The North American Gourmet Demon Handbook

"This is no longer just an economic issue; it has touched the nerves of the capital market and shaken the foundations of the entire industry."

Li Shanze raised his eyebrows: "What do you mean?"

Kate sighed. "Yeah, we certainly don't care how much market value those damn pharmaceutical companies lose. I'd even kill them all with my lance... but someone does."

"So, it's attracted quite a lot of attention now. This hospital is almost at the center of the storm." Kate's voice was full of unquestionable seriousness.

"Investment banks, senators, governors, even the president... they all turned their attention here. Everyone was watching this place, watching every move of each of us, watching every detail of this case."

"My administrative supervisor, Deputy Director Clark, repeatedly asked me indirectly what was going on with this case."

"Even His Holiness the Pope in the Vatican felt that Paul Fitzgerald's sudden death was not enough for him to worry about. He even had the leisure to inquire about this kidnapping case."

Kate's tone was full of sarcasm and irony - but mainly directed at the Pope.

"This is a major case that has attracted worldwide attention. There are countless spies and eyes here. I suggest you remain vigilant, Master."

She leaned forward and lowered her voice, a hint of warning in her tone.

"In particular, Master, you have gradually become one of the key figures in this case... because you are responsible for Annabell Graham's security."

"Countless people have tried to contact and test this woman, trying to extract information from her. The information you possess and everything you have experienced are crucial. But at the same time, this also means that you are in great danger."

"The forces behind the scenes who are able to manipulate such a large pharmaceutical company and conduct such large-scale human trials have power beyond your imagination."

"They won't allow anyone who might threaten their interests to exist. You're like standing under a huge spotlight, with no privacy and no way out."

"After I modified the master's original file in the FBI database, many people have tried to access it. Who knows, someone might realize that you are actually the 'Ogre' wanted by the entire United States."

"Whatever your plans are, my advice is to move fast."

Kate's voice became even more stern: "I must warn you, Mr. Li. From now on, your every word and action may be scrutinized by countless eyes."

"Any tiny mistake, any careless action, could lead to irreversible consequences. You must not only protect yourself, but also protect those around you."

In order to express her seriousness, Kate even changed the address from "Master", which was used to express obedience in private, to the extremely formal "Mr. Li".

"Even among FBI agents, I don't know which ones can be trusted. Please be careful with your words and actions and make quick decisions, master." Kate continued.

Li Shanze frowned: "Even if they are your men?"

Kate said sarcastically, "My men and I don't have a slave contract like you, my master, have. I certainly can't trust my men like you trust me."

"Idris Julio, ostensibly the FBI contact, is actually an informant for another agent, Major, who's been keeping an eye on the Special Affairs Unit—the Major you met once in Fern."

"Esposito Lopez is the Church's public insider. He appears to be loyal to the Pope, but in reality he is a man of Los Angeles Archbishop Santos."

"There are more, and I can't figure out who they serve. Everyone has their own standpoint. After all, as the Grand Knight of the Catholic Church, everyone wants to keep a close eye on them. No one wants this power to be used by others, right?"

Kate's tone became more sarcastic.

Kate paused here, giving Li Shanze time to digest.

Li Shanze paused for a moment and completely digested the news brought by Kate.

"So, what you're saying is that this kidnapping case and human experiment has turned into a huge vortex that affects global capital, politics, and even religious forces."

"Novartis, Johnson & Johnson, Merck, these giants' market value evaporated, attracting the attention of Wall Street, Congress, the White House, and even the Vatican."

"And I am standing at the center of this vortex."

Li Shanze said calmly.

"At the same time, you are also warning me that the people around us, including your agents, may have ulterior motives and become spies planted by those behind-the-scenes forces."

"Not only do I have to face external enemies, but I also have to guard against infiltration from within. Furthermore, my identity could be exposed at any time, and I could once again become the nation's most wanted 'cannibal,' right?"

He pointed out all the potential threats directly, and there was no panic in his tone, only an almost cold clarity.

Kate looked at him with a flicker of admiration in her eyes. She knew that Li Shanze had fully understood the seriousness of the situation.

"Yes, that's right." Kate nodded. "Although I have processed the data, the backup of the original data in the database cannot be destroyed. If you continue to be in the spotlight, someone with ulterior motives will always find a way to access it."

"And there's this RV. Since those pharmaceutical company executives are looking for this RV, I suggest you drive the RV away—at least don't park it in the hospital—so as not to cause them unnecessary associations." Kate continued to advise seriously.

Li Shanze smiled and shook his head: "No, on the contrary, I just wanted to arouse their associations, so I chose to park the RV at the hospital."

"I believe that those who care about this should also take a look at this RV."

