I Am a Salted Fish in the Interstellar Era - Chapter 36
Feng Xiao and his team, after retracting their mechas, noticed that the entire Sea Blue Express headquarters was shaking violently, unsure of what had happened.
Feng Xiao’s brain-computer interface screen flickered as he said in a deep voice, “That group of spiders is running away frantically.”
They were escaping without any order, all the red dots scattering, running for their lives without any organization or purpose.
Lu Dongyan tried calling Shi Yu’s brain-computer interface again but got no response: “What do we do now?”
The fact that the spiders were fleeing so desperately meant that something abnormal had happened here, but since they hadn’t seen Shi Yu or Xie Yuyan, they couldn’t just leave.
Luo Xiaci’s eyelids twitched; he suddenly looked up, observed around, then jumped onto a nearby building, unfolding his brain-computer interface screen. A virtual tentacle emerged and attached to the building, pulling up its surveillance immediately.
The remaining three followed closely, soon seeing a blurry image appear.
Three people in black exoskeletons were escorting Shi Yu and Xie Yuyan down from a hovercar. The group exchanged glances, tightening up at the sight.
Even with a hood on, Xie Yuyan’s silver hair was too conspicuous to hide. Seeing him captured alongside Shi Yu, having left the shelter without their knowledge, was naturally astonishing.
The four of them looked down in silence, and upon seeing the scene below, they involuntarily twitched the corners of their mouths.
Gu Qianqian clenched his fists. “I think there’s really no need for us to worry about her. We can go back the way we came.”
Being captured and still leisurely eating fruit, the person who captured her is truly pitiful.
Feng Xiao nodded in agreement.
Lu Dongyan found it hard to disagree.
Luo Xiaci also reluctantly put away his brain-computer interface.
A minute later, the four stood in front of the elevator, exchanging a peculiar look before entering.
Don’t ask, it’s just curiosity at work.
–
Shi Yu felt a sense of eeriness as she watched the two people looking at each other up and down.
The silver-haired boy’s appearance was fully exposed, but he obviously didn’t look like the Little Beauty. There was a hollow pattern on his forehead, unfortunately, it was too far away for Shi Yu to see clearly what pattern it was. Below that, a pair of mysterious golden eyes shone with a mysterious light, making one unconsciously want to explore what he was thinking.
His eyebrows and eyes did not carry the aloofness and sharpness of the Little Beauty, but they were equally sharp and distinct, like the work of a skilled craftsman. His silver hair floated in an unknown liquid, adding an unusual beauty to him.
Suddenly, a transparent tube shot out from the glass jar, moving like a flexible snake, its needle piercing into the neck of the silver-haired boy. Once the liquid in the transparent tube was injected, the tube flicked and retracted.
The boy’s brows immediately furrowed in pain, his face wrinkled, and his body shook violently. The original beauty was crushed, replaced by chaos and suffocation.
He struggled in pain, bubbling with air.
Shi Yu felt an inexplicable heaviness in her heart, and with difficulty, she looked away, only to see that Xie Yuyan had unfolded his smart device at some point, connecting virtual tentacles to the transparent glass jar.
He pursed his lips, his hands moving across one virtual screen after another. Shi Yu guessed what he was trying to do and blurted out, “Are you crazy?”
An SSS+ suspected insectoid royal evolutionary, if released carelessly, who knows what would happen.
Sometimes, Shi Yu also thought she was too cold-hearted, but that was the reality. She had witnessed the evil of humanity, having climbed out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood. In the face of danger, her first thought was how to survive, not to make decisions that might endanger her own life because of a moment of soft-heartedness.
Xie Yuyan, with his lips pressed together, said something that astonished Shi Yu.
“I’ve seen him before. He was supposed to be dead.”
The gurgling sound began, and the liquid inside the transparent glass jar started to be drained. When the liquid was completely removed, the jar opened, and the boy locked in the jar slid down.
Xie Yuyan took off his coat to support him but was instantly grabbed by the throat by the boy and slammed against another transparent glass jar.
Without hesitation, Shi Yu raised her energy gun, but Xie Yuyan immediately raised his hand to her, signaling her not to shoot.
“Lan Luo, it’s me. Do you remember me?” Xie Yuyan, holding the boy’s hand on his neck, said with difficulty.
Shi Yu’s eyes widened in shock. The Little Beauty actually knew this suspected insectoid royal evolutionary? And even called out his name?
