You, a living person, are telling me I've served in the underworld for ten years?

The two have similar effects, but their essential strength and operating mechanisms seem to be worlds apart!
Is the final source of the even more destructive enhancement potion concocted here, or does it point to that mysterious "Black Tortoise" island? Or is this merely one link in a larger plan—a raw material processing base?

We absolutely must get the samples! Absolutely!
Chen Yang's gaze was sharp as a sword, locking onto a busy, semi-automated packaging area not far below the side ventilation duct outlet.

There were piles of freshly bottled, viscous medicine that shimmered with an eerie, ghostly blue fluorescence. Batch labels were being affixed to the bottles by robotic arms, and the medicine was being packed into ordinary cardboard boxes labeled "Industrial Lubricating Grease Additive - Grade G7"! The camouflage was excellent! Several boxes of packaged medicine were stacked to the side, waiting for the forklift to enter the warehouse. The door to the storage room had just been closed.

The opportunity was fleeting! The forklift operator below, with his back to the pile of boxes, was operating the equipment to grab another batch of finished products. The surveillance camera briefly focused on the point of operation of the forklift arm!

It's now!

Chen Yang's movements were as fast as a ghost!

His entire body was incredibly flexible and curled up, like a snake, silently slipping through the gaps in the ventilation grille!
puff--!
The sound of airflow disturbance was extremely slight. The feet touched the ground silently, landing precisely in the shadow of stacks of spare protective clothing boxes, just out of the main monitoring line of sight.

Without the slightest pause!

He moved like a weightless shadow, skimming along the boundary between the cold equipment and the light and shadow cast by the wall! The distance of a few meters was covered in an instant!

With hands moving like phantoms, a faint spatial force swirled around their fingertips as they precisely and swiftly retrieved a specially made, double-walled, insulated glass bottle containing a ghostly blue liquid from each of the three open, awaiting-to-be-sealed medicine boxes. Their movements were so light that they didn't even touch the bottles themselves!
The instant he succeeded! Without hesitation, he retreated and sprang upwards! His fingers subtly slipped against the side of the stacked material crates, and he sprang upwards as if springy! He precisely slipped back through the ventilation gap he had just entered through!

At the same time, he tapped his finger in the air behind him, silently and perfectly pushing the slightly deformed and displaced ventilation grille back into place!

This series of actions happened in less than two seconds!

Just as his figure disappeared into the darkness of the ventilation duct, the forklift turned in a different direction. The operator was completely unaware.

The surveillance cameras in the distance also shifted their focus.

The underground space continued to operate without interruption. Only the extremely fine dents inside the pile of medicine boxes that were originally waiting to be sealed proved the arrival of uninvited guests.

Three sealed vials of potions, emitting a ghostly blue glow and exuding a strange life force and a chilling, corrosive aura, were carefully hidden close to Chen Yang's body and placed inside the antique-looking storage ring on his finger, which contained a vast, enigmatic space within.

The bottle was icy cold, and even the slight spatial isolation power lingering around my fingertips could not completely block the contradictory energy emanating from it, which made people feel uncomfortable from the depths of their souls.

In the darkness, Chen Yang took a deep breath, quickly calming his racing heart and the considerable mental strain he had expended.

Instead of the joy of success, his eyes were even more solemn and hardened.

Like a drop of ink falling into a drop of water, Chen Yang silently slid out of the huge ventilation duct of Warehouse No. 7, returning to the evening breeze in the suburbs of Binhai City, which was mixed with the smell of the sea and the scent of grass and trees.

His fingertips twitched slightly, and a lingering cold sensation remained on the ancient storage ring, as if it were touching three ominous blocks of ice—the three dark blue potions stolen from the core area.

They lay quietly within the Sumeru space, yet seemed to carry countless silent questions.

"If these aren't for weapons of mass destruction... then who will ultimately use them?"

This question, like a persistent boil, weighed heavily on my mind.

The sheer size and suffocatingly sophisticated production system of that underground factory could not possibly be solely for supplying the batch of super-enhanced warriors that attacked last night!

There must be a much larger and more evil goal!
Without pausing, his figure moved silently through the shadows of buildings and sparse trees, like a ghost whose trajectory had been predetermined, avoiding the occasional headlights of cars speeding by on the main road of the city, and quietly returned to the top floor of the budget hotel on the edge of the city.

The Special Administration had preemptively disabled the independent surveillance systems on the relevant floors, so his return did not alert any electronic surveillance cameras.

Pushing open the slightly ajar door of the suite, the interior lighting was extremely dim.

