Tianyan’s optical brain suddenly chimed.
“Boss.” Tianyan’s fingers danced across a virtual keyboard as he pulled up a holographic screen. “We’ve got him. Howard’s private starcraft just entered the jump lane at Dock Three. Our people hacked the main control system and locked the engines cold.”
The screen displayed a massive silver-gray starcraft, hovering just outside the spaceport.
“Where is he now?” Jiang Lijin asked.
“Still on board. He’s got two squads of private security with him, trying to reboot the system manually.” Tianyan smiled, but there was no warmth in his green eyes. “But the mercs he hired? They’re nothing against our black-market crew.”
Jiang Lijin stood up, grabbing the jacket she’d taken off earlier. “Let’s go. Bring Aegis along. Time to pay a visit to His Deep-Pockets Minister of Finance.”
The spaceport was windy.
The perimeter of Howard’s starcraft was already surrounded by Aegis squad. Howard’s private guards hadn’t even managed to draw their weapons before they were forced to their knees, pinned down.
Jiang Lijin walked unhurriedly up the boarding ramp.
Howard was slumped against a large metal container, drenched in cold sweat, his reading glasses shattered, one lens cracked on the floor. When he saw Jiang Lijin enter, he flinched violently and forced himself to stand.
“Prince Jiang…” Howard’s voice trembled as he tried to cling to the last shreds of dignity. “What is the meaning of this? Detaining an Imperial minister’s private vessel without cause—even for a regent, this is an overreach of authority!”
Jiang Lijin ignored him. She walked up to the container and tapped its metal shell.
“Overreach?” She tilted her head to look at him. “Minister Howard, all these bags and crates—off on vacation, are we? The border sectors do have beautiful scenery, but the sand there’s a bit harsh. Think your old bones can handle it?”
“I… I’m just relocating a few personal collections…”
“Personal collections.” Jiang Lijin nodded and stepped back. “Tianyan, open it.”
Tianyan walked forward. Without any tools, he gripped the hydraulic lock on the container with one hand. His fingers clenched, and with a sharp crack, the alloy lock was ripped apart by sheer force.
The metal door slid open, and a wave of cold air rushed out.
Inside the cargo hold, there was no gold, no jewels, no antiques. Row after row of low-temperature hibernation pods stood neatly arranged. Through the observation windows, the contents were clearly visible, suspended in preservative fluid.
Thick sections of vine. A sickly green, covered in barbs. Even in their dormant state, the thorns remained slightly spread.
Strangler vines.
Jiang Lijin’s gaze went completely cold.
Tianyan stood before the hibernation pod, staring at the contents inside. His breath grew heavy, and his ever-smiling green eyes churned with murderous intent.
“This is your personal collection.” Jiang Lijin turned to face Howard, who was now ashen-faced. “Mother plant samples from Operation Wither, ten years ago. Not only did you fail to destroy them—you hid them away. What, hoping to resurrect that hellscape again?”
Howard’s legs gave out, and he collapsed to his knees.
“No… it wasn’t me…” he stammered, clutching at excuses. “It was the Federation! They wanted these samples! I was just overseeing storage… Prince Jiang, spare me! Back then, I was just an errand boy. The real beneficiaries were the senators!”
“An errand boy?” Jiang Lijin walked over, looking down at him. “An errand boy who embezzled half an empire’s treasury allocations? An errand boy who pushed eighty percent of Blue Star’s population to their doom?”
Howard opened his mouth, but no sound came out.
Just then, Jiang Lijin’s wrist optical brain vibrated.
She answered the call, and a half-body hologram of Bal appeared in the air. He was sitting on an office desk, one boot planted on a figure sprawled on the floor. The background showed the dome of the Federal Parliament building.
“All done.” Bal nudged the person beneath his foot, who let out a muffled groan. The man was Federal Senator Lucas.
“These three old foxes were good at hiding—laundered their money through a dozen accounts. But no matter how much they washed it, military intelligence trackers still caught them.” Bal’s tone was casual, unconcerned. “The money Claude transferred over became the convicting evidence. I’ve got them locked in the military dungeon. Besides these three, we dug up over a dozen sleeper agents.”
He paused, his golden eyes fixed on Jiang Lijin, his expression openly seeking approval. “I’ve had all the funds in their accounts transferred to your name. Think of it as pocket money.”
Jiang Lijin raised an eyebrow. “Fast work. Any resistance?”
“Resistance?” Bal scoffed. “Who’d dare? The Federal Speaker started to flap his gums, so I slapped the bill for their bioweapon funding right in his face. Now he’s too busy trying to cover his own ass.”
“Thanks,” Jiang Lijin said, in good spirits.
“Just words?” Bal grunted in displeasure. “After I wrap up here, I’m coming to the capital. Leave a door unlocked for me.”
The call ended.
Howard had heard everything. The last shred of hope in him crumbled. He collapsed limply to the floor, too drained even to beg for mercy.
Jiang Lijin snapped her fingers. Two members of Aegis squad entered and hoisted Howard up without ceremony.
“Take him to the Cabinet,” Jiang Lijin ordered. “And tell Tianque to bring in Claude and Victor as well. A family reunion—everyone together.”
…
Half an hour later.
The Imperial Supreme Cabinet building was once again buzzing with activity. Nobles and ministers sat stiffly in their seats.
