Monster Cub Live Stream – CH78

Chapter 78

Just as Lin An’an and the others had guessed, even though the people of the X-System had found a way to cross the Chaotic Stone Belt, the Belt itself was still a barrier between the two star systems. They simply could not send over a large force.

The only ones who had come to the Silver River galaxy to carry out this expansion mission were the cyborgs aboard Lan Ersite’s starship, along with the other starship—now destroyed by Lin An’an and the others—that had been packed with Zerg and Kailuo Stone.

The Kailuo Stone and the Zerg had been their most important weapons.

Now, with the crucial Kailuo Stone destroyed by Lin An’an, and Lan Ersite and the others annihilated along with their starship in the Chaotic Stone Belt, the only thing left was the Zerg army still attacking the Federation.

But with the broodmother—the Zergs’ “commander”—already dead, the remaining Zerg army on the battlefield had lost its core. Their actions were now driven purely by instinct, which made them far less threatening. All that remained was a large-scale cleanup.

Si Youlin stayed near the Chaotic Stone Belt with half of the First Legion’s soldiers, making sure no further accidents occurred and overseeing the post-battle cleanup.

The Federation and the star pirates also left behind quite a number of people.

On the way back to the Empire, Feng Wu all but forced Lin An’an to rest properly.

Purifying an entire shipload of Kailuo Stone had consumed an enormous amount of power and stamina. Aside from the first few small rooms, Lin An’an had basically relied on energy replenishment potions to get through the rest of the purification work.

Drinking large amounts of energy-replenishing potions in a short time, then forcing himself to overuse his powers that heavily, put a tremendous strain on the body.

Lin An’an sighed as if troubled, but when he saw the firm, faintly worried expression on Feng Wu’s face, the corners of his eyes curved again.

It looked like, for the next stretch of time, he was going to be forced into “standby hibernation mode.”

Lin An’an lay down on the bed and closed his eyes, trying to sleep and recover the strength he had completely drained. But he had only just come out of a thrilling battle. His body was exhausted beyond words, yet his mind was still buzzing with excitement.

A while later, he opened his eyes again and logged onto StarNet.

News of the X-System’s defeat had already spread across the entire Silver River galaxy.

Lin An’an browsed through the posts on StarNet. Gone was the panic and despair that had filled it just days ago. Now StarNet was lively and celebratory. Even the Federation, still in the middle of wiping out the Zerg, had joined in the cheering.

[I’m so emotional right now I don’t even know what words to use, wuwuwu.]

[This was way too fast! I declare this the shortest war in Silver River history!!!]

[I thought those bastards from the X-System were supposed to be so powerful. Turns out they got wiped the second they came out of the Chaotic Stone Belt. ?]

[Ah, I really wish I could’ve seen the look on their faces when they tried to run with their tails tucked and still failed.]

[Invaders deserve exactly this kind of ending!]

[What about that whole ship of Kailuo Stone? Was it blown up too? Can people still go near the Chaotic Stone Belt from now on?]

[Yes, you can. Don’t worry—the Kailuo Stone has all been purified by His Highness the Third Prince, so no one needs to worry about radiation there anymore. [happy pinwheel.jpg]]

[The entire shipload of Kailuo Stone was purified?! [pupil earthquake.jpg]]

[Holy crap, the Third Prince is incredible! [offering my knees.jpg]]

[This victory really is thanks to His Highness the Third Prince and Marshal Feng and the others. When His Highness posted on Starblog earlier saying “As long as I’m here,” I was still thinking, what can one person really do? How much difference can one person make? How could he possibly turn things around? And then just a few days later, I got slapped in the face, wuwuwuwu. [my face hurts but I’m exploding with joy.jpg]]

[I hereby declare that from today onward, I am the Third Prince’s dog. [wagging tail.gif]]

[I’m kind of worried about His Highness the Third Prince… that was a whole ship of Kailuo Stone. Is his body really okay? I hope he won’t be left with any aftereffects.]

[Help, I was so busy celebrating I forgot to worry—please let His Highness be okay. [cat crying.jpg]]

[@Xia Lin, Your Highness, can you please come out and let us know you’re safe? Just tell us you’re okay. [covering mouth and crying.jpg]]

[His Highness is probably resting right now, right?]

[Yes yes, let’s not disturb him for now.]

