The compliant construction of technical barriers, the sleight of hand behind a psychic shield

The Bridge was deathly silent.

All the alarms went silent, not because they had returned to normal, but because they were forcibly suppressed by an even more ruthless force. The faint golden aura surrounding Jean Grey had become the only source of light in this space.

Her spiritual tendrils, like an invisible exploration team, have reached the edge of that shattered star field.

One more step forward, and you'll reach the core of that coordinate system.

There lies a man's secret.

Lynn's gaze did not fall on the piano, but calmly landed on the face of the Technology Minister, Wanda.

There was no request or command in his eyes, only a cold, businesslike confirmation, as if he were confirming whether a pre-arranged procedure would be carried out on time.

Wanda understood.

She must understand it too.

Qin's overstepping of authority, ostensibly a risk assessment, was in reality a silent trampling and spying on her past in Sokovia with Lynn. This was something she absolutely could not tolerate.

The Director's gaze, however, provided her with an impeccable pretext to package her personal jealousy and protectiveness as a compliant and necessary departmental action.

"According to Article S-09 of the ' High-Risk Entity Energy Interaction Safety Protocol ' and the Supreme Authorization Order S-001 issued by the Director's Office..."

Wanda's voice broke the silence of the Bridge, devoid of any emotion, as if she were reading a technical manual.

"To prevent unknown spiritual contamination from flowing back to the Core Server, the Department of Technology will forcibly activate the ' Chaos Firewall ' to physically block this cross-dimensional Mind Link."

Before she could finish speaking, she raised her hand.

The Scarlet light was no longer the restless energy that had previously protected her, but had transformed into countless precise, intricate Runes that shimmered with a cold luster. These Runes had no trace of violence; with an almost mechanical precision, they rapidly constructed an invisible Bastion between Jean Grey's mental Probe and the distant coordinates.

This is not a clash of energies.

This was a surgical removal.

The unstoppable golden torrent of Qin's spirit did not explode violently the moment it touched the Scarlet Bastion. It simply... broke.

Like a fiber optic cable spanning the ocean, it was cleanly cut from the middle of the deep sea with the sharpest tool.

All Data Stream, all perceptions, vanish into nothingness within a fraction of a second.

The lights on the Bridge returned to normal, and the low hum of the circulation system became clearly audible again.

Jean Grey abruptly opened her eyes, her body swaying slightly, and all color drained from her face. Her red hair, which moved without wind, fell down, and the golden light in her eyes transformed into astonishment and incredulous rage.

She stared intently at Wanda, a gaze powerful enough to ignite steel.

But Wanda simply withdrew her hand calmly, the Scarlet Runes vanishing without a trace. She didn't even glance back at Jean, but turned to Lynn and nodded slightly.

"Director, the ' Chaos Firewall ' has been deployed urgently. The threat... has been eliminated."

Lynn nodded, his expression as if the clash of forces that had just torn reality apart was nothing more than a routine system adjustment.

He turned to Qin, whose face was pale, his tone still businesslike and composed.

"Special Envoy Qin, I commend your dedication. However, procedure is the Management Committee's ironclad rule."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over everyone present.

"This exploration operation is classified as highest risk. Any independent action not jointly approved by command will be considered irresponsible towards the safety of all members. I do not want this to happen again."

These words, though spoken on the zither, intimidated everyone present.

Hela loosened her arms slightly, a faint sneer playing on her lips. She was pleased to see this new Special Envoy getting his head bruised and battered by the rules Lynn himself had set.

A glint of shrewdness flashed in Natasha's eyes. She could see clearly that Lynn hadn't used the slightest bit of his personal power; he had merely manipulated the gears between departments and within the established rules, yet he had managed to make a powerful figure with world-destroying abilities suffer a humiliating defeat. This method of using someone else's strength against them and intimidating them with power was more chilling to her than any force.

Gwen Stacy quietly breathed a sigh of relief, but her fingers, gripping the Data Pad, turned slightly white from the force. She knew better than anyone that Lynn had successfully covered up the secret. But she was also more terrified than anyone else of what a horrific scene it would be if these women, whom he had manipulated, were to one day break free from the constraints of the rules.

"I..." Qin bit her lip, her chest heaving violently.

She wanted to lash out, to use the power that could restart the stars to burn away the hypocritical bureaucratic shackles before her.

But she couldn't.

She could clearly feel that Lynn's words were like countless invisible shackles, firmly binding her to the identity of "Special Envoy." Once she took action, she would be guilty of "threat," which would be tantamount to going against the entire Management Committee's order.

She will completely lose the "legitimacy" of staying by his side.

In the end, all the anger and resentment were reduced to two words.

"Yes, sir."

She practically spat out those words through gritted teeth, then took a step back and sat back down in her seat in the Supervisory Group, radiating an aura of icy indifference that kept strangers at bay.

A potential overreaching incident that could have sparked Civil War was effortlessly defused by Lynn with a simple technical procedure.

He turned to face the holographic Star Map on the Control Console.

"Director Gwen Stacy, read out the launch procedures. Target: ' Preventive Dimension Exploration ' coordinates. Full speed ahead."

"Yes, Director."

As the flagship engine roared to life, no one noticed that Jean Grey had closed her eyes in the shadowy seat of the Supervisory Group.

Her face was still pale, but the anger had subsided, replaced by a dangerous confusion and suspicion.

Just moments before her Mind Link was forcibly severed by Wanda's Chaos Magic.

She felt it in that instant of contact.

That Scarlet barrier was not just a cold wall.

While isolating her, it also resonated with the residual aura of that coordinate, albeit extremely faintly, yet with unparalleled clarity.

It was a shared, mutual attraction.

It was as if a key had touched the lock.

Jean Grey abruptly opened her eyes, her gaze sharp as a knife, piercing Wanda, who was standing in front of the Control Console, reporting technical parameters to Lynn.

She understood.

The secret of those coordinates, this woman... also knows.

In fact, she knew more than she did.

That Scarlet barrier wasn't there to protect the Management Committee's servers; it was there to conceal her own secrets.

A secret that also involves Lynn.