The migration through the wormhole had already lasted nearly twenty hours. As the spaceship soared through the wormhole, everything in the universe was pushed backward at faster-than-light speed, and no one could stop the ship from moving forward.
Jin Mianyue stood in the middle section of the spaceship, inside the ward of Shi Mingyuan. At this time, everyone on the ship should have entered hibernation, waiting to awaken only after the ship reached the planet Saint Bear. However, Jin Mianyue had not entered hibernation. She wore a tight purple space suit that shimmered with a mysterious glow, making her look like a seductive serpent.
Jin Mianyue gazed at the life-support pod that looked like a glass coffin, her expression as if she were looking at an old friend: “Shi Mingyuan… Shi Mingyuan.” Jin Mianyue smiled faintly, lost in thought. “I really envy you. You found a good way out and a man who loves you. He’s even willing to take such a huge risk for you.”
Of course, Shi Mingyuan did not respond. In fact, she couldn’t even hear, so she lay there silently, expressionless.
Jin Mianyue fell silent for a moment. “However, they won’t make it to Saint Bear. In a few minutes, everything will end. This spaceship, Yang Hao, and even you will die. In the universe, you will disintegrate into the smallest particles, without even feeling the slightest pain.”
The gravity device in the ward was very stable. No matter how much thrust the migration generated outside, nothing could be felt inside. The extreme silence made one’s heart stir with countless emotions.
Jin Mianyue sighed: “Actually, I didn’t want to do this either. We’ve known each other for so long. Although we weren’t like sisters, we got along quite well. But what could I do? I lost the base of Ling Fei Star Sea, and the Senate would never let me go. I had no choice but to cooperate with the Uranus Fleet. If I could help them capture Yang Hao, maybe I could redeem myself.”
Jin Mianyue’s words seemed to imply that she had known Shi Mingyuan and Yang Hao for a long time. But judging from her appearance, there was no sign of that. This woman had followed Yang Hao onto the Doomsday ship as a spy. What was even more regrettable was that Yang Hao and his people had trusted her early on, even handing over control of the spaceship to her.
Now, Jin Mianyue had guided the spaceship into the wormhole maze migration, and all the wormhole coordinates were set by her. In other words, the exit point from the wormhole where Yang Hao’s ship would emerge had been arranged by Jin Mianyue.
And this exit point had already been clearly specified in the message Jin Mianyue had sent to the Uranus Fleet. As long as Commander Wang Mu’s fleet simply fired a coordinated salvo at the exit point, everything would end, and Jin Mianyue’s mission would be complete.
Jin Mianyue checked the integrated computer on her wrist, estimating that the time was almost up. In less than ten minutes, the spaceship would emerge from the wormhole, and then it would be reduced to ashes under the barrage of fire. Therefore, she herself had to escape within these ten minutes; otherwise, she would become a sacrificial offering along with Yang Hao and the others.
Jin Mianyue was just about to run toward the escape pod through the side door of the ward when she suddenly heard a familiar sound. This sound she had heard long ago, and it definitely shouldn’t appear at this time and place.
But it had appeared.
Jin Mianyue heard the buzzing sound of flying swords. And such a sound of flying swords was probably something only Yang Hao possessed in the entire universe.
Jin Mianyue turned around and, sure enough, Yang Hao—who should have been in hibernation—was standing right beside Shi Mingyuan’s glass coffin, with four small flying swords swirling around him.
X13, Long Yun, and a few other members of the Hao Sword Group also rushed into the room at the same time.
“How could you…?” Jin Mianyue was shocked, her eyes wide with disbelief. “You weren’t supposed to be awake. How did you get here?”
“You weren’t supposed to be awake either, yet here you are,” Yang Hao replied with a cheerful expression, showing no sign of anger at being deceived. Instead, he teased her playfully, “Did you miss me? Want to do some exercise with me?”
“Hey, there are kids here. Watch your language,” Long Yun dryly reminded Yang Hao.
The few kids from the Hao Sword Group giggled. They were only slightly younger than Yang Hao, and all had been wandering orphans before. They had heard all sorts of things.
“Please, I think it’s you who hasn’t gotten any for too long and your hormones are out of whack. You’re the one who’s worried about what I might say,” Yang Hao retorted with a smirk. “Next time we see Ling Fei Star Sea, I’ll lend you some pills so you can go wild and dominate the battlefield.”
Yang Hao’s seemingly offhand mention of Ling Fei Star Sea caused Jin Mianyue’s expression to change drastically. It was as if her identity had been exposed, and she suddenly looked very troubled: “Yang Hao, did you already know I was a spy?”
