LWGP - Chapter 238
Chapter 238: Sowing Discord
Wang Jiu had predicted it before. The greatest threat to her in this Fourth Spacetime wasn't mecha, but the pinnacle of their technology: starships. This was the source of this spacetime's advantage over the others.
Even Wang Jiu would have to evade the cannon fire from a top-tier starship. After all, that stuff could harm the Eternal Night Race, and certainly not just those at the Mecha Warrior level.
So, the mecha Wang Jiu wore couldn't withstand it. If she were hit, she would be...
Boom!
On the vast plain, the image locked onto by the starship that had just broken through the atmosphere was magnified infinitely. At a glance... the figure that should have been engulfed by the cannon's light along with the countless elementals on the plain flashed into mid-air, protected by a barrier.
Wang Jiu made out the insignia on the starship.
A cluster of black flames.
It belonged to the Heiyan Empire.
Coincidentally, Wang Jiu also saw A Ran, who had escaped from underground at the other end of the plain.
From high above, A Ran glanced at her. "Why are you looking at me like that?"
Wang Jiu: "Your speed at turning on people is faster than this starship's light cannon."
A Ran: "You think I'm controlling it?"
Wang Jiu: "I don't care if you're controlling it or not, because everyone's the same."
What was the same?
The elementals had surrounded them, and the starship had also become a target for the elementals' attacks.
The most interesting part was—starships from other empires had also arrived.
When the Xingyao and Taihuang starships entered the atmosphere, the two empires instantly locked onto the Heiyan Empire's starship.
Inside the Xingyao starship, the display was split into two views—one showing the movements of the other empires' starships, the other showing the plain.
Wang Jiu and A Ran were wreaking havoc among the surrounding elementals.
"So powerful, but so ugly," the Young Prince couldn't help but mutter. His first glance had fallen on the ugly swordsman, his second on the unrealistically beautiful woman on the other side.
The contrast was rather tragic.
Normally, for an outing with such an uncertain situation, the imperial prince should not have come along, lest he be in danger. But the Young Prince had just pestered the Emperor with his request, and the Emperor had agreed.
Saling, General Feng Liao, the empire's First Duke Mi Sa who was also on this mission, and his daughter Suo Nu were all present.
They all turned to look at the Young Prince.
Mi Sa said hoarsely, "Lord Saling, didn't you tell His Majesty that the Young Prince's status is precious and it is not suitable for him to come?"
Saling: "I am merely a medical officer. I cannot manage such matters."
Her attitude was cold, and in the eyes of many high officials in the empire, this woman was the female closest to the Emperor.
Even if there was no romantic involvement, they shared the bond of being schoolmates and comrades in the military.
Therefore, many high officials who wished to use marriage to bind themselves to the royal family did not have a very favorable impression of Saling.
However, Mi Sa was also known in the empire for his iron-faced demeanor, never showing his emotions. He said nothing upon hearing her words. It was Feng Liao, worried that Saling might offend the powerful duke, who took the initiative to explain, "Duke Mi Sa may not know, but several of us did try to persuade His Majesty. But His Majesty said that if he came and still couldn't protect the Young Prince, it would mean something had happened to him as well. And if something happened to him, the Young Prince wouldn't survive for more than three hours in the capital either. So it was better to bring him along."
The high officials: "..."
That was indeed the truth.
The Young Prince: "???"
I'm right here!!! What's with that look of agreement on all your faces?
But where is my emperor father? He said he was coming, so where is he?
The group had only interjected with this brief comment; their main focus was still on the situation on the plain, because the remaining elementals below were flying up, especially the wind elementals.
"Prepare."
On this starship were Feng Liao and two other high-ranking generals, both of whom were stronger than him, with average attributes around five hundred thousand. Adding Duke Mi Sa, with average attributes over eight hundred thousand, and Suo Nu, the inheritor of the ruins, who also had average attributes over five hundred thousand but was far stronger in combat than Prince Xingyun, the high-level combat power on this starship was formidable. The group summoned their mecha and flew out of the starship, leading their personal guard teams to cut through the storm formed by the converging wind elementals below. Then, the starship bombarded the area below with its light cannons.
The other two empires employed similar tactics.
With the situation on Desolate Ridge Star unclear, none of the three empires would be foolish enough to attack the others first. Otherwise, if some unforeseen event occurred in the environment, relying solely on their own side would be dangerous.
In a sense, humanity was one body.
But vigilance was a given, so the people remaining on the starships were the think tanks, including high-level imperial officials with sharp minds like Saling.
As the experts from above descended, they broke through the encirclement of elementals. Wang Jiu, who was fighting high in the sky below, had no desire to get too close to A Ran and these high-level officials. She used the slaughter to keep her distance, repairing her injuries while observing the current situation.
