Though centuries of linguistic evolution separated them, when Lei Ting spoke the phrase "Galactic Empire" in Galactic Common—a tongue few truly bothered to learn anymore—without the aid of a translation module, the commander’s expression shifted instantly.
Leaden clouds, a permanent fixture of the zenith, began to churn. A torrential downpour swept across the city, submerging it in a sudden deluge. The city’s protective shield did not filter out the rain; it pattered down upon the streets, soaking the faces and clothes of the people, drenching the modest clusters of black metal buildings and the neatly arranged dark scaffolds.
"Do not be afraid," Lei Ting said.
With a light flick of his fingers, the thick clouds dispersed. Piercing red sunlight broke through, and the golden radiance permeating the city precisely evaporated the falling rain. A mist, fine as gossamer clouds, drifted through the air.
"Do not be afraid, and do not be nervous," Lei Ting repeated. He turned his gaze downward, looking toward the city's power source buried deep within the planetary crust, where a strange red substance was burning. "As their protector, are you not going to come out and talk?"
After he spoke, two minutes passed in the confusion of the crowd and the silence of the city. Then, a sigh softly emerged, echoing around everyone present.
"Alas..."
It was a sophisticated display of energy control—a resonance of energy precisely tuned to the air, simulating a deep male voice in the void.
The red liquid writhed for a moment, looking like some sort of mutated slime, before a portion of it separated. It seeped through the various gaps between the mechanical structures and the geological strata. Finally, it filtered through the solid floor, merging before the stunned eyes of the Imperial remnants into a ball of red flame about the size of a fist—an Imperial remnant's fist. It floated there in mid-air.
"Greetings... 'Sun Star,'" Firewine said. "How did you know I was here?"
*How did I know?*
*Because I knew from 'last time.'*
Lei Ting’s gaze remained calm. Long ago, he had deliberately trained himself to avoid almost every physical reaction associated with thinking, preparing, or fabricating lies, including subtle eye movements and behavioral tics.
In the previous timeline, when the galaxy was nearly incinerated by the fires of war, he and Firewine had actually fought side by side. Before the entity died in battle, it had told him many things. Although those memories were now somewhat blurred, much like his recollection of the "time travel experience" itself, Lei Ting still remembered this much clearly.
Through the memories of "last time," he could determine which individuals in the galaxy were completely trustworthy... and which were only trustworthy "in phases." Among those who were completely trustworthy, Firewine was one.
Even though they hadn't interacted extensively, the portion of memories the entity had shared with him directly through psychic power allowed him to understand Firewine better than anyone else besides the entity itself. Unfortunately, even so, he did not know the entity's specific origins.
"I know many things," Lei Ting replied, answering a question with a question. "Regarding what I said—their new mission... what is your opinion?"
"..." Firewine was silent for a moment before saying, "I have no right to command them."
"You have protected them and powered this city for centuries, Firewine," Lei Ting sighed.
"But I never thought about... I mean, I never thought about becoming one of them, or becoming the leader of a race. You see, my life form is different from theirs." Firewine separated a small glob of floating red liquid, waving it at Lei Ting like a chibi-style palm. "Don't talk about repayment, friend. When you protected the Orionids, did you ever think about asking them for something in return?"
"I am an Orionid; I am part of my people," Lei Ting said, his voice slow and heavy. "And you? How do you view them?"
"Don't ask that. Bah, I don't know," Firewine said.
It writhed and tumbled through the air, its flames burning fiercely. Lei Ting did not understand such mucilaginous organisms, and he could not read the thoughts of a normal "S-rank" without provoking hostility. It was difficult to tell if this was a deceptive reaction—those old memories weren't detailed to that degree, and wisdom required privacy.
"Please, brother, I do it because I want to. I’m just a glob of burning red slime, a long-fermented 'Firewine.' I have no intention of recounting the past or debating the future with you, so don't try to persuade me. No one can persuade a glob of burning red slime," Firewine’s synthesized voice took on a jaunty tone. "Not even you, at least for now. Besides, if you were just passing by and happened to lend someone a hand, would you want them to repay you?"
Fine. This "glob of burning red slime" was free—both in body and in spirit. A sentient being with a free spirit would not spend its days thinking about controlling things or avoiding being controlled.
Lei Ting wasn't entirely sure how many years this fellow had existed. The earliest records of it in the galaxy only traced back to after the fall of the Galactic Empire. On the surface, one might think it had been slumbering on this planet all along, only to be awakened by the arrival of the Imperial remnants...
But a sharp intuition told Lei Ting that something was definitely wrong. For some inexplicable reason, he felt that having the "Imperial remnants" follow Firewine's lead wouldn't be a case of the latter using his kindness to demand a reward. He would not ignore this anomaly.
However, he had no intention of solving this mystery—which had almost nothing to do with him—right now. Firewine had proven its reliability through battle and sacrifice; there was no need to pry into irrelevant matters.
"Very well," Lei Ting said. "I should warn you, this star is nearing the end of its current life stage..."
