225: Chapter 225 The Older Generation's Counterattack!

Early the next morning.

When Lu Cheng woke up, his arms were already empty.

There was still a hint of warmth left in the blankets.

Outside the window, mist clung to the bamboo forest, and the Tang Family mansion appeared exceptionally quiet in the early morning.

Lu Cheng sat up and rubbed his brow.

The scenes from last night flashed through his mind, and he couldn't help but exhale a breath of murky air.

"This girl... she's responsible for teasing but not for cooling things down..."

He looked down at his terminal.

There was a message left by Qian Shuying on it.

[Qian Shuying: I've returned to the Navigator Academy first.]

[Qian Shuying: There's no need for me to keep watching over things here; the Alliance organization has taken shape, and the System has been established.]

[Qian Shuying: Li Huayi will help the Tang Family and Zhou Family with the follow-up coordination.]

[Qian Shuying: Take care of yourself.]

Lu Cheng looked at the last sentence, remained silent for two seconds, and then slowly placed the terminal face down by the bed.

After washing up, he originally intended to check on the follow-up of the Alliance here at the Tang Family.

But just as he stepped out the door, he suddenly received a message from Mei Wushuang.

[Don't run around these next few days.]

[The Navigator Academy and the top brass of the Dragon Kingdom are making a big move.]

Lu Cheng raised an eyebrow slightly.

A big move?

...

At the same time.

Navigator Academy.

In the supreme conference room, the three deans sat in the main seats.

Mei Wushuang sat on the left, with dense screens of data floating in front of her.

Below, in the conference room, sat the heads of the Department of Education, the Inspection Department, the Martial Arts Association, and various provincial governments.

More seats were occupied by holographic projections.

The political world.

The business world.

The police force.

Inspection Systems from various regions.

There were even a few elderly figures who rarely showed their faces.

But there was one exception: the military was absent.

From the very beginning, this meeting had clear boundaries.

Rear-area cleanup belongs to the rear.

The border battlefield belongs to the Military District.

An elder from the Department of Education spoke slowly:

"After the Qian Family incident, quite a few leads regarding the Black Seed and the Origin Organization have emerged from the shadows."

"After the Tang Family incident, some of the gray channels linked to the Qin Family faction have also been exposed."

"The time is now ripe."

"All Black Seed and Origin Organization strongholds within the Dragon Kingdom are to be wiped out."

The conference room fell briefly silent.

Someone frowned.

"A nationwide synchronized sweep creates too much of a commotion."

"If they are cornered and act like dogs jumping over a wall, they might harm ordinary people."

Another head from the Inspection Department said coldly:

"They are just a bunch of clowns."

"The main stronghold of the Origin Organization is not within the Dragon Kingdom."

"The core altar of the Black Seed is also outside our borders."

"These strongholds within the Dragon Kingdom are at best branches and experimental sites."

"They cannot stir up much trouble."

Someone said in a low voice:

"Twenty years ago, the Dragon Kingdom hadn't fully stabilized yet."

"Many things had to be let go for the time being..."

"If we had been free back then, these guys should have been liquidated long ago."

Director Mo Zhan, sitting in the main seat, tapped the table. The headmaster hadn't appeared, so he was the most senior person in the Navigator Academy...

"We must be clear."

"The enemy we must ultimately face has never been these rats in the sewer."

The conference room quieted down.

Director Mo Zhan's voice was aged but carried an extremely profound aura.

"But before that day arrives, the rear must be stable."

Mei Wushuang raised her hand and projected a map of the Dragon Kingdom.

On the map, dense red dots lit up.

The Imperial Capital, Demon City, Nanling, Bashu...

Every red dot represented a suspected Black Seed or Origin Organization stronghold.

Her voice was cold and clear.

"Phase one: The Inspection Department and local police Systems will blockade the perimeter."

"Phase two: The Martial Arts Association and elite teams from major colleges will enter to sweep."

"Phase three: The Department of Education will make public the dangers of the Black Seed and the evidence of the Origin Organization's crimes."

"Phase four: Local chambers of commerce will cut off their sources of funds and Materials."

"Move quickly."

"We cannot give them a chance to move ordinary people."

A chamber of commerce representative nodded.

"The Southwest Mutual Aid Alliance recently formed by the Qian Family, Tang Family, and Zhou Family can assist in cutting off the underground material supply lines in the Southwest."

Mei Wushuang nodded.

"Contact Tang Fuyuan."

"Tell them to cooperate."

Director Mo Zhan said slowly:

"Begin."

...

The attack came very quickly.

