TIC 88

 Chapter 88

This is a complex issue.

Infiltrating an enemy's mind implies that one becomes merely the *object* of thought, while the other party remains the *subject*. The subject of thought possesses significantly greater constructive and controlling capabilities than the object; consequently, the likelihood of the object being annihilated—or even sustaining neuronal damage—is far higher than that of the subject. For instance, years ago, when Hein and Shen Bing entered the mind of Lieutenant General Renodin, Shen Bing suffered such severe repercussions that, to this day, he remains unable to access anyone else's subconscious ever again.

For the subject of thought, should an enemy intrusion occur—and if the defensive countermeasures prove inadequate—the intruder would not merely extract vital information; they could go so far as to disrupt the subject's very patterns of thought, inflicting unpredictable and lasting damage. A case in point occurred years ago, when Xiao Yan was piloting a spacecraft alone and fell victim to an intrusion by a "Blocker"; in his desperate bid to trap the intruder's mind, he inadvertently trapped himself within his own subconscious as well.

Xiao Yan furrowed his brows, lost in deep contemplation.

Observing his earnest demeanor, Major General Hiti chuckled softly. "I am pleased that you didn't offer me a hasty, knee-jerk answer."

As Major General Hiti took a sip of his coffee, Xiao Yan subconsciously raised his own cup and took a tentative sip as well.

"It's so bitter!"

Compared to coffee, Xiao Yan was now absolutely certain: he much preferred black tea. "Haha!" Hiti was amused by his expression, and the heavy atmosphere instantly lightened. "While coffee suits me perfectly, it might not necessarily suit you."

"...So, it’s just like coffee—everyone reacts to it differently. I possess a neural processing speed of three thousand gigahertz; when I think, no one can keep up with me—not even the most seasoned Blocker, unless they are at least as fast as I am! My brain is my dominion; within it, I can construct anything I desire. Therefore, for me, luring an enemy into my mind—especially one possessing high-speed cognitive abilities—actually places me at a distinct advantage."

Hiti leaned back against her chair and met Xiao Yan’s gaze. "I cannot judge whether your ideas are right or wrong, for the validity of such concepts can only be proven through your own execution. All I can offer you are the methods. The first lesson I am teaching you today is not about scattering your thoughts to prevent a Blocker from pinpointing information within your mind—Colonel Burton has already covered that with you. What I intend to teach you is how to lure a powerful cognitive entity into your subconscious, thereby turning the tables and seizing control."

"The faster a person’s mind operates, the higher their vigilance! They could easily see through any trap I set!" Xiao Yan recalled his own life-and-death struggle against Valentine Sheen; had Casey not simultaneously breached Valentine’s mind, Xiao Yan likely would not have stood a chance of escaping with his life.

"Therefore, you need to remember only one thing: show your opponent exactly what they wish to see—grant them access to the very things they crave most, perhaps even the things they have spent their entire lives pursuing. That is the bait. Once they reach for more, they will automatically follow that bait deeper into the core of your mind. A true master compels their opponent to willingly succumb. At that point, you will not only be able to lock their consciousness within your own mind but also proceed to dissect and analyze it openly—exploring their most primal thoughts, unconstrained by morality or conventional logic."

Xiao Yan could not quite imagine what form this "bait" Hiti spoke of might take; yet, he understood one thing: constructing such bait required him to possess a certain level of insight into his intended target—otherwise, the lure would prove utterly ineffective. "Further words are futile." Major General Hiti clapped his hands; his adjutant entered, carrying two wireless terminals and a set of monitoring equipment. "I am going to enter your mind—to let you experience firsthand how I draw you into the depths of my own brain."

Xiao Yan was stunned. Did this mean Major General Hiti intended to enter *his* mind first, before guiding *his* consciousness into Hiti's own?

Major General Hiti had interrogated countless dangerous individuals; his mind, surely, must be a treacherous landscape rife with peril.

"Don't worry. You are my student; I won't let you end up as mere dust in the wind."

Hiti donned the terminal headset. Xiao Yan took a deep breath, sitting face-to-face with him; he watched as Hiti closed his eyes, appearing utterly relaxed.

The system's audio prompt—signaling the calibration of their neural links—sounded in his ears.

Xiao Yan exhaled slowly, calmly accepting the influx of Hiti's thoughts.

