Chapter 066
Chapter 66: Escape
Jun Tang’s expression was calm, even with a faint smile on his lips.
Wang Jie stood beside him. During their time together, he had come to understand this man’s temperament. Jun Tang seemed deep and composed, but it was all an act. A small thing could set him off. Now, with the smile on his face, it was clear he was up to something.
Since the moment the Old General had taken control of the warship, every action Jun Tang had taken seemed to be based on some kind of precondition. Now, with that smile, Wang Jie felt that the moment for that condition to be fulfilled had arrived.
On the light screen, the succession ceremony of the Silver Radiance Empire began.
Wang Jie’s eyes widened. This was the first time he had seen a civilization beyond Blue Star.
As Blue Star had once imagined, it was filled with advanced technology and grandeur. On the light screen, space battleships lined up, and the entire imperial capital was immersed in a sea of celebration. What Blue Star’s people never could have imagined was that such a civilization also practiced cultivation.
The Silver Radiance Empire was a blend of technology and cultivation.
Numerous cultivators soared into the air, performing some kind of ritual. There were also many large creatures flying about.
Wang Jie was captivated.
This was the first alien civilization he had ever seen.
Humans could never imagine a world completely devoid of people, because humans themselves were a medium for imagination. As long as there were people, a world could be imagined.
The Silver Radiance Empire, including the Armor One Sect, was exalted, yet as long as there were people, it could be imagined.
Wang Jie was only surprised for a moment before he regained his composure. His gaze shifted to the figure of Jun Hua, the emperor.
Jun Tang and Jun Hua—siblings.
Jun Tang was dark and brooding, but Jun Hua was the opposite. She was not only beautiful and full of regal charm but also carried an icy demeanor. Though she seemed distant, her smile was genuine, and her eyes held the coolness of a snow mountain along with the warmth of passionate fire. It made one feel a strong sense of admiration.
Behind Jun Hua, a group of people followed her as she approached the imperial throne.
Jun Tang stared at the light screen, slowly clenching his fists, his smile growing wider.
Jun Hua was about to ascend the throne.
But then, from behind her, the seemingly calm man made his move. He struck her on the back of the head with a palm. As the blow landed, the light screen distorted, and everything in the Silver Radiance Empire seemed to be in chaos.
Jun Tang couldn’t help but step forward, his breath quickening.
The capital was thrown into chaos. But no one dared make a move against the man.
The succession ceremony was frozen in time.
Everyone watched in confusion.
Only the man stood there, staring at his hand in shock. His plan had failed.
“You’re not Jun Hua.”
In front, Jun Hua, who had been struck, slowly turned around. Her face began to change, transforming into another face.
“Yu Dong,” the man gritted out.
The woman glared at him. “Xuan, as the Empire’s war god, you had no standing to act, did you?”
Xuan exhaled deeply, his smile bitter. “I underestimated Jun Hua, and I underestimated you, Yu Dong.”
Suddenly, the light screen shut down.
Jun Tang stood frozen, unable to believe his failure. How could he have failed? He had waited for so many years, manipulating Xuan to remain neutral, all in order to kill Jun Hua when she ascended the throne. If he killed Jun Hua, he would be the master of the Silver Radiance Empire.
The earlier escape had just been to ensure that Old General used up his one chance to intervene.
He had thought his plan was foolproof. So why had it failed?
Outside the mine, chaos broke out. In the distance, a small space battleship launched and attacked the mine.
Bian Qi grabbed Jun Tang. “Lord, we need to leave. There will be other opportunities.”
Jun Tang roared in fury. “Why did it fail? Why?!”
Bian Qi quickly dragged Jun Tang away. “Lord, we’ve been tricked. The shackles cannot be broken. The mine belongs to her.”
Jun Tang was forcibly pulled away.
Suddenly, he seemed to remember something and looked around for Wang Jie. “Where is he? Kill him.”
Bian Qi had been searching for Wang Jie as well, but the man had disappeared.
“We’ll get him later, Lord. We need to leave now.”
Jun Tang, unwilling to accept defeat, could only retreat.
Out of nowhere, a figure appeared—Wang Jie.
Jun Tang stared in disbelief. When had he come?
Wang Jie pointed a finger, unleashing ninety-nine times his limit of power. The energy and force merged into the Heaven and Earth Luo Xuan Finger.
A single strike pierced through Jun Tang’s neck, sending blood splattering across Bian Qi’s face. Bian Qi stood frozen, eyes wide as he watched Jun Tang’s body pierced through, his gaze shrinking in horror.
Wang Jie turned and charged toward the distance, his armor eight steps moving like a shadow, his speed unparalleled.
“Lord!” Bian Qi shouted, clutching Jun Tang’s body. Jun Tang’s pupils slowly turned gray, his lips parted as if to say something, but he died in agony.
A massive light beam struck ahead. Bian Qi tossed Jun Tang’s body aside and quickly tried to dodge.
But with the shackles binding him, his movements were slow.
Even with Star-Breaking Realm power, he was helpless.
Wang Jie, however, had broken free from his shackles and moved faster than any human could. Beams of light continued to bombard him from behind, the entire mine area caught in the blast zone. Various other weapons fired as well.
A terrifying heatwave rushed toward him.
Wang Jie moved through the air, looking back to see countless miners die in the bombardment.
Bian Qi couldn’t escape either.
