From Titan Corporation to the Empire of Man

Chapter 680 "You have provoked an existence you shouldn't have provoked."

Inside the fast food restaurant at this moment.

Mike sat by the floor-to-ceiling window, eating local synthetic food, while his ear implant received all the special vibrations within a three-kilometer radius—

This includes encrypted communications for the building's security system.

Suddenly, Mike's pupils contracted slightly, and he reminded him, "They've increased the number of scanning stations, and the bio-monitoring accuracy from B2 to B6 has improved by 300%."

Upon hearing this, Chris immediately issued a warning to Leon:
"Evacuate immediately. If necessary, we will activate Contingency Plan C and release strategic biological weapons."

On the other hand, Lyon...

The server room lights suddenly turned a glaring blue, a sign that a scan was about to begin.

Upon seeing this, he immediately pulled out the data needle and took a small device from his waist and attached it to the server rack.

This is the "Memory Worm" developed by the Imperial Engineering Institute, which can continue to steal data without human intervention.

As the first scanning beam pierced the wall, Leon's figure had already blended into the shadow of the ventilation duct.

The scanning beam swept across the spot where he had just stood like a ghost, but only detected normal heat dissipation fluctuations from the server.

"Cleaning complete." The security AI's electronic voice echoed in the corridor. "No signs of intrusion found."

Meanwhile, the auditorium on the middle floor of the building gradually filled with representatives from all walks of life.

The front row was occupied by well-dressed high-ranking military officers and dignitaries, whose seats were equipped with privacy shields to prevent any possible prying.

The middle row was crowded with holographic recorders from various media outlets. These suspended metal spheres constantly adjusted their focus, like a group of hungry eyeballs.

The back row was occupied by lower-ranking military officers and civilian staff who had to stand at attention and keep their coughs below a certain decibel level.

Lyon, meanwhile, walked along the ventilation ducts and, "by accident," arrived at the auditorium. From his vantage point, he could clearly hear the whispers of the officers in the front row:
"I've heard about that Mara Sara dimensional portal."

"The First Expeditionary Fleet needs more psionic jamming missiles."

"Reliable intelligence indicates that a goddess of war exists within the human empire; we should attempt to capture her alive."

Fine water droplets condensed on the metal surface inside the ventilation duct, refracting Lyon's figure into blurry fragments.

The implant in the ear captures every arrogant declaration below.

Those UED officials sat upright in their leather chairs, the stars on their collars gleaming arrogantly under the spotlight, completely unaware that death hung over the ventilation mesh above their heads.

"Athena, the goddess of war of the human empire, has extremely high research value."

The speaker was a fleet commander with graying temples. His prosthetic eye gleamed with a cold, mechanical light, and his finger traced an attack route on the holographic projection. "The target's priority is SS-level. This will be the key to our cracking of the alien biotechnology."

Ah.

A disdainful sneer curled at the corner of Lyon's mouth.

These office bureaucrats have no idea what kind of existence they're talking about.

He had personally witnessed Athena's incredible feat of single-handedly tearing apart the Zerg tide on the battlefield of Char.

The light emanating from that spear of victory was enough to make even the most fanatical Protoss berserkers tremble, and now, these fools who don't even know what warp demons are, dare to attempt to imprison a true god.
A slight vibration suddenly came from the ventilation duct.

Lyon's invisible holographic glasses immediately pinpointed the epicenter—

Two security robots are patrolling the lower-level pipes, their ball joints emitting a distinctive metallic scraping sound.

He slowly pulled out the pulse dagger from the leg strap. The special coating on the blade could instantly disable any electronic device. If anything unusual happened, he would deal with the security robots first, and then any high-ranking officials or generals within his sight.

At this moment, Chris's encrypted communication suddenly broke in:

"The memory worm has acquired 87% of the data, and Hoffman's schedule shows that he will go to the underground parking garage alone in three hours."

Once the security robots were away, Leon's muscles relaxed.

Rather than creating chaos in front of everyone, having the Chief of Logistics "accidentally die" in a private hovercraft is clearly more in line with the mission's objectives.

The press conference held at noon appeared to be about the current situation in the Koprulu Sector and the full-scale conquest of the human empire that replaced the Terran Empire.

Because the UED had also gathered intelligence that Mar-Sala might have a portal to other universes, this was extremely tempting for a regime with such a large population as the UED.

