Chapter 20: The Den of Temptation

Chapter 20: The Den of Temptation

Ji Clan.

After Ji Lian left, the manager picked up the proposal on the table and carefully reviewed it.

He had learned many important pieces of information, such as the fact that Shennong Star was just a barren planet, and its lord, Yun Wan, although surnamed Yun, had no connection whatsoever with the Yun family. She was merely a poor girl with no background or money, and she had a younger brother to support.

A gleam of ambition flashed in the manager's eyes.

Initially, he had intercepted Ji Lian's proposal with the intention of using it to advance his career, but now he had changed his mind.

Having worked in the Ji Clan for many years, he fully understood how lucrative the agricultural sector could be. Now, a small-time planet lord actually possessed planting techniques and unknown seed varieties. If he could acquire these, he could establish his own "Ji Clan," even surpassing the glory of the existing one.

A lord with no background didn’t deserve such valuable assets!

The manager called his nephew and instructed him to reconnoiter Shennong Star.

His nephew, Zhou Ye, was a lazy troublemaker who had only managed to secure a position as a sales associate at Ji's Fresh thanks to his uncle's influence.

Zhou Ye was puzzled by his uncle's request.

"What am I supposed to do in that godforsaken place?"

The manager rolled the document into a tube and smacked Zhou Ye on the head.

"Weren't you listening just now? You, go and check out the defenses of Shennong Star. Why ask so many questions? You'll find out later! Don't mess this up, or I'll beat you to death!"

The manager was furious with his clueless nephew. How could someone so old still fail to understand the situation?

Fortunately, Zhou Ye was quite obedient and followed orders well, making him a reliable pawn.

"If there's an opportunity, install a few surveillance devices there," the manager added.

Zhou Ye obeyed his uncle and took leave that very day, bought a ticket to Shennong Star.

This planet was located on the outer rim of the galaxy, in a region where few planets were well-known to the public. Compared to the central planets, it was barren and inhospitable, with outdated infrastructure in terms of environment, healthcare, and education. Apart from the locals, no one was willing to live here.

Upon arriving at Shennong Star, the spaceship was already empty.

Zhou Ye slung a briefcase across his shoulder, wore sunglasses, and donned a flashy plaid suit. His leather shoes looked out of place on the wild, overgrown plains.

He dodged a small flying insect, sneering in disgust.

What a place for savages!

Without a map, he didn't know which way to go.

Luckily, he had come prepared. He pulled out a few moth-shaped drones from his bag, pressed a button, and the drones flew off in all directions. Soon, the areas they flew over were mapped out and displayed on Zhou Ye's smart device.

This was a live map.

Zhou Ye stood in place for thirty to forty minutes before the drones finally found signs of life. From the footage, he only saw a red outline.

The drones could only capture scenery and couldn't identify living beings; any living creature would appear as a red shadow.

There was a makeshift lord’s residence there, likely the dwelling of the Shennong Star Lord.

Who still lived in such a free, rudimentary lord's residence these days?

He looks like a broke loser, what kind of defense facilities could he afford? Uncle’s really something else, insisting on sending me here. There’s not even a bar. I really don’t know what’s so attractive about this dump of a planet!

Zhou Ye grumbled under his breath but didn’t dare to half-ass it.

He swiped across the light screen, checking the distance to the lord’s residence. He found the direction and set off.

The trip was anything but smooth. First, two Swarm creatures popped up, then he encountered a mountain and had to take a detour. Hiking through rough terrain while fighting monsters, he was almost wiped out by the time he reached the vicinity of the lord’s residence.

Before he could even catch his breath and get closer to install a few security cameras, the lord’s residence, which had been visible just moments ago, vanished into thin air.

He kept walking, and after another half an hour, he should’ve been there by now, but the surrounding scenery hadn’t changed at all.

What the hell’s going on?

Zhou Ye frowned.

He opened the map, and a cold shiver ran down his spine.

The map showed that he had been standing in the same spot all along, but he had clearly walked a long distance. Had he been dreaming for the past half hour?

He gave his thigh a pinch.

It hurt. It wasn’t a dream.

What’s going on now?

Zhou Ye wasn’t buying it. He walked while watching the map, but no matter how he moved, even when he started running, the map on his device was frozen, unmoving.

Is this some kind of ghost trick? What’s going on? Now he can’t find a way to leave, and he can’t move forward either. So where is he? Is there a wormhole here?

He tried everything, but Zhou Ye felt like he’d been thrown into another dimension, surrounded by emptiness, with no way to find an exit.

Just as he was about to lose his mind in frustration, a light suddenly flickered ahead. He rushed over, excited, and saw a bustling commercial street.

This dump has a street this lively?

Zhou Ye was suspicious. He walked slowly, looking left and right on the street. The scenes felt strangely familiar, as if he had seen them somewhere before.

Suddenly, his eyes lit up when he saw a bar not far away.

Standing in front of the bar were two stunningly beautiful women with curvaceous figures. When they noticed him looking, they both gave him flirtatious glances.

There’s such a good place here?

