"What exactly is the forbidden substance ACE-004?" Qing Chen asked. "The external information only describes it as a black stone, without mentioning its specific function."
Old Shen said, "This really is top secret. That black stone is called the Eye of True Sight, but there is more than one Eye of True Sight. It is a spellcasting tool of wizards. In the last human civilization era, it was kept separately by a wizard and Ren Xiaosu. Later, it was given to Hope Media. When there was a disagreement within the journalist group, they were taken away by the Bystanders organization."
"More than one?" Qing Chen asked, puzzled.
“Yes, there were over a hundred True Sight Eyes in existence at the time: 3 black, 12 gold, and 72 red. The number of the rest is uncertain, but black is the highest rank,” Old Shen said.
Qingchen asked, "I've heard that someone can use it to open a door and travel through a space-time continuum."
Old Shen laughed and said, "This is the most famous function of the Eye of True Sight. You can open a door by rotating it clockwise ten times anywhere and go to the place you most want to go at that moment. However, you can only choose this door once in your life. If someone is in a hurry to go to the toilet, the door will open in the toilet. If a child likes candy, the door will open in the candy house. After that, it will be too late to regret it."
Qing Chen thought to himself, "This forbidden item ACE-004 is quite interesting... I'd like to try and see where I really want to go. To be honest, I don't even know where I want to go."
Qing Chen then asked, "Is there anything forbidden that could create an island at sea?"
Old Shen was stunned for a moment: "Forbidden item ACE-013, Whale Island? Isn't that thing in the Forbidden Sea? You've seen it? No one has seen it for hundreds of years."
Qing Chen shook his head: "I've never seen it before, I'm just guessing... By the way, Shadow told me I absolutely had to come here, is there anything specific about it?"
At this moment, a door behind Old Shen opened, and Qing Zhun walked out with a smile, leaving Qing Chen stunned for a long time.
Old Shen said, "Shadow gave the order. He knows you want to explore the wilderness and forbidden lands to relax. Qing Zhun is the person in the Secret Service who knows the wilderness best, so he's going with you. You can ask him anything you don't understand."
Qingzhun smiled and said, "Boss, it's been a long time."
Qing Chen looked at Qing Zhun, his former subordinate in the Intelligence Division, who was already carrying a hiking backpack, and remained silent for a long time before saying, "...Okay, but there's something I need to make clear: where to go, what to do, and how to do it—you have to listen to me."
Kyung-joon laughed and said, "No problem, you're the boss, you call the shots."
...
...
Qingchen and Qingzhun bought some supplies and a hiking backpack in the city.
Qing Chen tossed the backpack to Qing Zhun, telling him to carry it.
Qing Zhun paused for a moment and looked at Qing Chen: "Boss, is it inappropriate for me to carry two hiking backpacks by myself?"
“What’s inappropriate about it?” Qingchen said matter-of-factly. “How can you go out with your boss and expect him to carry his own bag? Don’t you agree?”
Kyung-jun: "...Yes!"
The two walked out of the city. Surprisingly, after bringing Qingzhun along, they no longer had to struggle to pass through the border control bureau. Qingzhun could solve the problem with just one phone call, without even checking their identities.
After walking for a full 12 hours, the two finally met up with Yangyang and Zhang Mengqian in the wilderness.
"Let me introduce you. This is Yangyang and Zhang Mengqian, and this is Qing Zhun from the First Intelligence Division. The four of us will be traveling together on this trip," Qing Chen said.
Qing Zhun looked at Zhang Mengqian with great interest, his gaze as if he were looking at a piece of uncut jade.
People who are born with the ability to resonate with the world through their spirit and will are treasures wherever they go.
The little boy took two steps back: "Why are you looking at me like that?"
Qing Zhun said with a smile, "Mr. Shadow said you have a sixth sense, so I was just curious. By the way, would you be interested in joining my Qing Clan's Secret Service? Boss Qing Chen is the deputy director of our Secret Service."
