Roadmap to the Boundless Sky-Chapter 211: Documents

After they left the war room, Lao Feng brought Chen Chuan to the committee’s logistics office and handed the request form to the logistics officer sitting behind the grilled window at the request counter.

When the logistics officer saw the signature and stamp on the form, he didn’t waste any time and immediately handed the form to the logistics officers behind him so that they could open the storeroom and retrieve the items.

They worked efficiently. In less than ten minutes, they pushed the requested items out in a cart.

Lao Feng checked that nothing would be switched out for something cheaper or missing. Then, he asked the logistics officer to put all the items into a compartmentalized metal box, which he handed to Chen Chuan.

Despite its heavy weight, Chen Chuan took it with ease and said, “Thank you, Mr. Feng.”

Lao Feng dismissed it with a wave. “You don’t have to thank me. This is what you deserve.”

After they signed a form stating that they retrieved the items, Lao Feng brought Chen Chuan outside. “Chen Chuan, you’re about done here. Leave the rest to Yangzhi City’s Department of Administrative Affairs and the other governmental departments. We’ll be leaving in two days. By the way, we’ve also sent money to your personal bank account.”

“What?” Chen Chuan was surprised.

“We submitted most of the money we got from taking down Black Orchid and seizing the other companies, but we distributed the rest among ourselves. As part of the operation, it’s only natural that you got something.

“Don’t worry. That money is legal. All of us at the bottom have to rush to the frontlines. If the top government officials didn’t pay us enough, who would fight for them again?

“Aside from this, you also got a mission reward. It’s all in one lump sum, and no details are stated in the transfer. As long as you know, that’s enough.”

“Okay.”

The operation committee had seized quite a number of Black Orchid Co.’s assets, so many would have benefitted from it. Since the National General Affairs Bureau was fighting at the frontline, they were bound to ask for their share too. What Chen Chuan got would be just an incredibly small slice of the pie.

“You must have applied to go to Central City over the last few days, right? You need money for everything in Central City, so don’t go thinking that we gave you a lot. You might spend it all in the blink of an eye when you get there. Of course, there are plenty of opportunities in Central City, and with your abilities, I’m sure that you’ll find your footing easily enough,” Lao Feng said.

He then searched his pocket for a card with a handwritten phone number. “You won’t be able to contact the National General Affairs Bureau directly, but if you need us, call this number.”

Chen Chuan took the card and carefully put it away. “Thank you, Mr. Feng.”

Lao Feng patted his shoulder. “Come. I need to take care of some things, so I’ll send you back on the way.”

Chen Chuan thanked him again and got into his car. Once they returned to the university, Chen Chuan said goodbye to Lao Feng at the entrance before heading straight to Cheng Zitong’s office in the Logistics Department to update his resume. Mainly, he was going to add his participation in the state operation.

He was only supposed to have a mission from the National General Affairs Bureau, but now, he also had a mission from the Cult Investigation Bureau. While he couldn’t specify the details and only give a general report, if anyone wanted to check, they could find it in the government’s records.

Now, his resume was complete.

When Cheng Zitong read through it, a great sense of satisfaction filled his heart. “Alright. All that’s left is for the new director of the Department of Administrative Affairs to sign this, and we can submit everything. This is usually just a matter of completing the formalities.”

“Mr. Cheng, now that I’ve participated in a state operation, can I apply for an armor permit?” Chen Chuan asked.

“Of course you can. No other mission is a more solid testimony than this one. Even if you don’t ask for it, I’d suggest it for you.”

He then took out a form from his drawer. “Fill this out, and I’ll submit it for you.”

Chen Chuan took it. While he filled it out, he asked, “How long do I have to wait to know the results?”

“There’s still two more months until the end of the year. If you submit it now, you’ll get your results earliest within two months. If they take their sweet time with it, you’ll still get your answer before February,” Cheng Zitong said.

“If that’s the case, does that mean that I can only go to the main campus after this semester ends?” Chen Chuan asked after pondering over it a little.

“In theory, once you get your application approved, you can go to the main campus. In the past, the recommended students would only choose to go in their senior year, but that’s because they weren’t strong enough. You got your unrestricted defense permit in your freshman year. Staying in Yangzhi City would just slow down your progress. The sooner you go, the better for you.

“I think that you’ll be able to go to the main campus after the New Year. Worst case scenario, you’ll just have to wait until February.”

Chen Chuan nodded. He would have plenty of time to wrap things up before going to Central City.

After he came out of the administrative office building, he returned to his room for his daily training.

The next day, Chen Chuan received a parcel. After signing the receipt, he opened it and found that it was the cult information Lei Guangcheng had promised him.

Chen Chuan looked through it and divided it into three sections.

