134: Chapter 134 Crisis Escalates! Undercurrents Surge Across the City
The Ghost's movements were as swift as a bolt of lightning tearing through the night.
He didn't opt for a complex physical intrusion; that would be too time-consuming and prone to leaving traces. He observed the three-story neighborhood office building from a distance, his gaze locking onto several slightly cluttered antennas on the roof—one was a backup transmitter for civilian emergency broadcasts covering several surrounding blocks; another was a wireless data backhaul node connected to the local public security surveillance network.
His target was the latter.
Using the shadows of the shantytown's chaotic buildings for cover, the Ghost climbed onto the roof of a two-story building slated for demolition opposite the office, moving as silently as a gecko. From here to the office rooftop, the straight-line distance was less than fifteen meters, separated by a narrow alley.
The night wind howled. The Ghost knelt on one knee and took a palm-sized black device, shaped like an old-fashioned pager, from his personal tool kit. This was one of his trump cards—the 'Signal Weaver.' It could perform non-contact injection attacks on specific wireless data link frequencies within a certain range, provided it could capture the precise protocol handshake characteristics of the target link.
He first needed to 'sniff' the communication characteristics of that security surveillance node. This was risky, as active scanning could trigger the opponent's alarms.
But the Ghost did not hesitate. He adjusted the device and performed an extremely brief directional spectrum scan with power suppressed to the limit. Almost the moment the scan finished, the device's screen glowed faintly, capturing the periodic checksum packet characteristics sent by the target node.
"Now!"
The Ghost's eyes were cold as his fingers tapped rapidly on the miniature keyboard, loading a pre-prepared 'data pollution packet' that had undergone multiple layers of encryption and obfuscation. He then aimed at the target antenna and pressed the injection key.
Buzz...
The device emitted a nearly inaudible hum. An invisible stream of data, like a venomous snake emerging from its hole, crossed the fifteen-meter distance, precisely 'boring' into the antenna's receiving module. Following the data backhaul link, it reverse-invaded an edge server of the district's security surveillance network.
The core of the 'pollution packet' was not a virus or destructive program, but a meticulously forged 'emergency alert command.' The command content was disguised as coming from a higher-level, unverified 'Internal Testing Early Warning System,' claiming that 'signs of unidentified biochemical pollutant leaks' had been detected in multiple urban areas. It requested the system to automatically send 'Red Alert' level evacuation prompts and panic-inducing 'insider information' to all civilian mobile phones registered for public emergency notifications in the coverage area, accompanied by several tampered links that looked like internal documents.
The command also included a self-destruct countdown and propagation instructions—once triggered, after sending the first round of messages, it would attempt to self-replicate and spread to other adjacent nodes in the network.
The entire process, from climbing onto the roof to completing the injection, took less than three minutes.
The Ghost didn't wait for verification of the results. He quickly stowed the device and, just as silently as he had appeared, slid down from the roof and blended back into the labyrinthine alleys of the shantytown. Whether or not this 'pollution packet' successfully triggered or how much chaos it caused, his position at North Heaven Gate might be further exposed due to this brief signal transmission. He had to leave this area immediately and move toward the next designated location—a large vehicle repair shop near the suburban logistics park, where he had a pre-prepared, undiscovered emergency evacuation plan.
Almost at the same moment the Ghost injected the signal, a piercing alarm suddenly blared inside fortress-1!
"Abnormal data injection detected! Target: West District shantytown neighborhood office level-3 surveillance network node! Injection signal characteristics... highly disguised, carrying a malicious instruction payload!" Su Wan's voice came through the quantum communication, carrying a rare sense of urgency. "Weaving Net is attempting to intercept and analyze... the command target points to the public emergency notification system! The opponent wants to create large-scale social panic!"
Lin Mo's eyes sharpened as he immediately realized the severity of the problem: "Can it be completely intercepted?"
"The injection point is too low-level, the command disguise is extremely high, and it has trigger conditions... Weaving Net's automated defense system reacted 0.7 seconds too late! Some pollution commands have already penetrated the pending queue!" Su Wan's voice carried a hint of frustration. "I'm trying an emergency queue clear, but it takes time! And the commands have propagation logic!"
