Chapter 210: Incoming Attack

About five or six hours after they left the planet, the person Nan Yu had treated finally began to wake up.

The first thing he said after opening his eyes and seeing the old man was...

"You old bastard, why am I seeing you again?!"

The old man spoke in an extremely humble manner. "My good grandson, as long as you're awake... As long as you're awake..."

The young man slowly sat up. The way he treated the old man was nothing like how someone would treat his grandfather. It was more like he was speaking to a servant.

"Who cured me? Where is that person?"

The old man said, "I found a very powerful Mental Power User. His identity is special, and he already left earlier. You only just woke up, so you still need to get plenty of rest."

The young man didn't listen to him at all.

"I'm asking you a question! All you have to do is answer me. You found such a powerful Mental Power User and didn't even know enough to keep him here!"

The old man hurriedly said, "All right, all right. I'll tell you. That person is from the Empire. You should have heard his name before. Aside from the High-Tier Mental Power Users, he's the most powerful one in the entire Empire."

The young man's eyes lit up.

"You mean Nan Yu from the Nan family? He actually came to this planet?! Where is he now?"

The old man said, "My good grandson, have you forgotten? He joined Marshal Yu's legion some time ago. This time, Marshal Yu personally brought him to this planet because they were looking for a certain item. Once they obtained it, they left."

Although the young man behaved arrogantly and overbearingly, he wasn't stupid.

"Then why would they save me?"

He quickly figured out the connection himself.

"You prepared that item, didn't you? Are you an idiot? Do you not have a brain? No matter what, you should've waited until I actually woke up before letting them leave!"

The old man said, "But... even if we'd waited until you woke up, you wouldn't have been able to keep them here, would you?"

The young man choked.

That made perfect sense!

He really couldn't refute it.

But that didn't stop him from being angry.

"Just get out of my sight! Even if I couldn't have kept him in the end, at least I would've tried. Even if there were only a one-percent chance..."

He stopped speaking.

He knew perfectly well that there was absolutely no possibility of making Nan Yu stay.

First of all, Nan Yu was a citizen of the Empire and held an enormously important position there. Why would he remain on a filthy, chaotic planet like this, much less inside some insignificant organization?

"Forget it. Forget it. Hurry up and get lost. Right, how long was I unconscious?"

"Several years..."

"What about those bastards who plotted against me?"

"They've all been captured. Since you never woke up, they've been imprisoned in the underground cells this entire time. If anything had happened to you, I would've made all of them accompany you in death."

The young man immediately tried to get up after hearing that, but he'd barely lifted himself halfway before collapsing back onto the bed.

Only then did he remember that he'd just awakened and couldn't casually get up yet.

Still, as an Ability User, his rehabilitation should progress very quickly.

"I want to see those bastards right now. You haven't been treating them well these past few years, have you?"

"Don't worry, my good grandson. They've all been locked up at the very bottom. Every day, they're given only one cup of water and half a steamed bun. We've kept them half-dead down there, waiting. There's no way they'll escape."

Only after hearing this did the young man feel somewhat better.

He got into a wheelchair and went all the way down to the lowest dungeon to see the prisoners.

After being imprisoned for so many years, the people inside had clearly become numb.

They desperately wanted to die, but they didn't dare.

They were attached to wealth and power and terribly afraid of death. Otherwise, they never would have betrayed this man in exchange for some compensation in the first place.

When they saw someone who, according to everything they knew, should already have been dead appear in front of them, every one of them was shocked.

What was going on?

"Du Teng, you're actually still alive?!"

The person they called Du Teng was the young man sitting in the wheelchair.

Seeing how miserable and emaciated they looked now filled him with indescribable satisfaction.

"That's right, I'm still fucking alive. Aren't you disappointed? You sold me out back then for a little money... Didn't expect me to survive, did you? Now tell me, how are you planning to die?"

Du Teng was speaking to them, but not a single one of the prisoners answered his question.

Instead, they seemed immersed in their own worlds.

He could clearly hear what they were muttering.

"Impossible. How could he still be alive? Based on the amount of time that's passed, he should already be dead. There's absolutely no way he could still be alive. Did something go wrong with the drug? This is unbelievable..."

"I never expected their product could fail too. They swore to me that it would work, but the evidence is right in front of us. Du Teng really is still alive."

Although they had all noticed Du Teng's wheelchair, that didn't prevent them from observing his current condition.

He looked like someone who had been ill for a very long time, but his overall state was extremely good.

It was almost as though he'd already recovered.

But that was impossible.

The poison they'd used had no antidote whatsoever.

Even Mental Power Users supposedly couldn't do anything about it.

