Inside the palace, a beta, disguised as a servant, furtively entered Song Ke’s study.

“Get out.” Song Ke lay on a rocking chair, cradling a game console, not bothering to lift his head. Since his father the King had replaced everyone around him, he had been formally released from house arrest, but still felt as if he were under soft detention. There was no one he could trust, and he felt constantly monitored.

“Your Highness, it’s me.” The beta servant glanced around, his voice very low.

The voice was familiar. Song Ke looked up, sitting up abruptly. “How did you get here?” This beta servant was Song Ke’s former chief assistant.

“I found out some things.” The former chief assistant quickly walked over, leaned close to Song Ke, and whispered a few sentences. Song Ke first frowned, then his eyes lit up.

“Dad really wants to call Song Yu back?!”

The former chief assistant nodded, lowering his voice: “It looks like His Highness the Queen is about to make a move.”

Song Ke tossed aside the game console in his hand, got up from the rocking chair, and paced back and forth several times, growing happier with each thought. “It’s finally time to make a move!” He rubbed his hands excitedly. “Heaven knows how long I’ve waited for this day?!”

The former chief assistant’s eyes gleamed with shrewd calculation: “You just need to wait patiently now, maintain the best image, and reap the rewards.”

Song Ke couldn’t suppress the rising curve of his lips. In just a few minutes, he had already envisioned the scene of himself surrounded by stars after ascending the throne. “You continue to gather information,” Song Ke instructed the former chief assistant. “When I ascend, you will be amply rewarded!”

The former chief assistant’s eyes flickered, and he respectfully replied: “Yes.”

After the person left, Song Ke not only didn’t calm down but became even more excited. Song Yu had publicly humiliated him repeatedly and made him lose face in front of everyone in the Empire; this matter couldn’t just be let go! Since Dad was going to make a move, why not let this fire burn even fiercer! He opened his terminal, found Liu Nan’s communication number, and dialed.

Next door to the study, Song Ke’s current chief assistant withdrew the listening device and walked out of the room as if nothing had happened.

The situation outside was chaotic; almost every legion had officers affected by super omegas. The widespread nature made it difficult to pinpoint accurately. Rong Shi could currently only confirm that the First and Second Legions had not yet fallen under enemy control.

“I originally planned to leave quietly.” In the hangar lobby, Song Yu and Rong Shi sat side by side in the waiting seats, speaking in low voices: “Even if we encounter an attack, my people are not weak; there won’t be a problem.”

Rong Shi’s gaze swept over the large crowd of students blocked outside the lobby, his voice light and faint. “This time is different from any other. His public declaration of war on you means he’s fully prepared to ensure you can’t safely return to Capital Star.”

This statement was very subtle, and Song Yu understood it well. Ji Ling couldn’t wait to see him dead. The journey back was a better time to strike than being on Capital Star; an “accident” could easily dispose of him. As soon as he died, Song Ke would be the sole heir to the throne, and by controlling his father the King, the entire nation would fall into Ji Ling’s hands.

“Is your method feasible?” Song Yu stared at Qin Luo in the distance, who was controlling the camera and taking photos with the students. “He doesn’t look very reliable.”

Rong Shi said confidently: “Trust your husband.”

Song Yu glanced at him, chuckling: “If we really make it back to Capital Star smoothly, I’ll call you husband.”

Rong Shi: “It’s a deal then.”

Song Yu: “…” He answered so quickly; was he afraid he’d back out?

After taking photos with the students, Qin Luo swiped his finger, and the live stream camera changed its angle. He checked the time, waving to the students who had come to see them off: “We’re about to depart; you all should head back.”

Liu Hong, Chen Chen, and others squeezed to the front, breathless from being pressed against the railing by the students behind them. Seeing Qin Luo about to leave, Liu Hong stretched out his hand, hooked Qin Luo’s clothes, and pulled him back a bit. “The spaceship is so big, what’s one more of me? Go ask Rong Shi again; maybe he’ll agree?”

Chen Chen: “You’re going out to play and not taking us along? Is that what humans do?”

Qin Luo stumbled backward a step, then stood firm, mercilessly swatting away Liu Hong’s hand. “We’re going for academic exchange, not for fun!”

Bai Ting: “They’re not on the same level as Chairman Rong’s dad. What kind of ghost exchange could they possibly have? What’s the difference from playing?”

The surrounding students cheered—

“Going to the Royal Academy for exchange again, Chairman Rong’s dad is amazing!”

“I’ve never been to Capital Star. Three years of military school for nothing.”

“They say it’s for exchange, but I think it’s because they lost to our military school last time and are looking for an excuse to get even.”

“Then aren’t they just asking for trouble? With the Chairman’s talent, no one at the Royal Academy can compare. Didn’t the last wasteland competition prove that?”

“As long as it’s not about general knowledge, Chairman Rong’s dad can’t lose.”

