CH 68

“Stay put.”

Xiao Nian suddenly raised his hand and grabbed Xiao Jiali’s sleeve, his voice cold, “It’s not your turn to intervene in this way yet.”

“Nian Nian…” Xiao Jiali stared blankly, lowering his head to look at the boy by his side, who was far more mature than his age. When getting along with Xiao Nian, Xiao Jiali often felt like an ignorant eight-year-old, foolishly following the household head.

Xiao Nian sternly lifted his face, took Xiao Jiali’s hand again, leading him away from the bright and bustling hall. Surrounded by chattering guests, they brushed past waiters carrying dishes, heading against the flow toward a quiet and dim corner.

Xiao Jiali’s heated head gradually calmed down, and he remembered that besides using the sentinels’ auditory search, he could also call Xiao Jingfeng. Quickly, he dialed the chairman’s voice communication. Xiao Nian watched him dial, lips pressed into a straight line, saying nothing.

Xiao Jingfeng didn’t answer. Xiao Jiali had to send him a text, repeating what Si Chu had said about the situation and urging him to call back urgently.

Xiao Nian silently watched him pace anxiously like a rabbit. Suddenly, he caught a glimpse of silver in the corner of his eye. Raising his gaze, he looked over and saw Si Di, who had changed back into the sentry uniform. The other party also noticed them and quickly walked over.

Before Si Di could speak, Xiao Jiali quickly spilled the details of Xiao Zhenyun’s kidnapping, Si Chu’s disappearance, and the failed attempts to contact Xiao Jingfeng.

“Yeah, I know about it. Someone is already tailing them. Most likely, the kidnappers’ goal isn’t Xiao Zhenyun himself; kidnapping him is just a tool for intimidation. They won’t harm Zhenyun for now.”

Si Di’s demeanor mirrored Xiao Nian’s calmness. Compared to a little kid barely reaching an adult’s chest, an S-rank sentinel’s words held much more weight. Seeing Si Di’s confident and steady expression, Xiao Jiali’s heart gradually calmed down.

“Captain Si’s team is definitely reliable…” he murmured with his head down, then suddenly looked up and asked, “So, what’s the real purpose of the kidnappers? Money or…?”

Si Di didn’t answer directly, only said seriously, “You and Xiao Nian stay in the hotel. After the chairman responds, go to him. Don’t wander around, don’t go anywhere…” At this point, fearing Xiao Jiali might figure out his intentions and try to interfere, Si Di added, “Jiali, you’re the big brother. Protect Xiao Nian, understand?”

His last words were a bit too late. Xiao Jiali wasn’t easily fooled. He immediately realized the true intention of the kidnappers, “…their target is actually me… right?”

“It’s me. Xiao Jiali, don’t be delusional. What connection could you possibly have with Zhenyun? Why would someone use him to threaten you?” Si Di decisively vetoed.

Xiao Jiali’s face was full of disbelief as he murmured, “If it’s as you say, then they are using Mr. Xiao to threaten you, forcing you to hand me over… Back when we negotiated with the Sorelan United Nations together, we faced two assassination attempts… After returning to the country, I’ve always heeded your advice on my safety, staying at Mr. Xiao’s place and not wandering around… I never expected they would brazenly kidnap Mr. Xiao…”

Si Di and Xiao Jiali had kept these incidents a secret from Xiao Zhenyun, and Xiao Nian was unaware as well.

In sync with Xiao Jiali’s thoughts, Si Di could only say, “They haven’t contacted us yet. All I said is speculation, but it might just be purely about money.”

“Captain Si…” Xiao Jiali looked resolutely at Si Di, and before he could speak, Si Di furrowed his brows and interrupted, “It’s not time for you to heroically sacrifice yourself. I won’t use you as a bargaining chip for him. Even if later on, we really need you to play a role, remember to prioritize protecting yourself. Don’t interfere recklessly. Xiao Zhenyun has me there.”

“Captain Si, I know. I just wanted to make my stance clear.” Xiao Jiali said sincerely, “If someday in the future, it’s necessary to exchange me, whether it’s for Mr. Xiao, you, or Nian Nian, I’m willing…”

Xiao Nian lifted his foot and directly kicked Xiao Jiali’s calf with great force, his face dark like a boiler, “Idiot. You think you’re the protagonist of a novel, and now you’re out of breath? Do we need you to showcase your personal heroism here?”

