Star Hunter.

Chapter 249 Not on the Same Level

Chapter 249 Not on the Same Level

Everything was arranged, and all Xilin needed to do was move his feet. The meeting point was not on this planet, but on a satellite planet that was inconspicuous among the many orbiting satellite planets.

"We've only been here a short time and we're already going on a long trip, without even a chance to rest," the gray cat muttered. It had originally planned to go and say hello to Bona and King Kong, but who knew it would be sent out again so soon after settling in? Didn't Chang Xiaosan and Chang Xiaosi say that students should prioritize their studies? How come the people from the affiliated school are completely unsuitable for that rule?

Xilin scratched the gray cat's chin: "It's better to leave. At least it will give everyone some time to adjust. The Imperial Capital Star Region is the absolute territory of one emperor and three kings. If there is any unavoidable conflict, we won't be able to escape either."

The gray cat flicked its ear: "Xilin, what exactly is your relationship with the Yuan family? I've tested it, and you're not related by blood, so why do they keep coming to see you?"

"...It's a long story." That was the only word Xilin could use to summarize it.

"Okay, if it's too long, then let's not talk about it." The gray cat squinted and started to doze off.

The satellite planets that have been assembled are smaller than the previous preparatory campus planets, but in terms of buildings and equipment, this planet is no less important than the previous preparatory planets.

The aircraft landed next to a tall, cylindrical building, which was the meeting point in Xilin.

After Xilin handed over the student certificate Guan Feng had given him for inspection, the door opened, and Xilin and Gray Cat entered. The interior was a monotonous metallic color, not too dazzling or flashy, but Xilin could sense the armed equipment embedded in the metallic walls, ready to deal with intruders at any moment.

Each door in the corridor bears a sign. It is not the sign of any of the three affiliated schools, but the sign of the Royal Academy of Sciences, meaning that the building belongs to the Royal Academy of Sciences.

"Intelligent and mechanized architecture. Powerful equipment and precise system scanning and micro-control, this place seems pretty good," Gray Cat commented.

Xilin flicked the restless guy on his shoulder, took the elevator to a conference room on the tenth floor, waved his student ID through the scanner, and the conference room door opened.

What came into view was a group of more than ten people sitting around a round table. Among them were students from the First and Second Affiliated Hospitals who had been invited, just like Xilin, as well as people wearing the emblem of the Royal Academy of Sciences.

"Oh, Sirin's here. Please have a seat. You've come just in time; we're about to begin," a member of the Royal Academy of Sciences said to Sirin with a smile.

Xilin nodded politely and sat down in an empty chair. The person next to him, who had been sleeping with their head down, rubbed their hair and glanced at Xilin sitting down beside them.

"Huh? You're here too?!"

The student who had just woken up was Wei Lai, his roommate in the temporary dormitory that day.

Wei Lai was kicked here by his debt-ridden yet self-righteous tutor to do pre-enrollment training. Wei Lai was very unwilling to do this. Putting aside how lazy he was, Wei Lai's purpose for being here was different from many others. He didn't seek wealth and glory, only basic sustenance; he didn't seek numerous military achievements, only peace and quiet. Even listening to those old scholars passionately and eloquently expounding on things that most students found profound and incomprehensible, things they impatiently glanced at but couldn't understand, Wei Lai didn't want to run around here and there. Especially not when he had to leave the academy to complete a dispatch mission.

If it weren't for the high salary the old man paid, Wei Lai would never have moved an inch. He arrived relatively early. However, looking around the conference room, he didn't recognize most of the people there; they were mostly alumni. Aside from listening to them boast about their glorious achievements and gossip about their mentors and top students at the affiliated school, he only heard the academicians discussing profound and mysterious things among themselves.

