chsdbacks Page 184
Page 184
Without hesitation, Lu Mingfei raised his hand to stroke her head and immediately activated the "emotional manipulation" skill.
He immediately changed Chen Motong's opinion of him.
She transformed all her helplessness and displeasure into love and loyalty for him.
With the system amplifying his emotions, Chen Motong's love and loyalty to him quickly reached the point where he would even die for him.
Lu Mingfei withdrew his hand. "You can open your eyes now."
Chen Motong opened her eyes, her previous worries gone, replaced by eyes full of love and loyalty for Lu Mingfei:
"This is truly an unparalleled ability. Even though I still remember what happened before, I can't help but want to give myself to you now."
Lu Mingfei responded:
"I'm so sorry, but I have to do this for the sake of what's to come."
"It's alright, I understand," Chen Motong said softly.
She then added, "If you really die, I'll be buried with you."
Lu Mingfei also witnessed the domineering nature of this skill.
Even without altering the other person's memories, one can still reverse their personality.
"From now on, you should get along well with them," Lu Mingfei said, pointing to Erii and the others.
"Okay." Chen Motong nodded in agreement.
Chu Zihang frowned slightly. He keenly sensed the instantaneous change in Chen Motong's aura, a profound internal transformation.
Yuan Zhisheng and Xia Mi exchanged a glance. Xia Mi pursed her lips but didn't say anything.
Zero simply watched quietly, a hint of understanding flashing deep in her eyes, but more so, an understanding of Lu Mingfei's decision.
Su Xiaoqiang and Liu Miaomiao were somewhat bewildered, but they instinctively trusted Lu Mingfei's decision.
No one spoke; a tacit, heavy atmosphere filled the air.
They all understood that this was a critical time, and Lu Mingfei was eliminating the last unstable factors around him.
"Alright." Lu Mingfei took one last look at everyone, his gaze lingering on the five girls for an unusually long time.
On the system panel, the five bright red [Side Quest: Please elope with XX and become an enemy of the world!] still hang high, with the status showing [In Progress].
It was like a cold mockery, reminding Lu Mingfei that as long as he did not possess the power to crush everything, and as long as the threat was not eradicated, they would always be in danger.
This continued lack of settlement was like a Damocles' sword hanging over Lu Mingfei's mind, pushing his sense of urgency to its peak.
"Wait for me to come back." After saying that, his figure turned into a silver light and disappeared into the cave.
He did not immediately begin the Tenth Trial, but instead met up with him on a small reef island near the isolated island, chosen by Su Enxi, which had stable satellite communications.
"Ready?" Su Enxi's voice came through the encrypted line, hoarse from staying up all night and tense from focused concentration.
The screen in front of her was divided into countless sections, displaying the real-time movements of key figures in global politics, economics, and military affairs, as well as a topology of encrypted communication nodes.
“Target list, priority order.” Lu Mingfei’s voice was calm and even, without the slightest hint of emotion.
He needed efficiency; he needed to complete this "safety net" covering key nodes around the world in the shortest possible time with minimal disruption.
Su Enxi's fingers tapped the last key on the keyboard.
"The list has been sent, ordered by influence, decision-making power, and potential hostility toward Heaven."
"Heads of state, heads of powerful agencies, intelligence chiefs, and key tycoon leaders... are all on it."
"Route planning complete, optimal route has been loaded into your personal terminal."
"I will monitor network and security changes in real time and deal with possible backdoors and electronic traces."
"Remember, the time window is very small. Once something unusual or alarming happens at a certain point, the chain reaction will be very fast."
“Understood.” Lu Mingfei glanced at the complex route and densely packed dotted markings on the satellite phone, a glint of silver flashing in his eyes.
The next moment, he transformed into a silver thread almost invisible to the naked eye, skimming along the surging surface of the Pacific Ocean and speeding toward the nearest edge of the Eurasian continent.
In the time that followed, Lu Mingfei was like a ghost walking in the cracks of reality.
In a quiet study in the Moscow Kremlin, a powerful figure is reviewing documents.
I felt a gentle breeze pass by, and my consciousness wavered for a moment before returning to normal.
However, deep down he harbored vigilance and hostility towards the organization codenamed "Paradise" and its associates (especially those close to Lu Mingfei).
It was quietly replaced by a deeply hidden seed of "neutral observation/secret assistance when necessary."
The instinctive fear of the "Black King" is cleverly guided into a subconscious message of "not to delve too deeply and to avoid conflict."
He merely frowned, finding the lights somewhat glaring tonight, and then continued to focus on the documents.
In a heavily guarded safe house in Washington, D.C., several key staff members, still reeling from the destruction of the White House, are holding an emergency video conference.
The silver light flashed and disappeared in an instant, causing a barely perceptible ripple in the air in the corner of the conference room.
After the meeting, two of them exchanged a glance and, without prior agreement, added a vague but crucial note to their subsequent response strategies:
"A strategy of non-direct contact will be adopted with specific individuals and related parties (Paradise, Snake Clan), with information suppression as the priority, and any form of proactive hostile action will be avoided."
