“As for the specifics, I can’t tell you yet, but rest assured, it won’t violate any principles; it’s a personal matter for me. Moreover, with your current abilities, you can’t really help me much. Thus, this gift of the Six Spirits Condensation Dew and Jade Marrow Cleansing Liquid is to gain your assistance. In fact, Lin Feng had no grand plans that required their help. The previous day, when he threw out the Xisui Liquid, it was an emergency measure without much thought to the potential risks. After Xing Shun pointed out the potency of the liquid, Lin Feng realized he had inadvertently stirred up trouble. Since the deed was done, further concealment would likely be futile. He decided to leverage the situation, as he had just mentioned, first by offering small favors to win over these ‘tyrant flowers’ before addressing other matters. After all, the catalyst for the Xisui Liquid posed only a minor challenge to him. Enhancing the abilities of these ‘tyrant flowers’ would only benefit him, and he had a bold plan to further test their capabilities. From Sun Dacheng’s reaction, it was clear that virtual equipment needed a robust physical match for optimal performance. Given his decision to craft top-tier equipment for his family, the more detailed the data collection, the better. He was confident that Xing Shun would soon seek him out again regarding the Xisui Liquid. The catalyst, although abundant, was not easy to gather because it came from the inner layer of his storage space, secreted by thousands of cocoon-like mutant skeleton insects. After he had killed a vampire prince’s true soul in the Virtual Sky Fantasy Realm, the pure blood energy within the prince was absorbed by these cocoon-like insects, which then began secreting an amber-colored translucent liquid. When Sun Dacheng was exhausted, Lin Feng had Niuniu find a cure, and she suggested using the Six Spirits Condensation Dew and Jade Marrow Cleansing Liquid formula with this amber liquid as the catalyst. The preparation of the Xisui Liquid was thus straightforward.”
“Lin, you really don’t make life easy for yourself! What’s the deal with this Six Spirits Condensation Dew and Jade Marrow Cleansing Liquid? And I hear it’s actually effective!”
“What’s it to you, Manager Qin? I’m not out there deceiving people or setting up some cult. Can’t I give a little benefit to my own subordinates?”
“Cut the crap! Whatever you’re up to, you should know better than to show off! And why flaunt it in front of the Xing family? You’ve already made quite a splash with the virtual terminal technology project, and then you throw a hundred billion dollar lawsuit into the mix! Don’t you know how many secret organizations are watching you? Are you looking for more trouble?”
“Screw it! I’m not looking for trouble; I’ve been dragged into this mess! Let whoever wants to come for me come! If you can’t handle it, that’s your problem, not mine! We’ve agreed, once the virtual terminal technology is fully implemented and ‘Net Spirit’ is operational, I’m out of all this! Dead or alive, I’ve seen enough. It’s better to die gloriously in battle than to live a cowardly life!”
“Getting tough, huh? Lin, you’ve grown!”
“Hmph, it’s all because you forced me into this! I’ve realized that in this day and age, it’s the tough who fear the crazy, and the crazy fear those with nothing to lose! You know, I’ve killed before! Ha, if I’m really pushed to that point, this world might see the rise of a new killer!”
“Alright, you’re fierce! You’ve scared me! Every time we meet, you threaten me! I don’t understand, am I the one forcing you into this, or are you the one coercing me? Lin, don’t forget, you’ve taken all my assets!”
“Spit! You’re talking nonsense! What good is all that money to me now? At our stage, money is just an external possession!”
“Otherwise, if you were really that open-minded, would you just hand over such a huge family business to me? Why don’t you go find some beggar on the street to be your heir!”
“Ai, ai, ai, here we go again! Lin, I really don’t get it. Even if those people from the Ninth Bureau had their eyes closed and hurt your tender little heart back then, so much time has passed. And now, with your old brother here strongly recommending you back to the National Security Bureau, you really won’t consider joining again? And I assure you, if you just nod your head now, you’ll join the core department. It’s a win-win for both your future development and the country’s need for special talents! Why? Why do you dislike the National Security Bureau so much? You’ve been in a nominal position at the bureau’s peripheral department for a while now, and you still feel such aversion?”
“Stop! Stop!” Lin Feng made a timeout gesture. “Can you please stop nagging about this every time we meet? Why must I commit to joining? Isn’t the current cooperative arrangement good enough? Do you have to see me as some kind of troublemaker, the Monkey King from ‘Journey to the West’, that you must find a way to put a magical headband on me to control me before you can feel at ease and stop treating me like a potential threat? Please, don’t be so naive, you and your superiors! We’re all adults here. If I really had some ulterior motive, do you think you could completely control me just because I join?”
“What nonsense! You see me being controlled?”
“Do you want the honest truth?”
“Go ahead!”
“I can’t tell, you’re too cunning, and I’m just a kid!”
“Damn! You make me so angry every time we talk about this! This is called earnestly seeking talents, you know? Don’t always think of people so darkly, and don’t always have this paranoid fear of persecution! It’s not good! In the vast land of China, a true man should protect and serve his country! There are things I can’t tell you explicitly because only after entering that circle, you’ll have the right to know some things.”
“What’s so secretive? Give me a hint!”
“No way unless you agree to join! Do you want me to leak national secrets?”
“I’ll trade the formula for the Six Spirits Condensed Jade Marrow Cleansing Liquid! You know, if this were widely used in the military, it would be far safer and more convenient than the current brain enhancement methods! How about it? I’ll give you the whole set!”
“Ha! I thought who would be so foolish to speak of such things in front of so many people, not fearing leaks. So, you’ve got a trick up your sleeve, huh! I admire you, I really misjudged you. You left a backdoor in the virtual terminal technology’s source code back then, fooling those who were watching in the shadows. Now you’re pulling the same trick again! ***, I need to warn those fools quickly, so we don’t lose lives like last time!”
“Then hurry! I hope it’s not too late.”
“Lin, who are you trying to trick this time? Ah, it’s the Xing family! Cough, you really are fearless, aren’t you? The Xing family are like local tyrants in the capital, and you dare to provoke them!”
“I didn’t force him!”
“Alright, alright, do as you please, just don’t complain about the hassle! Here, take a look at the final product I brought for you! I’ll just focus on getting the virtual terminal technology on the market, the rest, you do what you want!”
“A helmet? This is the final virtual terminal login helmet?” Lin Feng played with the lightweight motorcycle helmet for a while, then commented with some skepticism. After receiving a very affirmative answer, he reluctantly put it on and turned on the switch. He entered the virtual space for a brief experience, followed the prompts on the virtual console, and then chose to log out.
“So, how is it? What’s your professional opinion?”
“Not bad! The speed is smooth, and the virtual simulation is quite good! Seems like the experts at the Marumi Research Base aren’t just freeloaders! But…”
