Chapter 210: Suspicions of Cloning
Chapter 210: Suspicions of Cloning
The next morning, Ji Xinghuo arrived at the Qinling Base of the Sword Bureau and saw a jubilant expression on Zhou Yishang's face as soon as he entered his office.
"Director Zhou, did the psychic interrogation yield results?"
"Indeed!" Zhou Yishang nodded. "Kaminda confessed everything he knew and did. It's a significant breakthrough. Take a look."
He pushed over a document.
Ji Xinghuo picked it up and carefully perused its contents, now understanding why Director Zhou was so pleased.
Kaminda had spilled all the beans.
Ten days ago, on the third day after the giant lizard video was uploaded, someone had approached Kaminda in Kakamega, the capital of the East African Kingdom, with a request to kill a foreign hunting team that would be entering the kingdom in a few days.
The reward was a batch of military supplies worth 200 billion Asian dollars, which would be sold to him at a 30% discount.
This meant a profit of 60 billion Asian dollars for Kaminda.
In warlord-ridden Africa, military supplies were the most valuable hard currency, even more sought-after than cash. A well-armed army was the key to survival in Africa, whether it be the government forces, rebel groups, private armies, or warlords—all were perpetually thirsty for arms.
Kaminda couldn't refuse such a tempting offer, even though he was one of the eight generals most trusted by the Black King. The competition among the generals was fierce.
The opportunity to acquire 200 billion worth of military supplies in exchange for killing a few foreigners was simply too good to pass up.
Moreover, he had reported this to the Black King and received permission.
However, when Kaminda reported this, he omitted mentioning the 30% discount. He had pocketed that extra 30% as a kickback.
The batch of military supplies was to be delivered in two installments.
The first half arrived the day after the deal was struck. The remaining half was to be delivered after the task was completed.
The arms dealer making this offer was a notoriously infamous man named Victor Nicole.
The document included a profile on Victor Nicole.
Victor was born in 2158 in the New Roman Empire and was currently 73 years old. He was a superpower user who, in his thirties, had ventured into the arms industry and become a trafficker. His primary clients were mostly in Africa, and he also did business with South American rebels. Wherever there was turmoil on Earth, Victor's shadow could be found lurking in the background.
However, Victor was extremely cautious about protecting his whereabouts and always had a formidable team of elite power user bodyguards by his side.
He also never dared to provoke the four major powers.
In Africa, there were quite a few arms dealers like Victor. They had access to products from legitimate arms companies and even built their own clandestine factories. Some even sold weapons manufactured by extraterrestrial civilizations.
The African branch of the Sword Bureau had been secretly investigating these arms dealers, trying to uncover their backers and networks.
Victor ranked among the top five global private arms dealers.
Previously, he had never crossed paths with the Sword Bureau.
Now, with this new development, Victor had entered their sights, and they were eager to learn more about his connections to the Qian Yuan Association.
After finishing the document, Ji Xinghuo asked, "Is this Victor a member of the Qian Yuan Association?"
"Most likely," Zhou Yishang replied. "Our African division has long been aware of a Victor-owned arms factory in the 'West African Alliance.' That's one of his old lairs, but since it posed no threat to our country, we never took action against him."
He switched the projection screen, displaying multiple synchronized scenes. "Our people are already on their way and will arrive shortly."
Ji Xinghuo watched the scenes unfold on the screen.
Three mid-sized aerospace fighters, each carrying six Sword Teams and a company of Titanium-Cobalt Dragon Men, were speeding through the sky.
Their destination was a place called 'Kumba,' located in West Africa, just a few dozen kilometers from the coastline.
Kumba was a city in the West African Alliance.
The three major powers in Africa included the East African Kingdom, which dominated most of East Africa, and the "Sahel-Niger River Alliance" in West Africa.
This alliance was formed by seven Sahel region countries and those in the Niger River basin. They shared similar ethnicities and languages, jointly controlled the "Abuja Stargate" in West Africa, and had made Abuja, the location of the stargate, their alliance capital.
Internationally, these seven countries were collectively referred to as the West African Alliance.
The West African Alliance boasted the strongest collective power in Africa, with a population of nearly two billion and three Heavenly Kings.
However, only one of these Heavenly Kings was black; the other two were not native Africans. They often worked against each other, preventing the alliance from forming a unified will. As a result, the internal structure of the alliance was rather loose, allowing the individual countries to maintain their autonomy but hindering their ability to expand outward.
The border control of the West African Alliance was even more relaxed than that of the East African Kingdom, allowing people to come and go as they pleased.
A few minutes later...
The three aerospace fighters arrived at Kumba, where it was still the middle of the night. The fighters hovered in the air as the Sword Warriors and Titanium-Cobalt Dragon Men parachuted down, heading straight for the factory hidden in the secluded mountains.
The scenes on the projection screen immediately turned into a battle, but it was swiftly concluded.
The Sword Bureau had taken control of the arms factory and captured everyone inside, but they didn't find Victor Nicole.
Through on-site interrogations, they learned that Victor had been there just a few days ago but had left in a hurry a few hours earlier, and his current whereabouts were unknown.
"He fled," Ji Xinghuo said, unsurprised.
The news of Kaminda's capture had already spread online.
There had been multiple elite hunting teams in the rift valley, and they had witnessed the entire process. The Titanium-Cobalt Dragon Men hadn't wiped them out, so the news was bound to get out.
The Sword Bureau had gambled on the possibility that Victor didn't know they had already located his arms factory.
