Chapter 58 Hypnosis: "I like you."
Perhaps because the security at Fortress Zerg was strong enough, Yi Lan was not very strict with Shi Wei, and she could wander around freely—the title of girlfriend was actually quite effective, and she could go and see most areas inside Fortress Zerg.
The mercenaries' bandit aesthetic is reflected in the robots here; they are all oddly shaped and don't look very intelligent.
Unlike the usual punching bags (Nth type), which are meticulously programmed and naturally become better at making her happy, these ugly robots are all incredibly annoying.
"Idiot, you're going the wrong way! There's a restricted area 500 meters ahead! A restricted area!"
"You've entered the restricted area! Ah! Quickly swipe your ID card!"
"Aaaaaah, they're coming with guns! Waaaaah!"
Shi Wei watched helplessly as the two robots who were leading the way ran away, leaving her alone surrounded by several patrol robots.
These red-eyed robots, armed with dangerous weapons, scanned her and then merely warned her, "Don't wander off."
It's less of a fortress and more of a planet.
The first building Shi Wei saw was the core of the Grasshopper Fortress. Tens of thousands of starships, nearly half a million troops of various kinds, and a million mechanical units were stationed in the planet's atmosphere and orbits, scattered across its satellites and smaller planets. The entire Grasshopper Fortress refers to these entities.
In other words, the so-called "old nest".
This massive structure on the planet, covering approximately one-fifth of the planet, is said to have been built by the original mercenary leader, then redesigned by Asta, and subsequently expanded.
"What are you looking at?" A voice came from behind, unusually calm and composed, without any hint of frivolity.
It's Yi Lan.
"Compared to our peak, we have nearly a third less troops. In the entire Chaotic Starfield, the places where I can truly call the shots are also half as many as Mother... and half as many as Lord Asta," the tall, red-haired man said, his tone tinged with sadness.
As a hostage, it was time to say something nice. Shi Wei earnestly comforted her, "It's okay, it wasn't all lost by you alone."
Yi Lan: "..." Thank you.
After Asta relinquished military power and Sklag I proposed marriage, Manla gained another "Queen Mother"—
The mercenaries were no longer arrogant; instead, they strengthened their ties with the orcs and gradually shifted from an offensive to a defensive posture.
This shift was certainly correct, but the increasingly deified Asta's long stay in Manra still affected the balance of power, and the mercenaries could only go toe-to-toe with the Manra army at that time.
The most fatal blow was the gradual decline of the orcs, which also led to a decline in the mercenaries.
However, it wasn't a big problem. After Asta, Sklag I, and the geniuses of the time passed away one by one, the balance of the universe began to follow the laws of nature, with one side rising and the other falling.
There has never been a situation where two major powers dominate the entire universe and compete with each other again.
"The rise of the Alliance reflects an age-old truth—the triangle is the most stable structure." Shi Wei looked at the faint blackness in the sky and said, "The era of Asta was too magical. I have never seen such an era of explosive geniuses in the history of the universe. So many shining stars illuminated those hundreds of years of history."
Yi Lan, however, didn't seem to feel anything and shrugged: "Because that was the most unstable era. Mercenaries took shape, empires rose one after another, and the turbulent universe gave birth to countless opportunities in the midst of conflict. Humanity has never lacked such geniuses in every period of history, but only chaotic times can allow them to show their talents."
His tone carried a hint of excitement, like a little kid about to do something naughty. Shi Wei frowned slightly and said, "Yes, geniuses come in every generation, but there's only one Asta."
Even her least favorite professor in college couldn't deny Asta's important place in cosmic history.
Yi Lan hummed in response, seemingly unable to refute: "You're comparing him to Lord Asta, then I can only say that everyone else is a plaything of the God of Fate... But I'm curious, you seem to really like Asta?"
"What's wrong?" Shi Wei asked, "Many Omegas admire Asta, right?"
Although she went to Manra because of Asta, which led to her meeting Dekari and being captured by the Security Bureau.
But she never regretted it; her admiration for Lord Asta grew deeper with each new understanding she gained.
Yi Lan stroked her chin and leaned closer, asking, "Doesn't King Sklag II have any reaction?"
Shi Wei looked at him strangely: "Should he have any reaction? I like Lord Asta, shouldn't he be proud?"
Even Shi Wei's parents, upon learning that His Majesty was a descendant of Asta, suddenly understood and accepted their daughter's reason for lingering abroad.
Yi Lan laughed heartily: "Don't you know? He hates Asta the most, hahaha!"
Shi Wei looked at him in surprise, disbelieving: "Are you kidding me? He is the emperor of Manra, hailed as the emperor most like Sklag I, and he hates Asta the most?"
