The weapon refiner is not doing her job properly

Chapter 157 A Ruthless Pursuit
"Madam, please walk forward ten meters and stand inside the red circle of light on the ground," the robot instructed.

Su Ninglong followed the instructions and stepped precisely into the center of the striking red circle of light.

The moment she regained her footing, the last gate behind her leading to the area where the robots were located slammed shut, placing her completely in a sea of ​​safes.

A magical scene happened.

A safe, located high up and perfectly matching the key in Su Ninglong's hand, silently detached from its original fixed position. As if attracted by a magnetic force, it floated down steadily and finally hovered firmly in front of Su Ninglong within easy reach.

Su Ninglong did not rush to take action, but first carefully examined the safe that belonged to her.

Its shape is very special, square and upright with sharp lines. The whole body is made of some kind of matte dark gray alloy, which looks exceptionally sturdy. The overall style is more like a kind of extremely sturdy floating suitcase that can withstand interstellar travel.

She noticed that in this secluded space, she could only access the safe she had summoned.

The tens of thousands of other safes around her seemed to simply remain quietly in their places, keeping a considerable distance from her, making the entire space appear spacious and "loose".

However, Su Ninglong knew that beneath the surface of this top-tier interstellar bank's core vault lay extremely sophisticated and dangerous security measures, and any unauthorized touch or movement could trigger unimaginable consequences.

Composing herself, Su Ninglong followed her memory and first entered the complex password into an inconspicuous sensor area on the side of the safe.

"Beep, verification successful." With a soft electronic sound, a smooth, seamless alloy panel on the surface of the safe quietly slid open, revealing a hidden, uniquely shaped physical keyhole.

Su Ninglong inserted the key and gently turned it. With a soft "click," the safe's lid popped open. The contents were far fewer than she had expected: an antique wooden box about the size of a jewelry box, and three neatly folded paper documents sealed with a special material.

Su Ninglong pulled it out and quickly glanced at it; it contained three land deeds.

One document corresponds to a small mineral vein with limited reserves but clearly defined ownership, while the other two are forest land ownership certificates located in different nature reserves.

Ziyue's grandfather's intention was very clear: if his granddaughter had difficulty establishing herself in a big city in the future, she could retreat to these places and make a living by relying on the natural resources of the woodlands.

She can build a simple wooden hut within the protected area and freely gather fruits, herbs, and other produce from the forest to maintain a basic livelihood. Of course, the terms also explicitly restrict large-scale commercial development, and absolutely prohibit hiring people to enter the protected area for destructive digging or logging activities.

In terms of the value of these three land deeds alone, they are not particularly valuable in a prosperous interstellar society, and it seems that they are not worth storing in the core vault of the Star Merchant Bank with such solemnity, and even needing a child to retrieve them, in order to prevent covetousness.

The real key is clearly in that unassuming wooden box.

Su Ninglong had no intention of opening the wooden box inside the vault.

She carefully put the wooden box and the three land deeds into her Dingding Mouse backpack.

Just before she was about to close the safe lid and leave, she caught a glimpse of something out of the corner of her eye: deep inside the safe, there seemed to be an extremely fine, shimmering grid structure, like stardust, emitting barely perceptible specks of light.

A sense of unease immediately arose in her mind: why would a quantum-level filter be installed inside a safe? Such devices are usually used to block specific energy radiation or prevent the escape of microscopic particles.

Could potentially dangerous items be stored in the vaults of Star Commercial Bank? This level of security is rather unusual.

She subconsciously touched the seemingly ordinary earring on her earlobe, as if confirming something, then turned around decisively, carrying her backpack full of items, and walked out of the red circled area.

Almost the instant she stepped out of the red circle, the vault door behind her slid open silently and swiftly.

The guardian robot quietly glided to her side and guided her back the way she came until she stepped back into the waiting elevator.

"Item deposit and retrieval complete. Thank you for your trust and cooperation. XingShang Bank looks forward to your next visit." The robot emitted a standard electronic farewell voice.

Yun Fei, who had been waiting in the elevator, came up to her when she came out and asked in a low voice, "Is everything taken care of?"
"Mm." Su Ninglong nodded.

