novelCounterfeit Keystone
| ← Ch.1364 | Ch.1366 → |
Translator: Sean88888 Editor: Elkassar1
These contestants only had Gavin and Grey in mind. All of them firmly believed that those two had struck it rich and had run away with the treasures they found, so they were naturally anxious to catch up to the traitors. They had no attention to spare to their surroundings at all.
So Sheyan let them pass without stopping them. After walking for about five or six more minutes, he climbed up a high ground to survey the surroundings. By this time, Sheyan was already pretty confident in his deduction.
"The principle behind the Wraith's stealth function isn't very complicated. The Wraith needs to store electrical power so as to continuously supply energy to the light refraction device on it. That's why after being in stealth mode for a certain period of time, the Wraith must deactivate stealth mode to store energy again. Now that the Protoss have achieved complete victory, those people wouldn't dare to fly around in a Wraith that can't turn invisible..."
While he was analysing the situation, Sheyan had climbed to the top of the high terrain. The unique Prussian blue land of the Lost Temple planet unfolded in front of Sheyan. As he surveyed the terrain ahead, his eyes narrowed.
"So, their best option would be to temporarily land the Wraith and camouflage it. Not only can they reduce the chances of the Wraith being found, they can also save some fuel... The Wraith doesn't have the ability to take off and land vertically, and this area is filled with rugged mountainous terrains, so there aren't many places that are suitable for a Wraith to take off and land... That's it, that should be the place! Hmph, Miss Artemis, I bet you didn't expect an uninvited visitor like me!"
***
The place was a hidden cave.
There was a huge piece of rock that protruded out of the cliff above the cave entrance, and it cast a large shadow. If one were to look from above, it would look like nothing but a common boulder. Nobody would spare it a second glance.
But if one were to stand on the ground and look at the place with their gaze parallel to the ground, they would see a cave below the rock. The cave had a small entrance but a large belly. The space inside was at least as big as a basketball court, and it was more than 20 metres high.
There was a layer of camouflage film covering the entrance of the cave. The camouflage film was a rather advanced piece of technology. From the outside, the entrance of the cave looked no different from a rock wall. The disguise would only be discovered if someone were to walk close and touch it. However, the person would also receive a strong electric shock, and a warning would be sent to the people inside.
The camouflage wall would also block out the light from the inside and filter out sound and smell.
After walking past the camouflage wall, one would immediately see a Wraith on the right side of the cave. It appeared to have been purposefully modified. The Gemini air-to-air missiles and the 25 mm burst lasers in its weapon system had been dismantled, so it had completely lost the ability to attack air and ground units.
In fact, the whole weapon system, ammunition supply system, and ammo storage had been removed. But because of that, a lot of space was opened up in the Wraith. The space had been used to install two "Falcon" engines, which increased the maximum acceleration of the Wraith by 175% and its maximum speed by 271%.
What's more, the stealth duration of the Wraith had been greatly improved by the additional installation of a kinetic solenoid pack.
In the open space to the right of the Wraith, a campfire had been lit. The warmth of the campfire had driven out the dry, cold odour inside the cave. Half a sheep was being roasted on the fire, its skin already golden, and it was letting out the mouth watering smell of cooked meat.
There was also an amorous smell in the air inside the cave, which should have been caused by recent sexual activities. A woman with an hourglass figure was sitting beside the fire. Her eyes were curled like half moons, and looked as if they were able to speak. Her cheeks were unnaturally flushed. Two men were either sitting or lying down lazily beside her, their exposed chest revealing their solid muscles.
"What if those guys decided not to come back too, Artemis?" A man with a scar on his face asked.
Artemis raised an eyebrow. She exuded seductiveness.
"They wouldn't dare. Two people can still coordinate their interests successfully, but how do you expect them to split the profit into four? And even if they're really alright with that, I'll just go look for them myself and skin them alive, then fly their skins as kites!" sneered Artemis.
"You're way overthinking it, James. Artemis' judgment has always been accurate. There's no need to worry, " said the other man lazily.
James snorted."Are you absolutely sure that the thing you made can really block our smell from leaking outside, Gyan? If it doesn't work as you say, we'll all become Zerg food."
