Forbidden Zone of Deception

Chapter 201 Hijacking
Just as the Nirvana team was getting ready to train new recruits, no one expected that something terrible was about to happen.

Guangming Hotel, Changming District.

This is where the imperial envoys stationed in Muxu City stayed.

In the presidential suite on the 23rd floor of the Guangming Hotel, Wen Jinsong was bent over his desk reviewing documents.

As the head of the imperial envoy delegation, he was originally a powerful regional official wielding the imperial sword.

But everyone knows that this position is not easy to hold.

Certainly, serving as an imperial envoy would bring numerous political achievements, but correspondingly… Wen Jinsong would also bear enormous risks. The per capita SAN value in Muxu City was declining year by year, while memetic pollution was becoming increasingly severe. No one could guarantee that their stay in Muxu would be peaceful. If luck wasn't on their side, they might just be killed off one day.

Wen Jinsong was always trying to improve the overall strength of the outer ring patrol team as much as possible, and to recruit talents for the court in order to deal with various memetic disasters in the future.

However, to his utter surprise, during his term, Liang Zhiyuan was openly murdered by the Insect Hole team. Even with his powerful connections and influence, Wen Jinsong would be held accountable if he didn't handle the situation properly. Therefore, his task was to deploy a strategy to eliminate the Insect Hole team.

However, the Insect Nest is currently under complete lockdown, and all team members are temporarily staying in the main world instance. Wen Jinsong can only dispatch a few official Reincarnators to the Insect Nest's main instance to defeat them.

Of course, to be honest, while it's called a campaign of conquest, going to Lady Pussy's home turf to fight her would inevitably result in heavy casualties. Besides, once inside the instance, there's no way to control those reincarnated individuals. They're paid by the government, but ultimately they're not regular soldiers; they're essentially bandits recruited by the imperial court. Expecting them to put in the effort and fight Lady Pussy with all their might? Are you kidding me! Just not slacking off is good enough!

How much resentment crystals do you think I earn in a month? You expect me to serve the imperial court?
Moreover, the current Insect Nest main battlefield is extremely terrifying. Lady Pussy has changed the original Gu magic system, combining it with memetic contamination to form a unique "living Gu domain".

In the original work, Gu techniques were a secret art passed down for thousands of years, involving a variety of strange methods such as Golden Silkworm Gu, Love Gu, and Corpse Gu. However, Lady Pussy further distorted these Gu techniques, turning them into a source of meme pollution that could spread.

She first transformed the entire instance into a "Gu Nest," forcing all entrants to follow her "Gu Technique Rules." The Gu worms from the original work were given cognitive pollution properties in her instance—for example, the Golden Silkworm Gu would devour memories, the Love Gu would distort emotions, and the Corpse Gu would cause victims to gradually lose their self-awareness and become walking corpses.

The entire instance has now become a living ecosystem, and anyone who enters it will gradually be assimilated into a "Gu person".

Therefore, Wen Jinsong didn't expect them to actually achieve anything. He just hoped they could bring back a few heads of well-known reincarnators from the Insect Nest team so he could write a more impressive report and submit it to the court, thus barely keeping his official hat as the imperial envoy.

Then, he made a phone call to someone.

The other party is Li Tianshi, CEO of the Pan Shi Group. Li Tianshi's son, Li Yuanxiu, is the leader of the Minghun Team and the prospective son-in-law of Ye Xiu, the leader of the Yongmeng Team. This marriage between these two major reincarnation teams is a significant event.

Yongmeng and Panshi were the main forces in this campaign against the insect nest, so Wen Jinsong should also offer his congratulations.

"Mr. Li, congratulations! I just received the news that the wedding is being held this week. I will definitely attend the wedding in person."

"Thank you, Commander Wen!" Li Tianshi laughed heartily as he sat in his luxurious office. His son, a prospective LV4 Reincarnator, was about to have an LV5 Reincarnator as a relative by marriage, which would further strengthen the relationship with the imperial court. How could Li Tianshi not be happy?

Suddenly, the glass window shattered silently.

No alarm, no vibration!
Li Tianshi suddenly looked up, his pupils shrinking sharply—five figures stood like ghosts in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, the leader wearing a bronze mask with the nuclear symbol of the Old Nuclear Organization engraved on it.

"Mr. Li, I've heard so much about you." The man chuckled, his voice gentle and warm, yet chilling.

