Interstellar Survival: Invasion

Zhang Bao'er reached the crown of his tree first. The top of the tree resembled a lotus leaf, with the difference being the distinct veins visible on the leaf. Red blood could be seen flowing through the veins.

The leaf left almost no opening on the crown, and the only way to get to the tip of the tree was by going through the leaf. Since Zhang Xingxing had ordered us to avoid damaging these plants, both of us tried to use our suits' flight mode to move around the leaf.

With our suits, we were able to quickly go around the leaf and reach the top of our respective trees. The very top of the tree resembled a washbowl filled with liquid. A peculiar feeler could be seen at the center of the treetop, constantly swaying about in the air. From its movement, I could see that the liquid on the treetop was extremely viscous, making it look like some sort of syrup.

"This liquid might be the nutrient fluid of the tree. The shape of the leaf is for the purpose of storing this viscous liquid. But I don't understand why the leaf also faces the light from the blue star. Won't that cause evaporation?" I muttered doubtfully.

"How is that confusing? All plants need sunlight to survive. Perhaps these trees have too much water and need the sun's help to evaporate some of the excess water," said Zhang Bao'er.

"Canyue, can you see the opposite mountain peak?" asked Dodo.

"Yes, we can. The weather is excellent. The opposite peak is clearly visible. It seems to also be covered by these trees, but I don't know if these needle plants are also growing below them," I replied.

"Good. The distance between the two peaks is roughly five kilometers. You can easily reach it with your flight mode," said Dodo.

Following Dodo's suggestion, Zhang Bao'er and I turned on our navigation systems and took off with our thrusters. Before long, we were hovering above the opposite peak. The plants looked basically the same as the ones on the previous peak. Surprisingly, we found an empty piece of flat land in the middle of the trees.

After more observation, I found that the flat land looked rather peculiar. A bunch of fallen trees could be seen in the clearing. From the broken parts of the trees, we could see that these trees were freshly snapped, most likely from intense collisions.

"Reporting to the commander, we found an opening formed by a bunch of snapped trees. I suspect that the fiend had snapped them during its landing. The fiend is nowhere to be seen," I reported. "Permission to land and scout?"

"Granted. Be careful," came Zhang Xingxing's reply.

With her approval, both of us started descending. Zhang Bao'er remained 10 meters above the ground to provide cover while I landed on the ground. The scene before my eyes was clearly caused by a massive shockwave. About a dozen thick and tall trees had been snapped and sent flying. From the damage they had suffered, one could see how powerful the shockwave was.

The moss-like plants and needle plants on the ground were all burnt. When I approached the still-standing trees, I saw a familiar back. The fiend was actually lying on the ground between two snapped trees.

"Reporting to the commander, the fiend has been discovered. It is lying still on the ground. Permission to make contact?" I said.

"Young man, call Little Ant and report your name. See if it reacts," said the great sovereign.

"Little Ant, I'm your ally, here to help you. If you're having difficulties moving, I can help you leave," I called out, but the fiend remained still.

"The fiend is still completely still. I intend to go ahead and make contact," I said.

"If you have no choice, just open fire at it. Be careful of its mutations," said the great sovereign.

"Canyue, be very careful. The monster might go crazy," reminded Zhang Xingxing nervously.

I signaled Zhang Bao'er, who was still in the air, with my eyes to continue covering me, and then I carefully stepped forward. I did not stop calling out to the fiend, but it remained motionless on the ground. I didn't even know if it was still alive.

Slowly, I reached the fiend. No life signals could be found coming from the fiend's body with my laser scan. It was unknown if the fiend was hibernating. I tried poking it with my cluster laser gun, but it did not react.

"It's probably dead. Canyue, try to flip it around," said Zhang Bao'er from the sky.

I followed the suggestion and tried to turn the fiend over. I found that the fiend's body was surprisingly light as if weightless. Suddenly, one of the needle plants near the fiend that had yet to be fully destroyed stabbed into the fiend's back. Immediately, I heard the sound of leaking gas, and a burst of air erupted from within the fiend's body. The fiend was reduced to a layer of skin.

"Commander, the fiend is dead. There is only a layer of skin left," reported Zhang Bao'er.

"No. That fellow is not dead. I believe it molted and evolved. Look at the shredded skin. The arm broken by the black ball had regrown," I corrected.

"Wait there, Canyue. We'll be there shortly," said Baron Sisse.

A few minutes later, the team gathered around me.

"This fellow had cast off its skin. Looks like it had fully healed itself when it molted. This skin was what had misled us here," observed the great sovereign.

"I wouldn't say we have been misled. Since the fiend had cast its skin here, it must also be on this planet. Coming here was not a mistake. But I don't understand why the ship's mental connection can't discover the fiend's true body," said Baron Sisse.

Dodo hurriedly notified Temo about our discovery. We were also told that Markus was still in the middle of performing an elemental analysis. The ship was still unable to come for us. Temo also promised to use the mental connection between Markus and the fiend to locate the fiend again.

We waited in the clearing. All around us, numerous needle plants could still be found. None of us were willing to walk into the field of needles again. Soon, we received an update from Temo, but the update was quite demoralizing.

According to the latest information, the fiend was still on the planet. However, it was at the border between the planet's dark side and livable zone. It was closer to the dark side than the livable zone, the place where the blue star's light had never reached.

"That fellow has gone mad. Why did it go to such a cold place? We should give up on it. Just wait until Markus is done charging, and then we'll leave," suggested Zhang Bao'er.

Even Domo agreed with Zhang Bao'er this time.

"Temo, how long do you need to finish recharging the ship?" asked Zhang Xingxing.

"I need at least eight more hours," said Temo.

"How much time will it take for us to reach the fiend's latest location?" asked Zhang Xingxing.

"If you go on foot, you need around 68 hours," answered Temo. The answer helped finalize our decision to leave the fiend here.

"Forget it. We don't have the time to waste looking for that monster," said Zhang Xingxing.

"There is a shortcut. With this shortcut, you can reach the fiend's location in three hours," said Temo.

"How can there be a shortcut? Don't even dream of tricking us all to go on a suicide mission. All my wealth is left on your ship," Domo protested.

"What shortcut? Be clear," I urged.

"From the mountain peak you're on, go 10 kilometers into the forest. Then, climb 30 kilometers upward. You will reach the highest peak in this region. At one side of the peak is a waterway formed by a collection of waterfalls and rivers. If you go through the waterway, you will be able to reach the border of the dark side," said Temo.

"What kind of a shortcut is that? Are you trying to make us jump down a mountain or a waterfall?" Zhang Bao'er wasn't happy with the answer.

"The impact from falling from a peak so high would be quite great, but if you go with the waterfall, your morph-capable shield will be able to protect you well. Of course, it is still up to the commander whether we should take this shortcut," said Baron Sisse.

Everyone looked at Zhang Xingxing, awaiting her decision.