At noon that day, actions were taken almost simultaneously across the Dragon Kingdom.

In a certain coastal city, a company ostensibly dealing in medical equipment was blockaded by the Inspection Department.

On the third underground level, an Origin Organization human experimentation laboratory was discovered on the spot.

Incubation pods, modification serums, incomplete data, and records of human Source Power Fusion were all sealed.

Outside Nanling City, an abandoned mine was breached by a Martial Arts Association team.

Black Seed cultists were holding a pollution ritual; before the altar could be fully opened, it was smashed to pieces by a dozen instructors of the Hua Hai Realm working together.

In the old district of Demon City, a Black Seed branch hidden under an orphanage sponsorship foundation was eradicated.

In the mountain paths of Bashu, the Tang Family's hidden weapon team cooperated with the Inspection Department to capture three adventure teams specializing in transporting toxic Materials for the Origin Organization.

On the internet, a monstrous wave was stirred up at the same time.

The Dragon Kingdom officials comprehensively elaborated on the dangers of the Black Seed.

Pollution, sacrifice, mental erosion, alienation.

Using ordinary people as sacrifices for Ancient Gods.

On the other hand, information about the Origin Organization was also made public.

A large amount of human research content was censored.

But even though it was censored, ordinary people still felt their scalps go numb upon seeing it.

For a time, the Black Seed and the Origin Organization became the target of public criticism.

Some rumors that had been hidden in the shadows in the past were finally brought into the sunlight.

Public opinion burned like a fire.

Strongholds everywhere collapsed rapidly in this fire.

...

Bashu Tang Family.

Lu Cheng had not left the house for the past few days.

He had locked himself in the Cultivation chamber specially cleared out by the Tang Family.

This Cultivation chamber of the Tang Family was built underground, and the concentration of Source Power was extremely high.

Hearing that Lu Cheng wanted to go into seclusion to Cultivate Source Techniques, Tang Fuyuan directly granted him the highest level of access.

"Whatever Student Lu needs, the Tang Family will cooperate with full effort."

Thus, Lu Cheng began to grind.

Hundred Shadow Killing Array, Ten Thousand Souls Prison Suppression.

One Shadow type, one Soul type.

Both were S-rank Source Techniques.

Practicing to proficiency wasn't difficult, but practicing to mastery was very mentally draining.

To push them to the Origin level, he could only keep grinding for experience...

Inside the Cultivation chamber.

Lu Cheng sat cross-legged.

The shadows beneath him spread out like a tide.

Shadow Clones stood up one after another from the shadows.

Ten.

Fifty.

One hundred.

One hundred and eight shadows surrounded him, forming a huge circular killing array.

These shadow bodies no longer simply imitated his movements.

They seemed to truly possess combat instincts.

Some lurked.

Some feigned attacks.

Some blocked in front of the main body.

Some merged into the corner shadows, waiting for an opportunity.

Lu Cheng closed his eyes, feeling the breathing of every shadow.

Suddenly, his fingertips moved slightly.

A Shadow Clone was shattered by an attack beam from the Source Array.

After the shadow shattered, it didn't completely dissipate.

It merged into the ground and re-condensed from the shadows on the other side.

At the same time, a black crack appeared on the surface of the Source Array that had fired the attack beam.

It was as if when the shadow body was shattered, it returned a portion of the backlash damage to the attacker.

A System prompt appeared.

[Hundred Shadow Killing Array - Origin]

[Shadow bodies can merge into ground shadows and re-condense after being shattered. A large number of shadow bodies form a killing array, which can surround and kill enemies. Each time a shadow body is shattered, it will cause backlash damage to the target equal to 5% of the damage limit taken by the shadow body.]

Lu Cheng slowly opened his eyes.

"This is a bit devious."

When the enemy shatters a Shadow Clone, it will re-condense.

Shatter it once, and they have to take backlash damage.

If a group of people is surrounded by a hundred shadows, the harder they kill, the more backlash they take.

It might have limited effect against high-Realm powerhouses.

But in large-scale melees, this thing is ridiculously disgusting.

More importantly, Shadow Clones can bait out skills.

The enemy uses an ultimate skill to clear the shadows, only for them to shatter and re-condense, then strike back and shave off a layer of their health.

Next was Ten Thousand Souls Prison Suppression.

Lu Cheng put away the Hundred Shadow Killing Array, and black-gold Soul light slowly rose behind him.

The air in the Cultivation chamber instantly became heavy.

The mental stability array on the walls began to flicker violently.

A blurry phantom of a Soul prison unfolded behind Lu Cheng.

At first, it was just the size of the room.