They themselves never really investigated where this idea came from.
In his luxurious penthouse office in the City of London, the elderly man, who controlled vast amounts of capital, paused slightly as he signed a document concerning the allocation of future resources.
A hint of confusion flashed in his deep eyes, but it was quickly replaced by a rational mindset of "commercial risk aversion".
He subconsciously crossed out a potentially "high-risk" vetting project that might point to Tokyo in his mind.
Instead, they felt that the infrastructure development plan of a certain small Pacific nation was more worthy of "attention".
In Paris, Berlin, New Delhi, Cape Town...
Lu Mingfei's figure moved like a ghost through the heart of power and wealth.
His "emotional manipulation" is like the most precise micro-surgery scalpel, accurately cutting into the target's deep consciousness.
He didn't force loyalty or love into someone; that would be too abrupt and easily noticeable.
What he did was a more subtle form of "emotional guidance" and "cognitive fine-tuning":
It amplifies their awe of the unknown forces and intensifies their fear of the mysterious background of "heaven".
Implant the subconscious belief that "becoming an enemy of Lu Mingfei and those around him is an extremely high-risk and unwise act."
It also subtly implies that "under certain rules, providing limited conveniences without exposing oneself is a possible option for risk avoidance."
Su Enxi, meanwhile, is weaving an invisible shield deep within the internet.
She monitors her targets' communications and public statements, using pre-set logical traps and public opinion interference procedures.
Subtle fluctuations in words and actions that may contradict the "new understanding" should be interpreted as caution under pressure, strategic observation, or a reassessment of the situation.
Any electronic traces that might point to "external interference" are instantly erased or disguised as system noise.
This is a silent war, an unprecedented "psychological surgery" conducted on the edge of human cognition and decision-making.
Lu Mingfei's speed was extremely fast.
Even so, as he completed the last critical operation on the list, located in the Southern Hemisphere, the last rays of the setting sun were about to sink below the horizon.
The continuous high-intensity mental and sword energy manipulation was a heavy burden even for someone at his current level.
Although the sword energy within him was not exhausted, a wave of mental fatigue washed over him, and every nerve ending was throbbing with pain.
He suppressed his exhaustion, transformed into a silver rainbow once more, and sped toward the deserted island.
Chapter 181 The Trial of Fire (Part 1)
When Lu Mingfei's figure quietly appeared on the deserted island's beach, it was already completely dark.
As the stars first appeared in the sky, the waves gently licked the white sand, and a warm glow from the campfire shone through the cave.
Inside the cave, the atmosphere was different from when he left.
Yuan Zhisheng and Chu Zihang sat near the cave entrance, talking in hushed tones, their eyes warily fixed on the outside of the cave.
Chen Motong sat alone in the shadows of a corner a little further away, her gaze fixed on the campfire with a complex expression, occasionally glancing at the spot where Lu Ming was sitting.
In the warmest spot by the campfire, the five girls naturally gathered together.
Zero remained quiet, but her body turned slightly to a position that Lu Mingfei was not used to.
Erii hugged her knees, her red hair dancing in the firelight, her pure eyes gazing expectantly towards the cave entrance.
Su Xiaoqiang and Liu Miaomiao sat close together, talking quietly, their eyes occasionally drifting towards the cave entrance.
Xia Mi, holding a small twig, absentmindedly poked at the fire until Lu Mingfei's figure appeared at the edge of the flames.
"I'm back!" Xia Mi was the first to jump up, her face regaining its radiance, all traces of her previous boredom gone.
Erii silently stood up, ran a few steps to Lu Mingfei, looked up at him with her small face, her eyes filled with undisguised peace and joy.
Zero's gaze fell on his slightly pale face and his eyes, which were filled with undisguised fatigue. A hint of worry flashed across her icy blue eyes.
But he didn't ask anything, he just gently patted the spot he had specially left for himself.
"You're finally back! How are you?" Su Xiaoqiang stood up as well, her voice filled with concern.
Liu Miaomiao also looked at him nervously.
"Yes, you're back." Lu Mingfei gave them a gentle but weary smile, without going into details, and simply said softly, "Everything is arranged, and for now... we should be safe."
He walked to the spot Ling had given up and sat down. The warmth of the campfire dispelled some of the chill of the sea breeze and his physical fatigue.
Erii immediately sat down next to him, like a kitten seeking warmth, gently resting her body on his arm.
Su Xiaoqiang and Liu Miaomiao also moved closer and sat on the other side of him and Ling.
Xia Mi squeezed to the other side of Lu Mingfei, trying to pull Erii closer, muttering, "It's warmer when we're squeezed together!"
Without any extra words, the campfire crackled, illuminating several young yet weathered faces.
The sound of ocean waves is a constant background noise.
"Is it going to start tomorrow...?" Zero's voice broke the brief silence.
She knew that Lu Mingfei's "arrangements were all made" were only temporary.