AEKMEM chapter 36

An Qiao and Chu Heng followed a group of about a dozen natives from a distance.

However, they soon discovered another group of people following the natives from a distance. The attire of these people clearly did not belong to the locals.

“They’re from the Greedy Wolf Star Pirate Group, ” Chu Heng said, narrowing his eyes.

The Greedy Wolf Star Pirate Gang was not as well-known as some other star pirate groups, but it was actually the strongest in the Empire and extremely cunning. Chu Heng had always wanted to eliminate the group. However, perhaps because the group was overly well-informed and might even have military personnel in their ranks, his Second Army Corps, despite monitoring the group for several years, only managed to inflict a minor blow and failed to completely eradicate them. An Qiao asked, “The Greedy Wolf Pirates? Judging from their behavior, could their target also be the Elf Palace?”

“Maybe. The Greedy Wolf Pirates are very greedy. As long as they pay enough star coins, they’ll take any mission.”

Chu Heng suspected that the group of star pirates who kidnapped him from the Imperial Capital Star when he was just a few days old were members of the Greedy Wolf Pirates.

Unfortunately, he had never found any evidence. The Greedy Wolf Pirates were also very slippery. The core members were impossible to capture, and the lower-level members couldn’t possibly know anything about what happened back then. Even if they were captured, they wouldn’t reveal any information.

“But the Spirit Burial Snowfield seems quite poor. Wouldn’t it be a losing proposition to risk so much trouble entering it?”

Chu Heng replied, “I accidentally overheard that the Greedy Wolf Star Pirate obtained an ancient treasure map. Judging from the current situation, it’s likely that the map points to the Spirit Burial Snowfield.”

“Moreover, the Burial Spirit Snowfield is only poor on the surface. Due to its unique geographical features, it’s actually incredibly rich in special resources. Rare minerals needed to manufacture starships, energy shields, and other advanced technologies can all be found here, though they are scarce elsewhere. However, the environment here is treacherous… Furthermore, all high technology malfunctions here, making it extremely dangerous. This is why few people venture into the Spirit Burial Snowfield.”

Chu Heng was right. The Wolf Star Pirates were drawn by an ancient and mysterious map. They firmly believed that the Spirit Burial Snowfield got its name from an elf buried there and that the magnificent palace the map pointed to was the elf’s final resting place. They believed that the palace contained treasures left by the elf and collected and offered by the natives of the Spirit Burial Snowfield.

In reality, however, the elf only stayed there temporarily. After finding the way back to the elf world, he left. The elf palace was merely a place of remembrance.

**

After following the native group for most of the day, they came upon a magnificent, dazzling gold-and-red palace towering high atop vast snow-capped mountains.

The palace’s golden roof peeked through the clouds. Its sacred beauty was awe-inspiring against the backdrop of the snow-capped peaks and floating clouds.

It was undeniably beautiful.

Even An Qiao, with his discerning eye, couldn’t help but marvel at the meticulous care put into its construction.

Perhaps because the Elf Festival was to be held in two days, the palace and its surroundings had been newly decorated with exquisite lanterns and banners that swayed in the breeze, creating a festive and joyous atmosphere.

There were quite a few local warriors guarding and patrolling the palace.

An Qiao and Chu Heng carefully avoided the guards, circling around to the back of the palace.

Their target was the back of the Elf Palace, where the magic crystal had appeared, not the palace itself.

As they approached the rear of the mountain, An Qiao sensed the magical elements in the air growing increasingly active.

He could faintly sense the subtle aura of the Elven territory.

Suddenly, a violent sound erupted in front of the palace on the front mountain.

“A fight has broken out over there,” said An Qiao, turning around and frowning.

“Aren’t you going to take a look?” He glanced at Chu Heng, his face expressionless.

Chu Heng’s earlier bad premonition was now stronger than ever.

An Qiao was trying to get rid of him. It seemed he had a secret he didn’t want Chu Heng to know.

“Do you want me to leave for a while and check it out?” he asked, staring into An Qiao’s eyes.

An Qiao: “… ”

Had Chu Heng guessed that he wanted to send him away?

He was now certain that the back mountain was closely connected to the Elf world. To prevent any unexpected incidents, as well as the possibility of being caught off guard and exposed, he had decided to get Chu Heng away from there.

But he hadn’t expected Chu Heng to see through his intentions.

“Will you be in danger?” Chu Heng asked again, his deep, rose-red eyes fixed intently on An Qiao, reflecting his image with unwavering intensity.

Startled by his gaze, An Qiao felt a slight tingling sensation run through his heart.

“No danger,” he said, lowering his beautiful, icy blue eyes to avoid Chu Heng’s gaze.

“…Okay.” Chu Heng didn’t ask any further questions.

An Qiao watched his tall, black figure disappear step by step, and couldn’t help but remind him, “Be careful…”

**

This was a bottomless cliff.

At first glance, it didn’t seem particularly special.

However, standing on the edge, An Qiao could feel the familiar, nostalgic aura of the elven lands below.

Perhaps because of its location at the heart of the Burial Snowfield and its permeation with magical elements from the elven world, coupled with the unique, enclosed geographical environment of the Burial Snowfield, the entire area possesses an incredibly special magnetic field. This field renders all high-tech systems from the outside unusable.

Hidden here is a spatial magic array, either natural or man-made, that connects to a certain location in the elven world. It is capable of teleporting individuals with the magical ability to activate the array to that location.

—Jumping from here will return you to the elven world.

The elf who came to the Burial Snowfield must have left from here and returned to the elven world.

This realization surfaced clearly in his mind.

However, he didn’t seem as excited or happy as he had imagined.