“Of course I did. Come on,” Yang Hao replied with a stomp of his foot, as if he were genuinely worried for her. “Miss Ling Zhiyan, with such a unique fragrance of Zi Han Mei on you, how could I not know?”
At this moment, Jin Mianyue’s face turned ashen. She knew she had been completely exposed. Jin Mianyue was actually Ling Zhiyan, the owner of Ling Fei Star Sea on the planet Laymon. Although their appearances and body shapes were completely different, they were indeed the same person.
“I’ve long heard that in the Imperial Senate, there is a special envoy directly under the elders known as the ‘Thousand-Faced Temptress,’” Long Yun said in a deep voice. “Never thought we’d be so lucky to see two of your different faces.”
“Twice?” Yang Hao exclaimed as if discovering a new continent. “Old Long, so you used to frequent Ling Fei Star Sea on Laymon too? What a coincidence!”
“We’ll talk about that later,” Long Yun whispered. “Let’s deal with the important matter first.”
“Ling Zhiyan… Jin Mianyue… anyway, old acquaintances,” Yang Hao still wore a mischievous smile. “I just don’t get it—why have you been following me all this time? Have you really fallen for me?”
“Fallen for you? Because you’re handsome?” Ling Zhiyan sneered coldly.
Yang Hao took this opportunity to nod vigorously: “That’s actually a pretty fair assessment. I don’t have many other good qualities, just that I’m too handsome. It’s a real burden.”
“Handsome, my foot!” Ling Zhiyan gritted her teeth. She was utterly helpless against Yang Hao’s cheeky attitude and could only reveal the truth: “Back on Laymon, I was Ling Zhiyan, working as an informant for the Senate elders…”
“Was Wang Tao’s attempt to control Laymon also the Senate’s idea?” Yang Hao suddenly realized.
Ling Zhiyan didn’t answer, but her silence was an admission. She glanced around at the many people surrounding her—Yang Hao’s allies—and realized there was no escape. After hesitating for a moment, she continued: “After you killed Wang Tao, my mission completely failed, and the Senate punished me. I was demoted to be an administrator at a nearby space station. But who could have known I’d run into you again, this pestilence.”
Now Yang Hao understood why there had been no real human administrators at that space station other than robots—it was because Ling Zhiyan had already infiltrated the group of women there.
“I couldn’t even manage that space station properly. If the Senate found out, I would definitely be severely punished,” Ling Zhiyan’s face turned pale, showing how terrifying the Senate’s punishment could be. “So I urgently contacted the nearby Uranus Fleet and volunteered to be their inside agent on your spaceship.”
“So that’s how it was,” Yang Hao rubbed his chin, pretending to look wise. “Looks like I was the one who ruined your life.”
“Now you know!” Ling Zhiyan glared at him, showing no sense of right or wrong.
“So what do we do now?” Yang Hao still acted like a rogue. “How about I offer myself to you as compensation?”
“No, no need,” Ling Zhiyan’s lips curled slightly, revealing the first smile since Yang Hao had captured her. “I don’t think that’s necessary. Anyway, you’re all going to die. Why should I ask for more?”
“Die?” Yang Hao chuckled foolishly, his eyes gleaming coldly. “It seems like the one who’s going to die is you.”
“The coordinates of the wormhole maze were set by me,” Ling Zhiyan said, revealing her charm with a slight curve of her lips. “I didn’t set the exit at Saint Bear. Instead, I designed it to emerge in an empty stretch of space far away from the Saint Bear system. At that exit point, the Uranus Fleet has already been waiting. As soon as you appear, they’ll deliver a devastating blow, and you’ll be completely annihilated.”
“I’ve been talking with you all this time,” she continued confidently. “By now, you’ve already missed the chance to stop the ship. There’s nothing you can do now but wait quietly for the next minute, until you all vanish into oblivion.”
“We’re going to die?” Yang Hao’s eyes narrowed.
“You’re as good as dead,” Ling Zhiyan said with a delighted smile. “Unless you can withstand a full salvo from the Uranus Fleet. As far as I know, Commander Wang Mu’s fleet uses the King’s Formation, one of the most powerful weapons in the universe.”
A cold, tense atmosphere filled the cabin as Ling Zhiyan and Yang Hao stared at each other, neither willing to back down. Outside, the dark blue-black expanse of space was already concealing deadly danger. It was like a lurking beast, ready to pounce at any moment and devour Yang Hao whole.
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