Star Hunter.

Chapter 207 Searching for a Temporary Base, A Strange Planet

Title:

Chapter 207 Searching for a Temporary Base, A Strange Planet

Inside the starship of the Sixth Squadron, Xilin looked at the string of characters displayed on the communicator panel in his hand. After decoding, these characters turned out to be a message sent by Hunter Knife Gadda.

Gada's main purpose was to reassure Sirin that the "Grim Reaper" wouldn't be looking for him for the time being, and that Oscuro had also been harassed by some military personnel recently. After all, he was a well-known lone wolf in the Covenant, and those who knew Oscuro would be on high alert, so Sirin was safe at least for the time being, which gave him some breathing room.

Xilin had always been curious about Gada, the Hunter with the Knife. This man was hailed as the second-best lone hunter after Oscuro. Although Gada said that he was injured by Oscuro and had to hide in the Z-sector prison to recuperate, Xilin felt that there was half truth and half falsehood in his words.

It's believable that Xilin was injured by Oscuro, but the fact that he was forced to hide in the Z sector to recuperate is another matter.

The fact that Gada was able to survive Oscuro's attack demonstrates his strength, but at the same time, Shirin also considered that Oscuro was able to injure Gada back then, but what about now?

Gada gave Xilin a strange feeling; Xilin couldn't understand this person. And given Oscuro's temperament, if he had his eye on Xilin, why did he change his mind at the last minute?

The reason still lies with Gada.

How strong has Gada become after all these years?

Aside from his personal strength, Gada's ability to speak to "Death" is already astonishing in its influence. Add to that the divination, and regardless of the truth of Gada's words, it shrouds him in mystery.

"Wow—we're here!"

Kari's shout brought Xilin back to reality.

Everyone was excited as they watched the images displayed on the big screen.

According to the star map, this is the area assigned to the Vanguard.

ZJ region. Z star zone J sub-zone. This region will be the pioneering area for resource extraction over the next ten years.

Next, the team will first take a detailed look at the general situation of this area and list the conditions of each planet to facilitate subsequent actions.

After ten days of preliminary research, the main team identified a relatively large planet with a habitability level of A, which they named ZJ100.

Once planet ZJ100 is identified, barring any special circumstances, it will remain the core planet of the J-sector, whether it is handed over to the military now or in the future.

After the central planet was determined, the ten sub-fleets did not stop exploring. With the planet ZJ100 at the center of the sub-fleet as the core, they radiated outwards in ten directions. The ten sub-fleets spontaneously occupied a planet as a temporary base around the central planet ZJ100 where the main fleet was located, and then developed it on their own.

Finding a suitable planet as a temporary base for the fleet is not as simple as it sounds. It would be ideal to find a planet with a habitability rating of A, but if that's not possible, then we can only look for one with a habitability rating of B. However, in the Z sector, planets with a habitability rating of A are extremely rare, and the best one has already been designated as the core planet.

  

The communication network of the ZJ division has been established, and with the easing of the cosmic environment, communication between the various fleets is now quite frequent. They know which fleet has found a suitable planet and which is still making little progress.

As the exploration continued, news kept coming in that some fleets had found suitable planets, and two of them were incredibly lucky to find planets with Class A habitability. Although those two planets were not large, they were still enough to make the other fleets envious.

The Sixth Fleet is getting increasingly impatient lately because they haven't yet determined a temporary base planet.

No planets with an A-level habitability rating were found, and only three planets with a B-level habitability rating were found. Putting aside their small size, the environment alone made them unsuitable for building temporary settlements.

As for planets with a Class C habitability rating, there's no need to mention them. There are certainly many Class C planets, but who would build a temporary base on a Class C habitable planet?

In the past, if the team found a planet with a C-level habitability, they would be excited to rush over and investigate. But now, no one is in the mood to look at C-level planets. The most important thing right now is to find a temporary base. As for other investigations, they can only do them after the temporary base is built. Otherwise, without a place to stay, and with other teams that have already started building bases ahead of them watching with a smile, who would be in the mood to investigate?

On the main starship, Shorten and his team of technicians were busy reviewing the results sent back by the probes from various locations. The habitability of the surrounding planets was either C or D.

Meanwhile, these analysis results will be shared with each team after being processed by the technical staff, so that everyone can understand the situation.

Kari, slumped in his chair with a bitter expression, stared at the probe results sent from Shorten's main starship. "Do you think we're just incredibly unlucky?" he said dejectedly. "Otherwise, how come we've only found those two underdeveloped Class B planets by now?"

Yudi glared at him: "It's already impressive that you've developed to that extent in this kind of environment."

Kari snorted. "Are we really going to have to go back to those underdeveloped planets to build outposts? No way, that would be so embarrassing..."

Looking at the summary of information he had gathered over the past few days, Beaver said helplessly, "There's nothing we can do; not every fleet can get lucky."

Kari turned her head and looked at the chubby white boy rolling around with dough in the corner. "Snowball, come here and give your brother a squeeze so he can vent his anger."

