novelraw Chapter 186 - 177: Heart’s Intent Set, Cutting Ties for a Free Hand (Part 1)
Chapter 186 - 177: Heart’s Intent Set, Cutting Ties for a Free Hand (Part 1)
On the outskirts of the Modu City District, at a branch of the Special Security Bureau.
Even though it was now late at night, the facility was still heavily guarded. Fully armed soldiers stood watch over the perimeter, and various high-tech surveillance cameras provided 360-degree coverage with no blind spots.
At this very moment, in the surveillance command room, several Warriors were staring at the monitor screens, not daring to let their guard down for even a second.
"We’ve got a situation!"
Suddenly, one of the Warriors spoke in a low voice, drawing everyone’s attention.
Everyone followed the Warrior’s gaze to one of the monitor screens.
The image on that screen was shaking violently, making it blurry and unclear.
"Area Three, be advised! Area Three, be advised! Assume alert status immediately!"
The team leader immediately picked up his radio and made the call.
The four-man team in Area Three, the squad guarding the main entrance, was instantly on high alert. They swiftly entered a combat stance, raising their firearms and aiming them at the surrounding area.
However, from their perspective, the surroundings were empty. There was nothing out of the ordinary.
"Control room, what’s the situation..."
the Area Three team leader asked in a low voice, but his words were cut short the next moment.
WHOOSH!!
The four men saw a burst of blue-white light erupt in the space before them, and a tall figure emerged from within the flames.
The feeling was shocking, enough to make one’s scalp tingle—as if the Void had split open and someone had materialized out of thin air.
The men immediately recognized the newcomer.
Yi Beidou.
By now, there probably wasn’t a single person in the entire Modu Special Security Bureau who wouldn’t recognize that face.
"Mr. Yi, what brings you here?"
The four Warriors breathed a slight sigh of relief and lowered their weapons. While still amazed by the miraculous scene they had just witnessed, they radioed the command room to explain the situation.
"I have some business to attend to. Is your Minister Zheng here?"
Yi Beidou asked.
"Please wait a moment, sir. We’ll inform him."
Although the team leader wasn’t sure of Yi Beidou’s intentions, he reported the situation nonetheless.
Soon, a burly, middle-aged man came out with several Warriors, welcoming Yi Beidou into the branch headquarters.
"May I ask what brings Mr. Yi here so late at night?"
This Minister Zheng was well aware of Yi Beidou’s power and influence, so he dared not show the slightest neglect.
"I’d like to see the items related to Yao Lingfeng. Is that possible?"
Yi Beidou didn’t beat around the bush, getting straight to the point.
"Well..."
Minister Zheng exchanged a look with the key officials beside him. Yi Beidou himself held the position of special consultant within the Special Security Bureau, making him a high-ranking figure with the authority to view these items.
"Please, follow me."
Minister Zheng nodded slightly. Although Yi Beidou’s late-night visit was a bit strange, he didn’t overthink it.
A person like him was enigmatic, with a thought process beyond ordinary comprehension. It was perfectly normal for such an individual to act on a sudden whim, taking immediate action upon some discovery, regardless of the time of day or season.
Merely viewing the items was something he could authorize on his own authority.
Afterward, Minister Zheng and his group led Yi Beidou to a heavily secured, encrypted evidence locker to examine the various clues and items obtained from the investigation into Yao Lingfeng.
Among them, a rather inconspicuous Jade Pendant caught Yi Beidou’s attention.
"Is this the Dharma Artifact Yao Lingfeng used to conceal his presence?"
Yi Beidou asked, holding the Jade Pendant in his hand.
"Yes. Elder Wei and the other Saint Experts speculate that this Dharma Artifact was likely crafted by an Ancient One who is extremely skilled in the Dao of Arrays. That’s why its effect is so powerful."
Minister Zheng said with a nod.
Yi Beidou focused his senses, trying to use the Jade Pendant as a karmic node to track the location of its creator, but he failed.
’According to Wei Cheng, the Pioneer Group’s East Asia Headquarters is in Japan. Then there’s a high probability its creator is also in Japan. With that distance, and the fact that they’re an Array master, it’s impossible for even me to sense them directly.’
’But if I enter Japan, the distance will be shorter. Combined with the karmic entanglement, there’s a good chance I can break through their shielding and lock onto them.’
"I’m taking this Jade Pendant."
Yi Beidou stated, clenching the Jade Pendant in his hand as he spoke to Minister Zheng.
His entire reason for coming here was to take this Jade Pendant.
It was the key he needed to locate the Pioneer Group’s critical personnel after entering Japan.
"This... I’m afraid that’s against regulations. Could you please wait while I request permission from the Director-General and Elder Wei?"
Minister Zheng’s heart skipped a beat upon hearing this, and he spoke hastily.
He had the authority to bring Yi Beidou to view the evidence, but allowing him to take it was beyond the scope of his approval.
"Minister Zheng, and everyone else, my apologies for the trouble this will cause you."
Yi Beidou said, his expression calm.
Before anyone could react to his words,
The next moment.
WHOOSH!!
A terrifying Blue-White Demon Flame erupted from Yi Beidou’s body, instantly filling the entire room.
Everyone present felt an extreme, bone-chilling cold, as if even their thoughts were freezing over.
