Chapter 99: Hall, I Have Bled for the Organization!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Three massive explosions erupted in quick succession, leaving Hall entirely dazed.

He hurriedly activated the surveillance feed on his Smart Terminal. Most of the cameras had already been destroyed by the blasts, leaving only a few in the corners barely functional.

The sight of green-armored soldiers on the screen caused his expression to change drastically. "How is this possible? How did they find this place?!"

The woman frowned and glanced at him. Keri was also bewildered, struggling to process the situation.

"We need to leave, now!" Hall hastily unlocked Cage 17. Ignoring Keri's dumbfounded expression, he grabbed the two of them and prepared to flee.

'Has this slave trader lost his mind? Disaster is right on his doorstep, yet he hasn't forgotten to take his slaves with him while escaping?'

Keri was no fool, however. He quickly realized that something was very wrong here...

However, when Hall threw open the door to the Escape Passageway, the color drained from his face. It was completely blocked by a cave-in of rubble.

"Don't panic," Cree said, shaking her head. Meeting her younger brother's suspicious gaze, she sighed. "I suspect they haven't discovered our true secret. They are likely here for other reasons..."

"Other reasons?" Hall stared at her blankly.

"Exactly. Don't overreact," Cree warned Hall. She then turned to Keri. "Keri, I know you have a lot of questions, but right now, you need to do exactly as I say."

Torn between hesitation, anxiety, and confusion, Keri reluctantly nodded. "Alright..."

......

"Commander, targets acquired." Two green-armored soldiers returned from the rear, escorting Keri and Cree.

Hall practically crawled over, stumbling in his haste. Keeping Cree's instructions firmly in mind, he put on a fawning smile. "My lord... Your Excellency..."

Panting heavily, he continued, "Do you need these slaves? They are yours... a gift..."

The Female Commander cast a cold, indifferent glance at him. Hall pressed on, "Do you need any other slaves? I have plenty more here... Would you like to pick out a few others?"

"Scram!"

"Right away!" Hall eagerly followed the order, scurrying off to the side while carefully hiding the deep worry in his eyes.

"Take them away," the Female Commander ordered. The soldiers hauled Keri and Cree up. Both siblings remained silent. Keri's face was pale; he still had no idea what was actually going on.

"Hold it right there!" a voice suddenly called out from the lingering smoke. The Female Commander's expression shifted, and she abruptly raised a hand, signaling her troops to go on high alert.

Glowing green guns were instantly raised, aiming directly at the source of the voice, waiting only for the command to fire.

As the dust and smoke gradually settled, a figure stood proudly in the doorway. It was Li Ping, who had tracked the green-armored soldiers all the way here.

"Who are you?" the Female Commander demanded, her tone laced with suspicion and uncertainty.

Even though the man stood alone, an overwhelming wave of confidence radiated from him, making it feel as though he had an entire army standing at his back.

"I have the item!" Li Ping declared loudly. Even facing down so many guns and soldiers, he didn't show a hint of fear.

That was because he had Li Yu backing him—his mentor, his guide, his undisputed god!

"What item is in your hands?!" The Female Commander's pupils shrank. She hastily signaled her subordinates to hold their fire while secretly issuing several commands to scan the perimeter for any ambushes.

Keri looked at Li Ping with sheer adoration. 'To face so many people alone... how incredible! He must be a powerful Interstellar Adventurer.'

Cree lowered her head in deep thought, trying to connect this mysterious man with the recent chain of events, but she couldn't find a single clue.

It felt as though an invisible hand was deliberately trying to muddy the waters.

Li Ping narrowed his eyes. In truth, he had no idea what "item" they were talking about either. He glanced over and spotted Keri. 'It's that little guy.'

'I see now. The great Mr. Li Yu didn't want innocent people to be implicated, so he sent me to rescue them.'

'As expected of the great Mr. Li Yu!'

"The very thing you are searching for, of course!" Li Ping continued. "If you want it, release that brother and sister immediately!"

"Sister... someone is here to save us!" Keri whispered excitedly.

