Chapter Thirty: Drawing In
“The Corpse Hunter Organization? I’ve heard we do business with them?”
Xizer turned his head, a hint of confusion in his eyes, and questioned his adjutant.
The adjutant produced a file, flipped through it carefully, and reported, “Indeed, we acquire certain mutants through our dealings with this organization and sell them to research facilities under the Leviathan Virus Research and Administration Bureau.”
“However, the volume of trade with them only accounts for a tiny fraction—barely a few thousandths—of all our commercial activities on Zombie Star.”
“They’ve always been insignificant. Who would have thought they possessed such terrifying virus technology? Truly a remarkable organization.”
Hearing this, Ze Xi’s face broke into a broad grin.
“My little sweetheart really has an eye for talent, to have found such a formidable partner!”
The adjutant could only shrug helplessly.
Just a minute ago, you were full of disdain for this organization...
Suddenly, the observer from the Queen of the Undercurrent hurried to Ze Xi’s side and said respectfully, “Miss Ze Xi!”
“We’ve just discovered a bit of a situation…”
As he spoke, he switched the display in the captain’s room to another feed. Despite severe radiation interference on the ground, the thermal imaging still revealed humanoid figures moving rapidly.
Ze Xi was momentarily stunned, then something dawned on her, and her gaze turned icy. Her voice was chilling: “Javier from Arboreal Star?”
The observer nodded. “Yes, we’ve just detected this group rushing at high speed toward the battlefield between that corpse hunter and the mutant.”
“And Mr. Zela will appear right along their path!”
A violent murderous aura burst from Ze Xi.
“Relay my orders! Notify the Duke of Cannons—blast those Arboreal Star trash to pieces!”
The adjutant broke into a cold sweat and barked at the communications officer, “Wait!”
Seeing the officer’s innocent expression, the adjutant sighed and explained, “Miss Ze Xi, if we take out Javier from Arboreal Star’s First Defense Army, Second Legion…”
“Putting aside that both our flagships would lose their main gun capability, and that the Scarlet Queen is in perfect condition, we might lose a flagship ourselves!”
“If the commander of the Scarlet Queen is bold enough to turn and head straight for Chaos Star, General Talan wouldn’t even know his flagship had been taken out on your orders!”
“The consequences of such surprise could be catastrophic.”
“Besides, Arboreal Star dispatched two fleets for this diplomatic mission to Chaos Star…”
“The Perogen Stellar, flagship of the First Legion, is docked at an unknown spaceport somewhere on Chaos Star!”
Ze Xi’s brow furrowed deeply.
“Perogen Stellar… Captain Edward Teach.”
“It was he who masterminded Arboreal Star’s raid on Zombie Star back then… One of the ten great strategists of the system, known as the ‘Weaver of Schemes’!”
“So even he has come to Chaos Star.”
At last, Ze Xi gradually calmed.
Watching Javier and his men draw ever closer to Zela, Ze Xi spoke: “Contact the Scarlet Queen. If Javier dares to advance another step, the Duke of Cannons will open fire.”
“If they don’t want to jeopardize the fruitful trade between Arboreal Star and Chaos Star, they’d better halt at once! Tell them my fiancé, Prince Zela of the Undercurrent, has already perceived Javier’s threat!”
The communications officer glanced at the adjutant, who, eyes half-closed, gave a slight nod, and then hurried out.
...
“Commander Javier, message from the Scarlet Queen: Ze Xi demands we stop immediately, claiming our actions threaten the future prince of the Undercurrent.”
“If we advance, they’ll strike us!”
Javier halted abruptly, his face darkening.
Seeing his brother-in-law’s troubled expression, Cantor offered, “Commander, they’re just bluffing…”
“The Queen of the Undercurrent’s main gun is charging, but the Scarlet Queen’s energy reserves are fully replenished.”
“If they dare attack, they’ll lose at least one flagship!”
“The Talan family could never afford such a loss.”
Javier shook his head, gazing into the starry sky, and spoke softly, “Leaving aside the fate of that corpse hunter we’re interested in…”
“Risking so much, gambling on Ze Xi’s madness, isn’t worth it!”
“More importantly, this kind of formal diplomatic language isn’t Ze Xi’s style.”
“It looks like a simple diplomatic warning, but it forces both sides to cool down and weigh the massive risks of escalation…”
“This style is… familiar!”
Cantor asked curiously, “Whose?”
Javier’s eyes flickered. “One of the system’s ten great strategists, the ‘Master of Open Strategy,’ Yixiao Nangong!”
“A truly troublesome character. Even with Commander Teach and General Kobayashi on our side, it’s no guarantee we can outplay the Undercurrent if Yixiao Nangong is involved.”
“Even Commander Teach wouldn’t dare claim he could trap such an opponent…”
“Though the Talan family and Arboreal Star are vastly mismatched in power, Chaos Star’s position is too unique—it’s the trade hub of the entire system.”
“No other planet would allow Arboreal Star to wage war here!”
After a moment’s thought, Javier fixed his gaze on his brother-in-law, making Cantor’s skin crawl.
Clapping Cantor on the shoulder, Javier said, “Cantor, I have a task for you!”
“Take everyone but the First Combat Squad and withdraw from the radiation zone!”
“Go to the Plati black market, find the mysterious leader of the Corpse Hunters—Crow.”
“At the very least, find the Corpse Hunter stationed at the black market and establish a partnership.”
“Arboreal Star is willing to accept all members of the Corpse Hunters and guarantee that their entire organization will form the Tenth Legion of Arboreal Star!”
“All warships will be provided by Arboreal Star; all positions, they may appoint themselves.”
“If they refuse to leave Zombie Star, tell them all our channels will be opened to them free of charge, and we can supply them with weapons and equipment at no cost!”
“All we want in return is their virus technology for purging mutants!”
Cantor was so astonished he could barely close his mouth.
“Will His Majesty the Emperor agree?”
Javier sighed. “He must. Arboreal Star’s resources are exhausted!”
“If we can’t mine Zombie Star’s subterranean veins, we’ll revert to our old pirate ways…”
“That’s why such a simple mission warranted dispatching both the First and Second Legions of the First Defense Army.”
“We’re the only ones willing to touch Zombie Star!”
“We entered the radiation zone to gather core data on the zombie virus, hoping to solve the mutant problem…”
“And the Corpse Hunters already possess the answer…”