Chapter 48

Chapter 48

After the fierce battle throughout the night and the elimination of several streamers, the atmosphere in the Star River ship’s cafeteria was no longer relaxed.

The injured soldiers passing by occasionally hinted at the intensity of the competition—although they had gained the upper hand on the first night, with such injuries, it was unlikely they could continue competing for the battleship.

The four of them found a seat in a corner, and the first thing they did was check the numbers on the projection screen.

The number after the small icon had dropped to 2153, and it continued to decrease.

Xu Tu frowned. "Looks like, in addition to those who were killed by the robbers, there are also those unlucky ones who were eaten by the bugs."

Bai Qi said, "Some of the injured can't hold on any longer."

However, the number of small military caps representing the soldiers in black remained a full 1000.

The four of them fell into brief silence because of this, until Mu Yuan energetically led four men and women into the cafeteria.

Xu Tu glanced over and chuckled softly, "Little Xi Yu, that’s his brainless team."

Xi Yu had expected Mu Yuan to group with streamers who shared his temperament, but surprisingly, the people following him seemed out of place. Aside from a cold-faced short-haired girl, the other three men looked either like scholars, nightclub stars, or a cute young boy. Together, they made a strange mix.

"Others are cunning, just ignore them, but be careful of that woman," Luo Xi put down the nutrient bag.

Bai Qi sneered slightly, "That woman’s name is similar to the boss's, she’s called Luo Er. She's like a powerhouse, always ready to fight if things don’t go her way."

Xi Yu nodded calmly, not paying much attention.

Unfortunately, Mu Yuan hadn’t let go of the grudge from before and purposely walked over to provoke them, "Oh, big star, why didn’t you get on a warship last night?"

Xi Yu replied, "What does that have to do with you?"

"I’m just regretting it for you, after all, I don’t want to see you get kicked out by the system," Mu Yuan leaned down with a wicked smile. "Because I want to personally take you down!"

Luo Xi pushed his face away, "Enough, being radical won’t end well for you. If I were you, I’d pray for the best."

Mu Yuan understood the meaning of his words but didn’t take them to heart. "How can you know if things will end badly if you don’t try? Wait for the award ceremony tonight, don’t regret it."

Then he raised his eyebrows slightly, "By the way, whenever you want to join me, you’re always welcome."

Luo Xi said, "Get lost."Mu Yuan didn’t get angry. Instead, a mocking warmth emerged in his eyes. He casually raised his hand and made a gesture, and the four people obediently followed him to get breakfast.

"Really sick," Xu Tu, who had been watching for a while, couldn’t help but feel anxious. "Boss, Mu Yuan might be arrogant, but he’s not stupid. Did he kill a lot of robbers last night?"

Luo Xi said, "Mm, they probably launched a joint attack on the robbers' warships, so their results must be quite good."

Xu Tu lowered his gaze. "He seems so smug. He’s probably already gotten some extra information, but what’s there to expect from the award ceremony... military ranks are just a formality..."

Xi Yu suddenly realized, "No, he might have used this opportunity to get the one thing he wants the most."

Xu Tu raised an eyebrow. "What?"

Xi Yu said, "Weapons. Senior soldiers might be able to wear weapons."

Luo Xi added seriously, "And the privilege to meet high-ranking officials and access the lower levels of the battleship."

"So, next time we raid, should we group up to gain points together?" Bai Qi said uneasily. "Rabbit and Xi Yu didn’t even kill a single robber."

Luo Xi remained very firm. "Listen to me first. It’s fine to move forward together in a group, but we could also die together. Our actions must differ if we want to gain more information."

Xu Tu patted Bai Qi’s head. "Don’t be so impulsive, okay? Stay calm! Right now, I’m more concerned about the threat from those big bugs."

Xi Yu followed along, thinking. In a daze, he noticed that Tang Yanyan had finished bandaging and appeared nearby with Wu Zhi, so he smiled and greeted them.

Tang Yanyan came closer.

Xi Yu asked, "Is your wound alright?"

Tang Yanyan shook her head. "It’s fine. It looks scary, but as long as my organs are fine, I can hold on. The medical conditions on the Star River battleship aren’t as good as I thought. They only have some regular gauze and disinfectant... I saw some streamers die from excessive bleeding."

