Chapter 63: A996

Shao Hua finished the handover and left.

Inside the office, only Meng Dalei, who was still stuck with her rear in the air, and Meng Lingneng remained.

“By the way, did you clear Su Ling’s background? Are you sure she has nothing to do with that traitor, Bai Wei?”

Meng Lingneng asked as if casually while preparing to leave.

Yun Liuxue waved her hand dismissively.

“The investigation is complete. The background profiles for Su Yao and Su Ling are perfectly clean. Furthermore, they underwent Genetic Testing; they are 100% Witches.”

“That is strange. Where did that Zerg come from, then?”

Meng Lingneng narrowed her eyes, staring at Yun Liuxue.

Yun Liuxue met her gaze with a calm smile.

The atmosphere fell into an eerie silence.

“Ha, maybe that woman Bai Wei is actually a Zerg Mimicry?”

“That is likely impossible. No matter what else she is, Master Bai Wei is a Great Witch. That majestic Magic of hers cannot be faked,” Yun Liuxue said softly.

“Since Bai Wei and Su Yao are not Zerg, where did Bai Miao come from?”

“We are investigating that as well. We have several hypotheses, the most likely being that Bai Miao is the Zerg egg Bai Wei brought back from the Fourth Universe more than twenty years ago.”

“But the timing does not add up.”

“Then we have no way of knowing. I am afraid the truth will only be known once Master Bai Wei is found,” Yun Liuxue replied fluently.

A meaningful smile played on Meng Lingneng’s lips.

She looked deeply at Yun Liuxue.

“You seem quite biased toward Su Ling’s family.”

“I am not. I am merely stating the facts. If I were to speak from the heart, I do indeed favor Su Ling slightly, but that is only out of my own sense of empathy.”

“Heehee, true. A girl that beautiful… any Witch would favor her a little more.”

Meng Lingneng burst into laughter.

She tucked Meng Dalei under her arm and immediately tore open a space rift, her figure vanishing instantly.

Yun Liuxue watched the spot where they had disappeared and could not help but sigh in relief.

“What are you so nervous about?”

Suddenly, a space rift tore open without warning, and Meng Lingneng’s small head popped out.

Yun Liuxue nearly jumped out of her skin.

“Ha… you haven’t left yet?”

“Hee, I left my manga here.”

Yun Liuxue looked at the sofa.

Sure enough, there was a manga book lying there.

“Don’t be so tense. I was just asking questions. As long as you do your job well, don’t let the psychological pressure get to you~”

After grabbing her manga, Meng Lingneng gave Yun Liuxue a wink before finally departing for real.

However, Yun Liuxue’s back was already drenched in sweat.

She was still not entirely certain if the woman had truly left this time.

“Hah, these Great Witches really have… unique personalities.”

Yun Liuxue forced a bitter smile.

She was truly walking on thin ice.

At the thought of the person currently in her home, Yun Liuxue felt a headache coming on.

‘Sigh, I really just want to be a good Witch and a good leader.’

‘Why is it that the more I want to stay out of trouble, the more trouble finds me?’

Yun Liuxue knew that Meng Lingneng had sensed something and had been testing her just now.

After being rattled by Meng Lingneng like that, she no longer had the heart to stay in the office.

—

After sending the work assignments for the next few days to Shao Hua and Banxia, she pulled out a Space Anchor and teleported to a large shopping mall.

Perhaps because she had just taken office, not many Witches recognized her, which was a good thing.

She purchased a large amount of food and household supplies.

Just after she finished paying, a message popped up.

The Magic Potion she had purchased for healing had arrived.

She had bought it using an anonymous account; even if Meng Lingneng wanted to investigate, there would be no trail to follow.

Yun Liuxue rubbed her temples, stuffed the food and supplies into her Space Backpack, and then teleported to the outskirts where the Lower City and Upper City met.

There was an unregistered warehouse here, located in a remote area with few inhabitants.

The warehouse was already piled high with various medicines and Magic Potions.

“Tsk.”

Yun Liuxue sighed softly.

She stuffed everything into her Space Backpack.

Her nerves were currently pulled tight, fearing that Meng Lingneng might pop out from some corner at any second.

*Ye~ Oh ye~!*

Suddenly, a suggestive moan nearly scared her to death.

It turned out to be her ringtone.

Yun Liuxue’s face flushed.

When she saw the caller ID, it turned even redder.

“Didn’t I tell you to stay home quietly? I just took office! Do you know how many eyes are on me? If you aren’t afraid of dying, I am!”

Yun Liuxue kept her voice extremely low.

Although there was no one for miles around, she felt inexplicably guilty.

Without waiting for the person on the other end to speak, she hung up the phone.

Interrupted by this little episode, she no longer felt like browsing further.

After checking to ensure she had left no traces behind, she teleported directly home.

Her home was located in a high-end Folding Space residential area.

The residents here were all wealthy or influential, forming an elite social circle.

Although it was called a “neighborhood,” it was actually several pieces of Folding Space overlapped together, containing ten or so households at most.

Yun Liuxue entered her home.

