Chapter 730 Thunderflame
GOR
After having informed Chen Xiaolian, Roddy repeated those words through the guild’s public channel.
“The intruders’ identities and position? I will go over right now,” Chen Xiaolian was quick to respond as he retrieved an alloy sword from his Storage Watch.
Two of the three Four-eyed War Cats immediately jumped off Yu Jiajia’s body, transforming into their War Forms as they followed Chen Xiaolian. The one remaining Four-eyed War Cat continued to press Yu Jiajia down.
“I do not know.” Roddy’s answer came as a surprise for Chen Xiaolian. “At present, I cannot find the intruders. However, the first and second layers of this island’s defensive systems have failed. I cannot determine the intruders’ location for now, but… … they are definitely already on this island.”
Chen Xiaolian quickly considered the situation at hand before issuing his orders, “Everyone, gather up with those closest to you first before heading toward Roddy’s position together, the main control room in the left wing of the third floor. Be vigilant for any surprise attacks and stay safe.”
At the same time, Qiao Qiao pushed open the door of their room to rush into the corridor. Despite the displeased look on Qiao Yifeng’s face, he continued to follow Qiao Qiao.
“There are other teams coming after you?” After exchanging glances with Chen Xiaolian, Qiao Qiao turned to ask Qiao Yifeng.
“That shouldn’t be the case.” Qiao Yifeng slowly shook his head. “The two guilds back then are not too big. While I do not know the exact number of members they have, the main powerhouses of their guilds should all be in the earlier fight. Unless…”
“Unless they had sold this information to others.” Chen Xiaolian’s face was highly distorted.
After receiving a vast amount of supplies from Blade Mountain Flame Sea Guild, he had upgraded this small island’s defensive system.
The defensive system here was divided into three layers.
The outermost layer was the several entrance and exit points, including the dock. Surveillance cameras and signboards have been set up there to warn others that this was a private place and entry was forbidden.
The second layer was a wall surrounding the whole resort. Over three metres high, it was also reinforced with anti-climbing barbs. Additionally, anaesthetic dart launchers were also set up in various locations.
After the base’s master control computer was enhanced by Roddy, members of Meteor Rock Guild no longer needed to carry any form of identifications on their person. The computer’s AI program could compare the images provided by the surveillance cameras with its own database and determine if there was a need to attack.
Before bringing Yu Jiajia and Qiao Yifeng back to the resort, Roddy had already used the equipment aboard the Tidal Fighter to scan the two of them and sent their physical data into the main control computer.
The innermost layer of defence was set up within the main building. The defensive equipment set up here had been upgraded to the lethal kind. Although no firearms have been installed, the electrical defence there was powerful enough to endanger even the lives of ordinary Awakened ones.
In the central hall, where the entrance to their base was located, Roddy had modified two laser-powered miniguns to block off any attempts to enter or exit the base.
Anyone whose physical data had not been entered into the database will receive a warning when they approach the area. If that person were to remain within the area after three seconds, the laser miniguns will swiftly open fire to riddle the opposing party with holes.
This defensive system was not infallible. Should a fisherman accidentally come ashore, he might end up making contact with the resort due to curiosity. As for the other Awakened ones, by using brute force, it would not be too hard for them to break through the wall.
At present however, the first two layers of defence have failed without any warning. This was something that Chen Xiaolian had never considered.
Qiao Qiao carried the drunk Yu Jiajia with her as she led the way. Behind her were Qiao Yifeng and Chen Xiaolian, who served as the rear-guard. The four of them carefully moved toward the main control room that Roddy was in.
Earlier, Roddy informed them that only the first two layers of defence had been broken while the innermost layer remained intact. However, Chen Xiaolian dared not let his guard down.
Thankfully, nothing happened on their way to the main control room. No enemies had appeared. It did not take long for Lun Tai and the others to arrive as well.
In the monitoring room, Roddy was looking at three screens. His hands tapped about and the images on the screens kept switching.
“What is going on right now?” Chen Xiaolian himself did not understand what Roddy was doing.
After hitting a keyboard a few times, Roddy then pointed at one of the screens.
The image on the screen switched into a bird’s-eye view of the whole island. Different areas have been marked with different colours. The outermost layer was green in colour, the middle layer was yellow while the innermost layer was red.
“The outermost layer’s surveillance system and the middle layer’s anaesthetic launcher system have failed. They are currently in the process of recovering.” Seeing the quizzical look on Chen Xiaolian’s face, Roddy was quick to add, “It is not a circuit failure. Someone had broken into the system and messed up all the coding there.”
“A hacker broke in?” Chen Xiaolian frowned. “Are there any traces? Is the innermost layer’s system still functioning?”
“The security level for the innermost layer is higher. At present, there are no signs of it getting hacked.” Roddy shook his head. “The other side has already retreated without leaving any traces behind. It seems they are pros.”
“Even your Mechanical Heart cannot find anything?” Chen Xiaolian was somewhat shocked.
“By the time I noticed, the other side had already cut off their connection. Besides, the equipment that they are using aren’t conventional equipment.” There was a somewhat embarrassed look on Roddy’s face. “However, seeing as the security system for the main building remain intact, it is likely that they have yet to enter here.”
