Chapter 81: I Am Ji An’s Sister!

Chapter 81 I’m Ji An’s Sister!

"How could this be? This is impossible!" Han Yaokun was deeply shaken, refusing to accept such a fact. He questioned, "Commander-in-Chief Gu, I’ve always trusted your integrity. But don’t you think this is too much of a coincidence? Zhao Zhen just targeted Ji An, and the next moment, you lock him up, then tell me Zhao Zhen has committed treason.

Commander-in-Chief Gu, do you honestly think your words hold any credibility?"

Gu Jinsheng remained expressionless, utterly composed. "If Dean Han doesn’t believe me, you can go to the dungeon and ask him yourself. I haven’t laid a finger on your people."

"Country M and Country R failed to recruit you, so they turned to Zhao Zhen instead.

Zhao Zhen, out of jealousy toward Ji An, leaked his information to Country M and Country R—including the fact that he’s the creator of the spatial storage device and nutrient solutions.

We were able to capture Country M’s spy this time, all thanks to Zhao Zhen.

The Country M spy saw the healing pod at the base and tried to gather intelligence. When they went to the research institute to find Zhao Zhen, our pre-arranged personnel apprehended them on the spot."

Gu Jinsheng continued, "And then there’s Wang Zhenghao from your research institute—he’s also working for Country M and Country R.

His reason for betraying the base was simple: pure greed.

Country M and Country R offered him enough benefits to manipulate Zhao Zhen into targeting Ji An.

Wang Zhenghao thought it was no big deal and readily agreed.

The recent uproar over the zombie monarch crystal was fueled by Wang Zhenghao’s meddling, combined with Zhao Zhen’s deep-seated jealousy of Ji An." On the way, Gu Jinsheng briefly explained the situation to Han Yaokun.

Han Yaokun couldn’t accept that the research institute under his management had become so compromised, harboring so many traitors.

Gu Jinsheng then took him to the dungeon where the prisoners were held. Ji An, being central to the incident, accompanied them.

The conditions in the dungeon were undeniably poor, but Gu Jinsheng hadn’t resorted to torture. All the researchers showed no physical injuries—only psychological distress, leaving them pale and like hollow shells.

The moment Zhao Zhen saw Han Yaokun, he lunged forward, reaching through the iron bars to clutch at Han Yaokun’s clothes. Sobbing, he cried, "Professor! Professor, why did it take you so long to come? I’ve been tortured to death by Gu Jinsheng! He bent the law for Ji An’s sake, forcing me to confess to things I never did under duress. He even made me admit to treason, all because I was supposedly jealous of Ji An!

Isn’t this absurd? With you here, how could I ever be jealous of some snot-nosed brat?"

Han Yaokun glanced at Gu Jinsheng, noting his calm and indifferent demeanor—completely unbothered by Zhao Zhen’s accusations. His attention was entirely fixed on Ji An.

Steadying himself, Han Yaokun replied coldly, "Zhao Zhen, even now, you still refuse to admit the truth?"

Zhao Zhen’s tearful expression froze for a moment before he quickly recovered. He said to Han Yaokun, "Professor, you’d rather believe him than me? I’ve been by your side for decades, weathering countless storms with you. And now, you’d trust the words of an enemy over mine?"

Han Yaokun closed his eyes, suddenly looking utterly disheartened. "They found the person who contacted you. Before coming to see you, I already met with that individual!"

Zhao Zhen’s expression shifted, but he still stubbornly insisted, "Professor, that person was planted by them to deceive you! Those slanders against me must have been fed to him by them!"

Gu Jinsheng cut in, "Then the details he provided—about how you contacted the human traffickers, posed as an R Country national, directed them to kidnap children and capture Ji An, even tampering with the headquarters’ surveillance system to mislead the human traffickers into thinking you were from the headquarters—are all lies too?"

Zhao Zhen blurted out, "Impossible! How would he know any of that? I never told a soul!"

Han Yaokun suddenly staggered back two steps, bracing himself against the wall. "Zhao Zhen… how could you become like this? I hardly recognize you anymore!

Everything I just said about meeting someone from R Country was a lie. I just wanted to see your reaction.

Before coming here—before you admitted it yourself—I truly didn’t believe you could betray our country. I genuinely thought Gu Jinsheng had done something to you. But now, you’ve admitted it outright. You’ve disappointed me deeply!"

Seeing that the situation was beyond salvage, Zhao Zhen dropped the act. His tears dried instantly, replaced by a look of pure malice. He let out a hysterical shriek, "Why?! Why is the world so unfair?! Ji An is just some snot-nosed brat, yet he keeps inventing groundbreaking inventions, one after another, transcending the limits of our time!

