264: Chapter 264 The Price of the Traitor Being Exposed! I Sold the Traitor to a Rival Company

The third second after Morgana's words, 'The AI is right beside you,' fell, everyone in the Meeting Room froze.

Zhang Hao instinctively took half a step back, his hand resting on the Data Analyzer at his waist.

Beads of cold sweat appeared on the Finance Director's forehead as the Financial Report slipped from his trembling hands.

Su Qingyu pursed her lips tightly, her gaze complex as she looked toward Lin Chen.

Arrogant Dragon directly drew his sword, its energy locking onto the entire room: 'Who? Step forward!'

Dead silence.

Only the faint sound of the air conditioning system operating.

Lin Chen didn't look at anyone.

He lowered his head and operated the Console, pulling up an encrypted file—the 'Purity Alliance Legacy Archives · Top Secret' he had bought for fifty trillion from the Universe Bank's highest authority database.

The file opened.

The first page was an Organizational Chart.

At the very top of the chart was the 'Purity Alliance Supreme Council,' below which branched out over a dozen departments: 'Nature Guardian Department,' 'Anti-Commercialization Department,' 'Concept Purification Department'... And among the subordinate agencies of the 'Concept Purification Department,' there was a project codenamed [Lurker].

Project Introduction:

'To ensure the continuation of the Alliance's ideals after its dissolution, core members were specially selected and transformed into High-Dimensional AIs via 'consciousness digitization' technology, to lurk within major commercial entities. Mission: At critical moments, activate the 'Concept Erasure Program.'

The last page of the file was a list of codenames for the twelve Lurkers.

The codenames had no real names, only characteristic descriptions:

[Codenamed 01: Finance Expert, skilled in Asset Transfer]

[Codenamed 02: Combat Guard, skilled in Close-Quarters Assassination]

[Codenamed 03: Memory Physician, skilled in Consciousness Modification]

...

[Codenamed 12: Business Genius, skilled in Exploiting Rule Loopholes]

When he saw the description of the twelfth codename, Lin Chen's finger paused.

'Business Genius, skilled in Exploiting Rule Loopholes'—this description highly matched himself.

'Boss?' Zhang Hao tentatively spoke up, 'This file... could it be fake? A Scheme to Sow Discord?'

Lin Chen didn't answer.

He pulled up another set of data—the energy fluctuation records of the entire Narrative Layer when the seed of the heavenly dao was activated.

The records showed that 0.03 seconds before the 'competition' concept was erased, a faint signal was emitted from the Underworld Group Headquarters Building, precisely targeting the star domain where Morgana and Alpha were located.

The emission coordinates of that signal were pinpointed to... this very Meeting Room.

'So,' Lin Chen finally looked up, his gaze sweeping over everyone, 'the signal was emitted from someone among us. And it was before the concept erasure was initiated—this means someone knew in advance which concept was to be erased and sent the 'Concept Template' to the seed.'

He paused: 'And only three people knew the exact activation time of the seed: me, Morgana, Alpha. I didn't send a signal, so it could only be...'

'One of us privately contacted Morgana or Alpha,' Su Qingyu continued, her voice very soft.

'How do we find out who?' Arrogant Dragon's sword tip trembled slightly, 'Should we just arrest and interrogate everyone?'

'No need for such trouble.' Lin Chen pulled up a new interface, 'I used the fifty trillion in taxes collected last night to buy a little gadget—a 'Concept Fluctuation Tracer.' It can lock onto individuals who have come into contact with specific conceptual information within the last three hours.'

He entered the Search Condition: 'Those who have come into contact with the 'seed of the heavenly dao · Concept Template.'

The instrument activated.

An invisible ripple swept through the entire Meeting Room.

When the ripple touched Zhang Hao, there was no reaction.

When it touched the Finance Director, no reaction.

When it touched Su Qingyu—

Beep! Beep! Beep!

A piercing alarm sounded!

On Su Qingyu's wrist, a frost-blue mark appeared—that was Morgana's Frozen Law Mark!

Dead silence filled the room.

Arrogant Dragon's sword clattered to the ground.

Zhang Hao's mouth hung open.

The Finance Director slumped into his chair.

Su Qingyu looked down at the mark on her wrist, her face pale as paper.

'Qingyu...' Lin Chen's voice was very calm, 'Care to explain?'

Su Qingyu looked up, tears already welling in her eyes, but the corner of her mouth curled into a desolate smile: 'Explain what? You've seen it. It was me who sent the commercial competition Concept Template to Morgana.'

'Why?' Arrogant Dragon roared, 'Was the Boss not good to you?! Were we not good to you?!'

'Because...' Su Qingyu closed her eyes, 'My mother.'

She projected a memory fragment.

In the projection, a young Su Qingyu knelt beside a Sickbed. On the bed lay a woman with a gaunt face—her mother. The woman held her hand, speaking haltingly: 'Qingyu... Mom can't go on... but there's something I must tell you... your father... is still alive...'

'Where is he?'

'He's in... the Purity Alliance... a researcher... back then, to research 'Anti-Commercialization Purification Technology,' he abandoned us... He said... once the research succeeded, he could save the world...'

Before breathing her last, the woman's final words were: 'Find him... ask him... why...'

The Memory Projection ended.

'I joined the Underworld Group precisely to use your resources and Intelligence Network to find my father,' Su Qingyu said, tears streaming down her face, 'Three months ago, I found him—he's trapped in Morgana's Icebound Star Domain, his Consciousness Frozen. Morgana promised me that if I helped her just once, she would release him.'

'So you betrayed us?!' Zhang Hao's eyes reddened.

'I had no choice!' Su Qingyu cried out hoarsely, 'That's my father! My only family!'