Hiti entered the "troposphere" of Xiao Yan's mind. His thoughts flowed in an endless stream—without a discernible beginning or end—intertwined and inseparable. Most astonishingly, Xiao Yan found absolutely no traces of Hiti's interrogation sessions here. Instead, he encountered only snippets of daily life: memories of Hiti and Aver playing bridge together—and how the two had conspired to make Gordon suffer a humiliating defeat; or instances of his adjutant committing yet another exasperatingly foolish blunder; or even details regarding his preferred blend of coffee. Hiti was, indeed, a true master of mental manipulation. When ordinary individuals intruded upon another's mind, their own stream of consciousness would inevitably—to varying degrees—bleed in memories of their daily routines. For Hiti, interrogation was merely his job; yet, he had successfully sequestered all such critical information, concealing it from view. Xiao Yan continued to peel back the layers of Hiti's consciousness, analyzing the structure of his thoughts—a process Hiti made no deliberate attempt to hinder. Just as Xiao Yan became fully immersed in the dissection of the other man's mind, an alarm blared overhead.

"Alert! Alert! Channel I node failure!"

"Alert! Alert! Channel J node failure!"

Xiao Yan’s fingers tightened their grip on the back of his chair. He instantly accessed the monitoring system, only to see a sudden swarm of "Level 3" entities appearing within the corridor; just outside the door, the Special Forces operatives were locked in a desperate, fierce battle for survival. What on earth was going on?! Could it be that the Tide still had spies embedded within the Special Task Force—spies who had leaked the news of his presence there?

Yet, he had left the Special Task Force less than an hour ago; surely the Tide’s operational response couldn't be *that* fast?

Major General Hiti’s voice rang out in his ear: "Cut the comms! Cut the comms! Follow me!"

"What’s going on?"

"What else *could* be going on? This is the Interrogation Unit, not the Special Task Force! Our personnel aren't exactly built for heavy combat!"

Xiao Yan was just about to slide open the door when Hiti stopped him.

"I know you think that just because you’re equipped with an X-2 unit, you can charge out there like some invincible hero! But this is the Interrogation Unit; I absolutely cannot let anything happen to you here! You *must* leave with me via the emergency exit!"

"Hein is right outside!"

Hiti raised his communicator and spoke to Hein on the other side of the door: "Colonel, let's meet at Point A!"

"Acknowledged."

With Hein’s confirmation, Xiao Yan finally felt reassured enough to follow Hiti toward the emergency exit.

Hiti pressed a button, and the floor beneath the office desk slowly slid open; Xiao Yan followed Hiti down into the opening.

The instant he stepped inside, a sudden sensation of weightlessness washed over him as he began to plummet. The light from above receded abruptly into the distance, and he plunged into a bottomless void—the sheer force of his rapid descent threatened to tear his body apart.

Hiti had vanished completely.

"Welcome to my mindscape, Major Xiao Yan."

Hiti’s voice echoed through the boundless void.

Xiao Yan finally understood: everything that had just transpired was merely an illusion Hiti had fabricated within his own mind. Hiti had used the Level 3 assault as bait; the so-called "emergency exit" was, in reality, a mental tether—a means by which he had successfully lured Xiao Yan deep into the confines of his own consciousness.

For the first time, Xiao Yan realized just how terrifying the world of the mind could be. He was ostensibly interpreting memories that Hiti had projected into his mind, yet Hiti had taken those memories and woven them into vivid, immersive scenarios—trapping Xiao Yan within them and blurring the very boundaries between Hiti’s thoughts and objective reality.

The boundless darkness slowly began to dissipate as light flooded back into Xiao Yan’s vision. The lingering scent of coffee still hung in the air... Had he returned to reality? “Terminate the link, Major.”

Xiao Yan took a deep breath and removed his terminal. At that moment, Cité sat with his legs crossed, leisurely raising his coffee cup to his lips.

His heart was still pounding wildly; the sensation of weightlessness he had experienced while plunging into Cité’s mind was something Xiao Yan would never forget.

“This is the ‘bait.’ No one can construct a scenario within another person’s mind that is entirely devoid of flaws. You harbored suspicions about everything I created for you, yet you chose not to expose it. In fact, the moment you opened that door, I was forced to craft everything with even greater caution—including the presence of Hein and the scene of the battle against the Level 3 entity. I am not intimately familiar with Hein in combat, and my understanding of Level 3s pales in comparison to yours. The more I constructed, the more flaws I risked exposing. Tell me, Xiao Yan: what have you learned from this lesson?”

“‘Inducement’ is, in essence, a flawless deception—a ruse in which you lure me, without resistance, into a trap you have laid. Therefore, the bait must be something I find impossible to refuse; furthermore, you must guide me with extreme care, avoiding the construction of overly complex information. For if I were to see through the illusion, I would immediately withdraw from your mind—and then, I would ruthlessly crush you within the confines of my own.”

