The Stranger

"Did you hire those thugs?" Wang Wen's expression turned cold.

He found it a little strange. From the way those guys had fought, it hadn't seemed like ordinary horseplay between students.

That was why he'd never suspected anyone from The Academy.

But if Yu Zhi really had hired them—

Then she'd gone too far. She was completely out of line!

"Don't be mad. I... I'm sorry..." Yu Zhi explained timidly. "That guy said he liked me. I was in a bad mood at the time, so I casually told him about you. He said he'd help me get even. I thought he was just..."

"Go." Wang Wen turned his head and said flatly, "From now on, I'll stay far away from you. I absolutely won't make you angry again."

Yu Zhi's voice grew tearful with panic. "I really didn't do it on purpose. Don't be like this. I'll go back and yell at him..."

"Go." His tone was so flat, so devoid of feeling, as if he were speaking to a stranger.

Yu Zhi walked away, crying.

The moment she stepped out of the hospital room, she felt as though she'd lost something.

She'd seen the unmistakable disappointment on Wang Wen's face.

Hmph!

A lousy student!

You were the one who pursued me!

What gave you the right to be disappointed?

What right did you have to be disappointed in me?

Yu Zhi kept repeating these words to comfort herself.

But the tears wouldn't stop falling.

The proud princess of the past now cried like a child who'd lost her candy and been left all alone.

Back at The Academy,

a boy came over to Yu Zhi with a grin, rubbing his hands together.

Yu Zhi ignored him and tossed her long hair as she walked away.

The boy caught up with her and asked with a pained expression, "Are you still upset?"

Yu Zhi flew into a rage. "What kind of people did you hire? Were they trying to kill someone? Wang Wen and the others almost died. Did you know that?"

The boy looked helpless. "I had a friend make the arrangements. Maybe he took it too seriously because we're close. He went straight to his underworld buddies. I couldn't do anything about how rough they were."

"Forget it." Remembering the disappointed look Wang Wen had given her in the hospital room, Yu Zhi lowered her eyes and said, "Your friends are terrifying. Stay away from me from now on. I'm scared."

The boy reached out wistfully to hold her, but Yu Zhi dodged him.

Watching the girl he loved turn away without the slightest trace of mercy, the boy called after her sadly, "Zhi'er, do I really have no chance at all?"

There was no response.

Yu Zhi disappeared into the teaching building without the slightest hesitation, treating him like a stranger.

All day long,

Wang Wen slept in the hospital.

After being discharged, he returned to The Academy, shared a meal with the frail boy, then went to the Dean's Office to report that he was safe and offer his thanks.

Then he left The Academy.

Using his Intelligence Department pass, he went through a portal and arrived at the foot of the First Consortium's headquarters.

The First Consortium truly lived up to its name.

The lobby on the first floor even had a dedicated reception desk.

And the young women working there were all exceptionally beautiful.

They wore sky-blue uniforms and immaculate makeup, their posture graceful and their smiles confident and sweet.

Wang Wen stepped forward and presented his pass to register his name.

The receptionist glanced at him, picked up the desk phone and made a call, then gestured toward an electric tour cart nearby and told its driver, "Take him to the Intelligence Department."

Wang Wen climbed aboard.

The little cart sped across the clean, polished marble floor.

It crossed the lobby, skirted an indoor soccer field, passed through an artificially cultivated primeval forest, then swept past a lake.

At last, the cart, dripping wet, drove into an elevator at the end of a corridor.

"Ding."

The elevator rose to the second floor.

Before the alloy doors opened, the driver straightened his collar and gloves.

At last, he shook off his earlier drowsy air and got down to business.

Seeing the driver's tense, battle-ready posture from the back seat, Wang Wen raised his left eyebrow.

He couldn't help gripping the handrail.

A few minutes later,

the driver was ready.

He had even put on a bulletproof vest and helmet.

He started the cart and drove Wang Wen through the streets and alleys.

Up into the sky and down underground.

Through fire, under earth, through water, dodging trees.

Amid clouds of smoke, he frantically swerved to avoid stray bullets and flying shrapnel.