The place was designed for a resort after all. Thus, there was a lengthy distance between the walls and the main building. There were also various structures, pools, bamboo forests and ancillary buildings in between. As the enemy may have gotten past the walls, there were many buildings for them to hide in the areas outside the main building.
“Should we split up and investigate?” Roddy turned to Chen Xiaolian. “After Zero City’s destruction, there aren’t many other strong Awakened guilds around. Given our guild’s present level of strength, there is nothing for us to fear.”
“No.” After considering it for a moment, Chen Xiaolian shook his head. “The enemy is presently hiding in the dark while we are out in the open. Acting recklessly will not bring us any good. Xia Xiaolei does not have any offensive abilities still and Qimu Xi’s level of strength is even weaker. Besides… … Qiao Yifeng and Yu Jiajia do not have any combat power at all. They are our enemy’s objective. If we spread out, it will give them a higher chance of successful getting what they want.
“Since the enemy side has stopped hacking, we will just stay right here. How long will you need to restore the defensive systems?”
“Around 15 minutes. However… … what if they are more patient than us and insist on not coming out?” Roddy frowned. “For example, what if they are waiting for reinforcements?”
“If they have reinforcements, they will have no need to act so rashly.” Chen Xiaolian shook his head. “The enemy’s objective must surely be Qiao Yifeng and Yu Jiajia. Prioritize their protection and we will be able to slowly deal with the enemies. Once you have restored the defensive systems, we will be able to determine the number of enemies and their whereabouts.”
“All right.” Roddy nodded his head. He stopped talking and focused on swiftly tapping the keyboard.
“Wait! We forgot someone!” Lun Tai abruptly knitted his brows. “Did no one inform Sister Yun to gather here?”
“I actually forgot. She is not a member of our Meteor Rock Guild, so we are unable to inform her using our guild channel.” Only then did Chen Xiaolian remember. Next, he smiled. “Still, it is fine. Given her level of strength, it is unlikely that there is anyone in this world who can harm her. We can save ourselves the trouble if the enemies decide to go look for her.”
…
Within a bamboo forest inside the resort, a woman in red-coloured leather jacket was crouched in the middle of a bush as she carefully crawled forward.
“Is it done?”
After moving to the edge of the bamboo forest, she looked at the main building situated before her. Then, she lowered her head and uttered those words with a cold and hoarse voice, directing them at the communication device placed near her throat. There were traces of petulance in her voice.
At present, the sun was gradually setting and the surrounding area was turning dark. It won’t be long before night fell upon them. And yet, despite the dim illumination, her red-coloured attire remained incomparably striking.
“Aunt Flame…” Fatty’s fearful voice replied through her ear piece. “The other side found me. So, I had to disconnect. If I did not, they would have found my location. Currently, the innermost layer of security system remains intact.”
“Youngling, you are really useless.” Aunt Flame snapped in a low tone. “You can’t even handle such a small matter.”
“I have already told you before!” Fatty shouted into the other end of the communication device. “I am a genius in mechatronics, not a Mechatronic God! This is someone else’s system, someone else’s turf! Naturally, being a thief is harder than being a housekeeper! It wasn’t easy for me to hack the two layers of defensive systems!”
“Enough! You and your nonsense.” Aunt Flame gave a harrumph. “You can forget about this. Drive the speedboat away and wait for me somewhere far from this lake. After I am done here, I will inform you beforehand to come pick us up.”
“But…” Fatty hesitated for a moment. “This guild has a Tidal Fighter. They…”
“So what if I crash my way into this insignificant guild’s turf?” Aunt Flame sneered as she interrupted Fatty. “How is killing them any different from playing with a toy? Do not forget, I am Blade Mountain Flame Sea Guild’s Thunderflame! Do you think I will lose to a small and ordinary guild?”
“But… … Uncle Qiao is still in their hands…” Fatty stuttered. “Aunt Flame, I am of course aware of your strength. I am just afraid that those guys might use Uncle Qiao to threaten you…”
“Since when can Thunderflame be threatened by others?” Aunt Flame continued sneering. “If they so much as touch a hair on Qiao Yifeng, I will make them regret ever being born into this world.”
“Oh, fine… … in that case, Aunt Flame… … take care of yourself.” Fatty sighed. “It’s just strange. Before this, you and Uncle Qiao had argued that much. To think that you would be so anxious to come save him.”
“That is a different matter altogether.” Aunt Flame snorted softly. “No matter how bad our relationship may be, that is the internal matter of our Blade Mountain Flame Sea Guild. He is a member of Blade Mountain Flame Sea Guild. Forget about him being an eyesore. Even if I really want to kill him, that doesn’t mean outsiders can kill him!”
“Fine, fine! I get it!” Fatty smiled wryly. “Aunt Flame, you should hurry it up. If you continue to delay it, they will probably restore the outer layers’ defensive systems.”
“I’m hanging up.” Aunt Flame turned off the communication device. Slowly, she raised her head to measure the distance between the bamboo forest and the main building. She crouched down and got into a get set position. However, her right hand was not placed on the ground. Instead, it was placed on her back.
“Blade Mountain Flame Sea Guild’s Thunderflame… … is going to start a massacre!”
Her right foot forcefully kicked the ground and her figure shot forward like a bolt of lightning while staying close to the ground, quickly making her way toward the main building.