"Director Long!" Lin Mo immediately connected to Long Zhantian. "The target is desperate and is attacking the public information system, attempting to create chaos to cover their retreat! We must immediately activate the city-wide public information channel control contingency plan! Also, the opponent might be near the signal injection point!"
Long Zhantian's roar nearly shook the communicator: "Understood! Activate the 'Clear Skies' protocol! Take over all public information release channels! Get the police, armed police, and traffic authorities moving to maintain order and prevent stampedes or riots! Dark Blade team, seal off that shantytown area completely and search it inch by inch! He just sent a signal; he can't have gone far!"
The orders were like a mountain, transmitted instantly.
But North Heaven Gate was still one step too late.
A few seconds later, in the shantytown and two adjacent blocks, thousands of citizens' mobile phones registered for local public emergency services emitted a sharp, piercing alarm sound—different from the usual message notifications—almost simultaneously!
On the screens, the blood-red words 'Emergency Evacuation Alert' were shocking, the content vague yet full of panic: 'Warning! Signs of unidentified harmful substance dispersal detected... Residents in relevant areas please remain calm, follow instructions, and take necessary precautions... (Attached: Suspected internal situation reference link)'
Panic, like ink dropped into clear water, spread instantly!
"What's going on? What harmful substance?"
"Oh my god! Did a chemical plant explode?"
"Look at the stuff in the link... it sounds terrifying!"
"Husband! Come back quickly! Pick up the kids! Something's happened!"
People startled from their sleep, those having dinner, and those still working overtime were plunged into chaos in an instant. Some rushed to windows in terror to look outside, some began haphazardly packing belongings, and others tried to call to confirm, only to find the network congested due to the sudden surge in call volume. Disorganized crowds began running in the streets, car horns blared incessantly, and minor fender-benders occurred at some intersections due to panicked drivers, further exacerbating the chaos.
Inside fortress-1, several screens in front of Lin Mo simultaneously switched to real-time surveillance footage of the affected areas. In the images, streets that were originally orderly began to show signs of chaos. Although it hadn't yet evolved into a large-scale riot, the mood of panic was rapidly infecting the air.
The system was analyzing the pollution packet's propagation path and impact range with full force, assisting Weaving Net in clearing subsequent commands. The team led by Su Wan was racing against time to send debunking and reassuring messages to the affected areas while trying to trace the injection source from a technical level.
But the insidious part of the Ghost's move was that it struck one of modern society's most fragile nerves—the fear of unknown public safety crises and the speed at which rumors spread in the information age. No matter how fast the official response was, the initial shock of panic had already been caused, enough to disrupt social order in the short term, distract security forces, and create a precious window of chaos for his own actions.
"It's not just about creating chaos," Lin Mo said in a low voice, looking at the panicked faces on the screen. "He's testing. Testing our society's emergency response speed, testing whether there will be loopholes in our protection of core targets when dealing with sudden public crises. And... also proving to his masters behind the scenes that he still has value in causing destruction."
Long Zhantian's communication patched in again, the background noise chaotic: "Engineer Lin, the chaos is within controllable limits, but it has diverted a large number of our personnel and attention. The search in the shantytown is being interfered with; many residents have flooded into the streets, making identification more difficult. The target is very cunning!"
"He definitely isn't there anymore," Lin Mo judged quickly. "His main purpose has been achieved—creating chaos and drawing fire. He must be moving toward a location he considers safe or where he can execute the next step of his plan. Director Long, we can't let him dictate the rhythm. Analyze immediately: after creating this chaos, where is he most likely to go? Where can he use this chaos to achieve his ultimate goal—either to pass on intelligence or... to try one last localization or attack on me?"
The city lights remained, but beneath the calm exterior, an undercurrent of panic surged in localized areas. The city's entire security force was mobilized, struggling to reassure the public and maintain order while keeping their nerves taut, searching through the background noise of chaos for that 'Ghost' who had already bared its fangs and become even more dangerous.
The crisis had abruptly escalated from a hunt targeting Lin Mo personally into a social security event affecting ordinary citizens and disrupting urban order.