Chapter 00205: Predicament
# Predicament
Chapter 205
Novel: Above Destiny
Chapter 205: Predicament
The explosive mixed with various toxins detonated, clearing the traces around the ruins and creating a vast cloud of poison that thoroughly contaminated the area.
Mixed within it were the ashes left behind after the disintegration spells destroyed the alchemical items, enough to confuse the Ether Chosen who would later trace the scene, saving Xu Guan a lot of trouble.
The journey was silent.
The vehicle traveled for a long time before finally stopping in a corner of the ruins.
Ji Liu got out of the car and covered it with a camouflage cloth, blending it almost seamlessly with the pile of rubble.
Only then did Tong Shan slowly let out a sigh of relief.
He exhaled softly.
"Is this place safe?" Tong Shan asked.
"Yes," Xu Guan replied.
"After the latest changes, the overlapping forks that appeared last time can only be accessed through a specific trajectory. It hasn't been reported."
Tong Shan nodded lightly, and then his tense body gradually relaxed.
From the silence, a horrifying cracking sound emerged.
Crimson cracks spread rapidly across his skin like a spiderweb.
Before anyone else could speak, Ji Jue acted swiftly, plunging a bone knife into Tong Shan's heart.
The cracking sound stopped abruptly, and even the rapidly paling complexion regained a hint of color.
The situation was forcibly stabilized.
The corner of Tong Shan's mouth twitched slightly.
"Did you disinfect that knife after stabbing Big Liu's butt last time?"
"Don't talk."
Ji Jue waved for the others to step aside.
A mercury tentacle extended from his back, quickly clearing a space in the car.
After laying Tong Shan flat, he wiped his sweat and carefully removed his protective suit.
On his back, the gaping wound, no longer held together by telekinetic force, was finally exposed.
"When did you get injured?" Ji Xue asked in shock.
"Were you stabbed at the end?"
Tong Shan didn't speak, only smiled.
Ji Jue sighed, suddenly realizing.
"... It was at the beginning, wasn't it?"
At the moment the Burning Star phenomenon appeared, when the Heretic Cult detonated the explosives in the ruins, Ling Zhi launched the first attack from behind...
Between his teammates and himself, Tong Shan had chosen to protect his teammates first.
Only then did he find the time to counterattack fiercely, turning it into a trap.
From start to finish, he had pretended as if nothing had happened, even fooling his opponents.
"Before we start, let me ask—is there really no other surgeon besides me?" Ji Jue looked around, hoping against hope, but received the inevitable answer.
"You do it," Tong Shan said.
"I'll cooperate."
"Cooperating or not is one thing, but removing the contamination is going to be a pain."
Ji Jue sighed.
"Can I ask for more money?"
"Are you underestimating the Safety Bureau or the Tong family?" Tong Shan chuckled, completely unfazed.
He didn't care about the money, nor did he think Ji Jue would actually raise the price at this moment.
If Ji Jue really wanted to charge, Jiang Xuan might not know, but Tong Shan was well aware of the costs.
The few minutes of pleasure he had enjoyed were enough to make him work for Ji Jue for free until next year.
"Be serious. I'm giving you my first time here."
Ji Jue pulled out disinfectant from the toolbox and sprayed it into the air.
Under the slight telekinetic force, it naturally atomized and sterilized the area.
Then, with the help of his third spiritual hand, he put on sterile gloves.
Everything was kept simple.
A quick disinfection would have to do.
If they survived, they could deal with antibiotics later.
He pulled out the bone knife, and the experience and knowledge of countless surgeons flowed through his mind.
Under his direction, everyone carefully turned Tong Shan over, revealing the blackened wound on his back.
Shadow poison swirled, lingering like a vengeful spirit.
"Hmm, Mad Butcher, Abyssal Depths, and a bit of... Shadow Sun, I think."
Ji Jue picked up a bit on his fingertip to examine it, then sighed in relief.
"Good, I've dealt with most of these before."
Thankfully, there was no White Hall poison.
Even though he had encountered the Undying Disease before, the White Hall's toxins were more than just that one.
Just looking at the hospital's list of infectious disease threats showed how varied they were.
If any of those had been present, Ji Jue would have had to stabilize Tong Shan with a quick stab and some placebo.
A penetrating wound on the back, damage to the heart and left lung, contamination from corruption, and countless small cracks and bruises all over his body, along with severe damage to his soul—likely from overexertion when he unleashed his Rebirth form.
Most of these were within the scope of surgical solutions.
The corruption contamination could be dealt with using Non-Aggression and his cousin's methods.
If it was in non-essential areas, they could simply remove it.
If it was in vital organs, they could use the attraction between corrupted entities to draw out the high-purity corruption toxins and then excise the contaminated parts.
