing only eyes looking through face shields.

No way. Cheng Ye instinctively tensed up.

Although he was now also a member of the "system," seeing those familiar red and blue lights, that iconic reflective vest.

Especially when the buzzing siren sounded and the residents gathered around the fog passage suddenly scattered to both sides.

Being watched by so many "uncles" at once, to be honest, was a bit nerve-wracking.

Screech.

The lead motorcycle stopped steadily five meters from the fog passage, with the other vehicles following in sequence.

Half the riders quickly pulled isolation tape from their rear boxes, using the motorcycles as anchor points to create a cordon of over ten meters around the fog passage.

The other half assumed alert postures, forming an elliptical blockade around the fog passage as the center, their movements extremely efficient.

The lead rider stepped forward, lifted his helmet, revealing a face with sharp features, "Xinghuo B4 Security Department Special Response Team, Patrol Captain Zhang Jian, responsible for fog passage site security. May I ask who you are?"

"Happiness City, Inspector, Cheng Ye!"

"Inspector Cheng, could you please show your identity badge?"

"Certainly."

Cheng Ye nodded slightly and pulled out his identity badge from his pocket.

Zhang Jian immediately pulled out a "defense communicator" from his pocket. The style was indeed very similar to modern smartphones, much more compact than Happiness City's big brick.

Same process of photographing the badge front and back for database comparison.

Two seconds later, the verification passed prompt lit up.

Zhang Jian immediately gave a standard salute, "Inspector Cheng, hello!"

"We have already notified the Defense Department, checkpoint, liaison department and multiple other departments. Please assist with security and do not allow any personnel to rashly cross the fog passage."

"No problem."

Cheng Ye replied, turning to give Second Dragon a look.

Second Dragon immediately understood, calling everyone to step back and guarding the rest hall door.

"Inspector Cheng, from your situation there, has it been completely enveloped by fog?"

Zhang Jian's gaze swept over the white fog condensed outside the rest hall, his tone carrying professional seriousness.

After speaking, he realized he sounded like he was interrogating a suspect and was about to change his tone.

However, Cheng Ye interrupted him, "Yes."

Actually, Zhang Jian's attitude and tone really made people feel familiar, quite reminiscent of returning to modern times.

"Do you remember the time when the fog passage appeared? Sorry, we need to record this first. This way there will be much less unnecessary questioning when comparing data later."

"Understood."

Cheng Ye pulled out his defense communicator to check, "From when the fog passage appeared until now, it's been about 12 minutes."

"12 minutes."

Zhang Jian quickly pressed buttons on his phone, uploading the information synchronously, "Could you describe the situation when you encountered the fog passage? Just give a general account, no need to be too detailed."

"I wasn't here when the fog passage appeared. I came in later."

Cheng Ye waved toward the back, calling Second Dragon over, "Tell Captain Zhang what happened in the hall."

"Understood."

Second Dragon thought for a moment and quickly said, "When we were cleaning up tables and chairs, we found the wall suddenly filled with a layer of cloud and mist, like the wall was wrapped in a big water bubble. We didn't dare touch it. Later it seemed like someone from your side touched it, and that water bubble burst open with a pop, becoming the passage it is now."

"Our people touched it?"

Zhang Jian frowned slightly, speaking a few words into his earpiece.

On the other side of the fog passage, team members immediately turned to question the residents who had been watching earlier.

In just over ten seconds, they confirmed this fact.

"Sorry, Inspector Cheng. They also didn't expect the fog passage to appear directly in the urban district."

"It's fine."

Cheng Ye waved his hand, more concerned about another matter, "Xinghuo Sanctuary City isn't enveloped by fog, right?"

"No!"

Zhang Jian shook his head, "The fog coverage is currently in your Shi Province area, but the endpoints are randomly generated. Sand Province also had fog passages connecting to Xinghuo before, but that passage was only one-fifth the size of this one and only lasted about half an hour before disappearing."

"Half an hour."

Cheng Ye silently repeated this, waves stirring in his heart.

If even smaller fog passages could last this long, wouldn't this giant passages spanning an entire wall be able to remain stable until the fog completely dispersed?

Just then, there was new movement on the other side of the fog passage.

Several howling sounds came through the air, not from the street, but from the somewhat dark night sky!

Cheng Ye instinctively looked up, his gaze instantly freezing, his breathing skipping half a beat.

He saw four people wearing black and blue uniforms, standing on balance scooter-like objects, swooping down from the night sky like legendary cultivators riding flying swords!

Holy crap, what is that thing?

Anti-gravity technology?

Cheng Ye's eyes widened, even thinking he was hallucinating.

Although Xinghuo Sanctuary City's technology level being higher than Happiness City's was expected, it shouldn't be this much higher, right?

Three or four seconds later.

When those people flew closer, he finally saw the details clearly. It wasn't anti-gravity at all, but the balance scooters had a pair of black metal wings mounted on both sides, with feather-like blades vibrating so fast they were almost afterimages, yet could generate extremely strong thrust, supporting people in flight, gliding, and even hovering in mid-air.

"Those are Wing Assault Units?"

Second Dragon murmured beside him, his eyes wider than copper bells, "The radio said Xinghuo Sanctuary City had aerial flying people who could fly individually. I thought they were bragging."

Wing Assault Units?

Cheng Ye's eyes paused. Just as he was about to ask more, he saw all ground personnel salute toward the sky.

Those four people adjusted their flight posture and slowly descended within the isolation cordon, the humming from their wings gradually weakening before finally folding into streamlined shapes against their backs.

Damn, it's even a collapsible design.

The leader, well, calling him a pilot for now, removed his helmet to reveal a relatively young face.

"Captain Zhang, thank you for your hard work. We'll handle the subsequent contact."

"Yes, Inspector Li!"

Zhang Jian saluted again and without a word led his people to step aside, expanding the isolation area once more.

The residents who had been watching the excitement earlier, realizing the inspector had arrived, also understood the seriousness of the situation and quickly ran away.

Inspector?

These flying people were inspectors from Xinghuo Sanctuary City?

Cheng Ye couldn't help swallowing, suddenly feeling like a primitive person who opened a space-time tunnel to the future.

Good heavens, he was also an inspector, and up to now couldn't even afford a big golden cup.

What version were these people?

Flying sword cultivation version?

For some reason, Cheng Ye instinctively opened his panel and glanced at the cooperation ratings in the upper right corner.

Well, they were all single digits, only Zhang Jian was slightly higher at 13%.

"If I could search this Inspector Li, could I search for his, um, the Wing Assault Unit under his feet?"

Cheng Ye thought dreamily, but saw the other person had already stepped over and, completely unconcerned, stood at the passage edge, extending his hand toward him:

"Inspector Cheng, hello. I'm Li Changfeng, Level 4 Inspector at Xinghuo B4 Checkpoint."

Li Changfeng's hand stopped in the middle of the fog passage, wisps of white mist parted by invisible force to create a gap.

"Inspector Li, hello. I'm Cheng Ye, Probationary Inspector from Happiness City."

Seeing this, Cheng Ye also moved forward a step. Across the fog passage, the two men's hands met in a virtual handshake.

Level 4 versus probationary.

Although he didn't know how Xinghuo Sanctuary City classified inspector levels, it should surely be far above his little probationary rank.

However, when away from home, identity was self-determined.

If Xinghuo Sanctuary City's general station chief came over, Cheng Ye might still feel intimidated.

But just a district inspector, calculated by 500,000 people, Xinghuo had nearly 20 districts.

In terms of scarcity, the number of inspectors was definitely far greater than Happiness City's, so scarcity and value naturally decreased significantly.

By all rights and reason, he shouldn't show any signs of flinching or embarrassment.

Sure enough, Li Changfeng seemed not to have heard the word "probationary" at all. The smile on his face became even broader, "Inspector Cheng, might Mr. Cheng Wu be your...?"

"He's my grandfather."

"I've long admired him!"

Li Changfeng immediately put away his smile and cupped his hands slightly, his posture more solemn than before, "Mr. Cheng Wu is truly a legend among our inspectors. Inspector Cheng, with such a scholarly family background, I'm sure in a few years you'll be another pillar of Happiness City."

"Inspector Li, you flatter me!"

Cheng Ye smiled, but was secretly shocked.

The Cheng family had such influence?

Cheng Wu's reputation was known even in Xinghuo Sanctuary City?

However, on second thought, Lee Matteo had said the checkpoint system was Happiness City's original creation.

In that case, as the creator of the system, Cheng Wu's reputation probably worked not just in Xinghuo.

As the thought flashed by, the panel opened again.

Cheng Ye glanced at the cooperation rating in the upper right corner, unable to suppress a slight smile.

Just from those few sentences, Li Changfeng's cooperation rating had already reached 15%.

If he could gather 30%...

Glancing again at the Wing Assault Unit on the ground, Cheng Ye took a light breath and suppressed all distracting thoughts.

"Inspector Li, do you know how long this fog passage will last?"

"Should be no less than two hours. Wait, let me test the fog passage's strength."

Li Changfeng bent down and pressed something near his ear.

To Cheng Ye's surprise, what seemed like an ordinary headband on his forehead slowly rotated, and a single-lens eyepiece gracefully positioned itself over his right eye.

?

What kind of black technology was this again?

Cheng Ye was somewhat dumbstruck. From his angle, it really looked like the battle power detection glasses from the anime Dragon Ball.

"Energy strength 331, estimated duration 5 hours 17 minutes, minimum no less than 4 hours 40 minutes."

Li Changfeng stared at the lens and read out the data, then lifted his hand to push the glasses back behind his head, "The values are very stable, much stronger than the last connected fog passage, which only had 27 strength."

"5 hours?"

Cheng Ye was stunned, "Didn't they say fog can only last a maximum of two hours?"

"Fog and fog passages are two different things."

Li Changfeng explained, "I applied for permissions on the way here and checked the records. The fog only descended on Shi Province at noon. I imagine Inspector Cheng doesn't yet know the specific information."

After speaking, he turned his head and called to the man behind him, "Little Xu, get me a new information receiver. I need to synchronize fog information with Inspector Cheng."

"Yes!"

So the other people who came with Li Changfeng weren't inspectors, but staff members?

As Cheng Ye was stunned, he saw the man pull something out of his backpack.

It was none other than the headband glasses that had just been used to detect the fog!

"Inspector Cheng, just put it on your head. It will automatically adjust to your viewing angle and pupil distance."

Little Xu handed the device across the fog passage, and Cheng Ye instinctively reached out to take it.

Gently grasping it, feeling the cool metallic sensation in his hand, he finally reacted, "This, I can use it?"

To be honest, this was the first time since crossing to the wasteland that he had encountered a truly high-tech item.

Not some big golden cup, not a big brick phone anymore.

But a truly high-tech product that he had never seen on Earth, looking much more advanced than any AR glasses!

"Of course you can use it. Although Happiness City and Xinghuo are separated by thousands of kilometers, we've always been the most reliable allies. In a certain sense, we two are also comrades, colleagues!"

Li Changfeng smiled, "Besides, this is just an information receiving tool. As long as you're within signal coverage, anyone can wear it. It's just that receiving information requires permission verification."

"Um, Inspector Cheng, you'll need to come over to this side. Standing over there, the fog passage will block signal transmission."

"I can come over?"

"Of course. The fog passage is very stable. Are you afraid the fog passage will disappear when you go in and out?"

Li Changfeng suddenly realized and laughed, "Don't worry. If the fog passage disappears, our Xinghuo will deploy the highest level escort mechanism to guarantee your safe return to Happiness City."

[NEXT CHAPTER]

INS Chapter 111: The Fog Passage Reopens, Xinghuo Sanctuary City!

The bus smoothly drove into the Works Department, traveling all the way unobstructed to the parking and charging area.

When the weather turned cold, the battery consumption of electric vehicles immediately skyrocketed.

All the charging stations in a row were occupied. After waiting a few minutes, one bus slowly drove away, freeing up a charging spot.

The remaining vehicles seemed to be planning to stay overnight, waiting until early morning to unplug and pack up.

Master Zhang's bus had been charged during the day, and the dashboard showed 81% battery remaining, more than enough to run four hundred kilometers.

But when he heard Cheng Ye say they needed to plug in and reserve a spot, then top off the battery before leaving, Master Zhang didn't hesitate at all and directly followed the instructions.

"I'll go charge up, you and Big Dragon go find pots and some seasonings."

"Alright."

Although it was strange why Cheng Ye was so concerned about charging, Master Zhang didn't suspect anything and happily left with Big Dragon.

There weren't seasonings in other places, but the Works Department should have some. Using Cheng Ye's reputation, finding some would be simple.

After everyone left, Cheng Ye removed the charging head and inserted his pendant, swiping his card to start charging.

