Li Yinuo, the Insider

Currently, Li Changqing and the outside world believe that Qing Chen is just a genetic warrior.

Therefore, in Li Changqing's view, Qing Chen should be overjoyed to know that he could be injected with gene-injecting drugs.

However, this was not a pleasant surprise for Qing Chen, but a shock.

First of all, gene therapy drugs cannot be administered at different levels. Ordinary people must wait a full month after receiving their first Sequence 005, otherwise they may die suddenly due to their bodies being unable to handle the effects.

If Qing Chen were to receive the Sequence 003 injection directly without any prior injection, he would likely die on the spot.

Secondly, the gene-editing drug will cause the inability to reproduce.

Although Qing Chen doesn't have those worldly desires now, what if he does in the future?

In short, this gene therapy injection must not be given!

Li Changqing looked at Qing Chen: "Why aren't you happy at all when you see this FDE gene serum with the Sequence 003?"

Before Qing Chen could speak, Li Changqing suddenly laughed and said, "I understand. You think I didn't give you 002 and 001 as well? Honestly, I'm not that stingy. I already told you that 001 and 002 are still being configured and won't be available for you for another half month. The production volume of those two sequences is too small; I can't just conjure them up for you out of thin air..."

Qing Chen recalled and pondered in his mind. He compared the timeline and said, "I can't take this Sequence 003 gene injection now because it's only been 13 days since I took the 004 injection. I have to wait another 18 days."

The interval between gene therapy doses is calculated based on a 30-day month.

Li Changqing looked at Qing Chen and suddenly realized, "Oh, I see. I thought you had already been injected. Okay, I'll keep the gene serum here for now, and I'll give it to you when it's time."

Qing Chen suddenly breathed a sigh of relief. He thought to himself, "What kind of situation is this?"

I haven't even gotten anything from here yet, and I'm already being forced to take a shot. Where can I go to complain about this?

To be honest, neither he nor Yi expected that Li Changqing would give him an injection in person!

Fortunately, only 10 days have passed since his first appearance in the Inner World ring, which gave him the perfect excuse.

But here's the problem: what happens after 18 days...?

At this moment, Li Changqing told Old Liu to put away the gene serum. He knew he would have to witness Qing Chen receiving the gene serum again next time, which gave Qing Chen a headache.

He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye and was shocked to find that Li Yinuo was trying very hard to suppress her laughter.

Li Changqing pulled Qing Chen down to sit by the arm. "This lady next to me is my niece Li Yinuo. She really likes your competition. We were all here last night. I had already arranged for Old Liu to save you, but I didn't expect you to turn the tables and win. It's rare to see someone from a higher level win such a challenge in the entire Federation."

Li Yinuo said with a smile, "Hello, Brother Xiaotu, I'm your fan."

Li Changqing said earnestly to Li Yinuo, "How should I address you as 'brother'? Call me Uncle Xiaotu."

Li Yinuo: "???"

The beautiful young woman who had been secretly suppressing her laughter immediately changed her expression!

How come I suddenly have an uncle out of nowhere, just because I was enjoying the gossip and gloating?!

However, Li Changqing thought for a moment and said, "Forget it, Qing Chen is too young. You can each talk your own thing. By the way, since we've met here, you should also learn his real name, Qing Chen. Don't call him Xiaotu anymore... although Xiaotu is a rather cute name."

Li Yinuo thought to herself, what's so cute about the name Qing Xiao Tu?

"Aunt, let's get down to business first," Li Yinuo, looking at Li Changqing. "We were just talking about the Kashima and Kamishiro Family. I heard you've captured several people from Kashima and Kamishiro?"

Upon hearing the names of these two conglomerates, Li Changqing's face darkened. "These ignorant fools dare to stir up trouble in the south. I suspect they anticipated the power transition within the Li family and are trying to sabotage it. These two have been stationing troops in the north recently; perhaps as soon as the old man closes his eyes, they'll launch another small-scale war over there."

Li Yinuo asked curiously, "They've made quite a stir these past few years, with things like arranged marriages and frequent troop movements. Why?"

"There are many Forbidden Zone in the north, and their expansion speed is relatively fast. Forbidden Zone No. 037 has even spread to 30 kilometers north of City No. 26. They may have sensed the crisis, so they want to reshuffle the Federation and develop in the south," Li Changqing sneered. "But the three conglomerates in the south control the political and economic lifeline. If we don't create chaos, they won't be able to come over."

Qing Chen listened from the side without saying a word.

He realized that Li Yinuo's sudden bringing up of these things was actually to help him understand more information in order to make up for his current isolated and helpless situation.

Qing Chen's current situation is very delicate. Li Shutong has already left, and all the familiar people are no longer by his side. Although Yi is still there, Yi is not his steward and will not help him casually. He usually seeks an equal exchange principle and is more like an ally than a friend at present.

If he wants to rely on Yi for everything, he's overthinking it.

However, the three inside agents, Li Yinuo, Li Tongyun, and Nan Gengchen, have always been dutiful and responsible.

