Sheng Anlan’s raised footsteps came to an abrupt halt.
Were they talking about her?
She really hadn’t done anything.
Before she could recover from her embarrassment, one of the rabbit-eared beastmen spoke up again. “I think you’re both overthinking it. How could the Princess possibly be with the Royal Husband?”
It seemed someone still had a clear head. Right, she surely wouldn’t be so shameless and debauched.
After speaking, he glanced left and right, then lowered his voice. “No matter how eager the Princess is, the Royal Husbands wouldn’t submit anyway. Look at Royal Husband Li Luo—he never gives the Princess a kind look.”
“True enough. The Princess and her Royal Husbands have never gotten along,” one of the beastmen nearby agreed.
“Yes, we all work in the palace, so it’s no secret. The Princess treats her Royal Husbands terribly. Before, she would beat them at the drop of a hat…” The beastman attendant stopped mid-sentence, glancing around nervously, as if he’d touched on something that couldn’t be spoken of.
The beastman watering the plants picked up the thread. “That’s right. Royal Husband Zuo was sent to Trash Planet before for defying the Princess’s arrangements. Who knows when he’ll be allowed back.”
Sheng Anlan guessed that these people’s dislike of her was related to the original owner’s behavior—and it seemed the matter was no small one.
She pricked up her ears, wanting to listen more closely, when a stern rebuke rang out. “What are you all gossiping about over here?”
An older attendant approached from a distance, frowning at the sound of their chatter.
“Chief Attendant.”
“Chief Attendant.”
“Chief Attendant.”
At his words, the three set down their tasks and bowed their heads in greeting.
Hearing someone being scolded, Sheng Anlan did not step forward.
If she showed herself, the three would likely be punished.
She lifted her feet and turned to walk in another direction.
After only a few steps, she saw several attendants with sheep horns hurrying over, rushing up to the Chief Attendant with anxious expressions.
Before he could even ask what was going on, one of them blurted out in a panic, “Chief Attendant, Royal Husband Zuo is injured—”
Before he could finish, a purple-and-white figure flashed past.
His white tail was covered in blood.
The Chief Attendant took one look and hurriedly waved his hand. “This is bad—Royal Husband Zuo is showing signs of going feral. Get him to the confinement room, quickly!”
At the Chief Attendant’s command, the beastman guards swarmed forward, helping up Zuo Qi’an, whose eyes were bloodshot and whose mind seemed to be losing control, and escorted him toward the confinement room nearby.
Watching the scene before her, Sheng Anlan asked Qiao Mo, “What’s going on?”
Qiao Mo lowered his head and replied, “Your Highness, Royal Husband Zuo must have entered his manic phase.”
Manic phase?
What was that?
Before Sheng Anlan could figure it out, a muffled groan reached her ears.
She looked up. Beneath the white figure the attendants were carrying, blood trickled slowly from his tail, dripping onto the ground and leaving dark red stains. “It looks like a serious injury. Go and see if anything else has happened.”
Qiao Mo nodded and walked ahead.
After sending him off, Sheng Anlan found a secluded spot and opened her Optical Computer to look up what a manic phase was.
Of course, to avoid drawing attention, she chose to search in silent mode.
Under the blue light, a line of white text floated into the air.
The manic phase is a normal physiological phenomenon for Beastmen. The common problem is an inability to control one’s emotions, which easily leads to violent outbursts. Milder cases can enter the confinement room to calm and regulate themselves, while more severe cases cannot self-regulate and require the Mental Power of a Female-type to be soothed.
Beastmen who fail to receive timely relief may lose their Mental Power, becoming cripples—or even lose their lives.
So this was something only Beastmen experienced.
Sheng Anlan had barely finished looking into the matter when Qiao Mo hurried back. “Princess, Royal Husband Zuo encountered a mutated species on the Trash Planet. During the fight, he used his Mental Power in battle, which is why his manic phase came early.”
Sheng Anlan frowned at this. “How could a xenobeast appear on the Trash Planet?”
She remembered that xenobeasts shouldn’t appear on the Trash Planet, because that kind of place was unsuitable for any species to breed.
Qiao Mo shook his head. “I don’t know what happened. Royal Husband Zuo’s warship is still intact.”
Sheng Anlan thought for a moment, then decided to go see for herself.
Since she had already transmigrated into the original owner’s body, she would have to live in it from now on. To survive in this unfamiliar place, she needed to gather more information.
With that thought, she turned to Qiao Mo. “To the confinement room.”
Qiao Mo was somewhat surprised. In the past, when Royal Husband Zuo had been injured, the Princess mostly ignored him, even saying he deserved to suffer endlessly so he would know how good she was to him. She hadn’t expected her to show concern for Royal Husband Zuo today.
But after a moment, she came back to her senses. Royal Husband Zuo was, after all, the Princess’s Beast-husband—it was only right for the Princess to care about her Royal Husband.
Qiao Mo nodded and walked ahead.
The confinement room was even smaller than Sheng Anlan had imagined. She had thought it would be a separate living quarters, but apart from a bed, there was nothing else inside, and it was sealed up tight.
The moment she approached, a cold voice came from within: “This isn’t an ordinary manic phase. Your mental consciousness sea is also damaged. Did you run into the Zerg on the way back?”
Along with the voice, a dose of blue serum was injected into Qi’an’s arm.
Once the medicine entered his body, Zuo Qi’an’s mind cleared considerably. He opened his eyes and looked at the person before him, his voice low. “Troubling you again, Yan Jin.”
“It’s no trouble at all. As a physician, this is simply my duty. It’s just that your Mental Map has already been corroded. Forcing yourself to endure like this won’t work—you need to be soothed by a Female-type’s Mental Power as soon as possible.”
“I’m fine. I just ran into a few xenobeasts on the way back. It’s nothing serious.”
“This time is different from before. The mental consciousness sea damage you suffered in your last battle hasn’t fully healed, and now you’ve added new injuries. You may not make it through.”
“Then I’ll die of the pain. I’m not going to beg that Toxic Female anyway—you know she never means well.”
“Suit yourself. This is the most soothing agent I can prescribe you this time.”
After the white-clad figure left, the person inside the room twisted in agony.
His whole body curled up, his head heavy and splitting. Zuo Qi’an felt as if his head were about to break apart.
Yan Jin was right—this time it truly was a fate worse than death. But even so, he would not go to that Toxic Female.
Seeing someone come out, Sheng Anlan pulled Qiao Mo aside to hide.
Mental Power?
She might be able to save him.
Hearing the person inside painfully pounding against the wall, she walked to the door and gave Qiao Mo an instruction, “Block the way here. Don’t let anyone else in.”
Qiao Mo nodded.
Sheng Anlan took a deep breath and pushed the door open, walking inside.