Chapter 138: Second World: Friend, Boyfriend, Fiancée or Stranger?

Wen Qinxi would have loved to go to lunch with him but he was in the middle of nowhere and wouldn't be back for at least another week.

"Remember that pilgrimage spaceship I told you about?" asked Wen Qinxi sitting by the window while looking out into the cold inky vacuum outside.

"Yeah I remember," he said wondering where Zhao Xieshu was leading this conversation to. Did he find it?

"I think I might have found where the rest of the wreckage is. I have been out looking for it," replied Wen Qinxi, "so I can't go to lunch with you."

Qie Ranzhe wore a sullen expression with a wave of complicated feelings. He was hurt, disappointed and worried. The prince didn't find it necessary to let him know where he was going. For an entire week he thought Zhao Xieshu was ignoring him but it turns out it was worse than that. He was concealing something from him whether on purpose or not he still didn't disclose his whereabouts. He should have escorted his omega and protect him with his life but the man ran off on his own making it impossible for him to aid Zhao Xieshu if he was in trouble.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked suppressing the urge to yell at Zhao Xieshu which was great pain as the words where right at the tip of his tongue.

Wen Qinxi didn't know how to answer that question. Why did have to report his whereabouts to him? He had been fine all along and didn't need the Marshal to protect him so why did he have to tell him where he was going? He wanted to ask why he should tell him but he held back saying, "I didn't think it was important plus you are busy and didn't want to disturb you."

Zhao Xieshu's attitude towards this broke that last shred of restraint that he ended up reprimanding him, "What am I to you Xieshu? Friend, boyfriend, future fiancee or a stranger? When you find the answer to that question you will understand why you should have told me. Call me then."

Qie Ranzhe immediately cut the video call staring blankly at the communicator for a long time wondering if he was too excessive just now. He was so angry and needed to vent out his frustration.

"Machu did you find Emperor Zhao's base of operation?" asked Qie Ranzhe clenching his jaw. He needed to blow off steam by screwing someone over and the someone happened to be the emperor.

"Ah.....yeah l did but didn't you want to wait a bit longer before coming after him?" asked a nervous Machu vexed by Qie Ranzhe's fluctuation in mood. Wasn't he all lovey dovey a moment ago?

"Change in plan. Contact the Serpentine eight and blow his shit up," said the Marshal swaggering out of the amoury leaving behind a confused Machu. Serpentine eight were a highly trained group of assassins under UPSF. If you wanted to start a war without exposing yourself these were the right guys for the job. Now Qie Ranzhe was using them as a means to screw with Emperor Zhao.

Qie Ranzhe headed straight for the hangar messaging Xiao Hua asking for their coordinates. While waiting for his response, he settled into his warship known as Night Scourge which was the fastest warship in the entire universe well that is not counting Zhao Xieshu's warship known as White Baine. He was heading off to find his omega and execute punishment equivalent to his offense.

Meanwhile, Wen Qinxi was left dumbfounded by this situation. He didn't expect Qie Ranzhe's reaction to be this extreme. The question he was asked rang through his mind his gaze fixed on a blank space. What was he supposed to say? "You are my boss and I am trying to get you out of the game but I don't want to be too emotionally involved with you as it will be hard for me when we go back to reality?"

Wen Qinxi was still trying to figure out things when Xiao Hua sent him a message that they had arrived at the last planet. In a daze he took a quick shower before heading out with Meng Huangse to a dark grey planet with an eerie feeling to it sending chills down his spine. They had pinned pointed the longitude and latitude of where the fragment could possibly be thus a search range.

Wen Qinxi was down there searching but you could tell his heart wasn't in it his mind straying to what Qie Ranzhe said. He hated this feeling the most because he felt cornered.

He was strolling through a vast marshland with grass half as tall as his mecha while partially listening to the conversation happening in White Baine.

"Don't fuckin bring rodents again otherwise I will blow up that shitty planet," said Teng with a sickly pale face after being scared straight by Hauidan and his decapitated rat-like creature.

"Bring one over and I will put it in her bed. That will teach her to never disrespect Xie Xie again," said Xiao Hua patting Hauidan's shoulder.

Feeling guilty for pushing Zhao Xieshu into the vent, Tong asked, "Do you need help? I can come down and ke-," that is until the communication channel was suddenly cut off. Wen Qinxi didn't think much of it besides he was in sullen mood and needed space but what he didn't realise was danger lurking beyond the marshland.

After searching for an eternity, he finally made some progress and found a huge part if the marshland where the grass was laying flat. It was obvious something big had been there flattening the grass but it had been removed. Someone had got there before him and took something that belonged to him. Panicked, Wen Qinxi tried to re-establish communication but he kept getting an error message. Even Meng Huangse had been disabled with his mecha constantly showing error messages. It didn't take a genius to know something was wrong but before he could get to higher ground and get a clearview of the marshlands, his head began to throb as his mecha's air filter system failed.

He struggled to hold his breath as an odorless gas seeped in making him feel light headed. It was carbon monoxide poisoning his system. He tried to move but the mecha suddenly felt heavy with his chest feeling constricted his lungs screaming in pain. This was it. Was he going to die on this grey cold planet all alone?

With the little bit of strength he had left, he asked, "Jolie what's going on?"

The system did respond but he barely heard anything collapsing to the ground. He wasn't sure if it was an illusion but the last thing he saw was a mecha's feet standing right before him.

"Ran-ge, you came for me," he said before passing out.