Chapter 152

Chapter 152: An Incident

The Military Department was the Empire’s central hub of authority for its armed forces, representing its collective interests.

It had always been a colossal force in the Empire’s power dynamics—highly independent and operating as a unique entity. Over the years, it remained a target for both the Qin Family and the Regent Government’s attempts at recruitment.

Although the Qin Family was a powerful and deeply rooted force with countless experts under its banner, its influence primarily extended across various imperial departments and provinces.

In the Military Department, however, their influence was relatively limited.

While the Qin Family had made attempts to infiltrate the Military Department by placing their own people, the department’s core and critical positions remained controlled by loyalists within its own ranks.

The Military Department and the Qin Family cooperated frequently, but both remained wary of one another. This time, their collaboration was centered on dividing the Eastern Military, a prospect laden with intricate power plays.

Whoever dominated the process would gain the upper hand and claim a greater share of the spoils.

Li Yinglong understood this balance of power all too well.

One officer hesitated before asking, “What if the Qin Family doesn’t take action?”

“Rest assured,” Li Yinglong replied with a faint smile, his eyes glinting with ambition. “The Qin Family and the Regent Government are already on the verge of conflict. They must take control of the Eastern Military. This trial is their only opportunity!”

The Emperor’s disappearance had intensified the struggle between the Qin Family and the Regent Government.

While the Qin Family’s foundation was undeniably terrifying, the Regent Government also had the support of remnants of the Imperial Party. Should these two giants exhaust each other, the Empire might very well see the rise of a military government.

—

Inside the command room, several large screens displayed various data from the trial space, including participant numbers, points rankings, and real-time footage of the digitized Void Elite Bosses. This was the monitoring hub for the Void Hunting Trial.

Initially, the Military Department controlled this room. However, after Wen Yu took over the trial, she had insisted on transferring control to the Eastern Military.

In the monitoring hall, an Eastern Military technician reported grimly, “Commander Wen, we’ve only obtained Level 2 access to the monitoring system. There are several zones we cannot monitor.”

Wen Yu was unsurprised by this. She knew that the Military Department would inevitably manipulate the trial space’s control system before handing it over.

“Which zones?” she asked.

“The areas for Void Lord Gobert, Mirage Queen Mirach, and Fallen Spirit Sister. Additionally, we’ve identified over twenty unidentified individuals who’ve been granted Level 2 access and entered the trial space.”

A cold smirk spread across Wen Yu’s face. Those twenty or so unknown individuals were likely elite experts from the Qin Family and the Military Department. She didn’t need to speculate further to understand their plans.

Turning to a middle-aged man, she spoke in a low voice, “I’ll need your help.”

The man chuckled. “No need to be so formal, Commander Wen. It’s my duty.”

The man’s name was Sun Ke, a captain from the Empire’s Special Operations Bureau. While his rank and strength were unremarkable, he possessed an exceptionally rare skill—True Sight Eye.

– True Sight Eye: An active skill that can pierce through all disguises, dispel any camouflage buffs, and monitor all scenes in the targeted area with replication capability. Duration: 120 minutes. Cooldown: None.

This skill was akin to the all-seeing eye.

——

Within the trial space, Gu Anran’s face was flushed red from the cold. Despite applying several buffs to herself, she still felt chilled to the bone. The cold wasn’t physical—it was a soul-deep frost that pervaded the Void.

However, everything had gone smoothly so far. With Wen Xu and the others supporting her, Gu Anran’s team had already successfully defeated over a dozen bosses, completing each encounter swiftly.

After all, Wen Xu, Zhao Haoran, Li Ling, and Xu Taichu were among the Empire’s top-tier talents. With four elites as her teammates, Gu Anran was in an enviable position.

Her points had already climbed into the top ten rankings.

“Anran, are you okay?” Wen Xu asked, his concern evident as they traversed a labyrinth.

Gu Anran nodded and glanced at the four outstanding men around her. Tang Siyuan’s earlier words echoed in her mind—choose the one who loves her the most and test their sincerity.

Who among them would truly care for her, risking everything without hesitation?

Feeling a sudden spark of excitement, Gu Anran decided to try the test. After all, Siyuan had assured her it was harmless.

“We should head to the Crystal Palace,” she suggested.

The Crystal Palace was the territory of a boss known as the Maze Lord. Entering this area would trigger a teleportation mechanism, separating the team members temporarily.

Wen Xu and the others hesitated, worried about Gu Anran’s safety. After all, once inside the maze, it would be difficult for them to reunite quickly.

Despite their concerns, they couldn’t bring themselves to refuse Gu Anran.

Wen Xu considered the situation before handing out several markers. “These are location markers. They’ll share our coordinates. Once we’re inside, we’ll use them to regroup as quickly as possible.”

“Got it!” Gu Anran nodded enthusiastically, pocketing the marker.

In her heart, she had already made up her mind—she would carry out the test in the Crystal Palace. After all, it was just a small experiment.

Surely, nothing could go wrong... right?