The tension that hung in the Apex Council's war room was not the kind that could be dispelled with clarity or commands. It was the kind born from uncertainty—an unseen threat whose contours Lin Feng could feel, but not yet trace.
Since Cassandra's tactical retreat and the foreign surveillance network's partial exposure, Lin had expected backlash. What he hadn't anticipated was the eerie stillness. No media counterattack. No diplomatic scuffle. Not even a whisper from Spectron or Cassandra's usual backchannel operatives.
Just silence.
It unnerved him more than opposition.
And then, quietly, the fractures began to emerge—not at the top, but among the middle tier of supporters.
Lin Feng sat with Zhou Kewei, head of Apex's Civic Coordination Office, in a quiet café near Tsinghua's west gate. They had chosen the location for its informality, hoping to avoid the pressure of headquarters. Kewei's usually sharp demeanor had dulled under the weight of confusion.
