第43章 原来你们离我那么近

Deep Sky Technology Building, top floor.

Lu Zijin sat in a comfortable office chair, lazily resting her chin on her hand, her slender, fair fingers toying with a ballpoint pen.

In the holographic projection opposite her, a figure dressed in a white martial arts uniform coalesced.

He was a middle-aged man with hair as white as snow and a stern, profound expression, possessing a natural authority like a lion.

"Zijin."

He said gravely, "I have already read the intelligence report you sent me."

Lu Zijin narrowed her beautiful eyes. "Brother Chen, do you think there are any issues?"

This Minister Chen was silent for a moment before saying, "Gu Ci'an's son... Gu Jianlin, right? A very impressive young man. Being able to kill the Joker almost single-handedly has already proven that he has more potential than his father did at his age. From my personal, subjective perspective, I am more inclined to cultivate him; don't let the Tribunal disgust him."

"The report you compiled lacks evidence."

He said sternly, "Currently, the internal factional strife within the Ether Association is severe. If we can find key evidence regarding this matter, it could very well influence the election of the next President. This matter is of great importance; you must protect this child."

Lu Zijin licked her crimson lips. "Brother, do you also want us to topple the Tribunal?"

"I remain neutral, but I certainly do not like the Tribunal's methods."

Minister Chen replied, "Therefore, you need to work harder and find more clues to resolve this. Because the person investigating the Blood Moon Massacre is that man—the recognized hero."

Lu Zijin fell silent.

That person was indeed a recognized hero; even those at the Minister level could not shake his authority.

"What about the President?"

She asked, "What is her take?"

"The old lady has already gone into seclusion, and I haven't been able to receive her instructions. The last order she left was to resolve all existing problems in Feng City before the Kirin Immortal Palace opens; everything else is unimportant."

Minister Chen pondered for a second. "As for the Tribunal, too many people have died at the hands of Gu Ci'an. It is inevitable that they will target his son. As a Minister, protecting him is more than enough. As for his resource issues, try to transfer some from other branches to ensure he receives fair treatment."

Lu Zijin curled her lip. "Is that all?"

"That is all for the current stage."

Minister Chen looked at her deeply. "I know that Gu Ci'an has a close relationship with your Lu Family, and the potential Gu Jianlin has shown is indeed excellent. However, you must let him demonstrate more value—not just limited to one jurisdiction, but entering the vision of the headquarters. Only with sufficient backing can he contend with the Tribunal."

He emphasized, "The Omega Project is a very good opportunity."

Lu Zijin rubbed her brow. "I understand."

The communication cut off.

She stood up, faced the massive floor-to-ceiling window, and remained silent for a long time.

Actually, if possible, the best backing was not entering the vision of the headquarters.

It was that Catastrophe-level Ascender who had already arrived in Feng City.

The King of Azure.

In the burning copper cauldron, the flames extinguished.

Accompanied by the scarlet light shattering into pieces, a mass of thick blood floated up, churning and twisting like a living thing. Countless blood-colored bubbles formed and burst, releasing a rich, fishy sweetness.

The Pharmacist watched this scene, a touch of fanaticism appearing in his pupils. "It's done! It's done! This is the Ancient God Blood, the precious resource every Alchemist dreams of, comparable to the Philosopher's Stone in alchemy. We have finally succeeded!"

The Book Elder sniffed the intoxicating scent and sighed, "This damnably sweet fragrance."

"This is the authority of the Ancient God Race. Their spirit is a fatal pollution to humans, but also an opportunity for evolution. Their language is a fatal destruction to humans, yet the blood they create is a supreme gift, endowing humans with evolution and breaking the shackles of life."

The Pharmacist closed his eyes in prayer, pressing his hands against his chest, and said piously, "They are a race born from the depths of the universe, using the energy of entire planets as the cradle of their lives. If not for that destructive catastrophe... perhaps humanity today would also be livestock kept in captivity, enslaved by gods, and turned into their nutrients."

"But now, it is the era of humanity."

The Book Elder suddenly thought of something. "Teacher, if we consume the Ancient God Blood, won't that Supreme Being be able to manipulate us at will the next time we enter the Kirin Immortal Palace?"