Li Tianshi had already pressed the emergency alarm button under the table, but the expected rush of guards did not occur. The entire floor was eerily silent, as if completely isolated by some force.

"Don't bother," the man said slowly as he approached. "No one will come to save you."

Li Tianshi hung up the phone, forcing himself to remain calm: "Who are you?"

"The old nuclear organization, Li Ming." The man removed his mask, revealing a refined and handsome face, a faint smile playing on his lips. "I am a Class A wanted criminal by the imperial court."

Behind him, four other former core members stood in place, blocking all exits.

One of the slender women raised her hand, a blood-red eyeball floating in her palm, the eyeball constantly moving, scanning every corner of the room.

"What do you want to do?" Li Tianshi asked coldly.

His calm demeanor at this moment impressed Li Ming; he truly deserved to be the CEO of a large corporation.

“Negotiations,” Li Ming smiled. “Unfortunately, the imperial court doesn’t seem very willing to listen to us, so…”

He snapped his fingers.

The walls of the suite shattered with a crash, and in the hallway outside, the bodies of more than a dozen security guards lay scattered about.

"Now, I think they should be willing to listen."

Li Tianshi's expression finally changed drastically!
"If you think you can use me to blackmail the court, you're dreaming!" Li Tianshi roared. "The court will never be blackmailed by you! If you want to force me to do anything, don't even think about it! I, Li Tianshi, will never do what you traitors want!"

This is where Li Tianshi demonstrated his high level of business acumen. After all, Commander Wen was listening on the other end of the phone, and if he didn't handle things properly, the future of the Panshi Group would be over. While saying the right thing might seem like nonsense, it was something he couldn't avoid saying.

"Alright, take good care of Mr. Li."

……

Soon, the camera focused on Li Tianshi, who was forced to sit on a carved wooden chair, his mouth was gagged, his hands were chained, and the mark of the old core was forcibly carved on his forehead.

"Good evening, everyone." Li Ming smiled at the live broadcast camera, his voice as gentle as if he were reporting the weather. "This is a special program from the Old Nuclear Organization—'The Rules Are Sacred'."

He walked behind Li Tianshi and gently placed his fingers on his shoulder: "First of all, our Old Core Organization's Strange Core Branch declares responsibility for the scarecrow meme incident in Pingdong District. That's right, those adorable scarecrows were the seeds we planted. This is just the beginning, our first step in response to the Manhattan meme. Memes are the evolution of humanity, yet you heretics call them pollution—a grave sin of blasphemy!"

Li Tianshi struggled desperately, knowing full well that struggling was futile at this point, but he had to put on this show for the court. Otherwise, if he sat upright, it would be used by those with ulterior motives to attack him!

“Secondly, our conditions are very simple.” Li Ming held up two fingers. “First, the imperial court needs to provide us with 10 billion yuan for ‘backroom’ research; second, release all imprisoned members of the old core; third, acknowledge that memes are an inevitable path for human evolution.”

He leaned down and whispered in Li Tianshi's ear, "Of course, if the imperial court refuses... we don't mind going on a killing spree. We've already taken all the board members of the Panshi Group hostage; we have plenty of hostages. We don't mind dragging things out with you!"

The barrage in the live broadcast room exploded instantly.

This event instantly plunged the entire Muxu City into a massive wave, like an earthquake and a tsunami!

The Panshi Group building was surrounded by special police, and even military personnel were present!

Li Tianshi of the Panshi Group has been kidnapped by the Old Nuclear Organization!

Wen Jinsong himself also issued instructions that the safety of all board members must be guaranteed!
The old nuclear organization's decision to target Li Tianshi was clearly meticulously planned—it could both obtain a huge ransom and use Li, a business tycoon, as a hostage to force the imperial court to make concessions on meme policies.

The Meme Contamination Monitoring Department reacted extremely quickly; within half an hour, three teams of Reincarnators at level 3 or above had arrived at the scene.

One of them was the "Nine Grudges Team," specializing in curses and spells. The team leader, Ma Laojiu, held a puppet and sneered, "Playing tricks, watch me curse him to death!"

He bit his finger and wrote Li Ming's birth date and time on the doll, then suddenly plunged a steel needle into the doll's heart.

However, as soon as the needle pierced his skin, Ma Laojiu suddenly convulsed and bled from all seven orifices.

Beneath his skin emerged an old nuclear symbol identical to the one on Li Ming's mask. His entire body was twisted into a pretzel by an invisible hand, and finally exploded into a cloud of blood mist with a "bang".

