Chapter 179: What

Cang Lang turned the short sword in his hand and proactively moved to meet the furious goblin that had just climbed onto the top of the crate on the other side.

In a few swift steps upward, the opponent's low intellect couldn't keep up with such rapid assault; before it could even shout, it was pierced through the celestial spirit by a single sword.

Ji Ming had originally thought of charging forward to join the group, to form a crisscross stance with Tiaozi Ge or something.

But seeing his fierce side kick kick the goblin's head like a football and send it flying, then a shield strike killed the stunned Cai Ji goblin standing nearby…

Desert Cang Lang, twenty‑nine years old, afraid the wild monsters aren't enough to kill. jpg

Seeing Tiaozi Ge single‑handedly slay the wild monsters back and forth, Bai Yesheng reluctantly set down his longbow.

But watching the other's swift dodges and the instantly lethal, fierce demeanor, she mused and lowered her voice.

"Wai Shu, look at his sword‑gripping stance: reverse grip, fierce attack, primarily stabbing—clearly the dagger art from military hand‑to‑hand combat."

Indeed.

Moreover, players who equip a shield usually wield a longsword even without a one‑handed sword, but Cang Lang, like a Roman legionary, went straight into battle with a short sword.

Thus, several clues in Ji Ming's mind gradually linked together, forming a vague hypothesis.

"So Tiaozi Ge actually isn't a 'Tiaozi', but…"

While they were discussing, Cang Lang had effortlessly slain all the wild monsters.

Swinging his wrist, which tingled from overexertion, he wiped the fine sweat from his forehead.

"Great, this game is way more exhilarating than training!"

Turning back to look at the two teammates still standing in place, he realized it and wore a puzzled expression.

"By the way, why aren't you fighting?"

"Bro, you've already cleared the monsters; what are we supposed to fight?"

Ji Ming could only pat the shovel handle and blurt out a random excuse.

"This… isn't it because you were having fun, so we left the stage to you?"

"Also, these monsters are a bit too easy; let's go tackle something a bit higher level!"

Chuckling lightly, he fiddled with the transparent panel that popped up beside him, but the numbers displayed left him confused.

"Hey, by the way, any recommendations for where to allocate points? I just leveled up."

Bai Yesheng quickly replied.

"Currently, the only reliable way to earn free attribute points is through leveling, so point allocation must be careful!"

Ji Ming suddenly understood.

"Right, right, here's the thing: let us see your panel before deciding."

Cang Lang, half‑believing, half‑doubting, let out a sigh.

"You guys… actually I wasn't planning to hide; with my demeanor… trying to hide would be impossible!"

Saying that, he placed his panel in front of the two.

"You've figured it out, right? I'm not a regular police officer; I'm a paramilitary police, essentially a soldier."

They glanced once and simultaneously sighed.

Comparing oneself to others, it's infuriating!

During the closed beta, the gunner's initial HP of ten already amazed many players.

Thanks to his taller, sturdier build and the army's harsh training, Cang Lang's initial HP could directly reach fifteen,

and looking around, his skill bar was extravagantly lavish.

Various combat techniques, short‑weapon and multi‑type firearm handling skills…

If you also stack the martial arts learnable in the training ground and keep pulling up levels, the opponent would soon become a combat monster.

"…so envious, are you Captain Yanhuang?!"

Cang Lang waited a long time, then raised an eyebrow at the two who wore uneasy expressions.

"Why are you not speaking again, is my panel unsightly?"

Ji Ming and Bai Yesheng sighed again.

"Given your current situation… sigh, just add some HP."

"Yeah, right, add it."

"Ugh, you two always seem so weird…"

He complained verbally, but Cang Lang still added HP on his hand, then swung his fist empty.

"Whoa, that's truly spiritual; I feel my strength has indeed increased!"

Getting stronger turned out to be that easy, so the excitement in his eyes was reignited.

"Let's go, let's not waste time here; let's start a harder match, and once I grind my level a bit more, I'll take you guys up the ranks hard!"

Having a top player as the lead, Ji Ming readily followed suit, instantly preparing to go with him to spar fiercely with the goblin warrior.

Just as he lifted his foot, the system notified him of another message; looking down, it was from Director Zhao.

