Atlas of Heaven and Man.

Chapter 1501 Following the Trail to Capture the Hidden Shadow

After Lao Qi gave the notification, he thought the matter was over and was even thinking about going back to buy something for his daughter.

His daughter, Qi Qi, is currently studying at the company academy of Fusion Boundary. After graduation, she will become a company employee, and as a talent cultivated by the company itself, she will be promoted much faster than others.

Just then, a notification sounded on his device. He saw that it was the contact number for the Pure Faction branch and immediately answered it. A voice came from the other end: "Boss Qi, this is Chang Dong."

"Oh, it's Mr. Chang, hello, hello." Old Qi immediately responded warmly, "Did Mr. Chang have any instructions?"

He knew that after Chen Chuan went to Zhongjing, this man would become the main person in charge of the branch.

Chang Dong said, "Boss Qi, I saw the clues you provided, and I think they are very noteworthy and cannot be ignored."

How did you find out about this?

Old Qi didn't hide anything and explained his relationship with the leader of the Skull Gang.

Chang Dong said, "Oh, no wonder. Right now, our branch is cooperating with the requirements of the administrative office, and most of our staff have been transferred there. There's no one to watch over there for the time being. I'll have to trouble you, Boss Qi, to keep an eye on that area."

This matter might be a bit dangerous. Do you know Mr. Qi, the owner of the South Street Fighting Gym?

Old Qi said, "Yes, I know it. I used to drive there when I was a driver for Captain Chen."

Chang Dong said, "That's good. The fighting gym has a partnership with us. Just find Director Lu and ask them to cooperate. I'll let him know in advance. This is a commission that the branch has given to Boss Qi."

Old Qi readily agreed!

After Chang Dong ended the call, he instructed the new members:
"Don't take this lightly. This Mr. Qi has been in Central City for so many years. When the minister first came to Central City, he was the one who picked him up. His sense of smell is much sharper than yours. You should all pay attention to the things he reports."

Old Qi was very pleased that the branch valued his report, and he was very motivated. He turned the steering wheel, stepped on the gas, and headed towards the South Street Fighting Hall. He arrived at the location in less than half an hour, parked the car, and walked in.

The fighting arena has been renovated and expanded twice in one year, encompassing one-third of the street area. Many middle and upper-class people in the city send their children here to learn martial arts.

Even under these circumstances, Lu Fang still insisted on accepting students from disadvantaged backgrounds, which displeased many people. However, despite this, these people still sent their children to study here and had no intention of switching to another school.

Old Qi gave his name and went straight to Lu Fang, who said, "Master Qi, Mr. Chang told me the general situation, but I'd appreciate it if you could tell me the details."

Old Qi immediately gave instructions, then said, "I can't say for sure about this. I just feel that the branch has been telling us to pay attention to some things these past two days, and since I've seen them, I can't just keep quiet about it."

After listening attentively, Lu Fang asked, "Master Qi, could you go again?"

Old Qi thought for a moment and said, "I'll give it a try, it should work."

Although it was a bit risky, he knew what the Skull Gang liked, so he could just bring some good stuff. Besides, he wasn't some nobody anymore, and the enemy wouldn't dare to mess with him easily.

Lu Fang shouted down, "Chu Wu!"

A moment later, a young man in his early twenties ran up. He had sharp eyes, but he had an indelible street vibe about him.

Upon approaching, he respectfully said, "Teacher."

Lu Fang said, "Go with Master Qi and check on the situation over there."

Chu Wu said, "Okay."

Old Qi recognized Chu Wu; he was the best student here, having already reached the second level according to the classification of fighters, and was said to be the most promising student to become the third level.

Now he felt more at ease. The strongest person in the Skull Gang was only at this level, because training fighters required resources. If the Skull Gang were any powerful gang, they wouldn't be hiding in a corner.

He said, "Brother Chu, get in my car, we'll head over now."

Meanwhile, at the government office, due to thorough preparations and sufficient manpower, the inspection of the mother was completed ahead of schedule.

The official in charge of technology came out and reported to Jin Guogang.

"Chief, some problems have been detected. It seems that the mother creature has made self-adjustments due to some external stimuli. According to the report, it is likely that there is a problem with the transmission of field information."

We initially thought it was due to the connectivity of the skyline and the mutual influence between fields. However, since other large field organisms were unaffected, considering the adaptability of the female worm, it's possible that the influence came from some external organisms.

Jin Guogang asked, "External life forms? What could they be?"

The official said, "There's no way to determine it yet, but we can be sure that the impact started at least five days ago."

"Five days ago? Are you sure?"

"Yes, we can be sure of that."

Jin Guogang said in a deep voice, "Is this effect still present? If so, will it still affect the mother of the snake?"

The official said, "No, at least not when we were testing."

