Chapter 137
You Xingluo had run into trouble.
Even though the timing of it caught him off guard, Ji Qing had indeed thought long ago that something like this would happen someday. With complicated feelings, Ji Qing thought, This counts as a kind of fated destiny too, doesn’t it?
Ji Qing let out a long sigh in frustration.
He was still inside the Pure White Space. He had originally planned to go to sleep early after finishing the manga, but he had never expected to receive such shocking news from the system. Now he was wide awake, and there was no way he could sleep anymore.
But things still were not over.
Ji Qing glanced once more at the time in the bottom-right corner of the desktop. It was currently 11:07 PM. An hour had already passed since the system reported the situation to him. During that time, You Xingluo’s location had been shifting irregularly the entire time.
“System?” Ji Qing called softly.
“I’m here, Host.” The dazzling violet orb revealed itself the moment it heard him. It appeared like a mass of evening clouds gradually gathering into shape in midair, slowly merging from nothing into this pure white room.
The system quickly floated over to Ji Qing and said seriously, “The probability that something has gone wrong has now risen to 81%. It has already reached the alert threshold set by the Bureau.”
“Ah…”
Ji Qing sighed once more.
Now… it was basically certain that something was wrong.
Although Ji Qing had expected it, the arrival of this incident was still far too abrupt.
There were two reasons Ji Qing had not set out immediately. First, You Xingluo’s location had been changing the entire time. If he rushed out blindly without knowing the other party’s destination, then even if he hurried there, it would still be for nothing. Second, he still held onto a sliver of hope that this was all just a false alarm.
You Xingluo definitely would not go to a dangerous area on his own.
He had always been extremely clear about his own place. Although Ji Qing sometimes felt both amused and helpless whenever You Xingluo openly and frankly emphasized that “he was an idiot,” as a Seer with no real strength to protect himself, You Xingluo rarely placed himself in a dangerous position.
Ji Qing only knew You Xingluo’s identity because of the system.
If not for the information the system had provided, Ji Qing might still think You Xingluo was just a family heir like Shao Huayu. He would never have connected him to identities such as the Head of the You Family, a Federal Council Member, the Seer of the Black Tide, and so on.
Judging from Ji Qing’s understanding of those few in Central City, there were probably very few people who knew all of You Xingluo’s identities.
Shao Huayu knew. Zhou Que did not. As for Liu Mu… he probably knew part of it.
“Ah…” Ji Qing sighed softly.
At present, the most urgent question before Ji Qing was: how many people knew that something had happened to You Xingluo? And this time, was You Xingluo’s trouble caused by external factors or internal ones?
Two causes, two ways of dealing with them.
Ji Qing’s gaze could not help shifting toward the contact list on his Terminal. He lowered his head and stared at Shao Huayu’s name, his fingertips hovering over the chat box for a long time, only to pull back as though deflating in the end.
Ji Qing leaned against the back of his chair and let out a long sigh as he tipped his head back.
Seeing that, the system hurriedly floated over, its tone full of concern. “Host, what’s wrong? Are you sick, or just in a bad mood?”
“In a bad mood.” Ji Qing sounded listless. “I’m thinking about how I’m supposed to explain my source of information to other people. I’m not active in Central City at all. No… even if I were active in Central City, how am I supposed to explain how I can know the whereabouts of a Federal Council Member?”
To be honest, that was the most troublesome part.
If You Xingluo were just an ordinary Class S classmate, Ji Qing naturally would not be this troubled. Just like those chance encounters he had had with Xie Chang’an, Jiang Cuo, and the others before, Ji Qing could easily make up an excuse about it being a coincidence.
After all, the manga’s viewpoint followed Xie Chang’an. In other words—
As long as Ji Qing did not run into Xie Chang’an, there was a very high chance that his movements would not be recorded in the manga. For example, Ji Qing’s meeting with Emerald not long ago, or the “tit-for-tat” verbal sparring between Ji Qing and Shao Huayu during the first semester…
None of that had been included in the manga, and it probably would not be in the future either.
Unless someone deliberately recalled him, and the manga plot also became strongly tied to Ji Qing, causing that old thief Yuexia to specially draw part of his past because of that. But then again… Ji Qing hesitated. No one would deliberately miss him, would they?
A chill inexplicably ran down Ji Qing’s back.
Just as his thoughts were straying even farther off course, the system asked in confusion, “Then, Host… are we still going to save him?”
“Yes.”
Ji Qing answered instinctively.
No matter what the outcome was, if someone needed saving, then he still had to go. If the danger You Xingluo was facing this time could be resolved on his own side, then Ji Qing only needed to act as a hidden observer behind the scenes. If it could not be resolved, then Ji Qing would definitely have to step in.
A future where he went to school only to discover halfway through that half his classmates were dead or injured… that future absolutely could not appear in his life.
Ji Qing would never sit by and allow it.
It was precisely to prevent such a future that Ji Qing had specifically told the system to pay attention to the movements of his classmates. As for everything else… Ji Qing said without hesitation, “If I really can’t come up with a reasonable explanation by then, I’ll meet You Xingluo first and coordinate our stories.”
“It’s much easier to settle things with one person than with a whole group.”
Presumably, You Xingluo would not refuse. Ji Qing thought.
Compared to being curious about how a classmate knew his whereabouts, his own life was obviously far more important. You Xingluo himself was also a rather clear-headed person. He probably would not press the issue rudely the way Xie Chang’an might.