And what about me?! Slaving beside you for years, day after day—what did I ever gain?! I finally cracked one human-zombie coexistence tech, only for Ji An to deem it unworthy of his attention. If he wanted to break it, he could do it in seconds!"

Zhao Zhen looked at Han Yaokun, "I'm not interested in that useless research at all, nor do I care whether it can help more people! All I want is fame and glory, to stand under the spotlight and be admired by thousands!"

Han Yaokun said, "But as researchers, the more accomplished we are, the more we should keep a low profile—otherwise, it could cost us our lives!

Even Ji An can't publicly admit that he's the creator of the nutrient agents and the treatment chamber!"

Zhao Zhen's expression remained blank. "I never liked research in the first place. As long as I can stand in the spotlight, nothing else matters to me!"

Han Yaokun seemed to finally see Zhao Zhen for who he truly was, his entire demeanor broken and weary. "If you wanted the spotlight, if you wanted to be admired, you could have told me. I could have helped you.

But betraying your country—that's my bottom line, the bottom line for all of us in Xia!

Zhao Zhen, I can never forgive you for betraying your country!"

Zhao Zhen suddenly became agitated, shouting, "I didn’t betray my country, I didn’t!"

He pointed at Ji An. "What is he? How can he even compare to the nation? The only one I sold out was him! I never leaked a single piece of national intelligence!

All I did was send those traffickers after Ji An, to capture him and hand him over to those perverts in R-country and M-country for their exploitative displays, to make him their forced servitude!

Isn’t that what Ji An likes? Doesn’t he enjoy being violated?

I was just helping him fulfill his wish—he should be thanking me!"

Gu Jinsheng unleashed a skill, sending Zhao Zhen flying into the wall, blood streaming from his head. Zhao Zhen struggled, clutching his chest as he spat out a mouthful of blood.

"Zhao Zhen, how much longer will you stay deluded?" Han Yaokun had known Zhao Zhen was jealous of Ji An, but he never imagined that jealousy had twisted into something pathological, obsessive, and outright insane.

"Outsiders might not know, but everyone within our ranks understands—the spatial storage device, the nutrient agents that can save lives worldwide, the treatment chambers that restore countless bodies and spirits—all of these were developed by Ji An. How can such a man not represent our nation? He can save millions, pioneer a new century—he is humanity’s greatest hope!

And you, you sold his secrets to foreign powers, yet claim you didn’t betray your country?

You are nothing but a traitor, one who seeks to drag Xia into ruin!"

"I’m not! Ji An can’t represent the nation!"

"He can! Xia cannot do without him now, nor can the development of the Jing City Base! All humanity’s future hinges on him!" Han Yaokun declared. "By destroying Ji An, you are destroying Xia, destroying the Jing City Base, and destroying all of humanity! You are not just a criminal to the Jing City Base—you are a criminal to Xia, a sinner against all mankind!"

"No, I’m not! I just hate Ji An, that’s all!" Zhao Zhen shook his head desperately, as if that could shake off the crushing weight of his sins.

Seeing Zhao Zhen still so obstinate, Han Yaokun suddenly found he had nothing left to say. He turned and walked step by step toward the cell door, his back hunched and weary, as if all vitality had been drained from him in an instant, aging him by a decade.

Watching Han Yaokun truly leave, seemingly abandoning him, Zhao Zhen panicked.

"Teacher, teacher, you can’t just leave me! You were the one who brought me into the Jing City Base, who showed me the world’s glamour! I’m in this state because of you—you can’t abandon me like this!"

Han Yaokun paused but didn’t turn around. Zhao Zhen couldn’t see the tears streaming down his face. "Zhao Zhen... you’re on your own now."

"Teacher, teacher, you can’t go, don’t leave me—"

Han Yaokun lifted his foot again, and this time, no matter how Zhao Zhen screamed, he didn’t stop.

Zhao Zhen slumped like a hollow shell to the ground, then suddenly flared up again, glaring venomously at Ji An. "It’s all your fault! All because of you! Why does everyone protect you? I just despised you, couldn’t destroy you myself, so I used others to do it—*how* is that betraying my country?

How dare you compare yourself to the nation!"

Ji An looked coldly at the wretched insect that was Zhao Zhen. "Because of the technologies I hold—technologies that can save billions of lives worldwide! That is Xia’s classified national secret!

When you came after me, did you ever think of the people of Xia?"

It doesn't matter if I fall into the hands of R and M nations, but what about the technology in my possession? Once those two nations obtain it from me, given their nature, countless waves of bloodshed will inevitably arise!

Have you ever thought about what will happen to the people of China then? What will your selfishness cost them?"

