Han Xiao said calmly, "I only want some compensation."
"You sold the blueprints to arms dealers. Wasn't that compensation enough?" the head of the Research and Development Department couldn't help sneering.
Han Xiao glanced at him and said, "If you hadn't stolen my blueprints, I could have earned that money normally. It was mine to begin with, and you call that compensation? If you'd offered to buy them from me, I might have sold them to the bureau, but did you discuss it with me?"
The department head opened his mouth, but had no answer.
"Let's hear your terms," Gu Hui said in a low voice.
Han Xiao pretended to ponder for a moment before saying, "I hope nothing like this happens again."
"Very reasonable."
Han Xiao's orders were intended for Thirteenth Bureau agents anyway, so they would be the ones using his products in the end. The only difference was the minor issue of whether they were mass-produced. There was no reason to refuse. Besides, if something like this happened again, valuable blueprints might just "leak" to another country.
The department head was the only one dissatisfied with the decision, but under Old Man Gao and Gu Hui's gazes, he could only agree reluctantly.
"Then..." Han Xiao rubbed his chin, as if the thought had just occurred to him. "I'd like to take a look at the Mechanic Class's advanced knowledge."
Old Man Gao frowned and stared at Han Xiao without speaking, wondering whether he had come up with this on the spot or had planned it long ago.
The Mechanic Class's advanced knowledge was a Stardragon secret, accessible only to those with level five clearance or higher. For players, it required a [Respected] relationship. The Six Nations and the Germinal Organization each possessed different advanced knowledge, which they used to train powerful members whose loyalty they could trust. If it leaked, the consequences would be unthinkable.
Han Xiao kept a calm expression, but his heart was practically in his throat as he waited nervously for Old Man Gao's answer.
This concerned his advancement mission. Whether he won or lost came down to this moment. If he failed, his growth would suffer a major setback!
"Why do you want to see the advanced knowledge?"
"I'm curious."
Fine. That was one excellent, compelling reason. Old Man Gao had nothing to say to that.
The nerve-racking silence lasted five minutes before Old Man Gao made his decision. He looked deeply at Han Xiao and said slowly, "All right, I agree."
Han Xiao's entire body relaxed. Suppressing his joy, he gave a faint nod, acting as unshakable as a sheer cliff, as though having no desires made him invincible. He almost passed the false off as real, like calling a deer a horse.
Although he needed to rely on the Thirteenth Bureau, the bureau likewise needed to rely on his intelligence. The two sides were in a fragile balance, and as long as that foundation remained unchanged, minor disputes could be settled peacefully.
Just then, the department head suddenly spoke up.
"Wait! Advanced knowledge can only be made available to level five personnel. This is against the rules."
The corner of Han Xiao's mouth twitched. Success was within reach, only for someone to jump out and interfere. It felt as uncomfortable as being urgently stopped just as he was about to open the floodgates. He fixed the department head with a hostile stare, determined that if the man dared stop him, he would find a night sooner or later to stuff him in a sack and beat him up.
"What do you suggest, then?" Gu Hui asked, his tone unfriendly.
The department head belonged to the hardline faction and couldn't stand seeing the Thirteenth Bureau compromise with an intelligence informant whom he believed they could take anything from at will. Whatever Han Xiao's reason for wanting to browse the advanced knowledge, he didn't want him to get his way. Han Xiao had also framed him for reselling arms, and he was eager to get back at him. He said to Old Man Gao in a low voice, "Rules and regulations cannot be cast aside. You agreed to this request only in your personal capacity, without a vote from the other committee members. I believe they may not agree with your decision."
Old Man Gao gave a faint smile, a sharp glint in his eyes. "Are you threatening me?"
"I wouldn't dare." The department head lowered his head, but refused to yield an inch.
The upper ranks of Stardragon's intelligence agency had two tiers. The first consisted of the Thirteenth Bureau's thirteen department heads and deputy director, who handled day-to-day authority. Above them was the seven-seat committee, which included Director Gu Hui. Its members were all powerful senior officials from the military and government, and the committee answered directly to the highest authority in Dragon Horn.
Old Man Gao and Gu Hui were both committee members and leaders of the conservative faction. The department head's hardline faction also had backing on the committee, which was why he dared challenge Old Man Gao now.
"Since I'm here, I have full authority to represent the committee," Old Man Gao said mildly, his tone revealing neither anger nor pleasure.
