Master Manipulator

At exactly ten o'clock the next morning, Wei Zitong arrived at the academy entrance on time. Jace had already been waiting there for a while.

Today, Jace was driving a business van rather than yesterday's sedan. In fact, after Du Qiangwei's little stunt, that sedan was no longer drivable. He just did not know whether Du Qiangwei had compensated Jace for the car.

The two exchanged wry smiles, both understanding what the other meant.

After Wei Zitong got in, Jace tossed him a black suit and a pair of sunglasses. "Maintain formation!"

"Huh?" Wei Zitong sighed helplessly, climbed into the back to change into the black suit, put on the sunglasses, and checked himself in the rearview mirror a few times. "Not bad. I actually look pretty handsome!"

"Clothes make the man, saddles make the horse!" Jace said smugly. "How could the clothes I picked possibly be bad? If you're worth nine points now, my outfit accounts for eight of them."

"Get lost!" Wei Zitong snapped as he climbed back into the passenger seat.

Only after Wei Zitong had fastened his seat belt did Jace say, "Qiangwei went to recruit the female trainees."

"Oh? What does that have to do with me?" Wei Zitong replied absentmindedly.

"Aren't you curious who the female trainees are?" Jace asked.

"Not curious." Of course Wei Zitong was not curious. He already knew who they were.

"There are lots of beauties," Jace said with a strange grin.

"Give it a rest. Save that line for the losers on the list. What kind of beauty haven't I seen?" Wei Zitong leaned back more comfortably. Naturally, he was speaking as the Original Body Owner. As for himself, he had seen them, sure, but never touched them.

"Tsk, that Little Police Flower from Juxia City was chosen too. The one you used to pursue..." Jace felt that he had finally brought out his trump card. "A Taotie attacked the airport road in Juxia City last night. That Little Police Flower was shot straight through the chest."

"Oh, Qilin. Is she okay?" Wei Zitong could no longer pretend not to care. If he kept it up, he would give himself away.

"She's fine. More or less fully recovered." Jace's mood darkened as he spoke. "Quite a few soldiers were killed..."

Wei Zitong wanted to say that this was only the beginning, but seeing Jace's dejected expression, he could not bring himself to say it. He could only pat Jace on the shoulder and say, "We'll strike back..."

"Right!" Jace nodded, looking somewhat more energized. Then he turned and saw Wei Zitong practically curled into a ball in that lazy pose. He immediately shouted in exasperation, "What the hell are you lying like that for? Look what you've done to that nice suit!"

Wei Zitong froze, then sat up straight. When he turned to look, the back of his suit had indeed been crushed into a wrinkled mess beneath him. He hurriedly said apologetically, "Sorry, force of habit..."

Then he silently chanted in his heart, No wrinkles. No wrinkles.

As soon as he finished chanting, streaks of black light flowed across his body. The formerly crumpled suit immediately became perfectly smooth, as if it had just been ironed.

"Tsk, your ability is really useful!" Jace exclaimed in amazement.

Ge Xiaolun was a little nervous. He felt that the two people across from him were both familiar. Naturally, one of them was the person who had taken him out of the police station, so he remembered him. The other, who looked rather lazy, also seemed vaguely familiar, but he was wearing sunglasses, and Ge Xiaolun could not recall who he was for the moment.

He kept looking behind them, as though searching for something.

Both Jace and Wei Zitong knew what Ge Xiaolun was looking for, but neither exposed it. Jace gathered his thoughts and said, "I'm sure you've noticed that you're different. If you were given a chance to save the world, would you do it?"

Not seeing yesterday's beauty, Ge Xiaolun was somewhat disappointed. Hearing Jace's words, he hesitated before shaking his head. "N-No. I wouldn't!"

"Ahem, let me introduce us..." Jace felt that he had been too abrupt, so he explained, "We're from the Super Seminary, specializing in training people like you. Come with us, and you'll join Xiong Bing Lian, becoming a Super Soldier who protects the country and saves the world!"

