VAP - Chapter 130
Chapter 130: The Marshal's Journey is the Sea of Stars (26)
Yue Du’s face was a picture of utter confusion.
What had happened?
The host had never truly lost control before, especially not after receiving a mental soothing session just before they left. It had only been a few hours. Even the most mentally unstable Sentinel wouldn’t lose control this fast. What reason could Ah Jiu possibly have…
No.
Yue Du suddenly froze.
There was a reason. Since He Yin had sent a communication request, it meant they had already received news of the Empire’s Death Ray Cannon bombardment, but they didn’t know that Yue Du and the others had escaped Planet El.
And with a thermal weapon of the Death Ray Cannon’s caliber, anyone within the blast radius would undoubtedly be killed.
It seemed the people on the other end thought her side was as good as dead.
Yue Du’s brow furrowed deeply. She tried to contact Sheng Xuejiu, but the call wouldn’t connect.
She took a deep breath and accepted He Yin’s communication request instead.
The other side picked up immediately.
“Yue Yao, you’re okay? Where are you? We’ll come rescue you right away.”
Yue Du explained simply, “We had already left Planet El when the Death Ray Cannon fired, so we weren’t affected. Let’s not talk about that for now. How is the Marshal?”
He Yin said worriedly, “The Marshal suddenly lost control, but she didn’t attack us. Instead, she piloted her mecha and rushed out of Cadina. I’ve sent people to follow her, but there’s no news back yet.”
Yue Du: “…I understand.”
He Yin said urgently, “The Marshal will be fine. Where are you now? We’ll come to you right away. The Empire could launch another bombardment at any moment—”
Yue Du gave her coordinates, then ended the communication and turned to leave.
The conversation with He Yin had taken place on the mecha channel, so the others couldn’t hear it.
When Yue Du had stood still just now, they had stood still with her. Now that they saw her suddenly move, they naturally prepared to follow. This was the discipline of a soldier.
Yue Du stopped them. “I have a new mission. Don’t worry about me. Just stay here.”
“Yes, sir!” the soldiers responded in unison.
On the surface, Yue Du was flying in the direction of the Empire, but in reality, the Empire was not her destination.
Inside the cockpit, a pair of deep amber eyes snapped open. The gentle light within them transformed into a purely mechanical, inorganic quality, a cold luster swirling inside.
A stream of data surged out from the fingertips resting on her optical computer.
The majority of her consciousness as a System dove into the star-net device, leaving only a small portion behind to pilot the mecha.
The data, stripped from its divinely crafted shell, was like a whale swimming against the ocean current, moving through the virtual world of information toward another set of coordinates.
A true case of crawling through the net to get to someone.
Traveling through the world of information was obviously much faster than flying a mecha. In what seemed like an instant, Yue Du’s consciousness captured the trace of Sheng Xuejiu’s optical computer. The data stream emerged from the small screen of the optical computer, like breaking through the surface of dark, silent water.
She “saw” Sheng Xuejiu.
At first glance, it was hard to tell if the woman had lost control. Unlike other frenzied Sentinels with ferocious expressions, Marshal Sheng’s face was placid, cold and calm, as if frozen in ice—a perfect replica of Yun Yijiu.
But this impression was quickly shattered by Sheng Xuejiu herself. She turned her head slightly, and with that subtle shift in angle, a dangerous, distorted hue bled out from her, making one feel as if they were staring into an abyss.
A closer look revealed that the cockpit was filled with signs of violent destruction. Even the sturdy bulkheads were dented with several craters.
In contrast were Sheng Xuejiu’s own injuries. She seemed to have just punched the bulkhead, as her knuckles were still red.
The situation was more serious than Yue Du had imagined.
A data stream couldn’t make a sound to wake someone up, so she simply entered the host’s mental landscape directly.
Upon entering, Yue Du was first stunned, then she drew in a sharp breath—if data could even breathe.
The place was completely different from how it had been just a few hours ago. The stony ground, once merely scattered with wreckage and bloodstains, was now completely submerged in a vivid red, transformed into a sea of blood.
All the jarring colors within the landscape had vanished, replaced by a chaotic tangle of bizarre lines. Thick clouds obscured the entire sky, churning in a massive vortex.
…It was like the end of the world.
The data coalesced into Yue Du’s form. She looked around and quickly found the only soft tone amidst the gray-black and blood-red: a complex of temples.
Even situated directly beneath the center of the vortex and surrounded by a sea of blood, the temple complex still stood tall. Not a single drop of blood could be found on its pristine white stone walls.
Sheng Xuejiu’s own consciousness was there, sitting on the stone steps before the temple. She wore a simple white dress, her calves half-submerged in the sea of blood below the steps, seemingly swaying gently and stirring scattered ripples.
Her head was slightly bowed, her long, pale-gold hair falling beside her face, obscuring her expression.
To any observer, this scene would be somewhat horrifying. One could only admire it from a distance; if you tried to pull someone closer, they would surely wave their hands frantically and refuse.
This was humanity’s instinctive aversion to danger.