The Fumu (a type of worm) possesses extremely strong adaptability and resistance. If such a situation still occurs, then human intervention cannot be ruled out. Because if mutated, alien creatures were to emerge occasionally, they wouldn't be able to interfere with a large-scale organism like the Fumu unless they formed a significant number and scale. Only continuous and uninterrupted intervention could produce such an effect.

Jin Guogang's tone turned serious: "Was it deliberate? Didn't you find anything unusual during the inspection?"

The official nodded.

Jin Guogang said, "Is this the only possible reason?"

The official said, "We can't make any judgments, but we can say that, given the current situation, this is the most likely cause."

Jin Guogang: "Will this kind of situation happen again in the future? Can we find the person responsible?"

"It's hard to say. If that's the case, and the mastermind gives up, those mutated creatures will no longer appear, making it difficult to find the whereabouts of the people behind them. But if they don't give up, we can try to capture them with equipment. I also suggest stationing a fighter near the mother of the venomous creatures. The fighter's spiritual power can help us guide them better."

After asking the question, Jin Guogang immediately came out. He first informed the other central city authorities, asking them to pay attention as well. At the same time, he contacted the handling bureau, asking them to use every means to investigate suspicious persons and find those who might be hiding behind the scenes!

Old Qi finally arrived at the Skull Gang in his car. Old Qu came out to greet him, showing no outward signs of anything amiss. He even said, "Old Qi, look at my memory! I told you a long time ago, you wouldn't have had to make two unnecessary trips, would you?"

Old Qi said, "Old Qu, I'll bring you two more bottles of tonics another day to help you improve your brain function."

"Hey, that's great! Don't forget, I'm waiting."

Once they were on the side, Old Qu asked in a low voice, "Old Qi, what's going on?"

Old Qi said, "Old Qu, there's something wrong with these people in your faction. Don't get involved. It's best if nothing happens."

Old Qu knew he wouldn't harm him; these people were probably involved in something serious. He sighed, "What's wrong?" He glanced at Chu Wu, "Do you need my help?"

Old Qi said, "No need, you don't need to do anything."

He turned to Chu Wu and said, "Brother Chu, those people should still be inside."

Chu Wu looked up, pointed to a spot, and said to Lao Qu, "Can I stand over there?"

Old Qu said, "Come with me." He led Chu Wu over, right below the abandoned building. "Is this side okay?"

Chu Wu glanced at it and saw that the building's surface was covered with vines, and that there were aluminum cans connected together inside, as well as some strange insects buzzing around. It was impossible for an ordinary person to climb up there.

He had no intention of climbing up. He was using a free-style fighting technique that particularly enhanced his five senses, especially his hearing and smell. Now, with his eyes slightly closed, the sounds inside immediately reached his ears.

He heard people moving around, fiddling with something, and muttering something. There were many unpleasant smells in the air, but he could also smell a very different scent, like the fragrance of a special plant. He sensed it was a creature from that area.

Old Qu was slightly nervous: "Brother, how are you? You can't stand here for too long."

Chu Wu said, "Give me two more minutes."

Old Qu said, "Okay." He smoked a cigarette while keeping an eye on his surroundings. Fortunately, the Skull Gang was very loosely organized, and most of them didn't know what the guests upstairs were doing there, so no one paid any attention to them.

After listening for a while longer, Chu Wu noted down a few keywords and the taste, then said, "That's enough."

Old Qu breathed a sigh of relief, and the two of them walked back together. Chu Wu said to Old Qi, "Uncle Qi, we can go now."

Old Qi said to Old Qu, "Old Qu, be careful."

Old Qu nodded: "I know."

Old Qi and his companion quickly drove away. At that moment, the captain glanced out the window, frowned, and went to look for the Skull Gang members: "Who were those people who just left?"

The Skull Gang member said, "That's Lao Qi, who delivers goods for us. Don't worry, he's an acquaintance. You're safe here."

The captain wasn't entirely at ease, but he had no choice; the mission had to be completed.

After waiting another day in the room with his three teammates, he learned that the field information had been restored, and a box containing heart-eating worms, which had been sent from the sea, had also been delivered to them.

The team leader said, "Keep going. Once we complete the mission, we can go home and reunite with our families."

The team members mustered their spirits and started fiddling with it together.

At first, everything went smoothly, but that night, just as they were dozing off, they were suddenly awakened by a noisy noise. Then, everyone felt a numbness in their bodies and immediately lost consciousness.

Inside the room, Deng Fu, Tai Dongwei, Geng Zheng, and two teammates wearing protective suits and masks appeared and restrained all four unconscious technicians.

Deng Fu glanced at the creature in the field, walked to the side, and said to Jie Ping, "Reporting to Commander Xu, all personnel are under control."

……

……

(End of this chapter)