The Interstellar Queen of Scavengers

Chapter 600: Investigator Xuzhou

Ji You suspected that Sheng Qingyan would stick to her like glue. A few seconds later, this suspicion became a reality. It turned out that Sheng Qingyan was indeed intentionally clinging to her; whenever Ji You moved, Sheng Qingyan followed closely in her Mecha, keeping the distance between them less than 1 meter. It made Ji You almost think she had spontaneously grown a tail or something.

A few minutes later, Ji You felt speechless and said, "Little Cutie, we don’t seem to be familiar, do we? Why are you following me all the time?"

Sheng Qingyan covered her mouth and whined, "I’m scared because I’m such a coward. I can only feel a bit safe when I’m next to a big shot like you."

Ji You: "..."

Ji You admitted defeat, thinking to herself: Fine. It’s just a tag-along bug behind me, just pretend it doesn’t exist.

So—

Ji You started focusing on dealing with the situation at hand.

Swish~

Swish~

Swish~

The trees swayed rhythmically. Xuzhou and Zhang Ye, who were in charge of scouting ahead, suddenly paused. Xuzhou said, "Be careful, there’s movement."

The group stopped immediately.

Shen Changqing spoke over the team channel, "Zhang Ye, go find out what it is. Everyone else, stay put."

Both Zhang Ye and Xuzhou piloted ’Chasing Sun’ Mechas, a combination of scout and vanguard types, and both were bold yet meticulous. They quickly determined that the disturbance ahead was a level 3 Star Beast.

After pondering for a moment, Shen Changqing said, "Chu Jiaojiao, go take care of that Star Beast. Be discreet and avoid making any big noise."

Chu Jiaojiao said, "Give me one second."

One second later, the level 3 Star Beast fell silently to the ground, not getting up again, and Chu Jiaojiao promptly rejoined the group.

Everyone gave a thumbs up and praised, "Impressive."

Chu Jiaojiao giggled, then sidled up to Rag Queen and said, "Don’t be frightened, Rag Queen. I’m here for you, and I will definitely protect you."

Ji You: "..."

Ji You managed a smile and said, "Well, thank you so much, Drunk Lying on the Beauty’s Knee. You’re really kind-hearted."

Chu Jiaojiao replied, "It’s an honor to serve a beauty."

There she goes again, shameless and unabashed.

Really—

It’s impossible to deal with her.

However, with Xuzhou and Zhang Ye scouting ahead, Yue Qiyuan covering the rear, and people like Lou, Lance, and others in between, plus combatants like Chu Jiaojiao and Yue Qiguang, Ji You was comfortably in the middle of the team, living the easy life of mooching off others; her days couldn’t get any better.

In the following tens of minutes, the team didn’t encounter any significant crisis, making Ji You almost believe that she had come not for a group battle, but for a leisurely outing.

Suddenly—

Rustling~

Rumbling~

...

There was a violent shaking and sound of explosions from ahead. Everyone was startled and stopped collectively.

Zhang Ye cautiously moved forward to investigate and reported back, "Ahead, there are two groups fighting each other. Should we go around, or should we lie low like a mantis stalking a cicada?"

After a moment of thought, Shen Changqing whispered, "For now, let’s go around. Our objective isn’t to get into a melee, but to reach Yunding Peak as quickly as possible and hide."

Exactly.

After a unanimous discussion, they decided to head to Yunding Peak early, find a spot to hide in, and then wait for the other teams to beat each other down, or after they had fought several battles with level 9 Star Beasts and worn each other out. Only then would they come out to snatch the advantages.

Cough cough...

This approach, while not particularly honorable, well, what’s the need for honor on the battlefield?

As long as victory is achieved, isn’t that enough?

Of course, this proposal wasn’t made by Shen Changqing, but was raised simultaneously by Ji You and Sheng Qingyan, with the likes of Chu Jiaojiao and Yue Qiyuan quickly echoing it before Shen Changqing stamped the decision.

Silently, just as they came, they left...

Throughout the entire process, they hardly drew the attention of the two clashing teams.

Below the stage.

The audience, witnessing this scene, didn’t know quite what to say.

Here, as the camera swiveled again, everyone saw the direction in which the Rag Queen and her team were retreating—happening upon a team sneaking over, led by Bai Jiu, the top contender of the North District.

The two teams were about to meet around 5000 meters apart.

meters.

meters.

...

Watching the distance close, the audience sat up straighter, lips curling into a look of anticipation: "Which of these two teams will come out on top?"

Suddenly—

Xuzhou said, "Something seems off ahead."

As they were in the dense forest, the view ahead was nearly obscured by the lush tree branches and leaves, and the thick miasma hampered visibility, creating quite a challenge for the investigator’s scouting skills.

Shen Changqing asked, "Are you sure there’s something ahead?"

Xuzhou, with pursed lips, responded, "Not certain, but my intuition tells me something’s off."

Shen Changqing hardly hesitated before giving the order: "All hands—be on alert—"

Ji You, seeing that Shen Changqing hardly considered before trusting Xuzhou’s ’intuition,’ was a bit surprised and couldn’t help but ask, "Xiaoqing, do you trust the investigator’s words that much? What if he’s wrong?"

Xuzhou, his dark eyes fixated ahead, didn’t seem offended by the Rag Queen’s skepticism.

Shen Changqing said, "There’s no harm in being cautious. Moreover, I trust Xuzhou’s scouting skills."

Xuzhou may not be the strongest among the thousand-odd students in the Combat Department, nor does he possess the top talent. Despite his burly appearance with thick brows and big eyes, he was genuinely bold yet meticulous. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been selected for the team competition by Shen Changqing and the others.

It was at this moment that a faint rustling sounded from up ahead...

Then—

A Mechanical Warrior with branches stuck in its helmet, crouching down, appeared before everyone’s eyes.

Xuzhou, concealed from view, remained undetected, but Chu Jiaojiao had quietly approached, resting a massive Energy Sword against the Mecha warrior’s neck.

The opponent: "..."

Ji You, witnessing this scene, was slightly taken aback. She truly had no idea that her eldest son’s scouting skills were so advanced. As it turned out, someone really was there.

Chu Jiaojiao raised her hand, gesturing to inquire: "To kill? Or not to kill?"

Seeing the enemy’s gesture, the pupils of the captured North District team member sharply constricted, yet for some reason, they suddenly shut their eyes, making no move to resist—

Huh?

A bit strange.

Ji You felt something was amiss but couldn’t quite pinpoint what was wrong. With furrowed brows, she observed closely the surroundings and the captured Mecha warrior’s every action.

In the meantime, after some thought, Shen Changqing gave an instruction over the team channel: "Kill!"

This person was clearly the opponent’s investigator; taking out one of the enemy’s investigators was without a doubt like clipping their wings, blinding their eyes... This was crucial for winning the battle.

Chu Jiaojiao was about to make her move—