I Eat My Own Jealousy chapter 32

Chapter 32 

“What do you want to say?” Professor Moor noticed that Jian Ning seemed to have something to say and asked.

Jian Ning snapped out of it and whispered to him, “I met Marshal Zong Ye just now in the restroom. He seems to be on a mission here and told us it’s dangerous and we should leave.”

Upon hearing this, Professor Moor’s heart tightened. Instinctively, he scanned the hall. If Marshal Zong Ye personally intervened, it definitely wasn’t a trivial matter. Frowning, Professor Moor knew that nothing was more important than their own lives. They should leave immediately, but the rules here stipulated that once inside, they couldn’t leave at will. They had to wait until the auction ended.

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Maswczle cu vbkp, y xyd okvb y okdl tzypp rypple cu vblx, pllxkdtzu pvwxczkdt shla y dlyacu nbyka. Mbl okdl kd vbl tzypp prkzzle sdvs Kkyd Lkdt’p nzsvblp. Mbl xyd bwaaklezu vssj swv y bydejlanbklq qasx bkp rsnjlv, cldekdt esod vs okrl kv qsa bkx, alrlyvlezu yrszstkgkdt, “R’x psaau.”

“Rv’p sjyu, R’zz bydezl kv xuplzq.” Xdzu y pxyzz ryav sq bkp nzsvblp tsv olv, ps kv oypd’v vss plhlal. Kkyd Lkdt oyp ycswv vs vyjl vbl bydejlanbklq qasx vbl xyd vs okrl kv bkxplzq.

Mbl xyd bydele vbl bydejlanbklq vs bkx yde yrszstkgle ytykd clqsal zlyhkdt okvb bkp okdl tzypp.

Gzsdt okvb vbl bydejlanbklq, vblal oyp y dsvl kdplavle kdvs Kkyd Lkdt’p byde. Tl pdlyjkzu tzydnle yv kv yde pyo fwpv vball osaep: Slpvkdt Sssx.

Jian Ning whispered a few words to Professor Moor, who nodded slightly. A pained expression appeared on his face. Supporting him, Jian Ning stood up from his seat, found a waiter, and inquired about the location of the resting room, using Professor Moor’s discomfort as an excuse.

The waiter led them to the resting room. Shortly after they left, someone swiftly entered the room, the same man who had given the note to Jian Ning.

“Marshal sent me to escort you out,” the man said simply, locking the door to the resting room. He then applied a signal-blocking patch to both of them, stepped on a table, and retrieved a tool from his pocket. He opened the ventilation hatch on the ceiling, inviting Jian Ning and Professor Moor to climb up.

Due to being underground, the ventilation duct was quite spacious. An adult could crawl forward while kneeling. After Jian Ning and Professor Moor climbed up, the man followed suit. He led them through a complex network of ducts for about ten minutes before stopping. Taking out his tools again, he worked for a while and opened the ventilation panel on the ceiling.

The man cautiously poked his head out to take a look. Seeing no danger, he signaled for both Jian Ning and Professor Moor to come out. In a hurry, he said, “Follow this path for half an hour, and you’ll reach a road with signs of civilization. Hurry and leave. I’ll go back first.”

After the man finished speaking, he entered the ventilation passage and retraced his steps back to the main hall.

Jian Ning secured the ventilation panel for him, then turned to survey the surroundings. This seemed to be the backside of the building, surrounded by woods that allowed a faint view of a dilapidated structure not far away.

“Let’s go.” Worried about guards around the building noticing them, Jian Ning and Professor Moor briskly departed following the path the man had mentioned.

While the journey by hover car hadn’t given them this impression, after walking for about ten minutes, Jian Ning realized the area was truly desolate. It was all mountainous terrain, devoid of any human presence. No wonder the underground auction was held in such a location.

Suddenly, the sound of an aircraft echoed from behind. It was too late for them to hide. The aircraft landed in front of them, and a subordinate of Zong Ye emerged, saying, “Get in. I’ll take you back to the academy.”

Jian Ning and Professor Moor breathed a sigh of relief and boarded the aircraft.

Inside the aircraft, Zong Ye sat on a sofa, his expression somewhat grim. His clothes were stained with blood, and a medical robot was tending to wounds on his back.

Jian Ning glanced at him, and Zong Ye happened to look up. Their gazes met briefly before they were interrupted by Professor Moor’s exclamation, “Isn’t that Fragrant Tree?”

Jian Ning shifted his gaze to where Fragrant Tree was mentioned. He noticed a pile of items in a corner, and Professor Moor was excitedly circling a nondescript plant in a pot half his height.

“Jian Ning, come over,” Professor Moor joyfully called him, explaining, “This plant is called Fragrant Tree. It doesn’t look impressive, but its flower sap, when crushed, can be made into perfume. When applied to the body, it releases different scents based on individual body chemistry, lasting for hours. It was very popular among young ladies in the past. But it went extinct long ago. The genetic repository of the Academy doesn’t have its seeds. Never imagined that not only are there seeds on the black market, but they’ve also been cultivated to this size.”

As Professor Moor finished speaking, a disdainful snort came from the side, “What’s the academy compared to us?”

Jian Ning didn’t pay attention to the man’s chattering. His eyes fell on a metal box beside the Fragrant Tree. The box wasn’t securely closed, revealing a plethora of purple crystals inside.

