Strategy

She almost blurted out her real name by reflex, but fortunately, she caught herself just in time.

Jiang Xun knew her name. If she said it now, her identity would be exposed beyond a shadow of a doubt!

Although she was currently collaborating with the Administration, wearing the guise of a demon was one thing; exposing her human identity was quite another.

While Su Mian was debating whether to invent a fake name, Lan Yun saw her hesitation and seemed to misunderstand. She spoke up immediately:

“Miss Su? It is a pleasure to meet you. Although you are a demon, I share Captain Jiang’s view—I do not reject friendly entities. I look forward to a successful collaboration.”

The sudden response left Su Mian a bit flustered.

She quickly realized that Captain Lan had likely asked her name as a mere formality. She simply nodded along with the name the woman had assumed.

In fact, Lan Yun had only asked in passing. Demons, being entities from another world, rarely used human names, but calling her “Demon” repeatedly felt inappropriate. She simply wanted a way to address her.

Whether it was a codename, a real name, or something else entirely, she did not truly care.

After this brief exchange of goodwill, the woman’s attention shifted away from Su Mian.

“Let us talk inside.”

She turned and led the group deeper into the space, arriving at a large room resembling a briefing center.

Unlike the empty and desolate halls outside, this room was filled with various strange-looking instruments and many busy personnel.

Over a dozen men and women were working frantically. When the group entered, most only looked up briefly before returning to their tasks.

Lan Yun did not disturb them. She led the group to a small conference table in the corner. Once everyone had cleared a space and sat down, she finally spoke: “Time is tight, so I will skip the pleasantries. Captain Jiang wanted to know the current situation in Yujing…”

She looked at the man sitting across the table with Old He and An Ye.

“To that, I can only say: the situation is likely worse than you imagine.”

Jiang Xun said nothing. However, Zhi Yuan, sitting to Lan Yun’s right, frowned and tilted her head. “Captain, do you mean… the ritual can no longer be stopped?”

“You could put it that way.”

The woman in sunglasses could not help but sigh.

“The Truth Society’s actions this time were not a sudden whim but a long-premeditated plan. One could even say it began over ten years ago. Back then, they tried to sacrifice Yujing to summon a demon but failed. The Administration believed we had wiped them out, but we did not expect those lunatics to cut their losses and go into hiding right here in the city!”

“Over the years, they have not only infiltrated every industry in Yujing, but they even managed to plant their own people within the Administration…”

“…”

At these words, everyone from the Administration fell silent. Even Jiang Xun marveled at the sheer scale of the Truth Society’s operations.

Evil ideas were common, but having the high-level execution to match them was truly terrifying. The Truth Society possessed both.

“Using the traitor as cover, the Truth Society has planted a massive number of anchors throughout Yujing. The milk tea you mentioned is just one of them; there are surely many more undiscovered.”

“Even if we could find all these anchors now, we do not have the time to destroy them one by one. Therefore, this city is inevitably falling toward the abyss!”

Lan Yun’s voice was grim. Silence followed her statement.

Su Mian, leaning in the corner, was also lost in thought.

Captain Lan’s words answered some of her questions. She had wondered if they could stop the ritual by destroying the anchors, similar to how they broke the stability of the exhibition ritual at Yu Fu’s place.

The Truth Society’s scale was larger, but the principle should be the same. Without anchors for support, a ritual cannot remain stable.

However, it seemed Su Mian had underestimated them. The Truth Society was not composed of amateurs like Yu Fu. Their target was not a few hundred people, but all of Yujing!

With years of preparation, they had considered every angle. They would not leave such obvious flaws.

This desperate reality made the atmosphere in the room even heavier.

Jiang Xun’s expression remained calm. He tapped his fingers lightly on the table, thought for a moment, and looked up. “What is the Administration’s counterstrategy?”

He noted that while Lan Yun looked serious, she was not panicked. He guessed the Yujing branch had a solution.

He was right.

“The Administration does indeed have a strategy.”

Sensing that her voice had captured everyone’s attention—including the demon’s—Captain Lan hesitated briefly before speaking truthfully: “But because the method is extremely dangerous and unstable, the higher-ups are still in a heated discussion about whether to use it.”

“Is there still anything left to discuss?”

Old He was baffled. This was the sentiment shared by others as well.

Yujing was on the brink of destruction. In this situation, if there was a way, you used it. Why keep talking? By the time they finished discussing, Yujing might be gone!

