Chapter 72: Trading Cooperation (Bug Hunting) Then I'll just die...
White Tower, 17th floor, silent room.
An amber halo flows down from the soothing dome, and the honeycomb sound-absorbing material inlaid on the surrounding walls absorbs all unnecessary sounds from the outside world.
It was so quiet here that it seemed far away from the hustle and bustle of the world. Only a faint white noise flowed slowly in the air, gently soothing the wounded lying on the treatment beds.
"Your followers should really see this."
Suddenly, a deep voice broke the silence in the room.
A figure dressed in the uniform of a senior White Tower staff member strode into the silent room. As he walked, he clapped his hands twice, making crisp sounds.
"I've long heard of your name, Mr. Feng.
"Who would have thought that the ruler of PURGE would now be lying in bed in the White Tower, receiving treatment so leisurely..."
Before he finished speaking, Zhang Lang discovered that the sound of his military boots tapping the ground had been completely absorbed by the special material of the carpet under his feet, which made him feel an inexplicable anger.
So, he deliberately flicked the metal buckle on the restraint at the end of the bed, and then said meaningfully:
"Oh, if this image gets out, the rioting in the lower city will probably shatter the dome of the White Tower!"
Listening to the sarcastic "compliments" from the person in front of him, Feng Langxi, who was lying in a daze on the hospital bed, finally couldn't help but let out a muffled laugh from his throat.
"Sir..." After laughing, he vacantly waved the electronic shackles on his hands at the uninvited guest, his dark brown hair rustling as it brushed against the soft pillow beneath him. "You've said so much—you can't be here just to discuss my popularity, right?"
When talking to Zhang Lang, Feng Langxi kept his eyelids half closed, his brows half-knitted, and he looked extremely sleepy.
But his two ochre-red pupils were moving silently in the shadow cast by his eyelashes, like a poisonous snake lurking among the algae, waiting for an opportunity to strike.
"Furthermore, the Upper City District only sent an ordinary person like you to negotiate with me? Aren't you afraid..."
Suddenly, Feng Langxi seemed to have thought of something interesting. He slowly lifted his narrow eyelids, the corners of his mouth twitched in a half-smile, and then he said with a sigh:
"Ah, that's right. After all, I once persuaded a 'weak-minded' White Tower guide to rebel. As for the Sentinels—they'd be even more dangerous facing a spiritual master like me."
Hearing this, the muscles on the back of Zhang Lang's neck instinctively tensed up for a moment.
The eloquent guide in front of him had already been tied up like a silkworm cocoon with special restraints, and only his facial features and fingers could move.
This weakened viper, its fangs removed, had completely lost its ability to stir up trouble and clearly posed no threat to him. Even so, looking at those smiling red eyes, Zhang Lang couldn't help but tremble with his right hand, which was behind his back, and his fingertips subconsciously stroked the miniature tranquilizer gun hidden in his sleeve.
The weapon in his hand was cold and hard, which seemed to give him some confidence.
So, Zhang Lang gritted his teeth and forced himself to sit on the floating chair next to Feng Langxi. The leather cushion made a faint gasping sound when it was pressed, just like the chaotic gasps in his mouth.
After sitting down, he began to carefully observe this mysterious guide who had stirred up the turmoil in the downtown area:
The man in front of him looked surprisingly young, even like a green student who had just entered society, but his calm eyes revealed a depth that was totally inconsistent with his age.
Even though he was now trapped deep in the enemy camp and tied up like a fish on a chopping board, he seemed as comfortable as if he were in his own back garden, with a gentle smile always on his lips.
Under the influence of gravity, the pair of black thin-framed glasses fit tightly against Feng Langxi's high nose bone. Wearing them for a long time caused the nose pads to leave two deep red marks on his cold white skin.
But when these two obvious "flaws" appeared on this man, their nose bridge looked like a cracked and bleeding piece of white jade. Not only did they not destroy anything, but they added a touch of gorgeousness to his gentle and handsome face.
"Mr. Feng, aren't you afraid?"
After a moment's silence, Zhang Lang suddenly blurted out these words. At the same time, his sharp eagle eyes, like hooks, were glued to every expression on Feng Lang's face.
"With PURGE leaderless, the entire downtown area is about to fall into chaos. Before being shot, the rioters who took to the streets were shouting your name at the top of their lungs.
"Honestly, it's quite touching, isn't it? But if your human experiments on Sentinel Evolution were leaked to the White Tower... you should know that once the faith of the fanatics collapses, all kinds of extreme emotions will come back like a flood. At that time, those lunatics might just eat you alive—"
"What preparations have you made for this?"
Facing the threats and hints in Zhang Lang's words, Feng Langxi remained extremely calm. He just smiled and asked:
"Then I'll just die. It's a good thing for Uptown anyway, isn't it?"
When he mentioned the word "death", his voice was so soft that it was almost a whisper, as if he was talking about an insignificant topic, but there was a hint of excitement that was hard to conceal.
Before he finished speaking, Feng Langxi suddenly leaned forward. The leather restraints tightened with his movement, making a teeth-grinding creaking sound.
"However, since the White Tower placed me in a silent room instead of an execution ground..."
At this moment, the pitch-black mirror chain beside his ear swept across the restraint ring on the guide's clavicle. The sound of metal scraping made Zhang Lang's temples throb.