“If it’s about talent, that’d be tough, but I really want to see it.”

Qin Luo raised his hand to signal for silence, then raised his voice: “This academic exchange will be live-streamed the whole way. Those interested can tune into the live broadcast. I really have to go now, or the two big shots will leave me behind.” With that, he turned and ran, finally squeezing in before the boarding gate closed.

“Chairman Rong’s dad, you can do it!”

“Song Yu, you can do it!”

Before entering the metal gangway, Rong Shi heard the synchronized shouts from outside. He paused, turned, and waved to them. He had intended to ask them to leave, but the screaming only grew louder.

“What kind of ghost exchange meeting is this? No news, just leaving?” On the way back, Liu Hong grumbled, “If they had notified us earlier, I could have pushed for it more.”

Chen Chen shook his head and sighed: “Lost an opportunity to go out.”

Bai Ting’s face was mournful: “Everything is fun with the Chairman. I feel like I’ve lost billions!”

The three mumbled all the way, finally opening the school forum simultaneously and switching to the live stream page.

—Forget it. Watching the live stream is like a dry craving, pretending they went too.

They were on a spaceship specifically used by the military academy for student transport. Only the three of them were going to Capital Star this time, which was practically like having the whole ship to themselves.

Qin Luo had been socializing all morning and poured himself two glasses of water as soon as he sat down. “Being a top celebrity’s assistant is incredibly exhausting. It’ll be hard to settle for anything less than a million a day.”

Song Yu glanced at the number of live viewers, a smile playing on his lips. “Looks like everyone’s very interested in this exchange conference.”

The live stream comment section was filled with “Interested in you two (dog head emoji)”.

Song Yu: “Being interested in me is fine, but being interested in Rong Shi is not. He’s mine.”

Comment section—

“Hahahaha, Beauty Song’s possessiveness.”

“The Chairman is angry.”

“I came to learn about academic exchange, why am I receiving dog food in a basin?”

“There are 18 days until the next monthly exam. Can you come back after 19 days? Please, please, let the kids be happy for once.”

Rong Shi saw Song Yu smiling, not at all like an hour ago when he was clinging to him, looking as forlorn as a drowned kitten, all his fur matted down.

Song Yu’s patience was limited. After a couple of remarks, he went back to reading, having no intention of continuing to “perform.” With nothing else to do, Qin Luo took the camera and walked around, talking until his mouth was dry. He checked the live viewership: it had already surpassed a million. The military academy forum always had a lot of traffic, and the live broadcast section was entirely public. Coupled with the fact that they were undoubtedly the top stars of the military academy, the live stream viewership naturally wouldn’t be low.

It was still too low. Qin Luo felt he deserved over ten million, but he simply couldn’t talk anymore.

Returning to the resting cabin, Song Yu was reading, and Rong Shi had a math workbook spread out in front of him, doing homework. Qin Luo aimed the camera at them and went to his bag to find snacks. Halfway through eating snacks, he glanced at the live broadcast and a potato chip caught in his throat. He had talked himself hoarse to reach a million, but Rong Shi was just doing homework, without even lifting his head, and now the viewership had broken ten million. The live stream’s comment section was as lively as a New Year’s celebration, a complete contrast to the quiet resting cabin.

Just as the spaceship was about to enter warp speed, a sharp alarm suddenly blared. The expressions of the three in the resting cabin changed.

Qin Luo deliberately shouted: “No way, what’s going on? Have we encountered space pirates?!”

Rong Shi put down his pen and pulled Song Yu to his feet: “Let’s go take a look.”

There were only two pilots, the main and co-pilot, in the spaceship’s command center, both looking incredulous. “Are these, are these space pirates blind? Causing trouble for your grandfather?!”

When the three arrived, the enlarged virtual screen showed two large warships ahead, surrounded by seven or eight scattered small warships. The pilot opened the public channel and hailed the other side. 

“This is the Central Military Academy’s dedicated spaceship. Please grant passage, please grant passage.”

Daring to provoke the military academy was the same as provoking the military, and severe cases could result in a death sentence. 

So, generally, space pirate groups within the Empire’s territory wouldn’t provoke military academy ships. Firstly, they wouldn’t gain anything worthwhile, and secondly, if they were hunted down by the military, they wouldn’t have a good time.

Qin Luo aimed the camera at the enlarged virtual screen, teasing: “We’ve encountered a space pirate group robbing us, boo hoo hoo—I’m so afraid they’ll steal the snacks in my bag—” His tone was light, and the onlookers were also swayed by him. The comment section was full of “hahahahas,” not taking the space pirate group seriously at all. Even the very few who were worried were quickly drowned out.

