Interstellar Survival: Invasion

"Canyue, what's happening?" Zhang Xingxing asked.

"All of you must leave immediately. Everything we see now might be a trap. If the people on Fearless have their brainwaves controlled as well, things will get troublesome," I said.

"Fearless, retreat. Maintain communication," Zhang Xingxing commanded.

Looking at the dot representing Fearless going farther and farther away on the screen, I was relieved.

"Our terrain has changed completely. Only the distant mountain peak still seems stable. I believe our brainwaves are currently under control," I said.

"Are you saying that we have been placed in an illusion? How should we wake up from it?" Old Du asked.

"If we're in an illusion, was the Fearless earlier really Fearless?" Zhang Bao'er asked.

"I don't know. But I suggest we take the vehicle back to the planet's inner land area. We will go deeper to search for our answer," I said.

"But the creature's lair might be there. It was difficult dealing with even one of them," said Zhang Bao'er.

"How do you catch the tiger cub without entering the tiger's lair?" I said firmly.

"Looks like your knowledge download is working really well for you," teased Zhang Bao'er.

The team agreed with my suggestion, including Lifu. Rather than returning to Eternal, he seemed more willing to take a trip to the creature's lair. Just how afraid was he of the emperor?

"Canyue, we're at a safe distance of 25,000 kilometers from the planet. Fearless will be on standby here. We will be waiting for your update," Zhang Xingxing's voice came from the communicator.

"Very well. We're heading deeper inland. Keep in touch," I said.

We traveled on the two vehicles, moving quickly inland as the ground rose higher and higher. This time, Master Crystal was the one sitting beside me. As we went higher and higher, the temperature around us became even lower. Eventually, it reached negative 200 degrees. At that point, the ground was no longer as loose and soft as the ground where we landed. Instead, the ground around us was solid and hard.

'I wonder where Bulu is. Is this an illusion it created?' I wondered inwardly.

We continued ahead. After about three hours, the system indicated that we had traveled 600 kilometers and had risen in altitude by 2,000 meters.

"This is too slow. At this speed, it will take us 18 more hours to reach the peak," Old Du said.

"Fortunately we still have plenty of energy," said Zhang Bao'er.

"Something doesn't feel right," said Master Crystal.

"What do you have in mind, Master?" Zhang Bao'er asked.

"I don't think everything we see is an illusion. Rather, only a part of our surroundings is covered by an illusion. It is probably very energy intensive to control so many of us. It doesn't seem like we had encountered such a powerful energy source here. Even Bulu only has a small amount of energy in it," said Master Crystal.

"How do you judge the energy level? And aren't all of us in an illusion right now?" I asked.

"That's why I feel like there is an issue we're not seeing here. Rather than being trapped in a complete illusory world, we are being herded by partial illusions to head in a certain direction," said Master Crystal.

"You mean our surroundings are real with partial illusions inserted among them for the purpose of pushing us toward the peak?" I asked.

"Yes, I believe so," said Master Crystal.

"Impossible. That's impossible!" Zhang Bao'er denied.

"Why not? Think about it, Bao'er," I said.

"If it's partial illusions, that cliff is probably real. Illusions can mislead your eyes, but they won't be able to make our off-road vehicles go over a non-existent cliff," said Zhang Bao'er.

"You're right. Therefore, I believe we hadn't even returned earlier. We had merely been traveling in circles," said Master Crystal.

"Old fogey, are you silly? Even if we hadn't managed to reach our pickup point, the system had clearly indicated that Fearless had arrived at the same location. We might be under the effect of the illusions, but the people in Fearless are definitely still in a regular condition," said Zhang Bao'er.

"But are you sure you really spoke to the team leader?" asked Master Crystal, alarming the entire group.

Snow stopped the vehicle in shock. Our advance was halted.

"Xingxing, can you hear me?" I called out.

"Yes. Where are you? Everything is normal here," said Zhang Xingxing.

"Xingxing, do you remember the name of my mount on Sirius?" I suddenly asked.

Only static noise came from the communicator.

"Xingxing, Xingxing, can you hear me?" I continued calling out.

The sound of the machine being turned off came before the communication was severed. I broke out in cold sweat.

"Good lord. Have we been speaking to a ghost?" said Zhang Bao'er as he shivered.

"Nonsense. There are no supernatural beings here. This is our brainwaves being controlled, resulting in us seeing and hearing things. However, we are still capable of thinking straight," said Old Du.

"Where does the creature want us to go? With its powerful brainwave control ability, won't it be easier for it to just take over all of us?" I said.

"I have a feeling the illusions are made by Bulu. It might need our help to accomplish something. There is probably a big problem it can't solve and needs our help," said Master Crystal.

