Chapter 82 Wait for Me

Chapter 82 Wait for Me

More and more Guides were being admitted to the treatment room.

The noise in the room grew somewhat hectic.

Zhong Wan drifted awake, his eyes fluttering open.

The light was too bright; he raised a hand to shield his eyes, then rubbed his face. Still rattled from the scare, his mind felt foggy. After squinting for a while, he finally started feeling clearer.

As he shifted, the jacket that had been covering him slipped down.

The jacket carried a faint, fresh scent that was very soothing.

It was Fang Ran's...

Zhong Wan scanned the room and finally spotted his friend’s back.

He was talking with some District 5 personnel not far away.

The group of District 5 Guides grew more and more agitated as they spoke, their voices rising, seemingly reliving what happened.

Zhong Wan was about to get up to join them when he saw Fang Ran turn around with a look of shock.

His complexion, which had regained some color after treatment, had paled again. He made his way over to Zhong Wan.

"Zhong Wan, you're awake?"

Zhong Wan nodded and asked, puzzled, "What's wrong? Fang Ran, what's that look for?"

Could it be...

He felt a jolt of anxiety. "Could it be... something happened to Uncle Chen and the others?"

Fang Ran walked over to him, guiding him back into his seat.

"Uncle Chen is injured, but don’t worry, they say it's not serious. Shen Ke... not sure, probably went with Uncle Chen to the med bay to get patched up."

"But I still can't get through to them."

Zhong Wan let out a sigh of relief.

"That’s good. Should we go see them?"

"No." Fang Ran shook his head. "Let’s wait for Fu Zhangzhou and Lu Wenchuan to return first."

"Why?"

"Because... the District 5 guys were saying... Wen Qi was taken?"

"What!?"

Zhong Wan’s mouth fell open, his eyes went wide. "Wen Qi was taken?!?"

"They were after... him?"

"Zhong Wan." Fang Ran hesitated before adding, "I suspect... the group that attacked the top floor were the Raiders."

"Their gear was very similar to the Sentinels who attacked the camp and kidnapped me during the DT332 mission."

"Really?" Zhong Wan nodded distractedly. "That checks out."

"After all... Wen Qi is an awakener."

True.

Fang Ran remembered how, after Wen Qi publicly came out as an awakener, it set off a firestorm online.

Some called him bold, others said he was showing off, but even more were the countless Sentinels across the Federation who expressed admiration for him.

After all, who wouldn’t be into a Guide with great looks, strong abilities, and who didn't care about rank matching? Sentinels were just shameless like that.

It had been years and years since a new awakener appeared in the Federation.

It was only natural that the Raiders would have their eye on Wen Qi.

Zhong Wan then said, "But... for such a large headquarters to let a group of Raiders get in like this... that doesn't add up, right?"

He looked at Fang Ran doubtfully. "Fang Ran, don’t you think... it’s strange?"

"Mm." Fang Ran agreed with him. "Do you remember what Uncle Chen said earlier about the psy-shield on the top floor having issues?"

"Zhong Wan, could it be that District 5 headquarters here..."

There's a mole.

Fang Ran didn’t say it out loud, but Zhong Wan understood the meaning in his eyes.

The two exchanged a glance, both sighing as they slumped in their seats like two deflated pool toys.

Zhong Wan said helplessly, "Then we better not go anywhere. Let’s wait for A Chuan and the others to come find us."

"Mm."

Just then, both their terminals vibrated simultaneously.

They got a message in the central system backend.

Perhaps due to being outside their district, they were only now receiving the alert issued by District 5.

Fang Ran frowned, staring at the text on the screen.

A Level 1 intrusion alert?

This was one of the highest-level warning signals in the Federation.

Could it be that those Raiders did something else besides kidnapping Guides?

He instinctively looked toward the treatment room’s entrance.

It was open, and outside, he could see Sentinels and staff passing by in a hurry, their expressions tense.

A strange, tense atmosphere permeated everywhere.

This attack incident... was serious business.

As he was lost in thought, two private messages suddenly popped up on his terminal.

"Darling, I miss you so much."

"Fang Ran, wait for me."

"......"

Has this person finally remembered to text him?

Fang Ran immediately tapped open the text on the screen.

Strange...

Why is there such a big gap between the timestamps of the two messages?

The first one was sent this morning, while the second was sent just now.

Where exactly did Fu Zhangzhou go today?

Just as Fang Ran was about to type a reply, he heard Zhong Wan exclaim excitedly that:

"Fang Ran, A Chuan has finally texted back."

"They're on their way back and told us to stay here..."

"Don't leave."

......

Fu Zhangzhou emerged from the bottom of the pit and picked up an unusual smell.

Even though it was late at night, the entire District 5 headquarters was brightly lit, illuminating the surroundings as if it were daytime.

He looked up.

Black smoke was rising from a certain spot on the top floor of the headquarters. Hovercars and spacecraft were continuously taking off and landing, and the faint sound of a looping alarm siren could be heard.

"Fu Zhangzhou."

Lu Wenchuan caught up with him from behind.

The usually cold S-class Sentinel wore a rare tense expression and said to him in a low voice, "I received an alarm message from District 5 on my terminal."

An alarm?

Fu Zhangzhou looked down to pull up his terminal and skimmed it.

It was actually a Level 1 invasion alert...

Fang Ran!

The Sentinel's pupils constricted sharply, and his heart jolted. Without further thought, his body reacted instinctively.

The two powerful Sentinels leaped upward one after the other, rushing toward the top floor.

......

"Who are you? Please show your ID."

As soon as they touched down on the top floor, guards from District 5 quickly approached, surrounding them.

Fu Zhangzhou remained silent, instead scanning the surroundings.

The entire top floor was cordoned off with a security cordon.

Several hovercars lay as twisted wrecks on the ground, severely damaged and still emitting black smoke. They were barely recognizable, and the surrounding plants and trees were coated in black soot.

The wind was strong on the top floor, but the pungent smell of burning instantly filled his nostrils, putting him even more on edge.

Lu Wenchuan, however, cooperated by holding out his terminal.

"We are Sentinels from District 4 headquarters."

The guard squad eyed them for a moment, finding them vaguely familiar, and immediately relaxed their guarded attitude. After all, the monster tide in District 4 had just subsided not long ago, and it had drawn nationwide attention. Many people remembered Fu Zhangzhou's face quite well.

After verifying their identities, the guards backed off.

"Fu Zhangzhou." Lu Wenchuan showed him his terminal. "I received a message from Zhong Wan. They're in the medbay on the 32nd floor."

The two quickly found an elevator that was still working.

Once inside, the numbers on the display began to head down.

"66, 65, ........56, 55"

"Ding."

The elevator stopped first on the 55th floor.

This was the temporary dormitory level for Fang Ran and the other Guides.

The elevator doors slid open.

A familiar figure stood outside, saying quietly.

"Fu Zhangzhou."