Fearing he might truly be unable to resist making a move on the ship’s core energy source, Feng Zhixi lowered his gaze and proactively returned the operating permissions to the Executive Officer, his expression devoid of lingering attachment.
The Executive Officer watched Feng Zhixi’s movements with a hint of surprise. This military student had actually retreated so obediently after completing his task, without taking the opportunity to stir up any trouble? It made the officer’s prepared contingency measures feel entirely redundant.
However, Feng Zhixi’s disciplined behavior left the Executive Officer quite satisfied. The older officer nodded, thinking to himself that the youth was neither arrogant nor impetuous—a truly *good child*.
“?” Finding himself under a gaze that seemed to say “this young man has a bright future,” the “good child” Feng Zhixi felt a flicker of confusion. He didn't quite understand what strange things this suddenly fatherly Executive Officer was imagining.
Feng Zhixi instinctively turned his gaze toward Ji Yeran, subconsciously seeking out his "frenemy" and partner-in-crime to complain.
*The Executive Officer is acting so weird! That ‘creepy uncle’ look on his face is actually quite chilling!*
“...” Faced with the little pampered soul’s gaze seeking a shared moment of mockery, what could Ji Yeran do as an upright Warden?
He simply swallowed his sympathy for the Executive Officer. For the sake of a long-term, stable partnership with this delicate brat, the upright Warden ignored his conscience and nodded.
*You think so too, right?*
Seeing his sentiment validated, the corners of Feng Zhixi’s mouth curled upward. His slightly curved eyes, set against his exquisite features, blended sharp arrogance with lush beauty. It was like the purest, most potent wine—wild, uninhibited, and soul-stirring.
*Yes, whatever you say is right.*
Ji Yeran couldn't help but smile. Looking at the little pampered soul before him, he inexplicably felt that even Feng Zhixi’s smile carried a hint of aged spirits. That mellow, crisp fragrance seemed to seep into the corners of his lips and the curve of his brows, leaving Ji Yeran feeling slightly dazzled just by looking at him.
*Whimper...*
Not far away, Emil was quietly observing the interaction between the two Chief Candidates. What was with this atmosphere? It clearly looked like nothing was happening, yet it made her face flush uncontrollably!
*Ahhh!*
Emil wanted to keep watching, yet felt like a total creep for doing so. Because she didn't want to be caught by the Chief and misunderstood as a pervert again, she had to use every ounce of her strength to suppress her internal squealing, desperately restraining herself from looking at the "Double Chiefs" interacting.
*Sob sob sob...*
She suspected she was the only one on this ship who knew the truth. This secret, known only to her, gave Emil a sense of extraordinary excitement. The feeling of harboring a secret no one else knew while getting to witness it firsthand was—honestly—amazing!
Emil’s supposedly "discreet" observation did not escape the notice of the two men. Regarding the person who was still casting strange glances at them from time to time, Feng Zhixi turned his head nonchalantly, timing it perfectly to catch Emil’s gaze before she could look away.
Feng Zhixi smiled, but his eyes were cold.
“!” Caught red-handed once again, Emil panicked. *I’m really not a pervert! The Chief has to believe me!*
Feng Zhixi studied Emil at his leisure, his gaze fixed on the long-tailed Omega until she was nearly at a loss for what to do. Only when he heard the Executive Officer order the attack did he slowly withdraw his gaze, briefly letting the frozen-stiff Emil off the hook.
Completely oblivious to the undercurrents among the youngsters, the ambitious Executive Officer decisively ordered his subordinates to strike. A pirate ship that had already had its fangs pulled was no match for fully armed military combat craft—especially since this military exercise was specifically aimed at the total annihilation of the pirates in the Gamma System.
Consequently, the weapons and capture tools they had brought were extremely comprehensive.
Thus, the pirates, who had thought victory was within their grasp, inexplicably fell from hunters to prey.
The pirate leader watched as the escort craft—which should have been trapped in the Spiderweb and rendered immobile—suddenly broke free from the restraints and launched an attack toward them.
