Chapter 368: Green Sapient Lifeform
The Impaler had two radar systems: One was the standard radar in the Alliance and the other was the advanced Black Bat radar which Xia Fei had developed. The Black Bat radar currently only had the ability to send out signals. Its other functions, including scanning and probing, had been crippled.
Xia Fei could only rely on the standard radar to navigate the sea of stars, hoping to find a way back.
The standard radar was weaker all-around, and it also had a fatal flaw. It was incapable of sending or receiving signals over extremely long distances. Once it left the range of the interplanetary internet and the military’s encrypted network, Xia Fei essentially had no means to establish a connection with the distant Alliance.
In normal circ.u.mstances, if the army wanted to leave the Alliance, it would have to take signal relays with them. Every jump, they would have to leave a signal relay in s.p.a.ce to establish a temporary communication network with the Alliance. This would leave a fatal flaw, for if any point in the relay was destroyed, the fleet would lose contact with headquarters.
Alas, Xia Fei did not even have access to this most primitive communication network. Until he brought the Impaler back into Alliance territory, he would remain cut off.
In truth, even without a communication network, as long as he had a starmap, he would be able to use it to find his way back to the Alliance, but this region of stars was so strange that the Impaler’s starmap was incapable of identifying his position. Thus, Xia Fei’s final hope of returning to the Alliance was lost.
For the thirty-secondth time, the Impaler emerged from a wormhole. Performing such completely aimless random jumps was an action of Xia Fei relying purely on luck, and he had no control over what he might encounter.
“Begin scanning all surrounding planets,” Xia Fei grimly ordered.
This was the thirty-secondth time he had given such an order, but each result had been disappointing. There were just no planets with life, landmark towers, or pa.s.sing s.h.i.+ps close to him. This desolate region of the stars was tinged with a dim red, and this color that should have excited the mind felt bleak and cold.
“Landmark 35698… A planet with life signs has been discovered. The atmosphere is suitable for human habitation. Scanning the surface for sources of liquid water…”
Xia Fei jumped from the command chair and sternly ordered, “A planet with life signs! Quickly approach it! Prepare the execute a multilayer composite scan! Activate the s.h.i.+p’s cloaking system! Don’t reveal us!”
Phantom excitedly said, “Wonderful! If the lifeforms on the planet are humans or some other sentient races, we can get a starmap from them and then use it to find our way back to the Alliance.”
Xia Fei remained extremely cool and collected, not losing himself from this exciting discovery. He was well aware that finding a planet with life signs was one thing, but whether or not it had lifeforms was an entirely different matter. If only low-level lifeforms lived on the planet, Xia Fei could not possibly get a starmap capable of getting him back to the Alliance from them.
‘It can at least be a temporary base. If we’re fated to spend the rest of our lives like this, we can at least replenish our food stores on the planet,’ Xia Fei bitterly thought to himself.
“Human-type sapient lifeforms have been discovered, but no high-power activities can be found on the planet’s surface. a.n.a.lysis has determined that basic lifeforms live on this planet with very primitive technology. Threat level is extremely low…”
Normally, areas inhabited by highly sapient lifeforms would have large-scale energy pulses. After all, a population of sapient lifeforms required power plants, factories, and other high-tech locations. Since no large-scale energy activities could be detected after scanning the planet, it meant that the planet was home to basic lifeforms that did not have the ability to reach s.p.a.ce.
Xia Fei felt some disappointment. Basic lifeforms could not offer him much help. What he needed was a starmap—a route back to the Alliance.
“Do you wanna go down and take a look?”
Xia Fei nodded. “It’s fine to take a look. We might make a surprising discovery. Don’t forget that we found the remains of a t.i.tan in a deserted part of the Death Tri-region. We can’t let even the smallest chance pa.s.s us by.”
Xia Fei had the Impaler land in a mountainous region. The locals had probably never seen something so huge before, so Xia Fei did not want to frighten them.
The radar indicated that the local sapient lifeforms’ biggest habitat was in the southern plains. After getting himself ready, Xia Fei set off to the south.
A cool and fresh wind blew across the open plains. The blades of gra.s.s were beginning to yellow, and it appeared that this planet was in autumn season. The long and bitter winter would soon be there.
The plain was not completely flat. There were many small hills undulating across the landscape like waves.
After traveling around three hundred kilometers, Xia Fei did not see a single sapient lifeform, but he did spot many aardwolf-like creatures.
These wolves had very tough hides, and their teeth came in from all sides and came together at the center, like a terrifying man-eating flower. Their tails were short and stiff, and their paws had sharp claws that could tear away at the flesh of anything they latched on to.
These aardwolves were extremely wary. The moment they saw Xia Fei, they ran off into the brush, peering from the gra.s.s at Xia Fei with their crimson eyes.
Xia Fei was an Advanced Rank special ability warrior, so he naturally did not take these aardwolves seriously. Let alone the Beast Spirit Codex, even Celestial Moon was enough to take care of these small creatures.
On a somewhat more elevated slope, Xia Fei lit a cigarette and looked around, hoping to find traces of the sapient lifeforms.