TAP! TAP! TAP!!
With a few quick taps of his fingers, the men’s eyes rolled back in their heads, and they collapsed to the floor in an instant.
Only Minister Zheng was spared; Yi Beidou merely sealed his ability to move, without rendering him unconscious.
"Mr. Yi!! What are you doing?!"
Seeing this, a terrible premonition rose in Minister Zheng’s heart, and he shouted hastily.
"I don’t wish to cause unnecessary casualties. I’ll have to ask you to accompany me."
Yi Beidou said, then scooped up Minister Zheng’s large frame and started walking out of the Special Security Bureau headquarters.
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!!
The events in the evidence locker instantly triggered an emergency response throughout the entire branch. A deafening siren blared, causing all the guarding Warriors to turn pale with shock.
By the time Yi Beidou walked out of the branch building, a circle of fully armed Warriors had already surrounded the exit.
They all possessed a certain level of Martial Arts Cultivation and were equipped with Physical Ability enhancement gear developed by the Purple Cloud Research Institute. On their heads, they wore extremely futuristic combat helmets.
These helmets had magnetic field shielding and built-in imaging systems capable of detecting nearby magnetic field fluctuations. Even if a top expert’s True Intent could fool the naked eye, this equipment could still perceive their approximate location at close range, preventing complete concealment.
It wasn’t just the fully armed Warriors; on the ground were robotic dogs, armed and ready, while a dense swarm of drones danced in the Sky.
"Let Minister Zheng go! Hands up! Or we will open fire!!"
the acting combat commander shouted.
Although their opponent was at the terrifying peak of human physical potential, they represented modern technology. With their duty to uphold, they would not shrink back in fear.
"Don’t shoot! Mr. Yi, what is it that you want?! We can talk about this! Don’t do anything foolish!"
Minister Zheng shouted. It wasn’t that he was afraid of dying, but he understood perfectly well that once the shooting started, the situation would be truly irreversible.
They couldn’t act so recklessly without first understanding the reason for all this.
Besides, he could sense that Yi Beidou held no real malice and hadn’t dealt any fatal blows. Otherwise, with his power, he never would have walked so brazenly out the front door.
After all, when this man had forced his way into the Pioneer Group’s branch in Northern Myanmar, he had slaughtered nearly the entire building’s security force.
And now, he was even stronger than before.
How could a man like that be dealt with so easily?
There was still room for negotiation.
"Relay a message to Wei Cheng. Tell him I’ll be waiting for him at Wusong Port."
With that, Yi Beidou started walking forward, one arm around Minister Zheng’s body.
CLANG!!
In that instant, all personnel tensed up, their various pieces of equipment clattering loudly.
A battle seemed imminent.
WHOOSH!!
The next moment.
The inverted Beidou Seven Stars lit up one by one in the Sky. The terrifying Demon Flame flared violently, instantly spreading out in a forty- to fifty-meter radius, engulfing the dozens of fully armed Warriors and all their remote-controlled machinery.
BZZZT!!
The Warriors heard a scalp-tingling static noise from their helmets as the images on their displays shook violently. Despite their professional equipment and superior numbers, they were still significantly affected. A chill ran through their bodies, and they trembled involuntarily.
The drones floating in the air and the robotic dogs on the ground fared even worse.
THUD! THUD!
One by one, the drones spiraled uncontrollably out of the Sky, while the robotic dogs malfunctioned, tumbling to the ground one after another.
Within the magnetic field Realm that Yi Beidou was now operating at full power, these remote-controlled electronic devices posed no threat to him whatsoever.
For a moment, despite being fully armed and facing just one person—an unarmed person at that—an intense fear couldn’t help but rise in everyone’s hearts.
’If they opened fire, could they really kill this man?’
"I have supreme command authority here! On my order, let him leave! And notify the Director-General and Elder Wei immediately! I will take full responsibility for whatever happens!!"
Minister Zheng roared upon seeing the situation.
"Let them pass!"
The acting commander’s expression flickered with uncertainty, but he finally gritted his teeth and waved his hand.
He agreed with Minister Zheng’s assessment.
The man clearly had no intention of harming anyone, and his identity was extremely special. If he gave the order to fire, no one knew what the outcome would be.
Most importantly, facing this person, their dozens of men had no guarantee of subduing or even killing him on the first strike.
The men quickly cleared a path, allowing Yi Beidou to walk past them step by step, with Minister Zheng in tow.
Once Yi Beidou was clear of the encirclement, he tapped his foot and vanished into the night at an incredible speed.
The acting commander’s heart was pounding wildly. All the guards stared at the drones and robotic dogs littering the ground, their minds replaying the scene from moments before.
’With a single thought, all that modern equipment was rendered useless?!’
’Is that even a human?’
’He’s like a God walking on earth!’
’Without an elite force of several hundred fully armed troops, backed by various long-range, high-power heavy weapons, it’s simply impossible to pose a real threat to someone like that in a city!’
"Quick! Relay the message to the Director-General and Elder Wei!"
the commander said in a grim voice.
「Elsewhere.」
"What?!"
Wei Cheng, who had been sitting cross-legged in meditative cultivation when he received the news, shot to his feet. His pupils contracted instantly, and an immense aura surged forth from him, stirring up a gale within the room with every breath he took.