Cree, however, widened her eyes in horror. 'What a ruthless scheme! After saying something like that, just how stupid would the Green-Clad Knights have to be to let us go?'

Not far away, hidden in the shadows, Li Yu looked up in sheer bewilderment. 'What on earth is Li Ping doing?'

"Who exactly are you? Which faction do you belong to?!" The Female Commander was struggling to gauge the situation.

"If you don't release them, prepare to be annihilated by the massive organization behind me!" Li Ping fiercely rebuked her.

"Commander, the perimeter is clear!" Just then, her subordinate finished the initial scan of the area.

"Take him down!" the Female Commander sneered, immediately issuing the order. A second later, she added, "I want him alive!"

"I dare you to try!" Li Ping did not panic in the slightest. He bellowed even louder, standing tall as if he truly had an army waiting in the wings.

Li Yu was completely speechless. 'I told you to act like you had a powerful background, but not like this!'

Sighing in resignation, he revealed his presence. Naturally, it wasn't to save Li Ping, but to patch up the massive hole in his plan.

"Who dares lay a finger on a member of the Black Skull?!" His voice boomed like sudden thunder, startling the green-armored soldiers into whipping their heads around on high alert.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Bullets rained down from a distance, striking the green armor with a continuous clatter of metal, though they failed to pierce the defenses.

"Didn't you say the area was clear?!" the Female Commander demanded as she ordered her squad into a defensive formation.

"The enemy's stealth technology must be superior to ours... Our squad only brought basic Infrared Detection equipment..." a soldier whispered back.

"Cover the flanks! Watch for ambushes! I will lead the assault!" the Female Commander ordered. Scorching flames erupted from the thrusters on her back, launching her straight forward. Tracing the trajectory of the gunfire, she locked onto the enemy's position.

Boom!

A wall was violently smashed through, but there was no one there. All she found was an abandoned Purple Sniper and a Red Handgun lying on the floor.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Gunfire erupted from an entirely different direction. The Female Commander's face darkened, looking incredibly moody. She spun around and charged toward the new source of the sound.

The moment she left, the abandoned Purple Sniper on the ground suddenly sprang up. It sprouted two mechanical legs, grabbed the Red Handgun from the floor, and scurried off in a different direction.

One person and one gun had flawlessly created the illusion of an entire tactical squad.

"Commander, Black Skull is a powerful Marauder group... Not long ago, they..." a subordinate reported over the comms. Black Skull actually had a somewhat decent reputation in the No Man's Land System.

They were a first-rate Marauder faction.

"Hmph..." she scoffed. 'Marauders. Just a bunch of uncultured thugs who can't even show their faces in polite society.'

The Female Commander glanced at her armor's display panel, flashed out of sight, and dashed toward a nearby position.

Crash!

The metallic spikes on the green armor's gauntlets utterly obliterated a metal wall. Behind the debris, a figure briefly flickered out of view.

The Female Commander let out a cold snort and relentlessly continued her pursuit. The engine on her back roared to life. Energy surged through her armor like boiling blood, accompanied by sparking green electric arcs.

The flames from her rear thrusters burned even brighter, pushing her speed up yet another notch.

Li Yu could barely track her movements. This armor was undeniably at the C-class level of power. The attack force was terrifying; the Scale Armor on his arms had already shattered from the impact, forcing him to rely entirely on his speed to evade.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The green armor extended its mechanical fists. Suddenly, the metal spikes on the knuckles shot forward—they were actually miniature Robotic Missiles!

Li Yu's eyes went wide. Purple lightning surged across his body as his speed pushed past his limits, turning him into a mere blur. Engaging his Bullet Time, he threaded the needle to dodge the incoming Robotic Missiles by mere millimeters.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Dust and debris erupted into the air. When the shockwaves finally subsided, the surroundings fell dead silent. The Female Commander stopped in her tracks, staring intently at the swirling smoke.

Whoosh!

A small black sphere shot out from the dust cloud. The Female Commander's expression shifted dramatically. She hastily retreated while shouting a warning, "Distortion field! Fall back, now!"

