Chapter 807: Deep Behind Enemy Lines

First day.

The squad marched across the purplish-black wasteland.

Lin Chong led the way.

Zhao Si brought up the rear.

The ten moved as a single silent blade, slicing through the thick nether-energy mist.

The faint link of rule vision allowed Lin Chong to sense anomalies in the surroundings.

He 'saw' deep beneath his feet, those nether-energy conduits spreading like blood vessels.

He saw purplish-black specks drifting in the air, constantly eroding the normal rules.

"Avoid the main conduit."

He whispered.

He directed the squad with hand signals to bypass the area where energy flow was strongest.

The Heavenly Craft Institute's artificers held modified force-energy detectors.

The instrument's needle twitched slightly, indicating the direction of the nether-energy monitoring blind spot.

"Three hundred steps ahead to the left, there's a patrol fluctuation."

A scout returned with information.

"Three units, humanoid, moving at medium speed."

"Conceal."

Lin Chong gave the order.

The squad quickly dispersed into the twisted dead forest.

The concealment runes were fully activated, making their forms nearly blend with the ambient energy signature.

Three abyss piercers swooped past from outside the woods.

Their jade-green eyes swept over the dead trees, detecting nothing abnormal, and they continued on.

"Go."

Lin Chong stepped out first.

Noon of the second day.

The squad reached the first predetermined coordinate—an abandoned nether-energy collection station.

The buildings were half-collapsed, but inside there remained a faint energy pulse.

"Rest here for half an hour."

Lin Chong said.

"Replenish drinking water, check equipment."

Zhao Si led men to guard the perimeter.

Two artificers inspected the condition of the 'wall-breaker cone' components.

The spellcaster adjusted the energy of the concealment runes.

Lin Chong leaned against the wall, sat down, and closed his eyes to focus.

Through that faint link, he could vaguely sense the battle situation at the distant Iron Wall Fortress.

Violent energy fluctuations.

That was Xu Da and Zhu Yuanzhang on the front lines, fighting desperately to cover their infiltration.

He opened his eyes.

"Time's up, keep moving forward."

Early morning of the third day.

The squad approached the outskirts of the core zone.

The environment had been completely distorted.

The ground was a semi-organic fungal mat, elastic underfoot and leaving only temporary footprints.

The air was viscous; breathing required the aid of force-energy filters.

Jade-green light clouds hung low in the sky, occasionally shedding corrosive 'acid rain'.

"Two li ahead lies the first defense line zone."

Zhao Si watched the detector.

"The density of the energy-monitoring patterns has tripled."

"Patrol frequency is extremely high."

"Follow the route given by Mr. Liu Ji."

Lin Chong unfolded the structural diagram from memory.

"Enter through the abandoned maintenance passage on the southwest side."

"There are three monitoring blind spots there, but the passage may be prone to collapse."

"I'll take people ahead to scout."

Zhao Si selected two scouts.

The three moved forward silently.

After a quarter hour, they sent back a signal.

"The passage entrance is blocked by organic matter, but it can be cleared."

"The internal structure is basically intact, though the monitoring patterns are indeed damaged."

"Everyone, follow."

The squad moved to the entrance of the passage.

Zhao Si had already used a specially made energy cutter to cut an opening just wide enough for one person to pass through in the biomass blockage layer.

The edges of the opening were coated with a suppressive agent, delaying its self-repair.

"Enter."

Lin Chong led the way, drilling in.

The interior of the passage was dim.

The walls were a mixture of metal and biomass, with traces of dried slime on the surface.

The ethereal-energy monitoring patterns overhead were fractured in many places, dim and lightless.

But the air was filled with an unsettling "pulse."

It seemed as if the entire passage were a segment of the intestine of some colossal organism.

"Stay quiet."

Lin Chong whispered.

"There may be an auditory-sensing trap here."

The squad held its breath and moved forward.

They advanced about one li.

A fork appeared ahead.

"Go left."

Lin Chong judged based on memory.

"The right-hand passage leads to the active zone; the energy response is too strong."

Turn left.

The passage gradually sloped downward.

The temperature rose.

Tiny spores emitting a faint greenish glow began to appear in the air.

"Wear masks."