Upon hearing Kari's words, Snowball rolled away, ignoring Kari's shouts.

"Damn, this chubby guy is getting less and less likable!"

"Kari, it's not that Snowball isn't likable, it's just that you're on your period lately," Yudi said, flicking the tail of the dough ball that had jumped onto his lap.

"You're the one who's already on your period!"

Hearing Kari and Yudi's conversation, Beaver shook his head. "Never mind," he thought, "let them argue." He glanced at the analysis data again, then at the scene displayed on the large screen. They were about to pass a Class C planet. The planet's area was decent, but according to the data sent back by the probes, it was far from suitable for habitation. How good could a planet classified as Class C be?

Many people shared Beaver's opinion, so the starships of the Sixth Squadron showed no intention of stopping.

But as they got closer to that C-class habitable planet, the gray cat, who was sleeping on Xilin's shoulder, suddenly opened its eyes and pricked up its ears.

"What's wrong?" Xilin asked, noticing the gray cat's reaction.

"Something's wrong with that planet...!" Gray Cat stared at the image displayed on the big screen, his gaze falling on the planet that had just been classified as having a Class C habitability.

"Something's not right?"

The gray cat didn't speak, but Xilin saw the gray cat's pupils dilate and then contract to sword-like shapes. Something that could interest the gray cat so much...

Xilin immediately connected to Shorten's communicator.

"Captain, stop the starship for a moment, something's come up."

"What happened?" Shorten asked.

Shorten is also in a bad mood. After all, the Sixth Fleet has made no progress so far, and it was Shorten who drew lots to determine the sailing direction and route of each fleet. They haven't encountered any good planets along the way, and the team members are starting to complain. So Shorten is under a lot of pressure.

"I've discovered something. I want to go check out that planet that's been rated as Class C habitable," Xilin said, stating his idea directly.

Shorten frowned, remained silent for a moment, and then said, "Okay, how much backup support do you need?"

"No need, just Hulu, Xiying, and I will go."

"You have three hours. If you don't find anything, come back immediately."

"it is good."

After Shorten ordered the starship to stop, some technicians complained, but Shorten remained silent. Having chosen to trust Sirin, he had to withstand the pressure.

Kari also wanted to go with Xilin, but Xilin refused.

He piloted a small aircraft, carrying Gray Cat and Xiying, and headed there.

The air on this planet is extremely thin, so cosmic rays are very strong, and the composition of the air is also harmful to human respiration. Therefore, Xilin was wearing a protective suit when he stepped out of the spacecraft.

The location for settling down was also pointed out by the gray cat.

Gray Cat and west Ying seemed quite at ease. After stepping out of the spacecraft, Gray Cat ran in one direction. Although Xi Ying hadn't shown any unusual behavior on the starship, she became active after exiting the spacecraft, her eyes flashing as if she were conducting a deep scan.

This place is like a plain, with occasional small hills, but no towering mountains.

The gray cat seemed very excited, not for the food, but more like it had found something fun.

Here, most scanning devices fail, and the life indicator in Xilin's hand shows nothing. Even their life indicators are blank, which clearly indicates a problem in this area.

Fortunately, the Western Shadow was still functioning normally, transmitting some images to the starship through him. Although some were discontinuous, at least there were images that allowed the people on the starship to see what was happening there.

Xilin stopped running and looked around. He sensed that many eyes were watching them from the shadows.

"There are highly evolved alien life forms around!" west Ying said.

"Yes, there are some, but I don't know what they are." After looking around, Xilin followed the gray cat and continued walking forward.

On the starship, upon hearing Xilin and Xiying's words, Xiaodun and the technicians were somewhat incredulous. According to the data from the probes, there were no highly evolved life forms on this planet. There were microorganisms, but most of them were living in extreme environments, and there were also some low-level single-celled organisms. As for plants, they were also mostly low-level life forms.

The gray cat was clearly unconcerned about the hidden gazes, instead sniffing here and there with its head down, looking quite pleased.

"There's something down there, electronic equipment, a huge one," Gray Cat said excitedly to Xilin as he turned around.

"How big is it?" Xilin asked.

"The place where we landed, the land we passed through, and the land we're standing on now stretches far into the distance, covering roughly one-fifth of the entire planet's surface!"

Xilin squinted. Although he had sensed something unusual since arriving on this planet, his senses weren't as sharp as Gray Cat's. He didn't know what the feeling was, nor could he estimate its scope. However, he was genuinely surprised by Gray Cat's words. Now, he also vaguely sensed that someone had been on this planet a long time ago, and had made a great commotion, preserving some artifacts.

Shorten heard Gray Cat's words, and the news was indeed alarming. He didn't doubt Gray Cat's judgment, which meant that there was something on this planet that could interfere with the detectors, rendering the detected data useless.

"Xilin, don't act yet, I'll send someone..."

Before Shorten could finish speaking, some dark figures appeared on the screen.

Xilin watched as the figures emerged from behind the raised hills and drew his gun.

