Chapter 100 Danger

Chapter 100: Danger

Seeing Wen Jue shut down all the Mothership's defenses, Wen Run tried to step forward to stop him, but Wen Jue aimed directly at him and fired.

Wen Run never expected his own brother to shoot at him. It was only thanks to Qi Yanshen pulling him aside in time that he wasn't hit in a vital spot.

Lilette stepped forward and roughly subdued Wen Jue. He first punched Wen Jue in the stomach, and as Wen Jue doubled over, he followed with a chop to the neck, knocking him unconscious.

Wen Run, clutching his wound, rushed forward to catch Wen Jue, unable to understand why Wen Jue had suddenly acted this way. He and Wen Jue were twins, the ones who understood each other best.

Ji Anzhi was also stunned and shocked by this bizarre scene.

While Chi Yan, Na An'an, and the others nearby hurried over to bandage Wen Run's wound, Ji Anzhi suddenly felt a stabbing pain in his head.

"Ugh..."

Ji Anzhi covered his head, staggering backward, unable to support himself as he fell heavily to his knees with a loud thud.

Qi Yanshen was busy activating the defensive shield and communicating with the rescue team, so he didn't notice Ji Anzhi's distress immediately.

However, Chi Yan heard the noise, turned around, and saw Chief Ji kneeling on the ground, clutching his head in pain. He immediately handed his task over to Na An'an and ran back to see what was wrong with Chief Ji.

"Chief Ji, what's wrong? A headache?"

Ji Anzhi didn't have the energy to reply to Chi Yan. That mental force was attempting to control his own mental threads and take over control of his body.

His mental power had grown explosively after the fact and was inherently difficult to control. Even after a year, he had only barely managed to control half of it. Now, under this mental attack, Ji Anzhi was struggling to defend himself.

Fortunately, before departure, as was his habit, Ji Anjue had left a trace of his mental power in Ji Anzhi's mental sea. A few seconds later, that wisp of green mental thread repelled the attacker.

'An... are you... okay?'

Due to the great distance, even though Ji Anjue's main body was with Ji Anzhi, the mental link was still somewhat unstable.

As the headache faded and Ji Anzhi regained his senses, he found Chi Yan, Qi Yanshen, and others gathered around him, momentarily forgetting to reply to Ji Anjue.

Seeing that Ji Anzhi was finally alright, Qi Yanshen and the others quickly asked what had just happened.

Ji Anzhi wasn't sure either and vaguely replied, "I just suddenly got a headache, I don't know why..."

Na An'an, however, spoke up about something she'd sensed.

"I just sensed two unfamiliar mental fluctuations, very powerful."

Lu Yan asked in confusion, "More powerful than you?"

Na An'an nodded.

Qi Yanshen, Lu Yan, and the others immediately thought of the White Worm. Before coming, their parents had told them that the insectoids were acting strangely this year, with the appearance of a White Worm and a Queen Insect capable of mentally controlling humans.

Given the current situation, the Bug Swarm was on a small scale, so it couldn't be the Queen Insect arriving. Besides, the Queen Insect resided in the insect nest, and if there were any unusual movements, the military would have ordered the students to evacuate immediately.

So, there must be a White Worm within the Bug Swarm.

Qi Yanshen said solemnly, "There are insectoids that can use mental power. All omegas, fully unleash your mental power to protect everyone's mental seas here."

Upon hearing this, the omegas quickly released their mental power. However, there were only three omegas in the team, and protecting the mental seas of the other fourteen people was more than they could handle.

They finally decided that the omegas would only be responsible for protecting the mental seas of the betas and alphas below S-rank.

S-rank alphas, when alert, were not easily controlled instantly, and the omegas could help in time if needed.

Qi Yanshen walked over to Ji Anzhi and, not bothering to hide it from Chi Yan, asked in a low voice, "Where is the accessory button I gave Xiao Jue?"

Ji Anzhi replied, "I have it here."

As he spoke, he found the Rococo-style gemstone accessory button and handed it to Qi Yanshen.

Qi Yanshen took it and fastened the button onto the collar of Ji Anzhi's school uniform. At the same time, he took out an obsidian necklace and put it on Ji Anzhi.

While fastening the chain, he explained, "This was originally a birthday gift I asked my mother to prepare for you, but I'm giving it to you early now. This necklace has a built-in protective shield, similar to that accessory button."

After saying that, he expressionlessly tossed a small protective shield to Chi Yan. Although it wasn't as good as Ji Anzhi's, its quality far exceeded that of ordinary shields.

Ji Anzhi had thought Qi Yanshen was going to take away the Insect Crystal Shield, but it turned out he wasn't; instead, he gave him another shield.

Ji Anzhi asked worriedly, "What about you then?"

"I have a way. Isn't there still Thor?"

Ji Anzhi was still concerned. After being together for almost a year, it was impossible for him to say he didn't care about Qi Yanshen at all.

But his worry was useless, so he could only nod.