[Current energy replenishment efficiency: Normal (Lv.3 energy)]

[Time remaining until full charge: 3.42h]

The notification flashed briefly on the interface.

This time Cheng Ye didn't plan to leave at 80%, but was preparing to fully charge the pendant.

After all, there was no garage in Quarantine District B, and plugging into a regular outlet at home would only replenish about 5% overnight, which was too slow.

Liu Kun could come over anytime in the next couple of days, so it was more reassuring to fully charge the energy value.

However, three and a half hours was still somewhat excessive. Fortunately, he could use eating and drinking to kill some time.

Entering the rest hall.

The heavy glass doors blocked out the cold air from outside.

Before long, Engineer Liu arrived hurriedly with two apprentices.

It was late at night and they had already gotten off work, but were called back by one phone call from Cheng Ye. Normally, they should have been resentful.

However, when they heard on the phone that there would be beef to eat and fish soup to drink, and they could even take some salted fish home afterward, the three of them didn't hesitate at all and rushed right over.

Of course, they still maintained the appearance of being respectful servants ready to appear whenever the Inspector needed them.

"Inspector Cheng, are you planning to make modifications today?"

Engineer Liu rubbed his hands, placed the blueprint folder on the table, his tone carrying a hint of professional nervousness.

For clients, modifying blueprints was just a matter of saying a few words, but they had to measure, draw, verify parameters, adjust structural nodes, update material lists. Every step had to be watched as carefully as embroidering, and any mistake could cause problems during completion.

In the old era, if problems occurred, at most they would arrest the person in charge and be done with it.

But in the wasteland, if problems arose, nobody from top to bottom could escape.

"No rush, I'm not modifying blueprints today. I want to hear suggestions from you industry insiders, just chatting while having a meal. I've been troubling you quite a bit lately too."

Cheng Ye smiled with narrowed eyes, leaned back in his chair, his tone relaxed. "The pedestrian street demolition is almost complete these past couple days, and you're almost finished with the planning drawings too. Construction will start soon. My thoughts alone are limited after all, so I need to listen to yours more, trying to get it right in one go so we don't have to keep revising later."

"Our thoughts?"

Engineer Liu was stunned, instinctively pushing up the glasses on his nose bridge, hiding the surprise in his eyes.

But the two apprentices behind him exchanged glances, both showing expressions of disbelief.

After all their interactions during this period, who didn't know that Inspector Cheng was the type who made decisions without room for argument?

The planning drawings had been revised three times, and each time he had made the final decision. Why was he suddenly wanting to hear their opinions today?

Cheng Ye observed their reactions and understood in his heart. "Don't be formal, sit down. You run around the construction site every day, so you definitely know better than I do where drainage ditches should be placed and where foundations need reinforcement. For example, that area of temporary shops, I originally wanted to make them all flat-roofed for a uniform, attractive appearance, but after today's heavy rain and passing through the shantytown, I realized... don't you think sloped roofs would be more practical?"

On the road to and from the inspection station, Cheng Ye hadn't just been looking at the scenery outside the window.

As a proper architecture graduate with top marks, what he lacked was practical experience, not a pair of eyes that could spot problems and knowledge reserves.

"Sloped roofs are indeed better, but they require thirty percent more materials and two additional days of construction time."

Engineer Liu frowned in thought, his fingers unconsciously tapping the blueprint folder. "How about this? Keep the flat roofs, but add a thirty-centimeter eave at the cornice, then dig a hidden drainage channel along the back wall of the shops, connecting directly to the main drainage system. The eaves can block diagonal rain, the hidden channel drains water discreetly, and it won't interfere with laying floor tiles on the walkway in front of the shops. Practical and material-saving!"

"Eaves..."

Cheng Ye frowned in thought. After not using his brain for just over three months, he felt like his previous knowledge was almost completely gone.

Seeing him thinking seriously, Engineer Liu became even more curious.

In this entire buffer zone, he had never heard of any inspector being familiar with the construction industry.

"Engineer Liu."

"Yes."

"What material are you planning to use for this roof?"

"Color steel sheets." Engineer Liu answered decisively. "Lightweight, easy to replace, and simple for later maintenance. Most practical in the buffer zone."

"Hmm."

Cheng Ye gestured an angle with his fingertip in the air. "Then the inclination angle of the eaves must coordinate with the edge treatment at the cornice. Color steel sheets have poor toughness. If you just fold the angle directly, rainwater will seep in through the sheet joints during heavy rain, and it'll rust through in less than half a month, making rework even more troublesome."

"This issue?" Engineer Liu's eyes lit up. "So we need to add an L-shaped angle steel lining at the fold, both to increase bending strength and allow water to flow directly down the lining to the ground. This is especially practical under low-maintenance conditions."

What the two were discussing was precisely the curtain wall principle commonly used in industrial plants.

The two apprentices listened with wide eyes, originally thinking Inspector Cheng was just asking casually, but unexpectedly this Inspector Cheng actually understood these practical operational details?!

"So you're planning to use drop treatment for the hidden channel structure?"

"Drop treatment?"

"The hidden channel itself has elevation differences. If rainwater directly scours the channel walls when flowing into the main channel, it easily accumulates blockages. During normal light rain, it can still be cleared, but if there's continuous heavy rain and still needs cleaning, people would have to jump into the channel to dig out mud."

After speaking, Cheng Ye completely forgot he had come to listen to opinions and unconsciously resumed his client authority. "It's best to place three-level stepped concrete blocks at the junction, with each level having a 5-centimeter drop. Also, the inner walls of the hidden channel need surface treatment, plastering with cement mortar to a thickness of 20 millimeters, compacted and smoothed."

"This way, the inner walls are smooth, water flow resistance is low, reducing siltation, and it can also enhance impermeability, preventing rainwater from seeping into surrounding foundations and affecting the structural stability of nearby buildings."

"Oh, you're talking about multi-level energy dissipation!"

Engineer Liu slapped his thigh with sudden realization. "I suggested this method when I was repairing the wastewater treatment pool last time, but the budget was tight then, and this approach required nearly 15% more in material costs, so it was rejected by the higher-ups with 'unnecessary'..."

"The pedestrian street budget cannot be skimped on. You must build it to the most durable standards for me. If materials aren't enough, just report to me. A budget increase isn't a problem. Since we're building, let's build something that can last ten or twenty years, not something that needs to be torn down and redone in a couple years, which is purely wasteful of manpower and materials."

"Sigh, if I had known earlier that you understood these technical details..."

Engineer Liu smacked his lips. "In our line of work, the biggest headache is budget reporting. Change a design, add a material, and the budget numbers just keep climbing up. When you encounter leaders who don't understand the industry, you can talk yourself hoarse explaining and it's useless. If I had known earlier that you were knowledgeable, I would have spoken directly about these requirements."

"Don't worry, my budget here is definitely sufficient. In the future, I plan to make this pedestrian street into a landmark building of the buffer zone, not only practical but also presentable."

Cheng Ye made no effort to hide his ambition.

Investing twenty thousand contribution points, if it only resulted in some barely usable shops that improved the lives of Tianyuan Community residents a little, it wouldn't meet the Elder's expectations at all.

The so-called making 50% of communities envious was just talk for fools.

The real intention, combined with the ideals the Idealist faction was promoting in the buffer zone, Cheng Ye could roughly guess that the elder wanted the buffer zone residents to see new hope and new development direction!

In this case, whether for community development, cultivating influence early, or maintaining ideals to accumulate capital for himself, he had to create something truly impressive.

Since they were building, they should build big and build special.

The pedestrian street had to become the "face" of the buffer zone, the first stop for visiting merchant caravans, a place all residents and scavengers would want to visit regularly. Only then would the money be spent on the cutting edge.

He had a vague premonition that even if the current budget was already over, as long as he achieved the effect he wanted, the inner city elders would definitely not be stingy with second and third investments.

When that time came, not to mention more, just getting several tens of thousands more points would recover all the early investment.

"Good, since you put it that way, I actually have some ideas too."

Engineer Liu gritted his teeth. Rarely encountering someone knowledgeable, all those ideas and inspirations in his head that had been suppressed by budget and schedule constraints bubbled up like foam.

Some ordinary architectural details were still understandable, but as they talked, it became things like, "I think we can add solar panels to the rooftops. They might not be practical in summer and autumn, but in winter and spring when electricity is charged for, the power generated by solar panels can both supply the shops and be sold back to the city grid, creating sustainable development."

"This is good, we can add it, and best to get some energy storage equipment too!"

Cheng Ye immediately approved the decision, delighting Engineer Liu so much his teeth showed but not his eyes.

The two apprentices suddenly became somewhat dumbfounded. When they came, Engineer Liu had warned them that tonight they must be cautious in word and deed, whatever Cheng Ye said was final, and they should try not to express any opinions.

But now, Engineer Liu himself was talking with flying spittle, where did he remember about being cautious in word and deed?

After a while, the rest hall door was pushed open, and four large iron pots were carried in.

Master Zhang followed behind carrying a bulging cloth bag. "Inspector Cheng, we found seasonings, quite a lot, they say they make the stewed meat very fragrant!"

"Rest first, boil water, cook meat, eat while we talk."

After the discussion with Engineer Liu, Cheng Ye was somewhat excited. That fulfilling feeling of gradually implementing the ideas in his head onto blueprints was even more satisfying than taking down Zhang Can, the high-level fusion body.

After all, in the wasteland, construction was the main theme, and combat was always something that erupted only when forced into desperation.

However, charging still needed nearly two hours, so they couldn't just sit around making awkward conversation after finishing the planning discussion.

The induction cookers hummed to life. The rest hall's wiring was connected to industrial lines, so four stoves operating simultaneously didn't even make the lights flicker.

Before long, the water in the pots was bubbling, and Big Dragon lifted up half a hind leg of Yaksha Bull, skillfully chopped it into large pieces and threw them into the pot.

As soon as the meat entered the pot, a layer of fine blood foam appeared.

Strangely, after the blood foam formed clumps, it actually gave off a faint delicate fragrance, not the fishy smell of ordinary beef, but carrying a hint of fresh vegetation.

"This smell is absolutely amazing!"

Big Dragon sniffed and used chopsticks to dip some blood foam into his mouth. "Sir, this beef seems unusual. It tastes..."

For a moment, he was at a loss for words, not knowing how to describe this flavor.

Cheng Ye simply moved close to the pot and similarly dipped a bit into his mouth.

Mm.

How to describe it?

It was somewhat like the yak meat he had eaten in western Sichuan, naturally carrying a special fragrance.

But this fragrance wasn't meat fragrance, but rather a rich floral and herbal aroma.

"With such good taste, how could it still be living in Hai Province?"

Cheng Ye couldn't help being surprised.

Supposedly in the wasteland, mutant beasts that were delicious and didn't have hard shells should have been hunted almost to extinction by scavengers long ago.

Even ant wolves were delicacies on scavengers' tables.

It seemed that in Hai Province, this type of Yaksha Bull should also be uncommon, a rare species.

Unexpectedly, after crossing through the fog passage to the inspection station, six of them came at once.

"Hai Province?"

Engineer Liu came over. "There are few people in Hai Province because it's right next to the sealed zone. Over the years, I've heard of people migrating to other places from there, but never anyone who would run over there."

"No wonder."

Cheng Ye raised an eyebrow and didn't say more.

Four pots: one for stewing meat, one for cooking fish soup.

For the remaining two pots, everyone gathered around. Without any seasonings, they just put thinly sliced raw beef into the boiling water for a quick dip. When the edges of the meat slices curled slightly, they would scoop them out and stuff them into their mouths while hot.

For people accustomed to eating heavily flavored food, eating this way was inevitably somewhat bland and tasteless.

But after drinking so much nutritional paste, the chewy beef falling into their mouths was so fragrant it made their eyes light up.

Master Zhang's seasoning bag contained chili powder. Cheng Ye pinched some to dip and taste, but felt the spiciness destroyed the natural fresh fragrance of the Yaksha beef, so he put down the seasoning dish and only ate the original flavor.

"Everyone eat freely, eat as much as you can, and I'll give you some to take when we leave."

When Cheng Ye said this, everyone said "we wouldn't dare" with their mouths, but their chopsticks didn't stop.

Steam rolled in the light, making everyone's faces red.

Engineer Liu enthusiastically told interesting stories collected from the construction site, Big Dragon picked up the thread and told amusing incidents from when the corps built the dock, and Master Zhang, who had driven trucks and traveled north and south in his youth, also joined in telling strange tales from surrounding provinces.

Only Cheng Ye and the two apprentices were listening, but the latter only had eyes for the meat in the pots and weren't paying attention to these stories at all.

Outside.

The fog seemed to have thickened again. Even the searchlights on the rest hall could only illuminate a short section of light beam, and visibility continued to decrease.

They ate for a full two hours, and by the time it was almost midnight.

