102: Chapter 102 Probing and Defense at 10,000 Meters Above

The military airport runway was smooth, stretching into the distance.

A dark gray transport plane sat at the end of the runway, its engine blades spinning and driving the airflow.

Jiang Feng walked up the boarding ramp.

Old Chen followed a step behind Jiang Feng, carrying a canvas bag.

The interior of the cabin was bathed in a bluish light, with various reinforced pipelines arranged along the ceiling.

Jiang Feng walked into the passenger area in the front section.

Lu Cheng was sitting in the third row on the left side of the aisle.

She was wearing a white lab coat, with a Huake Institute ID badge pinned to her collar.

Dr. Lu.

She held a tablet computer in her hand, her fingertips sliding across the screen.

Jiang Feng sat down across the aisle.

Lu Cheng did not look up.

"Consultant Jiang, you are three minutes late."

Lu Cheng's voice came through clearly amidst the low-frequency vibration of the engines.

Jiang Feng leaned his head against the back of the chair, looking at the back of the seat in front of him.

"There's construction on the airport road; Old Chen already drove at the speed limit."

Lu Cheng turned off her tablet and moved her gaze from the screen to Jiang Feng.

"Have you read the report from the Deep Well Base?"

Lu Cheng asked.

Jiang Feng stretched, his bones making a faint cracking sound.

"Qian Li was shouting very loudly on the phone, so I heard the main points."

"A group of people wanted to perform a CT scan on an antique, but ended up turning themselves into mental patients."

Lu Cheng placed the tablet on her lap.

"That was high-frequency sonic detection, intended to establish a three-dimensional molecular model of the bamboo slip's interior."

"Currently, twelve researchers on level B3 of the base are in a state of losing control."

"They exhibit extremely strong self-harming tendencies, accompanied by cognitive impairment."

Jiang Feng turned his head and looked at Lu Cheng.

"I'm going there to solve a problem, not to listen to an academic report."

"Dr. Lu, are you on this plane just to study those mental patients?"

"I'll do what I can; after all, I am a member of the Huake Institute."

"But I am more interested in you, Consultant Jiang."

Jiang Feng took a mint from his pocket, peeled off the wrapper, and popped it into his mouth.

"Many people are interested in me, but most of them end up regretting it."

Lu Cheng adjusted her posture, leaning her body slightly forward.

"Consultant Jiang, according to current monitoring data, the anomalies at the Deep Well Base exhibit a regular fluctuation."

"In extreme physical environments, could human brainwaves produce a substantial energy field due to some unknown resonance?"

"Or rather, is this so-called 'Qi' you speak of merely a variant form of electromagnetic waves?"

Jiang Feng crunched the candy, making a cracking sound.

The mark of "Belongs to Me" in his mind produced a faint, chilly sensation due to Lu Cheng's proximity.

Jiang Feng felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up.

This coldness seemed to seep out from his very bone marrow.

He looked forward.

Sitting in the front row were two field-grade military officers in camouflage uniforms.

Their bodies were tense, hands pressed on their knees, looking straight ahead.

The atmosphere in the cabin became heavy.

Old Chen took half a step forward.

His body blocked most of Lu Cheng's view of Jiang Feng.

Old Chen looked down at Lu Cheng without moving, but his breathing frequency became slow and heavy.

Lu Cheng's line of sight was cut off by Old Chen.

She did not show any displeasure, merely letting her gaze fall on the back of Old Chen's hand.

"This gentleman's stress response is very professional."

Lu Cheng remarked.

Jiang Feng raised his hand and patted Old Chen's arm.

Old Chen retreated to his original position.

Jiang Feng waved to a passing flight attendant.

"Give me a cup of warm water, thank you."

The flight attendant handed over a paper cup.

Jiang Feng held the paper cup, feeling the temperature of the water.

He took a sip of water to moisten his throat.

"Dr. Lu, your insights are too advanced; I don't understand them."

"My insight is that drinking more hot water can solve ninety percent of troubles."

"For the remaining ten percent, it'll cost extra."

Lu Cheng was silent for three seconds.

She reopened her tablet and recorded quickly on the screen.

"Pragmatism, money-driven, refuses to communicate core logic."

Lu Cheng whispered to herself.

Jiang Feng placed the remaining half-cup of water on the cup holder.

His eyes turned cold.

"Dr. Lu."

Lu Cheng stopped her actions.

"I don't care what mission you're on this plane for."

"And I don't care what those departments behind you want to observe from me."

"Once we reach the Northwest, follow your rules."