But Yue Du just sighed helplessly. While controlling her body to float over, she called out, “Ah Jiu!”
Sheng Xuejiu’s head snapped up.
At the same time, Yue Du felt her body lighten. The scene before her changed in an instant, and the next moment, she was moved right next to Sheng Xuejiu.
Her wrist was seized. The other woman’s wantonly beautiful face slowly drew closer, her expression blank, her eyes still a chaotic mess.
She still wasn’t lucid. Yue Du couldn’t help but sigh again.
Yue Du turned her hand to grip Sheng Xuejiu’s, their fingers intertwining. At the same time, her other arm wrapped around the back of her neck, pulling her closer.
Resting her chin comfortably in the crook of the host’s shoulder, Yue Du smiled. “Ah Jiu, I’m back.”
About two seconds passed before she felt the host’s long fingers rest on her waist.
Sheng Xuejiu’s deep voice sounded by her ear. “How did you come back? Did you come back on your own, or was your body destroyed, forcing you to return to your host’s mental landscape?”
Yue Du: “I came back on my own. I was monitoring large-scale thermal weapons, so when the Empire’s Death Ray Cannon was charging, I took my people and got far away. Not a single hair was harmed.”
The embrace suddenly tightened. Yue Du didn’t speak. A moment later, Sheng Xuejiu said, “I want you.”
Yue Du replied with a very soft kiss.
Beneath the apocalyptic sky, before the blood-encircled temple, Yue Du was like a sacrifice offered to a god at some dark ritual, placed upon a high altar meant to ensure purity, and stripped bare layer by layer.
The sacrifice was very much to the god’s liking.
And so, the vortex of clouds slowly dispersed, erasing the chaotic lines. The sea of blood receded, and soon the ground was revealed. The space, as if granted a pardon, returned to its previous state.
Although it was still far from friendly, at least one could find a foothold.
After the storm passed, the two lay intimately against each other on the high altar, which was now covered with a soft white blanket.
In a mental landscape, the owner was the absolute master. They could conjure anything they wished.
Yue Du was too lazy to even lift a finger. She opened her mouth and said, “Clothes, clothes.”
Sheng Xuejiu was very satisfied now. She snapped her fingers casually, and a white dress of the same style she was wearing appeared beside them.
Sheng Xuejiu treated her like a life-sized doll, carefully helping Yue Du put on the dress and then arranging her hair to make sure it wasn’t caught underneath.
With her eyes closed, Yue Du said, “You really don’t hold back at all.”
Sheng Xuejiu: “You can’t blame me for that. You invited me first.”
Yue Du: “I can’t just pretend I didn’t hear that. Who was it that said, ‘I want you’?”
Sheng Xuejiu: “Pfft.”
“Laughing, still laughing.” Yue Du criticized her sternly. “You know, don’t you? Even if I really got hit by the Death Ray Cannon, at most it would just destroy that body. Nothing would happen to me myself.”
Sheng Xuejiu: “Mm.”
Yue Du asked, “Then why did you lose control like that?”
Sheng Xuejiu denied it. “I didn’t lose control.”
Yue Du: “I saw the chaotic lines in your landscape earlier. A landscape is a reflection of a Sentinel’s mind. If you had been lucid the whole time, those things wouldn’t have appeared.”
Sheng Xuejiu: “…”
Sheng Xuejiu: “Speaking of which, we just established the deepest level of mental link, didn’t we? How do you feel? Is there any discomfort?”
Yue Du: “Changing the subject is useless.”
Sheng Xuejiu: “Fine, let’s say I did lose control. But you’ve never seen a Sentinel who, after losing control, doesn’t kill the nearest person but instead gets in a mecha and runs off on their own, have you?”
“I certainly haven’t.”
Just as Sheng Xuejiu was about to nod, she heard Yue Du continue, “But you’re already such a special case in so many ways, what’s one more?”
Sheng Xuejiu: “…”
Leaving the host speechless gave Yue Du a great sense of accomplishment.
Sheng Xuejiu’s condition was indeed different from a typical Sentinel’s loss of control. There was no irritability, no zoning out. Rather than losing control, it was more like she had become a beast acting purely on instinct.
Yue Du: “So you were heading toward the Empire to find the person who fired the Death Ray Cannon?”
At the mention of this, Sheng Xuejiu’s expression turned cold. “He must pay the price. Whoever made that decision should thank you. If you hadn’t come so quickly, he’d be dead by now.”
Yue Du: “Oh, I know who it was. Terence.” She had the strange feeling of having indirectly saved her love rival’s life.
Sheng Xuejiu frowned, recalling, then made a displeased, disgusted face. “That annoying guy.”
Yue Du deeply agreed. “I think so too.”
But Terence had acted very cleverly this time. Using the mental infection as a pretext, he used the Death Ray Cannon to bury several King Zergs and two mentally-infecting Zerg on Planet El, without even affecting the planet’s metal ore resources.
If the full story of this incident got out, the public would also think their Second Prince had done the right thing. Using a single Death Ray Cannon to eliminate the Zerg threat was a bargain. As for whether there were other sacrifices along the way, that wouldn’t be part of their consideration.