Author's words: Thanks to Qianxiao Anran and Xiaopingguo112633 for their recommendation votes

There is still only one update today, and normal updates should be resumed tomorrow. Please forgive me...

303 Night Visitor

The fact is just as Li Shanze expected, someone has already been unable to hold back and has come to his door.

After talking with Kate, Li Shanze continued to patrol around the hospital.

The RV that Charlie inherited from her teacher was parked at the edge of a secluded woodland near the hospital. As night fell, only a faint light shone through the windows.

Li Shanze walked into the RV intentionally or unintentionally, and then a sound of footsteps came from afar, walking steadily.

A figure slowly appeared in the night.

He was an Indian man, thin, wearing a well-cut dark suit and a pair of gold-rimmed glasses, behind which lay a pair of deep and calm eyes.

He had a gentle smile on his face, with the corners of his mouth slightly raised, like an old friend coming to visit.

"Good evening, Mr. Li." The man's voice was low and magnetic, with a thick Indian accent.

To be precise, it was the standard Indian butler accent, which would have sounded comfortable to a white person.

"I apologize for disturbing you."

Li Shanze did not respond, but just looked at the other person coldly.

He knew who this person was - Vikram Chandrasekhar, a senior executive of Novartis. After hearing this name from Theodore Lancaster, Li Shanze had collected his information.

Vikram Chandrasekhar didn't seem to mind Li Shanze's silence. He bowed gracefully as if he was making a formal social visit.

"My name is Vikram Chandrasekhar, the Chief Wizard of Novartis. Of course, externally, I'm more often referred to as 'Senior Vice President of Global R&D Strategy and Innovation Partnerships' and 'Chief Scientific Officer.' After all, the title of wizard always sounds a bit...outdated in modern society."

He chuckled at himself, and the smile was so gentle that it made people feel a little cold.

The tone of his greeting was as if he was visiting a new neighbor, and he didn't seem to care about Novartis's identity.

His eyes swept across the beautiful exterior of the RV and finally landed on Li Shanze.

"Mr. Li's RV is truly an amazing masterpiece. It's more than just a means of transportation, right? I can sense the ancient and powerful energy contained within it, as well as those ingenious magical transformation arrays. It's truly a perfect masterpiece!"

Vikram made no secret of his admiration for the RV.

"Mr. Chandrasekhar, you are visiting me so late at night, I guess you are not here to admire my RV?" Li Shanze's voice deliberately carried a hint of impatience, as if trying to break the suffocating courtesy.

At the same time, he put on a hostile look, like a wild dog guarding its food, rejecting the person who directly revealed that he was a wizard and his criticism of the RV.

"No, don't misunderstand me, Mr. Li. I never had any intention of taking possession of this RV."

Vikram's smile remained. He slowly pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses. The lenses reflected the dim light from inside the car, making his eyes look a little blurry.

Li Shanze had no intention of inviting Vikram into the RV, and Vikram didn't seem to care. He just stood in front of the car with a smile on his face and chatted with Li Shanze.

"I understand your vigilance, Mr. Li. After all, this RV is inextricably linked to the 'Boiling Sage' school, and that school has always been known for its mystery and xenophobia." Vikram's tone carried a subtle hint of self-mockery.

"You might think that as a Novartis executive, I would be drooling over the secrets behind this car. But that's not the case."

He sighed softly, his eyes falling on his fingertips, as if recalling something.

"The 'Boiling Sages' school, they are ancient alchemists who master the secrets of all kinds of wonderful transformations. And this RV, as far as I know, is a relic of their former great wizard Barnum."

"Barnum...he was indeed a great alchemist, and his wisdom and skills were admirable."

Vikram raised his head and looked at Li Shanze with a complicated emotion in his eyes.

"You might think that I was once Barnum's student, or that I have a deep connection with him. But unfortunately, Mr. Li, that's not entirely true. I did study under Mr. Barnum, and you could say I was her student. But there has always been an invisible wall between me and the 'Boiling Sage' school."

He pointed at his skin, with a barely perceptible bitterness in his tone.

"Because of my Indian heritage, I was never truly accepted as a full member of the 'Boiling Sage' school."

"I'm just... an auditor. An 'outlier' who's allowed to peek into their knowledge from the edges. They use my talents and my understanding of modern science to help them solve some problems, but they never truly open up to me their most core secrets."

Vikram's smile turned sarcastic.

"So, if this RV has any secrets, any mysteries that only Barnum's true descendants can know, it has nothing to do with me. I cannot know, and I have no right to know. It's like a closed door, and I am always blocked outside."

He looked at Li Shanze, his eyes revealing a hint of "we are both wanderers in this world".

"Mr. Li, you are also Asian, so you should understand this feeling, right?"