He heard the man say with a smile:
"Doesn't this prove my worth?"
Looking at Feng Langxi's frivolous look as if he had already won, Zhang Lang felt his tense face twitch uncontrollably.
His Adam's apple trembled and rolled up and down twice before he regained his voice:
"Let's be frank, Mr. Feng. Hand over the Tai Sui research data, and the White Tower can provide you with a more superior experimental environment than PURGE."
"To be honest, I don't mind collaborating with the White Tower."
"Then you—"
"But I have a condition." Feng Langxi narrowed his eyes slightly, sensing the mental fluctuations in his mind, and suddenly interrupted Zhang Lang. His voice was light, yet it carried an undeniable sense of oppression. "Send me an S-rank Sentinel who will obey your orders."
After saying that, he added with a smile: "Alive."
"Tell the White Tower that this is the shepherd's invitation to the wolves... to cooperate."
…
On the third basement floor of the White Tower, there is a single dormitory.
When Kuang Jing sat up silently from the sofa, his pupils had not yet fully focused, but his five fingers had instinctively pulled the trigger of the pistol.
Only when he could clearly see the dim blue numbers on the cold electronic clock on the wall did he slowly release his strength.
The sentry first stared at the familiar small living room in front of him for a while, and then threw himself back onto the warm sofa as if he was familiar with the place. Obviously, this was not the first time this happened.
What’s wrong with me…
Looking at the clock numbers on the wall which clearly showed that it was not yet time for him to wake up, Kuang Jing rubbed his forehead hard and thought a little irritably.
At this moment, his palms were still slightly hot, and the fabric of his sleeveless vest, which was soaked with cold sweat, had somehow stuck tightly to the depression of his spine, causing the muscles on his back to tense unconsciously.
Recently, whenever Kuang Jing falls asleep, his damaged mental barrier becomes weaker.
Once he crossed a certain threshold, the images he had seen during his last mission transformed into invisible nightmares, suddenly popping up in his mind and replaying in his dreams like a movie replay:
The long white table swayed under the cold light, the silver cutlery and fork reflected in the dazzling light on the bone china, and... the strange figure leaning against the table with a silent smile.
These pervasive memory fragments made it impossible for Kuang Jing to sleep peacefully in bed. In desperation, he had to lie on the sofa in the living room and close his eyes to pretend to be asleep, trying to desensitize himself.
Logically speaking, this situation should not happen to Kuang Jing, a senior sentinel who has experienced many battles.
Over the years, he has carried out at least eight hundred missions, if not a thousand, and has witnessed all kinds of tragic scenes. How could he suddenly experience stress symptoms?
But... Kuang Jing's eyes suddenly darkened as he thought of something, and his gaze subconsciously fell on his palm.
These were undoubtedly the palms of a pair of extremely strong adult men. The chocolate-colored skin was covered with thin calluses, and light-colored scars of varying depths crisscrossed between the joints, exuding a primitive and wild tension everywhere.
As he watched, Kuang Jing suddenly stretched out his fingers and pressed hard on the back of his neck which was wet with sweat.
The moment his fingertips touched the spinous process of the seventh vertebra, the muscles there seemed to have awakened some painful memories and jumped heavily unconsciously. The trembling feeling from the electric shock seemed to sweep over him again, which made him fall into deep thought again.
Almost a week has passed since the last mission. After returning to the White Tower, Kuang Jing's injuries and damaged mental barriers have been effectively repaired and treated.
As for the fact that he suddenly fainted due to electric shock, the explanation given by the White Tower was that they detected that the sentry was out of control and had engaged in extreme behavior of trying to harm the target of the mission, so they had to intervene in him off-site.
It sounds reasonable, but——
Thinking of Yu Jingzi who has shown no signs of waking up so far, Kuang Jing couldn't help but sigh heavily, feeling inexplicably lonely.
However, he did not intend to do anything extreme because of this. He just silently clenched his trembling fists. The crisp sound made by the pressure on his joints was particularly clear in the air.
"Forget it," Kuang Jing lay on the sofa, sinking deep into his chest, and forced a self-deprecating smile into the void. "Anyway, it's almost time for me to retire, so it's better to have less trouble than more..."
After comforting himself, he shook his head vigorously, throwing the remaining stinging feeling on the back of his neck and all the unspoken questions about Bai Ta into the shadows, and his tense shoulder blades gradually relaxed.
However, Kuang Jing didn't want to delve into what tricks had gone on during the last mission, but fate had no intention of letting him go.
The next morning, when he woke up from another damp nightmare, the terminal on his wrist suddenly exploded with a scarlet halo representing the highest command from the White Tower—
【Mission No.: XX-001:
Sentinel 'Ouroboros', effective immediately, will implement around-the-clock close-quarter strategic surveillance of Senior Guide ███ (codenamed 'Rou Lingzhi'), who has been designated as a top-secret security officer.
…
Note: Risk factor SSS+, target's mental state is abnormal, and currently being pursued by no fewer than three forces. During the mission execution, rigor and meticulousness are essential, and no mistakes are allowed.]
Staring at the strange code name "Meat Ganoderma Lucidum", Kuang Jing suddenly got goose bumps all over his body, and he inexplicably had a bad premonition.
The next second, the sentry suddenly discovered that his door had opened a small crack, and a slender shadow was silently cast in through the gap.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
