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After waiting for a while without getting the answer she wanted, Chi Ying frowned and turned to look at her: "Captain Li, what's wrong?"

Li Manqiu then came to her senses, her usually calm expression now appearing unusually preoccupied: "I'm probably just a little tired... What did you just say?"

Chi Ying smiled and said, "I was wondering if the second team had already gone there? Captain Sheng from the criminal investigation team was already asking about it."

The decision to have the Minority Affairs Bureau take the lead this time, while having the captain of the Criminal Investigation Team, a veteran detective with decades of experience in reporting cases, handle logistics, had already caused some dissatisfaction among the police.

Therefore, they must win this operation; otherwise, not only will they fail to deliver to the higher-ups, but they may also lose control of subsequent operations.

To be honest, Chi Ying hated this kind of political maneuvering. The most important thing was the case itself, but it was being distracted by those inexplicable guys, which could even affect the operation itself.

However, the initiative in this operation was seized precisely because of her identity as the so-called hero who saved the meteorite.

“Hmm,” Li Manqiu glanced at her watch, “There are still fifteen minutes until 10:30. They should have surrounded the chemical plant according to plan.”

Chi Ying nodded: "Okay, the monitoring department will also do its best to help and try to find the bomb in the remaining time."

Their operation was neither simple nor difficult; it simply involved the second team surrounding the chemical plant in advance and using the latest smart barrier developed by the technical department to shield the entire plant from the bombs.

The monitoring department located and defused the bomb before the person behind it could discover this.

To do this, someone has to go into the factory and conduct on-site investigations, essentially acting as a suicide squad member.

Once the bomber discovers that they have blocked the signals inside the factory, there is a high probability that they will show up in person, which will be the best opportunity to capture them.

"Have you decided on the candidates to go in?" Li Manqiu asked.

Chi Ying nodded without hesitation: "I've thought about it. In terms of mobility, the entire Bureau of Spirit Management combined can't compare to me, so I'll go..."

"Can't!"

An anxious voice suddenly came from outside the window. The two people in the car were startled and looked over at the same time, only to see Lu Zhao's face appear outside the car window.

"Lu Zhao? What are you doing here?" Chi Ying exclaimed in surprise, rolling down the car window and scolding the other man, "Didn't I tell you not to come?! Go back right now!"

Lu Zhao didn't care about any of that. Seeing that the driver hadn't arrived yet, he opened the car door and climbed into the back seat, squeezing in with Chi Ying and Li Manqiu.

"There won't be any bombs!" she said urgently without thinking. "So whoever goes in will only be a pointless sacrifice!"

A hint of surprise flashed in Li Manqiu's eyes. She reached out and pressed down on Chi Ying, who was about to refute her, and said in a deep voice, "What exactly happened? Tell me the long story."

Lu Zhao took a deep breath and summarized briefly and quickly: "The bomb is just a decoy. The enemy's real ability is gravitational collapse. No one who goes inside can escape!"

No one can resist a black hole. Even she was able to escape only because Si Ling secretly helped her when she was outside.

"Without evidence, it will be difficult to persuade the higher-ups to change their minds," Li Manqiu shook her head in disappointment.

Moreover, everything has been arranged, and all that's left is for the final suicide squad to enter.

Lu Zhao's gaze gradually dimmed, he lowered his head, and his thin shoulders trembled slightly.

How to do?

Even if she knew all this, was there still no way for her to stop it all?

“I’ll be fine,” Chi Ying said, her eyes flickering slightly as she raised her hand to press on her shoulder. “If I want to leave, no one can stop me.”

No... wait, if it's a gravitational collapse, and the other side had prepared a trap beforehand...

She suddenly looked up, "Oh right, I asked Si Ling to come with me!"

"Si Ling?" Li Manqiu narrowed her eyes slightly, her expression somewhat unnatural. "Are you sure she'll go?"

Lu Zhao's voice faltered.

Indeed, even she knew how dangerous it was there, so how could Si Ling not know?

If that's the case, why should she let someone take such a dangerous risk so easily? Not to mention that Si Ling hasn't joined the team yet, even if she had joined as a formal member, would she be able to send someone to such a dangerous place at will?

She gritted her teeth, her fists clenching so tightly they cracked.

"I can go," a light, airy voice came from outside the window again.

The three looked up again and saw Si Lingwei standing outside the window, panting and with a slightly flushed face, smiling at them.

Lu Zhao's mind went blank for a moment, and the words of dissuasion blurted out without thinking: "It's dangerous there! You're not allowed to go!"

After she finished speaking, even she was stunned.

I was just about to ask them to come along, and now they're saying such contradictory things...

She seemed a little dazed, and thus missed the different expressions on the faces of the two people beside her.

Li Manqiu understood, while Chi Ying's expression darkened slightly.

“It’s okay,” Si Ling smiled, got into the passenger seat, and winked at her. “If I’m with you, I think you can protect me very well.”

Ah...you shouldn't trust her so much! It's putting a lot of pressure on her!

Lu Zhao's expression at this moment was incredibly complex, showing a mixture of surprise and bewilderment, but mostly confusion and guilt.

She'd been suspicious of him since last night...

“However,” Li Manqiu stroked her chin thoughtfully, “if we change people at the last minute, we’ll probably be questioned later.”

Suddenly, Chi Ying, whose face was gloomy, spoke up: "Lu Zhao, are you sure you want to go?"

