Stars See Me [Interstellar] | Chapter 163 | The Looming Shadow | Novela.app

When he ended the transmission with ‘Tong,’ Lei Ting followed his long-standing habit and added a remark to the Complex’s contact account: *‘Possibly Cu.’* Then, he closed the contact list where every entry was meticulously annotated. He deployed the form-fitting light armor beneath his uniform, which was now fully integrated. As the black-and-gold metallic structures crept up his neck and along his jawline, he accelerated, streaking through the starry void alone like a flickering bolt of golden light. Scorched earth, ruins, cold asteroid belts, and the chaotic wreckage of starships... He saw a small planet, caught in the crossfire of war, brushing past him at a clearly abnormal speed. The freshwater across its surface was being pulled into space, freezing into jagged mountains of ice. But before the entire world could freeze into a giant ice ball with a comet-like tail, Lei Ting halted its terrifying momentum as it tried to fly out of its star system’s inner ring. He deployed a megastructure machine to guide it back to where it belonged. It wasn't that he didn't see the scattered survivors of the native sapient race praying in panic upon that planet, but he had no time to attend to them. Perhaps in the years to come, a young, new civilization would develop here. In its earliest myths, the world’s first true disaster would be described as ‘the great sea ascending to heaven to become a pillar of ice.’ And that disaster would be resolved with the help of a brilliant golden radiance and the hand of a black giant. The ice mountains would melt, the waters would flow back, and it would rain for seven full months. Amidst the deluge, the ancestors would see the vast trenches carved by the catastrophe and the great stretches of land emerging from the sea. Of course, none of that had anything to do with Lei Ting anymore. Whether other civilizations lived or died was irrelevant to him—at least to the current him. He was merely a passerby lending a hand. However, he soon realized his actions had likely been witnessed. Before he could fly out of the system, he sensed a familiar aura ahead. It was ‘Imperial Blade.’ Having not seen him for some time, the fellow had changed into a set of shimmering golden light armor. Though the fabric beneath it still trailed with ceremonial gravity, it was, in some places, practically indecent. “Inner arms, waist, chest...” As he drew near, Lei Ting frowned and critiqued, “Not a single one is protected. Even the joints only have armor on the outside. Are you afraid you won't get hit?” “Please, isn't this the style of that ancient human civilization called, uh...” Imperial Blade paused with tactical deliberation, pronouncing a word in standard Greek: “...called ‘Ελλάδα (Hellas)’? I must say, it’s quite similar to my own culture...” “Hmm?” Lei Ting let out an ambiguous syllable, asking what the hell he was doing. It would be one thing if it were anyone else, but a high-level esper representing his own civilization trying to cater to his tastes? There was likely a trap behind this. Besides... Greeks didn't dress like that. That fantasy-style light armor clearly bore the marks of artistic embellishment by later interstellar generations... When this guy was doing his research, had he just watched a bunch of pop-culture works related to ancient Earth? “Don’t you like it? Don’t be like that...” Imperial Blade scratched his head, then seemed to have an epiphany. He produced an elegant golden laurel wreath from nowhere and, amidst Lei Ting’s eerie silence, placed it squarely on his head. “Excellent, the look is complete!” Imperial Blade exclaimed. “Not bad, right?” “...Yes, not bad. So, why?” Lei Ting’s lip twitched. “I want to ask you to—” “Don’t even think about it,” Lei Ting said. “This isn't a plot, it’s—” “Impossible,” Lei Ting politely declined. The sigh Imperial Blade let out physically fogged up the nearly invisible respiratory shield in front of his face. *Well, maybe that wasn’t very ‘polite,’* Lei Ting thought. As they continued their journey, Imperial Blade changed back into his original battle armor and robes. He conjured a massive block of earth and stone to envelop himself, and when it shattered in all directions, he had finished his transformation like a magical girl. “So, who exactly is the target you want to kill?” Lei Ting asked through their mental link. “You are strong. Whether it’s a grudge or something else, you should be able to handle it yourself.” “No, I cannot solve this problem.” Imperial Blade shook his head. “The target’s defensive power is immense. When necessary, they can make their defensive layers comparable to a solid planet reinforced by four hundred military-grade planetary modification programs... “Perhaps that is nothing to you, but for most people below your level, it would be an impossible battle against an unbreakable fortress.” “Immense defensive power...” Lei Ting narrowed his eyes. He inexplicably thought of Valianna—but Imperial Blade clearly wouldn't be stupid enough to ask him to kill one of the Federation’s own. “...The ‘Architect’?” “You mean that insect? It’s skilled at constructing its chitinous hives and executing corresponding offensive and defensive tactics, but its individual defense isn't actually that high.” Imperial Blade shook his head. “Don’t ask. That fellow isn't a carbon-based lifeform, nor even a simple orderly lifeform...” “...” Lei Ting grew serious. “Are you saying... a high-level esper who