The Imperial Marshal’s Darling at the Tip of His Heart - Chapter 3

Star-Shatter City.

The name sounded romantic, but in reality, it was a chaotic interstellar free port where laws were blurred and people of all stripes mingled. It was like a rough diamond embedded on the border between two nations, glittering with a dangerous yet alluring light. Soaring skyscrapers stood in stark contrast to the winding, narrow, neon-lit slum alleys below. The air was a mixture of machine oil, cheap spices, and the mutton-like stench of some unidentified creature.

The dilapidated cargo ship Yun Shu had taken, the Old Pal Stardust, wheezed as it docked in the Third Port District, letting out a groan of overburdened metal. Stepping down the gangway, a gust of turbid air mixed with metallic dust and rotting food hit him in the face. It forced another suppressed, low cough from him, and he instinctively pressed the filtration mask on his face tighter.

His lodgings were in the port district at a small inn called the “Mole Hole.” The sign hung crookedly, and half of the neon tubes were dead. The lobby was permeated with a lingering smell of damp mildew and low-quality detergent. The front desk clerk was a dozing Tiefling with drooping pointed ears who only lazily lifted an eyelid upon hearing movement.

“I have a reservation,” Yun Shu’s voice was muffled through the mask. “Surname Yun.”

The Tiefling slowly swiped on the light-screen, muttering after a long pause, “Third floor, 7-B. Credit points prepaid. Damaged items compensated at cost. Hot water from 8:00 PM to 10:00 PM.”

He tossed over a physical key. In a place like this, using an electronic lock would actually be seen as not “discreet” enough.

The room was cramped and narrow; the sheets looked as if they had been washed in the previous century. Yun Shu put down his simple luggage, and his first priority was not to rest but to take a palm-sized device from his bag. He cautiously scanned the entire room, and only after confirming there were no obvious surveillance or eavesdropping devices did he breathe a slight sigh of relief.

Exhaustion surged like a tide. He leaned against the cold wall for a long moment to recover before taking out his portable light-computer and connecting to the local network of Star-Shatter City. His fingers jumped rapidly across the virtual keyboard as streams of code flowed across the screen like a silent creek.

The first thing to do was establish a secure communication relay to bypass the chaotic local nodes of Star-Shatter City and connect with the “Firefly” relays—several miniature signal transponders he had pre-deployed in the interstellar dust belt. This was his only secure channel for maintaining contact with Xi Lan, as well as his springboard and umbrella when infiltrating the Empire’s network.

The process was not easy. The network environment in Star-Shatter City was even worse than he had anticipated, filled with junk data, virus traps, and countless prying eyes. Several times, his virtual tentacles almost collided with ransomware set by local gangs or traps set by data harvesters. He had to navigate with extreme caution, like dancing in a minefield.

Sweat soaked the stray hairs on his forehead. The high-intensity mental labor made his temples throb, and his lungs felt a faint, stabbing pain. He had to stop every once in a while to inhale a dose of medicinal spray to suppress the suffocating urge to cough.

“Teacher, how is the situation on your end?” Lin Xiao’s voice came through the encrypted channel with a hiss of static, but the concern was clearly discernible.

“Arrived. The environment is… very distinctive.” Yun Shu tried to keep his voice steady despite the itch in his throat. “The ‘Firefly’ link is being established. The stability is average, but it’s enough.”

“You must be careful! Star-Shatter City is too chaotic. I heard that over a dozen people disappear there every day!”

“I will,” Yun Shu replied briefly. His attention was already focused on the next task: gathering the latest updates regarding Ling Yao and the Empire’s “Iron Curtain” security center.

He slipped like a ghost into the information black market and tavern rumor channels of Star-Shatter City. Here, there were information brokers, mercenaries, and hackers from every corner of the galaxy; it was a breeding ground for intelligence and a quagmire of rumors. There was plenty of news about Ling Yao, but most of it was exaggerated and lacked detail. “The Blade of the Empire,” “The Iron-Blooded Marshal,” “The Cold-Faced King of Hell”… various titles filled the space.

A recent piece of reliable information indicated that a squad from Ling Yao’s direct unit, the “Obsidian Guard,” had recently arrived in Star-Shatter City for unknown purposes. This caused Yun Shu’s heart to sink slightly. He also noticed that transactions on the black market regarding artifacts from the ruins surrounding the “Turbid Core” and genetic drugs had been unusually active lately, with prices soaring. It seemed multiple forces were secretly making acquisitions. An unusual trend seemed to be hidden behind this.