Only then did everyone touch their round bellies and contentedly put down their chopsticks.

The two apprentices leaned back in their chairs, without even the strength to speak, with unwiped meat broth still on the corners of their mouths.

"Big Dragon, cook some more beef, and bring some back for Elder Song to taste."

"Right away."

Big Dragon immediately stood up, skillfully adding water to the pot and throwing in two more large pieces of meat.

Cheng Ye didn't plan to distribute the 85 bags of dried salted fish.

This stuff kept well and was essential supplies for winter, so it needed to be stored carefully.

But Yaksha beef was different. What mattered was freshness, and it would spoil if kept too long, so it was better to distribute it while fresh.

"Engineer Liu, each of you three master and apprentices take a piece home to treat your families."

Engineer Liu quickly waved his hands. "How could we be so shameless, we've already eaten so much of yours..."

"Take it."

Cheng Ye placed a piece weighing over ten pounds to the side. "Revising blueprints is also mentally taxing, so replenish yourselves."

The other two apprentices got less, five pounds each.

He also cut two more large pieces, both weighing twenty pounds, one for Luo Xiaoxue and another for Miao Yang.

"Big Dragon, take the rest back to process and give the residents some meat."

"Good, I'll thank Inspector Cheng on everyone's behalf."

Big Dragon happily agreed. With outsiders present, he finally didn't continue with pleasantries.

"Alright, you all continue eating. I'll go out for a walk to get some air. All this eating has made me sweaty."

Cheng Ye raised his hand to wipe the sweat from his forehead and pushed open the door toward the bus.

The steam in the hall was too thick, and with the heated discussion earlier, his back shirt had long been soaked. Being blown by the cold wind actually gave a refreshing coolness.

Moreover, just now, the pendant had finally sent the notification that it was fully charged. This was the first time since activation that he had fully charged the energy value.

If it was just level 1 skills, he could search five times.

At worst, searching for items and investing all the energy value should greatly improve the success rate.

"If this still can't find anything, it would only prove I'm still too far from transcendent beings."

Taking out the pendant, Cheng Ye plugged the bus back into charging.

A thunk sound.

The charging station activated. He turned to return to the hall to rest a bit more, but his steps suddenly stopped, and his expression instantly turned cold.

At some unknown time, thick fog had once again swept across the entire parking lot.

In just the time it took to charge, visibility had dropped to less than fifty meters, and even the buses charging in the distance were only vague outlines.

But what really made his heart sink was the direction of the Works Department.

Heavy clouds and fog had completely swallowed all three buildings, including the rest hall, which had also disappeared into the mist.

"Is this endless, coming for me again?"

A flash of killing intent crossed Cheng Ye's brow, and he yanked open the bus door, opened his backpack and began assembling parts.

Click click several sounds.

Two long guns were quickly assembled, the heavy gun bodies pressed into his palms, and extra magazines were efficiently clipped to his belt.

Faint rustling sounds came from the fog, like something scraping against the ground, or perhaps hallucinations.

"Starting tomorrow, I should bring battle armor to work."

Cheng Ye took a deep breath, and the interface flashed in the upper right corner of his vision.

Dragon Force was unloaded, freeing up a slot to equip Iron Body at any time to enter pseudo-embryonic state.

Walking down from the bus door, left hand holding the Ranger in reverse grip, right hand holding the Thunder-1, he slowly walked toward the rest hall.

Never mind Yaksha Bull or mutant beasts, even if high-level fusion bodies came, they would first have to endure a round of fire suppression.

The moment he contacted the fog passage, a weak pulling sensation wrapped around him, like invisible hands gently tugging at his clothes from behind.

But after taking two more steps forward, the pulling sensation suddenly disappeared, replaced by a strange pushing sensation, as if someone was pushing his spine with their palm from behind.

The further forward he went, the stronger this pushing sensation became, but just before Cheng Ye could feel uncomfortable.

Hum.

A ripple flashed by, and the pushing force instantly disappeared without a trace. The fog so thick it couldn't dissolve was also parted like invisible hands, and visibility suddenly improved several times.

Everything in front became clear.

In the rest hall, Big Dragon, Engineer Liu, and a group of young men gathered together, not showing the vigilance he had imagined, but rather crowding curiously in front of the wall facing away from the main door.

Hearing footsteps behind them, they turned to see Cheng Ye walking in with guns, and only then did everyone react.

"Sir, this... this rest hall has opened a fog passage!"

"Fog passage?!"

Cheng Ye's heart tightened as he turned his head in the direction Big Dragon's finger pointed.

He saw that the side wall had somehow cracked open a huge oval gap, over three meters high, almost reaching the ceiling, and the width occupied the entire wall, at least five meters long.

The edges of the gap glowed with faint white mist, like being wrapped in flowing light gauze, but the middle had been forcibly carved out into a passage, clear enough to see the scenery on the other side.

It was a spacious cement street with bright streetlights standing on both sides, walls covered with dark green vines, showing a vitality that Happiness City didn't have.

Even more shocking was that several people were also crowded on the other side of the passage, wearing clean gray-blue uniforms, looking across the fog passage toward this side, their faces also filled with curiosity and unease.

From their expressions, obviously both sides had already had a simple round of communication.

"Is it a sanctuary city?"

"Yes!" Engineer Liu nodded heavily, his tone carrying several parts realization and excitement.

"They say they are... from Xinghuo Sanctuary City!"

[NEXT CHAPTER]

INS Chapter 110: Rainy Season, Temperature Drop, Hearts Stay Warm!

Light rain was falling, pattering gently as it hit the ground and splashed into tiny droplets, making soft rustling sounds.

People moved in and out of the quarantine zone.

Most were guards changing shifts and workers clearing accumulated water, hurrying through the curtain of rain with quick steps.

After several heavy downpours, the rainy season belonging to Happiness City, belonging to Shi Province, had finally arrived.

According to records from previous years, this rain would last at least from mid-July to early August, continuing for nearly half a month.

When the rain lines finally departed and the weather cleared again, the bountiful autumn would slowly begin, treading on summer's tail.

Night, just past seven o'clock.

The tall pole lights in the center of the checkpoint lit up on schedule.

Like a lighthouse, the warm yellow glow pierced through the pervasive mist, casting a hazy halo on the wet ground.

Fine water vapor filled the air, blurring the outline of the isolation nets somewhat.

At first glance, the entire scene appeared dreamlike and fantastical, yet carried the particular chill that comes after rain.

By this time, although the checkpoint hadn't closed yet, there were basically no people in Quarantine Zone B.

According to convention, scavengers generally wouldn't return at this hour, arriving at the checkpoint by six o'clock at the latest before dark.

After all, the danger coefficient in the wilderness increased dramatically at night. Both mutant beasts and infected entities became more active in darkness, and combined with the effects of rainfall, traveling rashly would be tantamount to seeking death.

Only Zones A and D still had scattered personnel entering, sparse and few.

Most were merchant caravans that had left in the morning, or sentries ordered to investigate the scope of the aerial fog outside.

Gone was the daytime clamor, and no longer could gunshots be heard. The entire checkpoint gradually sank into the particular tranquility of a rainy night.

Quarantine Zone B.

Corner of the inspection area.

Cheng Ye had Hulu bring over a reclining chair, which he leaned against the isolation net at an angle.

Initially, he kept his eyes wide open, watching Wang Kang's movements, afraid the young man couldn't handle things.

But after observing for a while, he found that although Wang Kang's movements were still somewhat awkward, his approach was clear and orderly.

Inspection, questioning, guidance, all done properly, quite resembling his own style when he first started duty.

Plus, the foot traffic in Zone B was becoming increasingly sparse, with more than ten minutes passing without seeing a single person.

Cheng Ye completely relaxed, comfortably leaning back in the reclining chair and closing his eyes for a nap.

When he fell asleep, the last trace of dusky yellow light still hung on the horizon, with raindrops falling like silver threads in the twilight.

When he woke up, everything around was completely dark.

The rain had basically stopped, leaving only scattered drops falling from eaves, wall corners, and isolation nets.

The warm yellow light was softened by the mist into a mass, barely allowing visibility of the inspection passage, while beyond lay a vast expanse of white fog.

"Xiao Kang, what time is it?"

"Eh, Brother Cheng, you're awake?" Wang Kang was writing something in a notebook with his head down. Hearing the voice, he quickly turned around, the pen still in his hand. "It's five minutes before nine o'clock."

"Why is it so cold?"

Cheng Ye sat up slightly, moved his body a bit, and only then noticed he was covered with a thick coat.

It was the checkpoint's duty coat.

Normally no one would wear this thing, because the prominent "INSPECTION" character on the back was too conspicuous.

Instinctively pulling open a corner of the coat, Cheng Ye couldn't help but shiver, feeling waves of cold air instantly drilling in through his neck, causing goosebumps to break out.

After practicing martial arts, his blood circulation speed had increased, making warriors increasingly sensitive to changes in their surrounding environment.

In the past, Cheng Ye would have a vague sense of even a two or three degree temperature rise.

For him to clearly feel cold and discomfort now, the temperature must have dropped at least ten degrees, possibly even more.

"The temperature dropped. The higher-ups issued a notice saying it's the effect brought by the aerial fog."

"Is that so?"

Cheng Ye frowned as he sat up, draped the coat over himself, and walked several circles around the area to warm up his body.

When a warm current rose from his dantian and spread to his limbs and bones, driving away the cold.

He then took out his defense communicator to check the latest messages.

This nap had probably started around 7:15, and now it was just past 9 o'clock, so he had slept for an hour and a half.

The defense communicator had a pile of unread messages, including public warnings and broadcast messages from the checkpoint.

There were also three missed calls.

One was naturally from Luo Xiaoxue, another from an unknown number, and one from the checkpoint's official number.

Was the unknown number from Brother B?

Cheng Ye called back using the number, but the receiver only gave a no permission prompt.

"Hmm, seems I missed Brother B's call while sleeping."

For security reasons, the defense communicator was in silent mode by default. Unless identity was verified and unlocked, then pressed three times consecutively to enable sound, it wouldn't make a sound even if the sky fell.

Moreover, this prompt would only last eight hours at most, after which it would automatically return to silent mode.

However, Cheng Ye wasn't too worried about missing Liu Bi's call. As long as he could apply for permission on his end, he would call again tonight or tomorrow.

"Hey, Sister Luo, I was so drowsy earlier that I dozed off and didn't see the phone."

"You finally answered!"

Luo Xiaoxue's voice carried some urgency. "Remember to turn on alerts when you sleep in the future. Fortunately, I had Station Chief Lei's number saved and confirmed with him, or you would have scared people to death! What, a suspected mother source ran out from a fog passage at the hydroelectric station?"

A bombshell message came through the receiver.

Cheng Ye suddenly stood up, gripping the defense communicator tightly, his voice changing pitch as he instinctively lowered his volume. "Is Brother B okay?"

"He's fine. The hydroelectric station now has transcendent beings standing guard, also veterans who came out of the checkpoint."

"Is it Reagan Carl?"

"You know?" Luo Xiaoxue paused slightly. "Your Brother B called back, but you probably didn't answer. This time the aerial fog affects a very large area, almost half of Shi Province is covered!"

"Half of Shi Province?"

Cheng Ye couldn't help but suck in a cold breath.

The area of Shi Province wasn't calculated according to the old Earth standards. The native residents of New Era's Shi Province had annexed considerable territory from surrounding areas during pioneering, with a total area of 550,000 square kilometers.

Half of Shi Province, wouldn't that be equivalent to Guangxi Province?

"Yes, according to reports from Sha Province, it can basically be confirmed that this is a special mobile-type transcendent curse. The super shelter city there has tried various methods to disperse the fog, but nothing works. They can only wait for the aerial fog to dissipate automatically. Your Brother B doesn't know the specific situation either, but it should be distributed to you once the higher-ups organize the information."

Luo Xiaoxue finished in one breath, her tone becoming grave. "That suspected mother source at the hydroelectric station is still being hunted. Although there's a high probability it won't leave the industrial area, you're guarding the checkpoint, so you must stay fully alert. The frequency of infected entities will definitely surge dramatically in the coming days!"

"I understand. Sister Luo, you also need to be careful. Fog passages appear randomly!"

"Yes, judging from the higher-ups' intentions, they want to establish several concentrated shelters in the buffer zone. I'll see how things go, and if it really doesn't look right, I'll take Yi Yi to the shelters to hide for a while."

"That's good. Let me know if you have any arrangements, and I'll get people to help you out."

After synchronizing information, neither felt like chatting, leaving only each other's breathing in the phone, carrying a heavy sense of worry.

"Let's hang up. Contact me immediately if anything happens."

"Yes!"

The call ended.

Cheng Ye stood in place holding the defense communicator, frowning with his knuckles turning white.

