274: I need to investigate this thoroughly.

Such worries were not without reason.

Zhong Huai furrowed his brows tightly.

"Recently, there have been voices within the Abyss Domain suggesting the reclamation of Blue Star to develop it as a resource zone."

Such a horrific event, where blood would flow like rivers and the entire planet would be reduced to ruins, would never gain unanimous approval from the high command.

After all, most of the high command in the Abyss Domain were still human.

Humans with a conscience.

However, that didn't mean they wouldn't employ a gentler, yet equally fatal, approach.

This was what Zhong Huai was truly concerned about.

If Mr. Lin Yu's miraculous wealth was merely the tip of the iceberg of a massive plan surfacing...

And yet, everyone on Blue Star remained completely oblivious.

That was terrifying.

A flicker of genuine tension finally appeared on Qin Zhan's habitually composed face.

The atmosphere in the car plummeted to freezing point following his subtle change in expression.

In other words, the Abyss Domain... is really going to act against Blue Star?

Then what exactly is Lin Yu's status?

What role does he play in this impending storm?

Is he the one who stirred it up? Or... the one who will calm it?

Zhong Huai shook his head hard, his face etched with frustration.

He didn't know.

He knew nothing at all.

Every clue pointed to a bottomless vortex, and he couldn't even touch its edge.

Qin Zhan forced himself to stay calm.

As the commander of Fangs, he couldn't afford to panic.

"Maybe... we're overthinking things?"

He tried to suggest a possibility, attempting to dispel the suffocating tension.

"Perhaps the Zhong Family knows about this, but the matter is at a level that doesn't require your involvement yet."

Zhong Huai let out a long sigh.

He knew the Captain was trying to reassure him.

But such reassurance felt hollow and powerless right now.

"Boss, while I'm not part of the innermost circle of the Zhong Family, I'm certainly no discarded pawn."

His voice held a trace of bitterness.

"For something this significant, if the family were involved—even just as collaborators—it's impossible I wouldn't have heard a single whisper."

Silence.

A deathly silence.

Qin Zhan's attempt at comfort had instead confirmed the most terrifying suspicion from another perspective.

If even the Zhong Family didn't know...

Then who did?

"Regardless," Zhong Huai rubbed his throbbing temples and forced himself to focus, "I must report this to the family immediately."

"They have to be prepared in advance."

No matter who the unknown enemy is or what their plan might be.

Being on alert is better than being a sitting duck.

Qin Zhan nodded, offering no objection.

However, in his deep eyes, something was rapidly flashing and rearranging.

The iron-willed composure of a soldier was clashing with the immense pressure from an unknown civilization.

Suddenly, as if struck by a thought, he broke the silence.

"I still don't quite understand something."

Zhong Huai looked up.

"What exactly is such a massive quantity of potions intended for?"

Qin Zhan's brow furrowed.

"Is there even a market large enough to absorb them?"

That one sentence...

Was like a bolt of lightning, clearing the fog of fear and conspiracy theories in Zhong Huai's mind.

Exactly.

He had only seen the terrifying productivity behind those 5.3 trillion potions—enough to overturn civilization—and the potential grand conspiracy using Blue Star as a chessboard.

But he had overlooked the most basic, surface-level question.

Commodities...

Need a market.

"For such a staggering amount, who is the target customer?"

To expand the market?

To force a market open with a quantity that could shatter any price floor?

Or... to consolidate resources?

To supply all these potions exclusively to a specific power or group?

Zhong Huai's back was once again soaked in cold sweat.

"Boss..."

Zhong Huai's voice was jarringly dry.

"Did we... get one thing wrong?"

Qin Zhan didn't speak, simply looking at him expectantly.

"Regarding this assessment."

Zhong Huai's breathing quickened.

"From the start, didn't we assume that the higher-ups appointed you as the dedicated examiner because some big shot was paving the way for Lin Yu? That they wanted to use your influence to give him a back door into the military or some core system?"

That had been their most logical assumption.

A core figure in the "god-making project" with immense backing would need someone of sufficient weight and reliability to handle the final "certification" phase.

But now, in the face of the absolute scale of 5.3 trillion, that assumption seemed laughable and weak.

Give a back door to someone like that?

Would he even need it?

Would he need anyone on Blue Star to give him any kind of back door?

An absurd yet incredibly rational thought began to sprout and grow wildly in Zhong Huai's mind.

"Boss... is it possible..."

Every word he spoke trembled.

"That this assessment wasn't meant to make things easy for Lin Yu at all."

"On the contrary..."

"Is it a hint... deliberately arranged for us by the person or power behind the scenes, using Lin Yu as the messenger?"

A hint?

Qin Zhan's steady presence finally wavered.

"A hint about what?" Qin Zhan's voice dropped low.

"I don't know!"

Zhong Huai almost shouted, his face filled with frustration and agitation.

"I don't know anything! We have too little information! We're like ants at the feet of a giant elephant, unable to even see the whole picture!"

"But this is too coincidental!"

"Why you? Why now? Why just as we've noticed the undercurrents in the Abyss Domain?"

"Everything points to Lin Yu!"

He is the eye of the storm.

The sole point where all clues converge.

Zhong Huai gripped his hair, forcing his chaotic mind to settle.

"We thought Lin Yu was a pawn, that the person behind him was making the moves. But what if... what if the assessment itself is the move?"

"The goal isn't for Lin Yu to gain something from the assessment."

"Instead, the assessment is meant to show us something, or... make us do something?"

Qin Zhan fell silent.

A genuine look of "trouble" finally appeared on his normally impassive face.

As a soldier, he didn't fear strong enemies or bloody battlefields.

But he feared this kind of invisible, intangible maneuvering.

Every step could be a trap.

Every choice could lead to an irreversible abyss.

"So..." Zhong Huai looked up, his eyes bloodshot as he stared at Qin Zhan, "Boss, you must be extremely careful with this assessment! Every step, every task, must be weighed carefully!"

"We can't treat this as 'just going through the motions' anymore."

"This might not be a selection process."

"It's a dialogue!"

"A dialogue... across a distance with an opponent we don't even know!"

Zhong Huai urged him fervently; he had never been this agitated.

He knew that while Qin Zhan was powerful, his straightforward nature was too easy to exploit in a game like this.

Qin Zhan looked at his usually sharp subordinate, now so anxious he was practically jumping, and finally gave a heavy nod.

"I understand."

He had fully realized the severity of the problem.

This matter had already exceeded the scope of a simple military mission.

"I will reconsider the assessment plan."

Only after receiving the Captain's promise did Zhong Huai breathe a slight sigh of relief.

But he knew this was far from enough.

Passively waiting for the opponent to make a move would never allow them to seize the initiative.

He must do something.

Zhong Huai turned around and pulled open the tactical console in front of him.

A light screen unfurled before him.

"Before the assessment officially begins..."

His fingers tapped rapidly on the light screen, pulling up an encrypted file.

"I must investigate everything about him thoroughly!"

On the light screen, a Young Man's profile picture and basic information were clearly displayed.

[Name: Lin Yu]

[Gender: Male]

... Zhong Huai clenched his teeth tightly.

"Our previous attention to him... was far from enough."

"His past couldn't possibly be a blank slate!"

Zhong Huai's fingertip hovered over the virtual "In-depth Investigation" button.

"I don't care who stands behind him or what they want to do..."

"I will definitely dig up some clues from his past!"

"There must be some!"

His finger pressed down heavily.