Chen Chuan glanced at the identification badge. He had encountered people from this department back in Yangzhi City, and it was agents from this very committee who had previously intervened in Chen Bitong's affair.
From what he understood, it was a department with vast powers of supervision and investigation, particularly stubborn when it came to cases passing through its own hands.
He said candidly, "My apologies, but I don't have the time right now, nor can I answer your questions."
The committee agent replied coldly, "I must remind you, Captain Chen, that whenever the Operations Committee investigates a matter concerning national security, all personnel involved are required to cooperate unconditionally."
Chen Chuan said, "I was assigned by the Defense Department to resolve this incident, and I have already submitted all relevant reports to them. Until the Defense Department grants permission, I will not disclose specific details at will. If the two of you truly wish to know, you may retrieve the report from them—it contains everything you seek. As for questioning me later, I am happy to cooperate, provided the Defense Department authorizes it."
The other committee member glared at him, his tone unkind. "We will pull the report, but there are certain matters we need to hear from you directly, Captain Chen. Refusing our investigation—is there something you're trying to hide?"
Chen Chuan lightly tapped his finger against the scabbard, his tone placid. "Then all I can say is no comment."
The agent's eyelid twitched as his gaze fell upon the long saber in Chen Chuan's hand. Just as he tried to speak again, a sharp bark rang out from a distance:
"Where did you two come from?"
A squad of patrolling emergency response soldiers jogged over, leveling their rifles at the two committee agents. The pair immediately held up their badges for display.
"We are with the Special Operations Committee."
The soldiers remained entirely unmoved, their barrels staying dead on target. Special Operations Committee? Never heard of it.
The squad captain leading them didn't spare the badge so much as a glance. He said brusquely, "We don't know any Operations Committee. We are on active military duty, and unauthorized personnel are forbidden to interfere. Clear out immediately, or we have the right to shoot to kill."
The committee agents' expressions shifted. While the Operations Committee wielded immense intimidation in certain administrative circles, few down in the ranks had ever heard of them. These rank-and-file soldiers genuinely might gun them down on the spot.
Right then, one of the agents' boundary credentials chimed. A somber voice spoke from within: "Return first."
A sigh of relief escaped him. "Yes, sir."
Turning to his companion, he said, "Let's go." Before leaving, they cast another look at Chen Chuan. "Captain Chen, you..."
"Cut the chatter!" A soldier shoved him forward, causing him to stumble.
Indignation flared inside him, but at the sight of a gun barrel practically pressed against his face, he clamped his mouth shut. Escorted under the soldiers' aimed weapons, the pair was driven from the site.
The squad captain turned back to Chen Chuan, his face breaking into a broad smile. "Captain Chen, you all right?"
"I'm fine. Thank you," Chen Chuan replied.
"Hey, don't mention it! Rest up, Captain Chen. No one else is going to bother you." The captain barked at the soldiers behind him, "Did you all hear that? Keep your eyes peeled!"
"Sir!" the soldiers roared in unison.
Word had already spread that this was the very man who had struck down the active conscious entity—the monster capable of knocking men unconscious or killing them at a whim. Without him, none of them would be safe right now; their families might already be collecting bereavement payouts.
As for some committee, they had never heard of it. Since their captain was brazen enough to confront them, the men naturally had nothing to fear.
Chen Chuan climbed back into the vehicle. It suddenly occurred to him that if the Operations Committee had tracked him down, they might very well seek out the members of his squad too.
Borrowing the vehicle's comm channel, he contacted his squad members to ask how things were going on their end.
Yuan Qiuyuan answered, reporting that everything was normal and without complications. They were still managing cleanup and were currently on their way to a suspected fixed fissure.
Chen Chuan nodded upon hearing this and cautioned them to stay wary of the Operations Committee. If any issues arose, they should defer everything directly to the Defense Department rather than putting themselves on the front line.
Yuan Qiuyuan expressed his understanding and told him not to worry.
After passing along his instructions, Chen Chuan hung up. He reflected for a moment. Regarding Chen Bitong, he had already drafted a report and submitted it to the Defense Department right after emerging from the fissure.
That matter was far bigger than any single individual, tangling with various interests. How it would ultimately be classified would likely depend on what the higher-ups decided after their deliberations.
Setting his thoughts aside, he redirected his focus into the world across the rift, resuming his absorption of the pure substance drifting through. From then on, no one came to disturb him.
Minutes and hours trickled by. With the Ferris Wheel Company—the greatest hazard—eliminated, emergency response units were freed up in abundance, allowing the government departments to conduct operations smoothly over the next dozen hours.
Fumu's split cycles persisted through fifteen waves before finally coming to a complete halt around two in the afternoon. Nearly all subsequent split sub-bodies were either successfully retrieved or destroyed.
