Translator: CinderTL
Three days later, at the Tiger Soul Branch Base.
Laboratory No. 3.
After breakfast, Feng Qi and Lin Ran arrived at the art magic laboratory.
As they entered, they saw three art magic researchers with dark circles under their eyes, still working tirelessly at the control console.
They clearly hadn't slept all night.
Not even looking up from their work, they remained completely absorbed in their tasks as Feng Qi and Lin Ran approached.
Taking their seats at the center of the control console, Lin Ran opened his email.
A red internal email was prominently pinned at the top of his inbox.
"Whether this succeeds depends on the reply," Lin Ran said, glancing at Feng Qi before opening the email.
As Feng Qi scanned the message, a smile immediately spread across his face.
Just as he had predicted, the Tiger Soul High Command was deeply interested in his proposed art magic architecture and pledged their full support to refine his conceptual framework.
They also assured him that any resources or assistance he required would be provided.
The first step of their plan had succeeded.
Feng Qi wasn't surprised by the High Command's unwavering support.
Even if the Tiger Soul High Command hadn't been infiltrated by the Domain Force, they would likely have backed this research wholeheartedly.
After all, the art magic research had been certified by Lin Ran himself.
While the High Command might harbor doubts about Feng Qi's "art magic concept," they would never question Lin Ran's judgment.
But the true test lay in the subsequent probing, which was the key to their investigation.
As planned, they sent an email to the Tiger Soul High Command that very day.
The email detailed the feasibility of the art magic and included a list of spiritual materials required for the Art Magic Research.
The specific materials listed were:
1. Due to the instability of the art magic during its initial research phase, extremely pure qi blood spiritual resources were needed to assist the caster in releasing the art magic. (The purer the qi blood, the better the effect, greatly aiding the research and increasing the chances of success.)
2. Extremely pure spirit stones with a cold attribute bias. (Used for testing during the spiritual energy fusion phase. Combining the envisioned art magic trajectory with cold, pure spiritual energy could significantly enhance the art magic's power.)
3. High-quality spirit plants...
The list contained a total of thirty-two spiritual materials.
Half of these materials were described only by their concepts and uses, without specific names.
To allay the Tiger Soul High Command's concerns, he and Lin Ran had also drafted numerous justifications to make the material requests appear more reasonable.
The Lord of the Mist possessed an identical copy of the list.
For the next phase of the plan, he needed only wait for the Lord of the Mist's response.
Three days later.
It was late at night, but Star City remained brightly lit.
Lord of the Mist, hooded and hands in his pockets, walked through the crowded streets.
He sidestepped an automated cleaning robot sweeping the road, turned into an alley, and arrived at the entrance of a bar called "Doomsday."
A signboard stood before the bar, detailing its features and concluding with a prominent red-labeled notice:
This is a member-only bar. Non-members are not permitted entry. Membership requires a referral from an existing member.
Lord of the Mist was no stranger to this establishment.
Through the Black Shadow Faction behind the Technology Research Institute, he had learned of the numerous Domain Weakling Alliance members operating within Star City.
During his mission to seize the Miracle Bracelet in the Heijue Domain Field, he had even hired a group of "workers" here.
He had nearly died at their hands, saved only by Feng Qi's desperate protection.
Doomsday Bar served as one of the Domain Weakling Alliance's strongholds in Star City.
He stepped inside.
After walking ten meters down a dimly lit corridor, he stood before an iron door.
He knocked. A small iron window in the door slid open, and a pair of eyes scanned the exterior.
A raspy voice called from within:
"What do you want?"
"What do you think I'm here for if not for business?" the Lord of the Mist retorted bluntly.
"A regular?"
"Regular customer number 33210."
"One moment." The iron window slammed shut.
After a few minutes of waiting, the iron gate creaked open, accompanied by the grinding of gears.
A towering man, over two meters tall, stood in the doorway, his body covered in a chaotic array of runes. The clamor from within the bar flooded the air.
As the man stepped aside, the Lord of the Mist took in the scene inside the bar.
The space was surprisingly spacious, its layout indistinguishable from any normal bar.
The patrons appeared equally ordinary, mostly drinking, laughing, and socializing without any apparent anomalies.
Yet the Lord of the Mist knew this was all a facade for outsiders.
He approached the bar and fixed his gaze on the provocatively dressed female bartender.
"Mix me a Mission."
Hearing this, the bartender nodded knowingly and began a series of dazzling maneuvers.
Moments later, she dripped a single drop of purple mist-emitting liquid into the glass.
Accepting the "Mission" from the bartender, he drained it in one gulp.
His consciousness plunged into his sea of consciousness.
Purple energy seeped into his sea of consciousness, unfurling like a scroll.
Before his mind's eye appeared a list of missions issued by various Domain Forces.
Assassination, resource plunder, intelligence gathering, delivery... the mission list was extensive.
Each mission entry included not only the task requirements but also the reward for completion.
Finally, there was the processing fee required by the Domain Weakling Alliance to accept the mission.
As he scanned the mission list, his primary focus was on the mission dates, followed by the task requirements.
While continuously scrolling, he began cross-referencing the items on the list with the inventory provided by Feng Qi.
Bloodstones, frost cores, flame spirit plants... many of the mission requirements on the list matched the items Feng Qi had provided, and the dates aligned as well.
This discovery solidified the Lord of the Mist's suspicion:
The Tiger Soul High Command had been infiltrated by Domain Forces.
However, he couldn't rule out another possibility:
The Tiger Soul High Command might not have been infiltrated, but they were aware of the Domain Weakling Alliance's existence and were using the alliance to carry out their own agendas.
Regardless, a test would reveal the truth.
With this thought, his gaze settled on a mission requiring bloodstones.
Completing this task would be effortless for him. After all, he possessed a fragmented miracle bloodstone within his body that continuously generated small bloodstones.
What truly intrigued him was:
Where did the other members of the Domain Weakling Alliance obtain their bloodstones?
He was deeply intrigued by this and resolved to investigate further once he formally took control of the Tiger Soul Research Institute.
Perhaps he could even acquire another fragment of the miracle bloodstone, making the one within his body more complete.
His consciousness withdrew from his sea of consciousness.
Opening his eyes, he saw the female bartender gazing at him with a warm smile.
"Did you find a mission you're interested in?" she asked.
"Mission number 132452," he replied.
The bartender nodded immediately, then smiled and said, "It's customary to pay the processing fee before accepting a mission."
Familiar with this practice, the Lord of the Mist promptly produced three spirit stone crystals of exceptional purity.
"Will these suffice?" he asked.
The bartender took the crystals without answering and turned to a nearby instrument, inserting them into the device.
As they waited, the instrument's readings began to fluctuate.
The final values settled at 1325-193.
"The first number represents the spiritual energy content, and the second indicates the quality of the spiritual energy," the bartender explained.
Having assessed the spirit stones' value, she retrieved five crystal coins crafted from spirit stones from the counter and pushed them toward the Lord of the Mist.
"The value exceeds the fee. This is your refund."
The Lord of the Mist reached out and took the spirit stone coins, inwardly astonished. He couldn't help but nod in approval.
"Impressive!"
"Wait here a moment while I retrieve your mission documents," the bartender said, turning to walk behind the counter.
(End of the Chapter)
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