The elevator ascended smoothly.

The manager, who had previously been rude, was now unusually silent. He merely glanced at Su Ninglong out of the corner of his eye before refusing to engage in any further conversation.

When the elevator reached the ground floor and everyone walked safely out of the bank's magnificent doors, looking back, they saw the manager standing motionless in the shadows of the bank's entrance, watching them expressionlessly.

His last gaze was empty, cold, yet held an indescribable focus, as if he wanted to imprint their silhouettes on his face.

This was no ordinary farewell gaze; it carried an indescribable eeriness that sent chills down one's spine and made one's scalp tingle.

Shen Zhaoming's expression was grave: "Your friend... could he have offended some extremely powerful person? Something doesn't seem right."

Su Ninglong shook her head: "It's highly unlikely that she provoked it; she's just an ordinary web hunter. The problem probably lies with something left behind by her grandfather."

She glanced at the entrance of Xing Shang Bank. The power behind such a place as Xing Shang Bank must be far greater than imagined.

She didn't voice her suspicions, but everyone present was intelligent and they had probably already noticed the manager's unusual behavior.

As the group approached the hovercar, just as they got close to the door, Shen Zhaoming suddenly narrowed his eyes and knelt down, gently placing his palm on the chassis of the car, and his supernatural power instantly spread out.

A few seconds later, his expression darkened further. He precisely pried out a tiny, fingernail-sized metal disc, still shimmering with a faint red light, from an extremely well-hidden gap. It was the tracker.

This is not over yet.

Shen Zhaoming stood up, his sharp gaze sweeping over the top of the car door. Near the door handle on the side that Su Ninglong usually opened, he noticed something unusual.

An extremely ingenious spring-loaded door opener, disguised as a dust particle, is attached there. Once the Suninglong closes the door, touching the door again will instantly activate this device, forcibly opening the door a crack.

The choice of this seat is very targeted. Su Ninglong just sat here, and passengers are very likely to choose the same seat when they ride the same bus a second time.

Everyone's expression instantly turned extremely serious.

Yun Fei frowned and looked at Su Ninglong, "What was that you just took out?"

Su Ninglong helplessly spread her hands, her face full of honesty and a hint of confusion: "I really don't know what it is. There are only three land deeds, a letter, and a small locked wooden box in the safe. I only see these surface things, so asking me is useless."

The discovery of the tracker and the door opener weighed heavily on everyone's mind like two heavy stones.

This means that they were already being watched before they even entered the bank, and the other party clearly had ill intentions.

The hovercar was driven by Shen Zhaoming. His special ability not only allowed him to detect any potential hazards in the vehicle itself, but more importantly, it enabled him to analyze complex road conditions in real time, predict potential dangers (such as abnormally approaching vehicles or roadblocks), and even, in emergencies, forcibly take over part of the hovercar's control system to perform extreme evasive maneuvers. There was no more suitable driver than him.

The four of them got into the hovercar, which then roared into the busy air traffic. As the navigation system gradually approached the Starship Terminal, the atmosphere inside the car did not relax; instead, it became increasingly tense.

It was too quiet, unnaturally quiet, like the suffocating stillness before a storm. This calm was ominous.

Sure enough, their worries soon became a reality.

Four seemingly ordinary suspended container trucks suddenly accelerated and approached from different directions, forming a tight encirclement with remarkable precision, trapping their small car firmly in the center.

"Lower your head!" Yun Fei shouted.

The four people inside the car reacted very quickly, instantly curling up and crouching low.

Just as they lowered their heads, a huge truck flew past them at an astonishing speed, skimming the roof of their vehicle.

Due to the excessive speed and extremely tricky angle, the heavy chassis edge of the truck, like a shovel, tore apart and rolled up a large piece of the metal roof of Yun Fei's hovercar with a "rip" sound!

"Damn it, my car!" Yun Fei cursed, heartbroken.

As someone who needs to be frugal, he has only had this private hovercar for two years and cherishes it dearly.

"It's all over, it's completely ruined! Assistant Liang will definitely scold me to death if he finds out."

Lei Qingya glanced at the empty roof of the car, still shaken, and patted his chest in relief: "Thank goodness... thank goodness it wasn't my limited edition that was driven out today!"