[Holy crap, His Highness really posted on Starblog! He said he’s fine and told everyone not to worry. [bursting into tears.jpg]]

[Wuwuwuwu thank goodness he’s okay. An’zai—no, I mean, His Highness the Third Prince will always be the best!!!]

…

After letting everyone know on StarNet that he was safe, Lin An’an kept scrolling through Starblog, when he suddenly heard the bedroom door open.

Familiar footsteps entered the room, followed by Feng Wu’s slightly helpless voice. “Didn’t I tell you to rest? How do you still have the energy to post on Starblog?”

—He’d been caught red-handed.

Lin An’an blinked and tilted his head innocently to look at him. “I can’t sleep. And reading Starblog doesn’t use brainpower, so it still counts as resting.”

The logic was so shamelessly self-righteous that even Feng Wu fell silent.

A moment later, he asked, “Want something to eat? There are ingredients prepared on the battleship. Tell me what you want and I’ll make it.”

Lin An’an’s eyes lit up, and his stomach chose that exact moment to growl twice. “I want the egg noodles you make. With two eggs.”

“Alright,” Feng Wu agreed immediately.

The battleship flew steadily through the void. Unlike the tense urgency of their trip there, the return journey felt light and easy, like a tour group heading home after a vacation.

After finishing a bowl of steaming hot noodles, Lin An’an was finally completely overwhelmed by exhaustion. He wrapped himself in the blanket and slept so hard he might as well have lost consciousness.

When he woke again, the battleship had already returned to Imperial territory.

The room was empty. Lin An’an washed his face to wake himself up, then leisurely made his way to the battleship’s main control room.

Feng Wu was standing beside the main pilot’s seat, a light screen flickering rapidly in front of him as if he were looking through some documents.

When he heard the door open, he glanced back once, then immediately walked over to Lin An’an. “Not sleeping anymore?”

“Nope.” Lin An’an looked toward the main screen in the control room. “We’re almost there?”

Feng Wu nodded. “Mm. We’ll be landing at the Capital Star base in ten minutes.”

He raised a hand and touched Lin An’an’s face.

Lin An’an’s complexion was still very pale, which made the red marks on his cheek—left from sleeping—stand out more than usual.

Lin An’an turned his head and rubbed against Feng Wu’s palm. Looking up at him, he asked, “What is it?”

Feng Wu paused. “…Nothing.”

“You want to kiss me, then just do it.” Lin An’an blinked, glanced behind him, and said softly, “Don’t worry, Bear-ge isn’t looking this way.”

Feng Wu: “I wasn’t—”

“You don’t want to?” Lin An’an frowned. “Fine then. I’m the one who wants to.”

He rose onto his toes and planted a loud kiss on Feng Wu before the man could react, then gave a contented little sigh.

“Really nice,” he muttered softly. “Now that the X-System is gone, even kissing feels more comfortable.”

Feng Wu pressed his lips together, a smile flickering in his eyes. Just as he lowered his head, ready to continue that too-brief kiss, there came an awkward cough from behind them.

“Ahem.” Xiong Yingjun scratched the back of his head awkwardly. “Sorry to interrupt you two… but the Eldest Prince just sent a new message. Boss, are you really not going to look at it?”

Feng Wu’s ears instantly flushed a faint red. Pretending calm, he stepped back two paces and returned to where he had been standing, his gaze falling back onto the light screen.

Lin An’an sighed regretfully and strolled to the very front of the control room.

Through the transparent observation screen, the emblem of the First Legion’s base on Capital Star could already be made out in the distance.

Now that they had entered Capital Star’s airspace, the battleship had slowed its speed. The scenery that had once been a blur rushing past gradually sharpened into focus.

Lin An’an saw that a crowd had gathered outside the base gates.

Ordinary people weren’t allowed into the base, so they had clustered outside the entrance instead. Nearly everyone held some colorful little glowing object, lighting up the night in bright flashes.

“…What’s that?” Lin An’an asked in surprise.

Feng Wu took a look and said, “Probably people who came to welcome our return.”

The moment those words left his mouth, Lin An’an saw the previously quiet crowd suddenly stir.

A moment later, an enormous banner made entirely of colored lights slowly unfurled from among the crowd.

Congratulations to His Highness the Third Prince and Marshal Feng on your triumphant return!

Each character glowed in a different color, like a seven-colored beacon in the dark.

Lin An’an stared blankly. “…They really moved fast.”

