063. Abyss's Doomsday
"Happy birthday?"
N4 was stunned.
"Do I even have a birthday?"
The employee outside the door was thrown off and said casually, "The company shows your birthday as January 14th… That's what's on the official website."
Realizing he misspoke, he quickly added:
"This is a fifth-type contact, the first encounter with an alien civilization not led by GTB on Azure Star."
"Alien civilization? Judging by that casual tone, it's probably Li Aozi."
N4 laughed.
"…Pioneer?!"
The subordinate outside the door was shocked:
"Did you just crack a joke?"
Hiss!
The door opened, and the cold, impassive N4 appeared, reaching out and snatching the document from her subordinate's hand, reading it carefully:
"This form of gravitational wave communication is new to us. It guarantees superluminal, distortion-free transmission and encryption. Remarkable."
"We'll begin content decryption right away, but currently, experts aren't sure if the sender is indeed Li Aozi. They recommend…"
"Experts giving 'advice' to a 'Pioneer'? I suggest the experts study for another two centuries."
Upon boarding the special plane, N4 received the second decrypted message, which contained much more information, officially confirming the sender's identity.
"To Abyss Industries' 'Pioneer'—Ms. N4."
"Don't worry about how I did it, or how I know—just know that I've been watching you."
"I'll keep it short. I contacted you to make a deal; your days are numbered. Don't worry; I can offer you advanced knowledge for ascension."
"As for what I want, it's quite simple…"
N4 turned around, swiftly edited a document, handed it to a subordinate, and ordered:
"Notify the Frost-Plated branch."
The subordinate glanced at the content, his face immediately turning pale with fear:
"Pioneer! No! You can't! This will drag us into hell."
"I am giving an order, not seeking your opinion."
N4 said calmly:
"The entirety of Abyss Industries is built around me. Without me, you won't make further progress, and your current position will be lost."
"But if we do this, what will the employees think? It might lead to rebellion, especially since our competitors keep trying to poach our people…"
"Short-sighted," N4 said dismissively. "Utterly short-sighted."
"It's just a message from the universe. Are you truly planning to follow the words of an outsider, an alien even?" the subordinate said urgently. "Li Aozi might be tricking you; we know nothing about the universe. Following his lead, Abyss could be destroyed—"
"Such a nuisance."
N4 asked casually:
"What's your name?"
The subordinate was taken aback, instinctively replying, "Jim Zach."
"Jim Zach, a visionary and ambitious talent like you is wasted at Abyss Industries. I've decided to send you to the lower market to await new opportunities."
Jim was dumbfounded: "What does that mean…"
N4 smiled:
"It means you're fired."
Four hours later, Abyss Industries' Frost-Plated branch suddenly held a press conference.
Given Abyss's vast scale, even an unannounced, impromptu conference drew the attention of the government and the Four Nations. Major media outlets arrived immediately, speculating about the meeting.
Although Abyss Industries monopolized many fields, these fields were typically high-end, with more interest from agricultural capital and factories.
Unexpectedly, this conference mainly attracted medical and biochemical scientists from the Four Nations.
The reason was simple; one look at the title Abyss Industries had chosen explained it.
– "Statement on the Abyss Humanitarian Relief Organization"
This title immediately prompted the Frost-Plated Law III office to call the Gemini Palace. However, David Lin was busy clearing out the bureaucratic group left by the former president, Mai Dewei, and accepting her political legacy. At present, Prime Minister Honawar was responsible for overseeing the situation.
Honawar, a domestic affairs expert, quickly sensed trouble upon seeing Abyss Industries' stance. He summoned the Law III governor and asked urgently:
"Who is in charge of Abyss's project? Are there any insiders? Can we stop the conference?"
"This was all directed by former President Mai Dewei, beyond our authority to interfere," the Law III governor replied helplessly. "The former president passed away too suddenly. She personally suppressed these human experiment-related issues, but now that she's gone…"
"Fine, fine, I knew it. Some people, even in death, don't know how to pick their timing!"
Honawar was troubled, pacing the room with no clear solution.
For Frost-Plated, this was a delicate problem; mishandling it could lead to the collapse of the fragile interim government.
When Li Aozi slaughtered Abyss Humanitarian, Mai Dewei initially played the "patriotism card," condemning his actions as terrorism, stoking national outrage and fear.
But as the GTB investigation continued, and international condemnation from Tianhuan surfaced, a series of reversals exposed the Frost-Plated government's connection to human experiments, turning Frost-Plated citizens into global pariahs, the target of international condemnation.
