A burst of blazing white gas spewed from the stern, like a brief flash of lightning piercing the darkness deep within the rocky crevice. The spaceship shuddered slightly, then fell silent.

Chen Hao didn't let go; he was still pressing the detonation button, his knuckles turning slightly white. He stared at the external camera feed, his voice low: "Have they moved?"

Nana stood in front of the control panel, her eyes scanning the data stream. "Scan wave interrupted, enemy ship is turning."

"Turn?" Susan leaned back against the edge of her seat, looking forward. "Which way?"

"Towards the heat source diffusion zone," Nana said. "Two ships have already moved out of their original positions and are now maneuvering to the right, while the third ship is waiting in the rear."

Carl squatted next to the engineering terminal, glanced up at the propulsion system status bar, and said, "We only have a few minutes. The weld has exploded, and it will take two hours to cool down. Right now, it's just a metal shell."

"Then let's not wait any longer." Chen Hao released the button, turned around and grabbed the control lever. "Let's fix it while they think we've blown up."

"Did you use that move just now to make them think we escaped?" Susan asked.

"It didn't escape, it just crashed." Chen Hao grinned. "Who's going to chase after a wrecked ship that blew itself up? To be a garbage collector?"

Carl sighed, but had already started disassembling the panel. "Fine, there's no other choice anyway."

Nana pulled up the engine structure diagram. "According to the knowledge base records, there have been emergency restart cases for similar models. We can connect to the backup cooling line and skip the main circulation."

"How much time can we save?" Chen Hao asked.

"Theoretically, it can be shortened to thirty-five minutes."

"Too long." Chen Hao shook his head. "We have a maximum of ten minutes."

Susan stood up. "I'll remove the heat insulation panel to speed up heat dissipation."

She walked to the side door of the bulkhead, unscrewed the fastener, and pulled hard, tearing off the entire metal plate to reveal the silver pipes wrapped around it. A rush of heat escaped, and she took a half-step back, wiping the sweat from her face.

“This thing is hot enough to fry an egg,” she said.

"Then don't just stand there spacing out." Chen Hao handed her a pair of gloves. "Hurry up and get it done, I'm waiting for takeoff."

Carl connected the detector, and the screen flickered a few times, showing that the core temperature was still 42 percent above the safe threshold. "No, it's still too high."

"Is there an even more ruthless way?" Chen Hao asked.

Nana quickly swiped the interface, "There is a way: using the hull's gliding inertia, the cold air can be reversed from the outer guide channel to flush the heat dissipation module."

"It sounds like pouring cold water on a feverish head," Chen Hao said.

“The effect is similar,” Nana nodded, “but the posture angle needs to be precisely controlled, and the error cannot exceed 0.5 degrees.”

"Leave it to me." Chen Hao sat back in the driver's seat. "Just tell me when to push and when to stop."

“Ready to begin,” Carl said. “Now activate the auxiliary cooling program.”

Susan held onto the edge of the heat shield, staring at the vents. "It's too windy outside. Be careful not to blow the parts away."

"If the parts are gone, they're gone." Chen Hao stared at the instrument panel. "At worst, we'll just pick up a new one on the road."

Nana's voice rang out: "Cooling airflow is being introduced, and the rate of temperature drop is increasing."

On the screen, the red warning line slowly receded.

"Another eight percentage points drop and we can try restarting." Carl stared at the data. "That's about it."

"Then let's not wait until 'almost'." Chen Hao reached for the start button. "Let's get started."

"Wait!" Karl raised his hand. "At least lock the output power first, otherwise it will explode as soon as it's turned on."

He quickly entered the command to limit the power output to 60%.

"Alright," he said. "You can start it now."

Chen Hao pressed the button.

A low growl came from deep within the propulsion compartment, like a wild beast awakened. The needles on the instrument panel jerked violently, then stabilized, and the green cursor slowly climbed upwards.

"Power is back in operation," Nana said. "Current output is at 58%, and it's stabilizing."

"That's enough." Chen Hao breathed a sigh of relief. "It's better than lying down."

Just as he was about to push the control stick, Nana suddenly spoke up: "Attention, the enemy ship's communication channel has been reactivated."

"Not again?" Susan frowned.

“They were calling for their companions,” Nana said. “They mentioned discovering an escaping heat source and requested assistance to intercept it.”

"Looks like they really believed it," Chen Hao laughed. "They thought we were running away in a smoking boat."

“But they haven’t gone far.” Carl pointed to the radar. “One ship is staying put and is approaching the entrance to the crevice.”

