This time, setting sail wasn’t just for fun. The Eternal Night Queen wasn’t only playing hard to get with a certain goddess—she was here to inspect the progress the Holdings Group had made lately.
And the newly assembled armed forces were the first item on the checklist. Eternal Night Holdings Group, while boasting a huge force of Chosen Ones, still needed conventional firepower. Only by blending supernatural strength with standard military muscle could they reach their full potential.
These firearms, just like the Atlas Titan Cannon, were the latest products from Eternal Night Technologies—a first step toward future war machines. Shirley Xiao had installed a detection device at the top of the yacht; this high-performance gadget could track every target in detail and instantly send results to the data terminal.
The yacht sped along, looking like a medieval warship locked in a naval battle, firing off all sorts of flying targets to both sides. Each woman picked her favorite comfy spot and kept blasting those targets to bits. Some went wild with rapid-fire barrages, some suppressed with mid-range bursts, and some took up sniper rifles, quiet until their jaw-dropping shots.
Jill Young casually took the tablet handed over by the girl with glasses. On it was a data chart labeled "Black Rose." The chart showed each woman’s name and photo, and the “kill score” column was updating like crazy. They were neck and neck, leapfrogging each other—a unique competition training method inspired by The Reliable Adventure.
Pop pop pop! The flying targets exploded into a rainbow of confetti, drifting down into the sea like snowflakes.
By the way, those flying targets were made from eco-friendly materials—another win for Eternal Night Technologies. Not only are they biodegradable, you can even eat them. And thanks to a certain someone’s request, they actually taste pretty good.
The yellow ones—orange flavor.
The purple ones—grape flavor.
The green ones—apple flavor.
Alright, this tastes just like Fanta, honestly. So this trip out to sea might look like a smoky, trigger-happy shooting spree, but at its core, it’s no different from tossing rice dumplings into the Miluo River for luck, or, you know, forum folks on Baidu Tieba hurling seed links into the threads for the greater good. It’s all about public service, really.
"I’m basically an eco-hero, huh." Jill Young grabbed a starfish-shaped clay pigeon, popped it into her mouth, and munched away: "Hmm, still a bit undercooked, but definitely better than last time." No one could tell if she was critiquing Black Rose’s skills or the flavor of the clay pigeons.
Gotta check everything, can’t leave anything out—there’s a lot to review. Firepower is just one part of the equation. The days when you could defend the country with guns alone are long gone. Now, "security" covers way more: physical safety, financial security, and information security. Miss any one of those, and you’re toast.
Physical security—no need to explain. Financial security? Eternal Night Holdings Group already has its own bank, handling all internal funds and pulling in outside resources too. Plus, with the Brain of Operations running things behind the scenes, it’s way more reliable than the stock market. So, no worries there.
But the weak spot? Information security. In the digital age, keeping your data safe is the real MVP—it’s the backbone of efficient work. If you’re constantly worrying about eavesdroppers or someone swiping files off your hard drive, how are you supposed to get anything done?
Jill Young actually gave a whole speech about this once.
"You snap a photo and, before you know it, it’s already being whisked away to some weird data array for secret analysis. I post something online—carefully worded, mind you, to avoid hurting anyone’s fragile feelings—and boom, next second someone’s at my front door. Who can live like that? I sure can’t! So—" Jill Young slammed her hand on the board and declared, "We need our own info-security system, pronto! Non-negotiable!"
During this time, Jonathan went all-in tackling the problem and made serious progress. Building a fully independent info network is a huge ask—no way it’s done overnight. But encrypting messages with some special tricks? That’s doable, and it makes cracking or tracking way tougher.
"Let’s give it a shot." Jill Young whipped out her phone and dialed a number. Signal issues at sea? Please. The boss’s phone is in a league of its own.
Beep—beep—beep—click. The call connected.
On the other end of the line came a long-lost voice, surprised and delighted: "Is that you, Your Majesty? You finally remembered to call me!"
It was blazing sunshine in Hong Kong, but if you kept heading west—way out into the sand-blasted desert—it was still the darkest hour before dawn. In a border outpost, a squad of elite soldiers was stationed, and in the commander's office, a woman who’d long mastered the art of early mornings grinned at her phone: "You always text or email, so what’s up with the rare phone call? Honestly, it’s been so long since I heard your voice, I almost missed it."
This blonde beauty was none other than Jill Young’s oldest friend—special forces legend Fran Adler!
Back in the day, Jill wasn’t nearly this strong. She got caught up in a nasty scheme and ended up trapped with Fran, Beatrice Bliss, and the blind girl Nina—four of them, all stuck in SD’s clutches, practically being auctioned off like cast members from "Friends" at a sketchy company retreat. But they fought their way out together, wrecked the whole villain’s lair, and that battle sealed their friendship for life—real ride-or-die stuff.
Things got busy after that, but Jill and her besties never lost touch. At first, Jill was always on the move and hadn’t figured out voice-changing tech yet, so she stuck to texting. Later, with everyone scattered across the globe and time zones all over the place, texting was just way easier than calling.
