"Are you kidding me? You went to Sunu, but stayed on the ship the whole time?"
Oni looked at Lin Xi in surprise. Lin Xi could tell from his eyes that he genuinely found this very unbelievable.
"Hmm...sometimes you just don't want to be in completely unfamiliar environments, right?"
Lin Xi said, pretending to be nonchalant.
Although deep down, he wasn't as calm as he appeared.
He wasn't familiar with the newly appointed laboratory director in front of him, so naturally he couldn't tell him all the details about Sunu—such as his medical officer brother's extremely conservative attitude towards extraterrestrial life.
Lin Xide admitted that the most important reason he stayed on the spaceship throughout the journey was Bryce.
Almost every cell in Bryce's body was screaming against the Sunu. Lin Xi knew very well that Bryce did not want him to "get along" with those aliens.
Sometimes, Lin Xi even doubted that in Bryce's mind, those Sunu people were not alien allies who had established diplomatic relations with Earthlings for many years, but rather jungle cannibals who would kidnap Lin Xi at any time, then cut her into pieces and eat her as a sacrifice.
Of course, Lin Xi always felt that Bryce was making a mountain out of a molehill in this matter. However, on an alien planet so far from Earth, he and Bryce were practically inseparable. And he really didn't want to add to Bryce's mental burden—since Lin Xi was selected to participate in this mission, Bryce's paranoia and self-loathing had already been severe enough.
Moreover, Lin Xi herself has never been a fanatical Sunu culture enthusiast.
Finding ways to have fun and pass the time on the Helios wasn't that difficult.
So while everyone else was busy handing over those gray supplies or wandering around the only remaining orderly place on Sunu Star, Lin Xi stayed on the Sun God obediently as Bryce had instructed.
Lin Xi had no complaints about his previous decision. However, after "Number One" was born in his hands, Lin Xi regretted his lack of understanding of the Sunu culture.
"Okay, I admit I'm a bit stereotypical... those things look like nothing more than insects, who would have thought they could have such high intelligence and perception?"
In front of Unnie, Lin Xi could only awkwardly make a self-deprecating joke.
"Well, it's alright. In any case, even we have a very limited understanding of the Star Butterfly... Even I, after spending so much time in this damned lab, only learned from Dr. Ando that there really are insects that can have intelligence and perception close to that of human children. Perhaps that's why these insects are considered sacred objects by the Sunu people..."
"Oni said to Lin Xi."
However, after saying those words, he couldn't help but pause in surprise.
Mentioning Dr. Ando immediately silenced the room.
The horrific things that the seemingly gentle man did to his wife... and the half-human, half-insect monsters he killed with his own hands...
What happened in the Ando couple's cabin spread rapidly to every corner of the Apollo in such a short time.
Unnie's eyes darkened, and he looked a little sad.
"I really wish that tragedy hadn't happened to Dr. Ando. If he were still here, he could probably help you a lot more."
The young boy, with a tired face and dark circles under his eyes, said dejectedly.
Standing next to Oni, Lin Xi felt very uncomfortable after hearing Professor Ando's name... He suspected that this was a mental aftereffect caused by Solian's unusually wary and sharp attitude.
"Well, of course... I sincerely hope he can recover from that terrible mental state soon. Whatever happened, the experts back on Earth can always make things better. Besides, humanity always has its own ways of dealing with tragedy."
While comforting Unnie, Lin Xi couldn't help but smile bitterly to herself.
When did he become such a boring adult who spouts empty and meaningless words?
Lin Xi knew very well that some pain could perhaps be healed by time, but other wounds, some injuries you would never forget, would always be there, forever. They would rot, but would never be healed...
Just then, an exceptionally pale face flashed through Lin Xi's mind, causing him to feel a slight pang in his heart.
Lin Xi's expression turned somewhat grim, while Oni, who was just a young male student before the accident, actually seemed a little more invigorated after hearing Lin Xi's meaningless words of comfort.
“Thank you for your comfort, Dr. Lin Xi. I also hope you can return to your lab soon, otherwise, I might have gone mad from all the troubles here before I even get back to Earth. You have no idea, these organisms have become extremely abnormal since we landed here.” At this point, Oni suddenly clapped his hands, clearly having just remembered the purpose of Lin Xi's visit—
"Ah, sorry... I've gotten carried away and started going off-topic. I can go check out the breeding tank you wanted for raising Star Butterflies. As for the food to feed them..."
