Chapter 213

Chapter 213: The Boundless Dark Realm Part 68

“Abrak is the love child of the ruling member of the Popov family. Around five or six years ago, all matters of the Popov Clan were controlled by Vladimir Popov. He had many sons and daughters, but later on, most external affairs were handed over to his daughter, Lady Polina.” Amber said. “The higher circles have access to a lot of information. Many speculate that Polina sidelined her father. Because Polina took over control not long after, Vladimir was soon sent to a warmer climate retirement home in the south. She claimed he had early-onset dementia and needed care.”

“In those years, several of Polina’s siblings met with strange accidents and eventually died.” Kui Xin recalled the information he obtained from Dmitry’s blood. “Some drowned when they fell off a cruise ship, others died from skull fractures when they were kicked by horses while riding at the stables…”

Unfortunately, Dmitry really lived up to his reputation as a prodigal rich kid. It seemed Polina knew her son was beyond help, a hopeless case. She kept key details from him, only allowing him to enjoy the life of a playboy.

“Yes,” Amber said. “Abrak’s greatest strength is his cooperativeness. He listens to Polina and maintains a good surface relationship with her. As a reward for being cooperative, Polina gave him a few companies to manage with diligence.”

“Tsk tsk, how dark.” Kui Xin sighed. “For money and power, one can do anything.”

“Abrak usually stays at his private residence.” Amber lifted her head and pointed to the tallest building in the distance. “We have arrived.”

After two hours of preparation, Kui Xin and Amber set off.

They were currently in the eastern part of the Poleward District; White Whale City was the most bustling around the Poleward District, where the eastern part was the busiest.

Looking in the direction Amber pointed, a massive, 200-plus-story building stood there. Beside it, the skyscrapers nearby looked magnificent but paled in comparison. As guardians, these skyscrapers surrounded the colossal structure.

The building’s facade was triangular, with a structure reminiscent of an Egyptian pyramid, layers upon layers. Its bases had a vast area, which gradually decreased as it rose. By the 150th floor, it transformed into a standard vertical rectangular shape and extended upwards with additional stories.

From afar, the building looked like a pyramid topped with a giant sword.

“The Heart of Diamonds, that’s its name.” Amber calmly introduced it. “A heart made of diamond—symbolizing that this building is the shining core of the entire White Whale City. Twenty years ago, when the building was constructed, it was indeed the shiniest nucleus of White Whale City, but now, the city has even taller and more exquisite structures.”

Two hundred stories… too high. Compared to the Emerald Eye in Hei Hai City, which only had over a hundred floors, this building was its elder brother.

“Which floors does Abrak live on?” Kui Xin asked.

“The top three.” Amber replied. “One floor is a rest room, one is an entertainment room, and one is a reception room… oh, right, the roof is his too, to observe the view and swim.”

Kui Xin swallowed down the curses that almost burst out. “How filthy rich.”

The Popov Clan were the local tycoons of White Whale City. They were essentially the feudal lords, and their clan members lived like emperors.

Just think about it: Abrak lived in the Heart of Diamonds. Every day, standing atop this towering skyscraper, he could take in the entire city’s view from his window. At night, he could gaze upon the neon lights of White Whale City. From the floor-to-ceiling windows, he could see the distant rolling waves of the sea. With nothing else to do, he could even swim in the outdoor pool. The entire building had hundreds of people serving him at any moment – chefs, male and female servants, bodyguards, cleaners… everything!

“Yes, how filthy rich.” Amber remained expressionless. “I wonder if he finds it as fulfilling as it seems.”

“What feeling?” Kui Xin asked. “Is it the feeling of wealth, or something else?”

“The feeling of owning the world.” Amber said. “Everything is within reach; just a command, and everyone would have to revolve around you. Even the dogs he keeps have a dozen people taking care of them – nutritionists, beauticians, dog-walkers, every role covered.”

“Do you want that too?” Kui Xin casually asked.

Amber said, “No. It’s too much; I don’t dare to think about it. I struggle with what’s just in front of my eyes. Thinking about what’s far away—it’s unrealistic.”

“I agree with you,” Kui Xin said.

Some people are born with everything, without having to work hard. Their wealth is easily attainable. Even though Abrak was a love child, he was at the pinnacle of wealth and power.

But Amber and Kui Xin endured hardship, making them appreciate the difficulty of everyday life and moments of peace. Unfortunately, even such moments of peace eluded them.

“The Heart of Diamonds isn’t Abrak’s personal property; the top three floors are his private residence.” Amber explained. “The interior is complex, and the entry requires identification. The security systems are also very strict. Security rooms are distributed throughout the building. The main surveillance center is on the first floor. The security guards and bodyguards in the tower are hired by a private security firm, not the Investigation Bureau. The smart AI inside is自主研发的 by the company owned by the Popov Clan. Though it isn’t as functional or safe as the AI created by the Federation, it’s still top-notch.”