In Wei Lai's view, the gossip among his mentors and the profound academic discussions among the academicians were all hypnotic. Since he was quite familiar with the group and had to wait for someone, Wei Lai didn't participate in the pre-meeting discussions and simply lay down on the table to sleep. To his surprise, when he woke up, he saw a familiar face sitting next to him. This was good news for Wei Lai; without this acquaintance, he might have slept the entire way on this mission.

Xilin was quite happy to see Wei Lai. "Yes, it's a task assigned by my mentor."

"I never expected that we'd be assigned a mission before we'd even gotten a foothold in the field." Wei Lai rubbed his face to clear his head.

After Xilin sat down, the meeting officially began. The host first explained the task, which was neither difficult nor complicated, as everyone had known beforehand.

The host also introduced the students who were invited to the event. Before coming, Xilin had heard Guan Feng mention the hidden secrets behind it.

Since this mission was initiated internally by the Royal Academy of Sciences, and not by any noble family, the emperor and his three kings, or the two major armies of the empire, the main invited students all share a common characteristic: their career paths are not yet fully determined. They have not explicitly joined any powerful group or noble family.

  

To put it nicely, this shows the Royal Academy of Sciences values ​​these individuals and also aims to avoid any appearance of impropriety by getting involved with other groups. To put it bluntly, even if the invited students were to die a heroic death, the mission organizers wouldn't need to bother explaining to various factions. Many of these students' mentors have direct connections with the Royal Academy of Sciences, so the entire mission is essentially an internal matter for the Academy, and internal conflicts can be resolved internally.

Ten students were invited, and they would be accompanied by several academicians and honorary scholars of the Royal Academy of Sciences. As for the other guards, contrary to previous reports, the Imperial Guard was not used; instead, the Royal Academy of Sciences' own guard force was employed. Although the number of guards was small, they were quite elite, as many of them had been retained from the affiliated school.

After a brief introduction of the mission, the leader told everyone to prepare to depart, indicating that the people from the Royal Academy of Sciences were quite eager for this mission.

The Royal Academy of Sciences' starships bear the large Royal Academy of Sciences emblem and enjoy the same special routes and jump points as the nobility.

It must be said that the Royal Academy of Sciences is indeed very wealthy, as can be seen from the configuration and decoration of the starship's interior.

Xilin and his group of ten students had a special activity floor on the starship, where their rest room was also located.

In the central entertainment area of ​​this floor, Xilin and Wei Lai sat in armchairs enjoying juice and snacks served by a robot. Drinking was prohibited here; it was said that incidents had occurred before, with some trainees causing significant damage after drinking and resulting in drunken disorder. Therefore, if you had a severe alcohol addiction but wouldn't cause trouble after drinking, you needed to produce your instructor's permission certificate, sign a guarantee, and have the highest-ranking officer on your accompanying starship sign it before you could drink.

Although Xilin and Wei Lai both wanted to drink, they found it even more troublesome. They would have to endure the lectures and health education from the members and honorary scholars of the Royal Academy of Sciences: "Alcohol has different effects on the central neurotransmitter system, affecting acetylcholine, neuropeptides, and corticotropin-releasing factor, blah blah blah..."

For those academicians and honorary scholars who habitually consider issues from an academic perspective, Wei Lai wished he could just take off his shoes and shove them into their mouths. This was a shared view of his and his extremely shameless mentor, who took his debts for granted.

Not far away, Gray Cat was playing a game with York, a former student. Gray Cat, who had been looked down upon by Mian Tuan in games before and had since put in a lot of effort in this area, was able to hold his own against York, resulting in a best-of-three series. York was quite unconvinced and kept Gray Cat playing, so Xilin and Wei Lai sat down to watch and chat.

Xilin was chatting with Wei Lai when a melodious voice interrupted.

"So you're Guan Feng's new student?"

Xilin looked up. It was the girl named Kona Senza, a year ahead of Xilin and the others. She was also gentle and charming, and her long dress made her stand out among the ten people.

The meeting organizers introduced everyone's names during the meeting. However, they did not mention which mentor each person belonged to. Now that Kena Senza was able to say this, Xilin was not surprised, since many previous students knew that he had the Razer DeathAdder K during the selection test.