They'd heard that unless a High-Tier Mental Power User could be found to extend his life, there was no hope. And even then, there was a drawback: supposedly, even a High-Tier Mental Power User could only alleviate the condition temporarily.

After some time passed, another treatment from a High-Tier Mental Power User would be required.

But where in the world could anyone find a High-Tier Mental Power User with that much free time?

And why would such a person help an Ability User who was practically an undocumented outlaw as far as the Empire was concerned?

Especially when his family was involved in organized crime.

The prisoners muttered among themselves for a long time. What began as individual mumbling eventually turned into a heated argument.

In the end, they actually seemed to reach a conclusion.

One of them looked at Du Teng in the wheelchair.

"You look like you've recovered, but there was definitely nothing wrong with the poison we gave you. Once someone is poisoned with it, there's no way to treat them and no antidote. You really do look fine now, but ask the person who treated you whether you're actually completely cured!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Du Teng turned toward the person behind him.

"Hey, you old bastard! Is what he said true? I'm really not cured? I'm only temporarily better? If I can't keep getting a High-Tier Mental Power User to treat me, am I going to die again?"

The old man said, "My good grandson, he promised us that when enough time has passed, we can contact him again. So you don't need to worry."

How could Du Teng possibly not worry?

Even if his life wasn't immediately in danger, wouldn't he still have to constantly worry about whether he would survive?

His life was effectively in someone else's hands.

If they were willing to come and treat him, naturally there would be no problem.

But what if they weren't?

After all, from the Empire's perspective, wouldn't it be better if fewer people like them existed?

So as far as Nan Yu was concerned, someone like Du Teng dying would probably be one less problem in the world.

Du Teng was filled with rage but had nowhere to vent it.

Then his gaze fell on the prisoners, and he suddenly laughed before pointing at the man who had spoken earlier.

"Why don't you come out and play with me?"

The old man immediately waved his hand, ordering the people behind him to hurry up and drag out the person Du Teng had pointed at.

They suspended him in the air, leaving both feet off the ground, though the tips of his toes could still barely touch the floor.

Just looking at the position seemed exhausting.

"What's wrong? Weren't you pretty arrogant just now? Go on, keep acting arrogant!"

"Come to think of it, I still haven't asked who sent you or what exactly they wanted!"

The suspended man was nervous, but he didn't conceal anything.

After all, this was something that could eventually be uncovered as long as enough time was spent investigating.

Before carrying out the attack, the prisoners had already received enormous payments and handed the money over to their families so they could live comfortably.

So they had nothing to fear now.

Besides, the people who hired them had said it wouldn't matter even if their identities were exposed.

That meant their employers simply didn't care about retaliation from Du Teng's faction.

"You want to know? Fine, there's no harm in telling you. Do you remember the day before we drugged you? You forced a woman at a hotel to have sex with you. Do you know who that woman was? Someone far beyond your reach!"

Of course Du Teng remembered.

His memories stopped around those few days.

As far as he was concerned, spending the night with that beautiful woman had been a wonderful memory.

Sure, he'd forced her, but hadn't he given her enough money afterward?

But now this man was saying that the woman actually had a higher status than him and wasn't even afraid of his family?

"So... she gave you the poison? Whether an antidote exists or not is entirely up to what she says, then? There must be one. She just said there wasn't. Even if there wasn't one back then, several years have passed now. They must have developed one by now. Do you know who she is?"

"Of course I do. There's no harm in telling you. She's the mistress of one of the higher-ups in that mysterious organization. She's extremely capable. Back then, merely hiring us to poison you was already her way of giving you an easy death. If it had been someone else, you might not even have been able to die no matter how badly you wanted to."

Du Teng's expression changed.

"She's from that organization?"

Everyone was shocked.

That mysterious organization was universally recognized by everyone on this planet as something that absolutely could not be provoked.

Even if she was merely someone's mistress, she still couldn't be offended casually.

Otherwise...

Du Teng had previously forced himself on that woman.

If she'd chosen to be even slightly more ruthless, not only Du Teng but the entire Du family might have been completely destroyed.

So...

Although what had happened that day had been forced, perhaps she hadn't hated it that much?

Maybe that was why she'd chosen a relatively moderate method of retaliation.

"However, I heard she's no longer that man's mistress. Another woman replaced her. She's currently somewhere on this planet, but I don't know exactly where. You'll have to investigate that yourselves."

The instant Du Teng heard this, he couldn't wait another second.

He immediately turned around and shouted, "Hey, old man! You know who that woman is and where she is, don't you? You've been keeping an eye on her this whole time, right?!"

