Unedited chapter
25. Leopard Spirit Jones
The Imperial family scandal broke out in just a short period of time. The violated sub-beastman’s tearful complaints on the star network were spread everywhere. In the army, the Crown Prince had been arrogant and condescending; the videos and evidence of him bullying and humiliating the new recruit were also put online by someone. In addition, more people came out with information that the Crown Prince had toyed with numerous sub-beastmen and framed his highly talented classmate. There were even many parties who personally came forward to testify against Edgar.
Among them were the sub-beastmen who had been toyed with, the new recruit who had been bullied and humiliated, and also the classmate who had been framed. These people’s names and testimonies were authentic. For a time, the crown prince who had been worshipped unexpectedly became a lowlife who was detested by everyone.
"I didn't expect that His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince is actually this kind of person. It truly makes people very disappointed!"
"Previous poster, you still call him His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince? A man like him absolutely doesn’t deserve to be a crown prince."
"His perfect image was deliberately constructed by the Imperial family, right? "
"If he’s really an eight-star warrior, how could he lost his beast core just because he got besieged by a few wild animals? His strength is most likely fabricated, right? "
……
On the star network, all kinds of comments criticizing Edgar were breeding like flies. There were also some people who wanted to defend him, but their arguments seemed pale and weak in the presence of absolute evidence.
More importantly, the Imperial family all along hadn’t come out to give an explanation.
"His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince isn’t this kind of person. Don’t get deceived by those people!"
"I used to be His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince’s classmate. He’s indeed very remarkable. He didn't need to frame other people at all."
"His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince definitely won’t become a fallen beast . . ."
……
"The people who say that Edgar is a good person, are you blind and can't see that evidence?"
"If he really didn't do these things, come forward with evidence, ah! Get the original story to confront those people!
"That violent fallen beast and Edgar’s beast type are exactly the same, if it’s not him, who is it then? "
……
In the Imperial palace of the Beastman Empire, the emperor and the imperial consort were looking at the online comments, and both their expressions were very ugly.
Edgar had gone missing while exploring a new planet. They had been looking for him and still haven't found him yet. Then this kind of news suddenly broke out online.
If Edgar was here, they could make Edgar appear personally to explain that it had nothing to do with him. But, the crux was that Edgar was not here now and even had already been missing for half a year.
Edgar couldn't stand up for himself, and if they came out and explained, no one would believe it, let alone the people behind the scene who seemed to have been prepared since long ago. Even more, the evidence simply made people difficult to explain.
For example, the video of Edgar bullying the new recruit. That was actually true, but the soldier had been punished because he had made a mistake and the mistake was not like the sort mentioned above, which was merely because the new recruit had not been respectful enough towards Edgar. Besides, Edgar had only hit him once. However, such truth, even if the Imperial family said it, the common people who were incited would not believe it.
What was more . . .
"This snake type fallen beast, is it Edgar after all?" The imperial consort had been repeatedly playing the online video of the violent snake type fallen beast, his complexion dignified.
The number of snake type beastmen were, nevertheless, countless. Even though the beastmen of the Imperial family were astonishingly gifted, but their looks were quite ordinary. There were many beastmen who looked like them, and the beastman in the video looked exactly the same as Edgar.
So much so that . . . maybe he was Edgar.
When Edgar had been carrying out his mission, someone had plotted against him. The core components of the man and the mech had all disappeared, only some mech fragments had been left behind on the battlefield. The tremendous energy fluctuation on the scene had probably been the result of him self-detonating his beast core . . . . From the beginning, they had firmly believed that he had not died. They felt that he was still alive. In this case, wasn’t it possible that he had self-detonated his beast core and then got controlled by someone?
Was it possible that the snake type fallen beast was really Edgar?
"Only watching the video, I can’t tell if it’s Edgar or not, but he won't do this kind of thing." The emperor of the Beastman Empire was in the prime of life. He had still been high-spirited half a year ago, but now, he was unexpectedly showing his old age.
His outstanding son suddenly had had an accident. This matter had hit him deeper than he had imagined.
"Edgar won’t do this kind of thing, but what if he’s controlled by someone? What if he’s drugged?" the imperial consort said eagerly.
The two men looked at each other in dismay, silent at last.
If it was really their child, what were they going to do?
When the Imperial family scandal in the capital star got more and more intense, the helicopter carrying Shu Shu and Edgar finally arrived at the beastman colony of Cas planet.
The beastman colony was located in the northern hemisphere of Cas planet, while the forest that had been their home was located in the southern hemisphere. The distance between both sides was far away, and there was also a strait separating the two. It was quite a marvel that Jeress and the other men had actually run off to such a distant place to go hunting.
From the inside of the helicopter, Shu Shu had seen all kinds of high-rise buildings, as well as various kinds of high-tech products. He had even seen someone standing on top of some flying object high up in the sky . . . .