Oni stared at his personal terminal with a troubled expression, and after thinking for a long time, he slowly spoke again, appearing very uncertain: "I don't know what this precious creature should eat, but theoretically speaking, since Dr. Ando used conventional nutrient solutions as its initial culture medium, then the Star Butterfly should also be able to be raised using general insect culture solutions and high-protein feed—"
Then came a long silence. Oni kept flipping through the various records and memos from the lab during this period. He seemed flustered, which made Lin Xi, who was standing next to him, feel a little worried.
"Hmm... just like I said, there have been a lot of problems in the lab lately. We've already ruined nearly three large culture tanks. But you're a lucky one, Dr. Lin Xi. I just discovered that in the spare warehouse on level B-3, we seem to have another large insect culture tank. I'll try to talk to Taran... no, no, I think I can go to Vice-Captain Elisa and get a pass to go down and retrieve that thing for you."
"That sounds good."
Lin Xi said.
Although he also realized that the special egg case incubation device he needed was probably out of the question.
"By the way, let me take a look at the feed next. Ah, here it is... We just finished preparing some raw materials yesterday. Maybe I can directly mix some feed for Sunu insects for you... It will take a little time, but I think you won't mind."
"Of course not."
“If we go back two days, we still have some ready-made feed in our lab, but… well, you know, these little Sunu monsters in the lab have been eating a lot these days. I really don’t know why these little things have such good appetites…” Oni muttered to herself. “Please come with me, Dr. Lin Xi.”
As she spoke, Oni led him to the other side of the corridor.
They passed through several sealed gates and numerous spherical spaceships used as miniature breeding farms before finally arriving at the biological dormancy zone.
The experimental raw material preparation room is located at the very top of this vast dormant area.
They walked along rows of cylindrical petri dishes, the air filled with a strange chemical smell, the lights dim and tinged with a faint blue glow, making the area look like it was underwater at times.
Lin Xi's feet made a slight rustling sound as they stepped on the metal mesh floor.
He subconsciously observed the petri dishes—organisms of completely different shapes and sizes were arranged according to a certain pattern. Lin Xi knew what some of them were, but most of them were species he had never heard of before.
The Sunu organisms preserved here have mostly been injected with drugs and put into a state of cryogenic sleep. They float motionless in specific petri dishes, looking like biological specimens that have long since died and are soaked in formalin.
This association made Lin Xi feel slightly uncomfortable, because these cylindrical petri dishes were, in some ways, not fundamentally different from the cryogenic sleep pods used by human crew members during jumps.
Did they look this lifeless when they were using the sleep pods?
Lin Xi was momentarily dazed, but Oni's voice quickly brought him back to his senses.
"Dr. Lin Xi?"
"Oh, sorry, I got so engrossed in reading—what's wrong?"
Oni shrugged. "It's nothing. The things here are really captivating. I can guarantee that even the highest-level Sunu exhibition on Earth wouldn't have this many different kinds of Sunu creatures. Many of them are Sunu's most precious specialties, but now they belong to us." He smiled and said, then gestured for Lin Xi to stand aside. "You can wait here for a while. Only lab personnel are allowed in the ingredient preparation room. I'll go prepare the Star Butterfly feed you need... I hope there won't be any problems with what I make."
Unnie laughed.
Lin Xi then realized that they were now in front of a metal door equipped with security measures.
Oni's figure quickly disappeared behind the door, while Lin Xi, as instructed, remained near the preparation room, observing the strange Sunu creatures beside him with great interest. Inevitably, however, he mentally compared them to "Number One."
Without a doubt, even the most beautiful individual among these Sunu creatures (a male rainbow glass beetle, a giant Sunu beetle exceeding one meter in size, almost a plus version of Earth beetles, but with a magnificent and dazzling shell that Earth beetles could never possess. Its shell is a rare jewelry material more precious than diamonds on Earth), pales in comparison to "Number One" and has no chance of winning.
Lin Xi glanced back at the metal door of the preparation room. There was no movement inside; it was clear that Oni needed some more time.
