The mining area was still damp. Ding Meng stood in the dark tunnel and did not move. He simply sat down on a rock. Qu Xiaoqing was puzzled. "What's wrong?"
Ding Meng fiddled with his helmet. "There's a communication problem."
There was indeed a problem, because at this moment, on the main control panel of the spaceship, the screen representing Ding Meng's first-person perspective was filled with signal interference particles. Xin Jie's voice soon rang out in the communicator, "What's wrong with your ion scanning eye?"
"It seems to be malfunctioning." Ding Meng continued fiddling with it.
"There's a tool in the backpack. Do you know how to fix it?"
Xin Jie hesitated for a moment before asking, "If you don't know how to fix it, you can come up first and let Ruolan take a look."
"That won't be necessary."
Ding Meng got up and walked towards Qu Xiaoqing. "The power supply of this helmet seems to be blocked. Miss Qu's helmet seems to have the same problem."
Hearing this, Qu Xiaoqing was stunned. Before she could react, Ding Meng suddenly reached out and pressed down on her helmet. With a little force from his ring finger, the screen representing Qu Xiaoqing on the control panel was immediately filled with pockmarks.
Xin Jie did not seem surprised by this. He still reminded Hao Ren in the communicator. "There's a malfunction repair device in the toolbox. Just take it out and install it in the slot on the left side of the helmet."
"Okay, got it."
After that, Ding Meng turned off the communicator. At the same time, he made a "cut" gesture to Qu Xiaoqing.
Qu Xiaoqing was still in shock. She had no idea what Ding Meng was up to. "What are you doing?"
Ding Meng nodded at her. His hand was still on her ear as he gently cut down. Qu Xiaoqing was stunned for a moment before she followed his gesture and turned off the communicator. She trusted Ding Meng. Ding Meng must have his reasons for doing this.
Ding Meng sat down on the rock again. "We're not going anywhere. We're just going to stay here."
Qu Xiaoqing could not help but ask, "Why?"
Ding Meng raised his head and looked at her. His eyes became sharp. "Miss Qu, do you really think you can find the remains of the Empire's soldiers?"
Qu Xiaoqing took a deep breath. "You mean … we can't find it?"
Ding Meng did not answer her directly. Instead, he asked, "Miss Qu, did you receive this mission three months ago?"
Qu Xiaoqing hesitated and said, "Yes, the inspector on the space station of planet TT12 came to my house as a guest and accidentally mentioned this mission to my father. That's why I had this idea. After all, you know that I've always wanted to go to the front line."
Ding Meng nodded. He could now confirm one thing. Bamboo Pole must have received orders from the imperial military to hide on the Dead Silent Star, waiting for an opportunity to find the K virus. Once Bamboo Pole lost contact, the military would definitely take action.
However, Qu Xiaoqing still could not understand Ding Meng's strange behavior. "Turning off the scanner and instant communication, Ding Meng, what are you trying to do?"
Ding Meng let out a long sigh. "Miss Qu, thank you very much for your help during this period of time, so I don't want to hide anything from you. Three months ago, I escaped from this place."
No matter what kind of person Ding Meng was, he did not look like he was lying. Qu Xiaoqing looked at him in surprise. "But this is really the wreckage of a battleship."
"Yes!"
Ding Meng could not deny this. "This is indeed the wreckage of a battleship, but this place is more like hell. It's easy to come here, but difficult to leave."
What was this place?
What danger was there?
Was there some secret here that could not be exposed?
Why did Ding Meng describe this place as hell?
Qu Xiaoqing did not ask these questions. She was undoubtedly a smart woman. She knew that even if she asked some questions, Ding Meng might not be willing to answer. Since Ding Meng was not willing to answer, then there was a reason for him not to.
A cold wind suddenly blew through the tunnel, and the silent atmosphere suddenly became strange. Qu Xiaoqing sat down quietly beside Ding Meng. "This place does look like there is nothing here."
Ding Meng looked at her gratefully. Qu Xiaoqing's action showed her trust in Ding Meng. "Miss Qu, thank you."
Qu Xiaoqing smiled and said, "I should be the one thanking you. If you didn't tell me, I wouldn't have known that you had been here. It's really hard for a person to survive in a place like this. I really can't imagine what kind of price you have to pay."
There was a rare hint of emotion in her voice. This was the first time she had traveled to such a remote planet. Although she had seen similar scenes in the international space network, the virtual world was fundamentally different from the real world. After all, her identity was there, and she could not understand how the lower class felt about life.
Ding Meng said slowly, "I can assure you that there are absolutely no corpses of imperial soldiers here."
"I believe you." Qu Xiaoqing nodded. "But, what can we do now?"
Ding Meng said, "We don't do anything. We'll just wait here."
"Wait?" Qu Xiaoqing obviously did not understand.
Ding Meng nodded. "It's very simple. Because the people they are really looking for are not us."
Qu Xiaoqing stared at him. "You mean … it's Captain Cheng Da and the others who are looking for us?"
Ding Meng said, "Wanting to find them is one thing, being able to find them is another."
This time, Qu Xiaoqing finally understood. No matter what they were looking for, the people in their team who had the highest chance of finding it were definitely not her or Ding Meng.