To be honest, the three empires had arrived faster than she had expected.
She was also pondering the things that had felt off before. There were actually three things she found strange.
1. Wang Jiu had ventured deep into the Bloodthirsty Beast's abdomen and could feel that the thing in its stomach had exceeded a certain limit. At that time, she had a feeling: that thing was somewhat similar to the residual aura of the Black Witch Spirit King, like a source, but its attributes were more violent and tyrannical. Unlike the Black Witch's hidden coldness, it was intense, domineering, and could forcibly control energy. Of course, she had a hunch that it was countless times stronger than the Black Witch Spirit King, not on the same level at all.
Such a treasure must have been swallowed by this Bloodthirsty Beast by chance when it was weak. But for some reason, the beast could actually contain it and coexist with it. Generally, such treasures are destructive; how could it submit to a mere Bloodthirsty Beast? This could only mean that this Bloodthirsty Beast was very special.
2. The device controlling the Bloodthirsty Beast BOSS could not be dismantled or destroyed. The moment it was dismantled, the beast would be freed. This was why she and A Ran hadn't touched the device. While it was contained, they could still whittle down its health bar. Once it was free, they truly couldn't take it down and would be crushed by it. Based on previous analysis, it must have been controlled this way since it was young. The person controlling it must have also experienced its strange abilities and known about the mysterious treasure hidden within its body. Because they couldn't control the treasure, they controlled the beast on Desolate Ridge Star. They would surely be monitoring it constantly, so how could they not know about such a huge commotion on the planet? Therefore, they would definitely take action.
3. The elementals were rioting so violently, but based on the total number of elementals in the eastern part of Desolate Ridge Star, the number here was about half. Where did the other half go? Could that half have avoided the Bloodthirsty Beast's energy attraction?
Three questions. Wang Jiu hadn't had the leisure to think about them while fleeing earlier. Now that there were more people dealing with the elementals, she took the time to ponder. She had no answer for the third point, but she already had conclusions for the first two.
1. Its purpose might be the same as the Black Witch Spirit King's when it inhabited her body back then. It... had taken a fancy to the Bloodthirsty Beast's body.
2. The person behind the scenes naturally knew and would definitely make a move. Moreover, they must be one of the three empires, because no other faction had such capabilities.
If she extended these two conclusions, Wang Jiu could suspect that the Bloodthirsty Beast's biological genes weren't particularly high-end. How could it catch the eye of a treasure with a higher pedigree than the Black Witch Spirit King? What was so special about it?
—A Ran had said that this Bloodthirsty Beast's biological talent lay in its soul; it could devour and digest the souls of its prey.
Is there any soul in this world more unique than our Old Lady's?
It devoured the Old Lady's soul.
Thinking of this, Wang Jiu, with her unparalleled bias filter, suddenly smiled. She glanced at the ground below, her eyes devoid of emotion. Then, with a slash of her blade, she decapitated several elementals. As she dodged the retaliatory elemental tide from the elemental swarm, she glanced up at the three massive imperial starships in the sky.
The current situation was very disadvantageous for her. The three empires had arrived, the elementals were rioting, and she didn't know where the three emperors themselves were. In terms of strength, she did not have the upper hand.
To achieve her goal, she had to stir up the situation—make them fight each other, create internal friction!
So, Wang Jiu directly sent a private message to Saling. "Is the Young Prince's dad here?"
Saling was startled. Her first reaction was: "You're here?"
Her gaze swept downwards, but there were many people below. Many core members of the three imperial armies were present, and the elementals were densely packed. It was impossible to spot Wang Jiu at a glance.
Wang Jiu: "I am. Look at these."
She sent all the footage she had recorded from underground—the Bloodthirsty Beast, the device, etc.—to Saling in one go, including A Ran's presence.
"You can figure out what this means for yourself. But I think if the Young Prince's dad isn't here, given the scale of this scheme, you people won't be able to protect him. Nine times out of ten, you'll all be buried with him."
The conclusions Wang Jiu had just figured out, a high-level imperial official with a highly developed brain like Saling got it in minutes, even faster than Wang Jiu, because she was inherently accustomed to viewing things from the perspective of imperial conspiracies.
Saling kept her voice steady. With the Imperial Marshal present, she didn't focus on the slaughter below but divided her attention to observe the images while conversing with Wang Jiu. "They can't get the treasure, but they're raising it inside the Bloodthirsty Beast. Perhaps this huge elemental disturbance, attracting the attention of the three empires, was also the goal of the person behind it, all to lure us here and wipe us out in one fell swoop—do you think it's Taihuang or Heiyan?"
