Facing

The call connected almost immediately.

"Wang Yiyang! You're only calling me now? Don't you think it's a bit too late? Do you have any idea how long I've been stalling the board of directors for you? And that damn thing called the Avengers is a bottomless pit! I've poured thirteen mercenary squads into it—my god! That thing is a monster!"

"Alright, alright, I know. I know you're under a lot of pressure. That's why I'm back." From the moment Wang Yiyang decided to utilize the identity of the Security Department head, he had already resolved to shoulder all the consequences that came with it.

Just like now.

The only reason he had been granted a month of buffer time was because his good friend Sendner had been using his own influence to drag things out, bit by bit.

"Coming back won't do a damn thing! Find some corner where nobody knows you and hole up. Hide for a few years and see how long that guy can keep this up." After venting, Sendner calmed down slightly. "Seriously, do you actually have any confidence in dealing with that Avengers? If not, pull out now. Don't force it."

"I don't know. But if you're still willing to trust me, then keep supporting me," Wang Yiyang replied after a moment of silence.

"...You know I've always trusted you. But I need to know more about your situation so I can have some peace of mind, and so the people behind me can have some peace of mind. Do you understand?" Sendner's previously boisterous voice went quiet.

Wang Yiyang fell silent.

He couldn't exactly tell him that he was just waiting to flip the table with his next three random identity draws, could he?

He'd need someone to actually believe him first.

Furthermore, this was his greatest secret and his trump card; he couldn't possibly leak it.

"I'm sorry, Sendner." After a long while, Wang Yiyang finally spoke.

"I understand." Sendner seemed to grasp the implication.

Click. The line went dead.

Wang Yiyang didn't idle after that.

He began making encrypted calls one after another.

As the head of the Security Department, he naturally possessed a vast network of connections.

He had two disciples and several allies at the Maria headquarters. Abroad, he had adopted a group of homeless orphans. In various villas and estates scattered across the globe, there were butlers and subordinates loyal to him.

Beyond that, there was the former chairman of the group who had once supported him and transferred Mister shares to him—his mentor under this hidden identity, Caesar Sid. And then there were his fellow disciples, his seniors and juniors.

He checked them one by one, verifying their stances.

In the face of pressure—life-and-death pressure, at that—he needed to see who was still truly supporting him.

It was a cruel screening process.

But it was also an incredibly real one.

The numbers in his contact list dwindled one by one, yet Wang Yiyang's expression remained unchanged.

Soon, another number connected.

"Yiyang, thank goodness, you're safe! I heard the Avengers is scouring the planet for you. It's such a relief that you're okay! My god! Thank the Mother Goddess!" A slightly agitated female voice rang out from the receiver.

"Su, what's the situation like now?" Wang Yiyang asked calmly.

"It's very bad. The group is fractured, and many believe you're finished. They've even started staking claims on the position of the next Security Department head!"

"Is that so?"

"Also, I have news: the Avengers has already arrived at Yingxing City in the Mien Federation. You aren't home right now, are you? That's your hometown, right? Remember, don't go back there under any circumstances. The Avengers has been there for who knows how long—I only just received this news myself, and it gave me quite a scare..." Su continued to ramble on the other end.

But Wang Yiyang felt a thunderous roar in his head, his mind reeling. He almost couldn't catch his breath.

The Avengers has already arrived???!

Why didn't my chip or my intelligence reports contain any information about this??

In an instant, he felt the deep-seated malice from within Mister.

Countless people were watching him, trying to seize his position and his shares. While the bio-chips on his person were managed independently by various departments, the core was developed by the monitoring department.

Therefore, either the monitoring department had a problem, or the Security Department itself did.

He hung up the phone.

Wang Yiyang sat on the sofa, buried his face in his hands, and remained silent.

He carefully examined the data characters on his system interface.

Warning: You have twenty days left to prepare. You are about to face the massive trouble that follows from Mister.

Twenty days...

The system display is correct. That means either the intelligence Su gave me is flawed—she's trying to trick me—or there is a glitch in the system.

Compared to the latter, he leaned slightly toward the former being the possibility.

Su and Sendner were his two closest partners in Mister. According to the background summary he had reviewed, Wang Yiyang and they could almost be described as life-and-death partners who had supported each other through thick and thin.

But no matter how close the partners, when faced with a hopeless crisis, even they would make the "sensible" choice.

Wang Yiyang pondered for a moment, then decisively tapped delete on Su's contact name.

He needed to trust the system more.

"Then what about Sendner?" Wang Yiyang frowned, unable to make a judgment.

As of now, aside from the subordinates controlled by his chip, he dared not trust a single soul.

