Chapter 1 National Security Agency

National Security Agency, Confidential Conference Room.

Director Liu An’s face was grave, as if facing a formidable enemy.

He sat on one side of the oval conference table, his index finger constantly tapping the surface. Fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

He looked up.

Across the conference table sat his former teacher and old leader, Director Gao Yan. And sitting beside Gao Yan, chatting and laughing with the old leader… was the young man who had just handed him a stack of documents, which he had then passed on to the information security department—

Lin Xian.

Yesterday afternoon.

Teacher Gao Yan called him, saying he wanted to introduce him to a young man who had discovered many vulnerabilities in the Dragon Country’s Internet security Great Wall and wanted to submit them.

He didn’t pay much attention at first.

He told his teacher to have the young man send the information directly to his email. It would be reviewed and handled by specialized personnel.

Lately.

Ever since the American genius hacker teen threatened to breach Dragon Country’s Skynet system at the 2023 World Hacker Competition…

All of Dragon Country’s netizens were paying close attention, their patriotic fervor running high.

The National Security Agency’s public email was receiving a flood of emails every day, all offering to fight—

"Hui Bin Dragon City Internet Cafe’s Ace Technician Volunteers to Defend the Nation!"

"On How to Prevent Cyber Hacker Attacks Through Physical Means Such as Pulling the Network Cable, Cutting Off the Power, and Short-Circuiting the Computer Room."

"Who Says Dragon Country Has No Young Talents? Li City’s Youth Computer Bulletin Board First Prize Winner, Genius Computer Hacker Wang Yiming, is Willing to Fight for the Nation!"

"My Humble Opinion: Shut Down the Entire National Internet and Power Grid to Deny American Hackers Any Opportunity!"

"In Bold! I Have Discovered a Fatal Vulnerability in Dragon Country’s Internet Security Great Wall! I Have Scanned No Fewer Than 127 Fatal Vulnerabilities, and Suggest Using 2345 Security Guard to Repair Them."

…

Director Liu An was naturally pleased and gratified to see such high levels of patriotic sentiment among netizens.

But.

Those in one profession were like being on different mountains.

Most people’s understanding of hacker attacks was limited to movie scenes: a hacker wearing a hood frantically typing on a keyboard, with unintelligible streams of 0s and 1s scrolling across the screen…

Although some constructive suggestions were also received in the email, and occasionally some civilian experts did discover one or two vulnerabilities…

Compared to the flood of “junk mail,” these were merely a drop in the ocean.

However, Director Liu An deeply understood the tradition in the computer field: that true masters were often hidden among the common people. He therefore arranged for specialized personnel to review the information in the email one by one, not missing a single message.

Therefore.

He told Teacher Gao Yan to have the young man send the discovered vulnerability data to the email, where it would be reviewed by specialized personnel and would not be missed.

However…

To his surprise.

The highly influential Teacher Gao Yan told him earnestly:

“Little Liu, you should still make time to meet this young man. I’ll take him to see you myself.”

This sentence shocked Liu An.

What kind of young man had such a big reputation? Capable of making Gao Yan, the Director of the Dragon Academy of Sciences, a leading figure in the scientific community, and a living fossil of Dragon Country’s scientific history, personally accompany him?

It was truly surreal!

But since his teacher had said so, he had to take it seriously, so he quickly arranged this meeting.

At first, besides him, there were also two comrades from the security technology department in this conference room. Their skill levels were among the best in the country, and one of them was a core member of the Dragon Country Internet Security Great Wall project.

The two were shocked after receiving the stack of documents from Lin Xian.

They exchanged glances…

Wow, it’s so thick!

How many vulnerabilities are recorded inside?

If all of this is true, wouldn’t the Great Wall already be full of holes, like a sieve?

“This is impossible.”

One of the comrades from the technology department looked at the first two pages and pushed up his glasses:

“There’s definitely no problem with our network defense system in this area. Is this kind of attack method really feasible?”

Another comrade also frowned:

“This… this is a method we’ve never thought of before. It’s incredible. I’m not sure if it can really succeed. How were these vulnerabilities discovered?”

