Interstellar Survival: Invasion

The shrill sound of the wind flooded my eardrums as the cart moved rapidly. Everything around me turned into numerous straight lines due to the speed at which I was moving. The cart dropped and turned along the winding pipe. I was already starting to feel nauseous when I decided to shut my eyes.

After about five minutes of high-speed travel, the world around me darkened as the cart entered a tunnel. With my eyes still shut, I sensed the cart moving ahead like a roller coaster before it suddenly began a 90-degree descent. For a moment, the floaty sensation of the high speed roller coaster ride felt like gravity had vanished.

The falling sensation caused me to instinctively reach for the button of my suit to make sure that my suit was on. After the weightless sensation persisted for about two hours, some sort of cushion appeared out of nowhere as the cart slowed down steadily. Light appeared before me.

When I opened my eyes, I could see the tunnel exit not far ahead of me. Several vague silhouettes could be seen walking around the exit. After several minutes of moving ahead at a stable speed, the cart finally left the tunnel, bringing me into a new room.

All my companions were safely waiting for me. Zhang Bao'er looked pale, and it seemed like he had just finished vomiting somewhere. I heaved a breath of relief upon seeing that everyone was fine.

"Canyue, some of the Katars have gone up. Let's go," said Zhang Xingxing.

Looking at where she was pointing, I saw that we were in some sort of room that served as a hub. A rope ladder was trailing down from the air vent at the top of the room. As usual, Old Du took the lead. One by one, we climbed up the rope ladder.

I was the last to move again. After climbing through the air vent, I entered a shabby basement. Once I was inside, a Katar put the rope ladder away, shut the air vent, and covered it up. The Katar then left after saying something to Domo.

"Alright, my friends, this is the end of our journey together. You're now standing on the soil of Planet Eternal. After leaving this basement, you're free to do what you want," said Domo.

"How do we go about learning the location of the palace?" I asked.

"I don't know. This is my first time here as well. Farewell, my friends. This is the end of the unprofitable transaction between us," said Domo.

Although Domo loved money a tad bit too much, he was still capable and reliable. Thus, we found ourselves surprisingly reluctant to part with him.

"Canyue, show Domo one of our diamonds. See if we can hire him to help us with our operation on Eternal," Zhang Xingxing said.

I took out a fist-sized diamond from my bag. The moment Domo saw it, his eyes lit up.

"Hehehe, everything is negotiable. So long as payment is on the table, anything is possible," said Domo as he rubbed the diamond.

Surprisingly, even Zhang Bao'er kept his mouth shut this time.

"That's a deal, then. Domo will work with us and provide us with disguises and cover," said Zhang Xingxing.

"I remember the palace is a tall golden building with a conical roof," said Prince Toruse.

"Excellent. That gives us a clear target. We can't stay here for long. Our top priority is to look for a hiding place. From there, we can start gathering information," commanded Zhang Xingxing.

"I'll scout around with Zhang Bao'er. We'll return in 15 minutes," I said.

"Granted. Move with haste," said Zhang Xingxing.

"I'll go with you," said Domo suddenly. "I have some disguise techniques that can be of use during emergencies."

"Sure. Have Domo go with you, then," said Zhang Xingxing.

With the command, the three of us left the basement. The first floor was a storeroom. We opened the door and walked out of the building.

'Planet Eternal, after suffering so many hardships, I, Li Canyue, am finally standing on this planet,' I thought to myself.

I found that we had arrived at a bazaar that was bustling with noise and activity. The place was crowded with people, and the streets were brightly lit. Countless life forms of many shapes and forms were enjoying themselves around us. This was also my first time seeing an unarmed Eternal.

After a long period of peace, a large majority of Eternals who weren't in the army had shed their brutish dispositions. In fact, many of these civilians had a soft and gentle appearance. Some even seemed to have evolved out of the ferocious fangs protruding from their mouths, giving them a more civilized and cultured appearance. Apart from Eternals, I also saw some Katars around with their conspicuous red hair. My disguise made me look like one of them.

"What do the Liyates look like?" I asked Domo.

"Look at that green-haired freak with four arms. That's a Liyate," said Domo.

I observed my surroundings and saw that there were quite a lot of Liyates that looked even sturdier than Katars on this planet. While speaking, I saw two imperial police officers clad in gold armor approaching on their battle-wolf mounts.

"Canyue, be careful. The police are here," said Zhang Bao'er.

We did not feel confident to face the police since we weren't exactly here legally. Thus, we hurriedly withdrew into an alley. The patrolling police did not notice us and walked by us. All three of us heaved a breath of relief. We had encountered way too many dangers to reach this far. We did not intend to court even more dangers. Suddenly, a heavy hand of steel tapped my shoulder. When I turned my head, a familiar Gando face entered my view.

