Chapter 113: Ambush

“What skills do you have?”

“Hacking,” Hong Du replied confidently. “In this world, no one’s skills surpass mine.”

Hearing this, Captain glanced at Qin Qing.

Qin Qing gave a slight nod.

Indeed, Hong Du had a gadget called “Information Stream.”

It seemed related to network information technology, but whether it was as exceptional as he claimed was uncertain.

Captain wanted to ask more questions, but Hong Du clammed up, insisting on speaking directly with a superior.

Qin Qing sent a message to Captain.

Soon, the phone rang, and Captain put it on speaker.

“I’m his direct superior. Speak.”

The voice on the phone was Feng Qiuyang’s.

Hong Du began, “Who are you, what’s your position, and how high is your authority…”

Feng Qiuyang interrupted Hong Du’s questioning.

“I have only 120 seconds for you, and you’ve already wasted a third.”

Hong Du was at a loss for words.

Under the circumstances, he had no choice but to lower his head and say, “I’m not bluffing. With my skills, anyone’s information is open for me to take at will. Whoever you want me to investigate, I can help you find them…”

Everyone present looked at Qin Qing.

Hong Du, puzzled, continued, “Didn’t you use the Skynet system to locate me? Truth be told, I used this technology to erase my tracks. If I can hide my traces, I can certainly find people by following the clues. I can help you track down criminals and find whoever you want.”

Once again, all eyes shifted from Hong Du to Qin Qing.

Hong Du turned to Qin Qing, “What’s your rank? Are you their superior too?”

Feng Qiuyang didn’t let him waste time.

He pressed, “You claim you can help catch people. What’s the success rate?”

“It’s hard to calculate. My abilities rely on network technology, which has limitations. Not everyone can be found.”

“Can you find abducted children?”

Hong Du was displeased, “Are you joking? Those kids might not even know who they are. How could I find them?”

“Next question, can your skills breach the Pentagon’s security and escape unscathed?”

Hong Du fell silent, his expression filled with resentment.

Feng Qiuyang said coldly, “You’ve wasted 125 seconds of my valuable time.”

The call ended.

Captain approached Hong Du, handcuffs hanging from his finger.

“Let’s go, you’re coming with me.”

Hong Du protested indignantly.

“Your terms are too harsh, completely insincere. Do you realize what kind of talent you’re missing out on?”

Captain replied, “You can personally experience the sincerity of our prison meals—three meals a day, with meat and vegetables, very humane.”

“Wait! A deal! You don’t understand my technology, but we can still make a deal. I have special channels to obtain life-extension potions. Surely you know their value?”

Captain twisted his arms behind his back and cuffed him with a click. “I think you haven’t grasped your current situation.”

Captain led him forward.

They hadn’t even descended the stairs when chaos erupted.

Captain suddenly dodged backward, his waist bending almost ninety degrees.

He swiftly turned, a fresh cut appearing on his face. Team members rushed from all directions, but were blocked by a sudden cloud of thick smoke.

“Captain!”

The smoke contained irritants, causing anyone who approached to cough violently.

But it didn’t stop the warriors from pressing forward. The smoke lasted only a few seconds.

When it cleared, Hong Du was nowhere to be seen on the stairs.

All that remained was a group of Action Team members with reddened eyes, still coughing.

Captain’s face was covered in blood.

He shouted, “Qin Qing!”

Qin Qing had been closely monitoring the System Panel from the moment the chaos began.

However…

“Nothing, I can’t see! Hong Du has disappeared!”

She had watched as the red dot representing Hong Du vanished from the System Panel map.

The entire Action Team was like headless flies, with no idea where to start the chase.

Qin Qing had no leads.

Captain issued orders on his own, “Someone ambushed us and took Hong Du. Split up and pursue. Maintain communication.”

In an instant, the team members scattered.

Shi Jiang also took Qin Qing and Meng Yuan to find cover.

Half an hour later, Captain’s voice came over the channel, calling for the team to regroup.

The team returned without success, but fortunately, there were no casualties.

Captain, however, had a wound on his face, with his combat uniform’s collar and shoulder stained with half-dried dark red.

At the assembly point, the atmosphere was heavy.

“Sorry…” Meng Yuan was the first to break the silence. “I tried to sense it, but my intuition didn’t give me any feedback… Maybe you should bandage your wound first, it looks scary.”

The latter part was directed at Captain.

Captain took a portable medical kit from his bag. Using a car’s side mirror, he haphazardly splashed alcohol and iodine on his face, then pulled emergency gauze across the wound, patted it twice, and called it done.

They sat down on the ground for a meeting.

Captain said, “The attacker was tough, with precise force and movements, showing signs of specialized training. There were no unnecessary moves in their techniques. When escorting Hong Du down, I felt a gust of wind by my ear and instinctively dodged. A fraction of a second later, and I might have had my throat cut. In just two or three moves, I was knocked to the ground, allowing them to take Hong Du. This time, we faced a formidable enemy.”

“Does the Special Investigation Team’s dossier have information on someone matching this person?”

Qin Qing asked.

Captain shook his head, “I’ve reported it, but there’s too little information to match accurately.”

This was the most challenging mission Qin Qing had participated in.

The System Panel not only failed to detect the intruder but also suddenly stopped reading Hong Du’s information.

She could still see Hong Du’s previous log entries, but from the moment he was taken, the log was cut off.

This was different from the previous log gaps.

To illustrate, a log gap was like a sheet of paper with lines of text and some large blank spaces, whereas this time, it was as if the bottom half of a fully written page had been torn away, leaving Qin Qing holding only the top half.

Captain adjusted his headset, then said, “We’ve been ordered to end the mission and return to Beifu.”

So close to success, yet defeated and returning empty-handed.

