Chapter 92 A Bold Guess

Chapter 92: A Bold Hypothesis

At this moment, the Guardian sentinels also reacted, beginning to evacuate the crowd in that direction to prevent casualties should the statue fall.

Zheng Mingyu looked up, his expression complex as he glanced toward Fu Zhangzhou and Lu Wenchuan.

These two... why were they suddenly here?

The relationship between his Guardians and the Sentinel and Guide Center was neither good nor bad.

On the surface, they occasionally cooperated, but in reality, they secretly vied for dominance. The military had established the Guardians with the tacit approval of the Alliance Government, with the original intention of preventing the Sentinel and Guide Center from monopolizing power.

He had been assessed to possess potential beyond S-class during his differentiation.

The military had been promoting him over the years, aiming to expand the Guardians' influence through his reputation and thus contend with the Sentinel and Guide Center.

Fu Zhangzhou had always overshadowed him. Every time they met, they clashed fiercely, even coming to blows over that person... He never expected Fu Zhangzhou to suddenly step in to help this time.

Zheng Mingyu shook his head.

He knew the situation was critical, with no time for such thoughts.

He scanned the surroundings, charging his ability, preparing to leap into the air. He intended to help Fu Zhangzhou push the statue, allowing it to descend slowly and avoid casualties.

But just then, the longsword in the statue's hand suddenly vibrated.

"Clang! Thud!"

The longsword swayed, emitting a sharp clang, then tilted and slipped from the statue's hand, plummeting toward him.

Zheng Mingyu's ability was wind-based, renowned for speed and reaction. He swiftly dodged.

However, the longsword was a full 10 meters long, wide and heavy. Its falling path still covered several small stalls and many pedestrians who hadn't yet managed to escape, causing those below to scream in terror.

Zheng Mingyu quickly unleashed his ability, attempting to use wind currents to counteract the fall, slowing the longsword's descent to give the scattered crowd more time to flee.

"Captain, I'll help you!"

One of his teammates rushed over. That person was a Psychic Sentinel, skilled in telekinesis and making objects weightless.

"Clang!"

The sentinel's ability activated, causing the longsword to vibrate again. A subtle sense of weightlessness spread through the area, and countless fragments of sand, stones, and debris on the ground rose into the air at that moment.

Zheng Mingyu's psychic energy merged with his teammate's, and together they managed to hold up the longsword.

Just as he breathed a sigh of relief, he heard footsteps behind him.

It was likely more Guardians arriving.

Zheng Mingyu turned to look, ready to direct his teammates.

But what he saw horrified him, his pupils instantly contracting.

The ones behind him were not Guardian members at all. The several sentinels rushing toward him wore masks with strange patterns, circles spreading out like tree rings.

It felt familiar, and memories exploded in his mind...

Marauders!

The Marauders moved swiftly, charging straight at him. One of them raised a weapon and slashed at him.

Zheng Mingyu raised his arm, and a Psychic Shield rapidly unfolded in front of him. But his energy had been depleted in the earlier effort to counteract the longsword.

The shield was nowhere near as sturdy as usual, and the opponent's rank was high...

"Crash!"

The shield shattered violently.

Zheng Mingyu tried to dodge, but it was too late.

It felt as though someone had pressed a red-hot iron rod against his back, followed by a sudden, tearing agony in his chest.

He looked down, blood spilling from his mouth, his vision blurring and darkening.

A beam of energy pierced through his chest from behind to the front.

......

Fang Ran witnessed this scene from inside the café.

Zheng Mingyu was ambushed by the group of Marauders, his chest brutally pierced.

The seemingly invincible male protagonist of the story now collapsed to his knees, falling into a pool of blood.

Guardian teammates rushed over from all directions, tightly surrounding him.

Fang Ran and Zhong Wan beside him were too shocked to speak, both frozen in place.

Although being the male protagonist was a high-risk role, witnessing it firsthand still made Fang Ran's heart race wildly. Instinctively, he glanced toward Fu Zhangzhou, who was still holding up the statue.

Fortunately, the Marauders' target seemed to be only the Guardians.

After stabbing Zheng Mingyu, they engaged in a fight with Guardian Team A, seemingly unaware of Fu Zhangzhou and Lu Wenchuan hovering mid-air.

The falling statue's longsword, no longer held back by energy, crashed with a deafening roar onto the stone pavement of the square, instantly shattering and sending debris flying, stirring up a cloud of dust.

Thankfully, the civilians below had already been evacuated, and there were no casualties, but panic still ensued. Screams and cries echoed across the square once again as the remaining crowd hurriedly scattered toward the edges.

The group of Marauders took advantage of the chaos to begin their retreat.

Whether it was Fang Ran's imagination or not, the sentinel who had stabbed Zheng Mingyu glanced back in his direction just before disappearing.

Fang Ran paused, unable to suppress a shudder.

"Oh my, look at my mouth," Lu Tang finally let out a long breath, as if she had forgotten to breathe earlier. "I just said the Guardians were in for trouble... and now their captain gets stabbed through."

Zhong Wan murmured, "Zheng Mingyu... he won't die, will he?"

Lu Tang shook her head. "It shouldn't be that easy. Top-tier sentinels have incredibly robust bodies and strong self-healing abilities. As long as his head isn't cut off directly, there's a chance he'll survive."

Fang Ran withdrew his gaze and looked at them. "Why do you think the Marauders... wanted to kill Zheng Mingyu?"

"That's hard to say," Lu Tang shrugged. "Those Marauders are desperate outlaws willing to do any dirty work. Maybe Zheng Mingyu was just too high-profile and made enemies."

"Right, Fang Ran," Zhong Wan nodded. "During the DT332 mission, didn't they capture you just to make Fu Zhangzhou lose control?"

"If they dared provoke Fu Zhangzhou, Zheng Mingyu would naturally be no exception."

Fang Ran nodded in agreement.

But he always felt that things couldn't be that simple.

First, they kidnapped Wen Qi, and now they attempted to assassinate Zheng Mingyu. The actions of those Marauders were truly bizarre...

The Sentinel and Guide Center is currently the largest organization of its kind, controlling most of the Sentinels and Guides in this post-apocalyptic world. Although the Guardians were established relatively recently, they have quickly made a name for themselves over the past few years and have military backing.

How could a small rogue sentinel group like the Marauders dare provoke both...

And Zheng Mingyu—he was supposed to be the main character of this world. As for Wen Qi... although he had always puzzled Fang Ran, he and Shen Ke were the closest thing to the novel's main couple...

It was all too coincidental.

Something felt truly off.

A bold hypothesis started forming in his mind.

Could it be that, besides him, someone else in this world also knew the plot?