Alyssa's reminder made Lin Xi stay alert for the next few days. Considering her amazingly accurate intuition, Lin Xi did feel nervous.
However, this tense state is indeed difficult to sustain. After all, realistically speaking, the days of the Apollo on this strange asteroid are not that difficult.
Of course, there are still many things that make people anxious - one of the ion engines of the Apollo has been seriously damaged, and the other one seems to be far from "intact", which means that it will take a long time for the spacecraft to fly again; the cargo hold has different degrees of damage during the forced landing, and the warehouse storing the crew's food has suffered the greatest loss. However, there are artificial protein machines on the ship, and if all else fails, they can survive on artificial protein blocks (as long as you can ignore the horrible taste, that thing is actually quite nutritious), and Lin Xi does not feel too much crisis about this.
In short, all situations are within controllable range, and when the dangerous moment of life and death is over, people will always relax involuntarily.
And one thing that can be considered somewhat good news is that the exploration teams that were sent out to explore the surrounding situation have returned, and the data they brought are even more perfect than those of the unmanned robots.
If not everyone is going hysterical, then those data can only show that this planet is simply a perfect paradise tailor-made for human beings.
Those suspicious, brightly colored creatures that humans saw through the viewfinders were proven to be harmless and cute plant-like life forms after testing, and the small creatures living between their cracks were usually weak and dull, and completely indistinguishable to humans.
In addition, there is abundant water resources on this planet. The water can even be used directly for drinking, as long as some heavy metals are filtered out.
The gravity, the atmosphere, even the slightly cooler temperature... everything is so pleasant.
If the planets and the universe were created by God, then the supreme being must be a person without any creativity. This planet is like God took out the original Earth, kneaded it casually, and threw it back into the galaxy as it was, turning it into another planet.
It really is too similar to Earth. If the Apollo could return safely, just recording the coordinates of this planet would be enough to make everyone on the ship rich.
Lin Xi was very sure that the improvement in the atmosphere on the Apollo was closely related to this point.
“Other than those pesky bugs, this place is just perfect.”
Lin Xi has heard his colleagues and the crew on the Apollo mutter this more than once.
Ah, maybe that's true.
The expedition members didn't even find any animals larger than a cat, and with their spacecraft as the center, the entire forest was as friendly as something described in a children's fairy tale - the colors were rich and eye-catching, and the inhabitants were kind and friendly.
The most common creatures found by humans are bugs—all kinds of bugs—more bugs than on Sunu, which is known as the "Bug Planet."
They had no intention of avoiding human activities, and often swooped down clumsily on these strange two-legged beasts, then fluttered their wings in an attempt to squeeze through the gaps in their interstellar exploration suits.
According to Ando, those bugs like humans—they like human body temperature, which is just the right temperature for them to reproduce and lay eggs.
Lin Xi did not stay with Ando to listen to his long speech about his new research on alien insects in recent times. Perhaps it was because of his prejudice against insects. Lin Xi felt that since he started talking about insects (especially the egg case of the star butterfly), Ando had become much more talkative than before, and there was always a neuroticism in his words and actions that Lin Xi did not like.
However, it is also possible that it is not due to insects.
Lin Xi heard that Ando's alien wife Liz had been diagnosed with pregnancy, and Ando was extremely excited about this.
"… I really can't stand this kind of good dad type of man."
Lin Xi muttered to himself.
However, working with Ando on the boring and smooth Sunu plant and animal care work was not too unbearable. Working in the hold was at least much better than going out to explore the environment.
You know, those unfortunate guys in the exploration team need to spend a lot of time every day cleaning the bugs, mucus, and insect eggs of various colors and sizes attached to the outside of their protective suits.
This made them the group of people on the Apollo who hated bugs the most.
But from the perspective of researchers who don't need to go out...bugs are not that bad. After all, if a planet can support bugs comfortably, then humans will also feel at home.
The above point also came from Shizuo Ando, and Lin Xi did not have much objection to it.
Don’t think too much—this has always been Lin Xi’s life motto, and he plans to continue to follow it even after landing on a mysterious planet.
In this way, time passed in an orderly and busy manner. The expedition members would go out every few days to expand the scope of human exploration, while others on the ship were busy repairing the ion engine and the warehouse, and some were busy calculating the orbit in a futile attempt to find where they were.
Perhaps Alyssa's intuition had finally lost its effectiveness on the alien planet, and her uneasy foreboding was completely untrue - in fact, for now, the atmosphere on the ship was even more harmonious and relaxed than when they first made the emergency landing.
The most painful thing for Lin Xi so far is John's departure.
