Chapter 13: The Legendary District 13
“I am very sorry, Major General Shen. Due to my lack of discipline, your journey home has not been smooth…”
After a phone call from the White Tower, Shen Zeyu left the patrol bureau in one piece. A middle-aged politician walked alongside him with a face full of smiles and a humble apology. He wasn’t a fool like Ke’erxuya; he wouldn’t dare seek trouble with this “Black Panther” Fierce Beast even if he had eaten a bear’s heart and a leopard’s gall.
Shen Zeyu’s attitude toward him was indifferent. With a stride of his long legs, he sat into the starship marked with the Shen family emblem.
District 13 was a vast territory. Steel building complexes that had grown into a forest were arranged in an orderly manner, forming a semi-open fan shape. Open roads extended in all directions, dividing one building complex after another. It looked like a single stroke opening the heavens, vertical and horizontal, profound and ancient. From the air, it actually looked like an Eight Trigrams formation, coincidentally echoing the Ninth Legion’s emblem.
As the sun rose, a golden line of shimmering light appeared on the building complex on the other side. Dim and bright, the perspective was distorted, making one unable to tell the direction. The Shen family occupied the center of the white building complex, where a pure black building stood. Most of the white building complex was the residence for families of the Shen Family Army. On the opposite side were towering black tower buildings: the military training base area, the military management area, the military subsidiary hospital area, etc. The white building located in the middle of the black tower cluster was the Ninth Legion’s Supreme Command Center.
The starship flew into the Shen estate, and the black metallic gates slowly opened. The soldiers standing guard at the gate were as straight as spears. One hand was balled into a fist against their chest, while the other held an energy gun charged and ready; they leaned slightly forward to show respect for the person on the starship. Once the gates closed again, their bodies would snap back to being pin-straight, their gazes sharply scanning everyone approaching the Shen residence.
On both sides of the starship’s runway, the metallic-sheened walls were embedded with fine energy stones, providing power while also serving as monitors. After getting off the starship, the scenery before them changed abruptly. Flowers planted as ornamental plants were brilliant reds and purples, pinks and whites, blooming in clusters and looking beautiful beyond measure. A faint fragrance of flowers drifted by, giving this cold building a trace of warmth once more.
The scenery before him made Shen Lin dizzy with wonder. In the apocalyptic world, everyone was busy running for their lives and trying to survive; there were no such peaceful and beautiful things to appreciate. Of course, if a large sea of flowers really appeared, everyone’s first reaction wouldn’t be to appreciate it but to stay away—no one could ensure they wouldn’t be dragged into the flowers to serve as fertilizer.
The group passed through the sea of flowers and through a semi-arched gateway. They came to a corridor with walls embedded with energy stones. Light and shadows shifted, changing abruptly. Creatures with elytra, serrated mouthparts, and scythe-like limbs stood proudly. Insects with hard carapaces densely occupied cities and planets, devouring all energy.
“ROAR—”
A black creature whose face couldn’t be clearly seen jumped out, its beast palm crushing the insects, its roar shattering the image. Flames of war, severed limbs… blood dyed the sky red, and the land was full of devastation, with all life extinguished. The images were portraying a tragic battlefield.
A soldier wearing a mecha had an emblem on one corner of his collar that was identical to the one on Shen Zeyu’s chest. The soldiers walked steadily toward the direction of the flames of war, but the images ended the moment one turned back.
The corridor had reached its end. In the pitch-black walkway, the moment a foot stepped down, a light-panel lit up. As the light-panels stepped on by the group increased, the ceiling made of energy stones reflected the light-panels beneath their feet, emitting a strange glow. The light-panels were like living things, weaving freely beneath their feet.
They passed through several tunnels. If it weren’t for the light-panels driving their speed, they might not have reached the center of the Shen residence even after two hours of walking. This showed just how large the Shen estate’s land area was.
After the light-panels disappeared, four pillars engraved with ancient patterns appeared before everyone. Energy stones flickered on the pillars, and a light-net weaved through them to form a star-gate. Shen Zeyu didn’t enter the star-gate; instead, he bypassed it and stepped out.
“Welcome home, the two young masters.”
On both sides of the walkway stood a row of beastmen serving the Shen family. Looking closely, one could see that their eyes were all black. Blue Star beastmen. As mentioned before, Marshal Shen was from the low-tier Blue Star. After gaining a foothold, he began to slowly promote beastmen from his home planet, gradually expanding them into what was now jokingly called the “Shen Family Army.”
Shen Zeyu gave a hum as a response.
“Eldest Master, I have already arranged the Young Master’s residence. You can just hand him over to me,” the Old Butler said with a smile. The Old Butler had a mechanical hand installed on one arm; he was originally the earliest adjutant to follow Marshal Shen. He had lost an arm on the battlefield and refused the power of a higher-ranking position. He resolutely chose to retire and turned back to help Marshal Shen manage the household trivia.
Shen Zeyu was very busy. From the moment he entered the door, the adjutant’s communicator had been ringing. He wanted to nod and return to process military affairs, but seeing the little cub’s expression of unease and wariness toward the strange environment—his front paws tightly clutching the gaps of the nutrient pod, and the “plum blossom” soft pads beneath his claws turning slightly pale—he felt a trace of pity in his heart.
“I’ll go along as well.”
