Reverse flow of the Yellow Springs

Chapter 132 Cooperation
Inside the reception room of the East City branch, Jing Lin and Jing Nuo were chatting.

“Yesterday, the old man researched a lot of information about Night General. Today, he told me that he could release some rare benefits. Even Ark…” Jing Nuo paused and said, “It seems that the old man really likes him. It’s not even a done deal yet, but he’s already willing to invest heavily.”

“It is indeed rare. For someone as pragmatic as Grandpa to be willing to invest so much sunk cost,” Jing Nuo said with a smile. “However, Ye Jiang’s talent and special abilities are enough to be valued by the old man. Or rather, enough to be valued by any family. If his abilities can be passed on to the next generation, the strength of the Jing family bloodline will be further enhanced.”

"It's difficult." Jing Lin shook his head slightly. From his interactions with Li Yelai, he could tell that Li Yelai was not the kind of person who would abandon his responsibilities as a processor for the sake of a powerful family's resources.

Otherwise, he should have run away with Jing Lin at the very beginning of the disaster.

"Hmph, don't worry, I'll take care of it!" Jing Nuo chuckled, her smile brimming with confidence. "You should have faith in my charm."

Jingnuo is a user of the second awakening murmur path, but compared to Jinglin, she has no combat talent.

However, his abilities are rather rare.

Enchanting Voice, an extremely rare support ability.

This ability is currently not offensive, firstly because her awakening level is too low, and secondly because this ability requires a long time to activate before it takes effect.

She can subtly increase the target's positive feelings towards her through conversations.

In addition, Jingnuo herself is sweet-looking and comes from a prominent family. The allure is even more powerful.

This allowed her to thrive in the elite circles of Yaoqing City and the surrounding northern metropolitan areas. She had many admirers.

He was secretly called the "Little Sea King of the Jing Family," and those who didn't know better might have thought the Jing family had produced a monarch.

Of course, this effect isn't as good for highly awakened psychics; she's only at the second awakening stage.
However, Li Yelai is only at the third level of awakening, so he should still be able to have an impact. As long as they get to know each other better and have more contact, it will eventually have an effect.

Once the level of goodwill is high, it will be easier to win them over.

Of course, considering that Ye Jiang is quite handsome, it's not impossible to take things a step further.
Anyway, as a female psychic from the third branch of the Jing family, she'll be entering the forbidden zone in the near future. There's nothing to worry about.
“I think it’s risky,” Jing Lin said with a wry smile, shaking his head. “You have no idea what you’re going to face.”

Before Jingnuo could say anything more, “Don’t underestimate me,” the door was pushed open.

A beautiful figure walked into the room.

She has a neat short haircut, delicate features, and a quiet temperament.

"Sorry, Night has gone to get the equipment. You'll have to wait a little longer," she said with a light laugh.

The visitor was none other than Cheese. Li Ye had gone to the equipment department to retrieve his gear, so she had come to the reception room first. She didn't want to keep the Jing family waiting too long.

"Miss Cheese? You've successfully reached the fourth awakening?" Jing Lin felt Cheese's spiritual energy pressure and couldn't help but congratulate her, "Congratulations on taking another step forward."

"Thank you." Cheese smiled in response, then looked at Jingnuo: "You must be Jinglin's sister? You are indeed very beautiful."

Jingnuo sensed a subtle pressure emanating from the cheese.

"Hello. I am Jing Lin's younger sister, Jing Nuo." Jing Nuo responded softly, and at the same time, her alluring voice quietly activated, making her body feel weak. This was a curse triggered by her using her ability.

As a psionicist of the Jing family, after receiving specialized training, one will be cursed with the inviolability of sight, speech, hearing, and movement.

Jingnuo's curse is to remain still; after using his ability, his body becomes weak and he finds it difficult to exert any strength or move.

“You can call me Cheese. Your brother and I are comrades-in-arms, and also friends and neighbors of Night General.” Cheese replied with a smile: “Don’t rashly use mental interference on the processor.”

Psychological interference? Did she discover the alluring voice?
Jingnuo was somewhat surprised. Looking at the beautiful girl in front of her, she felt an invisible pressure.

'Did she mean by not using it on handlers, including Night General? Did she discover my thoughts? Is this a warning to me?'

Jing Nuo glanced at Jing Lin with a hint of unease, while Jing Lin helplessly shrugged.

"I told you," Jing Lin recalled that rainy night, the indescribable, terrifying monster in a mascot costume, "there's an even more ferocious one!"

Jing Lin thought to himself, "This is what I'm thinking."

The three seemed to have forgotten the little incident just now and started chatting casually.

