Chapter 127 Each One More Annoying Than the Last

Chapter 127: Each One More Annoying Than the Last

Fang Liyu nodded at him. "Yes, we are also Guides from the Center."

Cui Ming received the confirmation and smirked, a crooked smile playing on his lips.

He glanced at Fang Ran, Zhong Wan, and Shen Ke, then gestured towards the lounge behind him.

"We are all Sentinels from Guardians Team C. I'm the captain, Cui Ming."

"Currently, there aren't enough Guides in the lounge; everyone is busy purifying Sentinels. We need to rush back to the front lines, and you all seem quite capable. Could you... purify us first?"

The Sentinels behind him chimed in as well.

"Please help purify us."

"Exactly, we're in a hurry to get back. We're all working to maintain the safe zone's stability. Even if we belong to different factions, I'm sure you'll understand..."

......

Their voices were quite loud, drawing the attention of many Center staff in the hall.

Weren't these Guardians essentially guilt-tripping them?

However, given the special mission period, it was within regulations for their Sentinels to enter the Center's Guide station.

It all depended on how the people from Zone 4 would respond.

After delivering his speech, Cui Ming watched Fang Ran and the others, composed and at ease, as if certain they wouldn't refuse.

Fang Liyu scrutinized him for a few moments, about to speak.

But Zhong Wan and Fang Ran exchanged a glance, and Zhong Wan spoke first.

"Hey there, handsome, you've got the wrong idea," Zhong Wan said with an innocent smile. "I'm just a B-Class Guide. I've only purified one S-Class Sentinel, and ever since then, whenever he sees me... sigh..."

He just wouldn't leave him alone.

"Yeah," Fang Ran chimed in. "I'm only C-Class, as in the C of ABC, barely passing by the skin of my teeth. I've never purified an S-Class Sentinel before."

Mine is 3S-Class—who even cares about S-Class?

"I... I..." Shen Ke suddenly became flustered as all eyes turned to him. "I just recently differentiated into a Guide, and a few days ago, my head got kicked... I can't even tell east from west right now."

Don't come to me!

Fang Liyu: "......"

These three jokers—each one was more adept at spouting nonsense than the last.

She offered Cui Ming a polite, professional smile, then scrutinized him from head to toe.

"I am Fang Liyu, the Guide Coordinator Supervisor of Safe Zone 4, and also the executive secretary of Zone 4."

"Are you sure you want me to purify you?"

On the surface, she was polite, but her eyes clearly screamed, "Get lost already."

Cui Ming: "......"

He glanced at Fang Liyu's sleeve insignia—four horizontal bars with three silver stars beneath them. Her rank was clearly high.

"It seems the Guides from Zone 4 are quite busy. We won't disturb you further."

After saying this, he gave Fang Ran and the others one last look, then left with his people.

"Guides, I'm truly impressed, truly impressed," Lu Wenbai said as he approached. "Looks like my older cousin didn't need to keep me here after all, hahaha!"

"Those Guardians—each one's worse than the last," Zhong Wan complained. "First that Zheng Mingyu, and now this Cui Ming."

Fang Liyu smiled and shook her head. "Let's go, we should head to the lounge too."

The group made their way to one of the lounges.

The lounge was furnished with numerous wooden benches, all covered with soft cloth cushions. Hua Yan staff were moving around, offering fruits, snacks, and nutrient packs to the resting Guides.

Fang Ran looked around. "Hua Yan is quite thoughtful."

"They were originally planning to hold a public event tomorrow, so they must have prepared in advance," Fang Liyu said. "They probably didn't expect to be caught off guard by this outbreak."

Zhong Wan nodded. "Speaking of which, if they dared to plan a public event, does that mean the Raiders aren't around this breeding facility?"

"Who knows," Fang Ran replied, recalling the man from the meeting room that day—outwardly refined but deeply cunning.

Fu Yanhua was even more unpredictable than Fu Changzhou.

Those two, father and son, had a long history of deep-seated animosity.

Fu Yanhua seemed to express concern for Fu Changzhou with every word, yet everything he said came out strangely.

Fang Ran was no fool.

That day, the Hua Yan executive had been at loggerheads with Jin Ming, yet he had also subtly revealed a lot of important information to him.

Why?

"Fang Ran, what are you thinking about?" Zhong Wan asked, noticing him standing motionless at the doorway, and tugged at his hand. "Come on in."

"Okay."

The lounge wasn't packed, with only about a dozen Guides from Zone 5 scattered around, most of them purifying Sentinels.

Fang Ran and Zhong Wan picked a spot and were about to sit down when Fang Liyu walked over and patted his shoulder.

"Fang Ran, come with me for a moment. I have a few things to say to you."

The two slowly walked to an empty corner of the lounge.

Fang Ran asked, "Sister Fang, do you have any news?"

"Zhang Yi just sent me a test report about that piece of tree bark from last time," Fang Liyu said, looking down at her terminal and the previous data. "The results match our suspicions."

"The composition is identical to the pagoda tree bark collected from DT332 last time, and the residual energy fluctuations are almost the same."

Fang Ran nodded. "So it's confirmed—the creature that bewitched Fu Changzhou last time and the one that grabbed me in the camp..."

"Are the same, or at least from the same group."

"But how did this creature get to Zone 5 and successfully infiltrate the headquarters?"

Fang Liyu thought for a moment and said, "Fang Ran, did Sentinel Fu Changzhou ever tell you the purpose of our assignment to Zone 5?"

"No," Fang Ran shook his head. "Isn't that classified information?"

Fang Liyu sighed. "I'm afraid it won't be a secret after today."

"The mission report just mentioned that large fissures have appeared in three locations within the breeding facility, and the creatures emerged from these fissures."

"Over a month ago, after the explosion at the research institute in Zone 5, fissures appeared underground there as well."

"Underground at the research institute?" Fang Ran's eyes widened instantly upon hearing this. "If... if the creatures emerged from there, then the fissures must serve as some kind of medium."

"Wait, that explains everything."

Fang Liyu raised an eyebrow. "Explains what?"

"Those Raiders," Fang Ran said, looking at her. "They appeared out of nowhere in the DT332 area back then, even though that area clearly had only one entrance, and our people were guarding it."

"Including this time, the invasion of the Center and the attack on the Guardians—they always seem to materialize out of nowhere and then disappear without a trace afterward."

"But..." Fang Liyu frowned. "Why can the Raiders use these fissures?"

Fang Ran thought for a moment and drew a conclusion. "It can only mean there is some kind of connection between them."

Fang Liyu's expression was one of uncontainable shock.

"Fang Ran, are you saying... the Raiders have a connection with those mutated creatures?"