Monster Cub Live Stream – CH60

Chapter 60

“Commander Yu is being a little too impatient,” Modexin said flatly. “Are you really that eager to have me cooperate with you?”

Yu Jin smiled. “Because Deputy Commander Mo is a smart man. And the choice a smart man makes in the end never disappoints.”

“But Commander Yu, why do I have to work with you?” Modexin shot back. “Working with you carries too much risk. I could act alone just as well. For this sort of thing, the fewer people involved, the lower the risk of exposure. Commander Yu understands that better than anyone, doesn’t he?”

“True enough.” Yu Jin chuckled. “But Deputy Commander Mo, you need to think carefully. The time left for you is running short.”

He paused, giving Modexin a moment to think. “Feng Wu could return at any time. Before that happens, can you really come up with a flawless plan, one guaranteed to succeed one hundred percent?”

“At worst, I’d just be gambling once,” Modexin said. “But if I don’t work with you, I still have a way out. Commander Yu, as things stand, I haven’t yet seen any condition from you compelling enough to sway me.”

“Heh.” Yu Jin laughed again. “It’s nothing more than a condition… Deputy Commander Mo, what if I told you I have a way to make you succeed? Even if Feng Wu leaves Sin Star early and returns to the First Legion, I can still get you into the commander’s seat.”

Modexin’s expression tightened, and his pupils contracted slightly. To Yu Jin, that reaction was proof enough that the man had already been tempted.

Clearly, victory was already in his grasp.

That was where the conversation between Yu Jin and Modexin ended.

Yu Jin did not lay out any concrete plan, and Modexin gave him no definite answer either, yet the two of them seemed to have reached a kind of silent understanding.

At least, that was how it looked from Yu Jin’s side. Before they parted, Yu Jin even patted Modexin on the shoulder and unilaterally set the time and place for their next meeting.

He also said, “Deputy Commander Mo, if you’ve made up your mind, please let me know your decision in advance. I trust you won’t disappoint me, will you?”

Modexin gave him no answer, and Yu Jin left with a genial smile.

When Feng Wu, Lin An’an, and Modexin regrouped, they found Modexin wearing a dark expression. The first thing he did upon seeing them was let out a cold laugh. “Heh, heh, heh. Hearing that smug little laugh of his makes me want to smash a fist into his face.”

Lin An’an comforted him. “Hang in there, Brother Mo. It won’t be long before you can punch him as many times as you want.”

Modexin sighed. “I know.”

Feng Wu checked the time. “Let’s head back to the main hall. The birthday banquet is about to begin.”

By the time the three of them returned to the main hall, almost everyone had arrived, including those who had not come to the palace the day before.

Lin An’an spotted a few familiar faces among them, but his connection to these people was extremely shallow. At best, they were casual acquaintances. Some were people he had only seen once or twice from afar.

As the current acting overall commander of the First Legion, Modexin was immediately surrounded the moment he entered the hall.

Lin An’an and Feng Wu did not stick to him every step of the way. Instead, they found themselves a relatively quiet corner, sat down, and quietly observed everyone else in the hall.

Feng Wu knew almost all of them. In a low voice, he introduced them one by one to Lin An’an, telling him who could be trusted, who could not, and whose loyalties remained unclear.

Lin An’an had a good memory. After one round of explanations from Feng Wu, he had already memorized most of it, and could match nearly all the names to faces.

Just then, the hall suddenly fell quiet for a beat, and someone loudly announced, “His Majesty! The First Prince! The Second Prince!”

The crowded hall immediately parted down the middle, opening a path on both sides. Feng Wu and Lin An’an bowed respectfully along with everyone else, and only straightened again after Xia Jiyuan and the other two had taken their places at the front of the hall.

Taking advantage of their hidden position, Lin An’an lifted his eyes at once and looked toward Xia Jiyuan.

The man on the throne had put on some weight. His complexion was pale, his lips colorless, and his expression stiff and unnatural, completely unlike the Xia Jiyuan in Lin An’an’s memories.

Lin An’an frowned. Remembering what Gu Yubai had said earlier, that Xia Jiyuan was “not quite right,” he now felt even more certain.

The opening of the birthday banquet was naturally filled with long-winded ceremonial speeches.

His tone and cadence sounded no different from before, yet the longer Lin An’an listened, the more something felt off in Xia Jiyuan’s voice.

Too stiff.

It was as if someone had pre-programmed Xia Jiyuan, and all he was doing now was speaking according to a fixed script.

No, it was more than just his speech. Every movement he made—his words, his gestures, even the way his pupils shifted and contracted—felt like something dictated by a set program.

The abnormality was actually very subtle. The only reason Lin An’an could sense it was because he had encountered this sort of thing before.

In the world he had once gone to, there had been an ability called Control, classified under the broader category of “mind-domain enhancement.”

A person with the Control ability could completely manipulate another human being—their daily behavior, bodily movements, even their thoughts, soul, and life itself.

Naturally, such control came at a price, and not a small one. The unfortunate victim of this sort of manipulation would present exactly the same way Xia Jiyuan did now.

After the routine remarks ended, Xia Yuanhan, seated at Xia Jiyuan’s left, took over. “My elder brother is not feeling well, so I’ll be delivering his birthday remarks on his behalf today.”