Now, it seemed that Victor had been aware of the factory's exposure for quite some time.
"Cunning fox."
Private arms dealers relied heavily on their connections and networks. Bribery, transportation, customs, money laundering, and fencing—all these illegal and gray-area activities would leave traces that could be followed.
Unless Victor decided to retire or was silenced, he wouldn't be able to hide from the Sword Bureau's pursuit on Earth.
That was why Zhou Yishang didn't seem overly anxious.
He gave the order, "Destroy the factory, and then recall the team!"
Of course, he didn't forget to have the factory's top executives captured as well. Perhaps the psychic interrogations would yield some useful clues.
Ji Xinghuo asked, "What about Kaminda? What will be his fate?"
"He will stand trial and be executed," Zhou Yishang replied. "He killed seven of our Sword Warriors. We must uphold the principle of an eye for an eye to deter future crimes. We won't publicize it, but we will make sure that potential enemies are aware of the consequences." He looked at Ji Xinghuo and reminded him, "The Qian Yuan Association has failed in their attempts to assassinate you three times in a row. I predict that they will lie low for a while, but they may also become more desperate. You must not let your guard down."
"I understand," Ji Xinghuo nodded.
Each of the three assassination attempts had been carried out by increasingly stronger individuals, and the attacks had become more and more conspicuous.
Now that they knew about his Purple Electric Sword, if they still dared to make a move, it could only mean that a Heavenly King-level expert would be taking action.
When a Heavenly King made a move, they would never hide their identity.
At that point, it would be a battle to the death, and the enemy wouldn't care about exposing their organization or identity.
However, Ji Xinghuo didn't think it would come to that.
All along, the Qian Yuan Association had wanted him dead because they suspected that he had obtained some crucial item or vital information from Shen Yucheng. That was why they were trying to silence him.
Zhou Yishang had asked about this on multiple occasions.
Yet, Ji Xinghuo truly knew nothing. Aside from the name Qian Yuan Association, he was clueless.
He certainly hadn't obtained anything from Shen Yucheng.
It was all because of Shen Yucheng that he had been dragged into this mess!
"Shen Yucheng..."
Ji Xinghuo muttered the name, then said, "Director Zhou, I've always had a suspicion that Shen Yucheng might not be dead."
"Why do you think so?" Zhou Yishang's eyes narrowed.
Ji Xinghuo didn't know how to explain it, which was why he hadn't brought it up until now. Back then, when he had killed Shen Yucheng and brought back his blood for genetic testing, the results had confirmed his identity. Moreover, Shen Yucheng's strength had matched the information in his file. It would have been difficult for any other Sword Warrior to be his match.
If he hadn't failed to obtain the spiritual source energy, he wouldn't have had these suspicions.
"It's just a hunch," Ji Xinghuo could only say, "Shen Yucheng's behavior seemed like he was deliberately seeking death. I'm wondering if he had some kind of ability that allowed him to create a doppelganger."
Zhou Yishang pondered for a moment, then asked, "Are you talking about clone twins?"
"Most likely!"
That was exactly what Ji Xinghuo was thinking.
Clone twins was a core ability of the "Crowd." It created a doppelganger that was identical to the original, but it would only have half the stellar power.
Although the doppelganger only had half the stellar power, its thoughts were synchronized with the original, and it possessed the same abilities.
Genes, irises, and all other physical data were identical to the original, making it impossible to distinguish through genetic testing.
It was precisely because the doppelganger only had half the stellar power that Shen Yucheng had gone all out during the battle, not caring about his stellar power consumption. He wanted to end the fight quickly, or in other words, to die as soon as possible, so that his weakness of having insufficient stellar power wouldn't be exposed.
Then, he had revealed the existence of the Qian Yuan Association, diverting the attention of the Sword Bureau to investigating the organization instead of questioning whether his death was real or a ruse.
This was an extremely clever strategy!
That was why Shen Yucheng had mysteriously said, "Good luck."
"Damn it!"
Ji Xinghuo couldn't help but curse under his breath every time he thought about it. Shen Yucheng had successfully escaped, while he had become a thorn in the side of the Qian Yuan Association.
If he had been slightly weaker, he would have died nine times over.
After listening to Ji Xinghuo's analysis, Zhou Yishang's expression turned solemn. "If your guess is correct and Shen Yucheng is still alive, where do you think he would be now?"
"The Star Realm," Ji Xinghuo replied without hesitation.
When Shen Yucheng had first defected, he had fled to the Star Realm, and then he had returned to Earth and appeared in the Immortal City.
Zhou Yishang nodded. "The one who returned was probably just a clone doppelganger. Shen Yucheng's original body has likely been hiding in the Star Realm all this time." As he spoke, a troubled expression appeared on his face. "Finding someone in the Star Realm is extremely difficult, and you know that better than I do."
"Hehe..." Ji Xinghuo gave an awkward laugh.
Ever since the Star Gate had opened, the Star Realm had become the first choice for criminals, defectors, and those wanting to hide their tracks.
"I will notify the Sword Warriors in the Star Realm to keep an eye out for Shen Yucheng, but we shouldn't get our hopes up," Zhou Yishang continued. "Our top priority now is Victor Nicole. The Sword Bureau will continue to investigate him, and by keeping a close eye on him, we will definitely be able to track him down."
"I'll inform you if there's any news. Be careful and take care of yourself," he reminded Ji Xinghuo.
"Yes, Director Zhou," Ji Xinghuo replied.
He stood up and bid farewell, leaving the Qinling Base.
(End of Chapter)
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