IWYTBW - Chapter 50

 Chapter 50

Running Headfirst into Disaster at the Speed of Light!

Yi Zhen regretted it a little. He shouldn’t have acted so quickly. Now it seemed that the deaths of those three would alert the enemy. But there was nothing he could do. With the limited materials he currently had, he couldn’t concoct any perception-altering poisons like the Soul-Bewitching Incense, nor was he skilled in interrogation.

The boy was still rambling on with his complaints. There were more than twenty black-clad men surrounding him, standing silently like wooden carvings or stone statues.

“If I had capable people under my command, why would I rely on you...” His face was filled with displeasure. “You can’t even bring in a Retainer. Disgusting.”

Retainers, did he mean the S-grade pilots serving in the imperial court?

As far as he knew, there weren’t many S-grade pilots in the Azoth Star System, but five were currently serving the court: Rainbow Alice, Saint Quadrivirtue, Six Swords of Sloth, and two who were stationed year-round on the border planets, the S+ grade mecha Typhon, and the S grade mecha Gold-Inlaid Blade.

The combined strength of these five was almost enough to overthrow half of the Azoth Empire. Yet, the way he said it, they sounded like little pugs that should be at his beck and call.

The current Emperor of Azoth had many concubines and even more illegitimate children, a rough count putting the number at nineteen. Rong Hongxue had once joked about this with him at the dinner table, that guy was so venomous, he said, “A sow in a livestock pen can’t give birth to more than a dozen piglets in one litter. If he tries a few more times, he can match the breeding capacity of an entire pigsty.”

However, this boy could say “Queen Mother,” which meant he wasn’t an illegitimate child but a child raised by the Empress herself... Yi Zhen wasn’t interested in the royal family, but he vaguely remembered that there were only three so-called legitimate princes and princesses. The eldest prince was in his early twenties, the second princess was a little younger, and the youngest prince, known for his shyness and studiousness, had just turned sixteen.

...So, this was the supposedly shy and studious little prince?

Yi Zhen’s mouth twitched. He didn’t know where to start with his complaints.

His little finger was already on the trigger of the alloy crossbow. If he raised his hand now, he could blow the little prince’s eyeball to pieces. Once the Soul-Severing Spike was activated, it could blast his head into the brightest fireworks in the night sky. But this wasn’t the best way to infiltrate. Li Youdeng was behind him, and while he could escape, she might not be able to escape the pursuit of so many A-grades.

Moreover, he was also a little hesitant. Why would a member of the imperial family, a golden branch and jade leaf, make such a grand entrance at the preliminaries of a competition like this?

Naturally, there was no mention of this in the original novel, so Yi Zhen intuitively felt that he had touched upon a hidden plotline beneath the surface of the yellow-novel storyline…

The little prince paced around a few more times. Finally, he ran out of patience and pointed at three more people. “Go check if those three useless wastes died on the way. Why haven’t they returned after so long?”

Yi Zhen thought, you guessed right. Not only are they dead, but their bodies have also turned into bloody water.

He then asked, “Is there still no news from that side?”

“No, Your Highness,” a black-clad man replied. “The defenses there are tight, and they’ve mobilized the army. It won’t be easy to achieve our goal quickly. It will probably take a few more days.”

The boy sneered. “Good. Anyway, there are too many people on Longhua. It won’t be convenient to fight when the time comes. Let them eliminate each other during this time.”

After a pause, he added, “Keep an eye on the key individuals. Don’t let them be eliminated and sent away early. That would be boring.”

The black-clad man smiled strangely and said vaguely, “Your Highness also knows that with their background, they must have many trump cards up their sleeves. They can escape even in life-or-death situations.”

The boy seemed to think of something, and an arrogant, contemptuous smile appeared on his face. But this smile quickly vanished. He lowered his face and slapped his hand. The small snake darted out and bit the black-clad man on his right cheek.

Some snake venoms could paralyze a person’s nerves, while others could amplify pain. This snake’s venom was clearly the latter. The black-clad man’s body stiffened. He forced himself not to dodge and took the bite, immediately feeling his lips convulse in pain, stars exploding before his eyes, and even his iron-like limbs trembling slightly.

“You’re not wrong, but I hate it when people interrupt me while I’m talking!” the boy said darkly. “Have you found the person I’m looking for?”

The forest was silent for a while. Another person stepped forward to answer. “Your Highness, the person who defied you must have been in disguise, so...”

Yi Zhen thought, Could this defiant person they’re talking about be me?

The boy was silent for a moment, then said softly, “Forget it.”

Although he was arrogant, he still knew what was important. After thinking for a while, he said unwillingly, “When the main matter is settled, I must find that bastard! Alive or dead... Of course, preferably alive. He dared to take my spider. I’ll turn him into a feast for all my poisonous insects!”

Yi Zhen thought, Oh, it’s definitely me.

Then there was silence. This kid was somewhat cautious. Without confirming that the surroundings were one hundred percent safe, he wouldn’t reveal any key information. Yi Zhen listened to them talk for a while and only gleaned some scraps.