Jiang He stood with his back to the door, bent over marking a huge electronic map of Binhai City and its surrounding waters, his brow furrowed. Qiu Niu leaned against a heavy square table, his rugged face contemplative, several half-eaten compressed food packaging bags scattered at his feet.

Bi Fang sat on a single sofa by the window, a wisp of pale blue flame dancing on his fingertips, whispering rapidly into an encrypted communication terminal.

Hearing the soft click of the door lock, the three of them instantly looked up alertly like startled cheetahs. Only after recognizing Chen Yang did the sharpness in Jiang He's eyes slowly subside.

"Sect Leader Chen!"

He took a few steps forward to meet him, his gaze sweeping over Chen Yang's slightly pale face and the collar of his work clothes, which was once again stained with sweat.

"You're back? How was it?"

Chen Yang didn't speak, but walked straight over and sat down in an empty chair next to the square table, leaning back with a barely perceptible weariness. With a slight thought, the three specially made heat-insulated glass bottles containing a viscous, dark blue liquid silently appeared on the table, the cold vessels making a slight friction sound as they touched the wooden surface.

"Underground of Warehouse No. 7".

Chen Yang's voice was low and hoarse, carrying the harshness of a night of running and intense tension.

"A massive, highly automated production line that combines biological and alchemical synthesis."

The raw materials include deep-sea exotics, some mineral dust, and... biological organ remains.

He briefly described its size, the level of security, and its energy aura.

"This is what came out last."

Jianghe, Qiuniu, and Bifang's gazes instantly focused on the bottle lying quietly on the table.

The viscous, almost living blue liquid refracted an eerie glow under the dim light, and a faint, contradictory aura permeated the air—life and decay intertwined, a chilling, corrosive sensation mixed with a frenzied atmosphere.

"This... is the product from the underground base?"

The flame dancing at Bifang's fingertips froze for a moment; she could keenly sense the bone-chilling, faint radiation emanating from the liquid in the bottle.

"It doesn't smell like... the same smell as the men who ambushed us last night."

After severely injuring a Heavenly Alliance expert last night, she also intercepted half a bottle of residual liquid from a broken syringe. The domineering and cold energy of that liquid was quite different from this one.

"Yes, different levels."

Chen Yang nodded, confirming Bi Fang's senses.

"What's produced in Warehouse No. 7 is more like a defective product, or a stable, mass-produced 'civilian version.' Its medicinal properties are the same as the mutated power emanating from the core man in black, but its effects are diluted and its mechanism is more controllable."

He flicked his finger, a faint trace of fire energy emanating from its tip, and gently touched the glass bottle. The liquid inside seemed to be stimulated, a tiny, blood-red streak appearing at the center of its deep blue color before settling back down.

"Look, there's a reaction, but it's not intense at all."

It's more like a slow-release, long-lasting 'implanted' enhancer, rather than a potent drug that can turn a person into a monster overnight.

Jiang He's face was as somber as the frozen earth in late autumn.

"So... Warehouse No. 7 is just a huge raw material processing center, or... a production base for the 'basic solvent' of some kind of more efficient drug? And the final core product?" His gaze fell on the flashing mark representing "Xuanwu Desert Island" on the tablet map.

"It's very likely still on that island."

"We must know who their target audience is."

Qiuniu spoke in a deep, resonant voice, his voice carrying an barely suppressed murderous aura.

"Even a tiny bit of this monstrous stuff leaking out would be a disaster!"

"We have the samples."

Chen Yang pointed to the three bottles on the table.

"Send it away immediately and have someone analyze it."

From a technical standpoint, the Special Administration should have top-notch forensic toxicologists and bioenergetics. I need to know its detailed composition, mechanism of action, and most importantly… its stability, possible modes of transmission, and the timing of side effects.

"understand!"

Without wasting a word, Jiang He immediately picked up a specially made vacuum insulated box, carefully placed the three vials of medicine inside, locked them with multiple energy locks and physical locks, and then entered a complex self-destruct password.

"Bifang! Activate the highest priority biological channel! Have the bureau's 'Tiangong' team receive it personally! I want to see that every line in the analysis report is top secret!"

He slapped the box into Bi Fang's hands.

Bi Fang's expression was solemn. A flash of blue flame appeared at his fingertips, and some flame runes that were difficult to see with the naked eye appeared on the surface of the combination lock box.

"The bureau will receive it within three hours! If anything goes wrong, it will turn to ashes along its transmission path!"

Before she finished speaking, she flashed out of the window like a melting shadow and disappeared into the night.

Even after the drug samples were sent away, the atmosphere didn't lighten much. Jiang He looked at Chen Yang.

"Sect Leader Chen, you've had a great harvest over there, and we haven't been idle here either."

