Chapter 310: Hit Them Back Hard

The starship engine let out a low rumble, tearing through the silence of the cosmos as it sped toward Shen Gui Sha Li Tai.

On the bridge, Zhang Cheng stared fixedly at the star chart, his brow tightly furrowed, a faint unease stirring in his heart.

"Report! The ship is encountering intense cosmic ray interference!" A piercing alarm sounded across the bridge, and red warning symbols flashed on the screen.

"What the—! What's going on?!" Zhang Cheng's heart clenched.

The ship began to shake violently, various instruments flickering erratically and emitting crackling sounds, like a battered toy about to fall apart.

"Damn it! I knew I shouldn't have trusted these coordinates from an unknown source!" The Lan Xing merchant's face was deathly pale as he grabbed Zhang Cheng's arm. "Hurry! Change course! We have to get out of here!"

Zhang Cheng shook off his hand with a sharp glint in his eyes. "Let go! We must keep going!"

"Are you crazy?! This is Shen Gui Sha Li Tai! Even Star Gods have fallen here! You're going to your death!" the Lan Xing merchant screamed hysterically.

"Fortune favors the bold! Understand? Besides, what's there to be afraid of? At worst, in eighteen years I'll be a good man again!" Zhang Cheng gave a cold laugh. "If you're scared of dying, then scram back to your Lan Xing!"

"You—" The Lan Xing merchant trembled all over with rage, yet didn't dare say another word.

He knew that Zhang Cheng's resolve could not be shaken.

Just then, the lights flickered even more violently, and the ship's shaking grew worse and worse.

"Alert! Engine failure! Power system on the verge of collapse!"

"It's over! We're done for!" Zhang Cheng cursed under his breath.

Suddenly, a figure rushed out from one side of the bridge—it was Xingji Xiake.

He was holding a toolbox and wore a confident smile.

"Don't panic! Watch me!" Xingji Xiake shouted and dashed toward the engine room... Xingji Xiake did a sliding stop, landing squarely at the engine room door, his movements clean and crisp—anyone who didn't know better would've thought he was about to break into a space breakdance.

He opened the toolbox, and it was a dazzling array of high-tech gadgets gleaming with brilliant light.

His hands moved so fast they seemed to be on fast-forward, and in a few quick moves he had the engine casing dismantled, all while humming a little tune.

"Zzz-zzz..." Engine sparks flew onto Xingji Xiake's face, and he didn't even blink.

"Minor problem, no sweat!" he said, pulling a crystal shimmering with a strange glow from the toolbox and stuffing it into the engine core.

Xingyun Zhizhe assisted from the side, murmuring under his breath, as if chanting some incantation or reciting a product manual.

The two worked in perfect tandem, as if performing a high-tech ritual.

"Hum—" The engine's sound gradually steadied, and the alarms ceased.

"Done!" Xingji Xiake snapped his fingers with a flourish and dusted off his oil-stained hands.

"Next time you get a little problem like this, remember to call me—twenty percent off the repair fee!"

Before anyone could cheer, a cluster of red dots suddenly appeared on the radar screen, closing in at extreme speed.

"What the hell! What is that?!" Zhang Cheng's eyelid twitched, a bad premonition surging through him.

"Report! Unidentified flying objects detected, suspected interstellar raiders!" The starship captain's voice carried a hint of tension.

Before the words had even faded, several vicious-looking fighter craft appeared near the ship and, without a word, opened fire directly!

Laser cannon fire rained down like a storm, blooming into dazzling bursts of sparks all around the ship.

"Damn it! I knew it wouldn't be that easy!" Zhang Cheng roared. "Xiake, hit them back hard!"

Xingji Xiake flashed a grin, showing two rows of pearly white teeth.

"Just what I wanted!" He flipped into the pilot's seat, expertly maneuvering the ship to nimbly dodge the enemy's attacks while simultaneously pressing the fire button.

"Whoosh whoosh whoosh—" The ship's laser cannons fired back without backing down either, staging a fierce chase battle in outer space.

While piloting the ship, Xingji Xiake didn't forget to mock them: "These guys' flying skills are way too noob! Compared to my drifting, it's straight-up kindergarten level!"

Just as he was riding high on himself, the enemy fighters suddenly stopped attacking, and then... a peculiar missile launched from one of the fighter craft, heading straight for their ship.

"What is that?" Xingling xue zhe pointed at the missile on the screen, his tone full of confusion.

Zhang Cheng's heart sank sharply, a chill shooting from the soles of his feet to the top of his head... "Not good!

" he shouted, "..."

"Not good! It's an EMP!" Zhang Cheng shouted. "Quick, activate electromagnetic shielding!"

Unfortunately, it was already too late.

The electromagnetic interference bomb exploded near the ship, releasing a powerful electromagnetic pulse that instantly paralyzed the ship's weapon systems.

