Inside the Municipal Council Building, Speaker Quan sat in his office leaning on his cane, looking out through the glass curtain wall at the torrential downpour. Beneath the murky canopy of the sky, the high-rises flickered with hazy neon reflections.
He shifted somewhat awkwardly and coughed twice. His assistant stepped forward immediately, first testing the warmth of the teacup with a hand, then dropping two pills into the tea before carefully presenting it to him.
Speaker Quan took the cup and sipped. His spirits picked up a little, and his mind grew clearer. He asked, "Still no word from over there?"
"None for the moment, Speaker," the assistant replied in a low voice.
Speaker Quan looked ahead. Before the operation, the other side had communicated with him in advance, explaining that operating and searching for someone in a convergence zone was exceedingly difficult, estimated to take one to two months.
Furthermore, if the target had fled far enough or proved difficult to deal with, it might take even longer. Counting the days, only half the time had passed so far; waiting for a result might still require another month.
He did not ask about the possibility of failure. Once the Municipal Council decided to open the passage to the convergence zone, there was only one acceptable outcome for them.
In truth, even as Speaker, he had no power to stop the progression of this matter.
It was the shared wish of the entire council, the will of the corporate consortium—particularly the Progenitor Company, which was aggressively pushing the biotechnology park in Center City, pulling along a large flock of companies and enterprises. Moreover, regarding the matter of active conscious entities, the Progenitor Company had given the council tremendous support. In a sense, this had hijacked the will of the Municipal Council. They could only follow where this force led, unable to turn back even knowing how precarious it was.
Although the deployment of three martial artists was virtually foolproof in theory, not to mention the extensive technical support the Progenitor Company provided from the shadows, an inescapable unease lingered constantly in his heart.
After sitting for a while longer, he pushed himself up with his cane. The assistant hurried over to support him, but he waved a hand. Understanding his master's intent, the assistant bowed and withdrew, gently closing the door behind him.
Speaker Quan forced himself to stand straight, feeling the stiffness in his legs and feet and the friction grinding within his joints. At this moment, he actually felt a bit envious of those old contemporaries who used implants. Free from relying on medicine, they could look radiant inside and out, brimming with vitality.
Yet as an old fellow who had lived through the founding era of Great Shun to the present, his outlook remained traditional and conservative. Inwardly, he was filled with distrust and resistance toward implants.
He pondered alone for a long time, waiting for the medicine to take effect. Picking up his cane, he walked toward his desk with firm steps. Looking at an isolated telephone, he lifted the receiver and dialed a number. After a brief wait, an inquiring voice came through, and he said at once, "I am Quan Zengming of Jibei Dao. I am looking for Elder Guo."
After another pause, a young voice came from the receiver. "Speaker Quan? My father took his medicine just now and has already gone to sleep. If you have any business, you may tell me directly, and I will pass it on to him later."
Speaker Quan said, "So it is Young Master Guo. It's nothing important. I simply haven't spoken with Elder Guo on the phone for some time and was thinking of him. Oh, right, a few days ago I sent some local specialties from Jibei Dao to the capital. I wonder if Elder Guo has received them?"
The young voice replied, "Is that so? Well, the capital has been running some discipline rectification campaign lately, and the Privy Council is no exception. Many items sent up from regional jurisdictions must undergo inspections. Perhaps it was held up there and hasn't arrived yet. I'll have someone look into it another day. It wasn't anything urgent, was it?"
"Not urgent, not urgent at all. Just a few trivial trifles. It doesn't matter even if they're lost; they aren't worth worrying about."
"Oh, really? Truly nothing important?"
"No, no, nothing at all."
Speaker Quan continued, "Since Elder Guo is resting, I won't disturb him." Having said that, he slowly lowered the receiver, pausing slightly at the very end before clicking it onto the cradle.
He leaned on his cane once more and turned to look outside. After a long while, he picked up his boundary credential, put it on, and transmitted a precomposed message home. Then he took another pill from his pocket, swallowed it, and settled into the soft armchair before his desk.
After a brief wait, the telephone on the desk rang abruptly. He looked over at once and saw that it was not the isolated phone, but the private line from home. Feeling a twinge of disappointment, he picked up the receiver. "What is it?"
"Master, I passed along your instructions, but the eldest young master and the second young master refuse to leave. Several of the young masters among the grandchildren are throwing tantrums too. What do you think..."
Speaker Quan quickly heard the noisy shouts of multiple people over the line.
"The old man must be going senile! Out of the blue, why should we go abroad?"
"Exactly! Who knows what fit he's throwing? I have such a massive business here, and everyone in the household relies on me running around inside and out. If I leave, will the whole family live on thin air?"
"If the old man wants us to leave, fine, give us a reason! Not saying a single word, just one command telling us to pack up! I bring in so much money every day—am I supposed to just throw it away? Every day abroad is another day of lost money! This is all real wealth! Giving it away for others to pocket—the old man might not care, but I do!"