Chu Heng’s receding figure replayed in his mind again and again.

An Qiao couldn’t quite describe the feeling. Was it perhaps a guilty conscience for keeping a secret from Chu Heng, sending him away to avoid revealing his identity, and his understanding and lenient attitude of not asking further questions?

But a voice deep inside told him that wasn’t all of it.

If not… then what could it be?

Before he could ponder it, he heard a series of hurried footsteps not far behind him.

They sounded like a large group of people rushing over.

“Damn it! Weren’t they saying there was no one on the back mountain? How come there are still people here?”

“All right, he looks like a weakling. Just take him out. Hurry up! The final direction on the treasure map is nearby. Search carefully; don’t miss any place!”

“You…” The scarred man at the head of the group exclaimed in shock when he saw An Qiao turn around. “You’re Chu Heng’s useless, parasitic crown princess!”

An Qiao: “… ”

Ha, useless parasitic—

He’ll show these people who the real useless one is later.

His reputation as a “useless parasitic vine” seems to have spread quite far. Even the members of the Greedy Wolf Star Pirates, who aren’t on the capital planet, know about it. “Hahaha—” Scarface laughed uncontrollably, his expression a mixture of hatred and glee.

He chuckled sinisterly as he spat venomously: “I’ve heard Chu Heng is quite fond of you. Do you think that if I dumped your corpse in front of him, he would break down from grief?”

Confident that An Qiao was nearing his end, Scarface added a few more words: “These past few years, that monster, Chu Heng, has dealt a heavy blow to our Greedy Wolf Star Pirates, forcing us to live on the run like rats in the street.”

“If only…if only we had known when we kidnapped Chu Heng as an infant, we should have strangled him to death! Otherwise…”

“What did you say?!” An Qiao’s face darkened as he interrupted Scarface.

He rarely displayed such rage; his entire being radiated an uncontrollable, murderous aura as he stared at the scarred man and slowly said,

“It was you who kidnapped Chu Heng!”

Shortly after his birth, due to his parents’ negligence, Chu Heng was kidnapped from the capital planet by space pirates. He was stranded on a chaotic garbage planet where he struggled to survive for sixteen years before finally returning to the capital planet. There, he was recognized by the emperor after passing the entrance exam for the Empire’s First Military Academy.

Chu Heng spent sixteen years alone on that chaotic, dark garbage planet.

All because of these greedy space pirates before him.

“Oh, so angry? I didn’t expect you to be so devoted to Chu Heng.” Scarface’s smile grew even more sinister and gleeful. “Even better, then. After I torture you to death, I’ll hand you over to Chu Heng…”

An Qiao interrupted him. “Chu Heng shouldn’t have just dealt with your Greedy Wolf Star Pirates—”

“He should have slaughtered you all.”

His face was calm, yet the calmness was eerily unsettling and chilling.

And that extremely indifferent, nonchalant phrase, “should have slaughtered you all,” sent a chill down Scarface’s spine, even after witnessing countless acts of bloodshed.

**

When Chu Heng learned that another group of Greedy Wolf Star Pirates had taken a detour through the back mountain, his heart clenched.

Although he knew An Qiao was an elf with extraordinary strength,

Even he wasn’t certain he could defeat An Qiao.

But An Qiao had strange injuries. Who knew what might happen?

Previously, he had allowed An Qiao to go to the back mountain alone because An Qiao had his own secrets and didn’t want him to follow. An Qiao had also said there was “no danger.”

Now, however, a group of Greedy Wolf Star Pirates had gone to the back mountain where An Qiao was!

Chu Heng, who had initially wanted to keep his identity hidden, no longer held back.

He cleared a path with scorching, dangerous dragon breath. Countless firebirds, formed from fire-based abilities and chilling to the bone, surrounded him and slaughtered anyone who dared stand in his way.

Only then did the members of the Greedy Wolf Pirate realize that Chu Heng was there. Initially, when they saw him heading toward the back mountain, they feared he would disrupt their treasure hunt. They also worried that Chu Heng, still severely injured from the battle against the Zerg and now alone, was outnumbered and outmatched.

Focusing on their superior numbers, the pirates saw this as the perfect opportunity to eliminate him.

Fueled by old and new grudges, all the present members of the Greedy Wolf Pirates, upon receiving their leader’s order, abandoned their fight against the local guards protecting the Elf Palace and surged toward Chu Heng’s location like a tidal wave.

The brilliant yet extremely dangerous flames of the dragon’s breath danced and scattered in all directions, instantly incinerating anyone who stood in their way. Magnificent firebirds attacked fearlessly, like moths drawn to a flame.

The handsome man with deep-set eyes didn’t pause for a moment. His brows furrowed as he stared indifferently in the direction of the back mountain. He tread a blood-soaked path of corpses, striding swiftly towards the mountain.

**

When Chu Heng arrived, a pile of corpses lay on the edge of the cliff behind the mountain.

Besides An Qiao, no one else was standing nearby.

An Qiao withdrew the light blade from his hand and looked at Chu Heng, who was approaching with slightly furrowed brows. They met gazes.

His snow-white robe remained spotless, but a few drops of crimson blood had inadvertently splattered onto the right side of his porcelain cheek, below the corner of his eye.

The scarlet blood slid slowly from the corner of his eye like blood on fresh white porcelain, possessing breathtaking, fragile, and tragic beauty.

An Qiao watched Chu Heng approach.

Suddenly, Chu Heng reached out and gently touched An Qiao’s bloodstained right cheek with his fingers.

The cool, gentle touch lingered on his cheek, seeming to last both a very long time and only a few seconds.

An Qiao’s thick, long eyelashes trembled.

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