After about two hours of uneventful travel, the convoy smoothly reached the Lvshun toll station. Outside, three black Audi cars had cordoned off a lane, their hazard lights flashing. Although they had civilian plates, I could discern their identity from the complexion of the people standing by the cars. A total of six people stood outside the vehicles – three with a green aura and three with a yellow aura.
Lvshun truly lived up to its reputation as one of the province's only two major cities; the aura levels in Shabia were significantly higher than in Fucheng.
I got out of the car and greeted the leader of the group. There was no need for introductions; stating our purpose was sufficient.
Our request was simple: escort us to the headquarters of Cangjing Corporation, after which the Shabia contingent could withdraw. This would prevent the Shabia personnel from both cities from being entangled, avoiding any ambiguity and potential unnecessary trouble.
Three Audis led the way. Lvshun was a city built on hills, with many uphill and downhill roads. The Shabia officers drove quite fast, and the ride left my ears ringing. After about half an hour, the three Audis signaled right and, at the intersection ahead, turned off in three different directions – left, middle, and right.
I looked to the right, where a company stood. Its grounds appeared substantial, with the wall facing the road alone stretching for a hundred meters, comparable to an elementary school. There were large open spaces within. The company buildings were situated around the perimeter. No lights were on inside the compound, but now that I had regained my demon core, I possessed night vision. I could see a large lawn in the middle of the yard, but it was more than just a lawn. Scattered across it were low, cement-like objects, clearly designed as part of a mechanism.
I activated my aura-sensing technique and scanned beneath those concrete pillars. I couldn't see clearly, but I could discern that they connected to a vast underground space. It was likely a factory or something similar below; it was highly improbable to be a parking lot. Those concrete pillars might be disguised ventilation shafts, observation ports, or the like.
Extending my aura-sensing technique to the various buildings, I detected no powerful individuals. There were about a dozen people inside, all with the red aura of ordinary humans. Lights were on in some of the windows, making it look like a typical overtime shift.
"Have all the powerful individuals gone to Fucheng?" I speculated.
Yaoyao shook her head, "Don't be careless."
"Can you see where they've hidden their antiques?" I asked.
Yaoyao pointed towards the ground, "Beneath the lawn, on the third level."
At that point, I couldn't see. I couldn't even discern that there were two more levels of space beneath the visible underground area.
"Let's storm in directly," I suggested, as their defenses seemed negligible.
Yaoyao pondered for a moment, then smiled, "Dianna and I will stay here and prepare the vehicles. You take Yanan and the others first."
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"Once you launch your attack, reinforcements might arrive from the periphery. And reinforcements will undoubtedly be more difficult to deal with," Dianna, however, understood Yaoyao's intention.
Yaoyao rarely interfered with my offensive strategies or tactics. Her caution this time likely stemmed from her sensing other powers, beyond my aura-sensing technique, stirring. Could this Cangjing Corporation be a grand trap, intended to lure me in?
This was not entirely impossible. The ten purple auras I had seen on the highway earlier did not include the auras of the three female ninjas I had fought last night. This meant they were still in Lvshun.
No matter. They could come in any fashion; I would only proceed in one direction, directly towards those antiques, which was the true objective.
After strategizing, I led the seven demons, excluding Mengmeng, away from the convoy and concealed ourselves in a deserted spot. Just as I was about to vault the wall, the Tiger Demon grabbed me from behind and tossed me over. The other demons followed suit, easily clearing the two-meter-high wall.
"...I could have jumped myself," I frowned back at the Tiger Demon. They probably still saw me as the frail scholar who had first arrived at Jiuxian Cave, unaware that my physical capabilities had significantly improved after acquiring Dianna's demon core.
The Eagle Demon transformed first and circled the lawn at a low altitude but found no entrance.
"The entrance must be within the buildings. Let's attack these three structures first," I divided the eight-person team into three groups. The left and right annexes were each handled by two demons, one for strength and one for agility. I, along with the remaining three demons, entered the central main building to execute a targeted elimination plan...