"Th-This is my personal ability. Why should I..." Ge Xiaolun was still hesitating.

Wei Zitong could not stand watching any longer and said directly, "If I gave you divine power, would you do it?"

"I'll think about it..." Ge Xiaolun found the man across from him even more familiar, but still could not remember who he was.

"You'll share a dorm with beautiful women!" Wei Zitong raised the stakes. Even Jace beside him was surprised. How did this guy seem even better at fooling people than he was? Since when did joining the academy come with the perk of sharing a dorm with beauties?

"Are you screwing with me?" Ge Xiaolun finally remembered who the guy across from him was, and an inexplicable rage rose within him.

"Tsk, so you're not completely stupid." Wei Zitong simply took off his sunglasses and sneered. "Think about whether I'm screwing with you or not. If you don't go, then I will. Qiangwei... tsk tsk, now that's tempting!"

"You dare?!" Ge Xiaolun slammed the table and stood up. Before Jace could react, he declared firmly, "Fine. I've decided. I'm going!"

Jace silently gave Wei Zitong a thumbs-up.

On the plane headed for the harbor district, the two of them finally had some free time and lounged lazily in their seats. Jace took a sip of water to wet his throat and said, "You're really something!"

"It's nothing. As long as you understand the target's mentality, they're easy to fool." Wei Zitong said, "The moment he came in, he was looking everywhere. Why? Wasn't he just hoping to see Qiangwei? With Qiangwei absent, anything you said to him would lose impact. That's why Qiangwei, as a prop, was so important..."

"Shh!" Jace's expression changed slightly as he lowered his voice. "Watch your mouth. We're on a plane, ten thousand meters in the air. If you fall, you'll really die!"

Wei Zitong also felt a wave of lingering fear. He glanced around and asked quietly, "It can't be that much of a coincidence, can it? She's on this plane too? Wasn't she going abroad?"

"Th-That's hard to say. That girl has been incredibly mysterious lately. Better be careful!" Jace said, shaking his head.

"I'm listening. Go on, then. How did you use me, this nonexistent prop, to fool that loser into joining?" A cold voice came from the seat behind them, making Wei Zitong and Jace's hearts turn half-cold...

"We're done for!" Wei Zitong looked deathly pale at the equally pale-faced Jace.

"Talk!"

Du Qiangwei's sharp shout made Wei Zitong and Jace's hair stand on end. They nearly broke free of their seat belts and bolted.

"Well, Ge Xiaolun likes you a lot. I told him you were at the Super Seminary too, so he came..." Wei Zitong stammered.

"Judging by that smug look on your face, that can't be all, can it?" Du Qiangwei was not so easy to fool. With a hum, a throwing knife was already pressed across Wei Zitong's throat.

"That's all, that's all!"

Wei Zitong's eyelids twitched wildly. He hurriedly tugged at the dazed Jace beside him, and Jace quickly nodded as well. "R-Right, right, that's all. That's all!"

"Hmph, I'll believe you two for now." Du Qiangwei withdrew the throwing knife, making Wei Zitong and Jace both breathe a sigh of relief. Then she leaned lazily into her seat and said casually, "Actually, as long as it benefits the overall plan, I don't mind if you use my identity for something..."

The crisis was not over yet! Wei Zitong and Jace immediately felt as though blades were pressing against their backs, and they hastily said in unison, "We wouldn't dare!"

After an unknown amount of time had passed, and no more sounds came from behind them, Wei Zitong cautiously tilted his head as if by accident and glanced at the rear seats from the corner of his eye. Only after discovering that no one was there did he nudge Jace's arm and silently mouth, "She's gone. She's gone."

The tension in their hearts instantly loosened. Only then did they realize that their backs were already soaked with cold sweat. Neither cared about anything else as they collapsed into their seats in unspoken agreement, feeling that it had been even more thrilling than fighting a battle.