Book 3, Chapter 275: Cooperation

Chen Chuan went to the deck with Gu Haiting. The sun shone on the water and made the sea sparkle in dazzling gold. A warm breeze blew over and made their clothes and hair flutter.

While looking at the majestic and beautiful Central City in the distance, they went to the guardrail. Before them were the blue seawater waves that rose and fell. Occasionally, a white seagull flew past.

Chen Chuan looked in the direction of Glowing Dew District. Even though they were far away, he could see the outline of the large ferris wheel.

Gu Haiting took two boxes from a ship attendant and handed one to Chen Chuan before opening the one in his hands.

The waves surged, and a pod of dolphins swam past. A few of them took a moment to lift their heads and watch them, while others circled around the ship.

Gu Haiting grabbed a handful of pellets from his box and threw them down.

The dolphins immediately started trilling and leaped out of the sea to grab the food. Some jumped so high that they passed over the ship and landed on the other side with a huge splash.

This performance made it clear that they weren’t ordinary dolphins.

“These are mutated dolphins. They’re modified creatures created through the company’s research. They also have implants to help us save and find special items,” Gu Haiting explained.

“Special items?” Chen Chuan asked.

“Did you know that gaps aren’t just restricted to land? Some of them open at the bottom of the sea, which is a place we don’t understand at all.

“However, based on what happened in the old era and our deductions after we began exploring in the new era, there aren’t many gaps in the ocean. The first evidence is that there are few mutated creatures in the sea. We’ve also tried to set up a Central City on the surface of the ocean before, but the gaps we managed to collect were few. Due to some other reasons, the government abandoned that plan.

“While there are only a handful of gaps in the ocean, whenever one shows up, it affects the creatures in the area and causes them to mutate. These modified dolphins can help us locate those mutated creatures and find the gaps.

“Among the responsibilities given to Azure Dragon and Ocean Development Corporation when they were first built were to get rid of these mutated creatures, figure out where the gaps in the ocean are, and seal them remotely.”

It was clear that these two companies had received a lot of benefits to take up such responsibilities. Chen Chuan was also pretty sure that searching for the gaps wasn’t the only reason why they modified the dolphins. It was highly likely that researching combat-based implants and biomodification technology was their real goal.

But in the overall context, this was nothing. The Great Crash was right around the corner, and all the companies in the world were doing it.

Gu Haiting threw more pellets at the dolphins. “The islanders have always wanted to establish their own Central City, but the government has put a stop to it through us. I won’t tell you about all the conflicts. You just need to know that we won’t be letting them have what is ours.

“The islanders have the support of the Linacrox Union and some other international organizations that have always been trying to seize control of the ocean from us. One of their attempts resulted in Ferris Wheel. Some of the technology they use holds traces of the Linacrox Union.

“No matter the reason behind the company’s establishment, it was our enemy from the very start.

“I’m not talking about it being just Azure Dragon and Ocean Development Corporation’s enemy. I’m talking about how it’s also your enemy, Captain Chen.”

“Oh? How so?” Chen Chuan asked.

“Please log onto our company employee platform. I’ll show you something,” Gu Haiting said.

Chen Chuan tapped on his Realm Pass and found that an invite to Ivory Tusk’s platform had been sent to him. He accessed it, and Gu Haiting sent him a name list.

“This is a list of names we compiled. They’re all people who died of mysterious reasons over the past half a year, but we’re certain that they were murdered.”

Chen Chuan took a look. People died of violent conflicts in Central City every day, which made it impossible to tabulate the deaths in detail. The report did not reveal anything special, since the victims’ statuses and ages were all different.

He took a moment to think about it before asking, “Is there a connection between these people?”

“You wouldn’t be able to tell based on this alone,” Gu Haiting said and tapped on his Realm Pass. The victims’ pictures showed up with their times and causes of death underneath them.

At this point, Chen Chuan finally detected something.

Everyone on the list had died over the past few months from gunshots, accidents, overdose, and other things. According to the conclusion stated at the end, the methods used were incredibly similar.

“Are you saying that their deaths were organized?” he asked.

Gu Haiting nodded.

“These people are among the many who died in Central City, so their deaths don’t stand out, but no matter how secretly someone carries out the murders, they still leave traces.

