AEKMEM chapter 82

However, An Qiao and Chu Heng were not ordinary people.

Together, they managed to block the terrifying energy released by the Zerg Queen’s self-destruction.

—although they inevitably sustained minor injuries in the process.

Twilight left a crimson line on the horizon and fireballs sparked everywhere, caused by the Zerg Queen’s self-destruction. The evening breeze carried the smell of blood and acrid smoke.

Still shaken, Chu Heng tightly embraced the silver-haired elf, lowering his head to kiss his eyelashes and the corner of his lips.

The elf — An Qiao — slightly tilted his head back and reached out to hook his arm around Chu Heng’s neck.

Some of the arriving soldiers were moved to tears by the final moments of the Zerg Queen’s self-destruction and the sight of the Zerg Queen, the empire’s long-standing nemesis, finally destroyed.

They were about to say something when they saw the couple embrace and kiss. They exchanged glances and wisely kept silent.

It felt like a long time had passed, yet also like only a moment.

Chu Heng released An Qiao.

—After all, although the Queen was dead, the war was not over.

**

An Qiao and Chu Heng once again plunged into the battlefield.

Without the Queen’s command and control, the Zerg army was already in disarray. When the Zerg Queen self-destructed, the Zerg army, bound by a special pact with her, was weakened by the collective blow.

Within two days, the Zerg army on Red and Blue Star was completely annihilated under the leadership of Chu Heng and An Qiao, leaving no trace.

News of the Empire’s great victory over the Zerg, and especially the destruction of the Zerg Queen, caused an uproar throughout the Empire.

For many years, the Empire had been under serious threat from the Zerg.

This was the first time the Zerg Queen had been destroyed.

Without consuming the previous queen as nourishment, it is unlikely that a new queen will emerge. It could take hundreds or even thousands of years for a new queen to be born.

This would mean that the empire would be free from Zerg invasions for hundreds or even thousands of years, enjoying a long period of peace and tranquillity.

The soldiers of the Second Legion were welcomed throughout the empire.

Chu Heng and An Qiao, the key figures in destroying the queen, especially became the subject of heated discussion — or rather, gossip — among the people of the empire.

[Ah, His Highness the Crown Prince and Crown Princess are so amazing! They actually killed the Zerg Queen! That was a Zerg Queen! A Zerg Queen that had never before been destroyed in the history of the empire!

[It’s common knowledge that the Crown Prince is fierce; after all, he injured the Zerg Queen before. But what’s even more shocking is that the Crown Princess, An Qiao, is actually an elf, capable of both fighting and healing!]

[When I first saw the live stream video, I couldn’t believe it. Who would have thought that the quiet, doting crown princess was actually the elf our empire had been frantically searching for?]

[I hate that live stream video! The petty, jealous Crown Prince banned the video of the Crown Princess turning back into an elf. It’s nowhere to be found online — even downloaded and saved videos and photos have disappeared! Previous videos and photos of the Crown Princess were banned long before this.]

[Waaaaah, I hate it so much! If I had known that this live stream was going to be banned, I would have watched it hundreds or thousands more times…]

[…Do you think the livestream will ever be unbanned?]

[It’s probably impossible. Everyone knows the Crown Prince dotes on his wife like his life, once even going straight to someone’s door to “sparing match” just because they verbally provoked the Crown Princess. He is very possessive and even more jealous. Unless the Crown Princess personally asks for it, that video won’t be returned. Since their relationship is good, the Crown Princess definitely won’t do anything to upset him.]

[When do you think His Highness found out that the Crown Princess was an elf?]

[Definitely earlier than all of us!]

[Earlier than us — that’s obviously nonsense, isn’t it? Of course he did!]

[Speaking of which, back then, that prophetic teacher Zhen from the Empire’s First Military Academy possessed extraordinary abilities. He predicted that the elves were in Blue Star City on Water Blue Star, and that His Highness the Crown Prince would soon meet a real elf. That prediction was actually quite accurate, wasn’t it? The Crown Princess and the Crown Prince were in Blue Star City back then!]

[What’s funny is that the First Military Academy once sent outstanding freshmen on a mission to Blue Star City to find the elf—and one of the students selected… was the Crown Princess himself. Who knew that the Crown Princess was the elf? Searching for himself — too funny! I wonder if he was completely confused when he first received the mission notice.]

[It can only be said that the Crown Princess’s disguise was too good; no one expected that he was actually the mysterious and unfathomable elf who appeared in Blue Star City before.]