Although he had kept his voice very low, Wang Kang sitting at the desk still caught fragments of the conversation, his face somewhat pale.

"Brother Cheng, is there another..."

"Shh, there's no such thing. Just pretend you know nothing."

Cheng Ye turned around, shaking his head slightly. "Rather than worry about strays from the industrial area, you should worry about another fog passage opening at the checkpoint with something jumping right out of it. In the current situation, half of Shi Province is covered. To put it bluntly, it's all about luck. No matter where you stay, you can't escape."

Even if they packed up and ran immediately, there was absolutely no way they could escape this area on foot before the aerial fog dispersed.

As for driving vehicles to leave, this thought was extinguished as soon as it emerged.

All vehicles in Happiness City were battery-powered, with a maximum range of 1,000 kilometers, relying entirely on solar power for energy in the wasteland.

But now with the fog covering everything, solar panel efficiency was less than one-tenth of normal. If they really drove into the wilderness, they probably couldn't even supplement 200 kilometers of range in a day. Getting stuck in the fog would be extremely dangerous if they encountered anything.

Wang Kang's lips moved but he said nothing.

He just stared at the heavy fog in the distance, murmuring "luck" under his breath.

Having left the inner city, harsh reality had shattered his understanding again and again.

Thinking about it now, their ability to live peacefully until now, wasn't that also gambling on luck?

But could human effort really not overcome fate?

What if he and Cheng Ye encountered a mother source while on duty, encountered something transcendent, what should they do?

Could they only sit here, waiting to die in endless despair and fear?

Leaving Wang Kang sitting at the desk in a daze, Cheng Ye called back the checkpoint's official number.

What surprised him somewhat was that Lei Hu should have known he bought salted fish from the merchant caravan and gotten a share of beef, asking if he had somewhere to store it, and could arrange for the checkpoint's van to deliver it back for him.

"I contacted a bus earlier, it's a friend's vehicle. Can you coordinate with the Works Department to let him come pick up some things conveniently?"

"No problem, Inspector Cheng. Just give us the vehicle number and we'll immediately contact the Works Department for coordination."

Perfect.

Cheng Ye remembered Master Zhang's vehicle number but didn't know his full name and defense communicator number. Having the checkpoint coordinate would save a lot of trouble.

The call wasn't hung up, and the operator on the other end arranged everything in less than half a minute.

"Due to special circumstances, we've already applied for this bus's usage rights for the next half month. If you don't need it, it will continue operating on normal routes. If you do need it, you can contact the bus driver Zhang Yong directly, and Master Zhang will immediately drive over to serve you."

"Zhang Yong?"

Cheng Ye silently repeated the name, committing it to memory. "Good, thank you very much."

"You're too kind."

The operator's voice carried sincerity. "During the aerial fog period, all duty inspectors are fighting on the front lines for Happiness City's wellbeing. Whatever you need, we'll spare no effort to resolve."

Cheng Ye hung up the phone, somewhat surprised but quickly understanding the source of these privileges.

Indeed, as the operator said, during the days when the buffer zone was shrouded in aerial fog, those guarding the front lines were undoubtedly among the most dangerous groups for the next half month.

Some privileges were both appeasement and necessary guarantees.

"If only I could apply for charging privileges, but unfortunately there's no way to explain why I need charging..."

Cheng Ye looked up, the lights blurred into a mass in the fog like a piece of butter soaked in water.

He moved the reclining chair closer to the light, then opened the defense communicator again, his fingertips sliding across the screen.

He quickly skimmed through the repetitive warning messages, mostly repeated weather reports, surrounding environment warnings, and supply distribution point changes, nothing new.

Worth noting were three public announcements and one internal notification limited to checkpoint duty personnel.

[Aerial Fog Temperature Impact Notice: Due to continued aerial fog effects, local temperatures have dropped to 3-15°C. Please take care to add clothing and stay warm. Multiple temporary medical stations have been added in the buffer zone. Residents can present valid identification to receive fever reducers, cold medicine, anti-inflammatory drugs and other epidemic prevention medications.]

[Checkpoint Operating Hours Adjustment Notice: Due to aerial fog effects, checkpoint operating hours will be adjusted from tomorrow to daily 7:00-20:00. Please plan your travel reasonably and ensure return by 20:00 daily to avoid being unable to enter due to overtime.]

[Public Announcement Regarding Wilderness 'Fog Passage' Phenomenon: Investigation shows that due to aerial fog effects, special 'fog passage' phenomena randomly appear in wilderness areas. They typically appear as cloud-like spheres with diameters of 1-3 meters. When living beings touch them, they briefly form transit passages that can reach unknown locations thousands to tens of thousands of kilometers away.

For city safety, the Blood Dragon Corps will initiate round-the-clock patrol and lockdown mechanisms, strictly prohibiting any residents from unauthorized passage through fog passages to unknown areas. Special serious reminder: Crossing fog passages will be entirely at personal risk, and once fog passages disappear, those who crossed will permanently be unable to return to Happiness City. Please exercise extreme caution.]

[Checkpoint Upgraded Control Announcement: Effective immediately, all checkpoints will increase inspection intensity to Level 4 standards. Any residents confirmed to have records of crossing fog passages must undergo quarantine processing if there are data anomalies.

Identifying features: Those who cross fog passages will develop cloud-like markings on their arms that will persist for at least 72 hours.

Please treat this matter carefully, inspectors. Those who traverse fog passages may carry large amounts of unknown infection sources.

Checkpoints are currently temporarily adding quarantine chambers along the Happiness Defense Line. All inspection procedures must be strictly executed, with no unauthorized clearances permitted.]

"The temperature really dropped dramatically."

Cheng Ye breathed out a puff of white vapor. He still remembered checking the weather at noon, when the reported temperature was 21 to 29 degrees.

Unexpectedly, in just a few hours after one nap, the temperature had plummeted so severely.

The minimum temperature was cut by a full 18 degrees, and the maximum dropped 14 degrees.

Fortunately, neither Happiness City nor the entire Shi Province could grow crops, otherwise this round of temperature drop would have destroyed the entire autumn harvest.

As for the checkpoint operating hours adjustment and the subsequent two announcements prohibiting residents from approaching fog passages.

These were all within Cheng Ye's expectations.

During the day facing fog passages, they could at least barely make out what monsters emerged from inside.

If duty really extended until eleven at night, encountering fog passages in complete darkness would be terrible for the inspectors inside.

The current adjustment to 8 PM was perfectly timed just before complete darkness.

It both gave those outside sufficient time to return while allowing duty personnel to face less risk, a moderate and prudent approach.

As for prohibiting residents from approaching fog passages, it was more like a reminder of fog passage risks.

If the Blood Dragon Corps could really monitor all fog passages round-the-clock and lock down every spatial rift tightly, there would be no need to issue such announcements, they could just deploy troops to guard directly.

Since there were reminders, even specifying that fog passage disappearance might mean permanent inability to return, it meant the aerial fog coverage was too vast for the corps to have sufficient manpower, relying only on rules and warnings for restraint.

And fog passages inherently carried the mysterious nature of random appearance.

Appearing at the checkpoint today, tomorrow they might drift to somewhere in the inner city. No one could predict where the next one would emerge.

In such situations, there would always be people willing to take desperate risks.

Gambling with their lives!

Gambling on luck!

For those scavengers who feared no danger and constantly walked the line between life and death, as long as one person brought back something rare from the other side of a fog passage.

Within half a day, there would be a second, third person actively seeking fog passages to dive into.

This was human nature, completely impossible to prohibit.

Unless Happiness City's leadership was determined to lock all residents dead inside the buffer zone, not allowing them to take a single step out.

But this was impossible. Even when infection tides came, the leadership hadn't locked down population movement.

Even less likely would they confine people to their homes afraid to venture out because of an aerial fog.

Of course, this would be hard on the checkpoints.

"But this way is also convenient. Since crossing fog passages leaves marks, inspection difficulty isn't too great."

"Plus Level 4 intensity saves a lot of trouble. Anyone with data anomalies gets dragged to quarantine wholesale, saving arguments."

From initially checking everyone to now following regulations.

Cheng Ye had adapted and become familiar with it in just one week.

This wasn't because he had become lax about this job, but special times required special methods.

Under the current aerial fog shroud, any luck might brew great disaster.

Once encountering some infection source with extremely strong lurking ability, it might destroy all of Happiness City.

Isolating risks at the source was the most correct approach.

"Xiao Kang, I need to leave first to move the salted fish and beef back, and go to the Works Department to discuss step pedestrian street construction planning with Engineer Liu. By the time you finish duty, I'll probably just be finishing up."

Cheng Ye stood up, stuffing the defense communicator into his pocket.

Wang Kang instinctively turned around, forcing a smile on his face, not because he was leaving, but because his heart was still worried about the dangers brought by fog passages.

Cheng Ye saw this and softened his voice. "Don't worry, even if a mother source infected entity really comes, Brother Cheng has ways to make it sit down, at least I can buy us both time to run."

"I believe you, Brother Cheng."

Wang Kang nodded woodenly, but his smile was stiffer than before.

Clearly he hadn't taken these words to heart.

"Brother Cheng, you go ahead. Zone B probably won't have anyone else coming at night. With the schedule adjusted to 7 AM tomorrow, not resting well won't do."

"Alright, call me if anything happens."

Cheng Ye agreed, turned and walked out of the inspection area.

Busy from morning until now, fortunately he had dozed in the reclining chair earlier and recovered some energy, otherwise even with martial arts practice doubling his vitality, it would be hard to sustain.

Arriving at the quarantine zone, waves of cold air surged like tides, truly feeling like winter's arrival.

Cheng Ye instinctively pulled his coat tighter, calling several workers and guards on duty in the public area to help carry the salted fish and beef to the checkpoint entrance.

"Second Dragon, you can come over now. I'm waiting at the checkpoint entrance."

"Alright, we're waiting on Master Zhang's bus."

The cold wind was bleak, chilling hands and feet.

When the operator finished coordinating, Master Zhang's bus was already heading toward the South Station.

In just two or three minutes, two dim yellow headlight beams pierced the thick fog, and bus number '86' slowly stopped in front of the checkpoint.

The door opened with a "hiss," and Second Dragon led seven sturdy young men filing out, each carrying empty burlap sacks. Without a word, they rolled up their sleeves and got to work.

"Be careful, these salted fish have very sharp mouth parts, don't get scratched."

Second Dragon was bending over to lift a bundle of salted fish when he heard this, looked up and grinned. "Sir, don't worry. We've seen plenty of these swordfish when we used to run with the corps, even ate fresh ones."

"Fresh ones?"

Cheng Ye raised an eyebrow. "You've been to Hai Province before?"

"That's right." Second Dragon continued talking while his hands never slowed in their work. "That was over ten years ago. Back then in the Pioneer Corps, we followed the team to build docks, then followed supply ships on a long journey to Hai Province."

"How much would a fresh swordfish be worth in Hai Province?"

"It wasn't worth much back then. The coastlines were full of these fish everywhere. If you wanted to eat them, you could just cast nets and catch them yourself. The only trouble was processing them, you had to smash the mouth parts before cooking. Later, unexpectedly returning to Happiness City, we haven't seen these things for so many years."

Worthless items brought to Happiness City could sell for 240 points per ton?

Cheng Ye nodded thoughtfully. This seemed to be another method Happiness City used to attract merchant caravans.

Using resource premiums to purchase cheap goods from coastal cities both enriched food reserves and allowed caravans profit, maintaining inter-regional trade chains in this chaotic world.

Otherwise, once prices adjusted and crashed, if caravans couldn't make money and even lost money on trips, next time probably not even a shadow would appear.

The current situation was good, bringing one or two cars of food as a guarantee, earning something no matter what.

Items like those in the Red Mountain merchant convoy's third car were choices made after having this guarantee. Whether losing or earning, it wouldn't greatly affect the caravan's total revenue.

A total of two and a half tons of dried fish.

Because they were thoroughly dried, densely packed, and carefully loaded, 85 burlap sacks contained everything.

Second Dragon led two young men nimbly climbing onto the roof, while four people below formed a line, aiming accurately to throw upward.

These buses were originally modified from truck chassis and could transform into cargo vehicles at any time when encountering dangerous situations.

Nearly fifty bags of dried fish were spread flat on the roof, secured with thick nylon ropes in cross patterns, edges pressed with anti-slip nets. No matter how much the vehicle bounced, they wouldn't shake loose.

The remaining thirty-plus bags were stuffed into the rear of the passenger compartment, squeezed together with half a Yaksha Bull wrapped in waterproof cloth, exactly filling the back half of the compartment.

"Master Zhang, I'm really sorry."

Cheng Ye smiled embarrassedly, his nostrils filled with a fishy ocean smell. "These dried fish have a strong odor. You'll probably have to wash the vehicle thoroughly when you get back."

