Chapter 128: Successful Interception

Chapter 128 Successful Interception

Every action of the Capital City Base is now under global scrutiny, with nations and bases worldwide eagerly awaiting its response.

Some hope for the downfall of the Capital City Base, while others anticipate its full-scale counterattack.

Everyone is waiting with bated breath. Ji An and the other researchers are under immense pressure when suddenly, cheers erupt in the operations room. "We did it! We succeeded!"

Many overwhelmed researchers collapse to their knees, burying their faces as they weep uncontrollably.

Ji An isn’t as visibly emotional, but he can feel his heart pounding fiercely in his chest.

He turns, searching for that person in the crowd, only to be drawn into a warm, solid embrace the moment he moves.

"I knew you could do it," Gu Jinsheng’s voice comes from above him.

This time, Ji An doesn’t hold back—he holds onto Gu Jinsheng tightly in return.

Owen smiles too, but her expression betrays unmistakable disappointment and envy.

Her long, pale fingers absently trace over her smart device, like she used to tenderly brush a lover’s cheek.

"Chief, chief..." Owen hears someone calling her and looks up.

Jiang Fuzhong says, "Chief, Director Ji is talking to you."

"Oh, sorry, I spaced out," Owen apologizes with a smile.

"It’s fine," Ji An shakes his head. "We couldn’t have intercepted the missile without your intel. Without the exact launch coordinates from the M Base, we wouldn’t have tracked the target so quickly or intercepted it successfully."

"Have you managed to identify the sender of that message?" Wan Xueying asks.

"No."

For some reason, Owen’s heart lurches inexplicably at Wan Xueying’s question.

A desperate urge wells up inside her—to send a message assuring the sender’s safety.

Owen taps lightly on her smart device a few times, sending an encrypted message.

Her heart pounds as she waits. Three seconds later, her device lights up again. Owen eagerly opens the message, her hands shaking violently.

"Chief, what’s wrong?" Jiang Fuzhong is the first to notice Owen’s distress and immediately steps closer.

Owen’s shaking hands almost fumble the device.

"It’s him… it has to be him!" Owen murmurs, tears streaming down her face.

"Who?" Ji An asks.

"It’s him—Du Ruanlan. It must be him," Owen says excitedly.

Du Ruanlan—a name both familiar and foreign. Once, this name was a symbol of faith for many, a legend nearly on par with Gu Jinsheng.

"I’m sorry," Kong Zhongcheng says gravely. "Commander Du’s fate was tragic. But he turned into an infected, and the infected retain no memories. Even someone like Commander-in-Chief Du was no exception."

Otherwise, Du Ruanlan wouldn’t have vanished back then to avoid endangering Owen and the base.

"You’re wrong—you don’t understand!" Owen retorts loudly. "Look at this message—really read it!"

Ji An and the others gathered to look at the communication—two cryptic symbols none of them could understand.

"What is this?" Ji An asked.

"Of course you wouldn’t understand. This is a secret code only he and I share." Owen's expression was tender, full of endless nostalgia and deep longing.

"Whenever we were sent on separate missions, we would always send each other these two symbols as soon as the mission ended." To others, these seemingly nonsensical symbols were his sweetest expression of love.

They meant safety, a wish for each other’s well-being, and conveyed the deepest affection and yearning.

"No one knew what these symbols meant—only him and me." Owen insisted, voice trembling, "Ever since he left the base, no one has ever sent me these two symbols again."

"Harsh as it may be, if Du Ruanlan were truly alive and remembered you, why hasn’t he contacted you all these years?" Kong Zhongcheng said.

"Then what do these symbols mean?" Owen seized Kong Zhongcheng’s collar, furious. "This is a secret only the two of us knew—no third person could have known."

"What if someone found Du Ruanlan’s comms device, seen your messages, and cracked the code? Or maybe they didn’t even decipher it—just saw you two always exchanged this after missions and assumed it was a signal for mission completion, then sent it by mistake."

"No, he must still be alive. He was so strong—he must have found a way to save himself." Owen whispered, more to himself, "Something must’ve kept him from coming back. I believe he’s still alive."

"That idiot, why wouldn’t he come back? No matter what happened, no matter what he’s become, I’d have stood by him no matter what!" Owen sobbed uncontrollably.

"Commander-in-Chief Gu, Director Ji, Base H might be destroyed," a researcher suddenly announced.

Ji An and Gu Jinsheng walked over to check. In the earlier tension, they hadn’t noticed.

It turned out the two missiles had collided and exploded over Base H, leaving it a radioactive wasteland.

