Interstellar Survival: Invasion

Chapter 38: Reactivating the Revival System

The two-headed monster tried to escape the sea. Lifting its body into the sky flapped its massive red wings as fast as a dragonfly flaps its wings. However, the massive wall of water completely covered all possible escape paths. The wave of frost then crashed into the two-headed monster.

The great impact smashed the two-headed monster back into the sea. Its entire body was covered by cold water which proceeded to drag it to the bottom of the sea. The bright red all over its body dimmed.

'Just what terrifying power is that? It had taken only a blink of an eye for a freak powered by Sirius B's core to be put down,' I thought.

Suddenly, a gigantic red beam shot out of the sea, reaching straight for the clouds. The beam tore an opening in the sea. After being weakened by the seawater and underwater whirlpools, the two-headed monster, with its glow dimming, launched its final attack.

Its final attack was astonishingly powerful; the two-headed monster had finally pierced through the watery shackles around it. This was its final hope. It flapped its wings, shot out of the sea, and soared into the sky.

However, the whirlpool monster was not going to give up when it was so close to success. Thus, 12 massive icy arms shot out of the sea and tightly grabbed the limbs of the escaping two-headed monster. The extreme chill caused the two-headed monster's arms to rapidly darken as heat escaped its body at a high speed.

With death coming nearer and nearer, the two-headed monster unleashed a deafening microwave-like roar and continued soaring through brute force. It lifted the icy limbs of the whirlpool monster as it rose.

But without the core to replenish its energy, the two-headed monster had exhausted a majority of its energy in the battle with the whirlpool monster. Its final attempt at escape was akin to an arrow at the end of its flight.

It carried the icy limbs and soared to almost 800 meters above the sea. At that altitude, we could see that its scarlet eyes had lost their glow. It was almost fully exhausted of energy. Despair filled its eyes.

The two-headed monster finally exhausted all its energy, and it released a despairing roar. The whirlpool monster dragged it back into the sea. The chilly seawater surged violently and consumed the two-headed monster, turning the powerful bright red body an icy white.

Then, a chilly wave rose over a hundred meters to reach the monster's two heads. I saw the two lizard heads abruptly bite each other at the monster's moment of destruction, facing death with a defiant attitude.

When the wave washed over, the red vanished. The two-headed monster had disappeared into the sea's black hole. Just like that, the world-shaking battle was over.

"An ancient creature that had been sealed for more than a hundred thousand years had ultimately walked toward destruction so soon after its awakening, all because of its greed for energy," remarked Old Du.

"It had not done anything wrong. It was the greed of other life forms for energy that had broken the balance of its life," said Zhang Xingxing.

"There is no absolute right or wrong. The wheels of history will continue rolling forward. Any sacrifice for advancement would be the best utilization of one's purpose," I comforted everyone.

Titan and Amethyst brought the ship higher into the air, pulling it far away from the whirlpool monster's attack range. The ship flew into the distance. Following our ship, Blueflash and the other fish also left the battlefield. After a series of thrilling brushes with death, I found myself unaccustomed to the sudden peace. In fact, I still had lingering fears in my heart from the dangers I had faced.

Finally, the ship entered a stable flight mode. Everyone relaxed, and exhaustion caught up. Old Du was snoring thunderously while little Dondon was also sleeping with its belly and four limbs facing upward.

I also saw Zhang Xingxing sleeping in her seat. Her slightly messy hair gave her the image of an exhausted person who had just escaped disaster. Surrounded by the leisurely atmosphere, I also felt a weight pushing on my eyelids. Slowly, they dropped down, and I fell asleep as well.

That was a deep sleep. After an indeterminate amount of time, I was awakened by the feeling of something crawling on my face. When I opened my eyes, I saw a tiny red bug curiously moving around on my face.

I flicked the bug away and sat up before looking around me. Zhang Bao'er was still sleeping, drooling all over his own face. Everyone else was gone. The ship's door was wide open. Evidently, we had landed. A wide expanse of red could be seen outside the door.

I walked out the door and saw that the ship had landed on a relatively even area within a red forest. In this forest, the trees, the animals, and the insects were all red. The gentle rays from Sirius A shone upon the land, giving the place a relaxed and comfortable atmosphere.

