ABRIWMTHM Chapter 123

Everything experienced on Blue Star, everything brought back from the past is not short.

It’s not a small matter either.

As Shi Xing just started to speak, Chi Yao realized the seriousness of the situation and interrupted his narration.

“Get things sorted, I’ll call back everyone in the residence for a discussion.”

Shi Xing was stunned for a moment before nodding.

Chi Yao kissed him again and began to help him get dressed.

Just the action of buttoning his clothes made Shi Xing feel indescribably cozy as he watched Chi Yao’s meticulous expression.

He returned and passed through his maturity period, it truly was… wonderful.

So wonderful.

When Chi Yao raised his head, slightly surprised, he asked, “What are you smiling at me for?”

Shi Xing hugged Chi Yao and said sincerely, “I’m happy to see you again, Your Highness.”

Initially wanting to push Shi Xing’s hands away, Chi Yao hesitated in the air upon hearing this, and ultimately let his hand rest gently on Shi Xing’s back.

After a moment, Chi Yao indulgently curved his lips.

Yan Changyue was the first to be called back.

Fei Chu and Fu Qing were dealing with military affairs when Shi Xing woke up, and they happened to wrap up their tasks just in time. As the mothership summoned them back, the two of them immediately got up.

Er Ya was resting inside the mothership.

Now that Shi Xing’s maturity period was over, her burdens were finally lifted. Knowing Shi Xing was fine, she rarely went out, spending her time in the room either scrolling through StarNet or playing games. When Yan Changyue called her twice, she responded and dressed casually.

Once everyone gathered, Chi Yao gestured for Shi Xing to speak.

Yan Changyue placed the prepared crystal juice aside, concerned that Shi Xing might have a dry throat.

From the moment Shi Xing opened his mouth until he finished recounting, the sky gradually darkened.

The amount of information was too large and too bizarre. By the time Shi Xing gathered his breath, he had just finished the last sip of crystal juice.

Yan Changyue took the cup back. As a personal attendant, service was ingrained in his bones; even if his mind hadn’t quite caught up yet, his hands were already holding a new glass of fresh juice.

Shi Xing thanked him and took it.

It had been too chaotic lately, and he really needed some sweets to cheer him up.

The first sip went down the wrong way, and Chi Yao patted his back and chuckled.

“Why are you drinking so fast? No one’s going to snatch it from you.”

The voice was low, only audible to the two of them.

“So, the second talent is Devour, the rebirth and death are two sides of the same coin… this is what it means.”

Er Ya murmured, her focus distinctly personal.

Fei Chu articulated everyone’s primary confusion, “You really went back to the past? How did you manage that?”

Shi Xing continued explaining the characteristics of Blue Star humans, clarifying that the energy body traversed, and the physical body should have remained in place.

Chi Yao: “Then so much energy disappearing really is strange.”

“If it’s the opening that supports the laws of time, then it can be explained.”

“Otherwise, how do we explain the energy’s disappearance when Shi Xing’s mental sea has barely absorbed anything?”

This was something that confused Chi Yao from the moment he caught Shi Xing—he clearly sensed the energy from the hundreds of star beasts rushing towards Shi Xing, flooding into his body. However, upon catching Shi Xing, he couldn’t feel that portion of energy within Shi Xing’s mental sea and body afterward, as if… it vanished into thin air.

Hearing Shi Xing put it this way, in a sense, it indeed felt like it “vanished into thin air.”

Moreover, what Shi Xing understood also addressed some confusions about the tree nest; the growth pattern of Blue Star humans could explain why the withered blue fruits were empty and undetectable.

At the moment of stopping growth, the internal energy body must collapse, and when it fell and was opened up for research, it should complete the return of energy to the world.

Fei Chu scratched his head, “I feel dizzy, and I think it’ll take some time to accept this; it’s just… so ethereal.”

The whole event felt too vague for Fei Chu.

It wasn’t that he didn’t believe Shi Xing; it was just that from the activation of the laws of time to going back over one hundred and fifty years, many aspects surpassed Fei Chu’s limits of understanding, making it hard to accept.

After Fei Chu finished speaking, Chi Yao surveyed the expressions of those in the room and found that everyone’s expressions were somewhat subtle.

Perhaps they felt similarly to Fei Chu, unable to believe, yet extraordinary.

But rationality reminded them that Shi Xing wouldn’t lie; their feelings and rationality were in conflict.