The Pharmacist looked at him with the eyes one might use for an idiot and sighed. "You say that as if the Supreme Being couldn't kill us if we didn't consume the Ancient God Blood. You must remember, we are not the kind of Ascenders strong enough to confront an Ancient God; our advantage has never been in power."

"Even if He is a god and we are ants, so what? He has been imprisoned by a more powerful Ancient God for thousands of years, with no way to contact the outside world. His spirituality has been dried up for millennia."

He smiled. "The Kirin Immortal Palace is about to open. He is impatient to escape, but before that, He needs to replenish a massive amount of spirituality; otherwise, He will have no way to confront the entire human world."

The Book Elder suddenly realized and said, "So in the Kirin Immortal Palace, He won't kill us. In reality, we are just maintaining a superficial harmony, but we all know the truth."

"Yes, the Venerable knows, and we know. We are just in a relationship of mutual utilization."

The Pharmacist said indifferently, "The Ancient Records once recorded that someone, in order to obtain eternal evolution, offered their life and soul to an Ancient God, thus becoming a Divine Servant, enslaved forever. But after that Ancient God fell into a deep slumber in that lost world, for the next two hundred years, he never received another command..."

The Book Elder said, "He was free! Because the Ancient God was sleeping in another world!"

"Yes, everything is under control."

The Pharmacist said, "As long as we can survive the baptism of the Ancient God Blood without exploding and dying halfway, we will completely cast off the shadow of death and embark on a glorious... path of evolution!"

In the copper cauldron, the mass of thick blood cooled down, surging silently.

"Finish the evolution as soon as possible. The Sea Siren sent a message fifteen minutes ago; this black market has been targeted by the Ether Association and will soon face a comprehensive purge," the Pharmacist said.

"Since we have already completed our evolution, what is there to fear?"

The Book Elder appeared quite disdainful.

"Foolish! Never underestimate the Association! The water behind the Association is much deeper than you imagine."

The Pharmacist sternly advised, "Blind arrogance right after gaining power is a major taboo! What we must do is retreat and avoid the edge of the Ether Association. Do not cause extra trouble at this time, understand?"

The Book Elder said in a low voice, "Understood, Teacher."

However, he looked at that mass of bright red blood and swallowed, his eyes obsessed.

It was as if he hadn't listened to his teacher's words at all, but was instead fascinated by the power within his reach.

For a moment, Gu Jianlin felt as if he heard the clamor of the entire world.

Of course, this was an exaggeration; it was mainly because his Life Perception covered almost the entire Deep Sky Technology Building, and there were so many people in this building that he couldn't even count them.

Imagine being in a confined space with thousands of speakers playing different music simultaneously.

Or standing on a noisy, crowded street with countless whispers echoing in your ears.

If he weren't an Ascender with a mental will different from ordinary people, he probably would have fainted on the spot.

"Hell, what is going on?"

Gu Jianlin remembered clearly that the range of Life Perception for a Rank 1 Life Controller was twenty-five meters.

Yet he was able to cover the entire building.

This clearly wasn't a mistake in the Ether Association's data; it was his own issue.

"Perhaps it's because of the Kirin Venerable! I obtained the power of the Kirin Venerable, and it's definitely not just as simple as dual-core driving. The Kirin's instinct guided me to choose the Divine Priest Path; perhaps there was a reason for that."

Gu Jianlin secretly thought of a possibility: "Besides Ancient God transformation, my human state is influenced by the power of the Kirin Venerable, and I can also gain benefits in the advancement of the Divine Priest Path?"

He didn't know if his other abilities had changed as well.

At this moment, he suddenly felt two vigorous melodies appear in his Life Perception.

They were not in this building, but far away.

They were familiar life rhythms, as rough, vigorous, and profound as the roar of a beast.

Gu Jianlin was stunned and immediately turned to look into the distance, because he suddenly realized that this life rhythm was exactly the same as the Ancient God Blood he had given away.

Wait!

He suddenly understood.

Among those five people in the ancient tomb, someone had consumed the Ancient God Blood!

