Retired for A Hundred Years: Re-Employment for the Apocalypse Bigshot!-Chapter 250 - 248: Going to Gunan County

Ji Ning received tokens from the Twelve Forces of Chaos at both the Lin Family and the Bai Family, feeling vaguely uneasy in her heart.

Before her crossing, the twelve forces had only allied for less than two years.

Although the inside of the Huazhou Safety Zone was still relatively stable, not all forces were willing to let her be the spokesperson; otherwise, she would not have been ambushed on Jiuming Mountain.

It’s been 120 years since her "death," and in terms of power distribution, it is equivalent to the original twelve major forces being reduced to only her force.

As the three followers who inherited her force, they must have done something after her "death" to disintegrate the other eleven forces, leading to a situation where they dominated.

She searched through all of Huazhou’s history books and found no records on this; even the origin of the Twelve Round Table Council contained nothing about the Twelve Forces, as if they had never existed.

Ji Ning’s brows gradually furrowed.

***

After leaving the Bai Family, Ji Ning drove straight to the airport.

Agent No. 89, who had just joined the investigation team, had been waiting at the airport for a long time and showed a hint of admiration in his eyes when he saw her.

No. 89 is a B-level Investigator at the Beijing Security Bureau, a fifth-level superpower user of the Space System, currently possessing only space storage ability.

He looks very naive, giving off an honest vibe on the first glance, like a country bumpkin who just entered the city, exuding a silly aura that makes one want to pick on him.

Due to his unique superpower, he is somewhat favored within the Security Bureau, and various investigation teams invite him to join, but most of the tasks they give him involve evidence storage and item transportation.

Moreover, because of his appearance, others automatically overlook his other abilities, relegating him to basic tasks, so even if he joins an investigation team, he never gets access to core cases, seeming to have good rapport but never gaining team member’s attention, drifting on the fringe of various investigation teams as a handyman.

This time, his entrance into Ji Ning’s investigation team was thanks to his parents for having him born in Gunan County.

Originally, he thought he would again be on a handyman role in the investigation team, unexpectedly, leader Ji Ning directly assigned him a secret task, to independently investigate a trafficking case involving an actress named Ye Tong.

It was the first time an investigation team leader trusted him so much, assigning him an independent investigation task right off the bat.

No. 89 was overwhelmed with excitement.

Upon receiving the case, he immediately activated his connections in Gunan County to investigate every detail and progress of the case thoroughly, afraid of missing this opportunity and returning to being a "porter."

Finally, his efforts paid off.

He actually got the opportunity to secretly investigate the case in Gunan County alongside leader Ji Ning.

"Leader, I’ve already notified them over there; we can directly get a copy of the case file without alarming the police when we arrive," No. 89 reported eagerly in a low voice, his voice carrying a hint of joy.

Ji Ning nodded slightly, "Well done. What’s your name?"

No. 89’s smile became even more naive, scratching his head eagerly: "Not hard at all, thank you, leader, for letting me join the investigation team. I am a space ability user, you can call me Xiao Kong."

When a superior inquires about your name, it indicates they might use you in the future.

He isn’t afraid of being used, just of being sidelined, doing marginal work.

To fully cling to Ji Ning, he secretly gave himself a name similar to other team members.

Ji Ning was the first to learn his name.

Xiao Kong’s heart was ablaze with warmth.

Ji Ning gave a slight "hm," then said, "Xiao Kong, once we reach Gunan County, don’t report our info to the local police and the Security Bureau for the time being."

Xiao Kong was taken aback, immediately nodding: "Okay, leader. But my suppression ring has a positioning system."

Before he finished speaking, a transparent, thumb-sized circular device was thrust into his hand.

"Stick it on the suppression ring to block your location."

Xiao Kong’s naive eyes widened suddenly, becoming even more daft than before.

It took a while before he replied joyfully, "Alright."

Indeed, his new leader has quite the background, being able to get hold of such things.

Xiao Kong’s eyes were aglow with admiration, looking at Ji Ning with more fervor.

Ji Ning glanced at him.

She silently took a step to the side.

Both were seated in economy class, their seats adjacent, with Ji Ning by the window and Xiao Kong by the aisle.

Sitting down, he curiously looked around, whispering to Ji Ning, "Leader, it’s my first time taking a flight like this."

Ji Ning glanced at him while Xiao Kong rambled on: "Previously, it was mask-wearing, private charters. All seats around were empty."

Ji Ning: ...

***

From Beijing to Xiang City, where Gunan County is located, takes over two hours.

The two took a night flight, arriving at Xiang City at 10 p.m., but neither rested; they directly drove the rented car to Gunan County.

Gunan County is over 200 kilometers away from the city center, and it takes them longer to drive than to fly.

When they finally reached Gunan County, it was already two or three in the morning.

Looking at the familiar yet unfamiliar small county town, Xiao Kong felt sentimental for a moment, "Leader, since I became a superpower user, I haven’t returned for many years."

Ji Ning, driving, glanced at him, "Why?"

Xiao Kong scratched his face, a bit embarrassed, and said, "Afraid to cause trouble for my family."

"Trouble?"

"Yeah." Xiao Kong recalled the past, somewhat melancholy, "My family is just an ordinary one; my parents run a small restaurant. My powers awakened suddenly in eleventh grade. Initially, becoming a superpower user made me proud and arrogant, walking with my head held high, but slowly, I found I was becoming my family’s burden. My parents had to lie to hide my identity, reporting my whereabouts, couldn’t leave Hua Continent, enduring gossip from people around..."

Ji Ning glanced at him again, "Where is your home?"

"What?" Xiao Kong stared blankly at her.

Ji Ning said, "We’ll stay at your place during the case investigation. Is it convenient?"

Xiao Kong’s brain wasn’t working at that moment, but he reflexively responded, "Convenient."

He didn’t know why, but suddenly he felt a warmth in his chest.

"My home isn’t much. Sorry about that, leader."

"Alright."

When Ji Ning saw a self-built three-story house, occupying three and a half acres with a separate gate and yard, she regarded Xiao Kong deeply.

"Not much?"

Xiao Kong scratched his face, "I... I didn’t know when they built this. How did it even occupy the neighbor’s land?"

Xiao Kong stood at the door, casting doubtful glances left and right.

He wasn’t quite sure if this was his home.

He checked the messages his parents sent a long time ago.

Yes, it was this place...

"I’ll try the key."

Xiao Kong carefully took out a brand-new metal key from his carry bag, inserted it into the lock, gave it a gentle twist, and the lock opened.

Suddenly, Xiao Kong felt his eyes sour, sniffled, took a deep breath in, then slowly exhaled, turning to say to Ji Ning, "Leader, this is my home."

Saying so, he gently pushed the door open, when suddenly—

A large shadow darted out from inside the door.