Chapter 13 Since I've been mistaken for someone else, I can pretend...

In complete silence.

Ai Ying glanced in the direction of the nest entrance, and after confirming that the last insect had left, she had no strength left. She slumped back onto the hard, jewel-encrusted bed, her heart pounding rapidly.

After a while, her heartbeat finally calmed down.

She turned her head and saw Charlotte still staring wide-eyed in terror, not yet recovered from her shock. She reached for a bottle of IV fluid from the bed and tossed it to her.

Since things have come to this, let's eat something first.

Even in death, I'd rather be a well-fed ghost.

Charlotte instinctively reached out and caught the nutrient solution.

Perhaps it was Ai Ying's composure that influenced her, and her panicked heart calmed down a little.

She opened the nutrient solution, observing her surroundings as she sipped it to calm her nerves.

It's clear that this is a newly built insect nest.

The insect hive is very large, capable of accommodating dozens or even hundreds of insectoids at the same time.

What amazed her even more was the decoration of the insect nest.

Dozens of top-quality gems, each radiating a different color, were inlaid at the top of the insect nest, their shimmering light illuminating the dim nest.

Countless rare and precious rocks and minerals are displayed in every corner.

Even a planetary pulse core served as decoration!

Not to mention the bed nest built of piled gems, upon which the empire's finest healing and restorative fluids were placed...

This insect nest was far more luxurious than she had ever imagined.

The Zerg on Carlo Star are all low-level Zerg.

Such an insect nest is the limit of what they could achieve by sacrificing everything they had.

Thinking of this, Charlotte looked at Ai Ying with a serious expression:

This group of Zerg really values ​​Ai Ying, their 'king'.

But Ai Ying isn't a real king!

She swallowed the last mouthful of nutrient solution, recalling how the Zerg had gone to such lengths for their king, their mouths trembling as they silently spoke:

"what to do?"

Ai Ying read her lips, reached for a bottle of nutrient solution, and brought it to her mouth:

what to do?

What else can we do?

If you don't act like a king, you'll die immediately.

The one who pretends to be the king will only die when he is exposed.

Even a fool knows which option to choose.

Just live one day at a time!

As long as I can survive, I might find a way to escape someday.

Ai Ying blinked and thought optimistically:

Although they may now be exposed and killed by the Zerg, they weren't exactly living very safely before!

Zerg uprising, cave collapses...

They also had to mine endlessly on an empty stomach, under countless threats of death.

It's not as good as it is now!

At least they live a much more luxurious life now.

The nutrient solution and repair solution, which they usually have to fight over, are now readily available in abundance.

There are also some gems that, while not particularly useful, look shiny...

Moreover, they don't have to do anything; they can just sit here quietly.

Even after trying to comfort herself like this, Ai Ying still didn't feel much better.

She glanced at Charlotte, whose face was filled with worry, and silently comforted her:

"Since it's already like this..."

"Then we'll just pretend for as long as we can."

Charlotte's mind raced upon hearing this, and she quickly weighed the pros and cons.

Survival is the most important thing.

If she wasn't mistaken, these insectoids thought Ai Ying was their king, which was why they saved them from being submerged in the cave.

Regardless of why the Zerg mistook the King, what they need to do is try to survive under the Zerg's control for as long as possible and not be exposed so quickly.

Charlotte crawled as quietly as possible from the corner of the bed nest to Ai Ying's side:

"Let's discuss how we can act more like a king."

Ai Ying spoke almost at the same time as her:

What should the Zerg King look like when facing the Zerg?

What followed was a series of silent conversations and hand gestures within the hive:

"The Zerg King can create a web link with all Zerg and control their minds..."

"Forget it, I can't fake that..."

"The King can also soothe insects with confused or severely injured brains, and help them improve their original level..."

"Forget it, there's no way to learn this..."

"The king can still..."

Charlotte eliminated the possibilities one by one, based on her prior knowledge of the Zerg.

Finally, she gritted her teeth and stated the consensus regarding the Zerg King:

"The Zerg kings all have one thing in common."

"That is cruelty and violence."

This is the only characteristic that allows humans to approach the level of the Insect King.

Ai Ying nodded thoughtfully upon hearing this, and succinctly summarized:

"That means you have to be very fierce, ruthless enough!"

She suppressed her smile, pressed her lips together, and stared blankly ahead, imagining herself as a cold-blooded and ruthless killing machine.

Is this okay?

Charlotte looked into her eyes, which remained clear and innocent throughout, and sighed inwardly.

Just how crazy are these insects to mistake Ai Ying for the insect mother?

She doesn't resemble those cruel and tyrannical kings of the Zerg at all!

Well, no one can completely change their traits in just a few minutes.

Thinking of this, Charlotte said silently:

"It's okay, you just need to maintain the expression you had when the Zerg were here."

Ai Ying looked at her blankly:

"ah?"

What expression?