It was a bitter feeling.

The wound on Captain’s face required seven stitches, right on the cheekbone. The doctor said this muscle was frequently used, hindering recovery, and it would definitely leave a scar.

Captain himself wasn’t too concerned.

But Meng Yuan, upon learning this, shed a few tears.

She waited outside the infirmary to apologize, “I’m sorry, it’s all my fault. I thought of myself as the team’s mascot and didn’t do anything. I should have been more serious.”

“It’s not your fault. Missions are often unpredictable. I’m the team leader, so if anyone should take responsibility, it should be me.”

Meng Yuan wiped her tears haphazardly, shaking her head with sobs, “No, it’s my fault for being naive. If I had been more serious, maybe you wouldn’t have been hurt. Believe me, I’ll work hard to become a real warrior.”

Captain smiled, reaching out to smooth the hair stuck to her tear-streaked face.

“Alright, I believe in you, little warrior.”

—

Upon landing in Beifu, they didn’t return to headquarters but were taken directly to the hospital for check-ups.

Qin Qing insisted she was healthy and didn’t need an examination.

She couldn’t resist, as the check-up was reportedly mandatory.

Before the results came out, they weren’t allowed to report back.

The next day, Qin Qing and Captain were summoned by Team Leader Cisha to a specially renovated conference room for a meeting.

“Don’t be so down…” Cisha said, mainly addressing Qin Qing. His gaze slid over the bandage on Captain’s face. “Although we didn’t capture Hong Du this time, we recovered three special items, apprehended five suspects, and had almost no casualties, which is a good outcome.”

Qin Qing wasn’t exactly downcast, just filled with more questions.

But since it involved the System Panel, she couldn’t elaborate.

Cisha’s attitude was relatively normal this time, and she explained the reason for the check-up.

“The three special items you recovered showed varying degrees of side effects during testing. The more frequently they’re used, the greater the damage. Some researchers are still in the neurology ward, and it’s unclear if the damage is irreversible.”

They were handed a stack of medical reports.

Among the Action Team members who had played with those gadgets, Qin Qing and Meng Yuan were the most normal. Although no one else showed obvious symptoms, there were potential damages.

Especially those who had used the “Thousand Faces” ring to transform themselves into bizarre shapes.

Qin Qing speculated it might be related to the level of Spiritual Power.

Logically, she had used them the most.

Now she truly felt a bit down.

Regarding the mission, she had been too frivolous.

The consistent success had numbed her.

Cisha continued, “The suspects we captured have been interrogated. Aside from the parts they refused to disclose, fearing it might lead to their deaths, they confessed to everything else.”

The irrelevant details need not be elaborated.

What’s worth mentioning is the history of the Taiyi Ziwei Sect.

These core members met through special channels and had some mystical resources they wanted to monetize. Under Hong Du’s organization, they established the Taiyi Ziwei Sect five years ago.

In the development of the sect, they always stayed behind the scenes, with the core instructors they “helped” developing the network.

They had real items, which they diluted and sold if possible, or mixed real and fake ones. With the core instructors’ efforts, they quickly attracted many followers.

The reason for the name Taiyi Ziwei Sect was simply because Hong Du was a Taoism culture enthusiast.

The persona “Shao Shu” was a unified external image used by the six highest-ranking sect members. They took turns using the “Thousand Faces” ring to preach according to scripts written by Hong Du.

In reality, there was never a person named “Shao Shu.”

Recruiting followers was merely a means for them to screen high-end users.

Like the wealthy Yan Xianghua.

The Life Extension Potion was the core product of the Taiyi Ziwei Sect.

First, they used Hong Du’s “Information Stream” technology to send untraceable purchase messages to target users.

Then, they disguised themselves with “Visual Shielding” glasses and used the “Empty as Nothing” wallet to take the money and deliver the pills.

It seemed as if they came and went without a trace.

This is what made people feel mysterious and awe-inspired.

However, little did they know that the masterminds behind all this were merely a ragtag group of six at the core. They created the “Taiyi Ziwei Sect” and fabricated the deity “Shao Shu.”

How lamentable.

Cisha didn’t waste words. After explaining, he simply told them to rest up, as the next mission was just days away.

After the meeting, Meng Yuan was still waiting in the usual spot, the break room, surrounded by snacks he hadn’t touched.

“You’re done with the meeting!”

The next moment, seeing Cisha behind Qin Qing, he fell silent, looking guilty.

Even when Cisha scolded her, she didn’t talk back.

Qin Qing used the excuse of treating the Action Team members to a meal to quietly assess the extent of their brain injuries.

Fortunately, with just two or three Merit Values per person, she managed to repair them and even cleared some hidden injuries accumulated from past missions and training.

The next day, everyone was chatting away in the group.

“I don’t know if it’s just me, but yesterday’s meal by Comrade Qin was especially delicious. After a full meal, I woke up this morning feeling energized.”

“You know, I felt the same. This morning’s ten-kilometer run was a breeze. Everyone’s asking if I secretly took some kind of strength pill.”

“Damn, I feel as light as I did when I was fifteen or sixteen.”

“Could it be that Comrade Qin, having stayed in a Taoist Temple, knows more than fortune-telling? Maybe she slipped us some of her alchemical pills last night?”

“Come on, where’s your sense of reality?”

“Hehe, I’ve been relying on comrades’ fortune-telling for missions, so my worldview has long been rewritten.”

So, when Qin Qing woke up naturally, she found the group chat full of messages @ing her, asking what kind of elixir she had given them last night. Was it the legendary pill that could Cleanse Marrow and Refine Essence, allowing one to cultivate immortality?

Qin Qing: “…”

Their bodily awareness was too sharp, making it impossible for her to play the role of an anonymous good Samaritan.