Of course it was useless.
Shi Xingzhou sneered soundlessly. Lowering his head, he ate another piece of the purified pastry the youth fed him and nodded to the Emperor. “Chef Allen’s culinary skills are as excellent as ever.”
Seeing him casually eat another Crimson Flame Fruit pastry as if nothing had happened, the impeccable smile on the Emperor’s face froze for a fraction of a second. But he quickly recovered and laughed, “If Cousin likes it, Allen would be very willing to work at the Admiral’s manor.”
Shi Xingzhou smiled faintly and ignored him.
From then on, the atmosphere at the dining table gradually grew awkward. But evidently, this didn’t affect someone with a large heart[1]thick skin jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_2112920_1_1').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_2112920_1_1', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });.
Xi Xiuran was someone with a large heart; to be precise, when faced with delicious food, he couldn’t be bothered to care about anything else. He was currently completely immersed in the culinary delights, his eyes curved into crescent moons from the satisfaction the food brought him.
Whenever he ate something delicious, he didn’t forget to purify it once before sharing it with Shi Xingzhou. “This roasted meat is delicious, do you want to try it, Admiral?”
Shi Xingzhou lowered his head, took a bite, and nodded. “Mm, not bad.”
“The mushroom soup is really fresh too, try it, Admiral, but be careful, it’s hot.”
“Alright.”
“And this…”
Compared to the others who could barely swallow their food, Xi Xiuran ate with immense satisfaction. Being hand-fed by him, Shi Xingzhou actually managed to eat quite a bit as well.
As the meal neared its end, the maids began to serve the after-dinner fruits.
Right at that moment, the terminal on the Captain of the Guard’s wrist suddenly began vibrating incessantly. He glanced at the message, his expression changing drastically. He hastily stepped forward and said to the Emperor, “Your Majesty, the people from the Alliance are here. They want to take away that batch of Ancient Civilization Heritage.”
“What?!”
With a whoosh, the Emperor, the Queen, and Ying Huachi all stood up in shock.
Xi Xiuran was in the middle of gnawing on a slice of watermelon when he suddenly felt his body grow light. He had been picked up and set down on the chair next to him by Shi Xingzhou.
Xi Xiuran: “???”
Looking up blankly, Xi Xiuran saw that Shi Xingzhou had also stood up, his expression uncharacteristically stern and chilling.
What happened?
What Ancient Civilization Heritage?
***
Capital Star, First Imperial Research Institute.
When Xi Xiuran followed Shi Xingzhou off the aircraft, he was shocked by the magnificent and majestic sight before him.
Beneath a cloudless sky, suspended in mid-air over a boundless prairie, was a towering giant ship hundreds of meters high, its entire body gleaming with a metallic luster. It possessed incredibly smooth and graceful lines, its overall coating a deep blue. Under the sunlight, fine specks of starlight could faintly be seen twinkling on it.
Never in his wildest dreams did Xi Xiuran expect that the entirety of the First Imperial Research Institute was actually a massive aircraft carrier.
This is practically a mobile space fortress!
Xi Xiuran was dazzled, but he didn’t forget to obediently follow behind Shi Xingzhou, grouping up with the Emperor, Queen, and the others as they walked toward the giant ship.
“Your Majesty, Admiral Shi.” Just as the group arrived at the ship, the Director of the Research Institute hurriedly came out to greet them.
The Director respectfully led the way for the group. When his peripheral vision caught sight of Xi Xiuran standing behind Shi Xingzhou, he paused for a moment, a trace of displeasure and contempt quickly flashing through his eyes.
In the Interstellar Era, the transmission of information was akin to the speed of light. Practically the moment Shi Xingzhou and Xi Xiuran entered the royal palace, the news of their marriage and Xi Xiuran’s entire past had been dug up and laid bare for all to see.
The Director usually didn’t pay much attention to gossip, but upon hearing that Admiral Shi had entered a partnership, he couldn’t control his curiosity and looked into it. After seeing Xi Xiuran’s dossier, he almost doubted his life. He truly couldn’t understand how the Matching Center could match an Omega like Xi Xiuran—someone with a low rank, average family background, poor conduct, and absolutely nothing going for him except his face—with Admiral Shi.
