Chapter 523 - - 469 Not stirring trouble is uncomfortable_1

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A moment of silence.

Duge clearly sensed Nalan Li making a motion as if to throw his phone away, but then he quickly took it back.

It seemed like the two were on a call, but in reality, it was just Nalan Li on the phone. If Duge had possessed telepathic abilities, he would have been an enhanced version of Professor X.

“Lin Hong, I don’t care what your keyword is, but you absolutely cannot enter the science academy without permission from the National Defense Bureau,” Nalan Li said.

“Okay.”

Duge agreed with a smile, watching Nalan Li hurriedly leave, his smirk gradually fading.

That’s just how people are!

Never satisfied.

The nicer you are to them, the more they want to control and manipulate you…

They really think I’m a pushover to be squeezed!

If I don’t give you something to do, you’ll never understand my importance, brothers!

Luo Yan’s reaction time was too slow. By the time he sorted everything out, the opportunity would be lost. Duge couldn’t wait for him.

…

Not long after Nalan Li hung up, Tang Houming called with the same instruction not to go to the science academy without permission.

It must be said.

Duge’s identity was too sensitive and made everyone uneasy about him.

Naturally, Duge readily agreed.

That day.

Imperial University was hit with more than a dozen romantic pursuits, all targeting Gu Qingyan and Shen Yuning. Someone even put up a banner that read “Kill One Every Ten Steps, come at me if you dare,” blatantly challenging Duge.

Knowing their intentions, Gu Qingyan and Shen Yuning were both hoping to be the girl in Kill One Every Ten Steps’ mind, naturally ignoring these jumping toads.

The harassment in the battle net was even more intense. Out of necessity, the two had to run to the training ground and don their Mechas to spar.

Even so, they couldn’t escape the pursuers. Seniors from the Mecha department followed them to the training ground, looking for various excuses to watch their training, causing them nothing but annoyance.

Duge, having watched the lively scenes from his dorm for a while, casually made his way to his private training ground. He picked a Windwalker and started to modify its imperfections, since he had nothing better to do and exercising his practical skills wasn’t a bad idea.

His every move was naturally reported by the secret agent surveilling him to Nalan Li.

Meanwhile, Duge’s divine consciousness was always fully operational, like an omniscient and omnipotent god, bringing every nearby movement under his surveillance.

Mo Shengmin and Xu Wan both logged into the battle net, training their skills and expanding their influence.

Luo Yan was busy urgently mobilizing personnel to fortify and modify the National Defense Bureau, preparing to accommodate more Alien Warriors. He still hadn’t given up on utilizing all the Alien Warriors.

As for the underground organizations of the Imperial Capital, they were still busily conspiring on how to eliminate the masked hero, even spending a great deal of money to bribe the Imperial Capital’s security officers for temporary control over the city’s road surveillance.

…

In the dead of night.

The bustling Imperial University finally quieted down. Duge was still at his training ground, modifying the Mecha, occasionally altering blueprints, or logging into the battle net for some research, as if he were completely engrossed in Mecha modification.

Seeing Duge so busy, those responsible for surveilling him also grew lax.

After all, they didn’t have the robust energy of an Alien Warrior.

Besides, watching someone endlessly tweaking a cold machine, fiddling with a bunch of incomprehensible parameters on a computer, to someone who couldn’t understand, was exceedingly boring and tedious.

Seizing the moment when his watcher dozed off, Duge sneaked into the restroom, climbed out the window from the training ground, donned the mask of the masked hero, and disappeared like lightning into the night.

Today, Duge’s attributes of romance and low-key exploded off the charts.

Gliding through the night, he moved like a ghostly apparition; cameras could at most capture a fleeting afterimage of him, a speed many times faster than that of any mecha.

Duge possessed an extraordinary perception, bypassing surveillance blind spots with ease.

And so, Duge made his way to the gang’s stronghold, swiftly annihilating everyone gathered there, leaving no survivors. He simply wrote on the gang leader’s office wall with fresh blood, “As man sows, so shall he reap.”

Then he floated away, heading straight for the headquarters of the National Defense Bureau.

The National Defense Bureau had surveillance with no blind spots, covering 360 degrees; dodging them was impossible. Instead, Duge pushed his speed to the limit, breaking through a window to forcefully enter.

Amidst the blaring of alarms, Duge took the shortest route straight to Mo Shengmin’s room. He burst through the door, snatched the machete from Mo Shengmin’s hands just as he had disengaged from the battle network and before he could react, and with a reverse stroke of the blade, chopped off his head. Then he broke through a wall and floated away.

…

When Luo Yan, Xu Wan, and others arrived, all they found was a decapitated corpse.

