Chapter 99: Spirit Stones that Restore and Suppress Spiritual Power
It never thought Bai Zhi would use it like this. After all that talk, her real goal was to make it buy combat mechas for her Beast Husband’s army. And to think it actually believed she wanted to buy a star system.
’So I just got scammed, didn’t I?!’
And the worst part was, it had to accept it!
Because the money was, technically, spent on her Beast Husband. Even though the mechas were for his subordinates, they were still purchased *for* him.
The system announced reluctantly, "Congratulations, Host. Mission complete. You have received one selectable Unowned Star System valued at one billion Star Coins, and one hundred million Star Coins have been successfully deposited. Please check your balance."
Hearing the system’s notification, Bai Zhi was in an excellent mood.
A few Unowned Star Systems then appeared on the panel in front of her, each displayed with numerous images from different angles. Bai Zhi browsed them casually before asking the system, "Which of these Unowned Star Systems has some hidden treasures?"
System: "..."
’This host of mine is really exploiting me to the fullest.’
Bai Zhi could tell the system was feeling emotional, so she soothed it, "Hey, I’m doing this for both of our sakes. If I can use the least amount of money to get an Unowned Star System that contains Crystal Stones, it just proves that everything produced by the Godly Rich System is a premium product! Finding a hidden gem in an ordinary, unowned system—how amazing is that! And the richer I, your host, am, the more it proves you’re no ordinary system! If I have a system with Crystal Stones or something similar, my Beast Husbands will be happier, too! And don’t you guys want them to be happy? That’s all the more reason you should give us a system with good stuff! Am I right or am I right?"
System: "..."
’That... actually seems to make sense...’
’But something still feels off.’
Bai Zhi continued scrolling through the options and asked again, "So, which Unowned Star System has the good stuff?"
The system answered instinctively, "The third one from the left."
The moment it said that, the system went silent. "..."
’I got tricked by the host again!’
Bai Zhi immediately selected the Unowned Star System the system had pointed out, making sure to sweet-talk it. "Thank you, System~ You’re the best system in the whole world~"
Bai Zhi asked, "Are there any Crystal Stones in this star system?"
The system explained, "No, almost all Crystal Stones have already been discovered. This Unowned Star System has two types of natural Spirit Stones. One can greatly restore spiritual power, and the other suppresses spiritual power. Because the two are in a state of equilibrium, they can’t be detected with current technology."
Hearing this, Bai Zhi was so shocked she nearly jumped to her feet. She spoke quickly, her voice filled with excitement, "You mean we snagged a hidden gem because their tech couldn’t detect them?"
System: "You could say that."
Bai Zhi could barely contain her laughter. "Spirit Stones that restore spiritual power and Spirit Stones that suppress it!! That’s basically a cheat code!! AHHHH! System, I freaking love you!!"
The system was so startled it began to stutter, "H-Host, please restrain yourself. It’s... it’s impossible between us!"
But Bai Zhi was completely lost in her excitement over how incredible her new planet was and paid no attention to what the system was saying.
Lang Qiu and the others watched as Bai Zhi first typed away furiously on her Light Computer, then started chuckling to herself, and finally burst out laughing so hard they could probably see her back molars.
Just as they were about to ask what was going on, Bai Zhi turned to Hu Yan, her eyes crinkling into a smile. "Hu Yan, when it’s time for you to leave, I have a gift for you!"
Hearing this, Hu Yan vaguely guessed the gift she mentioned was related to the question she’d asked him earlier. A complicated mix of emotions washed over him. A tight, aching feeling bloomed in his chest, making him feel a little strange. He’d never experienced this sensation before, but he thought it was probably happiness.
However, her constant mentions of his departure, as if she was certain he would leave, made him uncomfortable.
A flicker of complex emotion crossed Hu Yan’s light-blue eyes. He asked in a hoarse voice, "Do you want me to leave that badly?"
Hearing this, Bai Zhi paused for a moment, then shook her head. "I don’t really want you to go, but you have things you need to do, don’t you?"
Hu Yan said instinctively, "What if I don’t go back..."
But he trailed off, knowing it was impossible.
From the moment he was born into his position, he was fated to be unable to escape certain responsibilities. The only reason he had this moment of peace was because *they* didn’t know he was still alive.
If they found out he was alive, he would have no choice but to leave.
It wasn’t a struggle he could avoid just by choosing not to fight.
Bai Zhi deliberately ignored his half-finished sentence, because they both knew it was impossible. She said with a smile, "Maybe I’ll even be able to help you when the time comes."
Hu Yan’s usual gentle expression returned to his face. He said softly, "Yes. You’ve already helped me so much."
At this rate, his spiritual power wouldn’t just recover quickly, it might even reach SSS-level. It was safe to say Bai Zhi had played an indispensable role in this.
Saye, not understanding the delay, urged, "If we don’t... go in... soon... there will be... patrols."
The words had barely left his mouth when an angry shout rang out, "What are you doing over there? Trying to steal Crystal Stones, are you?!"
Hearing the voice, Saye’s expression changed. Anxious, he reached out to pull Bai Zhi away. "Quick, run..."
Bai Zhi looked in the direction of the voice and saw several people in green work uniforms running toward them at top speed. She quickly shouted, "Hu Yan!"
Hu Yan scooped up Bai Zhi and took off running.
Lang Qiu snatched up Saye, and the group took off in a mad dash.
The people behind them shouted, "Stop! Don’t run!"
But Lang Qiu and his group were incredibly fast. They vanished in a flash, far too quick for the pursuers to catch.
After they reached a safe place, Bai Zhi said, a bit bewildered, "Why did we run? We could have just bought from them."
Hu Yan/Lang Qiu: "..."
Hearing her, Yue Junxiao said with a blank look, "That’s right. We didn’t take anything, so why did we run?"
Yan Yichen laughed sheepishly. "I just heard someone shouting and ran on instinct."
Suddenly, the whole group burst out laughing. Even Lang Qiu cracked a smile.
Meanwhile, Yun Xi, who was anxiously waiting for news, was in a foul mood. Ten hours had passed, but Kleiss still hadn’t contacted them.
It wasn’t that Kleiss didn’t want to contact them; he simply had no time for their affairs. He and the large search party he’d brought with him had spent an entire day searching, practically turning Blue Star upside down, but had found no trace of Bai Zhi and her group.
After much effort, they discovered that Bai Zhi was good friends with Lila Grey. Following that lead, they determined it was highly likely that Leon Grey had hidden them.
If the Grey Family was using its influence to hide them, it was perfectly normal that the previous search had turned up nothing.
Kleiss led his men straight into the Grey Family estate. Upon finding Leon Grey, he said with a grim expression, "Leon Grey, aren’t you breaking the rules by doing this?"