Has the Empire run out of excellent A-rank Omegas?
“Your Majesty, we absolutely cannot let the Alliance take this batch of Ancient Civilization Heritage. We should instead…” As the group boarded a hover-transport, the Director quickly briefed them on the latest situation, dropping a heavy hint for “armed detainment.”
The Emperor’s face darkened, and he reprimanded, “Are you trying to provoke a war between the Alliance and the Empire?”
The Director hastily bowed his head and admitted his fault, not daring to mention the use of force again. Instead, he began talking about the extreme importance of the Ancient Civilization Heritage. Reading between the lines, his meaning was still the same: this pile of stuff was crucial, and no matter what, they could not let the Alliance take it away.
Listening to all of this along the way, Xi Xiuran thought to himself: What exactly is this Ancient Civilization Heritage? Was this plotline in the original novel?
While they spoke, they arrived at Sector A, the area specifically designated by the First Research Institute for studying the Ancient Civilization Heritage. The moment the group stepped off the hover-transport, before Xi Xiuran even had time to examine the surroundings, a figure suddenly bounced right in front of him.
Yes, bounced.
The young man who bounced over looked to be in his early twenties. He had a flamboyant, fiery red “Shamate”[2]punk/delinquent – A Chinese internet subculture similar to “punk,” “goth,” or “emo,” known for heavily styled, brightly colored hair, heavy makeup, and … Continue reading jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_2112920_1_2').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_2112920_1_2', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], }); hairstyle and pale golden eyes. He wore an alternative black studded leather jacket, mid-calf boots, and a white lab coat over it all. A row of studs pierced his left ear, and his right arm was a mechanical prosthetic.
His features were exquisite and flamboyant, the kind of face you’d never forget once you saw it. But his mouth left an even deeper impression: “Oho! Let me see who’s here. Shi Xingzhou, you’re actually not dead yet!”
With a half-smile, the red-haired youth shot a sidelong glance at Shi Xingzhou out of his peach-blossom eyes, his tone laced with heavy sarcasm: “What’s the matter? The Soroa Empire invited a great deity like you out here—do you want to detain us by force? Come on then, if you have the guts, detain me right now.”
“Since you can’t win with your brains, you immediately think of using force. You people of the Soroa Empire really are a bunch of brainless war freaks.”
“Hey, still glaring at me? Did I say anything wrong? Back when our Alliance and your Empire excavated the ancient civilization ruins together, both sides started researching at the same time. Our Alliance has already deciphered 20%, and your Empire? It’s been ten years! Ten whole years have passed, and your Empire has deciphered less than 5%! If you aren’t embarrassed, I feel ashamed for you. How can we have such pig-like opponents?”
“Oh my, oh my, your eyes are turning red from anxiety again. If you have the time to stand here glaring at me, you’d be better off thinking of a way to bump up your decryption progress before today ends. At least try to hit 5%!”
“Hey old man, stop panting. There’s a medical pod right next to you, why don’t you go lie down inside?”
“Hey, you over there, I see you clenching your fists. You want to hit me, right? Come on, hit me right in the face as hard as you can! If you don’t hit me today, you’re my grandson! Blehh…”
The red-haired youth delivered a barrage of mockery and sarcasm, tearing down the people of the Empire until they couldn’t even lift their heads. A white-haired old researcher was so angry he was blowing his beard and glaring, constantly rubbing his chest to smooth his breathing, nearly choking on his own breath. Yet the red-haired youth was utterly fearless, certain that the Empire wouldn’t dare start a war recklessly. He gave the Emperor no face whatsoever; several times the Emperor tried to speak, only to be interrupted by him, completely unable to get a word in edgewise.
He was just arrogant. He just loved pulling aggro. His entire body practically radiated the sentence: “Come on, beat me to death if you have the guts!”