Impossible, impossible. No member of the Manla royal family has ever dared to publicly express their dislike for the Queen Mother.
His Majesty's usual assessment of Asta is one of admiration, and is very objective and calm.
Yi Lan patted her shoulder and said with pity, "Come on, if he likes Asta, I'll cut off my head and let you kick it like a ball."
Although with current medical technology, cutting off her head wouldn't necessarily kill her immediately, Yi Lan's confident expression didn't seem like he was lying to her.
"Why? You have to give me a reason, right?" Shi Wei asked.
“Hmm—” Yi Lan thought for a moment, then replied somewhat perfunctorily, “You want me to give a reason? Well… hasn’t someone already raised questions? Sklag II never goes to the Holy Monument. He’s the only oddball among all the dozens of emperors of Manra who would rather die than go to the Holy Monument!”
"If the Holy Stele were built at Locust Fortress, I'd go there every day!" Yi Lan said, his face full of envy, jealousy, and resentment.
Shi Wei, who was also a huge fan of Asta, couldn't help but chime in, "Yes, it really is strange... If I could go to the Holy Monument, I would go every day!"
The two groups of fans temporarily set aside their grudges over the hostages and kidnappers and began a lively exchange about their shared interests.
Shi Wei gained a lot, because the records about Asta in the Chaotic Starfield were very different from those in Manra. The records in the Royal Library were beautified and modified—and many of them were destroyed by Sklag I, so some parts of them did not make sense.
"Ah? So that battle was because of... that's how it is... no wonder..." Shi Wei was taken into the mercenary's archives by Yi Lan, who directly used his authority to open all the records about Asta for Shi Wei.
The red-haired man opened a chip, flipped to a page, pointed to a picture on it, and said, "Look, this is the structure of her heart—"
Shi Wei was stunned. The man said smugly, "You didn't expect that, did you? Inside her heart..."
This was undoubtedly a cosmic secret. The young Omega's brain went blank, and he stammered, "Why...why? My God...Star Source Material, so that's how it is."
Taking advantage of her slightly weak legs, Yi Lan supported her waist, closing the distance between them, and said, "Otherwise, why do you think the mercenaries and Manra are frantically hoarding star source materials? Do you think they're really playing an arms race? ... But that is indeed the reason, but more importantly, it's to prevent this material from falling into the other side's hands."
Seeing that Shi Wei was already leaning against him, Yi Lan calmly dropped another bombshell: "According to research over the past few hundred years, it has been confirmed that stellar source matter plays a very important role in human spiritual power."
Shi Wei's eyes widened as she heard him say regretfully, "It's a pity we didn't discover a direct connection, but I'm 100% certain that this substance can enhance mental strength!"
Shi Wei was really starting to lose her footing. If this kind of news were released, even if there was only the slightest theoretical basis for it, it would drive the entire universe crazy.
Physical fitness can be improved in various ways, and it's not impossible for Shi Wei to become a muscular woman, but she doesn't want to bear the side effects. However, mental strength is different—if there is a way to improve mental strength, even if it means halving one's lifespan, countless people would flock to it.
Yi Lan held her in his arms, his tone full of temptation: "Don't you want to improve your mental strength? Even if you can't become a god like Asta, just a little bit of improvement will make you no longer that powerless Omega. You can use your mental strength to attack anyone, protect yourself, and become a powerful person..."
His green eyes gradually turned bloodshot as he continued, "Don't you hate your life now? I know how you met that dead emperor... Is this really the life you wanted? They can bully you, control you, not let you go home, and don't even protect you properly. They say they love you, but in the end, you still ended up in my hands?"
"You're a bastard too!" Shi Wei gritted her teeth, but her pupils were already somewhat dilated.
Yi Lan paused for a moment, then increased the intensity—no, he increased the output of his mental energy.
"Yes, I'm a bastard too! Don't you want to get revenge on me? Don't you want to trample me and King Sklag II under your feet? Don't you want to slap those nobles and make them obey?"
Shi Wei's voice was weak, her consciousness blurred, and she whispered, "I don't want to... trample anyone under my feet, I want to... live well... sob sob..."
Yi Lan's heart skipped a beat, a gap appeared in his mental energy shield, and his emotions fluctuated violently, causing his mental energy to also begin to fluctuate—
Shi Wei suddenly snapped out of her daze and asked, "Where am I now? Am I part of some pyramid scheme?"
Yi Lan: "..." He withdrew his mental energy and sighed helplessly.
The wisps of spiritual energy still enveloped Shi Wei. This spiritual energy, which should have been extremely aggressive, seemed to have no aggression towards her. Instead, it was very close to her and lingered around her body reluctantly.
