Chương 161: The Cruel Truth and the Girl's Tears

Faced with the sudden question, Ji Ying instinctively wanted to deny it and brush off the topic.

But as she was about to speak, she suddenly realized that her original plan was to inform Liuli and Yinxue of this crucial information before her formal meeting with Xingxian the next day.

Whether she answers "no" or pretends to be completely unaware of the "Inspector's" existence, it will likely sound extremely deliberate to Luo Bingli, who already has some suspicions about Xingxian's identity.

Just as she was caught in this brief moment of hesitation, before she could even organize her thoughts to speak, Luo Bingli's calm voice, tinged with understanding, rang out again: "Xiaoying, there's no need to try to hide it any longer."

"As you probably know, since I asked this question, it means I already have some idea about Miss Xingxian's true identity."

Luo Bingli paused slightly, her clear black eyes quietly gazing at Ji Ying, and sighed softly, "Moreover—your slightly flustered expression just now—actually—already told me the answer."

"I wasn't wrong, was I?"

"well----" Ji Ying sighed heavily in her heart, knowing that no matter how she tried to hide it, it would be futile.

She looked at the girl before her, whose thoughts were frighteningly meticulous, with a hint of helplessness, and asked, "Xiao Li, how did you come to know the term 'Patrol Officer'? To be honest, I never imagined that this word would come out of your mouth."

"Ruby told me," Luo Bingli replied crisply and directly.

"It actually taught me a lot of basic knowledge about the Magic Kingdom, including the duties and authority of the Inspector."

Ruby?!

Upon hearing Luo Bingli mention this name, Ji Ying suddenly remembered the contracted spirit that always followed Xiao Li and resembled a snow-white kitten.

Since Luo Bingli came to stay at the Lin family's house the night before last, she seems to have never seen Ruby again.

It didn't come to its home with Xiao Li, and obviously—it couldn't stay in the apartment where Luo Hongyu was still.

So where did it go?

Before Ji Ying could voice her question, Luo Bingli continued to state her judgment in her calm tone: "A strange magical girl who suddenly appeared, whose strength far surpasses that of an ordinary Crescent Moon level, could effortlessly produce so many high-quality Corrosion-level Void Beast energy cores in one go —" Rather than the overly coincidental explanation that she just happened to be passing through Jiangchuan City, I'm more inclined to believe that she came here specifically on some special mission—as an inspector.

She paused, her gaze falling on Ji Ying, her eyes gleaming with a strange light, and said with some disbelief, "But—I never expected that Xiao Ying's strength had reached the point where she could even defeat such a powerful inspector."

Ji Ying gently shook his head and explained, "As I said before, the process of defeating her was actually very dangerous. When the ethereal energy in my body was almost completely depleted, her magic reserves were still quite abundant."

"If that method doesn't work, I won't be able to fight back at all."

At this moment, Su Yuqing, who had been sitting quietly to the side, trying to digest the unfamiliar vocabulary in their conversation, finally couldn't help but interject.

Her face showed obvious confusion, and she asked with some curiosity, "Um—Xiao Li, and Xiao Ying, what are you talking about? Miss Xingxian is an Inspector? Inspector—what does that mean?"

Upon hearing this, Luo Bingli turned to her friend and patiently explained, "Inspector is a special title and important duty bestowed by the Magic Kingdom upon a small number of powerful, experienced, and virtuous magical girls."

"They usually operate independently, handling difficult incidents that occur in various locations that the local magical girls cannot cope with, and investigating malicious attacks against magical girls."

"And—when necessary, to represent the kingdom in judging and dealing with comrades who have neglected their duties or betrayed their country."

"Simply put, magical girls who can obtain the title of 'Patrol Envoy' are at least at the Crescent Moon level, and many are even extremely experienced Sun-level seniors."

"Wow! Is it that amazing?!" Su Yuqing couldn't help but exclaim in surprise after hearing Luo Bingli's explanation.

Then, somewhat puzzled, she asked, "Then—why would an inspector as capable as Miss Xingxian come to our Jiangchuan City?"

Upon hearing this, Luo Bingli did not answer immediately. Instead, she turned her gaze to Ji Ying again, her eyes filled with obvious doubt, and said softly, "This is actually the question I most want to ask you, Xiao Ying."

"Why—why would an inspector from a magical kingdom specifically come to our city?"

"And why—Xiaoying, did you hide this from us?"

The atmosphere in the room became somewhat heavy because of Luo Bingli's direct question.

Ji Ying lowered his head, seemingly organizing his thoughts or making a difficult decision. After a long while, he slowly raised his head, his dark red eyes filled with unprecedented seriousness and solemnity.

She took a deep breath, looked directly at Luo Bingli, and asked, word by word, "Xiaoli, Yuqing, the truth I'm about to tell you may have a very big impact on you."

"Are you guys mentally prepared?"

Luo Bingli's heart clenched suddenly, and a nameless fear and unease instantly surged into her heart.

But she still pursed her lips tightly and nodded firmly: "Yes, Xiaoying, go ahead, we—are ready."

Although Su Yuqing didn't understand the specifics of the matter, she sensed its seriousness from Ji Ying's solemn expression and Luo Bingli's grave reaction. She subconsciously gripped Luo Bingli's hand and nodded vigorously in response.

Jiying took another deep breath, trying to make her voice sound calm and steady: "The reason Xingxian came to Jiangchuan City is to investigate the recent disappearances of several Crescent Moon-level magical girls in this city."

"New Moon-class aircraft missing?!"

Upon hearing this answer, Luo Bingli's pupils constricted to their maximum size in an instant, and her body trembled slightly uncontrollably.

