One Month Later

Regarding how to deal with the Truth Society, Su Yuan had asked the Grey Mirror quite a few relevant questions.

For instance, he had tried telling the Truth Society the truth about the alien forces—

That is, once the alien forces descended, all life on Blue Star would face a massacre, and the Truth Society would not be spared either.

After all, in Su Yuan's view more than ten days ago, no matter how deranged the Truth Society might be, they were still Blue Star people; when faced with alien forces, they should have stood on the side of Blue Star.

However, the answer given by the Grey Mirror was... the founder of the Truth Society simply did not believe it.

In the eyes of the Truth Society's founder, once the alien forces descended, a spokesperson like him would become the absolute ruler of Blue Star, enjoying immortality and eternal wealth under the support of the alien forces...

Not only did he not believe it, but he even ordered the Truth Society to hunt Su Yuan down. When the pursuit proved fruitless, they reported the matter to the alien forces.

This resulted in an even greater accident and variable, causing the alien Interstellar Colony Ship to descend upon Blue Star two years ahead of schedule.

"With matters here settled, it is time to go see Qiao Mingyuan..."

Su Yuan's heart stirred.

According to the normal course of events, Qiao Mingyuan would flee to the Xia Kingdom, where there was a sixty percent chance he would fall into the hands of the black assassin and be killed.

There was a forty percent chance he would be rescued by the Xia Kingdom Security Bureau and thereafter serve the Xia Kingdom in the shadows.

Of course, these two possibilities were based on the premise that Su Yuan did not intervene—that is, the two futures of normal event progression.

But once Su Yuan chose to intervene, all futures that did not align with his expectations were erased, leaving only the future Su Yuan desired—

To take Qiao Mingyuan away without a sound.

Hill Hotel.

Qiao Mingyuan slept very, very deeply.

Ever since he began being hunted by the Truth Society, he hadn't slept soundly for a single hour. Every time he drifted into a deeper sleep, he would dream that the assassins had arrived and be jolted awake.

It was in this state that Qiao Mingyuan fled to the Xia Kingdom.

In fact, if this state had continued for another few days or a dozen days, he likely wouldn't have needed those assassins to act; Qiao Mingyuan would have suffered an emotional breakdown himself.

After all, there is a limit to the pressure a person can endure, and once that limit is exceeded, it produces extremely severe negative effects.

He did not know how much time had passed.

Qiao Mingyuan slowly woke from his dream.

"How long did I sleep?"

Qiao Mingyuan glanced at the time in the room. "Four hours?"

"It's not a dream; I really survived and escaped."

Qiao Mingyuan took a deep breath. At this moment, he was living not just for himself, but for his wife, Anna.

Only by staying alive could he investigate what had happened to Anna and how he could save her.

If he died, then everything would truly be over; this was the greatest motivation that had sustained Qiao Mingyuan throughout his flight.

Just then, the mobile phone on the bedside table suddenly rang.

"Is that person calling me?"

Qiao Mingyuan reacted immediately. He had found the phone in a restroom at the South Sea Station and had carried it with him as a tool to contact Su Yuan.

"He called the moment I woke up. Is there surveillance in this room?"

Qiao Mingyuan speculated to himself while immediately picking up the phone to answer.

Just as Su Yuan had said to him, Qiao Mingyuan would not run.

Now that he was in the Xia Kingdom, he was unfamiliar with the place; where else could he possibly run to?

"Beep—" The call connected.

Qiao Mingyuan immediately heard a familiar voice.

"How did you sleep?" Su Yuan asked.

Qiao Mingyuan believed there was surveillance in the room...

In reality, Su Yuan had long known the exact time Qiao Mingyuan would wake up, which was why he had called at this moment.

"I slept very well," Qiao Mingyuan said truthfully, though he also seemed hesitant to speak further.

"I know what you want to ask," Su Yuan said with a smile. "The one who took your wife, Anna, is the Truth Society."

"The Truth Society? Why does that sound so familiar..."

Qiao Mingyuan froze. He felt as if he had heard that name somewhere before.

Compared to the regulated internet environment within the Xia Kingdom, the outside world was indeed much freer, and a great deal of sensitive information could be published there.

