The answer was: too late!
Far too late!
At this moment, hearing those words, everyone was already moved to bitter tears. The feast had gone stone cold two hours ago, the patient had already expired before you remembered to call the doctor, and now that you finally arrived, it was all over!
Where the hell were you earlier?!
Yet Ellis had his own grievances to air!
After receiving the message, he hadn’t dithered in the slightest, rushing as fast as he could toward Dadu to provide support.
Besides, leyline teleportation needed time to warm up! It wasn’t like the Star Core Association would provide services for such military operations, and even if they did, it would have been useless—the Empire had been the first to ban the teleportation functions in the garrison base!
This wasn’t the Celestial Rail, where you could board a train and arrive anywhere in the mortal world within minutes. For a colossal entity so tightly linked to the entire Empire like Ellis, being able to force his way over in such a rush was already an accomplishment!
He hadn’t even had time to put on his shoes. He had taken the spatial turbulence—strong enough to crush a Celestial-Human—head-on during the transit, squeezing his way through the conduit just to arrive in the midst of crisis and take every blow to the face, buying vital time for the Empire. Who could have imagined that this bunch of useless wretches would disappoint him so utterly?!
*"Mere Pang Pei is nothing, an old dotard offering his head on a platter."*
*"Extinction Heavenly Balance? Heh, nothing more than the Federation's group-order cheap takeout!"*
*"Even bearing the Imperial garrison base on my back while lifting the power of the Heavenly Overseer with one hand, I, Ellis, remain invincible under heaven!"*
*"Holy shit, what do you mean the fusion bomb is lost?"*
In just a few short minutes, even Ellis was left utterly bewildered, mentally shattered, staring agape at everyone in disbelief.
"The... fusion bomb?"
He gestured with his hands into the shape of a mushroom cloud. "The very one left sitting in the base for over eighty years, completely unused—that fusion bomb?"
Passarella nodded with a hollow, dead look in his eyes.
At that, Ellis smiled.
He turned on his heel and walked away, as if having reached an absolute resolution.
Without even pausing for a sip of water, he immediately shouldered his airship and left, without the slightest hesitation.
Don't even come near me!
Bear your own damn cross. It was true that I risk life and limb for the Empire, but you bastards can't treat me like an idiot. Leave. I must leave, the sooner the better.
This mess was uncanny and absurd to an unprecedented degree. If anything slipped up next, it wouldn't just mean Passarella and his flunkies were dead meat—it would splatter Ellis with their blood too. Unlucky as hell!
What kind of godforsaken nonsense was this?!
Having survived through three dynasties and protected three emperors over more than a century, weathering countless storms, the Earthward Bulwark had already scented the gathering tempest.
No, rather, it was the omen of an apocalyptic mudslide.
At this exact juncture?
A lethal thing like a fusion bomb could actually be lost?
How deep did the waters run behind this? What catastrophic fallout would it cause? What kind of chain reaction would it spark? He hardly dared to imagine!
I'm out, I'm out. Pretend I was never here!
He left ten minutes ago. Dadu went completely insane ten minutes later.
When the Senate received Passarella's report half an hour later, the entire Empire went stark raving mad!
From tribunes to judges, from high priests to the supreme commander in the Seven Star Building, all the way to the Prime Minister, every senator's face was plastered with question marks. Phone calls rained down like a tempestuous hurricane, every caller's opening line a hysterical shriek: "Passarella, you old dog, what the hell are you playing at?!"
"Just because the previous emperor didn't choose you, did you have to harbor a grudge for all these years?!"
"Confess! Are you trying to establish a New Empire?!"
...
Passarella silently gazed at the old crooked-neck tree before him, hesitating to speak, unable to utter a single word.
What was left to say?
No matter how he defended himself, primary responsibility was inescapable.
Setting aside whether disciplinary action was even meaningful, if the missing fusion bomb sparked some catastrophic incident with dire consequences, killing him wouldn't begin to atone for it.
In less than half an hour, the Senate had already unanimously passed a handling resolution: given the vital nature of Passarella's position, his punishment was temporarily shelved. After interrogation confirmed he was not a suspect in the crime, he was ordered to continue fulfilling his duties until the incident concluded, bringing the affair to a close.
It seemed painless on the surface, but he was already on death's door.
His feudal territorial fief as a frontier duke had been revoked, leaving him with only the empty honorary title of court advisor. Simultaneously, he was completely stripped of power within the base.
As for the actual authority, it was assumed by Doledonville, the director-general of Mid-Continent operations for the Imperial Secrecy Bureau.
Anyone with eyes could see that they were preparing to sacrifice Passarella to the heavens and make him take the fall at any moment.
