Back at his apartment, it was just 7:00 PM. This was the earliest Lin Qi had gotten off work since joining Liu’s Heavy Industries.

He took out his wristband and checked the message from King Arthur.

"I have secretly inserted a storage device with intel into a proprietary interface at the Liu’s Heavy Industry Branch. The Liu Clan’s security system is bound to receive its contents."

The message had been sent during the night. King Arthur’s efficiency was impressive.

Lin Qi rubbed his temples, a headache forming.

This near-exposure crisis could be traced back to his own actions.

If King Arthur hadn’t passed on the intel, Liu Xuan wouldn’t have arranged such a crazy plan.

Using the lives of the branch’s entire senior staff as pawns in her scheme... Lin Qi still couldn’t figure out what Liu Xuan’s objective was.

After some thought, Lin Qi decided not to reply to King Arthur’s message.

The fact that he’d gotten off work early wasn’t a secret. Usually, Lin Qi replied to King Arthur after 11:00 PM.

Replying early today might expose too much information.

He wouldn’t reply at all. He’d wait for Guang Ling’s email and the arrangements for tonight’s operation.

Guang Ling didn’t keep Lin Qi waiting long. The operation was scheduled for 9:00 PM.

’Guang Ling definitely knows I got off work early!’

In past operations, although Guang Ling never said it outright, nearly every mission requiring Lin Qi’s participation had coincided perfectly with his time off from work or vacation days.

’Guang Ling is definitely monitoring all the members of the Highest-Level Mercenary Corps at all times.’

Lin Qi checked the email’s contents.

[Time: 9:00 PM Tonight]

[Location: Jiuxin Prosthetics Club]

[Personnel: Master Ma, King Arthur, Wizard]

[Technical Support: Guang Ling]

[Equipment Support: Capitalist]

The Highest-Level Mercenary Corps, full participation, initiating a hunt for a Tier Three Extraordinary Professional.

Lin Qi’s gaze lingered on the two words "Master Ma."

’Master Ma is on the personnel list?’

’Master Ma has entered Greenfield City?’

’How did he get in?’

’With the Iron Curtain up, how could anyone enter Greenfield City without alerting the Si Clan?’

Lin Qi didn’t know, but now that a powerhouse like Master Ma—strong enough to control any situation—was participating in the hunt, the overall risk would be much lower.

At the bottom of the email, an invitation quietly appeared.

[Invitation to a Temporary Highest-Level Communication Channel]

’A temporary communication channel?’

Something like this had never appeared in their previous operations.

But Lin Qi believed that Guang Ling would never screw over the Mercenary Corps members.

Lin Qi knew even better that this invitation was just a formality. If Guang Ling wanted to, they could pull people directly into this so-called temporary communication channel without their consent.

Sending an invitation was Guang Ling’s way of showing respect to the Mercenary Corps members.

He clicked to enter. A chat box suddenly appeared in the image projected onto his retina by the electrode behind his ear.

It looked like a regular group chat.

All the members of the Highest-Level Mercenary Corps were listed.

After everyone had joined, Guang Ling was the first to speak.

Guang Ling: "Thanks to Capitalist for the large-scale server support. Without Capitalist’s hardware, it would have been difficult for me to securely create this temporary chatroom. The Highest Level’s frequent meetings have already attracted the attention of the cyber network."

Capitalist followed up immediately: "This is a very profitable deal. As long as we can successfully hunt two or more Tier Three Extraordinaries from the Round Table Conference, my return on investment will exceed one hundred percent."

In other words, killing one would break even, and killing two would be a massive profit. And he didn’t even have to go to the front lines himself. Capitalist was very satisfied with this transaction.

Master Ma said nothing, just sent an emoji: ":cyber_thumbs_up.emoji:"

King Arthur was much more talkative: "Nice, this is way better. Our Mercenary Corps acts like a bunch of mutes on every mission. We have to relay messages through Guang Ling’s emails. With this chatroom... Wait, Master Ma is in Greenfield City? Master, save me! Find a way to take me with you when you leave! I can’t stand it anymore! I haven’t even gotten a Prosthetic Body for my nose yet, and the smell in this sewer..."

Master Ma sent another: ":cyber_smile.emoji:"

King Arthur felt she’d been rejected and, somewhat awkwardly, changed the subject: "Wizard, why aren’t you saying anything?"

Lin Qi felt like King Arthur was probing for something. It wasn’t the time he usually replied to messages.

But with this temporary chatroom as cover, Lin Qi could reply without worry.

Lin Qi: ":cyber_smile.emoji:"

’Master Ma’s favorite little emoji is actually pretty useful. It seems like Guang Ling’s system just ported the character emojis from the cyber network—they probably even copied the code directly.’

Master Ma: ":cyber_smile.emoji:"

Lin Qi figured Master Ma didn’t mind him using his favorite emoji. The smiling response was a welcome, definitely not a look of disdain for Lin Qi’s plagiarism.

King Arthur replied: "..."

Speechless. King Arthur felt like she was being given the silent treatment.

A certain 1.58-meter-tall, golden-haired loli Knight was trembling with anger in the sewer.

Lin Qi stopped messing around and took the initiative to ask Guang Ling: "Guang Ling, what’s the detailed plan? You should know that my current Abilities aren’t suited for direct combat."

Lin Qi phrased his words ambiguously.

It could be understood as his Extraordinary Level being too low, or that his Ability type was unsuitable.

After Lin Qi spoke, Master Ma also sent a message: "The target is from the Round Table Conference. They will most likely wield Holy Light. It’s true that a Wizard isn’t suited for a frontal assault."

Master Ma’s line of thought wasn’t complicated. He understood that something like Holy Light had a suppressive effect on the Abilities of the Wizard Profession.

Guang Ling: "I have a detailed plan for the Wizard’s role. He won’t be in direct combat. The main combatant today is just King Arthur. A Tier Four Extraordinary can’t act carelessly in Greenfield City. Master Ma can only intervene to save the day in a crisis."

King Arthur: "Huh? Me? Master Ma, you’ll protect me, right?"

Master Ma: ":cyber_smile.emoji:"

In the sewer, Spiritual Particles fluctuated as a Knight’s Lance seemed to be faintly taking shape.

King Arthur clenched her fists.

Even a Tier Three Top Level Knight couldn’t stand the silent treatment.

But Master Ma was a good person, after all. After the cyber emoji, he sent a text message: "I’m here, so you can all act with confidence. Even if a Tier Four Extraordinary intervenes, I can create an opportunity for you to escape."

Master Ma was always the most reliable person in the Mercenary Corps. Truly worthy of being a Tier Four powerhouse!

Perhaps it was precisely because of Master Ma’s existence that the Highest-Level Mercenary Corps could even be associated with the two words "Highest Level."

’I really don’t know how Guang Ling managed to trick a Tier Four Extraordinary like Master Ma into joining the Mercenary Corps.’

’Money?’

’Power?’

’Sex?’

’It couldn’t have been for love, right?’

Seeing that Master Ma had finally used his words, King Arthur relaxed her clenched fists and sent a message: "Guang Ling, you can send the detailed operation plan. I’m ready anytime."