He pointed to a blue cursor on the map, located in the northwest of the coastal city, far from the port area, deep in an undeveloped hilly region.

"Jitong Express has an exceptionally large business network, one of which is a very peripheral but very stable 'business' – under the guise of an 'environmental technology research and development demonstration zone,' it has acquired a piece of land at the foot of the remote Yunxia Mountain and set up a so-called 'warehouse-style research and development center.'"

Nominally, it stores some environmental protection equipment and semi-finished scientific research products, but our satellite heat source scan revealed that its actual building volume is several times larger than the declared and registered volume! Moreover, the thermal energy reaction of its underground structure is particularly active after nightfall, and there are large-scale windowless buildings.

More importantly—

Jiang He paused for a moment, his eyes sharp.

"While tracking the unusual transport records of Jitong Logistics, we discovered several shipments of goods labeled with 'fragile items' and 'chemical reagents' and with 'warehousing center' listed as their destination. These shipments underwent energy leakage residue testing during transport... which closely matches the scent left behind by last night's attackers!"

Chen Yang's gaze sharpened.

"You mean... the elite Heavenly Dao Alliance troops who attacked Qingxi Village and injured Uncle Li, their equipment and supplies, and even their hideout... are very likely at that 'Environmental Protection Research and Development Center'?"

"The probability is over 70%! And it's a newly activated node!"

Qiuniu spoke, his eyes gleaming with the eagerness of a warrior who had found his target.

"That place is extremely remote, surrounded by mountains on three sides, with only one paved road leading into it; it's practically a natural fortress. Our people have returned from the daytime terrain reconnaissance and confirmed the presence of numerous hidden sentry posts and mobile security outposts!"

Chen Yang tapped his fingers on the table, making a soft, rhythmic sound. His eyes, no longer weary, were now filled with the sharpness of a falcon.

“Good place…new place. New places often have traces that haven’t been thoroughly cleaned up. Director Jiang, what are your plans?”

"Strike while the iron is hot!"

Rivers flowed with unwavering resolve.

“Bi Fang has gone to deliver the samples. We can’t just sit around with the remaining forces! Before the news leaks out, Warehouse No. 7 might not realize we’ve already found their second stronghold. Tonight, let’s investigate this ‘storage center’! If we’re lucky, we might catch a few big fish and follow the trail! Sect Leader Chen, are you willing…”

He didn't finish speaking, but his gaze was fixed intently on Chen Yang.

Chen Yang was the main force in this level of infiltration and reconnaissance.

"Right on my mind."

Chen Yang got up and stretched his still slightly aching muscles and bones.

"Without further ado, prepare manpower! Inform Liu Yu and Uncle Li to keep a close eye on the latest developments in Warehouse No. 7!"

Night once again provided cover.

A dark gray SUV, modified with parts from the Special Administration Bureau, turned off all unnecessary lights and, like a ghost in the night, silently drove away from the edge of the city and plunged into the hilly area to the northwest, where the colors were like ink splashed across the landscape.

Outside the car window, the city's neon lights were quickly replaced by the dark shadows of the mountains and the sparse canopy of trees, leaving only the deep and suppressed hum of the engine.

The driver was Xiao Wang, a young and highly skilled agent from the Special Administration Bureau. In the passenger seat sat Qiuniu, a silent iron tower, his keen senses scanning both sides of the road.

Chen Yang and Jiang He sat in the back seat. Xing San, a lean and taciturn middle-aged man whose aura was like a dagger hidden in the shadows, was the Special Administration Bureau's most outstanding expert in stealth, counter-surveillance, and interrogation. He leaned silently against the shadows of the last row.

The mountain road was rugged and the darkness was as thick as ink, so dense that it seemed to swallow even the starlight.

Only the road a few dozen meters ahead, cut by the headlights, shimmered with a pale halo.

The car was unusually quiet, with only the faint beeping of electronic instruments and the breathing of a few people.

As Chen Yang drove through a bend in a dense pine forest, he was closing his eyes and concentrating on sensing the road behind him with the faint light of his soul when suddenly his brows furrowed sharply!
He suddenly opened his eyes!

Almost at the same moment, Qiuniu also turned his head sharply and said in a deep voice.

"Two hundred meters behind us, two cars! They're moving at the same speed as us and keeping their high beams on! Something's wrong!"

Jiang He's eyes instantly sharpened like lightning!

He immediately glanced at the inconspicuous black wristwatch screen on his left wrist, which displayed the image from the vehicle's rearview camera—on the dimly lit mountain road, there were indeed two old-fashioned jeeps without license plates, clinging to him like leeches, slowly and steadily trailing behind, maintaining a strangely constant distance. (End of Chapter)