Zhao Zhenhuai contemplated his current situation: Deputy Director of Division 745—a respectable position with a good income and considerable status. His child had just come to Capital Star for school and needed his nearby care. His wife was about to be transferred here as well. If he resigned impulsively, everything would be ruined. He gave Chen Gu a deep look and silently got into the car.

Chen Gu even felt some sympathy for Zhao Zhenhuai. He recalled a popular saying from his previous life: in the workplace, you can't bully newcomers because they might resign on a whim. They have little to lose and can just walk away. But you can exploit middle-aged workers at will; they carry too many burdens to dare risk resigning.

He said to Zhao Zhenhuai earnestly, "You know very well what happened between us and who started it. But now that things have reached this point, you've paid a price. Focus on your work from now on. Don't resort to those underhanded tactics anymore. You still have a bright future ahead of you."

However pitiable Zhao Zhenhuai was now, he had been just as detestable back then. Even if his competition with Chen Jixian had been fair and square, Chen Gu wouldn't have deliberately targeted him. He had truly brought this upon himself. It was just as the famous line goes: You have to pay back what you owe sooner or later.

Zhan Cunshan sat to the side, looking straight ahead as if he hadn't heard anything. But the flames of gossip burned brightly within him. Zhao Zhenhuai, you old fox! To think you'd use despicable methods against such a young tactical genius, someone anyone could see had a brilliant future? Are you out of your mind? At the same time, Zhan Cunshan's mind grew active. Does this mean that if I work hard, I have a good chance of replacing Zhao Zhenhuai and becoming second-in-command at the Director's research institute?

Chen Gu's youth certainly shocked the entire research institute. However, the researchers were all tech nerds; it was just a moment of surprise, perhaps mixed with a little dissatisfaction.

The situation thereafter grew quite chaotic. The researchers had finally met the Director in person, and they bombarded him with tactical questions. They had to seize this opportunity. Given the Director's usual behavior, who knew when the next chance would come?

Chen Gu, channeling Griffin Wester's memories, handled these questions effortlessly. However, Wester's eccentricities seemed to have rubbed off on him. He found fault with everything and cursed freely, reprimanding the researchers as if they were errant children. Yet, precisely because his tactical insights were often spot-on, the researchers, despite being thoroughly berated, found themselves unusually convinced.

Before they knew it, this "exchange" continued until the end of the workday. The researchers were still reluctant to stop when Zhan Cunshan stepped in. "Alright, that's it for today. Let the Director rest. There will be other opportunities." Only then did the researchers sullenly disperse.

However, from that day's exchanges, Chen Gu identified a few promising individuals. He gathered these individuals, formed a research group, and tossed them the Mecha tactics research project, saying, "Work on this for now. Contact me if you encounter any issues."

Then, the young Director left his domain amidst the researchers' eager farewells.

Dr. Meng Ji had completed all the new test items he could think of, but they seemed to offer no help to his research. This made him scratch his head in frustration. For the time being, he had no better solution, so he had to let Chen Gu off the hook temporarily.

Today, Chen Gu finally received his car—it had just been shipped from Empire River Star. In this regard, the Bureau of Mystic Security's efficiency was hardly praiseworthy.

He went to the Dimensional Cage to visit the Combat Rooster. The Combat Rooster had always been kept at the Bureau's headquarters. During Chen Gu's time back on Empire River Star, it had nearly staged a rebellion. Since his return, Chen Gu had frequently visited to appease it, feeding it and taking it out for walks, much like one would a dog.

This creature had been growing wildly recently, reaching a length of thirty meters and increasingly showing signs of evolving into a Super Life Form. Inside the Bureau's headquarters, an entire floor had been cleared out specifically for researching these colossal beasts and had been converted into a natural habitat. This was also one of the Bureau's projects: an attempt to tame these colossal beasts to enhance the Bureau's combat capabilities. This floor at the Bureau headquarters served merely as a preliminary research site; the actual research base was on a desolate planet far, far away.

The expert in charge of this project was Dr. Obayan. He maintained a low profile and wasn't as famous as Dr. Meng Ji, but his status within the Bureau was by no means inferior. He was stationed at the research base year-round, leaving a group of his graduate students to manage things at the headquarters.

These graduate students had seen all sorts of enormous creatures—behemoths hundreds of meters long, even complete remains of Super Life Forms. Yet, whenever Chen Gu took the Combat Rooster out for a stroll, all the researchers kept their distance. They had never seen a living creature with such incredible offensive power, capable of easily wrecking various containment devices. If they got too close while the creature was in a bad mood, they could lose their lives. They weren't Professionals and lacked such formidable vitality.

Chen Gu was also vexed about how to handle the Combat Rooster. It had grown increasingly irritable and was only somewhat docile when by his side. However, its immense size made it impossible to keep with him at all times. Today, after "walking the dog," he returned the Combat Rooster to the Dimensional Cage. The Combat Rooster was reluctant, nuzzling against Chen Gu, clearly unwilling to part.

Chen Gu made all sorts of promises – "I'll bring you something tasty tomorrow," "We'll play five more minutes next time," "I'll find you a mate soon" – and finally coaxed the Combat Rooster inside.

A middle-aged researcher, seeing the Combat Rooster was safely inside, cautiously approached. "There's some news—it might be good news for you. The team responsible for the Dimensional Cage has made some breakthroughs recently. They're hopeful about miniaturizing it, which means you could carry the Combat Rooster with you."

Chen Gu smiled, relieved. "Thank you for telling me."

Then, Chen Gu left the Bureau headquarters and drove to the spaceport to pick up Griffin. Griffin's company headquarters was actually on Capital Star. That was the true center of his career. But Chen Gu still took the initiative to pick him up.

Man Suling had indeed come along. Both were wearing sunglasses and were disguised to avoid causing a stir. Once they were in Chen Gu's car, Man Suling cheered, discarded all her disguise, and sprawled on a seat, sniffing eagerly in Chen Gu's direction. She looked utterly blissed out.

Griffin coughed repeatedly. "Mind your image! You're supposed to be a future diva!"

Man Suling paid him no mind. Chen Gu smells amazing!

Griffin turned to Chen Gu with a serious expression. "Alright, out with it. Why did you ask for me? You wouldn't come all this way to pick me up for no reason. Gratuitous offers ring with hints of deceit."

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