Lâm Minh's life settled into a new rhythm.
Scavenging for Old Feng, cultivating diligently, attending school to maintain appearances, and occasionally sharing brief, polite conversations with Tố Quyên.
Their interactions were still infrequent and public, mostly nods of acknowledgment or short exchanges about schoolwork, but the initial frostiness was gone, replaced by a tentative, mutual curiosity.
He learned she was exceptionally gifted in xenolinguistics and Madakaros biology – subjects crucial to the war effort – and was already being courted by several high-level research institutions.
This only strengthened his resolve to become someone worthy of standing by her side, not just as a protector, but as an equal.
His cultivation steadily progressed.
He was now firmly in the Middle Phase of Qi Refining, his Dantian a vibrant wellspring of Qi.
His Qi Sense could now detect subtle energy fluctuations from a dozen meters away, and his Qi Infusion could make his crowbar dent plasteel.
The unsealing of his Heaven Tier Spiritual Root crept forward, now at 25% towards unlocking Stage 2. Each percentage point felt like a monumental achievement.
[Cultivation Progress: Qi Refining Stage – Middle Phase (70% progress towards Major Completion).]
[Spiritual Root: Heaven Tier (Sealed – Stage 1/9 Unsealed). Progress to unseal Stage 2: 25%.]
His arrangement with Old Feng provided a steady stream of Spirit Stones and credits.
Hạnh, Cường, and Tuấn had become his de facto work crew, their camaraderie forged in shared danger and mutual reliance.
Lâm Minh, despite his youth, often found himself subtly guiding their actions during Old Feng's more perilous assignments, his tactical acumen from his past life proving invaluable.
Hạnh, recognizing his sharp instincts, increasingly deferred to his judgment in tight situations.
One evening, Old Feng summoned Lâm Minh to the Sleeping Dragon's den, not through Hạnh, but directly, using a discreet messenger.
This was unusual and signaled something important.
Yan was present, as always, his demeanor calm and inscrutable.
But there was another figure in the small, incense-filled room – a tall, imposing woman clad in dark, functional clothing that hinted at a military background.
Her short-cropped hair was streaked with grey, and her face was a roadmap of old scars, the most prominent being a thin, white line that bisected her left eyebrow and disappeared into her hairline.
Her eyes were like chips of obsidian, sharp and unyielding.
She radiated an aura of disciplined power and barely suppressed lethality.
Lâm Minh's Qi Sense registered her as a blank – either she had no cultivation, or she possessed techniques to completely mask it, which was far more likely and far more dangerous.
"Lâm Minh," Old Feng said, his voice a dry rasp.
"This is Commander Trinh. She has… a proposition for you."
Commander Trinh's gaze swept over Lâm Minh, analytical and intense.
"So this is the prodigy Feng has been so discreetly utilizing. You're younger than I expected." Her voice was low and resonant, accustomed to command.
Lâm Minh met her gaze steadily. "Commander."
"Feng and Yan speak highly of your… resourcefulness and your ability to handle yourself in difficult situations," Trinh continued, her tone devoid of inflection.
"They believe you possess a certain… unique skillset."
"I do what's necessary to survive and complete my tasks," Lâm Minh replied, choosing his words carefully.
"Indeed." Commander Trinh leaned forward slightly.
"I am here tonight because we have a problem. A serious one. And we believe you might be part of the solution."
Old Feng and Yan remained silent, their expressions unreadable, but Lâm Minh could feel the tension in the room.
This was clearly beyond their usual clandestine dealings.
"What kind of problem, Commander?" Lâm Minh asked.
"The Madakaros," Trinh stated bluntly.
"Specifically, elements of what they call the 'Maka Legion.' Not their planetary occupation force, which is brutal enough, but individuals from their off-world armies."
Lâm Minh's blood ran cold.
The Maka Legion.
The true fist of the Madakaros empire.
Cultivators who had reached at least the Void Shattering realm, beings of immense power who had left planets like Earth far behind in their cosmic conquests.
If even one such entity returned…
"You believe Maka Legionnaires are on Earth?" he asked, his mind racing through the implications.
In his previous timeline, such high-level incursions hadn't occurred until much later, when humanity had become more than just a nuisance.
"We have… indications," Trinh said, her eyes never leaving his.
"Intercepted communications, unusual energy signatures detected near the deep space monitoring arrays. Nothing concrete enough to alert High Command and cause mass panic. But enough to concern certain… discreet departments." She paused.
"We believe a small scouting party, perhaps even a lone operative, may have slipped through our outer perimeter. Their objective is unknown. It could be reconnaissance. It could be an attempt to retrieve something… or someone. Or it could be something far worse."
Lâm Minh understood the gravity.
A single Void Shattering realm Madakaros could potentially lay waste to entire sectors of the ASEAN bloc before he could be stopped, if he could be stopped at all with Earth's current defenses.
