Directive

Chen Chuan looked up. The giant bird was not flying especially high, as the trailing cable was only so long. However, its wingspan spanned four to five meters, and the thrust of its flapping was extraordinarily powerful. From the rhythm of its movements, it actually struck him as being like a fighter. He immediately deduced that this was an avian creature bearing mutated tissue, and not of the implanted variety, but inherently innate. It was likely a creature originating from the Melded Lands. Even as he looked, he had already scooped up a handful of polished stones. With a twist of his shoulders and back, he whipped his arm upward, hurling them into the sky. In an instant, multiple shrieking air currents sliced through the air toward the giant bird. Midair, Qi Qianyang seemed prepared. Seeing the stones coming, he stripped off his training tunic at once, bared his upper body, and snapped the fabric outward in midair. A burst of heart jin traveled along the garment, instantly ballooning the highly resilient cloth outward and scooping up the bulk of the stones. A dense flurry of muffled thuds erupted across the impact zone. Though a good number of stones penetrated the cloth and carried on toward the giant bird, striking its body, their remaining force was kept at bay by tough plumage and mutated tissue, failing to inflict any serious damage. By then, Qi Qianyang had climbed even higher. Since taking to the air, he had anticipated such a move. It was only because Chen Chuan's stone throw packed such formidable force that he had been forced to defend against it; otherwise, even ordinary bullets would hardly have affected the avian beast. However, the garment had blocked his view for a split second. By the time he flicked the cloth away, he suddenly realized that Chen Chuan had vanished from below, and his expression hardened. At the same moment, a shadow loomed overhead. Jerking his head up, he saw Chen Chuan hovering directly above him, silhouetted against the sunlight like a soaring dragon, slamming a fist straight down at him. With a thunderous roar, Qi Qianyang's muscular physique tautened. Releasing the cable, he pressed one hand against the back of the other and shoved diagonally upward to block the descending fist. With a resounding boom, a visible shockwave blasted outward from the point of contact. Across Qi Qianyang's arm that met Chen Chuan's punch, the flesh and skin suddenly burst open in successive layers—starting from the back of the hand, tearing through the forearm, surging up to the bicep, and running all the way to the shoulder, accompanied by a rapid succession of fracturing bones. Blood spiraled and erupted from within, scattering into concentric rings of red mist. Chen Chuan felt a surge of heart jin rushing at him as well. But what he had executed was the Flying Dragon Fist Jin. Though there was no fissure nearby for him to shift through, he could convert that momentum into the lift needed to leap through the air. Thus, at that moment, the clash of their heart jin combined with the impact of the blow propelled both men apart amid exploding shockwaves. With an agile vault and turn, Chen Chuan stretched his body and ascended higher into the sky. Yet just as he pivoted to reset his stance and prepare for another aerial strike, Director Wu's deep, resonant voice suddenly came through his boundary credential: "Supervisor Chen, do not pursue. Let him go." "What?" Director Wu added in a low voice, "I will explain once you return." Chen Chuan glanced toward Qi Qianyang's position. The man had already gripped the long cable again with his uninjured hand. Yet during the clash of fists a moment ago, Qi Qianyang had seized the opportunity to transmit a psychic message. Chen Chuan had caught the image just now—it was a vast, open expanse. He understood at once that this was the opponent's chosen ground for their decisive duel. He weighed the situation. Director Wu had used an emergency channel, and the director was definitely not someone who would deliberately let an enemy slip away; there had to be a reason. He chose not to press further, reining in his strength and twisting in midair to let himself drop, touching down on the ground with a soft tap. Looking back up, he saw Qi Qianyang quickly haul himself onto the back of the giant bird and make use of its speed to fly far into the distance. He tapped his boundary credential. "Director Wu?" Director Wu said solemnly, "Return to the bureau first." Chen Chuan first checked on the armed squad behind him. He produced some specialized medication and had each of them inhale it. After a short while, they gradually recovered, though their minds remained groggy, and most suffered from splitting headaches. Had ordinary people endured that mental shockwave, it would have been fatal; it was only because these men came from martial arts backgrounds that they possessed a measure of resistance. Even so, only Team Leader Yu Xiao recovered swiftly. Upon hearing that Chen Chuan needed to return to the bureau immediately, he insisted on driving for him. Seeing that he was indeed unharmed, Chen Chuan agreed. He instructed the rest of the squad to stay behind and rest while he climbed into the back seat of his dedicated vehicle. Once the car started moving, he took out the envelope Haverford had handed him earlier. A faint gleam flickered in his eyes as he examined the contents. Inside were several photographs capturing scenes of Supervisor Wen meeting with other individuals. They appeared to have been taken in a private space, and the parties seemed to be exchanging something. He raised an eyebrow. Instead of using his boundary credential to look up the identities of those individuals, he pondered