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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 199: Targeted
With Lime's latest disappearance, we had no choice but to hasten our departure from Tibet.
This time, we were accompanied by Pei Zi and five others. The investigation into the Twenty Years Ago expedition had yielded numerous leads over the years through the Azure Dragon Organization, but to uncover further clues, we would need Cold Snow to look into it. After all, there are countless leads worldwide, making it quite cumbersome to sort through them.
However, the Azure Dragon has a dedicated section for intelligence gathering, managed by Qu Elder.
Although Tibet is the headquarters, it does not mean that all clues are found here; this place merely serves as a gathering point for all the elders to meet and hold discussions.
As for Wolf Elder, he was an active participant in various fights during his youth, so he is now primarily responsible for counter-operations.
Then there is Elder General, who mainly oversees surveillance—yes, various forms of surveillance and clue-finding.
Lastly, you might be wondering if these are the only elders in the Azure Dragon. What I want to clarify is that these three elders operate "behind the scenes." By "behind the scenes," I do not mean they are "puppet masters" in the usual sense; rather, these three sections within the Azure Dragon Organization are primarily responsible for counter-operations.
Counter-operations, intelligence gathering, and surveillance are closely interconnected.
Other elders mainly handle external operations. For such a vast organization like the Azure Dragon Organization, if there were no substantial funds backing it, not only would its sustainability be questionable, but the success rate of counter-operations would also be extremely low. After all, lacking funds means inferior equipment.
Now, don’t tell me that as long as one has capability, one can move freely anywhere; a person is still just a human being. No matter how strong one is, they remain a flesh-and-blood entity. When faced with strange phenomena, relying solely on intelligence and brute strength is insufficient. In my view, it would merely be a waste of energy. Tomb Raiding is not as simple as people imagine; climbing a mountain sounds easy in theory, but in practice, one finds themselves exhausted halfway up. If any unusual circumstances arise, it could lead to disaster.
So, after saying all this, I just want to emphasize that Azure Dragon holds significant influence in society. Although I do not know which wealthy and powerful individuals belong to Azure Dragon today—and I do not need to know—after all, they earn money to support those operating in secret for Tomb Raiding and gathering clues. We simply collaborate with those hidden figures.
Sitting in the car and watching the heavy snowfall outside, my mind couldn't settle down. The weather made movement inconvenient; wearing so many layers made my limbs feel stiff and restricted. Moreover, my concern was not about whether it was winter or not.
(The phone rings.)
I lazily took out my phone. This phone is new, and it can be said that this phone number is only known to members within The League of Shadows. Of course, Pei Zi and the others also have this number, but as for others, I think it's impossible for them to know. I looked at my phone and saw that it was a call from Wang Yi. "Hello."
"Hello, is this Brother Feng?" Wang Yi's voice sounded anxious, as if he was running urgently. On the other end of the line, I could still hear his heavy breathing.
I jolted awake and quickly sat up. "What happened?"
The others looked at me with confusion and tension because we were on a private bus, so I wasn't worried about being overheard. I switched to speakerphone and heard Wang Yi angrily say, "Brother Feng, after we followed your instructions and arrived in Jiangsu, we were monitored by a group of unknown individuals. These past few days, they have been acting aggressively and even raided our place!"
Being targeted again? I thought to myself, then Xianxian immediately asked, "Have you found out who those people are? Is it Golden Eagle Sect or Black Blade?"
"Master Xian?" Wang Yi gasped for breath. "I suspect they are from the Golden Eagle Sect." As he spoke, there was a loud commotion on the other end, with gunfire and various noises.
"Hold on for now and send the detailed address to Zhao Yang. Have him send some people for support!" Xianxian instructed.
"Okay, damn it! These Black Tortoise bastards dare to ambush me. Just wait until I wipe them out!" Wang Yi's voice grew fainter; that last remark didn't seem directed at us. I helplessly hung up the phone, feeling even more anxious.
How did those people know that Wang Yi and the others went to Jiangsu? Before they set off, I had repeatedly instructed them to go secretly and not to alert anyone. So, I believed they wouldn't make a big fuss about it. But why did the enemy specifically target Wang Yi?
They were only on standby over there; I had asked Cold Snow to look into information about my hometown, but she hadn't gotten her hands on it yet.
What? You ask me if I don't have a notebook?