Just as he was attempting to probe deeper, a hurried warning from Lin Xiao came through the encrypted channel: “Teacher! Watch out! We monitored a strong data-tracking signal that just locked onto the Star-Shatter City region. The source characteristics… are a high match for the active reconnaissance mode of the Chenhuan Empire’s ‘Iron Curtain’! They might have detected the abnormal traffic from the ‘Firefly’ relays!”

Yun Shu’s pupils constricted. Ling Yao’s reaction speed was even faster than he had expected!

He did not hesitate and immediately activated his emergency plan. His fingers flew as he quickly cut the connection to the current relay and cleared all temporary caches and operational traces, like a receding tide smoothing footprints in the sand. Simultaneously, he activated another backup relay that was in a “dormant” state.

Almost the second he completed the operation, a powerful and cold torrent of data, like a hound, swept through the virtual area where he had just been. Finding nothing, it roared in vain and departed.

Yun Shu leaned back against the chair and took a light breath, a layer of cold sweat breaking out on his back. That was close.

“Link has been transferred to the backup node,” he reported to Lin Xiao in a low voice, his tone carrying a hint of nearly imperceptible fatigue. “Temporarily safe.”

“That’s great!” Lin Xiao’s voice was full of lingering fear. “You were almost caught!”

“It was just a routine scan. They aren’t sure of the specific target yet,” Yun Shu analyzed calmly, but he did not dare relax in the slightest. Ling Yao truly lived up to his reputation; his sense of smell was terrifyingly keen.

Just then, a sudden clamor broke out downstairs in the inn, mixed with rude shouting and the sound of things being smashed. Yun Shu frowned and moved noiselessly to the door, opening it a crack.

He saw several burly men wearing black leather coats with obvious prosthetic modifications rudely interrogating the innkeeper. The leader had a hideous electronic eye scar on his face and a loud voice: “Find someone! Has a sickly-looking, solitary stranger moved in lately? Fair-skinned and tender, looks like a gentleman?”

Yun Shu’s heart leaped. Were they coming for him? People from the Empire? Or… a local force in Star-Shatter City?

The innkeeper shook his head tremblingly. The scarred man spat impatiently: “Keep a sharp eye out! Report if you see anyone matching the description! The boss of the ‘Grabbers’ is offering a high price for this person!”

The Grabbers? Yun Shu quickly searched for the name in his mind. They were one of the largest underground forces in Star-Shatter City, known for being ruthless and unscrupulous. Why were they looking for him?

Before he could think further, the men began knocking on doors one by one to inspect them, the sounds getting closer and closer. Yun Shu quietly closed the door and locked it. He quickly scanned the simple room; there was almost nowhere to hide. Outside the window was a narrow lightwell with mountains of trash piled below.

Footsteps stopped outside the door. A rude knock sounded: “Open up! Inspection!”

Yun Shu held his breath, his mind racing. Fighting his way out was definitely not an option; his body could not even take a single punch from the opponent.

Just as the door lock let out a piercing sound of being violently picked, a more chaotic loud noise and shouting erupted from downstairs, it seemed the port district marshals were conducting a surprise inspection and had clashed with another group. The scarred man outside cursed and seemed to be called away by his companion; the footsteps hurried away.

Yun Shu leaned against the door, listening to the commotion outside gradually fade before he finally breathed a sigh of relief. Another fit of suppressed coughing followed. The chaos of Star-Shatter City had unexpectedly helped him this time.

But the crisis was not over. The Empire’s tracking was like a sword hanging over his head, and the search by the local gang was also filled with unknown dangers. He was like a young cub entering a dark forest, stared at by countless eyes.

He had to act faster. Sitting back in front of the light-computer, he took a deep breath, suppressing his physical discomfort and the turmoil in his heart. The faint glow of the screen reflected on his pale face, but his eyes became steady and focused once more.

Ling Yao’s net had been cast, and local forces were moving upon hearing the news. Then, let it begin here, in the center of the vortex.

His fingertips fell upon the keyboard once more. This time, his target was aimed directly at the seemingly impregnable outer firewall of the Empire’s “Iron Curtain.”