“…”
Faeus didn’t know how Xu Cenfeng had the nerve to ask such a question. He suddenly realized that Xu Cenfeng’s ability to disguise himself was top-notch. On the outside, he seemed like a pushover that anyone could trample on, but once you cut him open, you’d find a cunning core.
Faeus silently ground his teeth, cursing himself for being deceived. “Why didn’t you say so earlier?”
Xu Cenfeng pondered for a moment. “Are you sure that if you had known the truth back then, you wouldn’t have thrown me in prison?”
Faeus raised an eyebrow coldly. “I can still put you back in there right now.”
They had just flown a short distance from Blackstone Prison, so it was still possible to turn back.
Xu Cenfeng smiled. “Would you be willing to do that?”
Faeus was momentarily at a loss for words. He thought, “Why wouldn’t I be willing?” but under Xu Cenfeng’s curious gaze, he found himself unable to say it. Finally, he turned his head away, furrowed his brows, and muttered, “I wouldn’t!”
He spoke with righteous indignation, tinged with a bit of embarrassed anger.
Xu Cenfeng had anticipated this response. He gently took Faeus’ hand, brought it to his lips, and gave it a light kiss. Faeus felt a damp, ticklish sensation on the back of his hand and instinctively looked at Xu Cenfeng. He saw Xu Cenfeng’s serious expression as he said, “I’ve already turned over a new leaf.”
Faeus stared at him. “Do I look ‘good’ to you?”
Xu Cenfeng thought for a moment. Indeed, Faeus was even more ruthless than the interstellar pirates. So, he corrected his previous wording with a smile, “Turned good to evil.”
Faeus lightly traced Xu Cenfeng’s chin with his fingertips, his voice low. “Actually…”
Xu Cenfeng responded, “Hmm?”
Even if Xu Cenfeng had revealed his identity as an interstellar pirate back then, Faeus still wouldn’t have had the heart to throw him in prison.
The first time Faeus saw Xu Cenfeng, he felt an immediate affinity towards him. Although it wasn’t quite love at first sight, it was close enough. If Faeus were to imprison him, it would be in his own home, not in some wretched place like a prison.
However, such sentimental words were out of character for Faeus, so he said nothing in response. Nonchalantly, he withdrew his hand as if nothing had happened. “It’s nothing.”
Outside the porthole, the endless night stretched out before them. As they distanced themselves, Blackstone Prison grew smaller and smaller, becoming a tiny black dot. Only towering peaks, resembling dormant beasts in the cold snow, stood in continuous succession, their gaping, hollow mouths seemingly ready to devour the heavens.
The aircraft was nearing the edge of Blackstone Prison’s jurisdiction, and the entire team was extremely cautious. The pilot had turned off all lights to avoid detection by nearby military bases.
Xu Cenfeng sensed the tension in the air and glanced out the porthole. As expected, not far away was a military base, its tall towers equipped with 360-degree searchlights monitoring every angle. The skies were dotted with simulated bird-like detectors, transmitting gathered information back to headquarters every half hour. Every movement within hundreds of kilometers was meticulously monitored under strict surveillance.
Nearby, a group of simulated detection birds fluttered with their black wings, indistinguishable from ordinary birds in appearance but with red-glowing eyes. They emitted ultrasonic interference waves from their throats, inaudible to human ears, to prevent being mistaken for prey by larger birds.
Upon seeing this, Faeus maneuvered the starship to deploy an electrical net, swiftly capturing all these detection birds. Xu Cenfeng only heard a muffled noise from the aft compartment, followed by the mechanical sounds of a device in operation. The captured detection birds were then completely pulverized and destroyed.
Faeus lazily explained, “These detection birds are first-generation products. They primarily use ultrasonic waves to deter predators, essentially just a bunch of rigid machines without any evasion protocols.”
Xu Cenfeng noticed a red alert circle appearing on the mountain range map on the screen, indicating they had entered the surveillance range of the military base. Puzzled, he asked, “Is catching these birds enough to evade surveillance?”
Faeus fell into a subtle silence for a moment. “…Of course not possible. At most, it delays the time until we’re detected.”
The military base was the last line of defense in the entire northern region. If just anyone could slip away unnoticed from under their noses, the northern defense would essentially collapse. So…
Faeus smirked slightly. “We’ll be detected in no more than three minutes.”