Jing Lin extended another invitation, as the Jing family planned to invite the former agents who had fought alongside him to a gathering at the manor as a thank-you banquet. It would also serve as a chance to strengthen the relationship between Border City No. 3 and the Jing family.

Cheese expressed her understanding, saying that the processing department did not restrict the invitation, but all the processors were very busy recently, and she was not sure if the other processors would go, but Night would probably go.

This put Jing Lin at ease; at least one objective had been achieved.

Soon, Jing Lin was greeted by Li Yelai, who had arrived.

He carried a large black umbrella that was more than two meters long in one hand and a box that was half a person tall in the other, making him look rather odd.

"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting," Li Yelai said.

"It's nothing. I just happened to be coming back from outside the city and stopped by to see you." Jing Lin replied, "Shall we talk in private?"

Li Yelai nodded, and upon seeing this, Zhishi and Jingnuo quietly left the reception room.

“We’ve been through thick and thin together, and our families are planning to win you over. So I’ll be frank,” Jing Lin said earnestly.

"As long as you don't bring out anything like a ring, everything is negotiable," Li Yelai retorted, seeing Jing Lin's sincere expression.

Jing Lin now resembles the male lead in an idol drama who is about to propose.

Jing Lin smiled, then lowered his voice and said, "During the disaster fog, I saw you summon a mount with a bell. I feel like I've seen it somewhere before? Was it the Thunder-Treading Dragon Steed? Summoned with ashes?"

Li Yelai's heart skipped a beat, but he put on a smile and replied, "Yes, you should have seen it, Your Excellency Camellia."

Jing Lin stared at him for a long time before a smile gradually appeared on his face: "It really is you! Copper Mask!"

This is a frank and open confrontation.

Jing Lin had seen Li Yelai's Thunder-Treading Dragon Steed on the Ark. Later, he confirmed that Li Yelai was indeed the 'Bronze Mask' on the Ark. This was because only the Black Umbrella could forge the summoning bell.

And only the voters of the Ark can recognize this.

Since Jing Lin took the initiative to say this, it proved his identity. Among the Ark voters, the voter who resembled Jing Lin in appearance and became emotional when the bookholder mentioned the No. 71 Disaster Fog was the new voter 'Camellia'.

Speaking of which, when Jing Lin first met Li Ye, he said he wanted to invite her to drink Baishan tea. We should have made some connections back then.

"I never expected the authorities to have planted a spy within the Ark." Jing Lin raised an eyebrow. "When I told them you might be Copper Mask, even our Jing family's think tank couldn't believe it. You're really taking a risk!"

“I didn’t expect you to ask me this so openly,” Li Yelai responded. Although this was within the official’s speculation, he was still somewhat surprised by the Jing family’s frankness: “We officials only have suspicions about you and have not conducted any investigations.”

"As expected, you discovered me a long time ago. As for my honesty, I really want to befriend you. Plus, my grandfather said he wants to show you goodwill."

"Your grandfather?" Li Yelai frowned. That mysterious old man? He was said to be a big shot in the Yaoqing Jing family.

He is the third son of the Jing family's supreme ruler, wielding considerable power within the family. Why would such a figure take a liking to Li Yelai?

If it were just a face mask, it shouldn't be this friendly, right?

"Who knows? The old man didn't tell me either. Perhaps it's simply for the benefit of the Ark." Jing Lin smiled and said, "Alright, anyway, we don't have any conflict of interest, and we're friends. Then, on behalf of the Jing family, I would like to invite the Third Border City's handling department to cooperate on matters related to the Ark."

“Of course!” Li Yelai nodded: “Our No. 3 Border City Processing Department is willing to cooperate with the Yaoqing Jing family.”

Then, Jing Lin frowned: "Speaking of which, since you are Copper Mask, why did you sell Night General's information?"

Jing Lin suddenly remembered that the information about Ye Jiang's special abilities was sold by 'Copper Mask', which was Li Ye Lai himself.

“My abilities are hard to hide. Since the Black Umbrella organization has already noticed me, I’d rather sell myself than be investigated by other voters,” Li Yelai responded. “I can still make a little money.”

"Selling our own intelligence for a good price is definitely a win-win situation." Jing Lin nodded. "We missed the last gathering because of the disaster fog, so they probably all think we're dead. We can give them a little surprise at the next gathering. What kind of cooperation do you officials need from us?"

"Not at the moment, but we'll contact you once we've confirmed," Li Yelai said.

“Okay.” Jing Lin nodded, then asked, “Your sister has become a psionicist, but she still can’t suppress the curse, right? If you have the chance, bring her to the Jing family manor. My grandfather said he might be able to help her suppress the curse.”

Li Yelai found it increasingly strange. Is there such a thing as love without a reason in this world? Isn't this old man taking it a little too seriously?

