Stars See Me [Interstellar] | Chapter 139 | Disguised Presence | Novela.app

To be honest, there were two things about Ruo that Lei Ting had never quite understood. One was why Ruo, despite belonging to a race that didn't perceive the world through Orion sensory organs like eyes or ears, behaved so much like an Orion in his actions and gestures. The other was why, as a 'Mediator'—a powerhouse capable of traversing the stars alone to complete missions for the Consortium—he always acted as if he had zero combat capability and could only use his words. And now, on top of those two mysteries, there was a third. "...Why are you so nervous?" Lei Ting asked, somewhat bewildered. "I only heard the latter half..." "Don't say it! Don't tell anyone!" Ruo the Mediator nearly jumped. "The Consortium requires us to maintain a trustworthy and positive image at all times, otherwise they'll dock our ratings and pay!" ...So it was a mandatory performance metric?! "Fine, I won't say a word." Lei Ting gave his promise seriously, then asked, "Why are you here?" Truthfully, when he sensed Ruo's mental fluctuations drifting across this entire planet, he almost thought he had 'seen' wrong. Though, of course, that was impossible. After all, Ruo had stayed in the same place for nearly twenty years— "So I wanted a change of scenery." Ruo gave a very human-like shrug. "Your 'miracles' still linger in that direction..." "'Miracles'?" Lei Ting frowned slightly. "What kind of terminology is that?" "It's just... the battle remains you left behind." Ruo immediately changed his phrasing. "Terms like 'miracles' are just things people joke about on the Star Net." "It's not a good joke." Lei Ting’s voice was low. "There are no gods in this world." "But it's a good conversation starter—" Ruo's mental energy pointed upward. "—Up there, there are at least twenty million lunatics who believe such things exist." "..." Lei Ting did not look up; after all, the two of them combined couldn't muster a single functioning eye at the moment. "I imagine they might be using that as an excuse to try something they shouldn't?" "Invasion, massacre, purging the galaxy." Ruo's answer was chillingly calm, despite the madness of the content. "To put it simply, they believe their 'Gha' has instructed them to purge the galaxy's tumors... and return this starry sky to 'Great Disorder'." "Tumors? Disorder?" Lei Ting frowned. "Has 'Gha' developed a self-awareness? No... it is also a Civilization Guardian. How could it..." "Who knows? Regardless, as it stands, 'tumors' refers to the Orions, and 'Great Disorder' refers to a state of 'no order, no government, and no management'." Ruo said, "Therefore, they intend to destroy the Consortium." "Do they actually think they can achieve that?" Lei Ting crossed his arms. "Regarding that, they seem quite confident." Ruo spread his hands. "From what I can see, the forces they've deployed this time aren't limited to just this group..." "Indeed, they aren't. They've allied with multiple civilizations and are attacking on several fronts." Lei Ting said, though he didn't specify which 'fronts' they were, as that was military intelligence. "The number of civilians here is higher than I expected. Did you bring them here?" "I did." Ruo confirmed this, still answering with his mental energy. "The Ghahe polluted the planets they originally inhabited... They brought a massive amount of pollution from the Ethereal Plane into the physical world. By now, some of those planets have likely lost all signs of life... "And certain 'Specialized Breeders' of the Ghahe have taken root there, growing towering crystalline mountain ranges. They use black-red tentacles to anchor themselves, converting the planet into energy to birth new Ghahe. These new members are born in a naturally polluted state." "..." Lei Ting felt a sense of growing trouble. But beyond the trouble, there was something more... a flicker of anger that he did not allow to surface. The Ghahe were themselves super-powered crystalline entities. Their birth was a miracle within the 'silicon-based' lifeforms, whose internal structures struggled to maintain growth with the stability of carbon-based organisms. And the gift this miracle gave them was an unparalleled reproductive capacity that surpassed even the 'Zerg' of certain literary works. Ordinary Ghahe could not produce new individuals, but 'Specialized Breeders' not only could, they could mass-produce them. As long as there was energy or matter that could be converted into energy, they could use preset individual templates to mass-manufacture attribute-less 'juveniles' or 'adult individuals' with specific elemental leanings. In the past, there were two reasons why the Ghahe population... or rather, 'crystal-count,' struggled to grow: 'insufficient energy' and 'low conversion efficiency of the breeders.' But according to Ruo, both of these problems had been solved... Though the solution was anything but ordinary. "I need to go see the people here first," Lei Ting said. Although he had been subtly scanning everyone with his mental energy, it was still better to see them in person. "Sure, I'll take you. Honestly, you look much more handsome now than you used to. Do you know that?" Ruo chattered as he transformed into a golden-pink jelly the size of two or three basketballs, flying into the air to lead the way. Even though Lei Ting