Rong Shi looked at the virtual screen. From the warship models, he could basically determine that these belonged to the clandestine division. Some warship models were better suited for tracking and stealth; they didn’t perform well in direct combat. The military generally didn’t use such warships after procurement, and they eventually flowed into the clandestine division through special channels.

In less than two minutes, a particle cannon was fired at the spaceship. The two pilots panicked, just about to maneuver the spaceship to dodge, but someone was faster than them.

Pilot: “!!!”

Rong Shi stood in front of another control panel, his fingers dancing across various buttons, skillfully controlling the spaceship to dodge the second particle cannon.

The live stream comments exploded—

“Holy crap! What’s going on now? Space pirates actually attacked a military academy spaceship?!”

“The Chairman’s reaction speed is even faster than the pilot’s!”

“So the Chairman really can fly a spaceship, so cool!”

“Don’t be infatuated yet, the situation is very serious! Quickly notify the school to rescue the Chairman and Song Yu!”

Rong Shi’s voice was faint: “Awaken the spaceship AI.”

A gentle male voice sounded on the spaceship. “I am AI Ares. How may I assist you?”

Rong Shi: “Hijack the enemy warship system and feedback the surveillance footage.”

Ares: “Yes.”

The pilots were stunned. Ares was just an auxiliary piloting AI system, not on the same level as a warship AI. How could it possibly hijack a warship AI? Isn’t this ridiculous?

Just as they thought this, Ares’s voice sounded. “Hijacked.”

Simultaneously, an enlarged virtual screen popped up in the center of the cockpit, displaying the internal footage of the enemy warship. 

The pilots and everyone in the live stream were dumbfounded. Was the enemy warship AI asleep? Was it really that easy to hijack?! But then, it didn’t seem right. AIs installed on warships must meet certain intelligence standards. Their side was using a spaceship AI that hijacked a warship AI in less than three seconds. This was an act of slaying an enemy far beyond its league!

“Where did this ignorant space pirate group come from, daring to attack your dad!”

“What’s the background of this Ares? He’s too incredible!”

“Is it a retired warship AI? Giving off major boss vibes.”

“I think no matter what it is, it becomes incredibly powerful in the Chairman’s hands.”

In the dorm, Liu Hong suddenly stood up with a whoosh, his eyes wide in disbelief. “Why does someone in this space pirate group look like my cousin?!”

Just as the spaceship was rapidly dodging amidst the gunfire, another AI’s voice sounded. A gentle female voice: “I am Zerores, Ares’s younger brother. How may I assist you?”

Pilots/Audience: “…?!”

Why does an AI have a brother?! And the brother’s voice is female?!

Song Yu looked at the screen, the smile on his lips very cold. “Control the enemy’s firing system. The next particle cannon will deviate by 10 degrees.”

Zerores: “Yes!”

Song Yu: “Next one deviates by 5 degrees—deviates by 20 degrees—”

Song Yu’s commands were concise, and the AI executed them extremely quickly. The irregularly deviating particle cannons posed a threat to the small warships around the enemy warship. One small warship moved to the side to avoid the previous particle cannon but was precisely hit by the next particle cannon, disintegrating on the spot.

The two pilots stood there like candles, realizing they couldn’t even intervene. Being attacked by a space pirate group was already incredible enough, but two freshmen playing with a spaceship were even more skilled than them, and could even control an AI to directly attack the enemy system, and the AI even had a brother! What kind of magical opening was this?

People in the live stream clearly saw their operation through the virtual screen in the command cabin. The comment section was blank for several seconds before it exploded.

“This is too exciting, ahhhhhhh, much more thrilling than watching Star Wars!”

“So real-life space battles are this big too?! Too, too amazing!”

“No more words, Chairman YYDS! Beauty Song YYDS!”

“I thought this enemy looked familiar, isn’t this Captain Liu De?! What’s going on?!”

“Damn it! This isn’t a space pirate group?!”

The enemy was being beaten without any chance to fight back. On the warship, someone hurriedly ran into the command cabin to report to Liu De. “The opponent is live streaming, with tens of millions of viewers! All our internal footage has been exposed!”

Liu De’s face changed drastically, and he immediately looked at his virtual screen: “Damn it!” It showed their current footage, even broadcasting what he had just said. That meant tens of millions of people now knew that Liu De was firing particle cannons at a military academy spaceship!

In another nearby military detachment, several commanders were watching the live stream and discussing. Someone asked: “What do we do? If we don’t shut down this live stream, we can’t attack. What if they pull the same trick on us, and our identities are exposed?!”

The leading alpha’s face was very grim: “First, have the programmers in the team shut down this live stream.” 

He had never seen anyone dare to live stream the command cabin’s footage during a military standoff. 

They were clearly telling the enemy their combat plan, yet still managing to run circles around them. It was practically pointing at the enemy’s forehead and saying, “I’m telling you my next move, and you still can’t win.” 

Damn it, he had never seen such an arrogant fighting style!