9: Chapter 9: Citywide Martial Law Declared in Search of the "Scrap King"—It's Terrifying!

Kyoto, Xishan Military Restricted Zone.

Deep within the strategic command center, three hundred meters underground, the red telephone that had been gathering dust for years suddenly let out a piercing buzz.

General Qin Weiguo, Commander of the Southeast Theater Command, who was studying a map, felt his eyebrows twitch violently.

He snatched up the receiver, but before he could even speak, the voice of Academician Sun Zhenhua came through, nearly roaring, his voice hoarse like a broken bellows.

"Old Qin! Level one alert! Tianhai University has discovered complete EUV technology! I repeat, it is complete technology!"

"Even if you have to turn Tianhai City upside down, you must protect that student named Jiang Chen for me! If he loses a single hair, I will tear down your headquarters!"

General Qin Weiguo's hand gripping the receiver stiffened, his pupils instantly contracting to the size of pinpricks.

EUV? Lithography Machine?

As a hawk in the military, he knew too well the weight of those three words.

It was the Sword of Damocles hanging over the head of the Dragon Kingdom, the iron hand with which the West gripped the throat of the Dragon Kingdom.

Now, this sword had been pulled out by a college student?

"Guard company! Assemble!"

General Qin Weiguo threw down the phone and rushed out of the command room like an enraged lion, roaring at his adjutant outside the door: "Notify the Tianhai City garrison to immediately seal off a five-kilometer radius around Tianhai University! Set up checkpoints at all intersections! Don't let a single fly escape!"

"Contact the National Security Bureau and pull up all the files on that student named Jiang Chen! I want to know if his ancestors for eighteen generations were clean!"

"Also, prepare the aircraft! I am going to Tianhai City personally!"

Ten minutes later, the sky over Tianhai City changed.

The once peaceful university town was suddenly shattered by a teeth-grinding roar of machinery.

The road surface trembled.

Several heavy armored vehicles painted in camouflage crushed the asphalt pavement like steel behemoths, recklessly charging into the main road.

Private cars on the roadside were so terrified they scrambled to avoid them, with several crashing directly into the green belt.

"Hum—hum—"

A massive sound of propellers churning came from overhead, and two armed helicopters swept by at low altitude, their massive air currents kicking up dust everywhere, the pitch-black muzzles of their cannons gleaming with a cold light in the sun.

The students of Tianhai University were completely in an uproar.

Those who were previously dating on the playground, saving seats in the library, or playing games in their dorms were all pressed against the windows, looking with terror at a scene only seen in Hollywood blockbusters.

"What the f*ck! What's going on? Are we at war?"

"Did you see that? That's a 99A main battle tank, right? Why did it drive to the school gate?"

"I heard it's to catch terrorists! The physics department area was just sealed off, they won't even let a bird in!"

"Terrorists? Do we have such hardcore people in our school? Could it be that someone built an atomic bomb in the lab and blew it up?"

Panic spread through the campus like a virus.

Everyone was guessing which earth-shattering big villain could attract this level of state machinery to surround and suppress them.

Meanwhile, at the center of this storm—the "big villain" Jiang Chen was holding a stainless steel tray, standing in front of the window at the Second Canteen, looking conflicted.

"Auntie, don't shake your hand."

Jiang Chen watched the spoon in the canteen lady's hand longingly, "There weren't many pieces of braised pork to begin with, and with that shake, I lost another two pieces of lean meat. I'm a brain worker now, I need to replenish."

The lady rolled her eyes, but considering this young man looked quite spirited, she finally dumped that spoonful of meat onto the rice.

"Eat, eat, eat, that's all you know! Didn't you hear the alarm outside?"

The lady muttered while serving the food, "I heard a spy mixed in, don't know if they can catch them. Young man, hurry back to your dorm to hide after you eat, don't wander around outside."

"A spy?"

Jiang Chen carried his tray to a corner and sat down, stuffing a large piece of fatty and lean braised pork into his mouth, muttering unclearly, "Are spies this high-profile these days? Daring to come to the university town to cause trouble?"

