The person who would interfere with the images on the electronic screen is naturally Xavier.
It was clearly startled.
This is understandable, after all, as a new life born on the Apollo, Xavier had never dealt with such a thing before.
"take it easy."
Seeing Xavier reveal his mouthparts to the cracked electronic screen as if facing a formidable enemy, Lin Xi quickly stopped him and said something.
Hiss—
Xavier unconsciously stepped in front of Lin Xi and then looked at her with some unease.
"Lin Xi?"
Lin Xi subconsciously glanced at Xavier's now somewhat bald back.
If Xavier still had wings, all its emotions would probably be displayed on them without reservation. Unbeknownst to Lin Xi himself, deep down he felt a pang of longing for Xavier's wings.
"...At least for now, this thing seems harmless."
Lin Xi continued.
However, while saying this, Lin Xi still looked warily at the electronic screen that looked like it was about to fall apart at any moment, showing no sign of letting her guard down.
Just as he explained to Xavier, the woman on the screen was not a real person; she was an electronic image designed many years ago to interact with humans on a spaceship.
If paired with the ship's artificial intelligence, these electronic images are practically like inanimate humans, able to freely communicate, interact, and handle various matters.
However, from Lin Xi's observation, the "woman" in front of him was clearly not connected to the Providence's system, nor was she assisted by any artificial intelligence.
It appears rigid and mechanical, repeating the same pre-set phrases over and over again.
Even now, with her electronic screen shattered, the woman's smile remained unchanged. She gazed captivatingly at the two people in reality and continued speaking according to the established procedure.
"...The NO8786 lounge will offer you a forest-themed spa retreat and a 360-degree holographic projection window... Distinguished guest... The entire crew of the Providence wishes you a wonderful time here, and a chance to fully relax your mind and body..."
It has to be said that the slogans set many years ago sound somewhat eerie and terrifying in today's environment... and even a little bit creepy.
As the woman whispered, a tightly closed, round metal hatch opened directly in front of Lin Xi.
Behind the door was a thick darkness, and Lin Xi could smell a musty odor emanating from behind the hatch.
The darkness lasted only a brief moment. Soon, Lin Xi noticed a soft light gradually flickering on behind the hatch, illuminating a small patch of crimson, soft carpet near the entrance…
In Lin Xi's time, it was rare to see such luxury items on a spaceship.
Lin Xi glanced quickly at the hatch, then silently took several steps back with Xavier.
His muscles tensed slightly, subconsciously waiting for something strange to emerge from behind the hatch.
Of course, rationally speaking, Lin Xi knew very well that such electronic images could not possibly have any real offensive power, but he still found it difficult to let down his guard.
What could be more eerie than a leisure space suddenly being reopened in a dormant spaceship? Lin Xi didn't think the people on the Providence would be so hospitable and friendly.
As the rest area reopened, more and more lights came on. Perhaps to create a relaxed and gentle atmosphere, each light was dim and yellowish, making the space in front of Lin Xi, which had been carefully designed by people, look more like an illusion created by the devil in a fairy tale to tempt mortals.
In contrast, footsteps and rustling sounds came from all directions through pipes and corridors, gradually approaching Lin Xi and Xavier.
Even without looking, Lin Xi knew that those mechanical warriors were still as persistent as ever, surging towards Lin Xi and Xavier in an attempt to stop them.
Originally, those mechanical warriors were not something to worry about. Neither Xavier nor Lin Xi were the weak and helpless individuals they were on the Sun God.
Lin Xi quickly looked at his palm. It was still a human hand, but Lin Xi knew very well that even without Xavier, he could easily deal with those annoying metal monsters.
Of course, the premise is... that a new life is currently growing inside his body, eagerly awaiting its arrival into this world.
Those will be his true descendants and offspring.
In human terms, it was the child he and Xavier had conceived together—though at this moment, the child's restlessness was causing Lin Xi immense pain.
"Hmm..."
Another soft groan escaped Lin Xi's lips, and her body swayed.
"Lin Xi?!"
Xavier immediately realized that something was wrong with Lin Xi.
It quickly followed Lin Xi's gaze to the latter's swollen abdomen.
That incredibly powerful and robust life began to reveal its existence, and a crimson glint flashed in Xavier's eyes.
"...We will have many children."
Xavier hissed.
If you don't like offspring that are underdeveloped and only have basic instincts, you can simply kill them after they are born...
Xavier almost blurted out the last sentence; in fact, it was quite certain that Lin Xi already knew what it was thinking.
Over the past hundreds of millions of years, there has never been a shortage of individuals in the alien species who have been killed by the Queen (or other offspring) because they lost the favor of the Queen.
"No."
Lin Xi shook his head hoarsely, rejecting Xavier's offer.
But then he couldn't help but stagger.
"Damn it—"
Lin Xi let out a curse.
"It's coming out."
He had to accept this reality.
Something was approaching, and that thing made him unable to control the birth of his newborn offspring—the new life reacted exceptionally strongly to what was approaching Lin Xi.
Lin Xi had no choice but to turn her gaze to that strange and inexplicable "rest space" once again.
At the same moment, along with the metallic sounds that Lin Xi was already very familiar with, the sounds that came with the movement of mechanical warriors, another implicit sound also became clear...
The sizzling, sticky, and wet sound was something that Lin Xi found very interesting.
Not long ago, Lin Xi had dealt with those tangled white nematodes. Now, only a short while later, Lin Xi would never forget the unique frequency and sound their disgusting bodies made as they moved.
