Arrangements

Having decided on the broad direction for dealing with Zhao Qian, the next step was to discuss the details and the concrete plan. Gao Ming took out his notebook and a stack of documents. "Cousin, as I mentioned to you last time, Zhao Qian used to take part in an escort operation once every two months on average. "The last time he went out on an assignment was last year. Back then, he was investigated due to the collapse of Molan Company and the Zhao family, which kept him away from company operations for a long time. It wasn't until recently that he seemed to break free from that negative fallout. "From here on, he will definitely take the initiative to get involved in operations. As a supervisor, he has to prove his competence to higher-ups and show those beneath him that his position remains secure. That's why he will certainly choose to join a transport run within the next two months at the latest." Chen Chuan thought it over. "If the Disposal Bureau keeps applying pressure, would that force him to stay in Center City?" Gao Ming replied, "Unless the pressure exerted by the Disposal Bureau is significant enough to make Lianwei Heavy Control decide to replace him, it will only make him all the more desperate to prove himself." Chen Chuan nodded. "So, in other words, if he still can't take part in company affairs after this, it means Lianwei Heavy Control is preparing to cut him loose?" Gao Ming pushed up his glasses and said, "Yes." Chen Chuan pondered. If that were truly the case, it would be the most ideal outcome, but they couldn't pin their hopes on it. He looked up and asked, "Gao Ming, how long do you estimate it will be before he personally takes part in the next assignment?" Gao Ming answered, "Lianwei Heavy Control conducts business evaluations and reviews every three months. It's April now. He didn't take part in the previous quarter because of the investigation. If he puts it off past June, half a year will have gone by. If he wants to shake off the negative fallout and prove himself to the company, he will definitely make a move before June." Chen Chuan nodded. "So that's why you said earlier that he might take action this month or next month." "Which means we'd better have everything ready within half a month." After a moment's thought, Chen Chuan said, "Half a month is enough." Gao Ming picked up the documents on the table, pulled out a few sheets, and pushed them toward Chen Chuan. "These are public records regarding Lianwei Heavy Control's past transport teams. "Aside from Zhao Qian, the convoy also has a head of security in charge of actual execution. His name is unknown, but his code name is 'Peregrine.' He's likely a third-limit fighter." Chen Chuan picked up the top sheet. There was a blurry photograph in the upper left corner. Because the person wore a protective helmet, there were virtually no identifiable features. Nor were there detailed data, only a brief overview and his past mission success rate. "However, based on analysis materials from other companies, Zhao Qian also seems to have an important figure beside him—suspected to also be a third-limit fighter. Nothing specific can be found on this person within Lianwei Heavy Control, suggesting he might answer only to Zhao Qian personally." Gao Ming pushed over another sheet. "These are analysis reports from Antan Company—a competitor of Lianwei Heavy Control—and several other firms. They should be reliable." Chen Chuan took it and looked over the analysis of the individual around Zhao Qian. It could essentially be confirmed that such a person existed. A direct assault on the armed team was indeed not a good idea. Even setting aside the strength of the company's team itself, three third-limit experts alone rendered any surprise raid virtually hopeless. Using the urban legend to curse and kill him was the right choice. Yet even with the ritual covenant modified, this urban legend required the target to initiate an attack on him before the subsequent steps could be carried out. Moreover, it was best if the target struck with a certain degree of hostility. In other words, he had to make Zhao Qian attack him once. But how to achieve that was a problem. It seemed the exact method would need to be discussed with Wu Bei. Since it was already past midnight, and Gao Ming did not possess the constitution of a fighter, Chen Chuan did not linger. After taking his leave and stepping outside, he contacted Wu Bei directly through his boundary credential. For a resonator, this hour happened to be the time of peak activity. Once the call connected, he asked, "Brother Wu, is our conversation secure right now?" Wu Bei's confident voice came through: "Don't worry, Brother Chen. With the resonance nest, I have ample capability to jam information transmissions. Even if someone's listening in, I can detect it in advance." Chen Chuan said, "Good. Do you remember how Youxing targeted me last time?" "Of course! How could I forget? His skills were seriously impressive." Chen Chuan asked, "If I need the same method to target someone—a middle manager at a company—can you do it?" Hearing this, Wu Bei's breathing grew noticeably heavier, tense yet excited. He thought it over and said, "Technically speaking, no problem at all. But it depends on the location. If the target is inside a company facility protected by a biological field, it will be very difficult to pull off." "So it is feasible outside the company?" Wu Bei said, "Right. If the target is a middle manager, he'll likely have resonators providing technical support around the clock, but it's impossible to carry a resonance nest while traveling. In that case, I have a very good chance." Chen Chuan turned the thought over. That wouldn't be an issue, because once the plan was