Even Xi Xiuran, a transmigrator, clenched his fists listening to this, screaming frantically in his head: Big Boss Shi, go get him! Beat him! Beat him to death! Slap his face, kick his ass, strip him of his clothes, and hang him from a telegraph pole!
Although he wanted nothing more than to rush up and beat the red-haired youth to a pulp, Xi Xiuran did manage to extract a lot of useful information from his words.
Roughly speaking: Ten years ago, the Empire and the Alliance excavated an Ancient Civilization Ruin together. At the time, the Empire contributed the most effort, and combined with the deterrent of Shi Xingzhou’s combat prowess, it was ultimately decided that the Empire would hold onto this batch of Ancient Civilization Heritage for ten years. The Empire and the Alliance formed separate research teams and did not share their progress. After ten years, whichever side had deciphered more would get to keep the heritage.
Today was the agreed-upon deadline.
The Empire’s research progress actually wasn’t slow, but they simply couldn’t compete when the Alliance produced a super-genius like the red-haired youth. In the short two years since he joined the research, the Alliance’s progress rapidly overtook the Empire’s and left them far behind in the dust.
Currently, the Alliance battleship sent to take over the heritage was already parked near the Empire’s border planets, waiting for the clock to strike midnight so they could sail into the Empire and take it away.
As for the red-haired youth’s identity, Xi Xiuran carefully recalled the original novel’s plot and finally remembered who he was—a major boss from the Alliance who appeared very late in the story.
The red-haired youth’s name was Jian Feichen. He was the youngest son of the current President of the Alliance, an S+ rank top-tier Alpha, and the leading figure of the Alliance’s younger generation. Although he wasn’t good at combat, he possessed unparalleled talent in scientific research. Whether it was mecha development or biological pharmaceuticals, his genius was outstanding, earning him the renowned title of “Little Ike” in the Interstellar Era.
As a true favored son of heaven and a peerless genius, Jian Feichen was incredibly arrogant and haughty, looking at everyone with an attitude of “I am number one in the world.” Later on, he clashed with Shi Xingzhou and was ruthlessly put in his place. After that, his attitude changed to: “Aside from Shi Xingzhou, who can barely compare to me, everyone else is garbage.”
Just as Xi Xiuran finished his trip down memory lane, he saw Jian Feichen dance right up in front of Shi Xingzhou and pull a face at him.
Shi Xingzhou merely lifted his eyelids lazily and shot him a glance, and he instantly chickened out, turning to yap at the Emperor and the others instead.
Xi Xiuran: “…”
His fists hardened again.
Accompanied by Jian Feichen’s arrogant, ear-piercing mockery, the group finally arrived at the very core of Sector A.
Inside the massive hall, concentric rings of precision instruments were built around the Ancient Civilization Heritage, which was protected by a giant energy shield in the very center. Many researchers in white coats walked briskly back and forth. Researchers from both the Empire and the Alliance wore white coats, so normally it would be difficult to tell them apart at a glance. However, Xi Xiuran could easily distinguish them right now.
Because the Empire’s researchers were mostly frowning with heavy, solemn expressions. Aside from a white-haired old man still sitting in front of a holographic screen, wearing glasses and burying his head in research, everyone else had essentially stopped working. The Alliance’s researchers, on the other hand, were all beaming with joy. Many were pointing at screens, discussing how to dismantle this part later or how to preserve that component. They were basically already discussing how to transport the Ancient Civilization Heritage back to the Alliance intact.
Walking a bit closer, Xi Xiuran finally got a clear look at the Ancient Civilization Heritage protected by the giant shield. He only took one glance, and his entire person froze on the spot!
Although that “Ancient Civilization Heritage” was a bit damaged, slightly deformed, and missing a lot of its paint job, that classic blue-and-white color scheme, and those six pairs of massive wings—one white and five blue—spread open like actual wings… he absolutely could not mistake it for anything else…
Because that was the mecha design he was most familiar with—
—Freedom Gundam, the dancing sword of the blue skies[3]An iconic, very real mecha from the anime Mobile Suit Gundam SEED. The author literally put a Gundam in as an “Ancient Relic.” jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_2112920_1_3').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_2112920_1_3', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });!