She unconsciously murmured, in an almost dazed tone, repeating Ji Ying's words from before: "Missing—what does that mean?"

Su Yuqing turned pale at the sudden bad news. She instinctively reached out and tightly grasped her friend's hand, which had suddenly turned cold.

At the same time, she turned her worried gaze to Jiying and asked in a trembling voice with disbelief, "Xiaoying—the disappearance you mentioned, could it be—those seniors—they all—" She didn't have the courage to ask any further, because she could clearly sense that her friend was on the verge of a breakdown after hearing the word "missing".

Looking at Luo Bingli's dejected and seemingly fragile appearance, Ji Ying felt an indescribable pang of pain in his heart.

She nodded gently and asked in a low voice, "Xiao Li, are you alright? Should I—stop for a bit?"

Luo Bingli's body was still trembling violently, but she stubbornly shook her head. She stared intently at Ji Ying, her voice trembling slightly, yet she said with unwavering determination, "—Continue, Xiao Ying, tell me everything you know—".

Seeing Luo Bingli, who had clearly suffered a huge blow but was still trying to find out the truth, Ji Ying felt an indescribable bitterness and reluctance in his heart.

But she knew that since she had already decided to tell them everything, any hesitation or interruption at this moment would only cause her more pain.

Without further hesitation, she continued to reveal the truth: "And now, based on the information that Xing Shuang, Xing Xuan, and I currently possess, we can be certain that the culprit behind the disappearance of those predecessors is—the Void Realm Apostle, Jing Jue."

She paused, her voice becoming lower and more serious: "Furthermore, the reason Miss Xingxian took the initiative to come to Jiangchuan City to conduct an investigation is because the Magic Kingdom has not received any regular security communications from Jiangchuan City for quite some time."

"It was just an accident that she ran into me first. After the misunderstanding was cleared up, she asked to meet with you tomorrow and told me that she planned to tell you about this in person."

"Actually, before this, it was Xing Shuang and I's shared wish to keep this secret from you as much as possible and not let you come into contact with these cruel truths too early."

"But—at this point, this secret can no longer be kept hidden."

Looking at Luo Bingli's increasingly pale face due to shock and sorrow, Ji Ying said with deep regret, "I made a decision at the time that I must tell you these things in advance, before Xing Xian, in a way that is easier for you to accept."

"I just never expected you to suddenly ask that question about the inspector."

Su Yuqing comforted her friend, whose body was trembling slightly from the shock of the information, and then turned to Ji Ying, asking in a low voice, "Since you had already decided to tell us all this, why didn't you just say it from the beginning? Why did you have to wait for Xiao Li to ask her?"

"Because of the atmosphere tonight, I really feel that it's inappropriate to talk about such heavy things." Ji Ying's voice was full of helplessness and bitterness.

"I originally thought that I would wait until tomorrow to say it, no matter what."

"Even if it's just so you can have one more relaxed and enjoyable evening, and get one more good night's sleep, that would be good. I just didn't expect—" She didn't continue speaking, but instead turned her gaze back to Luo Bingli, whose head was lowered and whose expression was obscured, and asked softly, "Xiao Li—are you—alright?"

Luo Bingli's body was still trembling slightly, but her voice was unexpectedly calm, though noticeably hoarse: "—Several seniors have gone missing? Who—who are they?"

Ji Ying's heart sank; she knew the most difficult part was about to begin.

She shook her head heavily: "One night more than half a month ago, Xing Shuang happened to meet Yue tide and learned from her that—besides Yue tide, the other three Crescent-level companions in Jiangchuan City have all disappeared."

"And a few days later, on the day Xingshuang accompanied you to the mall, Yuexi also lost contact."

"How could this be—?" Su Yuqing subconsciously covered her mouth with her hand, her eyes filled with disbelief.

Upon hearing this cruel answer, Luo Bingli abruptly raised her head.

—Senior Yuexi—and three other seniors—they were all— Countless chaotic memories surged into her mind like a tide. Those scenes she had deliberately ignored, even those filled with resentment and confusion, now flashed back into her mind with unparalleled clarity and cruelty—flashbacks.

She remembered that when she first became a magical girl, her seniors, though strict with her, would patiently guide her after she made mistakes and silently heal her injuries when she was exhausted.

And then there's the fleeting helplessness and disappointment in their eyes when faced with their own childish and hostile retorts, as well as their tolerance and concern for an immature junior.

So it turns out—so their seemingly cold and distant attitude towards me back then wasn't because they disliked me, nor because they looked down on my weakness.

Rather, it was because—their companions were disappearing one by one, and their hearts were filled with the same fear of the unknown and deep concern for their companions' safety.

The reason they no longer contact him, the reason they don't reply to his messages—is not because they don't care about him, but because—they may very well—become—unable to—do anything.

Overwhelmed by immense regret, self-blame, and endless longing for her predecessors, Luo Bingli was completely engulfed by a surging tide. Unable to suppress the pain and despair in her heart any longer, she suddenly threw herself into Ji Ying's arms and burst into tears.

Hot tears streamed down her face like pearls from a broken string, soaking the front of Ji Ying's clothes and searing Lin Che's heart.

Faced with the girl in his arms crying so heartbreakingly, Ji Ying did not feel repulsed or ashamed as before.

She reached out and gently yet firmly embraced the trembling, petite girl in her arms, gently pressing her head against her shoulder.

Without uttering any further words of comfort, she simply murmured softly over and over in a tone filled with endless tenderness and understanding, "It's alright, Xiao Li—it's alright—"

"If you want to cry, then cry it out—"

"I'm here, I'll always be with you."