"Nick, your words are still so harsh." A majestic voice came from behind. Everyone turned around and saw a somewhat bloated general, surrounded by guards, walking down from an expensive high-speed air-cushion car.

"Maginot, I haven't seen you for a few years. You've been promoted to lieutenant general?" The old dog's eyes moved from the other's shoulder straps to his belly. "And... you have more fat on your body."

"Ahem...Nick, watch your words." Machino coughed twice in displeasure.

"'If you are disrespectful to your superiors, you will be confined for three to seven days, depending on the severity of the offense'... There is indeed such a rule in the military regulations, but the problem is that you are not my superior now." Lao Gou said indifferently.

"Nick, I'm not here to argue with you." Machino emphasized, "Do you know the identity of the man you just captured?"

"A thug who hijacked the train?" The old dog shrugged. "Maybe he's a patient with an infectious disease, or maybe... um, a spy from an extremist organization?"

Before this, they had already agreed on a common statement. No matter what others asked, as long as it was related to the Seed of Erosion, they pretended to know nothing. As for why they took action, they explained it as self-protection - anyway, from the outside world's perspective, they were also hostages on the hijacked train, but compared to other hostages, their fighting power was "slightly" stronger.

"Is that all you know?" Maginot stepped forward and asked, staring into the old dog's eyes.

"What? Is there more inside information?" The old dog was slightly stunned, and then waved his hands quickly, "Don't tell me, you know, I am most afraid of trouble."

Then, the old dog added threateningly: "If you bring me into this mud pit, hehe... you know what the consequences will be."

"Indeed." Makino glanced at Ke Lan intentionally or unintentionally, "If possible, I would rather you not be on this train."

"But no matter what, you have acted bravely and helped the garrison to resolve a hostage crisis. You must be rewarded for this." Maginot suddenly took a step closer to Lao Gou's ear and asked in a low voice, "You really don't know anything about the origin of that man?"

"I know nothing! If I knew there was something wrong with this guy, would I still take this train? Is there only fat left in your brain? You can even ask such a stupid question." The old dog answered viciously.

"But your handling method is... too professional." Makino shook his head slightly, "You even considered preventing people from biting their tongues to commit suicide. It's really..."

"Isn't this the basic operation of capturing people alive?" Lao Gou asked, "Don't use the standards of those good-for-nothings under your command to measure my people."

"Do you think there's anything wrong with him?"

"Yes." Surprisingly, the old dog did not deny it this time, but nodded affirmatively.

"Where is it?" Maginot asked hurriedly.

"He's mentally ill." The old dog nodded his head. "A normal person wouldn't do such a stupid thing."

“…”

Machino was speechless for a moment. He stared at the old dog for several seconds, then he exhaled forcefully and said, "I know you are just pretending to be stupid, but I still kindly give you a suggestion. If you want to live longer, don't delve into this matter. If you want to pretend to be stupid, just keep pretending—"

Machino said, calmly using the corner of his eye to signal the nearby security agent, "Especially some people, you have to be careful."

"Are you done? Can we go now?" There was no extra expression on the old dog's face, as if he had not heard Maginot's hint at all.

"Sure." Just when everyone was relieved, Makino turned around and said to Ke Lan, "But can I talk to Mr. Ke Lan alone?"

"What are you talking about?" Ke Lan asked with some vigilance. Hound's previous military rank was colonel, and he was more or less half a step into the threshold of generals. It was not so outrageous that he could talk to this Maginot. But he was just a civilian, at best a fairly good relic hunter. Whether it was fame or background, these two things did not exist for Ke Lan at all. But this lieutenant general wanted to "chat alone" with him, which was very confusing.

Even the hound did not receive such special treatment - of course, Ke Lan estimated that even if the other party invited the old dog, the old dog would definitely refuse.

"Don't worry, I have no ill will towards you, but there are some things that are inconvenient to say in public." Machino pointed to the hovercraft behind him, "It will only take a few minutes, it won't take up too much of your time."

"Okay." Ke Lan nodded.

After Ke Lan and Machino entered the hovercraft, the guards immediately surrounded the entire vehicle. Even Lao Gou and others were not allowed to get close, which caused Lao Gou to curse at them with a series of swear words.

"General, what do you want to talk to me about? You can tell me now." Sitting on the soft and comfortable sofa, Ke Lan spoke first.

An officer of the rank of Lieutenant General is already very close to the power center of the Ark. If the people above really have information related to the Seed of Corrosion, then Lieutenant General Maginot in front of him must be one of the insiders.

"You've been in, right?" Maginot leaned over, put his hands on his knees, crossed his fingers, and there seemed to be a gleam in his eyes.

Without waiting for Ke Lan to answer, he repeated, "You've been into that underwater city, right?"

"Are you referring to the one under the Mediterranean?" Ke Lan looked directly into the other person's eyes. He knew in his heart that it was meaningless to continue playing dumb on some key issues. What he needed to know was the extent of the other party's intelligence, what he could confess, and what he could not reveal at all.

Ke Lan had to carefully consider his words. It was like playing chess, with both sides testing and attacking and defending each other. If he made a wrong move, the other side might seize the opportunity and tear the whole situation apart in one fell swoop.

"Yes." Maginot nodded.

"Information provided by the Soma Consortium?"

"They dare not hide this kind of thing. And the Security Bureau already knows about it, but we helped you stop them." Machino pointed at himself, "We are willing to provide Mr. Ke Lan with the necessary protection, but we also hope that Mr. Ke Lan can establish a cooperative relationship with us. This is a win-win situation."