14 year cycle of the Sapphire hills

It has been a week since Alan came home. He already reached an energy level of 100 by absorbing every kind of energy he can find. He can now be considered a D rank mutant. More energy was required for further improvement and he was planning to go to the new dungeon that the system discovered.

But, before he could do that, he found that the area was teeming with people from government and different corporations. They had already found the dungeon gate and the vanguard team had already gone to explore it.

The main goal of the vanguard team was to evaluate the dungeon level and make an outpost around the dungeon gate on the inside of the dungeon.

'The government might be waiting for the right time to announce the discovery.' Thought Alan.

So, Alan decided to lay back and wait for a couple of days.

—----------------

Sipping tea watching Sapphire jasmines in full bloom, Alan thought.

'Life is so peaceful.' He had enough money, leisure time and abundant food to eat.

"Beep… Beep…" A new notification came on his phone.

[Alan Fort, You are invited to join the dungeon exploration team (13) led by Emma Norton. Please be present for the briefing. Signed Life Corps] And an attachment of time and place followed suit.

Seeing this, Alan's face scrunched up. He felt uncertain for a moment before choosing to go to the briefing.

'Should have thought twice before joining Life Corps.'

The place and time of the briefing were a couple of kilometres away. In a familiar house, he went to a couple of days ago for dinner.

'Did they spy on me through their app? I am sure that they knew my location. This is why you should be wary of tech companies. You don't know what data they collect or where they store it. Huh!'

'Anyway, this might be the same dungeon detected by the system. And seeing how they are inviting everyone, even a D rank mutant like me. It would be at least be a safe area.'

Finally, with a sigh. Alan went to the meeting place.

After scanning his details, he was invited into the house. The large vacation house was filled with people both men and women in different age groups. Most of them looked physically strong, while some of them looked average. When Alan scanned them with the system, he found out that most of them had energy levels of B rank mutant or less.

But the most eye-catching of them all was Emma Norton and her two friends, Esther and Frida. The trio stood in front of the podium looking at the group of people.

They didn't notice the inconspicuous Alan entering the building. The briefing began soon after everyone was ready.

'As you know, You are invited for a dungeon exploration mission on a newly discovered dungeon. It is an S ranked dungeon and we were able to isolate and fortify the dungeon on the inside. It is now safe for exploratory travels.'

S ranked dungeon. This was the second S ranked one discovered in the entire Federation.

Instead of inducing fear. The crowd was excited hearing this news. This was a chance for them to change their lives. S ranked dungeon was known for its resource-rich environment and abundance of atmospheric mana. Exploring this land would boost their rank significantly.

'Life Corps was the first to discover this gate and now we have the opportunity to explore it. So, make your choice. If you want to go with the exploration team. You can, by signing the documents on your left. The infrastructure development team will be entering at a later date and for that, you can sign the documents to your right.'

After the initial notification, Emma Norton came to the stage and gave an in-depth explanation about the dungeon climate, biome, and life forms.

It was extremely helpful for a noob like Alan. His first dungeon exploration was an S ranked dungeon. He had to be careful.

—-------------------

Emma Norton was with her teammates. She looking at a high-ranking military officer.

The news that he brought was very exciting for her.

"Are you sure?" She asked.

"Yes, The Vulcan's informed the chairman that they are now capable of completely stabilizing the dungeon entrance. If it was a couple of years ago, I would have doubted them. After all, the Sapphire hill dungeon was discovered years ago. The periodic opening and closing of the gate every 14 years was a miscalculation on our part. And to force the gate to be permanently open is something unheard of."

"What gives them the confidence? Aren't they more focused on bio-tech and enhancement serums? What made it possible for them to force open a dungeon gate? Are they in contact with otherworlders?"

"That may be a possibility. But it was said in the documents that they found a new type of crystal catalyst that can stabilize unstable portals. I was also wondering why they were aggressively monitoring each and every spatial phenomenon, all across the country. This might be the reason." The military officer continued.

"There were also rumours about the Isabella Vulcan being the inventor of the technology. If it is, as they say, it is. Then, Isabella is more of a threat to your family than all the Vulcan's combined. Not only is she a leading figure in biotech. She is also a leading figure in spatial phenomenons now. You should be careful when dealing with her. She would also be leading a team of her own and entering the dungeon. Don't give her a chance to deploy underhanded methods."

"I know, After all, we are close friends. Right?" Emma replied with a smirk. Frida and Esther looked at the scene while a chill crawled up their spine. While the military officer stepped away in silence. He had done his work and it was time for him to leave.

Both Norton and Vulcan were families with close ties with each other. But, that was on the surface, beneath their social facade. They each had their own hidden agenda.

There was no strongest among the shareholders of the Life Corps. That was exactly the reason for the emergence of conflict between the families. Unless the chairman, One of the seven S ranked mutants in the whole world made a move, the families will fight it out till the end to gain dominance. That was how the situation in Life Corps is progressing.

And now, the discovery of an S rank dungeon would completely change the ball game.

Each S rank dungeon means the birth of more S ranked mutants. And only the powers who can explore and conquer the dungeon first will have a chance to gain a new S ranked powerhouses.

So, besides the competition between the shareholders of Life Corps. The military and other corporations are all eyeing the pie.

And now, Life corps having a head start to explore the dungeon was only possible due to the technology developed by the Vulcan's. If not, because of the limited amount of time the dungeon gate would have stayed open. Others would have rushed in without any cordiality.

But now, with the promise of the new technology that can stabilize spatial portals. Vulcan's gained a superior position in the fight for more resources. As long as they have this technology they would gain much more than an S rank mutant.

This was also one of the reasons Emma was vexed. Nortons didn't have an S rank mutant in their family and Vulcan's gaining one would be in direct contradiction with their interests.

The dungeon that should have withered like the Sapphire Jasmine was now a headache for all.

—---------

Alan signed up for the exploration team which is led by Emma Norton. An acquaintance!

After making sure he had done everything that was needed of him. He went shopping.

Tomorrow he would have to leave his home. Remembering his family members faces when he said he became a mutant. They were not exactly thrilled by the news.

They knew that the inevitable parting was near and they shouldn't be obstacles in their son's life.

Now, Alan had to go home and report the news of him leaving. Thinking about that, Alan shopped everything he wanted. Leaving the remaining money for his parents.

Who knows, maybe he would never come back.