Seeing Konasenza approach, Wei Lai winked at Xilin and moved over to make room for Konasenza.

After thanking Wei Lai, Kona Senza sat down and looked at Xilin with her big, curious eyes.

In response to Konasenza's question, Xilin nodded, "Yes, my mentor is Guan Feng."

Upon receiving confirmation from Xilin, Kena Senza was overjoyed and turned to shout to the people sitting on the other side of the entertainment hall, "Eros, Vino, Dado, he really is Guan Feng's student!"

The three people sitting on the other side looked over, got up and walked over. The big guy, Eros, looked a little embarrassed. After hearing Kona Senza's words, he scratched his head and said shyly, "Oh. Hehe."

Vino and Dado looked at Xilin with probing and suspicion, while the others sitting in another corner of the entertainment hall watched with amusement.

In fact, from the moment Xilin entered the conference room, she knew that some people here were hostile towards her. Their gazes toward Xilin were not exactly jealous, but they weren't exactly friendly either. Guan Feng seemed to have known this would happen all along, which is why he said those things to Xilin.

Seeing that things didn't seem to be going as expected, Wei Lai looked at Xi Lin and asked if he needed help.

Xilin shook his head subtly, indicating that he could handle it.

"This is Vino, Dado, and the big guy Eros. As for me, do you know my name?" Kona Senza asked Xilin with a smile, her eyes crinkling with a bright light.

"I introduced myself at the meeting. I know you, and I know you, Konna Senza," Xilin replied.

Kona Senza playfully waved her finger: "It's fate that we were able to get to know each other on this mission, so there's no need to be so formal. Just call me Coco, like you do with Dado."

Dado is the only woman among the ten people this time, besides Kona Senza; the other eight are all men. Dado's style is completely different from Kona Senza's. She is lively, active, and gets along well with everyone else. She seems carefree, but she also has her own principles, which is what Xilin has learned over the years.

Vino walked up to Xilin, looked down at him, pulled up a chair, sat down, and raised his chin. "I know Instructor Guan Feng. His Infernal Thunder Serpent is very famous."

In other words, I know you because your advisor is Guan Feng, not because you are any special.

Many people at the affiliated school have heard of or even seen Guan Feng's name. After all, Guan Feng has taught some courses at the school. Each of Guan Feng's courses has a limited number of places, and every time they fill up instantly. As soon as a course starts, people who have been waiting on the school's course selection platform scramble to grab a spot. This shows just how famous Guan Feng is.

However, this was only on the surface. Xilin didn't care about what Vino said, neither refuting nor saying anything more.

Seeing that Xilin didn't respond, Vino and Dado exchanged a glance and smiled mockingly. "I've heard that Instructor Guan Feng's students are all excellent marksmen. I agree. Although I didn't witness your 'three plus one test' firsthand, I've heard about it from my senior brothers. But..." Vino paused, as if he'd seen right through Xilin, and continued, "I wonder if all you gun enthusiasts are only suited for long-range shooting and not for close combat?"

As soon as Vino finished speaking, he and Dado next to him moved at the same time.

Dado was undoubtedly fast, while Vino was closer to Xilin and displayed a strong desire to attack. This made it easy for others to unconsciously devote more attention to him when both were under attack.

Having been at the affiliated school longer, Vino and Dado were undoubtedly more skilled than the candidates who had participated in the selection tests a few days prior, foregoing some of their fancy moves. Their attacks were direct and swift.

One was facing him from one side, while on the other side of Xilin was Kona Senza. Behind them was a chair, anyway. Being sandwiched like this would be a problem for a pure marksman, but Xilin was not a pure marksman.

In fact, before Kona Senza arrived, Xilin had already noticed the probing glances from Vino and the others. Xilin was wondering when they would make their move, but it turned out that Kona Senza, a girl with relatively low combat strength, took the lead, which then attracted Vino and Dado. The two of them also took the opportunity to get close to Xilin and launch a close-range attack.