Poof!

There was no blinding flash of fire. The black Bomb exploded silently, instantly causing everything in the immediate vicinity to warp and distort. Two green-armored soldiers failed to retreat in time and were sucked right into the anomaly.

Their entire armored suits began to twist violently. They let out agonized wails as blood was relentlessly squeezed from their bodies.

In the end, they were completely mangled into a spherical mass. The green metal, mixed with red flesh and white bone fragments, rolled sickeningly across the ground.

Watching the gruesome scene, Keri turned ghastly pale, nearly vomiting on the spot.

"You're courting death!" The Female Commander's armor began to shift. Blazing green energy erupted from her suit, intermixed with crackling electric arcs. Thoroughly enraged, she instantly activated Overload Mode.

However, the surroundings remained absolutely still for a long time, until a sudden report from a subordinate jolted her back to reality. "Commander, we're missing a man."

One of their soldiers had been abducted!

The realization felt like a bucket of ice water being poured over her head, sobering her up immediately.

She looked at Li Ping, who was still standing proudly a short distance away. The barrage of bullets hadn't instilled an ounce of fear in him, because the great His Excellency Li Yu had actually come in person to support him!

He was moved beyond words!

'Even though Mr. Li Yu didn't take me with him, he certainly has his own brilliant plan. If it's for His Excellency Li Yu's master plan, what does it matter even if I die?!'

"Take him away!" the Female Commander ordered through gritted teeth after verifying that the perimeter was empty.

As Li Ping walked away, he remained brimming with absolute confidence. His hands were clasped behind his back—mostly because he was locked in Metal Handcuffs—yet he strutted as if he were the leader of the entire unit.

Click!

A perfect photograph was snapped by Li Yu, who had stealthily circled back. The camouflage provided by the Sand Worm skin was incredibly potent, allowing him to blend seamlessly with the environment without a single flaw.

Standard detection equipment couldn't pick up a single trace of his presence.

Li Yu was just about to leave when he saw a fat man rush out of the Slave Exchange, gnashing his teeth as he glared in the direction the Green-Clad Knights had vanished.

Just another slave trader whose business had been ruined. Li Yu felt zero pity for him.

"...What do I do now... She was taken away... Who is going to... command the operations next..."

Faint murmurs drifted into Li Yu's ears, causing him to freeze mid-step.

The fat man paced back and forth, appearing highly agitated. Li Yu, blending into his surroundings like a chameleon, was completely invisible to the naked eye, let alone ordinary scanners.

'A secret?' Li Yu turned around and fixed his gaze on the fat man.

Hall suddenly shuddered as an icy chill seemed to sweep past him. He hurriedly clamped a hand over his mouth and scanned the area.

Only after confirming that no one had approached the blast zone did he finally let out a sigh of relief.

'This big mouth of mine is going to get me killed one day!' Hall thought. He had been completely flustered just a moment ago, causing him to lose his composure. Now, he forced himself to calm down.

Turning back into the Slave Exchange, Hall was still fraught with panic. Perhaps believing he was safe, he started muttering to himself again.

"...I need to contact the Elders first..."

"...I have to report this news..."

"...Tell the brothers to lay low for a while..."

"..."

When people were in a state of sheer panic, they often needed to vocalize their thoughts to remind themselves of what to do next.

Trailing silently behind him, Li Yu's expression grew increasingly bizarre.

'The owner of a Slave Exchange is actually a member of the Reformers? The Reformers' most famous rallying cry is the total abolition of the slave trade!'

'Then again... it does offer incredible camouflage. Almost no one would ever suspect him.'

As they walked down the corridors, most of the slaves locked in the cages were screaming and roaring in fury. Hall would occasionally shout back a curse or two, using the exchange to vent his own anxiety.

Li Yu gradually figured out that the majority of the slaves held here were Death Row Prisoners from various planets—criminals who had committed heinous atrocities. Doing so likely made Hall feel a bit better about his guilty conscience.

