Chapter 57
Chapter 57: You Want to Dig a Pit to Bury Me? I Was Born in a Pit. You Can’t Bury Me.
Jiang Tea Tea stopped dead.
Then she turned back and laughed—bright, wild, and unapologetically arrogant. “Chong Ming, Commander-in-Chief, your pie is huge, smells good, and even comes with filling. Too bad my teeth are bad. I’m afraid it’ll crack a tooth.”
“I prefer meat. And seafood.”
He wanted to dig a pit and bury her in it, trap her as his lackey, make her work for him.
A joke.
She was a tree demon. She’d been born in pits. Did he really think she couldn’t see the abacus beads practically flying into her face?
Chong Ming met her gaze without flinching. “You haven’t even bitten the pie I offered. How can you know it cracks teeth?”
“Maybe it’s softer than you imagine. Maybe it’s more filling than meat and seafood. Maybe it tastes better, too.”
Jiang Tea Tea’s eyes glittered. “Really?”
“I might not understand myself,” she said lightly, “but do I not understand other people?”
“A pie falls from the sky and lands right on my head—am I the Heavenly Dao’s favorite… or Beast God’s?”
She shrugged. “Go draw your pie for someone else. Don’t draw it for me. I don’t like it.”
“And if I end up allergic to it, that’d be troublesome.”
She waved. “I’m going to sleep. Don’t call me if there’s nothing. Don’t call me if there is something. Bye.”
She left without hesitation—no pause, no longing, no visible temptation.
Chong Ming watched her go until she vanished around the corridor.
Then he turned to the cleaning robot nearby. “Send five pounds of nutrient fruit to Room 920.”
“Yes, Commander-in-Chief.”
Chong Ming glanced around the cafeteria at the people who had finished eating but were still sitting there with ears perked.
“Finished eating and bored?” he asked mildly. “Then all of you can add ten hours of intensive training.”
A chorus rose instantly. “Yes, Commander-in-Chief.”
Chong Ming left the cafeteria.
The moment he was gone, the suffocating pressure lifted. People started whispering immediately—eyes bright, voices hushed, gossip spreading like a contagion.
Jiang Tea Tea returned to her room at a leisurely pace.
On the table, a bunch of golden-yellow fruit sat in a neat pile. She’d eaten plenty, yet the fruit was fist-sized and irresistibly bright, so she grabbed one and bit in.
Sour and sweet exploded across her tongue—six parts sour, four parts sweet. Even better than the juice.
She finished one fruit, stripped off her outerwear, flopped onto the bed, yanked the blanket over her head, and fell asleep.
In the command room, Chong Ming did a quick check of the screens to confirm nothing major was happening—then turned in his chair to face the man waiting.
Security Minister Yan Lan Shen stood in the uniform of a Royal Military Academy first-year, his face disguised to look younger.
Chong Ming’s voice was calm. “You’ve been disguised at the Royal Military Academy for over ten days. Any findings?”
Yan Lan Shen answered carefully. “Commander-in-Chief, I noticed some things, but I’m still observing. I can’t confirm yet.”
“Tell me what you noticed,” Chong Ming said.
Yan Lan Shen opened his lightbrain and projected footage. “Multiple student groups at the Royal Military Academy are interested in the Wipe Out the Other Twenty-Nine Military Academies Squad.”
“They have no signal, so they can’t locate them. They’ve been wandering through the Primeval Forest searching.”
“One group is yellow dragon clan. Another is human race. Most of them are avoiding instructor teams while searching.”
Chong Ming watched the footage.
One team was led by Chong Qi Xing, the first-year Combat Department chief at the Royal Military Academy—a yellow dragon clan—with ten people.
Another was led by Jiang Yi Cheng—Jiang Tea Tea’s cheap brother—a water-element ability user, with a six-person team.
There were more, too: teams from other academies, some led by azure dragon clan, others by black dragon clan.