At the same time—
The Prime Minister in Dadu signed the authorization, and the Senate endorsed it, mobilizing the Empire's resources and issuing notices to the Tacheng garrison base and all affiliated members.
Before the situation deteriorated to the worst possible outcome, spare no expense and spare no cost—bring back the missing fusion bomb!
"Investigate. Go on, investigate—start with the base."
That afternoon, seventy-one minutes after the assault on the base, Doledonville, who had assumed all command, settled into Passarella’s genuine leather seat. He cast a glance at the crestfallen Passarella beside him. Without any anger or gloom, he offered an unusually genial, faint smile to everyone present.
"We have to look into it after all. Who knows, we might just turn something up."
Meanwhile, the temporary special investigation team had long since deployed.
Over eighty Aethers, twenty Mirrors, and sixteen Heart Pivots had arrived at the base under emergency muster, spearheaded by an Aether Celestial-Human from the Imperial Observatory.
A swarm of Celestial Chosen fanned out like bees from a hive, and a continuous stream of clues immediately poured in.
In less than ten minutes, massive volumes of reports had been compiled in the Celestial-Human's hands.
Mere paperwork to check omissions and fill gaps was child's play for an Aether. Moreover, with a Celestial-Human's mastery of "Read," "Observe," and "Interpret," no matter how scattered the phenomenon fragments were, they could all be categorized and integrated. However heavy the contamination, it could not conceal every trail.
Even the faintest spider's thread or horse's track was enough to trace the culprit.
"A Wolf?"
Doledonville nodded. "I see."
Aside from the occult contamination of a Great Sin, the most prevalent residue left at the scene was the desperately concealed aura of a Wolf.
Inside the base, through personnel cross-referencing, interrogations, and inspections, they first pinpointed a foreign mercenary listed among the missing records.
Soon, his corpse was found in a latrine.
Headless.
The corpse, sheared clean in an instant by sharp claws, had already begun to decay. Backtracking via Aether records and his dog tags confirmed his identity: Smith, a temporary cannon-fodder mercenary from the Third Foreign Legion.
A truly unlucky bastard.
Running into a Wolf just by visiting the toilet.
He had likely stumbled right onto the infiltrator's disguise, getting his head lopped off and devoured on the spot. A sixth-class subject like this fell entirely outside the protection of the base's Law of Tianyuan; dying was dying for nothing.
Shortly after, the pilot of the Vengeance bomber was also identified: Erika, former lieutenant colonel of the base's flight squadron.
Yet viewing the situation now, she had likely died in the line of duty long ago.
A Wolf had worn her human skin, mingling inside the base, lurking for who knew how long.
Afterward, the assaulted commissioners were located. Once the warden of the classified armory was resuscitated, cross-referencing the memories and statements of both sides reconstructed the entire incident.
"It was almost certainly a premeditated attack,"
the Aether Celestial-Human supervising the entire process concluded. "The enemy first forced the base into a state of emergency by attacking the phlogiston refinery, while simultaneously sabotaging fighter jets to leave the base in panicked paranoia, seeing ghosts in every shadow.
"During this phase, Passarella's inaction caused matters to further deteriorate.
"Before the situation cleared, the enemy used the crisis of the Vengeance to draw everyone's attention. Meanwhile, two other accomplices disguised themselves as commissioners, using special clearance to enter the storage vault, thereby securing their prize while using the chaos on site to create conditions for their retreat."
The Aether Celestial-Human from the observatory took off his glasses and sighed softly. "A petty trick of creating a diversion. Simple, yet effective. They must have plotted this day for a long time.
"Behind them, there should also be the involvement of the Profound and Insects, among others."
"Insects?"
Doledonville’s expression turned grim. "That entity—Shadow Sun—hasn't it already been sealed?"
"A seal can only ever be temporary. It was no easy feat for the Celestial Rail to sacrifice itself to buy two hundred years of time. A bit of leakage is only natural, not to mention those bugs constantly burrowing holes. That is precisely why the phase lock lost control. The enemy used at least two—no, three or more Heaven's Works to bore a robber's tunnel, carting off the fusion bomb while jamming our tracking and reading."
Doledonville remained silent for a long time. Amidst that genial smile surfaced an irrepressible malice and chill. "Can you confirm it was a Wolf?"
"I dare not claim one hundred percent, but over ninety percent."
The Aether did not provide an absolute verdict, instead offering an image captured from surveillance footage: an ascetic monk treading barefoot through the wilderness.
It was footage taken from high altitude by a drone.
Captured at the exact time the base was attacked!
Incredibly, even with high-altitude cameras capable of capturing every single hair of a creature on the ground with pristine clarity, they could not capture his face.