"Dad, I told you long ago, if Grandfather's losing his mind, just get him an implant. I have the right connections; I guarantee there won't be any side effects or complications..."
"You don't know a damn thing!"
Speaker Quan closed his eyes. After a moment, he opened them and said, "A'cheng, let them do as they please." He hung up the telephone, then tapped his boundary credential.
Almost the next moment, a timid voice came through. "Master?"
Speaker Quan said, "A'lei..."
The woman immediately sensed something was amiss. Even across the boundary credential, her deference and anxiety seemed palpable. "Master, I'm here."
Speaker Quan said, "Take Xiaogua and leave today. Old Shao will arrange your ferry tickets to the Federation. I have an estate purchased in the Samkelan Continent over there. Go there and live a good life with Xiaogua. Money will be wired to your account every month until Xiaogua comes of age, at which point the property will be handed over to him. If you encounter any difficulties, turn to Old Shao."
The woman said, "Understood, Master. I will listen to whatever you say. I'll take Xiaogua and leave right away."
Speaker Quan grunted in acknowledgment. This was the first time today he felt some peace of mind.
The woman added, "Master, please take care of yourself."
Speaker Quan said nothing more and ended the boundary credential call. Looking out at the unending deluge, he sighed in a frail, aged voice, "I hope I am merely overthinking."
***
In the Bainiao District, the residential area for corporate consortium representatives.
Mr. Chi sent telegrams to his company every day, reporting on the situation.
At this moment, he too was waiting for results from the convergence zone. According to what the three martial artists had said, confirmation would take two months at most. Even if they ran into some difficulty, escaping would not be hard for two Visage of the Divine martial artists; it was impossible for them not to make it out.
He knew the situation at the convergence zone passage might not hold up under scrutiny, but the primary risk was borne by the Municipal Council. The Progenitor Company had such a massive biotechnology park investment situated right here; so long as no concrete incriminating evidence was left behind, there would not be any major trouble.
He poured himself a glass of liquor, sat down on the sofa, and opened a field screen displaying a map and real-time status of Center City in Jibei Dao.
Although he felt relatively confident about this matter and had no fear of being implicated, caution drove him to keep an eye on every development within the Jibei Dao Disposal Bureau and the Government Affairs Hall each day. If anything stirred, a ship was ready to pick him up immediately from outside.
He thought to himself that after waiting a few more days past the middle of the month, news would surely arrive one way or another.
On the other side, after Qi Weizhao submitted his application, the Martial Artists Council dispatched people very swiftly because the case involved national security—and particularly the participation of martial artists from abroad. They arrived within a single day.
Through examinations and comparisons, they first confirmed the identities and origins of Noche and Tuner. Subsequently, through a massive database, they discovered the true identity of Moon Rhino. This man was named Jin Litai, a martial artist who had long operated on the fringes of the Jibei Dao convergence zone.
This person had no record of passing through the convergence zone, nor any record of traveling abroad. He had likely entered the convergence zone through some unidentified rift and attained martial artist status there.
He had never signed any agreement with the Martial Artists Council, leading to the inference that he was very likely someone specifically groomed by the Convergence faction to handle dirty work.
Upon learning this news, Qi Weizhao felt the gravity of the situation on the one hand—the Convergence faction had indeed meddled in this matter. On the other hand, he felt somewhat relieved, for identifying this person gave them a clear justification to strike against the Convergence faction in Jibei Dao.
During their operations in Jibei Dao, these martial schools had deeply integrated their interests with the Municipal Council, becoming completely intertwined. Many of their members and spokespersons also sat within the Government Affairs Hall, providing the perfect opportunity to deal with them all at once.
Of course, it was impossible for him to purge every member of both factions, nor would the Government Affairs Hall deliberately target these factions as a whole. The primary objective was to dismantle the Municipal Council and the forces supporting it.
Once all conclusive evidence was secured, Qi Weizhao immediately convened an internal meeting of the decision-making team in his capacity as team leader.
This time, Security Defense Department Director Chen Chuan, Wuyi Principal Yao Zhiyi, Defense Department Commissioner Liang Guanghai, and Garrison Commander Qiao Weiting were all present, appearing together on the field screen in front.
Qi Weizhao looked at the four people on the screen and said with a solemn expression, "Gentlemen, the Great Impact is drawing steadily closer. The observatory in the capital has detected that other world drawing nearer to ours by the day.
"To confront such a crisis, and for the safety and well-being of all, we must concentrate our resources as soon as possible. This requires us to change our present state of being hindered at every turn.
"This operation aims to purge the hostile elements endangering national security and the forces behind them, freeing up room and opportunity for the development of Center City in Jibei Dao."
He checked his watch. "The time is now five-twenty in the afternoon. Half an hour ago, I submitted a report to the central authorities. I will wait for one hour..."
At this point, he lifted his head, his gaze resolute. "One hour from now, regardless of whether the central authorities respond, we will launch the operation. When that time comes, I shall personally bear all political responsibility!"
Chapter 909