Zhang Mengqian paused for a moment and looked at Qing Chen.
Qing Chen then looked at Qing Zhun: "Your official rank isn't high, but your tone is quite arrogant. Do you think you can just walk into the Secret Service like that?"
Kyung Joon: "...That's true."
"Qingchen, you told us to wait here, what were we waiting for?" Yangyang asked curiously.
Qing Chen glanced at the time on his arm: "Here it comes."
Suddenly, a jarring whistle rang out across the wilderness.
That long-lost steam train travels around the Federation every 27 days. The last time Qing Chen saw it was to use it to take everyone away from the North. This time, Qing Chen saw it again after it had already traveled around the Federation for a week.
Qingchen smiled at everyone and said, "This time, we'll ride it. Wherever it goes, we'll go. When we reach our desired destination, we'll get off. If we want to set off again, we'll have to wait 27 days."
Kyung-jun suddenly said, "It takes gold coins to ride it, right? Boss, do you have any gold coins on you?"
“No, I’ve already taken it in. It doesn’t need any gold coins,” Qing Chen said with a smile.
At that moment, the magnificent steam train emerged from nothingness at a speed of 120 kilometers per hour, its chimney still billowing thick smoke, and its rear filled with gold coins.
"Wow!" Xiao Mengqian exclaimed as she watched this amazing scene. So this was the mysterious world outside the city!
Qingchen said, "Let's go, it'll only stop for 10 minutes, let's get in the car."
As he spoke, he walked toward the steam train.
However, something unexpected happened. This time, when the steam train arrived at the station and saw him, it didn't stop at all, but continued to move forward!
Qing Chen, terrified, rushed from the side towards the fleeing steam train: "Oh no, it's going to run away! Quick, grab the handrail outside the door!"
He carried Zhang Mengqian on his back and ran like a madman toward the steam train, grabbing a handrail outside a carriage before the forbidden object disappeared back into nothingness.
Kyung Jun sighed softly, "You really are a nightmare for even the most fearsome creatures. Even forbidden objects are afraid to see you. You must be an incredibly detestable player..."
As he spoke, he carried a hiking backpack in his hand and another on his back, yet he ran even faster than Qingchen.
To be honest, this was the first time he had ever ridden a steam train this way.
The steam train drove into nothingness, and Qingchen, Yangyang, Qingzhun, and Zhang Mengqian remained hanging on the steam train, waiting for the light to return.
No one expected that Qing Chen would single-handedly force the steam train to change its timetable.
This brought the train's arrival time forward by ten minutes.
It's better to arrive ten minutes early, since those taking the steam train usually arrive early to wait.
But if Qingchen does this a few more times, causing the steam train to arrive at the station an hour or even several hours earlier, then the patterns that many people have already figured out will probably become completely useless.
From a certain perspective, Qing Chen's actions are indeed no different from containment, since in the near future, only he will be able to obtain the accurate train timetable...
Although this method is a bit underhanded, it works quite well.
Chapter 596, Taking Life and Death Lightly
The steam train burst forth from the dark void, its whistle loud and resounding, and thick smoke billowing from its chimney.
The thick black smoke in the sky looked like a black ribbon being stretched out.
Without tracks or a driver, it simply travels abruptly across the wilderness, thus transforming itself from a forbidden object meant for exploring the desolate landscape into a scenic attraction in itself.
"Hold on tight to my neck!" Qingchen shouted. He was hanging on the steam train, and Xiaomengqian was hanging on his neck. The wind was blowing their faces so hard they were almost distorted, and the cold wind was blowing straight into the little boy's mouth...
Zhang Mengqian never dreamed that the trip her boss was talking about would be like this...
Isn't this just a place to suffer?
At this moment, Qingchen freed one hand to turn the car door handle, and the door opened with a click.
At one point, a hint of anger mingled with the whistle of the steam train.