Along the entire route, all cameras could only capture a blurred human silhouette.
His true form remained impossible to glimpse.
Doledonville's expression grew increasingly solemn.
"Who is this?"
"The comparison of spiritus samples and phenomenon remnants has been completed,"
the Aether Celestial-Human replied resolutely. "If my eyes do not deceive me, this should be the former Hierophant of the White King back when the White Nation still existed—the confidant and subordinate of the White King: Rotscale Shehri."
"..."
Doledonville said nothing more. In that long, agonizing silence, he stared down at the photograph in his hand. After a long while, he couldn't help letting out a soft chuckle.
In a state of utter speechlessness and fury, he could no longer hold back a sneer of derision.
Who knew what he was truly mocking?
"Truly extraordinary,"
he murmured from the bottom of his heart. "Mere rats unable to bear the light, actually mingling inside the heartland of Tianyuan. Wolves with wild ambition indeed, truly remarkable."
In the dead silence of the vast conference room, no one dared to make a sound.
Only this Celestial-Human, who had discarded even his fake smile, gave a light sigh and lifted his head, inquiring curiously, "The White Nation Restoration Front? Shehri? A bunch of rabble, a bunch of skulking terrorists—and now they swagger under the very nose of the Imperial garrison base, clad in Imperial uniforms, marching right into the Imperial armory, making off with the Empire's fusion bomb... while our dutiful Imperial soldiers actually salute them?
"Truly, a strange and wondrous sight."
He paused, scrutinizing each of those pale, bloodless faces, and asked in earnest: "Can any of you tell me just what mistake the Empire made to be looked down upon so thoroughly?
"Just what did you worms do to grant them so many golden opportunities?"
Silence. Still dead silence.
Only the sound of terrified sweat slowly dripping from foreheads, tapping crisply against the tabletop.
Outside, an even crisper sound rang out.
Gunshots.
***
Like the crackle of firecrackers, on the shooting range, officer after officer deemed guilty of dereliction of duty—those grandees who had once run rampant and swollen their bellies with graft across the Mid-Continent—were greeted by dark gun muzzles.
Triggers pulled.
And then, they were reduced to one corpse after another.
"Investigate, gentlemen. Keep investigating."
Doledonville was expressionless. Across his gaunt face, a cold gleam appeared in his gray eyes. "You have brought shame upon the Empire.
"Once dignity is lost, it must be reclaimed at ten, a hundred times the cost.
"So, hurry up and investigate.
"I don't care what methods you use, nor do I care what means you employ—if you cannot wash clean the disgrace you have brought with the blood of that rabble, then using your own blood will do just as well."
On the shooting range, blood soaked into the rich soil, silently extending and spreading.
Countless threads, furious and violent.
Like hands once again reaching out toward the Mid-Continent.
The gunfire on the range continued without cease, stretching from afternoon into the dead of night.
From armaments to warehouse management, from defense to the military police, over twenty high-ranking base officials were convicted of dereliction of duty. All implicated individuals were shoved into the base's cells, crowding them to absolute capacity.
And the main gates of the base never closed again.
A heavy flow of traffic surged out in an endless stream.
One loaded armored vehicle after another rolled toward every street and alley, an unbroken procession. Countless fully armed soldiers broke into the urban districts, commencing a brutal search.
At Doledonville's request, the Senate in Dadu passed a provisional emergency administrative decree, granting everyone authorization for unannounced fire and the termination of dangerous targets, while also giving the Secrecy Bureau plenary authority over the affair.
Two hours later, all communications across Tacheng and the surrounding thousands of li were severed. Checkpoints were established along every major transit route, and then, like rabid hounds released from their cages, the search began!
All surveillance cameras were switched on. Swarms of drones ascended into the sky, rising and falling like clouds.
Aether Celestial Chosen, once exceptionally rare, were poured out like water, pursuing any insignificant clue under specialized guard.
The entirety of Tacheng was placed under military martial law. All surveillance and video backups were transported back to the military district by the Imperial army, right down to the physical servers.
The police stations were commandeered by personnel dispatched from the Empire, and all prior cases were reexamined by dedicated investigators.
Meanwhile, every single person who had ever pried into Imperial intelligence or the garrison base's inner workings was hauled into the base for questioning without exception, forced to make a multiple-choice decision: did they want to eat lead at the shooting range, or plant cauliflower in a penal labor camp?
From its initial boiling uproar, the panic-stricken Tacheng fell completely silent in the blink of an eye. Under the cold, looming gaze of airships, not the slightest sign of riot or chaos could be found.
Only between the rough revs of engines and screeching brakes did the knocking on doors resound continuously. In those once-opulent hotels, luxury apartments, and villas, anyone who had come within twenty kilometers of the Imperial garrison base or possessed an ambiguous background was packed onto buses and hauled away wholesale.