Then he turned around and went to the petri dish of the frozen glass beetle, looking at the beetle through the thick plexiglass.
That's strange.
Lin Xi muttered to himself.
He had initially thought he would dislike insects, especially since he had been terrified by a fossil statue not long before, and he had always believed he had a severe phobia of insects.
In my memory, that period of being plagued by insects didn't seem to have passed that long ago...
But now, Lin Xi's symptoms have significantly lessened. For example, as he gazes at the glass beetle in the petri dish, he feels no fear at all. On the contrary, he feels a deep sense of pity for this enormous little creature, a feeling so intense that he himself cannot understand it.
In Lin Xi's opinion, this glass beetle was not particularly attractive. After all, its body was so bulky and clumsy, and the colors on its shell were so intense that they could even be described as vulgar.
As Lin Xi watched it, she immediately noticed the wounds on the glass beetle's body.
Of course, it wasn't a very noticeable wound, especially on the glass beetle's brightly colored carapace, where the wound appeared even more indistinct and slight.
Lin Xi also knew that this beetle, which was famous for the color of its shell, was naturally sensitive and very difficult to catch.
When capturing rainbow glass beetles, leaving wounds on their shells is unavoidable.
Lin Xi knew rationally that this was not a big deal.
These frozen insects.
These are hardly serious wounds.
but……
Lin Xi took a deep breath, hoping to calm his racing heart. He didn't know what was wrong with him; as he stared at the wounds on the beetle, an unprecedented mix of pity and anger struck him simultaneously.
He felt frustrated, sad, and even more intensely, pain.
He disliked the wounds on the beetle at all.
Why would these humans treat this beetle so roughly? Just to plunder it from its original home and send it to the far reaches of the universe...
Lin Xi's eyes widened, and his breathing became rapid. Then he raised his head and glanced at the other petri dishes.
More wounds, more fearful and defensive postures, were frozen in the nutrient solution prepared by humans for a long time... and in the artificially created low temperature.
A strange impulse welled up from the depths of Lin Xi's body; for a moment, he even wished to smash these vessels to pieces.
The violent emotions generated by the insects were too intense—so intense that Lin Xi himself realized something was wrong. He shuddered and then suddenly came to his senses.
Then, that strange impulse and pity from before vanished instantly, like a dream. Lin Xi remained firmly standing beside the petri dish, without moving an inch.
"Bang--"
Immediately afterwards, Lin Xi heard a crashing sound.
Right next to him.
He turned his head in surprise, then his eyes widened in astonishment.
"Good heavens, what the hell is this...?"
Lin Xi muttered to herself.
He discovered that the rainbow glass beetle in the petri dish, which had previously remained silent like a specimen, had now opened its eyes. And those inorganic, orange-yellow pupils were now staring intently at him without blinking.
The glass beetle's brightly colored and thick, hard shell opened, and wings emerging from beneath the shell allowed it to constantly change position in the extremely cold freezing liquid.
"Bang--"
The terrifying sound of an impact rang out once again.
The glass beetle moved its head directly in front of Lin Xi and began to ram its head, the sturdiest part of its body, into the petri dish.
Now Lin Xi was truly convinced of what Oni had said before: the insects on Sunu Star did indeed possess extraordinary intelligence. Even this glass beetle knew some basic techniques; for example, right before Lin Xi's eyes, it repeatedly struck the same spot on the culture dish, as calmly and precisely as if using a sledgehammer to break a sealed glass window.
A tiny crack appeared on the inner wall of the petri dish, and soon it began to expand.
Lin Xi was stunned.
Some transparent liquid began to seep out along the cracks caused by the rainbow glass beetle's impact. It emitted a cold aura and had a very unpleasant smell.
The instrument at the bottom of the petri dish turned a glaring red, and it began to scream wildly the moment the first impact occurred. The alarm echoed throughout the entire biological dormancy area, sounding more and more like the scream of a banshee.
Warning—The petri dish is internally damaged; damage level: 21%.
Warning—The petri dish is 65% damaged.
Warning—The petri dish is 87% damaged.
...
The monotonous electronic voice kept repeating similar phrases.