Xiao Jiali didn’t understand what Xiao Nian was muttering. He only felt the strength of Xiao Nian’s kick, causing him to kneel on the ground.

Xiao Jingfeng seemed to be lost, with no response. Fortunately, Si Di’s terminal continuously received text updates from Hedgehog, mixed together with a complaint or two, stating he clearly came for a paid vacation and now felt like he got a new mission.

The capable should do more. Si Di comforted unenthusiastically.

As a highly rare Dark Sentinel, Hedgehog was indeed qualified as a ‘capable’ individual. He observed from a distance as the kidnappers’ car entered a remote abandoned factory, raised his hand to open a floating screen, swiftly searched the map interface, then turned the motorcycle towards a distant but open observation point.

The surroundings of the factory were pitch black, and it became even more difficult to see after turning off the headlights. However, Hedgehog’s vision was unhindered. He leisurely pulled out a pile of metal components from the black bag tied to the back of the seat, simultaneously refreshing the location of the kidnappers on Si Di’s terminal. As he quickly assembled these dark parts, he even sent a voice message to Si Di with a hint of gloating, “Black Wolf, I heard sounds. Your guide got a beating.”

Xiao Zhenyun was indeed beaten. It started with a splash of cold water, followed by a punch to the face—an intensely hardcore wake-up method.

Soon, he heard the angry shout of Si Chu, “Don’t touch him!”

This was probably the retribution for bullying the little dog… Xiao Zhenyun coughed and shook his head to get rid of the water on his face. A lot of cold water had also seeped into his clothes, making his eyebrows furrow in response to the chill.

Xiao Zhenyun, in a disheveled state, raised his head to see seven people surrounding him and Si Chu. Two of them wore oversized black robes, mysteriously covering their faces, while the others showed their faces. Their fusion states were boldly displayed, all being special individuals.

A sentinel with a tiger spiritual form was irritated by Si Chu’s noise, so he used the sole of his shoe to grind Si Chu’s face. The threat was clear: make another sound, and he’d cut off his tongue.

With a bit of thought, Xiao Zhenyun roughly understood his situation. It was all a staged kidnapping that went real. He was genuinely kidnapped in the middle of the planned act. After being knocked unconscious, he was brought here.

He could also guess why Si Chu appeared here wearing sensory suppressors and spiritual form suppression locks. After all, the other party was their meticulously selected audience. It was only natural for him to notice his disappearance immediately and launch a counterattack, resulting in Si Chu being here. This was something the little dog would do with his IQ.

Xiao Zhenyun’s neck was tightly fastened with a spiritual form suppression lock as well. He could keenly feel Tian Lu furiously colliding within his spiritual domain, desperately trying to help his master but ultimately powerless.

“Who are you?” Xiao Zhenyun’s head was still spinning, and he felt nauseous when he spoke. It was evident that the kidnappers hadn’t considered the damage and side effects of the drug on his body when they drugged him.

No one answered him.

However, Xiao Zhenyun could distinctly feel a restless emotion among the kidnappers. Their mission seemed to be going awry. He vaguely heard a few exchanges; it seemed like they had lost several teammates, lost contact, and failed to meet up with the main force within the agreed time.

Xiao Zhenyun gradually calmed down, realizing that the disappearance of these thugs’ accomplices must be the work of Si Di or Hedgehog. Of course, it could also be the doing of Xiao Jingfeng. In short, someone must have noticed and taken action.

At this moment, a masked man suddenly walked up toXiao Zhenyun. The voice, processed through a voice changer, sounded from above his head, “Chairman Xiao, cooperate a bit. Your sentinel wants to hear your voice.”

“Little uncle.” Si Di’s voice came through the terminal held by the masked person.

Si Chu, bound on the ground, immediately raised his head, “Brother!”

Xiao Zhenyun and Si Chu exchanged a glance. “Si Di, it’s me. Xiao Chu is also here.”

“I know. Don’t be afraid; I’ll get you out soon.”

The conversation ended there. Xiao Zhenyun didn’t have time to ask about their purpose before the masked person lifted the terminal and gave Si Di a half-hour time limit, abruptly ending the communication.