Wang Jie set his sights on a particular direction and continued to rush toward his destination. There, a small space ship awaited him.
He was grateful for having learned to pilot a spacecraft earlier, or none of this would have mattered.
The Old General had ordered him to kill Jun Tang, and he had done so—not because of the man, but for himself. Jun Tang had wanted him dead, and he would not have hesitated to strike.
Jun Tang must have been at Star-Breaking Realm, and Wang Jie might not have been able to defeat him. His only option was to take the chance and eliminate him first.
As for what he might gain from Old General after killing Jun Tang, Wang Jie hadn’t even considered it.
He had just killed an imperial prince. If the enemy didn’t publicly announce his death, that would be fortunate. The best he could expect was to be silenced.
So, his only escape route was to run.
He had already determined the spacecraft’s coordinates and had used his qi sensing abilities to ensure no one at the mine could stop him—no one at Star-Breaking Realm, at least. There were many space battleships, but as long as he avoided this wave of attacks, he could escape.
Quickly.
Wang Jie skillfully piloted the spacecraft.
Before long, the ship vibrated as it lifted off and soared into space.
The bombardment range of the battleships didn’t extend to this area, and they could only watch as the spacecraft disappeared into the vast cosmos.
Wang Jie didn’t relax until he could no longer see the mine planet.
He breathed a sigh of relief. His strength had proven resilient.
Though the Armor One Sect trial had introduced so many powerful figures, with some rumored to have the power to destroy countless stars with a single stone, Wang Jie had never been sure of his own abilities. Who would have thought that in the Silver Radiance Empire, he would do just fine?
In this place, there were very few at Star-Breaking Realm. He could practically walk unchallenged.
After entering space, another voice came through the device he had yet to remove from his ear.
“Come back for your reward.”
Wang Jie calmly looked at the star map and confirmed his next destination.
A reward? Perhaps death was more likely.
“What are you afraid of?” The voice continued.
Wang Jie remained calm.
“Check the news.”
Wang Jie was puzzled. He knew how to pilot the ship, but wasn’t sure how to access other functions.
With the voice’s instructions, he found the screen inside the ship, which was displaying news from outside.
The first headline he saw was the shocking assassination of Jun Hua. The assassin was the Empire’s War God, Xuan, one of the strongest figures in the Silver Radiance Empire, with full Star Realm power.
But this Xuan had been captured.
The second headline was about him—his own image was shown, though altered. The scene then shifted to show him killing Jun Tang, but it was followed by footage of Wang Jie being blown to pieces shortly afterward. It was fake.
The footage was fake.
But the Silver Radiance Empire had announced it publicly.
“See? We won’t harm you. Jun Tang couldn’t be killed, but you did, so we had to make a public statement. That statement has been made—you’re dead.”
“This is your coordinates. Come here.”
Wang Jie understood. From the beginning, this was a trap.
Jun Hua had set it up for Jun Tang. She lured him into having Xuan assassinate Jun Hua, while orchestrating Wang Jie’s assassination of Jun Tang to remove the hidden threat.
But how had they known he would kill Jun Tang?
First, because he had offended Jun Tang at the mine. With Jun Tang’s personality, he would never let Wang Jie go.
Second, the Old General’s voice.
If Wang Jie wasn’t mistaken, the Old General’s voice was also a fake. They knew he had heard it before, so they deliberately forged it.
Jun Tang hadn’t been wrong—Old General wouldn’t intervene again, nor would he ever do something so complicated.
They had used the Old General’s voice to manipulate him.
That woman’s face had seemed cold, her smile sincere, but her schemes ran deep.
It was clear now—there was no turning back.
The likelihood of being silenced was growing by the minute.
Without hesitation, Wang Jie tore off the headset and crushed it. He continued searching for his next destination.
This spacecraft wasn’t safe.
Beep, beep, beep.
Wang Jie glanced at the panel—low power, time to recharge.
Trouble. He’d have to land on a nearby planet.
After some searching, he found a planet named Ring Star.
Ring Star’s technology was much more advanced than Blue Star’s, with special landing zones for spacecraft.
However, Wang Jie knew better than to land there. He couldn’t afford to be discovered. Instead, he piloted the spacecraft straight into the ocean, abandoning it once he landed.
The landing was immediately detected by Ring Star, and a search was launched.
Wang Jie knew he couldn’t escape the Empire’s surveillance, so he didn’t care if the spacecraft was exposed. He prioritized hiding himself.
Sure enough, within an hour, the news of the fugitive was all over Ring Star.
Luckily, Wang Jie had covered his face. Otherwise, even in the ocean, Ring Star would have captured his image.
He had already entered the city. The city’s technology was far beyond Blue Star’s. He hid himself.
The next day, the search operation was canceled.
Ring Star broadcast a film about Interstellar Pirates hiding on the planet and being easily captured.
Wang Jie watched quietly, then made his way to the spacecraft port.
There, another ship awaited him.
As he boarded, the spacecraft took off once again, heading for its designated coordinates.
The movie had been for him—showing him that even hiding on a planet wouldn’t guarantee safety. Although he had learned a lot from Jun Tang, it still wasn’t enough.
His position could easily be pinpointed.
At that time, as long as someone at Star-Breaking Realm took action, it would be over. The enemy hadn’t done so yet, but it wouldn’t be long before they did.