—This kid was up to something, and the entire planet Longhua was the battlefield. He needed as few contestants on it as possible and seemed to have joined forces with some other power. The key individuals he wanted to keep an eye on had extraordinary backgrounds, had many trump cards, and were not easily eliminated.

Yi Zhen almost immediately thought of a target.

Natalia Rauðr Dreki.

At this moment, the three people who had been sent out earlier returned, their expressions grave. They reported to the boy, “Your Highness, the three members of Group B are all dead! We followed their tracking chips. They... they seem to have encountered an alchemist. Even their bodies have turned into water!”

So there were tracking chips, Yi Zhen thought. It was said that these chips were molecularly miniscule. He hadn’t used a conceptual-grade poison, so it was wonder the Bone-Eroding Spirit Scorpion had failed.

The scorpion on his shoulder was quite intelligent. As Yi Zhen thought this, it also seemed to sense what its keeper was thinking and arched its body in dissatisfaction, wanting to rush out and start a massacre.

Yi Zhen gently pressed it down with his forefinger.

The boy’s eyes widened, and he shouted, “What?! They failed and let the person escape!”

Yi Zhen saw the violent look on his face. He knew that if he could eat human flesh, he would have already grabbed a subordinate and torn at their neck.

He paced around in anger. At the same time, about fifty meters away, the bushes opposite Yi Zhen suddenly rustled and parted. Someone was coming. This person was clearly using a tree branch to clear the path, making no attempt to be quiet, and the leaves rustled loudly.

Yi Zhen’s heart skipped a beat. He didn’t know which unlucky person had chosen this moment to disturb this spoiled brat’s little gathering…

The boy suddenly turned his head, his gaze locking onto the bushes. The black-clad men were also on high alert, weapons flashing in their sleeves.

“Hello... hello?” A head popped out from the bushes, a foolish look on his face. Seaweed-green hair was tied in a ponytail. “Excuse me, can I ask for directions?”

At this moment, Yi Zhen’s pupils shook, and Li Youdeng, looking over from his shoulder, also had her pupils shake.

Ask... ask for directions, your ass! Are you fucking kidding me?! Even if you are an idiot, you have to have a limit!

—This unlucky person who had stumbled into a killing field was none other than the person Yi Zhen and Li Youdeng had been trying to find to no avail, the Desnian minor, She Xin.

The sense of disparity was like Nobita Nobi from Doraemon stumbling through an Anywhere Door into a meeting of Thanos’ army... and he didn’t even have Doraemon to protect him!

[Main Quest: Rescue has been triggered.

Quest Description: Speak of the Devil

After many days, I finally saw She Xin again. But this unlucky fool just stumbled upon the bad guys discussing their evil plans…

I don’t have many friends, and I owe him a favor. Looks like I have to step in again this time.

#1 MQ: Rescue

Main Quest: Rescue Triggered

Quest Description: Speak of the Devil

After many days, I finally saw She Xin again. But this unlucky fool just stumbled upon the bad guys discussing their evil plans…

I don’t have many friends, and I owe him a favor. Looks like I have to step in again this time.

Quest Rewards:

Compact, Recurved, Low-Bowstring Crossbow crafting materials pack x1

“Find a chance to take him and run!” Yi Zhen whispered. He had already put on the Mineral Essence Gauntlets. “Go to the place we agreed on. Put on the mask.”

He grabbed six Blood Tribulus from his Mustard Seed Pouch and gave them to Li Youdeng. “Where are your gloves? Don’t let your skin touch these. These are a last resort – if anyone chases you, press the mechanism and pretend to throw them at their face in a panic. These idiots will definitely try to catch them with their hands. Then you just run, and don’t look back.”

“I understand.” Li Youdeng took them and put away her staff.

The boy’s face no longer showed any sign of anger. He waved at She Xin and said with a smile, “You’re lost? Come here. I’ll find someone to take you out of this forest. Where do you want to go?”

She Xin leaned back. He had stumbled here by chance. He hadn’t seen anyone along the way, and when he heard voices in the distance, he thought it was a gathering of ordinary contestants, so he hurried over to ask for directions—he hadn’t lived for thousands of years for nothing, but he had been too well protected by his elders and brother. Even on Longhua, when some contestants saw that he was a Desnian, they quickly let him go. He hadn’t expected to get into such a big mess.

He could tell that the boy in front of him was not to be trifled with.

The boy was already smiling sweetly. He was a child, and children were always good at using the most harmless expressions to act spoiled. This helped them get more candy from their elders.

He wanted to indulge himself now, using She Xin’s blood and screams to satisfy his craving!

“You’re scared?” the boy said softly. “Don’t be afraid. You did trespass on our private property … It was a very rude thing to do. But I’m willing to forgive you because I’ve had such bad luck today. So, I want to do something good to accumulate some good luck for myself.”

He extended his hand, making an inviting gesture. “Come, you...”

He suddenly stopped speaking. The black-clad men all changed color, pulling out their plasma railguns and aiming them at the boy.

To be precise, they were aiming at the person behind the boy.

The gleaming armor made a soft click as it gently pressed against the boy’s neck.

Yi Zhen, like a shadow walking in the void, silently appeared behind him and smiled. “I heard you want to do good deeds?”

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