"Auntie, which candidate do you think is the most likely to win the Shadow Struggle?" Li Yinuo asked.

"I might favor Qing Wu more," Li Changqing pondered. "Qing Wen is too dazzling, so much so that everyone else sees him as a potential rival, but he doesn't have the ability to overpower everyone. Originally, Qing Huai was also dazzling enough to help him share the burden, but now Qing Huai has inexplicably died in Forbidden Zone No. 002. You were there at the time. It's said that he was hunted by some Divine Child of the Fire Pit. Is that true?"

"Yes, that seems to be the case for now," Li Yinuo nodded. "Aunt, please continue. I think Qing Zhong from the Second Branch is also very strong. Why do you think he can't inherit the Shadow position?"

"I've met Qing Zhong. He's brave but lacks cunning and is too reckless," Li Changqing said. "This kind of person is probably more suited to be a general charging into battle, not a shadow or a family head. I think neither the shadow nor Qing Xun family, would choose him."

"Then why did Aunt choose Qing Wu?" Li Yinuo asked.

"Intelligent, patient, and ruthless," Li Changqing said. "He possesses many of the qualities that a Shadow should have... You should study them more now, because no matter what, one of them will eventually become the Shadow and wield immense power. The more you understand them, the more helpful it will be for the future."

Li Yinuo nodded, glancing at Qing Chen out of the corner of her eye, thinking to herself that she had already done enough by directly asking the second-generation bigwig of the Li family to help analyze the situation.

However, Li Changqing then changed the subject. "Among this generation, the ones I dislike the most are Qing Yuan and Qing Xing. They have no distinguishing features and their supporting families are not powerful enough. Although Qing Yi is young, he has the appearance of a prodigy. Although Qing Shi is a girl, her father is ambitious and scheming. The Shadow Struggle has always been like this: no one knows the outcome until the very last second. Even years after the selection, the outside world doesn't know the result. So, the current speculation is only for reference and has little value. You just need to understand each of them."

Li Yinuo thought to herself that the outcome of the Shadow Struggle was truly shrouded in mystery throughout history.

Now, isn't there a candidate who faked his death sitting right next to me? Who would have thought that this person, who was initially overlooked, would grow the fastest?

Qing Chen appeared calm as he ate snacks and fruits, but inwardly he was seriously analyzing the situation. This was the first time he had heard someone analyze each candidate, and he finally had a general idea of the overall picture.

Even Lin Xiaoxiao and Li Shutong had never talked to him about this before, only telling him to find out for himself.

"Huh?" Li Changqing asked, "Why are you suddenly interested in the Shadow Struggle?"

Li Yinuo asked again, "Auntie, I've contacted several Shadow Candidate, and several others have also contacted me proactively. Although I don't know what they want, I've agreed to all of them. Now I have four allies with them."

Qing Chen listened from the side, thinking to himself that this was indeed very much in line with his style of joining everyone in the Outer World.

Li Changqing asked Li Yinuo, "Why are you allying with so many candidates?"

"I just want to form alliances with more people so I can keep track of their movements. Anyway, these candidates aren't from the Li family, so it doesn't matter if a few die," Li Yinuo said.

Li Changqing praised, "This time they did a smart job. However, I have always suspected that the Qing family's shadow has already reached City No. 18. This time, the Qing family's main focus is still on this shadow."

"Is he an enemy or a friend?" Li Yinuo asked.

"Neither enemy nor friend, but we should have a common goal," Li Changqing seemed unwilling to talk about this matter further, as it involved real secrets. She changed the subject and said, "The second round of missions in the Shadow Struggle should not be about participating in the power transition within the Li family. That Shadow always likes to use diversionary tactics when setting missions, and no one knows what he really wants to do."

At this moment, Li Yinuo asked, "By the way, Auntie, have you gone to see Grandpa?"

"No," Li Changqing said calmly as she spoke of the matter. She looked at Old Liu and said, "Why don't you take Qing Chen to the shooting range? These days, firearms are more useful before you reach B-Class."

"Alright, alright," the Old Liu brother said, limping as he led Qing Chen outside.

Qing Chen understood that this was an attempt to get him out of the way. After all, Li Changqing wouldn't be foolish enough to let him eavesdrop on matters involving the family's core secrets.

However, he didn't mind; he had already gained enough for today.

Qing Chen looked at the Old Liu leading the way and asked, "Why are you called the Old Liu? Is it because you're the Old Liu in your family?"

"No," Old Liu shook his head, "I'm called Old Liu because I once took six bullets for Boss Changqing in City No. 1, and that's when my leg was crippled. Boss Changqing calls me Old Liu to remind her not to forget that I took the bullets for her."

"I see," Qing Chen nodded.

"The boss is right about one thing," Old Liu said without turning his head, "For all superhumans who are not yet demigods, firearms are always their greatest enemy. Even an A-level might be caught off guard by a sniper. So, it's good that you get familiar with firearms. Spend your free time at the shooting range."

There's another power outage. I'll update one chapter now and go to an internet cafe to write more. There will be another chapter tonight.