83: Dark Star Sea

"Let's begin."

Chen Feng's voice wasn't loud, yet it tightened the already frayed nerves of everyone in the command center.

"Yes, Boss."

The newly appointed administrative director, Irene, took a deep breath and began her report. She had once been an archivist in the mining area and possessed an innate sensitivity and reverence for data.

"We have completed the preliminary structural processing of all data within the Crimson Ledger. Boss, the situation... is not optimistic."

Irene's voice was somewhat dry as she waved her hand to call up a massive star map, which was instantly covered by a dense cluster of light points.

"At its peak, the Su Family's commercial network covered at least fifteen star systems, with over three hundred primary trade nodes and countless secondary transit stations. These light points represent their former commercial territory."

"How are we supposed to find her?" a young Technician murmured to himself, his voice filled with despair. "This is harder than finding a specific grain of sand in a desert."

Reno's brow was furrowed, and he remained silent. He didn't understand this complex data, but he could read the gravity on Irene's face and the suppressed morale of those around him.

"Irene, continue," Chen Feng said, his tone showing no trace of emotion.

"Yes." Irene forced herself to focus. "We tried filtering using standard missing persons models. Considering Su Li's identity, she would most likely head to developed trade planets with good security, high levels of information encryption, and where it's easy to live under an alias. However, there are over three thousand planets that fit those criteria."

"Each one is a behemoth with a population exceeding ten billion."

"We posted anonymous bounties on the exchange to purchase population inflow data for these planets over the last six months, but the results were negligible. Our target is a top-tier cryptography expert; if she wants to hide, our current methods make it nearly impossible to find her."

The command center fell into a dead silence, save for the hum of flowing data. The hope that had just been ignited by establishing a goal felt as if it had been doused by a bucket of ice water. This sea of stars was too vast, and they were too small.

"Your line of thinking is wrong."

At that moment, Chen Feng finally spoke.

"We were all wrong."

He slowly stood up and walked to the holographic star map, looking at that despair-inducing sea of stars.

"You are looking for a 'survivor,' an ordinary person who wants to hide. But Su Li is not that."

Chen Feng's voice reached everyone's ears clearly: "What would an avenger think? What would she do? Someone whose family was massacred, who carries a blood feud, and who possesses evidence powerful enough to shake the Alliance?"

"She won't look for a place to live out her life in comfort. She will be like a wounded lone wolf, using every means possible to gather intelligence that can kill her enemies, to find weapons that can pierce her foe's throat, and to contact anyone who could potentially become an ally!"

Chen Feng turned around, his gaze sharp as a blade. "Don't look for where she 'might' have gone; look for where she 'must' go!"

"What does an avenger need?"

This question was like a thunderclap, exploding in everyone's minds.

"I understand!" Irene's eyes instantly lit up, and she practically rushed back to her console. "Resetting the filter model! Target: Non-standard commercial zones! Keywords: Intelligence black markets, arms trading, mercenary hubs, lawless territories!"

"Lao Mo!" Chen Feng looked at the technical supervisor.

"Boss, just say the word!"

"Analyze the ledger's metadata. Find every fragment of information that has been repeatedly modified or overwritten, especially those that were ultimately deleted. No matter how cautious a person is, they will leave traces in the places they are most familiar with!"

"Yes!"

The atmosphere in the command center reversed instantly. The despondency was swept away, replaced by a new, fanatical passion as everyone threw themselves into their work.

This time, the results came quickly.

"Boss, I found it!" Irene's voice carried a hint of a tremor. "In the Su Family's secret financial records, several locations are highly correlated with the 'black market' tag. One place in particular saw an abnormally high frequency of fund transfers in the six months before the clan's downfall."

She reached out and tapped the star map, zooming in on a star system marked in dark red.

"Tartarus Free Port."

"The most famous lawless territory and intelligence distribution center in the universe."

Almost at the same time, Lao Mo looked up, his eyes flashing with excitement.

"Boss, I found it too! Within a data fragment in the ledger that was encrypted under a dozen layers, I extracted a small segment of repeatedly modified star map coordinates! Although incomplete, the area it points to is very clear!"

He marked a tiny point of light at the other end of the star map, in a barren region far from all bustling space lanes.

"A chaotic space station in a lawless zone. In underworld slang, it's known as the 'Shadow Hive'."

Two names, two locations—like two lighthouses in the night, they instantly illuminated the path ahead.

"Irene." Chen Feng's instructions were concise and rapid. "Immediately use all our backup accounts on the exchange to buy all public and semi-public intelligence regarding 'Tartarus Free Port' and 'Shadow Hive' in batches and anonymously. I want to know every rule there, every power faction, and even the name of every tavern owner."

"Yes!"

Chen Feng's gaze finally landed on Reno. This iron-blooded man had felt somewhat lost during the previous management turmoil and AI incident, feeling as though he had no place to use his skills.

"Reno."

"Boss, I'm here!" Reno straightened his chest.

"Intelligence is the eyes, but to bring someone back, one needs hands and a sword," Chen Feng's voice was steady and powerful. "You and A Yong, starting now, reorganize our most elite warriors. I don't care what methods you use to train them, I need an operations team that can accompany me into the dragon's den and tear a bloody path through any environment."

The last trace of gloom in Reno's eyes was completely dispelled, replaced by the supreme honor of being entrusted with a heavy responsibility. He felt his blood begin to boil once more.

"Mission guaranteed!" he roared with all his might.

The meeting ended, and the crowd dispersed to their respective duties.

Chen Feng stood alone before the massive holographic star map.

On the screen, the two light points of 'Tartarus' and 'Shadow Hive' flickered with a dangerous yet alluring glow in the infinite darkness. They were both far from Ashen Earth Star and filled with the unknown.

He knew that the small ship of Hanhai Trade, which had just set sail, was about to leave the safe harbor and enter a truly turbulent, undercurrent-filled dark sea of stars.

This journey was not just to find the woman named Su Li.

It was also an ultimate test for their ragtag crew and for the strength of Hanhai Trade itself.