Oh, yes, crazy John Bronson is the ship's chef, and ever since he had a mental breakdown and left the previous meeting, the food on the entire ship has become a nightmare. Although the pre-packaged food and frozen vegetables before were not delicious, they were much better than those directly heated food bags.
"I clearly remember that this kind of food bag tasted good before."
Lin Xi frowned and muttered.
"Hey, Lin!"
Someone was calling him.
Lin Xi turned around and saw several people in bright orange exploration uniforms dragging a box towards him at the other end of the long and narrow corridor.
He was greeted by a young man with freckles and rusty red hair, who looked like a cocky kid who had just graduated from college.
It took Lin Xi a moment to remember that the red-haired boy's name was Mark.
"Oh, hi, you guys are out on another mission?"
He nodded at Mark and exchanged meaningless greetings.
"Yes, our mission this time—"
Before Mark could finish his words, a thin shriek suddenly came from the box the men were transporting, and then the box vibrated on the ground.
Lin Xi paused, and a feeling similar to a subtle electric current ran through his neck. He felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.
“…finally captured a living specimen.”
Lin Xi was in a daze for a long time before she realized what Mark was talking about.
"Wait, this is a live sample?"
He asked.
Then his brows furrowed.
"You caught something from the wild - you should have gone through the lab passage," Lin Xi said, "not the daily passage."
As if responding to his dissatisfied words.
“Sizzle—sizzle—”
The huge hissing sound caused by friction in the sealed box became louder.
Mark's face tightened.
"There was a circuit failure in the laboratory channel, and Dr. Ando asked us to send the captured samples to his laboratory as soon as possible," he explained. Perhaps because Lin Xi's face was not looking good, Mark added: "Don't worry too much, nothing will go wrong. We have studied this type of samples outside before, and they are very safe."
"Ha, yes, they are all slow-witted fellows."
"right."
Mark's teammates started to make noises behind him, like a group of idiot college students who had just escaped from a cocktail party.
Then, perhaps to increase the persuasiveness, someone tapped the sealed box, and the originally milky white visible layer turned transparent, allowing Lin Xi to see clearly what the living sample inside looked like.
"Didn't you say there's nothing around here that's bigger than a cat?"
Lin Xi's gaze stopped on the surface of the creature in the sealed transport box.
Then he spoke with a barely perceptible hint of disgust.
It was a giant bug that looked a bit like a cross between a beetle and a spider—except that on Earth, neither beetles nor spiders were likely to grow to the size of a large dog.
"Oh, we're talking about animals—this thing is a bug."
One of the team members said nonchalantly.
Lin Xi's heart sank. He looked at the group of young people in front of him and knew that the bad influence brought by Taran's weirdness and inaction had gradually spread to the lower-level personnel in the Apollo. At least when they were still doing the material handover on Sunu Star, these people did not dare to bring these alien creatures into the defenseless spacecraft so blatantly.
"We've only just arrived here a short time ago, and no one can say for sure what is safe."
Lin Xi showed no clues on the surface, he spoke calmly to the exploration team members.
Just when he was thinking about finding time to talk to Alyssa, an accident happened.
The insect's sizzling sound began to grow louder, as if it was frightened by something.
Then, its shell opened outward, revealing wings underneath that were as thick as steel plates.
When it flapped its wings, the hard edges of its wings almost created sparks by cutting through the plexiglass inside the sealed box.
The friction sound was so loud that it made your teeth ache, and the high frequency was like a needle piercing the eardrum.
At the same time, there was a particularly unsettling heavy thumping sound.
The giant insect may have been harmless (at least according to the team members), but its thick, heavy, metallic body looked particularly dangerous once it started rampaging around in the sealed box.
“Click—”
Lin Xi even heard the crisp sound of glass breaking. He looked at the sealed box in horror and sure enough, several thin cracks had appeared there.
However, this box specially used to store living aliens should not be so fragile in theory.
"Oh shit, what's going on?"
"Turn on the paralysis device!"
"Who the hell is paralyzing this thing—where's the kill switch—"
"But Dr. Ando said..."
"Ding ding ding—Alarm—Ding ding ding—Box damaged—Ding ding ding—Alarm—"
"Oh shit shit shit—"
…
For a moment, the panicked cries of the exploration team members and the harsh noises of the insects, along with the alarm sounds of the sealed boxes, echoed throughout the entire passage.
Seeing that something was not right, Lin Xi hurried forward to help.
But as soon as he got closer to the sealed box, the giant insect behaved even more crazily.
It began to struggle frantically at a terrifying frequency, and in a flash, the originally transparent and visible interior of the sealed box was covered in purple and green mucus.
"Fuck—"
A team member uttered a curse, and he simply pressed all the buttons used to control the sample, from paralysis to death.
Electricity, liquid nitrogen, and toxic gases filled the entire box at the same time.
