The little azure dragon soared through the sky, releasing a high-pitched dragon roar. The Zerg paused for a moment, visibly frightened by the sight of the dragon.
Without giving them a chance to react, the little azure dragon charged straight at them, sweeping its tail across a large group of Zerg. It then opened its mouth, releasing a thick stream of water that drowned the Zerg on the ground.
The water seemed controlled, forming a pool where the Zerg were, without spreading elsewhere. The Zerg, unable to swim, flailed desperately in the water, struggling in vain.
The Zerg flying in the air, sensing danger, turned to flee. The little azure dragon roared again and swiftly circled in the air. Suddenly, dark clouds gathered above, and lightning crackled across the sky.
In just one breath, a torrential downpour began, and bolts of lightning struck the Zerg without mercy. Some were instantly fried to a crisp, while others shrieked in agony.
Two of the higher-tier Zerg, holding a grudge, saw no chance of escape and ordered the swarm to attack. A portion of the swarm was sent to deal with Xu Zifan.
The little azure dragon lazily looked down at them, as if even fighting them would tarnish its dignity. When the Zerg headed for Xu Zifan, it intercepted them swiftly, knocking them to the ground with another water column before calling down a thick bolt of lightning to strike them.
The entire battle was a one-sided slaughter. The Zerg stood no chance against the dragon's powerful body and masterful magic. In no time, they were utterly defeated.
Xu Zifan, connected with the little dragon through their shared thoughts, instructed, "Don't kill them all. Let a few escape to draw more Zerg in so I can practice."
"Understood." The little dragon blasted a few of the Zerg far away with a water column, allowing them to flee. It pretended not to notice, focusing only on those in front of it.
With one final thunderous strike, the entire swarm fell silent.
However, the little dragon wobbled slightly, instantly reverting to its small snake form. It scurried back to Xu Zifan's shoulder, saying, "I'm so tired, Master. Any reward?"
Xu Zifan picked it up, holding it in his palm, smiling, "After using up so much of my Spiritual Spring Water, what more do you want?"
The little snake laid down limply, muttering, "There's still plenty of that spring water."
Xu Zifan chuckled and tapped its tiny head, concerned, "You seemed unsteady earlier. Did you exhaust your energy? Don't push yourself before you're fully healed. Your health is what matters most."
"I just wanted to show you what I can do. I'm still injured, but I don't eat for free."
"Yes, yes, you're amazing. But tell me, why were you left alone on Earth, and why were you so weak?"
The little snake rolled around in his palm and explained, "I was in hibernation but got hurt by a shockwave. When I came out, I found that half of Earth was destroyed, and everyone was gone. I tried everything to heal with Earth's remaining resources, but it was no use. Earth never had much spiritual energy to begin with, and after what happened, I was getting weaker every day. I held on for as long as I could, and thankfully, I found you. You're so powerful, master! Your Spiritual Spring, your aura, and your golden light of virtue. I could sense it from far away."
No wonder he was drawn to it by the spiritual energy. It had intentionally lured him there. Seeing that it was still a young dragon, Xu Zifan felt a twinge of sympathy and gently patted its head as if it were a child.
"Chang Sheng, go back inside the space and focus on healing. Take whatever you need."
Chang Sheng joyfully rolled around again. "Master, you're the best! I love the name 'Chang Sheng.' From now on, I'll protect you forever and never let those bugs hurt you!"
With that, Chang Sheng disappeared into the space. It loved the space; filled with spiritual energy, treasures, and medicinal fields. It was perfect, and it was thrilled to have found the right master!
Xu Zifan felt its joy and shook his head with a smile as he began to inspect his planets.
***
These planets hadn't been destroyed by anyone, allowing the plants and animals to thrive, giving off a sense of prosperity. Otherwise, those Zerg wouldn't have come here.
If the Empire's people had discovered this place first, the prices of the planets would have skyrocketed, and the energy stone mines would have been impossible to sell. He had definitely stumbled upon a windfall.
The first thing Xu Zifan did was set up a massive illusion array and a large defensive array. The arrays encompassed all nine planets, ensuring that no one could enter or easily attack them.
From now on, this would be his territory!
Xu Zifan piloted his mech into space, gazing at the planets under his name, feeling a sense of satisfaction he hadn't experienced in a long time. What were houses in clusters? Now he had several planets, which was truly an extraordinary experience.
After resolving the security issues, he officially settled on the planet with the best environment. Every day, he practiced and occasionally sparred with the Zerg that dared to invade, honing his mech skills and increasing his combat power.
The Zerg came three times but seemed to be frightened, as they never returned. Xu Zifan felt bored, so he piloted his starship around space, encountering other airships and starships along the way, and when he met pirate ships, he engaged in a bit of "black-market trading".
Several times, he even managed to rescue some people.
The pirates were always furious, cursing and demanding to know who he was. Xu Zifan would occasionally reply, "I act on behalf of justice when I see injustice."
Thus, a major news story quickly emerged in the Empire; a mysterious figure known as the "Skywalker" appeared in space, boasting exceptional combat skills and mystical methods, targeting pirates and rescuing many people.
