"It’s fine. I have other methods," Zhou Chen said, pulling out his phone to call the Plague Doctor. This plan required some cooperation.

"Hello? It’s me, Siegfried. I have a plan that requires the cooperation of the Salvation Army’s sleeper agents in the city... Which city? I’m in Yellow Goose City, but I need to activate the agents in every city."

The Plague Doctor’s tone on the other end of the line immediately grew heavy. "Activate all our agents? What are you planning?"

Zhou Chen smiled.

"I’m going to give a grand speech."

"..."

The Plague Doctor was silent for a few seconds before asking, "When do we activate them?"

"Wait for my signal. I need some time to prepare, and it also depends on the situation at the front."

"Alright."

The call ended.

Zhou Chen sat in his chair, eyes downcast, and began to brainstorm, further refining his plan.

「Jinzhu.」

「A bedroom.」

Zhou Chen pulled out his phone. A blurry reflection of his face stared back from the dark screen. He mulled it over for a few seconds before calling out:

"Moshi Moshi? You there?"

There was no answer.

"I need to talk to you about something. It’s about North Carolina."

The next second, the phone screen lit up, and Tang Ling’s face appeared. Her on-screen persona had an anime-like, two-dimensional quality, like a VTuber. Her long, metallic-looking silver hair even swayed with her slightest movements.

’So she *is* living in my phone,’ Zhou Chen couldn’t help but think. ’And with an avatar like that, she’d definitely be a hit if she became a VTuber...’

"What are your thoughts on the situation in North Carolina?" Tang Ling asked from the phone.

"The Salvation Army can win if they play it slow and steady. Even if they can’t take the government down right away, they can establish their own regime and slowly bleed them dry. But a lot of people will die in the process, and the losses will be catastrophic. I have a plan, but I don’t know if it’ll work."

"What do you need me to do?"

Tang Ling had already run a data analysis on the many possible ways Zhou Chen could be interfering in North Carolina, so she didn’t press for details. Maintaining a certain distance was a form of respect.

"I want to open an Any..."

Before he could finish, Tang Ling cut him off. "Impossible. The Star Association has already made its position clear: we will not interfere in the North Carolina civil war. Opening an Any Door is one thing, but the moment a member of the Salvation Army steps through it, it’s the same as the Star Association officially taking a side."

Zhou Chen hadn’t gotten his hopes up anyway. "In that case, getting me some real-time holographic projectors shouldn’t be a problem, right? I don’t need too many. Let’s start with... a hundred, just to be safe. Oh, and remember to wipe off any labels or anything. Don’t leave a trail."

"That, I can do. I’ll contact the Alchemy Association."

"Hmm... and could I trouble you to run some data analysis on what the common people of North Carolina need most?"

"Food and money," Tang Ling answered instantly.

Zhou Chen stroked his chin, pondering for a long time. "That’s going to be tricky..."

"Are you trying to buy off the common people with food and money? That’s impossible. They’ll take your food and money, but they won’t do any real work for you, much less risk their lives. At most, they’ll pay you some lip service, but the moment there’s trouble, they’ll run faster than rabbits."

Zhou Chen grunted in agreement. "I know. Buying them off is useless. I have to give them a real motive. Otherwise, they’ll never dare to rebel."

"Whatever you’re planning, you won’t be able to get your hands on that much food and money," Tang Ling pointed out, stating a very practical problem.

Zhou Chen’s eyes narrowed as an idea took shape. "Then I’ll just rob the government and the upper class. They have plenty of food and money ready for the taking. Lots and lots of it."

"Good luck with your plan." Tang Ling tilted her head. "Where do you need the holographic projectors sent?"

"Send them to the Salvation Army’s rear lines."

"Got it."

"Siegfried, why did the Alchemy Association suddenly send over a bunch of holographic projectors?"