"Inspector Cheng, please don't say that. Being able to help you is my good fortune, Old Zhang. Besides, the Works Department already instructed that for the next half month, I'm your dedicated driver. Wherever you want to go, just say the word. My defense communicator number is 317550, please remember it and call me anytime."

Zhang Yong quickly waved his hands, the wrinkles at his eyes squeezed together.

From an ordinary bus driver to connecting with an inspector, connecting with the Tianyuan Community, these past days the other drivers running together were dying of envy.

Not to mention Cheng Ye had no airs at all, even more amiable than minor leaders in the Works Department.

"Good, then I won't be polite."

Cheng Ye pulled up his contact list, saving the number. Everyone gradually got on the bus, crowding in front.

You squeeze me, I squeeze you, everyone's blood and qi burning hot, immediately dispelling much of the cold air in the compartment.

"Master Zhang, first to the Works Department. I need to discuss pedestrian street construction with Engineer Liu."

"Right away!"

Master Zhang shifted gears and pressed the accelerator. The bus slowly drove away from the checkpoint.

The guards on duty at the entrance couldn't help but peer over, their eyes full of amazement.

They had been guarding here for several years and all knew inspectors held lofty positions. When they really needed things done, plenty of people competed to help.

But they had never seen any inspector actually do this. Most were aloof and independent.

Someone like Cheng Ye was the first they'd seen. From the respectful look in Second Dragon's and others' eyes, he was as impressive as the station chief!

The vehicle drove forward for a while.

Cheng Ye sat by the window. The glass was covered with white fog, which he cleared with his finger to look at the retreating foggy scenery outside.

The tent camps that had been full of life when he passed during the day had shrunk into gray shadows in the cold mist by evening, like grave mounds rooted in the wilderness. Without the shouts and cooking smoke, even the sound of wind through canvas carried an air of death.

Driving further ahead, the outline of the shantytown emerged in the fog.

Low earthen houses crowded together, with scattered lights in a few windows, the entire area terrifyingly quiet.

Gone were the clamor and chaos that couldn't be suppressed!

The vast buffer zone had become desolate again in just one day, even the air carried an indescribable oppression, even bleaker than after the last infection tide.

"Was it always like this in winter before?"

"Winter was much more desolate than now." Second Dragon immediately responded. "This is because everyone's afraid of coming out and encountering fog passages, encountering danger. It's not because the weather's too cold. Actually, this temperature is just right for daytime work, neither cold nor hot, much better than sweating in summer!"

"Hmm..."

Cheng Ye didn't respond, just gazed out the window.

Until leaving the shantytown and entering the city outskirts, only then did he speak:

"Second Dragon, go find some pots later and stew up this salted fish and beef for us. Tonight I'm treating, giving everyone a meat feast, not letting you run for nothing."

"Sir, how can we accept this!"

Second Dragon quickly waved his hands, his dark face flushing. "You give orders, we'd run our legs off happily. How could we let..."

Before finishing, Cheng Ye glanced at him with eyes that held no authority but carried a gentle insistence.

Second Dragon sheepishly closed his mouth, but couldn't help the corners turning up, his heart sweet as honey.

Working with Cheng Ye was completely different from following orders in the corps before.

Everyone could clearly feel that although Cheng Ye was directing and instructing them, on a personal level everyone was equal. He didn't treat them as tools.

The compartment fell quiet for a moment, no one speaking, but several young men glanced at each other with brightened eyes.

This bit of respect, in the wasteland where human life was worth less than grass.

Perhaps in some people's eyes it was worthless, couldn't be traded for bullets, couldn't fill bellies.

But perhaps... it was more precious than anything else!

[NEXT CHAPTER]

INS Chapter 109: Winning Hearts and Minds, Tide-Level Catastrophe!

[EMERGENCY NOTICE]

[Unknown disaster "Void Mist" has descended on the Happiness City perimeter, impact has now ended]

[All duty inspectors must immediately begin personnel evacuation work, strictly prevent border inspection chaos]

[This Void Mist is a regional disaster in Sha Province, relevant data is being urgently retrieved from Sha Province's "Tianxin," "Liantan," "Xueyuan," "Olympics" and other super-class and large shelter cities, expected to synchronize to all inspector defense communicators no later than 8:00 AM tomorrow]

[Void Mist has extremely strong interference with electronic signals. Defense communicators were automatically locked during signal interruption while in the mist. Field duty mode is now activated for all inspectors, defense communicators will cancel the signal interruption lock mechanism]

[According to preliminary information monitoring, "fog passages" in the Void Mist appear bubble-shaped. Contact with any bubbles in the mist is strictly prohibited, as this may trigger fog passages connection, causing personnel to be forcibly transported to the other side of the fog passages]

[Void Mist has persisted in Sha Province for over three months, with cumulative casualties under ten thousand. Threat level rating: 'Tide.' All inspectors should actively guide residents to respond rationally and must not spread panic]

[Subsequent information will be continuously updated. Report high-value clues immediately, Happiness City will provide corresponding rewards based on information importance]

Happiness City's emergency response speed was swift, especially when facing known disasters.

Almost two to three minutes after the Void Mist dispersed, a series of messages were distributed.

"Threat level only Tide-class?"

Scanning through the warning information line by line, Cheng Ye's gaze paused slightly.

Using casualty numbers alone to define disaster threat might apply to other types of disasters, but clearly couldn't be applied to Void Mist.

Because of the fog passages' existence, Tide-class should only be taking the average threat value.

The real threat level would depend on what emerged from inside after the Void Mist descended.

If it were transcendent earth-bound spirits or mother source infection bodies, the threat level soaring to Destruction-class wouldn't be surprising.

Conversely, if nothing appeared from the Void Mist, it would merely be a special natural phenomenon with no real threat at all.

"Gambling on luck?"

For individuals, this might still be acceptable.

But for a super shelter city like Happiness City, every decision involved the life and death of hundreds of thousands of people. They obviously couldn't pin disaster response on mere "luck."

Cheng Ye could already imagine how hectic the inner city command center must be right now, but fortunately, these matters weren't for a small trainee inspector like him to worry about.

As a grassroots member, inspectors' current task was simple: just handle personnel evacuation work.

"Sir, the ant wolves have been cleared, and the two missing guards have been found!"

Snake had changed clothes, but still reeked heavily of blood.

"Oh, already cleared?"

Cheng Ye turned to glance over. Indeed, dozens of wolf carcasses were piled in the corner of the quarantine area, bleeding black blood.

But he hadn't heard gunfire, clearly the cleanup of these ant wolves hadn't even required firearms.

This was normal. The guards who could stay at inspection stations were all capable hands selected through several rounds of screening.

In terms of individual combat ability, they might not match the elite picked from thousands in the three major legions, but compared to ordinary garrison troops or scavengers, they were already outstanding.

"How are those two guards? Not injured?"

"Just scared, hiding in isolation chambers not daring to come out. We only found them after clearing the wolf carcasses."

"Not bad, they have brains!"

Cheng Ye didn't say much more. In this environment, fear was instinct. Being able to preserve their lives wasn't shameful.

Isolation chambers were made from specially crafted isolation alloy. As long as they didn't encounter special infection bodies that could corrode metal, they were indeed much safer than staying outside.

However, after thorough inspection, Zone A still brought bad news: one staff member had been killed.

The mutated creatures that appeared in Zone A through fog passages were large beasts called Yaksha Bulls.

Six in total, with massive bodies, each estimated at least 1,200 kilograms or more. They had three-pronged forks atop their heads and thick keratin membranes covering their bodies. Ordinary bullets could only spark off them without penetrating their defense.

The unfortunate staff member who died had underestimated them, thinking ordinary rifles could suppress them, only to be gored through the chest by a Yaksha Bull.

As for how to deal with these creatures, the manual had never covered them, presumably because they weren't mutated beasts from Shi Province.

Just as Cheng Ye was recording this in his defense communicator's memo, planning to search for related information when he returned, Wei Lecheng, the inspector from Zone D, proactively approached.

"They're mutated beasts only found in Hua Province." Wei Lecheng's face carried a deliberately friendly smile. "I've been on field duty there before and seen these things. Usually their aggression is moderate, they even ignore humans most of the time. Most likely their ferocity was triggered after passing through fog passages into unfamiliar territory."

After speaking, he lowered his voice with a hint of gratitude, "Thank you, when the mist was thick earlier, I know you wanted to warn me. I heard you tapping the railing."

Cheng Ye glanced at him, "You stayed in the inspection area the whole time?"

"Of course." Wei Lecheng puffed out his chest. "I'm an inspector, it's my duty. I had to guard the inspection area."

"Heh."

Cheng Ye smiled noncommittally and didn't continue the conversation.

This person, whether in behavior or speech, clearly wasn't sincere, the cunning type.

But this was expected. How could one expect truthfulness from an Eastern inspector who had betrayed his faction to join the Westerners?

However, one thing made Cheng Ye secretly alert.

Both Song Hai and Wei Lecheng seemed to know about Void Mist, and each knew more details than the last.

"I've been so busy practicing martial arts and reading books, always feeling radio information reception efficiency was too low. Now it seems I was too eager for quick success, too anxious to quickly understand all information about this wasteland!"

Cheng Ye sat behind the isolation desk, pondering silently.

Knowledge gained from books could only let him know about past events, but when encountering unprecedented celestial anomalies like Void Mist, these records left by predecessors were utterly useless.

To collect information in advance and prepare properly, he had to constantly pay attention to seemingly unimportant messages on the radio.

"This means that neither Uncle Dong nor Master Tian and others never miss radio messages not just for entertainment, but because it's the most direct way to collect outside information."

No one had specifically reminded him of this point before, presumably because no one had ever expected someone who didn't like listening to radio.

But who could know that for modern people accustomed to scrolling short videos, even focusing on reading text could cause restlessness, let alone patiently listening to those slow radio broadcasts.

Having suffered this setback, Cheng Ye belatedly resolved that no matter how busy future days became, daily radio broadcasts would be mandatory listening.

Perhaps some seemingly insignificant message could save lives at crucial moments.

After these delays, time passed 3:30, with only half an hour remaining before shift change.

Since Zone C still had no caravans coming, Cheng Ye could temporarily catch his breath.

But neighboring Zone B where Song Hai was stationed had considerable trouble. The two to three hundred scavengers who had been queuing earlier encountered mutated beasts emerging from fog passages during the Void Mist coverage. After the battle, four died on the spot, over twenty were severely injured, and nearly fifty had various degrees of minor injuries.

Setting aside the dead, the twenty-plus severely injured required immediate treatment, but before that, their infection risk had to be assessed first.

This tedious process couldn't possibly be handled by Song Hai alone.

Sure enough, within minutes, two staff members hurried through the isolation passage, bringing Lei Hu's orders:

"Station Chief's order: duty inspectors from Zones A, C, and D immediately execute personnel redistribution to assist Zone B in completing infection detection!"

"Understood."

Cheng Ye stood and responded without hesitation.

If personnel weren't redistributed, when Wang Kang came for shift change, all these people would still need his help.

Better to clear the backlog of scavengers while there was time and space available.

Having already inspected convoys and caravans, inspecting scavengers was still his first time, but it shouldn't be too difficult.

After the order was issued, under guards' guidance, the scavengers originally crowded at Zone B's inspection entrance quickly redistributed, evenly allocated to three inspection points.

Nearly fifty people were assigned to Cheng Ye's side, including two severely injured and over ten with minor injuries.

Under Snake's guidance, they entered the inspection area in groups of three for examination.

Truth be told, inspecting scavengers was indeed quite simple.

No need to check for smuggling or repeatedly inquire about travel details. Just confirm no suspicious wounds on their bodies and normal vital signs, then direct clearance.

For injured cases, the process was the same as when inspecting Zone A caravan members earlier: detailed wound examination required.

If wound examination showed no problems, they could be sent to isolation areas for treatment.

As for when they could leave isolation areas, it still followed the 21-day isolation protocol.

But for scavengers, preserving their lives was already enough. They didn't dare hope to return to the buffer zone at such times.

Because even if they returned, seeking emergency medical treatment at clinics might not guarantee bed availability.

"Data normal, clearance!"

"Clearance!"

"Send to isolation!"

"..."

Bang, bang.

Gunshots suddenly rang out from Zone D as a Green Giant infection body fell in a pool of blood.

Less than half a minute later, Zone A also heard gunshots as two infection bodies were caught.

But Cheng Ye's Zone C remained incident-free until the last person was sent to isolation.

"Yesterday had many infection bodies, today is obviously more normal."

Cheng Ye nodded silently.

From this morning's queue until now entering the buffer zone, there were easily one to two thousand residents, yet including Song Hai's morning shooting, only five infections had been detected.

Less than 0.5% probability was already quite good for Happiness City's massive scale.