However, Vino and Dado, having just begun their movements, quickly stopped, stiffly remaining in their original positions. Vino's fingers were claw-like, aimed at Xilin's neck, while Dado's fist was aimed at Xilin's side, but both were deflected from their optimal attack points due to Xilin's instantaneous movement. Even though they were off target, they had no intention of continuing their attack.

Apart from York, who was playing a game with the gray cat, everyone else was staring in this direction, looking completely bewildered.

What forced Vino and Dado to stop their attack?

A knife, a gun.

The slender knife was pointed at Vino's forehead, while the Infernal Razer K was pressed against Dado's forehead.

The eerie atmosphere around him affected York, who was playing a game with the gray cat. He finally realized that it was too quiet, and all he could hear was him and the gray cat hurling insults at each other during their game.

York, distracted by the surrounding images, was instantly killed by a direct hit from the gray cat. Seeing the words flashing on the screen, York was furious. He slammed his hand on the game console and roared, "Hey, what's going on with you guys?!"

But after seeing what was happening on Xilin's side, York paused, nudged the gray cat who was licking its paws smugly because it had won the game, and pointed at Xilin's side.

The gray cat didn't even glance at it. "Why do you care so much? No wonder you lost; that's called a lack of willpower!"

"Bullshit! Again!"

York ignored everyone else's reactions, flexed his fingers, and continued to fight the gray cat.

Grey Cat was overjoyed, because they also gambled on the games, and he had won at least three bags of dried fish cakes in these few rounds. Hmm, not bad, it's rare to run into a simpleton like York.

I wonder what York would think if he knew he was seen as a simpleton by this gray cat.

Xilin stood there with a hand chop to the neck, his expression unreadable. Since Vino and Dado had initiated the attack, no one else dared to criticize him. The problem was that the onlookers nearby showed no intention of intervening. If Xilin were easy to manipulate, they might have used their seniority as their reason for speaking up, but it seemed he was no pushover. They weren't his close senior brothers, and their relationship with Vino and Dado wasn't particularly good; nobody wanted to get involved. Therefore, after their initial shock, they made no further moves.

Eros scratched his head again, looked at Kona Senza sitting next to him, and gestured for her to try to persuade him. After all, Kona Senza was a girl, and she was better than him, a big guy. If Eros directly stepped in, it might make the situation worse. Moreover, it was well known that Eros was not very good at talking.

Wei Lai crossed her legs and swung them around. She slowly picked up a pastry with her finger and put it in her mouth, ignoring the pitiful look that Kona Senza was giving her.

Kona Senza put down her teacup. A smile spread across her face. "As expected of a student of the renowned teacher Guan Feng, I admire you. It was just a little scuffle. Xilin, Vino, and Dado were just curious about you. Let's leave it at that."

Xilin looked at Kona Senza and smiled. Kona Senza didn't know what Xilin's smile meant, but she always felt that Xilin's eyes seemed to be able to see through to the essence of things.

Xilin's hand trembled, and the knife and gun disappeared. He picked up the water glass and juice again.

A person watching from a distance said to their companion, "Is his tutor really Guan Feng? No wonder everyone is scrambling to get a spot whenever Guan Feng teaches a class."

The companion nodded in agreement. "A master teacher is a master teacher indeed. Look at how well his students, who have just started, have reached this level. No wonder Guan Feng, who has such high standards, opened his door to accept them."

Previously, while they admired Guan Feng, it was mainly because of his Hellfire Serpent. Boys tend to focus more on firearms, and the mysterious Hellfire Serpent was one of their main interests. However, in their minds, close-quarters combat with guns couldn't be very effective. But today, Xilin taught them a lesson. Who says gun users can't fight in close combat? Look at his movements; they couldn't even keep up. In the blink of an eye, he was blocked by a longsword. That speed—even Daduo couldn't match it!

