Chapter 122: Aliens Appear!

Chu Xiao wanted Wang Yan to rest well, as their lives depended on it—and after all, Wang Yan was still a woman. No matter how capable she was, she was still a woman.

“It’s alright, I’m not tired. I’ll try to calculate the results by tonight,” Wang Yan said determinedly.

Seeing Wang Yan like this reminded Chu Xiao of himself. Had he not met Wang Lulu, perhaps the two of them could have become good friends—but only friends!

Hours passed, and as nearly six hours slipped away, Wang Yan, bearing two dark circles under her eyes from lack of sleep, suddenly exclaimed, “I’ve got it! I’ve calculated it!”

Her shout startled everyone awake. The other astronauts, upon hearing the news, hurried out.

“Captain, you’ve figured it out!”

“Exactly, our original trajectory lies 5,000 kilometers southwest!”

Yet a new problem arose. Although they now knew the original path, they needed to bring back a large quantity of meteorites, which would consume an enormous amount of fuel.

“We can fly two thousand kilometers, then glide through the vacuum for three thousand more. Maybe that way, we can return to Earth,” Chu Xiao mused. Perhaps this was the only viable plan. If it didn’t work, they might have to abandon some meteorites—he couldn’t risk his crew’s lives for them.

After a quick meal, Chu Xiao and the others set out to continue cutting the meteorites, eager to leave as soon as possible. This time, Wang Yan also prepared to join them; she wanted to study the alien life form more closely.

Wang Yan assigned three astronauts to guard the spacecraft while she and Chu Xiao headed toward the meteorite crater.

Wang Yan collected some charred remains of the alien creature to bring back for research. The temperature in the crater had finally returned to normal.

Chu Xiao instructed Wang Yan to take two people as lookouts above while the rest went down to cut the meteorites. Though the meteorites were no longer as hot as before, they still radiated warmth to the touch.

Cutting proceeded much faster this time, perhaps because knowing the route home renewed their strength. Soon, they had cut through a large portion.

“Who’s there, sneaking around? Show yourself!” Wang Yan’s shout from above startled Chu Xiao. Concerned, he paused his work and climbed up to see what was happening.

“What’s going on? Is there something wrong?” Chu Xiao asked.

“I feel like something’s watching us from over there!”

The darkness was absolute; even if something was there, it was difficult to see. Chu Xiao didn’t dare wander far and remained on guard nearby.

“I felt it yesterday too—something’s been following us all along,” Wang Yan confessed, knowing that as long as these beings didn’t cause trouble, they wouldn’t attack first.

Not fully trusting Wang Yan’s group alone, Chu Xiao decided to stay with them on watch.

Suddenly, a noise came from nearby. Gripping his weapon, Chu Xiao cautiously moved towards the source.

Just as he approached, a green creature with antennae on its head sprang out from behind a rock, startling him.

It babbled rapidly in a language Chu Xiao couldn’t understand. Wang Yan came over, and the two exchanged glances.

“Is it trying to talk to you?” Wang Yan asked.

She seemed to sense the creature was communicating with Chu Xiao, though no one could comprehend its words.

When Chu Xiao and Wang Yan didn’t respond, the creature’s antennae began moving and glowing, as if transmitting some message. This left both of them perplexed.

Suddenly, the sound of many footsteps approached. Chu Xiao shone his light around and saw numerous creatures like the first one surrounding them. The initial alien had been pleading for help.

Seeing such a large group arrive, Chu Xiao’s heart tightened.

“Don’t shoot. Only if absolutely necessary!” he ordered his team. These aliens seemed fearful rather than hostile, which explained their numbers.

From the crowd, a taller figure emerged—apparently the leader. It too babbled extensively.

“We mean you no harm. Please don’t fear us. We will take only what we need and then leave,” Chu Xiao attempted to communicate.

They seemed equally confused, looking at him with strange eyes, as if they too saw Chu Xiao and his team as foreigners.

Chu Xiao then used hand gestures to demonstrate that they would take the meteorites and leave, with no intention to attack. The alien leader appeared to understand somewhat and lowered its guard. It gestured as well, signaling that the meteorite had caused many deaths among their kind when it fell and was a cursed object they wished to bury.

Chu Xiao explained that the meteorites were valuable to them and would be taken away, not left behind.

At that moment, another alien rushed over, seemingly speaking urgently to the leader. The leader then communicated further with Chu Xiao through gestures.

Chu Xiao realized there was a more powerful alien threat coming to kill them. The leader was seeking Chu Xiao’s help: if they defeated the invaders, the meteorites would be handed over to him.

After a brief hesitation, Chu Xiao agreed. Soon, many red-colored aliens appeared, resembling these green ones but with a more aggressive demeanor.

They wielded weapons made of stone, indicating this planet’s inhabitants were still in a Stone Age stage.

The red aliens advanced, shouting orders. Chu Xiao fired a warning shot at their feet to keep them at bay.

They hesitated, then one shouted again for them to move forward. Chu Xiao aimed his gun at that figure, suspecting he was their leader.

“What do you think? Should we fight?” Wang Yan asked uncertainly. She was only trained to handle emergencies in space, not combat, so command fell to Chu Xiao.

“Wait and observe. If we must fight, I’ll take out their leader first,” Chu Xiao decided.

He fired another shot into a nearby rock, blasting a hole clean through it as a warning, signaling them to stop advancing.

The aliens halted, staring wide-eyed at the blasted rock. Their expressions held unmistakable fear, as if they couldn’t believe such a small weapon wielded such power.

Completely intimidated, they formed a circle, seemingly deliberating among themselves.