Chapter 297: New Team Member

Chapter 297: New Team Member

A calm and rational person would carefully weigh the pros and cons rather than agreeing blindly.

Xie Shi En possessed such a calm and cautious personality, which was why he had managed to infiltrate the Creator Organization for so long.

After some thoughtful consideration, he asked, "I have a few questions."

"Ask away," came the reply.

"First, my relationship with the Creator Organization is terrible. If my identity is exposed, they will undoubtedly hunt me down. On the other hand, you can safely stay within the organization, which has significant influence and could be of great help to you. Are you sure you want me to join?" Xie Shi En voiced his greatest concern.

Up until now, Lu Heng's actions had gone unnoticed by the Creator Organization, so it was indeed possible to remain within their ranks.

However, as Lu Heng learned more about the organization's inner workings, he found that their ideals clashed with his own in many ways.

Moreover, during his last encounter with 013, they had produced a superpower serum, SPA-3.

The SPA-3 was currently the purest superpower serum available, with minimal side effects, so subtle that they might go unnoticed at first.

It would take at least half a year for the side effects of the SPA-3 serum to manifest.

Injecting this serum could maintain one's peak condition for up to two years.

If the fate of human civilization were at stake within two to three years, then using the SPA-3 serum could be a viable option.

However, the Creator Organization undoubtedly had other intentions. By offering the SPA-3, they aimed to control Lu Heng through the serum's addictive properties.

The organization must have realized that despite Lu Heng's membership, he was not easily controllable, hence their resort to such measures.

As Lu Heng's ideals clashed with the organization, his perception of them worsened.

Now, Su Muyu had also accepted the Knowledge Tree's request to retrieve the Life Tree Vine from the Creator Organization.

These circumstances had inadvertently pushed the Creator Organization into an opposing position.

After a moment's thought, Lu Heng said, "I've already established an opposition with the Creator Organization, and the chances of reconciliation are slim. It's just a matter of when the conflict will erupt. So, you need not worry about that."

Xie Shi En slowly nodded and then asked, "What will be required of me if I join the team?"

Lu Heng replied without hesitation, "There's not much to give, just fighting alongside each other from now on. If anything, it's about mutual trust."

Xie Shi En continued his inquiry, "The team pact should have five slots, right? How many vacancies are there now, one or two?"

"Two," Lu Heng answered. "Our team currently has only three members."

Xie Shi En asked further, "If we add more members in the future, will we seek the opinions of all team members?"

Lu Heng responded matter-of-factly, "Of course, just like we're doing now."

After careful consideration, Xie Shi En agreed, "Alright, I'm willing to join."

Upon hearing his response, Lu Heng took out the team pact and handed it over, "Sign here."

Xie Shi En accepted the team pact and signed his name.

An invisible force of rules bound the four of them together.

This invisible force was peculiar; there seemed to be no apparent changes, yet a sense of something different from before lingered.

After putting away the team pact, Lu Heng cleared his throat and said, "Now, I'll tell you a team secret."

Xie Shi En was momentarily taken aback. His keen senses told him that this so-called team secret was no trivial matter, which was why they waited until after he signed the team pact to reveal it.

"It's not bad news, is it?" he asked, his cautious nature prompting him to brace for the worst.

Lin Zeyu laughed heartily, "If you had just used the Moonwell Spring Water to upgrade your skills, then it would be bad news. But if you haven't, then it's good news."

Xie Shi En looked puzzled and asked, "What do you mean?"

Lu Heng explained, "I have the ability to help you upgrade your skills, but the process requires consuming your own Divine Energy."

Xie Shi En's eyes widened in surprise, "Really? This is a reward that can only be obtained by completing world tasks."

Su Muyu smiled and said, "Didn't you ever wonder why our skill levels are so high?"

Indeed, Xie Shi En felt that the skill levels of the three in front of him were intimidating, all at A or B-grade.

This was something that ordinary Mystics would find challenging to achieve.

Of course, in the Abyssal World, there wasn't just one way to upgrade skills.

Completing world tasks could upgrade skills, and acquiring Moonwell Spring Water could do the same.

With good luck, one might obtain a substantial amount of resources like Moonwell Spring Water, making it possible to attain high skill levels.

However, he never imagined that Lu Heng could help team members upgrade their skills, which was indeed terrifying.

Lin Zeyu chuckled, "That's right, our captain is a human-shaped world task reward dispenser."

During this Abyssal Battlefield, Xie Shi En hadn't received a world task reward because he didn't participate in the final battle, resulting in fewer rewards.

Fortunately, Queen Aureana had given him a bottle of Moonwell Spring Water, making up for his losses.

Upon learning this secret, Xie Shi En felt a mix of excitement and tension, eager to upgrade his skills immediately.

He usually conserved his Divine Energy since he didn't follow the firearm enhancement path, which didn't require consuming Divine Energy to assimilate hot weapons. As a result, he had accumulated a substantial amount of Divine Energy, which could now be put to good use.

