Chapter 23 - Chapter 23: 23. Uninvited guest

Chapter 23: 23. Uninvited guest

The prison had lost its usual bustle, with everyone secretly mulling over the recent events.

Only those who had spent some time in Prison No. 18 could understand what kind of status Uncle Li Dong held there.

So, it was beyond everyone’s comprehension, what kind of fool would come here and spout nonsense to Uncle Li Dong?

The Mechanical Prison Guards approached Liu Dezhu, their alloy skeletons hissing with hydraulic transmissions as they moved.

Seeing this display, Liu Dezhu had already forgotten his aspirations to make a name for himself in Prison No. 18.

He had come here today as part of the second group of transmigrators, making his first visit to this Inner World dominated by steel beasts, and was immediately intimidated by what unfolded before him.

Facing the blockade of Mechanical Prison Guards and drones, it took just over ten seconds for him to be completely subdued and escorted to an unknown area outside the square.

“Boss, don’t you think things have been a bit strange lately,” Lin Xiaoxiao pondered while squatting on the chair, “The day before yesterday, a kid came in and went crazy right away, babbling on about Los Angeles City as if he really were the scion of some conglomerate. And today, another idiot shows up, asking you to assign him a mission—what mission can you give?”

As he spoke, Lin Xiaoxiao involuntarily reached out to pet the big cat on the table, but before his hand could touch it, the big cat gave him a cold glance, and he sheepishly retracted his hand.

Source: novgo.co

Uncle Li Dong thought for a moment and said, “Indeed, it is somewhat peculiar.”

“Oh, where’s that kid Qing Chen,” Lin Xiaoxiao suddenly said, “Wasn’t he quite eager to come down for meals yesterday? Why isn’t he around today?”

At that moment, Qing Chen, still walking through the corridors, ignored Liu Dezhu and the Mechanical Prison Guards and headed straight to the sixth floor. He found Lu Guangyi, who was still lined up waiting to go downstairs, and whispered, “After dinner, have your men take control of all the new prisoners and question them one by one about their identities and backgrounds in the outside world.”

“Right, Boss,” Lu Guangyi hurriedly agreed.

He figured his boss probably wanted to see if there were other forces coming in to compete with them for resources.

But Qing Chen was thinking of seeing if there were any other transmigrators hidden among the newcomers.

If there were indeed transmigrators, they certainly wouldn’t be able to fabricate an outside identity.

Those who could clearly explain their identity and background were the natives; those who couldn’t, were definitely transmigrators.

However, Qing Chen was a bit surprised; he had originally thought that Nan Gengchen would also transmigrate to Prison No. 18, but that didn’t happen.

At that moment, Qing Chen seemed to remember something, hesitated for a moment, then said to Lu Guangyi, “I know the welcome ceremony is your tradition, but don’t be too harsh. It’s not easy for anyone.”

Lu Guangyi was taken aback but then responded, “Okay.”

After a farce, all the prisoners went to line up for their meals. Following Qing Chen’s instructions, Lu Guangyi planned to take the new prisoners to their cells for interrogation.

Shortly after, he came back to report to Qing Chen, “Boss, it’s done.”

Qing Chen listened attentively as Lu Guangyi described each prisoner’s situation, and only after confirming there were no more transmigrators in the prison did he stride over to sit opposite Uncle Li Dong’s dining table, “Playing chess today?”

“Not today; we’ll skip it for the next few days,” Uncle Li Dong thought for a moment and said, “I have some things to think over, and a visitor is coming.”

“A visitor?” Qing Chen asked, puzzled.

Uncle Li Dong smiled, “An unexpected guest.”

Whoever could be referred to as an unexpected guest by Uncle Li Dong was certainly not an Ordinary Person.

Qing Chen was not yet ready to involve himself in matters he couldn’t control, so he refrained from asking further.

“I just saw something going on downstairs, what happened?” he said nonchalantly.

Uncle Li Dong’s face rarely showed a hint of hesitation, “I don’t know either.”