But with fog passages appearing, infection rates in coming days would likely rise again.

"Sir, Inspector Yang from Zone A, Yang Xingwen, wants to trade Yaksha Bull meat for some ant wolf meat and a few pounds of salted fish. What do you think..."

Leopard hurried over from the isolation area with a mischievous smile. "Inspector Yang also said the Yaksha Bull meat is particularly tender, whether eaten raw or stewed with salted fish, it's a rare delicacy. He said you'd surely understand."

"Trade it. We'll make the exchange during shift change!" Cheng Ye responded decisively.

He naturally understood. Trading meat was just an excuse; essentially it was about drawing closer to each other.

Song Hai could pack up and leave, but he and Wang Kang still had to continue duty here.

Today was only Tuesday. Zone A's Yang Xingwen had five more days of duty. During this period, Zones A and B could be mutual support, and now was the time to build good relationships.

By 4 o'clock, all inspection points had no more queuing people.

Zone C still had no second caravan coming, so Cheng Ye secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

After experiencing the frightening ordeal in the Void Mist, he truly lacked energy to handle complex inspection procedures, especially large caravans requiring vehicle-by-vehicle searches.

Song Hai had also instructed guards to temporarily maintain order while leaning against the isolation net, pulling out a half-crumpled pack of cigarettes and placing one between his lips.

The lighter clicked to life with a blue flame, smoke slowly dispersing before his eyes, mixing with the remaining mist.

Seeing Cheng Ye looking over, Song Hai raised the cigarette pack, gesturing to pass it over, "Have one, good stuff imported from Sha Province, helps refresh the mind."

Cheng Ye shook his head slightly, "I'm not used to it, you smoke."

"Good that you're not used to it." Song Hai chuckled, stuffing the pack back in his pocket. "This stuff is precious now, 55 contribution points per pack. Smoke one, lose one. Really can't afford it."

As they spoke, the inspection station's bell finally rang.

Dong, dong!

Two chimes, signaling the inspection station's temporary closure.

The half-hour rest period for duty handover had finally arrived!

Cheng Ye returned to his desk to organize duty records while Song Hai continued leaning against the isolation net, puffing smoke.

Before Wang Kang arrived, Zone C's replacement inspector entered first.

The newcomer appeared somewhat thin and short, wearing ordinary clothes indistinguishable from scavengers.

Black hoodie, fitted pants below, leather shoes, shoulders slightly hunched, face carved with weariness beyond his years.

"Inspector Cheng?"

"Inspector Dong?"

Cheng Ye immediately approached, and they shook hands.

Dong Xing. They had chatted extensively in the hospital room a few days ago. He was a first-term inspector who had recently been promoted.

However, "recently" here didn't mean Dong Xing's duty time at the inspection station was short.

From trainee to first-class, Dong Xing took nearly two years and eight months to barely complete it, among the slowest on record at the entire inspection station.

Not that Dong Xing lacked ability, but his luck was simply cursed.

Duty at the inspection station was stable enough, but once on field assignments, he'd encounter all sorts of bizarre troubles.

Good roads would suddenly collapse, vehicles would get repeated flat tires, even passing scavenger fights could somehow result in him getting grazed by stray bullets from hundreds of meters away.

Later, Ding Yishan couldn't stand it and specifically assigned an experienced third-term inspector to accompany his missions, but that time was even more cursed.

The two had simply gone to recover a signal tower in the wilderness, yet encountered migrating mutated elephant herds, causing mission failure and the third-term inspector to break a leg, requiring over half a year to heal.

Dong Xing's field duty was directly marked as a serious incident, all nine evaluation forms reset to start over.

When he again steadily obtained nine evaluation forms, under joint recommendation from Ding Yishan and Harlin, the inspection station held a meeting to vote on whether to let Dong Xing skip field duties.

All inspectors voted in favor, allowing him exceptional promotion.

After all, Dong Xing's ability was long sufficient. Luck was too mystical, and sending him out again risked bringing disaster to the inspection station.

Better to let him honestly perform inspection station duties. At least during three years of duty, he'd never encountered accidents or made errors.

"Thank you for your hard work. I just heard about this Void Mist when I arrived at the inspection station. Inspector Cheng didn't encounter danger, did you?" Dong Xing took the duty records and gently flipped through them.

He showed no airs of a first-term inspector toward a trainee, instead treating Cheng Ye like a third-term inspector.

"It was manageable. The Void Mist was quite eerie, those fog passages..."

Speaking, Cheng Ye gestured toward the corner of the isolation area. "Some ant wolves came through, nothing major happened."

Dong Xing nodded without further questions, placing the record book on the desk and saying solemnly, "I received notice from headquarters when clocking in that this mist won't dissipate for the next week or even half month, and could transform into Void Mist at any time. Zone C is adjacent to Zone B, so when real danger comes, we should look out for each other where possible."

"Don't worry."

Cheng Ye replied, "I'll be right next door in Zone B. Even when not on duty, I'll mostly be watching over Wang Kang's area. If anything happens, a shout will be heard, and we'll definitely look out for each other."

"I really envy Inspector Wang." Dong Xing smiled, and they shook hands again.

Zone C's brief day trip thus concluded.

Wang Kang from next door also came to complete shift change with Song Hai. Cheng Ye waved from the isolation net, and Wang Kang immediately showed a relieved smile.

Growth!

A few days ago, Wang Kang would have been too scared to function properly.

But now, he could not only maintain composure but also display such steadiness. Truly commendable.

Looking at Wang Kang and Song Hai's relationship, while not close, it was normal interaction between inspectors.

This suggested yesterday's injuries on Wang Kang probably weren't from conflict with Song Hai.

Could it be observers or guards?

Cheng Ye shook his head slightly. That was even more impossible. The inspection station had rules, and no one dared be so bold.

Leaving the inspection area, the Red Mountain merchant convoy's four trucks had completed disinfection and departed when the mist cleared.

The unloaded two tons of salted fish were piled in the open space in front of the garage under rain-proof awnings, with two layers of waterproof cloth underneath.

"This quantity seems more than two tons?"

"It's three tons. The extra ton is a special gift from Captain Jin." Leopard relayed, "He said if not for rushing to the inspection station, encountering this cursed mist in the wilderness, not only would cargo certainly be damaged, but who knows how many would die."

"He also said having inspectors like you at Happiness City is why caravans love coming, come often, and will return next time."

"Heh, this guy's quite sweet-tongued."

Cheng Ye shook his head slightly. This was an unexpected bonus.

However, he still planned to purchase the extra ton at 120 points per unit.

Jin Dafei had his own way of handling things, and the inspection station had its own rules.

Price fluctuations when buying goods were within acceptable range, but accepting caravan property for free would constitute bribery suspicion.

Perhaps no one would say anything now, but if this were dug up at crucial moments, it would be trouble.

"Set aside five hundred pounds to trade with Inspector Yang for bull meat."

"Yes."

How to transport all this salted fish was a problem.

Cheng Ye could only figure on having Big Dragon bring some people to the inspection station tonight to help carry it to the bus.

For storage, Uncle Dong's convenience store was currently empty and could temporarily store it there, just needed to ensure rainwater didn't flood the store.

When pedestrian street construction began later, he'd build a dedicated small warehouse for convenient future storage.

"Inspector Cheng!"

Just as he was thinking, Yang Xingwen's hearty voice came through the isolation passage, penetrating strongly enough to be heard even through the Void Mist earlier.

As a first-term inspector, Yang Xingwen naturally couldn't escape factional alignment and was also a factional enthusiast.

However, in the current fog-locked city situation, encountering such people wasn't necessarily bad.

With slight effort, he could unite Zones A, B, and C.

As for subsequent replacement inspectors, at such critical times when lives could be lost at any moment, they presumably wouldn't refuse such mutually supportive alliance.

"I brought bull meat for you!"

Yang Xingwen was tall and broad-shouldered with a resolute face, clearly powerful.

Four guards followed him, jointly carrying a large piece wrapped in waterproof cloth. From its outline and weight, it was apparently an entire cleaned Yaksha Bull.

"This much?"

"Not much at all."

Yang Xingwen waved his hand. "Three kept for station reserves, I keep one, you get one, and that remaining harmful beast gets distributed to Zone A brothers for eating and venting anger!"

Speaking of this, his tone carried some weight, "Today only my Zone A had a brother sacrifice himself. As the inspector, I failed to protect him properly. I'm ashamed."

Yaksha Bull meat was rare.

Distributing meat to inspection station guards and staff was even rarer.

A crowd had already gathered to watch the excitement. Cheng Ye's thoughts turned quickly, and he understood immediately, raising his voice:

"Inspector Yang can't say that. Everyone who comes to inspection station duty is living with their head on their belt! When brothers are sacrificed, we grieve, but what we must do more is handle follow-up compensation properly, ensuring their families receive proper settlement. We absolutely cannot let brothers shed blood and tears, chilling people's hearts!"

"Yes! I promise everyone I'll personally supervise compensation matters, not one cent less, not one item missing."

"I'll personally contribute equivalent materials as compensation, absolutely won't let sacrificed brothers bleed in vain!"

Seeing Cheng Ye so cooperative, Yang Xingwen's eyes flashed with gratitude.

As his words fell, cheers erupted around them.

At this moment, Song Hai emerged from the isolation passage, glanced at the excitement here, shook his head lightly, but didn't join the commotion.

He could only secretly sigh that young-generation inspectors were becoming increasingly skilled in methods.

Back when his generation first entered the profession, they only knew to work with their heads down, never understanding these heart-winning tactics.

Only later, gradually learning through factional struggles and tasting the benefits of unity, did they slowly learn to read people's hearts.

After the exchange, 500 kilograms of salted fish were taken by Yang Xingwen in return for an entire bull.

With so much meat, they certainly couldn't finish it all.

Cheng Ye immediately had Leopard cut off two thick bull legs, one for Zone C guards and staff for better meals, another sent to Zone B.

Void Mist was eerily unpredictable, and upcoming duty periods would certainly be more dangerous than usual.

To unite everyone and focus their efforts, the simplest direct method was using supplies to buy hearts.

Sure enough, Zone C immediately erupted in cheers, leaving Dong Xing only able to shake his head in envy.

So much so that when Cheng Ye left, even flipping through the duty manual and seeing records of confiscated smuggled goods worth 7,000 points barely stirred his emotions.

He could only shake his head and sigh that sometimes the gap between people was greater than that between people and dogs.

When the Yaksha Bull was carried to Zone B, Wang Kang hurried over to swipe open the isolation door, followed by two observers.

"Good day, Inspector Cheng. I'm Hulu, he's Jundao."

The older observer proactively introduced them, still in the old-young pairing.

Hulu handled clerical work while Jundao focused on combat.

Cheng Ye studied both men carefully, quickly confirming yesterday's injuries to Wang Kang had nothing to do with them. That heartfelt respect for inspectors couldn't be faked.

"Xiao Kang, go on duty first. I'll come over later."

"Alright." Wang Kang responded and left.

With Zone C temporarily having no caravans for inspection, everyone was idle. Two and a half tons of salted fish were quickly transferred to Zone B through staff relay transport.

Cheng Ye took out his defense communicator to call Big Dragon. Hearing about helping move things, Big Dragon agreed without hesitation.

"Mm, also find Old Zhang on this bus route, have him drive to the inspection station to wait for me."

"Got it."

By 5 PM, the rain finally lessened somewhat, becoming gentle drizzle.

However, the mist shrouding Happiness City's periphery hadn't dispersed, ultimately stabilizing at 700 meters range after various changes.

Not exactly heavy fog, but like a bone-deep parasite impossible to ignore and its accompanying threats.

After arrangements were complete, Cheng Ye sat on the steps before the isolation chamber, finally relaxing.

Come to think of it, he hadn't been idle during breaks and had been busy non-stop during duty but these gains were truly delightful!

Both bull meat and salted fish, how could he have dared imagine such good fortune during previous duties?

Yet in just one day, everything that should be there was there.

Before completely eliminating food cravings, just thinking about eating a few pounds of raw bull meat and drinking some wine after duty ended made Cheng Ye's eyes narrow with joy.

Moreover, this salted fish was extremely easy to store. If this winter's infection tide was massive in scale and required hiding out somewhere, food shortage wouldn't be too concerning!

[NEXT CHAPTER]

INS Chapter 108: Mysterious Empty Fog, A Moving Transcendent Curse! (Part Two)

"It's me!" Song Hai withdrew his hands, probably moving closer to the isolation net, his voice becoming slightly clearer. "This isn't infected entity influence. Don't scare yourself, and don't randomly shoot in panic. If I'm not mistaken, this is the kind of... empty fog that's been appearing frequently in Sha Province recently."

"Sha Province, empty fog?"

Cheng Ye was stunned, frowning in thought.