But the insect's movements became more and more violent.
boom-
Finally, with a dull, sickening sound, the bug exploded in the box.
Lin Xi stood stiffly beside the sealed box, staring at the dead insect through the thick protective layer.
Sizzle—
Sizzle, sizzle—
The insect's wings fluttered over its debris, making a small noise.
…
It's like some kind of message that is difficult for humans to understand.
vol 2
Sunu Cultural Exchange Exhibition.
The weather was fine and the crowds were great.
Lin Xi stood blankly among the blurred crowd, not knowing why he dreamed of this scene again.
However, compared with the previous dream, something seemed to be different.
Maybe it’s because the background crowd looks even weirder
Or maybe it was because the pavilion in front of him, which was originally decorated to look like a termite nest, now looked more like something else
"Lin Xi, look - after the summer vacation is over, I will tell this to Teacher Anna - it's so interesting -"
He heard Bryce's voice, the crisp call of a young boy.
Then he lowered his head and looked at the boy beside him.
The brother, who was still a little child, had a blurry, melted face. The only clear thing was his pair of scarlet compound eyes. Whenever he started talking, his eyes would vibrate regularly.
Is this a nightmare
Lin Xi asked herself in her dream.
He vaguely felt that something was wrong, but he couldn't remember what was making him so uneasy.
His mind seemed to be floating on a dark ocean of nothingness, with nowhere to rest.
Then Bryce began to pull him toward the pavilion.
Some memories began to float up from the dark sea of memory. When awake, humans would force these memories to be suppressed in the deepest part of their memory, because humans are such fragile creatures. Things that are too terrifying, such as the reality under this dream, will completely break down those delicate nerves.
But in dreams, sometimes, those things would surge out with the shock of emotions, just like now.
Lin Xi's body kept trembling because of the unreasonable fear.
No - no - I won't go - I won't go -
He whispered softly in his sleep as he struggled to free himself from Bryce's fingers.
However, it was obvious that Bryce in this dream was still a child and he was already an adult. When he tried to break free from Bryce's fingers, he had no strength at all.
Lin Xi felt more and more scared.
"let me go… "
he shouted, trembling.
Then, suddenly there was a moment when he realized something.
Oh, no... that wasn't actually Bryce at all.
He lowered his head and looked at the boy beside him.
Why did he discover this only now? Even he himself was puzzled.
After all, as a human, Bryce would not have such a pair of red compound eyes, and the fingers of a young human child would not be tentacles covered with fine and hard scales.
"Who are you?"
Lin Xi asked breathlessly.
A few seconds later, the person who grabbed Lin Xi turned into the smiling Sunu tour guide in memory.
The clear sky and the surging crowd instantly turned into the dark and damp interior of the cave.
Unknown insect pupae were wriggling in the densely packed nests.
Some things hidden in the darkness huddled together, staring at Lin Xi in the dark. Their tiny eyes reflected the faint light inside the cave, like small, shining light bulbs.
"Yes, that's right. What you are seeing now is the most precious and sacred star butterfly on our planet Sunu. It is also our totem and spiritual symbol. This star butterfly is a rare individual that has remained active over the long years..."
The tour guide kept whispering the original lines into Lin Xi's ear.
But while it was saying those words, its gradually deformed face was always staring straight at Lin Xi.
And the slightly stinging restraint never left Lin Xi's wrist.
"… Wow, this little Earth friend is really rare. The Star Butterfly will only fully display its wings in front of the one it really likes. Hahaha, I never thought that it would actually show its wings in front of Earthlings."
"Huh..."
Lin Xi's breathing became extremely heavy.
Something was approaching him.
As the "tour guide" whispered, the thing came closer and closer.
It was right behind Lin Xi, but Lin Xi could only tremble and stand stiffly in place.
The "tour guide"'s voice gradually changed from unskilled English to the Sunu language with a strange accent.
And Lin Xi could actually clearly understand what the monster was repeating.
“… We love you, Your Majesty… Do not resist… Do not be afraid… We will be your descendants, your people, your subjects… It has been too long… We have waited for you for too long… Your Majesty… We love you so much…
Along with its whispers, that thing that was definitely not a star butterfly slowly emerged from the darkness.
Under the influence of an inexplicable force, Lin Xi slowly turned his head.
Not Star Butterfly.
Because that thing doesn't have any beautiful wings as ethereal as clouds, nor does it have the hard body of an arthropod with a clear structure.
That's another creature.
A bug, or rather, it looks slightly similar to an insect.
There is no such thing in the meager vocabulary of earthlings.
Every piece of its armor is like a piece of silver, a piece of silver, a piece of silver. It is a piece of silver that is used to engrave the body.