"The Ancient God Blood was created while I was in the Ancient God transformation state, and the function of this drop of blood is to help them complete true evolution. This seems to be what they call... Divine Servant!"

Gu Jianlin pondered for a moment, having basically figured out the key, and whispered in his heart: "The Ancient God uses the Ancient God Blood to help people complete evolution, making them Divine Servants, guardians under the throne of the gods."

Currently, two of those five people had already consumed the Ancient God Blood.

Gu Jianlin, despite the vast distance, had a direct resonance.

Interesting. Although the distance was a bit far, it was still within Feng City.

"I didn't expect you to be so close to me."

Gu Jianlin's eyes flickered; this matter was getting more and more interesting.

The phones of Lu Zicheng and Chen Qing received a notification from the Deep Sky Network.

"Collective Hunting Operation—Immortal Palace Project, officially begins!"

"All team leaders and deputy leaders, please proceed to the central control room to receive mission information."

Gu Jianlin's phone also repeated the notification from Taixu.

"Hello, respected D-rank investigator Gu Jianlin, your team is participating in this large-scale hunting mission. Please carry your equipment and supplies and assemble immediately in the lobby of the Deep Sky Technology Building."

Lu Zicheng stood up and patted his shoulder. "I'm heading out. Will you be okay?"

Chen Qing also picked up her handbag and looked at him with concern.

Gu Jianlin said indifferently, "Don't worry, no problem."

The lobby was a spacious conference hall, usually used for meetings.

Scattered investigators sat in the seats, fifteen in total.

There were no team leaders; they were all team members.

Except for the team leaders and deputy leaders, each team was basically configured in groups of three.

"I heard this mission is to purge all the Fallen in Feng City."

"The Ether Association rarely makes such a big move. It must be because the Kirin Immortal Palace is about to open, right?"

"Yes, my father told me I must perform well this time. I made a fool of myself in the Joker hunting mission last time, got a scolding when I got home, and was almost grounded by my family."

"What's that? When I just got out of the hospital bed, my grandfather gave me two slaps."

The investigators whispered among themselves.

"Wait, wasn't it said there were seven teams in total? Why are there only fifteen people?"

"Thunder has always been by herself. She is the strongest among Rank 3s, even comparable to Rank 4s, and she came from headquarters. She's a noble princess; why would she team up with trash like us?"

"Then the number is still wrong. Isn't there one more person?"

Speaking of this topic, those who had participated in the Joker incident fell silent.

The Joker incident was an indelible disgrace for the original task force.

Although, due to the Necro-Gu, it was a non-combat defeat.

But they had indeed been wiped out, and it was only thanks to a Rank 0 newcomer turning the tide that they survived.

Cheng Youyu felt a bit embarrassed when this was mentioned and scratched his head.

Nie Xiangsi lowered her head, looking at that photo from the ruins, her lively eyes full of curiosity.

She looked up from time to time, but did not see that familiar figure.

"If I were you, having suffered such a humiliating defeat, I would have even swallowed a gun and killed myself."

Yan Ye crossed his arms and said coldly.

"Yeah."

Yan Feng chimed in, "If you guys weren't so weak, you could have held out until we arrived."

Mu Ziqing combed her blonde hair, saying nothing.

Yan Ye said expressionlessly, "I don't need to say how bad the Blood Moon Massacre was. We still need to clean up the mess."

He said with a cold face, "Don't screw up this mission."

No one spoke; the topic was too sensitive.

The Blood Moon Massacre had caused the heaviest losses to the Tribunal, including the Ascender families of Feng City, among which was the Yan Family.

At this moment, the doors of the conference hall were pushed open.

A black-haired youth walked in expressionlessly. He wore a black shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, gray slim-fit trousers, and a pair of white sneakers. He had no decorations on his body; he was very clean.

As soon as he appeared, the atmosphere suddenly changed.

"Look, that's him, the D-rank investigator, Gu Jianlin."

"Is this the one who was used as bait and killed the Joker single-handedly while you were all lying like corpses?"

"That's right, it's him."

Damn, forgot to set the scheduled update...