Chapter 104.1 – When the Roses Bloom (22)
◎The third puppet ◎
Guards kept arriving, surrounding Song Ke and the others. After Nai Wen’s death, the scene fell into a stiff standoff.
At this moment, Nai Kang surprisingly calmed down. All emotions—be it shock, sorrow, fear, or anxiety—vanished from his face. Only the sternness belonging to a magistrate and the dignity accumulated over nearly three decades remained. An internal affairs officer brought him a fresh military uniform. Before everyone’s eyes, Nai Kang unbuttoned his collar and cuffs, calmly changed into the new clothes, meticulously fastening every button.
“A group of rats from the sewers, trying to infiltrate everywhere, attempting to meddle in others’ affairs.”
Nai Kang’s piercing gaze landed on Zhang Ci. “Are you Qiong Qi? Stirring up this drama to replace me?”
Zhang Ci coldly stared back. “It’s your self-destruction. Your tyranny, your oppression of the people, your allowance of the twisted caste system that plunged Mu City into chaos. You are utterly undeserving of being a magistrate.”
With an arrogant lift of his chin, Nai Kang retorted, “Young people often have heroic ideals, thinking they’re saviors. Understandable, but mostly self-deception. What you say now sounds grand, but if you ever sat in my position, you might turn out to be even more of a ‘tyrant’ than I am.”
“Nai Dog, stop talking rubbish!” Fan Yiwen roared. Nai Kang was clearly trying to throw dirt onto Zhang Ci.
Nai Kang sneered, his gaze shifting to Song Ke, Zhuang Qingyan, and Lu Xiaoyu. These three sudden S-level awakeners were entirely beyond his control. Their secret alliance with Qiong Qi was the main reason he found himself in this predicament.
“And you, what’s your purpose?” Nai Kang asked coldly.
“To kill you,” Song Ke pointed her triangular military dagger straight at him.
“Nai Kang, you allowed your son to commit murder, killing my daughter. You deserve to die,” Fang Zhixu, his hands soaked in blood, slowly stepped forward. Yet, it wasn’t his blood; it belonged to Nai Wen.
Nai Kang squinted, taking a while to match the face with the name. “Dr. Fang, never expected, you were the mastermind behind the scenes. I underestimated you. If I had known you’d cause so much trouble, even if it meant eradicating Tongwan, I should have killed you back then.”
Even at death’s door, Nai Kang’s attitude thoroughly infuriated the awakeners present.
Song Ke and Zhang Ci led a hundred people charging forward.
The guards scrambled to defend, but the relentless artillery and supernatural abilities razed the surrounding buildings. Countless attacks surged towards Nai Kang, yet mysteriously diverted before reaching him.
Nai Kang’s close aides, seeing the dire situation, fled. Barely a few steps away, sharp talismans descended from above, piercing their backs, and numerous supernatural abilities surged towards Nai Kang. He smirked coldly, unmoving from start to finish.
Zhuang Qingyan, amidst the chaos, stared intently at Nai Kang, his brow gradually furrowing.
If the third puppet was indeed on the scene, given the current chaos, there was a constant risk of being killed. How could Nai Kang remain so composed?
Zhuang Qingyan glanced towards Lu Xiaoyu, who immediately turned the screen towards him. The monitoring on it was crystal clear—aside from their core area, where they were, Nai Kang hadn’t stationed any troops in other locations identified by the mechanical spiders.
Zhuang Qingyan paused for a moment, then raised his voice to shout at Nai Kang from a distance, “You’re left with only one puppet. Why do you think we can’t kill you?”
Nai Kang sized him up directly. “Interesting. You even know I have a puppet.”
Zhuang Qingyan, leaning on his cane, stood up and took two steps forward. Nai Kang subtly raised his hand, and the guard unit switched to a defensive retreat.
The melee halted, casualties on both sides, but Nai Kang’s losses were evidently more severe, with only a third of the high-level awakeners remaining.
Next came the time for psychological warfare.
Zhuang Qingyan smiled faintly. “It’s been five minutes since the explosion. I was just wondering why not a single warlord rushed to save you. Unless… you never issued the order for reinforcement.”
“And you’d do this for only one reason,” Zhuang Qingyan spoke slowly, each word deliberate, “you’re protecting your puppet, and in doing so, you’re safeguarding yourself because as long as he’s alive, you won’t die.”
“You can maintain composure now because you know the other person isn’t in the Reunification Palace, ensuring we can’t find him.”
Nai Kang’s lips gradually tightened. This kid had an uncanny ability to see through people’s intentions.
Zhuang Qingyan’s eyes narrowed slightly as all the pertinent information raced through his mind.
“Your first puppet, Jularamani, an almost S-level awakener, chosen because he’s hard to kill.”
“The second, your son Nai Wen, imprisoned in the Reunification Palace, firmly under your control. You’re confident here due to the top-notch security, believing no one would breach it before us.”
