As soon as Jia Lan spoke, everyone in the meeting room except for the superhuman team turned to look at her.
For a moment, Jia Lan, who had just entered, looked somewhat embarrassed. She glanced around the meeting room and couldn't quite process what had happened. It seemed to be different from what she had expected.
"Lu, Brother Lu, what's this...?"
Jia Lan's confidence crumbled at this point.
Lu Ting looked at Jia Lan, but couldn't even say a word. He actually knew what Jia Lan wanted to do with him—to give Zhou Ziqi a warning, and then one of them would play the good cop and the other the bad cop.
A two-pronged approach, combining both kindness and severity.
Ironically, before Jia Lan's "rescue" arrived, it was Lu Ting who was already in an awkward position, and Jia Lan wasn't saving Zhou Ziqi, but rather Lu Ting, the base leader...
To avoid another awkward situation, Lu Ting waved his hand, dismissing the already useless team of superhumans, and explained the situation himself.
"It's alright, Jia Lan, Mr. Zhou and I just had a misunderstanding."
"Is...is this how it is..."
Jia Lan gave an awkward smile, met Lu Ting's gaze, and immediately realized that the plan had changed. Since that was the case... they had no choice but to sacrifice Lillian.
She subconsciously looked towards Zhou Ziqi's side. The tall, slender man was only half-embracing Ruan Qing'an, his upturned phoenix eyes looking at them with a half-smile—as if waiting for an explanation.
Since they can no longer use this opportunity to befriend Zhou Ziqi, the only thing they can do is avoid making enemies and distance themselves from the situation.
Thinking of this, Jia Lan's eyes hardened.
Lu Ting coughed softly and said to Zhou Ziqi, "Mr. Zhou, although we have some differences in our beliefs, as you have seen today, I am only responsible for upholding justice. The one who really wants to accuse you is your student, Lillian."
"She spoke rudely and tried to sow discord between you, Mr. Zhou, and the Third Human Base. I was deceived."
Regardless of whether the reason was clumsy or not, Lu Ting had to shift the blame first.
Beside her, Lillian, trembling with fear, suddenly raised her head and stared intently at Lu Ting: "Lu, what do you mean?! Yes, it was me who suggested it, didn't you agree?!"
Have you said enough?
Lu Ting's face turned cold, and lightning-type superpowers instantly surged in his hand, condensing into a lightning whip, which he fiercely lashed out at Lillian!
Lillian was startled and instinctively dodged to the side, but the lightning-streaked whip still grazed her face, leaving a horrific char. She screamed in pain and curled up on the ground.
Lu Tingming was clearly looking for a scapegoat...
Lillian realized what was happening. She was already curled up on the ground in pain, and now, ignoring the pain on her face, she staggered forward and almost knelt down in front of Jalan.
She raised her scarred face, her long golden hair stained with dirt, and sobbed uncontrollably, "Sister Jia Lan, please help me!"
"I clearly did as you said—"
*Smack!*
But before Lillian could finish speaking, Jalan slapped her across the face, the action swift and decisive.
The meeting room fell silent after the crisp sound of the slap.
Lillian knelt on the ground, instinctively covering her face, staring blankly at Jia Lan: "Sister Jia Lan, why...why..."
"Lillian, you've disappointed me so much!"
Jia Lan said in a deep voice, looking heartbroken. Judging from her pained expression, she seemed even more heartbroken and distressed than Lillian, who had charred marks on her face. She seemed so angry that she couldn't even speak clearly.
Lillian stood frozen in place, her face deathly pale.
Jia Lan continued, "If you hadn't begged me, I would have trusted you and given you the chance to meet Brother Lu. But you... but why did you take advantage of my trust to slander Mr. Zhou?"
"It was you...you tried to harm me!!!"
Lily screamed hysterically, her eyes blazing with fury.
She finally realized that Jia Lan had taken the initiative to propose it a month ago, but now she was being blamed for it all. Considering Lu Ting's previous reaction, it was clear that he wanted to sacrifice her in exchange for Zhou Ziqi!
