Chapter 301: Full of Loopholes

In the cafeteria, the Chief Engineer quickly finished discussing the specific repair details.

He seemed eager to help Cangyuan repair the warship as soon as possible, so that these guests could be sent away quickly. He answered all of Ye Xing and Black Smoke's questions.

The final repair price was 20 million credit points, with half as a deposit and half as a final payment.

This quote was proactively offered by Cangyuan, more than half lower than New Hope's standard repair fees.

Varuyev did not haggle, and his face showed no emotional fluctuations.

"Can we visit your factory?"

Ye Xing was still uneasy; this place was full of strangeness.

"Of course. Those who need to confirm the production equipment, follow me. Others, please feel free. If you decide to stay overnight at the base, please abide by our rules."

The players split into three groups. Ye Xing and Black Smoke led a dozen people to the colonial industrial zone, following Chief Engineer Varuyev.

Lu Yuan and four players returned to the warship. On the way, he told everyone about his discoveries, then received many horrifying .jpeg expressions on their helmet displays from the crew.

The remaining four voluntarily stayed overnight in the colonial living area, planning to continue exploring later.

Upon arriving at the industrial zone, Black Smoke was the first to step into the vast factory. He saw well-maintained production equipment on both sides, with overhead cranes and tracks for transporting products in the middle.

"Not bad. It feels like you could build warships yourselves."

As Cangyuan's Chief Engineer, he could tell at a glance that the production capacity here was considerable, roughly one-third to half that of a Li Star industrial ship.

Red Dust Star was a self-sustaining colony, meaning it could consume minerals, produce large quantities of materials, and expand mining operations and logistics lines according to the company's development strategy.

Varuyev gave a wry smile, the first time his face truly showed human emotional changes.

"Theoretically, yes, but those people above will never give us the complete blueprints. Here are the vacuum smelting furnace and additive manufacturing machine you rented. As you can see, raw materials have already started to be transported. Are you reassured now?"

"Hmm..."

Black Smoke communicated with the other party again, confirming that with the current technology here, it would be difficult to produce Cangyuan warships' standard high-temperature ceramic-metal armor. They would have to make do with much less effective titanium alloy armor.

The good news was that if all armor plates were made of the fastest-producing vanadium-titanium alloy, repairs were expected to be completed within 48 hours.

As for the electric propulsion engines and Jubian direct injection engines, they were common in the Star Alliance. After Cangyuan provided the blueprints, there would be no issues with component production.

The warships from this expedition were from earlier batches and still used Cangyuan's first-generation engines.

Subsequent batches of frigates had already started using second-generation electric propulsion engines, which incorporated biomimetic results from Radiant Dragon's sheath wings and the high-efficiency engine technology of the Intelligent Order Consensus drones. Their thrust was increased by 200% compared to the first generation, and their production process was complex, no longer a common commodity that other Star Alliance factions could replicate just by obtaining the blueprints.

The Scholars in the rear had also been working hard these past few months, with the proportion of real-world experts and even research leaders gradually increasing.

"It's a good thing they're first-generation engines. It seems being behind also has its advantages," Black Smoke mused, while sending a message to the Executive Officer, reporting the situation.

Lu Yuan sent a reply.

"Prioritize repairing the engines. Armor can come later. Be prepared for not being able to stay until the end."

After issuing the order, he directed the players on the ship. Some entered the gaps between the engines and the hull structure through internal maintenance passages to release the engines' physical locks, making them ready to be extracted as a whole from the rear of the hull.

Others went outside, activated their power armor flight packs, leaped into the air, and gripped the engine nozzles tightly with both hands.

"Alright! We'll pull outwards as the Executive Officer said, and the brothers inside push outwards with all their might! Listen for my command: one, two, three!"

H

With the high output of the power armor, the two groups worked together, inside and out. Without the aid of shipyard facilities, they completely removed the damaged engines in less than half an hour.

The cylindrical metal behemoth fell from the sky, kicking up large clouds of red dust.

When necessary, weapons can also be useful production tools!

