Chapter 601 - 331: Guard

With that, Chen Bitong stood there calmly, waiting for Chen Chuan to make his decision.

Chen Chuan considered this for a moment, then looked up. "Teacher Chen, I have to go deal with the split-off body. That’s the primary mission the Defense Department has given me. In the meantime, I hope you can stop the Old Imperial Family’s people from crossing through the Rift."

Chen Bitong gazed back at him, his eyes filled with both gratitude and relief. "Captain Chen," he said, "I will hold my ground here and fight to the very end. Go, and fulfill your duty."

Chen Chuan said nothing more. He hefted the Snow Monarch Blade, turned, and walked away. After about twenty paces, as the dust and brilliant light gradually faded behind him, he emerged from the Rift.

The rain outside had stopped, but the crimson glow in the sky remained unfaded. Powerful gusts of air surged from behind him, rushing into the empty plaza ahead.

Fang Zhixin and Yu Lie were waiting for him outside.

When they saw him emerge alone, Yu Lie’s expression grew complicated, looking as if he wanted to speak but couldn’t find the words. Fang Zhixin, on the other hand, was visibly startled. He hurried forward a few steps and asked, "Captain Chen, Teacher Chen..."

"You know the choice Teacher Chen made," Chen Chuan replied.

A jolt went through Fang Zhixin, and he fell silent.

Chen Chuan crossed the plaza to the car that had brought him there. He retrieved a briefcase from the trunk, then walked back to the Rift.

He waited for a short while, only stepping back inside after a light on the briefcase began to faintly glow.

This time, he didn’t end up on the side connected to the Merging Land. Instead, he successfully entered a space identical to the Rifts he had been in before—a vast expanse of pure white.

The indicator light on the briefcase glowed even brighter now.

He moved the briefcase back and forth, following the changes in the light to pinpoint the split-off body’s location. He walked over, and about thirty seconds later, he found it floating in mid-air.

Only, this one was slightly different from the others he had seen before. It seemed to emit a hazy glow.

’I don’t know the reason for this. Is it because it’s connected to the source of the Pure Essence?’

He set down the briefcase, drew the Snow Monarch Blade, and stepped forward. After a moment of intense focus, he slashed down with a single strike!

The instant the blade cut through, the point of contact erupted in a brilliant flash of light. The Snow Monarch Blade, which had been dormant, began to vibrate. A luminous mist billowed out from within, just as before, enveloping the two halves of the severed split-off body.

After a few breaths, the luminous mist receded. The split-off body, now resembling a dry, shriveled husk, fell to the ground.

He glanced at it, then at the Snow Monarch Blade, which had returned to its original appearance. He sheathed the blade, then took a destruction agent from the briefcase and poured it onto the split-off body. Before long, the thing completely dissolved, vanishing without a trace.

Inside the Defense Department command center, the air buzzed with the sound of messages being relayed back and forth. It was clear many of the communications officers were at their wits’ end. Ever since Fumu’s sixth wave of division began, the situation had become far more complex and increasingly difficult to handle.

Just then, a voice from the Sentry Tower crackled to life. "Report. The Domain reaction from the split-off body in Hongsheng District has vanished. Confirmed neutralized."

Specialist Liang’s head snapped up. He gripped the railing in front of him, his voice tight. "Confirm?"

"...The Domain reaction has completely dissipated. Confirmed destroyed."

The communications officers on the floor exchanged glances, followed by a few low cheers erupting from the corners of the room.

The deep furrow in Specialist Liang’s brow relaxed slightly.

They had run into numerous problems with the sixth wave of division, and by the looks of it, the seventh wave might arrive ahead of schedule.

The pressure on him was immense.

Furthermore, that *entity* had yet to reveal itself. The later it appeared, the more likely it was to cause some catastrophe at the final hour. If it emerged at the same time as the other unresolved Rifts, the problem would be immense.

But he truly hadn’t expected Chen Chuan to crack the problem of Chen Bitong—the toughest nut of them all. This freed up more forces to be allocated elsewhere.

This would absolutely be recorded as a major accomplishment.

One of the communications officers spoke up. "Specialist, although the split-off body there has been handled, the Rift remains. Its scope is extensive, and people from the Old Imperial Family have emerged from it before."

"If the Old Imperial Family refuses to give up, that place could become a breach. Captain Chen just fought Chen Bitong; he can’t have much combat strength left. We fear he won’t be able to stop them."

Specialist Liang thought for a moment, then asked, "Have the two response teams from the Deep Unexplored District returned?"

"They’re on their way back now."

Specialist Liang ordered decisively, "Have them divert to Hongsheng District."

Resources were stretched thin everywhere; all he could dispatch were standard response teams. Realizing it wouldn’t be enough, he turned to his female assistant. "Tell Captain Chen to find a way to hold on a little longer." He paused. "And send another Recovery Potion to Captain Chen."