As for danger and instability—it was still better than everyone falling into the abyss to become a demon’s dinner.

“So, what exactly is the method?”

Su Mian could not help her curiosity. Lan Yun glanced at her and did not hide the truth. Under the gaze of the group, she spoke slowly: “Someone in the Administration suggested that we take the initiative to drag Yujing into the Shadow Realm first!”

“Drag Yujing into the Shadow Realm ourselves?”

The Shadow Realm was the overlapping state between reality and the abyss—the prelude to a demonic descent.

Taking the initiative to pull the city into the Shadow Realm sounded like suicide. But no one in the room was a fool; they soon understood why someone would propose this.

Even Su Mian understood the logic. It was simple: as the Truth Society’s ritual expanded and absorbed power, the Shadow Realm was bound to appear as the abyss drew closer.

Since the Shadow Realm was inevitable, it was crucial to decide whose hands it fell into.

If the Truth Society controlled it, they could increase their influence over the Shadow Realm through the ritual, accelerating the sacrifice.

But if the Administration deployed the Shadow Realm first and manipulated it…

“It is a stroke of genius. If we can deploy the Shadow Realm first, we can keep the battlefield on the ‘other side’ and leave the ordinary people in the physical world, thereby minimizing casualties and damage to the city.”

Jiang Xun nodded in approval of the method, but his tone soon shifted. “The only problem is that it is too unrealistic.”

Actually, “unrealistic” was an understatement. It was almost wishful thinking.

Deploying the Shadow Realm first to disrupt the Truth Society and isolate civilians was a great idea. The problem was: how could they create a Shadow Realm faster than the Truth Society?

This plan was effectively doing what the Truth Society was doing—pulling the abyss closer through a ritual. The Truth Society could do it because they had prepared for years, planted anchors, and sacrificed countless victims.

The Administration had none of that. To be faster than the Truth Society under these conditions…

It was a great idea, but hardly practical.

Lan Yun did not deny this.

When she first heard the proposal, she had also suspected it was a move born of desperation. But after more communication with the higher-ups, she found there was some feasibility to it.

The reason was…

“The higher-ups are prepared to use an ‘Inscrutable Class’ relic.”

The woman spoke slowly. Her voice was flat, but the last two words caused immediate gasps. Zhi Yuan and Old He’s eyes widened.

“Inscrutable Class!?”

Even Jiang Xun was shocked. “Yujing actually possesses an Inscrutable Class relic?”

“I do not know the specifics.”

Lan Yun shook her head. “You understand the nature of Inscrutable Class items. I only just learned about this myself. All I know is that the object seems to be related to Yujing Lake.”

“The Lady of Yujing Lake?”

Su Mian, leaning against the wall, did not understand what “Inscrutable Class” meant, but she knew Yujing Lake. Hearing the name immediately made her think of the delicious Jade-scaled fish and the famous Lady of Yujing Lake.

However, they were saying “Inscrutable,” while the Lady of the Lake was “Known by All.” It did not seem to match.

Having caught the others’ attention, the girl simply asked: “What do you mean by ‘Inscrutable Class’? Is it a ranking for relics?”

“Yes. The Administration classifies relics into six levels: Harmless, Risky, Dangerous, High-Risk, Sealed, and Inscrutable.”

Jiang Xun explained briefly, then turned back to Lan Yun. “You mean the Yujing Administration plans to use the power of an Inscrutable Class relic to trigger the Shadow Realm descent first?”

He had heard her correctly, but the matter was so significant that he needed to confirm.

As the woman nodded, the man’s expression did not relax; it grew even more somber.

“Using an Inscrutable Class relic could indeed create a Shadow Realm faster than the Truth Society, but this is still the power of a relic. Can the Administration control it perfectly? Furthermore, the Shadow Realm we create is still the Shadow Realm—it will still lead to the descent of the abyss. If we cannot handle the trouble quickly, Yujing will still fall into disaster.”

Jiang Xun was filled with worry, and he left several things unsaid. For instance—what if the relic went out of control?

If an Inscrutable Class relic went berserk, the destruction it caused would be no less than the Truth Society’s—it might even be more terrifying!

And the probability of such an event was not low.

The Truth Society’s ritual was still ongoing. If the Administration used an Inscrutable Class relic, the two forces would inevitably clash, causing destruction to both parties and the entire city.

Furthermore, once the Truth Society noticed their move, they would certainly react.

Ultimately, there were far too many uncontrollable factors.