Two hours later, they arrived safely at the Intelligence Department's entrance on the second floor.

Tong Xiaolei, the Central Group Leader of the Intelligence Department, stood by the entrance, waiting with a smile.

"Mr. Mai, sorry for the trouble." She held out her hand from a distance.

Wang Wen got out, shook her hand and smiled with a nod. "It was a bit of a rough ride."

The two of them headed inside together.

Wang Wen turned to see the tour cart setting off along the same route, as if narrowly escaping death all over again. Unable to resist his curiosity, he asked, "Why are there so many traps outside?"

In his previous life, when he'd joined the First Consortium, there hadn't been all this weird stuff outside the Intelligence Department.

It had certainly been an unusual experience.

But it wasn't very safe.

He couldn't shrug off bullets yet. If he had to go through that every time he visited the Intelligence Department, there was no guarantee he'd make it through unscathed every time.

But Tong Xiaolei only pressed her lips together in a smile and said nonchalantly, "Those are just failed prototypes. They'll be cleared away in a few days."

Hearing that,

Wang Wen remembered the trap array in the First Consortium's headquarters, famed as a place where "intruders die."

At last, he nodded in understanding.

So the world-famous trap array in the headquarters had been developed by the Intelligence Department.

They'd even used their own floors as a laboratory in the early days. The department was truly the First Consortium's most trusted branch.

Wang Wen silently gave the Intelligence Department a thumbs-up.

He followed Tong Xiaolei through the work areas of the various groups in the Intelligence Department.

Suddenly, he spotted a familiar face.

Very familiar!

The Upper Group Leader!

In his previous life, he'd been the only person Wang Wen could really call a disciple.

But at the moment, the man still wore the uniform of an ordinary group member, sitting quietly at his desk and listening to his more senior colleagues brag about all kinds of Tower adventures.

Every so often, he even had to pour Coffee for the colleagues who'd worn themselves out bragging.

Wang Wen smiled and walked past his busy disciple, who was pouring Coffee. He gave no sign of recognition, as if he were a stranger.

Inside the Department Head's office,

"Sit." The old man was wearing glasses and reviewing documents. Without looking up, he indicated that Wang Wen should wait a moment.

After showing him the way, Tong Xiaolei turned and left.

She showed no intention of staying to pour water or make tea.

Wang Wen didn't sit. Instead, he wandered around the room like he was right at home.

Every now and then, he flipped through a book on the shelf.

He also picked up a few oddly shaped trap models to examine.

"There's a limit to how rude you can be." The old man's imposing voice rang out. "They're all meticulously crafted, life-threatening traps. If one goes off, you won't even have time to get to a hospital!"

Wang Wen pursed his lips and silently mimicked the old man's words as he quietly put the trap back together, having taken it apart out of habit.

The old man put down his pen and removed his glasses. When he spoke again, his tone was caring. "How's your recovery coming along?"

"The hospital the Intelligence Department arranged was great." Wang Wen nodded. "The mattress was especially comfortable—firm but springy, soft yet supportive. It had the feel of that brand a certain sleep master from the history books used to promote."

The old man chuckled. "Were you there to test out the bed?"

"Of course. A hospital room that costs thousands of Points a day? What a waste if I didn't enjoy it." Wang Wen grinned. "I recommend you give it a try when you have time."

The old man paused slightly, then let his smile fade and shook his head. "I'll pass. I'm in excellent health. No need to go sleep in a hospital bed."

Wang Wen glanced at him without letting on, then nodded with a smile and changed the subject. "I told you before that I came here to discuss a partnership with the Intelligence Department."

"Young man, don't go tossing around the word 'partnership.' You have no idea how big the First Consortium is." The old man offered a mild admonition.

"Understood." Wang Wen nodded, taking the lesson to heart. "Then let me put it another way. I came here to discuss with the esteemed Intelligence Department of the First Consortium a proposal concerning the cultivation of elite teams over the next twenty years, based on tens of billions of Points; training methods for storming the upper Tower levels; and plans for exploring and acquiring resources within the first six hundred floors of the World Tower. To be precise, I have two proposals for you to choose from."

The old man's dentures fell into his teacup.