"Captain Chen has likely already taken one," the female assistant said. "Taking another dose so soon could cause him some physical harm."

"You can be upfront with him about the side effects," Specialist Liang said. "Tell him not to worry. I’ll find a way to compensate him after this is over. Right now, I need him to hold his ground."

"I’ll make the arrangements immediately," said the female assistant.

Specialist Liang spoke again. "Sentry Tower, give me a status report on all remaining split-off bodies."

The Sentry Tower immediately reported the status of the neutralization efforts for the split-off bodies in each district. Despite their pursuit and interception tactics, four split-off bodies had been lost.

He stared intently at the light screen. Although the Domains of the split-off bodies were masked, it was impossible to have transported them out of the city so quickly. ’They’re either hidden somewhere,’ he thought, ’or someone is trying to smuggle them out through a secure channel.’

’If they’re just hidden, that’s easier to deal with. We can leave them for now, since we have ways to track them later. But getting them out of the city? That’s absolutely forbidden!’

The entire city was on lockdown. A transport convoy couldn’t possibly get out without alerting someone. That left only one route. His gaze fell to the area beneath Central City, where a dense network of tunnels was displayed.

’Through the Underground City District.’

’It’s the area with the weakest controls in all of Central City, and the best place to hide and transport items.’

Although the Administrative Affairs Hall had long since stationed interception teams at every tunnel entrance, there was no guarantee every location was secure. Not to mention the people of the Lower City District had carved out their own secret passages over the years, and even the current interception teams were not immune to error.

Thus, the Administrative Affairs Hall’s other arrangement was to entrust the matter to certain contractors in the Lower City District, having them arrange the manpower for the interception.

These contractors had intricate connections to the Lower City District’s gangs, major powers, and even mercenaries. Down there, their word sometimes carried more weight than the Administrative Affairs Hall’s. If they took the job seriously, they could certainly block the routes. But they were also deeply entangled with various corporations, so it was hard to say which side they would ultimately choose.

Specialist Liang didn’t actually trust them. But as a specialist dispatched from above, he couldn’t interfere in Central City’s specific affairs beyond the purview of the Defense Department. Besides, they were short-staffed everywhere. The most he could do at the moment was to increase the intensity of the outer blockade.

Fortunately, thanks to a special modulation, Fumu’s split-off bodies only appeared on the city’s surface. Otherwise, the situation would be even more unmanageable.

At that same moment, at a branch of the Lianwei Zhongyu Company, its head, Che Gaoyi, was listening to a report from a non-active Consciousness Body. Just as he had predicted, someone had entrusted them with the task of transporting a split-off body.

The client needed them to transport the item out of Jibei Dao and deliver it to a designated area. They promised that as long as the cargo was delivered, they would not only provide the business payment but also cover all of the company’s compensation and reputational losses as agreed.

But Central City’s entire perimeter was locked down. A direct breakout was essentially impossible.

So this time, they were taking an alternate route.

Lianwei Zhongyu had once acquired a company called Jin Yu. This company used to be the backer for the Iron Fist Association, a gang from the Underground City District. The Iron Fist Association, in turn, was closely connected to Lu Tong Logistics Underground Logistics. The personnel from these groups still controlled a portion of the underground channels and manpower—resources they had long ago prepared for a day just like today.

After listening to the report and consolidating information from various sources, Che Gaoyi confirmed that neither the Administrative Affairs Hall nor the Defense Department currently had the personnel to intercept them. The probability of success was extremely high. "Assemble the convoy," he said. "We depart immediately. I will personally escort the western route."

The contracts came from two different companies, for two separate split-off bodies. Due to a shortage of personnel, he had to personally escort one of the convoys.

He came down from the upper floor and climbed into an armored vehicle. The convoy then began to drive out. As he exited the company grounds, he glanced at the distant sky and saw an Airship hovering there.

Because the overall information field was gone, the city now relied on these Airships to relay information. Therefore, as long as they created a certain amount of interference and took detours through some hidden side streets, they could ensure their convoy wouldn’t be discovered for a short time. Once they entered the Lower City District, no one would be able to stop them.

Meanwhile, having dealt with the split-off body, Chen Chuan emerged from the Rift.

He took off his hat, slapped the dust from it, and put it back on. Then, blade in hand, he once again turned and went back inside.

Because the split-off body was gone, the path through the Rift now led only to the Merging Land.

When he reached the depths of the Rift, he saw Chen Bitong with a Long Spear planted in the ground. In the short time he’d been gone, the ground had become littered with many more strangely shaped corpses.

Hearing footsteps behind him, Chen Bitong looked back in surprise. "Captain Chen? Why have you returned?"

Chen Chuan walked to his side and stood shoulder to shoulder with him. As a powerful gust of air swirled past, he looked out from the Rift. "Teacher Chen," he said, "as an Execution Captain, it is also my duty to guard this place."

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