He seemed to have heard of such a thing somewhere, but couldn't recall the specifics for the moment.

His thoughts raced, memory flipping like pages in rapid search and focus.

Suddenly, his gaze sharpened, finally remembering where he had heard this news.

It had to be traced back to half a month ago, the day he had just activated the Collector and found Dragon Force Embryonic Form on Chu Yunfeng. Since he didn't know beforehand that skills would modify the body, he had been hungry all night and waited at Uncle Dong's door at dawn.

Uncle Dong had been listening to Little Sun's broadcast then, which included a mention of strange thick fog in Sha Province.

However, listening through a door at the time, he hadn't heard clearly, only managing to catch a few key words.

"Empty fog is brought by celestial anomalies. Starting from mid-year, it had never appeared before."

"Some suspect this is a kind of moving transcendent curse, but Sha Province's super shelter cities denied this theory, since no other provinces had reported similar empty fog outbreak events."

"Now it seems this theory... might not be false!"

Worthy of being a third-term veteran inspector, Song Hai took sides but still had personal capabilities.

With his explanation, Cheng Ye immediately felt reassured, and the two huddled by the isolation net for quiet discussion.

"Did they mention how to deal with this empty fog, or how to break out?"

"When I first heard news about empty fog, it was just a radio broadcast mention. Later, although I actively searched for information on this, because it only appeared in Sha Province, I didn't take it to heart."

Song Hai deliberately slowed his speech so that even through the thick fog, people could hear clearly.

"First, empty fog has a duration limit, maximum no more than two hours, minimum no less than half an hour. During this period, once a person is enveloped by the fog cavity formed by empty fog, there's no way to leave, and all electronic devices will fail. Of course, there's a theory that transcendents can overcome all methods through pure force and break out directly, but I suggest you absolutely don't try this. Just stay here!"

"Because there's another theory that fog cavities are interconnected. That is, if empty fog appears simultaneously in two places, even if they're separated by thousands of kilometers, if you leave from this side's fog cavity, you might directly cross those thousands of kilometers and appear in the other side's fog cavity."

"If the fog cavity dissipates at that time, you'll have to stay there."

So miraculous?

Cheng Ye was stunned and couldn't help asking, "Wouldn't that be equivalent to a space tunnel?"

"Not clear. This news came from someone claiming to have crossed through a fog cavity, without further verification. We don't know if he really crossed such a long distance or deliberately fabricated false information. But if we can survive this time, we must conduct deeper research on empty fog."

"Don't worry, we can survive this." Cheng Ye said in a low voice.

"You're quite optimistic, just like your father."

Song Hai sighed, then his voice became serious again. "But if the fog cavity connection theory is true, you should know what consequences that would bring."

"People could drop directly into our checkpoint, crossing thousands of kilometers to reach Happiness City?"

"That's the best-case scenario."

Song Hai's voice turned colder. "If what drops down isn't human, you should know what the result would be."

Hiss.

An angle he hadn't considered.

Cheng Ye instinctively gripped his gun tighter. If an infected entity dropped down, wouldn't that be a direct face-to-face encounter?

More terrifying, what if a mother source dropped down? If it landed at the checkpoint, that would be manageable.

But if it dropped in the buffer zone or inner city, wouldn't all of Happiness City be finished?

"Alright, I suggest you don't stand in corners, just stand in the middle of the inspection area."

"If anyone appears from the fog cavity, remember: don't respond, don't speak, don't make contact."

"If you're confident, shoot them dead directly. Don't bet your life on whether what comes out of the fog is a normal person or monster."

"If you're not confident, then..."

Song Hai didn't finish his sentence, knocking on the isolation net. "For the sake of being colleagues, three long one short to give me a heads up, thanks!"

"Don't worry, if I encounter a monster I can't handle, I'll definitely signal you."

Cheng Ye's heart stirred, suddenly understanding Song Hai's purpose in telling him all this.

Currently, everyone was trapped in the empty fog, facing the same unknown situation.

To survive, they needed to cooperate and share information.

"Good, you're a promising seedling among us Easterners. Live well, don't take foolish risks."

Song Hai's voice paused, but before leaving, he hurriedly added, "Don't warn Zone D's Wei Lecheng. That guy's a Western lackey, he deserves to die!"

Damn.

Even at a time like this, he still couldn't forget factional struggles. Really something!

Cheng Ye couldn't help but feel exasperated, and the tension he had been building up dissipated somewhat.

Returning to the center of the inspection area, he couldn't help looking up overhead, where equally thick fog had formed an almost substantial heavy layer, pressing down heavily above as if something might penetrate down at any moment.

When he didn't know the situation before, he hadn't thought about this but after Song Hai's reminder, his mind kept replaying images of giant monsters falling from overhead.

Especially those dozens-of-meters-tall giant monsters he had seen through drones before.

"I just hope no real monsters appear, or I'll have to go on a killing spree."

Gripping the pendant tightly, at this moment, he suddenly had the illusion of holding an Ultraman transformation device.

Besides the heavy sense of security, there was actually a little excitement?

Time passed minute by minute.

Without a defense communicator to check exactly how much time had passed, time seemed infinitely stretched, becoming extraordinarily long.

Cheng Ye maintained his habit of staying active, warming up whenever he felt his body getting cold.

He also wasn't foolish enough to stand in the center of the inspection area the whole time, constantly changing his standing position.

As for warning Zone D's Wei Lecheng, he had gone over once but before the empty fog appeared, Wei Lecheng had already retreated to the rear isolation area, and should not be in the inspection area now.

"Huh, the fog seems to be clearing?"

After an unknown amount of time, having just finished physical activity, Cheng Ye suddenly noticed signs of the thick fog dispersing.

Vaguely, he could already see the inspection passage ahead clearly.

Only when turning to look behind, the fog remained thick, but regardless, this was already a good omen.

He quickly walked to the isolation net between Zones B and C.

The two seemed to have telepathic connection, approaching and knocking on the isolation net almost simultaneously.

"Clearing up?"

"Same on your side?"

After these two sentences, both tactically retreated without saying more.

Danger often lurked at moments when hope first appeared.

Before the fog completely cleared, now was the most critical time to stay alert.

Fortunately, all worries seemed excessive. After showing signs of clearing, the empty fog dispersed faster and faster.

Cheng Ye counted silently. Almost every half minute, the fog thinned by one degree.

Just when the inspection passage became completely visible, a light 'zzzzt' sound suddenly came from his waist.

The defense communicator was back to normal?

He pulled out the defense communicator and looked. The screen had indeed lit up, with the time in the upper right corner showing:

2:37 PM!

From receiving the weather warning until now, about an hour and a half had passed.

But enveloped in this empty fog, Cheng Ye felt like at least three to four hours had passed, so incredibly long.

"Sir, sir!"

Urgent shouts from Snake came from behind. Cheng Ye whipped around. The fog in the isolation area had also cleared, revealing blurred human figures!

What surprised Cheng Ye was that centered on the isolation net closest to him, the guards and staff in the quarantine area had spontaneously formed a semicircle.

At the front, Red Mountain merchant convoy's four trucks were parked haphazardly, cargo panels lowered to form a simple barrier.

Everyone was squeezed together back-to-back, long guns and short cannons in their hands uniformly facing outward, pointing directly at areas where thick fog had not yet dispersed, faces showing alert wariness after recovering from shock.

"You all..." Pressing the isolation door switch, Cheng Ye moved slightly closer while maintaining alertness.

"Sir! Something was moving in the fog just now!"

Snake's voice trembled, pointing at the fog outside the semicircle. "We got scattered, many people couldn't be found, then somehow we all gathered here. Jin Dafei said putting the trucks sideways could provide some blocking..."

"What?"

Cheng Ye looked in the direction he pointed. The fog outside the semicircle remained impossibly thick, but he could vaguely see drag marks on the ground mixed with dark red stains, extending into the fog.

"Where's Jin Dafei?"

"In the truck. He said if monsters come, he'll run them over directly!"

"What's the casualty situation?"

"Currently... currently no bodies found, but two guards are missing." Snake's voice dropped lower. "Just now there were strange sounds in the fog. We heard screaming, but... no one dared go over."

"Well done. At times like this, staying put keeps you alive."

Cheng Ye nodded slightly, his voice steady. "Tell everyone to maintain formation. Don't shoot randomly. Wait until you can see clearly."

"Yes!"

Snake responded loudly, his voice gaining confidence.

With Cheng Ye as their backbone, the previously panicked crowd gradually calmed, their weapon-gripping hands steadying.

The defense line further contracted near the isolation door, but no one entered the inspection area.

Because inside was enclosed, and once monsters charged up, everyone would only be trapped to death inside.

Cheng Ye tried contacting the outside with his defense communicator. The screen could light up normally and functions had resumed operation, but signals were still blocked by the fog.

Just then, a burst of intensive gunfire suddenly shattered the silence.

Rat-a-tat, rat-a-tat-tat.

Not from Zone B, nor Zone D, but from Quarantine Zone A.

The gunfire mixed with monsters' fierce roars and frenzied howling.

Like instantly igniting a fuse, the fog that had been quiet enough to hear each other's breathing the second before suddenly became noisy.

"They're coming!"

Almost simultaneously, clear 'click-click, click-click' sounds came from Zone C's fog, like some hard claws tapping the ground. The rhythm was slow but carried step-by-step oppressive pressure, slowly approaching from multiple directions.

Infected entities wouldn't make such strange sounds.

"Mutant beasts?"

Cheng Ye roared suddenly, raising the Thunder-1 first and pulling the trigger toward where the sound was clearest.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The shotgun's thunder exploded in the fog. Crimson splashes immediately appeared in the fog ahead, followed by sharp, pained monster shrieks.

Effective!

Gunfire instantly became the main theme. Not caring where exactly the things in the fog were, everyone held the principle of striking first, pulling their triggers at the thick fog in unison.

Bullets tore through the fog with sharp whistling sounds.

Suddenly, a black shadow ignored the shooting blockade and charged out. Without thinking, Cheng Ye pulled the trigger.

Beautiful blood blossoms bloomed.

Then came the 'thud' of a heavy object hitting the ground, crashing in front of the truck and bouncing twice.

"It's an ant wolf?"

Everyone looked closely. The monster corpse that fell in front of the truck revealed its true form.

Gray-black fur covered in blood, fangs protruding, slightly larger than ordinary wolves, exactly the ant wolves at the bottom of the wasteland food chain.

Without reason, everyone's panic instantly vanished.

Especially Little Black cowering in the corner, who directly stood up and barked twice at the fog.

Damn, trying to scare who?

Thinking it was some powerful monster, turns out it's ant wolves that humans could beat barehanded?

Seeing the barely contained eagerness in everyone's eyes, Cheng Ye coughed lightly, suppressing the gradually heating restlessness, "Hold your positions. Until the fog clears, no one moves around."

After being badly frightened, there was always need for an outlet.

The shooting just now was one wave of outlet, instantly venting most of the fear and anxiety accumulated in everyone's hearts.

"Yes!"

Everyone responded in unison.

In fact, if he really told them to charge out, they definitely still wouldn't dare.

After the gunfire stopped, the mutant beasts in the fog were obviously scared, no longer daring to charge forward  but embarrassingly, as the fog gradually dispersed, the passage they could use seemed to... disappear?

Waves of agitated roars came, accompanied by scratching sounds.

When the fog dissipated a bit more, Cheng Ye squinted and saw more ant wolves revealed, a full thirty to fifty of them.

Crowded in front of the isolation chamber, huddled at the edge of corner fog, snarling at the defensive formation in front of the isolation net, saliva dripping from their fangs, yet never daring to cross the line.

"Fog cavities are real..."

Cheng Ye's heart sank slightly.

For ant wolves to enter the isolation area, they would have to first pass through his inspection area.

But now, with so many ant wolves suddenly appearing in the isolation area, one thing was already proven.

Through fog cavities formed by empty fog, one could indeed instantly travel to the other side, ignoring spatial distance.

Currently, only ant wolves from the bottom of the food chain had appeared, posing negligible threat.

But what if infected entities appeared, or mother sources, or even transcendent earth-bound spirits?

"I hope this empty fog only formed by chance. If it continues to break out around Happiness City for extended periods..."

Cheng Ye gazed at the gradually dispersing fog, only able to silently pray at this moment.

Time reached just past 3 o'clock. The fog enveloping the checkpoint seemed to receive some signal.

In just one to two minutes, it suddenly scattered like being swept by fierce winds, shrinking back to its original scale.

Though still shrouded in veil-like mist, it was now like ordinary water fog, completely unaffecting vision.

Cheng Ye instinctively looked toward neighboring Zones B and D, discovering situations remarkably similar to Zone C.

Each area had constructed defensive circles centered on isolation doors, also facing only mutant beasts without any infected entities appearing.