Cité lowered his gaze and smiled.

“You performed admirably. Had it not been for my position, your vigilance would have been far sharper. However, because you regarded me as your mentor—approaching me with a preconceived sense of trust—it never once crossed your mind that this entire sequence of events was a trap I had meticulously laid. Listen, Major: if your enemy knows you well enough, they could even disguise themselves within your mind as someone you trust implicitly—someone like Colonel Burton, for instance. Of course, that remains purely theoretical; even I would be incapable of achieving such a feat within the confines of your brain. Oh my, the coffee has gone cold. Let us conclude for today; I shall see you at our next session.”

Xiao Yan glanced at the communicator on his wrist. The display indicated that he had been in Cité’s office for less than half an hour—yet in that brief span, the Major General had succeeded in sending a chill straight down his spine. “Thank you for your guidance. See you next class.”

Watching the retreating figure of Xiao Yan, Major General Cité lowered his head and pressed his fingers against his temples in exasperation.

“Good heavens, is there actually going to be a *next* class? An intervention speed of three hundred quadrillion... constructing a trap inside your brain nearly tortured every single one of my brain cells to death...”

The sliding door behind him closed. Xiao Yan stared blankly at Hein, who stood a short distance away—his posture as upright as ever, his handsome face devoid of desire. The liaison officer was just about to step forward to speak to Xiao Yan when, in two swift strides, Xiao Yan reached Hein, cupped his face in his hands, and kissed him fiercely.

It was a kiss of extreme force—rough, wild, and frenzied.

Hein did not immediately respond; he simply parted his lips slightly, allowing Xiao Yan to ravage his mouth at will. It was not until Xiao Yan’s hands left Hein’s face to grasp his shoulders—and the urgent kiss finally shed its undercurrent of anxiety to become something deeply earnest—that Hein finally ran his tongue along the side of Xiao Yan’s, slowly enveloping it in return.

Taking a deep breath, Xiao Yan ended the kiss with lingering reluctance, resting his forehead gently against Hein’s. “I’m sorry.”

“You never need to apologize for kissing me.”

Xiao Yan let out a soft chuckle. “Right—I forgot.”

“What happened?” Hein placed his hand against the back of Xiao Yan’s head. It was a simple gesture, yet the sensation of being sheltered and protected brought Xiao Yan an overwhelming sense of peace.

“Nothing much. Major General Cité merely chose to demonstrate his exceptional mental prowess to me. He succeeded in making me unable to distinguish between reality and illusion.”

“So you kissed me just to confirm that you are, in fact, back in reality.”

Xiao Yan let out a long breath. Perhaps, in this entire world, there truly was no one who understood him better than Hein Burton. His preferences, his anxieties, and even his deepest fears—this man saw them all with perfect clarity. “Yes, because I believe that no one could ever deceive me using your kiss.”

“Of course.”

In that moment, the tension lifted from Xiao Yan’s heart. With his hands tucked into the pockets of his military trousers, he strolled leisurely down the corridor with his head tilted back. Occasionally, he would turn to exchange a few words with Hein, yet every expression on his face radiated pure, unburdened joy.

“Hey—now that we’ve finally managed to get away from the Special Task Force, can we not rush back quite so soon?”

“You want steak and red wine.”

“No, I want to go to a strip club!”

“Steak only.”

“Don’t be such a stick-in-the-mud! You could put on a show for me—I swear I wouldn’t look at any other women or men!”

“Steak and red wine only, Major. That is an order.”

“...”

The liaison officer stared blankly as the pair walked away, noting that not a single one of the nearly full squad of Special Forces soldiers trailing behind them showed even a flicker of surprise at what had just transpired. After a long silence, the liaison officer murmured, “Was that really Colonel Burton just now?”

A week later, Xiao Yan officially submitted the formula for X-2 to the Central Academy of Sciences. The task of verifying this formula fell to Maya.

Once Maya successfully emerged from the sterile isolation chamber, the Central Academy of Sciences authorized the full-scale deployment of X-2 throughout the Special Task Force. Hein’s unit became the very first Special Task Force to be completely liberated from the grip of the X-virus, ushering in a new era of hope for all the Special Forces soldiers.

