Chapter 22
◎Even dogs wouldn't want members of the Gaimington royal family.◎
Earth is humanity's home planet and the starting point for our journey into the universe. Historical records and research have consistently suggested that humanity officially established itself in space around 3000 AD. This means that humanity could operate completely independently of Earth, without needing to return for supplies or equipment repairs.
Earth's resources were already nearing depletion; after all, it's humanity's home planet. Therefore, humanity designated Earth a protected natural planet, establishing a cosmic covenant prohibiting the exploitation of any of Earth's resources. Even tourism is limited to a certain number of visitors each year. Earth gradually faded from humanity's focus, becoming a purely tourist destination. The era in which humanity developed civilization with Earth as its primary planet is known as the Ancient Earth Era, used to distinguish it from the period when Earth became a protected natural planet.
"For every Philosopher's Stone in this universe, there is a corresponding Philosopher's Stone in our universe." Regas, the human massager, provided Lan Hua with a massage service while also offering explanations.
"Where does this area correspond to? Venus?" Lan Hua asked.
"Because no descendants of 'Li' have explored the Philosopher's Stones of our universe, their exact location has remained undetermined. Of the four, only one has a slight clue, and the results pieced together from various sources all point to Venus," Regas explained.
“It seems I have indeed seen photos of similar pyramid-shaped megaliths, located on Venus.” Lan Hua closed her eyes and instructed Regas, “A little higher, um, this is the spot.”
Luo Ying: "..." This person is really pretentious and hypocritical. Your Highness has always been discerning, how come you can't see through Lan Hua's pretense!
Destroying a monolith dozens of times the size of a pyramid would be incredibly easy, especially since the Philosopher's Stone is composed of materials different from ordinary stones. Destroying it would be no less difficult than destroying an entire interstellar fleet.
Lan Hua did not question Regas's preparations, but—
“Although the Philosopher Stones are scattered in uninhabited areas, destroying them would definitely cause a significant disturbance,” Lan Hua said, already reclining on a deck chair with her arm behind her head. “Didn’t these administrators notice you?” That doesn’t make sense. If anyone dared to do this in the Southern Region, even on a desolate planet in some remote corner, they would definitely get the news immediately. And Regas has been here for over two years, having already destroyed three Philosopher Stones. No matter how well they try to conceal it, it certainly wouldn’t be completely silent.
“Not every place is the Southern Region,” Regas said. “Even the Silver Glow Empire is not a monolithic entity. You’ve been in charge of the Southern Region for so long, you must know that. Since everyone has their own agenda, it’s easy to defeat them one by one.”
As Regas explained, he held up a parasol over Lan Hua's head to shield him from the direct sunlight.
Lan Hua: "..." Regas has been missing for almost two years, which has made him almost forget that Regas is an ambitious schemer from the Gamondon royal family, a person who can still hold the position of crown prince even though the current emperor knows that he is not his own son. His methods are not actually consistent with the gentle and upright image he has established in the outside world.
To paraphrase a line from the Lan family's old patriarch's notes, the people of the Gaymont royal family are "not even worth dogs." Lan Hua didn't bother to investigate how much resentment was in that assessment; after all, the Gaymont royal family were indeed despicable, and the Lan family members were equally insane—both extremely selfish and willful, two sides of the same coin, neither good at all.
It's likely that Regas has done much more than simply searching for and destroying the Philosopher's Stone during his two years here. Whether it's destroying the Philosopher's Stone to silence everyone, or if he truly can't return and is forced to remain in this universe, Regas will certainly have made thorough preparations.
"You haven't been idle here either," Lan Hua chuckled. "I thought that choosing to come to this universe would make your life easier than in the Silver Glow Empire, at least you wouldn't have to be so calculating and scheming. But maybe this is just your nature; if you lived a simpler life, you might even find it boring."
"Isn't that the kind of person you like? If he were truly someone without desires, you wouldn't even glance at him." Lan Hua's words might have angered or prompted others to defend themselves, but Regas's reaction was unusual. His expression remained gentle, and even his tone was as soothing as ever. One could say he had incredibly thick skin and truly exceptional mental fortitude.
“That’s true.” Lan Hua nodded in agreement. If Regas’s persona were to crumble, he might as well remain missing forever; at least his love story would remain perfect. If he were to go mad, it would be for the Regas who had captured his heart.
Lan Hua lay under the parasol watching the blasting of rocks. "If only I had a cold drink, it would be perfect," he thought with a touch of regret. He watched Regas's retreating figure and nodded in satisfaction. That physique, that waist, those long legs, plus Regas's unparalleled handsome face—if any one of them were missing, it wouldn't have been able to seduce him.
