"Next time, I won't let you off, Commander." Selene said softly with a smile. She moved a little closer to Kilenc, then stood on tiptoes. The young woman's pink lips gently touched his cheek. She pulled back, a blush gracing her youthful face.
Selene didn't say anything further. She quickly left the cooking area, leaving Kilenc standing alone. The warmth of her touch still lingered. The young man gently touched his own cheek before returning to grilling meat skewers.
Kilenc wasn't originally the cook. The person actually assigned the task suddenly fell ill due to the dimensional energy toxicity in the air, and as Kilenc happened to be nearby, he offered to help out. That's how the whole situation came to be.
As for the grain porridge, Kilenc had to admit he made it to please Selene and the other girls. On this dimensional rift exploration, they had performed exceptionally well despite facing difficult dangers. Catastrophe-level dimensional monsters were not ordinary creatures, truly living up to their designation. If this were the outside world, not this alternate dimension, an entire city might have already been destroyed.
And indeed, with a human body alone, it was very difficult to confront a Catastrophe-level monster. Even S-levels were no exception. The human body had its limits. No matter how much a human body could contain dimensional energy, ultimately, their bodies were still confined by the limitation called "human."
Just a few casual attacks from a Catastrophe-level dimensional creature could easily send an S-level human six feet under. Normally, in the outside world, whenever the Federation or any organization with military forces encountered such threats, they would use specially designed battle suits focused on dealing with Catastrophe-level monsters.
These battle suits couldn't be easily deployed. Not only did one need a certain level of potential to wear them, but they also needed a strong enough mind not to be tempted by dimensional gods. And most importantly, these battle suits were directly connected to the Cell Protocol network, researched and built by the PRIORITY organization.
What did that mean? It meant that the Federation or other organizations needed to submit requests to PRIORITY to unlock the battle suits' maximum capabilities. In this world, no one else could create anything equivalent to PRIORITY's Cell Protocol network anymore.
Not even the Federation. To this day, they still had to cooperate with PRIORITY. Half of the decision-making power within the Federation was practically in PRIORITY's hands. Fortunately, the leaders or high-ranking officials within the organization didn't seek excessive personal gain from using their power. Otherwise, the Federation would suffer heavy losses.
Because once PRIORITY successfully created the Cell Protocol, they already had military power superior to the Federation's army. How could the Federation dare to defy PRIORITY? If the Cell Protocol were misused, the world could face collapse. It was an extremely powerful weapon of mass destruction.
Initially, the Federation thought the Cell Protocol was no better than atomic bombs. But the truth slapped them hard in the face when it was successfully created. Not only could the Cell Protocol achieve the same results as dozens of atomic bombs at a lower cost, but it could also be integrated into daily life with various technologies.
The Cell Protocol Heaven's Network was the most advanced and dominant technology ever created by humans from ancient times to the present. Less than a year after it appeared in the world, the Federation couldn't sit idly by. They immediately had to negotiate and sign a contract with PRIORITY for the Federation's stability.
Fortunately, the Federation had a good relationship with the initiator of the Cell Protocol project since its inception. Every past President of the Federation knew him well. He was not only a genius scientist who could advance humanity but also one of the co-founders of the Human Federation and the creator of the foundations for everything that exists today.
Therefore, the negotiations proceeded smoothly without any problems. The Federation merely wanted a promise to reassure various parties. They didn't dare to demand too much. They knew who the other party was, how much they could push. If they displeased that man, the end of their lives, or perhaps the entire Federation, might not be a good one.
Returning to Kilenc, after preparing the ingredients, the young man was ready for the next batch of cooking. He gazed at them, contemplating the various cooking competition steps in his head. With the ingredients available, he could make many things.
"…" Before he could start cooking, Kilenc suddenly sensed something in the distance. His eyes narrowed slightly, his gaze showing coldness. A terrifying aura unintentionally escaped his body for a moment, then returned to normal.
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Sparks fell onto the hard stone ground. While the rift defense unit was merrily socializing, the dimensional rift suddenly closed rapidly, preventing outsiders from entering this alternate dimension and preventing those inside from leaving.
