Enforcer Manual
Chapter 1079 - 935: Behind the Scenes Black Hand_2

Chapter 1079: Chapter 935: Behind the Scenes Black Hand_2

"You haven’t said what you’re here to do. Is this also part of the Counter-Intelligence Department’s job?"

"I came on my own."

Lu Xiang said, "Because of Elmon’s situation."

"Elmon? What happened to him?"

Anfiya and Elmon’s transfer had gone very smoothly, and they had already integrated into their new environment the day before.

Newster had also established a campus in The First Region, where mostly children of high-ranking corporate executives studied. After finishing their elite-focused education, they would be directly employed by major corporations.

"Don’t you find the things happening to him very strange?"

In the past hour, she had been accessing the Psychic Research Institution’s database. Despite various policy reasons that banned inhumane research across the territory of the United Government, these researchers always found loopholes, most notably the Psychic Research Institutions and bio-pharmaceutical companies.

They had expanded such operations into the "outside", because the "outside" was not subject to the laws of the United Government, creating a vast gray area.

"Do you think Elmon is considered dead or alive now?"

"...He should be considered alive?"

After the conflict with Phine, he had recovered Elmon’s body, which Lu Xiang had carefully preserved; astonishingly, it showed no signs of decay to this day.

From a medical perspective, that body had entered a vegetative state.

They had tried many ways, but still couldn’t get Elmon’s consciousness back into his own body.

"His state is somewhat similar to δ, but the actual situation is completely different."

Lu Xiang shook his head. "δ and others became Consciousness Entities and, because the pathways to the upper world were blocked, they could only drift here. But when we first encountered Elmon, he almost knew nothing about Psychic Abilities and had never properly developed his abilities. It was more like he was transformed into this state by some experiment."

This was the reason she conducted the surprise inspection on the Psychic Research Institutions today.

Forcibly separating human consciousness from the body.

Not to mention how inhumane the experiment was, from the results, it seemed like a failed product of a process that started with knowing the "correct answer" and worked backwards.

Leaving behind the physical body is the necessary path to the upper world, but now, very few people should know about this.

Lu Xiang’s intuition told her that this was related to the Psychic Research Institutions.

"The reason Phine breached into The Seventeenth Region was to bring back Elmon’s Consciousness Entity. The Psychic Research Institutions’ philosophy is that cooperating between Ability Users compensates for their individual weaknesses."

They firmly believed that the coordination among different Psychic Abilities would result in a situation where 1 + 1 > 3.

And indeed, this was the case.

Without any pre-acquired intelligence, the combination of Phine’s and Elmon’s abilities was enough to severely injure most opponents upon first encounter.

Unfortunately, she came across Mr. Song Lan, a deeply concerned citizen, in The Seventeenth Region.

"Before I left, I investigated the laboratory in Elmon’s memories according to his description, and found that it had long been abandoned, and all experiment data had been destroyed."

An expected outcome.

Phine was undoubtedly the laboratory’s trump card. As word of her defeat spread, the researchers would probably have packed up and fled at the first opportunity.

"You go ahead, I’m almost done browsing."

If the information in the Psychic Research Institutions’ database were exposed, that would certainly spell big trouble for those people.

Illegal human experiments, nearly inhumane practices—if all this data were recorded therein, then the experiments on Elmon would definitely be hidden somewhere too.

"Mr. Song Lan, are you done so soon? Don’t worry about us, just come find us when you’re done with what you need to handle, I’m always here."

As soon as the door opened, a middle-aged man with a warm smile came up to him.

"Done. Let’s go meet your supervisor, then."

"Alright, I’ll lead the way now."

The conversation with the middle-aged man always gave Song Lan a peculiar feeling. Although the man was perfectly respectful and impeccable in his demeanor, the intense gaze always repelled Song Lan as if he was merely a lab rat to a researcher.

This was perhaps indicative of their perpetual relationship with Psychics.

Despite his efforts to hide it, clues would invariably surface from their interactions—signs that ranked him akin to the "Big Mouse."

It was still the same office they had used for the last meeting.

The last time he saw Jiu, he had come with Rose and Sister Jasmine. They did not show any kindness towards the old man who had created the concept weapons.

However, for these research-obsessed individuals, demeanor was never a concern. Song Lan had no doubt that if Rose and Jasmine were willing to cooperate with the research, Jiu would gladly tolerate not just their insolence but even a few stomps on his foot.

"We meet again, Mr. Song Lan."

Jiu’s facial wrinkles obscured his expressions, and his emaciated frame was shrouded in a lab coat that was several sizes too big, likely to conceal the extensive modifications done on him by the bio-pharmaceutical and prosthetic companies.

Song Lan had heard that the United Government had gone to great lengths to keep Jiu active in frontline research.

The original parts had been almost entirely replaced, and every day, he had to inject a dose of anti-aging drugs that was more than ten times the normal human dosage to maintain his vitality, similar to the former head of the Purple Wisteria Institute. These almost insane individuals considered their bodies as part of the experiments too.

In their previous meeting, Jiu had shown a keen interest in the identity of Rob Lucci, hoping to unearth secrets about time through him.

"I never expected we would meet like this."

Jiu signaled with his eyes for the middle-aged man to leave, and as the conference room door closed, his eyes unexpectedly moistened—the fervor in his eyes akin to a devotee who had finally reached their sacred site, completing the most important pilgrimage of their life.

This sudden surge of emotions caught Song Lan off guard.

"I only have little time left, and many of my research projects will have to be left to others. I wonder how many will be able to carry on my legacy."

The regret in his words seemed genuine.

Song Lan immediately sounded an alarm in his mind—beware of the sob story.

Nowadays, too many people were filled with sly tricks. A young person could easily fall for their plot; a company boss could hold your hand, eyes brimming with tears, telling you about the company’s hard times that required cost-cutting.

He felt the situation might be similar now.

Perhaps Jiu was eyeing his capabilities, wanting to use the sob story tactic to revive his youth, but he had to admit that Jiu’s acting was superb—his emotional expression appeared far more genuine than many recent performers at Kolo Film Industry.

At least the sadness and regret were well portrayed.

About a minute later, Jiu managed to stabilize his emotions.

Doctors had told him that emotional excitement was harmful to his health.

But now was not yet the time for his demise; he still had many missions to complete.

"Rest assured, the data from the Elmon experiment is not stored in any database. No matter how many times Minister Lu searches the information library, he won’t find any clue."

???

Even Song Lan, adept at deceptive rhetoric, was astounded by the unfolding conversation between the two.

Why did the atmosphere now seem like one where a perceived villain was reporting back to the true mastermind?

The real mastermind, hidden in the shadows, remained obscured.

And before this critical turning point of revealing the identity, there would appear those familiar lines:

— "To be continued."

— "No publication next week."

"Continue,"

Song Lan steadied himself and spoke.

"All experiments are proceeding smoothly; I have already selected the appropriate candidates. Even if I die, there will be others who will continue my research."

Jiu’s gaze was resolute, "I will definitely fulfill your cherished wish."