In the live stream, Li Ming chuckled, "Oh dear, it seems someone's made a move against me. Don't you think I'd dare come here without sufficient backing? Right?" Five minutes later, a convoy arrived at the scene!

Upon seeing the car at the very front, countless reincarnators immediately projected their attention towards it!
The person in this car is a real heavyweight – Long Mingzhang, the Minister of the Membrane Contamination Monitoring Department!
LV5 Reincarnator!!!
When Long Mingzhang's convoy arrived, the area outside the group's building was already in chaos.

"Minister Long, all assault plans have failed." The SWAT commander on site stepped forward, saluting, his voice trembling. "Thermal imaging shows they're not in the normal space at all. Our bullets and spells are all ineffective!"

Long Mingzhang was a robust man who looked to be in his mid-thirties, with a dark complexion and a strong physique.

He naturally knew that the so-called conventional space was the material layer.

They are clearly inside the contaminated layer!
Long Mingzhang stared at the window on the twentieth floor where Li Tianshi was, his eyes icy cold.

Li Ming is practically immortal and is Chang Wuyong's right-hand man. Even if I were to make a move, I wouldn't be able to kill him unless I could knock him into the Infernal Realm with a single blow.

If Li Tianshi is one of the top entrepreneurs in the country, then Panshi Group is also among the top 500 companies nationwide. Not to mention Li Tianshi's unimaginable connections and influence within the government, his son and prospective in-laws are both LV4 and LV5 reincarnations! If anything were to happen to him, how could Long Mingzhang possibly have a good life afterward?
Therefore, he dares not launch a direct attack now. After all, the less he does, the fewer mistakes he makes!

"Summon all Level 3 and above Reincarnation Realm members in the city," he said through gritted teeth. "Whoever can rescue President Li, name your price!"

The imperial court would never agree to the other party's conditions. The consequences of a national court compromising with an old nuclear organization would be unimaginable.

If they can't rescue President Li, someone will definitely have to take the blame, and Long Mingzhang certainly won't escape it. Since it's the same thing to take the blame, they need to find several people to share the responsibility!
As for setting any conditions, you can just make empty promises first. Anyway, if they can't be rescued or die inside, you don't have to fulfill even the biggest promises yourself.

Long Mingzhang was also frustrated... There was nothing he could do. No matter how strong a reincarnator was, he was still just an individual, not a cultivator who could turn the world upside down with a flick of his wrist. He was powerless in the face of a fully activated national machine.

When the news reached the Nirvana team, Jiang Jin had just finished a round of training.

His bare upper body was covered in fine beads of sweat, and his muscles rippled slightly with his breathing. Scattered on the floor were several crystals of resentment that had exhausted their energy and changed color completely.

"Something's happened." Yu Tianlun pushed open the door and entered, his voice unusually urgent.

Jiang Jin grabbed a towel and wiped his face. He rarely saw Yu Tianlun with such an expression. He asked, "What's going on?"

Yu Tianlun picked up an iPad, and the screen of the tablet was playing a chilling live broadcast—Li Tianshi was chained to a bronze chair, and five members of the Old Core wearing Old Core masks stood behind him.

At this moment, comments in various languages ​​floated across the screen.

"The old nuclear organization attacked the headquarters building of the Panshi Group." Yu Tianlun placed the tablet on the table, and the screen switched to live news footage of the exterior of the Panshi Group building.

Dozens of police cars surrounded the group's building, while helicopters hovered overhead.

"At present, it seems that the murder of Deputy Regiment Commander Liang Zhiyuan is just a prelude. After all, there have been rumors that the Bug Hole is secretly colluding with the Old Core. And now they have taken General Manager Li hostage and are making demands live."

"What are their demands for Mr. Li's kidnapping?"

"First, the imperial court needs to provide one billion in funding; second, release all imprisoned former nuclear members; third, acknowledge that meme contamination is an inevitable path of human evolution."

Jiang Jin suddenly stood up and said, "These demons! My family is in danger because of them!"

Just thinking about his family being quarantined and their uncertain future makes Jiang Jin want to wipe out all the demons from the old nuclear organization!

Yu Tianlun looked up at him, his brows furrowed: "This unit is the 'seeders' of the Strange Core branch of the old nuclear organization. They are extremely dangerous. Last month, the Strange Core organization's overseas branch created a 'textual plague' in a certain city, turning half the city's population into living pages."

"They're really that scary?"

