170: Chapter 170 Deceiving the Real from the Fake, a Secret Maneuver

Forging a "pseudo-psionic" signal alert pointing to the Northwest Zone—if he could make the other side believe it, even just temporarily, it could force Zhou Ming's action team to divert their energy to investigate, thereby reducing the search pressure on the eastern underground, and also creating a sliver of uncertainty and delay (needing to confirm the authenticity of the alert) for Su Qing's operation to pressure Wang Hao and Sun Li.

the key lay in making the forged signal sufficiently "professional" and "credible." This required utilizing known "pseudo-psionic" characteristics (summarized from himself, the black stone, and his perception of the Old Factory District) and precisely simulating its parameters.

The risk was that the other side might quickly disprove it, but even if it were exposed as a fake, it would just be a "false alarm" and would not directly expose his ability to launch active information attacks, still leaving room for maneuver.

Ling Ye did not hesitate any longer, his fingers operating rapidly on the tablet. He entered the "Report Status (Simulation)" interface. There were several preset "simulation event" templates here, such as "Equipment Malfunction," "Insufficient Energy," and "Standard Biological Signal Detected," but there was no option for a "pseudo-psionic signal."

He had to construct it manually. He chose the closest template, "Abnormal Energy Reading Detected," and began editing the details.

Location: Manually input the coordinates. He pulled up the PIT's offline map, found a relatively desolate area in the Northwest Zone of Dawn City that contained old industrial ruins, and entered its approximate coordinates.

Signal Type: Select "Abnormal Energy Reading," and check the sub-categories "Non-standard Spectrum," "Suspected Life Energy Related," and "High-Frequency Fluctuation."

Intensity: Set to "High" (but not so high that it would be absurd and arouse suspicion).

Duration: Set to "Intermittent, disappearing after approximately 30 seconds."

Characteristic Description: He recalled the various sensations he felt when using "Spiritual Sense," the resonance of the black stone, and his perception of the anomalies in the Old Factory District, and described it in a tone that was as professional as possible while carrying a sense of uncertainty: "The reading presents intense, non-linear information disturbance patterns. There are high-frequency harmonics in the spectrum that are faintly similar to the residual characteristics of 'secondary pollution sources' in the archives, but there is no clear corrosiveness. Accompanied by extremely brief signs of life-field resonance, which then disappeared. Suspected to be the unconscious leakage of an unstable 'pseudo-psionic' individual, or the brief activation by someone carrying an 'abnormal item.' Recommend immediately dispatching a technical team for on-site verification and spectrum capture."

Priority: Set to "High."

Recommended Action: "Request nearby action teams (such as the Nightingale Team) to proceed to the coordinate area for verification and authorize the use of psionic detection enhancement equipment. At the same time, it is recommended to suspend non-emergency operations in the eastern region and concentrate resources to confirm the source of this sudden signal, in case it has a potential connection to 'the key' or 'Escapee-Zero'."

The last sentence was guidance he had carefully added, with the intention of drawing the "Nightingale Team" (Zhou Ming) away from the east, and implying that this signal might be related to "the key" or himself, increasing the likelihood of it being taken seriously.

After editing, he quickly checked it over. The description looked professional enough and left room for ambiguity and uncertainty, fitting the characteristics of a report made when a monitoring station accidentally discovers an anomaly. The coordinates were far from the east and located in a relatively remote area, making it convenient for the other side to verify while also buying himself time.

He took a deep breath and clicked "Simulate Report."

The screen flickered, displaying "Simulated Status Reporting...". The progress bar moved forward slowly.

The low battery warning flashed again, and the screen began to dim.

Hurry! Hurry!

"Report successful. Simulation record generated. Note: This is a simulated operation and does not generate actual instructions." A screen prompt popped up.

Success! The fake alert had been "reported" to the System and existed as a simulation record. But the key was whether this simulation record would, like a real alert, be automatically processed and filtered by the "Main Relay Station" System, and trigger a notification or be distributed to relevant units (such as the Nightingale Team)?

Ling Ye could not be sure. This depended on the degree of automation of the other side's System and their settings for such simulated reports. He was betting that in this final stage of the "Purification Net," a moment of high tension, any "high-priority" anomaly report, even a simulation test or false alarm, might be given a second look by personnel on duty or the automated System, or even trigger a low-level verification process.

