After leaving the meeting room, Chen Chuan was given a temporary room at the Patrol Bureau Headquarter, as he was to continue with his mission.

As for the set of equipment he received from Old Feng, after signing his name, it was left with him. It wouldn’t need to be returned in the future; if it was damaged, it would be written off. However, he wasn’t allowed to sell it, or he would be held responsible.

Whether by coincidence or design, the place he was staying was the exact same room he had been in during his last visit to the Headquarter.

After taking a quick shower, he changed his clothes and sat down in his room.

From Specialist Cao’s words, it seemed he might confront the Molan Company’s defensive forces within the next day or two. This meant he needed to find a way to cut through that type of Protective Clothing.

The simplest idea was to switch weapons; striking with a heavy object was often more effective. However, this would affect his original speed and require him to change his fighting style. It would be far from as natural to use as his current weapon, and it was practically impossible to become combat-effective with it in just a day or two.

Switching out the Snow Monarch Blade was also unlikely. After all, he was already used to it, and the performance of standard-issue weapons wasn’t necessarily better than the Snow Monarch Blade’s.

In that case, his only option was to find a solution through his Power. In his battle with Tan Wang, the Heavy Slash Blade Force had proven effective.

But there was a problem. Activating the Heavy Slash Blade Force required a brief charge-up. A single slash was fine, but if he performed consecutive slashes, a subtle pause would occur during the transition, which could lead to a lag in his rhythm.

This was with the help of his "Second Self." Without the Second Self, the charge-up and adjustment time would likely be even longer. Against ordinary opponents, a simple slash was sufficient, which was why he rarely used this Sword Force.

Now faced with a difficult problem, he had to figure out a way to adjust it.

A Sword Manual, after all, was created by a person. It was based not only on the creator’s own experience and understanding but also had to account for the strength and amount of their own Mutated Organization.

If nothing else, he dared say his own Mutated Organization was far more abundant and complex than that of the Sword Manual’s creator.

When practicing the Sword Force previously, he had followed it to the letter at the very beginning, but later on, he stopped following it completely and instead made some of his own reasonable adjustments.

Now, as his ability to call upon and utilize his Mutated Organization became deeper and more comprehensive, he felt he could further change his method of Force Application. He now had both the means and the ability to solve this problem.

He’d had ideas before but lacked the time to act on them. Now, he could settle down and put them into practice. Although the process would consume a large amount of medicine, since the state was providing for his needs, he wasn’t going to hold back.

He first closed his eyes to meditate, calming his mind and slowly channeling his Mutated Organization through his breathing. After a long while, he lifted the Snow Monarch Blade and slashed. A moment later, he slashed again, repeating the motion. This was a process of moving from little to much, from shallow to deep, gradually coordinating more of his Mutated Organization to participate.

As more and more of his Mutated Organization was incorporated into the Sword Force, he felt a noticeable improvement in the transition between his Saber Techniques.

But eventually, it seemed something was still missing. After all, the Sword Force first required him to gather the Mutated Organization within his body and then transfer it to the Snow Monarch Blade. This sequential process was what caused the slight lag.

’But maybe... there’s another way...’

He then twirled the Snow Monarch Blade and guided his breathing slowly. After about half a day, the blade began to hum continuously, and the red line along its spine seemed to come alive.

When he brandished the blade again, he found that the feeling of lag had faded, and the transitions had become much smoother and more fluid.

’I see...’

He was lost in thought. ’The purpose of this blade isn’t just to channel Power; it can also become an extension of my body.’

’Once I connect the Mutated Organization within the Snow Monarch Blade to my own, it can be activated simultaneously during Force Application, eliminating the need for that sequential transfer process.’

’This is the true purpose of this blade.’

Those who can do this don’t need to be told, and for those who can’t, being told is useless.

It’s something a Sword Master must comprehend on their own.

The reason he hadn’t discovered this before was that this connection required a process, much like a person needing to warm up before exercise, or their movements would be sluggish. For a blade to "warm up," it needed a very long time, just like the time he had just spent.

None of his previous battles had ever lasted half a day. Even his fight with Tan Wang was over in about an hour.

However, this wasn’t an unchangeable situation. First, as the bond between them deepened, this process would shorten. That was the long-term view. For a more immediate solution, he could choose to actively connect with it beforehand, warming it up thoroughly so the blade was always in a primed and ready state.

There was another method: kill some non-threatening opponents first, and then seek out the main target. It had been proven that the more intense the battle and the heavier the killing, the more active the Mutated Organization would become.

But this still depended on the specific situation. A plan was just a plan; real combat rarely offered ideal conditions. Still, he should at least be able to prepare in advance for this battle, because this time he was on the offensive and held the initiative.

So, for the next two or three days, what he needed to do was warm up the blade in advance and prepare to enter combat at a moment’s notice.