[Is it just me, or has the brain system’s matchmaking always been so precise? When it matched the Crown Princess with the Crown Prince, people thought there must have been a glitch in the system — why else would the weakest ‘awakened failure’ elf be paired with the strongest beastman in the empire? I even remember people betting that the Crown Prince would divorce within a month! Looking back now, the brain system really did have the best foresight! The Crown Prince and Crown Princess are truly a perfect match, a pair made in heaven!]

[The brain system really is worthy of its name! The strongest matchmaking system of all time!]

……

[I wonder when the Crown Prince and Crown Princess will return to the Imperial Capital Star, or if they won’t be returning immediately, when will Red-Blue Star be open to tourists? I dream of seeing the Crown Princess in elf form with my own eyes! He was breathtaking in the livestream, so he must be even more beautiful in real life! If only I could take a picture with him or get an autograph]

**

An Qiao learned from Chu Heng that a stray livestream orb had appeared on the battlefield and had accidentally broadcast his transformation back into elf form while he was fighting, allowing almost the entire empire to see it. His whole body froze.

Being exposed on the battlefield was bad enough, but being exposed in front of the entire empire?

Didn’t he have any pride?!

The elf king, whose image was weighed down by eight tons, couldn’t help but cover his face with his hands.

Although it wasn’t shameful to be an elf, after being exposed in front of so many Second Army soldiers, he simply stopped pretending and remained in his elf form — after all, he preferred his original form.

However, being exposed in front of the entire empire, under everyone’s watchful gaze, was still quite embarrassing.

Chu Heng gently pulled away the hand covering his face and took it in his own, lightly poking Qiaoqiao’s cheek. “Qiaoqiao, don’t be sad. I’ve already banned that live stream video for you.”

An Qiao: “… ”

Are you sure you banned that livestream video for me, and not because you wanted to ban it?

He knew Chu Heng’s possessive, domineering, and jealous nature all too well.

Normally, he would glare at anyone who stared at him for too long. It would be a miracle if he allowed a video of him on the battlefield to circulate online!

An Qiao glanced at him sideways. “Oh, really? Thank you so much then.”

Chu Heng understood the implication but pretended not to know, innocently going along with it. “So, how does Qiao Qiao plan to thank me?”

An Qiao knew he was being manipulative but raised an eyebrow and answered with interest. “How do you want me to thank you?”

Chu Heng felt a little guilty. “I’ll tell you later. You can’t be angry.”

The time for the second step in breaking the Demon King’s curse was fast approaching.

According to the dragon race’s inherited memories, the first step was to offer the heart’s blood of a dragon. The second step was to establish a partnership contract with the dragon race. The third step… yellow trash.

Each step could be spaced out over time. While offering the heart’s blood could be done secretly beforehand, establishing the partnership contract cannot be done alone.

Furthermore, An Qiao would inevitably become aware that the dragon’s blood was slowly breaking the Demon King’s curse.

If An Qiao knew that he had used his heart’s blood to break the Demon King’s curse, who knows how angry he would be?

**

There were still some matters to attend to, so Chu Heng and An Qiao did not leave Red and Blue Star immediately after annihilating the Zerg race.

Since they would be staying on Red and Blue Star for a while, Chu Heng sent over several of An Qiao’s usual chefs.

The military’s garrison conditions weren’t ideal, but there was a mess hall. Except for the few days before and after battles, when time was tight and the soldiers ate nutrient solutions, the soldiers could choose from the mess hall’s natural foods and nutrient solutions.

In the evening, when An Qiao and Chu Heng entered the mess hall, the soldiers eating there became excited.

Had they not been trying to maintain their image in front of their two idols, some of them probably would have screamed and shouted with excitement.

Needless to say, Chu Heng was the marshal of their Second Army Corps, the war god of the empire, and their idol whom they worshiped and revered.

An Qiao had healed countless soldiers on the battlefield, a feat for which the Second Army Corps was deeply grateful.

Moreover, An Qiao possessed terrifying strength, having slain countless Zerg. He played a crucial role in exterminating the Zerg queen and her entire army. His astonishing achievements left the soldiers speechless and filled with utter admiration.

Furthermore, An Qiao was an elf! He was beautiful, powerful, and kindhearted—an elf unseen in the empire for centuries. Who could resist being curious? Who could resist taking a second look?

