Marty was like a child who had just learned how to speak, carefully and slowly repeating, "Don't become like me?"
His face gradually twisted. As tears fell, he let out a laugh.
Yes. That was exactly something the Marshal would say.
Back then, Marty had been full of questions and asked why he didn't eat.
The Marshal replied, "For long-life species, this isn't a big deal."
Then he said earnestly to Marty, "Don't become like me."
The Marshal didn't want his subordinates to imitate his terrible eating habits, so what about death?
If it were the Marshal, how could he accept his subordinates dying along with him? How could he bear that?
Marty clenched the tie clip in one hand while raising the other to touch his neck.
For the first time, a thought of going against the Marshal's wishes appeared in his heart.
Marty thought about it, then put it down again.
At the very least, not now.
If it were the Marshal… he would definitely want his successor to have a happy birthday.
At the very least, he would have to wait until after the Huai'en Festival.
Just like how the Marshal had deliberately punished Guanliang and ordered the Galaxy Rangers to withdraw from the Xianzhou, he didn't want his own choices to drag others down. He wanted to minimize the impact of his departure as much as possible.
Marty took a deep breath and picked up his jade communicator.
The Marshal had planned things so thoroughly, so he couldn't leave a mess for his colleagues either.
First, Marty needed to hide the truth of the Marshal's departure from the outside world.
Second, he needed to deal with the planet that had already lost its civilization and exposed the nature of the universe, to prevent more people from learning about it.
These two tasks were extremely simple for Marty.
In the entire Xianzhou, no, more precisely, in the entire star sea, aside from the Marshal, only Marty could freely view and modify the physical data of jade communicator users.
The Marshal had left his jade communicator at the Xuling. The neutron gun had likely been taken by an Aeon, and after it left the Luofu, its location could no longer be tracked.
But why had the Aeon come to the Luofu… what did he want to do?
He suddenly thought of the person who had delivered a message from the Marshal to Akivili.
That person had only said three things. First, he reminded Akivili to keep the Marshal's promise to Marty.
Second, he emphasized the importance of that blade and told Akivili to carry it with him.
Lastly, that person said they would meet again.
Setting aside the special nature of the blade for now, someone who could travel with the Marshal to a place "humans cannot reach" was definitely no ordinary person.
The Marshal always left room for contingencies.
So what about this mysterious companion? Could he be the Marshal's backup plan?
Marty suddenly felt energized.
Could it be that the Marshal hadn't died? That he was just severely injured and unconscious, and was rescued by his companion?
That would also explain why the Aeon had gone to the Luofu.
He was there to look for the Marshal.
Following normal logic, after being seriously injured, of course you would return to the safest place to recover.
In the entire star sea, was there any place safer than the Luofu?
This was the Xianzhou. This was the Luofu, where the annual meeting was being held and eight Hunt Emanators were gathered.
That companion must have already taken the Marshal somewhere even the Aeons couldn't reach, somewhere absolutely safe.
After all, the Marshal never broke his promises.
He had told Akivili that if there was a chance, they would meet again.
Marty instantly stopped crying. He picked up the pocket square he had set aside and quickly wiped the wet streaks from his cheeks.
Besides, the Reignbow Arbiter bestowed blessings upon the Marshal and the generals. Before they stepped down, that is, before death, they would pass their power to the next successor.
But the Reignbow Arbiter had not appeared.
And the successor chosen by the Marshal had shown no abnormalities at the banquet.
So of course the Marshal was fine! He just needed time to recover.
Marty sorted out his thoughts.
The neutron gun's information was extremely misleading. Even he had almost been fooled.
Next, the plan remained unchanged. Handle the neutron gun's information and fabricate the illusion that the Marshal's vital signs were stable and healthy.
After that, request the deployment of a star-destroying warship... no, better to use the "Heaven-Burning Divine Weapon."
Completely erase that damned civilization that had collectively chosen self-destruction from the universe.
Marty pushed himself up from the ground and stood. He opened the emergency exit door and took a few steps toward the venue, just in time to run into Guanliang in the corridor.
Guanliang was looking around. When he saw him, he quickly stepped forward, but for some reason, his pace slowed midway.
Marty didn't understand why.
Guanliang stared at Marty's red, swollen eyes, his heart sinking.
'Marty… already knew?'
He pointed to the corner of his own eye and asked casually, "What happened to you?"
Marty also raised his hand and touched the corner of his eye, saying indifferently, "Oh, this? Just a misunderstanding. By the way, if the research institute needs to deploy the 'Heaven-Burning Divine Weapon,' what's the process?"
Guanliang carefully observed his expression, looking him up and down. Finding nothing unusual, he immediately felt relieved.
'Better if he didn't know.'
The two walked toward the venue together.
After thinking for a moment, Guanliang said, "Is it for research? Then you just need to submit an application to General of Yaoqing through the office software."
Marty shook his head. "Not research. Use."
Guanliang was stunned. "Use? Your research institute wants to use a weapon that can destroy star systems?"
Marty scratched his head.