Lu Heng first explained the process and precautions for skill upgrading to Xie Shi En, and then helped him unlock his skill.

Xie Shi En had two skills that could be upgraded, one at C-rank and the other at B-rank.

Upgrading the C-rank skill required 600 points of Divine Energy, while the B-rank skill required 1,500 points.

A total of 2,100 points were consumed, and his two skills were upgraded to B-rank and A-rank.

The B-rank skill was Mental Power Amplification, and the A-rank skill was Force Field Expansion.

After upgrading both skills, even Xie Shi En, who usually maintained a serious demeanor, couldn't help but smile.

Especially the A-rank Force Field Expansion skill, which could increase the coverage of force field-type abilities by 100%.

This meant that his mental force field was stronger than other Mentalists; while others could cover a range of 30 meters, he could reach 60 meters.

This skill directly brought about a qualitative change in the Mentalist's abilities.

...

The original team of three had now become four, and as teammates, their relationship grew closer.

The four continued chatting and exchanging information.

Before becoming teammates, there was some information that was not easy to disclose, but now that they were teammates, they didn't have to be so cautious.

Xie Shi En spoke up, "I have a piece of information that was originally confidential, but I think I can share it with you. However, this secret must stay within the team and cannot be leaked."

"Go on."

"I filed a report with my teacher's unit, asking them to take care of his wife. I contacted them twice, and I've also established a cooperative relationship with the security department. Currently, I'm considered an external member, and I've provided them with some intelligence about the Creator Organization. So, the state is aware of the organization's existence, but as of now, the organization hasn't caused any serious harm, so there hasn't been any direct conflict."

This situation matched Lu Heng's expectations; if they needed to deal with the Creator Organization in the future, they could also rely on the country's strength.

This was considered good news.

As they chatted, the conversation turned to the recently concluded Abyss Battlefield, and they began their final summary.

After carefully reviewing the events of the Abyss Battlefield, Lu Heng realized there was still one matter that hadn't been fully investigated: "Even though we have returned, there's one question about the Abyss Battlefield that remains unanswered."

Su Muyu chimed in, "You mean the person who infiltrated the palace of the Elven Capital and opened the Hell Gate?"

Lu Heng nodded, "Yes, we've already identified four traitors—Blake Feld and his team.

"I've mentally interrogated Blake Feld, and they were the ones who blew up the walls of Koloss City from the inside, so they are undoubtedly traitors.

"At the time, they left the West District and were heading towards the Palace District. It's possible that opening the Hell Gate was the task of another traitor in their team.

"However, we intercepted their actions, and after that, we don't know who opened the Hell Gate."

Xie Shi En hadn't participated in the final battle, so he had heard about these events from others.

This allowed him to view the situation from a different perspective.

He offered his analysis from an outsider's point of view: "Since the task of opening the Hell Gate was originally given to Blake Feld's team, and they were traitors, there's a high probability that another traitor was also assigned this task."

Lu Heng nodded in agreement, "I think so too, but the city was in chaos at the time, and even the Elven Guard didn't discover who opened the Hell Gate. After that, it became difficult to investigate."

After the final battle, it was almost time for their return, so even if they wanted to investigate, there wasn't enough time.

Moreover, the number of Mystics summoned to the Elven world was quite large, and they came from many different countries.

Lu Heng had encountered Mystics from the White Eagle Federation, Lionheart Empire, Fusou, Shendu, and some smaller nations.

Due to the complexity of the Mystic composition, any Mystic from these countries could potentially be a traitor, making the investigation challenging.

As for the Mystics from Daxia, Lu Heng had met most of them, and Chen Zi Hang and Rong Xin-cheng's teams were allies.

They had also participated in the final battle together, so the possibility of them being traitors was low.

If there was any suspicion among the Mystics from Daxia, it would likely be Zhuo Hongjun.

Lu Heng had suspected Zhuo Hongjun, but aside from their first meeting, Zhuo Hongjun hadn't caused any trouble.

Additionally, Wu Weibing, Tao Yalun, and others were in contact with Zhuo Hongjun, as they were all from the military. Given Zhuo Hongjun's high rank, maintaining contact was necessary.

Based on the available information, Zhuo Hongjun's suspicion wasn't high.

Furthermore, in Lu Heng's memory, Zhuo Hongjun was indeed useless, but there was no information indicating he was a traitor.

From Zhuo Hongjun's perspective, as long as he stayed alive, his status would continue to rise, and there was no need to take the risk of becoming a traitor.

...

After the discussion and review of the Abyss Battlefield, the four returned home.

Having spent a month in the Elven world and experiencing many events, they finally returned home, eager to see their families and spend some time with them.

Lu Heng's greatest desire was to lounge on the sofa at home, watch some mindless soap operas, eat the fruit his mother had cut up, and listen to her nagging.

Su Muyu missed her mother deeply, and the longer she stayed in the Abyss world, the more she longed for her.