Xi Yu blinked and suddenly became interested. "What about the bodies of those who died? They can’t have just disappeared, right?"

Tang Yanyan thought for a moment. "They were all carried away by those black-clad soldiers. The medical room is to the right after you exit, but I didn’t follow them. They had a really bad attitude."

Xu Tu immediately slapped the table and stood up. "We’re just sitting here doing nothing. Why don’t we go take a look? Maybe the bodies of the dead bugs are all together!"

Luo Xi instructed, "Xi Yu and I will go. You protect Bai Qi and let him sleep. There might still be a robber attack tonight, so we need to rest up."

Xi Yu nodded in agreement but was puzzled. "…Did those three bugs really die?"Although the vast majority of streamers had stayed up all night, the unease brought by the hidden score system made it impossible to rest peacefully.

During the peaceful morning period, there were still many figures coming and going in the corridor.

Xi Yu and Luo Xi walked casually to the vicinity of the medical room. Sure enough, in the thick smell of blood, they saw a cart transporting bodies.

Experienced Luo Xi led the way, maintaining an appropriate distance from the black-clad soldiers and quietly following them.

At this moment, Xi Yu's attention was on the game. He主动 lowered his voice to communicate, "The soldiers we’re playing as are controlled by Bai Sen, while the general’s guard team obviously listens to Xing Tian. The disparity between the two teams’ status and treatment is so clear. Are they really part of the same group?"

Luo Xi stood at the corner, peeking ahead, and answered, "If I were the game planner, each NPC would have to fend for themselves. Why would there be so many characters with the same functions?"

In fact, the immersion of the holographic game was very strong, so Xi Yu always liked Luo Xi's out-of-the-box statements.

Once they distanced themselves from the surrounding environment, their thoughts became clearer.

Xi Yu murmured, "At least from what we can see right now, our role seems to be cannon fodder."

Luo Xi replied, "Tonight, when we see how the system clears out those 200 people, many of our questions will be answered."

Xi Yu lowered his gaze.

Luo Xi saw that the black-clad soldiers had pushed the bodies into the inner warehouse and immediately pulled Xi Yu to a parallel corridor to hide.

After three to five minutes of quiet, the footsteps gradually came closer and then faded away.

Xi Yu signaled, "They should be gone. I heard the sound of a card swipe just now."

Luo Xi smiled slightly, "Then... shall we take action?"

Xi Yu nodded.

The two immediately hurried after the black-clad soldiers.

Since entering the game, the members of the general's guard team had always maintained a cold demeanor towards the streamers, exuding an "entry forbidden" aura. They moved with order, never as chatty as the streamers.

In order to scatter them for an ambush, Luo Xi deliberately broke a surveillance camera at the end of the corridor.

As expected, the black-clad soldiers received an alert through their earpieces and hurriedly ran towards the direction of the disturbance.On the other side, Xi Yu had been waiting by the roadside for a long time.

He spotted a slightly overweight soldier who was at the back of the group. With lightning speed, he lunged forward, pulling him into a concealed corner and quickly covering his mouth.

The soldier was terrified, his eyes immediately turning a shade of green!

Xi Yu was momentarily stunned.

In the brief moment, Luo Xi had hurried back and ruthlessly pressed down on the soldier, snapping his neck!

Xi Yu was astonished: "......"

Luo Xi: "Killing an NPC will affect the score."

Xi Yu: "You don't have to take everything onto yourself."

Luo Xi: "I am more adaptable than you."

Xi Yu had started getting used to his unreasonable confidence. He gave up on questioning and reached out to lift the soldier's eyelids, finding nothing unusual. Afterward, he searched for the identity card: "Let's go, what should we do with this guy?"

Luo Xi lowered his gaze and thought for a moment, then decisively announced: "You wear his clothes and search the body, the person... just leave them here!"

He stood up and kicked open a box at the end of the dead-end hallway, urging: "Hurry up, it won't be long before we’re discovered! I need to take care of something else."

Due to the severe damage to the western side of the spaceship last night, many of the facilities were damaged to varying degrees, which provided the streamers with an opportunity to act covertly.