Her words carried a hint of relief at surviving a disaster.

Shen Zhaoming: "..." He silently swallowed his complaints.

He, a poor man, could only feel sorry for the rich who "feel bad about scrapping a limited edition car" and could not empathize with them at all.

"Finally, you've made your move." Su Ninglong's voice was unusually calm. She raised her head, her sharp gaze piercing through the windshield.

The speeding truck that caused the accident suddenly started to slow down a short distance ahead.

Their intentions couldn't be clearer: if their car crashed into it, they would definitely end up with a fatal accident.

The hovercraft's built-in safety system was no longer able to stop it.

At the critical moment, Shen Zhaoming placed his hands on the control panel, instantly connecting his supernatural power with the vehicle's control system. Without hesitation, he cut off most of the lift engine's output and simultaneously pulled the control lever sharply.

The hovercar was suddenly pulled downwards as if by an invisible giant hand, and it lost its weight.

The three people inside the car (except for Shen Zhaoming, who was in control) were instantly thrown off their seats, and only managed to avoid being thrown off by instinctively grabbing onto fixed objects inside the car.

They narrowly escaped falling through the gap beneath the slowing truck.

The truck that tried to force them to stop was then violently rammed by a companion truck that was also trying to sandwich them from behind.

"Boom."

A deafening explosion suddenly rang out, and the two huge hover trucks collided and rolled violently, instantly turning into two huge fireballs, with thick smoke and flames shooting into the sky.

In the chaos, Yun Fei shouted to those around him, "Run! Run! That truck is a dangerous goods transport vehicle!"

Upon seeing this, the other hovercars traveling normally on the aerial road quickly left the current aerial passage and dispersed into other roads.

The other side didn't care how they died, nor did they care if innocent people were affected. They had only one goal: to make Su Ninglong disappear completely, at any cost.

This thought flashed through the minds of Su Ninglong and the others.

At the same time, a thick, dark green plume of smoke suddenly erupted from the cracks in the wreckage of the hazardous materials transport vehicle.

This smoke is not only pungent, but also has a strong concealing effect.

They spread rapidly as if they were living things, greedily devouring the surrounding light and vision, and soon shrouding the nearby airspace in a blurry and dangerous mist.

The two hover trucks, twisted and deformed from the collision, suddenly disintegrated under the impact of the thick smoke and explosion.

Countless burning metal fragments, twisted mechanical parts, and remnants of unknown hazardous materials loaded inside, like deadly black hailstones, mixed with sparks and thick smoke, poured down from the sky.

Damn it, how many people will die? People have no bottom line when it comes to killing.

"Madman!" Lei Qingya gritted his teeth.

Shen Zhaoming's temples throbbed slightly as his hands moved with incredible speed across the control panel, like phantoms.

He maneuvered the battered hovercar, struggling through the falling debris of death, like playing a thrilling aerial dodgeball game. The car lurched and swayed violently as he narrowly avoided potentially fatal impacts.

But the crisis is far from over.

Under the cover of thick smoke, the top doors of the other two hover trucks, which had been watching from above, suddenly opened wide.

Four figures dressed in tight-fitting black combat suits, their faces covered with menacing metal masks, appeared silently.

They wielded strangely shaped cold weapons, such as long swords flashing with eerie blue arcs of electricity or chain whips covered with serrated edges, like reapers from hell.

They were positioned high above, their goggles able to penetrate the smoke and lock onto the hovercars that were desperately trying to escape.

Su Ninglong and the others all sensed the killing intent, and their hearts sank.

The dark green smoke was fast approaching, and a hissing sound of corrosion could be heard from within the fog. Shen Zhaoming turned the engine to maximum and accelerated away.

But the murderous aura still followed closely behind, without creating any distance.

Su Ninglong slowly stood up, remaining as steady as a rock in the violently shaking carriage.

She tilted her head slightly, and on her delicate, porcelain-doll-like face, a smile bloomed that was completely out of character for her age and appearance, carrying a hint of wickedness and playfulness. Her innocence was tinged with a chilling eeriness, making her look like an evil doll that had stepped out of a horror story.