Director Liu An became nervous when he heard the two men say this, realizing that today’s visitor was indeed extraordinary:

“Go verify it quickly. We’ll wait here.”

Afterward.

The two left.

Twenty minutes later, the conference room door was pushed open again, and four or five people entered, their faces solemn:

“Director Liu, we’ve verified it. These vulnerabilities are all real! Some of them even seem to have been ambushed by the enemy, and could erupt at any time.”

“This is really incredible. This intrusion method is beyond our understanding! If all of this was really done by Kevin Walker, then we wouldn’t have been able to defend against it at all on September 17th!”

“It’s terrifying. What kind of genius is this? How did he do it? To be honest, as far as I’m personally concerned, I’ve always been a fan of Kevin Walker’s skills. Although he has never appeared in reality, he is still very active online and often gives guidance to those who ask questions. His thinking is indeed very unique. But… these intrusion methods can no longer be described as unique. They can only be described as unbelievable!”

“Fortunately, as expected, experts are hidden among the common people! The field of hacking is different from other academic fields. Hackers who come from formal training are not as good as those self-taught geniuses who are hidden among the common people! We must quickly repair these vulnerabilities!”

“But… what about September 17th? If this concerned citizen hadn’t provided us with vulnerability information today, we wouldn’t even have been able to detect Kevin Walker’s traces. A genius like this must still have more powerful trump cards hidden, right? He has already intruded into the security and defense systems of many countries, including the American Pentagon, without a single defeat. I’m really worried…”

…

Director Liu An waved his hand to let the technicians leave, instructing them to quickly repair the vulnerabilities, draw inferences from them, learn Kevin Walker’s new ideas and attack habits, and learn more about the enemy.

Bang.

The soundproof door of the confidential conference room closed.

Director Liu An solemnly stood up, walked to the opposite side of the conference table, and tightly grasped Lin Xian’s hand:

“Mr. Lin, thank you very much for providing us with this vulnerability information. Without your timely rescue… it’s hard to imagine how badly and how embarrassingly we would have lost on September 17th.”

He turned his head and glanced at Teacher Gao Yan. After the two nodded at each other, Liu An turned back to face Lin Xian and said:

“Mr. Lin, we don’t accept something for nothing. We’ll be frank. I also know that the purpose of your coming here is definitely not just to deliver vulnerability data. You must have other things you want.”

“You’ve helped us, helped the country so much. Feel free to make any requests you have. As long as they don’t violate principles and regulations, I’ll definitely agree to them!”

Lin Xian nodded and smiled.

On the way here, Director Gao Yan had talked with Lin Xian about Liu An, saying that Liu An was a very straightforward person. Although his temper was sometimes a bit irritable, and he lacked some stability and calmness when necessary, his character and heart were very good.

Liu An was wholeheartedly dedicated to the country and had made outstanding contributions in the field of national security. He was also a very frank person who didn’t beat around the bush or mince words. Just tell him what you want directly.

If it’s possible, it’s possible. If it’s not possible, it’s not possible. Liu An wouldn’t fudge or equivocate.

“Director Liu, then I’ll be direct. Actually, I have two requests for coming here today.”

Lin Xian said truthfully:

“The first request may be a little difficult… I want to join the national team participating in this World Hacker Competition. I don’t ask to be a formal member, even a substitute or a water boy will do. I just want to go to the competition venue to take a look and experience it.”

“Of course, that’s no problem at all. It’s not difficult at all.”

Director Liu An laughed heartily:

“Our participating team is led by the National Security Agency and escorted and protected by specialized troops. There are already many people accompanying us, so we don’t mind having one more. It’s not a difficult thing.”

“And… on the contrary, actually, compared to substitute members, I’m more curious, Mr. Lin. You can help us find so many security vulnerabilities in the Internet Great Wall, which means your skill level is far above our technicians.”

“Of course, don’t misunderstand. I don’t mean to pry. I’ve come into contact with all kinds of hackers in the country. Everyone has different purposes, different identities, and their own ways of survival, so I won’t ask you any detailed questions. But, then again…”

“I can’t help but have some expectations for you, so can you tell me, if you were allowed to participate in the Hacker Competition as a formal member, what hacker program would you prepare? What would you be cracking?”