He looked through the floor-to-ceiling window at the helicopters circling outside, his heart completely calm, even a little amused.

It was probably some film crew shooting a movie, or maybe some anti-terrorism drill.

Anyway, it had nothing to do with him.

His mind was now filled with the image of Sun Zhenhua's inexperienced look from earlier.

It was just a few blueprints, right?

Was it worth getting so excited that he needed to take emergency heart pills?

And that old man was weird too.

After seeing the blueprints, not only did he not detain him, but he kindly told him to go eat, saying things like "The country will not mistreat its heroes" and "Young people need to eat on time."

It made Jiang Chen wonder for a moment if the old man had taken a liking to him and wanted to recruit him as a live-in grandson-in-law.

"Whatever, anyway, 400,000 is in the bag, the assignment is submitted, this is a huge profit."

Jiang Chen happily took a sip of the free seaweed and egg drop soup.

Just then, the mobile phone on the table suddenly began to vibrate wildly.

It wasn't a call, but a text message bombardment.

Jiang Chen frowned, picked up the phone, and was stunned.

The first message was from XX Bank: [Respected Mr. Jiang, given that your credit rating has been upgraded to "National Special Level," your account's daily transfer limit has been canceled, and transfer fees are waived. Your exclusive financial advisor is on the way, please keep your phone accessible.]

Jiang Chen: "?"

I only deposited 400,000, and I'm already a special-level customer?

Since when did the bank's threshold become so low?

The second message was from the mobile operator: [Respected user, your mobile number has been upgraded to "Global Encrypted Satellite Communication," and signal priority has been adjusted to the highest level. Even in uninhabited areas or the deep sea, your call quality can be guaranteed. Additionally, your plan has been automatically upgraded to lifetime free unlimited data.]

Jiang Chen: "??"

Scam messages, right?

Satellite communication?

Next, you'll tell me I have an Ultraman transformation device!

The third message was even more outrageous; it was actually from the school's Academic Affairs Office, and the wording was extremely humble: [Student Jiang Chen, regarding the "expulsion warning" previously issued to you, it was a system misjudgment and has now been revoked. Principal Zhou Weimin, on behalf of all faculty and students, extends his sincerest apologies to you and cordially invites you to serve as the school's "Honorary Alumnus." PS: Your final exam scores have all been locked as perfect scores.]

The chopsticks in Jiang Chen's hand clattered onto the table.

This braised pork... suddenly didn't taste good anymore.

If the first two messages could be explained as a new type of telecommunications fraud, then what about this message from the school?

Who has such great ability to hack into the academic affairs system to change their grades and even make the principal apologize?

An ominous premonition crawled up his spine.

He subconsciously looked around.

The canteen was still noisy, with students still discussing the armored vehicles outside.

But Jiang Chen keenly noticed that the three tables around him had filled up with people at some unknown time.

They were all young, able-bodied men.

They weren't wearing uniforms, just ordinary jackets or hoodies, but their posture—backs straight, feet planted on the ground, shoulders slightly tense—definitely lacked the relaxation that ordinary students should have.

Most importantly, they hadn't bought any food.

The tables were empty, save for pairs of eyes hidden behind sunglasses, locking onto him almost imperceptibly.

"Gulp."

Jiang Chen swallowed the braised pork in his mouth with difficulty.

Could it be... that "spy" is me?

Is it because of those blueprints?

Or because of that kilogram of gold?

Just as he was about to get up and slip away, a broad, powerful hand pressed silently onto his shoulder.

The palm was like an iron clamp, completely immovable, yet exuded a sense of oppression that made one dare not resist.

The hair all over Jiang Chen's body stood on end.

Behind him came a deep, hoarse, yet somewhat respectful voice: "Mr. Jiang, is the braised pork delicious?"

"If you aren't full, we can wait for you a while. If you are full... can you come with us for a trip?"