When did the science and technology on Earth develop so much? Shu Shu faintly felt that something was wrong, but it was too late to think deeply about it. Glancing to left and right, he started to look like a simple person who was overwhelmed by new experiences and luxurious surroundings, constantly gasping in surprise.
Gasp of surprise aside, he started to feel a bit afraid.
Feeling uneasy, Shu Shu pulled the animal skins on his body tighter. He always felt that he looked out of place compared to everything here. Inexplicably, Jeress and the other men also made him feel strange. In the end, he actually couldn’t help but move closer to Edgar’s side.
"Big Snake, this place is really big, ah!" Shu Shu’s face was full of emotions.
Edgar was silent; he could not speak now, and also . . . from his perspective, this place was not big. Indeed, when it came to places, the capital star was a hundredfold bigger and a hundredfold more beautiful than here.
"I feel a little afraid." Shu Shu said again, his voice very low. It was only Edgar who heard and understood Shu Shu’s words.
Extending his own tail, Edgar patted Shu Shu's shoulder.
Shu Shu was pacified and then recalled that it was a snake tail patting him . . . . It seemed that he was even more afraid now, ah!
Shu Shu looked at the huge snake that was stationed very close to him, all the hair on his body standing on end. At this moment, he heard a very gentle voice: "Are you the little sub-beastman whom they picked up in the forest?"
Shu Shu could not understand what the man said, but that man’s appearance made Shu Shu feel very, very secure—that man was just like him, half-man half-animal!
The man seemed to be about thirty years old. He didn’t look like Jeress and the rest who were muscle-bound from head to toe—on the contrary, he was rather thin. Looking at the cultured and refined man with a gentle smile hanging on his face made people who saw him can’t help but have a deep, good impression of him.
Without doubt, Shu Shu liked those two round ears on top of the man’s human ears . . . . Those were leopard ears, right? Was this man in front of him a leopard spirit?
"You’re also just like me. Did your cultivation go wrong?" Shu Shu asked.
The young man with leopard ears did not understand Shu Shu’s words, but he already knew some things about Shu Shu from the inside information sent by Jeress. No wonder he had been smiling gently at Shu Shu all this time: "Hello, my name is Jones. I’m a doctor. I’ll take you to do a checkup, OK?"
Jones beckoned to Shu Shu, and Shu Shu followed after him for a few steps before looking back towards the huge snake.
Edgar glanced at Jones, tail tapping the floor a few times.
"He can also go with us." Jones said to Shu Shu.
"Dr. Jones, don’t! This is a fallen beast!" Jeress immediately said. Although Dr. Jones was quite powerful, but he was also a mere sub-beastman. What if he got hurt by the fallen beast?
"Do you think that I can't even handle a fallen beast?" Dr. Jones was all smiles toward Jeress.
"Of . . . of course not . . ." Jeress stammered, unexpectedly showing some fear on his face.
Apparently, this leopard spirit was quite powerful, ah! Shu Shu looked at the man admiringly while encouraging himself. He believed that he would surely become very powerful as well. Even if he could not become very powerful, his disciple would definitely become very powerful!
"Let's go." Dr. Jones turned his body around and walked ahead.
Shu Shu, a little nervous, followed closely behind.
"Jeress’ group found a little sub-beastman in the forest!"
"He looks really cute, ah! So small and exquisite!"
"I want to talk with the little sub-beastman!"
……
A group of beastmen crowded in not far away, whispering. They stared at Shu Shu and drooled. At last, someone could not help but stand up and walk toward Shu Shu.
Naturally, it was a particularly tall beastman. He wore a skintight combat uniform, revealing all his muscles. When he walked, his imposing manner was even more striking.
It was the first time Shu Shu saw such a tall man. He gaped at him and got scared in the end. Making eye contact with the other man’s hungry gaze, he couldn’t help but shrank a little and went to hide behind the "leopard spirit"—this daemon looked so fierce and also liked him, didn’t he?
Then, Shu Shu saw a scene that shocked him.
The "leopard spirit" pressed a switch on his hand, and a needle flew toward the muscled male. The muscled man's eyes went straight, and then he crashed onto the ground and turned into an elephant, slumbering and snoring.
What an awesome hidden weapon! What an awesome leopard spirit!
While Shu Shu was busy admiring the sub-beastman Jones, whom he believed was a leopard spirit, Jones himself was smiling and sweeping his eyes over the restless beastmen surrounding them: "This sub-beastman is still young, you’d better not have any thoughts that you shouldn’t have."
The surrounding beastmen thought of Dr. Jones’ earlier trick and immediately quivered. They no longer dared to think too much. Jeress, who originally wanted to catch up, also halted his step with a bitter face.
Jones brought Edgar and the little sub-beastman directly to his infirmary, and his expression suddenly became solemn: "Your Imperial Highness the Crown Prince, how could you appear here? Also . . . how could you become a fallen beast?"