The boy stopped exerting force, and Xie Yuyan slowly said, “Didn’t you leave? Why are you here? Why have you become like this?”
Xie Yuyan stared intently at the boy’s unfocused golden pupils, seeing a fleeting confusion, and whispered, “Who captured you? Do you know?”
As time ticked by, the boy remained silent. Xie Yuyan continued to stare into his eyes until finally, the golden pupils slowly regained focus. The boy opened his mouth with difficulty, uttering an almost inaudible sound, “Xiao… Yan…”
Xie Yuyan immediately nodded, holding his hand: “Lan Luo, do you remember me?”
The boy slowly released his grip under his gaze but in the instant he let go, he suddenly grabbed Xie Yuyan’s collar and threw him out.
“No! You’re not! You’re lying to me! You’re all lying to me!”
Xie Yuyan was left reeling from the blow, coughing heavily as he fell to the ground.
Seeing the boy lose control, his transparent nails flinging out and elongating with the sharpness of a razor, heading straight for Xie Yuyan, Shi Yu realized the danger. She quickly leaped forward, her right pinky’s mimetic exoskeleton ring activating, emitting a sudden flash of silver-blue light.
With a ‘clang’ sound, the boy’s nails collided with the mimetic exoskeleton covering Shi Yu’s entire hand.
The massive force of the impact made Shi Yu’s body tilt, a tingling sensation spreading from her arm, nearly throwing her off balance.
She wasn’t one to just take it; her curved knife appeared in hand, slashing towards the boy’s jaw. He awkwardly dodged, but a cut left a thin line of blood, which astonishingly healed at a visible rate.
The faint fragrance drifting with the blood startled Shi Yu, and at that moment, a violent tremor came from outside.
The boy was distracted by the tremor, his golden pupils dilating with confusion then sharpening with caution. Before Shi Yu could react, his elongated nails retracted, and a pair of exquisitely beautiful butterfly wings sprouted from his back.
She barely had time to take a closer look at the boy’s butterfly wings before he sliced open a black hole in the air with them and dived in, disappearing along with the hole.
Such a defiance of physics left Shi Yu with her mouth agape, not closing it until Xie Yuyan pulled her up, making her realize that the boy had indeed appeared and then vanished.
Rubbing her numb arm, Shi Yu glanced at the grim-faced Xie Yuyan and quietly asked, “Who exactly is he? What’s your relationship with him?”
Xie Yuyan’s expression turned complicated, as if unsure how to describe their relationship. Shi Yu waved it off, “Never mind, we’ll talk about it later. Let’s get out of here. Who knows what’s happening outside, but that shaking wasn’t a good sign.”
Her words had just ended when a loud crash echoed, a heavy object colliding with the wall made the entire space tremble.
Shi Yu shivered, quickly grabbed Xie Yuyan’s hand, and from her space bag, took out the hood she had previously removed from him, covering his head again before he could react. Using her metal ability, she tore open the wall, but the stench of blood nearly made her run back.
The ground was covered with torn corpses, and a humanoid figure, covered in tumors, was chewing on something in the corner, causing Shi Yu almost to vomit on the spot.
The creature stopped its chewing motion for a moment, turning its stiff head towards them.
It had a human face but was covered in tumors, with strange fluids seeping out and dripping down.
Really, Shi Yu’s stomach churned at the sight.
She quickly glanced around, grabbed Little Beauty trying to pull off the hood, her eyes shining with a golden light.
The creature, with blood still at the corner of its mouth and making a sinister chuckling sound, hadn’t moved before a metal blade pierced through its exposed heart.
Without pausing, Shi Yu continued dragging Xie Yuyan.
She didn’t know what was beyond another wall, but she ran towards where the shaking sounds were faintest.
If not for the confined space, she would have taken out her ?War God? instead of running breathlessly for who knows how long without getting anywhere.
Finally, after tearing through another metal wall, she heard whispers.
“What’s going on here? Why does it keep shaking? Speak up, or your life is forfeit.” The arrogant voice was undoubtedly Gu Qianqian’s.
Skeptically scanning towards the source, Shi Yu saw several vague figures.
“Looking at how badly you’re injured, seems like things are complicated. Tell us where the people you brought went, and we’ll let you leave,” said Lu Dongyan.
Shi Yu rolled her eyes at the ceiling, pulled off Little Beauty’s hood, stuffed it into her space bag, pretending she hadn’t just done something, and walked towards them with him under the cold gaze.