Xilin and the others might not yet know Daduo's identity, but the senior students here do. Daduo and Bie Yao, a well-known speedster from the Second Affiliated High School, share the same instructor. This means Daduo is also skilled in speed. However, even Daduo didn't gain any advantage in Xilin's meeting.

They didn't know. Even when Da Duo's senior brother, Bie Yao, personally took action, he was still kicked by Xi Lin, let alone Da Duo, who was slightly inferior to Bie Yao?

After Xilin sheathed his sword, Vino stared at Xilin for a while, then laughed and said, "Indeed impressive, I concede defeat!"

Vino's words made Xilin look at him with new respect. Someone who could so readily admit defeat certainly earned him more points.

Daduo flicked her fingers, then casually slumped onto a nearby recliner, putting her feet up on the edge of the table. "I guess I'm still not good enough. No wonder my advisor said I'm not up to par. Sigh, compared to you, a freshman, I feel a lot of pressure. I wonder how my senior, Bie Yao, will fare."

The gray cat tilted its ears to this side, manipulating the game controller with its paws as it said, "Bieyao? You mean that guy who was with Black Panther Panther?"

Grey Cat's words startled York on the other side. His hand trembled, and damn it, he lost again!

The gray cat skillfully raised its paw to scoop up the gambling money placed next to it, counted it, and then pushed it to its feet to weigh it down. There was already a stack of coins sitting on its butt.

"You know Bieyao and Panther?!" York, no longer caring about the money he had lost in the bet, jumped in front of the gray cat and asked.

The gray cat glanced sideways at York, whose face was full of curiosity and surprise, raised its paw, and moved it closer to York.

"Damn!" York rummaged in his pocket, pulled out a large bill, put it back, and handed a smaller bill to the gray cat.

The gray cat glanced at the banknote, then at York's pocket where he kept his money, but neither took it nor said a word.

Xilin was "focused" on drinking his juice, which made Wei Lai grimac. After spending time together in the temporary dormitory, he already knew that these two, master and servant, were no good!

"Well, enough is enough," York said, shaking the coins.

"Hmph!" The gray cat raised its paw, scooped up the coins, and placed them under its rear end, saying slowly, "I know Black Panther Panther, and we know Bie Yao too."

Although you said not to make a big fuss about those things, it's okay to mention names, right? The gray cat counted on its paws, "And there's Zani with wings, the big, goofy-looking Puno, Inaf, and that guy who plays music, what's his name again, oh Lingxi!"

The group was now truly stunned and even more silent. Not to mention Black Panther Panther and Bie Yao, there were also Zani, Puno, and even Ling Xi. These were all characters who had been recruited by "Wing" in advance and were considered celebrities in the affiliated school. People who could come into contact with them... Originally, they thought everyone was on the same level without "choosing sides," but they didn't expect that Xilin would actually be able to come into contact with that level.

Wei Lai didn't often gossip. Aside from Zani, who had appeared during the selection tests, he didn't know about the other people Gray Cat mentioned. However, from the reactions of others to these names, he could tell their roles at the affiliated school. He also noticed that Gray Cat was noticeably more nonchalant when mentioning these names than usual, seemingly not thinking much of them. Someone who could elicit such a reaction from Gray Cat… hey, this master and servant are really good at hiding their true intentions!

The gray cat ran back to Xilin with the money in its mouth, asking Xilin to deposit it for it, including the principal Xilin had lent it. Xilin didn't settle accounts with it.

The gray cat perched on Xilin's shoulder and glanced at Eros, who was standing beside him. It said, "Puno is stronger than you."

This is just a statement from the cat, and it doesn't mean anything contemptuous. It's just the cat stating a fact. It had seen Puno expand and transform when it was doing so, and it was indeed much bigger than Eros.

"Uh, hehe." Eros scratched his head sheepishly.

Gray Cat: "..."