The abandoned factory fell into silence. No one spoke, only the countless intertwining breaths could be heard. Xiao Zhenyun couldn’t see what was under the black robes of the two masked men, so he could only observe the appearance of the remaining five. Based on the initial assessment of their spiritual forms, he concluded there were four guides and one sentinel.

In general, the number of guides in a team would be relatively less than the number of sentinels, at most equal. A situation where there were significantly more guides than sentinels, as in this case, was extremely rare. However, after a little thought, Xiao Zhenyun could understand the reason – it was a deliberate move to counter Si Di.

It was well-known that Si Di’s spiritual domain had collapsed before. Spiritual attacks from guides were his weakness. The only person capable of healing him, Xiao Zhenyun, was at a C-level in spiritual strength, with a painfully slow recovery rate…

Of course, this was just theoretical. Perhaps these kidnappers were unaware of Xiao Zhenyun’s exceptionally fast spiritual recovery speed, and Si Di’s spiritual domain had already fully healed three days ago.

However, Xiao Zhenyun didn’t relax his guard. He had a feeling that the four guides gave off a very unsettling vibe. Since they dared to kidnap the Vice Chairman of the Union on the day of their wedding ceremony, they must have some confidence or reliance.

Certainly, the most unsettling vibe came from the only sentinel present at the scene. The sentinel’s emotions seemed to be in a continuous state of extreme excitement. Initially concerned about Xiao Zhenyun’s condition, Si Chu had been shouting aimlessly, and the sentinel naturally vented his emotions on the little dog. Si Chu still had a black shoe print on his face, mixed with nosebleeds, giving him a smeared appearance.

Now that Xiao Zhenyun was awake and knew Si Di had received the message and was on his way, Si Chu quieted down. Regardless of how the sentinel kicked or beat him, he remained silent. Due to the masked person’s intervention, who ordered the sentinel not to continue abusing the hostage, the tiger sentinel reluctantly spared the little dog but remained restless, constantly moving around without a moment of stillness.

The noise he created was incredibly disturbing. Xiao Zhenyun couldn’t discern if the masked man was getting impatient. However, the four guides who showed their faces were evidently irritated. Yet, not one of them moved to stop him.

Even the sentinel himself seemed annoyed by the disturbance he caused. Unable to control his behavior, he grew increasingly agitated, which only made him louder. And the louder he became, the more agitated he grew, creating a never-ending cycle.

Xiao Zhenyun, having listened to the lessons at the White Tower for quite some time, recognized that this tiger sentinel’s current condition was typical of someone needing guide elements and spiritual reassurance. Otherwise, he would soon fall into mental chaos.

However, there were clearly at least four guides present, but all of them were indifferent. They would rather endure the noise than make any effort to comfort their fellow sentry.

Unless…

They simply can’t appease this sentinel.

Xiao Zhenyun suddenly thought of Xiao Jiali, the artificially modified sentinel with zero compatibility with all guides. 

The people from the MP Research Institute were here today for Xiao Jiali!

He suddenly understood why two of the seven kidnappers were completely covered, fearing exposure of their identities. The other five were nonchalant because the masked ones were likely internal personnel from the MP Research Institute, and the rest of the special individuals were disposable experimental subjects, used and discarded at will.

Will Xiao Jiali eventually become like this too? Xiao Zhenyun’s gaze followed that tiger sentinel, who was being restless and angry, with no outlet for his emotions, like an inflated balloon reaching its limit, consuming life, enduring unbearable pain, only waiting for the day it explodes. Death would be a relief.

More importantly, since the MP dared to pull out these five special experiments to challenge the real S-class sentinel, assuming the tiger sentinel, like Xiao Jiali, was an artificial S-class sentinel, what about the remaining four guides? Four artificial S-class attack guides?

The author has something to say:

Zhenyun: Show some concern for me, okay? I’m the one being kidnapped here. Little Bird is still enjoying the feast. If you don’t rescue me soon, he might even have another feast.

Hello, everyone ヾ(＾∇＾). I hope you enjoyed the story! If you’re feeling generous, please buy me a coffee, share/comment on my translated works! Check out the link below for early chapters.  (๑>ᴗ