9: Chapter 9: A Cunning Plan – Let's See How You Act

Qin Weiwei leaned against the doorframe of the cramped room assigned to her, watching Su Qingyu leave. Once that capable back had completely disappeared around the corner of the hallway, the timid, slightly relieved expression on her face vanished without a trace, like a receding tide.

In its place was a cold, scrutinizing calm.

She reached back and gently closed the door, the old hinges letting out a faint 'creak.' The room was tiny, containing only a bed and a dilapidated wardrobe. The air was thick with a faint smell of mold mixed with disinfectant. For her, however, it was enough.

"Underworld Fortress... Lin Chen..." she whispered, chewing over the words. Her eyes were as sharp as knives, devoid of the weak and helpless look she had just moments ago.

Step one of the mission, infiltration, was successfully completed. It had gone even smoother than expected. This Lin Chen seemed to be nothing more than a fool easily moved by the family card. As for Su Qingyu, she had a bit of cleverness but was nothing to worry about. And that Zhang Hao was a pure simp and an idiot.

She walked to the room's only window. Outside was a corner of the Fortress interior, where she could see Yin Soldiers patrolling the high walls in the distance, emitting a grim, ghostly aura. Those Yin Soldiers marched in perfect step, their eyes hollow, bodies wrapped in black mist. Just looking at them from afar was enough to chill one's heart.

"The energy reaction is very strong... He can actually summon Yin Soldiers of this level in organized units?" Qin Weiwei felt a surge of apprehension. Lin Chen's strength was likely higher than the cult's estimates. She had to quickly find the Fortress's defensive weak points and the location of its energy core.

She took a deep breath and pulled a transparent object the size of a fingernail and thin as a cicada's wing from her inner pocket. It looked like a small piece of plastic, but when she pressed it against the inside of her fingernail, it quickly changed color, blending perfectly with her nail until it was nearly invisible to the naked eye.

This was the Thousand Faces Cult's specially made "shadow recording worm," capable of recording images and transmitting information through special means.

For the next half-day, Qin Weiwei perfectly played the role of a "newcomer, somewhat timid but trying hard to fit in" younger sister.

Su Qingyu arranged for her to help in the kitchen washing ingredients. She didn't complain, rolling up her sleeves and getting to work. Although her movements were a bit clumsy, her attitude was extremely serious, and she would occasionally give a shy, friendly smile to the other busy people in the kitchen.

Using the opportunity to deliver water, she carefully moved through the Fortress's public areas. Her eyes, which seemed to be looking around curiously, were actually functioning like a precision scanner, silently memorizing the routes she took, the fortifications she saw, the gaps in the Yin Soldiers' patrols, and even fragments of people's conversations. She used the shadow recording worm to capture images of key nodes.

"Brother," at dusk, she knocked on the door of Lin Chen's lounge, carrying a cup of warm water. Her face wore a look of just the right amount of concern and a hint of dependence. "You've been busy all day, have some water."

Lin Chen was sitting in a large chair, a system interface that only he could see floating in front of him, as if he were checking something. Hearing her voice, he looked up, his gaze calmly falling on Qin Weiwei and the cup of water in her hand.

"Put it there," he said, his tone flat.

Qin Weiwei obediently placed the cup on the nearby table, her gaze "accidentally" sweeping over the room's layout, especially the wall behind Lin Chen that looked like a core control area.

"Brother, this place is so big and safe," she exclaimed with heartfelt (feigned) admiration. "I was helping in the kitchen today and saw how orderly everyone is. Just like Sister Su said, it's all thanks to you."

The corner of Lin Chen's mouth seemed to twitch slightly, looking like a smile yet not quite one. "I just set some rules, that's all."

"Mhm! The rules Brother sets must be right!" Qin Weiwei nodded vigorously, playing the part of a mindless little fangirl worshipping her brother. "I even saw those Yin Soldiers today; they're so powerful! With them here, those monsters outside definitely can't get in!" She seemed to be sucking up to him innocently, but was actually trying to draw out the topic of defensive strength.

"Mhm." Lin Chen's reaction remained indifferent, even appearing somewhat perfunctory. He turned his gaze back to the void in front of him, seemingly dealing with more important matters.

Qin Weiwei felt a bit frustrated, but the smile on her face didn't change. "Then I'll leave you to your work, Brother. I won't disturb you anymore." She sensibly retreated and gently closed the door.