"This is not good…" Ling Lian quickly understood the situation. Her footsteps quickened to meet the Director. It was true that the objective of exploring this dimensional rift was to close it, but this wasn't the correct way to close it. Something was seriously wrong.
This dimensional rift was quite peculiar, so it couldn't be closed from the outside. It required an internal closure only. And by its very nature, there was no way it could close immediately without time to withdraw the forces. This meant… someone had interfered.
But who could it be? Was it a dimensional creature? Or perhaps an external enemy had planned this? Countless questions appeared in Ling Lian's head. Soon, the young woman arrived at the area where her Director was. He still looked as unconcerned as ever, as if he had anticipated this.
"Tell everyone not to panic. There's no immediate danger, and we have enough supplies here for a long time." Kilenc immediately gave the young woman orders upon seeing her. The current situation was not unpredictable. In fact, it had been obvious from the start. He didn't know who designed the plan, but that person wasn't very careful. Kilenc could see some poorly hidden flaws.
Firstly, the enormous amount of dimensional energy, far exceeding Catastrophe-level. It seemed too deliberate, as if intentionally signaling the Federation or any organization to send in significant forces to explore the rift, or perhaps to imply something else.
At first, Kilenc thought Tanha was behind it, but after meeting her, Kilenc was 100% sure. It definitely wasn't her. And now, he could somewhat guess the answer to who was behind the entire plan.
There was also a second flaw. This dimensional rift seemed too peaceful, with no abnormal environment. Allia, or even Selene, might not know, but Kilenc, who had studied and understood all types of dimensional rifts, could immediately sense the abnormality.
By the nature of dimensional rifts inhabited by Catastrophe-level dimensional creatures, they would be filled with countless ferocious dimensional monsters and a constantly fluctuating environment that made survival difficult. This was vastly different from the current situation here.
There were two possibilities: one, this land already had a ruler. Two, this land was a collapsing dimension. The second possibility could be ruled out. The dimensional energy fluctuations here were very low, not meeting the criteria for a collapsing dimension.
With the second possibility ruled out, the remaining answer was the first possibility: a Land Ruler—a being that stood at the apex of the dimensional gap, capable of controlling things within its own domain just like the dimensional gods, but not as strong.
In summary, Land Rulers were weaker versions of dimensional gods. They lacked the essence of divine power and had to serve dimensional gods to exist. Collapse-level dimensional creatures alone could not become Land Rulers on their own. Like humans, dimensional monsters also had limits.
The highest limit for dimensional creatures was the Collapse-level. They could not become stronger or more powerful than that, thus needing external power to develop and exist. Or, to be more precise, becoming servants of even higher beings.
What did all this reveal? It pointed more clearly to the mastermind, narrowing down the search significantly. There was no doubt that the mastermind was related to the dimensional gods. It was a trap designed to lure significant forces into it and exploit humanity's weakest moment to carry out some plan.
"Enough supplies?" After hearing the Director's words, Ling Lian felt a little surprised, a mix of excitement and unexpectedness. "So Project DNF has succeeded? Why haven't I received a report about this yet? Or is there a reason it needs to be kept secret?"
"The research team hasn't been able to solve certain issues, but I've fixed them." Kilenc shook his head slightly. Project DNF was no problem for him, who was proficient and knowledgeable in various dimensional sciences. Not only DNF, the truth was Kilenc could create as many miracles like the Cell Protocol as he desired.
There were no problems for Kilenc, no hitches whatsoever. He could solve every problem that current humans couldn't. However, Kilenc chose not to, because it didn't benefit him, nor was it beneficial for humanity in the long run.
What Kilenc wanted to see wasn't flowers growing in a greenhouse, but flowers that could bloom in the darkest of nights. Flowers that would shine brightly every time they were about to wilt. Flowers that would rise again and bloom more beautifully than ever.
"I understand." Ling Lian nodded in response. Although she was quite curious how the Director managed to fix it, the young woman didn't ask. If the Director wanted her to know, he would initiate it himself. What he didn't want to say, the Director would never say.
