Chapter 68 Like a Peacock Displaying Its Feathers

Chapter 68: Strutting Like a Peacock

Fang Ran soon found out the answer.

In early July 152 of the New Calendar, the Federation government issued an important announcement.

Jin Ming, the former director and commander of the Fourth Security Zone Sentinel and Guide Center, was transferred to the Central Office of Zone 12 as Deputy Executive Officer. His former position was assumed by Lu Tianlin, the former commander of the Eighth Security Zone.

The announcement sparked nationwide controversy.

Zone 4 had always held a special status, and with the presence of Fu Zhangzhou, a 3S Sentinel, it consistently remained in the spotlight.

At the same time, the announcement indirectly confirmed the news that Zone 8 was about to be decommissioned.

An online storm of public opinion instantly erupted.

Some said Jin Ming's transfer was a nominal promotion but actual demotion.

Others claimed the Lu family had made a far-sighted move and scored a big bargain.

More people were discussing the decommissioning of Zone 8 and the resettlement issues.

Half a day later, amid the extensive discussions, another bombshell dropped.

The Federation's Fourth Security Zone was about to welcome an S-Class Guide.

An S-Class Guide.

In this post-apocalyptic world, they were incredibly rare.

These individuals were mostly protected within Zone 12.

This time, one was actually being posted to Zone 4, the most dangerous area, which was completely unexpected and naturally quickly drew massive attention.

Many were speculating about his identity.

An illegitimate child of a major family, a product of the Central Research Institute, a mysterious figure who appeared out of nowhere—all kinds of guesses emerged.

Fang Ran saw these messages while sitting in the small living room of his dorm.

His grade confirmation wasn't complete yet, and he hadn't officially started his job, so he was temporarily exempt from purification duties.

Zhong Wan and Lu Wenchuan were out working, and he wasn't allowed to roam freely, so he stayed in the safest place—the dorm.

The living room of the dorm was small, with simple furnishings.

A dining table, a sofa, and a coat rack.

Fang Ran sat at the dining table, his eyes skimming the terminal screen.

Amid the flood of comments, he spotted one reply.

"This S-Class Guide seems to be an Awakener."

The message was anonymous, but the IP address traced back to Zone 12.

His heart pounded unexpectedly.

In the story, Shen Ke awakened as an S-Class Guide around this time.

But right now, he was still just a therapist...

His finger unconsciously tapped on the term "Awakener."

The system automatically redirected him to a dedicated search page.

"Awakener."

Fang Ran scrolled down.

It turned out the Federation had no record of any new Awakeners for quite some time.

The last recorded case was more than two decades ago.

"Fang Ran, what are you looking at?"

Huh?

He looked up in surprise at the voice.

Zhong Wan had returned at some point.

He stood at the door, holding a takeout bag.

"I brought you food," Zhong Wan said as he walked over. "What are you so absorbed in? You didn't even notice me opening the door."

Fang Ran took it with both hands. "Thanks, just browsing this morning’s news."

Zhong Wan sat down beside him, leaning back in his chair.

"I really envy you. Your onboarding is stuck, so you're temporarily off the hook for missions."

Fang Ran smiled and opened the takeout box.

The aroma of food instantly wafted out.

"Once you sign the contract with Lu Wenchuan, won't you get exemptions too?"

"But it's not signed yet," Zhong Wan said, crossing his arms, his face pouting with annoyance.

"You have no idea, today... a bunch of Sentinels from Zone 8 deliberately came to me for purification. Lu Wenchuan stood at the door the whole time, his face as dark as a pot."

Fang Ran couldn't help but laugh at his expression and casually popped open a bottle of soda.

The carbonated bubbles quickly overflowed the bottle's mouth.

He handed it over. "Here, cool your jets."

Zhong Wan glared at him and took the drink.

"Fang Ran, don't gloat."

"Wait till Fu Zhangzhou comes back. Your situation might not fare any better."

"By the way, did you check the system notification?"

Notification?

Fang Ran had been scrolling through online feeds the whole time. The AI hadn't alerted him either—probably a bug.

He glanced at his terminal—the earlier reply had already been buried under other messages.

He scrolled further, but couldn't find it again.

"Fang Ran, what are you looking at?"

"Nothing," Fang Ran looked up at his friend. "By the way, what was that system notification about?"

"There's an all-hands meeting at headquarters tomorrow afternoon."

Zhong Wan’s expression was a little helpless.

"Lu Wenchuan’s father is probably coming."

......

The scale of the meeting was massive, with many media crews in attendance.

Fang Ran and the other two got their IDs checked outside, and it still took them half an hour to get into the venue.

"Wow, I never knew HQ had this many people," Zhong Wan couldn’t help exclaiming.

The meeting venue was as big as a basketball gym.

It was set up like a theater, with rows of red seats curved around the main stage.

Behind the main stage, a screen displayed the emblem of the Fourth Security District.

The lighting and media gear were all in place.

Many people were already seated.

The three quickly found their seats and sat down.

A moment later, the lights in the audience area dimmed slightly, while the main stage lit up.

The door beside the main stage opened.

A middle-aged man in a white sentinel uniform stepped out.

He appeared to be in his fifties, with a resemblance to the Lu Wenchuan brothers.

His features were sharp as a blade, and he carried an imposing aura—clearly someone who’s been in power forever.

This man was the polar opposite of Jin Ming, that smiling fox.

Lu Wenshan followed closely behind him.

Fang Ran also spotted Fang Liyu, along with a few unfamiliar faces, likely new department heads who’d been parachuted in.

They slowly made their way toward the main stage.

The door remained open.

For no reason at all… Fang Ran felt a weird feeling rising within him.

He kept staring at that dark doorway.

A strange, hard-to-pin-down feeling surged in his heart.

What did he expect?

He took a soft breath, unconsciously holding his breath.

The next moment.

Another figure emerged.

The sentinel rarely wore white, though the style was slightly different from the others.

It featured a mandarin collar and was perfectly fitted.

Even his hair was combed back, accentuating the sharp angles of his face.

His demeanor was casual, yet he oozed confidence.

"Wow," Zhong Wan nudged him. "Your guy cleaned up good today."

Fang Ran didn’t respond, his gaze locked in place.

In an instant, Fu Zhangzhou caught his eye from the crowd.

His eyes were back to their usual color.

He gave a slight smirk.

He blinked.

Fang Ran’s heart skipped a beat.

"Sheesh, like a peacock strutting," Zhong Wan suddenly spoke again beside him. "You knew he was coming back today, didn’t you?"

Fang Ran smiled. Actually, he hadn’t.

After accidentally cutting the comms that day, the man had gone radio silent, not even replying to messages.

After seeing the news of Jin Ming’s transfer, he’d even been worried…

When Fu Zhangzhou saw Fang Ran smile, he turned and tagged along with the group.

Just as Fang Ran started to relax, two more people appeared at the doorway.

This time, even Zhong Wan jolted upright, eyes wide.

He tugged at Fang Ran’s sleeve.

"Fang Ran, am I seeing things?"

The two exchanged a glance.

How could that be?