He was practically jumping at shadows.

"My phone has a tracking function. If the Avengers could find me so quickly, it's highly likely there's a mole within the Security Department leaking intelligence." Wang Yiyang thought for a moment, then took out his phone, turned off the screen, and placed it in front of him.

However, he soon shook his head and put the phone away.

His background was no secret to the big shots in Mister; his hometown was right here in Yingxing City.

Even without intelligence, the Avengers would certainly choose to come here first to search for him.

What's more, his family was here.

His grandfather, parents, and other relatives were all here. This was his root; he couldn't run.

This was clearly a blatant trap.

It forced him to face everything head-on.

But there is one doubt: if I die, how can he guarantee that the position of Security Department head will definitely fall into his hands?

Wang Yiyang pondered in his heart.

The more critical the situation, the calmer he became.

Since the system had provided a buffer of twenty days, he chose to believe it.

Then he would believe it to the end.

He guessed that even if the Avengers had arrived, they would certainly not choose to make a move on him immediately.

"Then... tomorrow I'll go see Zhong Can first. I must strengthen the guards around me as soon as possible."

"Right, and that cooperation invitation from the R&D Minister—now it seems like he was just trying to fish in troubled waters." Wang Yiyang realized in an instant.

In his current situation, if he really sent his last bit of elite force to the R&D Department, they would be like meat buns thrown at a dog—gone forever.

All that talk about K-Crystal Serum and competing for the Board Chairman position was just a ruse!

By now, he understood the intentions of the R&D Minister Kesati clearly: if Wang Yiyang rose again, the cooperation would be treated as a fair trade.

If Wang Yiyang failed completely, then he shouldn't blame him for striking first to snatch the elite resources of the Security Department.

...Every one of them is calculating, placing themselves in an invincible position beforehand... they are all old foxes!!

After finally piecing the intelligence together, Wang Yiyang felt a splitting headache.

The minds of these people were deep, troublesome, and complex.

Thinking about having to deal with such a circle in the future, he suddenly felt a bit nostalgic for the simple life of an office worker.

If the Avengers have really arrived here... Wang Yiyang suddenly had the illusion of needles pricking his back.

Thinking of the series of movements he had exposed while constantly using his status to mobilize power and subordinates, he felt a chill run down his spine.

But back then, he had just come into contact with his identity and his many subordinates. If he hadn't utilized his status and influence, he probably wouldn't have survived until now.

In other words, the current situation was a dead end he was destined to face!

"I must find a way!" The constant, intense sense of impending threat kept his entire being in a state of high-speed operation.

The Avengers could strike at any moment; if they couldn't find him, they would definitely target his family and relatives.

Although the time displayed on the system was indeed twenty days, that referred to him personally. What if something happened to his relatives...

Wang Yiyang dared not gamble.

His existing resources were insufficient to break free from the crisis, so he began to turn his attention to the data and memories of the doctor, Twist.

As Twist was a surgeon suspected to be from another world or a planet with higher technology, Wang Yiyang had yet to truly attempt to utilize the full extent of the anatomical knowledge and experience he had acquired.

Now, under the pressure of the crisis, he quickly began searching his memory for anything that could help him in his current situation.

As a Bronze Rank identity, he guessed there must be hidden resources he hadn't discovered yet.

Sitting on the sofa, Wang Yiyang searched through every bit of memory involving anatomy.

The structures of bizarre, grotesque creatures that Twist had dissected appeared one by one in his mind.

Some of these creatures were ones he had seen before, and the Mien Federation possessed them as well.

However, many of the other creatures were types he had never encountered.

The number of living things Twist had dissected was countless.

Animals, plants, bacteria, viruses, fungi, and the like were basic. There were also semi-liquid, semi-solid living things, humanoid monsters with metallic skins, and so on.

The more he recalled, the more Wang Yiyang became certain that Twist did not come from the same place as he did.

Time slipped away bit by bit.

Finally, Wang Yiyang suddenly saw a dissection procedure.

In Twist's memory, this surgery was supposed to be a very, very common minor operation for the people of his world.

Therefore, while performing the dissection, he even brought along a student, explaining the details and purpose of each step as he worked.

But to Wang Yiyang, this minor surgery was enough to stir up a massive storm in the current Federation.

Because this minor surgery utilized an auxiliary dissection technique: Bio-Mechanization.

That is, a technology that allows metal to freely convert between flesh tissue and its own state. And with no side effects!

"Bio-Mechanization...!!" A glimmer of hope finally appeared in Wang Yiyang's eyes.

A glimmer of hope that could break him out of this dead end.