Lin An’an instinctively glanced toward Xia Changluo and saw him sitting there with a slight curve to his lips, smiling faintly down at the crowd below.

Maybe it was the lighting, but Lin An’an felt that Xia Changluo’s face looked even paler and worse than it had the previous night at the cemetery.

Xia Yuanhan’s speech was nothing special. Once he ended with, “I hope everyone can find enjoyment at tonight’s banquet,” the celebration officially began.

Lin An’an’s gaze swept across his face. Of the three men on stage, Xia Yuanhan was the only one whose complexion looked completely normal.

Xia Changluo did not remain in the hall for long. After politely declining a few guests who wished to toast him, he was helped away through the back door by Uncle Lu.

With his sharp eyes, Lin An’an noticed several guards standing by the back entrance. They escorted Xia Changluo and Uncle Lu away together. Up on the platform, Xia Yuanhan’s gaze remained fixed on Xia Changluo the whole time, only withdrawing after the guards appeared.

So it really was surveillance.

Not long after that, Xia Yuanhan and Xia Jiyuan also descended into the crowd, each holding a wine glass and chatting amiably with the guests.

It was obviously Xia Changluo’s birthday banquet, yet the guest of honor had already left, and still the hall remained lively and spirited. Lin An’an could only find it deeply ironic.

Soon enough, he and Feng Wu met up with Modexin again. Modexin lowered his voice and asked, “Should we go test the Second Prince a little?”

Lin An’an shook his head. “No. Let’s check on my fa—on His Majesty first.”

Modexin nodded.

There were still people toasting Xia Jiyuan. Everyone seemed to understand the unspoken rules well: when someone was already speaking to him, no one else would step forward. They all waited until the previous person was done before moving in.

That also meant a lot of people were eyeing the spot beside Xia Jiyuan. Being “next up” was highly competitive.

Modexin was quick enough to secure the position, bringing Feng Wu and Lin An’an with him.

One official who had already been halfway there looked annoyed, but after recognizing the acting commander of the First Legion, could only retreat bitterly and wait for another chance.

“Your Majesty, have you been in good health lately?” Modexin asked with a respectful bow.

Xia Jiyuan smiled faintly. “All is well.”

Standing behind Modexin, Lin An’an studied him closely. Now that he was nearer, that rigid sense of wrongness felt even stronger.

While Modexin dutifully made small talk with Xia Jiyuan, Lin An’an quietly moved the fingers of the hand hanging at his side. A thread of spiritual force slipped out, made two discreet circles around Xia Jiyuan, and quickly dissipated.

Once the exchange ended, Modexin turned and went straight toward Xia Yuanhan.

As the Second Prince—and currently the imperial prince most likely to become Crown Prince—Xia Yuanhan had no fewer people waiting around him than Xia Jiyuan did.

This time Modexin had to wait more than ten minutes before finally getting a chance to speak.

“Your Highness,” Modexin greeted respectfully.

“Deputy Commander Mo, long time no see. I trust you’ve been well?” Xia Yuanhan smiled at him, as warm and cordial as though they were old friends reunited after many years.

Was it because Xia Yuanhan had already decided Modexin would cooperate with Yu Jin, and therefore counted him as one of his own? Lin An’an lowered his eyes, surprised to find his mood much calmer than he had expected.

He had once imagined many times what it would feel like to see his dear second brother again.

Maybe regret—regret that he had once misjudged someone so badly. Maybe sorrow—because he truly had trusted Xia Yuanhan before and, for a time, regarded him as the person closest to him. Or maybe disgust, hatred, and any number of other emotions.

But now Lin An’an discovered that what he felt was not so much calm as clarity.

People always say time is the best thing for diluting feelings, and now that seemed true enough.

He did indeed despise Xia Yuanhan, but more than because of personal grievances, his hatred stemmed from the damage Xia Yuanhan had done to the Empire and the entire galaxy.

By now Modexin had already finished his exchange with Xia Yuanhan.

Though it was meant to be a probe, Modexin dared not say too much, worried he might let something slip when he already knew Xia Yuanhan’s true nature. In the end, he only asked one question regarding the First Prince’s health.

It was the sort of question many people would ask, and Xia Yuanhan answered, “My elder brother’s old ailment has flared up again. It’s just more severe this time than before. The healers say they’ll do their utmost, but as for when he’ll recover…”

He paused at exactly the right moment, letting the rest of the sentence trail into a sigh, his face full of concern.

An old ailment…

Xia Changluo’s long-standing problem was his heart condition. But Lin An’an clearly remembered his elder brother telling him once that his heart disease had remained fairly stable and, with medication and healers, should not present any major issue.

Modexin did not press further and led Feng Wu and Lin An’an back toward the quieter edge of the hall.

Once they were seated in a relatively empty and quiet area, Feng Wu asked softly, “An’an, what did you find?”

“My father has been controlled,” Lin An’an said, lowering his eyes slightly.

That thread of spiritual force had already given him the answer. The method used to control Xia Jiyuan was extremely similar to the Control ability from his memories, though the energy fluctuations were not entirely identical.

It was likely some other method similar to Control—Lin An’an’s instincts told him it had to be the handiwork of someone from the X Galaxy.

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