As for the numerous grey and black industries, there was even less need to mention them.
People couldn't even speak...
What could they say? These Imperials had gone stark raving mad. Never mind resisting—if you so much as gave them a slight shove, they would shoot you on the spot. If you dared to run, you’d be obliterated directly by artillery.
They'd blow your entire home base straight into the sky.
Where is the Wilderness Market?!
Get the Wilderness Market to handle this!
Facing the deluge of tearful complaints and pleas coming through the phone, Shaban, the Dragon Head of Tacheng, paid them no heed, offering only a couple of perfunctory replies before hanging up. Then, he looked at the Imperial Celestial-Human seated opposite his desk.
"Investigate, go right ahead. An innocent conscience fears no accusation,"
he said with a smile. "Since the Chief has spoken, then search thoroughly, take your time. We will cooperate unconditionally—make sure you don't miss anything, gentlemen."
The Wilderness Market had declared: if they want to search, let them.
Instantly, countless people began to panic.
Search your mother's ass!!!
Is this the kind of thing you can just let people casually search?! Everyone's illicit dealings in arms, human trafficking, organ trade, contraband drugs, and unspeakable dirty laundry—once exposed, you might walk away unscathed, but death is the only thing waiting for the rest of us!
Where's the Federation?
They're acting so arrogantly, why hasn't the Federation spoken up?!
The Federation was still in a daze.
Watching the Empire run around searching everywhere like a mad dog, they had initially scoffed with cold derision: *Look at them panic, the Empire is losing its mind, hahahaha! Don't be in such a hurry—if something is bothering you, why don't you share it so we can all have a listen?*
*You won't say?*
*Then I'm definitely going to laugh at you!*
Regrettably, before they even had the chance to laugh.
That very evening, after the proxies of both sides held an emergency closed-door meeting in an unofficial setting, the Federation panicked too.
Wait, brother, are you an idiot?!
A fusion bomb that massive, and you're telling me you lost it?!
Are you pulling my leg?! Haha, very funny. Alright, stop joking, let's talk seriously—this joke is getting a bit too terrifying. It's a joke, right?!
Fan Yun cursed in his office for two and a half hours straight, from the Empire's dead emperor to Passarella, right down to the stray dog in front of the base gates, blasting them with a torrent of venom.
Then, following the senators of Dadu, the Saints of Midtown began to sweat as well.
You gutter-born bastards of the Empire have truly brought disaster upon us all!
You had to realize: all along, the Federation had been the prime target for White Nation terrorist attacks!
Imagine it: a fusion bomb suddenly appearing in Midtown...
They hardly dared to conceive the thought.
Just thinking about it drove the military command mad!
And then, the Security Bureau went mad as well!
When everyone started going mad,
some people had already begun dying.
Inside the once-glittering, prosperous urban districts, dead silence now reigned, broken only by endless gunshots and wailing screams.
Those grandees who had once stood high above... well, they still stood high above, higher even, step by step climbing to the highest peaks.
And then, like dumplings dropping into a pot, they leapt.
*Splat!*
Even more people clung to wishful thinking. Under orders, directives, intimidation, and outright coercion, they allowed investigators from the Empire and Federation to turn their homes inside out. Resigned to taking the fall alone so their families might survive, they boarded the buses bound for the interrogation centers.
Tears poured like rain.
Bitter, oh so bitter...
Wasn't becoming a dog supposed to guarantee our survival? Why are you killing even the dogs?!
Inside bus after bus, former bitter enemies who had once fought to the death sat gazing at each other in speechless silence, weeping in one another's arms.
How bitter! Far too bitter!
How did this godforsaken life become so bitter?!
Tears, laments, denunciations, and roars echoed throughout the dead of night, and in that exact instant, day broke.
In the most literal sense, it turned bright.
A magnificent, boundless celestial light descended out of the gloom, blanketing the entirety of Tacheng.
Disgusted by the agonizingly sluggish pace of interrogating suspects one by one, the Empire could no longer tolerate the delay. Amidst the cascading waterfall of celestial light, a colossal eye, invisible to ordinary mortals, snapped open.
Searching heaven above and the yellow springs below, looking down upon all!
Tangible as physical substance, it swept inch by inch across Tacheng,
sparing not a single corner.
Scouring heaven and raking the earth.
Atop the unfinished building of Haian Industry, Ji Jue sat in a beach chair, gazing at this majestic spectacle. Unable to hold back any longer, he chuckled softly and applauded in admiration.
"Great is Tianyuan, mighty is Tianyuan!"
Chapter 602