Modu University, Club Activity Building.
Lin Qi and Xia Chu returned to a familiar place.
The mecha was parked outside the building. Once the cockpit opened, it led directly to the building's second floor.
"There's something on the roof of that building, drawing us upstairs. The Rescue Team has probably been wiped out," Lin Qi told Xia Chu frankly.
Xia Chu looked worried. "What should we do now?"
It was already late, and less than an hour remained before the Gate's cooldown ended.
"Let's rest first. Tomorrow, we'll organize a rescue for the Modu University students."
"We can't count on the official rescue team to arrive anytime soon. We'll have to save ourselves."
Lin Qi wanted to organize a group of people.
The Doomsday World was too vast for Lin Qi to collect Extraordinary Items alone. He needed help from more people.
Lin Qi had his eye on the college students at Modu University.
These hard-to-kill college students were excellent recruits. If they were equipped with Exoskeletons, cybernetics, and mechas, they would make a fine workforce.
But Lin Qi needed to rally them under the banner of self-rescue and mutual aid.
After all, the official government in the Doomsday World was still standing. Only one rescue team had been wiped out.
"Okay."
Xia Chu trusted Lin Qi.
Besides, she wholeheartedly supported rescuing her fellow students.
Helping one another and standing together were basic virtues for a college student like Xia Chu.
The two returned upstairs.
Although the mecha had torn a hole in the experimental workshop, Xia Chu knew the upper floor better. They only needed to find another room to rest in.
As for Lin Qi, he took clothes from the Cyber World out of the mecha's storage compartment, then went into the bathroom.
March 3, 2089, 12:55 a.m.
Lin Qi returned to the Cyber World in the same state as before, with hardly any changes.
Only on closer inspection would anyone notice that, compared to the previous moment, Lin Qi's beard and hair had grown slightly, and his biological age had increased by twenty-four hours.
No one could detect such a subtle difference. Even if Lin Qi stood under the surveillance cameras in Red Fruit City, they might not register anything unusual.
As he recalled what had happened twenty-four hours earlier, the frequent trips between the two worlds left Lin Qi feeling a little disoriented.
"I need to get to the company early today. I have to be there by seven."
"After I go to Greenland City, I probably won't be able to return to Red Fruit City for a while. Dad will have to take care of Lin Xin, but if anything major happens, I'll have no choice but to ask Guangleng for help."
"Once I reach Greenland City, I need to make a request to Guangleng tomorrow. I need a secure way to communicate with Arthur."
"The risks in Greenland City are still high for me. On the surface, I'm an L-level cybernetic implant user. In secret, I've only got the strength of a First Rank Wizard and a First Rank body."
Lin Qi sorted through his thoughts.
His assignment to Greenland City had been arranged by the company, so he couldn't change it. But the danger wouldn't fall directly on him.
The ones truly caught up in the crisis were the Liu and Si clans. Lin Qi was little more than an add-on.
Still, Lin Qi wasn't entirely helpless in the face of danger.
A Wizard's powers were strange and unpredictable. Psychic Vision and Blood Control weren't particularly strong on their own, but together, they posed a serious threat to cybernetic implant users.
As long as no extraordinary being of Third Rank or higher targeted Lin Qi, he could keep himself safe.
Once he'd sorted things out, Lin Qi realized that the turmoil in the two cities wouldn't affect him much. The real trouble still came from the Assassin's League—and from his disobedient little sister.
"I need to contact Arthur as soon as possible. I need more information about the Assassin's League."
Lin Qi promptly used his Brain to compose an email and sent it to the Highest-Level Secure Mailbox.
Guangleng replied quickly: "I'll hold an emergency meeting at midnight tomorrow. Once I have Arthur's approval, I can try to help you find a secure way to communicate."
There was still no network.
The email had been sent successfully, and a reply had come through.
But the reply surprised Lin Qi.
Given Guangleng's control over the network, couldn't he help Lin Qi establish secure communication with Arthur? Did they really have to find another way?
Lin Qi didn't understand, but he didn't ask.
Everyone had secrets, especially Guangleng, the founder of the Highest Level Mercenary Group and the most mysterious of its five members.
Lin Qi left the workroom and continued composing an email, this time sending it to his father, Doctor Lin.
[I've accepted a transfer and need to go to Greenland City. I may not be back in Red Fruit City for a while. You'll have to keep an eye on Lin Xin...]
It was just a brief, ordinary message. Lin Qi didn't think his father could handle the trouble with the Assassin's League.
Lin Qi left the Cybernetic Clinic and boarded a Flying Vehicle.
He had to be at the company by seven, so he planned to return to the employee apartments to rest.
The journey passed without incident, and the night went by quickly.
At 6:58 a.m., Lin Qi arrived at the top floor of the Weapon Research Institute just in time.
As expected, a Flying Vehicle landed on the platform almost at the same time.
"What a coincidence. Good morning." Liu Li was standing beside Liu Xuan.
Liu Xuan was as calm as ever, while Liu Li shot Lin Qi a hostile look.
"Good morning."
This was practically their usual exchange.
On every workday, the same thing happened.
As usual, they each took an elevator.
When Lin Qi stepped into the elevator, it automatically clocked him in.
Time: 6:59 a.m.
After Lin Qi entered the elevator, the Corporate Intelligence system spoke.
"Researcher Lin Qi, you have been temporarily promoted to A-level researcher. As arranged by the company, you will travel to the Greenland City Branch today aboard the Red-Green Train."
"The elevator will stop on the first floor. The train is waiting at the Weapon Research Institute platform. Liu Heavy Industries occupies carriages 1 and 2. Based on your clearance, you have been assigned to carriage 2."
The Red-Green Train was the rail line connecting Red Fruit City and Greenland City.
It was rarely used. The last time it had run was a long time ago.
Usually, people traveled between the two cities by Flying Vehicle.
Lin Qi guessed that the reason this old train had been put back into service was the Iron Curtain System.
But Lin Qi didn't have the clearance to learn about the Iron Curtain System yet, so he still didn't know how it worked.
The elevator soon stopped at the first floor.
The doors opened.
"What a coincidence."
"It really is."
Since they'd entered the elevator together on the top floor, naturally they'd gotten off together on the first floor.
Lin Qi saw the Liu sisters, Liu Xuan and Liu Li, once again.
They left the first-floor lobby one after the other, and Lin Qi boarded the company shuttle.
Once aboard, he looked out the window.
The Flying Vehicle the sisters had taken had somehow made its way back to the first floor. They climbed aboard again.
"..."
Lin Qi fell silent.
No wonder Liu Li was so resentful.
Even now, Lin Qi still didn't understand why Liu Xuan was so determined to keep running into him.
It had been a long time since Lin Qi had ridden in a ground vehicle. He looked around at the scenery outside.
Before long, that inexplicable feeling of being watched crept over him again.
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