Chapter 581: Eerie Signs

In that moment, Ye Liuying changed. Her demeanor grew colder and more detached. If she had once been an aloof figure who kept others at a distance, she now exuded the aura of an icy longsword that gave off a subtle yet piercing chill. It felt as though anyone who dared approach her would be sliced by sharp sword qi.

Her phoenix-like eyes gleamed with an uncanny light, as if a sword danced within her pupils. Even her very pores seemed to emit faint threads of sword qi, as though her body had become one with the blade. She was now a true sword person[1] .

Li Xiaofei felt a faint sense of threat himself . The sword qi she radiated was sharp enough, he estimated, to cut through a third of a millimeter of his skin.

Impressive.

"This sword technique... it’s simply divine," Ye Liuying murmured with genuine awe.

She turned to Li Xiaofei and said, "You’ve saved me once again."

"Is there a need for such distant words between us?" Li Xiaofei replied with a smile.

A faint ripple of emotion appeared in Ye Liuying’s otherwise icy gaze, she asked, "What is our relationship, exactly?"

Without hesitation, Li Xiaofei answered, "We’re friends, of course."

"Just friends?" Ye Liuying asked, her voice carrying a subtle challenge.

Li Xiaofei blinked, momentarily caught off guard. "Uh... really good friends?"

"How good?" She pressed further, her tone unreadable.

"Uh..." Li Xiaofei scratched his head, thinking carefully before replying with a mischievous grin, "Good enough to... uh, pee together?"

A metaphorical row of black lines seemed to appear on Ye Liuying’s smooth, jade-like forehead as she stared at him in exasperated silence.

"We need to quickly take control of Lanfu Base City's military and government to restore the city’s defenses," said the Goddess, her expression turning serious.

She continued, "The current situation is dire. The heartland of Great Xia is in ruins. Reports suggest that only a few super-base cities like Xiajing and Haijing remain standing. Everywhere else has either been overrun by the Yiggs-led coalition or betrayed by rebel martial families."

Li Xiaofei’s heart burned with fury. "These martial families are citizens of Great Xia, and yet, in the face of national calamity, instead of aiding their country, they exploit its suffering for personal gain. They deserve nothing less than eradication."

"A world where martial strength reigns is fertile ground for tyrants," Ye Liuying remarked. "Often, the inflammatory words of a single ambitious despot can plunge an entire base city into chaos."

Li Xiaofei nodded in agreement. He understood the truth in her words. For years, the Great Xia government had governed with the people in mind. Its policies and laws were designed to protect civilians, with education systems heavily favoring the common populace.

This fairness and progressiveness, though admirable, had created an irreconcilable rift between the martial families and the government. Their conflicting core interests had led to increasing tensions.

"The military will be your responsibility, Goddess," Li Xiaofei said decisively. "As for the government’s operations, in addition to leveraging the existing officials, we’ll need to identify a few reliable and capable individuals to take on key roles."

He had already given this issue considerable thought and had a list of potential candidates. One name stood out: Xie Renyu, the former leader of Liuhe Base City. Though he hailed from the Xie family, Xie Renyu had severed ties with them long ago. He possessed the ability, experience, and political acumen necessary for leadership.

Furthermore, appointing Xie Renyu could help win over some of the former Xie family-affiliated officials, allowing them to continue serving the people and contributing positively to the rebuilding effort.

After all, some of these officials were competent and had not willingly supported the Xie family’s treachery. Li Xiaofei’s guiding principle was clear.

"Punish the past to prevent future wrongs, treat the disease to save the patient."

In times of national crisis, it was essential to unite all who could be rallied to face the calamity together.

"The situation in Xiajing City—is there still no accurate information?" Li Xiaofei asked.

Ye Liuying nodded solemnly. "The light-network is down, communication lines have been cut, and the sudden beast tide has completely severed physical connections. Now, the major base cities in the country are all operating independently. Otherwise, the Yiggs coalition’s advance wouldn’t have been this swift."

The situation was worse than Li Xiaofei had imagined. The collapse of the light-network was catastrophic for any nation on Earth in this age. It was akin to suddenly becoming blind and deaf. However, the light-network’s breakdown seemed far too unusual. After all, the light-network was the creation of the Star Council, an interstellar organization of unparalleled influence.

In this world, no force dared to openly challenge the Star Council. Even the Yiggs, as aggressive and powerful as they were, had to tread cautiously when dealing with the council.

"Lanfu Base City had a Star Council presence. Did they give any explanation for the network’s collapse?" Li Xiaofei asked.

Ye Liuying shook her head. "Shortly after the war began, the Star Council declared a temporary lockdown of all its facilities within Great Xia. They withdrew their inspectors and ceased all external operations."

Li Xiaofei frowned deeply at her response. This was clearly a deliberate move to allow the Yiggs free rein. Great Xia held a seat in the Star Council, and its Grand Commander was the council’s current chair. More importantly, Great Xia had been one of the founding nations of the Star Council. Yet, the Star Council now appeared to be blatantly taking sides against Great Xia. There had to be a conspiracy behind this.

Li Xiaofei’s mind raced. This betrayal by the Star Council was not just about neglect; it was a calculated abandonment of Great Xia, and perhaps even collusion with its enemies. He couldn’t afford to ignore this treachery.

Li Xiaofei thought for a moment and decided he didn’t need to worry too much about Xiajing City. After all, it had several Grand Commanders stationed there, not to mention the Cemetery of the Ancestors at White Deer Academy.

