parentshiftbook Chapter 649 Improvements and Covert Covert Espionage
Chapter 649 Improvements and Covert Covert Espionage
With Harding's help, the Shadow Serpent backlash on Dirk was gradually suppressed.
Just as things were going well, Harding frowned.
Just a moment ago, he sensed an unpleasant feeling.
The feeling was very subtle... like something was crawling across his skin, extremely light and fast.
If he weren't in a highly sensitive state at that moment, he wouldn't have noticed at all.
It is an almost instinctive "discomfort".
It's like walking down a dark alley and suddenly feeling someone watching you, but when you turn your head, you can't see anything.
Harding paused, his gaze sweeping over himself.
But there was nothing there.
Dirk sensed it too.
He opened his eyes, a hint of confusion appearing on his pale face: "Old Ha, have you sensed it?"
"Hmm." Hardin didn't say anything more and continued to channel energy. "It might be the aftereffects of the Shadow Serpent. Don't get distracted."
Dirk didn't press further, but he knew in his heart that wasn't the case.
He had experienced the backlash of the Shadow Serpent many times, but he had never felt like he was being touched from the outside of his skin.
It was more like... something had attached itself to him and then left.
But he couldn't explain what it was.
Outside the factory, on the loading tower, Jemin turned his gaze away from Harding and Dirk, his brows furrowing slightly.
"It seems that the Eye of Light still needs further improvement."
Their reactions confirmed the problem that Jemin had discovered earlier.
He noticed something was wrong when he placed the Eye of Light on the shady broker.
Every time the shady middleman came to deliver goods, Jieming would check the condition of the Eye of Light.
Unsurprisingly, the shady broker never realized that he had been given anything extra.
But every time the Eye of Light attaches to him, he has an unconscious, subconscious action, such as scratching that spot or patting it unconsciously with his hand.
Jemin realized the problem immediately.
The fact that these shady brokers can thrive in the underground black market means they can't be ordinary people.
Although the energy fluctuations of the Eye of the Glimmer are disguised as eerie, their "frequency" does not match the power of the eerie spirits sealed within each individual. When these two eerie powers of different frequencies come into contact, a subtle repulsive reaction occurs.
Although it may not be noticed, it is enough to give the host an instinctive feeling that "something is wrong".
Just like before, Harding and Dirk both felt unwell at the same time.
The strangeness within them clashed with the power of the Eye of Light, triggering a natural reaction similar to "getting agitated."
Jemin made a mental note of the question.
Therefore, the next improvements to the Eye of the Glimmer should either adjust its energy frequency to make it "compatible" with most eerie auras, or further reduce energy fluctuations so that even this instinctive reaction will not be triggered.
But that's all for the future.
Right now, he has more important things to do.
Jemin's figure faded away on the loading tower as he chased after the direction the shadow thief had fled.
After escaping through the gap in the sealing array, the Shadow Thief slid rapidly along the ground of the abandoned industrial area.
Its shadow membrane is completely invisible in the dark, and its power fluctuations are completely dispersed in the surrounding environment, making it theoretically impossible to track and capture.
But Jemin had placed more than one Glimmering Eye on the Shadow Thief, and even on the shark monster, so there was no need to worry about escaping the pursuit. Jemin's choice was to chase the Shadow Thief first.
The technology fused with that strange creature certainly intrigued him, but the Shadow Thief was also a very valuable resource.
Although there are many strange things in this plane, this level of strangeness is still not something you can encounter casually.
Jemin moved silently in the night, heading towards the direction from which the Eye of Light was transmitting signals.
Meanwhile, inside the abandoned factory.
Harding finally managed to completely suppress the Shadow Serpent within Dirk's body.
Dirk's face went from deathly pale to ashen. Although he was still very weak, at least he was no longer in mortal danger.
He leaned against the wall, panting heavily, his uniform collar soaked with sweat.
The emergency treatment of the Shadow Serpent didn't take long. Just as the resealing was completed, chaotic footsteps and the clanging of metal came from outside the factory. Two elites from the east side, a male and a female pair, and two other elites from the other two directions led their capture teams into the factory almost simultaneously.
They all bore the marks of battle.
Especially the members of the capture team; almost everyone had bullet holes and scratches on their uniforms, and some had dust and blood on their faces. Fortunately, it seemed that no one was seriously injured.
Each member of the elite team was either dragging or escorting one or two men in black robes.
The hoods of those men in black robes had been torn off, revealing faces beneath them that were either young or old, filled with fear or numbness.
