Chapter 23: A Black Horse  

Xia Zhi had matured quite a lot in that one night.

He became much more grounded and steadfast.

Xinghe had made an immense impact on the reformation of his character, strengthening his constitution to help him brace the vicissitudes of life with unwavering resolve.

Many years later, when he was old and weary, that night would still be his most memorable.

His sister’s fragile body when she left the hospital to perform the miracle that would singlehandedly change their lives forever was imprinted into his mind.

He had found a real-life hero: Xia Xinghe!

The long night was finally over.

Xinghe had shred through an uncountable number of systems.

When she felt that she had done more than enough, she stopped her dexterous hands, rubbed her tired eyes and left the café in a daze.

Back at the hospital, before she could even reach her uncle’s sickbay, she saw Xia Zhi running towards her.

Xia Zhi had been worried for her the entire night. He sighed in relief when he finally saw her approaching.

"Sis, are you alright? How are you feeling, where were you all last night?" Xia Zhi bombarded her the moment they were close enough for conversation.

Xinghe answered vaguely, "Spent the night at an internet café. Zhi, have we got enough money?"

"Yes!" Xia Zhi nodded in a hurry, adding happily, "Sis, you’re so incredible, we have a little over 400000 RMB!"

Xinghe had surpassed the 300000 RMB required for Chengwu’s operation.

Xia Zhi had never been happier in his life.

"Sis, you’re my hero!" Xia Zhi said as he stared at her with unbidden admiration in his eyes, "Sis, tell me please, how did you manage to earn so much in just one night!"

"Let me take a rest first," Xinghe replied.

Only then Xia Zhi noticed Xinghe’s pale face, bloodshot eyes and heavy dark circles under her eyes.

The recent years hadn’t been particularly kind to Xinghe and now she looked even worse.

Xia Zhi said kindly, "Sis, then you should go rest by dad’s side. I’ll go buy your fav, dumplings and drumsticks for your breakfast. Rest your body and I’ll handle the rest."

"Okay," Xinghe nodded and left for Chengwu’s sickbay.

There was a small couch for the patient’s family to rest in Chengwu’s room. Xinghe curled herself on it, covered herself with a blanket and entered a restful sleep.

Xinghe, in her tired state, was out like a light while Xia Zhi was happily going through town buying her breakfast.

Neither of them knew what Xinghe did the previous night had rocked Hwa Xia’s online world to its core.

Over the span of one night, a hacker by the codename 001 had become a household name among the IT industry.

This 001 challenged the top 20 hackers in Hwa Xia over one night and he took them all down!

He even neutralized Xi Empire’s latest security system that was released earlier that year, and needless to say, systems released by lesser companies were taken down as well.

It is worth noting that these systems were developed by some of the best security teams in Hwa Xia!

These systems had stopped some of the most influential hackers but 001 hacked through them in just one night!

Like a dark horse, 001 had burned his trails through the hacker’s world but the trails led nowhere. 001 left no trace that would lead back to his real identity.

Last night, thanks to Xinghe, Hwa Xia’s online world was the busiest it had been in recent years.