"Well, Minister Long Mingzhang has now summoned the reincarnation teams led by the leaders of all the LV3 guilds, hoping to pool their wisdom and efforts to successfully rescue the other party. He said that if President Li is rescued, the conditions are open to all. However, with Li Ming's strength, he is capable of entering the deepest part of the Annihilation Layer, and most reincarnators cannot do anything to him. Our team cannot be of much help, but since Minister Long has personally summoned us, we should at least be there to go through the motions."

Jiang Jin nodded and said, "Alright then..."

Suddenly, Jiang Jin thought of something.

“Commander, I’m saying… if we rescue General Li, and Minister Long says we can name our terms—then when Blood Lord wants to touch us again, he’ll have to think twice.”

Although this has temporarily restrained Blood Lord, preventing him from taking action against the Nirvana team, this approach is still not entirely safe.

With Long Mingzhang as their backer, Blood Lord wouldn't dare to attack them again. Long Mingzhang is one of the strongest LV5 Reincarnators officially recognized! Blood Lord is only LV4; he's nothing in front of Long Mingzhang!
Yu Tianlun shook his head and said, "According to the current intelligence, the Old Core has dispatched five core members this time. In addition to Li Ming, there is Zhang Que, the 'Space Folder'; Wang Wu, the 'Cognitive Distorter'; Zhao Hui, the 'Causality Inverter'; and Sun Mei, the 'Memory Compiler'. They are all proficient in rule-based professional skills and have a very deep understanding of the rules of the Resentment Crystal Shards. They are all reincarnators who can enter the deepest layer of the Annihilation Layer. Compared to any one of them, I am far inferior!"

Jiang Jin continued, "What if... I had a way to wipe them all out in one fell swoop?"

Yu Tianlun was stunned.

what's the situation?
“Jiang Jin, you…” Yu Tianlun shook his head and said, “Although we did obtain a lot of treasures from the Bloody Team this time, and you and Liu Yan also have a lot of resentment crystals, this time the enemy is the Old Core Organization! We can’t possibly be their match! Even the Blood Lord himself can’t do anything to them!”

"You just mentioned all those people's names, which means you have detailed information about them, right?"

"Yes...they are all wanted criminals by the imperial court, of course there are..."

“That’s good then,” Jiang Jin continued. “I have a way.”

For a moment, Yu Tianlun felt his brain freeze.

What...what's going on?
"You, you mean to use witchcraft? Although we have a member named Kong Huaizheng on our team, we've already tried witchcraft, and it's completely useless. They all possess mysterious and unpredictable rule-based skills, and even the floor they're on is completely detached from the material world. To be honest, even Long Mingzhang isn't confident he can save President Li's life."

“It’s not a curse.” Jiang Jin said decisively, “No matter how many powerful rule-based skills the people of the Old Core possess, it’s useless.”

"Huh?" Yu Tianlun carefully observed Jiang Jin.

Could it be... could it be that Jiang Jin ingested too much resentful ashes and failed to digest and integrate them, causing him to go into a demonic state and start talking nonsense?
At this moment, the Panshi Group building was heavily cordoned off, with glaring police tape surrounding the entire building.

The building's perimeter was filled with vehicles flashing police lights, and fully armed SWAT officers used armored vehicles as cover, their guns all pointed at the upper floors of the building. Three armed helicopters circled overhead, their searchlights constantly sweeping across the building's glass curtain wall, occasionally catching glimpses of dark figures flashing past inside the windows.

At that moment, a blood-red banner made of bed sheets was hung from the top of the building, with the five large characters "Rules are sacred" written crookedly.

"Minister Long!" The on-site commander jogged over, saluting, his voice trembling. "They just executed another board member; the body was thrown out the window. They're demanding one person be killed every hour, until..."

"I know."

Long Mingzhang raised his hand to interrupt, his eyes scanning the live stream on the tablet.

On the far left of the screen, Li Ming was actually slowly and methodically peeling an apple with a dagger!

Inside the command vehicle, twelve monitoring screens simultaneously displayed analysis footage from different angles.

"Minister!" At this moment, Deputy Minister Chen Chongming reported, "More than fifteen Reincarnator teams have arrived at the scene! Including the Temple, Eternal Dream, Dawn, Netherhound, and Bloodlust teams!"

"Alright... Call everyone for a strategy meeting! With everyone pooling their wisdom and strength, I refuse to believe we can't take down these guys!"

(End of this chapter)