The researcher suddenly recalled that not long ago, they had repatriated several protesters originally from H Country.

"Base H was truly unlucky. They were supposed to evade it, but in the end, the missiles deviated and landed right on them."

Gu Jinsheng said, "Get me a radiation suit. I’m going to Base H."

Ji An knew better than to argue. "Be careful."

"Alright."

"I’m coming too. Count me in," Owen suddenly declared.

"Owen, you’re too emotional right now. Maybe you should rest. If you still want to go after calming down, then you can join later," Ji An gently advised.

Owen shook his head. "No, I have to go. I have to see it with my own eyes. If he sent me that message, he must be watching this closely. Maybe he’ll be there."

Ji An fell silent.

"I’m coming with you, Boss," Jiang Fuzhong offered.

"No, you return to Luo City Base. They need you back there," Owen refused.

"The base doesn’t need me—they can handle it. The boss put you in my care before he left. I have to take care of you." This time, the "boss" Jiang Fuzhong referred to was Du Ruanlan.

Owen didn’t argue further.

By now, residents across China had received news of the successful missile interception. Celebrations erupted everywhere.

The internet was flooded with cheers and jubilant festivities.

But some still flooded in, spreading doom.

"Do you people of China have no conscience, still cheering and celebrating? The M base was clearly targeting you, but ended up bombing the H base. If it weren't for you, how could the H base have been bombed?"

"This is entirely the M base's fault. Instead of condemning the M base for starting the war, you come here to blame us."

"It wasn't deliberate. Our plan was to intercept the M base's missiles in an uninhabited mountain forest. But there was too little time and not enough preparation, which led to the H base being affected. It wasn't intentional, okay?"

"Direct your anger at the M base. China was only acting in self-defense."

"Wasn’t the H base the most loyal supporter of the M base? I suppose they should feel honored to be hit by a missile launched by the M base."

"The Chinese people show no humanity. It’s clearly their fault that the H base was bombed, yet they keep shifting the blame. Utterly disgraceful."

"The Chinese are selfish and cold-blooded. They show no regard for humanity or human rights. This incident reveals their true nature. I once again call on everyone to boycott China, the Chinese, and everything made in China."

"You can boycott China and the Chinese all you want up there, but boycotting Chinese-made goods is unnecessary. Don’t forget, the nutrient solutions, treatment pods, and even the smart devices you’re using now are all made in China. Other things aside, boycotting nutrient solutions—are you trying to starve yourself?"

No matter how heated the arguments were on the smart devices, they had no real impact on the Jing City base.

"Commander-in-Chief Charles, the Jing City base successfully intercepted the missiles outside China. Unfortunately, the two missiles collided over the H base," the missile-launching researcher reported to Charles.

"An explosion over the H base? The H base really drew the short straw," a high-ranking official remarked. "I wonder what state the H base is in now. Should we send someone to check?"

"Who would go? You? The area's completely irradiated now."

"I’m just worried that if the H base is completely wiped out, they won’t be able to contribute funds next time."

"Speaking of which, part of the missile production costs were funded by H Country."

Amid the discussions of the high-ranking officials, Charles flew into a rage.

"How could China intercept my missiles? This time, I made a surprise attack, without leaking any information in advance. How did they know?"

Charles glared suspiciously at each official in the room. "Even if they knew I was launching missiles, without the exact coordinates, they couldn’t have intercepted them so quickly. So, who among you betrayed me and the M base?"

All the officials immediately straightened up. "No, we didn’t betray the M base, nor you!"

"Lies!" Charles roared in anger. "If none of you betrayed me, how could the Jing City base react so swiftly this time?"

Charles’ eyes were bloodshot, as if filled with blood. "Who was it? Step forward now, or I’ll force you to."

Almost all the officials tensed up, bracing themselves covertly.

They knew Charles wasn’t joking. If he decided someone was guilty, he wouldn’t give them a chance to explain.

Finally, one official, under the weight of Charles' accusatory stare, struck first. Charles immediately retaliated, and soon other officials joined in.

A battle between elite superpowered officials erupted in the M base’s high-ranking meeting room.

The fight lasted an unknown amount of time before it finally ended, leaving the building awash with blood. All the officials died in the battle, and Charles, now missing an eye, emerged as the sole victor.

Bleeding profusely, Charles hauled his broken body to the command room. No sooner had he burst through the door than his first action wasn't to call for medical aid but to order the researchers to prepare another missile strike—at maximum speed this time—to launch a second strike on the Jing City base.

The researchers receiving these orders were convinced Charles had lost his mind entirely.

Yet not a soul dared oppose him.