Lin Xi watched as the numbers appearing on the screen steadily increased.
But these warnings seemed so ethereal, and that dreamlike feeling enveloped him once again.
The surrounding scenery seemed to have become blurred, like a watercolor painting soaked in water. The only thing that was clear and distinct was the glass beetle that kept bumping into the petri dish.
The beetle itself wasn't unscathed, given that it could inflict such significant damage on the petri dish in such a short time. In fact, it was bleeding, though the blood wasn't red. The blood of this beetle was a beautiful gold. (Lin Xi knew that silk dyed with this golden liquid had been quite a sensation at haute couture shows a few years ago.)
And the rainbow glass beetle seemed to be looking at him.
A strong sense of attachment and joy emanated from the beetle's eyes; its gaze toward Lin Xi was even one of longing...like a newborn cub looking at its mother.
Lin Xi stared blankly at its struggles, its thrashing, its longing. As if possessed, Lin Xi slowly reached out his hand. Only the walls of the petri dish separated him from the poor little creature, and now, a crack had appeared in those walls—
"Dr. Lin Xi—Watch out!"
Someone shoved Lin Xi away from the petri dish.
Lin Xi swayed and almost knelt on the ground.
The previously blurry and ethereal world suddenly returned to normal, and Lin Xi suddenly woke up, only to see a sea of bright red.
It was only at this moment that he was shocked to discover that it wasn't just the petri dish containing the glass beetle in front of him that had issued the red alert.
Centered on the petri dish containing the glass beetle, within a 20-meter radius, all the insects that should have been dormant in their respective petri dishes awoke. These insects, inexplicably awakened from their frozen sleep, were all simultaneously and in their own ways trying to destroy the hard petri dishes. Their twisting and struggling appearance was exceptionally malevolent and chaotic; coupled with the warning sounds and red lights, the scene resembled the opening of some horror movie.
Fortunately, at least in this small area, not all insects possessed the hard exoskeleton of the glass beetle. Therefore, in such a short time, only the first beetle to awaken successfully created a crack.
At this moment, Oni was pressing his entire body against the instrument panel beneath the petri dishes, adjusting the temperature and drug concentration.
"Dr. Lin Xi?! I'm sending the parameters to your personal terminal. Follow these steps to restart the hibernation program for these damn monsters!"
Oni turned around and shouted at Lin Xi.
Lin Xi was stunned for a moment, then he jumped up and began to deal with the suddenly rampaging insects as instructed by Oni.
To his surprise, the riotous rampage of these insects was terrifying, but under his manipulation, they could also quickly fall back into hibernation.
Perhaps it was only a few minutes, or even less, before Lin Xi saw the insects quiet down again. Several times, before Lin Xi could even type the parameters that Oni had sent him onto the screen, the insects suddenly stopped all movement, and the accompanying detection equipment would tell Lin Xi that the insects, which had been particularly active before, were now in a deep hibernation.
It was as if that terrible riot had never happened at all.
If Lin Xi hadn't witnessed those insects writhing and struggling with their own eyes, she would have thought she had developed space hysteria.
However, regardless of the reason for this strange phenomenon, Lin Xi still felt a slight sense of relief.
Even he himself didn't realize that deep down, he didn't like to put those insects back into a deep sleep in such a rough manner.
Although the instruments on the Helios spacecraft wouldn't kill them, such a sudden change in parameters, followed by forcibly putting the insects back into hibernation, would still cause some damage to the bodies of these alien creatures.
Now, it would be the best option for them to spontaneously end the riots and return to hibernation.
When the last insect curled up and floated quietly in the freezing liquid, Lin Xi wiped the sweat from her forehead and stood up.
He glanced at the time and was surprised to find that not much time had actually passed between Oni telling him to wait and her going into the preparation room alone, and the riot that broke out.
"Ah... I really hope God will forgive me..." Oni kept complaining, rubbing her temples as she slowly turned around to look at Lin Xi: "Were you scared?"
What just happened?
Lin Xi asked.
He secretly bit his tongue hard, hoping he wouldn't be too dazed in front of Unnie.
Oni shrugged: "Just like I've been saying before, these little monsters have always been abnormal, often exhibiting violent biological fluctuations, and then everything happened just now, hibernation failure, instrument alarms."
