"Sister Cipher, I'm back!"
Cipher, currently watching a movie in the bedroom, brightened at the sound and immediately rushed out. The front door opened, and Lu Zhaoran stepped into the living room.
"Sister Cipher, are Luo Lin and the others awake yet?"
"No." Cipher shook her head, then rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Though their complexions look much better than when we first got back. They should wake up soon."
"I'll stay here and keep an eye on them. If you have business to attend to, big boss, feel free to head out."
"How did you know I wanted to go out?"
Cipher felt a bit puzzled. Usually, she either stayed home playing games or followed the team. Even if she ran off alone, it was typically in the middle of the night. It was only afternoon.
"Well, you suddenly ran off to interrogate Shen Yan, and you seemed so urgent about it. I figured you must have come up with a plan. It's not strange for you to want to move now."
"True..." Hearing that, Cipher dismissed her doubts. Her recent behavior hadn't been particularly normal.
"Then I'm leaving. If you run into danger, remember to send a message to my terminal!"
After warning Lu Zhaoran, Cipher waved and walked out the door.
"Bye-bye, Sister Cipher! Good luck with your mission!"
Lu Zhaoran waved back, seeing her off. Once the door closed, Cipher looked down at the terminal in her hand. The screen displayed the nearest sub-base of the Backcurrent Alliance.
'Since you guys want to capture me so badly, I might as well collect some interest first~'
The corners of her mouth curled into an arc. With a flash of purple-gold light, Cipher vanished from the spot.
★ ★ ★
"According to the address... it should be here, right?"
Comparing the address and the photo of the base entrance on her terminal, Cipher looked up at the building in front of her. She tilted her head, feeling a bit skeptical.
The gate... looked similar to the photo, yet different. The architectural structure matched perfectly, but in the photo, the entrance was a simple sheet-metal door. Now...
Cipher stared at the heavy alloy electronic mechanical door—the kind usually reserved for top-secret experimental sites—and fell into deep thought.
'I remember Shen Yan saying that photo was two years old. Did things change this much in just two years?'
'Whatever. Maybe they got funding from somewhere? That would explain how they became so wealthy.'
Cipher stopped overthinking. If the Backcurrent Alliance struck it rich through some sponsorship, it was better for her anyway. After all, wasn't that exactly why she came?
Shaking off her stray thoughts, Cipher looked toward the front of the gate. Two armed guards stood watch, but they posed no real obstacle. The primary hurdle was the alloy door itself.
While she could coordinate with the system to use her Trickster powers and bypass it easily, that function cost Stellar Jades. Not knowing the exact price, Cipher decided to try the old-fashioned way first.
Specifically: wait for someone to open the door, then sneak inside.
Hard work paid off for the patient cat. Before long, Cipher, leaning against a wall near the entrance, heard a slight mechanical hum behind her.
'Here it comes.'
She stood up instantly, eyes fixed on the alloy gate. Soon, it slid open. A middle-aged man in a white lab coat, holding a terminal, hurried out from the interior.
"Doctor Lin."
"Good day, Doctor Lin."
The two guards bowed respectfully the moment they saw him. The man ignored them, speaking into his terminal instead.
"I've reached the entrance of Experimental Base 036. Get me to Combat Base 037 immediately. I have urgent business there."
After finishing his sentence, the man stuffed the terminal into his pocket and waited for his ride. A moment later, a car pulled up to the base entrance.
The man hurried to the rear door and sat in the back seat. A red scanning light swept across his face, quickly turning green as a mechanical voice announced:
"Identity verified. Doctor Lin Zhiyuan, welcome. Destination: Combat Base 037."
As the announcement finished, the car slowly started and drove toward the destination.
"Hah... To lose two A+ rank combatants at once... Which faction did they provoke this time? The Alliance finally recovered some strength, only to have those idiots ruin it again!"
Inside the car, Lin Zhiyuan grew more agitated the more he thought about it. He clenched his fist and slammed it against the leather seat.
"No, I have to warn them personally. Otherwise, more problems will crop up. Losing two A+ ranks is already a disaster."
Lin Zhiyuan reached into his pocket to send a warning message, but he froze. His personal terminal was gone!
He frantically patted his clothes, only to find that every single pocket was empty. His eyes widened in disbelief. He began a desperate search, tearing through the seats and checking the floorboards, but the item remained missing.
"Stop the car!"
Lin Zhiyuan shouted. The car screeched to a halt.
"Does Doctor Lin have a request?"
"U-turn! Return to Experimental Base 036 immediately!"
"Understood. Complying with your request."
The car turned around and headed back the way it came. In the back seat, Lin Zhiyuan continued his frantic search, cold sweat drenching his forehead.
Losing a terminal wasn't the end of the world—he could always buy another. The problem was that when he checked his pockets, he realized everything was gone. And something incredibly important had been tucked into the inner pocket of his coat!
★ ★ ★
"Lin Zhiyuan, Level 2 Base Authorization Card? What's this for, opening doors?"
Staring at the card she just lifted from the middle-aged man, Cipher fell into deep thought.