Analysis

Marsh Training Camp... Chen Chuan pondered for a moment. If it was merely students from the training camp, he did not consider it much trouble. According to what Qu Tianli had just confessed, only five people in the camp, including himself, had reached the third limit, and his level was roughly in the middle. In that case, Chen Chuan could roughly judge the caliber of these five people. If that was all, these five alone posed no significant threat. At most, the two instructors warranted some attention. From Qu Tianli's description, the level they displayed was clearly different from these students. As for the head instructor... Qu Tianli said he had never seen him and had no idea of his strength. If that person was also a Third Limit fighter, there was no need to worry excessively; within this current tier, Chen Chuan did not believe there was any fighter he couldn't handle. Assuming that person was a martial artist, there was even less reason to worry. Such a figure would not come in person. It wasn't that martial artists were above bullying the weak, but rather that Center City was deeply wary of martial artists. He suspected the city possessed certain countermeasures, making it very unlikely they could simply appear openly within its borders. However, preparations still had to be made. He said, "Mr. Chang, Ms. Gao, to guard against accidents, you two should move elsewhere for now, rent an apartment, and settle down first. Setting up the branch here can be left to others." Chang Dong was very receptive to advice and said immediately, "All right, I'll go pack up right away and leave tonight. Oh, by the way, what does Supervisor Chen intend to do with this fellow?" As he spoke, he pointed at Qu Tianli beside them. Chen Chuan replied, "I plan to take him back to the Handling Bureau and detain him for now." He had already checked with his boundary credential earlier. Qu Tianli had no identification whatsoever. Yet for this person to reach the urban district, he must have passed through Center City's Confluence passages. Whether it was a hidden passage or someone had let him through, it was best to let the Handling Bureau investigate. At the same time, he could have Andun keep a close watch, allowing them to detect any further movement in advance. Gao Yanjun stepped over at this moment and handed over a paper document. "Supervisor Chen, please take a look." Chen Chuan took it and glanced over it. The document recorded the conversation just now and detailed the entire encounter. The handwriting was neat and beautiful, and the account was concise and clear. Gao Yanjun said, "Using boundary credentials carries a risk of leaks, so I wrote it out by hand instead. Once Supervisor Chen signs it, it will also make it convenient for me to send it as an archival record for future reference." Chen Chuan nodded, took the pen she handed him, and signed his name. Then he passed it to Chang Dong, who also signed before handing it back to Gao Yanjun to put away. Chen Chuan walked forward a few steps, picked up Qu Tianli by the collar, carried him over to the Jiade car, opened the trunk, and tossed him inside. Then he walked around to the front, sat in the driver's seat, and waited. Chang Dong was evidently prepared to relocate at any moment; in less than five minutes, he had packed everything he needed. Gao Yanjun had only arrived recently and had little to pack anyway. She went into the inner room, tidied up briefly, and emerged wheeling her luggage. Both of them had their own cars. Once the Jiade car started moving, they fired up their engines and followed behind. On the road, the three maintained constant contact through their boundary credentials to guard against mishaps. After driving for a distance, Chen Chuan asked, "Mr. Chang, back then, how much of the Purist Faction's secret arts did that person learn?" Chang Dong sighed. "Back then, the Purist Faction truly treated him as a pillar to cultivate. Many secret techniques were imparted to him; even if he didn't practice them himself, they were demonstrated for him to see. As for exactly how much he learned, I can't say for sure. "After things went wrong with him, teachings were tightened up and were no longer as lenient as before. Even for talents deemed worthy of attention and key cultivation, only a small portion of secret arts would be taught, and nothing else would be rashly imparted without going through proper vetting." Chen Chuan nodded and added, "I observed earlier that the techniques Qu Tianli learned were exceptionally well-suited to him, bringing out his full personal potential. Without such proper, tailored guidance, it would have been impossible for him to reach his current level. If he were the only case, it might not mean much. But from what he implied, his instructors could always draw out each student's specialties and unlock their potential so completely. That is a remarkably formidable standard of instruction." Chang Dong considered this. "Back then, that man was a true all-around genius. Whatever he learned, he could apply across the board. If he is the one acting as instructor, such performance isn't surprising." Gao Yanjun spoke up then. "Mr. Chang, our branch needs to recruit more people." Chang Dong said, "Comrade Gao, I'll leave that to you. Ah, and as for expanding the branch's members, I'll handle that. In line with the school's intent, it's best to recruit promising young people with clean backgrounds. "If they have spiritual talents, that would be even better. Unfortunately, such people are far too rare. Usually, the moment one emerges, they're recruited or poached away. Supervisor Chen, you're an investigation supervisor at the