Book 3, Chapter 164: Breakthrough

Meng Huang grew taller, and his body swelled up, as if there was something in him that was fighting to get out, and his skin was no longer able to contain it.

His skin tore open, and something resembling sand flowed out from the tears. Clumps fell off his body, and whenever they landed on the floor, Meng Huang lost more of his humanity.

In just a moment, he grew to be more than three meters tall. Even though the study was pretty spacious, Meng Huang’s shadow filled every corner of the room. It changed shape rapidly right in front of their faces.

The transformation happened before everyone. All of the Meng family members watched in dumbfounded shock. Most couldn’t understand what was going on.

Only a handful of those with higher positions, who knew the truth about the world, connected it to what was going on, and their gazes turned fearful.

Chen Chuan had already stood up at this point, but he only took a look around the room. The study was covered inside out in ritual arrays. They weren’t drawn with ritual materials, but infused into the building materials itself, hidden within ornate decorations.

The good lighting in the room also served as a good cover. Before the ritual was activated, it wouldn’t hurt anyone. It was no wonder Chen Chuan hadn’t sensed anything off about the room earlier.

Based on the current situation, this was a powerful binding ritual. It was likely created precisely to use against the existence from the other world.

Meng Huang looked up slowly while covering half of his face. He stared at Meng Lai with one eye and wondered, “A ritual?”

Then, he cast a glance at all the Meng family members watching him in shock and grinned. “That’s fine. I’ll just kill everyone who saw this.”

“You’re not even a human anymore! How can you still dream of inheriting the company?!” one of the Meng family members on the screen shouted out.

“Of course I can. Why else would I keep playing this game with you?” Meng Huang answered him.

“Do you seriously think that we’ll accept you? Do you think anyone will accept you?”

Meng Huang gave them a teasing grin. “Why not? Once I control the company and give enough benefits and concessions while also promising to keep my activities restricted to a set area, they’ll accept me.

“As for the Resolution Department, even if they won’t accept me, that’s okay. I’m sure that someone else will.

“You say that I’m not a human anymore. That’s fine. Even if I no longer have the appearance of a human, as long as I act like one, you’ll see a human in my place, and the words I speak will sound like those of a human. What I truly am won’t matter then.”

He turned to Meng Lai and grinned. “If you can tolerate a bioreplacement controlled by a consciousness regulator, you have no right to refuse me.”

As he spoke, he slowly lowered his hand. A huge eyeball forced its way out of his torn face and occupied almost his entire face. Sharp teeth grew out of its edges and filled with capillaries. The face organs and other facial features got all mushed together into a chaotic mess.

The Meng family members on the screen watched, flabbergasted. Some of them started vomiting.

Meng Lai remained calm. Or rather, he was prepared for this and turned to speak to the people on the screen. “I believe you’ve seen it now and understand why I’ve picked Xiao Shu.”

“What happened to him?”

“That’s right. What’s this, Second Uncle?”

Not everyone knew the truth of the world. Most of the Meng family weren’t senior executives and only cared about enjoying life using the money and benefits from the family and company. Because of that, they didn’t know what was going on.

Meng Lai didn’t offer any explanation. He just turned to Chen Chuan and said sternly, “Officer Chen, I’m going to entrust Xiao Shu’s safety to you. Please bring her out to safety.”

Chen Chuan nodded. He could tell that while the ritual had bound Meng Huang’s strength, he would not stay that way for long. The effect was going to fade soon.

Meng Shu stood up, bowed to Meng Lai, and left with Yan Yi.

The large eyeball on Meng Huang’s face turned to Meng Shu’s group and moved in such a way as if everyone in the room were his target.

The security guard Meng Huang brought had stood still since coming in. Even after all the bizarre changes, he showed no reaction. But the moment the eyeball moved, he rushed over and threw a punch at Meng Shu. Before his attack could draw close, a loud whistle cut through the air, and Aunt Yu stood in his way.

She brought up her seemingly delicate arm and blocked the punch. The custom-made floorboard sank, and the furniture rattled.

Chen Chuan didn’t even look at them. He just led Meng Shu out while contacting the Resolution Department through the emergency channel so that they would know what was going on.

Meng Lai cast a glance at Meng Zhenghuai and apologized to him, “Sorry, Granduncle. We ended up getting you involved in this.”

“Don’t say that. I’m already 120 years old. I’ve once even lied about my age and made myself younger by two years so I could become an apprentice. I’ve already lived a full life.

“If I hadn’t come today, he wouldn’t have let down his guard and come either, would he?

“Let me support you this one last time. You did right by picking Xiao Shu. You haven’t let the Meng family down—”

Halfway through his speech, two servants stepped forward. They grabbed him and lifted him up gently before bringing him out of the room.

Meng Lai watched them leave but didn’t go himself. In no time, Aunt Yu began overpowering Meng Huang’s security guard. A moment later, the victor would be decided, and the fight would end.