Qi Yanshen softened his tone and, for the first time, dared to place his hand on Ji Anzhi's head, gently rubbing it as he comforted him softly, "Don't worry, this is under the jurisdiction of the Third Legion."

Although his tone was still somewhat cold, compared to the beginning, this was perhaps the most tender Qi Yanshen had ever been with anyone outside his family.

Ji Anzhi froze as his head was rubbed.

Throughout this year, Qi Yanshen had been walking on eggshells around him.

Perhaps his own attitude had been too casual, making Qi Yanshen feel that if he accepted his confession today, he could just as heartlessly break up tomorrow.

Qi Yanshen even knew about Ji Anzhi's birthday, which Ji Anzhi himself had almost forgotten.

Ji Anzhi lowered his eyes, hiding what he was feeling.

He mocked himself inwardly, thinking that indeed, someone like him didn't deserve love, nor was he fit to love.

He would only end up hurting others.

Just like his birth mother, and the sister he admired most.

"Be careful."

"Mhm, don't worry. I'll go now."

After saying that, Qi Yanshen ran back to the command platform to tell the rescue team what they'd found and advise them to be extra cautious as well.

Chi Yan sensed Chief Ji's somewhat low spirits and said nothing.

He didn't know why Chief Ji felt this way, but he knew that at times like these, Chief Ji needed to be alone with his thoughts.

Because the discovery was timely this time, the military's rescue had arrived long before the Bug Swarm reached them. However, the earlier incident still left everyone uneasy, so the atmosphere remained tense and heavy.

Just as the military support was about one minute away, Ji Anjue's main body inside the Space Bracelet finally managed to link up with Ji Anzhi and asked, 'What happened?'

Ji Anzhi replied, 'We encountered insectoids again, most likely White Worms.'

'White Worms? You're really lucky, running into a swarm every year.'

Facing Ji Anjue's dig, Ji Anzhi calmly retorted, 'It's not luck. It's because I'm carrying your original body with me.'

Ji Anjue paused. If the little one, Xiao Tuanzi, were here right now, he might have already blown his top.

Ji Anjue didn't reply, and Ji Anzhi waited patiently while also comforting him, 'The Federal Military Department's rescue will arrive soon. Once they're here, we'll be safe.'

Ji Anjue still didn't speak, which made Ji Anzhi sense something was wrong. He straightened up and called out to Ji Anjue in his mind.

A few seconds later, Ji Anjue spoke with a grave tone, 'I'm afraid it's not very safe. The danger might come when the rescue arrives.'

Hearing this, Ji Anzhi's body stiffened.

Ji Anjue continued, 'My main psychic energy is in that created body. The strands of mental energy left in this original form aren't many, but I've already detected six White Worms inside the energy shield.'

Upon receiving this news, Ji Anzhi's eyes widened in shock, and a cold sweat broke out on his back...

'Then why didn't the starship detect them?'

Ji Anjue replied, 'I don't know.'

'Maybe they've mastered the starship's detection frequency and can mimic it perfectly, or they have some other disguise to evade detection. But their psychic energy is still too green compared to mine.'

Not in the mood to rib him for his arrogance, Ji Anzhi walked forward, with Chi Yan following.

Noticing Chi Yan was still there, Ji Anzhi stopped and whispered in his ear, "Don't protect me. Withdraw all your psychic energy and guard your own mind."

"But—"

"Listen to me."

Seeing Chief Ji's firm attitude, Chi Yan hesitated for a moment before choosing to trust him. He withdrew his psychic energy and focused entirely on protecting his own mental space.

As Chi Yan retracted his psychic energy, Ji Anjue's psychic energy took over, protecting all seventeen people present, including Ji Anzhi.

Ji Anzhi walked over to Qi Yanshen's side.

Noticing Ji Anzhi approaching, Qi Yanshen was about to ask when Ji Anzhi gestured for him to lean down. Qi Yanshen complied.

However, in the eyes of others, this was just flaunting their relationship, shoving their love in our faces even with a swarm coming.

Ji Anzhi whispered in Qi Yanshen's ear, "There are White Worms inside the energy shield."

Qi Yanshen was startled, his brow furrowing. He didn't ask how Ji Anzhi knew, only whether the information was accurate.

Ji Anzhi nodded.

Recalling the last swarm, when Ji Anzhi had told him and the team to escape in the opposite direction, ultimately drawing away most of the insectoids, Qi Yanshen had been skeptical last time, but now he was certain.

Ji Anzhi reminded him, "Right now, the White Worms won't detect what we're saying or thinking."

With that worry out of the way, Qi Yanshen gathered Lu Yan and the others around, saying, "After the military rescue arrives, don't let your guard down."

Lu Yan was the first to ask, "Why?"

Qi Yanshen had already prepared an excuse, explaining, "Just now, Wen Jue suddenly became like that because of White Worms. White Worms are a newly discovered insectoid species last year that can use psychic energy to control humans. Since Wen Jue dropped the shield, it's possible White Worms have slipped in unnoticed."

