Chapter 35. Where Did Jiejie Go?

Lin Xincheng’s words left him frozen in place.

Then came a fluster.

Suddenly someone says to you—

‘I might have been born just to run with you.’

How could that not leave someone dumbfounded?

Bai Fan couldn’t help muttering to himself.

‘Do I even deserve to be thought of like that?’

Like he had accidentally let down a treasured feeling. A nameless guilt and panic made him not know what to do.

Lin Xincheng watched him and smiled.

“Don’t take it to heart. Just think of it as me talking nonsense.”

He beckoned to the white cat.

“Puer.”

Puer’s tail, which had been resting on Bai Fan’s forehead, dropped. She tucked her four small legs and leaped lightly onto Lin Xincheng’s shoulder.

“Meow meow…”

It sounded like a serious report.

“Nothing serious, then. Thanks, Puer.”

“Meow—!”

The little white cat suddenly drew out the sound, as if begging for a reward.

“Alright, I’ll buy you your favorite mint-scented cat treats later.”

Puer nodded in satisfaction, then leaped out the window.

Bai Fan was curious.

“Can you understand cat speech?”

“No.”

“Then… you still…”

“Puer isn’t an ordinary cat.”

Lin Xincheng reached up and stroked the fur on his shoulder.

“You can think of it as a Spirit Beast that has signed a Soul Contract with me. No matter what language, as long as it wants to express something, we can understand each other.”

“Th-there are things like that?”

Bai Fan couldn’t help letting his mind wander.

‘When I get back, can I sign a contract like that with Dagan, the yellow dog at home?’

‘Then I’d finally know what he’s barking about every day.’

“So what did she say just now?”

“About your physical condition.”

Lin Xincheng’s expression became a little more serious.

“When I brought you here earlier, you had multiple fractures and bone cracks, and internal organ damage. But in less than two days, you’re almost fully recovered.”

He paused.

“But…”

Bai Fan immediately sensed his hesitation.

“But what?”

“But right now, your Spiritual Essence is severely overdrawn. It might even have damaged your Soul Origin.”

Lin Xincheng looked at him.

“You’ll probably need to rest for a long time.”

Bai Fan closed his eyes and tried to sense his internal condition.

Soon he found that his Perception, which had been as easy to use as an arm, was now sluggish and difficult.

The invisible, intangible force inside him—omnipresent before—was now pitifully thin.

He looked up.

“Captain, you…”

He was still too embarrassed to change the address.

Even though Lin Xincheng had said to just call him “Xincheng.”

But subconsciously, he still used “Captain.”

Lin Xincheng didn’t correct him.

He thought, let Xiao Fan get used to it in time.

Bai Fan hesitated.

“You… already know, right?”

“Don’t you think I’m strange?”

“Hm?”

Lin Xincheng raised an eyebrow slightly.

“What do you mean?”

Bai Fan suddenly found it hard to speak.

‘He must have seen it. After that fight, I changed back from a female form to a male form bit by bit.’

“It’s just… I don’t know why I turned into a girl.”

Bai Fan’s voice was hesitant. “Last time in the hospital, when you asked about ‘me,’ I pretended not to know anything.”

As he spoke, his voice grew smaller, and he awkwardly looked at the young man.

“Don’t you think I’m weird?”

Lin Xincheng didn’t hesitate at all.

“No.”

He said it very firmly.

“Xiao Fan is Xiao Fan. Whether male or female, my view of Xiao Fan won’t change.”

Bai Fan was stunned. After a moment of silence, he said:

“I’m sorry.”

“Hm?”

“Before… I lied to you.”

“After all these years, surviving in that environment without becoming a thug in the gangs is already rare.”

Lin Xincheng shook his head gently. “I have no reason to demand that you be honest with everyone.”

“Is that… so?”

Bai Fan looked down.

He had always known Lin Xincheng was a good person.

But he never expected that he would understand so easily.

No strange looks. No suspicious probes.

Compared to his openness, Bai Fan’s earlier doubts felt almost ridiculous.

His eyes grew warm.