Next, the players entered the warship's hangar, retrieved the components printed en route, and set up cranes and assembly stands at the rear of each ship, preparing for subsequent repairs in advance to further increase speed.

What a first-class team—

As the boss, Lu Yuan stood guard with a gun, pretending to be a security guard, and couldn't help but feel proud of his good employees.

"Executive Officer?"

Suddenly, a figure in a gray-white combat suit appeared on the rust-red ground.

"Where's the Executive Officer?!"

Recognizing Charlotte by her slender and petite figure, Lu Yuan quickly sent a message.

"Seven o'clock direction, the one holding the gun. Don't shout randomly."

"Oh—... Sorry!"

The other party pattered over.

"But this is really important! I've created a mathematical model based on our current location and known Imperial strongholds nearby. The simulation results show that if the Imperial commander is smart enough, there's a 16% chance they'll find this star system in one day, and it will increase to 34% in two days!"

"Also, the probability of them blocking the forward navigation channel is as high as 79%!"

Charlotte handed a pad displaying calculations and code to Lu Yuan.

Unfortunately, he couldn't quite understand it.

"You don't understand, do you?"

Charlotte looked up at Lu Yuan, with a hint of disdain in her eyes.

"As an Executive Officer of a galactic mega-corporation, it's impossible for me to master every single technical detail and be a teacher to all employees."

Lu Yuan's expression remained unchanged, his heart unwavering.

"I only need to know which experts under me I can trust. How confident are you in your research results?"

Charlotte was silent for a second or two, then said decisively: "One hundred percent!"

"Alright, what's your suggestion?"

"Depart as early as possible, then take a detour. This will delay us by about a week."

"A week is too long," Lu Yuan shook his head.

"But surviving is more important."

"I agree with that." Lu Yuan paused, "Let me consider it further."

Charlotte lowered her head and pursed her lips, clearly not very satisfied with the answer.

"Executive Officer, I am an Adjuster with a perfect gene sequence. Whether it's my innate intelligence or the education and training I received later, I can say I am custom-made for space travel. So please, take my suggestion as seriously as possible."

"Hey! What a coincidence."

Lu Yuan thought to himself, 'This body of mine is also an Adjuster, and with the boost from golden age genetic modification, I've reached level 31.'

"I know, which is why I'm already thinking seriously. Go back and continue to deepen your research results."

"Alright..."

"Oh, by the way, does 21st-century gene editing not include the physical body? I mean, a slightly more robust build should be more suitable for long voyages, right?"

Lu Yuan held his hands in front of him, making a gesture of "increasing size."

Charlotte, who was about to turn around, stopped abruptly at this remark, turned back, and glared at him like a cat hissing, her fists gradually clenching, and her breath trembling.

"You're right! But gene expression is something that can lead to unexpected situations, full of metaphysics! Plus, I was a picky eater when I was little, so it just, just..."

Her voice gradually dwindled, losing its conviction.

Flattened, huh...?

"Damn it! I'm going back first!"

Hmm, it's good that you know genes aren't absolutely reliable.

So don't be so arrogant normally.

Lu Yuan looked up at the reddish-brown sky.

Since that's the case, he would have to trouble the comrades of the First Air Squadron again to patrol the Jump Points in the surrounding star systems as soon as possible.

He suddenly realized that he should have done this sooner.

It seems all practical combat experience must be accumulated in actual combat.

As the fighters took off, inside the pyramid-shaped living area building, four players who decided to stay and explore the "horror plot" were sitting idly at a dining table.

"Cangyuan folks, my name is Pumandi, and I am the security chief here."

Finally, the person responsible for reception appeared.

The newcomer looked close to 40 years old. Like Chief Engineer Varuyev, he had a long, stern face, and his body movements were somewhat stiff and unnatural in an indescribable way.

"Hello, Supervisor Pu!"

Ye Xing proactively greeted him.

"Hmm—... You can call me Captain Pu. I'll take you to your rooms. Let's go."

Following Captain Pu, the four walked along the dimly lit corridor next to the cafeteria's serving window, continuing their exploration into the labyrinthine depths of the residential area.