"Does this happen often?"
Lin hoped to spray a special gel onto the outside of the culture dish, which had already developed cracks, onto the original glass beetle. The beetle itself then fell back into a deep sleep in a strange posture.
"A little advice: you'd better not keep staring at that guy."
Oni walked over and intentionally or unintentionally blocked the petri dish and Lin Xi.
"The patterns on this beetle's back have a strong hypnotic effect; it uses them to confuse and catch its prey. I should have warned you about this earlier, I'm so sorry..."
"So that's how it is?"
Lin Xi breathed a sigh of relief. He had been secretly worried about why he always felt dizzy.
"As for the question you just asked, sigh... I really don't want to say this, but that's the reality. These things happen all the time. At least this time they quieted down quickly. The previous times were disasters."
If the same scene were to occur in a laboratory on Earth, everyone from students to mentors would probably be trembling with fear and unable to sleep at night. However, here, Oni seemed completely used to it.
"You look very nervous, Doctor... Sigh, I envy you. At least the plants on alien planets don't suddenly go berserk..."
Unnie made an envious sound.
Once the crisis was over, he quickly recovered from the terrible accident—now Lin Xi could understand why the higher-ups would appoint such a young student as the temporary head of the laboratory.
Compared to professional skills, this kind of super strong mental fortitude may be more suitable for the spaceship laboratory currently stranded on an alien planet.
"This is the food for your star butterfly. I'll have someone deliver the culture tank to your lab later..."
For example, now, Unnie can calmly arrange what's to come.
Lin Xi left the biological hibernation area with the insect feed prepared by Oni (he inexplicably felt a kind of reluctance as he left, but the feeling was so weak that Lin Xi did not pay much attention to it. He thought he was just under the hallucination effect of the rainbow glass beetle).
After everything was settled, Lin Xi was escorted to the office door by Oni.
Just as she was about to leave, Lin Xi suddenly turned around and looked at the young man who had grown so much overnight.
He frowned, hesitated for a long time, and then said, "Although there haven't been any official instructions from Elisa yet, and Dr. Ando is in that state... I still want to confirm once again, are you sure you don't want to continue the Star Butterfly's subsequent training?"
In the previous conversation, Lin Xi had already confessed to Oni and the others in the lab about Dr. Ando's illegal operations.
It was that star butterfly egg sheath that was privately transferred to him... and the fact that the star butterfly had already successfully hatched.
Of course, since Lin Xi wanted to ask them for suitable culture tanks and feed, it was impossible to hide this matter.
Lin Xi even tossed and turned all night because of this. He knew very well that he didn't actually want to return the Star Butterfly. Ever since "Number One" was born in his palm, a strange connection had formed between him and it. He longed to keep that little life by his side. However, Lin Xi also knew that such precious creatures should, both morally and logically, be cared for by more professional people.
However, after arriving at the animal laboratory today, the attitude of these not-so-professional professionals towards Star Butterfly was completely beyond Lin Xi's expectations.
They earnestly pleaded with Lin Xi to continue caring for the star butterfly, as she had previously agreed with Professor Ando.
"You just experienced that terrible scene too."
Oni made a gesture of surrender towards Lin Xi.
“We’re in complete disarray here, and almost everyone here is an idiot—yes, I used to be one too. But now I’m the head of the lab, can you understand that? It’s a nightmare.” Oni pointed to her name tag, making a devastated expression. “Believe me, Doctor, apart from Professor Ando, everyone’s understanding of Star Butterflies is very superficial. Whether you or we raise them, it’s all the same—after all, you’re our teaching assistant, and you even incubated the Star Butterfly’s egg case yourself. In that sense, you have much more experience than us. Please, just let that Star Butterfly stay with you.”
After saying this long string of words in a pitiful tone, Unnie inadvertently revealed her true feelings as well.
"Besides, nobody here wants to keep such a disgusting thing..."
Lin Xi didn't hear Oni's last mumbled words clearly; his attention was completely focused on how he could openly and legitimately continue to keep "Number One" and the remaining insect eggs.
He was very happy.
Moreover, this joy even exceeded his expectations.
It was at this moment that Lin Xi realized so clearly that he might have indeed fallen in love with the little creature called "Number One".
