We've Met Before

After giving Ding Naiqing his instructions, Tu Ran turned to the guards before her.

"Send two of you to find the people who were interrogated together with Naya Rivera."

Two guards stepped forward—one was Liang Feng, who had mocked her and Ding Naiqing's approach earlier, and the other was Li Wu.

"We'll go."

Tu Ran nodded. "Be careful. Keep your distance when you bring them over."

"Understood."

After they left, Tu Ran found a patch of open ground nearby and slumped down, sitting cross-legged.

Her palms were sweaty and cold.

How could she not be afraid? She used to not even dare watch horror movies.

But in that situation, if she had turned and fled, it would have been embarrassing with so many watching. Besides, since she had come to this world as a Pioneer, she would inevitably face situations like this again. She could run once, but not twice. It was better to adapt early and prepare for the future.

"Ran Jie! Ran Jie!" Ding Naiqing suddenly called out, looking around before spotting her and rushing over.

"What's the matter?" Tu Ran pushed herself up from the ground and dusted off her clothes.

"Yao Jie replied."

Yao Jie referred to Yao Bei, the de facto team leader of their Fourth Squad.

"She said there are no alien creatures on her end for now, but from the looks of the corpses, it's likely that they're possessed by the same kind of creature as ours. Based on the information we sent, she's already begun focusing her search on the reptilian order, specifically snakes." Ding Naiqing quickly relayed the contents of the communicator.

"Yao Jie also said to keep investigating—she suspects there's more than one creature," Ding Naiqing said excitedly, looking at Tu Ran. "Ran Jie, Yao Jie's guess is the same as yours."

"What else did she say?"

"That's all." Ding Naiqing scrolled down. "She just told us to be careful. The rest are leads sent by the other groups—two of them also found traces of snake movement."

Tu Ran nodded, her expression turning serious. "Now we just have to wait and see what Li Wu and Lu Yun bring back."

"By the way, where's Tubin?" Tu Ran suddenly realized she hadn't seen him in a while.

Wasn't he the one giving them the briefing?

"Did he get scared off?" Ding Naiqing wondered aloud, looking into the distance.

The people who had gathered earlier were still standing far off, but Tubin was nowhere to be seen.

Tu Ran also looked at the dark mass of people in the distance. "Have them disperse. There's nothing more to find out now."

"Okay." Ding Naiqing ran over to the guards, relayed Tu Ran's thoughts, then ran back and stood in front of her.

The guards had already begun organizing the crowd to disperse.

Tu Ran looked at Ding Naiqing, crossing her arms. "Why do you keep following me around like this?"

Ding Naiqing scratched his head sheepishly. "Because I feel safe next to you."

Tu Ran: "…"

"What makes you think it's safe to be around me?"

She was someone who couldn't even shoot straight, someone who couldn't even guarantee her own safety.

"Because you're amazing, Ran Jie," Ding Naiqing said cheerfully. "Back in training, you were top in a lot of areas. I always looked up to you back then, and I often set you as my goal. The fact that I'm still alive owes a lot to you."