The starship entered a steady cruising state, and outside the porthole, starlight stretched into long streaks.
Jiang Lijin leaned against the sofa in the lounge area, her fingers swiping across the screen of her optical computer.
Tinia moved quickly and fought the public opinion war beautifully. In just a few hours, Graven's confession video and the list of live experiments had dominated all the headlines across the entire Star Network.
In the video, Jiang Lijin's voice was altered, and the camera angle cleverly avoided her face.
But netizens weren't fools. Combining the banquet guest list, the special identity of a 3S-grade female, and Graven's hysterical threats right before his death, anyone with half a brain in the entire galaxy could guess who the off-screen person slicing the Empire's first heir into pieces was.
The comment section had long since blown up.
The top comment had over ten million likes: Live experiments? Feeding retired officers to the Zerg? A scumbag like this deserves to die ten thousand times over! Well killed! Heroes deserve applause!
Many agreed in the replies below, all cursing Graven for being deranged.
But scrolling further down, the tone began to shift.
Graven is guilty, but it's not up to a commoner to punish him, right?
This method is too cruel, slicing him alive into several pieces. Is she even a female? She's simply a cold-blooded homicidal maniac!
The Empire has laws! It has courts! What right does she have to use a lynching? If she can kill the heir today, does that mean she can kill anyone she dislikes tomorrow?
I suggest a galaxy-wide wanted poster for this woman! She's too dangerous!
Chiron glanced at the comments on the screen and pushed up the glasses on the bridge of his nose.
The Empire's internet ghostwriters have joined the fray, he said, pulling out the chair opposite her and sitting down. Although the Emperor is paralyzed in bed and cannot speak, the noble interest groups standing behind Graven are not small.
Jiang Lijin picked up her cup and took a sip. Expected.
They are confusing the public, Chiron said in a steady tone, objectively analyzing the situation. As long as they shift the focus of public opinion from Graven conducting illegal human experiments to your cruel methods and disregard for Imperial law, they can muddy the waters. By turning you from a judge into a perpetrator, the royal family can justifiably issue a wanted poster in the guise of a victim, salvaging their pitiful dignity.
Jiang Lijin put down her cup and leaned back against the sofa cushions. She wasn't actually angry.
Court trial? she sneered coldly. By the time the Imperial Court slowly completes its procedures, my ashes would have already been scattered. In that situation, if I didn't kill him, I wouldn't have been able to get away at all.
She sympathized with those experimental subjects who had been tortured out of human shape by Graven, which was why she conveniently exposed the list to get them justice. But ultimately, she killed Graven for self-preservation.
As for the self-righteous comments online, she couldn't even be bothered to look at the punctuation marks.
The people saying these things weren't the ones locked in a laboratory waiting to have their mental energy drained dry. Jiang Lijin leaned back further, finding a comfortable position. It's easy to talk when you're not the one suffering. This little bit of public pressure couldn't even bend a single strand of my hair.
Tianyan strolled out of the cockpit carrying a plate of sliced fruit, just in time to hear this.
He had changed into loose casual clothes, his black hair casually tied behind his head, and his green eyes revealed a bit of laziness.
Boss is clear-minded. Most people in the world are ignorant and easily led by the nose. Once we reach our territory, the boss can have as much peace and quiet as she wants. Not even a punctuation mark from the Empire's wanted poster will be able to fly in.
The starship sailed through the pitch-black universe for three whole days.
During this time, it underwent five spatial jumps, taking an extremely tricky route that avoided all the checkpoints on the main routes.
On the morning of the fourth day, the starship exited the jump state and slowed down.
We're here. Tianyan stood up and stretched. Welcome to the Jiyang Galaxy.
Jiang Lijin looked down through the porthole.
It was a planet wrapped in a pale purple atmosphere. Viewed from space, it was as quiet as a sleeping gem.
The starship passed through the atmosphere and landed steadily on a flat clearing.
The cabin door opened, and the air carried a fresh scent of dirt and vegetation, completely lacking the industrialized metallic smell of the capital planet.
As soon as Jiang Lijin stepped onto the ground, the long-absent electronic voice sounded in her mind.
Ding—Congratulations to the host for unlocking a new map: Jiyang Galaxy.
System permissions are updating...
Reward for unlocking a new map: 1000 points. Current point balance: 0. (Debt: 2250.2 points)
Jiang Lijin's footsteps halted.
One thousand points?
Previously, when she unlocked the Sirius Galaxy and Valoran, the stingy system only gave a pitiful one hundred points. What kind of treasured land was this Jiyang Galaxy that the reward was directly multiplied by ten?
Just as she was about to ask Xiao Yi what was going on, she heard Xiao Yi, who had been playing dead recently, suddenly speak up.
Wow, this galaxy is so valuable!
Fine, this little useless thing also didn't know what was going on.
Jiang Lijin ignored it and began to observe the planet. Before her was a large-scale town.
There were no metallic skyscrapers towering into the clouds, no flashing holographic billboards, and certainly no hovercars flying all over the sky.
The buildings here were mostly made of wood and stone structures, with flying eaves and upturned corners, black tiles and white walls, arranged randomly yet neatly among the mountains and waters. The streets were paved with smooth bluestone slabs, and the shops on both sides hung cloth banners that swayed gently in the wind.
There were quite a few pedestrians on the street, men and women, old and young alike. Some people set up stalls by the roadside selling steaming hot food, and a few children chased each other playfully around the corner.
It was full of the breath of life. People lived and worked in peace and contentment, looking like a secluded village isolated from the rest of the world.
Jiang Lijin turned to look at Tianyan: Are you sure this is the black market's lair?
The vibe was wrong, wasn't it? What underground black market looked like this? Shouldn't it be a foul-smelling, lawless zone filled with the flash of swords and the shadows of knives, where contraband was traded?
Genuine and guaranteed. Tianyan smiled, walking ahead to lead the way. The entire planet is. We call it Guixu.
The surrounding passersby were not interested in them, the outsiders, at all. They didn't even give them an extra glance, going about their business. Those buying groceries continued to bargain, and those drinking tea continued to crack melon seeds.
The four of them walked along the main street for a bit.
A car with an extremely retro appearance drove over from the end of the street.
It wasn't a hovercar, but an internal combustion engine car with four rubber wheels and a chassis that drove close to the ground. The engine emitted a low roar.
The car stopped steadily in front of them.
The car door opened, and a middle-aged man wearing a traditional short jacket stepped out. He walked quickly to Tianyan, bowed his head, and acted extremely respectful.
Pavilion Master.
Jiang Lijin raised an eyebrow. She looked at the middle-aged man and then at Tianyan, who was smiling harmlessly beside him.
Pavilion Master? The boss of the black market?
She had always thought this pair of twins were just high-level thugs or hidden guards in the black market; after all, Tianque's skills were indeed impressive. It turned out they were the highest authorities of the entire underground black market?
Chiron, however, did not look surprised at all.
Get in the car, boss, Tianyan said as he pulled open the back door and made an inviting gesture.
Jiang Lijin did not stand on ceremony and bent down to slip inside. Chiron followed closely behind her. Tianyan opened the passenger door and took the front seat, while Tianque silently walked around to the other side, taking the seat at the far edge of the back row.
The car drove smoothly along the bluestone road. The suspension was actually surprisingly good.
