A Forest of Steel and Iron

Xi Chunzhi was naturally quite satisfied with this outcome, so she stopped arguing with them and asked, "Since we've already reached a conclusion, why are you still standing here?"

"Per orders from our superiors, we still need to ask Ms. Tu Ran a few questions." The owner of this voice was very polite.

Tu Ran knew this meant she was going to be re-interrogated.

She was already fully dressed, and under the nurse's guidance, she was about to push open that door.

Xi Chunzhi's disdainful voice came through, "Are you people out of your minds? How could she possibly be an alien!? Aliens can sense the presence of other aliens best. The fact that she nearly had her body taken over by that He Luo creature is proof enough that she's human, not an alien. If you have all this time, why not go investigate someone else?"

"Ms. Xi is absolutely right, but this is also an order from our superiors. Just a few small questions—won't take much time. If Ms. Tu Ran is amenable, we'd still like to ask per procedure, so we can report back to our superiors."

His attitude was so sincere that Xi Chunzhi, who wasn't one to be unreasonable, said no more.

But from their exchange, Tu Ran had thought of a method—clumsy as it was, it was also the only way to escape the re-interrogation for now.

"Ah!"

A cry of surprise came from the changing room.

Xi Chunzhi kicked the door open and rushed in.

In one glance, she saw Tu Ran curled up in a corner, hugging her legs.

"What's wrong?" She quickly strode over.

Behind her, the medical department staff in uniforms followed her in.

Tu Ran grabbed at her hair, trying her hardest to look pitiful and mentally unstable, "I want to go home... it's not safe here... I want to go home..."

She had originally planned to fake fainting, but then she remembered they were in the medical department, where there were a hundred ways to wake her up, so she decided it was more reliable to pretend she was suffering from stress-induced trauma.

After all, stress disorder couldn't be cured simply with medication, nor in a short period of time—it was perfect as a reason to refuse questioning.

Xi Chunzhi grasped her trembling hand, feeling a pang of sympathy, "Don't be afraid, we're going home now."

She stood up and looked at the medical department staff who had followed her in. Among them, the one standing at the front was a young man in a neat white uniform, with handsome, regular features and a gentle, refined demeanor.

"As you can see, her current mental state is unsuitable for re-interrogation. I'm taking her home. Please excuse us."

Xi Chunzhi stated this succinctly, then, without waiting for the group before her to respond, she grabbed Tu Ran's hand and walked out.

Tu Ran looked at her fearless back as she strode forward, and could only think: Sister Xi, you're my god!

But she didn't dare let her guard down at all. On the surface, she still wore a frightened, bewildered expression, like a puppet with its strings cut, obediently following behind Xi Chunzhi.

Perhaps because those people subconsciously believed she couldn't possibly be an alien, they didn't come after them.

Having temporarily dodged that disaster, Tu Ran let out a long, silent sigh of relief.

Through the medical department's long, narrow corridor, Xi Chunzhi led her into the elevator, but instead of heading down, she pressed the button for "48."

The elevator shot upward, and through the transparent glass, Tu Ran could clearly look down at the city below.

It was already night.

Dazzling neon lights illuminated the entire city, flashing with the brilliance of technology. Hovering cars and magnetic rails wove nimbly between towering skyscrapers. There were sports cars speeding along the ground and pedestrians skimming just above it. From this distance, Tu Ran couldn't make out the reason they were able to fly so fast.