159: Chapter 159 The Eye of Insight

Lin Ning locked his gaze on that professor — Eye of Insight.

Images flooded in.

He didn't need to slow down the progress bar of life like he did when looking for people or items before. He only looked at those few key nodes — the moments when they turned red.

Being bribed.

Betrayal.

Sabotage.

Turning his wife.

Arson.

...

The images flashed through his mind like a silent film on fast-forward, frame by frame. Only those key actions and scenes remained — the USB drive being handed over, the emails sent in the dead of night, the figure squatting in front of the power distribution box in the warehouse.

A wave of dizziness surged up.

But it wasn't the agonizing feeling of being drained dry like before.

He could feel his strength draining from his body, but the speed was slow and well within a tolerable range.

Compared to before, it was the difference between running five kilometers with a weighted pack until you cough up blood, and running eight hundred meters where only your lungs and throat feel uncomfortable.

Upgrading really makes a difference.

But he didn't want to show Director Li and the others how pale his face had become.

He looked at the dot behind the professor's name.

A new function that appeared after his Golden Finger upgraded.

An opportunity to kill two birds with one stone.

He grabbed the back of Chen Zhi's clothes, speaking rapidly in a low voice: "Professor Li Ke and his wife have issues."

Chen Zhi stopped in his tracks. Director Li also paused. Lin Ning continued:

"Li Ke was turned three months ago. Things he has done: laboratory data leaks, teaching plan leaks, and trainee information leaks. The person who turned him is someone named Jin Fenglai."

Director Li's brows furrowed.

"This arson," Lin Ning's voice was even lower and more urgent, "was done by his wife. She tampered with the warehouse circuits to create the illusion of aging wiring. Three days before the fire, she used a special solvent to corrode the wire insulation; it would only short-circuit and catch fire once it had corroded to a certain point."

As soon as he finished speaking, Lin Ning cast his gaze toward the dot behind Li Ke's name. He tapped it with his Psychic Power. Agonizing pain. It exploded in his mind.

It felt as if his soul had been violently grabbed by a hand and dragged into an endless abyss.

Countless black chains surged from all directions, intertwining and wrapping around to form that dot. Each link of the chains shimmered with an eerie light, and hidden within every ray of light were images — different people, different scenes, different timelines, densely packed, layered upon one another, too many to count, so many that one look would drive you insane.

That was the future. Countless possible futures. Interwoven together to form that small dot.

He could go and "see" one of them.

But the moment he conceived this thought — a realization exploded in his mind: he would die. Truly die. He would be drained into a soulless husk.

He decisively interrupted the exploration. The moment his consciousness returned to his body, he felt wetness on his face.

Eyes, nose, ears, corners of his mouth — blood! Warm blood was flowing down from his seven orifices.

His whole body went limp, his vision kept blacking out, all his strength had been drained away, as if a giant boulder were pressing on his chest, making it hard to breathe.

He wanted to say something. His lips moved, but no sound came out. His consciousness faded, and his body fell backward.

Chen Zhi was jerked off-balance and reached out to grab Lin Ning's arm.

Director Li stood to the side, watching the bloodstains spreading across Lin Ning's black combat uniform, muttering in confusion: "I didn't ask him to use his special ability... This shouldn't have happened... It shouldn't..."

Is this kid so patriotic, and his temper so volatile?

...

When Lin Ning woke up again, a day had already passed. His head was still throbbing violently, as if someone were driving nails into his temples. He opened his eyes, looking at the familiar and welcoming medical equipment and white ceiling around him. A hospital room. A hospital room again.

He turned his head to look at the bedside cot. Very good, no one was there.

No one was snoring like a chainsaw to annoy him, but likewise, no one could provide him with any information. How were things at the training base? How long had he been unconscious?

He lay on the hospital bed, closing his eyes to rest, his mind slowly turning. He wondered if this little trick of his would be effective.

Seeing that his ability had a price, a limit, and could kill him — such a person was more reassuring than a "flawless expert."

But everyone thinks differently; he would have to see Director Li and Chen Zhi's reactions to judge if it had been effective this time.

He thought back to the mass of intertwined black chains like locks that he had seen before losing consciousness.

Divination of Insight.

This new function was far more powerful than the Eye of Insight, but it also consumed more Psychic Power. Thinking of that near-death feeling, Lin Ning couldn't help but shudder.

It seemed he couldn't use it for now. At the very least, he absolutely could not touch it until his Psychic Power had improved to a certain level.

Just as he was thinking this, the door suddenly opened.

Jiang Yu walked in carrying a thermos.

She noticed Lin Ning was awake immediately, walked quickly to the bedside in surprise, and put down the things in her hand.

"You're awake! Where do you feel uncomfortable? I'll call the doctor over."

Lin Ning was full of questions. Why was Jiang Yu here?

His voice was dry and hoarse as he struggled to speak: "How did you...?"

When Jiang Yu heard his voice, her eyes instantly turned red. She forced a smile on her face, but her voice trembled a little:

"You didn't call me last night, and I kept calling you, but no one answered. Later, someone named Chen Zhi answered and told me you were in the hospital, so I came over. Don't talk anymore, is your throat uncomfortable? I'll call the doctor."

As she spoke, she pressed the call button by the bed.

Doctors and nurses came in, performed a simple examination, and informed him that he needed quiet rest as his body was quite weak. Other than that, so far, the various tests had not shown any other physical injuries.

After the doctors left, Lin Ning looked at Jiang Yu, whose eyes were still slightly red, not knowing how to comfort her. He felt a bit guilty and somewhat ashamed.

"The doctor said it, I'm fine, don't worry."

Jiang Yu's eyebrows raised for a moment, then relaxed. She likely didn't want to get angry at him. She just silently poured water into a basin, wrung out a towel, and wiped his body.

At this moment, the door opened, and Chen Zhi walked in. When Chen Zhi saw that Lin Ning was awake, his gaze swept over Jiang Yu, and his expression stiffened for a moment, appearing unnatural.

Lin Ning looked at Chen Zhi, then at Jiang Yu. Jiang Yu kept a straight face, looking very unhappy, and she wouldn't speak to Chen Zhi, her movements becoming a bit heavier.

A flash of inspiration crossed Lin Ning's mind.

Could it be that Jiang Yu had scolded Chen Zhi? Thinking of Jiang Yu's sharp tongue, and looking at Chen Zhi's unnatural expression, he suddenly felt like laughing.

It seemed likely that Chen Zhi couldn't bring himself to argue back with Jiang Yu, so he could only passively endure it. Could this be considered the most unjust scapegoating Chen Zhi had ever endured?

After Jiang Yu finished wiping Lin Ning's feet, she threw the towel into the basin and carried it out the door. It was as if she were leaving space for Chen Zhi and Lin Ning.

As soon as Jiang Yu left, Chen Zhi glared fiercely at Lin Ning.

"I didn't ask you to use that special Physiognomy method! Once we knew who the person was, it wasn't some emergency, what couldn't we have found out? Are you sick in the head? You don't take your own body seriously!"

He said stiffly: "Those two people have already been caught and have confessed to the relevant situation. We will handle the subsequent matters. You must not use that ability of yours at every turn; how many lives do you have to squander?"

"Also, I know you've been concerned — the interrogation regarding He Changcheng's case has yielded some results. Besides cross-border drug trafficking, Wu Zhanmu was killed by that drug dealer surnamed Zhao; it has been confirmed as murder."

The suppressed smile on Lin Ning's face faded. He had been mentally prepared, but hearing the definitive news, his mood still sank.

"Was He Changcheng a dirty cop all along?"