The King of Curses

Chapter 227 The Bell of the New Era
A new era has arrived——

When the "cutting down mountains and destroying temples" movement in Tianhai City came to an end, everyone had a premonition that the giant ship sailing on the crest of the waves of the times had already set sail with the humming sound of the whistle.

This is the first large-scale social movement initiated by a certain curse-master organization in China and even in the world. Although it has not yet subverted the "world of ordinary people" and made everyone aware of the secret, major changes have already taken place quietly. This movement has laid the foundation for a brand-new social model prepared for the arrival of the first wave.

And the speed of its change is so fast, as powerful as thunder. If it does not move, it will be fine; but when it moves, it will be amazing, with the force of crushing dry weeds and rotten wood, and determining the outcome of the event in one fell swoop.

Whether it is the insiders living in this city or the people in other cities who watched this movement from its launch to its end;
No matter whether they were spell casters affiliated with the Super Working Committee, those with close ties to official organizations, or those who had not yet joined the folk spell casters or even those sorcerers who had managed to escape the disaster, everyone understood that everything was a foregone conclusion.

Tianhai City became the territory of the Super Workers' Committee and became an example of how the society of curse-forbidden masters gradually took over the world of ordinary people;
Based on the experience gained from this operation, the “cutting down mountains and destroying temples” movement will spread across the country...

……

The core organization leading this new era of change——

The headquarters of the Supernatural Response Working Committee stands on an urban street in Xicheng District, Tianhai City.

It is not the city center, but it is not a deserted place like a higher education park or a new development zone. For an international metropolis, this place is still prosperous and bustling.

As a countermeasure department responsible for dealing with supernatural threats, the Supernatural Committee built its headquarters here without attracting the attention of local residents. This was achieved through the use of large-scale spells and sleight of hand.

On the surface, this is just a government agency consisting of several gray buildings with a cold and inconspicuous atmosphere, but in fact it is a huge building with three floors above ground and five floors underground.

As long as you push open that seemingly ordinary door, you can see the true face of the Super Working Committee and witness the thriving new atmosphere of an organization that is steadily walking on the pulse of the times and gradually transforming into a behemoth organization.

The first floor of the entrance hall is a giant open office area responsible for handling a large number of daily tedious affairs. It is divided into a two-story circular structure with different entrances responsible for contact between ordinary people and spell masters. Although they seem to be in the same space, they are actually separated into different areas by automatically running formation mechanisms and do not interfere with each other.

Fluorescent tubes overhead, clean and bright marble corridors, desks and chairs with computers, filing cabinets, fax machines... the interior looks modern, but it also has hidden secrets.

On the inner side of the huge ceiling that extends for a hundred meters, special lines are installed between the exhaust fans and the central air-conditioning facilities at regular intervals: a "sky net array" composed of 108 hanging exorcism copper coins. Each copper coin also has a built-in miniature electromagnetic jammer, thus forming the first level of prohibition that can counter both technological and curse-based information spying methods inside and outside the building.

At the same time, the green plants that can be seen everywhere in the corners of the office area are not randomly purchased decorations, but are specially designed by Feng Shui masters and placed in conjunction with internal formations. There is also a different world inside the potted plants, with evil-repelling stones wrapped around the root tentacles, and piezoelectric ceramic sensors buried in the soil to monitor the "earth energy", and so on.

The civilian staff members who were working at their desks, typing away on their computers, or walking hurriedly in the corridors seemed to be handling their daily business in a manner similar to that of employees in ordinary institutions and large companies. However, if an outsider could listen to their conversations, they would only find it bizarre.

Although not everyone can become a curse-master who handles frontline affairs, or loves and is good at fighting, after possessing the qualification of "Yin-Yang Eyes", they can also become official members of the Super Working Committee and be responsible for behind-the-scenes work.

"I've been busy again recently."

"Well, after all, the 'clearing of mountains and destroying of temples' has just come to an end, and there is a lot of finishing work to be done. There are also a large number of folk spell-binding masters, organizations, and groups that have been discovered and need to be catalogued..."

"However, the environment is safe now, and I can let my family go out without worry. The sorcerers made a fuss some time ago, and they even said they wanted to 'unite to resist the Super Workers' Committee'... After hearing such rumors, I dare not leave the unit."