bureau. Do you know where such people can be found?" He had only asked casually, but unexpectedly, Chen Chuan gave an answer that energized him. "A spiritual talent? I know one." "Oh? Where is this person?" Chang Dong sat up straight in his seat. Chen Chuan turned the steering wheel into a wide curve and said, "She has always wanted to live a peaceful life and has only just stepped out from the shadows. She might not necessarily agree to join the faction. I'll ask for her opinion first." Chang Dong sighed in agreement. "Quite right. Forced enthusiasm never lasts—one must respect personal wishes. Still, in this world today..." He shook his head. "For someone with such ability to stay out of the fray is no easy feat." Roughly an hour later, the three arrived in Wuding District. Chen Chuan found a secure residence for the two of them. Before parting, he reminded them to stay as cautious as possible and keep in touch at all times during this period. In truth, once they were here, they were largely safe. As an Investigation Supervisor of the Handling Bureau, he could mobilize extensive resources. The previous place had been in Hongsheng District, but here, with just a single order from him, a large contingent of combat biomorphs and security officers would arrive immediately. After bidding farewell to the two, he left and first delivered Qu Tianli to the Handling Bureau before heading back to his apartment at Wuyi. *** Inside the Lianwei Heavy Control Company building, the young woman finished communicating with the active conscious entity and stepped out from the underground chamber. Her female assistant was waiting for her and gave a slight bow. "Miss, the Elephant Gang has explicitly rejected us. Our analysis suggests the Handling Bureau intervened." The girl asked, "Understood. Anything else?" "People from the Syndicate took the initiative to contact us and sent an invitation, wishing to invite Miss over as a guest to discuss business cooperation. We believe they want to use our Confluence channels." The girl said, "Tell them to send a representative over. In this matter, they need us more." The female assistant had no objections to this. Though Lianwei Heavy Control was not a world-class megacorporation, its line of business meant it maintained substantial armed reserves. Aside from powerful fighters meticulously cultivated in-house, they could rapidly recruit large numbers of fighters through their mercenary platform without needing to defer to the Syndicate. They were fully capable of claiming relics exclusively for themselves. The female assistant stepped forward again and whispered into the girl's ear, "Our people should have arrived by now." The girl nodded slightly. *** A few days slipped by, and time moved into late September. During this period, Chen Chuan took an airship outside during the day to train, and upon returning, dealt with incoming messages and reports from various quarters, as well as checking in on the training of the students and his old friends. Returning this day, he took another look at the intelligence regarding Lianwei Heavy Control and found that, just like before, there was nothing worthy of much attention. Yet after reviewing it, he felt something was off. Lianwei Heavy Control had actually done nothing all these days; it felt a bit too well-behaved. After some thought, he had Andun project Lianwei Heavy Control's communications, personnel movements, business contacts, and other activities onto the main screen in line graphs. He noticed the curves on the chart were relatively flat. This meant Lianwei Heavy Control's daily routines were almost entirely fixed. His gaze shifted slightly. Something was wrong. Although his experience in investigation couldn't match the veterans at the bureau, he understood combat and possessed an intuition ordinary people lacked. A target under intense scrutiny and containment wouldn't completely refrain from resistance unless they were resigned to death. More likely, they had other measures hidden in the shadows. He pondered and arrived at a possibility. He said to Andun, "Andun, I need you to run an analysis. If Lianwei Heavy Control dispatched another team into Center City, where might they appear? What communication methods would they use?" After half a minute of waiting, Andun's voice sounded. "Supervisor Chen, based on hypothetical analysis, they could appear in the following districts: Shenwei District, Yinglu District, Feng'an District..." Several red dots instantly appeared on the map of Center City on the large screen ahead. "Furthermore, no unmonitored external communications from Lianwei Heavy Control Company have been detected. Therefore, they may have adopted an independent, parallel operating model in advance. "If this strategy is employed, the team's leader would require sufficient decision-making authority. Lianwei Heavy Control is very likely to dispatch a fighter above the Black Steel rank to lead this operation. "Supervisor Chen, Andun reminds you: to counter such fighters, it is recommended to deploy an enforcement captain to ensure the success rate of the mission." Chen Chuan considered this. He felt the reality was very likely as Andun had analyzed. He couldn't just keep his eyes glued to Lianwei Heavy Control Company itself; he also needed to stay vigilant and search outside. In fact, this also presented him with an opportunity. If such a team truly existed in Center City, it meant they had no legal identities, which meant eliminating them would present no problem at all. If he could wipe out this armed force, it would deal Lianwei Heavy Control a heavy blow, leaving them incapable of doing anything for a considerable time.