The dynamic map on the control panel had shrunk. The entire map showed the curve of the warship's structure. The flashing green dots corresponded to each person. The two green dots in the center of the 'calabash' had not moved since the beginning. Ji Ming frowned and said, "What are Ding Meng and Qu Xiaoqing doing?"
"There's a problem with their communication. They've been detecting the malfunction."
Xin Jie was operating the interface of the detection system. "It's good that they're staying there. If there's any trouble, we can easily deal with it. Of course, it's best if there's no trouble."
Ji Ming did not need to ask why because a new screen appeared on the control panel. It showed that an ion drive had broken through the Dead Silent Star's atmosphere and was flying toward the ground.
Ruolan enlarged the image and saw a 'Blazing Shark' spaceship shuttling through the colorful sunlight. Its destination seemed to be where they were.
Songqing's camouflage system could fool the human eye, but it was difficult to avoid radar detection. Therefore, as long as the distance was close enough, the Blazing Shark spaceship would discover Songqing's spaceship sooner or later.
"It looks like space pirates?" Ruolan turned to look at Xin Jie. She looked very nervous.
"It shouldn't be space pirates."
Xin Jie also stared at the screen. He noticed that the signal lights on the two wings of the Blazing Shark spaceship were flashing green. This was a friendly gesture during interstellar travel.
Ji Ming also noticed it and said in a low voice, "It could be bounty hunters."
Space pirates and bounty hunters were two completely different groups of people. Most space pirates made a living by robbing. They often killed people for their belongings and committed all kinds of crimes. Whether it was the Federation or the Empire, they almost never asked for a reason. If they saw a space pirate, they would basically 'beat' them up. However, bounty hunters were different. They usually did things for money. These people had certain principles and bottom lines. Some of the hunter groups that had developed to a large scale were very famous. The fleets of the Federal Empire treated them with respect.
At this moment, Ding Meng and Qu Xiaoqing had already returned to the ground. Looking at the slowly descending spaceship, Ding Meng also made a judgment. "It must be a bounty hunter from some clan."
He dared to be so sure because of this spaceship. This kind of Blazing Shark spaceship was considered a relatively backward spaceship. Its appearance was like a leaping carp. This was a small spaceship that had many functions such as attack, defense, interception, transportation, speed, reconnaissance, and so on. It was precisely because it had too many functions that it did not have any outstanding advantages.
If there were any advantages, it would be that although this spaceship looked very small, it could travel long distances. This was because bounty hunters were mostly active in space that was not under the jurisdiction of the Empire. Usually, they would have to fly long distances for any job they received. However, this Blazing Shark spaceship in front of them seemed to have several ion drives added to its sides, spine, and tail. It was obviously a modified spaceship. How could a regular spaceship of the Federal Empire be modified?
It was not that there was absolutely no such thing. How could it be modified in such a ridiculous way?
Its appearance looked like a mutated fish with tattered plates.
What valuable things could there be on the Dead Silent Planet that would make space pirates travel such a long distance to do a losing trade?
Therefore, it was definitely a bounty hunter.
Sure enough, after the spaceship stopped, a group of fully armed people walked down from the connecting cabin. They were all wearing different kinds of armor. Judging from the models, it should be the first generation of the Pioneer series. The appearance of the armor could not be any more broken.
Could this spaceship, this group of people, be a threat to Song Qing?
Qu Xiaoqing could not help but glance at Ding Meng. She could not help but sigh. School is indeed different from outer space. You have no insight if you don't know anything.
This was undoubtedly praising Ding Meng for his extensive travels and extraordinary insight.
However, Ding Meng ignored her and walked toward this group of people.
There were nine people in this group. The leader was an imposing man. His hair was slightly white, but he was hale and hearty. His body was tall and sturdy. Judging from the way he walked and his steady steps, it was obvious that he was an experienced hunter who had been on missions for a long time.
The man had already turned on his wristband. On the screen was his own image and information.
Silman, Green Arrow Bounty Corps. Position: Captain.
At the bottom of the information bar was the Corps logo, the leader's personal signature, and a 4D anti-counterfeiting virtual seal. This meant that they were not imposters. After all, the Green Arrow Corps was very famous in outer space.
Ding Meng was also slightly surprised, but he still greeted politely. "Hello, Captain Silman."
Silman ignored him because a young man beside him came up with a mini photon computer. "Boss, this is a probe ship from the Norse Empire called Anvil Corporation. They look like crew members."
When a probe ship appeared on such a remote planet, it was usually to collect data or materials. It was not a threat to bounty hunters like them. In fact, Song Qing's spaceship had advanced technology and strong defense. With the configuration of this Blazing Shark, it was also not a threat to them.
Seeing that Ding Meng's wristwatch also raised the light screen, Sileman took a deep breath and said slowly, "Hello, Little Brother Ding, I see that you are not a citizen of the empire. We are all trying to make a living. Let's put it bluntly first. We are also entrusted by our employer to find a place here. Once we find it, we will leave. As for what you want to do, I have no interest in knowing, and I don't want to know. It's best if we can cooperate, but if we can't, I hope that we can meet and part with each other politely.