"Gando!" I exclaimed and took a step back while my grip around my gun tightened.

"Don't be nervous. This Gando is not one of the black and white Gandos," said Domo.

Only then did I regain my calm. I studied the Gando before me and found that the Gando was truly a different person.

The Gando before me was also clad in white armor, but the armor was clearly in bad shape. There was no comparing this shabby armor with the shiny white armor of the white-eyed Gando. Also, this Gando wasn't too tall. He was a similar height as Old Du at about two meters. A friendly look covered his eyes as he looked at us.

"Excuse me, are you hiring a bodyguard?" asked the small Gando, a question I never expected him to ask.

"You're too small, and your armor is terrible. How dare you peddle yourself as a guard with your tiny size?" Domo's business instincts took over as he started negotiating.

"I might be small, but my iron staff technique is a unique technique exclusive to my family. Because this is my first time looking for a job, I can offer you a preferential price," said the Gando.

"Name your price. We might need to stay here for seven Betelgeuse days. If hired, you will need to guard us 48 hours per day. If you're too expensive, we will instead go hire some actual professionals," said Domo.

The small Gando sank into silence. After thinking for a bit, he seemed to have steeled himself as he said, "Half an imperial gold coin."

"Are you trying to rob us or something? Someone like you is probably worth only one imperial silver coin," said Domo.

This was the very first time I saw a look of helplessness on the face of a supposedly ferocious Gando.

"This Gando might just be a kid," Zhang Bao'er said to me.

"Half a gold coin. You'll be our guard. What's your name?" I asked.

"I'm Sarje. When do you need me to start working?" asked Sarje in excitement.

"A rich fool indeed," muttered Domo under his breath.

"Immediately. Are you fine with that?" I asked.

"No problem. I can start immediately," answered Sarje cheerily.

"Is there any place we can rest nearby? A tavern or something?" I asked.

"Yes. Take a turn ahead of us and you'll see a tavern. I'll show you the way," said Sarje.

We immediately followed Sarje when we heard that there was a tavern nearby. Only after walking out of the alley did I notice that Sarje was clad in outdated armor. He held an iron staff with his hand. Resting the staff on his shoulder, he bounced forth joyfully as he led us to the tavern.

"Canyue, is this kid even reliable?" asked Zhang Bao'er.

"I guess. He doesn't feel like the crafty type," I replied.

After walking for about 300 meters, we arrived at a big building with a signboard saying: House of Brave. Sarje brought us straight into the tavern. We walked into a lounge staffed by a long-nosed alien.

"Masse, I brought you customers. A room for five, please," said Sarje.

"Where do you see five people?" asked Zhang Bao'er.

"Aren't there five of us?" asked Sarje in a somewhat childlike manner.

"Hehe, you're treating yourself as a boss already? I really don't understand why Gandos are considered good bodyguards with your level of intelligence," jeered Domo.

I gestured at Domo to stop him and walked up to the reception desk. "Excuse me, do you have a big room here?"

"How many people do you have?" asked Masse as he raised his head to meet my gaze.

"Ten in total," I replied.

"So many? I'll need two silver coins per day for that," said Masse.

"That's too expensive! This is robbery!" exclaimed Domo, the money grubber.

"Deal. Get the room ready," I said.

"First room to the right on the second floor. You can check in the moment you pay. All guests are not allowed to disturb each other. Any violation will be immediately reported to the imperial police," said Masse.

"No problem," I said.

I turned and gestured at Domo to pay. He unwillingly fished out a gold coin from the bag he had gotten from Kado. The moment Masse saw the gold coin, his eyes seemed to light up. He accepted the coin in excitement, then busily searched his drawer. After a while, a pile of silver and copper coins was placed atop the counter.

"Domo, how many silver coins can you get for one gold coin?" I asked.

"One imperial gold coin is equivalent to a hundred imperial silver coins. One imperial silver coin is equivalent to a hundred imperial copper coins," said Domo.

"What a scum. The silver coin is so worthless yet you had only offered our bodyguard one silver coin?" said Zhang Bao'er.

"Since you're so generous, feel free to be the one footing the bill," Domo retorted.

"It's not the time for you to be arguing," I said. "Bao'er, go bring Xingxing and the others here."

Bao'er left to do as told. I took five silver coins from the counter and gave them to Sarje as the deposit for his service. As for the remaining pile, Domo carefully kept them all away. He even checked under the counter several times to make sure he hadn't missed a single coin. We then went to our room together. The room was large, and it looked like a warehouse. After several minutes, Zhang Bao'er arrived with Zhang Xingxing and the others.