The moment she opened the door, she smelled a thick, metallic scent of blood.

Her face darkened as she shut the door tight.

At that moment, a pair of pale, small hands hugged her from behind.

“A996, enough!”

Yun Liuxue slapped away the small hands that were wandering over her body.

“Hmph. I think you’ve been playing at being a Witch for so long that you’ve forgotten who you are.”

A disdainful voice came from behind her.

However, the speaker sounded weak, as if she were seriously injured.

The living room lights flickered on.

The entire villa did not have a single Automaton Maid.

On the sofa lay a silver-haired girl eating potato chips.

She had pale skin and messy hair.

She was dressed very lightly, wearing an oversized T-shirt with nothing underneath.

Yun Liuxue could catch glimpses of what lay beneath multiple times.

Her long, silver-gray hair was like moonlight, falling softly but in disarray.

A few strands stuck to her pale, almost transparent cheeks, accentuating a fragile, sickly appearance.

She tilted her head slightly against the sofa, her lips curling into a manic, uncontrolled grin.

Her sharp canines bit down hard on a potato chip, but she seemed to be eating too quickly; a tooth pierced her lower lip, and a bead of blood seeped out, blooming like a bright red flower against her pale skin.

The girl did not care at all, enjoying her snack as it mixed with her own blood.

“Hah, it seems your injuries have mostly healed. You even have the strength for Mimicry.”

Yun Liuxue arched an eyebrow, her tone mocking.

“Unlike you, who has almost forgotten who you really are. Do you need me to remind you? Your original name, D763?”

“Zerg matters have nothing to do with me anymore. Whether it is the new Empress or that person in the Fourth Universe, I do not care. Right now, I am Yun Liuxue. I am a Witch, and I am the Bureau Chief of the Azure Star.”

Yun Liuxue’s brow furrowed, her voice filled with displeasure.

“Ha, a Witch? Hahaha! D763, you were born Zerg and you will die Zerg. And now you’re pretending to be a Witch? Hahaha!”

A996 acted as if she had heard the world’s funniest joke, laughing so hard she reclined backward, exposing her lower half directly to Yun Liuxue.

‘Dammit, she really isn’t wearing anything!’

Yun Liuxue reached her limit and threw the underwear she had just bought directly at the girl’s face.

“You idiot! Since you’re recovering at my place, you have to follow my rules! How many times have I told you? Put on all your clothes!”

Yun Liuxue roared.

This girl was a member of the Imperial Guard sent by the Acting Empress of the Fourth Universe to find the new Empress.

A few days ago, she had encountered Bai Wei and Meng Lingneng.

After being double-teamed by them, she had narrowly escaped with her life. Somehow, she had found Yun Liuxue and was now recuperating here.

“Tch, what are you yelling for? These clothes are a hassle. I’d rather not wear them at all,” A996 muttered quietly.

However, seeing Yun Liuxue’s murderous gaze, she reluctantly began putting on the underwear.

She did it right in front of Yun Liuxue, forcing Yun Liuxue to turn her head away in a hurry.

Yun Liuxue felt exhausted.

What a nuisance.

“But are you sure you want to keep staying here as your so-called Witch? If the Ez Gathering Order ever sounds, what will you choose?”

A996 finished dressing and looked at Yun Liuxue.

The Ez Gathering Order was the summons issued when the Empress fully awakened and took control of the Insect Hive.

It was the signal that the Zerg Queen had truly ascended.

This was also the reason they dared to hunt the new Empress.

As long as the new Empress had not fully awakened or taken control of the Insect Hive, they still had a chance.

“Sigh, I will deal with that day when it comes,” Yun Liuxue sighed.

The Zerg who had come to the First Universe were split.

Aside from the factions of the Acting Empress and the new Empress, there was a tiny minority of Zerg—like her—who were tired of the Zerg’s endless slaughter.

They wanted to fully integrate into the Witches as a neutral party or just live a quiet life.

“You should worry about yourself. The new Empress was chosen by the Hive Mind, at the very least. That person in the Fourth Universe has almost no hope. When the Ez Gathering Order sounds, there is no guarantee you won’t be purged.”

“We prepared for that long ago.”

The underwear Yun Liuxue had bought for her had a print of little bears and strawberry cookies—a bit of a wicked joke.

A996 did not seem to mind.

She ate her chips while watching an anime on the projection, her gaze drifting.

“Twenty years ago, she was the one who stood up and led the Tyranid Swarm, preventing our total extinction. In our hearts, she is the true Empress.”

That was why they were racing against time.

They had to find the new Empress before she fully awakened to buy time for the one in the Fourth Universe to construct a new Insect Hive.

“Fine. Thanks to those Magic Potions of yours, my injuries are mostly healed. In a while, I’ll head to Andromeda. I won’t stay here to bother you, so don’t worry.”

“I do have one question, though. I remember you weren’t like this before. Why did you suddenly decide you wanted to be a Witch?” A996’s crimson pupils held a searching look.

“Me?”

Yun Liuxue drifted off for a moment, a gentle, smiling face flashing through her mind.

‘I suppose… it’s a promise I made to someone.’