“My skill level is actually just so-so…”

Lin Xian said with a smile:

“The vulnerability thing wasn’t just my effort alone. As you said, experts are hidden among the common people, so we won’t go into detail about that. If I were really allowed to participate in the Hacker Competition as a formal member, the vulnerability I would prepare would be about cracking Tesla cars.”

“I will perform a toCtou attack on the Tesla gateway, and use heap overflow and OoB writes to hack into the Tesla car system and obtain all Tesla driving and security permissions.”

Director Liu An suddenly realized:

“Then this… would be a complete hack of Tesla, which is still very powerful! As far as I know, the most that hacker teams around the world can do against Tesla is hack into the infotainment system. Being able to obtain vehicle control… you’re the first one I know of.”

He nodded thoughtfully:

“To be honest, the vulnerabilities prepared by our five contestants are actually not much stronger than yours, and may even be weaker, in terms of difficulty.”

“And one of our colleagues in the information security department actually doesn’t want to participate in this World Hacker Competition. He says that participating in this kind of competition is meaningless and is equivalent to giving away vulnerabilities to those internet companies. He thinks the most urgent task is to protect the Skynet system.”

“Therefore, he has repeatedly submitted applications to me, requesting to replace him to participate in the Hacker Competition, while he stays to protect the Skynet system. I can understand this, because he is one of the founders and builders of the Skynet system and has a lot of affection for Skynet, like it’s his child.”

“However, the country’s considerations are multifaceted. It definitely wants to protect the Skynet system and win this World Hacker Competition. It’s not to show off our national power, but at least to teach a lesson to those who are arrogant and look down on Dragon Country’s network technology. So, after comprehensive consideration, it was decided to let this very skilled colleague participate in the World Hacker Competition.”

“But now… if you really have prepared to completely crack a Tesla car, then you can completely replace him to participate in the World Hacker Competition and let him stay to protect the Skynet system as he wishes, which can be considered a win-win situation. I wonder, Mr. Lin… what do you think of this plan?”

Lin Xian nodded:

“I personally have no problem with it. I’ll follow the country’s arrangements.”

For Lin Xian, as long as he could go to the United States under the protection of the elite troops, it didn’t matter whether he was a substitute member or a formal member.

If he was a substitute, he would guard the water dispenser and pour tea and water.

If he was allowed to play, he would double-click to start the program written by vv and show off his skills.

It didn’t matter.

“Okay, then let’s settle it this way.”

Director Liu An chuckled and patted Lin Xian on the shoulder.

It was clear that he was very happy and had resolved a difficult matter.

Presumably, the comrade who was determined to live and die with Skynet had put a lot of pressure on Director Liu An during this time, and it was also difficult for him.

“Then Lin Xian, you will take the place of that comrade and face that genius hacker teen Kevin Walker in the final free presentation segment. Don’t worry too much about this order. The final victory or defeat is calculated based on the total score, so don’t feel any pressure. Besides… Kevin Walker is recognized as the world’s number one genius hacker. Whoever faces him basically loses, so no one will blame you.”

“So… you said you had two requests just now. Now that the first request has been resolved, what is your second request, Lin Xian?”

Lin Xian looked at Director Liu An:

“My second request is that after the World Hacker Competition, I hope that under the premise that the elite troops continue to protect my personal safety, I can go to Princeton University for a trip. It won’t waste too much time. I have a private matter I want to deal with there.”

“Well, that’s not a problem either.”

Director Liu An agreed very readily:

“Princeton is not far from New York. Before you return to the country, our elite troops will definitely protect you safely. I promise you this. Go and come back on the same day, just don’t delay the return plan.”

At this point.

Things went very smoothly.

Director Liu An was very happy. Lin Xian not only provided him with a large number of security vulnerabilities, but also solved his urgent problem of the participating contestants.

Lin Xian was also very happy. All his requirements were readily agreed to. As long as he arrived in the United States… his three-pronged plan could be implemented step by step.

“Happy cooperation.” “I wish us both victory!”

Lin Xian and Director Liu An shook hands with a smile and temporarily left the National Security Agency.

Liu An told Lin Xian.

