Every Sentinel I Dreamed of Came Looking for Me

"Based on the current evidence, we can’t determine that this is definitively related to Miss Yun Sheng," Luo Cheng said, feeling an invisible pressure as he chose his words carefully. "But... the timing is too coincidental."

He paused, then continued, "After the incident, my team retrieved the Sentinel’s recent routine evaluation reports. They show his spiritual power was extremely stable, with no underlying issues from old injuries or any signs he was about to lose control.

Moreover, he comes from a well-off family and has a designated guide for regular pacification and spiritual grooming. Logically speaking, there was almost no reason for him to suddenly lose control under those circumstances."

Bai Ye’s brows furrowed even more tightly.

’A stable Sentinel who receives regular pacification just happens to lose control the exact moment he’s about to attack Yun Sheng?’

’The coincidence was too great not to be suspicious.’

"What about the mall’s surveillance? Did you pull the footage?"

"Surveillance in some areas of the mall captured the key moments." As Luo Cheng spoke, he placed a datapad in front of Bai Ye. "This is the video clip we retrieved."

Bai Ye took it and quickly played the video.

The video was very clear. Yun Sheng was standing alone in front of a store window when Zhao Qian and her group surrounded her and began taunting her.

After she retorted with just a few words, the D-level Sentinel’s expression turned vicious. He stepped forward, reaching out to shove her...

Just as his fingers were about to touch Yun Sheng, she seemed to do nothing more than lift her gaze slightly. With no other discernible movement from her, the Sentinel’s expression suddenly contorted, and he collapsed to the ground, screaming in agony.

The entire sequence was bizarrely fast and happened without any warning.

Bai Ye’s gaze was locked on Yun Sheng’s face in the video.

She was calm from start to finish. Even after the Sentinel collapsed, her face betrayed no sign of panic.

’Too calm.’

’Abnormally so.’

’Especially considering what Luo Cheng just said about the Sentinel’s stable spiritual record.’

Bai Ye zoomed in on the video, rewatching the details in the one or two seconds before the Sentinel collapsed, focusing on Yun Sheng’s eyes and the subtle shifts in her facial muscles.

The more he watched, the more he felt Yun Sheng’s reaction was far too calm, as if she had anticipated it.

"Where did she go after that?"

Bai Ye closed the video, his voice even colder than before.

"The conflict was resolved by Mrs. Lin, who arrived shortly after. Mrs. Lin seemed to be in a hurry and left first. Miss Yun Sheng lingered in the mall by herself, purchased a Basic Spiritual Perception Enhancement Agent, and then left. Afterward, our people... lost her." Luo Cheng’s voice dropped. "We lost her tail because of an accident..."

’An accident...’

’Too many accidents happen around Yun Sheng...’

Undercurrents swirled in Bai Ye’s deep eyes.

"Send more men, and expand the search area. I want to know where she went after leaving the mall and who she met. Also, at the hospital, have our people intervene. Conduct a deep analysis of that Sentinel’s spiritual landscape. See if there are any... traces inconsistent with a natural breakdown or an external attack."

"Yes, General!" Luo Cheng snapped to attention and saluted.

"One more thing," Bai Ye added, his gaze as sharp as a blade. "Review all of Yun Sheng’s movements since her return to the Capital Star. Also, look into the shop where she bought the spiritual power enhancement agent, and... find out if she has accessed any unconventional spiritual-power-related items or information through other channels."

"Understood!"

Luo Cheng departed swiftly to carry out his orders.

Silence returned to the office.

Bai Ye sat alone in his large chair, his gaze falling once more to the datapad on his desk.

’Is it really a coincidence? Or am I just being paranoid?’

’Yun Sheng is a suspect in Chen Hao’s disappearance, and now there’s a D-level Sentinel who lost control right in front of her.’

’Yun Sheng...’

’How many secrets are you hiding?’

「Meanwhile, a dark gray hovercar traveled smoothly along the express route back to the main urban district.」

Outside the window, city lights streaked past like fireflies as the night grew deeper.

Yun Sheng leaned back in her seat, resting with her eyes closed.

Si Jin sat across from her, his own eyes half-closed. The car was silent.

Just as the vehicle was about to enter an underpass, a muffled boom echoed from the tunnel ahead, followed by the piercing screech of scraping metal and a deafening crash.

A large cargo hovercar, like a rampaging steel beast with a mangled front, shot out of the tunnel at an angle. It violently slammed into two smaller hovercars that had been traveling ahead of it, sending them flying.

One of the airborne hovercars spun wildly, hurtling at a terrifying speed straight toward the front of their vehicle.

It all happened so fast, and at such a close range!

"ALERT! FRONTAL IMPACT! EMERGENCY EVASION!"

The onboard AI blared a piercing warning.

The hovercar’s autopilot instantly kicked into the highest emergency level. The vehicle swerved sharply to the right as its under-chassis thrusters fired at full power to brake.

The immense inertia threw the vehicle into a violent tilt, sending loose objects inside flying.

Yun Sheng was jolted awake by the sound of the crash, but her exhausted body and dulled reflexes left her unable to react. She could only watch as the tumbling hovercar hurtled toward them, growing larger and larger in her field of view.

A strong, powerful arm shot out, wrapping around her shoulders and back, and yanked her toward him.

THUMP!

Caught completely off guard, Yun Sheng slammed into a rock-hard, blazing-hot chest.

Immediately after, Si Jin’s other hand came up to cup the back of her head, pressing her even more tightly against him.

The second after Si Jin pulled Yun Sheng into his embrace, the hovercar began to shudder violently.

Although the autopilot had performed a last-second evasive maneuver, there wasn’t enough room. The out-of-control hovercar still violently sideswiped the left front and side of their vehicle.

The massive impact sent another violent jolt through the vehicle, shaking it furiously. The airbags deployed instantly, but Si Jin’s body, already shielding Yun Sheng, took most of the force.

Yun Sheng was held tightly in Si Jin’s arms. She felt the jolts and vibrations of the crash but was miraculously spared any direct impact.

Her ear was pressed against his chest. Amid the surrounding chaos and noise, the steady, powerful beat of his heart reached her, a strangely reassuring rhythm.

The last of the impact’s reverberations faded. The car slid forward a short distance from inertia before lurching to a stop at the tunnel entrance, its front end emitting wisps of black smoke.

Si Jin’s arms were wrapped so tightly around Yun Sheng that she could barely breathe.

Even after the hovercar had stopped, he didn’t immediately release her. He looked down, his deep blue eyes quickly scanning her from head to toe.

"Are you hurt?"

Si Jin’s voice came from above her, deeper and huskier than usual, laced with an almost imperceptible tension.

Yun Sheng lifted her gaze and found it captured by his deep blue eyes.

They swirled with emotions she had never seen in them before: tension, residual fear, and a searing heat that seemed to want to pierce through her very skin to confirm that she was, bone and blood, completely unharmed.

"I’m fine. You can let go..."

Before she could finish, Si Jin suddenly raised his other hand, the pad of his finger brushing ever so lightly against her temple.

Yun Sheng flinched slightly.

A tiny, thread-like cut had appeared there at some point, one she hadn’t even noticed.

Si Jin’s fingertip came away with a barely-visible trace of red, and his expression darkened instantly.

"You call this fine?" His voice dropped even lower, carrying the dangerous promise of a coming storm.