BXBX NOVEL Chapter 319: Eruption
"Did some sort of problem pop up?!
"Dammit! What the heck is the Intelligence Division doing!"
The first half was informing others, while the latter part was more of a panicked rave.
However, everyone was well aware that the Intelligence Division was currently swamped due to the recent incident with Joseph and might not have too many resources to handle bookstore matters at present.
Another reason could be that things were much too stable for the bookstore owner. There hadn\'t been any folks running to get themselves killed in recent times, and the bookstore owner hadn\'t done anything that would cause an upheaval for the past period.
Everything had been peaceful.
There had only been three things of note during this time.
Ji Zhixiu had visited once more with gifts, but it was known that she was a regular, so it wasn\'t anything out of the ordinary. She had made a few more visits but only left with books, so it seemed that it was just a routine purchase or loan.
The second and third matter occurred at the same time.
The owner of the second-hand bookstore opposite the street had handed Boss Lin that mysterious book which could also be considered something that wasn\'t out of the ordinary.
At the same time, the bookstore owner\'s cat (its original form was still unclear, but according to the Sun\'s Faith, it was likely to be the Moon Child left behind by the Church of the Dome) and the assistant Mu\'en had gone out at around the same time.
According to the duty personnel at that time, they had just gone to catch pigeons... It wasn\'t certain whether this was done for the bookstore owner\'s entertainment.
This uneventful routined, coupled with the growing conflict between Secret Rite Tower and the Corpse Devouring Sect, led to everyone’s attention being placed on Joseph and Wilde.
…Even the Logistic Division’s duty personnel here had gotten sloppy.
As a result, nobody had expected the bookstore owner would make such a huge move out of the blue—going out!
This, to the whole of Norzin, was as alarming as the entire Central District being fired on by the Aether Annihilation Cannon!
Thomas slammed the main door of the house open, scraping his fingers in the process as he stumbled out, almost in a tumble.
A strict voice on the other end of the communications device asked with urgency, “Thomas, report the current position of the bookstore owner at once as well as the direction he’s headed in! You will lose your knighthood if you tell me you can’t catch up!”
Thomas bellowed into the communications device as quickly as he could, “I’m currently in pursuit! From what I just observed, he has already turned into alley 16, probably headed for 24th Avenue! It’s certain that this isn’t the direction he usually heads in!”
As Logistic Division personnel stationed to keep an eye on the bookstore, nothing but only two things matters—a fast response and familiarity with the area! Thomas knew the layout of this street like the back of his hand, and from one look, he could determine where the bookstore owner was headed next. And that was where he was frantically running to.
Thomas quickly concluded there was only a supermarket and a grocery store nearby, but neither was on this route. The new commercial center by Rolle Resource Development was next to this alley, but it hadn’t officially opened yet. And further ahead was a residential district where a temporary Secret Rite Tower post with three Abnormal-ranks and one Pandemonium-rank was stationed…
Did the bookstore owner go out in person just because of these small fries?
Impossible!
Thomas immediately denied this notion. Further, think... If a straight line is drawn through this small alley, where does it pass by?
His mind went into overdrive while his field of vision changed rapidly. Walls and roofs of various colors flashed by, yet his eyes never left the bookstore owner nor his shadow.
Thomas could have sworn he had never run so fast before in all his thirty-two years of life! Not even when he was less than a meter away from a dangerous dream beast on a certain battlefield!
There are too many places that 24th Avenue can lead to. There\'s no way of determining where he\'s going! We are totally helpless if we don\'t know his objective for leaving the store!
Thomas howled inwardly as he squatted on a rooftop watching Lin Jie\'s back intently.
The mysterious bookstore owner only went straight ahead, neither stopping nor attempting to make a turn.
Ahead was the end of the alley which was a dead end.
Secret Rite Tower, Logistics Division.
The normally calm and peaceful department was currently a chaotic mess.
"Report to the Council of Elders, inform the outer departments, especially the Intelligence Division. Contact the Truth Union! Hurry hurry!
“Immediately enter the battle-ready state! Evaluators, appraisals, where are they?!
“Who\'s going to tell me what\'s the current situation?!
“What exactly happened during these few days?!”
Caroline, who had been promoted to Logistics Division Chief, slammed her hand on the table and berated her subordinates.
Someone immediately stood forth to give a report. "All parties have been informed. Orders from the top are to first observe and standby to evacuate. The Combat Division has already been mobilized.The Truth Union has activated Aether Surveillance, issued the highest warning, and prepared the Steel Boundary. The Intelligence Division..."
He paused for a moment before continuing on with a slight quiver in his voice, "There\'s an incident with the Intelligence and there\'s no information yet..."
Caroline frowned. "What incident? What could be more important than this? What about Joseph? Isn\'t he the one in charge of reports on Boss Lin all the while?"
The reporting staff gulped and his face turned pale. "It\'s Sir Joseph... Melissa was tricked into participating in the mission to siege the Corpse Devouring Sect\'s hideout. Intelligence indicates that Wilde\'s close aide, \'Night Falcon,\' is currently engaging with Ma\'am Vivian.
"That is why Sir Joseph rushed out from the Tower and headed for the battlefield!"
Caroline\'s eyes widened as her mouth hung open but no words came out.
Joseph had marched straight into the battle with the Corpse Devouring Sect!
This was skipping the whole phase of testing the waters and directly going to war!
How could things happen at this juncture... Once Joseph left, Secret Rite Tower had lost one of its most powerful forces. And Boss Lin just had to head out of the bookstore at this time.
At this moment, another person rushed over hurriedly. "Latest information and report from the Intelligence Division!"
Caroline calmed herself down and made a gesture. "Report."
"A minute ago, Wilde appeared outside the 69th Avenue boundary. Accompanying him are two of his aides, \'Soaring Wyvern\' and \'Bookworm,\' and a large army of Corpse Devouring Sect members brought by the Sky Wolf.
"Two-thirds of our stations suffered simultaneous attacks by the Corpse Devouring Sect and are currently engaging in combat. At present, seven stations have fallen.
"Battle has thoroughly erupted!
"The Combat Division has dispatched reinforcements and the Sun\'s Faith has responded by sending out Apostles. However, the Truth Union denied our request for aid, saying that they will first need to ensure that the bookstore owner is safe."
The entire Logistics Division fell silent at that moment.
"What else?" Caroline asked vaguely.
The man continued, "According to the available information, the bookstore owner\'s movement might likely have something to do with the banquet being held by Rolle Resource Development."