The old man nodded.

"Yes, we've been watching her. Although another woman replaced her as that man's mistress, the higher-up never completely abandoned her. He never personally said anything like they would have nothing to do with each other from then on, so I've never dared make a move against her."

"Heh!" Du Teng sneered. "Go bring her here. If that higher-up really still had any feelings for her, he wouldn't have let her continue living in a place like this."

The old man thought about it and agreed.

"Then I'll send someone to capture her right now!"

Their status on this planet was naturally quite high.

After all, the fact that they could organize such a massive auction already demonstrated their strength.

It took only about half an hour before the woman appeared in front of Du Teng.

When she saw him, she looked genuinely astonished.

"You're actually still alive? Impossible. That drug makes someone gradually sink into unconsciousness without realizing it, slowly bringing them closer and closer to death until they truly die. There's no way you could wake up again unless you encountered a High-Tier Mental Power User and they were actually willing to treat you!"

Du Teng thought about it.

Although Nan Yu wasn't a true High-Tier Mental Power User, his abilities had already reached the level of what a High-Tier Mental Power User could accomplish.

"Why I was able to wake up has nothing to do with you. You only need to answer my questions. Now tell me, what exactly was the poison you gave me?"

The woman crossed her arms and stood there elegantly, as though she hadn't been captured at all and had merely come here to attend a banquet.

"The poison I gave you? You can call it a poison, but you could just as easily say it isn't one."

Du Teng asked, "What do you mean?"

"I mean that this poison is a newly developed experimental product. It gradually causes the victim to fall asleep, then slowly erodes their Mental Sea barrier until the Mental Sea completely disappears. At that point, the person is essentially dead."

Du Teng stared at her.

"So I was nothing but a test subject you used to experiment with the drug?!"

The corner of the woman's mouth curved upward.

"That's right. You're only realizing that now?"

"Still, your current condition really is rather strange. If possible, I'd actually like to take you back with me and study you. How about it? If you come back with me and cooperate with our research, we won't pursue the matter with the Du family!"

Du Teng suddenly had an ominous feeling.

"What do you mean?"

The woman abruptly burst into loud laughter, only to suddenly stop a moment later.

"I mean, did you really think capturing me would be that easy? You've been watched for a long time already. So choose. Either you come with me willingly and the Du family remains unharmed, or we make our move, kill everyone here who tries to stop us, tie you up, and take you away anyway."

Du Teng knew that if the Du family were capable of saving him, he would hide without hesitation and let the Du family's people handle everything.

But he knew they couldn't win.

Because at some point, every single person who had previously escorted the woman here had moved to stand behind her.

Only then did they belatedly realize that although these people were wearing uniforms distributed by the Du family, none of them actually belonged to the Du family!

The prisoners who were either suspended or still locked inside seemed to notice what was happening.

They immediately began shouting hopefully toward the woman, begging her to save them.

But the woman merely said softly, "They're too noisy."

Someone behind her immediately walked over, drew a weapon, and fired several shots into their heads.

Every person the Du family had imprisoned for years was killed on the spot.

"So, have you decided? Will you come with me willingly, or do I have to use force?"

Du Teng now completely understood his situation.

He couldn't leave this place at all.

If they refused her or made any suspicious move, the people surrounding them would protect her while quickly slaughtering everyone here, leaving only Du Teng alive before taking him back with them.

Du Teng blinked.

"Didn't I already say it? I only managed to cling to life for a little longer because a Mental Power User helped me. It's not because there's anything special about my constitution..."

The woman rolled her eyes.

"So that's what happened? I was wondering what was going on. I thought you were actually impressive enough to wake up after being poisoned. But..."

She waved her hand.

Someone immediately went to investigate.

The result really did match what Du Teng had said.

"Looks like I was overthinking it. In that case, we'll leave for today. I hope you enjoy your life. We were husband and wife for one night, after all. I hope you don't die too soon."

"Of course, if possible, tell me who the Mental Power User who treated you was. I'd also like to know who he is and where he is now."

"I don't really know what happened. By the time I woke up, he was already gone."

The woman's gaze shifted toward the old man, who had been pretending to remain silent from the beginning.

The white-haired old man stood behind Du Teng's wheelchair, his expression appearing fairly normal.

So...

The old man said, "I can certainly tell you if you want to know, but can you pretend that nothing happened here today?"

"Of course. When doing business, integrity is what matters."

"I can promise not to tell anyone, so go ahead."

The old man said, "Actually, all of you know this person. His name became known throughout the Empire while he was still attending school. He's a Mid-Tier Mental Power User, not a High-Tier one, but he can accomplish certain things that only High-Tier Mental Power Users should be capable of."