"I have matters to attend to. I might be gone for a while. If anyone asks about me, tell them I'm improving the technology to open the rift." Without waiting for a response or reaction from the other party, after giving his orders, Kilenc's body vanished without a trace.
"Understood." Even though the Director had left, Ling Lian still nodded in acknowledgment of his command. She understood her duties well. What were her duties? What were the Director's duties? Ling Lian wouldn't interfere in matters that weren't her concern.
The young woman executed Kilenc's orders excellently. She went to inform everyone in the camp of the Director's words. However, Ling Lian was surprised. None of the entire A-unit Dimensional Rift Defense Force seemed panicked or relieved. No, there was one person, a pink-haired young woman. She gently rubbed her chest, showing a relaxed expression.
"You all don't seem to be panicking at all? This kind of rift situation isn't normal, you know?" Ling Lian asked without expecting an answer, but the answer she received far exceeded her expectations.
"Assistant Director, you are truly attentive. I deeply appreciate it, and others probably feel the same way… I'd like to speak on behalf of everyone in the force to answer your question. It's natural for you not to be familiar with the nature of our force, due to the unique characteristics of each unit." A middle-aged man raised his hand, then stepped forward in front of Ling Lian. No one objected to his words, letting the middle-aged man represent everyone in the force.
"I permit it," Ling Lian said in a calm, inscrutable voice.
Selene looked at the middle-aged man with interest, wondering what he would say. James cleared his throat slightly before beginning. "Most of us who have been here before have worked with Doctor… Ah, no, now she's the Chief of Team A… My apologies, Assistant, I'm not very good at organizing my words. In fact, none of us are good at that, ha ha ha."
"I have something I want to say first, but I'll answer your question for now, ha ha ha. The answer to that question is very simple, Assistant… Compared to other teams' forces, our team's force always receives risky missions. We can die at any moment, so we're already prepared for death. But of course, it must not be a futile death…"
"…All of us value our own lives. It's something the team leader always emphasizes. And for that reason, no matter how dangerous the situation, we won't panic. We might even be calmer. That's to keep ourselves clear-headed, to reduce the chance of death as much as possible…"
"…If someone happens to die, it's not just us, our fellow force members, who are sad. Team Leader Selene is the same. Perhaps even more than us. This is the reason and our answer to you all. I want to add one or two more things, Assistant. Do you have time to listen to my story?"
"Alright, tell me," Ling Lian didn't interrupt. She let the other party fully express his words. This could help lighten the spirits of the combat unit, preventing them from becoming too stressed.
Having received permission from the young woman in front of him, James quickly said, "Most of us have been with Team Leader Selene in previous assignments, and our lives were saved by her at that time. Not just once. Later, when we became Team A's force, there were many times when missions fell into dire situations. Team Leader Selene always took on all the burden herself. She tried to sacrifice herself for everyone without regard for her own life, even though she always said she was afraid of dying…"
"Hmm…" Ling Lian showed interest. She quietly looked at Selene before her gaze returned to the middle-aged man again.
James's demeanor changed. From resembling a drunken middle-aged man earlier, he now looked like a soldier who had been through countless battlefields. "You are also like Team Leader Selene. I can feel the same feeling that the Team Leader looks at me with… Assistant, even if you seem indifferent to everything except work, your momentary gaze cannot deceive. The gentleness from within, I can feel it…"
"Therefore, please don't think that bringing us into such a dangerous situation is your fault. No one can fully know the future. It's not your fault, nor the organization's, nor the Director's. We know our duties, we know the risks and everything. We may not be as strong as you and Team Leader Selene, but we are not so weak that we can do nothing. Trust us, rely on us. We will do our best with minds prepared for death."
"…" Ling Lian was silent for a moment before saying slowly, "I apologize. I underestimated you all. A few documents could never fully assess all of you. I have to admit that many teams' forces don't even have the unwavering resolve that your force possesses."
James smiled slightly. "It's all thanks to Team Leader Selene."