Evolution - Chapter 137
Chapter 137
While they were still on the road, they saw a bright light streak across the sky.
Nankong frowned. If this was a response to the escape pod’s automated distress signal, the reaction time was far too quick.
Among the five of them, Ji Changqing had reverted to her original appearance. Now that she was back in the Alliance, there was no need to keep up the “Zhao Qingci” persona. The other four, however, had done the opposite, adopting various degrees of disguise.
Their luck was good. On their way to pick up a pre-booked hovercar, they passed through a small town. They had originally intended to just grab a bite to eat, but through some casual conversation, they learned that a hovercar left the town at two every morning, bound for the Tiansha City spaceport. It was a six-hour journey, timed for passengers catching the nine a.m. flight to Tiandu City.
It was usually not full, and you could get a seat as long as you paid.
Since it was a private vehicle running this specific route, no one asked for identification.
The five of them paid their fares. With one person secretly standing guard, they took turns getting a good night’s sleep.
Around eight in the morning, they entered Tiansha City.
The five split into two groups. Nankong, Jixin, and Saiweiyala went together. Nankong had been “socially dead” for years—declared a martyr and had all his identity information erased after being placed under house arrest during a planetary rebellion—so Jixin generously lent him an identity.
When Ji Changqing and He Qingzhi stated they had their own usable identities, Nankong simply shot them a meaningful look and said nothing.
Using the three identities available to them, they booked rooms in different hotels, checked in, and then found a place to lie low, staying dispersed but close enough to provide support if needed.
Nearing noon, Nankong, who had been carefully observing their surroundings, suddenly said, “Looks like our luck isn’t so good. Their people got here first.”
He had spotted the Patrol Army.
It wasn’t unusual to see the City Guard maintaining public order, but the appearance of the Patrol Army told him what was happening. He could guess that the people behind this had seized on the fact that an Empire-made escape pod had crashed nearby, using it as a pretext to deploy the Patrol Army to “conduct searches and strengthen local security.”
Jixin grumbled, feeling rather wronged. He felt that these people had completely changed their tune the moment they returned to the Alliance. “Are we just going to keep hiding like this?”
Back in the Empire, every single one of them had been more ruthless than the last, killing without batting an eye. Look at Ji Changqing. On that barren planet, she knew to first kill Zhao Qingci and several other space pirates to secure her cover. On Wendeli, she didn’t hesitate to slaughter a group of disobedient troublemakers to establish her authority, and later she wiped out dozens of men from one of Ming Zixing’s squads. Even on Hading Planet, she hadn’t held back, killing Imperial nobles without mercy or hesitation.
In his process of screening for potential partners, Nankong had killed who knows how many of the Klopp family’s subordinates without showing any psychological burden.
And He Qingzhi was even more extreme—he’d even killed the head of the He family.
So why were they so restrained now that they were back in the Alliance, acting like law-abiding citizens who wouldn’t dream of stepping out of line?
Weren’t they just waiting to be captured?
He Qingzhi said in a hoarse voice, “They might not know the full story. They’re just following orders, doing their duty.”
Jixin’s lips moved, clearly wanting to say something, but seeing the expressions on their faces, he held his tongue. He complained inwardly, Plenty of the people who fled to the Empire with us were just as clueless about the real situation, but you didn’t show any mercy when you killed them.
Although he felt this cautious approach was too passive—what if something unexpected happened? Wouldn’t their lives be at risk?—he also understood the reason for their double standard. He could only admire how seamlessly these people could switch their attitudes.
Ji Changqing was focused on picking at the table with her fingers. Without looking up, she said, “We have our constraints, and so do they. Besides, they don’t know we have them. Isn’t that great? We still have the initiative.”
Jixin’s face screamed, Are you kidding me?
They had chosen to enter the city precisely because, no matter what, large-scale weapons of mass destruction couldn’t be used inside it. If they were outside the city, in a sparsely populated area, their enemies could just fire a single shell and send them all to kingdom come.
Inside the city, even if things were difficult, there was still a chance for a breakthrough.
Even though they weren’t using their real identities, the group acted completely at ease, like tourists curiously wandering around and taking in the city. They didn’t shrink back or act like they had something to hide.
For now, the checks were only stricter at the main transportation hubs for entering and leaving the city, as well as at hotels. An ordinary person wouldn’t have noticed the sudden increase in security.
That night, two of the places they had booked were raided by fully armed personnel.
Those were the rooms booked under Jixin’s two “clean” identities.
Nankong looked at Jixin with some surprise. Was he some kind of important figure? Why was he being watched so closely?
Jixin himself was panicking, his face alternating between pale and ashen. He defended himself, “I got these two identities from different places!”
That was what made it so terrifying, wasn’t it?
Either the Klopp Family Head had people watching him all along, or one or more of the people involved in this affair controlled the vast majority of the Alliance’s clandestine forces.
The former was manageable; the latter was utterly chilling.