put into motion, the Disposal Bureau would definitely issue a mandatory summons to Zhao Qian. That would be the window of opportunity. He said, "The target will leave the company when the time comes." Wu Bei said, "If that's the case, then only one problem remains. Brother Chen, I know Youxing's plan was to exploit biological fields and abnormal rules; the initial technical setup was just to provoke the target into counterattacking and lay the groundwork for what followed. "But what mimetic form should I use to force the target to retaliate or strike first? I can't use your appearance, Brother Chen, or you'd be exposed. Picking one at random won't work either. Does the target have someone or something he deeply fears?" Chen Chuan considered it carefully and said, "I have someone in mind, but it will take a little time. Brother Wu, I'll contact you later." *** Shenwei District, underground fighting arena. Lu Fang was instructing the youths practicing punches in the ring. Unlike the two senior disciples, he did not beat or scold the boys. Whenever someone made a mistake, he stepped forward to offer patient, detailed guidance. The short-haired young man leaned against the wall watching. After a long while, the bell rang, signaling the end of the session. The youths cheered and ran off, and Lu Fang walked back over. The short-haired young man tossed him a bottle of water. "Junior Lu, you don't need to be so polite to them. In a place like Center City, your good temper will only make people think you're a pushover. Didn't you see? Those little brats aren't afraid of you at all." Lu Fang unscrewed the cap, took a sip, and said, "Senior, I don't need them to fear me. As long as they learn the skills, that's enough." The short-haired young man said, "Learn? You're teaching them the way they teach students at Wuyi Academy. They don't need that. They're learning this so they can go out and fight others, so they can earn a bite to eat. What they need is to grab a weapon, go out and brawl, and fight for survival resources just like adults." Lu Fang shook his head, though he didn't say his senior was wrong. Ever since that incident with Chen Chuan, he had learned a great deal. He wasn't in his senior's shoes, nor had he experienced what the other man had gone through, so he had no right to preach to anyone. Besides, when he had been at his lowest, it was these two seniors who had taken him in and helped him. Seeing him remain silent, the short-haired young man dropped the subject and asked instead, "Junior Lu, that junior of yours—the one you went to see the other day—did he say he'd help you sort things out?" Lu Fang said, "Junior Chen said he would help me." "Help you? It's been so many days, and there hasn't been a peep?" The short-haired young man shook his head. "Don't get me wrong, but once someone gets into the Main Academy, it doesn't matter what they used to be like—they're not in the same league as us anymore. "Who's around him now? All those original recommended students. Now that he's there, he's long since mingled in with that crowd. "I've seen plenty of people like that. Hah, once they reach Center City and make something of themselves, they can't wait to cut all ties with everyone they used to know. To be honest, I was surprised you even managed to see him." Lu Fang said, "I don't know about other people, but Junior Chen isn't like that." "Then what is he like? Actually, I'm quite curious about him. How did he get into the Wuyi Main Academy in the first place? It's really rare for someone who wasn't a recommended student." Instead of answering directly, Lu Fang walked over to the side and brought back a newspaper from his bag. "This is a newspaper I kept. You can take a look, Senior Yu." "What's this?" Senior Yu took it curiously. After reading for a moment, his jaw dropped. "Th-this... this is a joke, right?" The newspaper detailed a thorough report of Chen Chuan single-handedly slaying thirty-seven members of the Mutual Aid Society. "No, that was Junior Chen's actual record back then," Lu Fang said calmly. "And that doesn't even count the security teams guarding those Mutual Aid Society members." "Wait." Senior Yu said skeptically, "Has the Mutual Aid Society become that useless? Was this Junior Chen a second-year student? This newspaper can't be fake, can it?" Lu Fang replied placidly, "If you return to Yangzhi, Senior, you'll know whether what I said is true." "No way I'm going back." Senior Yu shook his head. "It wasn't easy for me to gain a foothold in Center City. Why would I go back? "What's so good about Yangzhi? Isolated and remote, just a forgotten corner of the world. Center City is where the whole world is. Everything you can't find out there, you can find right here. "Once we get our status, we can legitimately open our own fighting arena, or join a major corporation as a head of security or consultant. When we've built up some capital, we'll go all out to push for the third limit. If we get the chance to reach the third limit, our lives will change completely." Lu Fang didn't think his senior's words were sheer fantasy. After all, he had sparred with both of his senior brothers; their combat skills were formidable, and neither of them was even twenty-five yet. What they lacked were various fighting cultivation resources. If they worked hard, there was still some hope. Senior Yu looked at the newspaper again, finding it harder and harder to believe the more he looked. What mattered wasn't just that Chen Chuan had killed so many Mutual Aid Society members—it was that he had walked away completely unscathed afterward! That bastard definitely had someone backing him, and someone far from ordinary at that. He looked at Lu Fang. "Junior, now I'm starting to believe what you said."