A is in StarCraft, just disembarked from the Zerg Prince spaceship.

***********

......

Orion didn't care: "Say what you want."

Provocation won't work on him; people who care about their reputation won't gain any advantage.

He holds the Crown Princess as his biggest trump card; only a fool would abandon such an absolute advantage and run out to duel with him.

If he were to leave, the Crown Prince could command his loyal Crown Prince fleet to unleash a barrage of artillery fire, blasting him and his flagship into cosmic dust. Who would he then turn to for justice?

He wouldn't take such a pointless risk.

Orion waved his hand, also annoyed by the stalemate: "But I'm annoyed too. This stalemate can't go on. Let's get straight to the point and stop wasting time here."

"I'm giving you one last day to consider. Surrender, sign the abdication edict, and transfer the legion's authority. If you're sensible, I might take pity on you and spare your little crown princess's life, letting you two wander on a starship as a pair of star-crossed lovers."

He snapped his fingers, and the screen perspective changed.

Two space pirate soldiers roughly dragged Gao Tian in.

......

Gao Tian was taken out of prison before dawn today. The space pirates put energy shackles on him and stuffed him into a starship, as if they were ready to run away at any time.

Gao Tian immediately understood that something must have happened outside.

Sure enough, there was a brief period of rioting outside, but things quickly calmed down.

Perhaps someone came to rescue them, but failed.

Gao Tian sighed, knowing he would soon see Lan.

Orion wouldn't have the patience to keep this up, especially after the failed rescue attempt.

Once a hostage-holding criminal discovers that someone is trying to rescue them, he will most likely fly into a rage and go berserk.

It might really be reaching its limit.

I wonder how many threats and grievances our little butterfly has suffered lately.

How could our upright baby bug possibly outmaneuver a cunning old fox like Orion?

Most Zerg believe in overwhelming force, and baby Zerg simply don't have the capacity for scheming or plotting.

How come the Zerg produced someone like Orion... I can't quite put my finger on it, but the Zerg are even more deceptive than humans?

Gao Tian was dragged in with energy-suppressing shackles on his wrists.

He looked rather disheveled after being locked up for the past few days, but his eyes remained clear and his back was ramrod straight.

Lan stood up abruptly.

Gao Tian sighed inwardly, knowing that Little Butterfly was really stretched to the limit, and gave him a reassuring smile.

He was the Crown Prince's undeniable weakness.

Although it's impossible to hide it anyway. Everyone knows about the Zerg's female Zerg's symbiotic relationship with the male, so even if you act calmly, it's useless.

Even though he didn't appear calm, he knew that Baby Bug wouldn't compromise with Orion.

It's okay, he'll support all his decisions, including dying together.

He was also prepared to sacrifice himself for humanity at any time.

Orion stood up and walked to Gao Tian's side.

One of his hands transformed into a worm, turning into sharp claws. Without hesitation, he grabbed Gao Tian's chin, forcing him to raise his head and shoving his face in front of the camera to show Lan.

"I heard that you gave him all eleven of the Insect King's powers before you were even married? That's a truly touching display of trust and respect."

"Surrender. Otherwise, starting tomorrow, I'll chop off your future insect king piece by piece, starting from your fingers, pack them up, and send them to you."

The sharp nails dug into Gao Tian's skin, drawing out a tiny bead of blood.

Gao Tian seemed oblivious, simply staring at Lan in the video.

His baby looked much more haggard; his cheeks were sunken, his jawline was thin, and his big blue eyes, with a hint of water and a touch of determination, were looking at him.

Lan remained silent, and Gao Tian did not speak either. Their eyes met for only a brief moment before Lan looked away.

Gao Tian thought to himself, "Our baby has suffered so much."

He gave Lan a reassuring smile again.

It's fine.

do not be afraid.

I can accept any decision you make.

Then Orion sent men to take Gao Tian away.

Gao Tian's gaze was forcibly pulled away.

The soldiers roughly dragged him away from the communication range and out of the command room.

Orion wasn't in a hurry at all.

If Lan surrenders, it would be best if he could rightfully succeed to the throne; if not, it's alright. If Lan doesn't surrender, just kill Gao Tian, ​​and Lan will die too.