for a moment, then slid the photographs back inside. The return journey was extremely fast; in under forty minutes, they arrived back at the Disposal Bureau headquarters in Wuding District. Entering headquarters, he headed straight for Director Wu's office. Once Chen Chuan took a seat, Director Wu began, "Ten minutes before you engaged that fighter, three high-ranking officials from the government affairs departments came under attack. "Our people successfully thwarted two of the ambushes. However, at the third location, the target was overly stubborn and insisted on leaving the Government Affairs Hall building. He was attacked and taken hostage en route, along with over a dozen innocent bystanders—including a child. "At first, they ignored our inquiries. But right after Qi Qianyang showed up at your location and assaulted the foreign affairs personnel from the Linax Federation, they immediately stated their demand: Qi Qianyang must be allowed to leave safely without any interference." Looking at Chen Chuan, he continued in a low voice, "Even if I hadn't issued the order, the Government Affairs Hall would have relayed the message to you through an emergency channel. If you had refused to comply, the blame for the death of that government official and the surrounding hostages would have been pinned squarely on your head. "After that, even if it didn't derail your post, you would certainly face procedural inquiries, and for a period of time, you wouldn't be able to involve yourself in bureau affairs." Thoughts raced through Chen Chuan's mind. Under normal circumstances, even if he had killed Qi Qianyang on the spot, facing inquiries afterward would have been no big deal—at most, he would step away from bureau matters for ten days to a fortnight, treating it as a vacation. Right now was different. This was an exceedingly delicate juncture, with all factions preparing to enter the Melded Lands to contend for the relic. Was this maneuver designed to sideline him ahead of time? Still, judging by the present situation, letting Qi Qianyang walk away carried its own trouble. A foreign affairs officer from the Linax Federation had died on the spot; that could easily be exploited to create an issue. Moreover, he wondered: why had Haverford appeared there at that precise moment, only to be struck down by Qi Qianyang? And why had those hostage situations occurred practically right before? This sequence of events felt far too calculated to be a mere coincidence. He voiced his thoughts to Director Wu, who said gravely, "Indeed. But that has nothing to do with you, Supervisor Chen. I gave the order; you merely carried it out." Chen Chuan looked at him. "Director Wu, will this affect you?" Director Wu replied, "Nothing major, though procedural inquiries will still happen. Over the coming period, I might not be able to oversee bureau affairs as closely as before, but I will make the necessary arrangements in advance." Chen Chuan considered this, then took the envelope from his pocket and handed it across. "This is something I obtained earlier. The Linax foreign affairs officer gave it to me." Director Wu accepted it, pulled out the contents, and looked them over. His expression suddenly turned grave. He asked, "Was anyone nearby when you received this?" Chen Chuan said, "Yes, my squad. However, they didn't see what was inside, and I used psychic force to disrupt the surrounding field for an instant. Even Andun couldn't have recorded it." When handed intelligence from an unknown source, how could he not stay vigilant? Without concrete recordings, whatever was inside could not easily be dictated by others. "Well done," Director Wu said. He quickly put the items away and cautioned, "Do not mention this to anyone." Chen Chuan nodded. Director Wu added, "Wait here for a moment." He rose and stepped into the adjacent secure room. A short while later, he returned holding a key, which he handed to Chen Chuan. "Keep this safe." He then whispered a few instructions. Chen Chuan took the key and nodded slightly after listening to Director Wu's briefing, sensing the mounting complexity of the situation. After giving his instructions, Director Wu tapped his boundary credential, and a map materialized on the nearby light screen. "Captain Xu will lead a team into the Melded Lands at five o'clock this afternoon. The specific route will be arranged on short notice by the Defense Department; even I don't know it. "However, within two or three days at the latest, armed personnel from the Linax Federation and the Combine will certainly follow them inside through special channels." In the months following Fumu's division, the garrison in the Melded Lands and the forces of the former imperial house had been engaged in intermittent fighting. The clashes between major armies, combined with strict controls imposed on personnel entering the Melded Lands, had hampered non-military elements from gaining access to a certain extent. It was also around that time that word of a Class 3 relic being discovered first leaked out. Now that late September had arrived, the large-scale skirmishes between the two sides had subsided, shifting into small-unit confrontations as both factions sought every means to locate that relic. "Old Xu carries a heavy burden this time. I hope he can bear the pressure and find that thing, but nothing is foolproof, so we must also prepare for failure." Director Wu gazed at the map on the screen and said in a heavy voice, "A Class 3 relic carries far too much significance. Under no circumstances can it fall into the hands of the Linax Federation or the Combine. If necessary, we must resort to aggressive measures. Supervisor Chen, when the time comes, await my directive."