Chapter 4664 — That Is What You Call a Gap

"Yes, yes, I'm going too!" Shangguan Lan'er chimed in eagerly from the side. "I've never seen anything so novel in my life—I absolutely must have a good look at it, and when I get back I'll have Grandfather buy me one too. It looks like such fun!"

"No!" Wei Zhao vetoed it without a moment's hesitation. Han Jingyi was at least somewhat sensible, but this girl Shangguan Lan'er was nothing but trouble—she had no idea what was going on. He shook his head firmly. "Neither of you is going. It's far too dangerous. With your strength, you can't even protect yourselves. If something happens, I won't be able to do a thing!"

With his own strength, Wei Zhao would likely be safe enough once inside, and even if something unexpected came up, there would always be room to maneuver. But with Han Jingyi and Shangguan Lan'er along, he might not even get the chance to save them if danger struck. If, heaven forbid, one of them were killed, where would Wei Zhao go to weep?!

"But..." Han Jingyi was still uneasy. The smart armor was merely defensive equipment, so that was manageable, but Kang Jingming's laser cannon was simply too dangerous—it appeared to have an extremely long range and devastating power. What if he deliberately held it in reserve to use against Wei Zhao?

She had always known that her brother Wei Zhao and Kang Jingming did not get along—or more accurately, that Kang Jingming was up to no good.

And though Wei Zhao knew of such ultra-high-tech weapons as the laser cannon, he had never actually come into contact with one, much less gained any firsthand experience in countering it! Especially this new and unknown model—if it truly came to a fight, he might well have no idea where to begin. Even a moment's negligence or misjudgment, and the consequences were unimaginable!

This was precisely where Han Jingyi could truly be of use. She had never encountered one either, but if she could just have a look at how the laser cannon operated, perhaps she could spot its weakness in a very short time and devise a countermeasure, so that Wei Zhao would not be left completely on the defensive, taking hits without room to strike back.

"No buts. This is not up for discussion. You two must stay here and wait for me to return!" It was rare for Wei Zhao to be so stern with Han Jingyi and Shangguan Lan'er. Letting the two girls put themselves in danger on his account—that was something he could never agree to.

Seeing how resolute Wei Zhao was, Han Jingyi and Shangguan Lan'er exchanged a glance and could only shake their heads helplessly. They knew too that going along might not be of any help to Wei Zhao—it would only make them a burden.

"Then how about this: Brother Wei Zhao, you take this with you. If anything comes up, contact Jingjing at any time—she can help you plan and strategize!" As she spoke, Han Jingyi suddenly fished a small object out of her pocket.

"What's this?" Shangguan Lan'er crowded in curiously, while Wei Zhao's eye twitched when he saw it—his expression even more astonished than when he had laid eyes on the smart armor and the laser cannon. The little thing in Han Jingyi's hand was a cell phone!

"What? That thing gets a signal?" Wei Zhao's jaw dropped.

Come to think of it, he still had a cell phone stored away in his jade pendant's space. He had once used it to secretly film Yu Jiang murdering his master, but beyond taking photos and videos, it had no other use—after all, there was no signal at all on Cloud Terrace Island!

"Mm-hm. Jingjing had Feifei specially order this from the Central Chamber of Commerce. At first there was no signal, but Jingjing modified it herself. She set up a little base station and wrote in the authentication codes, so it works perfectly normally—though only within West Island, since that is as far as the base station's coverage reaches." Han Jingyi spoke in a tone of perfect matter-of-factness, utterly oblivious to what a shock her words would be if they reached anyone else's ears. Fortunately, everyone present was a Cloud Terrace Island native who could not understand a word of it and merely looked bewildered.

"That advanced?!" Wei Zhao, however, could not close his mouth for quite a while. Looking at Han Jingyi's casual expression, he was struck speechless. To her, this sort of thing was child's play, but to anyone else it was sheer fantasy—at least Wei Zhao himself could never in a thousand years have managed it. In his hands, a cell phone was nothing but a camera...

"Hehe, anyway, there's been nothing much to do on West Island these past two years, so I just found things to tinker with and study. At first Feifei found it terribly novel—she would call Jingjing even from the next room over—but later she just tossed it aside." Han Jingyi said with a laugh.

"You two still haven't said what this is! What does 'calling' mean?" Shangguan Lan'er was frantic with curiosity, itching to snatch the phone away and take it apart to study it thoroughly—only for Han Jingyi to hand it to Wei Zhao first.

"It's called a cell phone, another piece of technology from the mortal world. Jingjing will explain it to you slowly later—Feifei has one too, so you can play with it when we get back!" Han Jingyi said with a smile.

"Oh, oh!" Only then did Shangguan Lan'er nod like a curious child, though her eyes remained fixed on the phone, lighting up from time to time. Under Wei Zhao's subtle influence, the girl had already fallen hopelessly in love with things from the mortal world.

"Mm, in that case I'll take it. It will be convenient to stay in touch—who knows, there may really come a time when I need to ask for Jingjing's help." Wei Zhao nodded and took the phone. When it came to dealing with high-tech weapons, Han Jingyi was more than qualified to serve as a strategist and advisor.

Still, he was a little worried about whether it would work properly once he reached the ruins of the ancient battlefield. After all, according to Han Jingyi, the little base station she had set up covered West Island, but whether it reached the ancient battlefield ruins was another matter entirely. No one even knew how far that place was from West Island—it was quite possible there would be no signal.

Of course, bringing it was better than not bringing it. If there happened to be a signal over there, that would be a bonus—and there was no loss in any case.

While Wei Zhao and Han Jingyi were talking, Kang Jingming had already made his way over on the other side, beneath the gaze of the entire crowd, with an utterly showy swagger, looking for all the world as though he relished being the center of attention.

To be honest, before a freak like Wei Zhao, Kang Jingming had always been nothing but a clownish supporting player—he had never really had the chance to show off like this. This time, seizing the rare opportunity to shine with his smart armor and laser cannon, it was already a first in his life.

"Hahahaha, isn't this classmate Wei Zhao? What's the matter—are my eyes playing tricks on me, or is my mind wandering? How is it I see a cell phone? Do you think this is the mortal world, where you can make phone calls?" Catching sight of the cell phone in Wei Zhao's hand, Kang Jingming burst into laughter, his sense of superiority instantly overflowing.

Both were technological products, yet he had the smart armor and laser cannon newly developed by Dr. Benjamin II of the Center, while Wei Zhao could only hold a useless piece of junk phone. That is what you call a gap! (To be continued) R466