Chapter 26: The Unlucky Soul

"Yueli, let's go find Angus!"

Wen Li could not hide the excitement in her heart; she was eager to show her mentor that she had not let her down.

The young man stood up, his legs, stiff from long periods of inactivity, faltering slightly. Wen Li quickly steadied him, leading him out of the surveillance room. As the elevator ascended, Yueli stepped out into the world beyond.

The long-lost sunlight shone upon the youth’s body. It was warm, yet it did not feel as comforting as the hand of the young girl guiding him. Wen Li pulled him through the crowd, and the youth followed, his gaze fixed on her flowing, bobbing hair.

*It’s so good,* Yueli thought to himself.

The excited Wen Li up ahead had no idea that she had already been etched into the heart of a sentinel. At that moment, Yueli’s faith had been replaced. Wen Li was the belief he would protect for the rest of his life.

Arriving at the central office building of the White Tower, two familiar figures stood at the entrance. On the left was a man with long, moss-green hair holding a light-board; on the right, a slouching, squinting man with white hair. They looked as if they had been waiting for a long time.

Cyril nudged his friend gently with his elbow, smiling as he pointed at Wen Li and her companion. "I told you, the little girl wouldn't let us down."

Angus leaned to the right, putting some distance between himself and Cyril, his eyes still scanning the documents on the light-board. Only after confirming everything was in order did he raise his gaze to look at Wen Li. Seeing the sentinel following behind her, the tension that had gripped Angus for the past few days finally began to ease.

As the saying goes, the first step is the hardest. For the sake of Wen Li, Angus had applied to the higher-ups of the White Tower for maximum authorization, ensuring she could complete this experiment. Otherwise, the White Tower would never have entrusted a figure as dangerous as Lin Zheng to her.

This was the opening salvo in proving her worth. Wen Li had lived up to expectations, successfully developing a method to contain the spread of pollution nuclei within a sentinel's mental sea. With this success, the path for Wen Li’s future experiments would be well-paved. The laboratories and training rooms she desired—Angus could provide them all, because she had proven her value.

"Congratulations," Angus said.

Wen Li was genuinely happy. She stepped forward, presenting Yueli to him.

"His current mental state is excellent. This should meet the standards for heading to the club, right?"

Cyril leaned in with a smirk. "Of course, no problem. If the little girl can't wait, we can set off right now."

Wen Li hid behind Yueli, avoiding the sight of this smiling tiger.

Angus, curious about how she had accomplished this, asked her directly. Knowing she couldn't hide the truth from these old foxes, Wen Li told them everything. "I simply drained Yueli’s mental power and then performed a mental sea graft."

Cyril’s eyes crinkled into slits as he smiled. "A very ancient method. It’s a technique that guides used during the Old Calendar period of the Federation."

Wen Li replied, "It’s effective, isn't it?"

Cyril countered, "And do you know why such an efficient method was banned?"

Angus cut him off. "Sign the mission report first, then go to the Finance Department to collect your bonus." He glanced at the sentinel behind her. "As for him, the White Tower will place him in the Medical Department for observation."

Wen Li, still wanting to see her "iron-eating beast" every day, asked quickly, "Then can I visit him?"

Angus looked at the girl’s expectant eyes and said, "As you wish."

The girl smiled gently.

Angus took the documents and dragged away the still-chattering Cyril. Waving at Wen Li with a smile, he said, "See you next Monday."

*Wen Li: I’ll pass.*

Upon arriving at the Finance Department to collect the bounty, Wen Li tapped "Accept," and 100,000 Federation Credits were immediately deposited into her account. The service robot informed her that there would be additional bonuses if she completed the follow-up tasks.

Curious about what these tasks entailed, Wen Li clicked to see that they involved a full summary of the mission and the submission of results. This task was of a research nature and classified as personal confidential information. Wen Li had a habit of keeping detailed records; in other words, as long as she uploaded the organized experimental data, she could earn even more money!

The experiment wasn't something only she could perform; as long as the blood injector was replaced with a suppressor, it was quite straightforward. Calculating that she already had quite a lot of money, Wen Li, on the verge of becoming a little rich girl, waved her hand, ready to buy things for Yueli.

Browsing through the items, she played the part of a doting mother, asking the sentinel beside her, "Yueli, what do you think of this bamboo-flavored nutrient solution? It says it contains mental power recovery agents for sentinels, and there's also..."

After looking, she felt it wasn't quite right, so she kept scrolling, wanting to buy everything she liked for Yueli.

Yueli was utterly helpless. The youthful sentinel reached out and turned off the girl’s device. His bright black eyes gazed into hers.

"I don't need anything, Wen Li."

"I can never repay the help you've given me."

"Little Butterfly is a great guide..."

Wen Li pouted, her cheeks puffed out in a mix of annoyance and anger. "You’ve already saved me twice. Does every bit of help between friends have to be calculated so clearly?"

"In your eyes, does my identity as a guide outweigh who I am as a person?"

With that, she quickened her pace, ignoring the sentinel behind her.

Yueli immediately clutched his head, crying out in pain. Startled, Wen Li, who had only taken a few steps, turned back, asking anxiously, "What’s wrong, Yueli?"

The youth suddenly lunged for her waist, tickling her until she burst into laughter.

"Yueli... stop! Hahaha, stop tickling!"

Setting aside all the awkwardness, Yueli only wanted to see her happy.

"Do you still dare to be angry?"

Unable to escape, Wen Li had to beg for mercy: "I'm not angry anymore, I'm not!"

Amidst their playful banter, they arrived at the Medical Department. After ensuring the sentinel was settled in his workplace, Wen Li left, feeling quite satisfied.

Back in the Purification Room, Wen Li recounted everything she had experienced that day. However, Ban asked with a grave expression, "The method of mental sea grafting... I do not suggest you continue doing that, Miss."

Wen Li asked, "Is it because it causes great harm to the guide? But since there is the method of nourishing the mental sea, the loss for the guide shouldn't be too severe, right?"

Ban shook his head and poured Wen Li a cup of fruit tea. "That is not it. Every guide is a treasure of the Federation. Since the beginning of the New Calendar, these methods have been prohibited."

"The current mainstream method for healing is still through the use of a spirit beast. This indirect method is the simplest."

Wen Li knew this was the way of healing-type guides; her colleagues usually added their own touches based on this foundation. In contrast, the methods used by attack-type guides seemed crude and violent. One would simply project mental power into the sentinel’s mental sea; if they managed to blast away the pollutants, it was a win, and they left the sentinels to fend for themselves otherwise.

Moreover, there were very few attack-type guides in the Federation, and they were generally only used for dealing with aberrations. The purification of sentinels still relied on healing-type guides.

Wen Li nodded, acknowledging his words.

Ban continued, "Miss, since you grafted your mental sea into that sentinel, it means that from now on, he can only form a mental link with you."

*What?*

Wen Li was shocked; she had absolutely no idea about this.

A mental link: the highest level of purification between a guide and a sentinel. Both parties fully open their mental channels, allowing for the exchange of mental power. The sentinel can be purified rapidly, and the guide can replenish their mental power. But most importantly, the sensation during the connection... it was indescribable... an addictive... stimulant.