After finding these three items, Yan Luo didn't leave immediately but tapped around the safe deposit box.

Sure enough, the safe had a secret compartment.

In Yan Luo's view, the two lists and the metal plate were not worth the Abyssal Believers' exhaustive search—they must be after something else.

If the safe didn't have a secret compartment, he would just spend more time searching. If it did, the thing the Abyssal Believers truly wanted would be in his hands.

—It was a piece of Jade!

Yan Luo pulled out a piece of Jade from the secret compartment in the safe. It was different from the Jade he had seen before; it seemed there was something engraved inside.

He shone a flashlight through the Jade and discovered, to his surprise, that there was an Engraving inside!

Is this an imprint?

The principle of an imprint is to engrave on the surface of an object, then use Magic Power to activate the engraving, allowing the Engraver to use additional engravings.

However, using an imprint imposes an extra burden on the Engraver, so most of the time, Hunters only use imprints' capabilities for a fatal strike.

Under normal conditions, Hunters would only use their own engravings to fight.

The Jade in front of Yan Luo did not fit Blue Star's definition of an imprint, because imprints are 'engraved on the surface,' and this Jade's engraving was hidden 'within the object.'

Also, generally speaking, imprints are made of metal, because only [Mechanics] can create imprints.

After entering the [Iron Ride] phase, [Mechanics] can transform mechanical objects, normally engraving on the surface, which doesn't turn an object into an imprint—it's just a 'drawing,' not an 'engraving.'

Is this Jade an imprint or just a regular item with engravings?

Yan Luo had no Magic Crystals on hand for experiments, so he decided to take this thing back to Crimson No.2 and plan later.

He placed the Jade close to his person, then put the two lists and the metal plate into a Space Box. Yan Luo then took out a trigger bomb and placed it in the secret compartment.

If it explodes the pursuers, great; if not, no matter.

After doing this, Yan Luo turned around to dismantle the power amplifier, placed the optical camouflage generator in the car's back seat, and continued using the optical camouflage.

He found this place by going straight, but this time, Yan Luo planned to return to Crimson No.3 in an arc, taking a detour.

Yan Luo drove away undetected by the satellites.

About half an hour passed before an armored vehicle rushed over to search for Yan Luo's whereabouts.

Based on tracks, they found the safe deposit box Yan Luo had left unused at the original spot without burying it.

The safe door was open, leaving the team of Hunters at a loss, not knowing what to do.

"Take the safe box back," the captain sighed.

They couldn't seize the item their boss wanted from Yan Luo, nor could they find Yan Luo. They needed something to report, and at hand, the safe was all they could offer their boss.

Rushing here, then rushing back.

Unexpectedly, Yan Luo didn't return directly to Crimson No.3 but leisurely looped back.

Thus, he left no deep tracks.

They only thought Yan Luo returned along the same route—missing him was sheer chance.

By speeding up, maybe they could catch Yan Luo before he entered Crimson No.3 to block him outside.

Though Yan Luo was physically strong, he wasn't an Engraver; he lacked those mystical abilities.

Being strong, so what?

Yan Luo may be adept at dealing with Demons, given his head was full of Demon knowledge, but when facing Engravers, his knowledge and experience were lacking.

With this self-deluding optimism, the Hunters pursuing Yan Luo accelerated to return to Crimson No.3.

But they went back the same way as before without seeing any sign of Yan Luo. When entering the town through the checkpoint, they asked the guard if he had seen Yan Luo, only to be told.

—No!

Then where did Yan Luo go?

No one knew!

After returning to Crimson No.3, the tracker team captain contacted their boss to report everything.

[Did you bring the safe back?]

The trackers' employer concealed their image and voice, presenting a completely fake image to the captain.

The captain was used to this; they were there for the money and wouldn't care about anything else.

Because of this, their employer liked employing them.

The captain nodded obsequiously to the hazy figure, "Yes, we brought back the safe."

[Go feel around and see if there's a secret compartment.]

"Yes, I'll do that right away." The captain nodded, reached out to inspect the safe.

He tapped around the safe, and soon joy spread across his face as he reported to the employer, "Boss, there's a secret compartment! It appears untouched!"

The safe's door was ajar, and the code still hung on its door. If Yan Luo had touched the contents inside the secret compartment, according to his 'habit,' the compartment would surely be open.

[Great, quickly open it and check it out!]

Even through a voice changer, the captain could feel the employer's urgency—they obviously wanted the thing inside the secret compartment from Yan Luo.

'This time we're hitting it big!' the captain thought contentedly and opened the secret compartment.

—Boom!

The bomb exploded, flames instantly engulfed the captain's right hand, and the shockwave shattered the room's windows.

"Ah!!!"

Clutching his maimed right arm, the captain screamed miserably, his face twisted in pain, tears streaming.

The explosion and the screams alerted many.

Not only his team but even Crimson No.3's guards arrived.

At the explosion's instant, the employer cut the call, unwilling to expose their conversation with the captain.

Then they thought of the bomb, an uncontainable fury rising.

That bomb couldn't have been from Wen Chongwu; it could only be Yan Luo's doing.

Yan Luo unlocked the secret compartment, took the item, and then placed a bomb inside.

This guy knew of their existence and had inherited Wen Chongwu's legacy, likely planning to succeed Wen Chongwu and trouble them next!

If so—

Yan Luo must die!

......

Yan Luo leisurely returned to Crimson No.3, just entering the town when he saw news of someone being injured in an explosion.

From the news description, Yan Luo deduced the blast's scale matched the bomb he placed in the safe compartment, confirming that the injured person was a minion of the Abyssal Believers.

A minion is a minion, but whether that person was an Abyssal Believer is debatable.

Not worried at all, Yan Luo replenished some food and ammunition at Crimson No.3 before heading to the Crimson Abyss.

Passing through the checkpoint, Yan Luo noted a soldier gave him a hard glare, to which he responded without any reaction.

But to that soldier, Yan Luo's indifference was the most infuriating.

The soldier picked up his gun, pointed it at Yan Luo's chest, angrily shouting, "Open your box and let me see what's inside!"

The surrounding sounds of laughter ceased instantly as all eyes turned to the soldier.

Yan Luo tilted his head slightly, rapidly drew the short-barreled shotgun from his waist, aiming it at the soldier, "You can repeat what you just said."

Facing the barrel, the soldier's face flushed red then pale.

The redness was from anger and shame, the paleness from fear and regret.

He could already imagine how his comrades would view him if he backed down now.

Luckily, the delay was already accomplished, with the money in hand, others looking down on him wouldn't matter...

"Alright, alright."

Suddenly, a Hunter appeared, lowering both of their guns, saying, "No need for this kind of trouble, Yan Luo, you can go right in. We know you wouldn't carry contraband; I'll handle this."

Yan Luo gazed at the Hunter for a moment, holstered his shotgun, and drove into the Crimson Abyss.

Failing to extort, these military men around Crimson No.3 truly were absurd.

Inexplicably, Yan Luo recalled what Qiu Zhixue once told him.

'The bravest died in the lost decade,' and now the era had rotted to this degree, perhaps because most who survived were cowardly and self-preserving.

With such people in charge, how could Blue Star Society not move in a negative direction?

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