However, the area near the corpse storage still had intact surveillance points, so disguising themselves was the safest option.

After quickly hiding the body, Xi Yu changed into the black-clad soldier's uniform and used the identity card to open the door to the storage room.

A blast of cold air hit his face.

Inside the room were rows of multi-tiered iron shelves, each layer frozen with grotesque-looking corpses, giving off a chilling atmosphere.

Xi Yu adjusted his military hat, covered his nose, and leaned forward to investigate.

He roughly counted, and all the bodies were dressed in streamer attire, numbering no more than a hundred.

A small portion had died due to collisions during the space battle, with wounds concentrated on the head and neck. These should be the ones Tang Yan Yan had mentioned as being fatally wounded.But more than that... were the severed limbs and shattered remains.

After witnessing the crushing power of the giant insects with his own eyes, Xi Yu was certain: all these streamers had died at the jaws of the insects!

Such a serious incident, and yet there was no warning or notification from above?

Filled with疑惑, he began to carefully examine the bodies, and soon noticed a more bizarre mystery – all the hearts were missing, and most of the cuts were hasty, leaving behind dark pools of blood.

Xi Yu's expression turned serious as a strange thought flashed through his mind.

But at that moment, the door to the corpse storage room was suddenly struck by something.

This was the retreat signal he had arranged with Luo Xi, so Xi Yu immediately lost interest, lowering his head and swiftly leaving the cursed place.

Luo Xi, whose face was smiling, was up to something unknown. As soon as he saw Xi Yu, he gestured for him to come over to the corner where the bodies had been thrown, squatting down to say, "Come on, come on, it's time to forge a fake ID."

Xi Yu: "?"

Luo Xi took out a small holographic computer from his sleeve: "I stole it from the lounge. It's low-end but usable. I’ll try cracking their keycard."

Xi Yu had heard about Luo Xi's talents in programming, but seeing it firsthand still piqued his curiosity. He handed over the stolen card, then couldn’t help but ask, "Are you worried the guard team will find out someone is dead and stop his access card?"

"Exactly, or we can use this card to lie in wait and set a trap for you," Luo Xi said, opening the computer's projection. He placed the card under the machine and quickly swiped his hand across the virtual keyboard. "In most games with a tech background, computers are pretty realistic, so many streamers study the code. You should catch up on that too."

Xi Yu quietly watched from the side, not sure why, but there was a faint feeling of familiarity as he observed Luo Xi in action.

About five minutes later, Luo Xi closed the computer with satisfaction and handed the card to Xi Yu. "Done, you can use it now, but it won’t verify the actual identity. We can try it later tonight."

Xi Yu took the card and was about to ask more about the programming, but then noticed something odd. He widened his eyes and said, "Those boxes have been moved. They weren’t like this before."

Luo Xi: "..."

Xi Yu immediately stood up and went over to check. He saw that aside from some bloodstains on the floor, there was nothing else—the black-clad soldier’s body had disappeared!

The disappearance of the body was far more unsettling than any battle.

Since something had gone wrong, the two of them were naturally prepared for the "day of reckoning" at any moment.

But they had hidden in a corner of the training ground the whole afternoon, even napping for two hours, and still hadn’t heard any announcements or seen any attempts to capture them.Luo Xi had already rested comfortably, rubbing his neck and chuckling, "It seems those people in black clothes have some secrets they can't let others know."

Xi Yu frowned. "Do you think there are still wandering bugs on the Star River ship? Maybe they dragged them off and ate them. After all, the bodies can't resist."

Luo Xi raised an eyebrow. "Hmm, and also... you said the bodies' hearts are gone. Could it be that they deliberately took them to feed the bugs?"

Xi Yu was puzzled. "There’s no other information to support that. After all, our ultimate goal is to escort 50,000 humans to the destination. What do bugs have to do with it? Maybe it's just because the heart is a very important organ and has other uses in the scientific background of this scenario."

Luo Xi smirked. "Go and test how the NPCs feel about the bugs, and you'll know."

Xi Yu asked, "How do we test that? I don’t agree with recklessly contacting them."

Luo Xi thought for a moment, then snapped his fingers and looked around. "Where’s Xu Tu?"