"In the end, rumors are just rumors. There is no such thing at all."

"I heard that several leaders were dealt with one by one by our experts in advance, so there was no big commotion."

"I see, that's no wonder."

"Anyway, compared to other cities, we are lucky to live in Tianhai City. I heard that there have been a lot of disappearances in my hometown recently, and the local police can't figure it out, which has caused panic among the people... Ordinary people don't know what's going on, but how could we not know? I have recently planned to bring my family to Tianhai City."

Two clerks who were taking a break were chatting while drinking coffee in the restaurant, discussing trivial matters in life and work. After a brief exchange, they returned to their workstations with their respective documents.

One of them came to an ordinary-looking fax machine and stuffed the document into the entrance.

"This family household registration file, which is said to have produced a corpse-reincarnating immortal, requires... let me see it, level three encryption."

While following the requirements in the work manual and the input instructions on the computer, the clerk stared at the small Taotie-shaped ornament on the fax machine.

In fact, it is not a "decoration" -

"puff."

A cloud of smoke with the smell of mugwort condensed and did not dissipate. It flowed over the document and immediately melted all traces of ink on the document.

After confirming that all the writing on the document had disappeared and only a blank piece of paper remained, the clerk breathed a sigh of relief and threw the discarded document into the shredder next to him. The job was thus concluded.

However, just before he left, the big screen behind him suddenly lit up.

A beautiful young woman with long straight black hair appeared on the screen. She sat upright in an office chair with a calm and gentle smile. But what the people in the Super Working Committee saw in her was the majesty of a superior.

"Hello everyone, I am An Zhizhen."

People who were working nearby put down their work and gathered here without any prior arrangement.

……

The heavy radiation-proof door closed behind them. The current location of this team of curse-binding masters is the fifth underground floor of the Super Working Committee's Tianhai City Headquarters - the deepest bronze containment area.

Everyone's nostrils were filled with the faint smell of copper rust, as if someone had ground the bronze tripod in the museum's collection into powder and sprinkled it in the air.

The curse master standing at the front of the team had an electromagnetic pulse gun made of jujube wood hanging around his waist. The Big Dipper pattern carved on the gun handle glowed dark red under the emergency light. This was the latest achievement developed by the equipment department of the 555th Laboratory. It was said to be able to interfere with the movements of ghosts and the operation of electronic equipment at the same time.

They followed the footsteps of the inspectors ahead and entered the containment area, preparing to place a cursed item that they had seized from the sorcerer group during the "clearing mountains and destroying temples" operation in a safe place.

Similar procedures should have been completed a few days ago, but due to some... "internal conflicts within the team", they missed the opportunity and had to find another way.

On the bronze walls on both sides of the corridor, there is an eight-diagram mirror embedded in the wall every five meters. The mirror surface is not ordinary brass, but some kind of crystal with blue light; where the crystal shines is the storage cabinet.

"...The temperature of the C-type storage cabinet exceeded the standard by 0.3 degrees. It is possible that the pressure at the third node of the liquid nitrogen circulation pump is abnormal... After all, this is a new experimental equipment put into production, so it is normal to have some flaws."

The inspector wrapped in winter clothes muttered to himself, holding a record book in one hand and a laser pen in the other, sweeping the light spot across the frost adhering to the storage cabinet.

"Remember to ask the logistics team to bring a new bundle of peach wood ropes for temporary sealing later..."

Seeing him walking and stopping from time to time and muttering non-stop, some team members began to become impatient.

"Hey, can you please walk faster?"

"Don't use that attitude. We asked him for help. He's an inspector, and this matter is not his responsibility."

The captain waved his hand with a calm attitude; then he spoke to the inspector.

"We'll go talk to the logistics team for you, so take care of our tasks first."

"Oh, okay, no problem."

The inspector put away the record book with a smile.

He found the corresponding numbered locker and used the electronic code to open it. The captain behind him carefully brought a wooden box and opened the lid. Inside was a bunch of black hair that looked like a woman's, emitting a strong resentment visible to the naked eye. "Wow, this amount of Yin Qi... It must be a ghost that is at least a hundred years old, right?"

"Yes, it had not yet awakened when we retrieved it, but..."

"This dangerous level of containment should indeed be kept immediately."

