Lu Su: I Have Connections

Jacques was not only a first-level researcher in the Demon Army, but also a Jade Grade Card Master.

That was right—he was a genuine human.

It was just that by the time he had been born, the region where he lived had long since been occupied by the Demon Army.

So he did not feel even the slightest sense of belonging toward Great Ming. After all, the Demon Army had provided his food and shelter for years, and even the materials that had set him on the path of card mastery had come from them.

After he displayed his talent as a researcher, all his treatment had reached its peak.

Jacques naturally knew that once this world was destroyed, he would become a Stray Dog.

But he did not care. The Demon Army had promised him that they would find a way to transform him into one of their kind.

That was why he found the ideas of those older uncles, aunts, and elders around him utterly laughable. They still expected Great Ming to someday fight its way back.

What a joke. If that day ever came, he would eat ten tons of it.

Jacques had even secretly reported some elders around him for colluding with the Shuběi Army. They had wanted to destroy everything he had worked so hard to obtain.

Of course, no one knew he had done those things. Before his family, he had always pretended to be loyal to Great Ming.

It was not to preserve their relationship. He simply wanted to see whether any other elders, including his parents, were colluding with Great Ming.

"Take it away."

Wiping the blood from his hands, Jacques casually instructed the Grafted Demon standing nearby to carry away the fresh Great Ming corpse on the operating table.

After ordering his subordinates to clean the operating room, he walked out.

He casually hung the blood-soaked white coat on the wall, stretched his stiff limbs, and muttered, "What a miserable job."

"I really want to get back to the army already."

As he spoke, he recalled the news he had received not long ago.

"So Cliff got captured by the Shuběi Army."

"And Lord Luster actually lost to a Jade Grade Card Master. What a…"

For a moment, Jacques did not know what words to use to describe the two of them.

Thinking of the description of that person that had come from the army, he could not help curling his lip.

Lu Su, Hu Su, whatever. In the end, he had still run away with his tail between his legs under Lord Commander’s might.

If it had been him, he definitely would not have been so careless and underestimated the enemy.

With that thought, he asked a Guiyi Cult member beside him, "What is the situation in the city now? Is the Association still hunting our people?"

The man lowered his head respectfully and replied, "My lord, the Association Dogs are currently busy dealing with the invading Holy Spirits, so they have no time to concern themselves with us."

"Is that so?" Jacques nodded thoughtfully, then revealed a malicious smile. "Then go capture some experimental material. The ones we caught earlier are almost used up anyway."

"Yes!"

Although they had gone through an assassination attempt, Lu Su and Cui Dazhu did not take long to reach Jeju.

After showing their identification to the staff at the Jeju Card Master Association Headquarters, a Jade Grade female card master with a deeply weary expression soon hurried over to them.

"Lord Luo, Lord Cui, sorry to keep you waiting."

"I am Huo Jing, vice president of the Jeju Card Master Association."

The moment Lu Su and Cui Dazhu entered Jeju, they could clearly sense the city’s heavy atmosphere. With their eyesight, they could also see black smoke rising from the southern part of the city from time to time.

Judging from the current situation, Jeju was only slightly better off than An De.

However, for the city to hold up two Mobile Unit squads in succession, its circumstances definitely were not as simple as they appeared on the surface.

"President Huo, there is no need for such courtesy. The situation is urgent, so let us skip the pleasantries. Please brief us on the situation first."

Lu Su spoke up and interrupted Huo Jing’s polite remarks.

Hearing this, the woman gave a bitter smile, then turned and led the two of them toward the reception room. "I was being overly formal."

"The Secret Realm in the south has now completely invaded."

"If it were merely an ordinary Jade Grade Secret Realm, we would not be struggling this badly. The problem is that there are an extremely large number of Jade Grade beings within that Secret Realm."

Lu Su and Cui Dazhu had already learned about Jeju’s situation from the mission intelligence before arriving.

However, the intelligence had only stated that a Jade Grade Secret Realm had descended upon the city and that the Guiyi Cult had been stirring up trouble in secret, tying down two squads.

Now that he heard there was something wrong with that Jade Grade Secret Realm, Lu Su was not particularly surprised. Combined with the information Guran had provided, Secret Realms like this would likely only become more common on Blue Star in the future.

After all, other worlds could also produce professions as overpowered as Card Masters—such as modelers and mechanics…

"Right now, nearly all the Association’s forces are dealing with the invading demons," Huo Jing continued. "The reason we requested aid from Headquarters is that we hope the two of you can help us deal with the Guiyi Cult in the city."

Upon hearing that, Lu Su understood. No wonder Headquarters had sent their squad to Jeju despite having other teams available. The reason was probably related to his own experience.

He had first dealt with the Guiyi Cult in Donglai, then joined the Shuběi Army. He was probably the only one in the entire Mobile Unit with such a background.