Chi Yao: “Actually, there’s a very simple way to prove it.”

Shi Xing looked at Chi Yao.

Chi Yao asked, “Did the priest mention the royal beast to you? It hasn’t been described in historical texts; it has always been mentioned as a part of a struggle in the history of the boundary line. Did she say anything to you?”

The priest hadn’t mentioned much to Shi Xing, but he had seen it in the popular science books on Blue Star.

It was in the hours while the priest was leaving, when boredom led him to skim through the books in the room.

In the holographic projection of the books, he had seen the portrait of the royal beast.

Shi Xing said truthfully, “I remember it had heterochromia, right? There are illustrations on Blue Star, but no pictures recorded.”

After this was said, for most of the people, silence fell as they stared intently at Shi Xing.

“You’re right,” Chi Yao confirmed, “There are records of pictures only in the palace; it indeed has heterochromia, gold and silver dual colors, right?”

Shi Xing nodded.

Chi Yao: “It seems it really isn’t dead.”

And indeed, Shi Xing had truly returned to the past.

Realizing what this meant, Fei Chu’s expression immediately became solemn. In the next moment, he suddenly looked at Chi Yao, “So what do we…”

He received an answer from his cousin.

“If it’s still alive, then it’s not just the Empire’s problem—it’s a matter for the entire star system.”

Given the gravity of the situation, Chi Yao tapped his fingers at his side and said, “Let’s stay here for a few days. If there aren’t more groups of star beasts gathering to threaten the boundary line, we’ll set off back to the Empire.”

They had come to the boundary line to help Shi Xing through his maturity period.

With the stability of the boundary line assured, if they calculated the time, it was about time to return.

Whether deliberating with government officials in the Empire or convening a planetary conference for the entire star system, it was all predicated on being able to proceed from the Imperial Capital.

On the other hand, it was predictable that since they were trapped on Blue Star for over a hundred years, the population of the royal beasts had likely grown stronger again.

The star beasts that came this time were not all of them.

It was far more likely that they were just a small part of the new population, sent ahead to scout.

Star beasts could also communicate with each other; since this portion had gone silent, their missing information would soon return to the population. It wouldn’t be long before the royal beasts learned the news.

By then… there would be even more mutated star beasts coming to the Twin Star Galaxy to search for Shi Xing.

Thinking of this, Chi Yao felt a surge of displeasure in his heart.

Returning to reality, he noticed Shi Xing was looking at him nervously, realizing too late that his expression was overly tense.

Chi Yao reached out and ruffled Shi Xing’s hair, slowly relaxing his brows while offering a comforting smile to his little companion.

With Shi Xing having passed his maturity period, many matters needed to be prioritized.

Considering the potential beast tide the Empire might face next, Chi Yao proactively decided to push matters forward.

First, was the announcement of his identity.

Once they knew that Chi Yao and Er Ya were actively promoting Shi Xing’s maturity period, Ren Yan Yong had already prepared multiple plans.

In the study of the mothership, Ren Yan Yong’s holographic image stood before Chi Yao.

“Your Majesty, the Elders Council believes the best method is to announce the new batch of therapists alongside the royal family announcing the identity of His Highness.”

Chi Yao: “Too long, don’t want it.”

It hadn’t yet been two years; most of this batch of Blue Star humans had just entered the late stage of maturity. By the time they all passed through, it would be the end of the year at the earliest, and the star beasts wouldn’t wait that long.

Moreover, in Chi Yao’s estimation, the timing for the planetary council would likely not exceed one month.

By then, he wanted Shi Xing to naturally appear before the Empire’s citizens and various planets as his partner in a legitimate manner.

Ren Yan Yong thought for a moment and brought out a second plan, “Then how about we directly announce that you matched and married a year ago, then disclose various information about His Highness to the public?”

He suddenly realized, “It’s just right, it could also build hype for the wedding that will be held later.”

“I’ll take a look at the plan.”

After reviewing it, Chi Yao decisively said, “Fine, generally like this, but the details need adjustments.”

Ren Yan Yong: “Your Majesty, what information do you wish to add or remove?”

Chi Yao patiently instructed, “First, flip to the third page…”

“And then the sixth page, here…”

Having passed through the maturity period, Shi Xing’s condition had indeed stabilized.