“What are you guys doing here?” Shi Yu leaned against the wall, eyeing four people cornering three chicks.
Seeing the state of the three chicks, Shi Yu whistled loudly, “Yo, 770, 880, 520, you guys look quite pitiful, huh?”
770, 880, and 520 were still in black mimetic exoskeletons, but one had a broken arm, another was covered in blood, and a third had a steel rod piercing through his abdomen.
After whistling, Shi Yu raised an eyebrow at Feng Xiao and the others, “Did you guys do this to them? Pretty impressive!”
Feng Xiao looked at Shi Yu, who was unharmed and still had the mood to jest, and gave a silent nod.
Lu Dongyan stared at Shi Yu with a gloomy gaze.
Gu Qianqian pulled the safety catch of the energy gun.
Luo Xiaci did not follow the crowd but tapped on the virtual screen of his brain-computer interface, glanced at Xie Yuyan, and said, “These three are from the Tribunal of the refuge.”
What did the people of the Tribunal want by bringing Xie Yuyan and Shi Yu here?
Shi Yu, surprised, glanced at 770, 880, and 520, then gently nudged the waist of the Little Beauty next to her with her elbow, “Your ability to command is really lacking, isn’t it? Your own people want your life?”
Xie Yuyan looked down at Shi Yu’s elbow, his gaze cold, and then said, “Let’s leave here first.”
“What about these three?” Shi Yu pointed at 770, 880, and 520, whose vital signs were very weak.
Xie Yuyan picked up the energy gun indifferently and, to the surprise of the onlookers, ended their lives.
“Traitors, die.”
Shi Yu glanced at the cold-faced Little Beauty beside her, feeling her impression of him needed updating again.
Just as they stepped onto the ground, the entire Sea Blue Express headquarters building collapsed instantly. Shi Yu grabbed Xie Yuyan by the waist and, amid the expletives of others, took him into the cockpit of the [War God].
As the building collapsed, a huge tentacle emerged from the ground. This flesh-colored tentacle, covered with many bumps that oozed disgusting liquid, resembled the monster they encountered earlier. It emerged from the ground, revealing a fat abdomen with a large circular set of sharp teeth on top.
Its teeth continuously snapped, emitting a loud cracking sound. Meanwhile, another huge tentacle was pulled out from below its abdomen, and in total, six tentacles were drawn out.
It was like an octopus, yet it lacked an octopus’s head; like a bug, yet it had tentacles instead of legs.
The bumps on the tentacles swelled, and Shi Yu felt vaguely familiar with them. A flash of light crossed her mind, and she thought of the tentacle that first emerged from the hole during the butterfly attack on the refuge.
Could this monster be the full appearance of that tentacle?
The Insect Clan’s compendium had no introduction to such a monster.
Shi Yu, piloting the [War God] towards the sky, watched as the monster’s sharp teeth opened, and its dark maw let out a deafening roar. Countless unknown disgusting things were sprayed out. Shi Yu’s light beam sword nearly had to weave into a flower to prevent the [War God] from being contaminated by those disgusting things.
Inside the cockpit of the [War God], Xie Yuyan had at some point opened his brain-computer interface, and countless virtual screens surged in front of him. He then said, “It might have been hit with a stimulant; it definitely wasn’t this big before. Four of the six tentacles are newly grown. The substance it’s spraying contains energy crystals, suggesting someone has been feeding it with energy crystals, leading to a mutation.”
“We can’t let this thing leave here. Once the stimulant in its body fully activates, it will mutate into something even more terrifying. By then, no refuge will be able to handle it.”
In a rush, Shi Yu glanced at Xie Yuyan, unable to discern how he knew the monster had been injected with a stimulant or was fed to grow.
Soon, the monster, waving its six tentacles, did not attack Shi Yu, nor did it attack Feng Xiao, Lu Dongyan, and Luo Xiaci. All six tentacles attacked Gu Qianqian.
This was exceedingly abnormal!
Gu Qianqian was surrounded by the six tentacles. The thrusters of the mecha, not his own but one he got from the refuge later, were pushed to the limit. Its performance couldn’t compare to the other mechas, and amidst the awkward dodging, the mecha’s weapons were completely destroyed by the tentacles.
Just as he was about to be bound by the tentacles, a sniper bullet flew from a distance, piercing through one of the tentacles’ bumps. The substance inside splattered out, causing the tentacle to flinch back in pain.
