162: Chapter 162 Reward: Controlled Nuclear Fusion!

"Holy crap, did this company do every shady internet business there is?"

"Buying traffic, faking rankings, tax evasion, yin-yang contracts, data fraud, illegal dispatching... Is Tianqiong Interactive Entertainment even a platform company? Isn't this just an internet landfill?"

"A few days ago, they were still arm-wrestling with Guanghui Technology from afar, and today they've been stripped down to their underwear?"

"I was wondering why Penguin went crazy and started stomping on them like mad today. Turns out it wasn't out of kindness, but to pick a side."

"Hilarious. Capital knows which way the wind blows best. Even Penguin has started submitting their pledge of allegiance; Tianqiong Interactive Entertainment is truly finished this time."

Meanwhile.

Official actions were even faster than the public opinion.

The tax bureau, economic investigation unit, cyberspace administration, market regulators, and transport system all intervened almost simultaneously.

With investigation orders raining down, all core business lines under Tianqiong Interactive Entertainment—game publishing, traffic platforms, ride-hailing dispatch, and data services—were hit with the pause button almost at the same time.

Three days.

Just three days.

This massive internet platform, which was still jumping around on the stage just a few days ago and even attempting to drag others down with it, was forced into the ground by an invisible hand.

No struggle.

And it couldn't even make a splash.

It went completely silent.

On the fourth morning.

A brief announcement, yet one enough to shake the entire industry, appeared in the headlines of all major official media outlets.

[Chairman Fan Jianguo, the actual controller of Tianqiong Interactive Entertainment, has been arrested in accordance with the law at Mingzhu International Airport on multiple serious charges, including hiring someone to commit murder, illegally selling important data to foreign institutions, and endangering national security.]

[The case is currently under further investigation.]

Once the news broke.

The entire internet was in an uproar.

...

Guanghui Technology, President's Office.

Secretary Wang Qiuge clicked her high heels and practically jogged in.

"President Su!"

"They caught him!"

She placed the tablet on the desk, her breathing still a bit rapid. "Chairman Fan Jianguo was caught at the airport; he didn't even make it out of Mingzhu City!"

Su Qingxue was looking down at some documents; upon hearing this, her finger turning the page paused slightly.

She raised her head, her gaze landing on the announcement on the screen. Her expression didn't change much, but those eyes, which were already on the cold side, darkened a bit more.

"Hiring someone to kill, treason..."

She softly repeated those words, her tone devoid of any obvious emotion.

"This time, he has truly walked himself into a dead end."

On the sofa nearby.

Lu Li was lounging lazily, holding a freshly opened can of ice-cold cola in his hand.

Hearing this, he lifted his eyelids, glanced at the announcement, and the corners of his lips curled up slightly.

"Normal."

"People like him, when they reach a dead end, usually don't turn back; they only continue to charge in an even stupider direction."

Secretary Wang Qiuge subconsciously glanced at Lu Li, feeling an indescribable sense of unreality.

Although that incident on the bridge a few days ago was kept completely under wraps and the outside world didn't see even a ripple,

she was, after all, Su Qingxue's most trusted confidante, and she knew a little bit about the inside story.

Knowing was one thing.

But seeing the name "Chairman Fan Jianguo" now—from a big shot who was calling the shots across gaming, traffic, and ride-hailing tracks just days ago, to suddenly becoming a serious criminal who couldn't even leave the airport and was crushed right before the runway—

that contrast still made her heart feel heavy.

"That incident on the bridge..."

Secretary Wang Qiuge subconsciously lowered her voice. "Was it really his doing?"

"It was him."

Lu Li took a sip of cola, his tone calm and without a ripple.

"Even if he didn't personally hire the people, it was the group behind him who did it for him."

"There's nothing to guess about this."

Secretary Wang Qiuge felt a chill down her spine.

She originally only had a vague guess, but hearing it said so casually by Lu Li made it even more chilling than any intense wording could.

Su Qingxue, however, did not continue with this topic.

She simply handed the tablet back to Secretary Wang Qiuge, her tone as cold and efficient as ever:

"Notify the PR department that we will not be making any statements regarding this matter."

