A fleeting moment became an eternity; this moment of happiness, blooming like a flower, marked an eternal end in Xia Zhen's heart. That warm and strong chest became the most profound and unforgettable perfect fragment of her lifelong memory.
a long time……
Ling Yun then released Xia Zhen. "Is there anything you want to say to me?" The boy's tone returned to calm.
Xia Zhen's body stiffened: "Do you know what I'm going to tell you?"
"I don't know." After a long pause, Ling Yun said calmly. He turned his head, a golden glint flashing in his eyes.
Xia Zhen stared intently at him, as if trying to discern something from his face. However, after Ling Yun released her, he no longer faced the girl, so Xia Zhen could only see half of his face and could never see what kind of expression Ling Yun had on his face.
"Who is Gu Xiaorou?" Xia Zhen suddenly asked, biting her lip. Just as she was waking up from her blissful state, her heart immediately started pounding because of this sudden question.
"You know the freshman English major girl, right?" Ling Yun said, trying to downplay the issue.
"Heh, just an ordinary girl? I'm afraid she's more than that." Xia Zhen smiled sarcastically. "She's the daughter of a major general of the Heavenly Eye Society, a stunning beauty who possesses the extraordinary Heavenly Eye, and her strength is in no way below that of a lieutenant. How could such a big shot be an ordinary female student from Jinghua University? My young master Lingyun, it seems you've missed telling me something."
"..." Ling Yun shrugged. "You already know, so why are you asking me?"
"I asked you what your relationship is with her? What, is there something you're hiding? I'm your older sister, and I'm also the one who introduced you to the Superpower Headquarters. In a sense, I'm your guardian, and I have to be responsible for your every move. So you must report everything about yourself to me, including your actions and your thoughts." The girl put her hands on her hips and spoke aggressively, seemingly reverting to her wild and unruly nature from school.
"Guardian?" Ling Yun was genuinely surprised this time, and finally turned to face Xia Zhen. "Hey, boss, my parents are still alive. Are you trying to take advantage of me? What were we just now? An aunt and nephew hugging?"
Xia Zhen's tense face could no longer hold back, and she burst out laughing, covering her cherry-like mouth as she said, "You rascal, you're usually as silent as a block of wood, but when you try to make people laugh, you can make me laugh to death."
"You asked for it." Ling Yun shrugged.
“Sigh…” After laughing, Xia Zhen immediately smiled bitterly and regained her serious expression. She sighed heavily, stamped her foot and said, “You still have the mood to joke? Do you know why I came to see you? If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t even be qualified to enter the fourth floor of the headquarters. Before I came to see you, Deputy Chief Instructor Luo Panxi had a special talk with me.”
"Is it related to Gu Xiaorou? Or is it related to her third eye?" Ling Yun said calmly, showing no surprise.
"How come you seem to know everything? I haven't seen you find it strange at all?" Xia Zhen said in surprise.
"No one knows that Gu Xiaorou and I are friends except for her and me. You asked about her as soon as you saw me, so naturally you know everything. It's not that I didn't want to tell you about her, but the secret of the Heavenly Eye is too important. I also promised her not to tell anyone, so I kept it a secret. But since you already know, then it must have been Chief Luo who told you. I didn't expect that the fact that she has the Heavenly Eye would be leaked so quickly." The young man said with a wry smile.
"Oh, I see." Xia Zhen nodded, a huge weight lifted from her heart. So he hadn't told her these things because he wanted to keep them a secret from Gu Xiaorou, not because he was deliberately hiding them from her. The girl felt a surge of sweetness and happiness.
"Ling Yun, it's like this, Chief Luo said he'd like to see if you could talk to Gu Xiaorou and get her to join the Superpower Headquarters. That way, she'll get protection from the headquarters and won't have to fear the Sky Eye Society's pursuit." Xia Zhen said hesitantly, looking into Ling Yun's eyes.
"Hehe." Ling Yun chuckled faintly. "Is it to protect Gu Xiaorou or for the Heavenly Eye she possesses? I'm currently a trainee superhuman at the Superhuman Headquarters, and I should obey my superiors' orders and your advice. However, I'm afraid I can't comply in this matter. The Heavenly Eye is a keepsake left to Gu Xiaorou by her mother on her deathbed, and she no longer trusts any organization. It's impossible for her to hand it over. Besides, I won't go to Xiaorou to discuss this with her. How should I put it? Is this protecting her or taking advantage of her vulnerability? If you were me, if I were Gu Xiaorou, would you talk to me like this?"
