Yun Che, who was sensitive and perceptive, noticed this as well.
He nodded to Lin Zhen, then pulled the stretching Kaos and Anvil to leave the training room together with Zi Jiu.
After the four of them left, Lin Zhen once again put on his virtual helmet and entered his personal space.
His personal space was simply decorated: a desk, a bookshelf, and a mechanical forging table placed in the center.
This was also the layout of his home back on Junk Star.
In the second year, after the war camp relaxed its controls and points became less important, he recreated it in the virtual space.
This was his constant reminder to himself—he did not belong here.
He walked to the bookshelf and reached for a thin booklet.
This was the knowledge Chicha had imported for him into the virtual network, disguised within the system.
To outsiders and the system, this booklet could be any volume in the system’s built-in knowledge base.
But to Lin Zhen, the contents were “forbidden knowledge” related to Jump Nodes and the Zhe Yue Engine.
However, Lin Zhen was not here to study these this time.
Based on his understanding of Chicha—
Since the other party could help him input this knowledge into the war camp’s virtual network and disguise it, there was no reason not to leave behind some other trick as well.
And if there was a way to contact Chicha, this booklet would be the absolute key.
“Chicha, Chicha, I need your help.”
In the virtual space, Lin Zhen called out softly to the book.
Although he knew the volume of his voice made no difference in the virtual space—the system could detect everything—
the fear of being discovered by the war camp still made him instinctively whisper.
“Why hasn’t Chicha responded yet… Could it be he really didn’t do anything to the network?”
After calling out for a long time with no answer, Lin Zhen’s hands and feet grew icy cold.
If what he was doing now was discovered by the Commandant or Dr. Forefinger, there would be no way to explain himself.
It could be said, to help Xiao Xi, he was gambling everything right now.
But… it seemed he had lost the bet?
Lin Zhen clenched and then released his right hand, finally letting it hang limp as he tossed the thin booklet to the ground.
He gripped his hair hard, then sat down heavily on the floor.
Staring blankly at the mechanical forging table for a while, Lin Zhen suddenly slammed a fist onto the ground with all his strength.
He got up, exited the personal space, and took off his helmet.
Like a walking corpse, he returned to his dormitory.
The dorm was empty.
His roommate Xini wasn’t there; he seemed to have been taken out by the Commandant along with other team members for field practice.
Lin Zhen lay down on his bed, his mind in chaos.
He felt guilty toward Yun Ruoxi for not finding a solution, terrified that his attempts to contact Chicha would be discovered by the Commandant and the others, and furious at his own helplessness.
With all these tangled emotions pressing down, he could only manage to fall asleep with the long-unused quick-sleep spray.
***
The next morning.
Lin Zhen climbed out of bed.
He washed his face with cold water to look more refreshed and forced a smile in the mirror.
After a full night’s sleep, his mindset had improved a little.
It wasn’t a desperate situation yet—how could he give up first? It took more than four months of brainwashing for Xiao Xi to change this much; there was still plenty of time left to solve the problem!
Yes, there was still a chance!
Lin Zhen exhaled and left the dorm, intending to visit Yun Ruoxi.
But just then, the Doctor’s voice rang out from his collar, calling him to the lab immediately.
He froze.
A bad feeling rose in his chest.
He didn’t dare disobey the Doctor’s orders. Even if he was unwilling, he could only go to the laboratory first.
In the laboratory.
Dr. Forefinger was still dressed in his usual white coat.
He smiled and patted the floating seat in front of him, signaling for Lin Zhen to sit.
Seeing this, Lin Zhen felt even more uneasy.
If Dr. Forefinger called him over for something related to ability development, he would have said so directly.
Whenever he put on this attitude, it never meant anything good.
Lin Zhen sat down anxiously.
Dr. Forefinger placed a hand on his shoulder and asked gently:
“Ah Zhen, tell me, who is Chicha?”
He had been prepared for this.
But hearing the word “Chicha” still sent an uncontrollable chill through Lin Zhen’s whole body.
So it was true, after all!
The Doctor had been monitoring him the whole time!
Fortunately, on the way here, Lin Zhen had already thought of what to say if Dr. Forefinger asked about this.
He didn’t seem flustered or give anything away.
He put on a hint of confusion at the right moment, to show his reaction to Dr. Forefinger knowing he had said “Chicha.”
“Doctor, how do you know about Chicha?”
Dr. Forefinger didn’t hide anything, saying directly, “Of course, the system reported it.”
He smiled.
“You don’t really think we don’t know what you’re doing or saying in the virtual space, do you?”
Lin Zhen was silent for a moment, then spoke: “Chicha is the deity my family back home worships.
I just had no other way.”
As he spoke, the youth suddenly jumped from his chair, knelt before Dr. Forefinger, grabbed his pant leg, and pleaded:
“Please, please, Doctor, let Xiao Xi go!”
“I haven’t done anything to Xinglan,” the Doctor raised his hands, looking innocent.
“It was the higher-ups who acted, wasn’t it?” Lin Zhen looked up.
“Who knows? Besides…” The Doctor smiled, lowered his head, and met Lin Zhen’s gaze at close range, “Tell me, is it possible that Xinglan is just pretending?”
“Doctor, you must be joking.”
Lin Zhen stood up from the floor, keeping a calm expression, but in his heart, he felt even more disgusted with this man.
To disgust him, the Doctor would even say something like that.
“Do you really think I’m joking?” Dr. Forefinger’s expression was unexpectedly serious.
“Aren’t you?” Lin Zhen retorted.
“Why do you think Xiao Xi is pretending? Even setting aside whether she could act that well, what possible benefit could she get from all that trouble?”
“For fun? Or maybe she actually wants to stay here, likes the rules and style of the war camp?” Dr. Forefinger laughed.
[The Doctor is quite the entertainer.]
[Do you think there’s a possibility the Doctor’s right? After all, the truth often slips out casually.]
[If that’s true, the truth is way too wild.]
…Lin Zhen was speechless.
“In any case, I just can’t believe there’s a girl that good in this world, and the Yun Ruoxi I know is really a bit different from her now.” The Doctor stroked his chin.
“People change, and hearsay is always distorted.”
“So, whether she’s acting or changed, it doesn’t matter.” The Doctor pulled Lin Zhen up from the floor and said seriously, “Is it really that bad to stay here, Ah Zhen?”
“If Xinglan wants to stay here and you’re with her, when you both come of age, I could even host your wedding.”