"Codebook, codebook..."

Yan Luo was rummaging through the house, trying to find the codebook left by his parents.

It's been almost nine years since his parents passed away, and many things in the house have changed places. Yan Luo couldn't remember where he had placed the codebook before.

After searching almost the entire house, Yan Luo finally found the codebook in a miscellaneous box on top of the wardrobe.

As he flipped through the paper codebook, Yan Luo simultaneously deciphered the email content.

It was an exhausting task; Yan Luo spent a full seven hours translating the email content into readable text.

Thankfully, Yan Luo became familiar with the ciphertext's pattern, or it could have taken even longer.

'Xiaoluo, very few hunters use ciphers now, but more than a decade ago, it was common among hunters to leave messages in the Abyss using ciphers. Hunters from the same exploration town would track demons based on the information left. If you want to become a hunter in the future, you don't have to study it too deeply, just have a rough understanding of such things.'

Sitting at the desk, Yan Luo seemed to hear his father's voice in his ear, though the face in his memory was now blurred.

He picked up a toppled photo to take a glance, committing the image of his parents to memory once more, and then shifted his gaze to the email he had just deciphered.

[Xiaoluo, this is Wen Chongwu. You might not remember my name, but you should remember 'Uncle Wen,' who used to play with you as a child. Long story short, it's been many years since your parents died, and I never visited their graves or visited you. I'm deeply sorry; I've been on the wanted list all these years. Entering human settlements would lead to my exposure, so please forgive Uncle Wen.]

[Over the years, you might have become a hunter or engaged in a related field, or maybe you're in college? No matter what, you've grown up and deserve to know some truths. This email is a scheduled email. Sending it in real-time worried me that they might trace it back to you, so it had to sit on the server for a few years.]

[There was something wrong with the demon tide that caused your parents' deaths; it was actually a conspiracy. Only some hunters involved in the tide knew why we were defeated; most people were kept in the dark. I've been tracking the truth behind this for years and almost lost my life, but due to that near-fatal crisis, I discovered some evidence.]

[Xiaoluo, listen carefully: the ones responsible for your parents' deaths were the 'Abyssal Believers.' They used a device to interfere with the engraving's operation, causing the hunters at the front line to collapse instantly, triggering the massive defeat. Their purpose was simple: to sacrifice hunters' blood to worship the Abyss! Don't try to understand the Abyssal Believers' thoughts or why they're doing this; they're all maniacs!]

[When you read this email, I may be dead or still hiding somewhere. But regardless, I'll leave something for you at Lingquan Bank under your mother's name. The retrieval password is your name in uppercase, followed by your father's birth year, your mother's birth date, and your current age. Be careful, because you might be watched when you go to retrieve it. If you're not strong enough, wait until you are before taking what I left for you.]

[—Wen Chongwu, left in 2112.]

After reading this email, Yan Luo lowered his eyelids and rubbed his brows.

First, there's a question — is the sender or writer of this email really Wen Chongwu?

The term 'Abyssal Believers' is understood as 'worshippers of the Abyss,' but do such things really exist?

Yan Luo, skeptical and cautious, did not immediately believe the words in the email, but he still speculated based on its content.

If the sender of the email is Wen Chongwu, then Wen Chongwu likely wanted to tell him something; if the sender isn't Wen Chongwu, then there's a possibility Wen Chongwu might still be alive, investigating the truth behind the demon tide from nine years ago. His actions made the perpetrators angry, so they wanted to use Yan Luo to lure him out.

If the Abyssal Believers truly exist, how powerful are they?

After pondering for a moment, Yan Luo stood up, casually deleted the deciphered email, and walked out the door.

Upon entering Lingquan City, he left his exoskeleton and weapons at the checkpoint. But with his current physical abilities, he possesses formidable combat power even without the exoskeleton.

The elevator descended, outside the passing light and shadow turned into vertical lines, seemingly dropping Yan Luo to the ground in an instant.

The motorcycle, informed of Yan Luo's arrival, rolled up to the front of the apartment building. Yan Luo swung onto it and revved the throttle, setting off directly.

The motorcycle blended into the flow of vehicles streaming across the ground, heading toward the headquarters of Lingquan Bank.

Darting through several boroughs, Yan Luo stopped in the circular core of Lingquan City, turning his head to gaze at the opulent building.

A red carpet spread over the marble ground, absorbing the sounds of footsteps like a shoal of people packed at the bank's entrance, reminiscent of a shoal of sardines seen in old documentaries.

Getting off the bike, Yan Luo let it find its way to the parking lot, as he, wearing long boots, tread on the carpet, following the crowd into the spacious yet noisy hall.

Inside the bank, a pop-up appeared before Yan Luo's eyes for business transactions. He selected 'Safe Deposit Box Retrieval,' and a cursor guided him toward the vault.

Through the side door of the hall, the scanning equipment installed at the entrance identified Yan Luo's identity.

Yan Luo arrived at a spacious waiting area, where some others, like him, were waiting to retrieve or deposit items, not far from the vault entrance.

A moment later, a male clerk approached with a smile and asked, "Mr. Yan, you don't have any deposited items in our bank. May I ask whose items you are here to retrieve?"

"My mom's," Yan Luo replied. "Her name is Liu Ti."

Upon hearing this, the male clerk immediately located a related entry.

"Ms. Liu does indeed have an item deposited here, but we'll need you to provide the password."

As the male clerk spoke, a pop-up appeared on Yan Luo's head-up display, prompting him to input the password.

Yan Luo did not input the password immediately; instead, he activated Lingquan Bank's verification program to check the authenticity of the pop-up.

Beep beep beep!

The head-up display instantly sent out an alarm. The smile on the face of the male clerk changed abruptly as he tried to turn and run, but was far too slow compared to Yan Luo.

As the male clerk turned, Yan Luo reached out to press his shoulder, holding him in place, unable to move.

The clients waiting to retrieve or deposit items were startled at Yan Luo's sudden action against the clerk. Their minds went blank.

The city is immensely safe, with even fighting incidents occurring rarely. Many people have never witnessed a brawl firsthand in their lives.

What's going on here?

Clang clang clang!

Security mechs, bearing riot guns, rushed into the vault waiting area, immediately spotting Yan Luo pinning down a person dressed in a clerk's uniform.

[Please surrender!]

The security mechs moved toward Yan Luo, but their guns were not aimed at him, instead focusing on the male clerk restrained by Yan Luo.

Being mechanical, the security isn't influenced by visual factors; it can discern who triggered the alarm.

Yan Luo is a bank client, while the individual he pinned down is a lawbreaker who sent Yan Luo a counterfeit password prompt.

The mech handcuffed the male clerk and took him away; next, he would be sent to the police station for a thorough investigation of his illegal conduct.

Watching the male clerk being taken away, Yan Luo found a place to sit down.

Services require queueing. There were still some clients ahead, yet that clerk had bypassed them to approach him, proof of being an imposter.

However, just arriving at the bank, he was immediately targeted?

That guy shouldn't be a real clerk, probably a masquerader wearing a clerk's uniform trying to steal the password.

Otherwise, would the Abyssal Believers plant someone as a clerk just to wait for his arrival?

If they had such power, why not simply find a way to directly take the contents from the safe deposit box?

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