has been ‘polluted’?” “Ah... yes, probably. I mean... forget it.” Imperial Blade coughed awkwardly. “He hasn't arrived in this sector of space yet...” “An outsider? From beyond the galaxy?” Lei Ting’s psychic power instinctively surged. If it truly was an outsider, and a suspected polluted high-level esper at that... he had to meet them! “Don’t—Brother, my head is going to split!!” Imperial Blade turned pale with fright, scrambling over eight thousand meters away. “Your mental strength... such terrifying aggression, gods... how do you usually communicate with your own kind on a mental level?!” “Sorry, I didn't mean to... I rarely communicate with people fully like this.” Lei Ting quickly withdrew most of his mental power. “No wonder you were always speaking aloud last time, even though making sounds like a common organism is the least efficient way to communicate,” Imperial Blade sighed. After that, the two didn't speak much more. They flew through the stars thousands of meters apart. From a distance, they looked like a streak of pure, blazing golden light accompanied by a golden shimmer tinged with the brown of the earth. Imperial Blade did not suspect whether Lei Ting had done it on purpose; most knowledgeable people in the galaxy believed in the ‘Solar Star’s’ moral standards. But this time... Lei Ting actually *had* done it on purpose. Amidst the stars, the ‘Solar Star’ composedly turned his gaze, feeling a rare, slight pang of guilt. Through that deep mental interaction just now, the process—which he had dominated—allowed him to capture fragments of the thoughts in Imperial Blade’s mind at that moment. This confirmed that there was no ‘dangerous enemy from beyond the galaxy’ involved. Only then did he truly withdraw his mental power. Otherwise... forget eight thousand meters; even at eight thousand or eighty thousand kilometers, no one could resist his forced mind-reading if he willed it. However... such behavior, though done to ensure the safety of the galaxy, was ultimately a true instance of ‘using might to suppress others.’ If it were the old Lei Ting, he would never have done such a thing... but conversely, if he had done this sooner, many of the mysteries and stumbling blocks currently obstructing his path might never have existed. The current him had to make a change. —He did not realize that if he had truly ‘done this sooner’ as he thought, he would not be ‘Lei Ting,’ nor would he be the ‘Solar Star.’ *** After these days of devouring and developing, the ‘Sea Lord’ had grown another size larger than its original large-planet scale, perfectly demonstrating to the galaxy that it was a ‘malicious entity.’ This made many bio-tech civilizations eager to act, but the Complex Council showed a rare, firm stance on the matter. It rejected all official applications for cooperative hunting and resource collection submitted by bio-tech civilizations and issued a Level 4 Bio-safety Warning and Conduct Ban. Lei Ting flew silently toward the shadow of the ‘Sea Lord’ and the layers of the Complex fleet surrounding it from afar. They were maintaining an interference line, primarily intended not to interfere with the ‘Sea Lord,’ but to block prying eyes from the outside. After all, even putting aside the oblivious planetary civilizations, the galaxy was full of people who loved to dance on the edge of death out of curiosity. The Complex had to do its best to block further information leakage from the ‘Sea Lord.’ If they hadn't granted Lei Ting authorization, what he saw from afar wouldn't have been the phantom of the ‘Sea Lord’s’ true body, but a void of darkness. The Level 4 Ban was also known as the ‘Red Zone Ban,’ a term similar to a bio-safety level classification that had spread to many technological civilizations at some unknown point. Under such a monitoring level, the armies of the various major powers within the Complex—which were rarely used for serious matters... no, rarely used for actual warfare—would be put to use for something other than maintaining security at public events. Of course, they would also send information back to their respective home civilizations, just as the various council members would notify their own homes of council decisions in advance. Though it sounded somewhat unfair, Lei Ting felt quite relieved as he looked at those messages and the preparations the Human Federation had made in advance. After landing within the fleet, Imperial Blade first asked the several officers who came to meet them, “What is the current situation?” The officers of the Complex Allied Forces, of various appearances and races, didn't waste words. They said, “Everywhere the ‘Sea Lord’ has passed, it has left traces of ‘pollution.’ It has carved a long black line through the galaxy, and the thing is still spreading. “We have been monitoring it. The data indicates this is not an active behavior. It is simply wandering and leaving traces, just like...” *** **Glossary** | Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | 铜 | Tong / Cu | The core AI of the Ring World. | | 帝刃 | Imperial Blade | A high-level esper from another civilization. | | 海主 | Sea Lord | A massive, planet-sized malicious entity. | | 建筑师 | Architect | A high-level esper mentioned by Lei Ting. | | 红区禁令 | Red Zone Ban | A Level 4 Bio-safety warning/restriction. | | 综合体 | The Complex | The intergalactic organization/council. | | 人联 | Human Federation | The human government. | | 阳星 | Solar Star | Lei Ting's title. | | 金属之主 | Lord of Metals | Another of Lei Ting's titles. |