"Let them handle it themselves."

"Also, postpone today's business meeting, originally scheduled for 3 PM, by half an hour."

"Yes, President Su."

Secretary Wang Qiuge nodded, picked up the tablet, and was just about to leave when she suddenly remembered something. She turned around and added:

"Oh, by the way, the sign at Tianqiong Interactive Entertainment was taken down this morning."

"I heard the main logo at the company entrance was cut off directly with a cutting machine."

Lu Li had been a bit uninterested, but hearing this, he finally raised an eyebrow.

"Cut off?"

"Yes."

As Secretary Wang Qiuge said this, her tone carried an uncontrollable sense of satisfaction.

"The entire main office building has been sealed, the people have basically been taken away, and they didn't even leave the four characters for 'Tianqiong Interactive Entertainment'."

Lu Li gave an "Hmm," his expression still indifferent.

"That's good."

"It looks clean."

After Secretary Wang Qiuge left, the office fell quiet again.

Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows was a skyline filled with tall buildings, and the sunlight slanted in, cutting a strip of pale golden light along the edge of the sofa.

Su Qingxue sat behind her desk, looking at the lazy-looking Lu Li on the sofa, her eyes softening bit by bit.

"Satisfied?"

She asked.

Lu Li tossed the empty cola can aside, leaned back, and stretched out his long legs casually.

"Not bad."

"Those two bursts of gunfire on the bridge can be considered collecting a little interest first."

"As for the rest, let them pay it back slowly."

When he said this, his tone could even be considered calm.

But Su Qingxue knew very well.

The lighter this man spoke, the more it meant he had truly taken this matter to heart.

Just then—

In front of Lu Li, a familiar semi-transparent light screen suddenly popped up.

[Ding!]

[Side quest completed!]

[Tianqiong Interactive Entertainment's core entity and influence in the country have been completely erased.]

[Distributing rewards...]

[Congratulations to the host for obtaining:]

[1. Personal Anti-gravity flying vehicle blueprints.]

[2. Fully intelligent self-driving car finished product.]

[3. Complete blueprints for Nuclear Fusion technology.]

The moment the light screen appeared, Lu Li's originally lazy gaze suddenly focused.

Anti-gravity flying vehicle.

Intelligent car finished product.

These were already absurd enough.

But what truly made his breath hitch slightly was the last item.

Nuclear Fusion technology—complete blueprints.

Not a concept proof.

Not a partial path.

Not some key node.

It was the complete set.

In that instant, an entire technical chain flashed through Lu Li's mind instinctively.

Superconducting material confinement, plasma stability, reactor structural design, energy output, engineering implementation...

That was not just one technology.

That was a key that could truly open the door to a new era.

Even with the perspective from his past life, a reward of this level was enough to make his heart pound heavily.

"Cough—"

And precisely because of that sudden surge of mental excitement, he almost choked on the mouthful of cola he had just swallowed.

Su Qingxue was stunned by his cough, immediately stood up, walked over, and patted his back with a frown.

"You can even choke while drinking cola?"

"Have you been too tired lately?"

Lu Li waved his hand, caught his breath, but there was an uncontrollable brightness in his eyes.

"I'm fine."

"I just suddenly felt... that today is a lucky day."

Su Qingxue looked at him suspiciously.

"Tianqiong Interactive Entertainment has fallen, and you're that happy?"

"A little."

Lu Li suppressed that almost instinctive excitement, pulled her to sit beside him, and his tone quickly returned to that half-dead, lazy demeanor.

"Mostly because there's less trouble."

"That puts me in a good mood."

Su Qingxue: "..."

She always felt that his reaction just a moment ago was definitely not as simple as just "less trouble."

But she knew Lu Li too well.

If he didn't want to talk, asking would be a waste of time.

So she didn't pursue it further, just leaned against the sofa armrest and whispered:

"The Tianqiong Interactive Entertainment matter is considered completely closed."

"What's next? Is it time to truly put the matter in Beining City on the agenda?"