"What...what is that?" a technician asked, swallowing hard.

Since it was nighttime on that side, the images transmitted from Xi'an Film Studio were indistinct, showing only a rough outline, over two meters tall, resembling a standing scorpion. In short, it was definitely not human.

"Attention, small team! Proceed to the rescue immediately!"

Shorten's hair stood on end. This planet was indeed very strange, and he now regretted sending Xilin out.

The number of those things gradually increased, surrounding Xilin and the others, forming an encirclement, and the encirclement gradually tightened.

With the help of the dim starlight, Xilin could make out the appearance of these monsters. They had triangular mouths with several pairs of fangs, three pairs of claws on their bellies, three pairs of large feet with sharp claws planted firmly on the ground, and a raised tail behind them.

With the appearance of these monsters, the surrounding temperature seemed to drop significantly.

The gray cat still didn't look at the monsters, but kept circling around in one place, seemingly lost in thought.

"Hoo-hoo, enemy activity, what do we do?" Xilin whispered.

These creatures that have emerged are definitely not easy to deal with, and there are so many of them. The aircraft is still some distance away, and the situation is very unfavorable for Xilin. Moreover, he is the only real human here, making him the target of everyone's attacks. Xilin is increasingly frustrated by the gray cat's continued composure.

In response to Xilin's low growl, the gray cat merely flicked its ears, then stopped circling, a string of green characters flashing rapidly in its eyes.

Xilin and Xiying stood back to back, ready to deal with these creatures that were slowly approaching.

"Eeya—"

A sharp roar shattered the silence.

This sound came from the monster at the very front; it must be their leader.

After that sharp roar, the monsters finally quickened their pace and charged towards Xilin.

Shoulder cannons, wrist blades, and combination light guns are all ready.

But just as Xilin was preparing to fight, the monsters suddenly stopped and let out a series of low, unintelligible growls.

"Eeya—"

There was another roar, but the tone was noticeably different from the previous one.

After the roar, the monsters that had rushed to within seven or eight meters of Xilin and the others slowly retreated, and the support team sent by Shorten in the air gradually appeared.

"Don't let the support team come over! And don't open fire!" Xilin said urgently.

Just now, the gray cat sent him a message.

The things underground are about to come out.

After receiving Xilin's instructions, the fighter jets and aircraft that had already flown over Xilin and his group did not land immediately. Since they were already there, they would open fire as soon as the monsters made any unusual movements.

"Vice-captain, what exactly happened...?"

Kari hadn't finished speaking when she froze, staring at the commotion below. The others reacted similarly.

Boom boom boom—

The ground began to tremble.

The monsters quickly left and disappeared without a trace in no time, just as they had arrived silently before.

Xilin and Xiying stood there without moving, and the gray cat told them that there was no danger here.

As the ground trembled, the rock debris and dust on the surface of the protruding hills were shaken off, and then suddenly they all lit up. In an instant, the originally dark night was illuminated.

Those aboard the starship were stunned by what they saw. Passing through the thin atmosphere, these lights stood out starkly in the darkness; even without the images transmitted from the Western Shadow, the people on the starship could see them clearly from space.

What does this scenario represent?

This means that someone has been here before and built these facilities! And judging from the current situation, these facilities are quite old.

Who built these?

Is there any connection between the people who built these facilities and the large planet where the military is stationed?

The technicians on the starship were incredibly excited at the thought of it.

After those small hill-like protrusions lit up, the ground continued to tremble until a quarter-sphere-shaped building rose up where the gray cat was.

The building was about fifteen meters tall. After it rose, the gray cat stared at it, its eyes flashing with green strings of light.

west Ying disconnected the image transmission from the starship and began analyzing the rising building.

The gray cat is decoding, and Xiying is learning this decoding method. It's a rare opportunity to learn this knowledge from a cyborg life form.

Xilin looked at the building. He knew that Gray Cat's so-called decoding was a "dialogue" with this, or rather, the massive machine underground. Although Xilin himself couldn't engage in such a "dialogue," he could "see" the mechanical language, and "see" the communication between Gray Cat and the building. He didn't understand it; he merely "saw" some of it.

Two minutes later, the quarter-sphere structure opened up to the fan-shaped section facing Xilin and his group, and the following year it was converted into a passageway.

"Let's go. It's just the few of us. The rest of you can wait outside. Going in without permission will only lead to your death." With that, the gray cat swished its tail and went inside.

Xilin and Xiying followed the gray cat inside.

Grey Cat's words were clearly directed at the rest of the Sixth Squadron, leaving those who were about to land and go inside dumbfounded.

"Captain, look..." a team member asked Xiaodun directly.

"Just wait around and do as it says. News from Xilin will come out eventually," Shorten said.

"Okay, that's all we can do for now."

"While you have time, look around and find the lair of those monsters. The second group will arrive on the planet soon."

After making some arrangements, Shorten boarded a spaceship and traveled with the second group of people to the planet that had previously been classified as having a Class C habitability.

Things don't seem to be going as they had imagined.