Seeing these craft suddenly shed their disguises and close in, the pirate leader’s shock quickly turned into the realization that he had been duped. This was a trap!
As the craft approached the docking bay, their discarded disguises revealed the distinct markings of the Federation Military. Having weathered many storms, the pirate leader immediately recognized them: these were warships!
So, this was a military fleet disguised as a civilian merchant convoy!
They were coming for them! This was bait released by the military, specifically designed for "fishing"!
*How insidious! Shameless!*
The pirate leader, having realized the truth, began to curse loudly. He immediately ordered his subordinates to push the ship’s power to its maximum to flee for their lives.
The warships were still entangled in the Spiderweb trap they had set. With the drag of the web, he was confident these military-grade craft wouldn't be able to catch them.
The pirate leader was full of confidence; his ship was renowned for its speed, and its agile performance had allowed him to successfully evade military encirclement several times before.
However, this time, the pirate leader’s plan failed. Following his command, the ship engaged maximum power, but the vessel the pirates had placed so much hope in remained stagnant in space, motionless as if dead.
Watching the craft—now revealing their menacing weaponry—draw closer, the pirate leader didn't have time to delve into why the ship couldn't move. At this moment, he only wanted to escape.
With a ferocious expression, the pirate leader kicked the subordinate at the console to the floor. He intended to manually operate the ship’s energy cannons to fight back.
*Beep beep beep!* Following the pirate leader’s savage attempts at operation, the pirate ship’s main control system issued a warning of insufficient energy. Infuriated, the pirate leader slammed his fist onto the console.
His face flushed red as he roared, “Those bastards! If you don't want to die, grab your gear and fight them to the end!”
As he spoke, the pirate leader pulled out his trump card weapons. He directly activated his personal energy shield, intending to lead his men into a desperate melee.
“Go!” The shouting pirate leader had no idea that the "Spiderweb"—which the designer and he himself viewed as a mere trapping tool—had become something entirely different in the hands of a weapon master like Feng Zhixi.
The reason Feng Zhixi had rated the Spiderweb as an "interesting little weapon" was its ingenious use of energy strings. It was just that even the designer of the Spiderweb hadn't realized its true value, leaving the "pearl covered in dust."
Now, after Feng Zhixi’s slight modifications, the Spiderweb’s energy strings—enhanced by the military warship’s systems—could discreetly use frequency variations to interfere with power activation.
This interference wasn't just limited to the pirate ship within the cosmic energy field; as long as there was a small docking breach, the energy string interference could follow the connection and directly entangle the enemy's power startup system.
One must understand that the weapons equipped by pirates all required a core energy source to fire. If the startup system for that core energy was interfered with and could not function normally, the result was that all weapons, including energy shields, became nothing more than scrap metal.
Simply put, if used correctly, the Spiderweb could strip the pirate ship and everyone inside of their weapons, leaving behind only defenseless lambs for the slaughter.
At this moment, the Spiderweb controlled by Feng Zhixi had easily become a tool for "pulling teeth." These blood-stained, vicious pirates had no idea that the weapons they relied on had long since become paper toys under the Spiderweb’s interference. One by one, the ferocious pirates followed their boss, prepared to go head-to-head with the regular army.
However, as powerful as the momentum of these debt-ridden pirates was before they stepped out, they were equally pathetic and fragile when facing the regular army.
The soldiers Xu Yi had selected for the bait ship were all experts in individual combat. These "paper tigers" were no match for them.
With almost no effort, the Executive Officer received news of victory from his subordinates. All the pirates had been captured alive, including the pirate leader who had ostensibly led his men to a fight but was actually planning to use the opportunity to escape.
One large pirate ship plus forty-nine pirates—the entire crew was captured, all alive and accounted for.
Hearing the report, the Executive Officer calculated the points he had earned and felt a rare surge of excitement. He declared: "Well done!"
