I Start with a Mysterious Island

Other than deliberately showing her charm to a certain blockhead, Su Yue had never intentionally flaunted it to anyone else.

She never deliberately flaunted her charm to strangers. But even so, a single casual glance in her direction was enough for people to find themselves involuntarily drawn to her stunning looks and captivating aura.

And sure enough, less than a minute after Lin Li left her side, numerous gazes had already fallen upon her.

Many of the people watching began to wonder how they might approach the beautiful girl and get her contact information.

"Hello, beautiful."

Su Yue, who was looking down at her phone watching short videos, suddenly heard someone talking to her. She looked up.

"Can I help you?" Su Yue asked, looking at the young man in his early twenties standing before her. He seemed to be about Lin Li’s age.

"Are you here alone?" the young man asked.

"No, I’m with a friend. He just went to buy some popcorn."

"Er..." Normally, the young man was a silver-tongued charmer in front of other girls. He could talk endlessly, effortlessly finding all sorts of topics to chat with them about.

But now, standing before this beautiful girl with her extraordinary aura, he found himself at a complete loss for words.

"Could I... get your contact info? Maybe we could be friends?" After stammering for a moment, the nervous young man asked Su Yue, who remained perfectly composed.

"Sorry, I’m not interested in guys younger than me," Su Yue replied calmly. An aura of cool sophistication suddenly radiated from her, putting immense pressure on the young man who had tried to hit on her.

"Oh... I... sorry to bother you..." The rejected young man’s smile froze on his face. He mumbled an awkward apology to Su Yue, then slinked away in embarrassment.

’Kids these days!’ Su Yue thought, watching the young man rejoin his friends, who started muttering something to him.

"What about ’kids these days’?" Lin Li asked quizzically, having returned with two buckets of popcorn and now standing behind Su Yue.

"Oh, nothing. You’re back already?" Hearing the familiar voice behind her, Su Yue’s sophisticated aura instantly dissipated, replaced by the gentle and sweet demeanor of the girl next door.

"How long does it take to stand in line for popcorn? Here, take this. Let’s go line up at the entrance, it’s almost time to go in," Lin Li said, pushing one of the buckets into her arms.

Not far away, a friend of the young man who had tried to hit on Su Yue pointed at the departing backs of Lin Li and Su Yue.

"Hey, look! That beautiful girl said she wasn’t interested in younger guys, so what’s with the one laughing and joking with her? That guy is clearly about the same age as you!

Looks like she was just making up an excuse to turn you down."

The young man who had hit on Su Yue watched Lin Li laughing with her and said sourly, "Maybe that guy’s her little brother!"

"Yeah, right. Stop kidding yourself," his friend laughed.

...

The Canglan Society, a notorious dark organization in today’s world.

No one knew where the Canglan Society’s headquarters was located, only that its influence spread to every corner of the known world.

From bustling, crowded cities to desolate wilderness areas roamed by Mutant Beasts, their secret strongholds could be found anywhere.

Inside one of the Canglan Society’s secret strongholds.

Dozens of burly men in black tank tops were working methodically.

"GRIND, GRIND, GRIND..."

Several expensive machines emitted a constant grinding noise. The sound was deafeningly loud in the vast, open space, grating on the ears.

While the grating noise would make anyone want to cover their ears, the men working here were already used to it.

"Let’s pick up the pace, everyone! Once we finish the work at hand, the higher-ups will give us a big bonus and seven days of vacation."

The Canglan Society’s local leader in charge of this stronghold announced to his busy underlings.

"TAP, TAP, TAP..."

The sound of hurried footsteps echoed from a distant corridor. A moment later, a man with a tattoo on his neck approached the Canglan Society leader and reported in a low voice.

"Mr. Zhao, I’ve heard some bad news. Our brothers in Rongcheng were captured by Investigators from the Superpower Administration Bureau..."

"Hmm?" Zhao Manduo frowned upon hearing his subordinate’s report.

"Who got captured?"

"Zhao San and Tie."

"What? You’re saying Tie Qiu Heng was captured too?!!! How is that possible?"

"Yes. According to the latest intel, Tie was indeed captured by the local Investigators."

Zhao Manduo and Tie Qiu Heng were good friends. Hearing that Tie Qiu Heng had been captured by the Superpower Administration Bureau’s Investigators, his face immediately filled with anxiety.

He then pulled a phone from his pocket and dialed a special number.

"Hello," a deep, middle-aged man’s voice answered once the call connected.

"Wang, it’s me, Zhao Manduo."

"Ah, Xiaozhao! What’s up?"

"I heard Tie Qiu Heng was captured by Investigators from the Superpower Administration Bureau while on a mission in Rongcheng, along with Zhao San. Is it true?"

"..." Wang Jinfu fell silent for a moment before replying, "It’s true... Look, Xiaozhao, I know you and Tie Qiu Heng are close, but you don’t need to worry too much about this.

I’ve already reported it to the higher-ups... Steward Liu knows about it, and I’m sure clear instructions will be coming down soon."

"Clear instructions? Wang, are you saying Steward Liu is planning to send people to Rongcheng for a rescue?" Zhao Manduo asked.

"Er..." Wang Jinfu hesitated, then lowered his voice. "It seems that’s what Steward Liu has in mind. The damned Rongcheng Superpower Administration Bureau has taken down several of our strongholds recently.

Steward Liu is furious about it. He discussed it with the other Stewards and they’ve decided to teach the Rongcheng Superpower Administration Bureau a lesson.

And rescuing our people from their cells would be a huge slap in their face."

Hearing this, Zhao Manduo’s anxiety eased slightly.

"Xiaozhao, Steward Liu’s plan to send a rescue team to Rongcheng is still confidential. You can’t tell anyone else about this! If you do, I’ll be held responsible..." Wang Jinfu warned.

"Don’t worry, Wang, I won’t breathe a word to anyone... Thanks for telling me. When I’m back for my debriefing, I’ll treat you to a meal..." Zhao Manduo said gratefully.

After ending the call, Zhao Manduo slipped the phone back into his pocket. His subordinate, who had been standing close enough to overhear the conversation, immediately tried to reassure him.

"Mr. Zhao, since Steward Liu has already decided to send people to Rongcheng to rescue Tie, it’s almost certain to succeed. You don’t have to worry so much about his safety."

"Even though Steward Liu has decided to send people to rescue Tie Qiu Heng, and I believe we have a high probability of breaking him out of his cell with the Canglan Society’s strength...

...breaking him out of his cell doesn’t mean he can escape Rongcheng safely.

After all, the Superpower Administration Bureau’s power is unfathomable. In the past few decades, the number of people who have been captured by them and still managed to escape is so small you could count them on one hand," Zhao Manduo said, his expression full of worry.

...