chsdbacks Chapter 75 A Plan to Turn the Tide
Chapter 75 A Plan to Turn the Tide
Inside the Hive's main control room, the air seemed to freeze. Chen Haotian and Tony stood side by side in front of a huge holographic projection, on which the Umbrella Corporation's internal communication data, deeply decoded by Jarvis, was scrolling at an astonishing speed.
"Ninety-one hundred percent similarity..." Tony repeated the number softly, his fingertips unconsciously tapping the edge of the control panel. "This is no longer a coincidence. Hydra, they really are here."
Chen Haotian remained silent, his gaze sharp as a hawk's, rapidly scanning the key information points highlighted on the screen. His mind raced, cross-referencing these fragmented pieces of information with his memories of Hydra's modus operandi.
"It's not just existence," Chen Haotian finally spoke, his voice calm and utterly unwavering. "Look here, Tony." He gestured across the holographic projection, highlighting several key areas. "These communications, initiated by a 'compliance officer' from Umbrella's European branch, went through seven or eight intermediaries before ultimately pointing to a shell company we've identified as a 'Hydra money transfer station' in the S.H.I.E.L.D. database."
He then pointed to another set of data: "And this, an email from a 'Human Resources Director' at Umbrella headquarters. The payload hidden in the attachment, after analysis, turned out to be a 'data request list' regarding the efficiency of T-virus aerosol transmission. And the encryption method of this list is exactly the same as the template we intercepted three years ago when Hydra stole Stark Industries technology."
Tony's face grew increasingly grim: "Damn it! They're not only stealing technology, they're using Umbrella's business processes as cover!"
"That's not all," Chen Haotian's lips curled into a cold smile, "Jarvis, retrieve the internal personnel permission change records of Umbrella Corporation marked as 'Alpha' level."
A new data stream unfolded on the screen. Chen Haotian's finger precisely circled several records.
"Look at this. Three months ago, the Umbrella Corporation's board of directors suddenly approved a 'special talent recruitment program,' exceptionally promoting five 'experts' to core management. Of these five, three had carefully crafted gaps in their resumes. The other two's early published papers highly overlapped with unpublished reports leaked from Hydra's secret laboratories."
Tony gasped. "Their people have already infiltrated Umbrella's decision-making ranks?"
"The probability is over 80%," Chen Haotian affirmed. "Look at these project approval records. Several radical research projects that were originally shelved due to ethical issues have been restarted in the past four months and have received far more resources than usual. And the key signatories who pushed for the restart of these projects... happen to be three of those five 'special talents.'"
He paused, his tone laced with cold sarcasm: "Hydra's ultimate goal is to utilize Umbrella's mature research platform to develop weapons of mass destruction. Umbrella thinks it's playing with fire, but it's unwittingly inviting a wolf into its den."
A brief silence fell over the control room. Tony processed this information, finally letting out a low curse: "These lunatics!"
"Obviously, yes." Chen Haotian calmly confirmed. "Therefore, the 'bait' we deployed earlier is even more significant. Jarvis, bring out the 'gift' we prepared."
The holographic screen switched, displaying several carefully disguised data packets. These packets appeared to be about topics of great interest to Hydra, such as T-virus mutant enhancement and bioweapon control technology, but in reality, each packet concealed a deadly logical trap and a flawed research direction.
"Each of these data packets has been meticulously designed," Chen Haotian explained. "On the surface, they appear to be valuable research findings, but in reality, the experimental data contains minor but crucial errors, the theoretical derivations harbor logical paradoxes, and key technical parameters have been subtly modified. If Hydra were to conduct research based on this data, it would not only waste a significant amount of resources but could also lead to experimental failure at critical moments, or even trigger catastrophic consequences."
Tony carefully examined the design of these data packets and couldn't help but whistle. "Impressive, buddy. These traps are ingeniously designed; they seem perfectly reasonable on the surface, only revealing their flaws in the most critical application stages. This requires a remarkably accurate prediction of their potential research directions."
