"Help me extract all of this source code. I'll study it myself!"
Since the source code was the notoriously difficult Doumu's Spiral, Chen Qi could only pin his hopes on himself.
Yu Dongcheng paused, stunned, but did as he was told.
'In his mind, a playboy like Jomoya would have a fleeting interest at best.'
The fact that Chen Qi could recognize ancient writing had already nearly made his jaw drop.
Dense lines of code flickered across the monitor.
However, a normal person looking at it would just wonder why there were so many bizarre fingerprints.
Those "fingerprints" twisted and warped, looking like the claw marks of a legendary Evil Spirit.
"Holy shit!"
Out of curiosity, several of the studio members had also been staring at the screen.
But as the chip decryption reached a certain point, the code on the screen suddenly dissolved into gibberish.
Even more bizarrely, the gibberish rearranged itself, coalescing into a blood-drenched head.
It was the head of a middle-aged man with a resolute face, apparently just torn off by immense force. Blood still dripped from the mangled neck.
STATIC!
As if sensing it was being watched, the head's expression suddenly turned savage and distorted.
Its lips moved as if it were cursing and roaring. Then, something even more incredible happened.
Every speaker in the studio suddenly erupted with a strange, unintelligible shriek.
The instant they heard the sound, everyone felt a tremor deep in their Soul.
No, it wasn't just their Souls; every cell in their bodies was shuddering.
Thankfully, in the next instant, Chen Qi yanked out the chip, and the bloody head vanished.
"Damn, that's some fucking advanced tech!"
Chen Qi swore. He had to admit, that had given him a scare.
In fact, he'd felt it more deeply than anyone else there.
The moment the bloody head appeared, he once again sensed the same kind of "presence" he had encountered with Flette.
According to Yu Hongwu's explanation, that was the Martial Dao will of Su Zhenqing, the Sect Leader of the Divine Tiger Sect.
He just never expected it to look so demonic on a screen.
What surprised Chen Qi even more, however, was the shriek.
Though its meaning was indecipherable, it gave him a terrifying feeling, as if he had encountered a natural predator.
"Calm down, calm down. Don't be scared. It's just a virus program."
Before Yu Dongcheng and the others could speak, Chen Qi offered an explanation.
'He was the big boss, anyway. They could take it or leave it.'
Aside from Yu Dongcheng, the others believed his explanation.
After all, it was the explanation that best fit their worldview.
Yu Dongcheng still had his doubts, but seeing that Jomoya didn't want to elaborate, he didn't dare press the issue.
"Overall, I'm quite satisfied with this inspection."
"I've solved your funding problem. Now it's up to you to work hard."
'The equipment Yu Dongcheng has here definitely won't be able to decrypt a Martial Dao will.'
That being the case, Chen Qi gave them a quick pep talk and prepared to leave.
Yu Dongcheng and the others immediately promised they would work around the clock to finish the project on schedule.
Chen Qi remained noncommittal, merely hoping they would surprise him.
As he left, Chen Qi not only took the extracted Source Code but also asked Yu Dongcheng for a complete set of study materials on Virtual Technology.
Knowledge is power. The Chen Qi of today was a firm believer.
"What a peculiar person!"
After the convoy was a good distance away, Yu Dongcheng muttered to himself.
For some reason, he couldn't shake the feeling that he'd gotten the short end of the stick today.
But at least he could continue his work!
...
"Arrange a team for me to protect Yu Dongcheng and his people!"
"If there's anything unusual, report it immediately!"
On the way back, Chen Qi gave Taruno a new order.
He wasn't worried about Yu Dongcheng taking the money and running, but rather that they might be targeted by other players.
'I can't let someone else snatch the meat from my bowl.'
Upon receiving the order, Taruno immediately sprang into action. Luckily, he had recruited quite a few people recently; otherwise, he really wouldn't have been able to handle the boss's endless stream of tasks.
...
The disappearance of the mercenary squad didn't cause the slightest ripple in Talin City.
It barely made a splash in the Dark Web World, either.
The "mastermind" Chen Qi had been expecting made no follow-up moves whatsoever.
He couldn't make heads or tails of it.
But whatever their goal was, Chen Qi had no intention of playing by their tune.
His top priority right now was still learning.
In addition to continuing his study of ancient scripts, Chen Qi also began to teach himself Virtual Technology.
Perhaps because he'd gotten used to the Hell-level difficulty of the ancient scripts, Chen Qi found he could understand the Virtual Technology materials at a single glance.
It was like a college student teaching himself elementary school curriculum.
'So my brain has already developed to this extent!'
...
In the following days, Chen Qi would take one Soldier's Rations Pill every day.
This wasn't because his body was weak, of course. Rather, the Erosion from the Red Heart 7 had consumed too much of his Energy.
Thankfully, this state only lasted for three days. Otherwise, his Soldier's Rations Pills, worth one million a box, would have been all used up.
Player: Jomoya Chris (Chen Qi)
Life Level: 5
Equipment: Red Heart 7
Skills: Body Control LV2, String Strangulation LV1
Spiritual Energy Points: [30]
This was Chen Qi's current status. In addition to his Body Control skill upgrading to LV2 as planned, his Life Level had also risen to 5.
That was an unexpected bonus!
Chen Qi speculated this was likely related to his intensive studying and the honing of his own Spirituality; after all, he had mastered another ancient script in the past few days.
Of course, the skill upgrades definitely had an impact as well, and perhaps even his study of Red Falcon Fist.
The only thing Chen Qi regretted was not realizing that leveling up a skill would automatically refill his Spiritual Energy Points.
'Damn that Jomoya. How could he not have written something so important in his diary?'
Soon, another two days passed, and it was the day to treat Yu Hongwu.
However, to Chen Qi's surprise, he received a call from Plum Blossom 10 on his way to the dojo.
Chen Qi glanced at the calendar. January 1st was still several days away; it wasn't time for the gathering yet.
Lanyu Kingdom wasn't that big. A train ride from south to north only took a day, so there was no need to worry about being late.
Despite a slight hesitation, Chen Qi answered the call.
"The gathering's been postponed. New date to be determined!"
"All hell broke loose in the Royal Capital. The Prime Minister was nearly killed by the Traitors. He barely made it out alive, but he won't be back on his feet for at least half a month!"
"Everyone's busy hunting the assassin now. You need to be careful too. A great upheaval is coming!"
Plum Blossom 10 had really dropped a bombshell. Chen Qi checked the web on his smart communicator, but everything seemed calm and peaceful.
"Why did that gang of Traitors want to assassinate the Prime Minister?" Chen Qi asked curiously.
"Haven't I told you?"
"The Prime Minister is also a player, and the holder of the Xiaowang Card!"
"And the Prime Minister has already gone through 4 shuffles. Haven't you noticed he's been in charge of the cabinet for over 20 years?"
Plum Blossom 10's slightly embarrassed voice came through the communicator. It seemed she really had forgotten to tell her newly recruited "subordinate" about this matter.