Just as he was thinking this, the body of that "thing" melted again. When it reappeared in front of Lin Xi, it looked much smaller.
But that was only in comparison with before. When it opened its mouth, it could still easily swallow Lin Xi whole.
Lin Xi just stared at it blankly.
"Your Majesty..."
It opened its mouth, revealing its tongue covered with thorns.
"The King... our King..."
It whispers.
"my king."
It seemed as if it was just repeating something meaninglessly, but Lin Xi could feel that behind those repeated calls, there were some deeper and more terrifying meanings.
"my sweetheart… "
"No… "
Lin Xi's body trembled even more violently.
"Do not come near me-"
Lin Xi growled fragilely.
However, "K" still came closer. Lin Xi wanted to escape, but he had nowhere to escape.
Countless mucus adhered to the surface of his body, making him completely unable to move, just like a prey captured by a carnivorous insect.
A long hollow spike emerged from behind the monster's terrifying curled tongue and pierced directly into Lin Xi's body.
Then, something squeezed out from inside the spike.
"Ah ah ah ah ah-"
“Ahhh—”
"No-"
…
…
…
"Lin Xi—you better wake up the fuck—"
Someone was shaking him hard.
"Lin Xi—"
Consciousness slowly returned.
His body felt unusually heavy, and something was binding him tightly.
"Lin Xi!"
"No… "
Lin Xi groaned in extreme pain. Even though his brain was still in a mess, his body instinctively began to struggle violently.
"Let me go, let me go, let me go—"
He started screaming.
Until he finally, slowly, realized that the voice calling him sounded very familiar.
Lin Xi finally opened his eyes.
Bryce's livid face appeared in his field of vision, and for a moment, he almost thought he had dreamed of being forcibly dragged out of the sleeping cabin again.
"I really hope this isn't some kind of time travel."
After breathing heavily for a long time, Lin Xi finally regained his breathing rhythm.
Then he murmured to Bryce.
Well, this is certainly not some time travel replay, because this time Bryce's attitude is not as friendly as before.
If I must say, Bryce looked like he wanted to punch him twice.
"what happened?"
Lin Xi's eyes were a little dark, and tinnitus and headaches came to him one after another.
Although the body has generally regained consciousness, the consciousness still seems to be floating in the clouds, the kind of clouds before a storm.
Of course, he was indeed still confused, otherwise he would not have asked such a stupid question.
Bryce's fist seemed to be getting more and more excited after his question.
"Your life monitoring system is sounding the alarm."
A gentle voice sounded from behind Bryce, answering Lin Xi's question.
"Your heart rate, blood pressure, and breathing are all flashing red, so we have to take you from the cabin to the medical room."
The kind person who was speaking had a doll.
That's Shizuo Ando.
With Ando's reminder, Lin Xi finally noticed his surroundings. This was not his cabin but Bryce's workplace, the medical room on the Apollo.
He was lying inside the treatment device with several medical probes hanging on his body. It was obvious that his treatment had just ended.
"Okay... what's going on..."
Lin Xi frowned and murmured in pain.
"You still have the nerve to ask what happened?"
Bryce was furious.
"Guess how many calming glue sticks I found in your room?! You should know that these things should only be used in emergencies!"
"Well… "
Lin Xi was stuck for a moment.
Calming glue stick
Oh, yes.
During the day, he had a minor accident in the passage.
A bug as big as a dog exploded into a pool of mud right under his nose. The scene was so mentally polluting that before falling asleep, Lin Xi had to take two more tranquilizer sticks to barely stop the "sizzling" auditory hallucination from lingering in his ears.
"As for why this stuff can only be used in emergencies, it's because if you take too much, it may cause sleep cardiac arrest - guess why you're lying in the treatment machine now?"
As Lin Xi tried to recall the scene before she fell into a coma, Bryce's voice became louder and louder.
"Because my dear brother's heart just stopped beating for thirty seconds! That is to say, someone has been dead for thirty seconds! If I hadn't been on duty tonight and arrived in time, you would have been dead by now--" Bryce choked.
Shizuo Ando looked at his watch and added gently, "Forty-eight minutes."
"You've been dead for forty-eight minutes at this point!"
Bryce growled at Lin Xi.
"… "
Lin Xi just wanted to lie back on the treatment machine to avoid Bryce's rage.
"I just didn't expect this thing to have such serious side effects..."
He defended himself in a weak voice, but even he could tell how guilty he was.
The calming gel stick tastes like a light orange soda, which is cool, delicious, and refreshing. The pain-relieving effect it provides is sometimes more useful than its calming effect.
And from Lin Xi's memory, he might have taken a little more than the prescribed dose - but not enough to cause any negative effects.