Feng Wu smiled. “Or maybe they had the banner prepared long ago and were just waiting for the chance to use it.”

Having a victory banner ready before they even departed—well, that did count as a good omen.

The battleship landed steadily inside the base. Medical staff who had been waiting for a long time immediately swarmed forward, giving each soldier who disembarked a full check-up.

Lin An’an was no exception.

After looking at his results, the healer responsible for him darkened in expression. “Mental power and ability overdrawn, excessive use of energy-restoration potions, resulting in unstable ability core—”

At the side, Feng Wu’s expression changed slightly.

Lin An’an immediately waved his hands. “Wait, wait, wait, don’t make it sound so serious! All of this can recover!”

The healer glared fiercely at him. “Recover, yes, it can recover—but! No using mental power or abilities for one week! And for one month, absolutely no heavy use of mental power or abilities!”

“I know, I know.”

Lin An’an nodded like a chick pecking rice. Seeing that Feng Wu still looked grim, he quickly added, “Come on, Wolf-ge, there’s nothing ahead that’ll need my powers anyway. I’ll rest properly.”

Only then did Feng Wu’s tightly knit brows ease slightly.

After the examination, Lin An’an and Feng Wu finally set off for the Aimeio Imperial Palace.

Though it was already deep into the night, the palace’s main hall was still brightly lit. Everyone was waiting for Feng Wu and Lin An’an to return.

Xia Changluo stood at the entrance in a heavy coat. The moment he saw Lin An’an, his eyes lit up. He walked over and pulled him into a hug, then stepped back two paces and looked him up and down.

“You’re not hurt, are you?”

Lin An’an shook his head and took Xia Changluo’s hand. Seeing how pale his face was, and how his lips had taken on a faint purplish tint, Lin An’an instinctively wanted to use his ability to treat him.

Then he heard Feng Wu cough softly beside him. Even without turning his head, he could feel the sharp look now resting squarely on his back.

Lin An’an gave a dry laugh inwardly. “Don’t worry, Big Brother. I’m not hurt. Wolf-ge and the others protected me very well.”

Only then did Xia Changluo look at Feng Wu. “You’ve all worked hard.”

Feng Wu shook his head. “It’s nothing. The healer said An—His Highness the Third Prince overused both his mental power and his ability. He’s not allowed to use his powers at all for the next month.”

Lin An’an protested, “It was clearly one week with no powers! The one month part only means no heavy—”

His voice grew smaller and smaller under Feng Wu’s stare, until in the end he could only sigh and say, “Fine. I’ll listen to you.”

Xia Changluo covered his mouth and gave a small laugh.

There were still many others in the hall waiting for them. After Xia Changluo organized a very brief meeting, he dismissed everyone.

Mo Dexin, who had originally been stationed on Capital Star, had been sent by Xia Changluo to support the Federation in wiping out the Zerg.

According to the latest message from Gu Yubai, those Zerg had already been reduced to little more than creatures acting on instinct. They were no longer much of a threat, and the large-scale cleanup would be over in about three days.

“Go rest first,” Xia Changluo said.

But Lin An’an shook his head. “Big Brother, you should rest first. Wolf-ge and I still need to go to the detention block.”

Xia Changluo understood at once. “To see Xia Yuanhan?”

“Exactly.” Lin An’an nodded. “Such a huge piece of good news should of course be delivered to him immediately.”

Xia Changluo laughed. “You really are…”

Some days later, Lin An’an and Feng Wu once again arrived at the deepest level of the detention block.

When the door opened, Xia Yuanhan was sitting on the crude little bed inside, looking up at the ceiling, lost in thought.

Lin An’an arched a brow. “Yo, still not asleep?”

Hearing his voice, Xia Yuanhan looked surprised. “Why are you still here? Weren’t you supposed to go to the front lines? Did you give up?”

He had been completely cut off from the outside world inside the detention block, so he knew nothing of the X-System’s defeat.

“Of course I’ve already come back from the front lines.” Lin An’an flashed him a bright smile. “And I brought you some good news.”

Xia Yuanhan frowned and said nothing. Then he watched Lin An’an casually open his terminal, tap into StarNet, and enlarge the trending page onto the screen.

#X-System Defeated#
#His Highness the Third Prince Purified All the Kailuo Stone#
#We Won#
#Nearly One Quarter of Sinstar Patients Have Recovered#

…

As the string of trending topics scrolled past, Xia Yuanhan’s face changed again and again.

