Eastern Alliance Intercontinental Equipment Group

Momentum Control. That was the name of Lin Qi's third Wizard ability.

"My ability's upper limit is affected by my Mental Power, and it also has a limit of its own. Right now, I can manipulate the momentum multiplier of objects within the range of my psychic perception, from zero to three times. For now, I can't change the direction of their momentum."

"However, the objects' mass places a limit on what I can affect. At present, the maximum mass can't exceed that of a person, and the minimum can't be less than half a coin's mass."

The data was rather vague. This was a Wizard's instinctive perception of his own abilities, not a digitized status panel.

The ability had an upper limit, and plenty of restrictions.

But it let him manipulate a certain vector—a power that completely defied common sense. Even the way it took effect was incredibly subtle.

Just like Blood Manipulation, within the range of his Psychic Vision, Lin Qi could bypass the restrictions imposed by an object's surface and directly manipulate what was inside.

That made the ability truly terrifying.

"At a critical moment, this ability can also triple my own running speed. I'd say that's better than expected."

Lin Qi was very satisfied with this ability. It would take considerable effort to develop, though, and he would need to master it carefully.

After briefly considering how to use his new ability, Lin Qi sensed his Mental Power.

His Mental Power had increased significantly, and the range of his Psychic Vision had expanded to around 110 meters. He still had room to grow stronger.

Based on Lin Qi's estimate, he would need to meditate for about two days under the Spiritual Energy Particle concentration of the Doomsday World before he could absorb another Extraordinary Item.

"At most, it'll take about a week for me to become a Second Rank Wizard. But given how bizarre my abilities are, my combat strength can't be judged by rank alone."

Lin Qi didn't know the exact abilities of other Wizards, but based on what he knew so far, neither the person who had led him onto the path of Wizardry nor Liu Group's Train Conductor could match the sheer strangeness of Lin Qi's abilities, at least on the surface.

Every Wizard was unique. There were no two Wizards in the world with the same abilities.

He checked the cooldown on the Gate. It was only a little over ten minutes.

Lin Qi changed his clothes in advance and waited to return.

Cyber World, March 4, 2089, 12:55 a.m.

Lin Qi returned to the Cyber World—or, rather, it was as if he had never left.

The moment he returned, his nerves tensed instinctively.

Lin Qi had far more trouble in the Cyber World than in the Doomsday World. Now that the Large Enterprise Alliance's intelligence had come to light, who knew how many people would set their sights on him?

"The false information Si Ying spread must have just surfaced. The various organizations lurking in Greenland City haven't had time to act yet."

"It's also possible that Liu Group has made a move and raised my security clearance. My location might not have been exposed yet."

Lin Qi reconsidered Si Ying's motives.

If what Si Ying had said was true, then his real goal was to survive.

In that case, Si Ying would never put Lin Qi—his supposed lifeline—in mortal danger.

The so-called false information was actually meant to pressure Liu Group.

Would Liu Group feel pressured?

It would. Lin Qi might not matter much to Liu Group, but he was Liu Xuan's weakness.

By pure chance, Si Ying had indeed put Liu Group under considerable pressure.

At that moment, Liu Xingzhou, the Train Conductor, was in Greenland City, his face dark with anger.

"Find out where the information came from. Now."

The pressure had come completely out of the blue.

The news was both good and bad for Liu Group. The good news was that the Liu sisters, Liu Xuan and Liu Li, hadn't been exposed to the public.

The bad news was that the decoy they had prepared was useless. Instead, Lin Qi, who was extremely important to Liu Xuan, had become the obvious target.

As Liu Xingzhou saw it, whoever had spread this false information was both malicious and stupid.

In the employee dormitory, Lin Qi lay on his bed.

Once he'd figured out the key points, Lin Qi knew there was little chance of danger tonight. Si Ying was still waiting for him to seek him out tomorrow.

He lay back down, feeling a little tired.

After all, he'd been through the exertions of two worlds in a row. Lin Qi needed to rest.

He closed his eyes and fell asleep.

It wasn't until eight in the morning that the alarm played by his Brain woke him.

Today, he needed to report to the Greenland City Branch of Liu Heavy Industries. Work hours in Greenland City were more relaxed than in Hongguo City: work began at ten each morning and ended at nine in the evening.

That was a full hour less work.

What a blessing.

Thank you, company.

He went to the bathroom and splashed cold water on his face to wake himself up.

[Successfully received an email from "Highest-Level Secure Mailbox"]

His Brain alerted him that he should read the email as soon as possible.

All emails sent by Guangleng were permanently deleted within an hour of receipt. No technical means could prevent this or recover them.

The email contained a three-dimensional model.

The model's main structure was Greenland City's landmark, the Twin Towers, where the headquarters of Si Pharmaceutical was located.

The most detailed section of the model depicted an unremarkable patch of landscaping outside Tower B.

It marked the blind spots in the surveillance system, the recommended entry point, and a timetable for entering and leaving the monitored area.

A bracelet-shaped object was hidden in the landscaping.

Besides the model, the email contained a message.

[The Quantum-Locked Text Communicator will appear at the designated location in 52 minutes. Follow the route and schedule marked on the model. I'll take care of disguising you on the surveillance system.]

The plan was extremely detailed. It really was Guangleng's style.

But the model had most likely not been made by Guangleng himself.

In the Highest Level Mercenary Group's previous missions, Lin Qi had handled most tasks involving information and obtaining building plans, while Guangleng had provided support.

"Don't tell me this model was made by the Holy Corpse Legion too?"

Lin Qi had reason to suspect that Guangleng hadn't just told him to retrieve an item ordered by the Holy Corpse Legion—he'd even used the Legion's route diagram.

All Guangleng had done was add a new route and schedule.

After wiping the remaining water from his face, Lin Qi left the bathroom.

According to Guangleng's schedule, he still needed to wait about twenty minutes before heading out.

Outside Tower B of the Twin Towers, in the patch of landscaping marked on the model.

A security guard in a Si Pharmaceutical uniform seemed to casually pass by on patrol.

When he reached the landscaped area, his abdomen shifted mechanically.

His abdomen was actually a hollow storage compartment.

He took out an [optical camouflage box] and placed it among the greenery.

A comparison with the model Lin Qi had received would show that the box was positioned exactly as shown, with not so much as a centimeter of difference.

Inside the box, a bracelet lay still.

Tiny words were engraved on the inside of the bracelet: [Made by the Eastern Alliance Intercontinental Equipment Group]