Shi Wei gradually regained consciousness. Looking at the wisps of spiritual energy that were about to dissipate, she suddenly realized: "You were just hypnotizing me?"
"Yes," Yi Lan replied, putting his arm around her waist.
Shi Wei shoved him away, looking furious: "Bastard! How can you use your mental power for something like this? Aren't you afraid of turning me into an idiot?!"
Most Alphas possess aggressive mental abilities. Just like when Similan accidentally attacked her, her intelligence would turn negative if she was unlucky.
"It's alright, I do this all the time, I won't make a mistake." Yi Lan's mood was also complicated. His mental strength was extremely strong, perhaps the strongest in the universe. Just now, Shi Wei was almost hypnotized by him, but he softened his heart and she escaped.
The pheromones interfered with his rationality.
well.
Shi Wei took a few deep breaths, recalling what had just happened, and remained silent for more than ten minutes before saying, "I finally understand why you're so crazy, and why so many people are willing to follow you—"
This guy can hypnotize people!
When the researchers were testing her mental strength, they said that people with strong mental strength can use their mental power to suggest things to their targets, making it easy for the other person to believe them.
The spiritual power she just sensed was hundreds or thousands of times stronger than that of Similan.
As expected, a lunatic like him can live so long without any super strong trump card!
Moreover, he is truly very perceptive, striking directly at the weaknesses deep within people's hearts.
She could resist being corrupted, tempted, or threatened with money, power, or force; but when tempted to become stronger—
It's so shameless, yet so useful.
If she hadn't been naturally more resistant to mental energy, she would have been hypnotized just now, and the consequences would have been unimaginable.
Seeing Shi Wei looking at him with eyes that seemed to be looking at him as a “super villain of the universe,” Yi Lan said casually, “It’s just a little hint, okay? I’m not lying to you. You can tell by how strong my mental power is. I really am not lying to you.”
"Then why did you help me? Are you some kind of universal philanthropist?" Shi Wei asked with a scrutinizing look.
Yi Lan chuckled and said, "I like you."
Damn, this guy is shameless.
She really didn't know how to refute this reason.
"Are you the kind of person who would risk everything for love?" Shi Wei sneered. "You might as well say you trained me to assassinate His Majesty."
“Oh, right.” Yi Lan actually nodded, shamelessly adding, “That reason sounds more plausible!”
Shi Wei was so angry at him that she almost collapsed.
This woman didn't say a single nice thing. She bluntly said, "If you had this method, you wouldn't need to compete with His Majesty. Half of Manra's noble families would immediately side with you, and the title of Lord of the Universe would be within your grasp."
It's true. The recruitment ads directly stated, "Join us and you'll start with a mental strength of 999," and countless powerful individuals immediately came to join us.
Yi Lan said seriously, "Do you think I say this to everyone? Do you think everyone can improve their mental strength? Without Asta's genes, I can't help you even if I wanted to."
He presented a report, saying, "This is an SSS-level file from the research institute, containing the genes of mentally strong individuals from the Chaotic Starfield over the past few hundred years. Nearly 80% of them have Asta's genes, and the higher the gene concentration, the stronger their mental power."
Shi Wei looked at the report and heard him say very seriously, "If I tell you a single lie, may I die without a burial place. If I lie to you, may I not live past a hundred years."
"Anyone can make such a solemn oath." Shi Wei's hands were trembling, but she still stubbornly insisted, though she had already believed most of it in her heart.
Yi Lan grasped her trembling hand and chuckled softly, "In Manra, they are more accustomed to calling this magical thing 'Source Blood'."
Shi Wei gasped.
But she quickly realized: "Although Manra's doctor also said that I have Asta's genes, it's very rare. According to what you said, I still can't improve my mental strength."
Even if I've broken free from his mental hypnosis, even if I know he has ulterior motives, even if I know he's up to no good—
The temptation was too great. Shi Wei kept telling herself to calm down, but she still couldn't help but ask more questions.
The red-haired man laughed heartily and said, "Give me a kiss and I'll tell you."
He was actually half-joking; he could tell that Shi Wei wasn't interested in him, so he didn't expect her to react.
As a result, Shi Wei quickly kissed him on the cheek, her face serious: "Speak."
It was Yi Lan's turn to break down. He touched his face and it took him a while to realize, "You really kissed me!"
Shi Wei said impatiently, "Didn't you tell me to kiss you? Tell me now!"
"Damn it!" Yi Lan cursed, as if he had swallowed a ginseng fruit and couldn't taste anything. He said angrily, "I should have asked for different terms..."