“The X-System… lost?” he muttered. “That’s impossible!”

“What’s so impossible about it?” Lin An’an’s smile only widened. “Whether you believe it or not is your problem. I only came to tell you that your public trial is still scheduled as planned.”

Xia Yuanhan’s eyes were wide, but his pupils had lost focus. He was clearly still sinking in utter shock.

Lin An’an said softly, “So then—see you tomorrow morning at ten.”

The next day at ten, Xia Yuanhan’s public trial began on schedule.

This trial was broadcast live from start to finish. Everyone in the Empire—and indeed across the entire galaxy—could watch every moment of it.

Lin An’an and Feng Wu sat below the stand as the presiding examiner listed each of Xia Yuanhan’s crimes one by one. After presenting each piece of evidence, the examiner asked him whether it was true.

Sitting in the defendant’s seat, Xia Yuanhan looked utterly lost and broken, as though he could not hear the examiner’s questions at all. And since he offered no denial, his silence was taken as admission.

The trial went very smoothly, and the final judgment was exactly what Lin An’an had expected.

—Death.

At the instant the judgment hammer came down, the people of the Empire erupted in cheers.

Xia Yuanhan’s execution was set for that very night. Before his execution, he was granted a final meal on humanitarian grounds.

Lin An’an and Xia Changluo brought it to him together: a bowl of scallion oil noodles topped with a soft-centered fried egg.

Inside the prison, Xia Yuanhan lifted his gaze. The moment he saw the bowl of noodles, his pupils shrank sharply.

“Looks like you still remember this bowl of noodles,” Lin An’an said. “Mother made it for you many times, didn’t she?”

He held the noodles out to Xia Yuanhan, but the latter remained frozen, staring at the bowl without reaching for it.

Lin An’an could only set it down in front of him. As he stood up, he asked softly, “Second Brother, I’ll ask you one last time.”

He looked straight into Xia Yuanhan’s eyes. “From the moment you set foot on this path until now—have you really never regretted it? Not even a little?”

Xia Yuanhan said nothing. After Lin An’an and Xia Changluo turned and left, only then did he finally pick up the bowl and take a bite of the noodles.

…It wasn’t the same taste anymore.

No matter how much it resembled it, it still was not Aunt Bai’s cooking.

An immense bitterness rose abruptly from the bottom of his heart, spreading through his entire body. His organs twisted with pain, as though about to tear apart.

Xia Yuanhan gave a low laugh. He laughed and laughed, and then suddenly burst into sobs.

He regretted it.

But long ago, he had cut off his own path back with his own two hands.

By the time Xia Yuanhan’s execution ended, the sky had already gone dark.

Lin An’an pulled Feng Wu to the imperial mausoleum, to that familiar gravestone once more.

Bai Cenrou’s grave had been kept spotless. Several bouquets had already been placed before it, and now there was one more—a bouquet of white lilies that Lin An’an had brought for her.

“It’s all over now,” Lin An’an murmured with a sigh. “It feels like a lifetime ago. None of it feels real.”

Feng Wu looked slightly puzzled. “Not real?”

“Mm. I guess it’s because I never imagined things would turn out like this,” Lin An’an said quietly.

Thinking back to when he had first awakened in this world, before recovering the memories of his former life, before learning who he really was—

Back then, the only thing he had to worry about was how to survive in the brutal environment of Sinstar.

Who could have guessed that less than a year later, he would already have accomplished something as absurd as saving the world?

Feng Wu wrapped an arm around his shoulders and spoke just as softly. “I never imagined it either.”

He had never imagined that he would one day return to the Empire.

Nor had he imagined that, when that day finally came, there would be someone at his side—the one person he wanted to walk beside for the rest of his life.

He lowered his head slightly, looking at the person beside him. In his dark golden eyes was reflected the pale curve of Lin An’an’s cheek.

Lin An’an tilted his head to look at him. “What are you thinking about?”

Feng Wu came back to himself. “I’m thinking… about the future.”

Lin An’an’s eyes flashed with amusement. “What kind of future?”

Feng Wu smiled too, then lowered his head and kissed him. “A future with you in it.”

—To be able to stay by each other’s side. A future like that was already beautiful enough, and more than enough to make one look forward to it with all one’s heart.

—End of Main Story—

Click here to download the full novel. (EPUB & PDF)