It turned out that Keri's older sister, Cree, was also a member of the Reformers, using the identity of a slave as a disguise.

Li Yu had to admit that this was indeed a highly effective method.

If it weren't for the unexpected variable known as Li Yu, they could have stayed hidden here for a very long time.

Thinking of this, his eyes darted away guiltily for a moment. But then, realizing that absolutely no one knew his true identity, he confidently puffed out his chest.

Hall returned to his Office, trembling as he activated multiple security protocols. The room was locked down so tight that not even a single biological Cell could slip inside.

Meanwhile, Li Yu simply stood quietly in the corner, watching Hall's every move.

Slumping into his chair, Hall wiped the sweat from his forehead. Suddenly, he was struck by the unsettling sensation of being watched.

"Who is it?!"

He shouted out of sheer reflex, but then quickly shook his head. Slapping his own cheeks, he scolded himself, "Snap out of it!"

With trembling hands, he dialed a secure comms line. The firewall here was surprisingly formidable; even Claptrap couldn't hack through it—a clear sign of extreme paranoia.

After a painstakingly long wait, a pitch-black holographic projection flickered into existence.

"Elder... Cree has been taken by the Green-Clad Knights," Hall reported cautiously.

"..." A burst of static echoed from the other side before a voice finally spoke, laden with urgency and unease. "What happened?"

"I don't know what went wrong today..." Hall explained while nervously scanning his surroundings. He couldn't shake the feeling that he wasn't alone in the room.

"Do not panic. Follow Cree's instructions and make sure you don't blow your cover. I will send someone over..." The Elder pondered for a moment before adding:

"Furthermore... from now on, I will contact you directly on a single encrypted line. Do not attempt to contact anyone else!"

"Do you suspect...?" Hall asked, filled with trepidation.

"Just stay sharp for now... Hall, is there someone else near you?" The Elder's voice suddenly spiked in volume.

Li Yu was secretly stunned. 'Damn! What kind of Elder is this? Can he seriously detect me through a network connection?!'

"Ah... no... of course not!" Hall paused for a second before hurriedly explaining, "If someone were here, I never would have contacted you."

"Then why do your eyes keep darting around the room?"

"I..." Hall forced a weak smile. "I don't know why, but I just have this lingering feeling of being watched. There's this eerie, freezing draft constantly brushing past me."

Li Yu: "..."

The Elder remained silent for a moment before letting out a deep sigh. "It's been hard on you. Once this matter is settled, return to base."

It seemed the Elder assumed that the immense stress of deep-cover espionage had caused Hall to develop some sort of psychological condition.

"Understood..." Hall agreed. Honestly, he was starting to wonder if he was going crazy himself.

"Elder... what is the situation over at Pastoral Song Star?" Hall inquired further.

"Sigh..." The Elder let out another weary sigh. "The Star Glory Empire has grown highly vigilant. Operations are difficult to carry out. Thank goodness the key was smuggled out... otherwise..."

"Elder... there is one thing... I forgot to report," Hall said, clenching his teeth.

"Speak..." A sudden, dreadful premonition gripped the Elder.

"The key... it's gone. The operative you sent... he was captured..."

Dead silence flooded the line once more.

"Hall..." The Elder's voice suddenly turned freezing cold.

"How many years has it been since you joined our ranks?"

"Six years... Elder..." Hall replied, thoroughly confused by the question.

"We have treated you well, haven't we? We considered you a brother in arms as we fought to save our enslaved brethren..." The Elder sounded utterly heartbroken.

Hall immediately panicked, finally realizing what the man was implying. With a miserable expression, he pleaded, "Elder, I haven't betrayed you! It wasn't me! I am still investigating the disappearance of the key, and I have absolutely no idea how Cree got captured..."

"Even though... I'm perfectly fine... but... but... but..." Hall choked on his words. He and Cree had been operating undercover together. She was arrested, yet he emerged completely unscathed...

Even he was starting to find himself highly suspicious.