Even Zone A, which had first erupted in battle, was only fighting a group of larger mutant beasts, with no difficult-to-handle monsters appearing.

"Clear out the ant wolves."

"Yes."

After the fog dispersed, dozens of ant wolves huddled in corners posed almost negligible threat.

Instructing Snake to lead people in cleanup, Cheng Ye walked back to the isolation net. Song Hai also happened to walk over.

"Fog cavities are real. These mutant beasts should have come through fog cavity passages."

"Indeed, the trouble might be big." Song Hai's expression was obviously somewhat dazed. After silent contemplation, he suddenly squeezed out two words:

"Take care!!!"

?

Cheng Ye was stunned, his expression suddenly turning silent.

If he hadn't come to report for duty, according to regulations, Song Hai would need to complete a full cycle partnered with Wang Kang before leaving, unable to abandon his post due to increased danger.

But now that he had come, Song Hai could conveniently withdraw.

Third-term inspectors already had qualifications to enter the inner city. Whether hiding in the inner city or leaving the city for secret shelter points, both were much safer than staying at this checkpoint.

But leaving the checkpoint for other places, would that really be safe?

[NEXT CHAPTER]

INS Chapter 108: Mysterious Empty Fog, A Moving Transcendent Curse! (Part One)

"Snake, does Happiness City often have fog like this before?"

Cheng Ye called over Snake, pointing toward the city ruins swallowed by thick fog.

Snake was stunned for a moment, looking in the direction he pointed, his gaze freezing. "How did fog arise?"

This reaction immediately made Cheng Ye's heart skip a beat.

When inspecting Red Mountain merchant convoy, his attention had been entirely focused on the smuggled goods and Jin Dafei's reactions, paying no attention to changes in the surrounding environment.

After the inspection, he had gone back to review intelligence on Liu Kun and Lei Hu, pondering how to improve cooperation.

As for when the fog arose and enveloped the area, who would have clear perception of such slow changes in the natural environment?

It was only because he had lowered his head in thought for quite a while, then suddenly looked up, that he found it somewhat strange.

"Normally, fog only appears in winter, and it's never been this thick before."

Snake scratched his head, then called over Leopard, who was recording entry information in the dormitory.

Leopard had just run out from inside and, seeing the white expanse before him, also looked bewildered, "When did the fog start? I was inside recording forms and didn't notice anything."

After asking around, only two guards standing in the corner hesitantly spoke up, "It seemed to be around twelve o'clock? Right when the rain suddenly got heavier. We went to take shelter from the rain then and didn't pay much attention..."

Indeed, no one would notice when fog began to rise.

In this continuous drizzle, it was easy for thin rain mist to mix in, and no one could distinguish between water vapor and fog.

But after Cheng Ye's reminder, everyone gathered together to look carefully, only then belatedly realizing that this fog seemed truly too thick.

The fog had started at twelve o'clock, and only twenty minutes had passed, yet visibility was already down to about one kilometer.

"Stay alert, watch for any abnormalities!"

Cheng Ye's heart sank as he took out his defense communicator to check the weather, which showed no fog forecast.

He hoped this fog was just an ordinary natural phenomenon.

Happiness City could withstand one attack from the Stand-In Starfish, but couldn't endure a second infection tide.

If there were two dense infection tides, never mind ordinary people, even he as an inspector would want to flee, first getting out to hide somewhere and assess the situation.

After downing five heated packets of nutrient paste, the warm liquid barely dispelled some of the dampness.

Cheng Ye thought for a moment, then turned toward the garage, planning to retrieve the pendant from the charging port.

While drinking the nutrient paste, Liu Bi's words "wasteland rules aren't made for people who can solve equations" kept circling and echoing in his mind.

Indeed, danger never played by conventional rules. He couldn't use rigid thinking to deny the warning signs his intuition detected.

Since transmigrating to this wasteland, he had to acknowledge that life-and-death crises could strike in the next second.

[Collector Retrieved]

His palm flickered slightly, and the pendant materialized.

Cheng Ye pinched one corner and lifted it slightly, his gaze falling on the hollow glass core's center.

That touch of azure in the upper left was particularly pleasing. The small Horned Starfish floated slowly in the liquid like a sleeping ocean sprite.

After staring at it for a while, the inexplicable unease in his heart immediately dissipated somewhat.

Why did he say this five-minute transcendent ability was his trump card, the confidence that let him act boldly, the assurance he could survive?

In Happiness City's rules, if someone dared transgress those rules to attack him as an inspector, not caring about any consequences or aftermath, it would mean this city's carefully maintained order had already collapsed, becoming a lawless land no different from the wilderness.

Even if someone later held accountable those who violated the rules, it would still prove the rules' binding power was weak, and staying here would only lead to death.

At such times, the transcendent power brought by the Horned Starfish would be his capital to fight his way out, his confidence to survive.

And if no one dared break the rules, then he could operate freely within the rules' framework without worrying about sudden deadly threats.

Externally speaking, like this bizarre weather he encountered now, like the super-strong infected entities that could appear at any time.

Transcendence was life-saving capital, the courage that let him continue duty in Zone C.

Within five minutes, even if a mother source came, it would have to sit down for me!

"Speed up. After disinfection, let them enter the city. Don't linger at South Station."

Cheng Ye gave the instruction without passing his panic down to Red Mountain merchant convoy.

Since humans established unified information communication systems, even scattered across the wasteland, they were ultimately a community of shared destiny.

Merchant convoys traveling far and wide might have seen many strange phenomena, but in terms of information channels, they absolutely couldn't compare to a super shelter city's accumulation.

If the fog truly posed a deadly threat, Happiness City's monitoring systems couldn't possibly show no reaction.

What he needed to do now was suppress his emotions and return to the inspection area to continue duty.

After sitting back at the inspection table, Cheng Ye took several deep breaths, getting up to move around every ten minutes.

Either jogging or doing push-ups, striving to keep his body ready for combat at all times.

Continuously searching for skills, his strength was rapidly growing.

The sense of threat that had previously weighed on his heart had already faded considerably, and even sleep had become more peaceful.

But now, even with the Horned Starfish ready for transcendence at any time, he still felt empty inside, completely lacking security.

"I still need to achieve self-transcendence, still need to grasp more power!"

At this moment, he suddenly understood somewhat why Ding Yishan and Harlin rarely appeared at the checkpoint.

The heavily guarded checkpoint, with its complete iron mesh and high walls, was indeed safe when called safe.

But from another angle, with countless external personnel and unknown goods passing through daily, it was a poison den exposed to the wilderness.

If mother source infected entities mixed in, veterans like He Fei, duty station chiefs, could die just like that.

Before absolute power, as long as you weren't strong enough, there was only death!

"The scope of this celestial anomaly's influence keeps expanding. Current visibility is probably less than nine hundred meters."

After another round of activity, Cheng Ye looked up at the fog and took out his defense communicator to check the time.

1:04 PM.

During this period, he had frequently observed the activities in neighboring Zones B and D.

Song Hai's side was quite lively, with a continuous stream of residents and scavengers undergoing inspection, leaving him no time to spare.

But Cheng Ye could clearly see that Song Hai was obviously much more irritable than in the morning.

Several times, people had barely finished reporting their identity data when his stern gaze had guards directly escort them to isolation chambers, not even giving them a chance to speak.

The inspector in Zone D was even more straightforward, simply abandoning his post to hide in the rear isolation area.

But according to regulations, if anyone entered Zone D, he had to come out for inspection, with no way to avoid it.

"Everyone seems to have a tacit understanding."

No one openly questioned this sudden fog, yet all were proving it through their actions.

This fog was wrong!

Ding.

1:10 PM.

The defense communicator suddenly chimed with an alert.

Cheng Ye immediately took it out and unlocked it. His gaze swept over the text on screen, and his tense nerves finally relaxed by half.

[Happiness City Broadcasting Station - Special Dense Fog Weather Warning]

[Affected by warm, humid air mass convergence, our city will experience continuous dense fog weather starting from noon today. Current visibility has dropped below 950 meters. It is expected that dense fog will persist for the next 72 hours and may further intensify, with visibility in some areas possibly dropping below 100 meters.]

[All residents please note: Unless necessary, do not leave the buffer zone for the wilderness. Happiness City has activated emergency response plans and is communicating with Xinghuo Shelter City to conduct deep analysis of the fog's causes.]

[Please do not panic, do not spread any rumors!]

This was a warning broadcast for all Happiness City residents.

Since it could be issued, the fog's scope of influence should still be within controllable limits.

Cheng Ye breathed slightly easier. What he most feared was the leadership turning a blind eye to this abnormal fog, letting panic spread, then making a complete mess of things.

Now it seemed that since Happiness City was already taking it seriously, what he needed to do was hold his position and wait for further news.

This was also the benefit of backing a super shelter city. If he were currently in the wilderness leading a team to establish a settlement, facing such an event, everyone would probably only be able to huddle with weapons, trembling, without even a clear direction for response.

"Snake, have everyone stay alert, wake up all the guards who were on duty last night."

Cheng Ye pressed the communicator speaker, deliberately making his tone sound relaxed. "Don't let everyone get too tense either. The warning's been issued, which means this isn't anything major."

As his words fell, Cheng Ye continued browsing his defense communicator. After three to five seconds passed, he suddenly sprang up like a compressed spring.

No reply?

No sound?

He whipped around to look behind him, the color draining from his face instantly, his expression completely darkening.

At some unknown time, thick fog had already crossed the inspection area's boundary, swallowing everything behind him like a tide.

The buffer zone, the checkpoint, even the isolation area behind him, all had vanished into the white mist as if they had never existed.

"Snake?"

Cheng Ye tentatively called out again. His voice was absorbed by the fog the moment it emerged, not even an echo could be heard.

He tried pressing the button on the table to open the isolation door behind him.

Without any surprise, the button responded with loud thuds under his slaps, but the isolation door remained motionless.

"What the hell?"

Cheng Ye's heart sank. He stopped the useless button pressing and grabbed the Thunder-1 from the table with his backhand. The cold metal touch of the gun body transmitted through his palm, slightly steadying his chaotic thoughts.

Was there something wrong with this fog itself? Or was it some infected entity's ability spreading, causing mental hallucinations?

Records about infected entities from the handbook flashed through his mind, with characteristics rapidly passing by.

Cheng Ye quickly assessed the current situation.

There were quite a few infected entities that could affect human minds and produce hallucinations.

Like hydrophilic infected entities, many had this ability. For example, the Terror Shrimp that Miao Yang had mentioned could amplify human emotions and spawn various realistic illusions.

However, that was under parasitic conditions...

As soon as the thought arose, an azure panel immediately appeared in his field of vision, unaffected by the fog.

Cheng Ye quickly switched to the personal interface, his gaze scanning the status bar, which showed no indication of any parasitism.

"No parasitism, yet such large-scale influence formed..."

If this was an infected entity, it meant two possibilities.

Either the infected entity's ability had already broken conventional limits, reaching mother source level with transcendent abilities.

Or the infected entity's ability had combined with this fog to create overlapping effects.

His finger moved slightly, the pendant materialized in his palm then quickly vanished, also unaffected.

Confirming the Collector wasn't restricted, most of the unease in Cheng Ye's heart instantly dissipated.

People only experience fear when facing the unknown that hasn't yet arrived.

When truly in this state, those fears and anxieties in the heart actually dissipated completely.

"1, 2, 3..."

Now he couldn't see anything. The entire inspection area was like an island isolated by thick fog.

Cheng Ye counted silently in his heart, waiting until the number exceeded 60, with the surroundings still deathly quiet without any unusual sounds.

Only then did he slowly release his grip on the Thunder-1, instead reaching for the defense communicator at his waist.

As expected, this thing had also completely died.

The screen was pitch black, and no matter how he pressed the unlock key, there was no response.

Pressing hard on the emergency communication key on the back, his fingertip felt the key depress and spring back, but it still sank without trace, as if all power had been drained.

Facing such extreme situations, the defense communicator actually had a built-in micro gravity power generator that could at least support sending one distress message, but needless to say, it would be futile.

"If this were a hallucination, it shouldn't change so abruptly, making people instantly aware something's wrong."

"Eliminating the possibility of hallucination, then..."

Cheng Ye crouched and slowly walked toward the isolation net, wanting to see the situation in neighboring Zone B where Song Hai was located.

He had to admit, this fog was truly sinister.

The thick white fog was like solidified milk, densely layering along the isolation net's gaps, even blocking the mesh holes tightly. Forget seeing human figures clearly, even light could barely penetrate.

Cheng Ye tried poking his gun barrel through a gap, but before he could act, he saw a pair of hands reach through from the other side, nearly causing him to pull the trigger.

"Cheng Ye?"

A faint voice came from the other side, like using an old telephone, with very obvious distortion.

"Song Hai?"

[NEXT CHAPTER]