indicated he knew the path. To this, Ruo replied, "It's our duty to make everyone feel comfortable. You know, 'a home away from home' and all that." Ruo said, "Even if this is your territory." *Good grief, he's acting like the host now,* Lei Ting thought. For a moment, Lei Ting didn't know what to say, so he simply followed the other through the planet's crust with an air of composure, arriving at an independent changing room adjacent to a vast underground space on the other side. Upon landing, Ruo reshaped himself into a child-sized humanoid and said, "Actually, the threat of the Ghahe isn't that great yet—their snowball hasn't started rolling. The problem is that the 'Wraiths' are acting with them. If they mix into the battlefield and take a cheap shot, anyone who isn't a mentally-specialized esper will likely run into major trouble. "Speaking of which... do you want to change your clothes?" Lei Ting was taken aback. "Hmm?" "In that getup, you're obviously 'Solaris.' But I think..." Ruo raised a hand to summon a portable terminal. After some manipulation combined with his own abilities, he disguised himself as a pink-eyed youth with brown hair. "...The people here," he gestured to the side, where a large number of refugees were gathered, "there are bound to be some... undercover agents. Sent by certain folks who can't stand being left out." "..." Lei Ting tilted his head noncommittally. In fact, within that incredibly noisy mental feedback, he had already heard some thoughts that were not particularly friendly toward the Orion Human Federation. Some were Orions, while others belonged to different races... The only reason Lei Ting hadn't dragged them out and killed them was that he didn't want to alert the enemy just yet. "Fine," he said. He didn't seem to do much, but with a flash of golden light, his armor, cape, and sashes vanished, replaced by a high-collared bodysuit he had already been wearing underneath. Then, he casually used a piece of star-alloy to tie back his thick, mid-length hair. Keeping his eyes closed, he removed his blindfold. As he changed into a set of standard Federation combat fatigues nearby, he reached out and grabbed a pair of light, enclosed tactical glasses equipped with 'auxiliary lenses.' "Friend," Ruo called out the term with practiced ease, "is there something wrong with your eyes?" "No," Lei Ting answered mildly. "This is just for... protection." "Protecting your eyes?" "No. Protecting all of you." Ruo was momentarily dazed, as the statement was far too ambiguous. However, a subtle sense of danger made him choose not to pry further. In his many years as a Mediator across the galaxy, besides 'run when you should' and 'never compromise your bottom line,' the greatest lesson he had learned was that 'unwarranted curiosity might not necessarily kill a cat, but it will definitely kill an intelligent being.' On the other side, Lei Ting acted like an ordinary, capable soldier. After putting on a respirator mask and light jaw armor, he walked with a steady gait to the weapon rack, swiftly equipping himself with a full set of gear. His movements were fast yet standard, simplifying certain safety-design steps required by Federation protocols. In Ruo's eyes, this naturally exuded a sense of precise confidence. "An aesthetic dressing process," he praised. "'Solaris,' even setting aside your power, you are a very attractive person to Orions... and to almost all carbon-based lifeforms." "Thank you for the compliment," Lei Ting replied calmly. As he headed out, he was quickly checking the weapons in his hands—not just to better play the part of a 'seasoned veteran' (come to think of it, his years in the military were actually enough for him to be called one now)—but also to test the feel of the weaponry used in the frontier systems. Ordinary mass-produced individual weapons prioritized a 'Three Lows, Three Highs' standard: low manufacturing requirements, low maintenance requirements, and low user skill requirements; but high power, high stability, and high environmental adaptability. Of course, sometimes trade-offs were made among the latter three. However, no matter how much standard data one knew, simply sensing cold metal couldn't help Lei Ting understand how these weapons felt in human hands. No matter the question, if one wanted a conclusion, the inquirer had to seek it out personally. "How does it feel?" Ruo asked with a smile. He also mimicked Lei Ting's movements to check the weapons, quickly learning to do so quite convincingly, though it didn't mean he could actually feel the weapons like an Orion. "Now, I need to take you to—" "Jelly!" A youthful voice suddenly called out from not far away. Ruo paused, cutting off his words. Like an ordinary Orion, he turned his head toward the corner of the corridor where the two of them stood. *** | Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | 加赫 | Ghahe | A crystalline alien race. | | 加 | Gha | The guardian or deity figure of the Ghahe. | | 伟大无序 | Great Disorder | The ideological goal/state pursued by the Ghahe. | | 特化繁育体 | Specialized Breeders | Specific Ghahe units designed for mass reproduction. | | 虚灵位面 | Ethereal Plane | A dimension of energy/pollution used by the Ghahe. | | 辅眼 | Auxiliary Lens | Sub-lenses or sensors on tactical eyewear. | | 幽魂 | Wraiths | An allied force or specific type of enemy acting with the Ghahe. |