If it had reached the bone marrow, they could temporarily seal it with spiritual circuits.
With the help of the Safety Bureau's medicines and the various spiritual herbs contributed by Young Master Lou, they managed to clear about 80-90% of the corruption contamination.
The remaining bits were negligible.
The emergency surgery took only half an hour, and with the help of his natural talent, Ji Jue worked with remarkable efficiency.
Finally, he attached the Ancient One's Mouth and two other healing blessings to complete the first aid.
"Sorry, this is the best I can do," Ji Jue said as he removed his blood-stained gloves and tossed them into the material box.
"The damage to your soul and matrix can't be fixed quickly. You'll need to go to a hospital and find a specialized craftsman for that. I can only help stabilize your condition for now, to prevent it from getting worse."
"It's enough."
Tong Shan had a straw in his mouth, sipping water from a bottle held by Ji Xue.
With the sugar and medicine, his pale complexion regained some vitality.
Half of his injuries were from Ling Zhi and Yan Chong's attacks, and the other half were from using power beyond his limits to take down those two.
Even the incomplete "Disaster Prevention Manual" was a power that only those at the Transcendent level could barely wield.
Before fully mastering it, the only thing bearing the pressure was his own soul.
Now, with his matrix overloaded, his spiritual energy depleted, and his soul severely damaged, it was enough to prove that the Tong family was truly wealthy, with all their life-saving measures maxed out.
As for the two blessings that had shattered and become useless in the process of saving his life, Ji Jue unceremoniously pocketed them.
Even if they were broken, they could be disassembled and used as fodder for Mechanical God.
Surgery wasn't free, after all!
"The situation isn't looking good."
In the solemn silence, Tong Shan was the first to speak.
"The scale of the Heretic Cult this time is probably much larger than we estimated. Those guys might have mobilized their entire force."
Using various illegal churches as fronts, the Heretic Cult had been active for over a century, moving between the Federation, the Empire, the Central Lands, and the Thousand Islands of the Endless Sea.
They were like flies in a sewer, always drawn to the stench.
Now, they had quietly infiltrated Quan City with such massive resources.
If they said they were here for an anniversary celebration, no one would believe it.
Even the permanent investigation base had been silently infiltrated and destroyed, and they had even set up traps with ease, waiting for reinforcements to walk right into them.
How many people had they sent this time?
Hundreds, possibly even thousands.
In mass-producing tools, the Heretic Cult had an advantage over the Federation.
Once tainted by the aura of higher corruption, the dead became resources, and the living naturally became tools.
Paired with their chaotic matrices, they might not even have blessings—just handed an AK and sent into battle.
In just a few short hours, the once vibrant and competitive situation had deteriorated to this point.
No one could speak, their hearts heavy with oppression.
In the midst of the silence, Ji Jue coughed.
"The situation might not be as bad as it seems."
"Is there still a chance?" Jiang Xuan asked in surprise.
"No, I mean it might be worse."
After thinking for a long time, Ji Jue finally reached into his pocket and pulled out the spoils he had scavenged from the ruins—a piece of skin he had stripped from the guy who had played dead and ambushed them.
It was about the size of a palm.
But the black tattoo etched into it like a brand left everyone speechless.
A cruel one-eyed emblem flanked by scaly wings.
—The Dragon Sacrifice Society!
"Looking on the bright side—"
Ji Jue said, "If the Heretic Cult's HR hadn't gone mad trying to meet their quotas by poaching from the Dragon Sacrifice Society, then there's a good chance he was here to earn some extra cash."
Of course, there was also a much larger possibility...
They were all unsavory, unlovable villains.
It was only natural for them to communicate, join forces, and collaborate on some grand scheme, right?
This would explain the Dragon Sacrifice Society's unusual activities in the Haizhou region recently.
It wasn't just Lawrence, who had been reduced to ashes by Sister Wen.
A few days ago, there had also been a Shepherd of Shadows.
Even in the hospital in Shixu, Ji Jue had seen the Vortex Implantation Technique that Lawrence had loved his entire life.
A Shepherd, lurking in Haizhou for so many years, couldn't have been working on just one dragon blood project.
It was possible that before he turned to ash, he had happily provided technical support to the Heretic Cult...
But if the Dragon Sacrifice Society was here, what about the others?
If the Heretic Cult wasn't keeping this to themselves, wouldn't they drag a few more groups into this mess?
But what were they trying to achieve?
Limited by his abilities and perspective, Ji Jue couldn't think of any goal other than blowing up Quan City and spreading contamination across the entire Haizhou region.
But what was the point of that?
Wouldn't that just lead to their quicker demise?
