The Old Emperor softly uttered a single word: "Leave."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

A maid, barefoot, came running and brought a long table that had a full panoramic projection system on it. A scrolling screen of code appeared in front of him.

—There naturally existed a system in the Imperial Palace that was directly linked to the entire Empire network.

The projection screen slightly trembled, showing the interior of a spaceship.

Hanton's parents were sitting in two hovering chairs, both in a state of deep sleep, with a pair of hourglasses set next to them.

An antimatter bomb!

An aged voice, altered electronically, resonated through the entire grand hall of the Imperial Palace.

"Has the White Ghost not arrived yet? Our Earl Hanton, do you not even have the heart to save your own parents?"

"Now let me check the number of viewers on this live broadcast, oh yes, the stream is restricted and there are not even millions watching yet. Wow, these are the methods of the Empire."

"You can cut off this broadcast, yes, completely possible. Then I will pick either Hanton's father or mother to throw out of this ship."

"We took great effort to bring them here, please do not doubt our determination to kill two people. Of course, you can say they sacrificed themselves for the country and award them some beautiful posthumous honor, but think about it, your hero, the Empire's little Ghost, alone, helpless, sitting on the living room sofa at his old home, sobbing uncontrollably in front of a projected photograph, his body curled up, trembling continuously. He's hating his own impotence, hating why he can't teleport instantly between the systems of the Milky Way—otherwise, his parents wouldn't be directly destroyed. Hahaha, hahaha! He's an orphan now! Oh, the powerful orphan of the Empire!"

Yang Ming's mouth twitched continuously, his expression turned exceedingly somber.

The Emperor gestured, and the maid directed the camera at Yang Ming, initiating a connection.

Yang Ming inhaled deeply, puffed out his chest and looked straight ahead.

"Wow! Ghost is here!"

That noisy voice rang out again.

A mechanical guard with a silver-white skeletal frame entered the frame, muttering something, and pressed several buttons.

The screen split in two, showing Yang Ming's figure and half of the grand Imperial hall.

"Don't harm them."

Yang Ming spoke sternly, "If you want to target someone, come directly at me."

"White Ghost? Handsome White Ghost."

The mechanical guard let out a cackling laugh:

"Let's see... you're on Emperor Star? Yes, you, the mighty and influential, who can arbitrarily convict Great Nobles—you should be on Emperor Star now.

"Are these men behind you, acting all high and mighty, the Empire's ministers?"

"What do you want to do?"

Yang Ming didn't respond, "State your purpose, don't play the mystic here. You should know if you harm my parents, I will tear you and everyone behind you to pieces."

"Then come on, White Ghost, come and jump to your strength's defense."

The mechanical guard sneered:

"Just a product of the Empire's biochemical experiments—accidentally achieved some accolades, and then the Empire elevated you as their biggest star.

"Are you even human anymore?

"How fragrant are the bodies of those women on Emperor Star? Eh? Earl Hanton, when will you become Duke Hanton, Prince Hanton?

"Being the Emperor's dog must taste pretty good, huh."

Yang Ming shouted furiously, "Shut up!"

"See, you're already angry, what else can you boast about besides your strength? Come, let me show you, look outside, outside the spaceship."

The screen displayed a change, showing an asteroid belt on the bandit's side.

With a beam of light, a hot sphere appeared within the asteroid belt.

"See?"

The mechanical guard chuckled:

"My antimatter bomb is real, I can obliterate your parents into fundamental particles at any moment, and you won't even be able to recover their bodies.

"Right, I also made a simple timing device, look here."

The screen trembled, showing the two hourglasses intimately, revealing a small timer below.

The mechanical guard casually turned on the timer, and the countdown began ticking.

Only thirty minutes.

Yang Ming could only spit out angrily, "You bastard! What exactly do you want to do!"

The mechanical guard chuckled, "Very simple, three things, satisfy me, and I will give you the coordinates of this transport ship and stop the timer."

"Speak!"

"The first thing, find the Emperor, you have only about twenty minutes—however, I'd think it's an easy matter for you to request an audience with the Emperor."

Yang Ming frowned deeply, pursing his lips in silence.

"What, are you planning to sacrifice your parents?"

Yang Ming declared resolutely, "If my parents die by your hands, it will be a sacrifice to evil, unrelated to any person in the Empire!"

"Beautiful words can be spoken by anyone; the choice is yours."

The mechanical guard's finger swept across Hanton's father's cheek, pressing down forcefully, causing Hanton's father's body to tremble continuously.

Yang Ming, unable to suppress his anger, trembled lightly all over.

Suddenly, the Old Emperor's voice came from behind, "Switch the camera over here, Hanton, do not fear the darkness and evil, if it's to protect the citizens of our nation, why wouldn't I, the Emperor, show my face?"

Yang Ming turned hurriedly, "Your Majesty, they might have malicious intentions..."

"It doesn't matter; this is Emperor Star."

The Old Emperor gestured, and the maids were already operating.

Yang Ming walked behind the long table; behind him stood the Emperor and more than ten of the Empire's most powerful ministers.

Suddenly, the live stream's viewership began to skyrocket, and tens of thousands of new streams proliferated throughout the digital world.

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