Chapter 1572 - Asurmen’s Aid (2/2)

The ring-shaped equipment was not Asurmen’s own device, instead, it had been automatically arranged by CARS’ mainframe to assist with the mission.

Looking at the floating ringed crystal, Lily’s ears fluttered as she started to mumble, “Why do I get the feeling that when this thing flashes, a group of twenty-something knife-wielding fanatics will appear out of nowhere, screaming ‘My life for Aiur!’ before swarming the command center…”

“Stop it!” Everyone yelled at the same time.

“I am extremely anxious to meet my dormant kinsmen,” Asurmen’s voice suddenly transmitted from the crystal. “When are we leaving?”

Lily was startled by the sudden voice and could not help but use her claws to poke the crystal’s surface. “Whoa! You can use this to transmit your consciousness and senses?”

“It is a natural ability for us Denizens of the Stars. We were born in a very hostile environment, and being able to split one’s self apart was a survival requirement.”

“We’ll leave in an hour.” Due to the completion of preparatory works while they waited for the “delivery”, plus the fact that there were only three passengers—the little fish included—Hao Ren immediately set the time for departure. “Do you need us to provide you with anything? A mounting platform or some wax and polish—”

“…I do not need any polishing…” Asurmen said.

An hour later, at the forward base’s starport platform…

With the help of the floating ring, Asurmen entered the ship safely, while Hao Ren and Vivian (with Lil Pea in Hao Ren’s arms) said their farewells to the rest.

Although the plan was to make a short exploratory excursion, who knew what they would run into inside the Denizen’s starship and if they would run into any troubles or delays. So, Hao Ren still had to leave some orders behind.

Among them all, only Rollie was rather dejected. Her ears and tail drooped as she squatted by Hao Ren’s side, muttering, “Big Boss Cat, you’re going out to play and you’re not bringing me along again, nya…”

“Play, play, play, that’s all you know. I’m going out to work.” Hao Ren glared angrily at the dumb catgirl, who never seemed to mature before he turned to Y’zaks. “Big guy, I’ll leave everything to you here while we’re out. Just remember to keep an eye on two things; first, don’t let Rollie scamper about, and second, look after your daughter. I almost got an anxiety attack when I saw her with her screwdriver near the long-range cognition array…”

“Don’t worry, don’t worry…” Y’zaks said as he rubbed his shiny head.

“While we’re away, the construction will still proceed. The crystal resonance search antenna array will be completed in five days, while the long-range cognition array will go online in three days. If all things go according to plan, I’ll return before then. If not, get Zorm to take over the First Born’s body here, and the rest of the tasks can be delegated to the automated system.”

After turning over what needed to be done, Hao Ren, Vivian, and the baby fish boarded the Petrachelys. A soft rumble later, the argent starship took off and disappeared into the skyline in a flash of light.

“Even with the three of us together, we aren’t triggering any attacks.” Hao Ren heaved a sigh of relief as he observed the scene outside from the sensors. Meanwhile, in his arms, Lil Pea swished her tail and tiny arms toward the stars on the screen. “Wahhh! We’re flying again!”

“I can sense a minute spike in energy signatures around the ship,” the MDT reported as it monitored the data from the sensors. “The network is actively scanning us, and it looks like we’ve made it through.”

Vivian snorted. “Hmph, this network isn’t all that smart.”

Hao Ren immediately shook his head. “Don’t say that. If it were any smarter, we would be reduced to playing ‘Civilization’ on that planet.”

“This perplexes me.” Floating in the corner of the bridge, Asurmen suddenly spoke, “This system… seems to have a lot of ‘things’.”

Hao Ren was dumbfounded by his cryptic way of speaking. “A lot of things?”

“I do not know how to describe them to you,” Asurmen said. “The way we Denizens sense and perceive things is different from you. If I need to put it into words, it is like a constant murmur everywhere. There are many things within this space; many murmurs and noises are all mixed together ceaselessly in the background radiation… but I cannot seem to find their source.”