There wasn’t much time left before the competition. After Lin Xian had arranged things at home, he should return to the capital as soon as possible and report to the National Security Agency to start collective action.

…

The next day, back in Donghai.

Lin Xian got into his Alphard private car and went to the Rhine Joint Laboratory at Donghai University to report on the current situation to Liu Feng.

“I’ve already taken care of the Guizhou Tianyan issue for you.”

Lin Xian sat at the laboratory table, looking at the space-time clock that still showed 0.0000000, twirling a pen, and continued:

“The project at the Astronomical Research Institute of the Dragon Academy of Sciences has been completed ahead of schedule and is now in the final stages. After they pack up and leave, our laboratory can officially move in… Although it’s called a laboratory, it’s actually just you alone, but there are still many graduate student and doctoral student assistants there that you can use.”

“After September 17th, Director Gao Yan should give me news. Then I’ll take you to the capital for a trip to go through the procedures on the surface, and then you can officially use Guizhou Tianyan. So during this time, continue your research here. Everything will wait until I come back from the World Hacker Competition in the United States.”

Dong.

The instrument in Liu Feng’s hand fell on the table.

He looked back with a suspicious expression:

“You’re going to the United States?”

“Yeah.” Lin Xian nodded.

“To participate in the World Hacker Competition?”

“Yeah, yeah.” Lin Xian nodded.

“You must be kidding!” Liu Feng was amused, picked up the instrument, and shook his head:

“What are you going to do? Have you studied computer technology?”

“I studied programming for two or three months.” Lin Xian replied truthfully.

“What can you learn in two or three months…” Liu Feng was speechless.

“You can’t say that.”

Lin Xian smiled meaningfully:

“Everyone’s constitution is different.”

“…”

Liu Feng was speechless.

He stretched his head and looked at the corridor outside the laboratory door, then shrank back.

Lin Xian blinked curiously:

“What are you looking at?”

“I’m looking to see if any women are coming today.” Liu Feng continued to tinker with the instrument in his hand:

“It seems not.”

“…”

Lin Xian suddenly felt that there were really a lot of drama queens around him.

“Bye, I’m leaving. I’ll come find you when I get back from the country.”

With that, Lin Xian got up, went downstairs, got into the Alphard private car, and left.

20 minutes later—

Thump, thump, thump!

A flurry of hurried footsteps, a fluffy, dark brown ponytail bounced in from the door. Chu Anqing looked left and right in the laboratory, then looked at Liu Feng:

“Teacher Liu Feng, is Senior Lin Xian not here? When I was in class just now, I saw his car parked outside, so I came over after class.”

“Ah, you’re late.”

Liu Feng turned his head and looked at the door:

“He came here today and just said a few words and left. He left a long time ago. He was in a hurry to catch a plane to go to the United States to participate in the World Hacker Competition.”

“Huh?”

Chu Anqing blinked her big eyes incredulously and tilted her head to look at Liu Feng:

“He’s going to the United States?”

“Yeah.” Liu Feng nodded.

“To participate in the World Hacker Competition?”

“Yeah, yeah.” Liu Feng nodded.

“You must be kidding!” Chu Anqing couldn’t help but laugh:

“He’s not a hacker! Why is he going to join in on this mess!”

“Everyone’s constitution is different.” Liu Feng repeated Lin Xian’s words, also looking at Chu Anqing with a puzzled expression:

“That’s what he said.”

Tap, tap, tap.

Outside the door, another burst of footsteps came. A tall woman in a short skirt and halter top, exposing her navel, supported the door frame and rubbed Chu Anqing’s head:

“You run so fast! I couldn’t hear you when I called you from behind! You didn’t answer your phone either!”

“Auntie!” Chu Anqing smiled and looked up at Su Su:

“The phone has to be on silent during class. I forgot to turn it back after class.”

“You still can’t run so fast!”

Su Su chuckled:

“You run like a rabbit, as if there’s a big bad wolf chasing you.”

Liu Feng held the instrument in his hand.

Looking at the young beauty in front of him, although her makeup was a bit heavy and her clothes were a bit too summery, her beautiful face and sexy figure were no less attractive than those of the endorsement beauties on billboards.

More importantly…

This beauty looked about the same age as Lin Xian, in her early twenties.

