Li ZouXing woke up to find himself lying in a life pod. A thick, viscous fluid was undulating beneath him, soaking his clothes and making his hair wet. After recovery, the dozens of tranquilizer needles hadn’t caused him any pain or symptoms of limb weakness.
The door to the room was pushed open, and someone walked in.
Li ZouXing closed his eyes again, maintaining steady breathing.
He was certain that there was no noticeable difference between his current state and when he was still asleep.
However, for some reason, the newcomer seemed to know he had awakened, and their tone was assured, “If you’re awake, come out. It’s not good to stay in the life pod for too long.”
Li ZouXing suddenly opened his eyes, swiftly lifted the lid of the pod, and got out, his movements agile. “It’s you.”
At first, he showed surprise, but his alertness quickly heightened. Jin Di chuckled warmly and greeted him in a friendly manner, “Long time no see, ZouXing.”
Li ZouXing joined in the laughter. “Captain Jin Di, are you the one who kidnapped me or the one who rescued me?”
Being direct, Jin Di sighed and said, “I’m the captain of the Tiran merchant ship. Why would I kidnap anyone?”
“Fair enough,” Li ZouXing replied, letting his guard down. He walked up to Jin Di and patted his shoulder. “But how did I end up on Captain Jin Di’s ship?”
He seemed to relax his vigilance in an instant, a display that impressed Jin Di. “I’m acting on someone else’s behalf.”
Li ZouXing narrowed his eyes.
Jin Di grinned as he led Li ZouXing out of the treatment room. “Tiran merchant ships occasionally transport goods, and that includes people.”
As soon as these words were spoken, Li ZouXing’s expression turned cold.
From the moment he entered this world until now, if you were to ask him what he detested the most, it would undoubtedly be the existence of human trafficking within the Empire.
Due to the vastness of various races on different planets, as well as the alignment with the progress of world history, the Empire didn’t usually intervene in local wars or small conflicts between planets. The Empire’s presence only came into play during confrontations between extraterrestrial and intra-Empire planets.
The never-ending wars on different planets had led to the existence of human trafficking – cheap and plentiful, with no value, akin to ancient slaves in future eras.
Li ZouXing calmly summoned his mental power – they hadn’t suppressed his mental abilities – and held it at Jin Di’s throat, his demeanor unruffled. “Return.”
“Return to where?” Jin Di asked, trying to keep Li ZouXing from acting impulsively. He chuckled, “You seem to have a much bigger temper now than when you used to call yourself Xing Xing.”
“Captain Jin Di, it seems you’ve mistaken me for a fool.”
His mental power tightened around Jin Di’s skin, causing a trickle of blood to flow from his neck. Jin Di shut his mouth, realizing this was no joking matter. He was genuinely surprised that, in such a disadvantageous situation, within his territory, the other party had dared to actually harm him.
“Wasn’t it just a moment ago that you cleverly pretended to know nothing?” Mental power collided with another layer of mental power as Jin Di’s skin formed a protective barrier, instantly pushing away the mental force aimed at his neck.
In the next moment, Li ZouXing conjured a longsword and fearlessly faced Jin Di again. The tip of the blade pointed at Jin Di’s eyes, shining with an arrogant silver light. Li ZouXing remained expressionless. “I’ll say it one last time, return.”
“Can you understand Interstellar Language, you scum?”
—
Chaos reigned on Shexing.
Both the military led by Yu Meng and Walter’s secret followers were thrown into disarray. The former worried about the disappearance of Nan, which had been painstakingly extracted, while the latter were alarmed by Li ZouXing’s vanishing act.
Li ZouXing had disappeared.
This news was like a bombshell, instantly leaving those involved in a daze, unable to think of anything else.
Two rumors began to circulate in the camp. One suggested that Walter had taken the drugs and Li ZouXing, while the other claimed that… Li ZouXing had stolen the drugs himself and made a run for it.
Yu Meng promptly quashed these rumors, dismissing them as absurd. After all, weren’t the students of Chengyang Military Academy destined for greater futures than stealing a Nan?
But what frightened Walter’s subordinates even more was their leader’s reaction.
Upon learning of Li ZouXing’s disappearance, the entire Dream Team wore grim expressions. Xi Nan was the only one unable to control himself, as his fist pounded into the wall.
Gu WenCheng sat on the sofa with a heavy, somber expression. Although there were many people coming and going, including the Dream Team, no one dared to approach him.
He didn’t vent his anger, nor did he speak, but the overwhelming aura he exuded felt like it could destroy everything. How could anyone dare?
The surging anger in his mental power made the air around him distorted, and those near him felt their breathing becoming difficult.
His fists clenched, and his fingertips turned pale from the pressure. Frenzy and murderous intent filled Gu WenCheng’s eyes, bloodshot and wild.