“In the Western world, no matter how much we achieve, no matter how hard we try to fit in, there is always an invisible barrier, a glass ceiling, separating us from those who are ‘really’ in power, from the ‘real’ inner circle.”

"We are exploited, marginalized, and treated as tools, but we can never truly become one of them."

I get it. This is an attempt to play the Asian card and resonate with discriminated Asians.

Li Shanze understood Vikram Chandrasekhar's lobbying strategy.

"So?" Li Shanze's voice remained calm, but there was a subtle hint of anger in his tone. "Mr. Chandrasekhar, you came to me late at night to tell me about your experience as an 'auditor'. Were you just looking for a sympathetic listener?"

Vikram's smile widened, knowing his strategy was working.

He restrained the "bitterness" and his eyes once again flashed with that deep and calm light.

He read from Li Shanze's deliberate indifference and eyes some deep-seated ambition and unwillingness similar to his own.

It was not simply the anger of the discriminated, but a fundamental contempt for the existing order, an impulse for complete subversion.

Vikram believed that Li Shanze, like him, was a true "progressive" at heart, a tough guy who disdained petty changes and only sought radical change.

Li Shanze had no idea that his acting skills were so good, so naturally he had no idea that this Indian guy was crazy about adding more scenes to his role.

"Of course I'm not complaining. I'm here to seek cooperation, Mr. Li." He looked straight into Li Shanze's eyes, and his deep eyes flashed with an almost bewitching fanaticism, as if to suck Li Shanze's soul into them.

"I know what you are doing! You want to completely overthrow the Drummond family's hypocritical system that only exploits humanity." Vikram's tone became firm and full of approval, as if he had witnessed every move of Li Shanze with his own eyes.

"I have come to join you in your great ambition."

Li Shanze couldn't figure out what Vikram was up to, nor did he know how much information this Indian guy knew, let alone what he was thinking.

"I don't know what you are talking about, Mr. Chandrasekhar. I'm just an ordinary FBI consultant." Li Shanze's tone was calm, trying to distance himself from the matter.

Vikram chuckled, and there was a hint of knowingness in his laughter.

"Mr. Li, you don't have to hide anything from me. I know better than anyone the corruption of the Drummond family and their control over Novartis. My teacher, the great sage Barnum, although she had collaborated with pharmaceutical companies like Novartis, complained to me more than once during her lifetime about the Drummond family's absolute control over the pharmaceutical companies, a kind of exploitation that bordered on feudal lords."

He adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses, and a cold sharpness flashed in his eyes.

And this story? Is it true, or did this Indian just make it up to curry favor? If so, is it related to Barnum's death?

Li Shanze's mind raced.

And Vikram Chandrasekhar became more and more excited as he spoke.

"Barnum even privately accused James Drummond of having 'sold his soul to the devil.'"

"His soul is filled with filth and distortion, completely contrary to the purity pursued by the 'Boiling Sage.' He believes that Drummond's control over the pharmaceutical company has become Novartis' biggest cancer."

Vikram's eyes fell on Li Shanze again, with a look of scrutiny and certainty.

"So, when the Drummond family heir was kidnapped, and then the Novartis scandal broke out like a plague, I immediately understood. This was no coincidence, nor was it ordinary business competition. This must be the true students of the great sage Barnum, or in other words, those who truly inherited his legacy, declaring war on the Drummond family."

He leaned forward slightly, with a barely perceptible hint of excitement in his tone.

"And you, Mr. Li, you appear here, you own this RV, and you exude a unique aura that resonates with the RV...that's not something ordinary people can possess."

"You were able to have the heir of the Drummond family kidnapped—that speaks to your strength; you were able to allow the Novartis scandal to spread like a plague—that speaks to your wisdom."

"All of this points to one fact: you are the one chosen by the Great Sage Barnum! You must have mastered the true core knowledge of the Great Sage Barnum, even surpassing her."

No, no, no, Barnum's choice was Charlie. The so-called unique aroma resonating with the RV was probably left after my recent sexual encounter with Charlie.

Li Shanze had no intention of correcting this small mistake - and he didn't take what the Indian said seriously.

This Indian accused Barnum of racial discrimination just because he was Asian, and then immediately declared Li Shanze Barnum's successor. Didn't he feel that his statement was inconsistent?

Is this Indian an idiot himself, or does he think I'm an idiot?

"You are the one who inherited the legacy of the great sage Barnum and is determined to clean up the 'cancer' of Novartis and other pharmaceutical companies. I am not here to stop you, but to fight alongside you!"

Vikram Chandrasekhar spoke with passion.

But Li Shanze just wanted to laugh when he heard it.

The words were pretty, but that wasn't surprising. After all, he was Indian, so the only thing he could do was speak pretty.