“You wouldn’t. You’d only try to find ways to use Her, thinking it could lead humanity down an evolutionary shortcut.”
“But the brood mother isn’t a beast that can be tamed. We cannot control Her.”
Yun Xunguang told him: “I will kill the brood mother, and I will kill you too.”
Manyuin Hurst completely didn’t care about his own death: “All greatness requires sacrifice to achieve. If you feel that killing me cannot eliminate the hatred in your hearts, then you can use any torture you can think of to torment me. Of course, before that—”
“I suggest you first send me to military court.” Manyuin Hurst calmly extended both hands toward Yu Chen. “Use my final value.”
“Third Prince, why do we need to evacuate…”
On Yaoguang Fifth Space Station, Lu You asked Yun Xunlan in confusion.
“Perhaps Duke Hurst’s deliberate leak of the 3S mecha blueprints to us has been discovered by the Corona Empire’s emperor. Manyuin Hurst is now ‘meeting’ with me. He was once a colonel of the Nebula Federation, then became a duke of the Corona Empire. Who knows what he might want to become on our side in the future?” Yun Xunlan said softly. “They might want to capture some hostages to prevent Manyuin Hurst from cooperating with us, or… to guard some secrets.”
However, the space station itself didn’t have the ability to launch efficient attacks while traveling at high speed in long-distance orbits like interstellar warships. After the three Corona Empire repair ships passed through the jump gate, they all aimed their planet-killer cannons at Yaoguang Fifth Space Station. Mecha groups also quickly emerged from the starships, surrounding the space station in a circular formation. In this situation, it was too late to evacuate everyone.
“We have no intention of conflict with your country.” Kos Telo said in his communication with the Fifth Space Station tower. “As long as your country cooperates with us and doesn’t make futile struggles to prevent unnecessary casualties.”
However, from the Fifth Space Station tower came the voice of Yun Xunlan, who should have been meeting with Manyuin Hurst at the Arlo Star supply base: “If you have no intention of conflict, then what do you mean by this?”
The young man’s voice was leisurely and slightly hoarse, calm and pleasant to hear. But hearing it, Kos Telo felt as if struck by thunder, saying in shock: “Yun Xunlan, aren’t you at…”
“Kos Telo.”
Kos Telo called Yun Xunlan by his name directly, and Yun Xunlan also called him by his full name. But after saying it, Yun Xunlan added indifferently: “Your status doesn’t seem worthy of calling my name directly.”
Actually, Yun Xunlan almost never used his status to pressure people, but Kos Telo had always shown him little respect. Yun Xunlan was too lazy to speak politely with him. Whatever this person didn’t like to hear, Yun Xunlan would specifically say: “Why do you always like to do these things beyond your capabilities?”
“Now, and also when piloting 3S mechas.”
As he spoke, Yaoguang Fifth Space Station also opened the fire control center’s hatch doors. Escort ships and mecha groups flew out successively, with the damaged Jian Xing Chen leading them.
The black mecha stood in the universe, the blue fluorescence of its chest power core source like a blue supergiant star. Though they were both 3S mechas, under Yun Xunlan’s control, it seemed more oppressive, so heavy it made people involuntarily hold their breath.
Jian Xing Chen slowly drew its saber, the blade tip pointing directly at Kos Telo, who led the Corona Empire forces.
Actually, in long-range combat, close-attack weapons had no use, but Yun Xunlan still drew his saber, using the most simple and straightforward way to provoke and despise Kos Telo: “72% resonance, such high operational delay… Kos Telo, you might as well switch to a 2S mecha.”
The young man’s tone was mocking as he smiled playfully: “Or I could also switch to a 2S mecha to personally teach you how to act within your capabilities?”
In same-level mecha combat, resonance rate was the standard for determining victory or defeat.
Kos Telo’s 72% resonance against Yun Xunlan’s perfect resonance—his victory would be a pipe dream. He usually used 2S mechas in actual combat, and his 3S mecha was generally only used for intimidation—to put it bluntly, for showing off.
But now that Yun Xunlan had put him in such a position, how could Kos Telo be willing to switch to a 2S mecha? Besides, they had more people. Kos Telo believed his side had the advantage no matter how they fought.
Just as he was about to respond to Yun Xunlan and mock him back, Vice Captain Lydon, a beta who could only stay in the command room, reminded him: “Captain, His Majesty’s mission for us is only to capture some hostages to negotiate with the Galactic Empire. If we have a direct conflict with the Third Prince, it might cause the situation to escalate out of control.”
In most cases, Kos Telo was willing to listen to Lydon’s suggestions. It was an undisputed fact that Lydon’s mind was more useful than his. Although Kos Telo didn’t have a completely clear understanding of his own abilities, he knew most of it. But having stayed in the Corona Empire’s alpha-supremacist environment for so long, Kos Telo essentially couldn’t respect Lydon from the bottom of his heart. Moreover, with Yun Xunlan mocking him like this, if he did nothing and retreated dejectedly, how could he maintain his position in the military in the future?