"Are you doubting my skills? Artemis herself hasn't said anything. Who do you think you are?" Gyan immediately jumped up and retorted angrily.
Even though anger was gradually creeping into the voices of the two men, Artemis seemed indifferent to the fact. In fact, she liked seeing men fight because of her. However, James' words seemed to have reminded her of something. She took out an object from the box beside her.
The object was a bottle made from a transparent material. It looked rather strange, as if it was made of ice. But more importantly, the content of the bottle was the fake "Keystone" used by the Protoss to lure the Queen of Blades into the trap!
When Gyan saw the bottle, he said proudly, "The crystals I produce contain dimensional powers; nothing will leak out of them. So don't worry, Artemis. Although this thing can't be kept in our personal storage space yet, keeping it in a crystal bottle I made is just as good. There's basically no difference."
"Oh, really?" Artemis gave him a stare, and the ample heaps on her chest shook. She suddenly flashed him a coquettish smile and said, "Of course I trust you, Gyan."
Gyan appeared to be in a daze. He looked like even his bones had melted because of the smile. However, he could not help questioning, "But, Artemis, why were you so determined to get your hands on this thing despite knowing the sacrifices it'd cause us? This is obviously just bait to be thrown away after use!"
Artemis rolled her eyes and stared at him mockingly. James quickly interjected, "You fool, what could we have done in that situation without exposing ourselves? It's already pretty lucky that we managed to get our hands on this. Besides, didn't you hear Artemis say that when the Queen of Blades was holding this thing, the look of obsession on her face was definitely real? That, together with the fact that it can't be kept in our personal storage, proves that it must be something extraordinary!"
When Artemis looked at the fake Keystone in the crystal bottle, she suddenly had a serious look on her face.
"I saw it clearly. The Protoss trap may have been powerful, but they couldn't kill the Queen of Blades. In fact, my instinct tells me that they never wanted to kill the Queen of Blades in the first place!"
"That's impossible!" exclaimed James in surprise."The Protoss should hate the Queen of Blades down to the bones!"
"The best way to get revenge on a person is not to simply kill them, especially someone like the Queen of Blades who have long ceased to care about death. What she fears most is to be deprived of her own powers. Why do so many millionaires choose to end their own lives when they go bankrupt? It's very simple for them to go on living, but once they've possessed something, they couldn't bear to live with the pain of losing it, " said Artemis confidently.
"But... But what does that have to do with us keeping the fake stuff?" doubted Gyan with a frown.
Artemis sighed."Don't you understand? Since this thing is so tempting to the Queen of Blades, the first thing we have to do is, of course, to find out why. Plus, there's a great chance that the Queen of Blades is still alive... Do I really have to spell it out for you? Of course we must find a way to make a deal with the great Queen! I'm sure she'll be very generous."
Gyan's showed a look of sudden realisation. He was just about to say something when a loud voice echoed in the whole cave.
"Ha ha ha ha! Not bad! Very well analysed, as expected of Artemis! In that case, the thing is mine now!"
The words were quite tyrannical. At the same time, the expressions of Artemis and Gyan changed. They immediately leaped up and entered combat-ready mode. Artemis was dual-wielding daggers. Together with her thin waist and large hips, she truly did seem like a queen bee. Meanwhile, Gyan had magically "made" a shield and was standing in front of her!
The two pair of eyes immediately surveyed the surroundings. Their gazes fell on James who was leaning against the wall.
To be precise, they were looking at his expression.
It was a mix of fear, pain, and disbelief!
The sharp tip of a blood-red sword was protruding out of James' throat!
Then, the tip of the sword suddenly disappeared. The stone wall behind James shattered and collapsed, having been smashed by a fist! Following that, a ferocious young man with thick black eyebrows appeared in front of them. He held an ordinary-looking blood-red sword in his hand, but when their eyes laid upon the sword, their minds could not help but scream!
The young man was Sheyan. Thanks to his strong Perceptive Sense, he easily saw through the camouflage at the cave entrance. G-spot then transformed into a pair of mining gloves, and Sheyan dug his way in from the side of the cave. He successfully sneaked inside and managed to overhear a string of secrets.
After that, Sheyan gave James a heavy blow with 'Extinction'!
| ← Ch. 1364 | Ch. 1366 → |