Qing Chen was both amused and frustrated, the transmigrator had even baffled Uncle Li Dong.

It was probably the first time Uncle Li Dong had encountered such a situation.

At this moment, only Qing Chen knew that the fool Liu Dezhu, after reading He Xiaoxiao’s strategy, had really treated Uncle Li Dong like an NPC in the game!

Countdown 37:00:02, the Alloy Gate emitted a rumbling noise, then lifted upward.

When the Alloy Gate was fully opened, a bald man over two meters tall was being escorted in by more than a dozen Mechanical Prison Guards.

Around them, there were 9 drones blocking all escape routes for the bald man.

Not only that, as the man entered, six of the metal Storms in the sky slowly started to rotate.

The rotation angle of these metal Storms was only 90 degrees, not 360 degrees.

So, as the robust prisoner moved, every time he left the shooting range of some Storms, new Storms would enter alert mode.

They were always firmly locked on to him.

This was the first time Qing Chen saw someone being escorted in during the day and the first time he saw the security forces at Prison 18 mobilized to such an extent.

The more than three thousand prisoners silently turned their heads to watch, no one spoke.

The prison rang with the crisp clinking sound of the chains of the bald man’s alloy shackles scraping against the floor as he walked.

The bald man was covered in bronze skin, with traces on his face from being constantly exposed to sunlight, and his exposed skin, like his arms, was marked with black, tattoo-like patterns, eerie yet magnificent.

There was no mechanical structure on him.

Qing Chen had thought Ye Wan was already tall and strong enough, but compared to this prisoner, Ye Wan seemed somewhat lacking.

Once the bald man was taken inside the prison, the Mechanical Prison Guards began to gradually retreat towards the Alloy Gate, without any intention of unlocking his alloy shackles.

After the Mechanical Prison Guards had left, the bald man calmly moved his wrists, then picked up a nearby prisoner and asked, “Where is Uncle Li Dong?”

The prisoner, who had been modified with mechanical parts in seven or eight places, was toyed with in his hands as if he were a mere plaything.

The terrified prisoner stretched out his hand to point towards the cafeteria, and all eyes turned to Uncle Li Dong, Qing Chen, and Ye Wan.

Big Cat, abandoning its usual laziness, stared intently at the tall, bald man from Uncle Li Dong’s arms.

Qing Chen also looked at Uncle Li Dong, who smiled at him, “I didn’t expect our guest to be so direct, his name is Guo Huchan, and you should have heard of him. In a moment, you and Ye Wan step back a bit, don’t get hurt.”

Ye Wan glanced at Qing Chen. To have his boss personally remind him of something so minor showed that his boss’s fondness for the young man seemed to exceed his and Lin Xiaoxiao’s estimates.

At this time, Lu Guangyi, who had been blending in with the crowd, muttered as he looked at Guo Huchan’s shiny bald head, “Guo Huchan… he’s come in too, no wonder the boss said a Lama had come from the south.”

“The boss hasn’t been looking for clues since he came in, just playing chess with Uncle Li and reading, as if nothing’s wrong, turns out he was waiting for Guo Huchan’s arrival to stir up trouble, then we can reap the benefits… Brilliant!” Lu Guangyi’s thoughts became animated. Now, in his eyes, Qing Chen was the kind of sage who planned before acting and strategized thousands of miles away.

CREATORS’ THOUGHTS

Lordbluefire

Footnote:

[1] The Chinese characters for “creak” can also mean scoffing or sneering at, in this case, the author may have meant that the sounds from their movement sounded like they were scoffing at Liu Dezhu.

[2] Metal Storm is a rapid-fire gun prototype that can fire up to 1,000,000 rounds per minute, or 16,000 rounds per second. It was declared by the Guinness Book of Records to be the world’s most intelligent and fastest firearm.

[3] The lama here refers to Guo Huchan. The “Chan” in his name refers to dhyāna or jhāna. It is the training of the mind, commonly translated as meditation. Lama is a title used in Tibetan Buddhism, which means “highest principle”.

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