Feng Xiao’s artillery support had arrived, with several shells exploding in the air, flipping the tentacles over. Immediately after, the mecha driven by Luo Xiaci dashed past, bringing Gu Qianqian out of danger.
The “War God” in Shi Yu’s hand was already prepared. She dashed like a bolt of lightning, slicing off the tentacles section by section with a ripping sound. The monster let out another fierce scream of pain as it wildly flailed its tentacles, which regrew with a squelching sound, even more disgusting and tumorous than before.
“Damn! How do we fight this? It can regrow?” Shi Yu commented in disbelief, but the monster moved even faster.
“Do you see the red marks at the base of its tentacles? That’s its weakness. Cut it off,” Xie Yuyan suggested, his virtual screen bustling as he made quick analyses and judgments.
Shi Yu grinned and responded, “Alright, alright!”
The virtual particle wings on the back of the “War God” vibrated lightly, and Shi Yu disappeared from the spot before the monster could attack again. She then opened the public channel, “Guys, cover me for a sec, I’m going to cut it off!”
The artillery on Feng Xiao’s mecha fired, each shell hitting the monster’s tentacles accurately. He coldly spoke over the public channel, “If you don’t finish in a minute, don’t bother coming back.”
Lu Dongyan fired several shots, also speaking over the public channel, “Weren’t you capable? Running off alone, now why can’t you kill it alone?”
Feeling guilty from their cold remarks, Shi Yu secretly turned off the public channel, pretending as if nothing had happened, and controlled the “War God” to dive straight towards the ground under their cover.
Shi Yu wasn’t foolish enough to approach the massive monster herself. Landing on the ground, she immediately detached the floaters mounted on the legs of the War God, and between leaps and flips, four floaters shot out silver beams, fiercely cutting towards the base of the monster’s tentacles.
With all four floaters working together and Shi Yu’s beam sword not idle either, as one of the monster’s tentacles was severed, two beam swords flew out like spinning blades of light, returning to her control after slicing through.
Meanwhile, Naka twin-wing floaters appeared behind the “War God.” Shi Yu, under Xie Yuyan’s guidance, completed the docking with the Naka floaters.
Feeling the Naka floaters mounted on the “War God,” Shi Yu’s eyes filled with excitement. She swiped through the newly appeared virtual screens and, vibrating the virtual particle wings again, flew high into the sky.
Silver beams shot out from the Naka floaters, striking directly at the giant monster’s bulging abdomen.
The energy beams from the Naka floaters, capable of disrupting Gray Light Shields and dissolving spatial rifts, were more than enough to handle the monster.
Under the energy beams, the monster howled madly, but it was too large and clumsy to escape the engulfing beams.
After a dazzling flash of silver light, the monster collapsed to the ground with a thunderous fall, its densely packed sharp teeth motionless.
After the intense battle came profound silence.
Shi Yu’s excitement subsided, turning to see Little Beauty kneeling on the ground, pouring a potion into his mouth.
He looked up, his silver hair fluttering, wearing a tight military uniform with a well-fitted belt cinching his waist, highlighting his slender and frail figure, having given his coat to the boy earlier.
Realizing her gaze was a bit inappropriate, Shi Yu blinked guiltily and helped him up, “Are you okay?”
How did someone so frail manage to overthrow those invaders and reclaim the lost territories for the federation?
Xie Yuyan didn’t refuse her help, taking a breath to stand but collapsed onto Shi Yu, lacking the strength.
Shi Yu quickly grabbed his arm, placing it over her shoulder, hearing his barely audible voice, “Keep Lan Luo’s matter a secret… destroy this place afterward, remember, no one should know you were here…”
Shi Yu, finding him half-dead yet concerned about this, rolled her eyes speechlessly, about to speak when she felt a weight on her.
Little Beauty had fainted.
Shi Yu had no choice but to support him and send a message to Feng Xiao and the others, asking them to destroy the entire Sea Blue Express headquarters.
They secretly returned to the shelter with Xie Yuyan, and only then did Shi Yu remember to message Xie Jiangsa, opening her brain-computer interface to see a screen full of question marks.
Shi Yu scrolled up the chat box speechlessly until she found a complete sentence.
?Brother Xie: What do you mean you can’t come back for now? Didn’t I say if he doesn’t listen, just knock him out and bring him back??
Shi Yu glanced down at the Little Beauty, indeed brought back unconscious.
Xie Yuyan was too high-profile a target, so Shi Yu didn’t dare to bring him into the shelter openly. Instead, she sneakily waited near the shelter for Xie Jiangsa to come and pick him up.