So Kos Telo said: “If we want hostages, isn’t Yun Xunlan more useful than some ordinary space station soldiers?”
“He is useful, but too useful.” Lydon softened his voice, speaking coaxingly: “I suggest we maintain the current situation and proceed directly to negotiations. If negotiations make no progress, then we can proceed with intimidation.”
Kos Telo disagreed: “Without intimidation, he’ll just think we’re afraid of him. What progress can negotiations make?”
Lydon said: “Then…”
“Enough, you don’t need to say more. I’m not really going to kill Yun Xunlan.” But Kos Telo didn’t want to hear Lydon speak anymore. He was a bit annoyed. “I’m the captain. Don’t overstep your bounds too much.”
“Captain!” Lydon raised his voice. “Although you are the captain, I am the vice captain. I also have the authority to manage fleet affairs. Please listen to my…”
Lydon’s words were cut off by a sudden communication from the royal family.
Kos Telo and Lydon both answered the communication together.
After the communication ended, Kos Telo immediately sneered coldly at Lydon: “See? I told you to just listen to me. What vice captain? What authority do you have? If I didn’t usually give you face, would anyone in the fleet be willing to listen to you?”
Lydon fell silent and stopped speaking.
The communication just now was from the emperor inquiring about their progress.
When the emperor heard Kos Telo say that Yun Xunlan was on Yaoguang Fifth Space Station, he immediately ordered them to capture Yun Xunlan alive at all costs, and everyone else could be killed.
After hearing this, Kos Telo felt as if he had received a pardon and immediately wanted to fight Yun Xunlan, ordering Lydon to activate the planet-killer cannons to bombard the Fifth Space Station, leaving only Yun Xunlan alive.
But after hearing this, Lydon vaguely sensed something was wrong, though he currently didn’t have much reference information and clues.
Even after Kos Telo led the mecha group to attack Jian Xing Chen, he continued his harsh scolding and berating. Lydon reflected on how he had served the Corona Empire for so many years, yet his rank was still only captain, while these alphas like Kos Telo stepped on his achievements and took credit for his military merits to rise through the ranks…
“Kos Telo.”
Lydon no longer called him captain alpha. He moved his finger away from the planet-killer cannon strike button and said coldly: “I told you, I have the authority to manage fleet affairs.”
At the same moment, Manyuin Hurst also said to Yu Chen: “Both Kos Telo and Lydon are spies the emperor planted beside me.”
“Ancient texts say: When merit threatens the master. The emperor doesn’t trust me, and I haven’t done much to earn his trust.”
Manyuin Hurst and the Corona Empire’s emperor had always been bound together by the 3S mecha blueprints and the secret of their joint participation in the fall of the first border line. He needed time to develop and strengthen his own power, and when his strength became powerful enough to influence a country, he would no longer need to be constrained by the emperor.
So he deliberately arranged for Kos Telo to attack Yun Xunlan, both to leak the 3S mecha blueprints and to give the emperor evidence of his “treason,” completely exposing and intensifying the conflicts between them.
“Yuchen, you hid too well. I couldn’t even confirm whether you were still alive.”
“So I thought, if you were dead, my public release of the 3S mecha blueprints would make me a hero admired by the world. No one could judge my crimes anymore. I would overthrow the emperor’s rule and become the new ruler of the Corona Empire.” Manyuin Hurst held up his hands, glanced at the handcuffs Colonel Chen Xu had put on him, then continued: “If you weren’t dead, then when I publicly released the 3S mecha blueprints claiming they were my work, you absolutely couldn’t tolerate it. You would stand up and judge my crimes.”
Manyuin Hurst could accept either outcome.
The former was because he didn’t trust others. He didn’t believe anyone besides himself would be willing to wholeheartedly save this rotten land. So he might as well stand at the highest position and practice the oath he made with Ran Xuechen.
The latter was the outcome Manyuin Hurst most deserved.
However, which outcome he truly preferred in his heart, probably no one knew except himself.
He now only said to Yu Chen: “Your early appearance forced me to make some changes to the original plan.”
“This ‘meeting,’ in the emperor’s view, is my ‘defection.’ He should have originally only needed some hostages to prevent you from cooperating with me, but…” Manyuin Hurst said, “My wife, Wei Dongyou, I left him a lot of evidence and materials. He will join you as a witness to testify against my crimes in military court.”
Manyuin Hurst paused again: “He should have become the leader of the rebel army by now. I don’t know what he’ll do in the Corona Empire, but it probably won’t make the emperor very happy. So the Third Prince remaining at the Fifth Space Station might be in danger. Go save him quickly.”
The fall of the Nebula Federation’s former government originated from the Corona Empire’s military sending fake rebels to hold Ran Xuechen hostage.
Eighteen years later, the Corona Empire’s collapse originated from a real rebellion, an unyielding resistance by the oppressed.
Manyuin Hurst lowered his eyes, the bottom of his violet pupils reflecting the silver handcuffs. He curved his lips: “The collective interests of humanity are above all else. I remember it, I practice it, I will never break this oath.”
**
(advanced chapters available on kofi)
