Chapter 3 Determined to Win

Chapter 3: Absolute Certainty

Two days later, at the 4th Security Zone Headquarters Hospital.

“Dr. Zhang, the patient in Room 3 is awake.”

“Alright.” The young doctor rose, reviewing a report as he exited his office.

His patient was a Guide admitted two days prior, whose condition the Center had specifically instructed him to monitor closely.

Upon entering the room, he found the patient already sitting up.

“Guide Fang Ran, I’m your attending physician, Zhang Yi.” He gently observed the person before him. “You seem to be in good spirits.”

The patient on the bed nodded to Zhang Yi.

His complexion had regained its color, and his appearance was strikingly handsome. He didn't seem particularly short, but his frame was somewhat slender, and his thinness made the soft patient gown hang loosely on him.

A faint, pleasant scent also permeated the room.

Zhang Yi couldn’t quite place it, but it vaguely reminded him of a fresh fruit.

The person before him exuded a clean, refreshing aura that drew others in.

During his two days of unconsciousness, many Sentinels had sought to visit, but all were ultimately turned away by the Guide Committee.

Zhang Yi performed some basic examinations on Fang Ran, then opened the report and began explaining his condition.

Fang Ran listened intently to each data point and indicator, only exhaling in relief at the end.

“So, my Spiritual Sea hasn’t been damaged, right?”

“Correct.” Zhang Yi habitually adjusted the frame of his metal glasses. “There’s indeed no irreversible damage. A few more days of rest will suffice.”

“I’ll schedule another examination before your discharge.”

Fang Ran gave him a grateful look. “Thank you, Dr. Zhang Yi.”

“You’re welcome.” Zhang Yi smiled. “Rest well, and feel free to call me if anything comes up.” With that, he prepared to leave.

“Dr. Zhang Yi,” Fang Ran called out, stopping him. “I’d like to know…”

Before he lost consciousness, he’d felt a strange dullness, as if he had formed a connection with someone, or as if he were treading on a layer of ethereal clouds. At the time, his energy drained rapidly, yet there was no pain in his Spiritual Sea.

Upon regaining consciousness, he instinctively checked his Spiritual Sea and found nothing unusual—in fact, his spiritual energy seemed even more abundant.

What exactly happened?

Fang Ran looked up at Zhang Yi. “Why isn’t Reverse Purification mentioned in the report?”

***

“Mental Resonance.”

Fang Ran typed these two words into his terminal.

To his surprise, the term had a considerable amount of discussion online.

In summary, it referred to a very mysterious connection between Sentinels and Guides.

Even to the extent of sharing a Spiritual Sea.

After browsing for a while, Fang Ran found that this kind of resonance usually only occurred between highly compatible and already bonded Sentinels and Guides.

But there were exceptions—a small number of people unexpectedly found their best-matched partner after experiencing Mental Resonance.

So when most people mentioned Mental Resonance, they often said:

“Meant to be?”

Fang Ran lowered his gaze. Zhang Yi had implied the same thing just now.

Rare, but not impossible.

Truthfully, he had been quite angry after waking up.

Why was he the only one who experienced Reverse Purification when so many people were present?

And they had promised to shut down the equipment if anything abnormal happened, yet the Center didn’t react until he passed out.

But Zhang Yi explained that the on-site equipment hadn’t detected any data indicating Reverse Purification.

According to the report, Fang Ran’s Spiritual Sea also showed no damage.

Both he and the Center were more inclined to believe that what happened was Mental Resonance.

Fang Ran found this conclusion utterly absurd—purely a story fabricated by the Center to placate him and the Guide Committee.

He wasn’t stupid.

Given the scale of that day’s event and the Center’s tense attitude…

The identity of the Sentinel in Zone 4 who could warrant such capability and treatment was already obvious.

That person…

How could they possibly resonate with him, who was only a Class C?

***

Not long after Zhang Yi left, there was another knock at the door. “Fang Ran!”

The visitor was Fang Ran’s friend.

Zhong Wan, a B-class Guide, worked with Fang Ran at the Sentinel and Guide Center.

He was slightly shorter than Fang Ran, with a baby face and bright eyes—a very energetic person.

When Fang Ran first arrived in this world, he kept his colleagues and friends at a distance for fear they would notice something amiss, but Zhong Wan’s enthusiasm eventually won him over, and the two gradually became close friends.

Zhong Wan carried a box of nutritional supplements in his left hand and a few bouquets of flowers in his right.

“You scared me to death. I came as soon as I got your message.”

Zhong Wan strode into the room and looked around.

A comfortable single room, expensive equipment, and even some thoughtful decorations.

“Fang Ran, you’re getting quite the treatment here.”

Fang Ran chuckled at his remark, clicking his tongue. “Want to trade places?”

Zhong Wan laughed and placed the nutritional supplements and flowers on the small table beside the bed.

“Why did you bring so much stuff?” Fang Ran asked.

Zhong Wan lifted the box of nutritional supplements. “Only this is mine.”

“This floor is off-limits to Sentinels. They couldn’t come in, so they left the flowers in the lobby. I just brought them up.”

