Kaidan Game Train: Abide Rule or Die!
Chapter 575 Xu Huo is Back

Chapter 575: Chapter 575 Xu Huo is Back

International tensions gradually grew taut, and the atmosphere within the Special Defense Department wasn’t much better, especially as players’ authority continued to increase, several chiefs within the department were trying hard to woo them.

The core members were still those who originally worked for government agencies, while others were drawn from players who volunteered to join the Special Defense Department.

However, Chief Wu and Chief Song’s relationship had deteriorated to the point where they no longer cared to save face. Known as the nice guy within the Special Defense Department, Chief Wu’s bluntness towards Chief Song was entirely due to having been twice burned by him.

Chief Wu was popular and commanded capable subordinates, particularly someone like Nie Xuan, who often brought back significant gains from each mission, and having resolved the issue with the Different Space in Hua City, he held considerable sway in the department.

Unexpectedly, Chief Song set a trap for him, sending his people on a perilous mission which resulted in significant losses.

In Chief Wu’s view, if not for the inaccurate early intelligence, such a loss of players, who all had promising futures, would not have occurred. Since Chief Song was in charge of intelligence gathering, he suspected it was Chief Song’s doing on purpose.

Of course, Chief Song wouldn’t admit to it, but his targeting of Chief Wu was somewhat obvious even to the usually neutral Jiang Qiao, who also started to show him coldness.

Whether or not Chief Song was deliberately obstructing is one thing, but his desire to snag all the good items for his team’s players was definitely true. Out of fear that other chiefs would get the advantage, he hurried over.

He failed to catch Jiang Qiao’s implication and thought that someone from the Player Association must have made contact with Chief Wu. Instead, it was Dai Wenqian who remarked, "Xu Huo is back?"

To everyone in the Special Defense Department, Xu Huo was a significant figure, but since his last departure two months ago without any news, people couldn’t help but speculate that he had died in one of the missions.

"He really came back alive?" Chief Song asked skeptically.

"Not only has he returned, but he also brought hope," Jiang Qiao told Minister Fan. "He’s now a Level D Player, able to stay in other game areas. He probably didn’t come back before because of this. I guess he must have returned to Zone 014 after obtaining this fungus, aiming to bring it back."

"According to him, this fungus can neutralize Rank-A contaminants and S-rank Toxins. In the Dimensional Rift, the threat level of contaminants, pathogens, and toxins are ranked from low to high: E, D, Rank-C, B, A, S, and above S. If we can cultivate it on a large scale, our country could take a big step forward in the field of potions."

At least we wouldn’t be constrained by the game anymore.

This news shocked everyone present because according to the game’s classifications, the strongest toxin in Zone 014 was only Rank-C.

"Is it really that powerful?" Chief Song asked. "Could he be seeking acclaim, offering something that can’t be verified in the short term to fob off the Special Defense Department?"

Chief Wu snorted coldly, "If you had something like that, you could also use it to fob us off."

Chief Song wanted to say more, but at that moment several researchers came out ecstatic, telling Minister Fan, "It really works! And the effects are simply too good, just a fragment of the mycelium can kill the Alien toxin!"

Minister Fan was overjoyed, "Is it possible to cultivate it?"

"Cultivation might not be easy," the researchers said. "This fungus isn’t very active and can’t survive without a nutrient solution. If kept continuously in a nutrient solution, it should be able to live for about a month."

Jiang Qiao had mentioned before that Xu Huo had only provided a few living specimens, fearing they wouldn’t be enough for mass production.

"We must find a way to make it grow," Minister Fan said. "The latest batch of potions has been stockpiled. Take them all and test them, see in which potion this fungus grows the fastest."

The researchers immediately went to get the potions and then went back to the laboratory.

Emerging from the laboratory, Minister Fan patted Chief Wu on the shoulder with a smile on his face, "We owe you a big one this time. Take good care of Xu Huo over there. Give him whatever he asks for."

"What players want are nothing more than good equipment and potions," said Chief Wu.

"No problem, whatever he wants, he gets," Minister Fan remarked generously and then sighed again, "It’s such a pity that a guy like him refuses to join the Special Defense Department."

"Why don’t you personally try inviting him, Minister? Maybe he would give you that much respect," suggested Chief Song.

Whether Minister Fan had that much face was unclear, but Chief Song definitely had ulterior motives.

Xu Huo had already clearly refused the Special Defense Department before and almost came to blows with them, so what difference would it make if Minister Fan went?

"Having a falling out benefits no one," said Jiang Qiao. "Do you think a player like Xu Huo would stay in Zone 014? It would be considered good if he could bring anything of value back."

"Chief Song, stop giving bad advice. If we had listened to you last time and directly taken action, do you think we would still have this fungus today?"

"Do you think I alone can sway the decisions of the Special Defense Department?" retorted Chief Song.

Seeing an argument brewing, Director Chang hastily smoothed things over, "Regardless, at least things are looking up now. If others don’t want to be constrained, it’s better to maintain the current situation."

"Such players aren’t bad either," Director Lü said with a smile, "They’re less likely to take personal grudges out on others."

The relationship between Xu Huo and the Special Defense Department was definitely not a pleasant one. The last fiasco in Jing City might have ended badly if he hadn’t used a Spatial Artifact to escape.

"We all need to change our attitude," continued Director Lü. "The Player Association has been established; instead of trying to control the players, we should think about how to win them over."

"Now that a player has gotten something like the fungus, an all-curing antidote, just think about it—there might be other players who have gotten high-level equipment. What’s their current attitude towards the Special Defense Department, towards the government?"

Most didn’t have a good impression, partly due to distrust of the Special Defense Department, which had previously used strongarm tactics to intimidate players. Additionally, as the players themselves grew stronger, they were not interested in working for the Special Defense Department, some even excited by the prospect of a reversal of roles.

It wasn’t just the Special Defense Department accumulating power; players scattered in various places were also secretly on the lookout.

*

Xu Huo slept soundly until the morning of the third day, then woke up refreshed. As soon as he opened the door, he saw Sima Xiao’er dozing at the doorstep. He kicked him, "Find another place to sleep."

Seeing Xu Huo, Sima Xiao’er immediately stood up, "Brother Xu, I was really worried something had happened to you!"

"I’m perfectly fine," Xu Huo replied curtly. "Go find something to eat."

Without another word, Sima Xiao’er scurried off to run the errand. Xu Huo stretched and then received a call from a stranger. When the call connected, the voice on the other end said cheerily, "Xu Huo, long time no see. Do you still remember this old friend of yours?"

Xu Huo paused from drinking water and replied indifferently, "If you think you have too many players on your side, I can take some time to help you deal with a bunch."

"Didn’t learn your lesson last time in Hua City, huh, Dai Wenqian? Still daring to call me."