The Seer's voice, now tinged with a haunting vulnerability as it spoke of being a "normal person" driven by the desperate need to save his family, echoed through every corner of China. For a nation that valued control and the inviolability of its digital and military might, the live spectacle of the Lanzhou being addressed by an unknown entity was already a monumental shock. But as the Seer revealed his personal motivations, a subtle tremor began to ripple through the populace.
Shanghai, China – A Bustling Street Market:
A cacophony of vendors hawking their wares and shoppers haggling prices had filled the evening air moments before. Now, a stunned silence had fallen. Every outdoor screen, every mobile phone in every hand, displayed the masked figure and the live satellite feed of the Lanzhou. People clustered together, pointing at the screens, their faces shifting from initial annoyance to disbelief, and then to outright alarm when the Seer named General Jian Li.
"That's General Li! On the Silent Hunter!" an elderly man exclaimed, his voice trembling. "How can this be?"
When the Seer spoke of overriding the ship, a wave of agitated murmurs swept through the crowd. But when the voice softened, speaking of being a "normal person," of wanting to save his family from "coming destruction," the commotion changed. It wasn't just fear, but a flicker of something akin to bewildered empathy.
"He's... one of us?" a young woman whispered, her eyes wide. "He sees something that terrifies him, too?"
Still, the underlying national pride was stung. "He talks to our General like that?" a gruff vendor muttered, shaking his head. "Controls our warship?" The anger was there, but it was overshadowed by the chilling realization that this entity was not just powerful, but spoke a truth that resonated with universal human fears.
Beijing, China – Ministry of State Security Operations Center:
The air in the secure control room was thick with frantic commands and the rapid click of keyboards. But when the Seer began speaking directly to General Li, a different kind of commotion broke out – a furious, whispered exchange among the senior officials.
"He knows General Li's name!" an officer hissed, slamming a fist on a console. "And the Silent Hunter designation! This is a catastrophic intelligence failure!"
Director Zhang, a stern man with decades of experience in counter-espionage, watched the masked figure on the main screen, his face a mask of stone. But a vein throbbed visibly in his temple. The Seer's claims of being a "normal person" who gained power, and his desperate plea to save his family, were being processed by analysts for psychological warfare implications. Yet, even Zhang felt a chilling tremor of uncertainty. Could it be true? Could this unprecedented violation of sovereignty truly be driven by something so fundamentally human as the desire to protect loved ones?
"We need to understand this entity," Director Zhang commanded, his voice tight with controlled fury. "It is either the most sophisticated adversary we have ever faced, or... something else entirely. Whatever it is, its capabilities are undeniable. We must ascertain its intent."
The commotion in China wasn't a riot, but a profound internal shockwave. From the street vendor to the highest echelons of power, the uninvited Seer had peeled back layers of national pride and technological confidence, exposing a raw, vulnerable humanity grappling with an impossible truth. The world was being shaken, not just by the coming physical events, but by the disorienting realization that its perceived controllers were as helpless as anyone else in the face of this unseen, omnipotent voice.