Armored vehicles, viewed from a distance, formed a continuous black line, stretching from Dingchuan Academy to the Military Department's security building in the eastern district of Zhongjing City.
The vehicles were flanked by long lines of the Armed Guard.
Thus, when this troop passed by, people glanced aside.
But it was just out of curiosity, and they didn't pay too much attention.
Zhongjing City was the core of the military's defensive presence; it was common to see military movements.
However, what was strange was that from appearance to departure, this troop wasn't questioned by anyone from Dingchuan Academy.
Ruan Xiongfei was still not back accompanying the dean, and Wu Yue hadn't shown up either.
Along with those, such as Luo Jianjin, who had returned earlier, had also disappeared without a trace.
Only an empty starship remained next to them.
Forty minutes later.
In an underground chamber of the Military Department's security building.
Lin Hao sat expressionlessly on a metal chair.
Facing him sat Colonel Li Shen, along with two captains from the military intelligence service.
"Speak, what does this mean? I was brought here right after touching down."
Li Shen smiled slightly, "Major Lin, no need to worry, nothing serious is happening. It's just an S-level secret order from the Military Department, imposing the strictest gag order on all personnel returning from Planet 131, demanding the sealing of all data obtained on Planet 131."
Lin Hao's brows furrowed into a "Chuan" character, his fingers tapping on the chair's armrest.
"We were ordered by the Military Department to conduct a clearance operation on Planet 131; now the Military Department wants to seal all this information?!"
"Major Lin Hao, no need to rush. Of course, there's a reason for this because the Federation has completely lost contact with Asteroid 131. Furthermore, according to the last information sent by the surveillance satellites, the Zeg Clan has blocked the only known space jump point to Planet 131 using unknown methods."
Colonel Li Shen paused for a moment, allowing Lin Hao to absorb the news, then smiled and said, "There's a deeper reason, but it's beyond your clearance level, so this is just a routine audit following the orders. At the same time, you need to share with us in detail what happened on Planet 131 without reservations, this is very important."
After hearing Li Shen's explanation, Lin Hao fell silent.
The little information revealed suggested that this was an issue initiated by the upper echelons of the military, definitely not something within his pay grade, perhaps something Colonel Qi could reach.
Seeing that Lin Hao had finally fallen silent, a faint smile appeared on Li Shen's face. Then, as if by chance, he asked, "By the way, is there a student named Mu Fan in the team you led?"
Mu Fan?
Lin Hao felt a pang of alertness and looked up at him.
...
At this moment, Mu Fan was still inside the armored vehicle, which traveled much slower than a floating car.
As time passed, his companions inside the vehicle began to whisper with growing concern.
However, this time, White Hair did not show any unusual reaction and fell asleep soon after asking their question to Mu Fan.
Mu Fan kept his eyes closed throughout, appearing inscrutable to the others, but in his ears, it was Black's voice that he heard.
"Mu Fan, all of the Planet 131 base has been preserved. Those Zegs clearly have no interest in cold metal, and with my avatar's preparations, the connection to the Federation has been cut. Plus, those bugs have done us a big favor—they've actually blocked the wormhole exit!"
"So the good news is the Shadow Base plan can now shift from darkness to light, but the bad news is that we can't provide you with effective support until we have enough power to oppose the Zegs."
"I've just caught some encrypted fragments with the Trojan programs I planted in the military channels. The references to Asteroid 131 are quite frequent, and it's very likely that the content of this audit is related to the secrets of Planet 131."
Mu Fan tapped his teeth lightly, indicating that he understood.
Suddenly, the vehicle came to a halt; a few seconds later, the rear door of the armored vehicle opened, and a flood of light poured in.
"We've arrived, come on out."
The group raised their hands to shield their eyes and adapted for a few seconds before starting to disembark.
Mu Fan, who was seated at the back, woke up White Hair, still asleep, and walked out.
Once outside, they discovered they were in a huge underground base.
A dozen black armored vehicles were neatly parked, and rows of soldiers were orderly arranging the disembarkation.
However, about ten students from each vehicle were being led separately into a passageway.
When Mu Fan got out of the car, a soldier came over to guide him.
"Mu Fan, interesting, you've reached the third underground level of the Blue Capital Star's Military Department security building."
The noise around was loud, and the soldier leading the way was two meters ahead.
Mu Fan made sure the other party couldn't hear him, then softly ventriloquized the message into his earpiece, "We might encounter metal detection soon."
"No problem, just normally remove the watch. I will directly shield the invisible earpiece within the X-ray machine."
"Mm."
Mu Fan nodded his head.
He always felt that things wouldn't be so simple this time; his intuition was usually very keen, so it was still better to plan ahead.
By the end of the conversation, Mu Fan had already entered that passage.
The light changed from bright to dark before returning to brightness—a moment that would normally cause discomfort in a person's pupils, but not for Mu Fan.
So Mu Fan clearly saw the several soldiers standing on both sides looking at him with mocking eyes, and a few were sitting beside a metal detector.
This was just a means of creating an atmosphere, so Mu Fan suddenly gave them a brilliant smile.
This clearly left several soldiers startled.
"Student's name?"
"Mu Fan."
After Mu Fan spoke these two words, he even keenly sensed two people's heartbeats accelerate, but he kept a poker face.
"Proceed with the metal detection first. Please remove any metal objects you have on you."
"The watch is normally taken off, and I've already activated the shielding, you bunch of dumb birds."
Black's voice rang out.
Mu Fan naturally took off his watch, "This is my tactical watch. Please take good care of it, I'll need to retrieve it later."
Resulting in Mu Fan's silver-gleaming watch catching the soldier's eye with a hint of surprise and eagerness; it was clear that the watch's appearance had thoroughly captivated him and he was ready to conduct some tests.
"Sure, you can retrieve it from us when you're back."
Mu Fan nodded with a smile and entered the metal detector, which showed no abnormalities on his body on the screen.
"Clear, Room G12."
The officer in charge of the inspection said, and the guiding soldier nodded and continued on ahead.
After three turns, Mu Fan finally entered Room G12, an entirely metal-wrapped room.
Mu Fan's footsteps made a distinct metallic sound, indicating that the room was made of pure metal.
There were four cameras in the corners of the ceiling, monitoring from all angles.
"Congratulations, Mu Fan. You are now under the watch of several eyes. Your espionage training will be commencing involuntarily." Black's tone carried a teasing meaning.
Mu Fan's eyebrows raised in resignation as he sat on the metal chair.
In less than a minute, the metal door opened, and a Captain with a grin walked in.
His smile was too fake, his gaze too scrutinizing, and his eyes inadvertently locked onto his hands and feet position, his pupils tightening for a few moments...
This person must have known something about him.
Mu Fan came to a conclusion in his heart.
******
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