If not for Chu Heng’s possessive gaze and chilling aura, they probably would have scrambled forward for An Qiao’s autograph as a keepsake.

After all, that was an elf! An elf’s autograph would make the entire empire green with envy.

As for a photo, the soldiers of the Second Army Corps knew it was out of the question. Their Crown Prince was notoriously jealous, and the Crown Princess certainly wouldn’t want to displease him. Even Adjutant Jiang Qi only got an autograph, not a photo, with the elf.

—However, this made the other soldiers extremely envious and resentful. Very few of them could get an autograph from the Crown Princess.

Seeing An Qiao and Chu Heng, Adjutant Jiang Qi couldn’t help but feel a pang of sympathy.

When he saw An Qiao transform into his elf form on the battlefield, he was utterly shocked and bewildered.

Two days before arriving at the Red-Blue Star front lines, he had asked An Qiao in front of Chu Heng if, as the elf’s messenger, he knew where the elf was.

He even asked, “Now that the Zerg are stirring, could we invite the elf to examine His Highness’s injuries?”

At the time, the couple had given him strange looks.

Looking back, of course it was strange!
He had actually asked An Qiao—the real elf pretending to be the messenger—if he knew where the elf was.

And in front of Chu Heng, the elf’s companion, he had asked if he could invite an elf to examine his injuries.

After being asked, An Qiao replied without the slightest hint of guilt: “If I see that elf, I will mention it to him.”

—It’s unclear what An Qiao’s motives were: a real elf claiming to be an elf’s messenger and pretending to be his own messenger.

He had previously received orders from Emperor Chu Zhengming to relay to Chu Heng and An Qiao. The orders instructed Chu Heng, the crown prince, to diligently search for elves, find them, and cultivate a good relationship with them.

—When he relayed those messages, the two of them were so calm!

As he recalled this, the Black Bear beside him bumped him with his shoulder.

“What?” the adjutant asked, puzzled.

The black bear rubbed his hands together, his face beaming, and said, “Old Jiang, no, Brother Jiang, I heard you have a good relationship with our crown princess. Could you put in a good word for me with him and get him to sign an autograph for me?”

Black Bear was truly filled with regret.

Had he known earlier, he wouldn’t have been the first to oppose the Crown Princess’s accompaniment of the Crown Prince to Red-Blue Star.

He was blind to the fact that the seemingly delicate Crown Princess was actually quite cunning and a master of deception!

After An Qiao healed his severe battlefield injuries and saved his life, Black Bear was filled with gratitude and shame.

However, because of what had happened before, he was too embarrassed to approach the Crown Princess.

Jiang Qi found Black Bear’s unusual politeness amusing. “If you want the Crown Princess’s autograph, just go get it yourself when you have the chance. As far as I know, His Highness the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess actually have a pretty good impression of you.”

This was indeed true. Black Bear was straightforward, brave, and single-minded. While his public opposition to An Qiao was arguably a form of “provocative” behavior, it was commendable for a subordinate to stand up and question him.

“Really?!” Black Bear exclaimed, standing up excitedly and seeming eager to rush to An Qiao for an autograph.

Jiang Qi quickly stopped him, saying, “Can’t you see that His Highness the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess are busy being lovey-dovey? Wouldn’t it be annoying to disturb them?”

Besides, Jiang Qi had overheard that the Crown Prince had secretly hired a pastry chef to prepare a surprise for the Crown Princess that night.

**

An Qiao and Chu Heng didn’t stay in the cafeteria long. They simply picked up their food and left.

An Qiao was puzzled. Chu Heng said he was going to the cafeteria but then just picked up his pre-ordered meal and left. If that was the case, why not have a robot deliver the meal? Why walk all that way?

When they returned to their residence with the meal, they found the room completely dark.

This wasn’t right. The room had definitely been lit when they left! Had someone been in the room?

An Qiao frowned and stopped in his tracks.

Chu Heng turned to look at him and said mysteriously, “Qiao Qiao, don’t go into the room yet. I’ll call you later—”

“I’ve prepared a little surprise for you.”

An Qiao: “… ”

For some reason, he had a bad feeling that it wouldn’t be a “surprise” but a “shock.”

However, Chu Heng smiled at him in the moonlight. His deep, rose-colored eyes were truly affectionate and beautiful.

It was a full moon night, the moon round and bright.

—The moonlight is beautiful.

An Qiao sighed inwardly and smiled.

“Waiting for your surprise.”

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