Mai Dewei used her secret methods to suppress domestic public opinion and shifted national attention with the Grant War.
Had she still been alive, she could have continued to suppress it.
But now she was gone, escaping cleanly, leaving all the pressure on the interim government.
"It's been half a year, and Abyss Industries suddenly declares its connection to Abyss Humanitarian, even bringing it to Frost-Plated—surely, they've received some enormous benefit and are deliberately shifting the blame onto Frost-Plated."
Abyss Industries, as a pharmaceutical, tech, and biochemical industry giant, was always profit-driven. Publicly acknowledging its ties with Abyss Humanitarian, knowing it would incite anger, disappointment, and cause a stock plunge, yet proceeding regardless…
What does that indicate?
It indicates that for Abyss Industries, there is a bigger benefit at stake.
Who might it be? Who offered Abyss such a benefit?
GTB? Impossible—GTB's biggest rival is Abyss Industries.
Could it be Red Arrow? But Red Arrow had always been wary of Abyss's infiltration.
Honawar couldn't pinpoint a suitable party, even after racking his brains. It couldn't have fallen from the sky, could it?
He ordered Law III to investigate while he braced himself for the impending pressure.
Currently, Frost-Plated had just lost its former president, and the nation was gripped by fear over attacks on home soil. People were afraid to work, and even factories feared attacks, reducing production. This prolonged state would harm both morale and the market.
Amidst all this, Frost-Plated had to contend with Abyss Industries' betrayal.
Though Mai Dewei's administration was past, with few survivors of Abyss Humanitarian's human experiments, they could drag the issue out in court—but the timing was all too unfortunate.
Honawar had no choice but to activate regulatory mechanisms, strictly limiting Abyss Industries' media reach, yet he couldn't stop the conference.
The unease extended beyond Honawar to the employees of Abyss Industries.
They anxiously eyed the gathered media. Outside, protestors had surrounded the building several layers deep. Betrayed and outraged Frost-Plated citizens, along with anti-human experiment activists, had come out in full force.
"Abyss is a concentration camp, get out of Frost-Plated!"
"Heartless scum, go die!"
"Today, they experiment on children. Tomorrow, it'll be you!"
Furious stones, Molotov cocktails, and smoke bombs hit the glass and security teams. Though they caused no substantial damage, the sight was alarming.
"Why is the headquarters doing this?" one employee couldn't help but ask. "Couldn't they have kept it hidden? Why sacrifice us?"
"Will we even do business in Frost-Plated anymore? Are we going to pull out of the area?"
"Just wait, we're nothing but pawns. They'll probably let us go after this; it's just an excuse to lay people off."
"Don't say that; the company must have its reasons for this."
"I heard it's a strategic move to consolidate power…"
"Yeah, right. It's the usual—executive infighting, unfair spoils, parachuted leaders—damn company politics. These capitalists don't care if we live or die."
"Lower your voice!"
Even the internal discontent at Abyss Industries couldn't deter the determination of the executives, who insisted on holding the conference.
"…Regarding Abyss Humanitarian, we have issued a statement. Abyss Industries hereby declares that we provided financial and technical support to former laboratories and humanitarian facilities. This is the complete truth, now publicly disclosed for society's oversight."
No sooner had the spokesperson spoken, a journalist loudly questioned:
"Does the technical support include research on telepathy using infants?"
"That…"
The spokesperson hesitated, glancing at the headquarters' executives. The latter nodded, and after a moment's pause, the spokesperson said:
"Yes."
"The head of the laboratory—'Professor' Yeliv Haston—graduated from Gemini University's Biochemistry Department in 156, joined Abyss Industries' Gene Editing Research Center in 160, left in 167, and founded Abyss Humanitarian. When Abyss Humanitarian was founded, was Yeliv still affiliated with Abyss Industries, according to your records?"
"According to our records, Yeliv left in 197. We have social security termination records and a resignation letter to prove it."
"So, Abyss Humanitarian's leader was indeed someone trained by you?"
"She was merely a former employee. We only provided necessary pre-job training."
"Am I to understand that her essential knowledge and skills were acquired at your company?"
"Only the basic, necessary ones."
The journalist pressed, locking eyes with the Abyss Industries spokesperson:
"Then, the experiments conducted by 'Professor' in the Abyss Humanitarian underground laboratory were also based on these?"
The spokesperson looked at the headquarters' executives. Their faces darkened, but they reluctantly nodded.
The spokesperson turned and answered:
"Yes."
At that, many Abyss Industries employees groaned in despair on the spot.
That single sentence sealed the fate of countless careers and jobs.