Xia Zhen shook her head: "Ling Yun, you've misunderstood me. I didn't mean to persuade you at all. I'm just a member of the Superpower Headquarters. Since Chief Luo told me to tell you clearly, I have to carry out the headquarters' orders. But my heart is the same as yours. Even if it were a stranger, I wouldn't do something like this to take advantage of someone's misfortune."
Ling Yun was taken aback and said, "Then you..."
Xia Zhen took two steps forward, looked at him tenderly, and said softly, "You should leave, Yun. I understand what Chief Luo meant. If you don't persuade Gu Xiaorou, he might use his superior status to pressure you, and you probably won't be able to remain a trainee superhuman. You should leave here. My strong recommendation for you to join the Superhuman Headquarters was a mistake. With your current strength and intelligence, you've already surpassed the level of a trainee superhuman, and you've far surpassed me... Yun, no matter how you acquired your power, I'm proud of you. A good man's ambition lies in all directions. Remember, you're in my heart."
As she spoke, the little girl suddenly smiled shyly, quickly threw herself into his arms, and gently kissed the stunned boy's lips with her delicate, exquisitely carved mouth.
Chapter 191 Ling Yun's Confidence
After stealing a kiss from her beloved, Xia Zhen was overcome with shyness and wanted to flee the quiet room as quickly as possible. Ling Yun was also taken aback by her boldness and was momentarily stunned. Seeing the girl trying to escape in a panic, he quickly grabbed her arm and said with a wry smile, "What are you in such a hurry for? I'm afraid I can't leave even if I want to."
Xia Zhen's heart pounded as he grabbed her arm. She thought that her stolen kiss had stirred his desire and he was about to take things further. She was torn between complying and refusing if Ling Yun made any intimate moves. Complying seemed too hasty… refusing risked upsetting him.
Just as she was in a dilemma, she suddenly heard what Ling Yun said and was taken aback. In an instant, she put aside her girlish thoughts and asked anxiously, "Can't leave? What do you mean? Will the Superpower Headquarters make things difficult for you?"
Ling Yun shook his head: "I don't know if the Superpower Headquarters will make things difficult for me, but Chief Luo certainly won't let me leave so easily. Even if I don't become a trainee superpower user, I might not be able to leave the Superpower Headquarters."
Xia Zhen looked at Ling Yun with some surprise, and after a long while shook her head: "No, I don't believe that the headquarters would do such a thing. I can understand Chief Luo's anxiety and desire for the Sky Eye, which led him to resort to such a desperate measure. However, the Superpower Headquarters is an official Chinese organization. It is not up to one person to decide what to do. Moreover, since the first chief instructor, Lu Ximing, the Superpower Headquarters has clearly stated its instructions that it will never allow superpowered individuals to use the Superpower Headquarters or national interests as an excuse to forcibly take advantage of others or individuals and seize them by force. The Superpowered Individuals Code of Conduct also stipulates these contents."
Ling Yun sighed and said, "Xia Zhen, you're still too naive. The rules for superhumans can only control ordinary superhumans like you. Can they really restrain those at the level of deputy chief instructor or above? Besides, Lu Ximing is already dead. His admonitions are no longer appropriate. Chief Luo can find countless excuses to keep me here. And from his perspective, there's nothing wrong with doing so. After all, the Heavenly Eye is too important. For the future safety of the Superhuman Headquarters, even using some extreme measures is necessary."
"How do you know all this?" Xia Zhen asked curiously. Suddenly, as if she understood something, she pointed at Ling Yun in surprise, "Did you know everything from beginning to end? How did you do it?"
Ling Yun smiled faintly: "I'll show you something, and then you'll understand." With that, he flicked his hand, and a silver light shot out from his middle finger, striking a bare, snow-white wall in the quiet room.
In fact, as soon as Ling Yun entered the quiet room, he noticed the unique features of the octagonal building. Like the control room on the third floor, it was a deeper level control room. The entire octagonal building was located at the center of the barrier, and each floor was closely connected to the SkyNet, with corresponding functions. As long as the deputy chief instructors entered specific rooms in the octagonal building, they could do anything within the scope of the SkyNet's functions.
