Chapter 110 Perfection Through Refinement (9)
This knife was supposed to be "tough," so how did it break so easily?!
The sword shadow, pressing down like a mountain, slashed down, the resulting wind brushing against her face, causing a sharp, stinging pain.
My vision gradually blurred, as if I were dizzy, my chest tightened, and waves of nausea surged up.
Her mind was completely preoccupied with the next steps and she was oblivious to everything else.
The weapon broke, but as long as she was flexible enough, she could still leap and dodge.
Retreat...and then...where to strike next?
Shu Ningmiao blinked lightly, her gaze gradually focusing. The surroundings were extremely quiet. Just a moment ago, she was at odds with Shu Changyan, but now she was standing alone in this white, enclosed space.
After a while, she pulled herself out of that world, clutched her chest, squatted down, and gagged.
It felt like a long time had passed in the combat simulation system. She opened the terminal and was surprised to find that less than half an hour had passed.
A few minutes later, the feeling of falling from the sudden disconnection from the equipment eased somewhat. Shu Ningmiao exhaled a sigh of dissatisfaction and then reopened the virtual control panel, wanting to enter it again.
A semi-transparent menu automatically pops up a formatting progress bar, showing that 50% of the data has been deleted and that there are still 20 minutes left to delete it all.
Based on this timeline, did the formatting process begin the moment she entered? Well, it's not surprising that something containing Pinheis's secrets would have protective measures.
At the same time, the screen was automatically locked and could no longer be tapped.
Shu Ningmiao raised her hand to her forehead, picked up the terminal, and skillfully moved her fingertips across the screen to find one of the contacts.
The contact page displayed the word "communication," and after a brief, weak radio wave, the call was answered.
The voice on the other end of the terminal was hoarse and indifferent: "What brings you here, Miss?"
Before Shu Ningmiao could speak, the person on the other end sensed her impending anger. After thinking for a moment, they condescended to squeeze out a few words: "Get to the point first."
"Do you think it's reasonable to design mission weapons to be so easily destroyed? That's not realistic." Shu Ningmiao seized the opportunity to mock him, clipping the terminal to her ear and bringing it close to the screen: "Forget it, how do I cancel the data formatting of the combat simulation system?"
"You mean the device used by the operator?"
There aren't many large-scale combat simulation devices left, and each one has its own place. Weston quickly figured out which one she was referring to and raised an eyebrow.
A faint sound of fabric rubbing could be heard from the other end of the terminal.
Weston stood up, a sneer in his voice: "First of all, I didn't design the stuff inside. I was only responsible for designing the structural diagrams. The military repeatedly emphasized that the data of their precious operators is top secret. Thanks to Kovina, this device is a crippled, defective product; data can only be imported manually. Without AI-simulated branch nodes, what you see is exactly what the imported data is like, understand?"
"In other words, if the knife in the data is broken, then the knife is bound to break..."
“That’s really clever.” Weston said, half-praising and half-sarcastically, completely dispelling her idea of taking the videotape out of the device for a closer look: “Secondly, the one-time data formatting is a factory setting and can’t be canceled.”
Shu Ningmiao deduced that if the knife broke, the person was likely in grave danger, and the data from her perspective clearly came from this person—meaning that Shu Changyan had also retrieved the videotape from the person and brazenly put it into the device.
...What exactly did he do?
Weston hadn't ended the call yet, and in her few words he gleaned the most important information: "You're at Union Tower."
Unable to do anything about the formatted progress bar, she tapped the screen listlessly as a response.
“Come here, I have something for you.” Weston ordered matter-of-factly, as naturally as if he were still in Cornunos: “My office is on the seventy-second floor. I’ve given you access. Take the elevator.”
"Can't we go somewhere else?"
“It’s election time now, do you know how much trouble it is to travel between Union Tower and other places?” Weston’s voice was soft, but it sounded sarcastic. “My time is precious, ma’am.”