If Great Xia truly faced a life-or-death crisis, those ancient sages buried in the cemetery would likely sense it and rise from their graves, wouldn’t they? Still, he needed to make his way to Xiajing City as soon as possible.

At that moment, a voice echoed in his mind.

"Great and noble master, your humble servant Barush greets you."

Hmm?

Li Xiaofei used his thoughts to respond.

"What is it?"

"Great and exalted master, the warship you captured has been locked remotely eleven times. I have resolved the issue for you, but the ship’s systems are too outdated to counterattack or trace the source of the interference."

"Locked remotely? Interesting."

Li Xiaofei’s interest was piqued.

The Yiggs warships were apparently advanced enough to engage in remote control locking.

"No need for retaliation. Focus on repairing the ship, ensure all vulnerabilities are eliminated, and station it at Lanfu Base City."

"As you command, great and noble master. Your servant has a humble suggestion, if you have time to hear it."

"Make it quick."

"Your humble servant suggests transporting the warship to Black Iron Wind Ruins for modifications. This will significantly enhance its combat capabilities in the shortest time possible. I assure you, the results will be a delightful surprise."

"Approved."

"An excellent and wise decision, as expected from you, great master."

Li Xiaofei shook his head, amused. The limited vocabulary of Subspace entities was almost pitiable. They only knew how to excessively flatter.

Li Xiaofei remained stationed in Lanfu Base City for the next three days. He needed to ensure that all aspects of the city’s recovery and stabilization were firmly on track before he could leave.

Fortunately, Xie Renyu’s injuries had fully healed, and he adapted to his new role quickly. With the assistance of former key members of the Cloudy Sky Gang, the veterans from Liuhe Base City, and individuals like Qin Dewei, a teacher from Red Flag High School, the city began to operate smoothly and efficiently.

During this time, Li Xiaofei didn’t remain idle. He personally ventured out and eradicated all high-grade star beasts within a five hundred mile radius of the city. This ensured that the star beast hordes wouldn’t be able to organize a large-scale beast tide for several months.

However, Li Xiaofei noticed some strange phenomena. Many of the star beasts outside the city didn’t belong to the northwest climate zone. Logically, star beasts of Grade Five and above possessed intelligence equivalent to that of adult humans. They should have been capable of assessing situations, understanding danger, and retreating when necessary.

Furthermore, beasts inherently followed a survival instinct that prioritized self-preservation. Yet, these high-grade beast kings outside Lanfu Base City displayed unusual behavior. Even when faced with certain death, they refused to retreat. Fear was evident in their eyes, but it was as if some unseen force was compelling them to charge forward to their deaths.

This reminded Li Xiaofei of the earlier incident with the Yiggs operative using the Eye of Artemis to control Principal Hu.

Could these star beasts also be under some kind of external control? Is this control linked to the legendary divine weapons of the Jiepeng Empire?

Li Xiaofei couldn’t shake the feeling that something profound was changing on Earth. He returned to the city with a large cache of strategic resources, including Inscribed Treasure Bones and star cores harvested from the star beasts. These materials would greatly aid Lanfu Base City in rebuilding its defenses and preparing for the challenges ahead.

"Little Li, something’s not right," said Xie Renyu, the newly appointed city leader of Lanfu Base City.

He was utterly exhausted. He looked like a husky that had just run a kilometer with his tongue hanging out. "The Xie family colluded with the Yiggs to smuggle 500,000 people out of the city without a sound."

Li Xiaofei’s expression sharpened.

Human trafficking?

He immediately thought of the infamous actions of the Jiepeng people from the past.

"Five hundred thousand is no small number. We must find a way to rescue them," he said, pressing for details. "Do we know where they were taken?"

"After exhausting myself to the brink of collapse, I’ve come to a preliminary conclusion—they were transported in the direction of Xiajing City," Xie Renyu replied, slumping against the desk.

Xiajing City?

Urgency surged in Li Xiaofei’s chest. An ominous feeling told him he couldn’t afford to wait any longer.

"By the way," he added, "you’re the new city leader now. Could you act with a bit more decorum? The way you talk and sit is so... unrefined."

Xie Renyu leaned back in his chair, throwing his legs onto the desk. "I’ve bled for Liuhe, broken bones for Great Xia, and been maimed for the people. If I want to slack off for a bit, who’s going to stop me?"

Li Xiaofei was momentarily speechless.

"Goodbye," he muttered, turning on his heel and leaving without another word.

After making the necessary arrangements, Li Xiaofei decided to depart immediately. Ignoring Principal Hu’s repeated pleas for him to stay, Li Xiaofei tightened his belt, soared into the sky on his sword, and transformed into a streak of radiant sword light that shot toward the northeast.

His speed in sword flight was unparalleled. In less than three hours, he was within three hundred kilometers of Xiajing City. The journey wasn’t without delays. He had encountered several flocks of flying star beasts along the way, which cost him some time.

"Hmm? What is this energy..."

About two hundred kilometers from Xiajing City, Li Xiaofei suddenly felt a strange and oppressive energy in the air. A suffocating, violent aura filled the heavens and earth, as though countless unseen beings were wailing and crying out in despair.

Even the sunlight seemed dimmed as shadows cast a pall over the landscape. It was as if the world itself had turned darker.

Suddenly, a piercing screech rang out across the air. Li Xiaofei’s eyes flicked toward the source of the sound, and his pupils contracted sharply.

1. The Chinese words ‘剑人‘ (Sword person) has the same pronunciation as ‘贱人’ which means ‘bitch’. ☜