Light Fortress
Chapter 174 - 161 Emergency Meeting

Chapter 174: Chapter 161 Emergency Meeting

The crimson door.

Entwined with dense, ancient scripts.

Behind the door, the meeting room lit up with a dim chandelier; the slumbering attendees on both sides of the long table slowly awakened.

"Ladies and gentlemen..."

The speaker was a frail-looking girl wearing a badge that symbolized her identity, inscribed with the number "101".

"I’ve called an emergency meeting because there’s an announcement that needs to be made."

This time, not many people in the meeting room awoke.

The usually jovial No. 031 slowly came to his senses, and couldn’t help but laugh when he heard her words.

He sat up straight, unusually serious, and looked at the slender girl; he reminded her with a smile, "Announcing important news at a time like this... Most people in the real world must be quite busy, aren’t they? There aren’t many like me, an unemployed drifter."

Indeed, at this emergency meeting, besides the two of them,

there were only two others who entered the deep water area.

A tall man, No. 073, and a young man in the corner of the room, No. 957.

After No. 073 awoke, he was as succinct as ever, "Three minutes."

He meant that he only had three minutes in the real world.

"Three minutes is enough."

The girl spoke gravely, "It’s about the latest news regarding the ’Awakening Bill’. The bill is highly unlikely to be implemented in East Continent."

"Oh?"

No. 073’s expression revealed slight surprise.

During the last meeting, everyone was troubled by the bill.

Almost no one could help... and the only one with influence in East Continent, No. 031, stated that he couldn’t do anything, he was unable to delay the process of the bill.

"Did you get some inside information? This isn’t a small matter..." No. 073 asked seriously, "From what I know, the struggle over the bill in East Continent is drawing to a close, Changye has declared abdication of rights, and the final contention has moved to Da Du. And in Da Du, nobody can outmatch Zhao Xilai, the Old Fox."

"As for my source of information, I’m not at liberty to disclose it."

The girl fell silent for a moment.

"Alright..."

No. 073 didn’t press further; instead, he smiled contentedly, "If there really is a chance for change, then it’s a godsend for us. The timing of this emergency meeting is perfect, thank you. After the last meeting, I was prepared to use my family’s power to try and delay the implementation of the bill."

"Heh..."

The young man sitting in the corner, No. 957, frowned and muttered under his breath, "Ready to use family power to delay the enforcement of the law..."

"You’ve really made the safest worst-case scenario, but how does that sound impractical? Because for the life of me, I cannot think of any family, especially one outside of East Continent, that could change a decree announced by the Federation..."

No. 957 glared intently at the tall man, "You had better not be lying to me."

"Would lying to you be meaningful?"

No. 073 replied calmly, "Moreover... as I said, it’s only about delaying as much as possible, not changing it."

"Aha..."

The young No. 031 quickly stood up; he raised his hand to interrupt their conversation.

"Sorry, sorry, both of you... I need to make something clear."

"Ever since Allen Turing’s death, the Ancient Literature Society lost the key. From that day on, every meeting could be our last... As a result, we survivors who narrowly escaped the purge began to hide our identities, each of us frightened of the day the meeting room is breached by Deep Sea, our information traced, and our reputations ruined."

No. 031 spoke in a low voice with a chuckle.

"But we are remnants at war with the entire world..."

"Even now, forced to wear a mask, we still hold the utmost trust in the face beneath the mask... because in the real world we are comrades-in-arms, siblings in the same trench, entrusting our backs to each other."

The young man smiled at 073, saying, "There’s no need to argue over this... Oh, just a reminder, your three minutes are up."

"...I need to log off."

glanced at the time with some regret, then turned to 101, saying, "The matter of the decree is critical, and you’ve likely done something about it, but I hope you’re aware... our current capabilities are limited, sacrificing yourself won’t change anything, do what you can, but always prioritize your own safety."

Upon hearing this, the girl fell into thought.

The tall man then looked toward 957, calmly saying, "Finally, regarding the delay of the decree... I haven’t lied to you."

After these words, 073’s figure slowly faded.

The light of the lamp above his head also vanished simultaneously.

"...I’m sorry, I was impulsive," 957 apologized to the far end of the long table where 073 had already disappeared, although his voice of apology would not reach 073, who had gone offline.

"Alright already—"

"I forgive you on behalf of 073."

The youth 031 said with a smile, "Kid, you’re still too young, don’t be so impulsive in your actions... Indeed, within the Five Continents, there exists a family that can intervene in the process of the decrees, such as the Lin Family of the Northern Fortress."

was slightly annoyed by the first half of the statement.

How could this 031, who appeared even younger than himself, speak with such an aged tone...

But the second half genuinely shook him.

"The Lin Family..."

He had subconsciously overlooked this colossal entity.

Because the concept of "family" in the Federation of the Five Continents was almost never associated with the Lin Family.

The Northern Fortress, resisting the collapse of order by the Transcendent, is the harshest battleground in the Five Continents, and Parliament sends a vast number of Transcendent to station there every year, but it’s far from enough... The force of the logical collapse is no longer something that numbers of Transcendent can fill.

The Lin Family bears the pressure of the Northern Fortress.

The surname "Lin" in the North Continent is a symbol of glory and sincerity and has become a form of belief. In comparison to the major families from other continents that indulge in plots and schemes, the Lin Family is an entirely different existence.

"073 is of the Lin family..."

No wonder, during emergency meetings, 073 seldom logged on, and whenever he did participate, he would always indicate that his time in the real world was very pressing.

He was stationed at the Fortress.

Participating in the meetings was already a rare opportunity.

looked once more toward the position of the tall man, his expression solemn, his eyes filled with a newfound respect.

"You seem to know a lot about us."

The girl looked toward the jovial 031 and quietly said, "Since the day I entered the meeting room, you have been here... yet we know nothing about you. You said you delivered the ’key’ to my city, have you confirmed my identity?"

The young man helplessly shook his head, smiling, "In this deep water area, we are all prisoners wearing masks. To see the face beneath the mask, you either cheat with x-ray vision or... take your chances and make a guess. But my luck seems pretty good, I usually guess pretty accurately."

"No, you guessed wrong."

"I haven’t come into contact with your ’key’," the girl said indifferently: "This ’red door’ was a legacy left to me by my father, as long as there is contact on a spiritual level, I can sense the ’key’..."

narrowed his eyes.

"Are you sure it was delivered to the city where I am? I’m in Da Du."

The girl glanced at 957 but did not conceal her location.

"Certain, positive, and absolutely sure."

said lightly, "I even believe you’ve already met face to face... If the red door didn’t respond, then try again!"