Yan Lan Shen continued. “I’ve already had my people keep eyes on yellow dragon clan, azure dragon clan, and black dragon clan.”
“As for the human water-element one—Jiang Yi Cheng—he’s… strange. He likes to hide in one place and talk to himself.”
The footage shifted.
Jiang Yi Cheng stood in front of a dense tree, murmuring “yes, yes, yes,” nodding like he was speaking to someone unseen. He looked like a man arguing with his own brain.
Chong Ming’s eyes narrowed. “Minister Yan, is it possible Jiang Yi Cheng isn’t talking to himself?”
“What if he’s communicating with insect clan—beast forms disguised as trees… or insect clan disguised to match the color of rocks?”
Yan Lan Shen’s pupils shook. “Commander-in-Chief… that’s my oversight. I’ll investigate immediately—”
“Stop,” Chong Ming said.
His gaze turned glacial. “Before you boarded my ship, the insect clan had already locked onto the Crown Prince’s location. They already abducted him.”
“If you investigate now… are you going to collect the Crown Prince’s corpse?”
Yan Lan Shen went pale. “Your Highness—if the Crown Prince’s safety is at risk, I’m willing to go rescue him and make up for my mistake.”
Chong Ming’s golden eyes sharpened, cold enough to cut. “Minister Yan, your recent performance is immature. Unprofessional. Your judgment is failing.”
He leaned forward slightly. “Is it because I gave you too much work… or because you’re getting old?”
Yan Lan Shen straightened like someone had poured ice down his spine. “Commander-in-Chief… I will take full responsibility for the Crown Prince being abducted by the insect clan.”
Chong Ming looked at him for a long moment. “Minister Yan, you disappoint me.”
“And you disappoint the brother who has always taken you as a model.”
Yan Lan Shen jerked his head up. His brother was here too?
Chong Ming’s words cut deep. “Your brother is Yan Yu. A half-beastfolk male.”
“To catch up to you, he enrolled in the Royal Military Academy’s Intelligence Department.”
“In this field training, his ability and physique weren’t outstanding. But his teamwork, execution, and trust in his teammates were excellent.”
Chong Ming’s gaze stayed hard. “I sent you here to identify potential dangers. Not to look for your brother and worry about him.”
“What have you done?”
Shame flooded Yan Lan Shen’s face. “Commander-in-Chief… I—”
“I don’t want apologies,” Chong Ming cut him off. “I want ability. I want results.”
“If you can’t produce them, resign and go train somewhere until you can.”
Yan Lan Shen’s body shook, then he snapped a salute. “Yes, Commander-in-Chief.”
“I will determine, within ten days, what Jiang Yi Cheng, yellow dragon clan, black dragon clan, and azure dragon clan are planning—and I will bring back first-hand evidence.”
Chong Ming flicked one hand in dismissal.
Yan Lan Shen saluted again, stepped back three paces, turned, and left at a brisk pace.
Not long after, Northwind Battalion personnel recovered insect clan corpses from the deep sea and brought them back to the ship.
In the Medical Department lab, sea spider corpses were lined up in rows. Beside them lay the corpse of a massive black mantis.
Chong Ming stood with hands behind his back—broad shoulders, narrow waist, long legs, two golden dragon horns, waist-length golden hair drifting down his back. His presence alone made the room feel smaller.
Director Lu finished examining the bodies and slid the lab table closer. “Commander-in-Chief, based on my inspection, they were killed by a blunt, rod-like weapon.”
“The weapon pierced their bodies and heads, suppressing their resistance. They died within two to three minutes.”
“And after death…” Director Lu hesitated, then admitted, “the corpses were thrown into the deep sea with an amount of force beyond my understanding.”
Chong Ming stared at the corpses for a long beat.
“Adjutant AI.”
“Yes, Commander-in-Chief.”
“Dismember and grind them. Put the remains in a nice box and teleport it to the insect race eldest prince.”
His smile was thin and cold. “Tell him that next time, he should send some useful, good-looking trash.”