"We knew perfectly well that finding a High-Tier Mental Power User was impossible, so we deliberately caused some disturbances here and drew over people from Yu Lanfeng's legion, which is stationed closest to this planet. That way, we could detain one of them and demand communication with the Marshal. Perhaps then we could get what we wanted."

The woman said, "I see. It wasn't a bad plan. Fine, we'll consider this matter over."

As long as Du Teng hadn't truly recovered through his own abilities, there was no need for them to go to enormous lengths over him.

But they really were interested in Nan Yu.

Especially since...

The organization had issued an enormous bounty specifically for capturing Nan Yu and bringing him back.

There was also an even more important mission connected to him, but with her current status, she wasn't qualified to know the details.

She could only speculate in private.

Still, that didn't diminish her desire to capture Nan Yu.

"Wait. You're saying Nan Yu and the others already left this planet? They departed only a few hours ago and headed toward the jump point?"

The old man said, "That's right. They left very quickly. It almost seemed as though they were afraid they wouldn't be able to leave if they waited too long."

The woman was a member of the organization.

She had gone from being someone's mistress to becoming an official member. Although her status within the organization couldn't compare with the man who had once been her lover, she now had much more freedom, didn't she?

"A few hours have passed. Then they probably haven't emerged from the jump point yet."

She murmured to herself for a moment before looking at the two of them.

"We'll forget about what happened today. But if there's a next time, don't blame me for being merciless. Understood? Oh, and our people will come negotiate with you shortly. I hope both sides can cooperate pleasantly."

Cooperate?

What cooperation?

After the woman left, people soon arrived to discuss cooperation with them, including matters involving the items to be auctioned.

But everything they said could ultimately be summarized in one sentence:

We are going to swallow you whole.

Du Teng and the old man had no choice whatsoever.

Before formally coming into contact with the mysterious organization, they'd assumed it wasn't overwhelmingly powerful.

Only after actually dealing with them did they realize that, to this mysterious organization, their entire faction was nothing more than an ant.

When the organization didn't notice them, they could jump around a little without consequence.

But once its attention fell on them, refusing to obey meant being crushed beneath its foot.

After the woman returned, she immediately reported the information to her superiors.

"You're certain they left only a few hours ago?"

"Absolutely. Even if they've already entered the jump point, there's no way they've emerged yet. There are only a few possible destinations connected to the jump point here. Set up ambushes at each one and you'll definitely catch them somewhere. Our organization has plenty of people anyway. Oh, right, Marshal Yu is with him too. As for whether you actually want to make a move, that's up to you. I hope everything goes smoothly."

She had barely finished speaking when furious cursing came through the communication channel.

"You fucking woman, why didn't you tell me earlier that Yu Lanfeng is there too?! If he's with Nan Yu, it doesn't matter how many people we send—it'll be fucking useless! Forget capturing Nan Yu. We might not even make it out alive ourselves!"

The woman seemed momentarily startled by his outburst and didn't know how to respond.

But she quickly recovered.

"Sir, don't get angry. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I never said you had to confront them head-on and fight them directly. Follow them along their route. You'll definitely find an opportunity!"

The person on the other end of the communication fell silent for a moment.

Unexpectedly, he actually thought the idea was feasible.

"I suppose that's the only option we've got. Fine, I'll give it a try. If we really manage to capture Nan Yu this time, I'll definitely report your contribution to the higher-ups!"

"Thank you, sir!"

At that moment, Nan Yu, Yu Lanfeng, and the others aboard the starship still traveling through the jump knew absolutely nothing about the fact that someone had already set their sights on them.

Their destination this time was Border Region Thirty-Two Military Base.

Zhang An, who was aboard the starship with them, had also awakened.

What they hadn't expected was for Zhang An to have such a personality.

When facing Yu Lanfeng, he was excessively obsequious, calling him "Lord Marshal" with practically every sentence.

It reminded Nan Yu of traitors who wagged their tails and begged their enemies for mercy.

As a result, Nan Yu's first impression of him was absolutely terrible.

When they returned to the lounge, Nan Yu's expression remained ugly.

"How did someone like that get into the legion? How did he even pass the assessment? He's completely useless!"

Yu Lanfeng thought the same thing.

But as an adjutant, Zhang An shouldn't possibly have such a personality.

Earlier, he'd had Nan Yu examine Zhang An's Mental Sea, and Nan Yu hadn't found anything wrong with it.

In other words, Zhang An was behaving this way entirely of his own volition.

Could it be that someone had directly hypnotized him and then brainwashed him?