The Military News Center officially announced this development to the entire military command. Although the identity of the lead researcher was not explicitly disclosed, it was an open secret within the Special Task Force; whenever Xiao Yan walked from his quarters to the research lab, he was invariably greeted along the way by the soldiers rendering him the most solemn and respectful of military salutes. Lauren, who happened to be trailing behind Xiao Yan, witnessed this scene, rubbed his nose, and remarked, "I’ve never seen even Major General Gordon treated with such respect! Who was it that said Special Forces look down on technical personnel?"

Major General Gordon, approaching them from the opposite direction, overheard this comment and smiled. "Major Xiao Yan’s achievements extend far beyond just a specific virus; he has also broken down the barriers between different units. The military command is far more united now than it ever was before."

Maya, standing behind Gordon, feigned an expression of utter exhaustion and let out a heavy sigh. "During our most recent recruitment drive, the number of candidates actually surged to five times our usual volume! We’re an elite unit—we’re looking for guys who are exceptional in every respect! Just the sheer process of selecting them has been absolutely grueling, let alone the training we still have to put them through afterward!"

Lauren tilted his head in confusion. "Didn't you undergo the X-2 augmentation? How could you possibly get tired that easily? Besides, don't you have that combat simulation system now? Training them should be much easier than it used to be, shouldn't it?"

Major General Gordon froze for a moment, then burst into such uproarious laughter that his sides began to ache. Maya shot Lauren a look of utter exasperation. "Kid, do you really not realize I was actually paying Xiao Yan a compliment?"

Lauren gave a cool, dry "Oh." "I’m not you, am I? How was I supposed to know?"

Amused, Xiao Yan grabbed Lauren by the collar and steered him away. "Come on, kiddo. You’ve still got a mountain of data waiting to be processed!"

Back in the lab, it was abundantly clear that Lauren’s mind was anything but focused on his research. With his terminal still strapped to his wrist, he kept glancing at Xiao Yan, looking as if he had something to say but couldn't quite find the words. Xiao Yan, for his part, deliberately pretended not to notice the boy’s expectant gaze.

It was simply too entertaining!

Xiao Yan felt as though he were practically raising a pet.

After a long silence, Lauren finally couldn't hold back any longer.

"Do you know that tomorrow is the Federation’s Anniversary?"

"Mm-hmm."

"You’re definitely going to get an invitation to the military command’s gala dinner, right?" Lauren leaned in close—it was a rare sight to see the kid acting so... *subdued* in his presence.

"Mm-hmm," Xiao Yan replied, feigning total ignorance of what was running through the boy's mind.

"Can you take me along? I heard that at the gala, all the female officers will be wearing sexy evening gowns!"

*He really is just a young boy,* Xiao Yan thought to himself, inwardly roaring with laughter as he watched Lauren wear an expression of pure, blissful fantasy. “If you were a girl, I might actually invite you to be my date. But you’re a guy.” Xiao Yan pushed away the head Lauren had leaned in close.

“...That’s gender discrimination!”

“You should focus on doing the work currently in front of you. Fragment 1242 contains an error.”

Xiao Yan handed Lauren’s work back to him. It took Lauren nearly half an hour of re-examination to finally pinpoint the mistake; clutching his head, he grumbled, “What kind of brain do you actually have?! You managed to sniff out an error that subtle!”

“You ought to know that in the work we do, being off by a hair can lead to a mile-wide error.”

Xiao Yan’s tone was half-joking, devoid of any actual reproach, yet Lauren felt an inexplicable weight in his words and lowered his head.

Poking him lightly on the cheek, Xiao Yan’s mischievous streak surfaced once again.

“Alternatively, you could just ask Wynn to take you.”

Lauren’s eyes went wide as he looked up. “I’d never go with that guy! He’d definitely mess up my...”

"...mess up my hair! And then find an opportunity to make fun of me in front of everyone!"

Xiao Yan subconsciously envisioned that scene and suddenly felt that, actually, that wouldn't be so bad.

"Are you going with Colonel Burton?" Lauren suddenly asked.

Xiao Yan paused, suddenly realizing that he had never seen Hein dressed in formal evening wear. The guy had a lean, elegant physique and an exceptional aura; he would undoubtedly become the center of attention for everyone there.

"Not that you two could dance together anyway."

Lauren’s gloating voice made Xiao Yan nearly choke on his own saliva.

Xiao Yan’s research into X-2 had, for all intents and purposes, reached a conclusion; what he truly needed to devote his full efforts to now was Citi’s training on how to utilize his Blocker abilities.

When he arrived at Citi’s office once again, it was quite obvious that the Major General’s smile was somewhat strained.

"Major, have you come to join me for afternoon tea?"