The group looked at Xie Yuyan, who was unconscious against the wall, exchanged glances silently, and then all looked at Shi Yu.
Feeling uneasy under their gaze, Shi Yu quickly came up with a justification, boldly saying, “What did you guys take from the Sea Blue Express headquarters? Don’t deny it, I saw that monster chasing after the rich young master, I saw everything!”
Rich young master was the nickname Shi Yu had given to the wealthy Gu.
Caught off guard by her accusation, they felt guilty. Gu Qianqian hesitantly pulled out a crystal box from his pocket.
Shi Yu was shocked when she saw the butterfly specimen inside the crystal box, “Are you collecting stamps now? Another butterfly specimen?”
Soon, Shi Yu found the butterfly specimen familiar; its wings were identical to the ones that had grown on the back of that boy.
Looking down at the still unconscious Little Beauty, she examined the butterfly specimen against the light. The wings, golden with hints of light green, were scattered with specks of gold, shimmering beautifully under the sunlight.
Shi Yu tilted her head and asked, “Where did you get this from?”
“Just now, when those three people were running away, they had it, and I just…” the rich young master tried to explain.
“Almost cost you your life in the process,” Shi Yu replied sharply.
Gu Qianqian felt the sting of her words.
Alright, he went silent, admitting he shouldn’t have spoken.
“Is it okay if I keep this butterfly specimen?” Shi Yu shook the crystal box.
Gu Qianqian nodded pitifully.
Soon after, Xie Jiangsa arrived in a hurry. He was surprised to see the group huddled together, and even more so when he saw the unconscious Xie Yuyan, incredulously asking, “Did you really knock him out and bring him back?”
Shi Yu avoided direct eye contact, neither confirming nor denying, but quickly stood her ground, hands on her hips, “I brought him back to you, remember to give me my pudding!”
Seeing Shi Yu still fixated on the pudding amused Xie Jiangsa, who agreed with a laugh and helped Xie Yuyan up.
Shi Yu hesitated, not handing over the butterfly specimen.
She felt the specimen was related to the disappeared boy and might be sought after again.
After all, the Little Beauty couldn’t leave Sea Blue Star anytime soon. It would be better to give it to him when he wakes up and ask what exactly happened today.
However, Shi Yu didn’t expect that their next meeting would be two years later.
Upon returning to the shelter, Xie Jiangsa exposed a bunch of infiltrators, cleansing them with bloody methods.
The core members of the Judgment Legion were dispatched by Xie Yuyan to Sea Blue Star, where ten SSS-class mechas bloodied the entire Zerg nest on Sea Blue Star and discovered a black hole. After destroying this hole, the Zerg seemed to realize the impending disaster, with the smaller ones hiding and the larger ones making their final desperate counterattack.
The shelter and the space station were finally able to communicate again. Xie Yuyan, upon waking up, was busy non-stop. Shi Yu was always on missions, having no time to meet him. During the ongoing operations against the Zerg on Sea Blue Star, a message came from the front lines.
The head of the Republic of Toyas was assassinated while signing a peace agreement with the Federation at the Lierweya Fortress, prompting General Helles, the supreme military leader of the Republic of Toyas, to declare war on the Federation!
Xie Yuyan was leaving.
Ever since he led the Judgment Legion to retake the Lierweya Fortress, he had been in charge of its management, never making a mistake.
Now, while he was on the planet Sea Blue, the head of the Republic of Toyas was assassinated at the Lierweya Fortress, inevitably linking the incident to conspiracy theories.
Should the Federal Congress seek accountability, Xie Yuyan could not escape questioning.
Shi Yu, along with everyone from the shelter, went to see him off. Initially worried, her concerns eased upon hearing comments like “Commander Xie, this time you must crush the scum of the Republic of Toyas without mercy, we support you” and “Exactly, Commander Xie, it must be their own internal strife, trying to shift the blame onto us. Let them see that it’s not easy to pass the buck.”
Shi Yu saw the Little Beauty waving to the crowd, then walking into the shuttle in a beautiful dark red military uniform, her silver hair tied with a satin ribbon.
The shuttle took off, with Xie Jiangsa and other core members of the Judgment Legion escorting it in their mechas.
Shi Yu waved with the crowd, then suddenly widened her eyes as if remembering something. She jumped up, pointing at the shuttle now a small black dot in the sky, and exclaimed angrily, “Damn! Little Beauty! You haven’t given me my pudding!”