Zhao Zhen stammered, then suddenly seemed to think of something. He shouted feverishly, "Then you should just die! For the sake of the nation, you should protect that technology with your life—you should take your own life right now!"

Ji An replied, "If one day I find myself in such a situation, I will. But for the sake of your jealousy, I won’t. You're not worth it!"

These words made Zhao Zhen’s pupils dilated sharply. Being genuinely despised by the person he deeply envied, Zhao Zhen felt as if every breath he took was laced with venom, eating away at him.

Ji An continued, "I don’t understand what you have to envy about me. Researcher Han was so good to you, trusted you unconditionally, and was willing to help you achieve whatever you wanted.

Even when Gu Jinsheng personally told him you had betrayed the country, he refused to believe it—he insisted on seeing you himself, hearing your explanation with his own ears."

Gu Jinsheng stepped forward, taking his place at Ji An’s side, and said with slight dissatisfaction, "You don’t need to envy him. I can do better. My life—if you want it, I can give it to you!"

Ji An’s face flushed red. He glared at Gu Jinsheng—was this the time for that?

By now, Zhao Zhen could no longer hear what Ji An and Gu Jinsheng were saying.

He sat on the ground, clutching his head, shaking it in agony. "But what he gave me was never what I wanted! I only wanted glory, to be the center of attention!"

Seeing that Zhao Zhen was beyond reasoning even now, Ji An and Gu Jinsheng stopped wasting words on him and left.

After several months, Philemon and the other healing superpowered individuals could finally board the plane back home. When they had arrived, these superpowered individuals had carried themselves like aristocrats slumming in a barbaric land, but now, as they returned, their faces were pale, like they were in mourning, their expressions stunned like hicks overwhelmed by the city.

The Beijing Base was a trustworthy one—they had promised to return Philemon and the others safely, and they truly did.

When Philemon and the others finally set foot on M Nation’s soil, the tension in their hearts finally eased.

Philemon looked around the empty airport and asked a staff member, "Where are the HSD Base’s reception personnel?"

The staff member awkwardly replied, "I’ve already notified HSD Base. They should be on their way. Maybe you could wait in the lounge for a while."

Everyone turned to Philemon—she was their team leader. Her expression darkened as she said to the staff member, "We appreciate your help."

"Captain, when we boarded the plane, the people from Beijing Base called Commander-in-Chief Charles right in front of us. How long has it been? We’ve already arrived—why isn’t anyone from the base here yet?"

Philemon was also uneasy but had to reassure her team, "The base must've been held up by something urgent!"

A team member still felt resentful. "But we went to Beijing Base for the sake of our base! For the base, all of us lost our superpowers! No matter what happened, the base shouldn’t have—"

"Enough!" Philemon snapped. "We all volunteered for this! We did it for our beliefs, for our nation, for our people!"

Though she said this, a sinking feeling grew in her gut. Remembering Charles’s character, Philemon suddenly closed her eyes, afraid to think further.

Philemon and the others waited from dawn till dusk, their stomachs growling with hunger, resentment brewing among them. Finally, the HSD Base vehicles arrived to pick up these "heroes who had fought for their country."

"What kept you? Beijing Base notified the base the moment we left—" A team member, having waited too long, couldn’t help but complain upon seeing the reception team.

But instead of treating them like heroes with respect, the reception team trained guns on their heads and roughly shoved them into the vehicles. "Shut up! Get in!"

"Ah!" One team member cried out in pain from the rough handling. A receptionist immediately pistol-whipped her, gashing her head and sending her sprawling unconscious in the back seat. "Shut up! Get in quietly!"

The team members were terrified, trembling. Philemon’s face was pale. "You can’t treat us like this! We went on this mission for the base, for M Nation—we’re heroes of M Nation!"

The receptionist looked at her with disdain, not an ounce of respect for heroes. "You know how you returned! Betraying state secrets—who the hell do you think you are?!"

"We didn’t! Don’t slander us!" Philemon shot back.

"Save it for the Commander-in-Chief. They’re useless on us!"

As Philemon was shoved into the car, she saw a Chinese woman being manhandled into another vehicle nearby. The woman kept shouting, "Who are you? Where is this? Do you know who I am? I’m the sister of Ji An, the partner of Beijing Base’s Commander-in-Chief Gu Jinsheng! If you kidnap me, aren’t you afraid Beijing Base will cut your rations?"

The woman was so loud they gagged her.

Having spent months in Beijing Base, even isolated from outside news, Philemon knew who the base’s Commander-in-Chief was. She had even heard of Ji An—but in her memory, Ji An was an orphan. Since when did he have family?