A Choice from the Heart

With generation after generation of Uriufises carrying on the bloodline, there was always someone who could inherit Chi Ren and hold the Federation at bay. Those nobles with normal lifespans could sit back and reap the benefits without bearing any burden, sucking the blood of the lower classes to live their own comfortable lives.

"Later, Xi'en grew up. He tested at S+ Psychic Power Level, and I knew the drug had failed in his case. I told him everything, and he only said to me, gently, 'Thank you, Father and Mother, for fighting to give me a normal life.' He knew that in a few years, the backlash would consume him, but he still played the perfect imperial heir before the people..."

Andrew's voice turned hoarse. "He was the child Yuan Xin and I wronged the most. Then came Fulian. She tested at S level, and the drug failed for her as well. In a few years, she'll follow the same path as Xi'en. She's the child who looks most like Yuan Xin—my precious pearl... Just when I was nearly at the point of despair, Jin appeared."

"He is a miracle."

"When he was little, he was often sick. I always thought he'd grow up and suffer the same backlash as Xi'en. But as he grew, bit by bit, his body got better. Until the day of his test at sixteen—he measured A+. That same day, I woke from my haze. A miracle had occurred. The fate of the Uriufises was truly going to end with him."

"Perhaps Yuan Xin was watching over me from beyond. That same year, Shen Shouli tested at S+, so Chi Ren's succession was no longer in doubt. And I finally woke up. In the remaining years of my life, I'll sweep away the filth and the corrupt—I want to leave a stable Empire for Jin and Shen Shouli. Neither of them, whatever their qualities, is suited to be a monarch."

Uriufis sighed. "Especially Jin. You've been around him these days, so you can tell—he's a particularly kind and thoughtful child. When he learns the truth one day, even though none of this has anything to do with him personally, he'll blame himself until he breaks."

"So these years, Xi'en has been preparing him, and Fulian has been giving him the cold shoulder. But I understand her. She's a very stubborn child. On one hand, she resents why she and her brother have to suffer this fate and can't help but 'hate' Jin. On the other, she's just trying to make sure that when Jin learns the truth, he won't carry too much guilt..."

Just by showing dislike for him, when the day of her death came, he wouldn't grieve too much. The strange, convoluted reasoning of a stubborn, childish girl.

"The fate of the Uriufises should end. I'm not testing you. This position of sovereign—you are the best successor. No one will be able to seize power from you."

After saying so much, Andrew couldn't help but cough violently. Xu Lingqu lowered her head, looking at the cup of flower tea before her, her feelings complicated.

"You met me for the first time, and you dare tell me all this?"

"These things—after a while, once I'm dead, the entire Empire will know them anyway." Andrew smiled. "Telling you all this in advance, frankly, is just adding weight to the option in your heart to accept becoming the successor."

For anyone else, the position of heir was a great honor. But for Xu Lingqu, with SS+ and Liu Ming at her side, it was really just a bargaining chip to win her over to the Empire's side.

Even if Liu Ming had no physical body right now, judging by the relationship between the two mechs, Chi Ren would not likely agree to move against Xu Lingqu.

Moreover, once Xu Lingqu was won over, that old fox Yude Meilin would inevitably have to make his move.

The Federation spies from the Merlin Family who had infiltrated the Empire had cut ties with Xu Chengbi quickly this time. Those who had been exposed all committed suicide, and those who hadn't gone deeper into hiding. Only one Tang Muwen had been captured alive, foiling Andrew's wish to sweep them all up in one net.

Back when Yuan Xin died, the Merlin Family's spies had played no small part in stirring the pot. Compared to those foolish nobles, they were more afraid that Yuan Xin could develop a drug that would completely cure the Uriufises' short-lived genes without harming their Psychic Power Level...

"I want everyone involved in harming Yuan Xin to die horribly, executed by my own hand. Only if you become the heir will Yude Meilin spare no effort to kill you..." Andrew's eyes darkened. "You know very well that this position of heir is something I'm begging you to take."

"That should be the most important reason for you." Xu Lingqu leaned back. "Just say it directly. No need to go around in such circles."

Andrew stirred the tea in his cup with the iron spoon. "There has to be some emotional buildup. What if you were full of righteous indignation, and after hearing the story of the Uriufises, you agreed to me on the spot?"

As he said this, he laughed at himself, coughed a few times, then lifted his head seriously. "But I sincerely believe you will make this Empire better. Or rather, if people like you hold power, this world will be better."

"I have a question. Answer me, and I'll give you my answer." Xu Lingqu rotated her wrist. "What was the history of the Federation before this?"

Andrew halted. His gaze at Xu Lingqu gradually grew complicated, like a thick fog.

"It's Federation year 418 now. So what came before the Federation? Don't humans have a history of origin? Why does the Empire forbid discussion of this too?" Xu Lingqu pressed.

"The questions you ask... have no answers." Andrew slowly shook his head. "Forbidding inquiry into what came before the Federation—these are orders passed down from Caesar. Every generation of Uriufises merely carried them out mechanically. In our short lives, no one thought to seek the truth. There are plenty of curious ordinary people, but their questions were buried beneath the ban. When you lead the Empire to conquer the Federation, perhaps you'll find the answers."

Xu Lingqu had received an answer she'd already anticipated. She replied, "You might have misunderstood. My refusal isn't because I don't trust your promises or anything else. It's just that I don't want to inherit an empire."

Instead of staying put, pushing wave after wave of reform through this Empire, then swallowing the Federation through war, and finally learning some half-understood truths, Xu Lingqu wanted to find a different way to accomplish what she set out to do.

In her eyes, inheriting this Empire was no different from becoming the highest Law Enforcer of Lake Arden.

Seven years as the highest Law Enforcer—Xu Lingqu didn't regret it. But if she could choose again, going back to the moment she became an Evolved, she would first walk out into the apocalypse beyond to seek the truth of the end of the world.

That was the answer most faithful to Xu Lingqu's own heart. She always leaned toward taking the initiative, solving problems at the source.

"I need to go search for Liu Ming's physical body first. If it's not within the Empire's star territory, I'll head to the Federation. While I'm in the Empire, you can publicly announce that I'm the heir and reveal my Psychic Power Level—that will lure out the Federation spies and the Merlin Family. I'll cooperate with you."

The words "duty calls" had trapped her in Lake Arden for seven years. How long would they trap her in the Interstellar Empire?

Xu Lingqu only wanted to obtain everything she needed to know in the shortest time possible. And she had already promised Liu Ming she would help find its physical body first.

"You can rest assured. When I find Liu Ming's physical body, or unravel all my confusion, I'll come back. After all, there are still a group of ambitious, idealistic young people in the Empire. With them, there's still a future here."

Xu Lingqu rose and left the glass greenhouse. Death hadn't set her free. Only today had she truly walked out of Lake Arden.