He didn't intend to tell anyone about the nature of the world, so he could only speak vaguely.
"Well… it's a long story. In short, the Marshal told me before that if we encounter this kind of situation, we must contain it, just like the Swarm Disaster or rogue machines. It has to be strangled in the cradle."
Guanliang thought it over several times but didn't ask further.
Since the Marshal hadn't mentioned it to him, it must be a secret known only to the Marshal and the research institute.
He asked, "How many planets need to be dealt with? Is it absolutely necessary to use the 'Heaven-Burning Divine Weapon'?"
If it were any other leader's death, their internal structure would definitely fall into chaos. The existing balance between factions would be broken, and both internal and external situations would become more complicated.
Internally, they would scrutinize the next leader. Externally, others would continue observing and weighing whether to maintain friendly relations.
But the Marshal was different.
They didn't need to worry about internal issues. They only needed to present a united front externally.
When they publicly announced the Marshal's death and released the obituary… the exchange rate of patrol tokens would very likely fluctuate, and the Xianzhou people would be affected.
At such a critical moment, how could they use their ultimate weapon?
The "Heaven-Burning Divine Weapon" had to remain on the Xianzhou for emergencies.
Marty thought for a moment and said, "The 'Colossus' works too. In any case, it needs to be handled quickly."
Guanliang answered without hesitation, "In that case, use the 'Colossus.' Check which Xianzhou ship is closest to that planet and just inform the general there."
The two entered the venue together.
As they passed a waiter, Guanliang took two glasses of wine from the tray and handed one to Marty.
Marty accepted the drink and looked around. Soon he spotted Hua.
By coincidence, there was no one around her.
Marty's eyes lit up. Holding his glass, he walked toward her.
He delivered the birthday wishes he had already prepared.
Hua smiled and thanked him. After exchanging a few polite words, the conversation ended.
Marty turned his toes outward, about to leave, when from the corner of his eye he noticed the silent Lan.
His body stiffened and he suddenly stopped.
"Wait..."
Hua, Guanliang, and Lan all turned to look at Marty at the same time.
Marty opened his mouth like a child who didn't know how to organize his words. After pausing for a long time, he asked, "…You're Lan?"
Without waiting for an answer, he stepped back in disbelief and exclaimed, "Your name is Lan?!"
People nearby turned toward them at the sound.
Guanliang immediately sensed trouble. He quickly moved beside Marty and whispered, "Just a coincidence. Not the Reignbow Arbiter."
Marty's gaze drifted as he instinctively asked, "Really?"
Guanliang lied without the slightest hesitation, "Of course. The Reignbow Arbiter is purging abominations in the star sea. How could he appear here?"
Marty looked at him deeply, then turned and left the venue without another word.
Guanliang couldn't figure out what Marty was thinking.
'That reaction… did he believe it? Or not?'
'Could it be that Marty knows about the Marshal's death? It doesn't seem like it.'
'With his personality… he would have already caused a scene. He wouldn't be this calm.'
Guanliang couldn't leave. Besides accompanying Hua in socializing, he also had to wait for Daiyang, who would soon return to the Luofu.
He could only contact the guards and tell them to keep an eye on Marty's movements.
But he had severely underestimated the speed of this scholar.
Even after he and Hua finished chatting one by one with several High Elders, there was still no news of Marty.
During that time, they also returned the gift the dragon preceptor had presumptuously prepared for the Imbibitor Lunae.
Hua saw through the situation with just one glance. It was nothing more than internal power struggles.
Using the excuse of giving a gift to a guardian… was rather tasteless.
Hua smiled brightly. "As expected of the Imbibitor Lunae. Having a subordinate who can share your burdens must make things much easier, right?"
The High Elder took back the gift box the dragon preceptor had brought without permission and replied, "You flatter me."
They watched as the Imbibitor Lunae left.
The guards searching for Marty found nothing. However, the guards monitoring Zandar saw him.
[He entered a pawnshop and bought something. After that he ran into Zandar. The two are now in a teahouse.]
The guard asked Guanliang what to do.
Guanliang thought that since Zandar didn't have long to live anyway, they might as well let them talk a bit longer.
[Continue monitoring. After they separate, proceed according to the original plan.]
———
At the same time, inside a private room in a Luofu teahouse, Zandar slowly lifted the teapot and poured tea for himself and Marty.
Marty sat across from him, holding tightly onto an object wrapped in silk with both hands.
Ever since leaving the pawnshop, he hadn't let go of it. Zandar told him to put it down, but Marty refused and kept holding it.
Zandar said nothing more and instead looked downstairs at the Xianzhou storyteller.
Honestly, if he hadn't been waiting for Eric, he wouldn't have set foot on the Xianzhou at all.
To describe it using a character from the novels Hui Feng had been reading recently, Eric was basically a love-struck fool who had lost his mind and run off with a blond pretty boy.
Of course, Eric's situation was far more serious.
Not only had he run off, he had become completely devoted, insisting on bleeding and cutting flesh for that person.
Probably only those trashy novels about heart or kidney transplants would write such disgusting plots.