Suddenly, dust rose from the distance and the chirping of birds and howls of beasts came from the surroundings, as if a large pack of creatures was coming his way.
Shading his eyes with a hand, Xia Fei looked over and saw a horse-like creature carrying a person. Behind this horse creature were several hundred aardwolves that seemed to want to eat this person and horse for lunch.
The person on the horse was incredibly short, like a five- or six-year-old child. Their skin was entirely green, and a few strands of black hair hung on their head.
Xia Fei thought it over and decided to save this sapient lifeform and question it. Thus, he swung Celestial Moon and charged out.
His body moved as swiftly as lightning, his blade like a shadow!
Xia Fei’s speed had long ago begun approaching the major threshold of nearly ten thousand meters per second. A normal person would find it extremely difficult to see him. As for the eighteen disk blades of Celestial Moon, it was like a comet circling around him, and from a distance, it appeared like a bright ball of light.
The person on the horse and the aardwolves behind were dumbfounded. The aardwolves could instinctively smell that they were in terrible danger.
A large yellow aardwolf served as the leader of this pack. It raised its head and howled, seemingly telling its subordinates to flee at once.
Alas, the piercing howl had only just gone out when that circular knife split into two, blades inserting themselves through both the scalp and the tail of the wolf!
Dark red blood gushed out, and without feeling the slightest pain, this wolf went to its eternal rest.
Celestial Moon continued to fly around, and in just a few seconds, it had taken down more than half of the pack, leaving the ground strewn with dismembered corpses. The blood dyed the yellowing gra.s.s a gruesome red.
The small, green man on the horse turned their head and looked at Xia Fei, fear evident in their eyes.
After exterminating the wolf pack, Xia Fei went back and s.n.a.t.c.hed that person off the horse with one hand, dragging him from his horse and onto the gra.s.s.
That man hastily crawled backward, not daring to meet Xia Fei’s eyes.
Placing a foot on the man’s chest, Xia Fei sternly asked, “What place is this? Do you know where the insectoids are?”
This place was extremely far away from the Pan-human Alliance, but as long as he could find out where insectoid territory was, he could still find his way back to the Alliance.
Xia Fei examined the face closely. It was clear that this little man was not very old. His small eyes were br.i.m.m.i.n.g with fear as he looked at Xia Fei, but when Xia Fei mentioned the insectoids, his eyes flashed with a tinge of indescribable fear. It was as if he had heard of the insectoids before and lived in mortal fear of their existence.
“You’ve heard of the insectoids before? Hurry and tell me where their territory is, or else I’ll have your life!” Xia Fei savagely said.
This young green person wildly gesticulated. It turned out that he was a mute and was incapable of answering Xia Fei’s question.
Xia Fei lifted him. “Take me to your people.”
…
The green man was unwilling at first, but he was compliant after Xia Fei slapped him several times. He used his finger to point in the direction he had come from, and Xia Fei quickly went to the south while carrying him. The horse-like creature followed. It was rather intelligent and knew that once Xia Fei left, it would never be able to survive on this plain.
“This child’s seventh brain region is already somewhat opened, around thirty percent. He should have some sort of special ability, I guess?” Phantom said.
Xia Fei ignored this comment. He was not worried about whether this little green man had a special ability or not, but rather on how to get back quickly to the Pan-human Alliance.
It was not long before Xia Fei ran into a group of green men who had been chasing the pack of wolves. They appeared very agitated upon seeing the boy in Xia Fei’s hands. Xia Fei looked at their weapons, but they were all cold weapons like spears or bows. The spears were made of some gold-colored metal and were covered in many mysterious carvings.
A golden beam of light suddenly shot out from an angle, targeting Xia Fei!
Startled, Xia Fei slightly leaned back, and the golden beam of light brushed past his chest. Xia Fei had never imagined that these spears held by the green men could fire lasers! It appeared that this planet was more complicated than it seemed.
Xia Fei stopped and released Celestial Moon, killing intent in his heart. Any lifeform that attacked him was an enemy, and Xia Fei would show no pity to enemies.
The green youth in his hand wildly gesticulated, seemingly trying to tell these people something. A green lifeform that appeared to be the eldest jumped off from his horse and dragged that fellow who had suddenly attacked off their horse. As he was very short, he had to pull on that other man’s leg to get them off the horse.
That eldest green man took a golden knife from his waist and swiftly cut off the offender’s ear. He presented the ear with both hands to Xia Fei as if trying to apologize.
The green lifeform who had had his ear cut off said nothing. He simply held the wound as he glared at Xia Fei, apparently unwilling to concede.
Xia Fei discovered that his teeth were very similar to those of a beast, embedded in the upper and lower jaws like nails.
“These sapient lifeforms might be more complex than we thought. They have laser weapons, but their appearances are very primitive,” Phantom said.
Xia Fei sensed a stubborn resistance from these people, so with cold eyes, he walked over to that little green man, who had had his ear cut off, and sliced off his head!
“I hate resentful gazes like this the most,” Xia Fei coldly said.