Chapter 384: Chapter 384 Classic of Mountains and Seas (Subscription Requested)
Pei Yan finished speaking and lightly waved his right hand. The mechanical clone behind him immediately came forward, carrying two captives who struggled to move, and casually tossed them in front of everyone. He raised his electromagnetic cannon mounted on his wrist and aimed it at the back of their heads, then removed his face shield and gave a threatening glare towards the opposite side.
"Ah! How embarrassing!" Bai Ze scratched his head in frustration and turned to look disdainfully at the people behind him. "Each one of you came here full of yourselves, didn’t you? Wasn’t it said that dealing with the Investigation Team would be a piece of cake? And what happened? One got killed, two got captured, and you two couldn’t even take down one person! Is this the young elite that the organization poured all its resources into nurturing? The proud disciples of your masters?"
Listening to Bai Ze’s sarcastic remarks, Hartman remained expressionless, but Lawrence and Mary, who were directly criticized, lowered their heads, seething with frustration and indignation but unable to retort.
After reprimanding his subordinates, Bai Ze turned, spread his hands towards Pei Yan with a smile, and said, "Do you think you’ve pushed us into a corner?"
"Isn’t that the case?" Shangxing stepped forward and questioned in return.
"You didn’t think I’d venture deep into Huaxia’s territory to engage in a battle of wits with your Investigation Team without any backup plan, did you?" Bai Ze said, waving his hand again and pointing to the three people behind him. "These people may be flawed, but they are still the backbone of my generation of God’s Will. They might take a hit here, but they can’t all fall here. I was sent as the final safety valve for this operation."
"Stop with the nonsense. It’s time to show your cards now!" Ye Jiumu, impatient, wiped the dirty water seeping into his ears and urged.
Bai Ze didn’t say more, waving once again to summon that strange flying fish, which leaped out of the water into his hand. "Do you know what this is?"
Hearing his question, everyone in the Investigation Team was taken aback. Shangxing inclined his head towards Pei Yan, who murmured softly, "Boss, I’ve compared it to the database and found no biological data on such a fish. Either it’s an undocumented new species undiscovered by humanity, or it comes from an alternate dimension."
Hearing this, Shangxing nodded, puzzled, and looked at Bai Ze, who no longer spoke in riddles and directly said, "It’s called a Luoyu fish!"
"What fish?" Zheng Jia Ru asked, confused.
Upon hearing Bai Ze’s words and receiving a system update, Pei Yan’s expression subtly shifted. He spoke softly, "A creature recorded in the Classic of Mountains and Seas. It has the body of a fish but the wings of a bird, capable of emitting cries like mandarin ducks. Wherever it appears, it brings flooding."
"The Classic of Mountains and Seas? Isn’t that a mythological text? This thing actually exists?" Ye Jiumu said in disbelief after regaining his composure.
Pei Yan helplessly shook his head with a bitter smile. "Who knows? Haven’t we seen enough strange phenomena?" Despite his words, he stepped forward and loudly stated, "You say it is, but why should we believe you? Even if this truly is the Luoyu fish you claim it to be, so what? Do you think we would be afraid?"
"Of course, you wouldn’t be afraid!" Bai Ze said, tossing the fish back into the water with a chuckle. "I figure you must already know what kind of abilities this fish possesses, right? Doesn’t the flood mysteriously appearing in this flat land say something? You can choose not to believe it, but the consequences will be yours to bear!"
Suspecting what Bai Ze was implying, Shangxing’s face darkened as he demanded, "What exactly are you trying to say!"
"I suppose you’ve evacuated the residents nearby already! Quite the burden your Investigation Team shoulders, isn’t it? Even if everything were to change dramatically here, casualties would be minimized, am I right?" Bai Ze, glancing shiftily and spinning in place as he diverted the topic, laughed, "But what about elsewhere? Are you guarding those places as tightly?"
"You...!"
"Don’t rush!" Bai Ze interrupted the impatient Zheng Jia Ru, raising a hand, and turned to Pei Yan with a smile, "According to our intelligence, you can freely manipulate electronic devices, correct?"
"So what if I can?" Pei Yan coldly replied, calmly watching Bai Ze’s performance.
"Then how about trying to control the surveillance cameras at Jiangwan New City and Tianyi Lanwan neighborhoods to take a look? Oh, by the way, both of these neighborhoods are by the river, supposedly picturesque and well-off areas. Focus on the cameras facing the river for a surprise!"
After Bai Ze’s speech, Pei Yan and Shangxing exchanged glances. Upon Shangxing’s nod, Pei Yan began searching as instructed. After a while, Pei Yan’s expression grew increasingly grim.
"Hey, found something? Is there another one of those fish in the river?" Ye Jiumu, roughly guessing the situation, urgently asked, leaning close to Pei Yan.
Pei Yan nodded with difficulty, his shoulders trembling as two projectors extended from his shoulders, casting a light screen before everyone. Under the dim night, lit by streetlights and moonlight, the shimmering river surface suddenly revealed a flying fish leaping out of the water, followed by another and another, purposefully swimming within the camera’s view as if to provoke.
"Thankfully, this small road is quite secluded, with no people around. Otherwise, just these images alone would make the local news headlines by tomorrow," Pei Yan sighed, rubbing his chin.
"You can still care about that now?" Shangxing coldly grunted, narrowing his eyes as he continued to stare for a moment before questioning, "Are you certain it’s the same kind of fish?"
"Sure of it, there’s no other flying fish species in this freshwater river!"
"What a convenient ability!" Bai Ze’s annoying voice came from across again. Turning to look, they saw his smile fleeting, replaced with a maliciously hard face. "In this place devoid of water sources, a single Luoyu fish can stir up such a flood. So imagine what havoc a school of these Luoyu fish could wreak in this mighty river. I don’t know, but the lower-level residents in those two riverside neighborhoods might not be so lucky, right? Can you evacuate in time? It’s like the moat fire affecting the pond fish! I feel sorry for those people!"
"Despicable!" Zhao Yuanhu spat out venomously through clenched teeth.
"Despicable already? Young lady, you really are naïve!" Bai Ze waved dismissively, turning to Pei Yan, "Take another look at the river. Before, I instructed it to hide. Now, you should be discovering something new!"
At Bai Ze’s words, Pei Yan hurriedly adjusted the lens and continued searching the river surface anew. It wasn’t long before Xia Yu exclaimed beside them, "There, look, there! There’s something there!"
Following Xia Yu’s pointing finger, everyone looked over to see a strange object faintly appearing on the river surface. Ye Jiumu squinted at it and mumbled, "It looks like a cow! Could it be a water buffalo?"
"Are you stupid? Can a water buffalo from your home walk on water? Ninja cow practicing chakra or what!" Xia Yu retorted irritably.