The Old Butler nodded, but he wasn’t as calm internally as he appeared on the surface. When the Eldest Master looked after the second daughter and the third son before, his temper couldn’t be described as very good. However, regarding this Young Master, his temper was surprisingly peaceful. Of course, this also had to do with the other two siblings; when they were young, they were like “demon seeds,” either blowing up their own house or on the way to blowing it up.
The Old Butler shifted his gaze to the “milk ball” in the nutrient pod, and his sharp gaze softened slightly. The Young Master looked so well-behaved; a herbivore cub should be very quiet and obedient. Surely the house wouldn’t collapse this time… right? If it did, it only meant he had to find a new maintenance technician. After all, taking such a high salary from Marshal Shen’s household and daring to slack off—he would let that fellow taste an old beastman’s iron fist.
Shen Lin was in the east room—though calling it a room wasn’t quite accurate. From a distance, it was a small castle with rooms within rooms. It was estimated to be eight hundred square meters, all belonging to the cub himself. The small castle was mainly white, with occasional silver threads flashing through, looking like mithril.
The interior was built with many areas suitable for a cub to play in, and every sharp part in these places had been carefully padded to ensure the cub wouldn’t get injured. Experienced builders had put a hundred percent effort into building the Shen family cub’s “nest,” making it sturdy and durable to ensure the cub wouldn’t destroy it in one go.
A semi-circular “bird’s nest” with a diameter of a hundred meters was filled with energy stones cut to the same size, and soft, milk-scented plush grass was placed in the center… Shen Zeyu reached out and felt the thickness of the plush grass and said, “Too thin.”
” I’ll have someone fix it immediately.”
With the butler’s command, the beastmen following Shen Zeyu immediately got to work. The quiet castle instantly became lively. Once the nest was laid thick and soft, Shen Zeyu revealed a look of satisfaction. The nutrient pod was opened as soon as it was moved into the castle, and the cub was placed into the nest.
“Shen Zejue, is the rumor online that your brother is a waste brother true or false?”
A student wearing the uniform issued by the Federation First Academy, but with an emblem of a different family embroidered on the chest, stopped Shen Zejue. At the school gate, students left in small groups, not wanting to get involved in this conflict. They were students, yes, but first, they had to be clear on one point. This was the Federation Prime Star, where nobles were as common as cattle hair, and throwing a random brick could hit a nobleman.
Especially since every student entering the First Academy had different forces, factions, and families standing behind them. Students able to study at this school were either children of high-ranking officials and nobles or heirs from ancient families. They were born knowing how to weigh pros and cons and wouldn’t be the kind of fools who rushed forward to play the hero in the heat of the moment.
Opposite these people was a group of teenagers. The tall boy leading them had snow-white hair that flew freely in the wind. His school uniform was casually draped over his shoulder, and his eyes revealed an arrogant and unrestrained look.
“Tali’er, if you want to fight, just say so. Don’t drag in other nonsense.”
“The boss is right. If you’re scared, just say so.”
The teenagers surrounding Shen Zejue immediately started heckling. Tali’er held his head high. An exquisite embroidered collar hid a family emblem that was vastly different from the one on the school uniform, representing the boy’s extraordinary status. He pulled out a star-computer, which was exquisitely crafted with beautiful patterns. His finger slid across it, and all the information regarding the little cub on StarNet immediately popped up.
He made a “tsk-tsk” sound and mocked, “Look at all these broadcasts about your brother. Tsk-tsk, if I had such a waste brother, the moment I heard the news, I’d strangle him directly to avoid losing face!”
The lackeys following Shen Zejue looked at each other, their gazes involuntarily shifting to Shen Zejue. Shen Zejue quickly captured the figure of his big brother standing silently in the picture, wearing a combat uniform. His eyes flickered slightly, but his expression remained unchanged as he curled his lips.
Before everyone could react, he pounced on Tali’er and bared a pair of sharp canine teeth against his neck. As long as Tali’er made even the slightest move, the canine teeth would tear his throat. Tali’er’s pupils constricted, and his blood froze at that moment.
“My family’s business is not for an outsider like you to manage!”
Shen Zejue patted Tali’er’s face, and razor-sharp claw tips quickly extended and retracted.
“We’re leaving!”
Shen Zejue led his group of lackeys away in a rush.
“Tali’er, are you okay?” A petite beastman immediately stepped forward to help him.
“Get lost!”
Tali’er rolled over and climbed up. A burst of stinging pain came from his cheek, and he reached up to feel it. Red blood appeared on his finger; several hideous wounds had appeared on his swollen cheek. One of them was only a few millimeters away from piercing his eye, showing just how precise the control of the weapon’s owner was.
These wounds, even if Tali’er’s family had the best medical equipment, wouldn’t fade for three to five days. Shen Zejue’s action was both a reminder and a warning. Tali’er’s face was extremely poor as he pushed away the weak boy trying to approach him. “Shen Zejue’s brother is a waste, and you are a hybrid—you should both be thrown away like trash!”
The weak boy trembled, his shoulder-length hair hiding the scales appearing at the corner of his eyes.
Translator’s Note:
Terms used in this chapter:
- District 13 (十三區): The Shen family’s stronghold on the Prime Star.
- Eight Trigrams formation (八卦圖陣 – Bāguà túzhèn): A traditional Chinese cosmological diagram.
- Demon Seed (魔丸 – Mówán): A term for a very troublesome child.
- Federation First Academy (聯邦第一學院): The top school where Zejue studies.
- Hybrid (雜種 – Zázhǒng): Used here as a derogatory term for mixed-species beastmen.
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