【Ji Ming, all members of the task force are now online. Please set aside what you're doing, gather at this location of the forward base for a preliminary meeting, and get to know each other (screenshot).】

After all, it's a ten‑thousand‑a‑day major task, and Uncle's face still needs to be saved, so Ji Ming said at once.

"Sorry, you two, I suddenly have something to attend to, can we meet later?"

"Ah, no, I haven't even spoken yet…"

Awkwardly rubbing his hands, the one who said this was the previously exuberant Cang Lang.

Ji Ming could only clear his throat lightly.

"Ah right, I also suddenly have something to step away for; Aurora, you play on your own for now, we'll meet later."

Bai Yesheng tilted his head, his gaze wandering over the two faces.

"You two… the urgent matter is the same one?"

"No!"

Compared to Cang Lang's decisiveness and composure, Ji Ming is rather lackluster.

"Not... right?"

Bai Yesheng was startled.

"Right!?"

Since they were already at the door, Ji Ming instinctively answered.

"Hey!"

Then he quickly changed his tone and started forcefully bluffing.

"... Oops, never mind, they'll be back soon anyway!"

"Indeed, they're urging me over there too, farewell, farewell!"

With that, the two left together under Bai Yesheng's gaze.

"I feel something's off..."

Standing still, she thought for a long while, then inhaled sharply, her eyes gradually turning terrified.

"Ji Ming, you!"

After moving a short distance, Cang Lang wondered why Wai Shu was heading the same way, and pretended to be casual.

"What a coincidence, buddy, you're also heading south?"

"Exactly."

……

"What a coincidence, you're turning east too."

"sadayo."

……

"Um, I'm heading to the Forward Base; there's a battle... anyway, a friend asked me for something."

"What a coincidence, I'm also going to the Forward Base; I have an uncle who introduced me to an online job!"

……

"Hey, I've arrived."

"Ah, me too."

……

Looking at Officer Xiao Zhang standing under a street tree, or rather a bespectacled man with "Azure Wave Flying Eagle" atop his head, both smiles froze and they fell into silence.

So Xiao Zhang stared dumbfounded as the two leapt simultaneously, then pointed at each other.

"I keep wondering why you always have that half‑smile; turns out you saw it all along!"

"I ask how you got the game account; you must have bought mine!"

Adjusting his glasses, Xiao Zhang seemed to understand what was happening and spread his hands.

"So, you two know each other too?"

"......"

What a great game, it set my fate's gears turning.

Even Director Zhao, who was on a voice call with Xiao Zhang, blurted out in bewilderment.

"Ah, so everyone already knows each other?"

After hearing their brief, tangled explanation, he chuckled.

"Ha, that's the fate between youngsters! Good, it makes our upcoming work easier."

Smoothly steering the conversation back to business, LaoZhao used Xiao Zhang's communication interface to display several PPT slides before everyone.

The PPT showed a series of investigation data on "Code Name·Yangyue", with the earliest part dating back to the closed beta... day one?

"Damn, we've been on the police's radar all along!"

"But the young boss never told me, seems it hasn't posed any threat..."

Ji Ming's heart was still raging, yet Director Zhao's broadcast tone began the narration.

"According to our research and investigation so far, Great Holy Seat does have registration records with the Administration of Industry and Commerce and other departments, but the listed address is merely an unfurnished empty room; the so‑called corporate legal person Yangyue cannot be found at all. In other words, its information is fabricated, yet for some reason it passed review and was entered into the database."

"I know doubts and speculation must be rising in your minds, wondering if corrupt elements are behind this, but our comrades have completed the investigation. Although the information shows software upload records on the relevant units' computers, there are no hardware input records, and surveillance footage indicates the office was empty at the corresponding times."

LaoZhao's voice was rich, like a 7 p. m. news broadcast, and at this point took on a hint of midnight horror story.

"In your younger‑generation slang, this company is basically an urban legend, an electronic ghost that only exists online!"

"Pfft."

"Exactly, my uncle, how are you so smart? The young boss really is an electronic ghost!"

Ji Ming chuckled quietly, while Cang Lang and Fei Ying wore serious expressions.

"This is probably the strongest supernatural phenomenon so far, far surpassing the so‑called cultivation methods of the Wu Longevity Clan."

"Of course, if the situation weren't complex, how could the higher‑ups spend such a huge sum to form a special four‑person team?"