The surrounding star beasts had been drawn in by the energy disturbances from the previous planet; the energy fluctuations from the barren star had also attracted some scattered star beasts, but their levels were not high. According to Fei Chu, it went like this—

“Of course, those who came to attack before were already killed; within a light year radius, your high-level star beast was already resolved last time, cleaned up. New star beasts, even if they come faster, their numbers can’t be that many, right?”

Everyone found this very reasonable.

So Shi Xing happily used the remaining star beasts to practice his second talent.

Practicing energy control through fog.

The effect was remarkable.

The officers were shocked the first and second times they saw Shi Xing utilizing his ability to devour star beasts.

By the tenth and twentieth time, they gradually became numb.

People are really different; once they accepted this setting, they became accustomed to supporting the troops encircling the tide of beasts, knowing full well they wouldn’t be of much use at the boundary line, left idly by.

His Highness simply raised a hand to solve the problem; no need to dispatch warships, right?!

Er Ya: “Yes, already very skilled, and the incoming star beasts are getting fewer and fewer. It’s likely that for a short while, this is all there is; the remaining scattered stationed star military can handle it entirely.”

Pausing for a moment and knowing what Shi Xing was thinking, Er Ya nodded.

“Prepare for treatment once we return to the Imperial Capital, Your Highness.”

Shi Xing’s eyes lit up.

Seeing this was so much fun, Er Ya couldn’t help but pat Shi Xing’s head.

Even if she wasn’t as tall as Shi Xing.

She was much older than Shi Xing.

A week later, the mothership was ready to take off from the stationed star, returning to the Empire.

Following a few support teams for escort, they headed back together.

At the same time, the Elders Council in the Imperial Capital quickly announced a piece of news on the internal network of StarNet, attracting attention throughout the Empire.

Lu Lu had been back in the Imperial Capital for half a month, yet he was still not very cheerful, burdened with worries.

Tan Shao had already enrolled Lu Lu in the First Military Academy, and soon, he would have to start school.

Although Lu Lu was not happy about it, he didn’t show the same resistance as when he left the Empire.

There was no other reason; as long as he could leave home, Lu Lu felt it was not a bad outcome.

However, the mother-son relationship remained poor, with conflicts still obviously present. Few of the servants in the Lu family dared to mediate.

Lu Guangyu and Lu Li had both gone to the boundary line, while Lu Man was still stationed at the remote fortress of the Empire. With no one to mediate, the atmosphere in the family grew heavier and heavier, quiet to the point it was hard to breathe.

Lu Lu also disliked staying at home.

Since returning to the Empire, aside from paying attention to the boundary line, he had spent most of his time with his high school classmates.

The classmates in the Imperial Capital had identity backgrounds, and this classmate stayed here for two days, that classmate stayed there for two days. Over half a month, if you counted carefully, Lu Lu had spent less than five days at home.

Tan Shao was so angry her head hurt, yet she couldn’t do anything about her youngest son.

She could only hope that when Lu Guangyu returned, things might improve a little.

This day, Lu Lu was at a classmate’s house, an old friend from high school.

This friend would also be entering the First Military Academy and was curious about Lu Lu’s experiences at the boundary line.

“By the way, two friends are coming over today. Is it fine with you? They’ll bring me some materials.”

“Weren’t you saying you wanted to join the mecha department? After entering the military academy, there will be an entrance exam, and you’ll be assigned to different departments in six months. I’ve got my hands on historical exams.”

“Oh, right! Ah Lu, do you want a copy?”

Lu Lu was currently finishing a simulation battle game and shook his head, “No need.”

After thinking for a moment, he added, “Maybe I won’t go to the military academy.”

“What? Not going to the First Military Academy? Isn’t your family all set up for you? What does that mean?”

Lu Lu thought to himself that he hadn’t found the person he was looking for yet. Once Tan Shao relaxed her surveillance on him, he would return to the tree nest, but he wouldn’t mention this to his classmates, fearing they would reveal his plans to Tan Shao.

Lu Lu laughed it off.

Classmate: “By the way, the other person is also an old classmate, Bi Shu, you used to be on good terms with him.”

Lu Lu’s expression remained unchanged, “Oh.”

Still focused on his game.

Soon, the guests arrived, and as they entered, Lu Lu overheard their conversation.

“That’s amazing; I thought the royal family had changed. Who knew Blue Star humans could be that impressive?”

“You and I heard the same rumors and thought it was related to healing; it seems… the royal family might just have a different perspective when it comes to choosing partners. The previous ruler was like this too, the introductions of the queen showed the army’s control and the application of mental power—simply terrifying.”