She was terrified by the insectoids and only remembered that she had to save the seriously injured Charlotte...

Forget about her expression, she didn't even know what she said.

Ai Ying and Charlotte exchanged glances, their thoughts completely aligned:

Can this queen really pull off the act?!

*

"king--"

On the massive, dimly lit starship, Aymos stood alone in the center.

His long gray hair hung quietly at his sides, and his silver-gray vertical pupils were dull and lifeless.

Without a king, even the most powerful insect is nothing more than a pitiful worm, restless and chaotic, wanting to devour itself.

He reached out, his sharp nails carefully retracting, fingertips pointing forward as if trying to touch something.

But in the end, he withdrew his hand.

Amos had long been accustomed to the pain that had almost exceeded his limits.

But he could never get used to life without a king.

There are no insects that can get used to it.

For every insect, a long life is a torment.

The torment of the insect wanting to destroy itself.

Amos's sharp nails easily pierced his body, which was harder than rock, and black insect blood meandered down his insect-patterned skin.

The pain briefly cleared his confused worm brain:

He can't die!

He still needs to find the King!

He also wants to give everything he has to the king!

Amos stood battered and bruised in the center of the starship, his once cold and emotionless vertical pupils now filled with a sense of aimless confusion.

"king--"

Where?

How can he see the king?

Yes! You can also talk to the lord—

His longing for the king was driving him to the brink of madness.

He even proactively contacted the lord who could kill him with ease.

The moment the insect web was connected, the lord's level suppression caused Amos to completely lose even the instinct to breathe.

The insect patterns on his body gradually deepened, and cracks began to appear faintly on them.

This is how his body reacts when it can't handle the pressure.

The insect-like cracks gradually crawled towards his neck and cheek; if they continued, he would soon be swallowed up by them.

Amos raised his head, and drops of black blood slid down from the worm-like markings beside his eyes.

"Lord."

The Zerg now have seven overlords.

Each lord is currently the most powerful being among the Zerg.

A lord's spiritual link can transcend the pull between planets, allowing them to control every inch of their territory.

The lord disliked being disturbed.

The lord is also the Zerg most likely to find the king.

Amos looked ahead pleadingly:

"Have you found the king?"

Within the insect web, the lord seemed to glance in his direction.

In an instant, an endless loneliness and emptiness completely overwhelmed him.

No King—

Nothing at all—

Even without himself—

There was only emptiness.

This is a mental world that the advanced Zerg, Amos, could neither imagine nor dare to imagine.

In just a moment, his worm brain was thrown into chaos, almost to the point of madness.

The existence of the other end of the insect web coldly drew a conclusion:

A mad, worthless worm.

The mental link within the insect web abruptly broke in the next instant.

Amos stood inside the starship.

His body and face were covered in wounds, and the blood of insects stained the ground beneath his feet black.

His powerful healing ability allowed his wounds to heal gradually, and the cracks on the insect pattern also disappeared little by little.

However, his worm brain was in a state of unprecedented chaos.

He can't go crazy—

He cannot die—

One thought firmly pinned him to the spot:

He's going to find the king!

He wanted to give everything he had to the king.

His life also belongs to the king!

The broken insect web connects to the other end.

In the tranquil, profound, and boundless universe.

A figure stood silently in the darkest corner.

His body didn't look strong, even somewhat thin, yet he stood effortlessly in a star field capable of crushing everything.

From the transparent wings extending from the spine, invisible energy chains searched with all their might:

The king is not here.

His transparent wings were already showing signs of dissipation at the edges due to the depletion of his energy.

But he didn't turn around; he simply disappeared silently from the spot.

He spent his whole life searching.

The lord can never stop searching for the king.

Because if they stop for even a second, they will be swallowed up by the emptiness within their hearts.

*

"Hiss—The king is giving us orders!!"

"The king doesn't hate us!!"

"We have a king!!"

"Hiss hiss hiss—we finally have a king among the insects!!"

On Planet Carlo, all the insects gathered together, their antennae twitching joyfully.

From the moment of their birth, they learned for the first time what it felt like to have a king appear:

There was no more unease, no more chaos, no more pain, no more nothingness, and no more despair that made one want to destroy oneself.

Insects chirped merrily:

"Find the gems! Find the gems!"

"We must present the king with the most beautiful jewels!"

"Finding food! Finding food!"

"We must offer the king the most energy-rich food!"

...

The massive Keo watched as the other insects busied themselves around the nest, their insect brain straining as they pondered:

What is he going to offer to the king?

What else does he have?

He looked at his own body with his vertical pupils, as if he had thought of something, and said excitedly:

Hiss—

"I will offer the king my strongest pincers!"

A note from the author:

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The joys and sorrows of the Zerg are not shared.

So, to all my little angels who are watering with nutrient solution, I love you all~

Today is Qixi Festival (Chinese Valentine's Day), so I'm giving out red envelopes to everyone!

Happy Qixi Festival, my darlings!