Chapter 477 - 410: Evangeline Rook
Chapter 477: Chapter 410: Evangeline Rook
A smirk touched Lex Cross’s lips. "Which one of those villagers was Old Rook?"
The old man’s face was a mask of nervous hesitation. "He, he wasn’t in that group!"
"Lead the way."
The village elder hesitated, then shook his head. "I told you, you should leave! If he finds out why you’re really here, I’m afraid I’ll be killed!"
Flora Bloom grew even more confused. "We’re just here as tourists. What does it matter if he knows?"
The old man stared at Flora Bloom for a long moment before looking back at Lex Cross. "Heh, really just tourists?" Seeing Lex Cross’s icy gaze, he gave a dry laugh. "Your girlfriend is about eight or nine months pregnant, isn’t she? For you to come here, you must be looking for someone from the Rook family. But I can’t be the one to betray him and become a sinner to our village!"
Flora Bloom still didn’t understand what their conversation was about. She asked, "Lex, why are we looking for that person?"
After Flora Bloom spoke, a strange voice came from outside the house.
"General Cross, to go to such great lengths to find me, you must have important business, no?" The voice belonged to an old woman, and it carried a penetrating, sonic power. An ordinary person hearing it would grow dizzy or even be knocked unconscious.
"Oh? A woman?" The sound of heavy footsteps slowly approached from outside. "I’d like to see just what kind of woman General Cross would keep by his side."
Lex Cross’s brow furrowed. Black energy enveloped Flora Bloom. "Flora, stay here. Don’t come out. I’ll be right back."
After he pushed the door open and went out, all sound was cut off from Flora Bloom.
An old crone dressed in tattered, patched clothes stood outside leaning on a cane, seemingly waiting for Lex Cross to appear.
When Lex Cross came out, he narrowed his eyes and looked at her. "What is Nina Rook to you?"
The crone peered into the house. "Is the woman inside Nina Rook?"
Lex Cross didn’t speak.
"No, that’s not Nina Rook. Nina has only been on Earth for a mere two months, how could she be pregnant? The woman inside is carrying a child!"
The crone’s eyes were sharp and inspecting. Her body wasn’t emaciated like the other villagers in the ancient town. On the contrary, she had a ruddy complexion and an agile frame.
"I’ve heard that the Rook family has a tradition of raising alien bugs that dates back to ancient times. The woman chosen as the next-generation heir is trained from a young age in how to raise them. Nina Rook’s abilities, strength, and character have been highly regarded by the family since she was a child, so she was groomed as the heir. I’m not surprised she has an alien bug.
But I never expected that besides Nina Rook and the current Rook Family Head, there would be another person with the ability to control alien bugs.
Tell me, what do you think would happen if the Rook family discovered you secretly learned their family’s skills?"
The crone’s face darkened. Her gaze, fixed on Lex Cross, shifted from sullen to fierce, and then she suddenly burst out laughing.
"HAHAHA, so what if they find out? What right does that bitch Nina Rook have to be named the heir? I was a prodigy, born with the innate ability to control alien bugs.
It was I who, at a critical moment in the cosmic war, used my life-bound alien bug to devour all of the enemy’s reserve supplies and food."
A flicker of emotion crossed Lex Cross’s face, and the tension in his features gradually eased.
"You’re the one from the Rook family who helped me vanquish the enemy in that battle?"
The crone’s aged face twisted into a miserable smile. Green energy seemed to restore her stooped figure, and in the blink of an eye, the old crone gradually transformed into a beautiful young woman who looked no older than twenty.
But this form only lasted for a dozen seconds. The young woman’s face paled, her skin became wrinkled once more, and her figure hunched over again.
"You...!"
"That year, for the sake of the ’great cause’ my father spoke of, I risked death to infiltrate the enemy army alone and used my life-bound alien bug to destroy all their rear-echelon supplies.
The two family elders covering for me deliberately made a sound after I completed my mission, causing me to be discovered.
The two of them escaped, but I only managed to get out at the cost of my life-bound alien bug being nearly destroyed.
My life-bound alien bug is connected to my very lifeblood. When it suffered a fatal blow, my own life hung in the balance. To save me, my grandmother sacrificed the alien bug she had spent years taming to extend my life.
And though I survived, my body was transformed into what you see now. Hunched, decrepit, like an old hag.
And it was all because of Nina Rook and her mother!"
Lex Cross had never been one to be moved by women, but the woman before him had indeed sacrificed herself for a great cause.
The admiration and pity in his eyes were like a sharp needle piercing her pride.
But then, Lex Cross started. "You came to Earth in your physical body?"
Evangeline Rook clearly didn’t want to answer Lex Cross’s question. "General Cross, I don’t know what you’re doing here, but I assume you wouldn’t abandon a chosen one like Nina Rook for a family outcast like me, who’s been ruined to the point of being neither human nor ghost.
I arranged everything here. If you want to leave, I’ll let you go for the sake of our past acquaintance. That’s all!"
With that, Evangeline Rook turned to leave but was stopped by Lex Cross.
"Do me a favor, and perhaps I can help you recover your former appearance and strength."
The narrow paths of the ancient town were silent. The sun’s direct rays were mostly blocked, unable to reach the ground level. The sunlight couldn’t penetrate the town’s buildings, leaving the cluster of houses steeped in a chilling, profound silence that bordered on terrifying.
They stared at each other for several dozen seconds. Lex Cross’s expression was calm and casual, while Evangeline Rook’s eyes were filled with a questioning light and a sliver of gradually expanding hope.
"Really? You can restore me?"
"On the condition that you can help me."
At the entrance to the ancient town, the hundred or so people were still on the ground, not daring to get up. After a while, some couldn’t bear it any longer, but the moment they started to stand, they were struck numb by a bolt of lightning and fainted.
As time passed, even though Lex Cross had already withdrawn his superpower, the crowd didn’t know it. Besides, they had been lying on the ground for so long that their bodies were sore and numb, leaving them unable to move. So, they simply stayed put, trying to relax and rest.
Lex Cross pushed open the door to the village elder’s house again, an old, stooped crone following behind him.
Flora Bloom was enveloped in Lex Cross’s black energy. The moment she was revealed, the crone rushed over. One moment she was turning Flora’s head, the next she was inspecting her arms and back. She even got on the ground to examine her calves and ankles.
"General Cross, you’ve given me a huge surprise! HAHAHA! Nina Rook and the others have harmed me so, yet I never expected to stumble upon such a fortunate opportunity!"
Watching the crone perform a series of bizarre actions on her, Flora Bloom couldn’t help but ask, "Lex, what’s going on?"
But Evangeline Rook was startled by Flora Bloom’s use of "Lex." Her gaze toward Lex Cross was filled with disbelief and confusion.
"Who would’ve thought! The universally revered War God of the army, General Cross, famous for being unmoved by women, is here in the middle of nowhere with such an ordinary woman." She stared at Flora Bloom’s swollen belly. "Nina Rook must be consumed with hatred, right? Otherwise, she wouldn’t have used the alien bug she’s been nurturing since childhood on her."