True to his words, the army trained by Faeus proved highly sensitive. As soon as he finished speaking, a sudden, intense explosion echoed from outside. Shortly after, the intercom crackled with noisy electrical sounds. “Crackle… Report to the leader! The military base has detected our presence. Currently, thirteen TP-300 starships are pursuing us from behind. They initiated an attack without any communication. Please advise. Over!”
Without any aerial negotiations, they had launched an attack directly, which undoubtedly meant it was Yenia’s informants.
Faeus picked up the intercom and issued his orders: “Increase speed and evacuate the base surveillance area. The TP-300 starships will need to return for refueling within an hour at most. Try to wear them down without engaging in prolonged combat. Preserve our strength. Over!”
His orders resonated clearly in every soldier’s ears. Instantly, all starships accelerated and changed course, heading in different directions. However, the energy projectiles seemed to have a mind of their own, relentlessly chasing after them, impossible to shake off.
A voice of cursing from Hawke echoed through the intercom, “Damn it! Leader, they’re using new tracking rounds. Unless they hit their locked target, there’s no way to shake them off!”
Faeus’ eyes flashed with a hint of darkness. “Isn’t the tracking round still in the experimental phase? How did it end up mysteriously deployed in the military?”
Xu Cenfeng unexpectedly replied, “It’s Yenia. He’s been eager to arm his private soldiers for a while now. Those weapons are all privately equipped by him.”
Faeus glanced at him instinctively upon hearing this, only to find Xu Cenfeng already seated in the copilot’s seat, securely fastened with all safety belts. Xu Cenfeng continued calmly, “However, these tracking projectiles still have significant flaws that haven’t been addressed. He’s too impatient.”
For ease of operation, both sides of the starship had control sticks. Faeus watched as Xu Cenfeng flipped through the pilot’s manual and awkwardly manipulated the controls on the screen. Suddenly, a sense of unease crept over him. “What are you planning?”
Xu Cenfeng replied with just three words: “Hold on tight.”
Faeus: “???”
Faeus hadn’t even processed Xu Cenfeng’s words when suddenly Xu Cenfeng maneuvered the starship into a steep dive, then swiftly changed direction towards the looming Blackstone Mountain below. Three relentless tracking projectiles followed closely behind.
“F**k!”
Faeus hadn’t secured himself properly earlier, and the steep dive left him feeling dizzy and disoriented. He quickly grabbed the safety harness to steady himself, managing to spit out a sentence through difficulty, “Damn it! Xu Cenfeng, who gave you permission to mess with the controls!”
Xu Cenfeng replied calmly, “I wasn’t messing around.”
Faeus snapped, “Go sit in the back!”
Xu Cenfeng hesitated for a moment before saying, “…Give me half an hour to play.”
The tracking projectiles were a new type of weapon developed over a long period in the northern region, promising immense battlefield advantages once successfully deployed. In a past life, it had dominated headlines on the StarNet for half a month, and even Xu Cenfeng had seen numerous reports about it.
However, this technology was still immature, plagued by a critical flaw. Although it had been reported on StarNet in the previous life, Xu Cenfeng still needed to verify it himself.
Xu Cenfeng had a past as an interstellar pirate. When he realized that the control system of the military starship was similar to the one he used before, he simply discarded the instruction manual. He maneuvered the starship near the mountains, circling around repeatedly until one TP-300 starship approached them. Only then did Xu Cenfeng take action, but it wasn’t to flee as one might expect. Instead, he steered the starship directly towards the enemy, accelerating to maximum speed.
Faeus’ pupils contracted when he saw this: “Are you crazy? Get out of here!”
With a curse, he swiftly tore off his safety harness, ready at any moment to spread his wings and take Xu Cenfeng with him to escape, lest the starships collide and they all end up dead.
However, Xu Cenfeng’s piloting skills were far stronger than Faeus had imagined. Just as they were only a ship’s length away from the enemy starship, Xu Cenfeng suddenly made a rapid dive downwards. The three projectiles behind them instantly lost track of their target. Due to the narrow distance, they couldn’t avoid collision and directly hit the TP-300 starship.
“Bang!”
“Bang!”
“Bang!”
With three intense explosions echoing, the starship erupted into a dazzling flame in the night sky, followed by a plume of black smoke from its rear, resembling a kite with a broken string crashing down from the heavens.
Meanwhile, Xu Cenfeng had already piloted the starship to a safe distance. Seeing Faeus looking at him with a mixture of surprise and uncertainty, Xu Cenfeng took the initiative to explain, “The tracking missile technology isn’t quite mature yet. If the distance to the mainframe is too close, it can be affected by signal interference, making it unable to track targets accurately. Evading those missiles is simple; just fly back.”