“After discovering this series of deaths, we have been paying attention. From the comparison and analysis made by our active biosentient entity, we managed to find all the similar cases before piecing together a clue that led to one source.”

As he stared at Chen Chuan, he gave a name that was not one bit surprising.

“Ferris Wheel.”

Chen Chuan looked at the names again and took note that some of them were people of high status, while others were normal citizens who didn’t look like they could threaten Ferris Wheel in any way, yet the company had still gone after their lives. It made it seem like they had no goal in mind and were just doing it because they felt like it.

“Why did they kill these people?”

Gu Haiting shook his head and said, “I don’t know, but they couldn’t have been murdered without a reason.

“Ferris Wheel attacked you before, so we were wondering whether these seemingly meaningless attacks are due to the same reason.

“Considering your position, there was no need for them to hire someone from Fierce Wave School to attack you.”

Then, he offered an apologetic smile. “Sorry, I’m not looking down on you, but with the power you currently hold, you’re just no threat to them.”

Chen Chuan agreed with what he said. “It’s true. I didn’t expect your company to have heard about it.”

“Due to our businesses, we pay attention to the island nations. Among his generation, Jiancheng Sheng was the headmaster’s most beloved disciple.

“I heard that after Fierce Wave School heard about this, a disciple named Sancheng Huang has expressed interest in you and wants to challenge you. He’s much stronger than Jiancheng Sheng, so you must be careful.”

“Is that so? I look forward to it,” Chen Chuan replied calmly. If a fitting opponent came knocking on his doorstep, he would happily fight against him.

Gu Haiting continued sincerely, “We’ve also seen Ferris Wheel’s apology and compensation to the Resolution Department. Honestly, that’s just lip service.

“They might have stopped causing trouble for now, but based on our moles, their people are active on various islands. They’ve been contacting people and sending information to them. It seems like they’re planning something major, and it’s going to happen soon.

“Captain Chen, I’ll be frank with you. We want to take down Ferris Wheel. If your name is on their kill list, they’re going to attack you again sooner or later. We have a common enemy in them, so we can provide you with some help.”

“Thanks for that,” Chen Chuan said as he met his gaze.

He wasn’t going to reject a gesture of good will. Gu Haiting was right. They were on the same side right now.

When he discussed it with Gao Ming, they had already considered this. It would be difficult for Chen Chuan to go up against Ferris Wheel alone. That company also always attacked him out of the blue.

If Azure Dragon joined in the mix, things would be different. Even if they just provided information to him, it was still going to be a great help.

Gu Haiting smiled before saying tentatively, “Things are going to be tense in Central City for a while. I’m sure that you know what’s going to happen, right?”

Chen Chuan nodded.

Gu Haiting relaxed. “The higher-ups are going to focus all their energy on fighting against possible dangers, so it’s impossible for Ferris Wheel to stay put during this time.”

Chen Chuan heard the underlying message. Ferris Wheel was likely to do something they usually wouldn’t dare and would have a hard time executing.

He also remembered something else: The Union had decided to come into Central City to assess Ferris Wheel at the same time that the Fu-Mu Entity was going to propagate. Was it really just here to assess Ferris Wheel?

No matter how he looked at it, it seemed unlikely.

“Thanks for the reminder, Mr. Gu,” he said.

“You’re welcome. By the way, aside from the disciple I mentioned, be careful of this person too.” Gu Haiting sent a photo of a ghastly-looking middle-aged man to Chen Chuan.

“This is Guanshang Jing, Ferris Wheel’s security director and external operations supervisor, as well as a disciple of Windforest School, one of the big three schools in the island nations. Since he could become a security director, he’s bound to be strong, especially after coming from somewhere like the island nations.

“We’ve analyzed the situation, and if they haven’t given up on taking your life, it’s highly likely that they will take things into their own hands this time. But you don’t have to worry about anything else.

“While the government can’t interfere in certain things, anything goes when it comes to a competition between companies.”

Chen Chuan immediately understood what he meant and said, “If he comes for my life, I’m not going to let him walk away alive.”

Gu Haiting’s smile widened, and he extended his hand before saying sincerely, “Captain Chen, we’re willing to offer you certain benefits over this period of time. If you find yourself lacking anything, contact me. Azure Dragon and Ocean Development Corporation are willing to help you.”

Chen Chuan shook his hand. “Don’t mind if I do.”