"Don't cause trouble for me."

Jiang Feng spoke very slowly.

Lu Cheng's fingertip hovered over the screen.

She looked up, staring directly at Jiang Feng.

"Consultant Jiang, I am protecting national property, including you."

Jiang Feng sneered.

"Protecting me?"

"Then you'd better pray your scientific theories work down there."

"Lest you forget even your own name when the time comes."

Jiang Feng closed his eyes.

He could feel that as the plane flew toward the Northwest, the mark in his mind throbbed faster and faster.

It was like a heart, sensing its own kind in the distance.

Lu Cheng looked down at the screen.

The screen displayed various vital signs monitoring data for Jiang Feng.

It was being transmitted in real-time through sensors on the seat.

"Heart rate stable, breathing frequency normal."

"Showed no emotional fluctuations when subjected to verbal provocation and stress testing."

Lu Cheng wrote a line on the tablet:

Suspected of possessing extremely strong cognitive shielding abilities.

Old Chen sat behind Jiang Feng, his gaze always fixed on the back of Lu Cheng's head.

He pulled a folding knife from his chest pocket, his fingers repeatedly rubbing the patterns on the handle.

The two officers in the front row exchanged a look.

One of them took out a stack of confidentiality agreements and stood up to walk toward Jiang Feng.

"Consultant Jiang, Dr. Lu, this is the supplemental agreement for this operation; please sign it."

Jiang Feng took the pen and scribbled his name in the signature column.

He handed the agreement back to the officer.

"How much longer until we arrive?"

"Reporting to Consultant Jiang, estimated time is one hour and forty minutes."

Jiang Feng leaned back against the seat again.

Outside the cabin, the clouds were torn apart by the wings.

Sunlight streamed through the porthole, shining on Jiang Feng's face.

His face appeared somewhat pale in the light and shadow.

Lu Cheng turned her head, looking at the sea of clouds receding rapidly outside the window.

Her fingers tapped lightly on the edge of the tablet computer.

The frequency was very fast.

That was her habit when thinking.

"Consultant Jiang, do you believe in fate?"

Lu Cheng suddenly spoke.

Jiang Feng did not open his eyes.

"I don't believe in fate; I only worry about whether my life is long enough."

"Dr. Lu, if you have time to care about fate, you might as well care about your tablet; the battery is about to hit the red."

Lu Cheng glanced down.

Battery display: 99%.

She withdrew her gaze.

The transport plane flew smoothly at ten thousand meters.

The cold air in the cabin blew past.

Jiang Feng felt that chilly sensation spreading.

It went from the back of his neck downward, creeping along his spine.

He knew that the thing in the Deep Well Base had already found him.

This feeling of being watched was even clearer than the mark of the Golden Mask.

Jiang Feng clenched his fist.

Old Chen seemed to sense something, alertly scanning the empty cabin.

Lu Cheng was still recording.

The blue light from the tablet was reflected in her pupils.

She wrote down the final sentence:

Target exhibits obvious somatization anxiety, source unknown.

The transport plane jolted suddenly.

That was a sign of entering the Northwest airflow zone.

Jiang Feng opened his eyes and looked out the window.

Below was a desolate, earthy yellow.

deep well.

It was right beneath that wasteland.

Jiang Feng's fingers tapped on the armrest of the seat.

"Qian Li, you'd better have enough money ready."

He muttered in his heart.

"This job is a killer."

The plane began to descend.

The sky outside the porthole gradually darkened.

On the distant horizon, a solitary building appeared.

That was the ground entrance to the Deep Well Base.

Several military jeeps were already waiting there.

Jiang Feng stood up and patted the wrinkles on his clothes.

"Old Chen, get the bag."

"We're going down the well."

Old Chen picked up the canvas bag and followed behind Jiang Feng.

Lu Cheng closed her tablet and stood up.

Her white lab coat swayed in the airflow.

"Consultant Jiang, I hope we have a pleasant cooperation."

Jiang Feng walked toward the cabin door without looking back.

"As long as I'm fine, the cooperation will be pleasant."

The cabin door opened.

A cold wind carrying dust poured in.

Jiang Feng squinted his eyes.

He saw it.

Above the base entrance, a mass of black aura was coiled.

That was death energy invisible to ordinary people.

The deep well had seemingly turned into a tomb.

The mark in Jiang Feng's mind gave an excited shudder.

Belongs to Me.

It was hungering to devour.

Jiang Feng closed his eyes.

"Sigh, I hope I won't have to use the Fated Prophecy."