The shaman reminded.

"These spores may have neuro-interfering properties."

The squad pulled down the filter layer of their masks.

They went on another half li.

Ahead, the view suddenly opened up.

A huge underground space appeared before their eyes.

In the center of the space stood a ethereal-energy conversion tower ten zhang tall.

The tower's body rotated slowly, its surface patterns flashing like breathing.

Dozens of thick pipes connected to the tower's base, extending in various directions.

Around the tower, dozens of shamans and technicians were busy.

They manipulated various instruments, adjusting the energy output.

"This is... a secondary hub."

Zhao Si lowered his voice.

"Liu Ji's intelligence didn't mention this."

"The route is blocked," observed a scout.

"To detour around this hub, we would have to go at least twenty li farther."

"We don't have enough time."

Lin Chong stared at that conversion tower.

His faint perception from regular vision let him "see" that the tower's energy flow had a periodic "trough."

That was a brief power drop during maintenance or data exchange.

"No more waiting."

He made a decision.

"We'll go through."

"Go through?" Zhao Si exclaimed.

"With so many shamans..."

"We'll use their 'trough period.'"

Lin Chong calculated.

"The tower's rotation cycle is thirty breaths."

"Each time it turns to face our side, the monitoring facing away has a half-breath delay."

"The shamans' attention is focused on the tower's data, following a regular pattern."

"We'll pass in batches, using the tower's shadow and their blind spots of attention."

This is an extremely daring plan.

But time is pressing.

"Zhao Si, you take the first team of five and go through during the next rotation."

"I'll bring the breaker-cone components and the second team, waiting for the following rotation."

"After crossing, we'll meet at the maintenance hatch on the opposite side."

Understood.

The Switch Tower rotated slowly.

When the tower's front turned to the other side,

Go!

Zhao Si led the five out like leopards.

Using the shadow of the tower base's pipe,

At the moment the shaman lowered his head to check the instruments,

The five successfully crossed the open area and disappeared into the opposite shadow.

Lin Chong stared at the tower body.

Waiting for the next rotation.

Time passed.

The tower turned back.

Now is the moment.

Go!

He led the remaining four out in a rush.

Everything went smoothly.

Until—

A technician suddenly turned and walked toward a maintenance panel on the tower base.

That spot happened to block Lin Chong's team's advance route.

Lin Chong's pupils contracted.

The inevitable route was blocked.

And the tower was about to turn, making the shadow disappear.

In a flash.

He made a gesture.

The four immediately turned and pressed against the back of another pipe.

The technician opened the panel and began debugging.

Time ticked by second by second.

The tower's shadow began to move.

The scanning beam of the monitoring pattern was about to sweep over.

Just then.

The Switch Tower suddenly emitted an abnormal hum.

The tower's rotation halted abruptly.

The surface patterns flickered chaotically.

All the shamans and technicians were drawn in, looking up at the tower top.

Network overload fluctuation!

A shaman exclaimed.

Quickly stabilize the output!

In the chaos.

Lin Chong's team seized the opportunity.

They slipped past silently behind the technician.

Charged into the opposite shadow.

The rendezvous point.

Zhao Si had already opened the maintenance well cover.

Hurry!

Ten people quickly entered the underground passage.

The well cover closed.

From above came the shamans' anxious shouts and instrument alarms.

But the squad had already gone deep underground.

Far from that secondary hub.

The underground passage was narrow and damp.

But the yin-energy monitoring was noticeably weakened.

"What just... happened?" an artisan asked, panting.

"Did the hub suddenly overload?"

Lin Chong leaned against the cold well wall, feeling that faint connection.

He seemed to "hear" Chen Wen's distant, weary will whispering.

It was the frontline battlefield.

Xu Da and Zhu Yuanzhang launched an over-the-top feint.

Forcing the lord of the Iron Crow Army to gather more yin energy.

Triggering a network chain overload.

That brief chaos saved their lives.

"Continue forward."

Lin Chong stood up.

"We're not far from the core."

The journey of the final day.

It lies just ahead.

And the will of the Iron Crow Army deep within the core.

It seemed not to have noticed.

A tiny yet deadly 'awl'.

It has already pierced into its most vulnerable point.