Therefore, Leon, Mike, and Chris plan to assassinate some of the powerful UED officials and generals after gathering enough intelligence, causing unrest and disrupting the UED's recent deployments.

At this moment, Leon adjusted his posture, ensuring the nanosuit completely adhered to the pipe wall, while continuing to listen to the press conference.

The holographic projection below switched to Mar Sara's orbital scan, with an area marked in red being magnified; the image resolution was pitifully low.

Clearly, UED spies cannot get close to the core area, which is precisely where the portal is located.

"The expeditionary fleet will be equipped with the latest quantum anchors."

Lyons, the director of the warp technology department, stood up and added, pointing out a few blue dots on the hologram with her neatly manicured nails. "Once we capture Mar-Sala's specific frequency, we can establish a stable two-way warp channel at a speed four times faster than the original faster-than-light engine."

"."

Upon hearing this, Lyon frowned slightly.

After all, the officials and generals below had already set their sights on Ma Sara.

Whoosh! Whoosh!
His thoughts were interrupted by a sudden burst of applause.

The projected image switched to a magnificent fleet, with thousands of warships arrayed in synchronized orbit.

A young officer in the audience stood up excitedly: "This is enough power to crush any barbarian!"

Lyon shook his head silently.

These poor wretches have no idea that the human empire's ships are of the "powerful brick" type, and that "caliber is paramount." Even the macro cannon shells of the Imperial-class battleships are filled with antimatter shells "blessed" by Hera.

If the UED fleet were to jump to Mar-sala, they would not be met with the barbarians they had anticipated, but rather with "Angels of Death" who had survived countless bloody battles.

"Abnormal airflow detected."

Suddenly, an electronic voice from a security AI came from below.

Lyon immediately went on high alert.

The airflow pattern of the ventilation system did indeed deviate due to his presence. He immediately activated the "mimicry" function of his casual clothes, synchronizing his body temperature with the pipes, while simultaneously pressing the pulse dagger against the edge of the grid, ready to throw it at any moment.

five seconds
Ten seconds
The alarm did not sound in the end.

During the Q&A session of the press conference, a reporter wearing a neural link headband stood up and asked, "General, how would you evaluate the combat strength comparison between the remnants of the Terran Empire and the Human Empire?"

An elderly general standing at the front of the stage wore a confident smile.

"Mengsk's old guard is like a snake whose fangs have been pulled out, and the so-called human empire..."

As he spoke, the elderly general paused deliberately for a moment, "They're nothing but a bunch of nouveau riche scavenging scrap metal from advanced civilizations." Inside the ventilation duct, Lyon clenched his fists slightly.

To be honest, he wanted to jump right now and show that old bastard how a "nouveau riche's" dagger could cut open a man's throat.

But the task timer jumping on the retinal projection stopped him; there were still 6 minutes and 23 seconds left before the memory worm could complete data collection.

Chris's communication came again: "Mike has marked seven high-value targets, and their private terminals have been implanted with tracking programs. He recommends prioritizing Lines, as her research is the most dangerous."

Lyon tapped the microphone gently to confirm.

His gaze was fixed on the female scientist below.

At that moment, a strong airflow suddenly rushed into the ventilation vents, as if the building's intelligent system was adjusting the air conditioning mode.

Lyon seized the opportunity to wriggle backward, the shadows enveloping him like living things. Before completely disappearing into the darkness, he glanced one last time at the confident faces below the stage.

As night falls, death will travel on the data stream to visit every target.

When the UED fleet actually jumps to Mar-sala, they will find—

He was not facing prey, but a hunter who had already laid his net.

吱.
Suddenly, a barely audible sound came from the metal joint of the ventilation duct.

Lyon paused slightly, the sensation from the nano-soles of his boots telling him—

The steel plate beneath our feet is sinking slightly.

He instinctively tensed his muscles, but it was too late.

Boom——bang——!
With a series of crisp cracking sounds of metal fatigue fracture, the entire ventilation duct collapsed with a roar, like a snake whose joints had been removed!
*Bang--!
The expensive carpet absorbed most of the impact, but the falling air still sent the female scientist's data panel flying.

Leon adjusted his posture in mid-air, and when he landed, he knelt on one knee, using his left hand to brace himself and his right hand to draw out the pulse dagger.

Then, his figure appeared out of place amidst the blue light of the holographic projection and the flashes of the reporters' cameras, like a bolt of lightning suddenly tearing through reality.

? ? ! !
An eerie silence fell over the room.