「North Carolina, Yellow Goose City. A hotel.」

The call was from the Plague Doctor. His intuition told him this had something to do with Siegfried. It was too much of a coincidence. The moment Siegfried mentioned giving a "speech," the Alchemy Association delivered the necessary equipment.

For free!

’That was fast,’ Zhou Chen thought, stunned for a second. He then calmly replied, "That equipment is for me. Have the command center arrange for people to deliver it secretly to the various cities. There’s no rush. Make sure it’s done securely."

"Alright, I’ve got it. Is there anything else you need from us?"

"I’ll contact you if anything comes up."

Zhou Chen hung up. Immediately, the anime-like, silver-haired woman appeared on his phone screen, her face full of curiosity. "Siegfried?"

Holy shit!

Zhou Chen jumped, nearly dropping his phone.

"No need to hide. I’ve been monitoring all communications throughout North Carolina, which is how I found you," Tang Ling said from the screen, looking "Siegfried" up and down. "How did you do it?"

Since he’d already asked Tang Ling for help, Zhou Chen was prepared to be exposed and didn’t try to hide it. "Just a little something I cooked up with the Hammer of Forging. Human Body Refinement."

"That was the highest-probability option among the various scenarios I analyzed." Tang Ling wasn’t overly surprised by this, but her tone quickly grew suspicious.

"You can perform brainwashing? Is that a Curse Technique from the Book of the Dead?"

"...Who told you that?"

"Siegfried is quite the celebrity within the Salvation Army. I hacked their electronic devices. A lot of people are talking about you, and they even have a file on you... You can brainwash a Tier Three Ascender?"

"It *is* the Book of the Dead, after all..." Zhou Chen shrugged, pinning all the blame on it.

"You’d be wise to use that book sparingly. If you lose control, you could easily be completely corrupted by Abyssal Power," Tang Ling warned him, her tone kind.

"I don’t use it that often." Zhou Chen changed the subject. "Speaking of which, what’s the situation on your end? Can you tell me anything?"

"Me? I’m not in North Carolina. I’m at headquarters, calibrating the Adaptive Evolution Array. Who knows when this thing will be finished... By the way, the Hammer of Forging should be helpful for the Adaptive Evolution Array. Could you come and help me when you have time?"

"Of course," Zhou Chen readily agreed. "But I can’t risk exposing the Hammer of Forging. Is there a way we can be discreet?"

"I can come to you in private."

"That works."

"Getting back to North Carolina. Right now, six Crowned Kings are in a standoff inside the North Carolina Royal Tower. They won’t make a move until there’s a clear victor between the two armies. Even if they do fight, they’ll go to a special dimension, so you don’t have to worry.

Fallen Paradise has gone to ground. After the Crystal Disease was cured, it’s as if they left North Carolina entirely. But that’s just for show. The ’Merchant’ is determined to advance to Tier Five in North Carolina; this is his only chance in years. Beyond that, Fallen Paradise has other plots that haven’t surfaced yet. You need to be careful.

Also, a while ago, the Star Association took in a patient who had adapted to Soul Crystalization. Our labs are currently observing and analyzing the crystallized Soul. The details are highly classified, so I don’t know much myself. I just know that it’s definitely not a good thing. If you encounter a patient who has adapted to Soul Crystalization, you must contact the Star Association.

That’s everything I know."

When she spoke about Soul Crystalization, Tang Ling’s tone had become much heavier, conveying the gravity of the situation.

’Of course,’ Zhou Chen thought. ’Nothing from Fallen Paradise could be simple. There’s definitely a huge catch.’

"Thanks. I’ll be careful," he said with a nod.

"Mm." Tang Ling’s image promptly vanished from the phone.

’Is she gone? Probably not. She’s definitely moved in for good...’ Zhou Chen muttered. At the same time, he made a wish, erasing the recent memories of the media personnel in the room.

"The off-site support is in place. Time to make a move."

Zhou Chen let out a breath. What came next was going to be a massive undertaking.