The Federation was still the Federation, no matter how bloated and corrupt.
It was one of the two poles of the world, with countless Celestials and possibly even hidden Sages and Dragons.
The Heretic Cult followed corruption, not self-destruction.
The Dragon Sacrifice Society pursued the apocalypse and dragon transformation, not an early death.
What was their goal?
But this had nothing to do with Ji Jue.
The situation was too big for him to handle.
Even if the Tong family's ancestor showed up, it wouldn't be enough.
"We need to report this immediately."
The moment Ji Liu understood the implications, he was drenched in sweat.
But no one else spoke.
Ji Jue and Tong Shan exchanged silent glances, then sighed.
This was the most critical point...
"What's wrong?" Ji Liu asked, confused.
Ji Jue didn't speak, remaining silent.
"Don't worry, everyone in this team was personally chosen by me. There's no way they're colluding with the Heretic Cult. Otherwise, I'd be dead already."
Tong Shan chuckled softly, self-deprecating.
"Is this the silver lining in this misfortune?"
But what about outside the team?
As an external craftsman, Ji Jue felt it necessary to say something harsh first.
"The Safety Bureau can no longer be trusted."
The permanent investigation team was a large operation with many members, yet the entire place had been wiped out without a trace.
The commander, Lou Yanyue, was missing.
Aside from determining whether he was alive or dead based on the spiritual fragments at the scene, nothing else was known.
Such a major incident, yet there was no reaction from the outside.
And Tong Shan's support team had been targeted on their way here, with corrupted entities and malevolent spirits lying in wait.
The Heretic Cult knew their route inside and out.
This wasn't just a little off—it was completely outrageous!
How else could this be explained, other than there being a mole?
And this wasn't just any mole.
It had to be someone at the middle or even decision-making level...
But who was the mole? Was it Lü Yingyue? Zhou Fang from Chaocheng Safety Bureau? Yu Zhengze from Chuancheng? Li Wan'an from Jiangcheng?
Or was it Old Tao, who was now drooling and eating porridge?
Once these small fry took a wrong step, they might just vanish into thin air.
"The Director is trustworthy."
Tong Shan stated firmly, "Absolutely."
After all, he was from the Tong family, one of the Celestial Hearers.
Although the old man rarely showed his face, it didn't mean he was out of touch.
Tong Shan was already a department head, and the cooperation between the Tong family and the Yacheng Safety Bureau was naturally close.
With the Tong family's assurance, there was no need to worry about this.
At least, they didn't have to fear going to Director Lü to report a mole in the Heretic Cult, only for Director Lü to smile, take off his mask, and ask, "Is this the mole?"
For a moment, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, at least confident that their lives were safe.
Only Ji Jue sighed silently, glancing at Tong Shan, who had only revealed half the story—he could only marvel at how the Celestial Origin truly mastered the art of offering both carrots and sticks.
It was an easy way to boost morale.
But...
Director Lü was reliable, but only if they could actually reach him!
Buddy, we're still in Quan City!
How are we supposed to get out?
The fixed route? If the Heretic Cult messed up, they might have Rebirths stationed every few kilometers along that road to prevent any leaks.
Xu Guan raised his hand.
"There are two backup routes..."
"The backup routes aren't reliable either."
Tong Shan shook his head decisively.
"All recorded routes go through the management of the outpost. Except for top-secret information, the routes calculated by Fourth Uncle are made in four copies: one kept by the Tong family, one sent to the Yacheng Safety Bureau, one sent to the outpost's archives, and one given to the team members."
Working with the Safety Bureau required strict adherence to rules, and rules were essential.
Leaving a paper trail was basic, so they could shift blame when necessary.
But now, with one of the four points compromised, the blame had been shifted, and Tong Shan had been thrown to Yacheng along with it.
In the renewed silence, Ji Jue fiddled with the tools in his hand, pondering for a moment before suddenly asking, "If the Heretic Cult realizes they've failed, they'll definitely come looking for us, right? They won't give us a chance to report this."
"Definitely," Tong Shan nodded firmly.
"And they'll send a lot of experts, right?" Ji Jue asked again.
"Right."
Tong Shan chuckled bitterly, trying to reassure him.
"Don't worry, I just need a few hours to recover. When the time comes, we'll have a chance to fight our way out."
"Why fight them head-on?"
Ji Jue's question caught Tong Shan off guard.
"The Heretic Cult has been in Quan City for so long, and they've made such a big move. They probably know the local routes better than the Safety Bureau, right?"
He took a deep breath and finally asked, "After sending out so many people, wouldn't their own defenses be at their weakest?"
For a moment, everyone was stunned.
Wait, what?
(End of Chapter)