Xiao Yan smiled as he took a seat across from him, speaking in a calm, unhurried manner: "You still haven't taught me how to successfully snipe an enemy *after* luring them into my mind."

"It’s actually the same principle as luring them in the first place. Trap your enemy in a place where they have nowhere to run; then, before they realize they’ve been confined, do whatever you wish." Citi pursed his lips and lightly tapped his finger in the air. "Actually, you remember this—Colonel Burton once did exactly this to you."

Xiao Yan froze, suddenly recalling how his consciousness had once been imprisoned by Hein within a body of Hein’s own creation—how he had been ruthlessly violated by Hein, who used that very method to force him to break free from that body.

Gasping sharply, Xiao Yan looked up at Citi. "So, when I use my own consciousness to imprison an opponent, I have to make them believe that everything they are experiencing is real."

"Or—even if it isn't real—that they would *prefer* to lose themselves in it."

Xiao Yan thought this over very seriously. "So, this time, will you let me enter *your* mind to give me a demonstration?"

"Haha," Citi laughed, tapping his own head. "Don't even think about it. I’ve already selected the perfect sparring partner for you."

"Who?" ”

Hiti raised her wrist and spoke into her communicator: “Colonel Burton, please come in.”

Xiao Yan looked at her in astonishment, but Hiti had already reverted to her stern demeanor.

“Major, remember what I told you: the key lies in this—when your opponent becomes trapped within your mind without realizing it, or willingly surrenders to it, that is when you win.”

Xiao Yan took a deep breath. To make him “unaware” or “willingly surrender”? That was no easy feat—after all, his opponent was Hein Burton!

Hein stepped up to stand before Xiao Yan and put on his neural interface terminal.

“Alright, to save time, let’s jump straight to the moment Colonel Burton enters the troposphere of your consciousness. I’m quite eager to find out if you truly possess the ability to trap Colonel Burton inside your own mind!”

Xiao Yan closed his eyes, striving to calm his thoughts. This was not the first time Hein had entered his mind, so there was no need for alarm.

He had committed all of this to memory for one sole purpose: to trap Hein.

Trap him... trap him... how am I going to pull this off?

At that very moment, Hein breached the outer perimeter of Xiao Yan’s mind and entered the troposphere of his consciousness.

Countless streams of data and fragmented memories surged toward Hein.

With a sudden, forceful thrust, he scattered them all, then—latching onto a specific memory of Xiao Yan’s—he conjured an alternate “reality.”

The scene from that day—the two of them sitting in a high-end restaurant, dining on steak—manifested once again. Naturally, Xiao Yan remembered every detail with perfect clarity. That guy, Hein, had actually booked out the entire restaurant; the special forces operatives who had escorted them from headquarters stood guard outside, leaving nothing but the gentle, languid flow of classical music to fill the space occupied by only the two of them.

“Hey—what are you doing dredging up *this* memory inside my head?” Xiao Yan leaned back against his chair with palpable impatience; the steak before him was identical to the one from that day—even the sound of Hein personally pouring red wine into his glass was replicated with flawless precision.

Xiao Yan felt an irksome sense of being upstaged.

Yet, when he raised his eyes and caught sight of Hein’s lowered gaze, he knew he was beholding a sight that had—and always would—effortlessly beguile him.

At some point, the special forces soldiers standing guard outside the restaurant had vanished, and the world fell silent. Xiao Yan gazed out through the glass window; the vibrant cityscape of Char seemed to float within the sea, shimmering and undulating in the mist.

Hein walked around behind Xiao Yan, wrapping his arm over the younger man’s shoulder to cut his steak into bite-sized pieces.

Xiao Yan lowered his head, watching the other man’s fingers. They were long and strong—so elegant, in fact, that one might easily overlook the sheer power and tenacity those hands possessed.

"Eat."

Hein’s voice drifted down from above; before Xiao Yan, the red wine in his glass rippled into a blurred semicircle, as if stirred by a caress.

Xiao Yan took the first bite of beef. He could not discern its flavor—or perhaps he simply lacked the presence of mind to savor it—for all his senses had been utterly captivated by the man standing behind him. Hein’s lips descended upon the crown of his head, grazed past the curve of his ear, and finally settled against his neck. Xiao Yan reached for his wine; the very moment he swallowed the rich, crimson liquid, Hein pressed a fierce, lingering kiss—a hickey—against the side of his neck. Xiao Yan’s shoulders tensed involuntarily. Although he knew that every sensation he felt was merely an illusion crafted by Hein—much like the countless times in the past when this man had invaded his mind—Xiao Yan found his own resistance to be utterly feeble and hollow.