Job Seeker (Part 2)

Several seconds after Ronan bowed, Zhang Yingying remained silent.

Only when Ronan straightened and met her gaze did Zhang Yingying purse her lips slightly and begin speaking slowly, her voice growing a little lower:

"I understand how you feel. You possess a remarkable ability, yet have no idea how to uncover its mysteries. You can only face one question after another, going in circles where you stand. Looking around, you find no one you can talk to, and you have no idea how the world regards someone who is 'different'... Many people in our circle were once like this."

She took a gentle step forward and placed her hand on Ronan's shoulder again, though this time with utmost tenderness. "You have resolve. That's good. But you need to understand what you're about to face, what you're going to face..."

Zhang Yingying suddenly began to stumble over her words. Ronan looked over in surprise, only to see the young lawyer's brows, the corners of her eyes, her lips, even her full cheeks trembling and twisting. In the end, she could no longer hold it in and burst out laughing.

"Pfft... Ah, sorry!"

Zhang Yingying sprayed saliva right onto Ronan's face. She hurriedly reached out to wipe it off, but halfway there, she saw Ronan's incomparably spectacular expression and erupted into a second fit of laughter. In the end, she could only weakly brace herself against the hollow of his shoulder and laugh to her heart's content.

"HAHAHAHAHA! Oh my God, you really believed it, didn't you? Didn't you? I'd only heard there were rookies like this before. This time, I finally got to see one in person..."

Zhang Yingying laughed until she went limp and curled up, her chin resting against Ronan's shoulder to keep herself from collapsing to the ground.

Ronan was practically holding a soft, fragrant beauty in his arms, but who could know the size of the shadow cast by this hot-bodied beauty?

Naturally, Zhang Yingying knew she had gone too far. Afterward, she kept apologizing, but every time she did, one look at Ronan's expression made her break down laughing again. She only finally recovered when the military sent someone over to urge them to disembark.

Nearly twenty-four hours later, the government, military, and Quantum Corporation had finally concluded their investigation. With no reason to detain so many people any longer, they began sending everyone away.

On the hurried way off the ship, Zhang Yingying kept clinging to Ronan's arm and softly begging his forgiveness. Even with everyone along the way staring at them, she showed no intention of letting go.

"Sorry, sorry! A real man has to be broad-minded, right? At most, I'll never again say your little chick won't grow..."

"Enough!"

Ronan finally stopped her. He understood now: Damn it, she wasn't using beauty to force him—she was using embarrassment!

Ronan willingly conceded defeat to Zhang Yingying's Thick-Skinned nature. Besides, her habit of circling around without ever getting to the point had begun to irritate him.

"All right, Lawyer Zhang, Miss Zhang. Right now, I just want information about this circle—meaningful information. Can we let everything else go?"

Zhang Yingying was finally satisfied and released his arm with a grin.

"Sure. We'll talk in the car."

After saying goodbye to the military Transport Ship and to a whole day of aggravation, Ronan got into Zhang Yingying's sports car. Intentionally keeping his distance from this Thick-Skinned girl, Ronan sat alone in the back seat.

Zhang Yingying turned to look at his expression and nearly burst out laughing again. Only when Ronan raised his cold gaze did she restrain herself somewhat.

"All right, all right, let's get to the point... First, I can say for certain that you've read too many novels. You think people like us are all devoted to mysticism from beginning to end, running secret societies and dark organizations or something?"

Other than not reading novels, she had hit everything dead on!

Ronan was momentarily speechless.

Zhang Yingying chuckled as she started the car. "What age do you think this is? If you're better than others and don't show it off, if you have extraordinary skills and don't flex them, you might as well be dead. Our circle is actually pretty high-profile. There's only one reason you've never noticed us: there are too few of us."

The flying car set a route for Zhi Xing Institute, merged onto the superconductive roadway, and entered a state of steady gliding.

"In recent years, the proportion of Ability Users has been rising. But according to the latest and broadest statistics, excluding Wilderness Vagrants and military Burners, there is only one Ability User for every twenty thousand people on average—fewer than six hundred thousand worldwide. As for the 'Awakened' truly recognized by our circle, there are even fewer. According to the Association's latest figures, there are just over seventy thousand. And that's only because the Association has spent the past twenty years vigorously advancing the Awakening Plan and training newcomers."

"The Association?" Ronan caught another key term.

"It's a professional association. We need to protect our rights too, don't we? Of course, because we're so small, we're affiliated with the International Science Exploration Association and count as professional explorers. Later, you can go directly to the local Exploration Association. They can handle a lot of miscellaneous matters for you."

"..."

"Let's continue: those seventy thousand Awakened are distributed very unevenly because of bloodlines, inheritances, and spheres of influence. Among the eighty-eight major metropolitan areas, some only have a handful, while lively places like Xia City have only around a thousand. And quite a few of those prefer adventuring and training in the wilderness, so even fewer actually remain in the cities.

"You need to understand that most of those thousand or so people are arrogant, unruly, eccentric, and twisted. Trying to gather them together into some kind of secret organization... Ha, sorry, I have to laugh again."

Ronan listened intently. From Zhang Yingying, he gained set after set of concrete figures and vivid images, gradually constructing an unfamiliar yet wondrous world in his mind.

Half an hour later, the flying car neared the Zhi Xing Institute campus. It connected to the guiding light rails and began lining up to enter the landing platform.

After Zhang Yingying's explanation, Ronan asked several key questions, then returned to his quiet, introverted state, scribbling and drawing in his notebook. However, most of it was merely chaotic lines with no discernible meaning, and no new work emerged. Zhang Yingying, who had been secretly watching him, was deeply disappointed.

As they were about to enter the landing platform, Zhang Yingying teased him, "Nervous? You can't even draw properly?"

"Shouldn't I be nervous for an interview? Especially after you said there'll be an assessment for joining the Association..."

"Relax, relax. This circle is desperate for fresh blood. Since you have some ability and have applied to join the Association, you'll be approved one hundred percent. The only difference is your initial rating—what kind of man worries about such empty fame? Oh, we're here."

Once inside the landing platform, vehicles were not allowed to remain for more than one minute. Zhang Yingying stopped wasting words and gave him a dashing farewell.

"You already have my contact information, and we've reached an understanding about the Spiritualist matter. So, I wish you success in your assessment!"

"Thank you for your help."

Ronan gave Zhang Yingying a long look, nodded, and got out just as decisively.

Zhang Yingying saw him off with a smile, calm and composed. Yet as soon as Ronan left, she let out a "Ha!" and kicked off her high heels with her long, fair legs, propping them up on the Central Control Console. Then she dialed a number. The moment the call connected, she shouted:

"Boss, I found an incredibly, incredibly tender little seedling! You have to give me a bonus this month!"