Chapter 516: The Price of Betrayal

The uniform belonged to Commander Qiu’s faction.

Leng Pan stared at the holographic image.

The man standing beside the alien commander was not Commander Qiu himself, but the insignia on his chest was unmistakable.

It belonged to the same group that had carried out human experiments at the military base.

"Do you know his name?" Lu Zhen asked the scarred man.

The man shook his head.

"No. The soldiers only called him Colonel."

"Did you hear his surname?"

"I don’t remember."

His eyelids began to droop.

Even with the spiritual spring water and the energy inside the space, his body remained weak.

Leng Pan lowered the chip.

"You should rest. We can continue later."

The man grabbed her wrist again.

"Wait."

"What is it?"

"Don’t let them take me back."

"They won’t."

"Promise me."

Leng Pan looked into his frightened eyes.

"I promise."

Only after hearing those words did he release her.

His hand dropped to his side, and he soon lost consciousness.

Lu Zhen checked his breathing.

"He is stable."

"He will need time to recover."

"So will the others."

Leng Pan looked around the warehouse.

Little Vine was moving between the rescued captives and removing the dead roots from their bodies.

It was working faster now that it had gained experience.

Several tendrils would enter the wounds, carefully pull out the foreign matter, and then absorb it.

The captives’ conditions were gradually improving.

However, they could not remain inside Leng Pan’s space forever.

Once they were stable, they would need to be moved outside.

The problem was that there were too many of them.

The small village did not have enough empty houses, beds, medicine, or food to support hundreds of recovering people.

"We might have to take them back to the base," Leng Pan said.

Lu Zhen nodded.

"They need proper treatment, and the researchers should examine the implants and parasites."

"But Tayi City is preparing to deploy an army in three days."

"We cannot take these people with us."

"We also cannot return to the base and come back within that time."

The ruined roads would make the journey too slow.

Even with the two captured aircraft, they did not know how to operate them yet.

Leng Pan rubbed her forehead.

They finally had a clear lead, but the aliens had made sure they could not follow it easily.

Lu Zhen took her hand away from her face.

"Don’t start carrying every problem by yourself."

"I am thinking."

"You frown when you think too hard."

"Maybe that is how my brain works."

"Then your brain needs a less stressful method."

Leng Pan looked at him.

"What do you suggest?"

"First, we finish treating the people here. Then we examine the aircraft. If we can control them, we could send the injured back to the base without delaying our journey to Tayi City."

"And if we cannot control them?"

"We will think of something else."

His answer was simple, but it helped.

There was no need to solve everything at the same time.

Leng Pan leaned against him for a moment.

"What would I do without you?"

"You would still manage."

"That is not a romantic answer."

Lu Zhen pulled her closer.

"You would manage, but I would rather not let you find out."

"That sounds better."

Little Vine tapped Leng Pan’s shoulder with one tendril.

It pointed towards the captives.

"Are you saying we are distracting you?"

Little Vine nodded.

Lu Zhen stared at it.

The vine quickly returned to work.

Leng Pan smiled.

"It has become bold."

"You encourage it too much."

"It is still young."

"That thing has eaten more crystal cores than most ability users."

"It is a growing plant."

"It also ate alien parasites."

"Growing plants need a balanced diet."

Lu Zhen gave up.

There was no point in arguing when his wife had already decided that the mutated vine was an innocent child.

They remained in the space until Little Vine finished treating the most critical captives.

Leng Pan then set up a system of mist barriers that could continue purifying their bodies gradually.

Before leaving, she stored the alien implant in a sealed container.

They would examine it properly once the immediate crisis was under control.

When Leng Pan and Lu Zhen returned to the empty house, only a short time had passed outside.

They removed the black curtains and stepped into the village.

The villagers were still gathered near the houses.

Mei Lin was helping distribute medicinal chocolate while Ouyang Jin monitored their condition.

Assistant Yao and Lu Hao had managed to lower one aircraft.

It rested awkwardly in a field outside the mud wall, tilted slightly to one side.

Lu Tao stood nearby with his hands on his hips.

"It could have landed more smoothly."

Assistant Yao looked at him.

"You were not inside."

"I was guiding you from the ground."

"You shouted random instructions."

"They were not random."

"You told us to press the blue button."

"It looked important."

"There were seventeen blue buttons."

Lu Tao paused.

"That was inconvenient."

Lu Hao came down the aircraft’s ramp.

"We managed to activate the basic controls, but most functions are locked. It requires a biological signature from one of the aliens."

"We have nine alien prisoners," Leng Pan said.

"None of them are willing to cooperate."

"They might change their minds."

Lu Hao looked towards Chief Gao.

The village chief was still trapped inside the mist barrier.

"I think we should deal with the human traitor first."

The villagers had gathered around Chief Gao.

The anger in their eyes was clear.

With the parasites weakened, many of them had recovered memories they had previously believed were dreams.

They remembered carrying unconscious travellers into the guest house.

They remembered hearing screams from beneath the floor.

Some remembered Chief Gao choosing which villagers would receive food and water.

Others remembered relatives who had disappeared after questioning him.

Old Chen stood at the front.

He was no longer holding the stool, but his expression suggested that he still wanted to use it.

When Chief Gao saw Leng Pan and Lu Zhen, he raised his head.

"You said you would protect me."

"I said we needed you alive," Leng Pan corrected. "That is not the same thing."

Chief Gao looked towards the angry villagers.

"They will kill me."

"That is between you and them."

"You cannot allow that. I have information about the aliens."

"Then start talking."

Chief Gao hesitated.

Lu Zhen crossed his arms.

"You should think carefully. The villagers are losing patience."

Chief Gao looked around.

No one showed him sympathy.

Even the people who had benefited from his rule avoided his gaze.

"The aliens left a metal box beneath my house," he said. "I can show you where it is."

"You already mentioned the box," Leng Pan replied. "Tell us something useful."

"I know where some of the supplies came from."

"What supplies?"

"The rice, flour, and meat."

Old Chen stepped forward.

"You told us they came from abandoned warehouses."

"Some did."

"And the rest?"

Chief Gao did not answer.

Mei Lin’s face changed.

"The meat..."