But she still replied, "Please thank him for me. Let's talk about it another time. My sister's situation is special, and she can't leave home easily."

“I don’t know what your sister’s curse is, but I can understand a brother’s concern for his sister.” After thinking for a moment, Jing Lin said in a low voice, “I don’t have many friends in Border City No. 3, or rather, I have very few friends outside of the Jing family. You are one of them.”

"Stop, that's getting a bit cheesy!" Li Yelai complained.

Jing Lin lowered his voice to a whisper: "If, and I mean if... if my sister wants to stay in Border City No. 3 and wants to leave the Jing family, please take good care of her!"

Leaving the Jing family? Is this... running away from home?

Li Yelai was somewhat taken aback, but seeing Jing Lin's serious expression, he nodded and said, "As a friend, if such a situation really occurs, I will do my best to help her."

"Very good, that's enough." Jing Lin smiled with relief, then turned and left.

After Jing Lin and Jing Nuo left, Li Yelai immediately passed on the information about the cooperation to Yin Huo.

After pondering for a long time, Yin Huo said, "Cooperation is inevitable. If both sides know that the other is a member of the Ark and neither intends to break off relations, then cooperation is inevitable. But why did that old man suddenly show you such goodwill? What exactly does the Jing family want?"

The authorities have a good attitude towards Jing Lin because he proved himself trustworthy during the disaster fog.

However, the authorities have always maintained a certain distance from Yao Qingjing's family.

No matter how good Jing Lin is, he is still just a member of the Jing family.

The Jing family, or rather, the spiritual energy family, has always been a utilitarian entity.

Their monopoly on various potion recipes and extraordinary knowledge reveals that all their actions are driven by some kind of benefit.

The old man's kindness towards Li Yelai came so suddenly. He must have had some ulterior motive.

After pondering for a long time, Yin Huo gave advice: it was appropriate to make contact with the Jing family, but one must remain vigilant.

A week after the fog of disaster ended, a massive monument to heroes was erected inside the city gates of the great city, inscribed with the names of every martyr who fought for humanity.

Some of them were administrators, some were soldiers, and some were civilians, but without exception, they were all heroes.

The workers would occasionally come to the monument to mourn their fallen comrades.

Now, the large insect swarms within the giant cities have been almost wiped out, and the reinforcements from various giant cities have gradually withdrawn from Border City No. 3 after leaving behind a considerable number of engineering teams.

The reconstruction of the megacity is in full swing.

There are still some dangers within the giant city. Certain insectoid creatures that are good at hiding, such as the hunting insects, as well as some rather strange supernatural creatures, are still hiding in the corners of the giant city.

The authorities are working hard to eliminate these dangers, which is actually not that difficult.

As long as the authorities use surveillance cameras or vehicle-mounted cameras, or photos taken by eyewitnesses.

This allows for the easy elimination of those undetectable insectoids or supernatural beings.

Even if they are well hidden, they will be quickly eliminated.

Some of them are Class C forbidden items: Scarlet Notice!
Simply place the photo on the blank head of the Scarlet Wanted poster and pay a certain amount of Giant City Coins.

That humanoid phantom creature will then transform into a Crimson Hunter.

It automatically appears next to the target and begins its hunt. It ignores any hiding places!

This is arguably the most useful forbidden item for the official team. The official team can afford to pay the bounty for dealing with these insectoids or supernatural creatures that do not exceed the fourth level of awakening.

Crimson Hunters are beings from the Void Realm; they cannot die, only be banished. They are the best pursuers.

It's said that at their busiest times, Crimson Hunters would go out more than thirty times a day, even dulling their knives from the constant cutting. One wonders if the Crimson Hunters were experiencing both pain and pleasure.

In any case, this brought great convenience to the authorities.

Even if the Crimson Hunters encounter monsters they cannot eliminate, nearby official teams can locate them based on the battle they are fighting and provide fire support.

In this situation, the risks in various regions were minimized.

However, some are so cunning that they have never been seen by any cameras or witnesses.

In the livestock breeding area on the outskirts of the old city, there are large numbers of livestock that have just been transported from other megacities.

Thirty percent of the meat consumed in the city comes from this breeding area.

However, in the past few days, many of the livestock here have been hunted by some kind of creature.

Neither the security detail nor the cameras in various locations could capture a glimpse of the killer's appearance.

This prevented the authorities from deploying the Crimson Hunters.

But they also have the weapon of cause and effect.

On that day, Li Yelai received instructions to go to the scene.

[Night - Monster Spawner - General! The organization has a challenging task for you!]
"Damn it, don't call me a mob spawner!"

Book recommendation: "Reborn in 2003, All I Want Is to Lie Down"

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A new book by an author with over 10,000 subscribers—it's of very high quality!
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(End of this chapter)