I'll also work hard to conquer the dungeon today.

Chapter 603, page 2.1-77: The Crown: The Treasure of a Lost Dynasty
“Lin Ya!” Skatech shouted, trying to call for help from someone nearby.

With a long howl and a gust of wind, a dark figure descended from the sky.

Lin Ya sat on the back of the griffin, looking down at Skatech, who was being controlled by Shui Qi. He then jumped off the griffin and took a few steps forward.

"Lin Ya! Hurry up and save me!" Skateher said angrily.

Lin Ya frowned slightly and stopped after taking only a few steps forward.

A black veil concealed his eyes. Through it, he silently gazed at Mu Yegui, who stood blocking his way. After a long silence, he said, "It's about time you had enough fun."

Mu Yegui tilted her head and said softly, "Have we been discovered?"

"Mm," Lin Ya replied.

"Lin Ya really has no childlike heart. She clearly wanted to play games with you..." Her cool silver eyes glanced at Shui Qi and Skatech not far away before slowly turning her gaze to Lin Ya.

"So?" Lin Ya asked calmly.

Mu Yegui walked towards Lin Ya and waved three fingers in the air.

Shui Qi frowned slightly as she watched Mu Yegui's actions, a dark glint flashing in her narrow eyes. So that's how it is…

After the two left, Shui Qi released Skateh and looked at her lying on the ground in a disheveled state. He said coldly, "My previous suggestion still stands."

"What works?" The sudden voice made Shui Qi frown, but he quickly seemed to have thought of something, and his brows smoothed out.

"You're too late." Shui Qi casually knocked out Skatehe, gave it a disdainful look, then turned to Mingxi, who was dragging a two-handed greatsword out of the woods, and said slowly.

"So can you tell me what's going on? Why am I in this instance and haven't received any quests?" Mingxi said, looking at Shui Qi with a cold face.

Shui Qi was silent for a few seconds, then nodded and said, "Okay."

after an hour.

Mingxi fell silent. He glanced at Shui Qi with a hint of resentment in his eyes.

Shui Qi's lips twitched slightly as she said, "It was Bertias who tricked you, it has nothing to do with me, so don't even think about complaining to Ming Jin."

"What a coincidence! I accidentally told Jin in the group chat that you were the one who tricked me. Was that a misunderstanding? I'm really sorry." Mingxi rolled her eyes and apologized without any emotion.

Shui Qi: "..." Brother, your apology is really insincere.

"Let's wait for news from Noyce and Mu Yegui first. I estimate that by the time they send the next message, it will be time for the war to begin." Shui Qi paused, her long, narrow blue eyes slightly raised as she quietly looked at the sky, then added, "It won't be long. We should speed things up."

"What should we do with her?" Mingxi looked at Skatech, who was lifting her eyelids, and stepped forward to knock her unconscious again. Her movements were swift and decisive, as if she had done this countless times before.

“Let’s break their alliance first.” Shui Qi walked up to Skateh and pulled a small scepter from her clothes, casually swinging it a few times. “Because Skateh would rather chase you to the death than attack the capital, so you’re planning to take her place and act in her name?” Ming Xi frowned slightly at Shui Qi’s actions. Rationally, he didn’t quite agree; after all, he was born into a warlord family and couldn’t bring himself to do something so disregardful of human life, but…

But from another perspective, he felt that Shui Qi hadn't done anything wrong. Victory is often accompanied by cruelty and bloodshed; there is no road to success paved with flowers. All success is achieved by stepping over the corpses of others; they have no other choice, nor can they overthrow a dynasty without harming any gods, like a savior.

"I'm glad you didn't say those stupid things like trying to persuade me to give up." He glanced at Mingxi with his narrow blue eyes and said calmly.

If Mingxi really said such a thing, he might not lay a hand on Mingxi out of respect for Mingjin, but he would definitely ignore him completely.

"Do you think I'm stupid? Jin is smart, that's true, but that doesn't mean I, as his brother, am dumber than him. I just rely on him so much that I don't use my own brain. You can figure this out with a little thought, there's no need to overthink it. My family... isn't the kind of old-fashioned family..."

Among the three major warlord families of the empire, the Ming family was the most enlightened. The fact that Mingxi became the deputy commander of the Fifth Army Corps when he was still a major general shows how much others trusted him. The deputy commanders of the other army corps were all generals.

The Ming family has a unique perspective on this matter. They are loyal to the empire but not blindly so, which gives them supreme mobility. Although they are not the rulers on the battlefield, they are responsible for rescuing anyone at any time.

"Your home? Come to think of it, I seem to know someone with a name that sounds a lot like yours. Could it be your brother?" Shui Qi suddenly recalled a vague memory. Although he had almost forgotten about the interstellar events, there was one thing he had never forgotten, and thus he also remembered the so-called 'savior' very well.

"What?" Mingxi paused slightly, looked up at Shui Qi, and asked in confusion.

“Clear, bright, and distinct,” Shui Qi said slowly.

“Big brother…” Mingxi said suddenly.

"So there really is a connection... I was a little suspicious at first, but then I thought you two looked about the same age, so I dismissed the idea." A cryptic glint flashed in Shui Qi's narrow blue eyes as she chuckled.

“Because my family has a hereditary baby face, including my dad, everyone looks incredibly young. Even though he’s hundreds of years old, he still looks like a teenager. This makes us two younger people feel embarrassed, like we’re old.” Mingxi paused, then added, “Later we found out it was because of a genetic defect.”

"All three major warlord families have genetic defects, but it is precisely because of these defects that we possess extraordinary talents that set us apart from others." This is the so-called compensation for what you lack.

The Ming family has an extra special chromosome, so there are no girls in the Ming family; they can only have boys.

"To be honest, some people think that the men of our Ming family possess a third gender in the human genetic code, otherwise how could they only produce boys no matter what kind of genes they combine with?" Gene fusion experiments were also conducted back then, but nothing was found.

In addition, they lack an aging gene. While other people's cells age, their body cells always maintain a youthful and active state, so they recover quickly even from injuries.

Another manifestation of this is that no matter how long they live, their appearance remains fixed at that of a teenager, and no matter how old their loved ones get, they themselves will not grow old. Isn't this a kind of torture for them?

Fortunately, their lifespan remains unchanged. However, no matter how long they live, the Ming family members will always die alone, because their partners will choose to leave them because of their ageless appearance. They fear growing old while their partners do not, and rather than being abandoned in the end, they prefer to depart first.

“I can’t tell whether I’ve gained more or lost more, but I always feel that things aren’t that simple.” A hint of struggle flashed in Mingxi’s lake-blue eyes as she spoke softly.

It's as if some conspiracy is waiting...

I think it's good that this gene is missing.

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(End of this chapter)