Wang Jiu: "What do you think of this woman's looks?"
Saling: "The Heiyan Empress, Mo Ran?"
Wang Jiu: "That I don't know. But I heard that in your Fourth Spacetime, the only one whose beauty surpasses Suo Nu is Mo Ran. If a powerful woman uses another persona, she wouldn't deliberately make it more beautiful than her real self. Guessing based on looks is somewhat reliable."
Your logic sounds quite reasonable.
Saling: "So you suspect the mastermind is Heiyan?"
Wang Jiu: "No particular leaning. Anyway, when I came to Desolate Ridge Star, the Taihuang's Star Navigation Bureau starship arrived before you guys, but I took care of it."
Saling: "So you killed Prince Xingyun."
Because the Star Navigation Bureau's starship was destroyed by other sacrificial starships, and with Wang Jiu's status, she couldn't have obtained a starship of that caliber unless—she killed someone and took their goods.
The great medical officer's mind is indeed sharp.
Wang Jiu smiled and asked in return, "So, why don't you suspect that this is all my conspiracy?"
Saling was startled. A vague guess that had flashed through her mind surfaced.
She didn't let her personal feelings prevent her from considering Wang Jiu's suspiciousness. After all, if it was about severely damaging the combat power of the three empires of the Fourth Spacetime, it would be profitable for an outsider like Wang Jiu.
"I hope it's not you." Saling rarely took an emotional route. With just that simple sentence, she cut off the private chat and then contacted the Emperor, reporting everything, including her conversation with Wang Jiu.
When it came to imperial matters, there was no room for personal feelings. She had never wavered on this point.
Emperor Xing Yao's response came quickly. "Understood. It's not her."
The Emperor's judgment had always been precise, and Saling trusted him. Although she was relieved, she was also suspicious—why was the Emperor so certain? Could it be that he already knew some of the inside story?
"Does Your Majesty have any suspicions? We need to anticipate and prepare for it on our end, and we might even have to strike first."
Xing Yao replied with two words. Saling narrowed her eyes.
So it was him!
When the Xingyao and Taihuang starships suddenly locked onto and bombarded Heiyan, the people of Heiyan were furious, and their starship attacked Xingyao and Taihuang in return.
Xingyao suspects Heiyan is the mastermind?
Wang Jiu was stunned for a moment, a flash of confusion, but then her eyes glinted.
She understood. So that's how it was.
In that case, she would add some fuel to the fire.
Xingyao has been good to me. I must help them!
In an instant, Wang Jiu flew towards A Ran, blocking a few stray attacks for her. "Your Majesty, I will protect you. Please leave quickly."
The voice wasn't loud, but the audio was perfectly captured by the systems of the three empires' starships and various mecha.
Everyone looked at A Ran in unison.
A Ran: "..."
That "Your Majesty" was truly inspired. I thank you for it.
"It's Empress Mo Ran!"
"Is it the Empress's avatar?"
"It's definitely not her main body. Attack her!!"
"This is a golden opportunity! Quick, lock onto her!"
The armies of Taihuang and Xingyao were excited, and a dense cluster of attacks locked onto A Ran.
The Heiyan side: The Empress? The Empress's avatar?
The Empress never mentioned it. No, wait, Her Majesty is cold and noble. When would she ever explain her affairs to them?
She must have come to Desolate Ridge Star in advance to investigate.
And now she's been exposed!
"Protect Her Majesty!"
"Quick!"
The original chaotic battle instantly turned into a "protect the monarch" operation. Even the elementals, seeing these living beings become so agitated, crazily swarmed over...
The three great starships thus began bombarding each other.
System: "When you get all green-tea-bitchy, even black coffee isn't as strong or as intoxicating as you."
Compared to the System, which seized every opportunity to complain and attract Wang Jiu's attention, Wang Jiu completely ignored it when she was busy. However, amidst such dense attacks, just as A Ran raised her hand, almost locking onto Wang Jiu, Wang Jiu suddenly grabbed her wrist and pulled her to dodge a wave of attacks.
A Ran's expression became even more subtle.
However, such evasion was not enough. There were too many experts, too many attacks. It looked as if the two were about to be swallowed by the light of the attacks.
Om, a brilliant light descended from the heavens.
A terrifying instantaneous teleportation. Two phantoms appeared directly.
Although it was an empire, which sounded very feudal, the emperor didn't necessarily like to wear imperial robes. Anyway, Xing Yao liked to wear black clothes—simple, clear, steady, and domineering, enough to suppress the gloominess of black.