Fang Ran glanced at the pile of flowers—every color and variety. The most eye-catching was a deep black rose.

The black flower was bewitching and hypnotic, carrying a seductive aura.

The more Fang Ran looked, the more unnerved he felt, but then he found it ridiculous—why be afraid of a mere flower?

Still, he averted his gaze.

Zhong Wan asked a nurse for a vase and began arranging the flowers.

Fang Ran stood nearby, occasionally helping out.

As he worked, Zhong Wan asked, “What exactly happened to you this time?”

Fang Ran paused and, instead of answering directly, asked, “Zhong Wan, have you ever heard of Mental Resonance?”

“Huh?” Zhong Wan put down the flowers and looked up at Fang Ran. “Mental Resonance?”

“It seems to be a very rare connection between a Sentinel and a Guide.”

After a moment’s thought, he added, “But I’ve heard the chances of it happening are vanishingly small, about as likely as winning the lottery.”

“Why bring this up all of a sudden?”

Fang Ran shook his head and simply said, “I signed a nondisclosure agreement.”

The center was very strict about this, and he didn’t want to get his friend involved.

“Oh.” Zhong Wan shrugged. As a Guide at the center himself, he nodded in understanding.

But since his friend brought it up, Zhong Wan had something to say too.

“You, next time you match with a Sentinel, make sure to pick a good one.”

By “match,” he meant signing an exclusive contract, or even being marked, between a Guide and a Sentinel.

Remembering how Fang Ran had once thrown himself into the sea over a jerk, Zhong Wan didn’t want him to repeat that mistake.

“Fang Ran, I don’t know what happened during this emergency operation.”

“But Fu Zhangzhou, though powerful, is extreme and uncontrollable in his methods. I’ve heard even headquarters has a very low opinion of him.”

He deliberately lowered his voice, his expression disapproving.

Fang Ran had just opened a bottle of nutritional supplements and nearly dropped it at these words.

He raised an eyebrow, giving his friend a puzzled look.

Why bring up Fu Zhangzhou all of a sudden?

“You still don’t know?” Now it was Zhong Wan’s turn to be confused.

“It’s all over headquarters.”

“Fu Zhangzhou is requesting you be assigned as his exclusive Guide.”

“What!?”

***

Meanwhile, at the Fourth Security District Headquarters.

In a large office, Jin Ming frowned at the Sentinel sprawled on the guest sofa.

“How long are you planning to camp out in my office?”

“Until you agree, of course.”

Fu Zhangzhou didn’t bother opening his eyes, a mocking edge in his tone. “Hey, didn’t you say I’m confined to quarters these days?”

Jin Ming snorted. He knew full well the guy wasn’t telling the truth.

The Guide Committee had complained to him two days ago that this guy had sneaked into the hospital’s exclusive Guide floor.

Sitting at his desk, arms folded, he narrowed his eyes at the Sentinel.

“Fu Zhangzhou, just forget it.”

“I’m not going to agree.” He seriously regretted releasing this guy early—every time he promised to follow the rules, and every time he broke them.

“Why?” Fu Zhangzhou finally opened his eyes, his gaze lifting slightly as he gazed absently.

“What are you thinking!” A vein throbbed at Jin Ming’s temple. “He’s only a Class C!” He held his forehead, not even wanting to look at the Sentinel.

“Of course, it’s because the difference in your ranks is too wide!”

“What’s the difference between that and pushing someone into a fire pit?”

“Then why was he in the Purification chamber?” Fu Zhangzhou sat up, tilting his head as he stared at Jin Ming. “When it comes down to it, the ones pushing people into the fire pit are you.”

“It was just an accident!” Jin Ming tried to continue. “Who could have expected—”

“Mental Resonance.”

Fu Zhangzhou airily interrupted him with those words. “Didn’t you suspect that what happened last time was Mental Resonance?”

“Just have Fang Ran and me undergo compatibility testing, and you’ll know.”

He stretched out, resting his head back on the sofa.

His attitude was casual, but he wasn’t backing down.

Jin Ming’s head throbbed at his casual attitude, and he couldn’t help massaging his temples.

He closed his eyes and sighed.

He had kept this matter under tight wraps, but somehow this guy still found out.

In principle, it would be a good thing if he was willing to undergo Purification, but he had to pick Fang Ran, who was only Class C.

By emotion or by reason, by the center’s rules and regulations, he shouldn’t agree.

Jin Ming fell silent for a moment, then looked at Fu Zhangzhou once more.

He seemed indifferent, but he was stubborn as hell.

Sentinels are all obsessive and extreme, especially this one—ruthless and without scruples.

He had no way out.

“According to the Sentinel-Guide Protocol, serving as an exclusive Guide must not violate the Guide’s will,” Jin Ming said slowly, staring at Fu Zhangzhou.

Since his superiors had tasked him with accommodating this revered figure, he had no choice but to play the bad guy.

He sighed, as if making a decision.

“If Fang Ran agrees personally, I will file an application with the Central Department on your behalf.”

“It’s a deal.”

The Sentinel replied casually, but his eyes were filled with…

Absolute certainty.