Prince Darren swept in with a squad of royal guards, storming into the meeting room.
“Jiang Lijin! What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Darren slammed his hand on the table. “Deploying private armed forces to detain high-ranking ministers—do you have any regard for Imperial law?”
Jiang Lijin sat in the Regent’s seat, chin resting on her hand, completely unruffled.
At the center of the long table, Howard, Claude, and Victor were tied up, kneeling on the floor in disgrace. Claude was still screaming about noble immunity, while Victor trembled in terror.
“Prince Darren, don’t get so worked up.” Jiang Lijin shifted position, and a holographic projection instantly unfolded in midair.
Dense streams of data—billing records, fund flow charts, and photos of the strangler vine samples seized at the spaceport—were laid bare for everyone to see.
Darren’s eyes swept over the evidence. His face went from flushed anger to deathly pale.
“Operation Wither, ten years ago.” Jiang Lijin leaned back, her voice calm but each word a knife. “These three, in collusion with Federal senators, embezzled Imperial treasury funds to conduct illegal human and bioweapon experiments. They killed an entire planet’s population. This isn’t just embezzlement. It’s a crime against beastmen.”
She turned to Darren, her tone dripping with mockery. “Your Highness, weren’t you trying to form a Regency Council? These three were your handpicked core members. What—did you plan to have a group of war criminals run the Empire?”
Darren was left speechless. He had no idea that the three old men had done such a massive thing behind his back. Now that the evidence was solid, if he dared to protect them again, he would be implicated himself.
"Guards," Darren decided on the spot, trying to salvage his dignity. "Take these three criminals of the Empire to be tried by the Supreme Court!"
"No need to trouble the court."
A cold voice came from behind Jiang Lijin.
Chiron stepped forward. He still wore that uniform, his gray eyes behind his gold-rimmed glasses glinting with coldness.
"According to Article 17 of the Empire's Special Wartime Regulations," Chiron adjusted his glasses, "in any case involving the large-scale proliferation of biochemical weapons and crimes against Beastmen, the Emperor holds the highest authority of judgment and can execute on the spot. However, since the new Emperor is young, the Prince Regent has equal authority."
Claude suddenly looked up, sensing danger. A desperate expression appeared on his face as he made one last attempt. "Prince Jiang! You cannot kill me! That incident ten years ago—it only destroyed one fringe planet! That place called Blue Star didn’t even have basic space-jump technology. It was an undeveloped, uncivilized savage planet! A bunch of primitive ants from a low-level civilization—gone and forgotten, of no consequence to the galaxy! There’s no need for you to make enemies of the Empire’s pillars over some dead people!"
He shuffled forward on his knees, offering what he thought was his most tempting bait: "Spare me, and I’ll give you everything my family has accumulated over generations—wealth, mining planets, private armies. I will swear loyalty only to you. With us in the Cabinet supporting you, Darren won’t be able to sideline you!"
Ants? Savage planet? Gone and forgotten?!
A surge of rage rushed into Jiang Lijin’s heart. In her mind, the images Tianque had described flashed—children fishing by the river, the screaming mummies in the sky, and the despair of a whole planet shattering apart.
Behind her, the auras of Tianque and Tianyan instantly changed.
Tianque’s crimson eyes blazed red. His white hair drifted without wind. A short blade had somehow appeared in his hand, its edge humming, murderous intent nearly crystallizing into something solid. Tianyan’s ever-smiling face turned utterly dark. A turbulent undercurrent surged in his green eyes, and his hand clenching at his side had already drawn blood from his palm.
The pressure of 3S-level power began to expand outward, but since Jiang Lijin had not spoken, they still struggled to hold it back.
Jiang Lijin was so furious that she clenched her teeth. She truly wanted to overturn the table and point at Claude’s nose, shouting: "I am from Blue Star! The savage planet you speak of is my homeland!"
But she forced herself to stop.
Darren was still present. If she revealed her and the Tian brothers’ identity as Blue Star natives here, others would quickly follow the trail back to the Abyss. Now was not the time to expose them to the galaxy.
Her emotions were forcibly suppressed, but the murderous intent in her eyes only burned brighter.
Jiang Lijin let out a cold laugh. "Your money, your loyalty—I find them filthy."
She tilted her head, her voice icy: "Tianque, do it."
Tianque moved with lightning speed. Without any wasted motion, the black blade in his hand precisely slashed across Claude’s throat.
Blood splattered, staining the marble floor.
Claude clutched his neck, his eyes wide open as he collapsed. He twitched a few times, then went still.
Dead silence fell over the meeting room.
Victor was so terrified he wet his pants. His eyes rolled back as he fainted. Howard’s breathing even came to a halt.
Darren pointed at Tianque, his finger trembling uncontrollably. "You... you dared to kill someone inside the Cabinet!"
"So what? My man, authorized by me." Jiang Lijin stood up, walked to the long table, and placed her hands on its surface. She stared coldly at every noble present.
"What happened today is a warning," she said, her voice flat. "I don’t care what scheming you’ve done behind the scenes before. From now on, anyone who dares to use the Empire’s resources to fill their own selfish desires or commit heinous acts will end up like these three old men."
She straightened up and clapped her hands.
"Tianque, clean up the other two."