The first section contained details about the most common rituals. It also included an analysis of their sources, a simple introduction of their history and background, the necessary conditions to perform successful rituals, and what sort of materials were required.

Lei Guangcheng even provided the details necessary to differentiate the types of cults through the arrays they made and the steps they took for their rituals. At the end, he also included the steps on how to destroy those rituals and how to set up rituals that would be beneficial for himself.

It should be a document solely reserved for members of the Cult Investigation Bureau. To put it bluntly, if a normal person got their hands on these documents and the channels to obtain the right materials, with the help of a specialist, they could conduct a ritual.

They needed a specialist because the cults’ arrays could not be formed by just randomly doodling on the floor. If the ritual were to have any effects, the array had to be drawn rather accurately, or the results would be lackluster.

The one drawing the array also needed to know the specific use of the ritual and be full of emotion, because they didn’t just need to be immersed in the ritual, but also to affect others through it.

This wasn’t something an average person could do. Either a cult had to train someone like this, or someone had to specialize in this. The latter were people the Cult Investigation Bureau heavily targeted, because once taken into custody, they would put a stop to many rituals, or at the very least, largely increase the cost for conducting the rituals and lowering their effects.

Chen Chuan had always been interested in mysterious things, especially the last part. He could now conduct some simple rituals that could be of help to him.

Of course, he wasn’t allowed to do this unless he got permission from the Cult Investigation Bureau, but that didn’t stop him from memorizing them.

The stack of documents was thick and contained a lot of information. Chen Chuan could take his time reading through it slowly.

Just then, he heard a piece of news on the radio.

「After extensive repairs by the Railway Maintenance Department, the railway going through Spill Hill has been fully restored and is now back in service...」

Chen Chuan paused in his reading. It’s finally back in service? After Black Orchid’s fall, many things have returned to normal.

***

Zhu Xian, the new director of the Department of Administrative Affairs, sat in the VIP carriage in a train leading to Yangzhi City. Sitting across from him was a salesperson in a high-class suit.

“Mr. Zhu, I’m sure that you’ve done your reading on Yangzhi City before coming here. When Black Orchid was around, we couldn’t expand our business. Now that it has fallen, we hope that we can sell our implants here. The city is an untapped market, and it has a lot of potential for development.”

“There are many cities surrounding Central City, but you aren’t promoting implants in most of them. Why Yangzhi City?” Zhu Xian asked while leaning back against his seat.

The man smiled and shot back, “Why did Black Orchid want Yangzhi City?”

Zhu Xian then understood and nodded. “Looks like there’s something special about Yangzhi City.”

“Mr. Zhu, after Black Orchid’s departure, I’m sure that our company isn’t the only one that wants to enter the market, but you’re the one who decides who to pick. Your support is incredibly important to us. If we can set up our business here, we’ll support you in various ways.

“Should you resign from your position in the future, we’ll also provide you a position you’d be satisfied with. This is our promise to you.”

Zhu Xian didn’t answer. His assistant then whispered, “Sir, it’s time for your lunch.”

Knowing that this was his cue to leave, the salesperson smiled and stood up. He grabbed his top hat from the shelf next to him and put it before his chest. Then, he bowed to Zhu Xian. “I’ve had a good time talking to you today, Mr. Zhu. Enjoy your meal. We look forward to your reply.”

He then put on the top hat and left with the assistant showing the way out.

As Zhu Xian watched him leave, he sighed with emotion. “It’s not easy getting things started.”

Once Black Orchid collapsed, a large group of top government officials in Yangzhi City was implicated, and many government officials from other places were transferred into the city to take over their positions. But the local forces of power remained strong, and the National General Affairs Bureau had planted a number of moles too. New companies also set their eyes on the city. The situation was complicated, and trying to sort things out was no easy task.

The assistant came back and set a few telegrams on the table. Even though Zhu Xian hadn’t officially assumed his position, some requests had already been delivered to him.

Most of them were testing where he stood and stating their support for him in advance. Their content wasn't important. He looked through the telegrams briefly and put to memory the names of the senders and the organizations. When he reached the last telegram, he picked it up and asked, “What’s this?”

The assistant took a look and answered, “This is the list of Martial Valor University students applying to go to Central City. One of them is really outstanding, so they sent it to you to sign for approval.”

“The application to go to Central City?” Zhu Xian spent a second pondering over this before he frowned. “This is a small matter. Let’s set it aside for now.”

He came from a family of government officials and was averse to combat forces. Also, compared to these things, he believed that the other administrative organizations were more important, so he placed it at the bottom of the pile.

Just then, he sensed something, and when he looked up, he saw that someone was already sitting across from him. Zhu Xian didn’t know when he came in. The security guards outside didn’t give him a warning either.

But Zhu Xian was great at keeping his composure, and, without batting an eyelid, he asked, “And you are?”