Thousands of eyes were focused on the intruder who had fallen from the sky.

The female scientist in charge of the warp technology, Lines, was closest; her meticulously manicured eyebrows had just been raised, and her lips were slightly parted, ready to let out a gasp—

Leon's movements were faster than the vibrations of her vocal cords.

He sprang up like a cheetah hunting its prey, the back of his pulse dagger striking the female scientist's carotid artery precisely, causing neither permanent damage nor enough to temporarily incapacitate her.

The moment Lines collapsed, Leon had already grabbed her waist, shielding this important hostage in front of him.

The tip of the dagger pressed against her temple, its special coating gleaming with an ominous purple light under the lamp.

Good afternoon, everyone.

Lyon's voice carried a self-deprecating tone, as if he were mocking his own special "luck," before continuing, "It seems that the quality of UED's construction, like your military strategies, is full of surprises."

Click, click—!
The reporters finally realized what was happening and quickly got their photographers to work. Then, a blinding flash of light erupted.

One daring photographer even used a drone to get close enough to take pictures, with the lens almost touching Lyon's face.

"Don't move! Put down Director Lyons!"

At this moment, more than a dozen security personnel surrounded them from different directions. Their nerve paralysis guns were fully charged, and pale blue electric arcs jumped between the electrodes.

But no one dared to fire, because Lines was more valuable than all their security personnel combined.

Lyon's invisible holographic glasses rapidly scanned for escape routes, while Chris's calm voice came through his ears: "Mike has hacked into the building's fire protection system. The east corridor will be filled with smoke in 30 seconds."

"Did you hear me? Release the hostages immediately!"

The security captain's voice trembled with tension, his finger gripping the trigger, yet he dared not make a move.

Lyon suddenly laughed.

He slowly retreated, holding the female scientist hostage, each step precisely calculated to maintain the angle relative to the various firing points: "Relax, gentlemen, I just want to use this lady to discuss some quantum physics issues."

The holographic projection in the center of the venue, which was still playing a loop of the magnificent images of the UED fleet, now became a wonderfully ironic backdrop.

The old general, his temples graying, was ashen-faced. His prosthetic eye frantically adjusted its focus, as if he couldn't believe that someone could break through layers of security to appear here.

"Seize him!" The old general finally found his voice. "Mobilize all—"

Buzz————!
The piercing fire alarm interrupted the general's instructions and echoed throughout the entire building.

The sprinkler system in the east corridor started running at full speed, and in an instant, a thick gray mist surged into the auditorium like a living thing, instantly engulfing a third of the area.

Lyon seized the opportunity and dragged the female scientist toward the nearest emergency exit.

The camouflage layer of his casual jacket began to flash frequently, making his figure appear and disappear in the smoke.

A paralysis bullet, blindly fired by a security guard, grazed his shoulder and exploded into a blue plasma grid on the wall.

“Mike, I need a clean road!” Leon shouted.

"It's being handled." The sound of typing came through the communicator. "The elevator shaft is under control, but you'll have to get through the press area first—watch out for the guy in the red suit."

A figure suddenly emerged from the smoke; it was a high-ranking security guard, his pupils dilated with excitement, and the weapon hidden in his sleeve gleamed coldly.

"The first-class merit is mine!"

However, Lyon didn't even stop walking.

He dodged the attack to the side, the hilt of the pulse dagger striking the reporter's jaw precisely, sending the man flying like a rag doll, knocking over a row of holographic recorders.

"Sorry." Leon shrugged at the unconscious reporter. "I'll give you the credit another day."

When he kicked open the fire door leading to the stairwell, all the lights in the entire building suddenly went out.

The moment the emergency lights came on, Lyon saw more than a dozen figures wearing nanosuits standing at the bottom of the stairs—

Being late is not a good habit.

Mike's voice came from beneath the helmet visor of the leader.

As he spoke, his friend tossed Leon a pulse pistol, saying, "We've blocked the surveillance on the entire floor, but we only have a 90-second window."

Chris was adjusting the wrist projection, and the holographic map showed the complex route of the underground pipe network: "The garage is 40 meters vertically below. Hoffman's hovercraft is in place, although the car owner may not need it."

At this moment, the female scientist began to struggle weakly in Lyon's arms.

Mike immediately stepped forward and injected her with a sedative: "Sleep, Doctor. When you wake up, you'll understand that you've messed with something you shouldn't have."

(End of this chapter)