53: Chapter 53 Craig's Madness: Activating "Dragon Slayer"

CIA Headquarters, that office that once symbolized power and status, now seemed empty and desolate. James Craig stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, his back stiff. Outside the window, Washington D.C. was still bustling with traffic, but his world had turned upside down. The formal notice of suspension sat on the desk behind him, like a cold sentence.

He didn't smash things in anger, nor did he roar hysterically. Extreme failure and humiliation had instead given birth to a heart-palpitating, cold madness. His eyes were cloudy and bloodshot, but deep within burned two dark, stubborn flames.

"Energy reserves... deathbed struggle..." He whispered his former stupid judgment, every word like chewing glass shards, cutting his heart until it bled. It was this misjudgment that caused him, and the entire Pretty Country, to miss the last opportunity, watching helplessly as the Dragon Country lit that damn "sun," crushing their carefully constructed sanction fortress into powder and becoming a global laughingstock.

He turned abruptly, his gaze fixed on the world map on the wall, which he had cracked with an ashtray; the crack happened to pass through the Dragon Country's location.

"Lin Mo... 'Patriot X'..." He squeezed these two names through his teeth, his voice hoarse, carrying a near-cursing hatred. All the clues, all the irrationalities, eventually pointed vaguely to this seemingly ordinary college student. He firmly believed that this person was the key to everything, the source of Dragon Country's technological explosion! Find him, control him, or... destroy him, and they could seize Dragon Country's throat, or at least save his personal and the Pretty Country intelligence department's final shred of dignity!

Conventional surveillance (the "Vulture" project) had already failed; Dragon Country's counter-espionage network was like a wall of bronze and iron. Then, they could only use unconventional means!

He walked to the corner of the office, lifted an inconspicuous floorboard, revealing a hidden safe requiring both iris and password authentication. This was the final trump card he had cultivated over the years, a secret operations team independent of the normal CIA system, composed of his most loyal and cold-blooded subordinates—"Shadows."

He quickly entered the password and passed the iris verification. The safe slid open silently. Inside were no documents, only an old-fashioned, unmarked black satellite phone.

He picked up the phone and pressed the only call button. A few seconds later, the call connected. No sound came from the other side, only a dead silence.

Craig spoke into the receiver in a cold tone devoid of any fluctuation, issuing the command:

"I am 'Emperor'. Authorization code: Prometheus-Zero-Nine."

"As of now, initiate the final stage of the 'Dragon Slaying' project."

"Target: Dragon Country citizen, Lin Mo. Location synchronized."

"Mission requirements: Capture him alive at all costs. If resistance makes live capture impossible... authorization to eliminate on the spot, and ensure all electronic devices and paper materials he carries are completely destroyed."

"Mobilize all available resources, including but not limited to: the dormant 'Deep Divers', overseas mercenary groups, and... 'Black Budget' funds. During the operation, cut off all regular contact with headquarters."

"Repeat: At all costs."

He finished speaking word by word, as if exhausted. The other end of the phone remained dead silence, but Craig knew the order had been received. That venomous snake hidden in the deepest shadows had already raised its head, baring its poisoned fangs.

He hung up, returned the satellite phone to its place, and covered the floor. He straightened his tie, a twisted and gratified smile appearing on his face.

"Since the normal rules of the game could no longer kill the opponent, then flip the table! Use the darkest, bloodiest means!"

He walked to the liquor cabinet, poured himself a glass of the strongest whiskey, and downed it in one go. The spicy liquid burned his throat, but it gave him a morbid excitement.

"Lin Mo... 'Patriot X'... no matter what kind of monster you are, this time, I want you dead!"

The "Dragon Slaying" project, this blade forged from all of Craig's madness and despair, was now unsheathed. Carrying a bone-chilling coldness, it silently crossed the Pacific, pointing at the young man who was still planning Dragon Country's future in a rented room.

Meanwhile, in Dragon Country's Capital, Old Chen, who was reviewing the site selection report for "Golden Crow" No. 2, felt a sudden, inexplicable heart palpitation.