"Are you kidding me...?"
Lin Xi muttered something, then her expression turned very serious.
The offspring he was developing inside his womb were completely out of control because of the arrival of those white nematodes.
"I thought Scripps had burned all that stuff to ashes."
Well... just thinking about those seemingly frail white nematodes made Lin Xi feel that indescribable nausea and unease once again.
"...Leave the external pressures and troubles outside for a while, and you will get the most complete relaxation experience here."
Just then, Lin Xi heard the electronic image in front of him once again deliver a programmed introduction.
His eyes sharpened, and he abruptly looked up to meet the woman's sweet yet mechanical face behind the screen.
When the other person said this, there was an unnatural pause in their speech—although they could only say a few pre-arranged lines of dialogue, it was clear that someone had just changed the order of those lines.
Someone was trying to communicate with him through this electronic image...
"Captain Scripps, is that you?"
Lin Xi spoke directly.
The electronically synthesized image flickered.
However, this was enough to earn Lin Xi recognition.
"...Our system will provide you with a holographic visual feast that will allow you to relax completely."
It sounded like a standard introductory statement, but upon closer examination, Lin Xi felt that some "ghost" hidden behind the information flow was trying to tell him something.
"Okay, it's you."
Lin Xi quickly came to a conclusion.
"...Next, after a countdown of ten seconds, we will begin deducting points from your account. If you absolutely need to use this space, please enter as soon as possible to avoid wasting your contribution points. Ten, nine, eight..."
After a slight, unusual pause, the woman in the holographic image spoke to Lin Xi again.
This is a subtle urging from Scripps.
Should we hide inside as soon as possible?
Lin Xi and Xavier exchanged a glance.
"Walk……"
The next second, Lin Xi took a deep breath and strode straight toward the so-called resting space.
What's going on?
Throughout this process, Xavier appeared somewhat stiff.
It showed extra resistance to the suddenly appearing electronic woman.
"Why...why do you listen to her?"
It muttered softly and confusedly.
“I don’t know,” Lin Xi said, frowning, one hand on her stomach, “...but my gut feeling tells me I don’t want to come into contact with those white things, those things are really…”
Some of them are quite creepy.
Lin Xi choked on all her words.
The door closed behind them.
After Lin Xi and Xavier were detected entering, the lounge seemed to come back to life from the dead.
Originally, most of the space here was hidden in darkness, with only a few scattered dim lights serving as the light source to enhance the environment.
And now the whole room is gradually becoming brighter.
Lin Xi heard some exceptionally realistic environmental sounds: the sound of water, birdsong, and the sound of wind blowing through the grass...
The stale air from 300 years of closure gradually became fresh thanks to the ventilation system, and then the carefully configured environmental simulator began to work.
Lin Xi smelled the fresh air as if it were drawn directly from the forest... and this close combination of sound and smell made the scene in front of him seem almost real.
Lin Xi...
Xavier looked like it was about to explode. It called Lin Xi's name dryly, then stretched out its arms and hugged Lin Xi tightly in its arms.
Where is this?
"Xavier asked."
It's hard to blame Xavier for being nervous at this moment, after all, he had never seen any natural landscapes on Earth before.
Now, if Lin Xi could forget that they were in the lounge on the Providence, even he would be stunned for a moment... He felt as if he were really standing in a forest, even the azure sky was so realistic, surrounded by swaying trees, and under his feet was soft grass with a fresh, green fragrance and cold dew.
Not far from them was a small pond, which looked incredibly clear and had a faint smell of sulfur.
The heat, accompanied by humidity, was carried by a gust of wind and blew directly towards Lin Xi.
Lin Xi thought of the promotional slogan mentioned in the electronic video.
"...Oh, a simulated hot spring. People in the Age of Exploration were truly extravagant."
Lin Xi muttered.
He then closed his eyes, letting his alien senses expand throughout the space.
After shielding human perception, which is extremely susceptible to illusions and deceptions, the true scene of this lounge became clear and real in the eyes of the alien species.
This is a private lounge that doesn't occupy a large space, but the spherical holographic installation and the micro-environment simulation system composed of the miniature mechanisms on the ground can deceive human perception to the greatest extent, making people mistakenly believe that there is a vast and boundless space here.
There are no forests, no meadows, no hot springs... only an empty, spherical room and a steaming pool in the corner of the room.
Lin Xi opened his eyes again, and the spacious hot spring nestled in the forest returned to his world once more.
He noticed that Xavier was looking around curiously, appearing both curious and confused.
Xavier's somewhat clumsy reaction softened his heart.
However, the sweet romance with Xavier was somewhat inappropriate at this time, and Lin Xi quickly turned her attention to the current situation.
"What exactly are you planning to do, Captain?"
Lin Xi asked, looking at the empty resting space.
This suddenly opened rest space left Lin Xi feeling extremely puzzled.
If all he needed to do was avoid those strange white nematodes, Streep could have easily had them hide in an inconspicuous equipment room or another office, instead of going through the trouble of leading them into the lounge.
As if in response to his question, a few seconds later, the slightly altered electronic female voice rang out again.
Of course, it was still the pre-set language already within the program.
"...A simulated hot spring that is safe even for pregnant women. Please don't worry, all the hot spring ingredients have been carefully screened and tested, and will not cause any harm to mother or child. A relaxed state of mind is conducive to the baby's birth, so please enjoy..."
Lin Xi's eyebrows twitched slightly when she heard the word "pregnant woman".
"I don't need such fancy stuff."
Lin Xi said calmly.
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