When it was time to get down to business, the inspector's expression became serious, and he quickly put the cursed object into the storage cabinet with decisive and quick movements. The moment he closed the door, the lifeless hair suddenly seemed to "come alive", winding like a snake and hitting the cabinet door, scaring everyone.

"boom!"

After a muffled sound, the blue crystal in the Bagua mirror began to ripple, but the storage cabinet remained motionless.

"Don't worry, it won't come out."

The inspector consoled him with a smile.

At this moment, the same voice sounded in the headphones they were wearing.

“There is an open call.”

After confirming that there are no other matters at hand, everyone opens the channel cautiously.

"who is it?"

"All departments have received it..."

"It's Consultant An."

Consultant An - this title seemed to have some kind of magic, making everyone quiet down and look at each other in bewilderment.

"Counselor An's speech cannot be missed. Don't just stand there like an idiot. Let's go out and listen."

……

The second underground floor is the talisman department.

The scene before their eyes would probably leave scientists or authentic Taoist priests dumbfounded. However, anyone who had worked in the Super Working Committee or the 555th Institute was already accustomed to similar scenes that combined modern technology with metaphysical incantations, and had long been desensitized to them:
In a sealed room emitting bright white light, there is a complex and sophisticated device. The robotic arm holds a consecrated wolf-hair brush, the ink trough is filled with chicken blood ink, and the talisman paper is made of graphite. The brush moves like a dragon, and the talismans are produced efficiently and in batches with the most precise brushwork.

"The energy of the Five Thunder Talisman drawn with the new material decays too quickly, and the image of the finished product on the oscilloscope is extremely unstable."

A researcher in white stood outside the room, looking at the distorted rune spectrum records jumping on the holographic screen while expressing his dissatisfaction with his colleagues to a certain research institute.

"The people at the 555 Institute are so unreasonable. They throw unreliable products here every day. Do they really think we are their assistants?"

"We can't help it. They have achievements and resources. If we can make something good here and attract the attention of the higher-ups..."

"Humph, that means there are no resources. Without resources, there will be no results."

“Where would the resources come from if there is no success?”

"Well, that's true..."

At this moment, the tablet placed next to the two researchers suddenly lit up. After taking a look at the message, the man who had been complaining just now immediately became excited.

"It's Consultant An's speech! Quick, quick, stop the machine first."

"Come on, come on, everyone stop for a moment and get ready to listen to the speech."

……

"Advisor An, the live stream is ready. May I ask..."

The person in charge of the live broadcast asked cautiously, but deep in that tone, there was fanaticism hidden.

"let's start."

A quiet voice echoed from the room.

After a few breaths.

"Advisor An" - An Zhizhen's face appeared on every screen that the members of the Super Working Committee could see everywhere.

……

When An Zhizhen was giving a speech, her secretary Kong Yinlian was one of the few members who was lucky enough to be nearby.

She was staring at the woman's flawless face, which seemed to be glowing, and was lost in thought for a moment.

Maybe because they were so close, Kong Yinlian even had trouble breathing...

The boss is usually incredibly beautiful, but today she is simply too much. Her charm is almost demonic, and even a top-class curse master like myself will be dazed for a moment after seeing her.

In order to prevent the members of the Super Working Committee from being distracted by the live broadcast, she had to add a spell to the instrument so that when the boss's charm appeared on the screen, it would be temporarily suppressed to the normal range.

An Zhizhen did not specifically use the power of "Tiankui Quanshou", but when the special life ban in her body awakened, the woman's spirit had already undergone a change - it was no longer an ordinary person's soul, but a "sun" hanging high in the spiritual world.

Even if she does nothing, the gravitational force brought by the huge star will unconsciously attract everyone to her, thus creating an overwhelming leadership charisma.

Of course, most of the time, the boss can always control this invisible gravity very well, and the reason why it changed in the past two days is probably because...

"I had a good rest these past two days."

The other party replied like this.

...But Kong Yinlian secretly guessed that this was because this adult's mentality had changed in some way, and it was very likely that he had encountered a "major event" that would bring his life to the next stage -

……

An Zhizhen smiled, and no one could see what she was thinking.

The woman spoke softly and uttered the first sentence.

"Everyone, the bell of a new era has been rung by our own hands..."

(End of this chapter)