When it came to gossip, Xu Tu was on par with Tang Yanyan.

Under Luo Xi's orders, Xu Tu spread the word about the bugs eating people, even threatening to report it to the captain for a reward. This made the situation spread quickly, no longer a secret.

At dinner time, Xu Tu returned satisfied after telling the story. She picked up the nutrient solution and drank it down in one go. "Don't worry, someone will definitely report it. The rules are all over the place right now, and everyone’s going crazy."

Luo Xi snorted. "Now, let’s see how the higher-ups react."

As soon as he finished speaking, the sweet-voiced female officer opened the broadcast. "Brave warriors, there are only twenty minutes left. Captain Bai Sen’s award ceremony will begin soon. Please gather quickly in the hall."

Immediately, all the streamers in the cafeteria became restless, rushing toward the door.

Xu Tu was surprised and clicked her tongue. "I’ve played in small games with only a dozen people, but this time, it’s really hard to get used to. It feels like we’re still on the cloud platform."

Xi Yu whispered, "We’ve always... been stuck on the cloud platform."

The lights shone brightly on the center stage. Although nearly two hundred streamers had already been eliminated, many remained, and the scene was still quite spectacular.

Xi Yu, squeezed to the front row with Luo Xi, felt uneasy. "General Xingtian and that female officer haven't shown up."

Luo Xi looked around. "There were multiple pirate attacks; this is probably just a routine process."

However, Bai Sen, who stood on stage, was full of passion. Holding the dazzling silver microphone, he spoke loudly, "Last night, the brave figures of all comrades deeply moved me, and they received the highest praise from the general. The journey ahead still remains fraught with danger. I hope you continue to strive, to protect the Star River ship and ensure it reaches the end safely!"

The applause was sparse, and everyone was waiting to hear important news.Bai Sen cleared his throat. "The purpose of this conference is to recognize outstanding contributions. Now, let me announce the rewards granted by General Xingtian! Among the 807 soldiers who triumphed and survived last night, 230 of them defeated more than one enemy warship! They are promoted to fourth-class soldiers and rewarded with a dagger! 105 soldiers destroyed more than three enemy warships and are promoted to third-class soldiers, rewarded with a military knife! 27 soldiers destroyed more than five enemy warships and are rewarded with an air gun!"

As expected, weapons were being given out!

Although weapons were useless against the pirates' high-tech warplanes, among the streamers, they could directly create a gap in combat power!

With this, anyone who gained a significant lead in the battle royale would no longer have any chance of fairness.

Xu Tu wasn’t flustered and even smiled at Xi Yu. "They really gave out weapons, just as you said!"

Luo Xi furrowed his brows. "This will provoke a bloody storm next time they attack."

Bai Qi looked at him. "We both got military knives, what do you think? Will we even bother to earn points next time?"

Before Luo Xi could answer, Bai Sen raised his hand passionately. "There is also one hero who deserves special mention! Soldier Mu Yuan, who destroyed as many as thirteen pirate warplanes in last night’s battle, has been promoted to second-class soldier and awarded a laser gun!"

The streamers gasped. The first-place ranking on the Cloud Platform had now shone in the first stage of the qualifiers, and it was truly eye-catching.

Mu Yuan, with his ponytail, sneered and strode up to the stage to salute Bai Sen. He then turned and received his weapon from the hands of a black-clad soldier.

Xi Yu immediately became alert, recalling Mu Yuan’s declaration earlier in the day.

Luo Xi took a deep breath and coldly said, "No one is allowed to act alone again! You must always have someone with you. Also, if we don’t engage in the battle tonight, I’ll make sure to see what these space pirates are all about!"

As night fell, the much-anticipated ambush battle triggered the alarm once again.

Prepared in advance, Luo Xi immediately rushed out of the dormitory, while Xi Yu, who had been left behind in the room, had already changed into the black-clad soldier’s uniform.

He tightened his grip on the military knife, secretly taking out the card modified by Luo Xi and taking a deep breath.

At that moment, Xu Tu knocked sneakily on the door, raising her eyebrows. "Shall we go?"