Faeus struggled for a moment before finally uttering, “How did you know?!”
Damn it, he didn’t even know himself!
Xu Cenfeng reluctantly revealed his dark past, “I knew from my time as an interstellar pirate. The Western Alliance was also developing these tracking missiles… to target us.”
Faeus: “…”
He couldn’t shake the feeling that Xu Cenfeng, this cunning zerg, was hiding many more things from him. However, the timing wasn’t right to dig deeper. Swallowing the words that almost escaped his lips, he instead picked up the intercom and ordered Hawke and the others to proceed as planned, to shake off the pursuers in the shortest possible time.
With that, the aerial situation saw a sudden and dramatic reversal. Hawke and the others swiftly turned towards the enemy fleet, accelerating to maximum speed without giving them any chance to evade. Explosions rang out continuously in the air, causing nearly half of the enemy’s thirteen starships to crash. The surviving few immediately turned tail and flew back to their base upon realizing the unfavorable situation.
Faeus commanded through the intercom once more, his voice low and commanding, “Cease all pursuit. Increase speed and depart from the Blackstone Mountains towards the direction of the Lagona Deep Sea.”
Once they reached the airspace above the Lagona Deep Sea, it would be within the jurisdiction of the navy, and the garrison base would have no authority to interfere.
After Faeus finished speaking into the intercom, he set it down and turned around, only to see Xu Cenfeng still seated in the co-pilot’s seat. Irritated, Faeus snapped, “Go sit in the back!”
Xu Cenfeng didn’t move. “But I want to sit with you.”
Faeus: “…”
Faeus grabbed Xu Cenfeng by the collar and dragged the stubborn zerg to the back seats, gritting his teeth silently. “You stay here and don’t move!”
Xu Cenfeng realized he had startled Faeus earlier and didn’t argue. He simply nodded, “Alright, I won’t go anywhere.”
Faeus released Xu Cenfeng at his words, but instead of returning to the cockpit, he squeezed into the back seat alongside him. He picked up the nearby light brain device, skillfully logged into the military network account, and established contact with General Wesley. Due to concerns about surveillance, they could only exchange information using encrypted files.
[Currently left Blackstone Mountains. Expected to arrive over Lagona Sea area in three hours. Ready for action at any time.]
Faeus typed out a line, then clicked send.
[Ding ding!]
General Wesley sat in the military office, having not slept all night. When he heard the sound of the terminal brain, he immediately opened the encrypted document. After reading its contents, he swiftly deleted the record, then got up and left the office.
His aide had been waiting outside the door and hurried to greet him as he emerged, “General?”
General Wesley walked swiftly downstairs, his voice grave as he commanded, “Go, relay orders to the Maritime and Aerial Surveillance Department. In three hours, a fleet is expected to arrive over the Lagona Sea area. Instruct them not to intercept, but to allow passage.”
Ever since seizing power, Yenia had been determined to replace all of Hossburgh’s guards with his own subordinates. However, General Wesley had stubbornly held his ground, only allowing half of the guards to be replaced. Fortunately, Faeus returned today; if he had delayed a few more days, Yenia would have surely sensed something amiss.
General Wesley walked up to the second-floor detention area, where the corridor was filled with soldiers armed with live ammunition. One of the officers saluted and reported, “General, we have apprehended all of Yenia’s close associates.”
Wesley glanced towards the detention room upon hearing this. Inside, a group of disheveled soldiers were restrained with electronic shackles, clearly caught in their sleep. Their mouths were gagged, preventing them from speaking, but their eyes all shared a look of profound fear and unease.
General Wesley said, “Inform the rest of the rebel forces that their leaders have all been apprehended. If they surrender now, they may still have a chance. Those who refuse to surrender will be executed on the spot.”
The detainees in the detention center were all key members. Once their leaders were taken out, the remaining soldiers were like scattered sand, no longer a formidable threat.
The officer hesitated briefly before asking, “General, when do we strike at the city gate? Just now we received word that there’s been an unidentified attack at the garrison base. It’s likely to reach Yenia’s ears soon.”
General Wesley glanced at the time and replied decisively, “Take immediate action. Leave a team here to guard the rebels, and the rest of you, come with me to the city gate!”
