Dugu Xin glanced sideways—then, in the next second—
Pfft—!
Spear in hand, a shadow pierced Li Chong's chest. Thus, Li Chong lost his life mid-unconsciousness.
Though greedy and corrupt—a Grade 8 soul engineer of the Sun Moon Empire—he might still prove patriotic on future battlefields. Better to eliminate him now.
The spear flicked—the key retrieved. A flick of Dugu Xin's wrist, and a silk cloth bearing Xing Luo's insignia landed beside Li Chong's corpse.
Huo Yuhao hesitated. "Xin, you're…"
Framing someone?
He didn't voice it, but his eyes asked: Isn't this… wrong?
Dugu Xin handed the key to Chen Junting. "Not framing Xing Luo. We're allies—that'd be dishonorable. This is just… insurance."
"When truth blurs with falsehood, who can tell real from fake?" Chen Junting led them into a room, sorting through keys until he found the purple one. As he searched for the lock on a cabinet, he explained: "For the paranoid, this 'insurance' sows distrust between Sun Moon and the Holy Spirit Cult. If it works, great. If not? Sun Moon already sees all Three Great Empires as enemies—who cares who stole it?"
"Ah, found it."
On the cabinet's left, Chen Junting spotted a hidden keyhole. Inserting the purple key, he swiftly input a 16-digit code, turned it two-and-a-half rotations right—flawless execution.
Clank-clank-clank…
Three light clicks—the door popped open three inches. The soul-engineered turrets retracted; the left door swung wide.
Beyond lay a 20-square-meter chamber. Chen Junting tapped three yellow bricks on the left wall in sequence.
Thud—!
The second door sealed shut. Yellow light encircled the ceiling. With a faint weightless sensation, the elevator descended.
A hundred meters underground—enough time to operate.
"Don't kill yet," Chen Junting calculated the depth silently. "Yuhao, trap everyone outside in illusions—no alarms."
Huo Yuhao's eyes glowed blue.
The elevator jolted. As the door cracked open, a playful voice called out: "Manager Li, why so—"
Before finishing, an invisible ripple spread.
When the door fully opened, two Grade 6 soul engineers stood frozen, smiling blankly.
Chen Junting didn't hesitate. Hands shot out—memory extraction complete in seconds.
Confirmed. A light clap—sword intent shattered their brains painlessly.
Thud—thud—
As they fell, Chen Junting looted their keys. Second time's the charm—efficient corpse-stripping. Even their storage-type soul tools were claimed. When you're hungry, a mosquito leg is meat too.
"Forgot that Grade 8 soul engineer…" Chen Junting muttered. Gu Tianchen wordlessly opened a spatial gate, letting Chen Junting toss the loot into its void.
Meanwhile, Dugu Xin studied the smiling corpses. Grabbing Huo Yuhao, he asked, "What illusion did you cast? They died grinning?"
Huo Yuhao scratched his temple. "I showed them their perfect world—a paradise they couldn't bear to leave."
Dugu Xin chuckled. "Mercy for the dead?" An idea sparked: A toxin so alluring, even the strong wouldn't resist it. Everyone has regrets to cling to. He'd call it… "Drunken Dream of Life and Death."
Just then—"Help!"
Chen Junting's shout snapped Dugu Xin back.
Before them loomed a 4-meter-tall, 3-meter-wide door—plain except for a hazard symbol, triple-keyhole, and keypad. With three memories to cross-reference, opening it was trivial. The vast armory awaited.
Clack-clack—
A faint metallic scent seeped out.
Treasures revealed: 10,000+ square meters of rare metals—32 types, thousands of tons. Yet Huo Yuhao's spiritual scan frowned. "Is this… underwhelming?"
"No," Chen Junting shook his head. "There are three warehouses in total. This is just the first. Li Chong only knew how to access the second level. But I have another way."
He spared the metals no second glance. "To Level Two."
"What about these?" Dugu Xin asked.
Gray light flooded the chamber. Runes etched above the crates. Miniature voids yawned open—swallowing every metal in five breaths.
Strip it bare—leave no blade of grass.
"Handled," Chen Junting said, striding onward. After informing everyone of the alarms in the warehouse, he guided them to the next door.
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