Embers Ad Infinitum

In the drizzle, the Jeep wearing military green camouflage slowed down and drove towards the entrance of the "Pangu Creatures" underground building.

Looking at the extremely familiar gate that they had only seen a few times, Long Yuehong and others couldn't help but feel excited.

After months of drifting away, I am finally going home.

Shang Jianyao even raised his hand and wiped the corners of his mouth.

After they left Hongshiji, their goal was directly at the location of the "Pangu Creature". They basically didn't stop anywhere along the way. They just went to a larger settlement and replenished some food.

Moreover, compared to when they first came out, because they no longer had to worry about the ambush of the "Life Ritual", the group's strength had increased a lot, so they did not take many detours. They just avoided places where they could easily be ambushed out of caution and caution. .

This effectively shortens the time it takes for them to return home.

As the silver-white door at the entrance of "Pangu Biology" opened, Jiang Baimian discovered at a glance that the layout here was very different from before.

In addition to the number of security department employees guarding the facility increased from 20 to 30, two additional new security inspection machines were also added.

"What's going on?" Jiang Baimian pressed down the car window, stuck his head out, and asked without concealing his doubts.

Liu Chengkun, who was in charge of the entrance area, saw that he was an acquaintance and walked over with a smile:

"Hey, isn't this Mianmian?"

The D8 captain of the Security Department is about thirty years old, with bronze skin and an angular appearance.

"..." Facing the unfamiliar nickname, Jiang Baimian didn't know how to respond.

Almost at the same time, she heard "low" laughter from the back row.

Immediately afterwards, Shang Jianyao suppressed his voice and said to Bai Chen in the passenger seat:

"The name Mianmian is not clear at all."

Bai Chen pursed her lips and did not answer, but the muscles on her face seemed to be trembling slightly.

Jiang Baimian took a breath and exhaled it slowly, pulled the handbrake, pushed the door and got out of the car.

She looked at Liu Chengkun, smiled and said:

"Captain Liu, what's going on? Why are you so strict all at once?"

Hey, who said that the guy in front of me is my brother's good friend!

Liu Chengkun glanced at Shang Jianyao, Long Yuehong and Bai Chen who were following him out of the car, and said with a smile:

“It’s not like someone caused trouble.

"Years ago, a team came back from a field trip. When they were handing in their belongings, a stupid young man hid two of them from their team leader. As a result, there seemed to be some hidden problem with one of them, causing a small area of ​​confusion. Well it was resolved quickly.

"The board of directors held the minister accountable for this matter, and the minister was also very angry. As soon as the New Year was over, he changed the rules and required additional search and registration posts at the door, so that the team returning to the company could hand in all their belongings here, and they would be released after review. return."

"Pangu Creatures" did not control their belongings so strictly before. After a preliminary inspection at the door, they would be released directly. Subsequently, the team leader and captain of the corresponding team would be responsible for supervising the members to hand in the items brought back from outside.

When Jiang Baimian heard this, he frowned and sighed:

"Really, isn't this causing trouble for everyone?"

She said this because she was trying to hide something.

——She didn’t want to hand over the turquoise night pearl that fixed Di Marco’s aura.

"Yes, that unfortunate guy was demoted to three levels." Liu Chengkun shook his head and said with a smile, "Okay, please cooperate with the work."

"Yes." Jiang Baimian did not object.

She greeted Long Yuehong, Bai Chen and Shang Jianyao, and opened the trunk of the jeep.

In the process, she winked at Shang Jianyao.

Shang Jianyao had already inserted his left hand into his trouser pocket.

He stood there and watched the team leader and Long Yuehong move down the two wooden boxes without helping.

"What is this?" Liu Chengkun and the several security department employees he summoned to do the inspection asked curiously.

According to their experience, the items brought back by field staff are all in bits and pieces, mostly those they carry with them and cartons filled with cans. Even if there are large items, they will not get a special wooden box to store them.

Jiang Baimian smiled deliberately and said:

"Open it and see for yourself."

Liu Chengkun was not polite. After all, this was his job. He bent down and opened the lid of one of the wooden boxes.

"This..." Liu Chengkun was immediately startled by the items that came into view.

This, this TM is actually a military exoskeleton device!

The next second, there were gasps of cold air in his ears.

His subordinate opened another wooden box.

There is also a military exoskeleton device inside, and it looks like a newer model!

Taking advantage of the inspector's attention, Jiang Baimian turned his head and glanced at Shang Jianyao.

Shang Jianyao took out his left hand and nodded with a smile.

Phew, Jiang Baimian breathed a sigh of relief.

After a few seconds, Liu Chengkun finally regained consciousness, pointed at the two military exoskeleton devices and said:

"You guys, where did you get this from?"

Companies don't have many of these high-precision mechanical and electronic products and military weapons, and they are always stretched in terms of distribution. However, Jiang Baimian and his group of four actually own two!

"One was exchanged for supplies by doing hunter missions, and the other was captured." Jiang Baimian explained simply.

