After Xu Lian took the money and ran, she vanished without a trace.
Song Jinze saw on the wristband that she was heading nonstop toward a planet called Canis.
He immediately shared her location with the manager of Mengmeng Pet Hospital.
Song Jinze: 「Locator」
Song Jinze: 「Keep an eye on her for me. Report her whereabouts and movements immediately.」
Broken Snake: 「Understood.」
…
Mu Hua was spreading news externally.
Song Jinze’s name carried immense attention; whenever he was mentioned, people responded instantly. So when she posted, “Commander Song is occupying T-003 Wormhole,” the recruitment post quickly gathered a large crowd.
This was a completely public recruitment post, so the respondents were a mix of all sorts—various ranks and backgrounds.
Defeating a powerful figure was something one could boast about forever. Even without considering whether T-003 Wormhole itself was valuable, just the name “Song Jinze” was enough to stir a storm.
But aside from some troublemaking small fry, the T-003 Wormhole also caught the attention of several powerful factions.
Song Jinze had countless enemies, and there were innumerable people who wanted to test their strength against him.
As soon as these people heard that Song Jinze had sent a large contingent to T-003 Wormhole, they became restless.
As early as yesterday, over a million people had landed near T-003, even causing severe congestion at the space station.
Among them were onlookers and some who wanted to compete with Song Jinze for territory.
A tiny asteroid had suddenly become extremely lively.
But…
Song Jinze had not shown up.
Moreover, there was no news of him anywhere.
The faction leaders and commanders lingered, surrounding the Wormhole, waiting for him like predators lying in wait.
At that moment, Mu Hua was panicking.
She had sent countless messages to Song Jinze, but none were answered.
She didn’t know that all her messages had actually gone to Xu Lian’s wristband, not Song Jinze himself.
At the time, Xu Lian was lying in the medical pod, with no time to check messages.
Now, she was napping on the long-range spacecraft, still ignoring them.
Mu Hua felt doomed.
She knew that posting such a message, causing such a huge military stir, would have gotten her into serious trouble if the report had been false.
What should she do? What should she do? Why isn’t Song Jinze replying!?
…
Xu Lian was reclining with her legs crossed on the ship, dozing.
A precariously balanced bottle of nutritional liquid hung from her mouth; she sipped intermittently, scratched her face, and continued drooling unconcerned.
She was so exhausted that her eyelids could barely stay open. She sent Lin Zhaocai a message, saying she’d arrive on Canis the next day, telling him to keep his wallet secure—she intended to eat her fill.
She casually glanced at the messages Mu Hua had sent, bored, all repetitive questions like, “Commander Song, should we withdraw troops?” or “Commander Song, should we send more reinforcements?”
She was too lazy to reply and deleted the chat window.
Besides, now that she was already away from Song Jinze, issuing commands would be too risky.
Ding—another new message arrived.
Lin Zhaocai: 「Are you out of danger?」
Xu Lian: 「Almost.」
Lin Zhaocai: 「What’s going on exactly?」
Xu Lian: 「I’ll tell you when I land. I’m afraid of being monitored.」
Lin Zhaocai: 「Alright. Be careful.」
Xu Lian: 「Mm. By the way, can you contact Black Chess and White Chess now?」
Lin Zhaocai: 「You mean your previous contacts? The twins?」
Xu Lian: 「Yes.」
Lin Zhaocai: 「Can do. Why?」
Xu Lian: 「I’ll kill them in a couple of days. Help me arrange a meeting beforehand.」
Lin Zhaocai: 「???」
Lin Zhaocai: 「You’re not joking, right?」
Xu Lian: 「Of course not. I’ve got the gun ready.」
From Song Jinze. Good gun.
Lin Zhaocai: 「Why kill them? Did they offend you?」
Xu Lian: 「They did, but even if they hadn’t, I’d still kill them.」
Lin Zhaocai: 「……」
Lin Zhaocai: 「Rolling, when did you go dark? Why didn’t you take me along?」
Xu Lian: 「……Recently.」
Xu Lian: 「Anyway, first make sure they’re under control. Also, monitor the twins’ wristbands closely. If any stranger sends a friend request or suspicious message, intercept and report to me immediately.」
Lin Zhaocai: 「Understood.」
After sending the messages, Xu Lian leaned back in her seat, thinking.
She had to handle the twins immediately, or Song Jinze might find out her name.
Also, Mu Hua and Gu Ying needed monitoring.
But with her current status, killing Mu Hua immediately was unlikely. She would need others to deal with her.
Or… perhaps she could exchange souls with Song Jinze once more.
Xu Lian frowned.
Her name absolutely could not be discovered.
She had to quickly eliminate these nuisances to prevent future trouble.
But life still needed to be enjoyed.
Xu Lian took out her wristband again, scrolling through short videos and jokes, while planning her final travels and her “100 things to do before dying.”
…
Meanwhile, Gu Ying was in a private chat room, passionately watching The Temptation of Wolves with a group of military and cryptography experts.
This was already their tenth viewing.
Joyful, lively howls echoed alongside the ridiculously low-quality plot, leaving everyone shocked.
Expert A: “Hss.”
Expert B: “Hss.”
Expert C: “Hss.”
Gu Ying covered his eyes. “How can Song Jinze watch such a dumb movie? It’s… ridiculous.”
Expert A frowned. “There must be something hidden in it.”
Expert B slammed his leg. “Great minds think alike.”
Expert C: “Mm-hm.”
The experts held electronic devices and files, constantly taking notes, analyzing the lines and character relationships.
Expert A furrowed his brow. “At 3 minutes 26 seconds, the protagonist wolf says, ‘West, the enemy is in the west.’ Could this hint at a key geographic location?”
Expert B added immediately: “I noticed that too. 3:26, 326. This number is crucial. Song Jinze controls S-326 Wormhole, a resource-rich mineral planet. This line might relate to that planet.”
Expert C: “Mm-hm.”
Gu Ying pondered. “Highly possible. Let’s continue.”
The Temptation of Wolves continued playing.
“Wait, stop!” Expert A spoke again. “Here it is!”
The scene froze on a golden planet.
Expert A pointed at the screen. “Look at this planet. Doesn’t it look familiar?”
Expert B: “Hss. Yeah… kind of like…”
Expert A: “Canis.”
Expert B slammed the table. “No, not just like it—it’s Canis. The movie was produced by Canis’ film company, and most of the story takes place there!”
Expert C: “Mm-hm.”
Gu Ying stroked his chin. “What does this mean?”
Expert A began a long analysis, outlining connections and reasoning, impressing everyone, ultimately concluding:
Canis likely has a military link to Song Jinze, and the movie might secretly transmit messages or intelligence.
Song Jinze would never watch such a film without purpose; it must hide secrets.
But Gu Ying remained puzzled. “I thought Canis’ leader and Song Jinze weren’t close. That person seems neutral.”
Expert A: “That’s mistaken. Leaders who appear neutral might privately take sides. Maintaining complete neutrality is nearly impossible.”
Expert C: “Mm-hm.”
Gu Ying still doubted. The conclusion seemed far-fetched.
But… why not try?
He thought for a moment and decided: “Immediately send people to Canis to infiltrate and monitor the planet constantly.”
Subordinate: “Commander Gu, we already have someone there.”
Gu Ying: “Hmm?”
Subordinate: “Remember Treasure? He’s still at the Canis academy for military assessment. Perfect for this mission.”
Gu Ying thought for a moment, then realized: “Ah, right, I almost forgot. Okay, contact Treasure immediately.”
Subordinate: “Yes.”