The moment the door closed, the system interface in front of Lin Chen clearly displayed a real-time surveillance feed of Qin Weiwei's room—he had used a nether talisman to directly link to the vision of a "Peeping Bizarre" attached to the shadows of the room.

On the screen, the smile on Qin Weiwei's face vanished instantly after she returned to her room. She quickly walked to the bed, pulled something out from her inner pocket, and began to rapidly record and draw diagrams by the faint light from the window.

...

Late at night, the Fortress fell into a dead silence, broken only by the faint, distant roars of Bizarre Monsters and the slight clanking of armor as the Yin Soldiers patrolled.

The lights in Qin Weiwei's room were off. After confirming there was no movement outside, she moved silently to the window.

She took out the shadow recording worm again and placed it in her palm. Then, she bit her fingertip and squeezed out a drop of crimson blood, letting it fall onto the shadow recording worm.

The drop of blood was quickly absorbed by the shadow recording worm, and a faint, almost imperceptible reddish glow appeared on its surface.

Next, she formed a strange hand seal with both hands and began chanting low, obscure syllables. Following her movements, the shadow recording worm that had absorbed the blood vibrated slightly, and more obvious energy fluctuations began to emanate from its surface.

She carefully placed the shadow recording worm on the windowsill, pointing it in a specific direction outside—the direction agreed upon with the Thousand Faces Cult for transmitting information.

"Go," she whispered.

The red light around the shadow recording worm flared brightly, and it then transformed into a tiny stream of light that almost blended into the night. With a "whoosh," it zipped out through the crack in the window and vanished instantly.

Having finished this, Qin Weiwei breathed a sigh of relief. Her face showed a hint of exhaustion, but more than that, it showed the smugness and coldness of having completed a mission.

"The general layout of the Fortress, the Yin Soldier patrol routes, several possible defensive nodes... this information is enough for the cult to make a preliminary judgment," she thought to herself. "Lin Chen... humph, let's see how you keep up that superior act once you find out the Fortress has been breached!"

She lay back on the bed and closed her eyes, beginning to plan how to reach more core areas next time, like... the energy center. Su Qingyu seemed to have lowered her guard slightly; perhaps she could fish for information from her.

...

However, what Qin Weiwei didn't know was that at the exact moment she activated the shadow recording worm and sent it out...

In the Fortress's core control room, Lin Chen was sitting leisurely in the main seat, facing a massive screen made of nether energy.

The screen was divided into over a dozen small grids. One of them clearly showed the real-time scene inside Qin Weiwei's room, including the entire process of her casting the spell to send away the shadow recording worm!

Another grid showed the trajectory of that tiny stream of light as it flew out of the Fortress into the night sky, firmly locked onto by a translucent "Tracking Bizarre" hidden in the clouds.

Zhang Hao and Su Qingyu stood behind Lin Chen, also seeing the content on the screen.

Zhang Hao shouted in rage, "Master! This bitch really is an undercover agent! I'll go grab her right now and skin her alive!"

Although Su Qingyu had expected this, seeing it with her own eyes still made her palms sweat. This woman's methods were so eerie; if Lin Chen hadn't been prepared...

Lin Chen raised his hand, stopping the agitated Zhang Hao.

He looked at Qin Weiwei's face on the screen, which looked somewhat sinister in the dark, and a playful smile curled on his lips—a smile filled with the mockery of one in total control and a cold killing intent.

"What's the rush?" he said easily, as if watching an interesting play. "The good show has only just begun."

"Doesn't she like drawing diagrams?" Lin Chen tapped the armrest lightly and instructed Su Qingyu, "Tomorrow, find an opportunity to let her 'accidentally' see that 'Fortress Energy Core and Ultimate Defense Deployment Map' on my desk."

Su Qingyu instantly understood Lin Chen's meaning, and her heart skipped a beat.

This was... leading the lamb to the slaughter! And he was going to use a completely fake piece of intelligence to lure the enemy into a deadly trap!

"Yes, I understand what to do," Su Qingyu took a deep breath, suppressing the chill in her heart, and nodded in response. She looked at the woman on the screen who thought she had succeeded, her eyes carrying a hint of pity.

Those who think they're clever are often the first to die.

Lin Chen leaned back in his chair, his gaze sweeping over the screen as if he could already see the disastrous scene when the Thousand Faces Cult's army "precisely" crashed into his carefully laid death trap based on the fake intelligence.

"Trying to play Infernal Affairs with me?" he whispered to himself with a touch of dark humor. "I'm afraid you guys haven't spent enough money to buy the walkthrough."