Sheng Xuejiu said bluntly, “I don’t care what the Imperial royal family thinks. As long as you were involved in this, Terence deserves to be killed by me.”
Yue Du: “Mm…”
She turned her head to the side, thinking to herself that the host was quite cute at times like this, looking like she was protecting her food.
Finally, Sheng Xuejiu’s consciousness faded from the mental landscape. She leaned back against the cockpit seat, slowly regaining awareness.
Fortunately, the mecha had an autopilot mode, so it hadn’t caused an accident while she was out of control. That would have been a real tragedy.
Yue Du asked her via the optical screen, “What do you plan to do next?”
In the bottom right corner of the Marshal’s light blue optical screen was a Q-version, black-haired little girl. This was the form of Yue Du’s data self. It was originally created to facilitate communication between them, but now it looked more like an optical computer desktop pet or a photonic butler.
Hearing the little butler’s question, Sheng Xuejiu answered in a heartbeat, “Overthrow the Imperial royal family.”
Yue Du: “Our biggest enemy right now is the Zerg. Making a move on the royal family isn’t a good idea.”
Sheng Xuejiu: “Then we’ll deal with them after we’re done with the Zerg. But this time, I can’t accept coming back empty-handed.”
—Terence must pay the price, or I will never let this go!
Meanwhile, on Planet Polai.
The news of the successful Death Ray Cannon launch made Terence breathe a sigh of relief.
This move killed two birds with one stone: it could stop the mental infection and eliminate a rival. Even if the Federal Marshal came demanding an explanation out of anger, the greater good of two species would weigh her down. What could she possibly say?
Terence thought this was excellent.
In fact, he had long given up the idea of pursuing the Federal Marshal as his future partner. Yes, he had a good impression of the female Sentinel, but that impression was nothing compared to his pride.
Killing that female Sentinel named Yue Yao as revenge, in Terence’s view, was letting her off easy.
Terence closed his optical computer with satisfaction and looked around, suddenly feeling that something was off.
He hadn’t yet pinpointed what was wrong, but years of vigilance had become a habit. He immediately pressed the spatial button on his wrist, letting the mechanical exoskeleton envelop his body.
He remained on high alert, fully armed, for several dozen seconds, but nothing happened. Terence inwardly laughed at his own paranoia. Just as he was about to deactivate the exoskeleton, he suddenly paused.
He had figured out what was wrong.
Why… was it so quiet here?
In the very next moment, a cold glint of light flew past, precisely piercing the joint connection on the armor of Terence’s right hand and embedding itself viciously in his knuckle.
—That cold light was a very thin, slender knife.
Few people these days would specialize in practicing with cold weapons, but some could train with them to such a degree and achieve extraordinary results.
Before his rational mind could react, his body let out a wretched cry of pain.
Sheng Xuejiu strolled in from the doorway, her tone almost gentle as she said, “Your Highness, the Second Prince. Long time no see.”
Terence was shocked, pained, frightened, and furious all at once. He blustered, “What are you doing? Attacking a member of the Imperial royal family without reason—do you no longer intend to maintain the alliance with the Empire?!”
Sheng Xuejiu shrugged. “Who knows.”
With a speed no one could react to, she pressed the spatial button on Terence’s hand, causing the mechanical armor to retract on its own, then deftly dislocated the joints of his four limbs.
Terence was a Guide. He gritted his teeth, about to launch a mental attack, but his brain suddenly roared. Forget attacking, he couldn’t even summon his Quantum Beast.
Finally, the Marshal, with a look of disgust, put on a glove, grabbed Terence by the back of his collar, and began dragging the immobilized Second Prince outside.
In his extreme fear, Terence actually calmed down. He immediately understood why the Federal Marshal had come.
He shivered and explained rapidly, “Marshal, I know I was wrong, but it wasn’t my intention. I just wanted to deal with the mentally-infecting Zerg. Once the infection spreads, the consequences would be unimaginable. Weren’t there Imperial soldiers stationed on Planet El too? It pained me just as much to abandon them…”
Sheng Xuejiu ignored him.
Terence changed tactics and tried to call for help. The moment he made a move, Sheng Xuejiu said languidly, “Don’t waste your effort. Even if you want to call for help, the message has to be able to get out. Why don’t you try shouting at the top of your lungs?”
Yue Du, who had cut off the connection to Terence’s optical computer, remained quietly in the background.
Terence didn’t shout. He knew that since Sheng Xuejiu hadn’t used violent means to silence him, it meant she wasn’t worried about him being able to call for help.
Thinking back to the eerie silence from before, Terence fell into complete despair.
He murmured, “My father… go find my father…”
Sheng Xuejiu sneered at him.
“Do you think the old emperor would be willing to trade numerous benefits for you, or will he just play deaf and dumb as long as I don’t kill you?”
Sheng Xuejiu turned her gaze forward again and added icily, “Of course, even if he did offer benefits in exchange, I wouldn’t agree.”
—This debt must be settled properly.
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