With those thoughts in mind, Lu Su casually asked, "Has the Guiyi Cult caused any disturbances recently?"

Huo Jing shook her head slightly. "It has been nearly half a month since their last major operation. They have not caused any trouble during that time."

"It is just that every time they appear, they abduct many ordinary people and low-level Card Masters. If this continues, I am afraid…"

Jeju had already been on edge because of the Secret Realm Invasion. The Guiyi Cult’s actions were undoubtedly adding fuel to the fire.

After understanding Jeju’s current circumstances, Lu Su and Cui Dazhu exchanged a glance, then nodded slightly. "Understood. Leave it to us."

Though he said that, he did not actually have any particularly good ideas. For now, it seemed they could only wait for the other side to expose a weakness.

Of course, Lu Su had another option: asking whether the Spirit Summoning Society members in Jeju had any clues.

As another illegal organization, those local layabouts would most likely have caught hold of some traces.

Late at night, Lu Su sat cross-legged on his bed, toying with the Sub-machine.

As one of the strongest people in Jeju City, he did not need to worry about exposing his identity because of it.

Even if someone saw it, they would only assume it was one of his unique Item Cards.

Six: Tell me everything you know about the Guiyi Cult in Jeju.

Zhuang Cheng: Understood, Sixth Master.

Elsewhere, an utterly ordinary middle-aged man trembled all over after sensing the message coming through the Sub-machine.

He had never dreamed that such an important figure from the Society would contact him.

Very quickly, he sent Lu Su all the intelligence he had gathered about the Guiyi Cult over the recent period.

Six: Do not tell anyone about what happened today.

After using Jin Ping’s contract to bind him, Lu Su began reading through the intelligence the man had sent.

Not long after, he put away the Sub-machine and muttered, "An abandoned hospital…"

According to the intelligence sent by Zhuang Cheng, one of his low-level Card Masters lived near an abandoned hospital in eastern Jeju and had discovered that disappearances had occasionally occurred nearby in recent days.

However, since the newly appeared Jade Grade Secret Realm was located in the south, they initially assumed ordinary people had fled their homes due to the threat of demons.

After all, such incidents happened throughout Jeju all the time. There was nothing particularly surprising about them.

That was also one reason why the Association had failed to discover the Guiyi Cult’s trail for so long.

With their attention tied down by the Secret Realm, they had no time to conduct a detailed investigation.

Later, however, that low-level Card Master discovered that was not the case.

Although the other side had acted discreetly, those who walked by the river often would eventually get their shoes wet. After one or two months, even an idiot would know something was wrong.

Sure enough, he eventually found traces of Grafted Demons at the scene.

"Whether it is them or not, I should bring Brother Cui over to take a look first."

That thought flashed through Lu Su’s mind. He immediately got up and went to the next room to wake Cui Dazhu, who was meditating.

"Come on, Brother Cui. I found a lead."

"?"

The burly man had just awakened from meditation and was completely confused, but in the end, he did not ask anything and obediently followed Lu Su.

Even if he had asked, Lu Su would only have attributed the lead to his card abilities.

Inside the somewhat eerie abandoned hospital, Jacques sat bored in a dilapidated office chair in the director’s office.

Before him stood several demons and Grafted Demons.

"Lord Jacques, we have brought the people back. Would you like to inspect their quality?"

Jacques waved a hand. "No need. Sort them according to the previous labels so they will be convenient for my experiments later."

"Oh, right. How is Experiment Number Three doing now?"

The Demon Army had naturally sent him here with an experimental assignment, and he had no complaints about that.

After all, he did not feel any heartache experimenting on Great Ming people. It could also create trouble behind the Shuběi Army’s lines and draw their attention. Why would he refuse?

It was not only him. All the researchers dispatched behind enemy lines were the same.

Moreover, every research task carried by these researchers had one thing in common: none had succeeded yet.

Every successful experiment was a treasure of the Demon Army. They would not willingly let Great Ming obtain one for free.

At Jacques’s question, one demon stepped forward and said respectfully, "My lord, Experiment Number Three’s condition has now stabilized. Outbursts like the previous ones have become rare."

Just as Jacques was about to say something, he suddenly looked out the window. "Hm?"

A terrifying aura suddenly and brazenly announced its presence beneath the pitch-black night sky.

"Tch, exposed?"

Jacques clicked his tongue irritably, then looked at the Guiyi Cult members before him, who were bracing themselves as if facing a great enemy. "Release all the test subjects."

"I’ll hold them—"

Before he could finish speaking, a slender, deathly pale hand pierced through the wall and gripped his head.

"What exactly are you going to hold back?"

At that moment, Jacques could barely make out the newcomer’s face through the gaps between the fingers.

It was a youth surrounded by several cards.

Seeing the youth’s face shining beneath the moonlight, Jacques’s pupils contracted sharply.

"Oh? Looks like you know me."

"Then this will be easy."