He quickly led Xiao Mengqian into the carriage, then rushed to the back of the steam train to open the door and let Yangyang and Qingzhun in as well.
He shouted, "Kyungjun, don't lose your backpack!"
Kyung Joon: "..."
Kyung-joon had a backpack in his mouth and another in his right hand, so he could only hold onto the handrail outside the car door with one hand.
But then he exerted a little force with his arm and jumped into the car.
As soon as he entered, he immediately questioned with feigned indignation, "You're considered rich now, aren't you? The Secret Service pays you hundreds of thousands every month. I heard you'll soon be included in the Qing family trust's profit-sharing list. Is it really necessary to save such a small amount of money? One gold coin is only worth a little over ten thousand yuan!"
Yangyang quickly took his backpack from him...
Qing Chen chuckled and said, "Getting something for free is a kind of happiness! Don't always question your boss!"
Kyung Joon: "...Okay."
The steam train never imagined that someone would ever use it for free.
But Qing Zhun was quick-witted, and he soon realized that the steam train was not avoiding Qing Chen because Qing Chen could evade the fare.
However, if Qing Chen had the ability to open the car door at any time, it would mean that the entire car full of gold coins behind him would be in some danger.
This is the fundamental reason why steam trains avoided Qingchen.
Qing Chen looked at Qing Zhun with a smile and asked, "You're quite fast. Back in Intelligence Division One, didn't you say you were only a D-rank? A D-rank doesn't have this kind of speed."
Kyung Joon responded, "I was sent by Mr. Shadow to secretly protect you, so of course I can't reveal my true strength."
"I see, Mr. Shadow is truly a good person!" Qing Chen exclaimed.
“Mr. Shadow is definitely a good person.” Kyung-jun went to tour the carriages with a curious look on his face, and the last carriage was full of gold coins.
Yangyang whispered, "I've seen this Kyung-jun's force field before... Shouldn't you be a little more polite to him?"
"Shh!" Qing Chen quickly said, "Of course I know who he is, but you can't let him know 'I know,' otherwise how can I get him to work! He likes to play around, so let him play to his heart's content!"
Yangyang glanced at Qingchen: "You're really bold, but I can't pretend I don't know like you do. They're elders..."
At this moment, Qing Zhun returned. Qing Chen stuffed both backpacks onto the overhead luggage rack, found a seat, and looked out the window.
Only at this moment did he feel completely detached from the previous struggles and begin to enjoy the real life in the underworld.
Kyung-jun asked, "Where is our destination?"
“No destination,” Qingchen laughed. “I get off wherever I want to go, and get back on when I’m done. I don’t make any plans or schedules.”
He smiled at Kyung Joon: "Don't you think this kind of travel is interesting? No more anxiety, just going with the flow. No need to think about how to deal with power and struggle, no need for social niceties. Learn to make friends with the world, the world never rejects anyone."
Kyung-jun seemed very interested. He stood by the car window, watching the scenery and snow-capped mountains rushing past.
He watched the herd of horses galloping across the snowfield, a fiery brown horse leading the pack across the plain.
He watched as a few wolves lone in the distance, curiously peering toward the steam train, cautious yet calm.
He doesn't know when it started, but he has become very far removed from that kind of life.
Those who enjoy playing the field can unknowingly become trapped in the pursuit of power.
Qingzhun disregarded his image, opened the car window, and shouted loudly, scaring away the wolves that were watching nearby.
Qingchen watched silently, perhaps this was the reason why the other party insisted on coming out with him.
He said to everyone, "Next, the steam train will pass through the southern Yunshan Hills, Yunmeng Marsh, and alluvial plains, passing through seven forbidden places, and then travel westward, passing through the Suchuan Forest, along the waterway from west to east, all the way through the Hengchuan Mountains, and arriving at the southwestern Great Snow Mountain and Plateau... Finally, it will turn back before Forbidden Place No. 001."