Volume One: Rising to Stardom Chapter Fifty-Five: Sister Jingzhi, Please Hear My Excuses!

Zhang Jingzhi curled up inside the box, hiding, her whole body trembling uncontrollably at the relentless gunfire echoing not far away. Although she had just learned that it was Chen Jing who had come to rescue her, which had soothed her terror somewhat, the fear surged back as soon as he left and darkness once more enveloped her. That inexplicable dread pressed in from all directions.

Biting her lip, Zhang Jingzhi silently tried to encourage herself, praying that Chen Jing would emerge unscathed.

She didn’t know how much time had passed before the gunshots finally ceased.

Zhang Jingzhi’s nerves tightened again. The gunfire’s end—did it mean that Chen Jing’s struggle with the kidnappers was over? Who had won? Chen Jing—or the kidnappers?

Please, let it be Chen Jing who won, she prayed silently.

“No!…”

Suddenly, a desperate, hoarse scream rang out. Zhang Jingzhi shuddered in fright. She recognized the voice—it was the scantily clad woman. Hearing the despair in her scream, Zhang Jingzhi felt a slight sense of relief. If even the leader of the kidnappers—the woman—was shouting like that, surely Chen Jing now held the advantage?

Fragments of sound drifted over, though Zhang Jingzhi couldn’t make them out clearly—it seemed as if the female kidnapper was begging for mercy?

Did Ah Jing win? The gunfire had stopped. Should she go out and see? Since things had been quiet for so long, the fight between Chen Jing and the kidnappers must be over. If Chen Jing had won, she needn’t hide any longer. If he’d lost, continuing to hide was pointless.

With this in mind, Zhang Jingzhi summoned her courage, turned over, and crawled out of the box, heading cautiously outside. The abandoned factory was dim and shadowy, its wiring insufficient.

The eerie, dilapidated surroundings filled Zhang Jingzhi with fear, but she forced herself forward, following faint sounds ahead, inching toward their source.

Rounding a corner and following the passageway, she emerged at a wide-open space and saw the corpses of several kidnappers sprawled on the ground in chaotic disarray.

Looking at the bodies, Zhang Jingzhi’s legs nearly gave out; she had to steady herself on a nearby box to keep from collapsing.

Taking a deep breath, she braced herself and stepped forward quietly. As she reached the end of the passageway, her view widened. She stopped—one more step, and she’d be exposed.

Carefully, she pressed herself against a box and poked half her head out, hoping to steal a glance at what was happening outside.

Peeking out, she saw all the kidnappers lying motionless on the ground—dead or unconscious, she couldn’t tell. The female kidnapper was also down, with Chen Jing squatting beside her.

Before Zhang Jingzhi could call out his name in relief, she witnessed a scene that stunned her completely!

What did she see? She saw Chen Jing grasping the female kidnapper there with his hand, even giving it a firm squeeze! Good heavens!

At that moment, Chen Jing straightened the woman’s skimpy camisole, muttering in surprise, “I didn’t expect it to be real.”

After that, Chen Jing shook his head and stood up, about to look for Zhang Jingzhi. As soon as he turned, he spotted her half-hidden head peeking out from behind a box. Who else could it be but Zhang Jingzhi?

Chen Jing’s expression froze the moment he saw her.

Why did Sister Jingzhi come out now? Damn, did she just see what I did? Oh no, Sister Jingzhi, let me explain—no, let me clarify!

Chen Jing stood rigid, his mind racing to come up with a reasonable explanation for his actions.

For a moment, Zhang Jingzhi was so shocked she forgot to avoid Chen Jing’s gaze. When she realized he had seen her, she hurriedly ducked back behind the box, flustered and eager to hide from his view.

Oh no! What was Ah Jing just doing? Did I interrupt him? What should I do?

She covered her chest with both hands, her face burning, her fear forgotten—she felt like a little girl who’d just stumbled upon something embarrassing.

Seeing Zhang Jingzhi shrink back, Chen Jing sighed helplessly and walked toward her. There goes my image, he thought. Why can’t I control these hands? All because my curiosity for the truth is too strong.

He brooded over how he would explain himself to Zhang Jingzhi.

When he reached the passageway, he found Zhang Jingzhi standing there blushing furiously. Chen Jing opened his mouth and called softly, “Sister Jingzhi.”

“Ah!” Startled by his voice, Zhang Jingzhi turned and saw him standing beside her. She could only stammer, “Ah Jing…” but didn’t dare meet his eyes, her gaze darting away nervously.