"Your teacher once spoke to you about the Truth Society," Su Yuan reminded him.

"That's right, my teacher did indeed mention them to me..." Qiao Mingyuan suddenly realized.

However, he immediately felt a vague sense of unease. How did Su Yuan know about this?

"Your teacher is an outer member of the Truth Society. He played a significant role in your escape this time," Su Yuan said.

This was indeed a fact; Qiao Mingyuan's teacher had been instrumental in his escape from that country across the ocean.

Qiao Mingyuan's teacher was an internationally renowned technical expert and also someone the Truth Society had been eager to recruit.

The members of the Truth Society were not just wealthy tycoons, but also top-tier professionals from every industry.

As an outer member, Qiao Mingyuan's teacher naturally knew that the Xia Kingdom was a blind spot for the Truth Society's influence, which was why he had instructed Qiao Mingyuan to flee there.

Under the pursuit of the Truth Society, fleeing to the Xia Kingdom was his only glimmer of hope for survival.

"Teacher..." Qiao Mingyuan fell silent.

"Will he face any repercussions?" Qiao Mingyuan couldn't help but ask.

"There will be repercussions, but his life is not in danger," Su Yuan replied.

This was the answer he had obtained by consulting the Grey Mirror.

Although he didn't know how Su Yuan knew about his teacher's situation, Qiao Mingyuan felt an inexplicable sense of conviction at that moment.

Steadying himself, Qiao Mingyuan continued to ask, "Why did the Truth Society take my wife?"

"Because your wife meets the requirements for the Truth Society's experimental materials."

Su Yuan did not directly mention artificial humans, as the people of Blue Star would find such technology difficult to grasp or accept immediately, so he used "experimental materials" instead.

"Experimental materials?" Qiao Mingyuan's face turned pale.

He naturally knew what experimental materials implied; they were consumables, like lab mice, countless of which died in laboratories every single day.

"Using living people as experimental materials—wouldn't the government stop them?" Qiao Mingyuan asked indignantly.

That country across the ocean had laws prohibiting the use of living humans in experiments.

"The government?" Su Yuan gave a mocking laugh. "How do you know this isn't the government's will?"

That country across the ocean had long since been thoroughly infiltrated by the Truth Society; even the president had to listen to them.

"This..."

Qiao Mingyuan's heart trembled.

He realized what Su Yuan's words implied. If the Truth Society was truly such a behemoth, then the fate of his wife, Anna, could be imagined.

"I can save your wife."

Su Yuan paused for six breaths, waiting until Qiao Mingyuan was on the verge of total despair before speaking again.

"You can save her?" Qiao Mingyuan grabbed onto the words like a lifeline, becoming instantly agitated.

"Yes," Su Yuan nodded. "But it will take three to four years."

Qiao Mingyuan's wife, Anna, met the criteria for a Level 1 artificial human.

However, the Truth Society's manufacturing process for artificial humans was extremely time-consuming; even for a Level 1, it required five to ten years.

According to Su Yuan's plan, there was plenty of time to save her.

"As long as you can save Anna, I would die for you if I had to."

Qiao Mingyuan immediately declared, his tone earnest.

Far away in the Magic City, a smile appeared on Su Yuan's face.

Through the Grey Mirror, Su Yuan knew that Qiao Mingyuan valued his promises highly; no matter how difficult, he would fulfill whatever he said.

Using the rescue of his wife, Anna, as a condition was the method the Grey Mirror had provided to completely win Qiao Mingyuan over.

Of course, to fully secure Qiao Mingyuan's loyalty, it wasn't enough to just tell him she could be saved.

He also needed to make the man believe it.

In this regard, Su Yuan had been laying the groundwork since he first contacted Qiao Mingyuan.

At this moment, Qiao Mingyuan trusted Su Yuan implicitly.

Qiao Mingyuan was linked to many of Su Yuan's future plans.

Establishing a wireless information network that covered Blue Star, stable and free from interference, was the foundation of Su Yuan's many plans, and this was an area where Qiao Mingyuan was needed to execute the specifics.

It wasn't that Qiao Mingyuan was the only choice, but he was the most suitable and the easiest to control.

Time passed.

In the blink of an eye, a month had gone by.