But Mo Ran loved to wear red. Not a bright, fiery red, but a rich, deep ochre red, the color of blood after it has settled and coagulated.
Even so, it couldn't suppress her own beauty, which was like a flame that drew moths.
High above, they looked down upon one end of the universe.
The recent attacks had been dispelled by the Emperor's move. The people of Xingyao and Heiyan had retreated. Seeing this, the people of Taihuang also became cautious, while contacting their own Taihuang Emperor.
Could it be that their Emperor isn't here?
This was not good for them. Even if they allied with Xingyao now, they were still a bit uneasy.
Just as the people of Taihuang were feeling suspicious.
On the other side of the sky, the Taihuang Emperor, Lue Jue, also teleported over. He was a tall, somewhat fierce and heroic man, slightly rugged. He chuckled at the sight.
"Mo Ran, I never thought you'd be one to send an avatar to investigate."
"Yo, and you're even letting someone hold your hand? Didn't you used to refuse to let even a speck of dust get near you?"
Sometimes, people who seem like boors are the most venomous when they gossip.
And the Heiyan Empress, hailed as the number one untouchable, ascetic standard-bearer of the Fourth Spacetime, was indeed a valuable source of gossip.
Even in such a serious situation, it attracted the attention of many. Oh, this was much more sensational than the Xingyao Emperor who was uninterested in women.
Under everyone's watchful eyes, Wang Jiu was assessing whether these three emperors were their main bodies, while Mo Ran's gaze swept over Wang Jiu. For a moment, it gave her the feeling of... being seen through by an emperor again, but it felt slightly different from the time with Xing Yao.
As a thought flashed through Wang Jiu's mind, Mo Ran spoke, her voice as cold as an ice blade. "That is not my avatar."
Wang Jiu was stunned. Someone so ascetic can also lie?
Lying is impossible.
Then there was only one possibility.
Wang Jiu turned to look at A Ran. "A, you are..."
A Ran returned her gaze, faint, cold, and strangely familiar.
The next second, A Ran's body transformed, changing into another person—Xing Yao.
Wang Jiu: "..."
They say it's easy to suffer from a lack of education when you're out and about. She was suffering from a lack of strength, unable to use insight.
Everyone was shocked. The people of Xingyao hadn't expected this twist either.
The Young Prince: "Is that my imperial father? No, wait, is that my imperial father's avatar?"
No one answered him, because there was no other possibility.
The other two emperors were present.
System: "??? Hahahaha!! Holy shit!"
For the first time ever, Lao Wang was also fooled by someone.
Remembering how she had relentlessly complained about Xingyao in front of "Mo Ran's avatar," and badmouthed Xing Yao to "her" face.
Jie jie jie.
Wang Jiu withdrew her gaze, released her hand, and rubbed her fingers, calmly saying, "Your Majesty's acting is so good. Why did you have to deceive a weak woman like me, stranded in a foreign land with no one to turn to?"
A cross-dressing big shot. Even with her years of acting, she never expected a domineering CEO-style emperor to pull something like this on her.
Xing Yao's avatar rotated his wrist and said flatly, "You are not weak. Stranded in a foreign land is true, but having no one to turn to is not necessarily so. I've said it before, I'm in need of a daughter-in-law. The offer is always valid."
The Young Prince: "???"
With a great enemy at hand, my father has pre-booked a wife for me!
And a disfigured one at that!
The Young Prince, not recognizing Wang Jiu, turned pale. His legs went weak, and he couldn't help but lean on the control console, his voice as faint as a thread. "No, no, I already have someone I like... Her name is Ma Lisu."
No one paid him any attention.
High above the battlefield, Suo Nu glanced at the commotion over there, lost in thought: Why would His Majesty be making small talk with someone at a time like this? This person's identity is suspected to be the mysterious "Ma Lisu," but I feel like something is strange among the three emperors.
"But compared to being my daughter-in-law, you seem to prefer the Empress of Heiyan. Flies don't buzz around an egg with no cracks."
A perfectly good emperor, but his mouth was truly vicious when he insulted people.
Who was the fly and who was the egg?
Who was he insulting?
Ignoring this kind of slander, Mo Ran coldly asked Wang Jiu, "Are you that Ma Lisu?"
Xing Yao: "She'd probably rather tell you her name is Qiao Biluo."
When he created a persona back then, he initially had no intention of cueing Mo Ran. Who knew this Ma Lisu would lock onto Mo Ran in minutes.
What you think about by day, you dream about by night. Of course, he had to satisfy her.
After all, she was the daughter-in-law he had his eye on.
Mo Ran: "Nonsense. Why bother with such meaningless things? You two arrived on Desolate Ridge Star early, you must have found something. You're deliberately stalling for time, aren't you? Xing Yao, you've never been one for idle talk."