"This is precisely the value of our previous analysis," Chen Haotian nodded slightly. "Based on our understanding of Hydra's technological roadmap and behavioral patterns, we can predict the research and development directions they are most likely to be interested in, thus allowing us to tailor these 'poisoned baits' to their specific needs."
He operated the console, bringing up a specific data packet: "For example, this one, ostensibly about a 'breakthrough' in improving the stability of the neural connection between the tracker parasite and the control unit. In reality, a key catalytic enzyme parameter introduced has been deliberately misset. The experiments seem to be progressing smoothly in the short term, but once it enters the field testing phase, the control unit will collapse due to neural signal overload, causing the bioweapon to malfunction."
"Brilliant!" Tony couldn't help but exclaim. "They're letting them think they've made a breakthrough, when in reality they're setting themselves up for disaster."
"That's not all," a sly glint flashed in Chen Haotian's eyes, "we also need to ensure these 'gifts' are delivered successfully. Jarvis, begin the first phase of the 'fishing plan.'"
"In progress, sir," Jarvis replied calmly.
The screen displayed a series of complex operations: Jarvis simulated the access permissions of several mid-level researchers at Umbrella Corporation, intentionally or unintentionally "leaking" some vague information about "breakthrough research progress" in internal forums and communications through these accounts; at the same time, he placed disguised access logs on several database nodes that Hydra agents were already instructing to monitor, implying that this data was being secretly studied by certain factions within Umbrella but not reported.
"We're laying bait," Chen Haotian explained, "letting Hydra agents 'accidentally' discover the existence of this data and convincing them it's a leak of classified information due to internal power struggles within Umbrella. This way, they'll take the bait faster and be less likely to suspect it's a trap."
Tony nodded thoughtfully. "Psychological warfare, I like it. Let them think they've stumbled upon a treasure, when in reality it's a carefully prepared poison."
"That's right." Chen Haotian smiled slightly. "And we've also prepared a follow-up 'verification' step. When Hydra agents try to verify the authenticity of this data, they'll 'accidentally' discover some supporting evidence—of course, this too has been carefully prepared by us. The entire scam is meticulously planned and executed, enough to fool anyone."
Several hours later, the signal they had been waiting for finally appeared on the monitor screen.
"Gentlemen," Jarvis's voice broke the silence, "we detected an access request from what's labeled 'Hydra Access Point Gamma,' targeting the third data packet we set up. The visitor used rather sophisticated penetration techniques to try and conceal its origin, but it has been successfully traced."
Chen Haotian and Tony immediately focused their attention on the screen. The data showed that the Hydra agent hiding within Umbrella's European branch had taken the bait and was carefully downloading the fake data packet about a "breakthrough in bioweapon control technology."
"The fish has taken the bait." Chen Haotian said calmly, but his eyes gleamed with the satisfaction of a successful scheme.
"Should we stop them?" Tony asked, half-jokingly.
"No," Chen Haotian shook his head, "let them take it. This is just the beginning. We need to let Hydra taste the sweetness so they'll keep biting and eventually swallow all the 'gifts' we've prepared."
They watched as the data packet was fully downloaded, encrypted, transmitted, and finally disappeared into Hydra's network.
"Phase one complete." Chen Haotian breathed a sigh of relief. "Now, we just need to wait for them to start analyzing this data and then reap what they sow."
Tony patted Chen Haotian on the shoulder: "Well done, bro. Give them a taste of their own medicine. I can almost picture their scientists' expressions when they run experiments based on this data and fail time and time again."
Chen Haotian smiled slightly, a hint of coldness in his smile: "This is just an appetizer, Tony. Once they integrate this erroneous data into their research system, the resulting chain reaction will cost them dearly. Hydra wants to play the biological weapons game? We'll let them experience what it means to reap what you sow."