"I know there was once a 'Behemoth' inside the star; that’s why it rapidly decayed into a red dwarf," Firewine said. "But it’s dead now. The time this star has left is at least enough to witness the dust settling on all of this."
"..."
Lei Ting raised an eyebrow slightly.
"You..." he asked softly, "do you know if there is a pattern to the parasitism of the 'Astral Behemoths'?"
"No idea," Firewine’s answer was blunt and straightforward.
"I can tell you," Lei Ting said, a cold smile touching his lips, his emotions remaining flat. "It is a matter of artificial selection."
"...?"
Firewine’s floating form paused for a moment. "...Are you serious?"
"I am serious," Lei Ting said. "You know..."
"Stop! Don't continue here," Firewine’s voice suddenly increased in volume. The serious tone made this "glob of burning red slime" exude a heavy sense of decisiveness and coldness. "Let's find somewhere else!"
"As you wish," Lei Ting replied readily.
"Crisp. I like that." Firewine seemed a bit talkative; it sent Lei Ting a set of celestial coordinates, telling him to go first. Then it turned to the commander of the Imperial remnants. "The starship *Treasure* has been deployed as a city for too long; some systems can no longer be restored. Don't be stupid and think about running around. Wait for us to come back like good children..."
As it spoke, a flash of fire signaled its disappearance, leaving behind only a boom and a lingering echo: "...Perhaps at a time like this, you should listen to me."
***
The coordinates pointed to an asteroid belt, 1.8 to 2.2 AU, with a total mass roughly estimated at 0.0008 times that of the Human Union’s capital planet.
After waiting a short while in a Kirkwood gap found through precise positioning, Lei Ting saw a fireball flying toward him from a distance. The thing was about six hundred meters in diameter, burning with flames so intense they were almost incomparable to his usual light. It hurtled toward him with the momentum of a planetary collision.
If it had been anyone else, they would likely have prepared for battle. But Lei Ting was not nervous. He knew that for some reason, it was difficult for Firewine to travel normally through the "Spirit's Depths." If the entity didn't want to tear space directly, it had to accelerate itself rigidly like a long-range strategic strike weapon.
As he expected, Firewine began to decelerate when it came within ten thousand meters of him. Although those ten thousand meters passed in a literal blink, relying on its life form's powerful pressure-resistance and shock-absorption capabilities, it came to a normal halt before Lei Ting within a few breaths.
"Aha! Firewine is here!" the comet-like red slime shouted, its voice echoing within the portion of psychic power Lei Ting had deliberately opened and partitioned off.
This fellow... its voice should have been quite pleasant, but combined with this tone—frequently high-pitched and manic, occasionally deep and cold—it would likely cause almost any normal person to flee immediately.
As for Lei Ting... "Welcome," he nodded, even though this was clearly the other's home turf.
This calm, self-assured behavior, acting as if he were the host, made Firewine freeze for a moment, its prepared words getting stuck in its slime.
But soon, it let out a loud laugh to cover the awkwardness and said, "What were you trying to say just now?"
"Before that," Lei Ting said, "you don't seem to trust... 'them.' Even though you don't even know what I'm about to say."
"Bah! I’m just a (*emphasized*) glob of burning red slime (*emphasized*). I can't figure out what you 'brained' creatures are thinking, and that includes them," Firewine said. "The Imperial remnants... even now, they can't recognize the fact that the entire galaxy is their home. How can I pin my hopes on their wisdom?"
"I suspect you left out the word 'morality'?"
"Don't mention that kind of handicraft to me. I used to have that thing once, maybe I still do, but I haven't seen it in a long time."
Firewine shifted its shape in deep space, playing around; its excessive thought speed made it already feel bored with the current situation.
"I say, brother, is this the pace you usually use to communicate with other creatures? Heavens... you only need an instant to load, think, and output a decade's worth of information for a normal person! How do you endure it? Also, your psychic power is terrifying. I've seen people who are cold on the outside and warm on the inside, but someone who is warm on the outside and cold on the inside to this extent is truly rare. Don't you usually feel abnormal emotions? Excited one moment, depressed the next... wait, you don't seem to have any emotional fluctuations. Heavens! You actually have no emotional fluctuations!"
The moment it discovered Lei Ting had no emotional fluctuations, Firewine was struck with shock. It visibly paused in mid-air for more than 0.1 seconds before continuing to change shape, making it look as if it had momentarily glitched.
"...How do you do it? No, why would you do this?" it murmured. "Clearly back then..."
"I can do it because I am the 'Sun Star,'" Lei Ting said. He still did not accelerate his communication speed beyond that of a normal person, and the perfunctoriness in his words was obvious. "Let us return to the main topic.
"Are you aware that there is a group of... 'things' in this world that hate almost all carbon-based humanoids? This, of course, includes the 'Imperials.'
"And unfortunately, this group of 'things' holds control over more than half of the galaxy. Even the 'Astral Behemoths' are merely a part of their design..."
***
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