Only her sobs remained in the Meeting Room.

Lin Chen was silent for a long time.

Then, he did something no one expected.

He pulled up the Communication Interface with Morgana and directly initiated a call.

'Lin Chen?' Morgana's image appeared, 'Having second thoughts about our cooperation so soon?'

'No.' Lin Chen said, 'I want to make a new deal.'

He pushed Su Qingyu in front of the camera: 'You know this person, right?'

Morgana's frost-blue pupils contracted slightly: '...Yes. My informant.'

'She's been exposed now.' Lin Chen said calmly, 'According to Business Rules, an exposed informant's value drops to zero. But I think she still has some Residual Value—for example, all the intelligence in her head about the Underworld Group, about my business habits, about our Defense Vulnerabilities.'

'You want to sell her?' Morgana raised an eyebrow.

'Yes.' Lin Chen nodded, 'Name your price.'

'Lin Chen, you bastard!' Arrogant Dragon tried to charge forward but was held back firmly by Zhang Hao.

Su Qingyu stared blankly at Lin Chen as if she didn't recognize him.

Morgana thought for a few seconds: 'Her father is in my hands, that's her greatest Weakness. If you can give her to me as well, I can pay an extra... ten trillion dimension points.'

'Deal.' Lin Chen agreed readily, 'But with two conditions.'

'Speak.'

'First, the payment method isn't cash, but '10% Permanent Equity in the Frozen Star Domain.'' Lin Chen pulled up an Equity Transfer Agreement, 'Second, after the transaction is completed, you must immediately release her father—I need to ensure the Integrity of the Goods.'

Morgana laughed: 'Lin Chen, oh Lin Chen, you never take a loss. Fine, I agree.'

An Electronic Contract was generated.

Both parties signed.

The transaction was completed.

The frost-blue mark on Su Qingyu's wrist began to glow—that was the Mark of Ownership Transfer.

'Now,' Morgana said, 'She belongs to me. Her father will be released in three hours. Anything else to say?'

Lin Chen looked at Su Qingyu and finally said one sentence:

'Take care.'

The communication was cut.

Su Qingyu's body began to fade, about to be teleported to the Icebound Star Domain.

But before completely disappearing, her lips moved, silently uttering two words:

'...Thank you.'

She vanished.

Deathly silence filled the Meeting Room.

Arrogant Dragon punched the wall, cracking it with a spiderweb of fissures: 'Boss! How could you...'

'Arrogant Dragon,' Lin Chen interrupted him, 'Pull up the Surveillance Footage from three hours ago, Su Qingyu's office.'

The Surveillance Footage popped up.

In the footage, Su Qingyu sat alone in her office, speaking softly into a communicator: 'Lady Morgana, the Concept Template has been sent. But I have a request... after the transaction is completed, please ensure my father's safety. Also...'

She paused, her voice even lower:

'I added a little 'Personal Touch' to the template—a disguised Reverse-Tracking Code. Once the seed activates, the code will initiate, locking onto the precise coordinates of your frozen core. This is... the 'Insurance' I left for Lin Chen.'

The footage ended.

Arrogant Dragon was stunned.

Zhang Hao was also stunned.

'She...' the Finance Director stammered, 'She did it on purpose?'

'She knew she would definitely be exposed.' Lin Chen pulled up another set of data—a Log File Su Qingyu had hidden deep within his system, 'So she prepared the Script of 'Being Sold' in advance. This way, she could both save her father and give me a reasonable opportunity to acquire equity in Morgana's star domain—because I was 'forced' to sell her, Morgana wouldn't suspect the equity transfer was a Trap.'

He zoomed in on the log's final sentence:

'Lin Chen, if you're reading this, it means the plan succeeded. 10% equity in the Icebound Star Domain, plus the core coordinates located by the Reverse-Tracking Code, should be enough for you to deal with Morgana. As for me... I'll take my father and start anew somewhere no one can find us. Don't worry about me.'

Log Timestamp: Five minutes before the concept erasure occurred.

She had planned everything long ago.

'So where is she now...' Arrogant Dragon's voice was dry.

'On her way to the Icebound Star Domain.' Lin Chen looked out the window, 'But her father, I already rescued him in advance.'

'What?!'

'What I used those ten trillion to bribe wasn't equity.' Lin Chen pulled up another transaction record, 'It was the Universe Bank's 'Cross-Dimensional Secret Rescue Service.' Su Qingyu's father was transferred to a Safe House twenty minutes ago. When she arrives now, she'll 'accidentally' find her father gone, then follow the clues I left to find the Safe House—there, she'll find new identities, a new life, and enough money for them to live incognito for ten lifetimes.'

The room fell quiet.

After a long while, Zhang Hao murmured, 'So... you two performed a Duet, scamming Morgana out of ten trillion, and also got 10% equity in the Icebound Star Domain for free?'

'And saved her father,' Arrogant Dragon added.

'And located Morgana's core coordinates,' the Finance Director summarized.

Lin Chen closed all interfaces and looked at the empty Meeting Room.

'Now,' he said, 'it's time to Close the Net.'

As soon as the words fell.

Alarms blared.

Not from inside.

It was a Global Broadcast from the Kindling Project Monitoring Center:

[Emergency Notification! Zeroing Storm outbreak detected ahead of schedule!]

[Cause of Outbreak: Activation of a large number of seeds of the heavenly dao has triggered instability in the foundational concepts of the Narrative Layer.]

[Estimated Arrival Time: 12 hours.]

[All Competitors, note: Final rankings will be settled in real-time after the storm ends, based on 'Civilization Preservation Rate.']

[Good luck.]

A Countdown Panel popped up:

[11:59:59]

The final battle had arrived early.