"Why is everyone here wearing hard-shell space suits indoors?" Nan Guo de Xue asked, looking at the colonial residents coming and going.

"Aren't you also wearing military power armor and carrying a bunch of messy weapons?"

Captain Pu sneered, throwing the question back at her without change.

"He's got some skill, this guy..." Jubian muttered in his heart, who was with Nan Guo de Xue.

"Indeed. We've come to a place that was shown as out of contact, but isn't in a hurry to restore communication with Star Alliance society. It's only natural for us to be highly vigilant. What about your reasons?"

Nan Guo de Xue showed no weakness in the face of such a counter-question.

Captain Pu stopped.

"First, I must correct you. We are not uninterested in restoring contact with Star Alliance society; we simply trust that our homeland will send personnel to repair the faster-than-light communication base station in time."

"Oh, so you don't want to learn anything about the outside world from us? You don't want to know if the Federation's rescue team has departed? Or where they've reached?"

The other party fell silent.

It turned out Nan Guo de Xue was just feinting earlier. Wearing space suits indoors was a physical anomaly, and there were always ways to investigate it. However, the psychological state of the people was what needed to be explored through dialogue.

"I said, we have absolute trust in our homeland. Asking outsiders about this and that is meaningless," Captain Pu's tone was clearly displeased. "But surely some employees here have family outside. Don't they need to send word through us in advance that they're safe?"

"No need, we only encountered a meteor shower earlier," Captain Pu began to change the subject. "The meteorites damaged many facilities, including the faster-than-light communication device. So, until a thorough overhaul, everyone must wear space suits to prevent sudden oxygen leaks and suffocation."

This was clearly a lie, but Nan Guo de Xue didn't press further, and the group continued onward.

She was also afraid of pushing the conversation too far and making the other party aggressive.

Currently, the most important task was to ensure the warship could be repaired; however, trying to confirm the potential threats of this eerily atmospheric colony was also a very important "side quest."

The two influenced and constrained each other, requiring a delicate balance.

Click!

A dormitory airtight door opened just to the side of the team. The person inside came out and quickly closed it again.

Ye Xing quickly glanced inside, grasping the layout of the room's furnishings.

"—You have children's building blocks and tricycles in this colony, but why can't I see a single child? Could it be that there are no children's space suits?"

"We are in a remote location, and educational conditions are not up to par. The children are all very mischievous, so to avoid causing trouble for our guests, they are kept locked up."

For this anomaly, Captain Pu seemed to have an answer prepared long ago.

"Is that so—"

"Yes. This is your room, please rest."

The door opened, and Captain Pu extended his palm, pointing to the four-person room inside.

"The cafeteria kitchen was also damaged in the meteor shower incident, so we temporarily cannot provide meals. There are frozen protein bars in the refrigerator and starch biscuits in the cabinet. Help yourselves if you're hungry."

Click!

He pressed the switch with obvious displeasure, closing the sliding hydraulic door.

The moment the door closed, Ye Xing noticed that the sounds of conversation that had just filled the entire space suddenly vanished.

Now, only the sounds of colonial residents walking could be heard along the entire corridor.

Tap, tap, tap,

Tap, tap, tap, tap!

Everyone seemed to be in a hurry.

"Something is definitely wrong."

"Yeah, the people here think differently from normal humans. Although they can show emotions like joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness, these two we talked to completely lack human warmth," Jubian summarized.

"Rather than lacking human warmth, it's more like they don't understand what human warmth is," Nan Guo de Xue said.

"Exactly, that's the feeling!"

"So what should we do?" Ye Xing asked for opinions.

Nan Guo de Xue took out a scanner.

"Scan directly!"

Previously, Lu Yuan decided not to scan, fearing that the action of taking out and raising the scanner would alert the other party.

Now, the four-person team was in a private space without cameras, so the situation was naturally different.

"Damn it—"

The room hadn't even been scanned a third of the way through when Ye Xing couldn't help but curse.

"No wonder this room was empty. There are wiped bloodstains everywhere!"