Simultaneously, the ubiquitous fissures vanished one by one. The swarms of insects that had darkened the sky seemed stripped of all vitality, withering into torpor.
Inside the vehicle, Chen Chuan distinctly felt an added barrier in his connection with the world beyond, making it far harder to seize pure substance.
He instantly realized: the Heavenly Gate must have closed.
Truth be told, had he not attained spiritual perception by now, he likely wouldn't have been able to sense a trace of the other side at all.
Yet his spirit had reached such heights and penetrated so deeply into the opposite realm that, theoretically, as long as the breach in the Ring of the World remained unsealed, he could still absorb pure substance.
He simply had no way of knowing how long this window would last. Governments and major corporations had probably detected the anomaly and begun taking action.
Pushing the vehicle door open, he stepped out and looked up from the plaza. Across the boundless expanse of sky, the torn chasm was slowly knitting shut. The blood-red glow was fading away, and the dome of the heavens was returning to a pristine, clear azure. Everything seemed to be settling back toward normalcy.
His boundary credential chimed with an alert. Seeing it was Counselor Pei, he accepted the call. The man's voice sounded noticeably relaxed and upbeat.
"Captain Chen, the Fumu split cycle has finally passed safely. The Defense Department extends its gratitude for your efforts. Take a good rest for now. I may need to reach out in a few days, and we can discuss the specifics then."
"Understood," Chen Chuan replied.
Though the operation had lasted only two days, it had felt excruciatingly long. Physically, he felt no exhaustion whatsoever, but deep down, all he wanted was to go home, take a hot bath, drink a cup of warm tea, and sleep.
There were still a few details to settle first, however.
He tapped his boundary credential and found the field comms had yet to fully recover. He returned to the armored vehicle and used its equipment to reach Yuan Qiuyuan and the others.
After a brief exchange, he learned their assignment was finished and they were packing up. He said, "Since everything is clear, go back and rest up. You can stay at my residence for now, and I'll treat everyone to a meal another day."
"Understood, Captain," Yuan Qiuyuan said.
Chen Chuan added, "By the way, is Mr. Sancheng with you?" He had heard that Sancheng Huang had been operating alongside them and had helped out considerably.
"Captain, Mr. Sancheng is here with us."
"Then invite him along as well."
A brief pause followed before Yuan Qiuyuan's voice returned. "Mr. Sancheng says he is deeply grateful for the invitation, Captain, and promises he'll definitely be there."
Chen Chuan gave an affirmative hum.
Yuan Qiuyuan continued, "Oh, right, Captain—that captured sword you left with us is safe in my care. I'll bring it back to you shortly. And the military banner has already been sent to the Defense Department per your instructions."
Chen Chuan nodded. "Good. That's all for now."
After ending the call, an emergency response soldier walked over, snapped a salute, and said, "Captain Chen, orders came down from above to withdraw. Are you headed anywhere? Squad command instructed me to see you back."
"Thank you," Chen Chuan replied. "Please take me back to Wuyi Academy, then."
At the very same time, atop Mount Qingding, Chu An had also concluded his absorption. He had barely been able to draw in much pure substance to begin with, spending most of his time simply assimilating what he had taken.
Now that the Heavenly Gate had closed, he could no longer sense even a sliver of it.
Even so, the meager amount he had drawn felt like an immense harvest.
The old man had kept his gaze fixed on the changes above. Seeing the fissure seal shut entirely, he knew the Fumu split cycle was over. "Having gained these extra benefits, you should be able to keep pace with your brother and sister now."
Though Chu An had profited, he still felt an insatiable yearning. "Master, the pure substance drifting out there..."
The old man shook his head. "Put it out of your mind. The corporations and governments will never allow it to drift freely outside. It's time for us to leave too. Even simply gathering this leaked pure substance is strictly forbidden. We must depart before the Central City catches on."
Once the group hastily packed their belongings and left, the final stick of long incense on the altar had yet to burn out completely. Atop the dais, the lips of the statue of the Strange God—previously sitting in motionless stillness—seemed to faintly curl at the corner.
Along the coastline outside Jiyang District, Xue Shou stood locked in confrontation with the old imperial house's General of State Conquest.
Yet as the fissures in the sky gradually melded shut, the rift behind the general grew unstable, and a deep, low horn echoed from within.
Hearing the call, the general reined his horse around, stepping stride by stride back into the fissure.
Xue Shou stood motionless, watching him depart. As the general crossed into the rift, the tens of thousands of mounted troops turned back with him, their silhouettes blurring as they moved farther away. Moments later, the entire seam flickered violently before vanishing into nothingness.
On the shore before him, nothing remained except the sea, endlessly washing across the sand.
Xue Shou stood with hands in his pockets for a short while. Smoothing back his hair, he strode across the shallows, his figure fading with every step he took. As a sea breeze drifted past, he vanished from sight.
Chapter 594