Even if the legion presses in, he won't be afraid. He'll just fight. He won't care if all the nobles' private soldiers are wiped out.

Even if he can't beat them, it's okay. He can still run away, and at worst, he can go back to being a space pirate.

Once a new queen is chosen in Lyrnia, he will find an opportunity to return and compete with her.

As long as Lan doesn't grow stronger and kills Bishen, who in the Zerg can fight him?

Orion smiled again at the silent Crown Prince.

My adorable little nephew, I'll be waiting for you for a day.

Then he hung up the call.

......

*********

......

After the communication was disconnected, the screen disappeared, and the bridge of the Prince-class destroyer was silent.

Lan stood in front of the cockpit window, looking at the black planet shrouded in a planetary barrier and the gloomy starry sky around it.

Actually, that planet is easy to destroy.

Ignoring those above, the main force of the Crown Prince's fleet is here, unleashing a barrage of cannon fire, without needing to consider barrier strength or energy cancellation.

The purest, overwhelming firepower would be poured down, vaporizing any planetary barrier along with the planet below, reducing it to the most basic particles and dust in the universe.

But Gao Tian was in his hands.

After a barrage of artillery fire, the Crown Prince and Crown Princess died simultaneously.

When there seemed to be still hope, the Legion could not accept this outcome. The entire Legion had sworn allegiance to the Crown Prince, and they could not make this decision.

There's one last option: use an undercover agent in a desperate last stand. If the undercover agent also loses, he can take Orion down with him.

It wasn't a mutual destruction where Orion killed Gao Tian and the Legion wiped him out; rather, it was a mutual destruction where he went to duel Orion and took Orion away with him.

His father's biggest mistake back then was not killing Orion outright.

No flaws are as serious as Orion surviving and posing a greater threat to the Empire.

In any case, the worst outcome would be death, and he would never let Orion have his way.

Lan left a timed edict in his personal terminal; if his life signal disappeared, the edict would be sent simultaneously to the nine legions and every citizen of the empire.

If he dies, the empire will be entrusted to Bishen. If Bishen also dies, the throne will pass to the Dragonfly Commander of the Third Legion.

The best outcome would be for Orion to die, or for him to perish together with Orion. Ideally, he should kill or take Orion with him, so that Gao Tian would not die.

According to the Zerg's rules, if a male Zerg dies, the female Zerg must be buried with him. If a female Zerg dies, the male Zerg is unharmed.

If he's truly useless and even if he tries to take Orion with him in a mutual destruction, it's fine.

At worst, he'll just die with Gao Tian.

If he and Gao Tian die, Orion will lose his bargaining chips.

The new Queen of Zerg, no longer having the leverage to be threatened by Orion, can kill Orion without any scruples.

No matter what, he was determined to get rid of Orion at any cost.

Orion is a complete psychopath; we must never let Orion become the Queen of the Bugs.

If Orion becomes the Queen of Lernia, not only the Zerg, not only humanity, but the entire universe will likely be doomed.

Orion, this kind of insect, seems quite normal when he has an opponent. He is strong, intelligent, and charismatic, and performs exceptionally well.

But once he has no rivals, he gets bored, and no normal person could ever imagine what he's capable of doing.

A pervert who revels in chaos, pain, and domination.

He might casually set fire to a star system for a bit of fun, he might drag the entire empire into a war of mutual slaughter for his amusement, and he might use cruel methods to reform all his subjects who do not suit his tastes.

If he wields the Zerg Empire, the sharpest weapon, no race in the universe can resist him or escape his slaughter.

...His father's biggest mistake back then was not killing Orion outright.

He probably thought he could control his naturally bad brother.

But he was being too optimistic.

Only those with a conscience can be properly managed.

Orion doesn't have that kind of thing; he simply can't control it.

......

Lan fumbled around for the Insect Emperor's power that Gao Tian had left him, and clenched his fist little by little.

He knew that Gao Tian supported him, and Gao Tian was never afraid of death.

He would pay any price to absolutely, positively prevent Orion from succeeding.