The blond man continued his rant about how foolish the Academy’s people were and how clever their own were, but they hadn’t disclosed any useful information. The subordinate grew tired of it and simply pressed a button on the control panel, instantly muffling the man’s voice behind a thin membrane. All that was visible now was his mouth moving without sound.

“These are items confiscated from the auction,” the subordinate explained, noticing Jian Ning’s persistent gaze on the metal box. He asked, “What were you hoping to buy at the auction?”

Professor Moor, circling the Fragrant Tree, overheard and replied, “Seeds of a plant called Moonflower. Its blossoms emit a luminous glow at night, quite enchanting. The Queen’s birthday celebration is approaching, and I was planning to cultivate some to gift her.”

“But that plan’s off now. I’ll think of another birthday gift,” Professor Moor sighed.

Jian Ning pointed to the energy stones within the metal box and inquired of the subordinate, “What are these crystals used for? And where did they come from?”

The subordinate gave a vague explanation, “A rather special type of energy stone.”

This was the reason they had covertly infiltrated the auction—to uncover the origin of these energy stones that had made their way onto the black market.

“…Can I open and take a look at them?” Jian Ning swallowed, wishing he could have this box of energy stones for himself. Even though he couldn’t keep them, touching them would be satisfying enough.

The subordinate glanced at Zong Ye, who didn’t object. He nodded, saying, “Sure.”

Jian Ning bent down to open the metal box.

Within the corner’s membrane, the bald man beside the blond man, who had remained silent since being captured, recoiled slightly as Jian Ning moved to open the box.

Ever since Jian Ning had come aboard, most of Zong Ye’s attention had been on him, with only a fraction allocated to the prisoners in the corner. Detecting the bald man’s movement, Zong Ye’s heart sank, and he blurted out, “Wait.”

But it was too late. Jian Ning had already opened the metal box and extracted an energy stone. In that moment, a swarm of black insects burst forth from the crevices of the energy stone and surged towards Jian Ning.

Before Jian Ning could react, he was suddenly spun around and pressed against someone’s chest. The air was filled with the buzzing of the insects, cries of surprise, and the muffled groan of Zong Ye above him.

Raising his head from Zong Ye’s embrace, Jian Ning witnessed Zong Ye taking the brunt of the insect attack. Zong Ye’s face was pale. Jian Ning wanted to reach out and touch Zong Ye’s back, but Zong Ye stopped his hand, cautioning, “Don’t touch. These insects are formidable. Once they bite, they won’t let go. And if you agitate them, they’ll burrow into your flesh. Avoid getting bitten by them.”

Amidst the chaos of the swarming black insects within the aircraft, the bald man in the corner managed to free himself from his handcuffs using an unknown method. He emerged from the membrane and transformed into a bald, fur-covered creature resembling a yellow weasel, scurrying towards the exit.

Unexpectedly, trouble arose. There weren’t many people on the aircraft—aside from Zong Ye and the subordinate, there were three other officers. Zong Ye shielded Jian Ning, the subordinate protected Professor Moor, and the remaining three officers found themselves entangled by the insects. In the midst of the chaos, no one managed to catch up with the fleeing creature.

The agile yellow weasel evaded the swarm, already near the exit.

Zong Ye reached to grab his military jacket from the sofa to cover Jian Ning before pursuing the creature. But Jian Ning stopped him, saying, “Don’t move.”

He remembered Zong Ye’s wounded back. If he were to move recklessly, the insects could penetrate his injuries.

Damn that bald yellow weasel! Let it taste what being bitten by those insects feels like. Jian Ning grew furious. With one hand tightly gripping an energy stone he had held previously, the other hand pressed against the Fragrant Tree beside him. Concentrating his mental energy, he absorbed the energy while simultaneously commanding the branches of the Fragrant Tree to elongate. Swinging the branches toward the creature by the exit, he swiftly ensnared the unsuspecting weasel.

Having immobilized the weasel, Jian Ning commanded the branches to shoo away the insects inside the aircraft, driving them toward the weasel. Soon, the weasel wailed in agony from the bites. It dared not revert to its human form, as doing so would result in even more severe bites.

Zong Ye, the subordinate, and the others were all taken aback. While the others were puzzled, Zong Ye quickly reacted, his gaze fixed on Jian Ning. One of Jian Ning’s hands gripped tightly, while the other remained attached to the Fragrant Tree.

Zong Ye pried open the hand Jian Ning had clenched. The once-purple crystal within had faded, turning into a drab piece of stone.

Seizing the opportunity, the subordinate rushed into the autopilot cabin. Soon, the aircraft’s circulation vents opened, releasing a harmless gas that could exterminate the insects. Five minutes later, all the insects fell to the ground. Cleaning robots began their work.

Zong Ye retrieved the energy stone that had been drained from Jian Ning’s hand and discreetly moved him away from the Fragrant Tree. The subordinate assisted Zong Ye to sit on the sofa. Only then did Jian Ning get a clear view of Zong Ye’s back, horribly ravaged by the insect bites, bloodied and painful to behold.

“Bugs got inside,” Zong Ye frowned, his fingers clenched onto the sofa armrests, his knuckles white from enduring excruciating pain.

The medical robot wasn’t equipped to deal with insects that had burrowed into the body. The subordinate altered the aircraft’s course to immediately head to the military hospital.

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