Lue Jue: "Right, Xing Yao. This isn't like you."
Xing Yao: "I'm wondering who is the one stalling for time."
In that instant, the atmosphere among the three emperors seemed to freeze.
It seemed that the one who started the nonsense wasn't Xing Yao, and it certainly couldn't have been the famously taciturn Mo Ran.
Since they were emperors, if they had a grand vision, they must have a grand strategy. They wouldn't tell their subordinates their plans.
Even though Saling had received Xing Yao's reply earlier, she hadn't anticipated the current situation, nor did she understand why the three emperors would descend simultaneously, or the mystery of Xing Yao and Mo Ran's avatars. But in that brief moment, she caught Wang Jiu lowering her head and smiling faintly.
Her body was still recovering, and the slight curve of her smile was a bit subtle.
But it was terrifying.
And what was even more terrifying was—BOOM!!
A war of an even more terrifying level suddenly erupted outside the atmosphere.
The commotion was so loud that everyone's mecha captured the sound. Their eardrums vibrated, and they were all horrified.
Its attack coefficient was directly transmitted to the exploration instruments on the starships. The damage index, even through an atmosphere and a nebula of fragments, at such a distance, still had such a high index. Converted, it meant its attack coefficient was—over one million average attributes!
Could it be!!?
Mi Sa's gaze was sharp. He exchanged a look with Suo Nu, and they both looked at the three emperor "main bodies" present, then at the sky.
The main bodies here were not the main bodies. They were still just avatars!
The real main bodies of the emperors were not here at all.
None of the three were here. They were... outside the planetary ring of Desolate Ridge Star.
Outside the planetary ring of Desolate Ridge Star, the three emperors' main bodies stood in a triangular formation. A wave of attacks had just shaken the universe and the planetary fragments, but without contact, it wouldn't trigger an explosion.
Lue Jue stared at the two in front of him and said grimly, "What are you two doing? Ambushing me? Xing Yao, I thought we were allies. I didn't expect you to be turned by Mo Ran."
The current Xing Yao was much more in line with his reputation than his previous avatar. When not acting, he was cold and ruthless, with only a deadpan, emotionless face. He replied, "You set up such a grand chessboard, trying to lure us to Desolate Ridge Star to wipe us out. You've worked hard."
Lue Jue: "I don't understand what you mean."
Mo Ran: "You don't need to understand. Just go with what you think. Think that we've teamed up to ambush you."
Then she continued to attack, and Xing Yao followed suit. Lue Jue's face was grim, and he had no choice but to fight back.
But with the two of them teaming up, he was definitely no match. Otherwise, he wouldn't have had to resort to such a crooked path. Unfortunately, it still failed.
No, maybe I can still achieve half of my goal.
As Lue Jue's eyes flickered, the people of the Heiyan and Xingyao Empires within Desolate Ridge Star received orders from their respective emperors.
Taihuang, kill!
Forget about being confused. Just obey. The Emperor says who to fight, we fight?!!
On the starship, the Young Prince was still processing these changes.
First, it was Xingyao + Taihuang against Heiyan.
Now, it was Xingyao + Heiyan against Taihuang.
What was going on?
The commander-in-chief was the Grand Marshal. Saling was in charge of the priest corps but also took a moment to educate the Young Prince.
"The scheme on Desolate Ridge Star was designed by the Taihuang Emperor, Lue Jue, to lure us here. Because its scale is too large for us to handle, the two emperors would definitely come as well. This means that the key figures of our two empires are all on Desolate Ridge Star. As long as he kills us all in one go, even if the main forces of the two empires are on other battlefields, it won't affect the overall situation. We will inevitably be annexed by Taihuang."
The Young Prince suddenly remembered that the avatars of all three emperors had appeared just now. He guessed that his father and Mo Ran had planned it. The avatars pretended to be the main bodies to make Lue Jue feel at ease, and Lue Jue, to avoid suspicion, also appeared.
So his cold father chatting with that disfigured woman was actually to gauge the situation outside Desolate Ridge Star.
—The situation where the emperors' main bodies were.
"But where did Lue Jue get the confidence to kill both Father and the Heiyan Empress? Just by gathering them together? Or in a chaotic battle, so he could be the oriole and reap the benefits?"
The Young Prince still had questions.
Saling gave only one answer. "He couldn't do it himself, but the planetary ring outside Desolate Ridge Star can. As long as he detonates it, blowing up a planet is more than enough to destroy everyone, including the two emperors."
"Taihuang must have mastered this technology."
This… this? The Young Prince was dumbfounded.
Comments
Post a Comment