Chen Hai's speculation was like an ice pick, piercing the cognitive barrier he had built over twenty years of his police career.
Reshaping society... the idea sounded quite absurd, but as a semi-high-level official, Chen Hai could easily grasp the various implications of the official actions.
Sapphire City's current economy looked prosperous and was still growing every year, but in fact, anyone with a discerning eye could see that the city's economy was now completely dependent on technological progress.
The economic structure here was completely saturated, with almost no possibility of further improvement.
Soon, it wouldn't be long before other well-developed places caught up. In fact, the economic levels of several cities in the world had already approached that of Sapphire City by copying its economic structure.
This should have been a neutral matter, but for the government of Sapphire City, it was a bad thing.
So they had to seek a breakthrough.
Where to break through?
The City of the Future!!
Who said they couldn't copy homework?
That's how the cleanup list came about. Before transforming into the form of the City of the Future, the first thing to be eliminated was these guys who occupied a large amount of social resources.
But shouldn't this plan be a slow transition over twenty to thirty years? Why...
Chen Hai's expression suddenly froze.
The City of the Future would pay the corresponding price for all of Arahato's actions this time, and what they had to do now was to expand the influence of this matter... wasn't this clearly a blatant extortion?
As everyone knows, the biggest difference between the rest of the world and the City of the Future now is the basic hardware...
So the government is planning to take this opportunity to make up for the missing hardware?!
Chen Hai's guess was indeed correct. The government of Sapphire City did have this idea, and it also had the support of the entire Shenzhou government.
But as for the deeper meaning, Chen Hai still couldn't understand anything. He couldn't guess the thoughts of the City of the Future, nor the thoughts of the core level of the Shenzhou government.
His speculation contained too much "unnecessary"—no need to be in such a hurry, no need to use such radical means, no need to revolve around Arahato...
But these were not things he had to consider.
If social order was really facing a reshaping, then what Arahato, and the City of the Future looming behind it, were doing was no longer a simple "hero game" or "overstepping their authority," but a... survival screening and pre-war preparation that had begun in advance.
He shuddered violently, not daring to think any further.
He waved his hand, his voice tinged with a hoarseness he hadn't even noticed himself. "Fall back! Clean up the scene, and appease the public.
"Regarding the target... for now, list them as a high-priority person of interest. Do not engage in direct conflict unless necessary. Prioritize collecting information on their behavior patterns and connections."
He needed to go back immediately and compile his speculations and all the anomalies into a report.
Perhaps someone within the police department, or even at a higher level, had already noticed these clues. He could also use this to request more equipment and make the most thorough preparations.
At the same time, Yae Sakura was racing desperately through the shadows between the buildings.
Time was like a noose tightening around her neck, second by second.
Eleven-oh-seven, eleven-fifteen, eleven-twenty-three... every leap, every thrilling maneuver between balconies, air conditioner units, and even billboards, was only to shorten the insignificant distance.
The clamor of the city faded into a blurry roar of wind in her ears. Her world was reduced to what was ahead, the rooftops, and the destination that guided her like a lighthouse—the Taixu Martial Arts School.
Rin... you have to wait for me!
The anxiety in her heart was almost about to set her on fire. She couldn't imagine what "trouble" Rin was going through. Was the so-called "isolation for protection" true or false?
Was the person who left the USB drive acting out of goodwill or malice? There was no time to think about all this. She could only rush towards the only source of light, like a moth to a flame.
Sweat soaked her bangs, and the palms of her hands, which were tightly clutching the USB drive and Sakura Fubuki, turned white from excessive force.
Her figure left afterimages between the tall buildings, occasionally drawing gasps from the passersby below, but she paid them no mind.
Eleven forty-one.
She could finally see the ancient-style building complex in the distance. The plaque of the Taixu Martial Arts School reflected a steady light under the sun.
However, just as she was about to leap directly from the top of a commercial building to the outer wall of the martial arts school, an indescribable palpitation suddenly seized her!
It was a premonition of danger, a stabbing pain that seemed to come from her soul.
She had been a miko in Yae Village since she was a child. Perhaps there really was such a thing as a psychic in this world. She could feel a profane power in the Taixu Martial Arts School.
But that was where Rin might be... even if there was a mountain of swords and a sea of fire, she had to go!
Yae Sakura's expression sharpened. She no longer cared about hiding her tracks, and her speed exploded again, like a falling meteor, rushing straight towards the back courtyard of the Taixu Martial Arts School!
Thud!
She landed lightly but with the force of a thousand tons on the bluestone slabs in the courtyard, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Almost at the same time she landed, a suppressed, teeth-grinding energy hum came from a closed room inside the martial arts school, along with a faint, muffled groan, as if someone were enduring great pain.
The energy fluctuation carried an erosive feeling that was unfamiliar to her, filled with violence, disorder, and ominousness.
The existence of this power here made it difficult for Yae Sakura to believe that anything good would happen next.
"Rin—!"
Yae Sakura could no longer hold back. She screamed her sister's name, her figure like a bolt of lightning, ignoring any possible obstacles in the martial arts school and rushing towards the center of the energy fluctuation!
Her time, at this moment, seemed to have coincided with some unknown countdown with a deafening roar.
In the core training ground of the Taixu Martial Arts School, Fu Hua, who had just finished a round of cruel training, seemed to have sensed something. She suddenly looked up in the direction Yae Sakura had broken in, a hint of surprise on her face.
The Seven Swords were lying around her in disarray. When they noticed someone had broken in, Ma Feima was the first to struggle up from the ground, holding Chijueying and blocking Yae Sakura's path.
Su Mei, who was wiping what was either lipstick or blood from her lips, licked them and gave Yae Sakura a dangerous smile. "Oh? It seems an extraordinary 'guest' has arrived."
Indeed, an extraordinary guest... although the other party didn't have the iconic l... fox ears on her head, Kallen could still recognize her as Yae Sakura from her sakura-colored hair.
But her current state...
Shouldn't she be a gentle, slightly ditzy, and understanding woman?
Why did this Yae Sakura look so... frantic?
There was even hatred in her eyes, burning along with anger on her body, like a beast about to devour someone.
Wait... who pissed her off?