Don't mind him, Erus is always like this. His catchphrase is nine words: "Uh-heh-heh, aha-ha, oh-ho-ho." He uses three words at a time, depending on the situation.

To ease the awkwardness, Vino took the initiative to start a conversation about Erros. It turned out that Erros was Ironhead's senior, his own mentor.

This finally dispelled the awkwardness from before, and Wei Lai joined the conversation, helping everyone to get along better.

Xilin isn't a petty person, just like Guan Feng said. There are bound to be minor disagreements between students when they first meet, but they'll be fine afterward.

When they finally arrived at their destination, Xilin had become much more familiar with Vino, Dado, York, and Eros. However, York had suffered an even greater blow from the gray cat. He was no good at games, and he still couldn't beat the fat cat in a fight! Every day, York's face was covered in cat claw marks.

Through their time together, everyone knows that this fat cat is very familiar with the animals at the affiliated high school. It's impossible not to be wary; everyone has some lingering fear from the selection tests before entering the school.

After landing, Xilin discovered that the buildings on this planet were generally not tall, lacking towering skyscrapers, but each building resembled a fortress, a fortress built for battle. Walking among these buildings gave one the illusion of being on a battlefield.

However, it is said that wars do break out here, but not between humans, but between humans and beasts. On this planet, oceans cover three-fifths of the area, and the remaining two-fifths are land. However, half of the land area is almost entirely desert and other desert regions, where few people live, leading to other more fertile terrestrial areas becoming densely populated areas.

Before this mission, Xilin and his team had already learned some general information about the situation here—the struggle between humans and sea monsters, as well as the conflicts among humans.

Cities are frequently attacked by sea monsters. Even with protective shields, they don't keep them open all the time because they don't have enough energy resources.

Neither side is willing to relinquish their territory, and generations of struggle have become a habit. Human weapons are constantly being upgraded, while marine species are constantly evolving. Perhaps one day in the future, one side will finally prevail, bringing temporary peace. If humanity wins, even more intense internal conflicts will follow the calm. If the marine creatures win, the defeated humans may follow their homeland to destruction, or they may leave this planet to find another place to live, but they will forever bear the mark of the losers, having lost their homeland in their hands.

The people here are very stubborn, a stubbornness inherited from their ancestors. Otherwise, they wouldn't have refused outside help and instead stayed here to fight against the sea monsters on their own.

It was precisely because they recognized the "stubbornness" of the people here that the Royal Academy of Sciences sent people here to negotiate. If it were someone from another place who was easier to talk to, they could have handled the matter directly through remote communication. Why would they have to travel all the way from the capital to here?

Many houses have various kinds of dried seafood hanging at their entrances, so you can smell similar odors everywhere in the air.

For example, the fat cat on Xilin's shoulder has had its mouth wide open ever since it arrived, practically drooling. If Xilin hadn't stopped it from running around, it would have gone off to forage for food as soon as it landed.

"Wow, look at the fish's teeth!" York exclaimed, pointing to half a fish head hanging in front of a shop.

Even just half a fish head reveals a lot. This fish's head is over two meters long, with rows of sharp teeth in its mouth and very sharp pharyngeal teeth. It's believed that even if a fish escaped the teeth in its mouth, it would be crushed by its pharyngeal teeth.

York's outburst embarrassed several academicians of the Royal Society, who glared at him. York reluctantly withdrew his fingers, which were about to go up and personally experience the sharpness of the fish's teeth, and winked at Vino. He remained silent.

The Royal Academy of Sciences had already informed the planetary government before their arrival, and the government had sent people to welcome them, but the reception was lukewarm compared to the warm welcomes they received on other planets. The Royal Academy of Sciences personnel were essentially given a cold shoulder this time.

Two of the more arrogant academicians immediately frowned, but considering the discussions before their departure, they prioritized the important matter and forced themselves to hold back.