"Ah, right!"
Just as Lin Xi was about to leave, Oni suddenly let out a soft cry.
"I almost forgot—please wait a moment, I have something to give you—"
He patted his forehead and said hurriedly, then rushed back to his desk. He searched under the desk for a while before returning to Lin Xi with his face covered in dust.
"I found this in Professor Ando's drawer when I took over his desk."
Oni placed something grayish into Lin Xi's hand.
It took Lin Xi quite a while to realize that it was actually a notebook.
On the first page of the notebook was written the name Shizuo Ando.
Oni rubbed her hair and explained to Lin Xi, "When Professor Ando hurriedly dumped this mess of a lab on me, he told me that there were some documents in the drawer that we could look through when we encountered trouble. But at the time, we didn't pay much attention to them. After all, nothing makes you more sleepy than research materials..."
The young man's eyes flickered for a moment under Lin Xi's gaze, but he quickly regained his composure.
"But you know what happened later... When I was looking for information, I found this at the very bottom of the drawer. I think it's some kind of record, not very formal, but most of it is related to the Sunu Star. It's probably something he jotted down when Mrs. Ando was talking to the professor. I didn't look at it too closely, but I think there should be a lot of information about the Star Butterfly in it. I think this might be helpful to you?"
"Thank you, this notebook is really helpful..."
If being able to keep "Number One" by my side is already gratifying enough, then this notebook containing information about Star Butterfly is an extra surprise.
Lin Xi thanked him gratefully, then hurriedly returned to her cabin with the notebook.
He needs to carefully study the information about the Star Butterfly...
However, before that, he first checked the condition of "Number One".
"How was your day today?"
He knocked on the glass and then spoke to "Number One".
Ever since he learned from Oni that Star Butterfly was very intelligent, he no longer felt that his greeting was a little stupid.
A strange sense of confidence made Lin Xi believe that "Number One" was capable of understanding him.
Sure enough, after he tapped, "Number One" slowly emerged from behind the Sunu wood. It tilted its head and stared silently at Lin Xi (so did it know that the slender branch actually had no way to hide its body and large wings? Lin Xi couldn't help but wonder).
It raised its head, its tentacles trembling rapidly on its head, and seemed quite pleased to see Lin Xi.
This time, however, it showed absolutely no intention of crawling out of the vent.
Inside the cultivation tank, around the Sunu wood, the nest of the Star Butterfly was beginning to take shape.
The fine threads became denser, especially around the initial small clump of secretions, which looked like a pale golden cloud to the naked eye, and it even emitted a fragrance.
Lin Xi also saw some leaves of Sunu wood and a few small stones that had been used to line the bottom of the culture trough at the bottom of the nest.
Of course, the most eye-catching things were some golden items.
Lin Xi couldn't help but narrow his eyes. He stared at those golden things for a long time, and no matter how he looked at them, they seemed to be some kind of metal parts.
Where did this come from?
Lin Xi examined the metal mesh covering the vent with great suspicion—it was intact, without any gaps or signs of being moved, just as Lin Xi had covered it up the night before.
But those tiny metal parts looked so familiar...
Just as Lin Xi was pondering the metal objects with a puzzled look, "Number One" floated out from behind the fragrant wood.
It noticed Lin Xi's gaze—the human was looking at the nest it had just built—and immediately became happy.
Lin Xi stared in disbelief as "Number One" spread its wings around its nest.
It began to dance up and down in a strange posture, the spots on its wings more numerous, denser, and more vibrant in color than those seen the night before.
All these actions are to make its nest more conspicuous.
It has to be said that "Number One's" action was quite adorable, provided that it didn't accidentally overturn the nest with its wings.
This is perhaps due to the overly small culture tank.
Lin Xi thought.
After all, the star butterfly has always been known for its enormous, outstretched wings that resemble the glow of the sunset.
The place was so cramped, and the fragrant wood it used to build its nest was so slender. Not to mention, the stone it placed at the bottom of the nest and the metal parts it stole from somewhere were so heavy relative to the nest.
In short, as "Number One" turned around, the soft, cloud-like golden nest clung to its wings, and then it tumbled off the fragrant wood.
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