Chapter 68 Just Partners 13
Ren and Zhou searched the base for a starship. Unlike the mercenaries sent by Fred as expendable supplies, Lando's men were there to work, so they would definitely have a way to travel back and forth. Moreover, the energy ore mined from Rode needed to be transported away, so there must be a starship at this base. It was just that the location of the starship was hard to say.
Infiltrating an enemy's headquarters is never an easy task, but this time it was surprisingly simple. After all, it was a sealed-off planet; even the base's personnel hadn't expected anyone to infiltrate. The security system was primarily designed to prevent alien invasions, with little regard for humans. The two walked around for a short while before discovering that even basic guard patrols were extremely sparse. What should have been the most tense area felt rather relaxed, almost like a leisurely stroll.
Zhou Kai visibly breathed a sigh of relief. He had just turned to look at Ren Yi as if to say something when suddenly, a piercing alarm blared throughout the entire base, and the lights on the walls flashed a blinding bright red.
After the initial alarm sounded, a female electronic voice continuously broadcast, "[Level A alarm! Level A alarm!! Unauthorized intrusion! Unauthorized intrusion!!]"
Zhou Kai?!
He was so startled by the sudden noise that he almost went numb.
—He really didn't touch anything!
Ren Yi frowned and shook his head at Zhou Kai, "It wasn't us."
There was a system monitoring them, and they didn't trigger any alarms.
On the other side, the head of base security watched helplessly as Lando pressed the alarm, almost bursting into tears, "Mr. Lando!!"
Lando slowly raised his hand, tilting his head innocently. "Oops, my hand slipped."
The person in charge dared not criticize his superior's affected performance and could only desperately try to clarify the misunderstanding and restore the base to normal.
Just as he was about to make a move, Lando stopped him with a gesture. The latter smiled with amusement, saying playfully, "Isn't it good to do a drill? Maybe there will be some surprises."
If it were Risel standing in front of Lando at this moment, he would immediately understand that there was probably a problem inside the base. However, the person in front of him clearly did not have this understanding, and he was far from grasping the meaning behind Lando's words.
However, this had no impact on the outcome.
Although the person in charge lacked tacit understanding, he was far from daring to disobey Lando. He didn't even dare to get angry, and immediately went along with Lando's words, "Then I'll go and notify the others?"
Lando's reaction was exactly what he expected. He chuckled and said, "How can it be called an exercise if it doesn't have a bit of realism?"
The person in charge dared not refute, and was even afraid that this person in front of him would actually capture a mutant and throw it back into the base for the sake of so-called "authenticity".
—He really is capable of doing it!
Pain Mask jg
Ren and Zhou were unaware that someone was deliberately making things more difficult for them, but regardless of what the alarm was about, their situation was dangerous.
The two of them initially didn't pilot their mech into the base. Such a large target would be tantamount to a blatant declaration of intrusion, and a mech without power is less than a pile of scrap metal—after breaking through the alien encirclement and arriving at the base, their mech's power was long gone. Without weapons of mass destruction, a direct assault was not a good option, but they had no other choice at the moment.
Zhou Kai simply picked up Ren Yi and carried him on his shoulders.
Ren Yi: "...?"
It's not very harmful, but extremely insulting.
Ironically, the person who did this was completely unaware of it.
“That will be faster,” Zhou Kai explained briefly before continuing, “Aren’t you looking for something? You give me directions, and I’ll go.”
Ren Yilai's initial and fundamental purpose in sealing off the star was for "Star River." He had told Zhou Kai about this before even entering the base, asking if he wanted to split up, but the latter refused. He just didn't expect that even now, this man still remembered this.
Zhou Kai's idea was quite straightforward. Given the current situation, it was uncertain whether they could find the starship. Ren Yi seemed to have some clues about what they were looking for, so why not at least complete one mission first? Maybe they would stumble upon the starship along the way?
Zhou Kai was very optimistic. He felt that he was having a very lucky time right now. Putting everything else aside, the fact that he had found a perfect partner in this mission was enough for him to believe that he was lucky.
However, over the next few days, Ren Yi's expression gradually became wooden.
Ren Yi seemed to understand why he had Zhou Kai infiltrated the undercover operation. Faced with absolute force, a few flaws didn't seem to matter so much.
Ren Yi had had a few encounters with Zhou Kai before, but those were definitely not even considered "fighting". His escape from the alien encirclement was mainly about dodging, with no direct combat. Although Ren Yi guessed that Zhou Kai's combat strength should be good, he didn't have any direct knowledge of it. But this time he finally saw it for himself.
A clean and swift disarmament, without even firing a shot, a quick knockout with the butt of a rifle is all it takes to knock someone unconscious.
Ren Yi was just about to have the system crack the password on the front panel when this guy, instead, blasted a hole open with his firepower, kicked it open, and the door collapsed.
Zhou Kai took several steps forward before remembering to ask, "What did you just say?"
Ren Yi: "..."