Yenia isn’t foolish; upon receiving the news, he would definitely rush to the city gate and tighten security at all entrances and exits. Fortunately, General Wesley had foresight initially and didn’t make any changes to key positions, ensuring that all remaining personnel were his trusted allies.
Tonight, Hossburgh was destined to be sleepless. The nobles, who had been peacefully sleeping in their luxurious beds, were suddenly awakened by a burst of intense gunfire. They hastily threw on clothes, sending servants to gather information while muttering curses under their breath:
“These damned ruffians! Just when we had some peace, they stir up trouble again. Tomorrow, I’m going straight to the military headquarters to complain!”
“Whoever that blind fool is disrupting my sleep! I’ll make sure to tear his ears off!”
“When Yenia seized power, there was already a commotion. Please don’t tell me another deputy leader is trying to usurp the throne!”
To some extent, that statement wasn’t entirely incorrect.
As servants of various noble houses nervously ventured outside to gather information, they were shocked by what they witnessed on the streets. They scrambled back in a panic to deliver the news, tongues tied with fear:
“N-No… It’s bad! There’s fighting outside! General Wesley and Leader Yenia are engaged in battle! All entrances to Hossburgh are blocked!!”
“There are additional warships outside Hossburgh!! Leader Faeus isn’t dead!! He and Deputy Leader Hawke have returned with their team!!”
The same news, heard by different ears, carried vastly different meanings. The nobles who were secretly allied with Yenia were shocked to hear this revelation. Their eyes widened in disbelief, almost fainting at the news. They grabbed their servants by the collar, shaken and incredulous:
“Faeus has returned?! How is that possible?! Isn’t he supposed to be dead?!!”
Meanwhile, the generals who had been suspended and idling at home under Yenia’s orders heard the news with excitement and joy:
“What?! The Supreme Leader is finally back?! Quick, prepare the aircraft! I’m heading to the military headquarters!”
Chaos reigned outside the city walls and within, with the military headquarters in turmoil. The nobles were in disarray as well, creating a scene of utter chaos and confusion.
As Faeus and Xu Cenfeng led their team to Hossburgh, they arrived to witness a scene of intense violence below. Gunfire echoed incessantly amid rivers of blood, with soldiers engaged in fierce combat, some partially transformed into zerg-like states. The pristine snow was now stained crimson.
“You stay up here and behave yourself. Don’t wander off,” Faeus instructed Xu Cenfeng firmly.
Faeus caught the long-missed scent of blood in the air, and a dark gleam flickered in his deep green eyes. He swiftly opened the hatch, shedding his military coat in a few swift motions and letting it fall to the ground. The biting cold wind and snow rushed in, tousling his red hair.
Xu Cenfeng squinted against the wind and snow, instinctively asking, “Do you want to go down there?”
Faeus raised an eyebrow at Xu Cenfeng’s response. “Oh? You want to go too?”
Xu Cenfeng dared to kill?
Xu Cenfeng smiled and shook his head. “I want to go, but I can’t fly.”
He must be hinting at something.
Faeus stood with his back to the hatch, his coat tails fluttering in the wind. Hearing this, he gestured to Xu Cenfeng with a beckoning finger, signaling him to come over. His voice was low as he said, “Come here, hold on to me.”
Xu Cenfeng complied, embracing Faeus tightly, his movements practiced.
Faeus lowered his head and took a sniff of the faint pheromonal scent from Xu Cenfeng, murmuring to himself, “This time, we go together. I’m not leaving you behind.”
As the final syllable fell, a pair of jet-black wings suddenly unfolded behind Faeus, exuding a fierceness and ferocity akin to that of an eagle or a falcon. He held Xu Cenfeng tightly and leaped from the starship, soaring through the biting wind and snow. The frigid wind cut like knives against their ears, cold and painful.
But because he held the other tightly in his arms, that warmth could dispel all pain.
Xu Cenfeng felt a moment of daze.
He remembered the first time he met Faeus in his life, and he was accidentally pushed down the cliff by the interstellar pirate, and he plummeted from the sky, his green eyes cold and overbearing, as if he would crush the entire world under his feet.
The Northern Zerg Tribe were never bound by constraints, their ambitions and desires openly displayed, and their wickedness delighted him.
Xu Cenfeng truly cherished that encounter.
More than any encounter in his previous life.
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![The Rebirth of the Last Days and Return to [Fang] Hao](https://www.freenovels.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/image_2021-09-11_143139.png "The Rebirth of the Last Days and Return to [Fang] Hao")