Everyone knew not to provoke him at this moment. People instinctively avoided danger, and Gu WenCheng’s appearance was simply terrifying.
His subordinates had never seen Walter like this. Among the few scattered individuals who had infiltrated Shexing to complete their mission, they had voluntarily followed Walter for many years. Over these years, through various crises and moments of anger, they had never seen Walter reach this level of intensity.
This both frightened and puzzled them. Whether as teammates or opponents, Walter’s level of attachment to Li ZouXing seemed to surpass even their own lives.
Ling Nian put down the neural interface helmet and shook his stiff, constantly operating hands in silence.
Gu WenCheng’s voice was hoarse as he asked, “Any progress?”
“Can’t find him,” Ling Nian admitted to his failure once again. He closed his eyes for a moment, trying to regain his composure. “The interference from the other side is too strong.”
It had only been two hours since Li ZouXing’s disappearance, but Gu WenCheng couldn’t wait any longer. He abruptly stood up and walked out of the room, not even bothering to put on a protective mask.
Ji Yu and Si Wo Lin were alarmed and hurriedly followed him. “Cheng! Where are you going?”
“To find him,” Gu WenCheng continued walking briskly, heading for the highest point nearby. “To use my mental power to find him.”
“Are you insane?!” Ling Nian, hearing this, moved decisively to block his path. “You want to use your mental power to find him? How far can your mental power reach? Even if it reaches far enough, what if your mental power encounters black holes, meteorites, magnetic fields, and countless other things in the universe? What’s your plan then?”
“What if you run into spaceships, armies, or even space pirates? How are you going to deal with that? Do you want to die?!”
Ling Nian’s tone grew increasingly intense, and he practically shouted his last sentence.
Mental power, a safe yet perilous vulnerability. Using mental power to search for someone was akin to a baby entering a snake’s den—there was only one way to end it, with death.
Who in the world would dare to do that? Who would dare?
Ji Yu was equally incensed, saying, “Gu WenCheng, are you trying to throw your life away?”
Who knew?
Gu WenCheng remained incredibly calm and said, “Step aside.”
He knew that once he unleashed his mental power, everyone here would know who he was. The Empire would know that Gu WenCheng was Walter, the Chengyang Military Academy would know, and his teammates would also discover his other identity.
Of course, Li ZouXing would find out too. His “Little Sun” would learn that the person who alternated between toying with him, Walter, and Gu WenCheng was, in fact, the same person. It would shake his feelings, shatter his trust, and perhaps even lead to disgust, as he might believe that Gu WenCheng was merely playing with him.
Gu WenCheng understood all the possible consequences, including the fact that his mental power could be devoured by dangers in the cosmos and that he might die.
But he remained incredibly calm.
His heart continued to beat steadily, not too fast and not too slow. His brain was clear, and he knew what he was about to do, but his rationality did not intervene.
In a state of complete composure, he understood that this was the calmest choice.
His “Little Sun” had disappeared.
Taken away.
Just the thought of Li ZouXing being tormented by someone made Gu WenCheng feel like his breath was about to stop.
“Step aside,” said Gu WenCheng. “You’ll only delay my time.”
But his teammates stood in front of him, unwavering, determined to stop him from taking what seemed like a suicidal path.
Walter’s subordinates wiped their brows, filled with anxiety.
Their hopes were pinned on their boss’s team, hoping they could thwart Gu WenCheng’s plan.
Even more so, they hoped Li ZouXing was safe. He must be okay, otherwise, it would be a catastrophe for everyone…
…
Li ZouXing attempted to activate the communicator for the umpteenth time.
The communicator was made by Ling Nian, using Shexing material, and theoretically, it should have had very strong penetration, and messages should not be blocked.
However, the fact was that the communicator showed no response whatsoever.
Blood splattered on his face, and his clothes and weapons were drenched in blood, a mix of his own and others. The entire ship had turned into a hellish scene, with blood on the carpets and walls. Every corner and hiding spot could potentially be an ambush point.
On his way here, Li ZouXing had already destroyed twenty-three information-jamming devices. However, the jamming intensity was still too strong. He took a moment to catch his breath, wiped the blood from his long knife, and used his weak mental power to shatter the lights in the next corridor, moving forward in the darkness.
His battle with Jin Di had devastated the entire life pod. He was injured, and the enemy wasn’t faring much better.
The ship’s current state of chaos was a result of Li ZouXing’s hypnotic abilities. He had hypnotized nearly a third of the people on the ship.
After his subordinates turned on each other, Captain Jin Di, who had been smiling all along, finally wore a cold expression. He hadn’t expected Li ZouXing to have this trick up his sleeve.
He underestimated Li ZouXing by not activating the mental interference device when he woke up. Li ZouXing was grateful for Jin Di’s mistake.