Xi Yu had already discussed with her how to get downstairs, so upon hearing this, he immediately moved and hurriedly followed Xu Tu as they took a shortcut toward the elevator.

The security was still as impenetrable as a copper wall and iron bastion.

Xi Yu crouched in the dark with his knife in hand.

Before long, thick smoke drifted down the hallway, accompanied by Xu Tu’s scream. "Fire! Help put it out!"The Star River ship was filled with electronic equipment, and any fire that reached it could potentially cause unknown short circuits and explosions.

The captain of the soldier team guarding the elevator entrance said, "This is really annoying. Some of you, come with me and check it out."

Six soldiers immediately followed him.

There were still five left, with a chance of victory.

Xi Yu furrowed his brows, then swiftly threw the knife to smash the glass cover of the surveillance point. Afterward, he flipped over, grabbed the knife, and without pausing, lunged at the nearest soldier, holding the knife to his neck.

The other soldiers were shocked, aiming their guns and shouting, "What are you doing?" "There’s a spy!" "Let go!"

In life-and-death moments, who has time for words?

Xi Yu frowned and slashed the NPC’s throat, then forcefully hurled him at the other black-clad soldiers. He crouched and dodged the erratic trajectories of the gunfire, quickly stabbing and cutting the ankles of two soldiers. He then grabbed one of the black-clad soldiers' bodies for cover and seized their gun to fire!

To his surprise, when his finger pressed the trigger, a warning sounded: "Fingerprint verification failed! Weapon access denied!"

The black-clad soldier, now retreating while aiming at Xi Yu, showed a strange smile.

In that critical moment, Xu Tu suddenly appeared from around the corner, charging forward and stabbing through his heart with Bai Qi’s military knife!

At the exact same moment, Xi Yu dodged another soldier’s gunfire, lunged at him, and swiftly ended his life!

Xu Tu quickly finished off the two soldiers writhing in pain with broken legs, panting as she said, "Hurry up, I'll wait for you nearby."

Xi Yu instructed, "Be careful, don’t pick up their items; there will be problems."

After saying that, he took out his special card and entered the elevator.

The blood on the floor and the gunshots earlier could not have gone unnoticed. Xu Tu glanced around, then quickly crouched and sneaked off in the safe direction.

The elevator had no buttons either; it automatically descended the moment Xi Yu entered. Two seconds later, it stopped steadily.

Xi Yu had already wiped off any suspicious traces from his body and braved walking out.

There were guards here as well, and one of them suspiciously asked, "Why did you come down?"

"Hmph, there are intruders on the battleship, and many people have already died. Bai Sen sent me to check on the General's safety," Xi Yu replied calmly.The black-clad soldier shrugged indifferently: "The general is drunk again, nothing to worry about."

Xi Yu lowered his head: "I’ll go check."

As he spoke, he stepped forward without hesitation.

Fortunately, the guards had no intention of stopping him. The one who spoke even sniffed the air: "Such a strong smell of blood."

The nearby guard laughed: "It smells so good, I want to join the battle too."

Xi Yu vaguely heard this, quickened his pace in confusion, and only slowed down once he confirmed there was no danger nearby. He then leaned against the wall and let out a slow breath.

The second floor of the Star River ship had become much darker, and the lights were no longer bright. From deep within the walls, there was a constant rumble, suggesting that the core of the ship was getting closer.

Pretending to remain calm, Xi Yu walked around aimlessly, only finding several rooms like well-decorated restaurants and lounges, but he didn’t find the freezing chamber.

But with fifty thousand humans, they couldn’t possibly be hidden in some corner.

He tried to discern the route and continued walking deeper.

Suddenly! The Star River ship shook violently!

Caught off guard, Xi Yu was slammed into the wall. He fought to maintain his balance, gripping the nearby door handle to brace himself!

This was likely the result of being hit by something.

The violent shaking continued for more than a minute, and almost all the decorative plants and unstable small objects crashed to the floor, turning the once magnificent corridor into a mess.

Xi Yu noticed a strange black electronic object by his feet and squatted down to pick it up.

At that moment, a strong, foul odor surged toward him from ahead.

Xi Yu immediately stepped back, raising his knife in alert, and was surprised to confirm: it was bugs! How did they get here?!