Xilin's senses were very sharp. He could sense that people on the surrounding building facades were pointing guns at them. It wasn't that they considered Xilin and his group enemies or lacked murderous intent; it was just a habit. A habit of looking at people through a scope, a habit of looking at people next to a gun—perhaps this made them feel safe, without any sense of impoliteness.

The others could probably sense that guns were being pointed at them. However, without clear instructions, everyone remained on guard and did not take any action.

"So this is what it feels like to walk under the muzzles of so many guns." Vino smirked.

Eros's facial muscles twitched, but he didn't answer. He didn't even use his usual three-word reply, which showed how nervous he was. Being pointed at and unable to do anything about it was indeed a very unpleasant feeling.

However, Wei Lai seemed quite used to this kind of thing, unlike Vino and York who were tense. Compared to the others, Wei Lai and Xi Lin were as casual as if they were taking a walk on the street. This surprised the others.

Perhaps this is the difference? Dado thought to herself.

Besides Wei Lai and Xi Lin, there was another person who was also very relaxed, and that was Kona Senza.

From their time together, Xilin knew that although Kona Senza wasn't particularly strong in combat, she possessed a natural predictive ability, much like Tico's rabbit before, with an innate intuitive sense of danger.

Although those who knew Kona Senza's abilities knew she wouldn't be in danger seeing her like this, they were still worried about the possibility of something going wrong. Life is irreplaceable; once lost, it's gone forever. Therefore, it was better to be cautious than to rely entirely on Kona Senza.

Suddenly, Konasenza stopped in her tracks, frowning as she looked in one direction.

Although Konasenza stopped, the whole team quickly became highly alert.

"What's wrong, Coco?" an academician asked.

Konasenza shook her head. "Nothing's wrong right now."

In other words, something's going to happen later?

Without the protection of the planetary government's military, the academicians felt uncertain about their small group. Although human society on this planet was relatively peaceful, anyone would feel apprehensive standing there. Some even regretted not requesting an escort from the Imperial Army.

The gray cat flicked its tail. It hoped that whatever happened would come in a more intense way. It had come all this way, so it wanted to have as much fun as it could. As for what others would do, that was not the gray cat's concern. It was just a petty cat and couldn't care less about so many people.

The planetary government was indeed magnificent, but like other buildings in the city, it wasn't very tall. Xilin's first impression of the planetary government was that it resembled an alligator snapping turtle, protecting itself with a hard shell while its mouth was open, ready to attack any approaching prey.

The planetary government was surrounded by layers of guards, but the force sent to pick them up was only a small team, far less than the troops stationed here.

"Xilin, there's a big guy inside the planetary government!" Gray Cat stared intently at a certain spot in the planetary government.

"Is it a sea monster?" Xilin asked.

"Yes, but that poor sea creature seems to be in bad shape; it's being used for research." Gray Cat has always been averse to the word "for research."

Back in the Star Covenant, many alien creatures were captured for research, so it couldn't be too carefree there. However, things were much better after arriving in the Lanza Empire. At least here, the alien creatures weren't openly captured for research, and the animals in the attached group also had their rights. They provided blood to the Royal Academy of Sciences for research, but all of this was voluntary, and they received generous compensation for their blood donations. Even the black panther Panther was recruited into the "Wings."

Although Gray Cat didn't hold Panser in high regard, Panser, now part of the "Wings," would undoubtedly consider things from the perspective of other animals, protecting their rights and shielding them from the torment of certain madmen. This is why Gray Cat still harbored goodwill towards Panser despite defeating him.

It is more convincing to believe that the rights of non-human species should be protected by non-human species themselves.

"It seems the conflict between humans and sea creatures here has indeed become quite intense," Xilin said.

As soon as Xilin finished speaking, a deep roar rang out, carrying far and wide.

Deep-sea mammals?

From the sound of this sea creature, Xilin could tell that it was a species that lived in the extremely deep ocean. It was indeed not easy to bring such a large creature from the deep sea here alive.