"It truly wasn't me..." Hall, an imposing slave trader, actually had tears welling up in his eyes. Suddenly remembering something, he desperately explained, "Elder... Elder! Before Cree was taken, she said that this might not have anything to do with our undercover identities!"

"There was another reason... It all happened so fast... She didn't have time to explain the details, but she mentioned it likely had something to do with her younger brother..."

The Elder remained quiet for a long while before finally responding, "Lie dormant and await further instructions!"

Staring at the darkened projection, Hall clenched his fists and cursed through gritted teeth. "Damn it! Who is pulling the strings behind all this?! You better hope I don't find you!"

Meanwhile, Li Yu was seriously contemplating whether or not to just step forward and finish the man off right there.

In the end, he decided against it. He simply waited for Hall to compose his emotions and exit the room before silently trailing out behind him.

Outside the Slave Exchange, a substantial crowd had already gathered. People were whispering and gossiping about the recent chaos.

After all, the commotion had been massive. Even though no one had dared to approach during the conflict, now that the fighting was over, plenty of curious onlookers had swarmed the area.

Ducking into a side alley, Li Yu approached a Metal Crate hidden in the corner. Inside sat a green-armored soldier, utterly immobilized and tightly bound by the Purple Sniper.

When Li Yu had doubled back to snap that photograph earlier, he had temporarily stashed his captive in this spot.

Checking his surroundings, he hoisted the Metal Crate over his shoulder and made his way to a temporary inn. Once inside the room, he had Claptrap jam the surveillance feeds.

He dragged the man out of the crate and stripped off the armor. The suit's tracking beacon had long since been disabled.

A muscular male Interstellar Human was revealed—otherwise known as a man.

The soldier wore the resolute expression of a martyr, fully prepared to endure inhuman torture rather than betray his civilization!

"Answer my questions honestly!" an eerie voice suddenly pierced his mind, causing his entire Corporeal Form to stiffen involuntarily.

"Tell me everything you know about this key..." Li Yu held up an Emerald Key, its surface etched with an incredibly complex array of patterns.

"...Seven months ago, we discovered traces of a Titan Ruin on Pastoral Song Star. After three months of excavation... we managed to unearth something... and it seems this key was among those artifacts."

The soldier didn't know the full details, only possessing a vague understanding of the overarching operation.

"A Titan Ruin?" Li Yu frowned. He quickly summoned Claptrap, and within moments, a compiled dossier of information was presented to him.

Long before the prolonged reign of the Star Glory Empire, there had apparently existed an unimaginably powerful civilization. Their footprints spanned across almost the entire Universe, leaving behind remnants in countless star systems.

Because the artifacts found within these ruins were exceptionally massive—clearly not designed for standard-sized lifeforms—they were labeled as Titan Ruins.

Thus, that ancient race became known as the Titan Civilization.

"Things just got a bit more complicated... but this is definitely a treasure," Li Yu muttered, staring intently at the Emerald Key resting in his palm.

Titan Ruins were highly coveted by all the Major Civilizations. The advanced Technology and data hidden within were enough to elevate a civilization's tech tree by several significant tiers.

There were even rumors circulating on the Black Hole Network claiming that the Star Glory Empire owed its rapid rise entirely to unearthing a fraction of a Titan Civilization ruin.

"So... what should I do with you now?" Li Yu mused, narrowing his eyes at the captive man.

Sometime later...

Hall rushed into the main hall of the exchange and was met by a hunched old man leading a burly man by the arm.

"Are you here to sell a slave?" Hall asked, sizing them up.

"Yes. Take a look and tell me what you think," the old man replied, pointing to the blank-faced man beside him.

Hall pulled out a scanner and inspected the merchandise, feeling slightly surprised by the readings. "His internal Cell strength isn't bad at all; it's right at the E-rank level. However, his IQ seems extremely low. I will offer you 150,000 Star Coins for him."

"Deal," the old man agreed bluntly. He accepted the payment and swiftly took his leave.

Hall felt that the transaction was a bit bizarre, but he didn't dwell on it. After all, he still had an endless mountain of pressing matters to attend to.