Seeing her flustered expression, Chen Jing gave a wry smile. “Sister Jingzhi, if I said it wasn’t what you think just now, would you believe me?”

Blushing, Zhang Jingzhi replied, “Mm, Ah Jing, I’ll believe anything you say.”

Chen Jing explained helplessly, “Just now, that woman begged for mercy and tried to seduce me by pulling down her camisole. After I dealt with her, I thought she looked too indecent, so I helped pull it back up. That’s all.” As for why he’d squeezed her like that, he left unsaid; how could he explain that he’d simply wanted to check if they were real because they were so big? Sister Jingzhi would think he was a pervert.

Zhang Jingzhi nodded, her cheeks crimson. “Yes, I believe you, Ah Jing.” Whether she truly believed him or was simply sparing his feelings, even she didn’t know.

“I really didn’t lie to you. If you don’t believe me, you can use your powers to check,” Chen Jing said with a bitter smile.

Zhang Jingzhi hesitated, feeling it would be distrustful, but she couldn’t help herself. She activated her ability and immediately sensed Chen Jing’s heart full of helplessness and embarrassment, but completely devoid of any lascivious thought. Zhang Jingzhi finally relaxed—so it really was a misunderstanding; Ah Jing couldn’t possibly be a pervert.

Sensing that faint, unusual feeling dissipate, Chen Jing looked at Zhang Jingzhi in surprise. Had her power level increased?

Shaking his head and pushing the thought aside, he smiled ruefully. “Now do you believe me?”

Zhang Jingzhi nodded awkwardly, feeling deeply apologetic. He had risked his life to save her, and yet she’d doubted him, even suspecting him of being a degenerate. She truly shouldn’t have.

By now, she had completely forgotten about the reason Chen Jing’s hand had wandered during the adjustment.

Chen Jing breathed a small sigh of relief—at least his reputation was safe for now. He turned serious and said, “Sister Jingzhi, you know about the Dynasty organization in China, don’t you?”

Zhang Jingzhi nodded. “Yes, I know—they were the ones who sent me to Xiang City.”

“Good. Well, I’m technically a retired member of Dynasty. These people here belonged to Pandora—the world’s largest terrorist organization. They’re evil to the core, bent on destruction. Every major incident in the world you can think of can be traced back to Pandora. To put it bluntly, they’re a band of madmen with no moral code.”

Zhang Jingzhi listened quietly, knowing this was the world she would have to face from now on.

“Pandora is searching everywhere for people with powers. If they find you useful, they brainwash and hypnotize you into joining them. If not, or if they can’t control you, they simply destroy you. But this time, their target wasn’t you, Sister Jingzhi—it was Molly. As for why, that’s classified. What’s important is that people with powers like you must never reveal your identity, because organizations like Pandora are a deadly threat.”

Zhang Jingzhi bit her lip and nodded. She’d always thought Dynasty’s secrecy was just to avoid disturbing society, but now she understood it was also for her protection.

Seeing her nod, Chen Jing continued, “Dynasty will handle the aftermath here. But your identity is compromised. You can’t go back to your old place. Wait for Dynasty to arrange a new one for you.”

At this, Zhang Jingzhi’s expression turned complicated. Would she really have to keep wandering from place to place? She didn’t want that.

After some thought, she summoned her courage and asked, “Um, can I join Dynasty?”

Chen Jing was surprised; he hadn’t expected her to make such a request. “It should be possible. Dynasty usually only recruits those with powers, and the requirements are strict, but you should qualify. Ultimately, though, it depends on their internal evaluation.”

Hearing that she might not be able to join, Zhang Jingzhi nodded in disappointment. She had hoped to join an organization capable of nurturing someone like Ah Jing—they couldn’t be bad people.

Having said all he needed to, Chen Jing reassured her, “Let’s go—we’ll head back for now. You can’t return to your old place, so come with me. We’ll figure things out later.”

After Chen Jing and Zhang Jingzhi left, the factory fell silent once more, as if nothing had ever happened, save for the many bodies littering the ground—a silent testament to the fierce battle that had taken place.

Click. Click. Click.

Suddenly, footsteps echoed as someone else entered the factory. It wasn’t a Dynasty cleanup crew but a figure in a cloak.

The cloaked figure surveyed all the bodies and finally stopped by the hardened man and the scantily clad woman.

“No fluctuation of power—not a gifted one,” said a cool, feminine voice. The cloaked figure was none other than the woman who had appeared earlier in Pandora’s Yatai branch.

Looking at her female subordinate’s corpse, she frowned. “Immune to mind control… Just who could it be?”