Director Zhao probably felt the atmosphere was too heavy, and cleared his throat, breaking the gloom.

"However, despite the opponent's unknown origin, purpose, and power, at least so far their orderly stance and positive guidance in the game are confirmed."

LaoZhao, a master of steering emotions and discussion, shifted the topic again in just a few words.

"Therefore, our task force's main focus is not to clash with this mysterious force, but to investigate and make contact, while probing other forces' layouts and objectives in this test, preparing for potential future issues."

"Everyone, remember, goodwill is the core and fundamental premise of this operation!"

Having said that, he turned the PPT to the next slide.

"With the overall mission set, next are your individual tasks; of course, even though you already know each other, I'll give a brief introduction here."

"Cang Lang, this operation's code name 【Desert Cang Lang】, is skilled in military hand‑to‑hand combat and various weapon techniques; in this mission he is responsible for armed security, and the operation's focus is on leveling up and testing skills."

"Fei Ying, this operation's code name 【Azure Wave Fei Ying】, has participated in the development and optimization of many light weapons; in this mission she is responsible for logistical preparation, and the operation's focus is on reproducing various weapons in the game."

"Ji Ming… Sorry, in order to protect you and also to protect us, I must at this stage conceal their true names from you; I hope you can understand."

"But it's just about using money; after all they've already been through the door, how could Ji Ming possibly get tangled up in that?"

"Naturally with sincere heart, as if a weight of 1.3 million points pressed on his head, he nodded heavily."

"Understood!"

"Thank you for your cooperation and support."

He exhaled, and LaoZhao continued.

"Ji Ming, this operation's code name… uh, 【Crooked‑Neck Tree】, has participated in the closed beta of the game 'Code‑Name: Sun Month', making him a somewhat famous star player; in this mission he is responsible for intelligence gathering, and the operation's focus is on player contact and information investigation."

"Damn, why is everyone else a battlefield ace or great inventor, and I end up being a lousy gamer?"

"Probably because Director LaoZhao feared that Ji Ming, as a newcomer, wouldn't understand, so he gave a special explanation."

"In short, your task is to search for various in‑game related information, record it into a document, and upload a report once daily; our intelligence staff will help you distill the key information, so you don't need to worry about anything else—just… a large volume will do, understand?"

"Got it!"

Ji Ming answered quickly; after all, the mission content was… simpler than he expected!

The little boss can record hundreds of thousands of useless words in a second; what's the difference between a salary of over a million and a freebie?

After a few seconds pause, the PPT turned into a blank sheet.

"Finally it's me, the leader of the special operations team; you can call me 【Director LaoZhao】, 【LaoZhao】, 【Uncle LaoZhao】, 【Uncle】… anything works, I'm just an ordinary near‑retirement old man responsible for paving the way for you youngsters."

"Who would believe this deliberately self‑deprecating nonsense? If he were just an ordinary old man, how could he sit in this position?"

After introducing everyone in the team, LaoZhao returned to his smiling demeanor.

"Alright, actually this is my first time handling such an incident; an old man like me still has to study this fresh stuff, truly a case of being completely in the dark, so whether this turns out good or bad is entirely up to you young people to explore."

"That's all I wanted to say, meeting adjourned!"

LaoZhao cut the communication, but Ji Ming didn't rush off; instead he looked at the nearby Fei Ying.

"..."

"Hey, I've been honing my skills at the grassroots level these days, and also investigating some special incidents, so…"

Avoiding his silent stare, Fei Ying raised a hand in surrender.

"Fine, that gun of yours, I accidentally broke it."

He quickly clasped his hands together.

"Sorry, Mingzi, I'm done; I'll find a way to give you a real weapon in the game… isn't there a forge right now? How about I forge you a flintlock!"

Ji Ming still remained silent and looked over to Cang Lang on the other side.

Cang Lang jumped back twice in fright.

"What's wrong! Aren't the armed police just police? I'm a cop, where am I lying! Do you know how many bastards I've personally blown up?"

"..."

His stubbornness failed, so Cang Lang also raised his hand in surrender.

"Alright, alright, it was my fault for threatening you by grabbing you for resources before; I'll… cover your upgrade, okay?"

Ji Ming finally cracked a grin.

"What? I didn't say anything!"