The hotel booked under Saiweiyala’s identity, however, remained undisturbed.
That evening, Ji Changqing and He Qingzhi booked rooms at another hotel. When checking in, they requested two adjacent rooms.
In reality, they both stayed in one room. For the first half of the night, Ji Changqing slept while He Qingzhi stood watch, so they stayed in Ji Changqing’s room. When they switched for the second half of the night, they moved to He Qingzhi’s room.
Late at night, as the moon grew brighter, a small, high-speed warship, typically used for patrol and reconnaissance, descended upon Tiansha City, bathed in moonlight and the glow of the city’s lights.
The forces dispatched from beyond Yan You Planet had finally arrived.
Jiang Hua glanced down at the time: 3:40 a.m. He saluted and offered a greeting. “Major Xiu, welcome.”
Major Xiu Jiacheng approached with his team in neat formation. He took a few steps forward and returned the salute. “Lieutenant Colonel Jiang, we’re here to assist you.”
He spoke graciously and appeared modest and unassuming. In truth, although Jiang Hua’s rank was one level higher, his arrival meant that he was the true commander and decision-maker for this operation.
Jiang Hua’s expression didn’t change; the Patrol Army didn’t answer to him anyway. He calmly briefed him on the situation in a low voice. “Based on the evidence at the escape pod’s crash site, there should be four individuals. We’ve tightened checks at all major transportation hubs and are conducting a large-scale search of the city, but we haven’t found anything yet.”
“Four?” Xiu Jiacheng frowned slightly, suppressing his doubts. “You have photos of the scene, I assume? Please grant our technical staff access so they can provide support.”
Was he looking down on their technical staff’s abilities?
The person leading the way up ahead heard this and couldn’t help but turn back to glare at him resentfully.
But the two men walked side by side, Jiang Hua with a stiff, expressionless face, and Xiu Jiacheng with a stern look, deep in thought.
Neither paid the slightest attention to the resentful glare.
“Fine.” Jiang Hua didn’t even raise an eyebrow. He agreed crisply and immediately contacted the relevant personnel, instructing them to grant access to Xiu Jiacheng’s team.
Xiu Jiacheng offered his sincere thanks and stated that the original arrangements would remain in place, with Lieutenant Colonel Jiang still in command. He added that if he had any new operational plans later, he hoped Lieutenant Colonel Jiang would dispatch personnel to cooperate.
He played the part of an outsider respecting the local authority perfectly.
Vehicles were already waiting outside, and the group departed in an orderly fashion.
Jiang Hua silently counted. A small warship used for reconnaissance and patrol typically carried no more than three hundred people. This Major Xiu had brought two hundred down with him—nearly the maximum combat personnel.
Even though Xiu Jiacheng put on a good show, to Jiang Hua’s subordinates, he was just here to steal their credit and burnish his own reputation. They were quite indignant. Couldn’t they find four people on their own?
Xiu Jiacheng was well aware of this and didn’t try to order their people around. He directly instructed his own technical staff, who now had access, “Filter for a list of all new arrivals today, including their locations and all personal data.”
The vehicles headed toward the City Guard’s command center. Just as they were about to arrive, Xiu Jiacheng, who had been rapidly scrolling through the list, suddenly requested a change of destination.
“I’ll lead a team there myself. Lieutenant Colonel Jiang, you should remain at the command center to coordinate our forces. That way, you’ll be ready to respond to any unexpected incidents.”
Was he trying to cut them out and act alone?
Jiang Hua’s gaze deepened, but he didn’t object. He was now certain that while these people were nominally here to provide support, they must have other, secret orders. Since his own orders were to provide full assistance, he wasn’t going to be tactless enough to insist on tagging along.
The convoy split in two. One part drove into the command center, while the other turned around and sped toward the location Xiu Jiacheng had designated.
Upon arrival, Xiu Jiacheng rapidly issued orders. The two hundred soldiers divided into dozens of small teams, melting into the crowd and occupying various strategic positions, subtly forming a blockade.
It was not just a blockade of routes; if necessary, it could become a blockade of fire.
Xiu Jiacheng glanced at the time. It was almost seven o’clock. He didn’t rush to act. He calmly entered the hotel, showed his credentials, and with the hotel’s cooperation, set up his cordon, securing all entrances and exits floor by floor.
The cordon was completed without any sign of movement. He clicked his tongue in his mind. His original plan had been to “startle the snake in the grass,” waiting for his panicked target to bolt so he could legitimately take them down.
Clearly, his opponent was keeping their cool.
He would have to try a different approach.
At seven-thirty, someone knocked on the door to Ji Changqing and He Qingzhi’s room. When there was no response after a long while, hotel staff quickly opened the door, only to find it empty. The bed was messy, clearly having been slept in, but it was completely cold.
Xiu Jiacheng’s face darkened. His earlier confidence vanished, replaced by the pure fury of having been outplayed.
This was nothing like what he had envisioned!
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