Chi Yan and the others didn't know about White Worms. The military was concerned they would cause public panic, and since only one had been discovered so far, they hadn't widely announced it.

This meant that people like Luo Hai and Chi Yan, who weren't descendants of the Federal Military Department, were hearing about White Worms for the first time.

Upon learning the situation, everyone felt a chill run down their spines. If there really were insectoids inside the shield that could control humans, they would be sitting ducks.

Jian Fuxu said directly, "So, you're saying the military rescue fleet could also be controlled by White Worms?"

Qi Yanshen nodded.

This was the most terrifying part. Once White Worms controlled the military fleet, all hell would break loose, and everyone would be overwhelmed by the swarm.

Hearing this, Lu Yan rubbed his hair in frustration and said, "The fleet is currently performing a space jump and can't receive any messages!"

The tension was palpable, and everyone's mood sank.

Ji Anzhi spoke up at this moment, "First, don't panic. There's always a way. The military knew about the White Worms earlier than we did, so they likely have preventive measures. There might be chaos at first, but it should be enough before the swarm arrives."

These words gave them a glimmer of hope in their heavy hearts.

Indeed, Qi Yanshen was a descendant of the Commander, and he had mentioned that White Worms were a new insectoid species discovered last year. Given the significant threat, the Federation would surely have prepared.

Otherwise, the Federation's insectoid defense line would be a joke.

And there were also the seven Legions stationed there.

Everyone understood. Although still worried, the despair had lifted somewhat.

Qi Yanshen instructed everyone to squeeze into three mechas as much as possible, with one omega in each to help defend against the White Worms' psychic control.

If the White Worms controlled the fleet to attack their Mothership, they could still escape and save themselves.

Noticing that Qi Yanshen wasn't among those chosen for these three mechas, Lu Yan asked in confusion, "What about you? Are you confident you won't be controlled by the White Worms' psychic power?"

Qi Yanshen glanced at the time—ten seconds left—and quickly took out his mecha, Thor, adjusting its height so Ji Anzhi could board easily.

"I have a way."

Lu Yan was skeptical. After all, during the last swarm, Qi Yanshen had acted alone and nearly scared him to death.

When he later asked what had happened, Qi Yanshen simply said it was intuition.

He trusted Qi Yanshen and boarded Sai Ren.

In reality, Qi Yanshen had no plan, but he knew Ji Anzhi couldn't leave with the team.

There must be something about Ji Anzhi that attracted the insectoids, which was why every time he came to the defense line, he attracted a small swarm, and their team always encountered the vanguard forces.

Ji Anzhi boarded Thor, and Ji Anjue was still communicating.

'Be prepared to show your hand. Relying solely on Chi Yan and the other three omegas won't be enough.'

Ji Anzhi also knew this and replied, 'You get ready too, to make a run for it at any moment.'

Ji Anjue said he was on it.

'Fortunately, we were prepared. The starship is at full power, and we even have reserve energy.'

Ji Anzhi didn't reply.

Military reinforcements are here.

Ji Anjue's psychic energy shielded everyone, especially Ji Anzhi.

Everyone's breathing unconsciously slowed, but their heartbeats sped up instead.

They were nervous, afraid that the fleet reinforcements would actually be controlled by the White Worms as speculated.

When the military fleet emerged, the rescue team moved forward first, ready to report the situation.

Just as they were about to approach, they saw the fleet's cannons turning toward them—the fleet had been seized by the White Worms.

Without waiting for an order from the captain, the twenty rescue team members immediately activated their protective shields and fell back toward the students' mothership. Their top priority was the students' safety.

"Xia Ci! What are you doing? Move!"

Someone shouted at their teammate over the channel, but the teammate's mech remained frozen in place. After several more calls, Xia Ci finally moved, catching up with the squad.

Seeing this, the others felt something was off and were on guard against Xia Ci.

Those selected for the First Military Academy's assessment rescue team were elites among elites, especially after last year's tragedy—the standards for the rescue team had been tightened considerably.

They shouldn't be making such rookie mistakes.

Yet, even after they returned and prepared to face an attack, Xia Ci made no suspicious moves.

Except for not speaking.

Although the fleet had aimed its cannons at them, it delayed firing. Many mechs streamed out from the launch bays, as if searching for something.

Time ticked by. At the seventy-eighth second, the rescue team received a transmission from the fleet.

Connection established.

"The fleet just encountered White Worms. A total of six were detected. The area is now secure. What is your status?"

"Report! One student was controlled by a White Worm earlier and has now been restrained."

"Good. Stay put. Mechs will head over to clear any remaining White Worms in your area."

"Received!"

The link ended. The captain sent a message to the students, telling them not to worry.

Speaking of which, this year's students were truly unlucky.

Every year, the end-of-term assessment always seems to run into a Bug Swarm.