“Um…”

He nodded with satisfaction.

That’s right.

This is in line with mathematical logic. The arithmetic progression is complete, filling in the middle link.

“You’re also late.” Liu Feng looked at Su Su and said seriously:

“You should have come 20 minutes earlier.”

“Huh?” Su Su looked at the teacher-researcher-looking man in front of her with a dumbfounded expression:

“Why the *** would I come 20 minutes earlier?”

“20 minutes earlier, Lin Xian would still be here.” Liu Feng replied.

“What the hell! Are you sick!”

Su Su shouted:

“What does it matter to me if he’s here!”

She lowered her head and looked at Chu Anqing:

“Anqing, who is this?”

“This is Senior Lin Xian’s friend, Liu—”

“Tsk! Birds of a feather flock together!” She interrupted Chu Anqing with a look of disgust, and pulled her out:

“Let’s go, let’s go eat. Bad brains are contagious.”

…

Today is Friday.

Su Su happened to be near the University City, so she volunteered to pick up Chu Anqing home, driving the McLaren directly into the school.

Unfortunately, Chu Anqing’s phone was on silent during class, so she couldn’t contact her, and waited outside the teaching building where Chu Anqing was having class.

As a result.

As soon as the class bell rang, this little girl darted out like a rabbit, and couldn’t be stopped, heading straight for the deserted experimental building next door, so she had to follow.

“Don’t eat at your house, let’s just grab something to eat outside.”

Su Su turned on the turn signal, rotated the McLaren’s steering wheel, and turned her head to look at Chu Anqing:

“Your parents are too chatty. If I go to your house for dinner, I’ll have to listen to them nagging, telling me to go on blind dates and get married or something.”

Afterward.

Su Su drove the car into a rustic restaurant, ordered a few signature dishes, and chatted with Chu Anqing while eating.

“What?”

Su Su’s chopsticks stopped in mid-air, looking at Chu Anqing with a bitter expression:

“You said Lin Xian is going to the United States to participate in the World Hacker Competition? Isn’t that just going there to be a laughingstock?”

She snorted, as if very proud:

“Him, he’s just a bit skilled at driving, I’ll admit that. But hacking is something that requires real skill. Lin Xian is neither a computer major nor does he work in this field, yet he dares to represent the country in the World Hacker Competition… This world is really getting crazier and crazier.”

“And he’s the fifth to play.” Chu Anqing added:

“He has to directly face that someone, the American genius hacker teen, Walker or something… Everyone on the internet has been discussing this lately, and I often see it when I’m scrolling Douyin.”

“Then he’s even more screwed.”

Su Su spread her hands and laughed:

“Kevin Walker, he’s recognized all over the world as the strongest hacker on earth. Don’t look at him being young… Ah, who knows if his name and age are actually real. Anyway, this genius hacker is indeed too far ahead of his time. He’s the kind of unreasonable strong, the kind of strong that shouldn’t appear in this era.”

“There have been many geniuses in history who were ahead of their time. A contemporary genius who meets this kind of true genius is really miserable, his light completely covered by him, living in his shadow.”

“Like in the racing field, the scientific field, the sports field… from time to time, there will be such unreasonably strong geniuses who suppress an era, and other peers can only breathe a sigh of relief after he dies.”

Su Su took a sip of her drink and smacked her lips:

“So, Lin Xian is definitely screwed. I really don’t know why the country would send him to compete.”

Chu Anqing put down her chopsticks, biting her lip:

“If Senior Lin Xian travels all the way to the United States just to lose a competition, what’s the point of him going?”

“I think Senior Lin Xian will definitely not lose! At least… if he knew he was going to lose, he wouldn’t go. He’s not the kind of person who insists on doing something he’s not sure about.”

“Oh ho?”

Su Su looked at Chu Anqing with a smile:

“So confident?”

“Of course! Senior Lin Xian is really amazing and smart.”

“Heh, since you’re so confident in him.”

Su Su twirled the chopsticks in her hand, raised her eyebrows, and looked at Chu Anqing with interest:

“Want to… bet something?”
作者: 卖报小郎君
Mai Bao Xiao Lang Jun