Chapter 11
Just as Guangyu was escaping the first round of investigations, new pressures began to mount.
The Dark Root Council's latest order is more precise than the last one—
"Monitoring seed pods" were buried at the confluence of major waterways across the continent.
These seed pods are not natural seeds, but rather sensory sacs refined through deep root processing. They can capture every fluctuation of water flowing through this area and transform it into root pulse signals, which are then transmitted back to the dark root center in real time.
The End of the "Deaf Spot" Era
In the past, the underground flow of water veins was like a river shrouded in black mist—no one could see its course at all times.
However, once the seed pods are spread out, all changes in water flow rate, temperature difference, and pressure will be recorded instantly.
Any "human manipulation" will be detected immediately.
This means that once the dark web is launched, it will no longer be able to remain hidden as silently as before.
As 237 looked at the intelligence, he could even feel the tingling sensation of that cold needle piercing his back.
Seed pod laying
Intelligence indicates that the Dark Root forces are targeting three key waterways first:
The Northern Cold Vein: Flowing through the frozen root region, its water supply is thin but extremely stable, serving as the lifeline of the northern part of the continent.
Central Sand Vein: Traversing the arid salt valley, any change in flow will immediately affect the survival of the surrounding towns.
Southern Edge Tidal Vein: Extending directly to the southern part of the Light Domain, it is the core water reservoir and a key supply point for the Dark Web of the Light Domain.
Sprout 12 wrinkled the bean pod as she flipped through the map:
"They're going to turn all the water veins on the continent into transparent pipes..."
237 did not respond, but instead quickly deduced the breathing rhythm of the dark web in his mind, judging how many more opportunities there would be to securely launch in the future.
Seeds of countermeasure
She understood that preventing the seed pods from being planted was almost impossible—the deep-rooted probing masters of the dark roots were like snakes with eyes, able to smell the soil being disturbed even in the slightest movement.
The only solution is to make these seed pods **"distorted"**.
She began cultivating a type of algae called "phantom algae" deep within the dark web—algae that can interfere with temperature difference signals in water veins, causing the data transmitted back by the seed pods to always carry slight fluctuation noise, making it look like an old, neglected vein.
More importantly, the Phantom Algae periodically release random water pulses, drowning out the real fluctuations of the Dark Web with "natural noise".
The covert war escalates
A few days later, the first monitoring seed pod was successfully planted on the southern edge of the tidal vein.
Even from dozens of nodes apart, you can feel the faint yet persistent "listening" of that seed pod—like a silent ear, forever lying at the edge of the tide, listening tirelessly to the whispers of every drop of water.
Sprout 12 muttered in a low voice:
"They are waiting for us to make a mistake."
237 looked up at the ground—there, the sky was gray and the clouds hung low.
She knew that from this day forward, this underground war would no longer be about defense and probing, but an endless battle of eavesdropping and counter-eavesdropping.
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