On a whim, Li Chunfeng commanded Shenfeng 1.0 to scan the concealed recess.

  The feedback arrived swiftly—this hidden cavity was a pre-arranged backdoor. It was obvious: a hacker had infiltrated the company's website and left this entry point open for future access.

  Although Li Chunfeng wasn't deeply familiar with the hacker world—having long specialized in application software development—he was, after all, a programmer. He had always been intrigued by the mystique of hackers, those digital rebels. And he knew a thing or two about their techniques.

  Now, he couldn't help but chuckle at the irony. The infamous backdoors hackers often left, whispered about in hushed tones, manifested plainly before him.

  He quickly analyzed the concealed recess, discovering embedded data—specifically, a feedback address used for monitoring. This backdoor wasn’t merely a secure channel for future intrusions; it also tracked the server’s status and relayed critical information back to its creator.

  Li Chunfeng felt a jolt of excitement. Tracing this feedback address might just lead him directly to the hacker behind it.

  First, he took stock of his own condition. Having only recently taken control of this new server, he was not yet fully integrated. His consciousness rapidly scanned the entire system: CPU, memory, hard drive, motherboard, optical drive, network ports, USB interfaces, and security software such as firewalls and antivirus programs.

  He realized his scanning speed had surpassed that of his previous encounter on the public server. This was not only due to hardware improvements but also the software enhancements gained from assimilating the virus.

  Reassured that he now stood at his peak since rebirth, Li Chunfeng launched his pursuit.

  Shenfeng 2.0 shot through the network at light speed, locking onto the target address.

  The pathways of the internet were vastly different from the company's intranet. Occasionally, Shenfeng 2.0 found itself squeezed into narrow digital back alleys, even encountering traffic jams of data packets.

  It became evident that not all internet routes boasted the bandwidth he had imagined. The main arteries were better, though they carried significantly heavier traffic.

  Then, Li Chunfeng discovered a new capability—his Shenfeng 2.0 could slice through those data packets without losing a single byte of information.

  This ability was nothing short of divine. He would no longer be impeded by network congestion. Shenfeng 2.0 could always travel at maximum velocity, outpacing any human operator.

  Soon, Shenfeng 2.0 reached a server. It immediately began replicating itself, using that server as a node to propagate further.

  The scan of this server was completed in an instant, with valuable information relayed back almost instantaneously.

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  Li Chunfeng deduced that this server was likely a "zombie"—a machine compromised and controlled by hackers.

  Hackers habitually operate through such proxies to conceal their true IP addresses, thwarting direct tracing.

  Without hesitation, Li Chunfeng pressed onward. Shenfeng 2.0 had already seized control of the machine and found another hidden backdoor, leading to a fresh address.

  Copying itself once more, Shenfeng 2.0 was dispatched to follow this new lead.

  Over the course of twenty minutes, Li Chunfeng’s awareness traced Shenfeng 2.0 as it circled the globe—from China to the United States, then Japan, Australia, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and back to the U.S.

  Along the route, he uncovered multiple backdoors across various servers, each marked with different hacker signatures.

  Li Chunfeng cataloged each, noting their unique code fragments. These signatures would serve as identifiers in future encounters. Otherwise, how could anyone distinguish the same hacker from a different one amid the vast expanse of the internet?

  Focusing intently on his original target, Li Chunfeng continued the pursuit. Unbeknownst to him, Shenfeng 2.0 had already begun to spread across the entire web.

  A minute later, the trail led back to China—specifically, a computer in Haidu.

  Using Shenfeng 2.0, Li Chunfeng accessed the webcam and saw a youth with dyed blond hair, about fifteen or sixteen, smoking a cigarette and chatting on QQ.

  He frowned—then immediately realized the futility of such a gesture in his current form. He silently admonished his spiritual self.

  This kid probably was not the hacker he sought.

  As Shenfeng 2.0 swiftly took control of nearby machines, Li Chunfeng identified that it was an internet café.

  The hacker had likely used this computer to connect to their zombie network, hopping through proxies to breach the company’s servers and plant the backdoor.

  They might attempt another intrusion, but probably not from this location again.

  Li Chunfeng felt a touch of disappointment. He had been eager to confront the hacker directly—to test his newfound abilities against a worthy opponent.

  Nonetheless, the journey had been an eye-opener. Observing the various techniques hackers deployed to establish backdoors had significantly broadened his understanding.

  As he withdrew from the café’s computer, Li Chunfeng did not fully retract his focus.

  From these observations, he saw how hackers relied on countless proxies for attack and retreat—an approach he could emulate.

  Shenfeng 2.0, cloaked in his consciousness, appeared peculiarly stealthy in the vast network, slipping past other hackers’ detection mechanisms.

  But safety remained paramount.

  He directed a Shenfeng 2.0 clone to patrol within China’s network, occasionally passing through systems he already controlled to ensure no traces remained.

  Whenever new target machines emerged, Shenfeng 2.0 would replicate, scan, and seize control.

  During this process, he uncovered numerous domestic zombies, expanding his signature database.

  Suddenly, a familiar signature reappeared—one belonging to the very hacker he had tracked across the globe.

  This zombie did not follow the prior trail.

  Without hesitation, Li Chunfeng sent Shenfeng 2.0 down this new lead.

  Within two minutes, it had traversed over a hundred systems, ultimately pinpointing an IP address in Haidu.

  Shenfeng 2.0 penetrated and seized the device—a laptop.

  His pulse quickened. This was likely the hacker’s own machine.

  As Shenfeng 2.0 analyzed the system, data streams flowed back at lightning speed.

  The webcam displayed an empty hotel room; the device was powered on, yet no one was present.

  According to the retrieved info, the laptop belonged to a woman named Deng Ling’er. There were also some photos saved on it.

  Li Chunfeng examined the images—an innocent-looking girl with an oval face, large eyes, and wheat-colored skin—about 5'3", early twenties, her hair tied in a ponytail.

  He sighed. The girl’s appearance was harmless—probably not the hacker himself.