Zhou Ye solemnly averted his gaze, trying to keep himself focused.

The mission isn’t finished yet…

But his eyes didn’t seem to obey him, constantly wandering to the women’s chests.

Finally, he swallowed and resolutely walked toward the bar.

Since he happened to encounter a place with people, he could ask for directions on how to get out.

Right! He’s going to the bar to gather information! Uncle shouldn’t blame him for that!

Zhou Ye figured he might as well enjoy a little romance in the bar.

As soon as he entered the bar, it was like Tang Sanzang stepping into the spider’s lair. All the women immediately surrounded him.

Jostling and laughing, joking around, pale thighs and arms whirled past his eyes.

As he had expected, he had his fun with several beauties. Eventually, feeling worn out, he wanted to decline the invitations from others, but one of them said:

"Can’t handle it anymore?"

Zhou Ye, never one to back down from a challenge, couldn’t bear to hear such words and jumped right back into the fray.

He patted the face of the beauty beneath him, grinning with a sly charm.

"You’ll see if I’m up to it soon enough!"

Zhou Ye got into the groove, picking up the pace. Hearing the sounds from the beauty beneath him, his male ego was greatly satisfied.

Caught up in the moment, he wanted to lean down and kiss the beauty’s face, but in a flash, he saw a massive, grotesque fish head beneath him, bubbles frothing.

The shock nearly made him freeze.

Zhou Ye paused, blinked hard, and saw that the beauty’s face was still beautiful, which reassured him.

It seemed that he had been a bit too indulgent today, draining too much of his vital energy, which made him feel dizzy.

He picked up where he left off, determined that this would be the last time. He couldn’t overdo it and harm his body; there would be other opportunities.

"Master Zhou, feeling good? Did Little Carp serve you well?" another beauty pressed up against him, her chest pressing into his shoulder.

"Comfortable!"

Zhou Ye was pleased and turned to give her a kiss.

"Master Zhou, you’re biased, I want one too!"

Zhou Ye spread the love evenly, giving each a kiss.

More and more women lined up for his kisses, but as he kissed them, he noticed something was wrong.

The scene flickered between shadow and light, sometimes showing beautiful skins and other times skeletons.

Like scenes from a nightmare, the real scene kept shifting, finally landing on a crumbling house filled with skeletal horrors.

Zhou Ye was so scared that he leapt up, hurting himself in the process, clutching the spot, howling in pain.

Soon, he had no time to care about it.

Cobwebs draped the ceiling of the ruined house, and a massive spider dropped from above, dangling in mid-air. The spider had a beautiful face, its eight legs constantly moving.

"Master Zhou, what’s wrong? Continue, don’t you like us sisters anymore?"

Zhou Ye looked at the monster, frozen in shock.

Seizing the opportunity, Little Carp pounced on him, hugging him. "Master Zhou, I still want more, why did you stop? Did Little Carp not serve you well?"

Zhou Ye felt the sticky sensation on his body, dumbfoundedly looked down at Little Carp’s ugly fish head, and a sickening stench of fish hit his nostrils.

Despite feeling disgusted, his eyes couldn’t help but scan the various monsters around him.

Were these... the beauties he had just enjoyed?

Zhou Ye shivered, stepping back repeatedly. With each step he took back, the monsters advanced one step forward.

When he finally found a chance to escape, the monsters were already prepared. Some rushed to hold the door, while others grabbed Zhou Ye’s arms and dragged him back.

"Mr. Zhou, we girls aren’t done having fun yet! Where do you think you’re going?"

Zhou Ye watched as the crack of the door slowly closed, blocking out the harsh light outside and the deep darkness inside, leaving him hopelessly trapped in the arms of the monsters.

Back on the bed, this time he was the one lying down. Numerous women took turns with him, and Zhou Ye couldn’t take it anymore. These creatures even gave him drugs...

He felt like he was going to die, dying because of a woman, how humiliating!

He didn’t want to die in such a disgraceful way, so with what little strength he had left, he kept calling for help. The monsters didn’t stop him, seemingly enjoying his desperate cries for help.

Gradually, he lost hope. With a final desperate shout, he was surprised to hear a voice respond.

"What the heck? Where are you? Show yourself! Give me back my cat!"

Cat?

Zhou Ye didn’t understand what the voice outside was saying.

Great, another woman!

He shivered instinctively, worried this might be another trap.

He talked to the person outside, but the monsters inside didn’t seem to care, just kept doing what they were doing.

Either way, he was done for. Dealing with one woman outside was better than facing a bunch of monsters!

Zhou Ye continued to call for help.

"Please, help me! I don’t even know where I am. I got off the ship and walked here, and now I’m stuck. Please help me, I’m dying! I’m dying..."

Yun Wan stared into the empty space, completely baffled.

The person inside sounded weak and miserable, not like a cat thief.

Hold on, where did this guy come from?

No one was around?

Then, Yun Wan suddenly remembered something. She returned to the safe house, closed the Mountain Gate Grand Array, and went back to the scene. Sure enough, there lay a man who looked extremely weak.

He looked like he’d been sucked dry by a demon!