Embers Ad Infinitum
chapter-912-30041322

After entering the underground building, Long Yuehong and Bai Chen handed over all their items as usual.

The employee in charge of the initial inspection wore gloves and seriously flipped through the items as they underwent security checks.

As he flipped through the items, he looked at Long Yuehong and Bai Chen. "A recording pen?"

This was something repeatedly emphasized in the security check manual to look out for.

"Yes." Bai Chen calmly looked at the recording pen in the other party's hand.

The male employee in charge of the initial inspection requested a list of supplies—through the electronic equipment—the two people opposite him were in possession of when they left the company and did a comparison. "You guys only obtained it a few days ago?"

"How should I put it?" Long Yuehong smiled. "It used to belong to us, but we just brought it back this time."

At this moment, the captain in charge of the entrance approached and asked with a frown, "What do you mean?"

Long Yuehong looked around and suppressed his voice. "We often go out on missions, so we leave some items outside so that we don't have to hand them over."

The Security Department employee protecting the underground building's entrance had plenty of fieldwork experience. He immediately understood what was going on.

The items obtained from their missions had to be handed over as long as they brought them back to the company. They were then converted into contribution points and distributed. This inevitably resulted in 'loss.'

When contributions were made, the employees could only obtain rewards equivalent to a percentage of their value. Of course, Pangu Biology would also make up for it in terms of giving them promotions.

Therefore, teams that repeatedly went outfield would leave some things in the outside world and hide them. If there was a chance in the future, they would use them to exchange for things they rarely could get to enjoy from Ruin Hunters, smugglers, or Rootless teams.

This was considered an unspoken rule of the Security Department. The higher-ups turned a blind eye to this and wouldn't interfere unless it went overboard.

The captain nodded and asked, "Why did you bring it back this time?"

This was a routine inquiry.

"It has some of our team's discussions and first-hand information recorded in it." Long Yuehong resisted the urge to scratch the back of his head with his metallic hand and smiled. "We were relatively free during this period of time, so we realized that we couldn't remember some of the details during our conversation. Therefore, we specially brought the recording pen back to listen to it."

"Have you submitted the information inside?" The captain wasn't too familiar with the Old Task Force and only knew of Jiang Baimian's reputation.

"It was long submitted," Long Yuehong replied sincerely.

The captain tersely acknowledged it. "It's fine with me. You can go back now, but this recording pen and other items have to be sent for review. They'll be returned to you after confirming that there's nothing abnormal. You should know this very well, right?"

"Of course." Long Yuehong knew that the company was very strict with recording pens, computers, and other equipment after the matter pertaining to the Naturalism Church.

He and Bai Chen—who had already completed the security check—returned to the car and drove the SUV deeper into the ground floor.

After leaving the door, Long Yuehong slowly exhaled.

He knew that the subsequent wait was the most unbearable.

I wonder if Team Leader's tricks can hide from the company's reviewers… Once any anomalies are discovered, Little White and I will be doomed… Long Yuehong turned his head to look at Bai Chen in the passenger seat and realized that her expression was calm without any signs of nervousness.

"Your mental fortitude is much better than mine…" Long Yuehong suppressed his voice and sighed.

Bai Chen pursed her lips and said, "We've already experienced so much."

She then added, "Don't say such words again."

This was to prevent walls from having ears.

…

Underground building, 649th floor, in a room.

A man and a woman switched on the recording pen and listened to the content. Beside them was a recording device—it was currently switched on, ready to record the voice in the recording pen at any moment.

After such a process, the possible abnormalities would be filtered out, allowing the people who listened to the re-recording for comparison with the text to be unaffected.

The man and woman held fountain pens in their hands and had a stack of paper in front of them.

They both had good memories. As they listened, they transcribed the content in the recording pen into words and handed them over to people in charge of the second round of reviews. At the same time, they also did the 'checking' of the equipment.

After listening to the recording, specialized personnel would determine if they were affected.

This was a process meticulously designed by Pangu Biology professionals.

The first step was to directly confirm if there were any abnormalities through the two people listening to the original recording.

The second step was to listen to re-recording and read the transcription. From the meaning of the words, they would examine if there were any negative inclinations or any hidden tricks.

The third step was to compare the transcription and textual records to confirm if there were any problems with the previous two steps.

As a child of management, a D9 employee, and an Awakened, Jiang Baimian had long learned of this process through her channels.

After a brief static sound, Shang Jianyao's voice sounded. "I have something very serious to tell you."

"What is it?" Long Yuehong's voice asked.

Jiang Baimian scoffed. "This fellow has never been serious. Do you believe everything he says?"

"He still occasionally discusses problems seriously." Bai Chen didn't show Shang Jianyao any form of 'discrimination.'

Shang Jianyao frankly replied, "About—uh, Big Boss."