If someone wrote Eric and the Xianzhou into a novel, anyone who read it would curse them out.
Zandar felt displeased, and even the Xianzhou people downstairs praising the achievements of the Reignbow Arbiter started to annoy him.
How could the Aeon of "Hunt" compare to Nanook?
So what if he was the Aeon of "Destruction"?
In past cycles, Eric had nearly a seventy percent chance of appearing in the Adrifen star system and forming an unbreakable alliance with Nanook.
Within just a hundred years, they would unify the star sea. Eric would become emperor, a far better position than some minor Xianzhou Marshal.
Just as he was thinking this, Marty finally loosened his grip. He carefully placed the object on the table and slowly unwrapped the silk, revealing what was inside.
Zandar glanced at it from the corner of his eye. After seeing its general shape, he raised an eyebrow.
With a slightly mocking tone, he said, "What? Do Xianzhou people sell their ancestral memorial tablets now?"
Marty's pupils trembled violently as if the words had pierced him.
He lowered his head, about to wipe it with his sleeve, but suddenly stopped. Instead, he picked up the silk it had been wrapped in and, with extremely gentle movements, avoided the name and slowly wiped the edges.
Marty spoke in a heavy tone, "This isn't a memorial tablet…"
Zandar smiled and asked with interest, "Not a memorial tablet? Then what is it?"
After asking, he lowered his head and took in the name written on it.
Zandar's smile disappeared.
Marty's voice was barely audible, "This isn't a memorial tablet. It's a longevity tablet. People used to make these to pray for the long life and fortune of their benefactors."
Zandar couldn't understand.
'Eric, were you really giving everything for these ungrateful fools? Then you're an incurable fool too!'
'It was your moment of softness that indulged those greedy idiots and raised a bunch of parasites!'
Zandar couldn't help letting out a cold laugh.
Marty looked up blankly, as if he didn't know what he was laughing at.
Zandar raised his hand and pointed at the Xianzhou people downstairs.
"Have you heard the story of what happened when the Reignbow Arbiter was on the Luofu?"
Marty carefully put away the longevity tablet and slowly placed it on the table.
"I have.", Zandar laughed outright.
"Whenever the people fall into trouble, a selfless hero always steps forward to turn the tide and save them."
"They're greedy and ignorant. They always think they're wiser than those in power and try to overthrow their rule."
"They think they don't need to rely on anyone, but from the moment they become embryos, they're already competing with their mother for nutrients. After cutting the umbilical cord and leaving the womb… they just switch to someone else to parasitize."
Marty's cheek twitched, as if he were suppressing his emotions.
Zandar smiled in satisfaction and said meaningfully, "The hero is selfless and sacrifices himself for others… whether someone is good or bad, he saves them all. But is that really fair?"
"What a cliche and boring story."
He sighed. "And in the end? No one remembers the hero..."
Marty uncontrollably followed Zandar's words and continued the thought.
'The Xianzhou people have already forgotten you… how are they worth your sacrifice?'
Zandar continued to guide him, "Do you think that's fair to him?"
Marty thought, 'It's not fair...'
The existence they should be praising and believing in wasn't the Reignbow Arbiter at all.
Zandar stopped while he was ahead, picked up his teacup, and took a sip.
He casually brought up several stories of self-sacrifice. When he mentioned "cutting flesh to feed an eagle," Marty for some reason looked especially emotional.
Zandar's heart sank.
Damn those Xianzhou people.'
'Eric didn't really bleed for them, did he?'
Just as Zandar was about to invite Marty to leave with him and join the ascension plan, Marty didn't give him a chance to speak.
He suddenly stood up, then slowly picked up the longevity tablet, hurriedly said goodbye, and left without looking back.
Seeing this, Zandar could only watch him leave.
He drank his tea while listening to the Xianzhou people talk about the Aeon they believed in.
Didn't feel as impressive as Nanook.
At least back then, people remembered Eric's sacrifices. There were statues of him everywhere, and currency printed with his face.
After finishing his tea and paying, Zandar went to the Starskiff Haven and left the Luofu by ship.
He soon arrived at another ship he had personally modified.
Here, even Aeons couldn't spy.
After passing multiple identity verifications, he entered.
Zandar glanced at the display screen near the entrance. It showed that someone had activated a medical pod.
After walking a few steps, he ran into Hui Feng.
Standing a few meters away with his hands behind his back, Hui Feng spoke hesitantly, "There's something… I don't know how to tell you."
Zandar had gone to the Luofu to wait for Eric, while Hui Feng had been sent out to find him.
He didn't think much of it. "What? You didn't bring him back? I saw you used the medical pod. Did you fight with Eric?"
Hui Feng shook his head. "No. I brought him back. It's just…"
Zandar stopped walking. He stepped forward and faintly smelled blood.
As if he hadn't noticed or understood, he pressed on, "What do you mean?"
Hui Feng slowly moved the hands he had been hiding behind his back to the front.
Both palms were covered in mottled, dried blood.
"It's just… I was one step too late."