“Fuck!” Xu Wan’s face turned deathly pale in an instant, “Who the hell did this? A one-hit kill, Mo Shengmin didn’t even have the chance to defend himself…”

Luo Yan, looking at the huge hole in the wall, twitched violently at the corners of his eyes, “Nalan Li, check the surveillance.”

Nalan Li swallowed hard and immediately turned on the portable computer he carried, accessing the National Defense Bureau’s surveillance system and replaying the entire process of Duge’s intrusion and escape.

From the moment Duge smashed through the door until he left, the surveillance footage showed only a swiftly moving black line, his figure completely indiscernible.

Even when slowed down to the lowest speed, all they could see was a blurry shadow; nothing more—no facial features, no height, nothing discernible.

“Three seconds,” Nalan Li pursed his lips, “It only took him three seconds from entering to leaving. This speed is not humanly possible. Moreover, he was targeting Mo Shengmin directly; his path had no deviations, which suggests it might be someone from our inner circle…”

“Fuck, is there an Alien Warrior hidden within the National Defense Bureau? Don’t you guys do checks?” Xu Wan, blood drained from her face, said, “With that speed, his attributes must be maxed out, definitely Kill One Every Ten Steps.”

“Are you sure?” Luo Yan asked Xu Wan, his voice stern.

“His reputation is the highest among all Alien Warriors. Who else could possess such high attributes?” Xu Wan said, “I’ve said it before, he’s a disaster. You wouldn’t listen. Now that Mo Shengmin is dead, I’m next. I can’t stay here; I need to leave. Luo Yan, find me a safe place, the farther from the Imperial Capital the better…”

“Besides Kill One Every Ten Steps, do you suspect anyone else?” Luo Yan asked.

“Great General Feng, Falling Leaves Know Flowers, I am Poseidon… Any of these guys making waves in the battle network could be possible,” Xu Wan said, “To cause such a scenario, he must have either maxed out his attributes or possess key abilities like speed or agility. There are no other possibilities. Damn it, I should have known better than to trust you!”

“Xu Wan, don’t panic,” Luo Yan said, trying to soothe the frantic Xu Wan, “He made a move tonight, which theoretically means he won’t strike again. Xu Wan, he managed to assassinate Mo Shengmin accurately, which proves he knows the ins and outs of the National Defense Bureau. It’s useless no matter where you hide. Better calm down and think of a solution, to eliminate him would benefit everyone, Green Star cannot allow such a scourge to exist.”

With a sign to Nalan Li, he said, “Nalan, start with an internal inspection of the National Defense Bureau, see who has the most motive?”

“Yes,” Nalan Li acknowledged, packing up his portable computer and leaving.

“It’s no use,” Xu Wan shook her head, “My attributes and skills are no match for him; he can just use his speed to kill me, just like he did with Lin Hong. His speed is so extreme that I can’t react in time.”

“So, what’s your keyword?” Luo Yan asked.

“Tactical mastery,” Xu Wan hesitated for a moment before answering, “My awakened skill is called Having a Plan in Mind. To me, everything manifests as data, allowing me to determine the best outcome.

That’s how I could see Mo Shengmin’s line of attack and its intensity with pinpoint accuracy, allowing me to choose the optimal evasion path.

During my combat with Lin Hong, he blocked all my evasion paths, and the least costly option was to take the hit from his pulse cannon with my mecha. All other paths would have led to severe injuries; that’s why I chose to withstand the pulse cannon.”

“Lin Hong?” Luo Yan’s brow furrowed again. First, it was Kill One Every Ten Steps, and now Lin Hong? Were the indications really so clear?

…

Xu Wan hesitated, then asked, “Where is he? Have you looked into him?”

“He has a reliable background; we will investigate him,” Luo Yan assured her, leveling his emotions, “If we’re dealing with a speed-related keyword, how could we counter it?”

“Keywords like delay, stasis,” Xu Wan suggested, “Luo Yan, take me to see Lin Hong; there’s definitely something off about him.”

“He’s hospitalized, suffering from mental exhaustion and severe trauma; it couldn’t have been him,” Luo Yan said, eyeing Xu Wan, adding, “I know that you gamers recover quickly, but at that time, while he was in hospital, he was still in a serious condition, so it couldn’t have been him.”

“Alright then,” Xu Wan glanced at Luo Yan, “If possible, I’d like to visit him at the hospital. After all, he looks so much younger than you all. He looks just like’seventeen-year-old Kill One Every Ten Steps.”

…

Luo Yan shook his head at Xu Wan, “Xu Wan, as for Lin Hong and Kill One Every Ten Steps, we will investigate. But you can’t go to see him.”

“Why not?” Xu Wan asked.

“Because if he really is Kill One Every Ten Steps, going to see him would be the greatest danger,” Luo Yan said, “Xu Wan, now that Mo Shengmin is dead, my options are limited to you. Contact the people of your planet! We need to put together a team as soon as possible; we can’t let such things happen again…”

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