"And how do I fit into this, Commander?" he asked.
"We need intelligence, Minh," Trinh said.
"Eyes and ears in places our regular operatives cannot easily go without raising suspicion. The Rust Market, the scavenger communities, the fringes of the alien-occupied zones. You have established a presence in these areas. People talk to you, or at least, around you."
"You want me to be a spy," Lâm Minh stated.
"An information asset," Trinh corrected smoothly.
"We need to know if there is any unusual activity, any whispers of high-powered Madakaros individuals operating outside their usual containment zones. Any strange technologies appearing. Any humans acting as their agents or collaborators at a higher level than the usual desperate informants."
Old Feng finally spoke. "Commander Trinh represents a… specialized branch of ASEAN Intelligence, Minh. One that operates outside the standard chain of command and deals with threats that are… unconventional."
"The pay will be substantial," Trinh added.
"Far more than your current arrangements. And you will have access to certain resources, information, even protection, should you require it. Consider it an investment in your… continued usefulness."
It was a dangerous proposition.
Becoming an informant for a shadowy intelligence agency, hunting for beings potentially far beyond his current ability to handle, was a swift way to get killed.
But it also offered unparalleled opportunities.
Access to classified intelligence, resources, and potentially, a way to understand the bigger picture of the war, something he desperately needed.
And there was another, more personal angle.
If the Maka Legion was already sniffing around Earth, it meant the timeline was accelerating, or diverging significantly.
He needed to know why.
"What kind of resources?" Lâm Minh asked.
"Information, primarily," Trinh said.
"Specific intelligence briefings relevant to your assignments. Access to certain restricted databases, under supervision. Occasionally, specialized equipment, if the situation warrants. And, if you prove truly valuable… perhaps even opportunities for… advanced training." Her eyes held a knowing glint.
Lâm Minh knew "advanced training" was likely a euphemism for access to the military's own fledgling, and largely unsuccessful, human cultivation research or Awakened programs.
Still, any advantage was an advantage.
"And if I refuse?"
Commander Trinh smiled, a thin, humorless expression.
"Then we will respect your decision. And Old Feng will likely find his supply lines for certain… imported goods… becoming significantly more complicated. And your activities in the Rust Market might attract a different kind of official attention."
It was a veiled threat, delivered with polite precision.
He was being recruited, whether he liked it or not. But the offer was also genuinely enticing.
Lâm Minh looked at Old Feng and Yan.
They both gave him infinitesimal nods.
They were already in this, whether by choice or coercion.
He turned back to Commander Trinh. "What's the first assignment?"
A flicker of satisfaction crossed Trinh's stern features.
"We have reports of a new, highly potent narcotic appearing in the lower sectors, particularly around the Rust Market. It's called 'Crimson Dream.' Users experience intense euphoria, followed by extreme aggression and paranoia. Some exhibit temporary, erratic bursts of enhanced strength. The worrying part? Its chemical signature has trace elements consistent with Madakaros bio-compounds, but altered, refined."
"You think it's alien-derived, or even distributed by them?" Lâm Minh asked.
"That's what we need to find out," Trinh said.
"Its origin, its distribution network, who is behind it. And if it has any connection to our… uninvited off-world guests. Your first task, Minh, is to learn everything you can about Crimson Dream. Infiltrate, observe, report. Do not engage directly unless absolutely necessary and you are certain of success. Your primary role is intelligence gathering."
She slid a small, encrypted data chip across the counter.
"This contains more detailed preliminary information, contact protocols, and emergency codes. Study it. Destroy it after memorization."
Lâm Minh took the chip.
His mind was already processing.
A new drug, Madakaros links, potential super-strength effects… this was complex and dangerous.
"I'll need resources for this," he said.
"Credits for bribes, for buying samples, for smoothing entry into certain circles."
"Feng will provide you with an initial operational fund," Trinh said, glancing at the old merchant.
Feng nodded curtly. "Report your findings directly to Yan. He will be your primary point of contact with me. Do not attempt to contact me directly unless it is a dire emergency using the codes provided."
The meeting concluded.
Lâm Minh left the Sleeping Dragon's den with the data chip, a hefty sum of credits from Feng for "operational expenses," and a heavy weight of responsibility.
He was no longer just a scavenger and a budding cultivator.
He was now an unwilling, yet invested, intelligence asset in a shadow war against an enemy far more powerful than he had ever faced directly.
As he walked through the darkened streets of Hanoi, the implications of the Maka Legion's potential presence on Earth gnawed at him.
This changed the stakes entirely.
The slow, grinding war of attrition he remembered was one thing. A direct intervention by cosmic-level cultivators was another.
He needed to get stronger, faster.
And he needed information, desperately. This new role, however dangerous, might just provide it.
His first step: understand Crimson Dream. And that meant a deeper dive into the treacherous undercurrents of the Rust Market than ever before.