In the field, Old Du and Dodo were in the midst of a discussion. Zhang Xingxing was observing the bizarre plants of the forest with her arms around Dondon. Titan and Amethyst were sitting on the grassy ground with their backs to each other. It seemed like this was their way of resting after the tiring flight.

Old Du raised his head when he saw me. "Canyue, you're awake as well."

"Yes," I replied. "How long have I been asleep? Where is this?"

"After three hours, the ship returned to where we set off. This is the red island at the very start of our expedition. The Brightlings call this place Brightstart Island," Dodo said.

"Three hours? I was only asleep for three hours?" I asked.

"No, you have been asleep for over ten hours," Dodo replied.

"Why didn't you wake us up? We could have started the revival process immediately. We don't have the luxury of time," I said.

"That was my order," said Zhang Xingxing, walking up to us from the side. "I was awake the moment the ship landed. I made the decision to let everyone have an ample rest before moving to the next stage of our plan."

Rank meant everything in the military, and since a senior official had spoken, I stopped questioning the decision.

"Wow, the view here is nice!" praised Zhang Bao'er, walking out of the ship drowsily.

Old Du took out some canned space rations from his bag. With that, the group of survivors started partaking in the meal. I did not forget to open a can for Dondon. The little fellow then started happily eating away.

"Where's my Toruk? Where are the fish? How's Toruk's injuries?" asked Zhang Bao'er.

"I already treated Toruk. The injuries weren't serious. They're out at sea, hunting for food," said Old Du.

"What a thrilling mission this is. We suffered several really close brushes with death," I said, still feeling some lingering fears in my heart.

"Yeah. But after everything, reality and results proved that the prophet was right," said Zhang Xingxing confidently.

"Old Du, Bao'er, how did you charge your crystal balls?" I asked.

Just as Zhang Bao'er was about to excitedly tell the story of his heroic deeds, Old Du interrupted him.

"We have limited time. The more time we save, the higher the chance we have of saving Captain Zhang Han. Since everyone is almost fully rested, we should proceed to the next part of the plan," suggested Old Du calmly.

"I intend to install the crystal balls and activate the revival equipment to revive Plum," said Zhang Xingxing.

Old Du woke Titan and Amethyst. Then, everyone entered the cockpit. Plum was still resting in his stasis pod with the same serene expression, as though the numerous dangers we braved earlier were completely unrelated to him.

Zhang Xingxing took out the crystal balls I gave her from her bag. The three balls were different in color. They were respectively purple, gold, and red. Dodo took the balls and, after a short inspection, inserted them into the control station.

With the long-awaited truth about to unfold, we finally felt like all the dangers we had faced had been worth it. After inserting the energy balls into the control station, the flowing energy inside them turned into chaotic currents. Three different colors moved violently inside three different crystal balls.

Then, each ball started transmitting a flow of energy into the blue tube. The three energy streams converged into one before entering Plum's pod together. The combined stream was actually green in color. Bit by bit, the green permeated the pod. Before long, the first motes of energy touched Plum's body.

We saw a blue glow slowly spread through Plum's flesh and veins from his face to his hands. The energy was progressively activating his bodily functions. As more and more energy entered, the pod became filled with green energy. The green energy worked, restoring life to Plum. His face began to look more and more lifelike, as though he was going to open his eyes at any moment.

"Plum is waking up soon. The secret will be unveiled shortly!" said Zhang Bao'er.

"That might not be the case. This is a life form over a hundred thousand years old. Perhaps he can give us some clues, but Captain Zhang Han's disappearance is a recent event. He might not know anything at all," said Old Du.

Zhang Xingxing appeared slightly displeased when she heard his words. When everyone was brimming with hope, Old Du's calm analysis sounded too cold.

"So long as there is a clue, we can continue advancing. We have been working so hard. Isn't this what we have been waiting for?" I said.

"The energy has been transferred. The recovery and awakening of his cells require five hours. Everyone, be patient," said Dodo.

"Five hours? That's way too long!" Zhang Bao'er said.

Everyone sat down. It would be quite a while before the wait was over. Everyone watched silently as Plum's body kept changing.

"Canyue, after experiencing so much, do you think we'll get an answer this time?" Zhang Xingxing suddenly asked.

"Yes, we can. Isn't that what the prophecy said?" I replied firmly.

After experiencing so many hardships, Zhang Xingxing seemed to be much less hopeful than before. A determined look covered her face when she heard my words.

Everyone waited for Plum's awakening in silence.