Chapter 118: The Secret

Only after Kuang Chi had left did Zhan Yu ask Xuan Xuan, “What did you discover?”

He had noticed that she had suddenly remembered something just now. She must have discovered something important.

“The insectoid inside her had been completely still for some time, but it just moved,” Xuan Xuan replied. She had secretly tampered with Xuan Guo, keeping watch over both her and the insectoid within her.

That insectoid had likely been seriously weakened, which was why it had remained inactive for so long. Once they entered the rainforest, however, Xuan Xuan detected movement and remembered that Kuang Shao had arranged for someone to keep watch.

Zhan Yu raised a brow. Wanqi Xuan Xuan’s methods were truly extraordinary. From such a distance, it was as though she could monitor Xuan Guo at any moment.

No wonder she had been so confident in front of him, showing not the slightest concern that he might refuse her.

“What did you put on her?” Kuang Shao asked curiously.

He was genuinely intrigued by such a method.

Xuan Xuan glanced at him. He was useless when it mattered and only good at making trouble. If she had not been keeping him under control, Xuan Guo would have succeeded this time, and he still had the nerve to ask.

She rolled her eyes at him and said, “Secret.”

Kuang Shao swallowed the question that had been about to leave his mouth.

As expected, she was just as unpleasant as her teacher.

Xuan Xuan gave a cold snort.

Within the rainforest, she could easily teach Kuang Shao a lesson without letting him discover what had happened.

Although she disliked him intensely, Xuan Xuan still tossed him a sachet. She had made it herself.

The most terrifying things in the rainforest were not the large beasts, but the countless insects one could never even imagine. The sachet could keep most insects away.

Xuan Xuan disliked trouble, especially when that trouble came in the form of someone as stupid as Kuang Shao.

She tossed another sachet to Zhan Yu, then hung one around her own neck. Her psychic power was constantly watching everything around them, but even she could occasionally become distracted. With the sachet, things would be much easier and more convenient.

Zhan Yu casually hung it on himself and asked Xuan Xuan, “Which way are we going?”

How would she know? She pointed randomly in one direction.

Zhan Yu did not care. The internal communications network on the uninhabited planet had already been established, and his subordinates could contact him at any time. He could go anywhere.

Kuang Shao followed behind them, even less concerned.

Xuan Xuan still cast a light-body spell on herself. Walking through an untouched rainforest was hardly an enjoyable experience. She drifted lightly above the ground, touching a branch or vine with her toes whenever she wished, and covering a great distance with every step.

Kuang Shao watched her with undisguised envy. Even Zhan Yu could not help feeling a little jealous.

There were countless insects in the rainforest, while the undergrowth concealed snakes, worms, rats, and ants at every turn. Sometimes, after walking for a while, one would look down and find several leeches clinging to one’s legs, already swollen from drinking their fill.

At other times, one might be bitten by a poisonous insect without noticing, or step on a snake.

There were poisonous plants as well. The rainforest held too many killers, so how could anyone not envy Xuan Xuan’s effortless way of moving through it?

Zhan Yu was still fine. But Kuang Shao was a fire-type esper, and in such a damp environment, he could hardly make full use of his abilities.

Xuan Xuan shook the dew from her clothes and found a high tree trunk to sit on. “Shall we eat?”

The corner of Zhan Yu’s mouth twitched. She never forgot about food.

He seriously suspected that she had followed him simply because she knew there would be something to eat.

Clearly, he had guessed correctly. That was exactly why Xuan Xuan had come. Sitting leisurely on the tree trunk, she ordered Kuang Shao, “Go catch a rabbit. Rabbit meat tastes better.”

Kuang Shao curled his lips. Kuang Chi had been ordered away, so he had no choice but to do it himself.

After Kuang Shao left, Zhan Yu gathered a large amount of firewood and prepared to roast the meat. “What did you put on Xuan Guo?”

“A little toy.” Xuan Xuan dismissed the question lightly.

Zhan Yu was sensible enough not to ask further. Kuang Shao soon returned with two rabbits.

Xuan Xuan brought out a variety of cooking utensils. The sight made the corner of Zhan Yu’s mouth twitch. Where had she taken them from? And was she here for a picnic?

Kuang Shao stared at her in astonishment. “Are you a space-type esper?”

Xuan Xuan nodded. Obviously.

She condensed several balls of water and tossed them into a bucket for later use. Then she ignited the firewood Zhan Yu had arranged, leaving both men staring at her in bewilderment.

“What type are you, exactly?” Kuang Shao demanded in exasperation.

Xuan Xuan ignored him and looked at Zhan Yu. “Hurry up and start cooking.”

She was starving. She had no time to concern herself with Kuang Shao’s questions.

Zhan Yu felt that surviving alongside this teacher and student required a powerful heart, one capable of enduring constant blows and accepting their endless assaults without complaint.

He silently began cleaning the rabbits, refusing to invite further humiliation.

Zhan Yu’s roasting skills still needed improvement. Xuan Xuan put away all the cooking utensils, picked several fruits, and began crunching on them.

“Are we going to search on our own, or follow the students?” Xuan Xuan spread out her psychic power and discovered the presence of students nearby. They seemed to be acquaintances.

Zhan Yu thought for a moment. “Why don’t we follow Xuan Guo?”

The insectoid inside her would probably not remain quiet for long. Following her offered the greatest chance of gaining something.

Xuan Xuan nodded, then pointed in a direction. “Then let’s go that way. Ai Zhe and the others are over there.”

“The boy from the Ai family is with Xuan Guo?” Kuang Shao asked.

Could that boy from the Ai family really be so lacking in judgment?