He whispered again.

“I’m sorry.”

No matter the reason, lying was still lying. He couldn’t excuse himself.

Lin Xincheng said nothing more. The ward fell quiet again.

Sunlight streamed through the window, and tiny dust motes floated in the air.

The unsaid words seemed to settle along with the silence.

After a while, Bai Fan suddenly spoke.

“Captain, there’s one more thing I want to know.”

Lin Xincheng nodded.

“Ask away. I’ll tell you whatever I know. I know you have a lot of questions right now.”

Bai Fan was silent for a moment.

When he looked up again, his gaze was firm.

“Captain, do you know where my parents are? Or… do you have any clues?”

Lin Xincheng paused.

“Professor Bai and Professor Song vanished completely seven years ago. I don’t know where they went either.”

Bai Fan’s heart sank.

‘As expected. Another answer like that.’

He had been mentally prepared, but he still couldn’t help feeling disappointed.

But then Lin Xincheng spoke again.

“But I suspect their disappearance might be related to their research back then.”

Bai Fan snapped his head up.

“What research?”

Lin Xincheng shook his head.

“I’m not sure. The specifics of their research were never made public. From what I can gather, it might be connected to the Primordial Abyss.”

“Primordial Abyss?”

Bai Fan’s pupils contracted sharply.

That terrifying existence had destroyed human civilization once five hundred years ago.

“What’s certain is,” Lin Xincheng said slowly, “all the materials about that research are now sealed by the Academy and Federation high-level authorities—classified as top secret.”

Bai Fan clenched his fists.

“So… they might have been framed? By the Federation or some high-level people?”

Lin Xincheng raised his hand to calm him.

“Don’t jump to conclusions. The research of those two professors was funded by the Federation and the Financial Consortium.”

“Logically, they had no reason to harm themselves for no benefit.”

Bai Fan gritted his teeth.

“Who knows? Who’s to say everyone in the Federation and the Financial Consortium is good? Couldn’t there be people jealous of them, wanting to harm them?”

He had been hunted by the Federal Security Bureau for years. He had seen the wealth gap created by the Financial Consortium.

It was hard for him to feel any goodwill toward these behemoths.

“Don’t presume,” Lin Xincheng said calmly. “That won’t help find the truth.”

Bai Fan pursed his lips, then said:

“Captain, are you speaking for them right now?”

“Or are you backing down because the Federation and the Consortium are too big?”

The air suddenly went still. Lin Xincheng was taken aback.

“Is that what you think?”

Bai Fan’s face instantly flushed red. He immediately realized he had said the wrong thing.

‘All along, the one helping me was this person. And I vented my anger on him.’

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s just… every time I think about my parents, I can’t control myself.”

Lin Xincheng was silent a moment. Then he picked up the scabbard and placed it horizontally between them.

His expression was unusually serious.

“Those two professors have shown me great kindness. Finding out the truth about their disappearance is my responsibility.”

“I promise you—if they were truly framed, no matter if the person is a high-ranking Federation official or a board member of the Financial Consortium, I will make them pay.”

The ward fell so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Bai Fan could feel that the words this man spoke were never empty promises.

He looked down and said softly:

“Xincheng… I’m sorry…”

Hearing that name, Lin Xincheng paused slightly, then showed a hint of a smile.

“It’s okay. Rest for now. I’ll come see you again when you’re feeling calmer.”

With that, he turned and left the room.

The door closed gently. Bai Fan watched his back disappear behind it.

A certain hard corner in his heart suddenly softened.

He wiped the corner of his moist eyes, pulled his legs up, and hid his face.

After a long time, he spoke in a muffled voice:

“Come out.”

“I know you’ve been hiding somewhere, watching me laugh for a long time.”

“Go ahead and laugh if you want.”

But one breath, two breaths, a quarter of an hour passed.

The room was still quiet, only the wind gently blowing outside the window.

Bai Fan suddenly lifted his head.

“Jiejie?”

No answer. An unfamiliar silence.

The Attached Spirit girl who claimed to be his sister did not appear this time.