Meng Lai looked away and turned his attention to Meng Huang. His “grandson” had become a giant. “Who are you? Or rather, which one of

them

are you?”

Meng Huang’s large eyeball flickered about for a moment before focusing on Meng Lai. “Why are you asking? Have you changed your mind? Do you want to negotiate with me now?”

“I just want to know who you are to make communication easier. After all, you’re all different, and I need to show different attitudes to different entities,” Meng Lai shot back.

Meng Huang had grown to be more than four meters tall, and his head was practically touching the ceiling. With his gigantic body, he leaned down to stare at Meng Lai. “You attacked me first, and now you want to talk?”

Meng Lai smiled and said matter-of-factly, “Is there a problem with that? You believe that might makes right. If I didn’t restrain your strength, you wouldn’t sit and listen to me. I think that this situation is just right for us to have a conversation.”

The murky layer in Meng Huang’s eyes surged, then calmed down. “Looks like you’ve been preparing for this day for a long time.”

“Yes. This situation is what I’ve been hoping for. I can restrain the effects of the truth here, and it won’t affect the company. Even if some news about it leaks out, I already have excuses for the public,” Meng Lai admitted.

“You’re weak. This alone isn’t enough.” Meng Huang looked around before casting his eye down. It seemed like he saw something through the floorboards. “Your real body is sleeping at the bottom of the manor, isn’t it? I can sense it now.”

Meng Lai nodded. “You’re right. If it weren’t, you wouldn’t have come over. You’re here to confirm the news that my real body is here, right?”

Meng Huang was quite surprised. “Looks like you let it out intentionally and ensured that Meng Xu would tell me. But that’s fine. As long as it’s true, that’s okay.”

He twisted his body, and the room swayed. “Soon. Very soon.”

Meng Lai didn’t seem bothered. He just said calmly, “You don’t need to worry about the ritual not being strong enough. Even if I can’t take you out, the Resolution Department officers will soon arrive to escort you back to the other world.”

Meng Huang acted as if he had just heard a funny joke. “You’re placing your hopes on the Resolution Department? I don’t think they can even get here,” he said teasingly.

***

Half an hour ago, Wu Quan received a nonstop barrage of connection requests from the City Hall.

Violent crimes related to martial artists popped up in several districts at the same time, and one of them was even right across the City Hall. This had an incredibly negative impact on the city.

Many news media outlets expressed their worries about Central City’s safety and the martial artists’ propensity for crime. Even though they didn’t blatantly state that they were blaming the Resolution Department for this, anyone with ears and eyes could tell that they were blaming the department.

Some government officials working in the City Hall and politicians also said that they wanted to inspect the Resolution Department. They demanded that the department immediately head to the crime scenes, especially the one before the City Hall. They also wanted more officers dispatched to the City Hall.

Wu Quan rejected all their demands.

He believed that Meng Huang was behind this. Ferris Wheel and some other companies might also be pulling strings behind the scenes. Because of this, he couldn’t agree to their demands at this point in time. Instead, he prepared to send his officers to Meng Lai’s manor to solve the problem in one go. He didn’t want more issues in the future.

“If they can, they’re welcome to remove me from my position. Otherwise, I’m continuing with the Meng Huang operation,” he said.

Director Fang was about to say something when someone contacted him. His expression turned serious, and he immediately answered it. After he finished listening to the message, his expression turned complicated. “I don’t think you can carry on with your plan today, Director Wu. The World Ring Defense System called. There’s abnormal activity at the World Ring, and they want us to send them reinforcements.”

“The World Ring has their regular operations teams protecting the World Ring, don’t they? Why are they suddenly asking for reinforcements?” Wu Quan asked with a scowl.

“You know what’s happened. Apparently, too many people died, and there are some gaps in our defenses.” Director Fang sighed.

“Why didn’t they say so earlier?!” Wu Quan seethed and slammed his hands on the table.

Director Fang just shook his head. “The higher-ups have their own considerations.”

“What about backup? I know they have them.” Wu Quan drummed his fingers against the table.

Director Fang took a moment to consider his words before saying, “You know that they won’t use those people, unless it’s absolutely necessary. They’re our safety net.”

Wu Quan paced for a bit with the scowl etched on his face. A long while passed before he finally said, “Since there’s a problem with the World Ring’s defense, I won’t drag my feet. That place is indeed more important...”

At the same time, he made a few calls with his Realm Pass. “Lao Wan and Xiao Lu stay. The others, come back. The department received new orders. Lao Wan and Xiao Lu should liaise with Officer Chen. Tell them not to push themselves. If they can’t get the deed done, they should protect themselves and Officer Chen.”

His expression remained grim even after he finished giving the orders. Leaving behind two Third Limit martial artists was the most help he could give Chen Chuan. He could only hope that they would be enough to take care of the matter.