“Xuan Guo will definitely go looking for him,” Xuan Xuan said with certainty.

Just as she had predicted, after following Ai Zhe for half a day, they saw Xuan Guo encounter him by chance.

Kuang Shao’s people were still following behind Xuan Guo and the others.

At such a close distance, Xuan Xuan could monitor the three of them with her psychic power at any time, while she and the other two remained far off to the side.

“Hey, this plant looks a little familiar.” Kuang Shao suddenly pointed to a plant.

Kuang Shao actually recognized a plant?

Even Xuan Xuan found that surprising. She moved closer for a look, then immediately burst out laughing.

“What a coincidence.”

What else could it be but a Shapeshifting Herb?

Even Zhan Yu looked Kuang Shao up and down. This plant truly seemed destined to cross paths with him.

He wondered what Kuang Shao would transform into if he ate it now.

Seeing the two of them laugh, Kuang Shao’s face darkened at once. He remembered. With a wave of his hand, he sent flames toward the Shapeshifting Herb, intending to burn it.

It was the humiliation of his lifetime.

Xuan Xuan was about to stop him, but Zhan Yu moved first. He turned to her and asked, “How should this be transplanted? Can we extract its seeds?”

“Hm?” Xuan Xuan asked. “You want to cultivate it?”

Zhan Yu nodded. He had not yet found a Shapeshifting Herb on Herb Star in the real world.

“You want to transplant it to Herb Star?” Kuang Shao asked. “You really have become obsessed.”

“Herb Star?” Xuan Xuan asked.

Zhan Yu glared at Kuang Shao. He talked too much.

Kuang Shao rubbed his nose and could only say, “It’s nothing.”

Xuan Xuan looked back and forth between them. What other secrets were they hiding from her?

She crouched down and carefully dug out the entire Shapeshifting Herb. She placed it in a crystal bottle and tossed it into her personal space.

“I’ll give it to you when we return to camp. It isn’t time to harvest the seeds yet.”

What a pity. There were no phantom foxes here. Otherwise, she would have caught one and raised it at home.

“They’ve made their move.” Xuan Xuan, who had been monitoring Xuan Guo all along, suddenly smiled.

Kuang Shao froze. He had not understood. “What?”

Xuan Xuan pointed ahead. “Xuan Guo has made her move.”

His eyes lit up. Kuang Shao asked, “How is it going?”

“The parasitism of this insectoid’s larvae has its limitations. There must be an open wound. The larva enters through the wound, which makes it very difficult to detect,” Xuan Xuan explained. “Otherwise, if it could act silently and without a trace, it would truly be terrifying.”

Through her psychic control, Xuan Xuan had witnessed one coincidence after another involving Xuan Guo and Ai Zhe. First, Xuan Guo had coincidentally encountered him and then used the opportunity to stay by his side.

Next, by another “coincidence,” she had caused a small wound to appear on Ai Zhe’s body. When Xuan Guo treated the injury, a tiny larva had slipped from her hand into the wound.

After Xuan Xuan explained everything to Zhan Yu and Kuang Shao, Kuang Shao asked, “Why did you know that Xuan Guo would choose to target Ai Zhe?”

When Xuan Xuan did not answer, he continued, “A woman’s intuition?”

Xuan Xuan gave him a contemptuous look. He was overthinking things.

“Xuan Guo has coveted Kuang Shao for a long time.”

Everyone in the affiliated primary and secondary schools of the Federation’s First Military Academy knew that.

Kuang Shao shook his head. Could it be that she had agreed to let the insectoid parasitize her merely so she could win over Ai Zhe?

He sighed. “Women are truly insane.”

Indeed, it was insanity. As she watched the larva burrow into Ai Zhe’s body, Xuan Guo’s eyes were filled with madness.

She did not care whether the thing inside her was an insectoid, nor how much danger it might bring to the Federation. As long as it could benefit her now, that was all that mattered.

She did not consider the future safety of the Federation at all.

She had already negotiated with the parasite within her. It had to provide whatever assistance she required, and Ai Zhe was her first target.

Once the larva remained inside Ai Zhe for a week, he would obey her every command.

After that would come Kuang Shao and Zhan Yu. Even Wanqi Weihao and the others would not be spared.

Once all of them were parasitized by the larvae, who in the Federation would dare stand before her and speak to her with their heads held high?

Hmph. She still had to guard against Wanqi Xuan Xuan.

Wanqi Xuan Xuan seemed capable of detecting and removing the parasitic larvae.

“What should we do about Ai Zhe?” Zhan Yu asked.

Xuan Xuan thought for a moment. “Bring Ai Zhe over tonight. Then your Shapeshifting Herb will come in handy.”

“Hm?” Zhan Yu looked at her.

“The Shapeshifting Herb isn’t useful only for making a Shapeshifting Potion.” It had many other applications as well. Xuan Xuan continued, “I’ll prepare another kind of potion from it. Then I’ll remove the larva from Ai Zhe’s body. Under the potion’s effects, the insectoid won’t notice.”

“Will it create an illusion, making the insectoid believe the larva is still there?” Zhan Yu asked.

“Yes. The Shapeshifting Herb affects the mind in the first place. With me assisting here and Ai Zhe cooperating, it shouldn’t be a problem.”

That insectoid was merely skilled at concealment. In terms of psychic power, it was no match for Xuan Xuan at all.

She took out the Shapeshifting Herb she had just placed in her space and began preparing the potion. She did not forget to remind Zhan Yu, “I’ll only use a few leaves. The plant won’t die.”

Zhan Yu nodded and watched Xuan Xuan lower her head as she prepared the potion.

Why did he feel that something was wrong?