But what shocked Xi Xiuran the most was yet to come. The scanned documents displayed on the holographic screens—the relevant data and literature that countless researchers were burying their heads and struggling to study—were also in a text he was familiar with.
Chinese!
F\*\*king Traditional Chinese!
Xi Xiuran: “…………”
***
“What is it?”
A man’s deep, cold, somewhat metallic voice suddenly sounded by his ear. Xi Xiuran instantly snapped back to reality, shaking his head and saying, “It’s nothing.”
After saying that, Xi Xiuran still couldn’t resist looking up again at the familiar text on the holographic screen. All sorts of bold, enlarged barrage comments swept back and forth in his mind, with a thousand words culminating into a single quintessential national phrase: “F\*\*k!”
He finally knew exactly what those three chapters the dog author had deleted and revised were about!
Xi Xiuran had read this novel rather late. He only knew that when the dog author was initially serializing it, they wrote quite wildly, including a lot of chuunibyou[4]edgy/cringey. Eighth-grader syndrome.” A Japanese slang term used heavily in Chinese web novels to describe embarrassing, edgy, or grandiose behavior (like pretending to have superpowers or … Continue reading jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_2112920_1_4').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_2112920_1_4', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], }); elements and “below-the-neck”[5]NSFW jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_2112920_1_5').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_2112920_1_5', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], }); plotlines. Later, to pass censorship for publication, a lot of content was deleted. Among them were three chapters where the Protagonist Shou flexed his skills at the First Imperial Research Institute by helping to study ancient civilization documents. Supposedly, the unedited version described what the documents contained and how the Protagonist Shou deciphered them, whereas the revised version just showed a string of gibberish and didn’t specify what the documents actually were.
In the comment section, a bunch of new readers who hadn’t seen the original pressed for details about the documents, while the veteran readers all smiled without saying a word, acting mysterious.
Xi Xiuran had been very curious at the time too, planning to scour the internet for the old version after finishing the whole book. But the moment he finished reading, he transmigrated.
…
At this moment, the old professor still sitting in front of the holographic screen slowly took off his glasses.
There was no need for the old professor to speak; everyone already understood. This batch of Ancient Civilization Heritage now belonged to the Alliance.
The Alliance researchers all showed joy on their faces, but considering Shi Xingzhou and the Emperor were present, they restrained themselves somewhat. Only Jian Feichen was beaming with flying colors, itching to open his mouth and yap a few more words, but his companions covered his mouth just in time.
Ancestor, please shut up!
If you pull any more aggro, we might really not be able to leave.
Many Empire researchers who couldn’t accept this outcome dejectedly walked out of the hall, some silently wiping the corners of their eyes. The Alliance researchers, meanwhile, started preparing the items to take away.
Xi Xiuran looked at the crowd, then at Shi Xingzhou, whose expression was unreadable. Unable to hold back, he secretly tugged at the Admiral’s sleeve and asked in a breathy whisper, “Admiral, is that Ancient Civilization Heritage very important to you?”
Shi Xingzhou lowered his eyes to look at him and didn’t speak, but Xi Xiuran understood. That “Freedom Gundam” was very useful to Shi Xingzhou.
He thought for a moment, leaned close to Shi Xingzhou’s ear, and said to him in a super tiny voice: “I can probably read it. Can you let me give it a try?”
Aside from the desires for farming and eating etched into their bloodlines, the people of the Foodie Nation also came with an innate ability to smoothly convert between Traditional and Simplified Chinese.
Xi Xiuran believed he was speaking in a breathy whisper, keeping his volume to the absolute minimum, so no one except Shi Xingzhou should be able to hear him. However, he overlooked the fact that everyone present possessed at least A-rank mental power. Even if they weren’t deliberately eavesdropping, they could hear his words clearly.
Instantly, the entire hall fell silent.
Everyone turned their heads to look at Xi Xiuran.
Xi Xiuran: “???”
Why is everyone looking at me again?
T/n: Please Vote on NU to support the novel. You can support the original author here. Happy Reading 💅
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