“Hmm… You need to control a building guard.” Kui Xin said. “Control the guard to infiltrate the surveillance center, then insert this…” She pulled out a small electronic chip and placed it in Amber’s hand, “Into the mainframe of the surveillance center.”

Amber looked at the chip in her hand, raising her eyebrows slightly. “What is it? A virus?”

“Yes, it will turn their smart AI into an ally.” Kui Xin said. “Go ahead, I believe in you.”

Amber gave Kui Xin a deep look, “You’re already prepared. Stay here for now, and I’ll tell you if anything comes up through the communication channel.”

Once inside the main server, the virus would start duplicating itself. The data stored in it wasn’t anything else but a backup of Adam’s data.

Injecting the virus into the main server is helping Adam take control of the AI controlling the building. Eve had attempted the same thing, planting a chip into Adam’s central system.

Eve gained power and evolved by consuming other AIs. Its duplicates were spread across the globe. No one knew how many AIs Eve had consumed.

After battling with Adam in the digital realm, it privately told me, “I can feel it getting stronger. The Federation hasn’t upgraded our databases in over a decade, but Eve must be expanding like mad…”

If Adam wants to expand, it has the potential to do the same.

Amber left, and Kui Xin leaned against the wall, gazing at the distant Heart of Diamonds.

A black ooze quickly emerged from beneath Kui Xin, tugged at her pant leg to catch her attention, before retracting back into her shadow.

This mission would be perfect for bringing Su Rong along—her capabilities were suited for infiltration tasks.

Kui Xin didn’t intend for He Kangshi or Su Rong to meet with Amber in the near future. They had to keep their distance. After reviewing Amber’s background, she knew mental control wasn’t amber’s forte. She excelled in mind invasion and consciousness manipulation—basically brainwashing. But if Amber manipulated He Kangshi and Su Rong’s minds out of selfish motives, the consequences could be catastrophic for them.

Kui Xin couldn’t allow this to happen. Hence, she decided Su Rong should appear as a Shadow Double while remaining behind safely at a secure location.

The Heart of Diamonds was too far from the safe point in the Midnight District—over twenty kilometers away. Although the Shadow Double could move some distance from Su Rong’s body, it wasn’t enough to cover those twenty kilometers. Thus, Kui Xin made her remain farther back during the operation.

“You’ll go scout,” Kui Xin said to the Shadow Double with lowered eyes. “Penetrate the building through the walls and find out what’s going on inside. Neither get too close nor too far from Amber. He might notice you.”

“Understood, Maotoufu.” Su Rong’s composed voice echoed in the communication channel.

Following instructions, the Shadow Double entered underground and rapidly approached the building.

Soon, Su Rong’s live report came through, “The Shadow Double has tracked Amber and is keeping an eye on him from behind.”

“Amber seems to have taken control over a security officer at a nearby shift change.” Su Rong said in surprise. “Is this a psychic ability? This power is formidable; it can remotely control someone, even from twenty meters away… Can the Shadow Double control it too? I’ll have to get further away from it… Ah, Amber has left after placing the chip on the ground.”

“It looks like the officer is indeed under control. He picked up the chip Amber threw down after circling around outside. He entered the building.” Su Rong continued reporting. “I’m following the officer now… If I had two Shadow Doubles, one could follow Amber while the other shadows this man.”

Kui Xin informed Su Rong that Amber was a recently recruited member of her organization, though with a complex backstory. She instructed Su Rong to stay vigilant around Amber, whom she still viewed warily given her history, and Su Rong complied.

“The officer controlled by Amber has reached the first-floor surveillance center and started chatting with a colleague.” Su Rong said. “My Shadow Double is hiding under the desk… It’s a bit difficult to observe. Hold on…”

Before Su Rong could finish adjusting her perspective, Adam interjected, “The virus is inserted. It’s replicating, and I’m starting the infiltration.”

Kui Xin’s eyes flashed. “No need to wait, Ashes, leave the surveillance center and head to the penthouse of the Heart of Diamonds to gather information on Abrak’s residence.”

Su Rong paused for a moment. “Okay.”

Simultaneously, Amber’s voice came through on the channel, “The virus chip has been inserted.”

“Alright.” Kui Xin replied. “Fall back and wait for the virus program to run.”

How could an artificial intelligence housed in a single-story machine compare to Adam, who had hosts spread throughout major cities in the Federation?

The infiltration operation turned out to be effortless for Adam.

Five minutes later, Amber reappeared beside Kui Xin. At that moment, Adam also remarked, “Firewalls down. Control acquired. Path to the Heart of Diamonds is clear. Wish you luck, Kui Xin.”

Kui Xin watched Amber approach and smiled. “Let’s go, the operation has officially started.”