Unexpected!
For the first time, Tian Xiao's plan was disrupted.
He had been ready to return to the base with Chen Wuling, using the pancreas tissue of the lizard-claw insect to further enhance his physical abilities. The entire team was prepared to meet with the squad leader immediately and board the Feiying 3 ship to participate in a temporary escort mission.
"What's going on?" Tian Xiao asked, confused, as he immediately turned to Chen Wuling.
Chen Wuling, who had already received the notification from Luo Fei, explained the situation to him. After hearing the full story, Tian Xiao finally understood.
Luo Fei was doing this to protect them.
Wu Hao, leveraging his connections at headquarters, had remained at the base to manage the overall situation.
Luo Fei, to be on the safe side, had taken his trusted subordinates with him, shielding them from any potential political pressure they might face over the next few days.
Life on the resource planet seemed simple, but the hidden competition was brutal. Wu Hao had gained power, and with a single order, he could send them to their deaths, with no way to resist.
Tian Xiao felt helpless.
Between cultivating and survival, he naturally understood which was more important.
The eight of them quickly gathered on Feiying 3.
Everyone was in high spirits.
Leaving the base for a mission was always exciting.
Luo Fei announced, "This journey will take four and a half days in total, round trip."
"During this time, our task is to stay on standby in the operations department of the life transport ship. Should any unexpected situations arise, we need to be ready to take off at any moment to carry out reconnaissance, patrols, threat assessments, and combat missions."
"Of course, we'll also receive additional bonuses during the mission. Under normal circumstances, the daily subsidy is one thousand. If combat occurs, it's five thousand per day! Any kills will be rewarded separately, and the spoils of war will be calculated separately."
At this point, he glanced at Chen Wuling and Tian Xiao, saying, "Wuling and Tian Xiao, you two have already killed twelve lizard-claw insects, and that's been logged in your mission log. The company will reward you with one hundred thousand, and we'll calculate daily rewards on top of that, roughly six thousand each."
The two of them smiled in response.
The others gave thumbs up and expressed their envy.
No one would ever refuse more bonuses.
Just then, the life transport ship slightly shook, and a neutral electronic voice came from the broadcast system: "Attention all personnel, the ship will soon enter full-speed navigation. All departments, please proceed to your assigned positions and stand by!"
The announcement was repeated three times.
Including Luo Fei, everyone entered their respective Qingniao craft.
Luo Fei was in Qingniao 1.
The eight Qingniao ships at the base were neatly parked at the combat exit, while six other Qingniao ships accompanied them on the mission, but these ships were positioned at the other end, seemingly indifferent to the ones in front.
Tian Xiao understood:
These people had been sent by headquarters to gain experience and credentials. Although they were capable, they looked down on those stationed on resource planets in remote areas, carrying an air of superiority, as if they were somehow above everyone else.
Once everyone had boarded their Qingniao ships, they quickly set up a group chat.
Luo Fei added everyone to the chat.
On the main screen, there were eight faces, seven men and one woman.
Old Lu joked, "Looks like we're about to enter four and a half days of isolation. It's good to know we've made some progress—finally got a woman on board! It's way better than staring at you bunch of bachelors all day."
"True," someone else chimed in.
"Xiao Xian, wanna play cards?"
"Go away!"
"Xiao Xian is here because Tian Xiao recommended her. Got it? Behave. Do you still want to eat barbecue later?" Chen Wuling snapped, sending the rowdy men away.
Xiao Xian, having worked as a miner, was no stranger to hearing crude jokes from the male workers around her. She just pretended she hadn't heard a thing.
Chen Wuling scanned the screen and noticed that Tian Xiao, after chatting for a while, had disappeared. The pilot seat was empty.
"Where's Tian Xiao?"
"Did he fall into the toilet?"
Immediately, everyone's attention was drawn to the empty seat.
Although Tian Xiao was still a newcomer, thanks to his incredible drinking skills, barbecue expertise, and combat talent, he had already become someone the entire team couldn't ignore.
Luo Fei, using his team leader authority, took control of Tian Xiao's Qingniao and used the internal cameras to locate him.
After a few camera shifts, they found Tian Xiao.
Tian Xiao was shirtless, performing push-ups with one hand on the floor.
His back muscles formed a thick, triangular shape, well-defined with sharp angles, rising and falling with each breath. Each muscle contracted in a steady rhythm, perfectly executed with consistent breathing.
"Sh*t!"
"Tian Xiao, you really are something else, torturing yourself in the cockpit."
"Training maniac!"
Liu Xuesong and Qiao Dazhi shouted in unison.
Old Lu, holding his flat wine bottle, was shaking, his nose almost touching the screen: "Tian Xiao! Are you really this obsessed? How are we supposed to live with people like you? Huh?!"
Everyone fell silent.
Tian Xiao's talent was evident to all.
He was gifted, and on top of that, he worked incredibly hard.
It was truly discouraging.
Chen Wuling and Luo Fei reacted with a sense of appreciation, but they also reminded Tian Xiao to maintain his biological energy. Overexertion could be detrimental, especially for the upcoming escort mission. If an unexpected event occurred, his body might not be able to endure the high-intensity space combat.
Space combat was extremely taxing on the body, creating immense pressure.
"Got it," Tian Xiao responded, continuing his one-handed push-ups without stopping.
Xiao Xian silently stared at Tian Xiao's nearly perfect triangular back muscles, her cheeks turning red. She grabbed a book nearby to shield herself.
Well, it looked good.
After completing two hundred one-handed push-ups, Tian Xiao set up a ceiling-mounted pull-up bar and gently leapt into the corridor of the cockpit. He bent his legs and began doing pull-ups.
Luo Fei controlled the camera, observing the others' reactions, but Tian Xiao had already consumed the lizard-claw insect's pancreas tissue, so he couldn't let the opportunity go to waste.
However, on the transport ship, it wasn't appropriate to use military-grade extreme training methods. He had to take it slow and steady.
Once his biological energy dropped to 80%, he would have to rest.
Meanwhile, Luo Fei didn't sit idle. He used the group chat to brief everyone on mission precautions. For example, the firepower on a fully loaded transport ship was average, but it wasn't something that beasts or insect monsters could easily target. The most dangerous threats were the armed space pirates, who were skilled at using anti-surveillance techniques to ambush ships with weaker firepower.
Space pirates were the number one enemy of transport ships.
These pirates also had exceptionally good computational chips and internal agents. They could travel between star systems, ambushing transport ships they believed to be carrying valuable cargo.
They were like hyenas, lurking in the depths of space, attracted by the scent of blood.
Especially for smaller enterprises, transporting goods was always a risky venture.
Otherwise, they might end up as pawns for someone else's gain.
Feiying Company, a subsidiary of the Yunzhong Group, had a fair number of security personnel. Feiying 3 had been specially modified, adding powerful weapon systems. It wasn't a soft target, but there were still some overconfident space pirates hanging around, coveting the millions of resources being transported and waiting for their chance.
And right now, they might just be making their move.
The ship shook slightly.
Then, they all heard the sound of the engine shutting off.
Immediately after, a red combat alert filled the operations room.