She knew that her mother lived for her, and every time she faced challenges, she wanted to escape back to her mother's side, where she felt the safest.

Lin Zeyu now lived at the Qiong Tianlu Lake, but today, he wanted to go home and have a meal with his family.

As the Abyssal Battlefield came to a close, the landscape of Blue Star began to shift.

News about the Elven world spread throughout the human realm.

Additionally, a secret was circulating among the major powers—the secret of the Moonwell Spring Water.

For most Mystics, upgrading their skills remained a challenging endeavor.

Thus, the value of Moonwell Spring Water was immeasurable.

This time, some Mystics had obtained Moonwell Spring Water as a reward.

Major powers began offering to purchase Moonwell Spring Water at astronomical prices.

The recipients of this precious water were primarily Mystics from Daxia.

Aside from Lu Heng's team of four, there were also Chen Zihang's group of nine, Rong Xincheng's team of three, and several other individual Mystics.

Chen Zihang, Wu Weibing, and Tao Yalun's group of nine belonged to the military ranks, and their acquisition of Moonwell Spring Water would undoubtedly be reported.

The military would not confiscate their Moonwell Spring Water, but they would provide guidance and arrangements for its usage.

...

As time marched into the second year of the Abyssal Era, the world's situation underwent numerous changes.

Superpower serums were flooding the markets of various countries, and the situation was becoming increasingly dire.

Daxia officially banned the production and sale of superpower serums within its borders, imposing severe penalties, including execution for severe cases.

This measure effectively curbed the usage of superpower serums within Daxia.

However, the situation in other countries was different.

Some nations had no regulations on superpower serums, while others declared them legal.

As a result, the proliferation of superpower serums in various countries became extremely severe, and there were even reports of Mystics openly consuming the blood of their kind on the streets.

Superpower serums were produced using various materials containing Origin Energy.

Inferior serums were made from mineral substances.

Mid-grade serums were extracted from the blood of mutated creatures.

High-grade serums, on the other hand, were derived from the blood of human Mystics.

Therefore, directly consuming the blood of Mystics could alleviate the addiction caused by superpower serums.

Bloody news like this began to surface in various parts of the world.

The Daxia authorities were relieved that they had heeded Lu Heng's advice early on and banned the production and distribution of superpower serums, as the situation within Daxia was not much better than in other countries.

Even with the official ban, superpower serums still circulated in the black market.

Completely eradicating these addictive and power-boosting serums was an arduous task.

Aside from inferior serums, a purer type of superpower serum began to emerge in February of the second year of the Abyssal Era, circulating among the upper echelons and families.

This purer serum commanded a terrifying price, with each vial costing tens of millions.

Moreover, this serum was not a one-time use; it required regular injections.

The price tag of tens of millions was far beyond the reach of ordinary Mystics.

This pure serum had another name—SPA.

When Lu Heng heard this name, he felt something was amiss.

Previously, 013 had sent a box of superpower serums labeled SPA-3.

Lu Heng, eager to learn more, took the initiative to contact Chen Linian.

One of the primary tasks of the Ironblood Investigation Bureau was to track down superpower serums.

After receiving Lu Heng's call, Chen Linian promptly invited him to their headquarters and laid out the files before him.

"These are all the collected materials regarding the SPA superpower serum. Take a look."

Lu Heng began examining the documents, focusing on the inspection reports of the SPA superpower serum.

The last time 013 had brought a box of SPA-3 serums, Lu Heng had declined it outright, and thus, he hadn't had the chance to inspect it.

Now, as he perused the Ironblood's documents, he finally noticed something peculiar.

On the inspection report of the SPA serum, a specific component fragment was clearly marked.

Only Lu Heng and Su Muyu knew the secret behind this component.

T

Initially, the Creator Organization had requested Lu Heng to hand over the Siks Civilization's technological data. Lu Heng had delayed for a while before asking Su Muyu to use the spatial anchor point to visit the Siks Civilization and retrieve an alternative set of biotechnology data from Xavier Matrix.

Within this set of technological data was a trap.

The marker for this trap was now present in the SPA superpower serum.

In other words, the SPA superpower serum was connected to the Creator Organization.

Long ago, Lu Heng had analyzed that the Creator Organization controlled a world-class biopharmaceutical company.

At the time, he didn't know which company it was.

The original plan was to use this trap marker to identify the biopharmaceutical company controlled by the Creator Organization.

Little did he expect that this marker would surface in such a manner.

The appearance of the marker in the SPA superpower serum indicated that the Creator Organization was behind the production of these serums.

The biopharmaceutical company controlled by the Creator Organization, instead of researching the technology to aid human civilization, was involved in the production of superpower serums.

There was another possibility—the Creator Organization believed that using the technology of the Siks Civilization, they could produce superpower serums without side effects.

If this research succeeded, humanity could rapidly acquire a vast number of super warriors, using absolute power to counter the Abyss.

But could such a research endeavor truly succeed?

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end