What do you mean by saying that the corpses I sew are all ominous creatures?

Lu Yan ignored Li Qing's banter. She walked behind her desk and sat down, looking at me with a deep gaze and a rare seriousness in her tone:

"Chen Yang, thank you for your hard work this time. If you hadn't been on the plane, the consequences would have been unimaginable."

I shook my head, my voice calm: "There's no need for formalities between us."

However, Lu Yan, this matter is probably not simple.

The black magic used by those two pilots was extremely sophisticated.

I did a quick check on the plane; the perpetrator wasn't on board, so they clearly came prepared.

Lu Yan nodded, took an encrypted tablet from the drawer, and pushed it in front of us.

"You're right. Just five minutes before the plane went out of control, at 10:15 p.m., our branch office's public mailbox and my personal terminal simultaneously received several anonymous emails and a video."

Her slender fingers tapped lightly on the screen.

The video has started playing.

The scene is dark, and the background seems to be in a damp and gloomy secret room.

The camera is pointed directly at a huge black altar, which is filled with all sorts of strange magical artifacts and poisonous insects.

A man completely shrouded in a black robe has his back to the camera, and the voice he emits is heavily electronically processed, sounding sharp and shrill:

"Jiangcheng Folk Customs Bureau...you killed my sect's elder Na Kong and stole my sect's sacred artifacts."

This is the first warning.

If the skull is not handed over, this flight from Fengtian to Jiangcheng will become a cemetery for hundreds of civilians.

You have ten minutes to consider…

The video ends abruptly there.

Holy crap!

Upon seeing this, Li Qing sat up abruptly, his face turning extremely pale.

"This is blatant terrorism! These Southeast Asian lunatics, are they really willing to drag hundreds of people down with them for a bone?"

I stared at the remaining image of the altar on the screen, my eyes narrowing slightly.

"Is it the skull we obtained after killing Nakong?" I asked softly.

"Yes." Lu Yan sighed and sat back down in her chair.

"This incident confirms that this thing is very important to the Black Serpent Cult."

However, we cannot yet confirm the purpose of this skull, including the reason why Nakong brought it into the country.

It is certain that this flight attack is their first wave of pressure.

"What's going on with those two pilots?" Li Qing interjected.

"How did they suddenly get infected?"

Upon hearing this, I blurted out with certainty, "These two pilots must have stopped in Southeast Asia."

A hint of approval flashed in Lu Yan's eyes. Then, she pulled up two files on the tablet.

"This is the background investigation we just urgently retrieved."

Both pilots had flown international flights to Southeast Asia a week earlier and had landed there for more than 24 hours.

Clearly, the Black Serpent Cult's intelligence network had long ago identified all possible flight crew members flying the Jiangcheng route and had implanted something in them beforehand.

"As long as the opportunity arises, the curse can be detonated remotely at any time."

I nodded, which confirmed my earlier guess.

This is not retaliation against me or Li Qing, but a premeditated attack.

Li Qing and I really met by chance.

"So what's next?"

I looked at Lu Yan, my tone calm.

"Since the Black Serpent Cult dared to release a threatening video, they must have other plans. Do you need any help?"

Lu Yan looked at me and suddenly smiled. Her smile carried a hint of relief, but also a hint of helplessness.

"This matter has nothing to do with you, or even with me, the branch chief."

Li Qing and I were both taken aback.

"What do you mean?"

"Just twenty minutes after the video was released, the higher-ups were already furious."

Such terrorist attacks targeting civilian aircraft have crossed the country's red line.

The General Administration has officially issued an order to take full control of this case.

Currently, the skull fragment has been transported to the secret warehouse of the Beijing General Bureau by top-level armed escort vehicles.

Lu Yan picked up the teacup on the table, took a sip, and her eyes returned to their usual coldness.

"Subsequent actions will be jointly carried out by the General Administration's Special Operations Group and relevant military departments."

As far as I know, a cross-border operation targeting the headquarters of the Black Serpent Cult in Southeast Asia has entered the planning stage.

This is no longer a private feud within the folk community; it's a state-level, devastating attack.

Hearing this, the tension in my heart finally eased a little.

Indeed, in the face of such a behemoth as the state apparatus, even something as seemingly random as the Black Serpent Cult or the Mysterious Skull, once designated as a terrorist organization threatening national security, will only face annihilation.

"Phew...that's great."

Li Qing patted his chest and breathed a long sigh of relief.

"Finally, I can get a good night's sleep. I was worried about being watched by these sorcerers every day, and I didn't even dare to order takeout."

Lu Yan put down her teacup, her gaze softening as she looked at us:

"So, the reason we brought you here is just to get you through a process."

Zhao Gang will take you to give an oral report; I need this report to ask for rewards from higher-ups.

Upon hearing the word "reward," Li Qing's eyes instantly lit up like light bulbs.

"A reward? Director Lu, we saved over three hundred people this time, the reward... it should be at least six figures, right?"

Lu Yan rolled her eyes at him: "Six figures? Li Qing, you underestimate the Bureau of Folklore."

This incident was classified as an exceptionally meritorious act.

In addition to the generous cash reward, I will also apply to the headquarters to allocate a batch of scarce cultivation resources to you.

I smiled faintly: "Then thank you very much, Director Lu."

At this stage, I don't actually have much desire for any rewards or honors.

What I want to do most right now is to take the snake egg and the evil crystal back to my rented room, and in a quiet environment, properly digest what I've gained during this time in Northeast China.

As the saying goes, don't bite off more than you can chew.

I can claim the reward from the Folklore Bureau after I've finished processing what I have on hand.

"Alright, it's getting late."

Lu Yan stood up, walked up to us, and earnestly instructed us: "After you finish the report, I will arrange a car to take you home."

During this period, although it may be said that the General Administration will take over Jiangcheng, it is hard to guarantee that there will be no escaped members of the Black Snake Cult.

Chen Yang, Li Qing, you two need to be extra careful.

"Understood," I nodded in response.

For the next half hour, I was taken to a special interrogation room.

Sitting in the interrogation room, I felt uncomfortable all over, so I briefly recounted what had happened.

As for the details, not a single word was mentioned.

The two civilian staff members in charge of taking notes were expressionless. They just wrote down whatever I said without asking any questions.

When I finished my report and walked out of the interrogation room, it was already 2:30 a.m.

Li Qing was already waiting for me outside, holding two checks stamped with the company seal, grinning from ear to ear.

"Old Chen, you've struck it rich! You've really struck it rich!"

He leaned closer and whispered a number in my ear.