That would be enough! Even if it just made Zhou Ming receive a prompt saying "Suspected anomaly in the Northwest Zone, please be aware," it might cause him to hesitate in his decision-making, or at least require him to divert a portion of his attention.

After doing all this, the tablet's battery was completely depleted; the screen flickered a few times, went completely black, and shut down automatically.

Ling Ye placed the tablet back where it was (trying his best not to leave traces of it having been moved) and then immediately stood up. This place was not suitable for a long stay; regardless of whether the fake alert took effect, he had to leave immediately.

He did not return to the shaft ladder the way he came. Since this monitoring station was added later, it was very likely to have other exits, such as maintenance passages or emergency exits.

He quickly searched the equipment hall. Soon, behind those military equipment cabinets, he found an inconspicuous airtight door with a manual valve, marked "Emergency Exit - Leading to Secondary Maintenance Passage."

This was it!

Ling Ye turned the valve, and the door opened in response. Behind the door was a narrow but relatively clean metal passage illuminated by faint emergency lights. The passage extended upward with a gentle slope.

He slipped inside, closed the door behind him, and then walked quickly up along the passage. The passage was silent, with only his own footsteps and breathing.

After walking for about ten minutes, stairs leading upward appeared ahead in the passage. At the end of the stairs was another door with a small observation window on it, letting in natural light from outside!

Was it an exit to the surface?!

Ling Ye felt a surge of joy, but became even more vigilant. He quietly crept up to the observation window and looked out.

Outside appeared to be a semi-underground equipment room or storage room, piled with some miscellaneous items, but it was empty. Further away, sunlight slanted in from a high window, casting bright spots of light on the ground.

This was no longer the pitch-black underground cavern or the roaring shaft! This was the interior of a surface building!

He had successfully come out from underground! And, it seemed he had arrived in a relatively remote, unguarded building!

He cautiously pushed open that door, slipped out, and quickly observed the environment.

This really did look like an auxiliary equipment room of an abandoned Warehouse or factory; the air smelled of dust and machine oil, but there was plenty of light. He walked to the high window and looked out.

Outside the window was a somewhat desolate-looking factory area, with low factory buildings and rusted pipes in the distance. The sky was leaden-gray, but it was undoubtedly the daytime sky.

Where... was this? Judging by the architectural style and the level of decay, it didn't seem to be Rust Town, nor the Industrial Zone. It was more like... some Old Factory District on the edge of the city?

He took out the PIT (with only a tiny bit of power left), opened the offline map, and tried to locate himself. The signal was very weak, but the approximate location was displayed—

Dawn City, North Zone, the site of the abandoned "Seventh Textile Factory."

The North Zone! He had really come to the North Zone! Through that ancient passage of The Shelter and the subsequent underground monitoring station, he had successfully transferred from the underground of the city's east to the surface of the North Zone!

The coordinates for the fake alert were set in the Northwest Zone, which was not too far from here. If Zhou Ming was really drawn over there, then at this moment, he should be far away from this area!

Temporarily safe? At least, he was temporarily out of the most direct search circle.

But the crisis was far from over. The Old Factory District barrier was on the verge of collapse (possibly only 3-5 hours left), the "Purification Net" final stage had already started, and Wang Hao and Sun Li might be being contacted or pressured by Su Qing.

Although he had temporarily escaped, he was still covered in wounds, starving and thirsty, and his identity had been exposed; he was "Escapee-Zero," wanted by the entire city.

He needed food, water, and medicine, and he needed an absolutely safe hiding place to recover and plan his next step.

Furthermore, he had to find a way to warn or help Wang Hao and Sun Li. He could not let them be harmed because of him.

Perhaps... he could take the risk of using this PIT (if he could still find a place to charge it) to try to contact them? But the risk was huge.

Or, in this relatively unfamiliar environment of the North Zone, should he first find a way to survive, obtain more information, and then plan his next move?

Ling Ye leaned his back against the cold wall and slowly slid down to sit on the floor. The brief joy of escaping was quickly replaced by the even heavier pressure of reality.

But at least he was still alive, still free, and, in a desperate situation, he had completed an incredible transfer and a bold distraction.

What next? Should he continue to lurk and avoid the impending final "Purification"?

Or... before the storm completely descended, with this broken body, carry out a final counterattack?