Having obtained the core key to Skynet, Ling Yun effortlessly deciphered the functions and layout of the octagonal building and the fourth floor of headquarters. He then unceremoniously used the quiet room to spy on the contents of the conference room. What Luo Panxi and the others said after he left, including their final private conversation with Xia Zhen, all occurred right under Ling Yun's nose.
If Luo Panxi had been paying close attention, he wouldn't have missed Ling Yun's spying. However, being at the center of the Heavenly Net barrier already provided extremely strong protection, so there was no need to set up another barrier. This, in turn, allowed Ling Yun, who had control over the Heavenly Net barrier, to find an opening.
Ling Yun felt both furious and helpless about Luo Panxi and his group's schemes against the Heavenly Eye. While he understood their self-interested motives, he couldn't comprehend their actions. The thought of the lonely Gu Xiaorou ignited a burning passion within him. No matter what, he would protect the beautiful girl who had endured such cruelty since childhood, even if it meant leaving the Superpower Headquarters. From then until Xia Zhen's arrival, Ling Yun secretly pondered a way to escape. He was certain Xia Zhen was on his side; even if the entire Superpower Headquarters opposed him, Xia Zhen would stand firmly by his side. Now, however, he needed to find a better way to escape without implicating Xia Zhen, and it would be best to avoid a rift with the Superpower Headquarters. But it seemed that achieving a win-win-win situation was now extremely difficult.
A flash of silver light, like a drop of water entering the sea, disappeared into the wall. Gradually, ripples appeared on the white wall, and after a few circles of silver ripples, the entire white wall suddenly went from blurry to clear, transforming into a picture.
On the screen, Luo Panxi, Tie Li, Li Zhongqi, and several instructors in black uniforms are staring intently in the direction of the two men, their faces showing expressions of confusion.
"What is this?" Xia Zhen stared at the screen in shock. "What are they looking at?"
Ling Yun's face remained expressionless: "Of course, it's up to us. This quiet room, seemingly protected by an isolation barrier, is actually part of a larger barrier. Even this octagonal building is just one of the core control hubs of the Skynet. The barrier within the quiet room has a hidden passage through which others can see everything happening here!"
"What?!" Xia Zhen was completely stunned. Someone could see everything through the barrier? How come she hadn't noticed at all? In an instant, the girl felt incredibly angry, as if her deepest secret had been spied on without her knowledge. But then her pretty face flushed red. Being able to see everything meant... meant that her proactive attitude towards Ling Yun had also been seen? For a moment, Xia Zhen really wanted to find a crack in the ground to crawl into.
Ling Yun noticed her worries and quickly said, "Don't worry, I changed the structure of the passage when you came in. What they saw was just our meaningless conversation. Your... uh... actions won't be seen by anyone, so don't worry."
Xia Zhen darted over, raised her two pink little fists, and kept pounding Ling Yun's shoulders. While patting his chest comfortingly, she pouted and said, "You scared me to death, you brat, it's all your fault."
Ling Yun didn't back down, and said with a wry smile, "Stop joking. Now you believe what I'm saying, right? If I really wanted you to do my job, why would I need to use a secret passage to monitor us? Normally, the Superpower Headquarters does everything according to the Superpower User Code of Conduct because it doesn't involve any interests. Once it comes to interests, things will immediately change."
Xia Zhen blinked angrily: "I went to talk to Xia Lan about this, but the head instructor hasn't returned yet. I don't believe that Chief Luo and the others would dare to force you to stay like this."
Ling Yun quickly grabbed her arm: "Little Miss, you mustn't go. Even if you find your sister, would she dare to disobey the commander's will? Besides, it would put her in a difficult position. Moreover, your sister might agree with Commander Luo's approach. Not everyone is as good to me as you are. Even if the chief instructor comes back, we don't know what his true attitude will be."
The little girl immediately deflated: "Then what do you suggest? Why don't you sneak away? Yun, I'll take responsibility for whatever happens. I don't believe that with the deep roots of my Xia family in the Supernatural Abilities Headquarters over the years, who would dare to do anything to me?" As she said this, the little girl's eyebrows were raised, and she looked extremely angry.
Ling Yun smiled faintly: "I came openly and honestly, so why should I sneak away? That would make it seem like I'm in the wrong. Even if I leave, I want everyone to know why I'm leaving. Don't worry, as long as I want to leave, no one here can stop me."