I wanted to say that in this world, there are hackers—an invisible type of "killer." These highly skilled hackers can even restore deleted items and browsing history. Therefore, relatively speaking, the high-level secrets of the Azure Dragon Organization are not stored on computers. To investigate further, I'd need to go to Beijing; there's another headquarters there, which is the intelligence department's headquarters where almost all high-level clues are recorded.
Currently, we haven't clarified the matter of my "real and fake hometown," nor do we know where the expedition team went twenty years ago. Everything will only be clear after we get to Beijing.
So actually, Wang Yi and the others are truly "on standby." Every day is just playtime for them. Asking them to investigate events from over twenty years ago or even further back is completely unrealistic. Therefore, it's hard for me to understand how they got targeted and ended up in a confrontation.
"What exactly is their purpose?" I couldn't help but ask. I really didn't understand; hadn't Wang Yi said that those people had been monitoring them for a long time? If that's the case, they should know that Xianxian, Lime, and I were no longer there. So why would they take action?
Xianxian frowned, deep in thought. "It can't be as simple as wanting to weaken our abilities, right?"
"I really don't think it's that simple!" Reducing our strength might be a possibility, but just a slight one. As for their true intentions, I still couldn't figure it out.
"Wang Yi said they had been watched for a while before they acted. They probably saw that we had no backup and were isolated and helpless before taking action," Pei Zi interjected, a glint of insight in his eyes. "They might want to capture us alive!"
Capture us alive?
Why?
"Wang Yi doesn't say much, but what exactly do those people want to know?" Xianxian scoffed. "The League of Shadows? Please, we've only been developing for a few months; we probably know less than they do. Why would they want to capture Wang Yi? Could it be..." Xianxian narrowed her eyes, and I felt an ominous premonition rising within me. "They wouldn't want to use this to threaten us, would they?"
I looked at the others; everyone was deep in thought. Although no one spoke, I knew we were all thinking along the same lines. The sense of foreboding in my heart grew stronger. Not only was there no progress on matters back home, but we also had no idea where Lime had gone. Now, someone was targeting Wang Yi—no, more accurately, they were targeting us!
Damn it, we hadn't even sorted one thing out when three new problems came crashing down on us. It felt overwhelming.
"What should we do?" After a long silence, Snow Princess broke the quiet and asked.
"Brother Pei, it seems we can't go with you," I said decisively, looking at Pei Zi and then at Cold Snow. "Xue Er, could you please go to Beijing to check some information for us? We need to head to Jiangsu."
"Okay," Cold Snow nodded without hesitation.
"How about I go with you?" Pei Zi frowned and said disapprovingly.
I had already prepared for the worst. If those people really wanted to capture Wang Yi to threaten us, we needed to get to Jiangsu as soon as possible. Although I was eager to pursue Lime right now, there were no leads; we could only take it step by step!
Pei Zi was also very aware that going with us was dangerous, after all, those people's goal was us. His suggestion was just to contribute, but I said, "Brother Pei, you should stay behind to protect Miss Xueer. After all, she is the most important person in our upcoming actions, and we can't be careless. With you here, we can feel more at ease!"
"Well, well, from my perspective, it seems like someone is feeling at ease," Xianxian said with a sideways glance and a smirk, his expression making him look quite annoying.
"Come on, stop messing around!" I shot him an exasperated look. It was such a serious time, yet he had no sense of urgency!
"Hahaha..." Xianxian laughed heartily. "What do you think? Do I look like I'm being silly or is someone just being stubborn?" He continued to tease while also asking the black bear and Big Dragon behind him.
Big Dragon appeared relatively composed; he just smiled without joining in. However, the black bear had a rather lewd grin on his face, his bright little eyes constantly winking at me. "Brother Feng, good eye! You know Xue Er is a flower in our organization; many people want to pick her but can't. But you? I, Black Bear, support you!"
"Alright, enough already." Cold Snow seemed a bit embarrassed as she helplessly spoke.
"Look, look! Our big sister Xue Er is shy now. Brother Feng, you have a chance!" The black bear laughed again, revealing two rows of big yellow teeth on his dark face that made him look anything but trustworthy.
Shy?
Upon hearing this, my first reaction was to glance at Cold Snow's face. However, since she had slightly lowered her head, I couldn't see clearly; I could only notice that her ears seemed a bit red?
The earlier tension felt like it had passed long ago. The carriage filled with teasing about this matter for quite some time. As seconds ticked by, the moment of parting would eventually arrive...
Everything seemed to be getting more chaotic...
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