The department head gritted his teeth. Then inspiration struck, and he said, "In that case, I have just one suggestion. Limit the time he can spend viewing the advanced knowledge. We can't let someone without the qualifications browse freely. I suggest a limit of half an hour."
Old Man Gao and Gu Hui exchanged a glance. The proposal was reasonable. Han Xiao had only said he wanted "to take a look," after all, so satisfying his curiosity would be enough.
"Then let's set the limit at one hour," Gu Hui decided.
The department head felt refreshed at once. The advanced knowledge was profound and intricate; an hour might not even be enough to read a third of one subject. Even if Han Xiao wanted to learn it, he wouldn't have enough time, and any ulterior scheme would be nipped in the bud. Thinking he had succeeded in making Han Xiao miserable, he felt immensely pleased with himself.
Han Xiao looked indifferent, but chuckled inwardly.
One hour? As long as I put in potential points, I can learn it in a minute.
The more pleased the department head looked, the more Han Xiao wanted to laugh. He hurriedly swallowed it back, pressing his lips together to keep from laughing out loud.
Make a fortune quietly. Keep a low profile, a low profile...
The advanced knowledge was protected by multiple layers of encryption using randomly generated keys. Hundreds of forty-eight-digit passwords were generated every second, virtually eliminating the possibility of a hacker breaking in through the network.
The contents of the advanced knowledge were set so they could not be altered or moved, and could only be accessed from a few designated mainframes.
Han Xiao followed Gu Hui into an elevator down to the lowest level of headquarters. When the doors opened, a brightly lit metal corridor stretched before them, leading straight to the mainframe room. A camera and metal detector were installed every ten meters, monitoring the corridor around the clock. Infrared beams crisscrossed the passage, maintaining a constant state of alert. There were no guards here, but numerous remotely operated machine guns were hidden behind the metal wall panels. If an intruder was detected, they could respond within 0.3 seconds.
The defenses were airtight, leaving virtually no chance of sneaking in.
"How much did this corridor cost?"
"Several hundred million, I'd say," Gu Hui replied calmly as he accompanied him.
Han Xiao pursed his lips. I'm not jealous at all.
The mainframe was Stardragon's most advanced computer. The total amount of data it processed in a second could crash a home computer. It was Stardragon's fortress and stronghold in cyberwarfare, storing countless state secrets. The advanced knowledge was only one of them.
Han Xiao reckoned that even if he raised the Control branch's [Basic Virtual Electronics] to the maximum level, he might not be able to breach the mainframe's network firewall. Oh, the name [Basic Virtual Electronics] sounded a little playful, but it was actually network technology and programming.
After five minutes of walking, they reached the end of the metal corridor, and a spacious spherical room came into view. A seemingly suspended walkway led to the center, where a rectangular screen stood alongside a keyboard and mouse. This was the mainframe's operating system. Looking around, Han Xiao saw that the walls were made of extremely tough, transparent blast-resistant glass. Behind it lay countless tangled networks of wires, hardware modules, and chip arrays, with colored lights flickering rapidly among them. The spherical room was one enormous computer room.
The science-fiction scene did not move Han Xiao. After all, he had witnessed grand interstellar battles and had been hit head-on hundreds or thousands of times by asteroid-class annihilation cannons. Though he had died, it had been an honor. Right now, he was focused on another crucial question.
"The air in here stinks and feels stuffy. Don't you ever ventilate this place?"
Gu Hui's eyelid twitched. Why are you focused on something so strange? Shouldn't you be marveling at how tight our defenses are?
Gu Hui composed himself and said, "That's the mainframe. I've already had the people in the back end unlock your access to the advanced knowledge. You aren't authorized to browse any other secrets. We're monitoring the mainframe in real time. This may be unnecessary to say, but the rules require it... Don't try any tricks."
Got it. I won't play tricks; I'll play dirty.
Han Xiao nodded, stepped up to the mainframe, and pressed Enter. A search field appeared on the screen. He typed in "advanced knowledge," and several options immediately appeared.
"Esper Class advancement: Tier 2 Gene Chain: Energy Level Enhancement"
"Esper Class advancement: Tier 2 Gene Chain: Control Enhancement"
"Pugilist Class advancement: External Wave"
"Pugilist Class advancement: Flash Qi"