At that moment, in the Molan Company’s underground conference room, five directors were listening to Manager Luo’s report. Aside from the construction of defensive points around the Molan Building, the main topics were the interception of the High-Energy Nutrient Supplement shipment and the ambush and killing of the personnel sent to retrieve it.

Manager Luo said, "I initially advised against trying to retrieve this shipment. But the directors insisted, arguing it was a company asset and there was no reason not to try and recover it. So, the operations team had no choice but to send several elite operatives, including two Three-Limited Fighters. This time, not a single one came back..."

At this, his voice held a hint of dissatisfaction. "It’s certain they were ambushed and killed on the way to the wasteland. We even exposed a safe passage the operations team had set aside. This loss could have been avoided."

One of the directors spoke with a harsh tone. "Manager Luo, I need to remind you one more time: you may offer suggestions and you may raise questions, but whether they are adopted and how we act are all decisions made by the company. Those two personnel were also company assets, not your private forces, Manager Luo."

Another director said, "Decision-making requires sacrifices. Before making a decision, the company conducts a detailed and cautious analysis and assessment. If an error occurs, it’s merely because certain unfavorable factors were not accounted for. We will question the intelligence department and hold them responsible. This is not your concern, Manager Luo.

"Manager Luo, all you need to do is obey."

Manager Luo was silent for a moment before slowly saying, "Yes."

"If you have nothing else to report, Manager Luo, then please leave. The company has further actions planned, and the external operations team needs to be on standby."

Manager Luo said nothing more and turned to walk out.

After he left, the pneumatic door of the conference room hissed shut. The fluorescent screen behind the five Molan Company directors suddenly lit up, and they all turned to face it.

The screen displayed a topographical map of Yangzhi, complete with waterways, mountain ranges, highways, towns, and more. At this moment, a blinking light could be seen on the eastern coastline, slowly sliding south from the north.

One of the directors said slowly, "A telegram just came in. Two warships from the north have arrived at Yuanwang Port, including a troop transport. There’s a considerable number of soldiers on board. They should be coming from the direction of Cold Valley City."

His voice was grave. "This is a clear sign that the Dashun Government is preparing to mobilize troops from the naval port in Cold Valley City to come south and deal with us."

Another director thought for a moment before speaking. "Yuanwang Port is only four hundred kilometers from Yangzhi City, and they’re connected by the National Path. Once the troops land, the advance units could reach Yangzhi City in less than a day."

The atmosphere in the conference room grew heavy. The Molan directors all understood that this might only be the first wave of troops. More reinforcements could follow, and by then, they would be trapped in the Molan Building with no way out.

After a while, one director asked, "Is the intelligence reliable?"

The first director replied, "That’s what the observation post stationed there reported. But I believe the information is sound. With only the forces currently in Yangzhi City, it would be difficult for them to breach our defenses without taking heavy losses. Using the army could force us to surrender, which is also their lowest-cost option."

The five directors fell silent. The crux of the matter was that they couldn’t afford to gamble. If it was true, any delay would rob them of all their options.

They had to start preparing for withdrawal, effective immediately.

The director who had spoken first said, "I recommend we activate Protocol Three immediately."

The other four directors all agreed.

Just two hours later, after a long period of inactivity following the Judgement Court incident, a convoy suddenly emerged from the Molan Building’s underground parking garage and headed toward the East City National Path.

Before this, they had radioed ahead to inform Fatty Guo, the head of the Blood Mark Gang who had been hiding out. He was to provide support. Because he had always remained outside the city and stayed out of its conflicts, he had managed to avoid the previous clashes. And since he was outside the city, no one had made a point to clean him up afterward.

The moment the convoy drove out, Specialist Cao received the news. He realized Molan Company was on the move and acted decisively, summoning personnel from various departments to a combat briefing room.

This time, the participants included the Central City Processing Bureau, the Esoteric Review Bureau, the Patrol Bureau, and various administrative departments from Yangzhi City. Even Wuyi Academy sent a representative.

After the briefing officer gave a rough outline of the situation, an official from the Yangzhi City Administrative Affairs Hall asked, "Since Molan Company is on the move, Specialist Cao, should we immediately issue an order to pursue?"

Specialist Cao said, "This convoy must be taken down, but it’s likely just a smoke bomb. The East City National Path leads to the port, or to the Central City Headquarter. If they return to their Headquarter at this time, they’ll only face a more severe crackdown. So, there’s no way they’re going back."

He looked at the crowd. "I predict that their key personnel and armed forces will choose to retreat from a different location."

"Then where will they go?" the official from the Administrative Affairs Hall asked.

Specialist Cao’s gaze fell on the sand table in the middle of the room. He reached out, pointed to a specific spot, and said, "My assessment is that the place they’ve chosen is right here!"

...

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