He said with difficulty, "No, there's nothing there."
To be honest, if it weren't for the incident of being "besieged by aliens on the blockade planet," Zhou Kai's combat ability would be no concern. If the location were different and he weren't a burden to others, he might have been able to fight his way out of the base.
As the saying goes, "If you kill everyone who witnesses it, that's an assassination," and "If you kill everyone who guesses the undercover agent's identity, that's a successful undercover operation"... Ren Yi had no idea when the Alliance's style had become so simple and brutal.
And now he finally remembered, "Doesn't the name 'Zhou Kai' sound familiar?"
Ren Yi's memories of this small world were actually a bit hazy; he only remembered a rough outline of the plot. He left his residence immediately not only because he was anxious to find the system fragments, but also because he was worried that the people around him would notice something was wrong.
However, the instinct of the disguise was still there. As Ren Yi stayed in this world for a long time, his body's memories gradually awakened.
He thought about it carefully now and finally had a vague impression. In the years before the protagonist was sought after by various military academies, there seemed to be a prominent figure who seemed to be surnamed "Zhou".
Various thoughts raced through Ren Yi's mind, but they didn't affect his direction. The two finally stopped in front of a specially made metal door. Ren Yi looked at the dent in the door that had been kicked in, and his eyelids twitched twice. Most of the defenses along the way couldn't withstand a couple of kicks from someone nearby, which showed just how sturdy this door was.
Ren Yi stopped Zhou Kai, who wanted to continue his brute force breakthrough, and gestured for him to put him down so he could go over and try to break through.
With the system in place, this minor issue was easily resolved. However, the door was jammed by the deformed part as soon as it was opened a crack. Before Ren Yi could think of a solution, Zhou Kai had already stepped forward and pulled the door open through the gap.
Ren Yi: "..."
A gorilla? Does this person really not have any foreign genes mixed in?!
Zhou Kai still didn't think there was anything wrong with what he did, and even turned around to ask Ren Yi, "Is it inside?"
Ren Yi nodded, his feelings a mixture of emotions.
But when Zhou Kai stepped into the warehouse, the motion-sensor lights came on, and he could see what was inside, he was stunned.
The room was somewhat empty, with only a mecha standing quietly in the very center. But this mecha was undoubtedly recognized by everyone in the Alliance. Its streamlined body featured sharp, steel-like edges. The main body material was jet black, but under the light, it gleamed with a faint, eerie blue light. The color, which should have been utterly somber, was adorned with specks of iridium silver… like a galaxy.
—The Milky Way.
This is its name.
During the alien invasion three years ago, this mech stood at the forefront like a beacon, forming humanity's defense line.
Thin and fragile, yet so indestructible.
In comparisons of mechs, appearance is never a consideration. But anyone who witnessed that sight must admit that the "galaxy" in the dark universe was the most beautiful mech in the world.
It is a beauty that no human being can forget in their lifetime.
This scene became the most brilliant and beautiful farewell; the λ3 vortex devoured the aliens, and the mech was also swept into it. Even knowing that the mech's owner had no chance of survival, the Alliance never gave up the search for the mech over the years. The distress signal from the γnt731 nebula almost seemed like a miracle, but it was ultimately proven to be a lie from the aliens.
Zhou Kai was still lost in thought when he heard a cheerful voice behind him, "How is it? Do you like it? It's part of my collection."
The voice, though not unfamiliar, suddenly appeared, causing Zhou Kai to turn around sharply.
The young man with short, silver-gray hair leaned against the door, which was deformed and unable to return to its original position, and looked at Ren Yi with a smile in his eyes.
“I didn’t expect you to cause such a commotion… but I really like it.” Lando’s expression showed a hint of surprise as he spoke, but he quickly smiled again. He raised his chin, gesturing towards the “galaxy” over there, and then said, “If you stay, how about I give it to you?”
Before Ren Yi could react, Zhou Kai, standing next to him, was already clenching his fists so tightly they were cracking.
His "collection"? Or a "gift"?
And the disgusted look in his (future) fixed partner's eyes!
After Lando appeared, almost every word and every glance danced on Zhou Kai's nerves. Seeing the former take a step forward and get closer to Ren Yi, Zhou Kai almost instinctively stepped in front of Ren Yi and warned him coldly, "Get lost."
Lando seemed to only then notice that there was another person in the room. He clicked his tongue, revealing an obvious impatience at being interrupted. A chilling sense of crisis made Zhou Kai suddenly grab Ren Yi and flip him to the side. In the blink of an eye, a huge dent appeared in the ground where he had just been standing.
Zhou Kai stared blankly at the slowly retracting arthropod-like tail exoskeleton. No, wait, that's…
Lando, who was retracting his tail, blinked, and his sinister vertical pupils returned to their human form.
He let out a puzzled "Huh?" and finally looked at Zhou Kai properly.
"You dodged it?"
He asked slowly, his tail dragging behind him, then suddenly grinned, revealing an excited smile and sharp canines.
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