Lu Zhao blinked and nodded solemnly: "Yes, they originally wanted me to go, and for the safety of the others, I have to go too."

Her white flames, combined with Si Ling's immortality, form the strongest spear and shield. As long as Si Ling is there, she is confident that she can complete the mission.

“Okay, I’ll talk to the higher-ups,” Chi Ying raised her head, her bloodshot eyes filled with trust and determination. “But you have to promise to come out alive.”

Lu Zhao was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said, "Yes, I promise."

Chapter Seventy-Four: On the Road

The car drove smoothly toward the chemical plant, its destination. Lu Zhao was forced to squeeze by the window, his gaze awkwardly fixed on the rapidly passing scenery outside. Occasionally, when he turned his head, he would meet two pairs of eyes that were staring intently at him.

Can you please stop staring at her like that?

She didn't know how many times she had awkwardly looked away, but she couldn't help but glance at Si Ling sitting in the passenger seat, and for a moment she felt a little envious of her.

At least you don't have to constantly endure the death stare.

"Are you sure you don't need to call your team over?" Li Manqiu, who was physically caught in the middle, coughed lightly and asked.

Lu Zhao quickly shook his head: "No! If it were them, they definitely wouldn't agree to let me in alone."

In the end, it will definitely evolve into the whole team going in together or something, so there's no need to go into details.

Li Manqiu nodded thoughtfully, "Okay, you should remember the current locations of the monitoring department and the second team members, right?"

"No problem." She forced a smile, a bead of sweat sliding down her forehead.

For her and Si Ling's safety, the two of them temporarily changed the plan while they were in the car. The second team was originally only to provide support, but now they are required to provide immediate support as soon as they see a signal flare being launched.

Good grief, the opponent is a neutron star that ranks among the top villainous organizations!

She had just checked and found that, according to astronomical explanations, neutron stars are the densest celestial bodies besides black holes. They are one of the few possible endpoints for stars after they undergo gravitational collapse and explode as supernovae at the end of their evolution.

In other words, Si Ling was probably only half right. The gravitational collapse and explosion may both be the other party's abilities. Only the combination of these two can be called a "neutron star".

Although it's unclear why the opponent possesses at least A-level abilities and the potential to be a multi-talented individual, it's always good to be prepared.

If it's just me protecting Si Ling, then there's not much of a problem. But if a few more come, I don't know how many of the people in the second team will be used as cannon fodder.

She silently gripped the signal flare in her pocket, deciding not to use it until she had captured the neutron star.

After driving for about fifteen minutes, the car finally stopped about one kilometer away from the chemical plant.

“This is the maximum extent of the smart barrier,” Chi Ying said, getting out of the car and looking solemnly at the chemical plant standing in the distance. “Unless we receive a signal flare, we will not take another step forward.”

Lu Zhao nodded slightly and turned to look at Si Ling, "If you regret it now, you don't have to go."

Even now, she still wants to prioritize the other person's opinion and force others into dangerous areas, which is not something she wanted to see in the first place.

“There’s nothing to regret,” Si Ling smiled, her slender fingers gently taking her hand in hers. “Let’s go.”

Lu Zhao turned his head to look at her smile, subconsciously swallowed, then suddenly turned his head and shouted to himself, "Okay, wait for our good news!"

With that, he took her hand and strode quickly toward the chemical plant.

"..." Chi Ying watched their departing figures silently for a long time before letting out a long sigh. "Let's go. It's time to go back to where we are."

Li Manqiu seemed a little puzzled by her emotions. She reached out and patted her shoulder, hesitated for a moment, and then said, "Actually, you can be with them."

With Lu Zhao, Si Ling, and her, the combined weight of the three of them definitely wouldn't exceed the limit. Since you're worried, why don't you go together?

However, Chi Ying merely glanced at her before removing the hand that had been on her shoulder, her voice hardening again: "No need, I just need to do my job."

Li Manqiu blinked, then suddenly realized.

Is this what they call tsundere?

"Ah! Ahh!"

Lu Zhao, who had already walked quite a distance, suddenly felt an itch on his nose and sneezed several times without warning.

Oh no, has he caught another cold?

She couldn't help but want to complain to herself about Bai Yan. He'd promised that having it would improve all aspects of her physical condition! Look at how many times she'd been to the hospital and seen doctors in the past month and a half!

However, considering that Si Ling was also present, she slowed down her interrogation of Bai Yan.

"Wait a minute, something seems off." The person next to her suddenly tugged at her sleeve.

—Shortly after entering the barrier, Si Ling took the initiative to let go of her hand.

Lu Zhao paused, immediately becoming alert and closely observing his surroundings, while pulling Si Ling behind him. "Something's not right?"

The white flames gave no warning, not even the slightest sign of movement.

If it weren't for the fact that her chest area was still a bit warmer than the rest of her body, she would have almost suspected that something was wrong with Bai Yan.

Si Ling wrinkled her nose slightly and sniffed the air hard. "It smells like gunpowder."

Lu Zhao: ? ? ?

Are you born in the Year of the Dog?

Noticing her shocked expression, Si Ling couldn't help but raise the corners of her lips, "My five senses have also been enhanced."

Oh, she forgot about that. Psychic energy can passively amplify some of the human body's abilities.

Lu Zhao followed suit and sniffed the air, but apart from inhaling a lot of cold air, he couldn't smell anything.