“All right, I understand.” The system immediately straightened up after hearing that.
But just as the system resolved to advance and retreat together with its host, it suddenly thought of something else. Because both the cause and the course of this crisis were unknown, neither one human nor one system knew who the enemy they were about to face would be. It might be other Federal Council Members, political enemies of the You Family, or perhaps…
In any case, it definitely could not be the Aberrants, the system thought.
The world database needed some time before it would record events occurring in the current timeline, so for the moment, it could not help its host understand the truth of the matter. All it could do was help its host track his classmate’s location in real time.
But if they did not know, surely those classmates in Central City should know, right?
The system’s eyes suddenly lit up. It floated closer to Ji Qing as if offering up a treasure, its tone bright with eagerness. “Host, should we notify our classmates and ask for their help?”
“Not for now,” Ji Qing said.
The system visibly froze.
The dazzling violet orb twisted as though some invisible giant hand had kneaded it into a massive question mark. The system asked blankly, “Host, why is that?”
It felt as though the computational power it had always been proud of seemed somewhat insufficient in front of its host. Was that because human thought itself was complicated, or because its host thought more thoroughly than other humans?
Ji Qing said gloomily, “Because I don’t know the situation in Central City.”
Although Ji Qing knew that Shao Huayu and You Xingluo were friends, how the Shao Family and the You Family got along, the identity of the mastermind, what Shao Huayu was currently busy with, what You Xingluo had been doing before something happened to him… all of those were unknown.
If the mastermind was also paying attention to Shao Huayu’s movements, then Shao Huayu joining in would only make the situation spiral even further out of control.
And all such requests for help would lead back to the single problem Ji Qing found most troublesome, namely: how was he supposed to explain why he knew You Xingluo’s whereabouts? Ji Qing’s Ability was Gravity Manipulation, a combat-type Ability entirely unrelated to mystical Abilities like Prophecy and divination.
He could not possibly invent a new one on the spot, could he?
Because of Ji Qing’s improvised remarks during the Team Competition, Shao Huayu was already paying a little too much attention to him. If he pulled out another spur-of-the-moment “intuition” now, Ji Qing felt that the odds of him being unable to smooth things over in the future would only get higher.
After thinking for a long time, Ji Qing said in a low voice, “It’s still better to act first.”
No matter how he turned it over in his mind, that was the only feasible option at the moment.
He would first go to the area where You Xingluo was and see whether the crisis truly required him to step in. If it did, then he would meet You Xingluo and coordinate their stories. If it did not, then he would quietly become a hidden pair of eyes behind the scenes.
Having made up his mind, Ji Qing turned to the system and said, “Show me the chart of his location changes from your side. Has he stopped moving yet?”
“…No.”
Ji Qing was instantly dumbstruck. “That truly is unfortunate to hear.”
Ji Qing could not help glancing again at the time shown in the bottom-left corner of the computer. It was currently 11:27 PM. At this point, he was almost certain that You Xingluo had either been abducted or was being transported elsewhere by some vehicle.
The strategic value of a Seer was extremely high, so there was no need to worry about You Xingluo’s life for the time being.
However…
Ji Qing felt it might be necessary to worry about whether You Xingluo’s frail body could endure prolonged transport. After all, even Xie Chang’an’s sturdy body could not hold up through an entire day of riding in a vehicle, and Ji Qing himself had felt like vomiting so badly he could hardly endure it.
Ji Qing prayed inwardly, “Let’s hope he’s unconscious rather than being dragged along by someone.”
Soon after, the system uploaded You Xingluo’s movement route onto the computer in the Pure White Space.
Ji Qing only needed one brief glance to notice how tangled and complicated the route was. He thought: So they’re trying to use this to confuse anyone who wants to rescue You Xingluo. After all, normal people do not have a method like the system’s. If they want to find someone, the only way is to physically eliminate possibilities one by one.
While Ji Qing was analyzing the situation, the probability that something had happened to You Xingluo shot straight from 81% to 100%.
Now there was no need for the system to emphasize it anymore.
Ji Qing could not help thinking that the system had truly been of enormous help to him.
Just as Ji Qing was about to analyze the route further, the system spoke up. “Host, the Main System has inferred their final destination. The success rate of the inference is 68%.”
A fairly decent success rate.
Ji Qing lifted his head calmly. “Then tell me.”
“The destination is Xucheng.”
As it spoke, the system marked the location on the computer with a red circle.
Ji Qing immediately leaned closer to the screen and looked. His gaze fixed directly on the northern city in the upper corner of the Federation map, the one circled in red, and he murmured in puzzlement, “…Xucheng?”
Ji Qing had heard of this northern city before.
White Night had once told him that Red Heart used to live there, and many Infected also liked to flee to Xucheng. The previous City Lord of Xucheng had advocated the food-chain law of survival of the fittest, and because Xucheng’s founder deeply despised the Law-and-Order Faction represented by Central City, Xucheng’s atmosphere had accordingly become chaotic and lawless.
Within Xucheng, there existed its own set of “Black Forest Law.”
This northern city was therefore suited to the Infected lying low there. It was also a perfect place for gangs and casinos to take root, for the people of the underworld to live and trade, and—most importantly—for the Federation to remain unable to control it to this day. It was very difficult for them to extend their reach deep into Xucheng.
With that thought, Ji Qing understood instantly. “That’s right—it has to be this place!”