Across the entire Douluo Plane, in terms of the precision of Soul Guidance military engineering, mass-production efficiency, and weapon power, no force other than the core factories of the Sun-Moon Federation headquarters could rival this underground arms factory. The core R&D zone overseen by Ling Zichen was the very heart of the factory. The blueprint simulations, prototype construction, and performance testing of every high-end, new-model, and custom Soul Guidance weapon all came from here.
In the past, this core R&D zone had always been brightly lit, never stopping even late at night. Ling Zichen was obsessed with research and often remained rooted here, working without sleep or rest to refine technology, improve shells, and simulate formation patterns. With her in command, progress throughout the entire R&D zone had always advanced steadily without the slightest delay. Every craftsman and researcher had long grown accustomed to the young genius's swift, decisive, fanatical focus, as well as her sharp and precise technical guidance.
But today, the normally bustling yet orderly core R&D zone carried an oppressive, stifling silence.
Most of the high-speed precision machinery had stopped. Several dedicated production lines for new high-end Soul Guidance shells had come to a complete standstill. The researchers who usually flowed through the area without pause all looked anxious, lowering their heads as they stopped in place and occasionally glancing toward the central control room at the heart of the R&D zone, their eyes filled with apprehension and unease.
Inside the central control room, the atmosphere was even graver.
Zang Xin, dressed in the black robes of the Tang Sect Master, stood silently before a massive holographic Soul Guidance screen. His posture was straight and his bearing calm, but his normally gentle, composed eyes were tightly furrowed, and an unshakable gloom and agitation twisted between his brows.