“That was reconnaissance.” Chen Hao gripped the control stick tightly. “We won’t call it a day until we’re sure we’re dead.”

"So what do we do now?" Susan asked.

"What else can we do?" Chen Hao looked at the V-shaped crack in the camera lens. "We'll just have to rush out."

"A frontal charge?" Karl's eyes widened. "They're already aiming!"

"If we don't go out facing them, are we supposed to go out backwards?" Chen Hao said. "By the time they realize we didn't blow it up, we won't even have a chance to move."

Nana quickly adjusted the flight path, "I suggest that after starting, immediately veer 30 degrees to the left to avoid the area of ​​direct fire coverage."

"I'll do as you say." Chen Hao took a deep breath. "Everyone fasten your seatbelts, we're about to start dancing."

He pushed the control stick.

The spaceship shuddered violently, its thrusters roaring as they worked. A dull thud came from the starboard side, like metal being torn open, but the power continued.

"They're out!" Susan shouted.

In the surveillance footage, the spacecraft, trailing a faint plume of flame, burst forth from the crevice in the rock, its left wing scraping against the rock wall, sparks flying everywhere.

The next second, a beam of energy shot from the side and struck the stern shield. The entire cabin shook violently, and the lights flickered.

"I got hit!" Susan grabbed the handrail.

"The shield held up," Nana said, looking at the data. "But only 23% remains."

"Don't stop!" Chen Hao jerked the steering wheel. "Weave a zigzag pattern, don't let them lock on!"

The spaceship weaved through the rubble, each change of direction accompanied by violent tremors. The alarm on the starboard side sounded again.

"The weld is cracked!" Karl stared at the screen. "Power fluctuations could cause a breakdown at any moment."

"So be it," Chen Hao gritted his teeth. "As long as it doesn't stay in the sky."

Nana pressed the decoy launch button. "Two flares have been released."

Two bright beams shot from the stern and flew off in different directions. The pirates' first volley missed, hitting a floating rock in the distance and exploding into a burst of fire.

“It works,” Nana said. “They’ll need time to recalibrate.”

"Then don't give them time." Chen Hao quickened his pace, "Get close to that big rock."

He maneuvered his spaceship close to a rotating giant rock, using its mass to block the signal tracking. The enemy ship's lock-on notification indeed disappeared.

"I've shaken them off for now." Susan breathed a sigh of relief.

“It’s only temporary.” Karl stared at the radar. “The third one is catching up and is charging its main guns.”

"How long do you need to charge it?" Chen Hao asked.

"Expected to be completed in forty seconds."

"How much longer until we're out of range?"

"Fifty seconds."

"Ten seconds to go." Chen Hao looked at Nana. "Is there any way to make them slow down?"

Nana quickly calculated, "We can try short-pulse electromagnetic interference to disrupt the charging rhythm. But we can only use it once."

"Use it," Chen Hao said. "Susan, prepare for launch."

Susan moved her finger to the control button. "Waiting for your command."

“Now,” Chen Hao said.

She pressed the button.

A weak electromagnetic wave shot out and instantly struck the bow of the enemy ship. The enemy's main gun charging progress bar suddenly stalled for five seconds.

"We did it!" Susan exclaimed.

“Don’t celebrate,” Carl warned. “They’ve started again.”

"Enough!" Chen Hao slammed the control stick. "Full speed ahead!"

The spaceship's engines roared, their exhaust plumes lengthening. The alarm at the weld joint grew increasingly urgent, and the power readings fluctuated wildly.

"Hang in there..." Karl murmured.

At the last second, the spaceship broke out of the main gun's lock-on range. Three pirate ships behind it opened fire simultaneously, their beams weaving into a net, but hitting nothing but empty air. The shockwave from the explosion struck the asteroid belt, triggering a chain reaction of collapses and scattering debris everywhere.

"I dodged it." Susan leaned back in her chair, panting.

"It's not over yet." Chen Hao stared at the rearview radar. "They're still chasing us, and the distance hasn't increased."

Carl inspected the system and said, "The thrusters won't last much longer; the welds have started to leak pressure."

"Then let it leak." Chen Hao looked at the dark depths of space ahead. "Anyway, we're not planning to turn back."

Nana suddenly spoke up: "A large gravitational disturbance region has been detected ahead, which may be a dense asteroid belt."

"Perfect," Chen Hao laughed. "Let's go inside and hide."

He adjusted the course, and the spaceship headed straight for the chaotic area.

A sharp metallic scraping sound came from the weld on the starboard side, like bone about to break.

Chen Hao gripped the control lever tightly.