Shu Ningmiao didn't really want to see him in a place like the United Building. Recently, she had only taken advantage of Wei Shengqianheng, and many people had come to ask her if she was going to dump Shi Yu. Her status as a councilor was already sensitive, and there might be some outrageous rumors that Weston was being kept by her.
Although the facts are not far off—political funding with its ambiguous bets and returns is not much better than throwing money at a man.
But she had no interest in being talked about, and Shu Changyan would definitely ask her all sorts of questions.
Okay, the latter is harder to handle.
She hesitated for too long, and Weston scoffed, hanging up abruptly without caring about her answer.
After a few months of miraculous interaction, Weston now unexpectedly understands her risk-taking nature when there's something to gain; in short, he always has carrots on the hook to feed her.
Shu Ningmiao opened the door and glanced outside unintentionally, seeing someone leaning against the wall outside, who happened to hear the sound and came in.
Shu Changyan stood upright, his face blurred by the backlight, gradually merging with the masked boy's figure. His tall and slender figure cast a shadow that was even more oppressive than the phantom.
He bent down and touched the ends of her hair, smiling. His eyes instantly seemed to fill with a warm, gentle lake. His aura was indeed frightening, but his calm smile completely eased it, naturally making people feel good about him.
His fingers brushed against her cheek; they were warm and slightly damp, as if he had just touched something scalding hot. Shu Ningmiao glanced at him but didn't say anything.
"I poured you some milk." Shu Changyan placed her cold hand on the glass, the warmth transferring from her fingertips: "What would you like to eat later? Have someone bring it over."
Completely different.
Shu Ningmiao saw Shu Changyan's face through the mist, and the bloodstains on his mask flashed through her mind, causing a huge sense of rupture to rise in her heart.
"Wait a minute." She pulled her hand back. "I'm going out for a bit."
Shu Chang reached out and opened the door for her: "Do you know the way?"
She turned her gaze back to him: "My memory and sense of direction are still normal."
"Where are we going?" Shu Changyan and she walked out one after the other in tacit understanding. He tentatively raised his hand, grabbed her sleeve, and shook it gently.
"Hmm... I'm going to see a friend." Shu Ningmiao said with a straight face, "Don't follow me."
"What friend?"
Shu Changyan placed his arm on her shoulder from behind, leaned over, and couldn't help but sigh softly, his eyes full of tender concern: "This place is full of... I'm afraid you'll be deceived by bad people."
“I’m an adult now.” Shu Ningmiao reached back and grabbed his collar: “Brother.”
“This is different.” Shu Changyan leaned down with the help of the force, his eyes crinkling with laughter.
Shu Ningmiao stopped in her tracks.
They were so busy criticizing Weston that they forgot to criticize him.
She turned around and poked Shu Changyan's forehead hard: "Did you import the data into the device?"
Shu Changyan pressed his forehead down following her pressure.
"Why keep this videotape?" Shu Ningmiao frowned, her voice unconsciously softening.
Shu Ningmiao could roughly guess why this person had to die. Due to the operating mechanism of Pines, some secrets had to be buried under the ruins along with the dead. However, she couldn't understand why Shu Changyan wanted to retrieve his videotape.
If Shu Changyan took the videotape for insurance purposes, it shouldn't have remained, because what she just saw was enough to send him to the central court for trial.
“It wasn’t left on purpose.” Shu Changyan’s voice rang in her ear, his distinctively clear voice carrying a soft ending tone: “The military’s specially made recorder is difficult to destroy. He had already seen Yelü’s device, so just in case, I transferred his data into my recorder and mixed it with my data.”
"...Didn't they check your dashcam footage?"
"I didn't hand it in," Shu Changyan said, drawing out the last syllable. "I'm a troublemaker."
"Then why take it out in the first place?" Shu Ningmiao crossed her arms, not giving him any chance to act cute or charming.
Since this device is manual, the fact that data can appear on it can only mean that Shu Changyan wants her to see these things.