Master Crystal's words were akin to a ray of light in the darkness. If that really was the case, then we would have a chance to meet Bulu again.

"I still believe that Bulu can fully control all of us if it wants. It can just do so and make us perform that task. There is no need to go through so much trouble," said Zhang Bao'er.

"Bao'er, do you still remember the mass-energy equivalence formula proposed by the Blue scientist, Albert Einstein?" asked Old Du.

"Of course. You're referring to E=mc^2?" asked Zhang Bao'er.

"Yes. E for energy, m for mass, and c for speed. To control the brainwaves of so many of us in our current environment will require a large amount of energy. Due to this planet's magnetic environment, our brains have been working overtime. Our brainwaves are probably moving rapidly. I don't believe Bulu has enough energy to control all of us that thoroughly," said Old Du.

"Let me think about it. This is a planet with controlling life forms. Bulu has limited energy, so it can only control a part of our brains. It intends to make us help it with something. But it is so powerful. What can we possibly do to help it?" I said.

"I remember you said that Bulu had erased the circles it drew on the ground. The erased circles were redrawn inside the big circle. If the big circle is really their lair, it can directly add those circles into it. Why draw them outside before erasing and adding them back inside the big circle?" asked Old Du.

"Is it possible that the big circle is something else and not their lair?" I wondered.

"Yes, it's probably something else. Perhaps it's a different life form, a gigantic life form that feeds on them. That is probably Lifu's true target," said Old Du.

"I can't keep up anymore. This is hurting my brain," complained Zhang Bao'er.

"Either you Interstellar League folks are too incredible in logical deduction or you folks are too imaginative. If there really is a massive creature that preys on Bulu's species, why haven't we seen any signs of it?" questioned Lifu.

"I understand. Because that creature is not here!" I suddenly exclaimed in excitement.

"Where is it, then?" asked Lifu.

I pointed above, "Up there. It is in the round sky section of the planet, the outer layer! Bulu is leading us to the peak, so that is probably the only path to the outer layer!"

"Canyue, you have improved greatly! Usually, Old Du is the one who makes these conclusions. What a surprise that you're the one doing it today," Dodo remarked.

"Organic brains are capable of autonomous evolutions. A machine brain like yours won't understand," said Zhang Bao'er.

"I wonder how Zhang Xingxing and the others are. I tried the communicator, but I can't establish contact," I said.

"The planet's magnetic field has probably disrupted our signals. Zhang Xingxing and the rest won't act rashly after losing contact with us. They will wait for more updates," said Old Du.

"Lifu, let's work together and catch that big creature. That way, you'll also be able to complete your task," I said.

"Good! Who cares how big it is? We'll catch it! This time, there's no letting it go!" said Lifu.

Master Crystal said, "We need to draw a proper plan. Even a smaller creature here can already give us so much trouble. The big creature that preys on these smaller creatures is probably even scarier. Our odds of success are too low."

"Focus on getting to the peak leading to the outer layer first," I said.

Through deduction, the forward team reached a conclusion and decided on a goal. A unanimous decision was reached to work toward the new goal. We continued heading toward the peak on our off-road vehicles, our morale much higher than before. Dodo continued trying to contact Fearless, but no communication was established.

"Canyue, how do you think Bulu had produced the voice speaking to us earlier?" Zhang Bao'er whispered to me.

"It had probably skimmed our surface memories and used the information to recreate the voice," I said.

"From the five-dimensional core you saw in Jupiter II, any chain of events can branch into countless realities. Is it possible that the voice actually belongs to Xingxing from a different reality?" said Zhang Bao'er.

"Damn you, fatty. My brain is already being worked to its limits. Please stop pouring such complex possibilities into my brain," I scolded.

Zhang Bao'er snickered before shutting his mouth. I could see that the fellow had definitely done it intentionally. He was trying to give me some trouble.

Our vehicles continued tearing through the pitch-black darkness. The temperature around us lingered around negative 200 degrees. We kept our headlights on, hoping that Bulu would show itself again.

"Old Du, do you think the creature can actually keep up with us? After all, this is quite a long journey," said Zhang Bao'er.

"So long as our communication channel remains shut, it means we're still within range of its control. Also, I had seen that it could even fly," said Old Du.

After we traveled non-stop for 10 hours, the ground before us rose into a steep cliff.

"Leader, the cliff is sloping upward at an angle of almost 60 degrees," reported Snow, who was in charge of driving.

"Why did the terrain ahead of us suddenly become a cliff?" I muttered.

Master Crystal said, "Perhaps we are going to reach Bulu's lair soon. Everyone, be on high alert. Pay attention to your surroundings and do not fire your weapons unless absolutely necessary to avoid provoking them."

The vehicles continued onward. We all breathed deeply to calm ourselves while observing our surroundings carefully.