(This chapter isn’t over yet ^.^, click ‘Next Page’ to keep reading!)
Plus, with a battlefield medic and a special forces legend in the group, you never know what kind of chaos they’re facing. Imagine getting a call in the middle of a crisis, like in the movies—dodging bullets, prepping an ambush, or running for your life—and suddenly, your ringtone goes off. Total disaster. So email became the norm, and even texts got rare.
But today, hearing an old friend’s voice? That’s just the best.
"Mwah mwah mwah! Miss you guys so much!" Gunfire crackled all around, but Jill Young ignored the chaos and beamed into the phone: "Been dying to call you!"
"Sounds like things are pretty lively over there." Fran Adler picked out the gunfire in the background and asked, "Doesn’t sound familiar—are those new models?"
"Eternal Night Tech—changing your life. With Tianyi, just GO!"
"You never miss a chance to plug your own brand, do you, boss? But hey, it sounds pretty cool. Set me up with a couple to try sometime—if it’s as good as you say, I might even hook you up with some buyers."
"Oho, listen to you—you sound like you’ve got another promotion! Weren’t you the youngest major before? Don’t tell me you’re the youngest lieutenant colonel now?"
Fran hesitated for a second, then, ignoring all those secrecy rules, admitted, "Wild guess, but you nailed it—I’m officially Lieutenant Colonel Fran now."
"Whoa!" Fran wasn’t a Chosen One, just a regular human, so that promotion speed was next-level. Jill Young shot upright, genuinely surprised: "How’d you climb the ranks so fast? Something weird going on? You didn’t get sucked into some bizarre incident, did you?"
"Nope—well, sort of nope. Compared to you, nothing I run into even counts as ‘weird.’" Fran knew all about Jill’s situation. She wandered over to the window, looking out at the pitch-black desert, her voice dropping: "I’m just on a special, tough assignment. There’s a bit of drama, sure, but nothing I can’t handle."
Jill Young frowned. "Need a hand? There’s not much I can’t handle these days—just say the word."
"No need to stress, it’s not a war or anything. The big shots are duking it out behind the scenes—I’m just babysitting the place. It’s dull, sure, but once I stick it out a bit longer, I’ll come home a hero. Lieutenant Colonel Fran will be Colonel Fran, and hey, I won’t have to salute everyone I meet!"
"Glad to hear it." Jill Young relaxed, then joked, "So, what if I tried to tempt you into quitting your glorious military career and becoming a professional slacker—what would you say?"
Fran shot back, "Quit? Sure, why not! I’m sick of all the saluting anyway. Plus, those soldiers keep trying to hit on me, and I’ve had more than enough of that."
"Heh." Jill Young chuckled, then got a little more serious: "Sis, the world’s about to get messy. You’ve got a bright future ahead, but I still want you with me."
"Bright future? Not so sure. Youngest lieutenant colonel doesn’t always mean a golden ticket." The wind whipped sand against the glass, making the outpost feel even lonelier. Fran Adler’s green eyes stared into the darkness, resolute: "Better to run with you than get sucked into some messed-up political game."
"Hey, you sure about that?"
"Nothing holding me back, so why not? Besides, anything’s better than being an international mercenary." Fran glanced at the construction site outside, watching the crews work nonstop. "Give me a little more time—once I’ve done my duty, I’ll come find you."
"Deal!"
Beep—the call ended. Jill Young sprawled out on her beach chair, refreshed. Black Rose’s leader was sorted—next up, she needed a boss for Magnolia. She dialed another number, pressed the phone to her ear: "Hey, Bibi darling—yep, it’s me! You figured it out that fast? Guess you really do think about me day and night, huh? Hahaha~~"
Just then, Liu Xiaoying, fiddling with her telephoto lens, frowned at a photo she’d just snapped—a stubborn speck of light wouldn’t go away. Glare? Didn’t look like it. Something weird? Liu Xiaoying glanced up, saw nothing unusual. Whatever, better safe than sorry—time for another shot.
She raised her camera, adjusted the aperture, and got ready for another photo. But as soon as she looked through the viewfinder, everything changed. Where the sky had been empty, a streak of light shot closer—like a meteor, heading straight for them. Zooming in, she saw a woman with wings soaring through the air, face twisted in a fierce scowl. Definitely not here for a friendly chat.
Liu Xiaoying’s jaw dropped—was that... was that an angel?!
She wanted to shout a warning, but the winged woman glanced her way and locked eyes with her. In that instant, Liu Xiaoying went blank, totally stunned—the warning stuck in her throat.
A "ding-ling" sounded—the Icebell Sword rang out. Rachel Luo, meditating on deck, snapped her eyes open and scanned the area. As soon as she did, a beam of starlight shot down from above, landing with a flash. Starbursts and shimmering light radiated everywhere, the sheer presence was dizzying.
But none of that fazed Jill Young.
"Got a little situation here—catch you later!" Jill Young blew a kiss into the phone: "Mwah~~ Love ya!"
Heavy breathing echoed from within the light.