Some people were still struggling, but their hands and feet were bound by specially made restraints by association members, and their struggles were in vain.
"How's the situation?" Harding stood up, his gaze sweeping over the elites who had entered.
"The east side has been cleared." The female elite spoke, her voice tinged with weariness. "The five psychics resisted too fiercely; there was no way to leave them alive. They were all killed. Eleven armed personnel remain, and three were captured."
"The same goes for the north side," said a member of another elite group. "They have fewer men than the east side, but they're fighting just as fiercely. Not a single one has retreated."
"South side..." The leader of the third elite team paused for a moment, "There are no enemies on the south side. Those guys are more ferocious than we expected, and my strength isn't good at leaving any survivors."
Harding frowned.
"Bring the prisoners here," Harding said.
Several elite soldiers pushed the prisoners to the center of the factory.
Three men in black robes were forced to kneel on the ground. Their faces lacked the usual fearless madness; instead, they showed bewilderment and terror. One of them had trembling lips, as if he wanted to say something but dared not.
Harding walked up to him and looked down at him.
"Speak! Who sent you? You should know that with a psychic here, you can't hide your secrets at all. You might as well confess now and suffer less..."
The man in black opened his mouth, a dry swallowing sound came from his throat, and then... his eyes suddenly widened!
His pupils dilated in an instant, as if something had exploded from inside his body.
His body suddenly stiffened, and then, like a felled log, he fell straight forward, his face hitting the concrete ground with a dull thud.
The two men in black robes beside them experienced the same thing at the same instant.
Their pupils dilated, their bodies stiffened, and then they all collapsed to the ground.
Harding and the elite squad members present looked grim upon seeing this.
Dirk leaned against the wall to stand up, walked over and examined one of the bodies.
He felt his carotid artery, then looked up at his pupils, before raising his head with a solemn expression.
"He's dead."
"Yes..." Harding's voice turned somber.
The elite member of the women's association also came up and examined the body, her face grim: "This method... is not something an ordinary cult could do." Upon hearing this, Dirk carefully examined the deceased's mouth, nasal cavity, and skin surface, but found no external injuries.
Then he released a wisp of Shadow Serpent's aura, probing into the deceased's body.
A few seconds later, he withdrew his breath, his expression turning even more grim, clearly indicating that he knew what had happened.
"The anomalies within them... have gone out of control," Dirk said. "It seems to be some kind of pre-set mechanism. Once they are captured or leave a certain area, the seal within them will automatically break, and the anomalies will instantly devour the host's soul and body."
The factory fell silent.
This shows that these men in black robes never intended to return alive from the beginning.
Of course, having seen many brainwashing techniques used by various cults, they were not surprised by the awakening of these people.
But as that elite female team member said, not everyone has this kind of skill.
"Can you find out the specific methods they used?" Harding's voice wasn't loud, but each word seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth. "Not really," the female elite said, a hint of reluctance in her tone. "The uncanny is too clean in destroying the soul."
"It seems... the enemy has been keeping an eye on this place," the elite troops on the north side added.
Eight elite troops, from three directions, captured prisoners and all died at the same time.
This is no coincidence; someone must be remotely monitoring all of this.
Harding stood there, silent for a long time.
"Old Ha," Dirk's voice came from the side, "what's next?"
Harding glanced at him but didn't say anything.
Dirk continued, "Judging from this attack, they knew the timing of our operation, the location of our deployment, that a surprise attack from the sea was the most effective direction, and even that we would deploy heavy forces on the east and north sides while ignoring the sea. These things cannot be obtained through observation alone." He didn't finish his sentence, but everyone present understood what he meant.
Such precise intelligence and such targeted deployments indicate that the other side is very familiar with the association's modus operandi.
This is not information that can be drawn from "observing outside a few times".
This indicates that there are informants from the other side within the association.
This thought weighed on everyone's heart like a stone.
Harding turned around and walked towards the factory gate.
His steps were steady, his back was straight, and he showed no signs of emotional fluctuation.
"About that...we'll talk about it later. Let's clean this place up first." His voice came from the doorway, as calm as if he were commenting on the nice weather. "The strangeness surrounding these guys has gone out of control and will soon break through the seals within them. Alright, let's restore the sealing barrier here first, reseal the strangeness within them, and then we'll consider other issues."
"Also, remember to go easy on them. The body needs to be taken back to headquarters for a thorough examination by the forensic team."
"Yes!" the elites responded in unison.
Harding walked into the night.
Dirk watched his retreating figure, opened his mouth as if to say something, but ultimately remained silent.