Then it continued to expand.

The underground Cultivation chamber.

The Tang Family inner courtyard.

The entire Tang Family mansion.

Finally, the aura of the Soul prison even briefly covered a corner of Bashu City.

Of course, Lu Cheng quickly retracted it.

He wasn't stupid enough to run it at full power casually in the Tang Family mansion.

But for that instant, many experts of the Tang Family felt their hearts tremble.

It was as if an invisible prison had swept through the depths of their Souls.

Tang Heqing stood on the back mountain and suddenly looked up.

A flash of shock appeared in the old man's eyes.

"This kid..."

"Just how many more things does he have?"

Inside the Cultivation chamber.

Behind Lu Cheng, a phantom of a black-gold throne slowly condensed.

Countless Soul chains hung down.

He could clearly feel that Ten Thousand Souls Prison Suppression had evolved from simple Soul pressure into a pseudo-Domain.

It couldn't yet compare to a true War Emperor Domain.

But below the War Emperor level, this was already close to rule-based suppression.

[Ten Thousand Souls Prison Suppression - Origin]

[Using one's own Soul Origin as the core, unfold the Ten Thousand Souls Prison Suppression.]

[The Domain range can cover an entire city; all targets within the Domain judged by Lu Cheng to be enemies will be suppressed by the Soul prison rules and suffer mental damage.]

[Type: Soul-type pseudo-Domain]

[Effect: Directly targets spirit, consciousness, Judgment, and Source Power mobilization.]

[Additional Effect: Soul Prison Judgment.]

[When an enemy is within the Ten Thousand Souls Prison Suppression, the stronger their emotions, the higher the damage dealt to them.]

[Those with excessive murderous intent will develop an impulse for self-harm.]

[Those with excessive gluttony will exhibit deranged behavior of gnawing on themselves.]

[Those with excessive fear will suffer a mental breakdown.]

[Those with excessive Voracity will sink into hallucinations and lose their ability to judge.]

Lu Cheng looked at the description, and his heart skipped a beat.

This effect is Heaven-Defying.

Once covered by the Ten Thousand Souls Prison Suppression, many monsters wouldn't even need Lu Cheng to act; they would be dragged into the abyss by their own mental impulses.

However, this thing also consumes a massive amount...

If he covered the entire Tang Family like he just did... he could maintain it for at most ten seconds...

Lu Cheng slowly exhaled.

The phantom throne behind him dissipated.

The Cultivation chamber became quiet again.

He fell backward and lay directly on the floor.

"Finally done."

He had been locked in the Cultivation chamber for the past few days, and it had been suffocating.

Snow Spirit was lying beside him, having already slept three times.

Hearing the movement, it raised its head.

"Daddy, are you done training?"

Lu Cheng reached out and rubbed its head.

"Done training."

Snow Spirit immediately perked up.

"Then can we eat?"

Lu Cheng checked the time.

"Yes."

"But let's check the messages first."

He tapped on the terminal.

The next second, the message bar almost exploded.

It was full of news about the cleanup of the Black Seed and the Origin Organization everywhere.

[Nanling Black Seed stronghold cleared]

[Origin Organization branch in Demon City old district destroyed]

[Bashu Inspection Department joins the Tang Family to uncover underground transport lines for polluted bodies]

[Dragon Kingdom officials release explanation of Black Seed dangers]

[Origin Organization human experimentation data exposed]

Lu Cheng looked through them one by one, his expression slowly becoming serious.

This commotion was even bigger than he had imagined.

The Dragon Kingdom is really preparing to get serious.

While he was watching, Mei Wushuang's message popped up.

[You should have seen that we have been dealing with the Black Seed and the Origin Organization these past few days.]

[However, there is a problem now.]

Lu Cheng frowned slightly.

Mei Wushuang coming to find him personally meant that this problem was likely not simple.

It might even be that only he could handle it.

He didn't hesitate and directly initiated the call.

The light screen lit up.

Mei Wushuang's figure appeared on the other end.

She looked a bit tired.

The desk was piled with data, and a large number of red dots were still flashing on the map behind her.

Lu Cheng spoke:

"Aunt Mei, go ahead."

"If there's anything I can help with, just leave it to me..."

Mei Wushuang looked at him and remained silent for a few seconds.

Then, she sent over an encrypted file.

The file title was very short.

[Northwest Cold Wind Defense Line Abnormal Rift Incident]

Seeing the words "Northwest," Lu Cheng's eyes flickered slightly.

Mei Wushuang spoke slowly:

"Su Wan is over there."

"She has lost contact."