The title "Skywalker" stemmed from his earlier statement.
***
Shao Hua had been monitoring StarNet and noticed the news as soon as it broke. Someone had even captured a video of Xu Zifan defeating a pirate, which quickly spread across StarNet.
It immediately reported to Xu Zifan. After reading the adoring comments online, he found them both amusing and frustrating. He had been robbing pirates, so how did he become the "Skywalker"? What a ridiculous nickname!
However, whatever StarNet said was irrelevant to him. He needed to pay attention to the government searching for him; he had no interest in being "invited in for tea".
From then on, Xu Zifan was even more careful about protecting his identity. He never revealed himself in the mech and never used his real voice when speaking. After each pirate raid, he would return home to organize his spoils. As time went on, his home expanded into a large estate; otherwise, there wouldn't be enough space to store all his treasures.
The pirates possessed not only valuables but also mechs, food, various medications, and various materials. As Xu Zifan accumulated more items, the research instincts within him began to surface, prompting him to study mech manufacturing seriously.
However, before that, he needed to return to the Capital Planet. Shao Hua had informed him that his younger brother was getting married. Despite their strained relationship, he felt obliged to return and make things difficult for Xu Zhikai.
***
Xu Zifan piloted his starship, which was filled with energy stones.
All these stones had been mined by Chang Sheng. With the Spiritual Spring and Xu Zifan's pills, Chang Sheng recovered quickly. Since Xu Zifan wanted to personally practice dealing with the Zerg, it helped him mining, thinking it could find something to occupy itself.
Before long, it had mined half of a planet's worth of ore.
This time, Xu Zifan brought a batch back with him. When he arrived at the Capital Planet for inspection, the sight of his starship filled with energy stones astonished everyone, and they immediately reported it to their superiors.
Xu Zifan had legitimately purchased those nine planets through proper channels; they were his private property. Having discovered energy stone mines on them meant that all those mines belonged to him. When they inquired about the size of the mines and learned that two entire planets were involved, the questioner gasped in shock, and their gaze toward Xu Zifan changed completely.
Xu Zifan brought back the energy stones specifically to sell them. Once the government found out, they immediately detained him and sent representatives to negotiate the purchase of the planets under his name.
Of course, Xu Zifan would never sell them.
The government then took a step back, hoping to buy his energy stones instead, and later take over all the energy stones he had.
Xu Zifan had initially been a successful businessman; no one could out-negotiate him. The government tried to pressure him with price cuts, use patriotism to guilt him, and persuade him with other methods, but nothing worked. In the end, they signed a contract at market price. The contract also specified that if the market price fluctuated beyond a certain amount, the contract amount would be adjusted accordingly, meaning the government gained nothing from the deal.
Such a significant event was reported that very night on the Empire's news, showing footage of Xu Zifan signing the contract with government officials.
Who was Xu Zifan? While some people on other planets might not know him, he was absolutely well-known on the Capital Planet.
He had been gone for just 4 months. Before he left, the shocking revenge he had exacted made everyone remember him. They speculated he would endure the pain of falling to a low status on some unknown small planet, wallowing in misery and poverty, eventually dying quietly.
But what did they see now?
Xu Zifan was back!
Not only had he returned, but he also made it onto the Empire's news, signing a contract with the government. Everyone began to doubt their ears. Xu Zifan had bought a remote little planet with his mother's inheritance? That planet had mines? It was worth hundreds of billions?!?
That meant Xu Zifan had become a billionaire! He was now one of the wealthiest people in the entire star system. What a miraculous turnaround!
Were the Xu family still around? Did they regret it?
What about Feng Yahui, who had abandoned Xu Zifan? She had nearly become the wife of a billionaire!
If Xu Zifan were willing to marry her, they would do everything to be with him. A billionaire wasn't an ordinary businessman; even if he were a waste, they would still want to marry him. He truly was a favored child of destiny.
During wartime, commerce wasn't as developed; having hundreds of billions of wealth would already place someone in the top three in the star system. As soon as this news broke, no one criticized Xu Zifan as a double-F waste anymore.
The internet was flooded with comments from people seeking to marry him, creating a frenzy.
***
After settling in the best hotel on Capital Planet, Xu Zifan sent a message to Xu Zhikai. [Dear brother, I'm back for your wedding. Congratulations! :)]
Xu Zhikai stared fixedly at the message on the screen, his throat feeling sweet and bloody, nearly making him vomit.
How could this be? He had worked so hard to bring Xu Zifan down a level, so how could Xu Zifan bounce back?
A planet with energy stone mines, and two of them! Why? He had never heard of these two planets in his previous life.
Why had they been discovered by Xu Zifan? Will I always be inferior to Xu Zifan? In this new life, he lived worse than a servant in his previous household. What was the meaning of all his actions?
Xu Zhikai's emotions surged too intensely, causing him to collapse onto the bed with a splitting headache. He gasped, telling himself it didn't matter. He was a double-A; he could join the military, while Xu Zifan would never be able to. Xu Zifan would never have the chance to realize his dreams again.