He nuzzled the top of her head with his chin without explaining why.
At some point, Shu Changyan began to realize that Shu Ningmiao was hiding many things from him.
This is actually a very normal thing. There are too many reasons that could separate and alienate them, such as identity, distance, and age. They are not real siblings, but he is illogical and still feels dissatisfied with the status quo.
His common sense had already vaguely discerned the transgression of this affection, but he pretended it didn't exist.
Even though the emotions mixed with remorse became more and more obvious each day, he preferred to deceive himself and let it grow into a carbuncle, festering in his heart.
As long as there's even a slight chance that puncturing this pus and blood could lead to a situation where he and Shu Ningmiao part ways, his only prayer is to maintain the status quo.
Shu Changyan did not want to press her to reveal the truth she was unwilling to tell, so all he could do was to dissect himself and show her his vulnerable flesh and blood without reservation.
Even though he didn't say it, Shu Ningmiao knew what he was thinking, and because she knew it, she didn't know how to respond.
If a person doesn't shed tears for the unfounded prejudice of their closest relatives, they will naturally lack explanations and won't try to hold on when they are loved.
Shu Changyan was simply telling her in his own way: I will never leave you.
She raised her arm, placed her palm over his, and gently slapped it away: "Move aside."
Shu Changyan withdrew his hand, chuckled, then returned to his usual indifferent expression, lightly flicking her forehead with his fingertips.
Shu Ningmiao was momentarily stunned by the sharp, mature look in his eyes. True beauty lies in the bone structure, not just the skin. When most people first saw him, what would be striking wouldn't be his unusual blue eyes or handsome face, but rather the captivating, soul-stirring essence of his features. In short, Shu Ningmiao felt that many years after his death, he would probably become a beautiful skeleton.
Almost subconsciously, he lingered over that insignificant touch, his fingertips sliding down to affectionately brush against her earlobe.
That particularly thin tissue was so white it was almost transparent, and you could almost see the pale pink flesh underneath through the skin. Shu Changyan observed her intently, as if he were conducting some crucial research.
Shu Ningmiao felt the warmth of his fingertips, like a tiny flame emerging from a candle. She paused slightly, then suddenly felt that the emotion reflected in his eyes showed an unnatural loss of control, which quickly engulfed her, making her feel strange.
Shu Ningmiao took a few steps back without looking back and stepped into the elevator. Different floors of the Union Building are managed by different departments, so the floors that can be selected by elevator also depend on each person's authority. As for more private offices, the owner needs to apply for visitor permission to enter.
Weston granted her access to the 72nd floor, but as she stood there, the device scanned the brooch on her collar, and suddenly all the floors became available for selection, forcing her to manually select them again.
A soft beeping sound came from behind him as Shu Changyan walked in. The elevator scanned him, and the floor was refreshed to be available for selection.
Shu Ningmiao had reached her limit with this tedious and idiotic elevator procedure: "Don't follow me."
"Can't I even go along the same route?" Noticing the direction of her gaze, Shu Chang reached over her shoulder and pressed the floor she had just selected, already thinking of the owner of this floor: "I also have something to discuss with Congressman Weston."
He tapped the screen: "Apply for me."
The mechanical voice responded quickly: "Automatic passage has been completed."
Shu Ningmiao was speechless.
The control door to the office on the 72nd floor opened automatically, revealing a simple black desktop and an open, curved floor-to-ceiling window that overlooked the main city of Piñe, with people's shadows reflected in the glass.
Weston leaned back on the sofa, one hand on the armrest and the other on the terminal with its screen dark, looking absent-minded.
He turned his head when he heard the sound.
The next second, Shu Ningmiao felt his face suddenly turn cold, his gaze passing over her with a hint of mockery, and his smile carrying a chilling edge.
-----------------------
Author's Note: Bro vs. Weston is the mature men's group.
Yu and Shi were still clear-headed men (clear-headed specifically referring to Yu).
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
