Chapter 021: Codename "Chief"
After ending the communication, Yu Jing sat in the wooden cabin, deep in thought.
The conversation just now had been concise and clear: the top-ranked individual on the contribution list, who had left all others far behind, had drawn the attention and focus of the highest levels.
To that end, a special task force with extremely high authority had been established, aimed at establishing contact, initiating engagement, and preparing responses on all fronts.
And she had been invited to serve as the deputy leader of this team.
"The team's level is set at the highest tier... Old Zhuang himself is taking the lead as team leader." She murmured to herself, a sharp glint flashing in her eyes.
This was hardly surprising.
The weight of this matter was immense.
Although the specifics of the rule—"the amount of faction contribution will determine one's status and authority after the trial ends"—were still unclear, it was unthinkable that it could be defied.
Just like being pulled into the Trial Ground—it was unquestionable and left no room for resistance.
And the top-ranked individual's despair-inducing contribution value, even if it stagnated from this moment onward, would still leave all pursuers hopelessly behind.
At least she, ranked second on the list, felt in her heart that surpassing it was utterly impossible.
Therefore, the correct attitude needed to be established from now on—to treat this top-ranked individual as the one who would hold the highest status and authority in the future.
Of course, all of this was predicated on the Huaxia faction achieving final victory.
Otherwise, no amount of faction contribution would mean anything.
But if the Fate Net was truly unique to the Huaxia faction, then the odds of winning this trial were overwhelmingly high.
So starting preparations for this now couldn't be considered too hasty.
From a national strategic perspective, a hundred days was merely a fleeting moment.
...
And faced with the invitation, Yu Jing had hardly hesitated.
The reason was not only that she saw the path to the core of power and the potential future it entailed, but also because of the curiosity and desire to explore deep within her heart.
How exactly had the being named "Yan Cang" accumulated such an astronomical amount of contribution on the very first day?
The answer to this question pointed blatantly to the "Fate Net."
But where did the Fate Net come from? Was it really obtained from a "Supply Box"?
Could a creation capable of connecting the consciousness of billions of people and building such a magnificent system of communication and exchange really be opened from a treasure chest?
She had personally experienced the gift of a Golden Chest—it had awakened a supernatural energy called "Digital Power" within her, which could enhance her brain and sharpen her five senses.
It could even briefly alter mechanical creations.
Moreover, this power could grow by absorbing and processing information and data.
This was already extraordinary.
But compared to the "Fate Net," which enveloped billions of people and wove an invisible network, it was like a firefly compared to the bright moon—falling short by more than one dimension.
What level of chest would be needed to produce such a miracle?
And in fact, whether chests of a higher tier than the Golden Chest even existed was still unknown.
On the Fate Net Forum, those who publicly claimed to have obtained a Golden Chest were already as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns, and even then, their authenticity was hard to verify.
As for chests of an even higher level, they were all fabrications with no evidence whatsoever.
Therefore, in her eyes, the one at the top of the contribution list was shrouded in a massive mystery.
A strong sense of doubt clawed at her heart like a cat's gentle scratch.
Now, with an opportunity to delve deeper into the person herself and uncover part of the truth, how could Yu Jing refuse?
As her thoughts flowed, the Fate Net sent a notification—she had been pulled into a newly created channel.
A core channel limited to the group's members.
The channel had only seven members: Team Leader Zhuang Hongwen, Deputy Team Leader herself, and five others representing the core members of five teams—Psychological Assessment and Behavioral Analysis, Strategic Judgment and Plan Formulation, Information Collection and Integration Analysis, Resource Coordination and Logistics Support, and Safety Assessment and Risk Control.
This meant the group could, when needed, mobilize the power of these five systems.
The first online meeting did not cut straight to the point.
The reason was simple: their understanding of the target was nearly blank. Apart from a name and an astonishing faction contribution, they knew nothing.
Under such circumstances, discussing any strategy for "contact" or "response" was nothing more than building castles in the air.
Thus, the initial exchange was not lengthy.
It mainly involved confirming each other's identities, familiarizing themselves with the departmental resources and functional boundaries each represented, and establishing a preliminary working rapport.
Yu Jing's role in this group was that of the executor of specific tasks and the frontline contact person facing the mission's target directly.
Contacting the top of the list as the second on the list—that did sound fitting.
Never mind how big the gap in faction contribution was; wasn't the ranking only one place apart?
That should be enough to strike up a conversation, right? Probably!
As for Team Leader Zhuang Hongwen, he was mostly a figurehead, representing the attention of the highest decision-making level and providing broader resource support when necessary.
So, after a brief introduction and framework confirmation, Zhuang Hongwen stopped speaking, handing over the meeting's lead to Yu Jing.
Yu Jing thought for a moment and put forward the first practical suggestion: "Before we start working, let's give our mission target a codename."
After a short discussion, the meeting reached a consensus: the target's codename would be temporarily set as 【Chief】.
This codename was concise, clear, and subtly acknowledged the transcendent status the target might hold.
The group's first meeting was very brief.
Because any effective action plan needed basic information as its foundation.
Thus, Yu Jing's first assigned task fell on the shoulders of the "Information Collection and Integration Analysis" team.
She gave clear instructions: "Do everything possible to gather all information about 【Chief】."
With just a name, trying to find the person in the current environment was like looking for a needle in a haystack.
Back on Earth, relying on household registration systems or big data, it would have been simple.
But in this Trial Ground, communication relied entirely on the Fate Net, and the means were extremely limited.
Only the most primitive methods could be used: on one hand, sifting through the vast information on the Fate Net Forum to capture any traces possibly related to the name "Yan Cang";
on the other hand, attempting to use manpower through various regional channels or established contact networks to make clumsy and widespread inquiries.
This was undoubtedly a daunting task for the information team.
After all, the team members were currently working on their own provisions, sustained solely by their past convictions and sense of responsibility.
They also had to struggle for their own survival, which naturally limited their work efficiency.
However, at this moment, everyone within the organizational system was in the same boat, leaving no room for complaints.
As the core duty of the information team, no matter how difficult this task was, they had to grit their teeth and take it on.
The only silver lining was that the surname "Yan" was not common, and the number of people nationwide named "Yan Cang" should be few and far between, which greatly reduced the difficulty of the screening.
After assigning the task, Yu Jing concluded the brief meeting.
The group chat channel of the team fell into silence.
She quietly stared at the personal interface on the Fate Net, and a subtle sense of absurdity suddenly arose in her heart:
In an environment where communication relied entirely on the [Fate Net], they were supposed to deal with the Chief, who was most likely the "Master of the Fate Net."
This was truly...