After Jin Di activated the mental interference device, Li ZouXing was pushed to the limit. Once he adapted to the interference’s intensity, he could only muster a tiny fragment of mental power to use.
Really, just a fragment, and it was challenging to even use it for attacks.
He had confidence in the strength of his mental power, and the growth he experienced from consuming energy crystals was a level of power no one could have expected.
Not as strong as Gu WenCheng, but definitely on par with the Empire’s renowned powerhouses.
If their goal was only to capture him, the mental interference device wouldn’t have this level of strength.
It had been premeditated.
But the target wasn’t him.
Li ZouXing’s heart sank to the bottom.
His breathing was barely audible, and his hearing and vision were pushed to their limits. In his hand, he held a gun he had taken from Jin Di’s underlings, moving slowly.
He was heading towards the area of the ship where small aircraft were often stored.
He wanted to contact his subordinates by using the ship’s communicators, not to ask for rescue but to report that he was safe.
No need to guess; Li ZouXing knew that Gu WenCheng would go mad.
Before he goes mad, please, Gu WenCheng, don’t make any irreversible moves.
He wasn’t in that much danger.
Li ZouXing licked the traces of blood from his lips and hid around a corner.
He saw the place where the small aircraft were stored and the people waiting for him, blocking his path.
Jin Di stood at the forefront, his body covered in blood because he personally led his subordinates in killing one-third of those hypnotized by Li ZouXing.
“Where are you hiding, young man?” Jin Di sneered, raising his voice. “Let’s have a chat about compensation.”
Blood soaked his shoes, and there were bloodstains on the floor.
Li ZouXing turned around and leaned against the wall.
So, the people on that Tiran ship were dealt with like this.
No wonder there was so much blood in every nook and cranny, more than they could clean up in days.
Who was behind Jin Di?
Why did those guys who stole Nan dress up so much like Walter?
What did they want to do with him?
Were they really after Walter?
Li ZouXing breathed slowly and softly, minimizing any noise.
He calmly summoned the mental power he had accumulated over the past ten minutes and quickly smashed the nearby light.
The people waiting in front of the small aircraft became disoriented, and Jin Di narrowed his eyes. “He’s here.”
Only one strike, it had to succeed, no room for failure.
Li ZouXing rushed into the darkness, his face devoid of expression.
Of course, it was a success.
…
Ling Nian and the others tried to stop him, but the weak could never stop the strong.
Their faces turned ashen, and they watched as Gu WenCheng began to release his mental power.
How could it possibly succeed?
Despair.
How could it succeed?
Gu WenCheng raised his hand, and his subordinates hiding in the shadows froze.
He had never been this calm before.
Gu WenCheng’s mental power unfolded layer by layer, and in his mind, all he could think of was Li ZouXing.
Even if his identity was exposed, as long as he didn’t die, he believed Li ZouXing wouldn’t abandon him.
Because he had already taken Li ZouXing, the two of them were now considered married.
If the other couldn’t accept it… his eyes turned deep, he didn’t know what he would do.
But before releasing more of his mental power, Ling Nian suddenly called out in surprise, “WenCheng! We’ve received a message from ZouXing!”
Gu WenCheng paused, his mental power suspended in the air.
Finally, the lightbrain displayed Li ZouXing’s location, and he had actively sent a communication. Ling Nian quickly accepted it, but there was no image of the other on the screen.
The screen turned blood-red, as if there was a layer of blood on the other’s communicator.
The members of the Dream Team felt a sinking feeling, and Gu WenCheng stared at the blood-red screen, gritting his teeth.
“Are you all the master’s teammates?” a clear, youthful voice came through, “The master is seriously injured and has been taken to the life pod for repair. Do you need to come over, or should I bring him back after he recovers?”
Si Wo Lin hesitated, “You mentioned the master, is it ZouXing?”
A hand wiped the blood on the communicator, and the screen finally showed an image. The young man on the other side had a beautiful face, and a reassuring smile graced his lips. “Hello, I’m Ye An.”
Ye An’s gaze swept over the group, finally resting on Gu WenCheng. The smile on his face became more genuine. “Long time no see, Mr. Cheng. I didn’t expect to meet you and my master again under these circumstances.”
“But it seems my master is in a bit of a sorry state,” the smile on his face faded slightly. “But don’t worry, I’ll personally take care of my master from now on.”
The implication in his words was clear – blaming Gu WenCheng for only ensuring his own safety.
Gu WenCheng remained expressionless, but in the part of the screen that couldn’t be seen, he clenched his fist.
Author’s note:
Xingxing is really badly injured… I don’t want to write it.
Gu WenCheng: It’s okay, we’re already considered married. You can’t compare.
Li ZouXing: ???