"What about Big Boss?" Jiang Baimian's voice became serious.

Shang Jianyao suddenly smiled. "I'm wondering if Big Boss will participate in the marriage assignment. Who has the luck to become the boss's husband?"

"…" After a brief silence, Jiang Baimian sighed and said, "I knew you didn't have anything good to say. If the board of directors heard this, they definitely wouldn't let you off easy."

Shang Jianyao clicked his tongue. "So what if they hear it? Even if—uh, Big Boss is—is a Kalendaria, haven't we blasphemed the Kalendarium enough?"

"We didn't. You're the only one who did it!" Long Yuehong firmly denied it.

Shang Jianyao seemed to count with his fingers. "The first one we encountered was Arbiter of Fate. Later, there were Eidolon Nun, Shattered Mirror, Subhuti, and Master Zhuang…"

He spoke eloquently before saying, "The board of directors aren't shepherds who obey 'Their' orders. Why should I be afraid?"

"Shepherds?" Jiang Baimian scoffed.

Shang Jianyao explained seriously, "In the Old World's ancient legends, there was a deity. 'His' or 'Her' clergymen were called shepherds because we're 'His' or 'Her' flock."

"There's only the Kalendarium now," Bai Chen said.

Shang Jianyao said seriously, "The Kalendarium used to be legends."

"That's only a small portion," Long Yuehong interrupted.

"Let's not discuss this." Jiang Baimian changed the topic. "Let's discuss the New World information we've gathered so far."

"Yes, yes." Shang Jianyao readily agreed. "My take on this is what enters is human consciousness, not the body…"

After discussing it for a while, he thoughtfully said, "I'm wondering: what is feasted on by New World residents?"

"Those who eat qi are spiritually bright and live the lives of gods." Jiang Baimian chuckled.

Shang Jianyao continued, "Many clues point to the New World. This is the origin of the Heartless disease."

"There's no final confirmation yet," Long Yuehong pointed out.

Shang Jianyao replied seriously, "Our role is to complete this matter."

"I don't think we should think too highly of ourselves." Long Yuehong objected. "One has to know their limits."

Shang Jianyao said seriously, "No, one has to have confidence. Maybe I will take Big Boss's role one day."

"Fortunately, you are medically certified. Otherwise, you would be considered a traitor if this recording was heard by the company." Jiang Baimian laughed.

Shang Jianyao immediately replied, "I can't say things like 'we might one day become food, as sustenance for the Heartless.' Everyone, though death befalls all men alike, it may be weightier than Mount Tai or lighter than a feather…"

"Stop, stop, stop!" Jiang Baimian interrupted him.

Shang Jianyao's voice became deep. "This is really a problem that requires serious consideration. The closer our investigation is to the New World, the more dangerous it is. Danger is ahead, and a disaster might be imminent."

"What kind of disaster do you think it will be?"

Shang Jianyao maintained his previous state. "I have many guesses. For example, the Heartless disease will erupt en masse again, or the New World will shatter, bringing about the destruction of the Ashlands… You guys have to take the opportunity to improve yourselves as much as possible. When the time comes, don't hesitate to escape and return to the company if you really encounter danger that you can't resist."

"What about you?" Bai Chen asked.

Shang Jianyao replied without hesitation, "I naturally want to save all of humanity before returning to the underground building. When that happens, we will completely escape the threat of the Heartless disease. The board of directors will probably elect me to inherit Big Boss's position."

"Why are you back to harping on this point?" Jiang Baimian's tone was filled with exasperation.

Shang Jianyao replied seriously, "This is one of my goals after I retire. As a human, you have to understand and control yourself."

"You call this control?" Long Yuehong retorted curiously.

Shang Jianyao ignored him and continued, "Everyone, let's work hard together and run toward dawn and hope! A beautiful life is right in front of us!"

"Thanks for your encouragement." Jiang Baimian asked angrily, "What if we fail?"

"Then…" Shang Jianyao thought for a moment before replying, "Quickly find an opportunity to escape!"

The Old Task Force had a few intermittent exchanges regarding the New World and left behind many recordings.

After hearing that, the man and woman in the room put down their pens and looked at each other.

"There's no problem." The man shook his head.

The woman echoed, "Apart from the fact that the man doesn't seem to be in a good mental state and likes to talk as he thinks."

They didn't say anything else and compared the content of their shorthand notes.

After doing all of this, they walked out of the room and handed the textual records and transcriptions to their colleagues in charge of the second round of review. The two of them then underwent professional inspection.

After confirmation, there was nothing wrong with the recording pen's content.

…

Room 14 on the 647th floor.

After receiving their items, Long Yuehong fiddled with them for a while before taking out the recording pen and playing it.

After hearing the first part, he turned his head and nodded indiscernibly at Bai Chen.

Bai Chen did the same.