Loying's mission was actually over when he found the last piece of the Philosopher's Stone. Destroying the Philosopher's Stone was not his job, nor was he capable of doing so. Therefore, while Regas deployed his personal guards to carry out the destruction plan, Loying and a few others stayed behind to wait.
Also left behind was Lan Hua, who felt increasingly uncomfortable the closer she got to the Philosopher's Stone.
"You're here to help in no way and only add to His Highness's burden." Looking at Lan Hua lying there lazily and boneless, and thinking about how he had pretended to be sick and weak all the way to have His Highness help him walk, and now he was just lying there, looking at His Highness with the eyes of someone picking ducks, Luo Ying was furious and walked over to him and said.
"Who gives you the right to speak to me?" Although Luo Ying's constant small actions and provocative words were of no use to Lan Hua, being bothered by flies all the time was still tiresome. At this moment, the magnetic storm had reached the peak of its torment on Lan Hua's mind, so Lan Hua's patience was running low.
"I—" Luo Ying stammered. Throughout the journey, although Lan Hua was mischievous and pretentious, she remained in a state between pranks and bitchiness, making her both infuriating and frustrating. Lan Hua only occasionally pointed out Luo Ying's petty actions and offenses, embarrassing him in front of others. This made Luo Ying forget Lan Hua's true identity, simply seeing her as a beautiful but pretentious rival.
"I'm not going to argue with you because you're not worthy of my attention, whether it's about status or feelings," Lan Hua said calmly. "Your work for Regas is none of my business, so I won't interfere with you. But do you even deserve to overstep your bounds and point fingers at me? My patience is limited, so have some self-respect."
Lan Hua didn't get up, only glancing at Luo Ying. But Luo Ying had never seen that look in Lan Hua before: haughty, indifferent, and ruthless, as if looking at an ant. Even though Lan Hua was just lying down, that aloof and disdainful gaze made Luo Ying, who was standing, feel an invisible pressure that made him feel suffocated, and it also brought some rationality back to his mind, which had been blinded by jealousy. It made him truly realize that Lan Hua and he were indeed from different worlds. Lan Hua's previous nonchalant attitude had made him forget that there was actually a chasm between them.
"Please step aside and don't block the light," Lan Hua said coldly.
Luo Ying was still immersed in the series of thoughts brought about by Lan Hua's words, so after Lan Hua finished speaking, he silently moved away from where Lan Hua was.
Lan Hua didn't care what Luo Ying thought. He only bluntly pointed it out because he was tired of Luo Ying's itchy, bothersome behavior. His headache still hadn't subsided.
"I have a feeling that I won't be able to leave here so easily today," Lan Hua murmured. He had a strong sense of impending crisis. However, this was also something he had expected.
Humans may pretend not to know about Regas's destruction of the Philosopher's Stone because of their own interests, but those who have no way out, if they continue to stay in this universe where their energy has been exhausted, what awaits them is only death as "gods"?
This is the last Philosopher's Stone. If it is destroyed, it means that it will be impossible for them to descend into their universe as before. They can only look for other universes with sufficient energy and find a way to descend. However, they have experienced the failure last time. If they fail again this time, they will not have the time or energy to prepare for the next round.
The reason Regas was able to destroy the Philosopher's Stone relatively easily this time was because these "gods" were already dead, and the "god-men," who served as the spiritual carriers, were not yet fully developed and could not completely merge with the spirit. Therefore, the "god-men" still believed that they had acquired genes to become stronger and were unaware of their true purpose. The "gods" had not even achieved a so-called resurrection in their own universe, let alone developed "demigods" and "followers." This is why Regas was able to destroy the Philosopher's Stone without encountering resistance from the "gods."
However, if the final Philosopher's Stone is truly destroyed, all of the "gods'" plans will be ruined, so they will use various methods to forcibly stop it. Presumably, those once high and mighty "god-like beings" in this universe are now suffering from excruciating headaches and are delirious. Regardless of whether the time is ripe, the "gods" must rely on those bodies to physically stop Regas's plan to destroy the stone. Even if these "god-like beings'" bodies are not perfect enough to fully adapt to the "gods," these "gods" will still have to forcibly intrude.
Lan Hua wondered how many "divine beings" would arrive. She was curious about how powerful these "divine beings" would be, given their physical bodies combined with the spiritual power of "gods." Since they were hastily fused together, their combat power was definitely diminished.
"I'm really looking forward to it." Lan Hua smiled slightly, crossed her legs to adjust to a comfortable position, and casually put on a pair of sunglasses. It's unclear whether Regas's side is getting a worse beating, or whether the "god-like" side will fare worse.
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