He looked at Shi Wei and said unhappily, "Why aren't you struggling anymore? Aren't you completely devoted to that damn emperor? I told you to kiss him, so just kiss him!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Shi Wei berated him: "Are all you Alphas out of your minds?! It's one thing to like seducing Omegas, but after you've seduced them, you even advise them to reform. You've barely managed to have a shred of humanity, and now that you've had your fun, you start pointing fingers, huh?"
Yi Lan, somewhat intimidated by her scolding, coughed and said, "That's not what I meant. You...you're doing fine this way. Yes, that's exactly it. Listen to me, I'm telling you—"
"First of all, I said... this gene... although the concentration... we can... probability..." He began to explain, speaking for at least fifteen minutes, interspersed with a bunch of biological terms.
Shi Wei didn't understand at all.
Her reason told her to be wary of this kind of psychopathic fraud, but her long-standing anxieties about her own safety, coupled with this delicate moment, made her want to believe it.
Trying to understand the principles he was explaining, Shi Wei was still a little confused: "Can you explain it in simpler terms? I'm a liberal arts student, I haven't touched biology in decades..."
Yi Lan looked very serious. After thinking for a moment, he said, "We don't lack raw material mercenaries. I'm the most successful example. The fact that you can resist my hypnosis shows that your mental strength is not bad either. Your source blood concentration is not low. You can try receiving mental strength training—"
"Do you want money?" Shi Wei directly hit the key to the sales pitch.
"I won't charge you any money." Yi Lan smiled, her face full of ill intent: "All you need to do is marry me."
He is now certain that Shi Wei is not only his nemesis's soulmate, but also his soulmate.
Marrying her is like killing two birds with one stone; it's a sure win.
Perhaps it could even infuriate Sklag II to death; that would be the perfect ending.
Shi Wei kept a blank expression; she felt a slight sense of familiarity with this routine.
Do all bastards with high concentrations of primal blood like to use this kind of rhetoric?
But His Majesty wouldn't go so far as to set a trap for her; who knows?
She said, "Why should I believe you, just because of your oath and a report? I've met all the mental experts in Manra, and they all said it's impossible to improve my mental abilities. You think I'd believe you just because you say so? You just tried to hypnotize me!"
Yi Lan said nonchalantly, "Believe it or not, if you don't want to marry me, I'll just use you to exchange for money with King Sklag II... As for hypnosis, hmph—"
He looked at Shi Wei with the kind of look one would give an idiot: "If I were the person with the strongest mental power in the universe today, guess who would be second?"
Shi Wei's expression changed slightly.
Yi Lan directly saw through her pretense and said, "It's your dearest Emperor~ He's older than me, has a more noble background, and received the best training in the empire from a young age. Do you think he could use this kind of hypnosis with his mental strength?"
Shi Wei fell silent.
Yi Lan continued to sow discord: "Actually, I was just bragging before. I'm really not good at hypnosis, otherwise how come I couldn't even handle you? And in all this time, haven't you ever doubted Sklag II? You believed him just because he said he liked you? Are you that easy to fool?"
As he spoke, he even began to believe himself, and his tone became more serious: "Look, I've tried everything, but your heart is harder than stone... He's an emperor, you know, he's seen all kinds of Omegas. You, with your average looks and average talent, and the burden of a false accusation, really believe that he's been completely open with you and hasn't hypnotized you?"
Looking at the silent Shi Wei, Yi Lan smiled smugly to himself.
Haha, he knew there was no seamless connection between the two, look—he found out!
Once the seed of doubt is planted, as long as he holds Manra back, Shi Wei will eventually side with him in such an environment.
He believed what his mother said—"True sincerity is invincible."
-----------------------
Author's Note: Your Majesty: You're a real piece of work.
Shi Wei: I'm so conflicted...
Yi Lan: Marry me! I love you!
-
What makes Yi Lan terrifying is that, firstly, his mental strength is too strong, allowing him to easily discover others' weaknesses; secondly, every word he says is true, even though we, including Shi Wei, feel that he has ill intentions, he really doesn't lie.
Putting aside his fighting prowess, he's really a nemesis to Shi Wei. Shi Wei is completely smitten with him... All of His Majesty's sweet talk and displays of affection can't compare to Yi Lan's brainwashing over the past few days. If he could do that, Xiao Wei would really be moved.
I saw a comment before saying that Shi Chuan is naive. He did make a mistake regarding his sister, and he was indeed brainwashed and manipulated, just like Shi Wei. He was exploited because of his weaknesses. As long as someone is willing to believe him, he will automatically ignore any inconsistencies (sounds like a scammer or someone with a love-struck mind, haha).
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