Soon, Xu Yi, the Commander of the First Legion Fleet stationed in the rear, received the Executive Officer’s brief battle report. Learning that the bait plan was a success and that they had even captured live pirates, Xu Yi nodded. Amidst his satisfaction, a strange feeling suddenly rose in his heart.
He couldn't quite put his finger on what it was, but Xu Yi felt, for no apparent reason, that he had overlooked something.
What exactly had he missed?
Troubled by this intuition, Xu Yi thought for a long time but couldn't find the cause. He had no choice but to temporarily set aside his thoughts and turn his attention back to the current operation.
Although the bait plan was successful, the fish they had caught were only "small fry." A single bait ship could have neutralized them; there was no need for the Legion’s main force to intervene.
This meant their gains weren't significant. The First Legion Commander, who still wanted to take the top spot, was a bit troubled. Where on earth were those pirates—who were slipperier than loaches—hiding?
At this moment, the Commander, still fretting over the small size of the fish on the hook, didn't know that his intuition was spot on. The person he had overlooked was currently nonchalantly bewitching his hand-picked Executive Officer, preparing to send him a "grand gift."
***
On the bait ship, watching the Executive Officer finish his reporting duties, Feng Zhixi asked seemingly casually, “Sir, is the pirate ship we captured intact?”
“Completely undamaged,” the Executive Officer replied genially. He looked at the military student who had played a major role in the recent capture with a very positive attitude. It could be said that in this encounter, this student had performed a great service.
Forty-nine living pirates... Aside from his satisfaction, the Executive Officer’s only regret was that the pirate ship itself didn't count toward points. After all, the Federation Military had no use for such junk.
The regretting Executive Officer suddenly heard a voice—clear and pleasant, yet the words spoken were like a sudden enlightenment.
“This pirate ship can be used to set a trap. If we have some people disguise themselves as pirates and operate it like they did just now, couldn't we catch even more fish?” Feng Zhixi suggested, painting a tempting picture.
“?!” The Executive Officer was stunned. He instinctively looked at the student who seemed to have made the suggestion offhandedly.
What was this student saying?!
Woken up by Feng Zhixi’s words, the Executive Officer couldn't help but start connecting the dots. One bait ship, plus one almost undamaged pirate ship, and the handy trap tool "Spiderweb" they had picked up for free.
They might truly be able to catch a massive amount of fish as they hoped... but... this didn't seem like the conduct of a "righteous" person?
Seeing the look of struggle on the Executive Officer’s face, Feng Zhixi, having calmly offered his "wicked" idea, gave a quiet smile.
After sketching out a beautiful prospect with a few light words, Feng Zhixi stopped talking, leaving infinite room for the Executive Officer to agonize over it. He believed the other man would make the "correct" decision.
The Executive Officer, inspired by Feng Zhixi, wore a conflicted expression. As he pondered, he cast a suspicious glance at the student who had seemingly unintentionally made the suggestion. Was it a coincidence?
Could this brat be hiding some restless, ulterior motives?
Sensing the Executive Officer’s wariness, Feng Zhixi looked up and met his gaze with an innocent expression. His long eyelashes fluttered slightly, and his eyes were clear and transparent, as if questioning why the officer was staring at him.
Realizing it wasn't appropriate to stare at a newly-adult Omega for so long, the Executive Officer turned his head away. His thoughts, influenced by Feng Zhixi, drifted toward agreeing with the suggestion.
*All is fair in war. When dealing with pirates, being a bit shameless seems perfectly reasonable.*
The Executive Officer thus convinced himself.
“...” Watching the Executive Officer get completely hoodwinked, Ji Yeran, as an Interstellar Warden with a sound moral compass, maintained a perfect silence. At this moment, his greatest confusion was something else: where did Feng Zhixi learn this trick of acting obedient to get his way?!
How come Feng Zhixi had never acted so "good" in front of him?
Feeling like he was being treated differently, the Warden felt a flash of displeasure.
***
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Starry Rebirth: The Warden and the Outlaw’s Interstellar Revenge | Chapter 47 | The Double Bait | Novela.app | Novela.app