Liu Chengkun and the security department employees around him were like listening to a book from heaven, with the words "I don't believe it" echoing in their minds.

They are all personnel who have been in the field, and some of them even have the identity of relic hunters, but they have never found that they can switch to military exoskeleton devices for hunting missions!

As for the seizure, they can still understand it. After all, Jiang Baimian and his team already have a military exoskeleton device and have corresponding capabilities.

Liu Chengkun was silent for a few seconds, then opened his mouth and said:

"You guys had a lot of experience going out this time."

He gave up the idea of ​​asking for details, because the person Jiang Baimian needed to report was not him, but Vice Minister Xi Yu.

"We just need to save all mankind." Shang Jianyao replied with a smile.

Liu Chengkun laughed dumbly and said to the subordinates around him:

"Okay, don't just look at it, check it one by one, and register it in categories."

With two military exoskeleton devices in front of them, the batch of portable computers that the "Old Adjustment Team" later moved out naturally could no longer amaze everyone. They passed the preliminary search and were put aside, waiting to be handed over. Review.

During this process, Jiang Baimian and others also took out their belongings one by one.

Liu Chengkun and the others returned the items that had been registered and reviewed by the "Old Adjustment Team" to them on the spot based on the Internet data.

One of the security department employees picked up an ordinary glass ball and casually asked Shang Jianyao:

"If this thing isn't everywhere, what's the point of bringing it back?"

Similar things are indeed rare in the underground building of "Pangu Creatures", but above the dust, such items that are inedible, unwearable, and unusable can only be played with by children, and almost no one deliberately collects them.

There are many similar glass balls in the ruins of the cities, and most of them are prettier than Shang Jianyao's.

Shang Jianyao replied sincerely:

"Memorial value."

"Haha, which girl gave it to you?" The security employee joked and put down the glass ball.

After the preliminary inspection, he signaled to Shang Jianyao that he could pass through the security checker.

After completing the process easily, Jiang Baimian drove the empty jeep to its original location and led the team members all the way back to his home office on the 647th floor.

After taking a shower, they put on clean clothes and walked to the elevator again.

According to the instructions in the previous telegram, they need to meet with the deputy minister Xi Yu, who is directly in charge of the "Old Adjustment Team" before dinner.

Seeing the elevator in sight, Jiang Baimian glanced at Long Yuehong thoughtfully:

“If you don’t understand something later, ask questions proactively.”

"Yes, team leader!" Long Yuehong just beat her chest to assure herself.

On their way back, they had already discussed the things to note when meeting their leaders, one of which was:

It’s better to ask the deputy minister more questions than to be asked by her!

For the "old investigation team" who has its own little secret and plans to hide the two incidents of rescuing Gnawa and beheading Dimarco, reducing the number of questions about Deputy Minister Xi Yu can effectively reduce the risk of exposure.

"Can I ask?" Shang Jianyao actively wanted to participate.

"Just... forget it." Jiang Baimian frowned and relaxed.

She was afraid of exposing the fact that Shang Jianyao's "condition" was more serious than the doctor reported.

At the same time, she was also afraid that Vice Minister Xiyu would lose his image due to Shang Jianyao's anger. In that case, he might have small shoes to wear in the future.

Not long after, the "old transfer team" arrived on the 646th floor and knocked on the door of Vice Minister Xi Yu's office. Then, they followed the instructions and sat side by side on the couch.

Xiyu, who was neatly dressed, with long chestnut hair and a gentle smile, walked to the single sofa while holding a sky-blue ceramic tea cup, sat down and said with a smile:

"I heard that you brought back two military exoskeleton devices? They are very impressive."

Jiang Baimian did not answer the question immediately, but said with an expectant smile:

"Minister, you said before that if we could get our own military exoskeletons, you could make the decision and keep them in our group."

Xiyu touched his forehead and said with a smile:

"I didn't expect you to be able to get two of them at once. Hey, many people know about it now and want to get one for their team. The director of the operations cluster just called me to tell me about this. You guys, you did it. I’m very passive.”

"I can help you convince them." Shang Jianyao volunteered.

"How to persuade? Do you rely on muscles?" Xiyu could understand the anxious mood of the "Old Tune Team" and asked with a smile.

In this regard, he is professional... Jiang Baimian replied silently in his heart.

Without giving them a chance to speak, Xiyu nodded:

"Fortunately, I can still withstand this pressure. Once the review is complete, your names will be on the two military exoskeleton devices, and you will receive them directly every time you go on a mission.

"Have you also modified that Jeep? Let it be your exclusive vehicle from now on."

"Yes, thank you, minister!" Jiang Baimian did not hide his joy.

At the same time, she quietly pinched Shang Jianyao's forearm with her right hand to tell him not to say inappropriate words, such as "Thank you for not breaking us up."

With this conversation, the atmosphere became more harmonious. Xiyu looked around and said:

"You should give a verbal report on this mission first."