But how could Jialan give Lillian a chance to argue? He slapped her again, leaving her speechless.
"Lillian, I never expected that even after things have come to this, you would still try to shift the blame onto me. Since that's the case, our friendship is over, and I no longer consider you my friend!"
"Jia Lan, you bitch—"
Lillian was furious. The person who had truly fooled her was none other than Jialan, whom she trusted so much. She rushed forward, wanting nothing more than to tear Jialan apart with her bare hands, but in the next moment—
Lu Ting stepped forward and shoved her away.
Lillian rolled several times on the ground in a sorry state, crashing heavily into the wall, and was casually swept away like a piece of discarded trash.
Lu Ting, who had done all this, didn't even spare a glance, as arrogant as when he first judged Ruan Qing'an, and casually said, "Stop fooling around, Lillian."
"You'll only face some punishment, but have you considered Jia Lan? She's lost Mr. Zhou's trust and has been implicated by you!"
This time, Lu Ting hit hard, and Lillian couldn't dodge. She was just a researcher with average physical abilities, and now she was in so much pain that she was sitting on the spot, even breathing became difficult.
She couldn't help but laugh, a laugh tinged with self-mockery.
"A little punishment?"
"She tricked me... but I'm fucking going to die!"
At this moment, the person who was originally involved has become a cold bystander, standing aside and watching them coldly. The interest in Zhou Ziqi's eyes has disappeared; he has no interest in such a boring thing.
I heard a very soft sigh.
Zhou Ziqi raised an eyebrow: "Are you bored, Xiao Ruan?"
The petite girl was looking down, touching her new scabbard, her fingertips unconsciously rubbing the crystal core embedded in it: "Hmm, it's not as interesting as my old scabbard."
"...You just want to take the crystal core, don't you?"
Zhou Ziqi sighed, glancing at the three with his narrow eyes: "However, they are indeed very boring. If they could keep causing trouble, I might think more highly of them, but now..."
"Mr. Zhou."
Just then, Lu Ting interrupted their whispers and explained, "In short, this has nothing to do with Jia Lan. I will also deal with Lillian. I hope Mr. Zhou will not take it to heart."
"I can't be bothered with you guys."
Zhou Ziqi raised his hand slightly and said listlessly.
Meanwhile, Lillian, whose vision was already blurred from the pain, suddenly felt a sharp pain in her head, as if a lock had been unlocked, when she saw Lu Ting carefully trying to exonerate Jia Lan.
In the last moments before she nearly died, her mind, which had regained some activity, struggled to function, and Lillian's smile became even more distorted.
"Lu Ting, Chief..."
"Let Teacher Zhou... take a look at your brain."
Lu Ting frowned: "What nonsense are you spouting?"
But Jia Lan, standing beside him, suddenly looked over, a hint of apprehension in her eyes. Her gaze flickered, and then widened: "Lillian, you—"
The next moment, Lillian, who was already barely breathing, stopped breathing.
Her death was sudden and hasty, and Lu Ting couldn't help but sigh: "It's my fault for being a bit too heavy-handed, never mind..."
"Mr. Zhou, are you satisfied with this explanation?"
"Satisfied, of course I'm satisfied."
Zhou Ziqi seemed to have discovered something, and smiled with narrowed eyes. After answering Lu Ting's question, he led his bodyguard out of the conference room. Lu Ting did not have the superhuman team follow to protect him anymore—after all, Ruan Qing'an was fighting a whole group of them by himself.
Only after he could no longer see her did Zhou Ziqi slowly and deliberately hook the ribbon on Ruan Qing'an's wrist.
Although his bodyguard had a blank expression, he seemed to have found something amusing and visibly became happy, albeit somewhat subtly. Zhou Ziqi, however, was quite familiar with this tactic and casually asked, "Something making you happy?"
"Boss, aren't you the same?"
"...Haha, Xiao Ruan is getting to know me better and better."
Zhou Ziqi squinted and smiled, "Looks like you also sensed that energy fluctuation. It's a mental energy, right?"
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