“Turning these two into puppets, although secure, poses risks. As long as the existence of your causality-based supernatural ability is known, they can be easily wiped out together. One shouldn’t put all eggs in one basket, a principle a general like yourself must understand. So, the third puppet must be entirely different from conventional thinking.”
Zhuang Qingyan’s composed voice reverberated in the vast space, “You must ensure that even if he’s not under your nose, he can survive unharmed. This means he surely possesses self-defense capabilities, maybe even more so, and his situation outside is safer and less conspicuous than staying in the Reunification Palace.”
Nai Kang’s eyelids trembled ever so slightly.
“Peasants, workers, or mercenaries? Too risky. Merchants or the wealthy? Not secure enough. Based on Mu City’s hierarchical structure, he must be at least at the second tier or higher, wielding substantial power and status, with a large private militia for protection. High-ranking officers and small warlords are absorbed or assassinated; they aren’t your best options.”
“Then, we’re left with the three major warlords. Ruan Wenjun is dead, so is it Mu Qin or Miao Lun?”
Zhuang Qingyan stared at the tightening back of Nai Kang’s hand, smiling brightly, “Do you think I’m going to guess Mu Qin? After all, he’s an awakener, with a better chance of survival compared to Miao Lun, an ordinary person.”
“But there’s a question that’s been bothering me. The three major warlords, each holding different powers, create a balance and a check on each other. Mu Qin and Ruan Wenjun had many overlapping interests, causing constant friction between them. However, Miao Lun seems to have no direct conflicts with anyone. General, can you tell me why?”
At the Hero Banquet where Song Ke participated alone, Mu Qin and Ruan Wenjun were at odds, but Miao Lun managed to navigate smoothly. Zhuang Qingyan had felt a sense of incongruity then. Furthermore, during large military actions like the attack on Shaye, the other two warlords participated, even Nai Kang himself commanded on the field. Why was it specifically Miao Lun who was excluded?
“Why do you particularly favor Miao Lun? It’s not because of trust but because…
“—Miao Lun is your most deeply hidden puppet,” Zhuang Qingyan declared conclusively.
Nai Kang’s calm facade shattered.
With a few words and an intricate sequence of reasoning, Zhuang Qingyan breached Nai Kang’s psychological defenses.
To kill Nai Kang, they had to eliminate the puppet first—Miao Lun had to die.
Zhang Ci immediately signaled a dozen people. “Come with me.”
He turned to Song Ke, who seemed about to say something, and nodded. “Leave it to me.”
Fang Zhixu wiped his face and stood resolutely in front of Zhang Ci. “I’m going with you.”
As for Ayao… she was still with Miao Lun. He didn’t know if she was in danger. He had to go himself to feel assured.
Fang Zhixu turned back, looking at Song Ke, Zhuang Qingyan, and the others, bowing deeply. “…I’m counting on you.”
“Stop them!!” Nai Kang bellowed.
Song Ke swiftly conjured a Shaolin staff, charging forward, sweeping through the opponents and knocking down the pursuers. Zhang Ci, Fang Zhixu, and others took the chance to leap into the tunnel, disappearing in an instant.
A hint of anxiety flickered in Nai Kang’s eyes, yet he managed to maintain composure. “Just with a dozen of you, you think you can kill Miao Lun?”
“We will definitely do it! Once he’s gone, you’ll be left waiting… waiting to die!” Song Ke spoke resolutely.
She wasn’t sure how strong Miao Lun’s self-defense capabilities were, but she knew Zhang Ci well. Her senior brother was the kind of person who, once making a promise, would give his all to fulfill it.
“What if I tell you that even if you kill Miao Lun, you still can’t harm me?”
Nai Kang quickly regained his calm demeanor, even arrogantly finding a chair and sitting down.
“Not good,” Lu Xiaoyu from the back suddenly spoke up. His ice-blue eyes swiftly flickered, displaying data streams. “Detected interference from unknown signals, five starships are heading towards Mu City, estimated to arrive in an hour.”
At this timing, arriving at Mu City on starships clearly exposed the identity of the approaching party. They hadn’t anticipated that the actions of the Alliance’s special envoy would be quicker than expected.
Nai Kang received the same information. His features relaxed, and he burst into laughter. “I told you that you couldn’t touch me. I not only sent a ‘request for intervention’ but also submitted an ’emergency refuge’ to the Alliance. Before you find Miao Lun, I might have already left Mu City.”
Nai Kang was planning to escape? Song Ke was stunned by his shamelessness.
Zhuang Qingyan looked at Nai Kang, who was laughing heartily, and grinned. “Once you submit an emergency refuge, it means you’ll lose all privileges as a magistrate. You won’t be able to return to Mu City for the rest of your life. General, you’re willing to hand over the kingdom you’ve painstakingly built. I must admire your magnanimity. Oh, are you this afraid that we’ll kill you?”
When it came to cutting remarks, Zhuang Qingyan ranked second to none.
Nai Kang’s laughter faded.