“This can no longer be described as terrifying…”

The classmates offered their shoes, curious, “What are you all talking about? What royal family, what partner? Is His Majesty looking for a partner?”

The new girl handed over some problems to her classmates and exchanged smiles with Bi Shu.

“What partner? His Majesty already has a partner.”

Classmate: “Got one? I didn’t hear about any announcements?”

Bi Shu saw Lu Lu and greeted him, receiving a glance from Lu Lu as acknowledgment.

The girl and Bi Shu sat on the sofa. After a round of the game, Lu Lu politely paused and joined in the discussion.

Lu Lu: “Of course, you didn’t hear the announcement. His Majesty has matched and married, and after matching with a Blue Star human, the relationship and partner’s itinerary before the maturity period must all remain confidential; only the tree nest knows the movements of matured Blue Star humans.”

Classmate: “How do you know this?”

Lu Lu: “I saw it; His Majesty came to the boundary line and saw his partner using abilities from afar, disintegrating the star beasts’ flesh from a distance. Very powerful.”

As he said this, Lu Lu slightly furrowed his brows, thinking of that unfamiliar face.

Even having ruled out the possibility, he couldn’t help but think of that figure.

Girl: “Very impressive; achieving an SS+ rating in the tree nest!”

Lu Lu froze and looked up, “What did you say?”

The girl repeated it.

Seeing Lu Lu’s expression change, she laughed, “Of course, it must be beyond that now, since the talent assessment might be a bit lower than the normal level.”

But Lu Lu wasn’t asking about that.

Thoughts churned in his heart as things grew worse; Lu Lu asked, “Since it has been announced, does that mean His Majesty’s partner has passed the maturity period?”

Bi Shu: “Yes, just recently.”

“Are there any photos?”

“There’s a video online; do you need me to…”

Before she finished, the classmate had already seen the public announcement and quickly opened the corresponding video.

It was a video demonstrating abilities.

The Empire was a military power, and due to background reasons, the public held a natural reverence for those with high levels of mental power.

In other words, when the citizens first learned that the current ruler’s partner was a Blue Star human, many expressed confusion, fearing the royal family’s excellent high mental power lineage would be diluted… until it was officially introduced, after which everyone was convinced.

The video opened with a night scene, looking like a mountain peak.

Until the camera scanned over a dense gathering of star beasts, the classmate’s hair stood on end.

The girl beside him exclaimed, “Yes, this introduction is particularly impressive.”

“It must be some special talent.”

Not long after, Lu Lu spotted that familiar figure he had seen countless times at the boundary line.

As the video played, excluding the parts where Shi Xing pushed people aside, it recorded the entire process of Shi Xing using his abilities to make the star beasts vanish.

Originally recorded by a black box, it was activated by Ye Jun.

Seeing so many star beasts, the general instinctively pressed play.

Thinking that if they perished, at least some records could be left for the Empire to know what their four teams encountered in the barren star.

Editing this video into an introduction was Chi Yao’s idea. Knowing the public’s inherent impressions and expectations of royal partners, a cut was made under the direction of the Elders Council.

Under the talent of Devour, the star beasts began to disintegrate.

The other three present emitted “Wow——” sounds of astonished admiration.

Only Lu Lu stared blankly at that figure.

Until the figure turned to face the camera.

It was Shi Xing, at that moment confirming Chi Yao’s safety.

He could see the face, but it was barely distinguishable; clarity was not something expected.

The flow of energy was so significant that the black box managed to record it perfectly. Even Ye Jun thought it was a miracle.

But who was Lu Lu? He was a classmate who grew up alongside Shi Xing. The moment Shi Xing’s jaw exposed, he had a bad premonition, and then, upon seeing Shi Xing’s blurry face, something in his heart went off with a loud clang—a shattering revelation that turned his entire consciousness upside down.

It was Shi Xing.

Was it really Shi Xing?!

When did Shi Xing become this powerful?!!

Crack—

With a sound of breaking, Lu Lu looked down; he had gripped the gaming console too tightly, the outer casing crushed into his palm, causing it to bleed.

“Oh dear, Ah Lu, you’re bleeding…”

Bi Shu’s words trailed off as Lu Lu slowly raised his head, startling Bi Shu into silence.

Lu Lu’s eyes were completely red, his gaze fierce.