The screen flashed with blinding red light, alarms blared all at once, and various instrument needles jumped wildly, as if breakdancing.

"What the hell! Now we've really done it!" Xingji Xiake couldn't help but curse. The rudder was unresponsive, and the ship began spinning out of control.

Seeing their opportunity, the raiders immediately intensified their assault, laser cannon fire pouring in as if it cost nothing.

The ship's Energy Shield flickered violently, on the verge of collapsing.

"It's over, we're barbequed!" Xingji Xiake wailed. This time they were really done for.

At this critical moment, Xingling xue zhe suddenly shouted, "Wait! I think I've found something!" His eyes were fixed on the waveforms dancing across the screen, his fingers flying across the control panel as he murmured, "Frequency... amplitude... wavelength... yes! That's it!"

He slammed a button, and the ship's defense system let out a low hum as a pale blue energy barrier appeared around the ship.

The raiders' laser cannon fire struck the energy barrier and was miraculously deflected!

"It worked!" Xingling xue zhe excitedly pumped his fist. "I found the frequency pattern of the EMP and adjusted the ship's defense system—now we can fight back!"

Hearing this, Xingji Xiake perked up instantly, immediately rebooted the weapon systems, and unleashed a barrage of fire on the enemy fighters.

"Let you taste my power! Take this—Italian cannon!"

The ship's laser cannons roared again, sending several raider fighters scurrying in defeat.

"Beautiful!" Zhang Cheng slapped Xingji Xiake hard on the shoulder. "Beautifully done!"

However, before they could celebrate for long, the ship suddenly jolted violently... "What's going on?" Zhang Cheng's expression changed as he asked in a low voice.

The ship's shaking grew more and more violent, as if it had been seized by an invisible giant hand.

Alarms once again rang through the bridge, the piercing shrieks nearly bursting everyone's eardrums.

"Report! The ship is being bound by an unknown energy!" The operator's voice trembled, his face deathly pale.

"What the hell?!" Xingji Xiake slammed a fist onto the console, nearly smashing a hole through the control panel.

"Who's the blind fool daring to mess with your Uncle Xiake!"

Guangming Shizhe pressed her hands together, gently closing her eyes as she prayed silently: "O great cosmic power, please bless us to safely pass through this crisis…" A faint golden light radiated from her body, warm and gentle, as if it could soothe the anxiety in everyone's hearts.

Seeing Guangming Shizhe's devout manner, Zhang Cheng took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.

"Xingyun Zhizhe, is there any way?"

Xingyun Zhizhe's brow was tightly furrowed, his ten fingers flying across the keyboard as various data scrolled rapidly across the screen.

"The source of the energy restraint is unknown, and the energy intensity is extremely high… wait, I think I've found a breakthrough!" He snapped his head up, a glint of light flashing in his eyes.

"The frequency of this energy restraint is very unstable. We can exploit this and attempt a resonance interference!"

"Resonance interference? How?" Xingji Xiake looked utterly bewildered.

"Simply put, fight poison with poison!" Xingyun Zhizhe explained. "We use the ship's energy core to emit an energy wave at a specific frequency, creating resonance with the energy restraining us, thereby disrupting it and ultimately breaking the restraint!"

"Sounds impressive!" Xingji Xiake rubbed his hands eagerly. "Then let's get started right away!"

After a tense round of operations, the ship's energy core began to emit a low hum, and a powerful energy wave rippled outward in all directions.

The energy restraint binding the ship began to shake violently, like an enraged giant python.

"Quickly! Increase the energy output!" Zhang Cheng shouted.

The ship's energy output reached its limit, and the energy core blazed with dazzling light, illuminating the entire bridge.

The energy restraint binding the ship finally could no longer bear the strain—it let out a sharp screech and then collapsed with a boom!

"Fantastic!" Xingji Xiake jumped up excitedly. "We're free!"

The ship regained control, and everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief.

However, before they could even celebrate their victory, the sight before them plunged them back into shock.

The destination indicated by the coordinates was right before their eyes.

It was a colossal vortex, radiating an eerie purple glow, as if leading to another dimension.

The surrounding space was warped and distorted, as if kneaded by an invisible giant hand.

A mysterious and dangerous aura permeated from the vortex, sending chills down one's spine.

Zhang Cheng gazed at the scene before him, an inexplicable unease welling up in his heart.

"Prepare to approach…" he said in a low voice, a trace of resolve in his tone.

The ship slowly approached the vortex, and the surrounding space warped even more severely, as if it would swallow them at any moment.

"Wait…" Xingling xue zhe suddenly spoke, his voice trembling. "I… I can sense…"

"What?" Zhang Cheng turned to look at him.

Xingling xue zhe's face was pale, his lips quivering as he pointed at the center of the vortex. "There… there is…"

Before he could finish his words, the ship suddenly began to shake violently, more intensely than any time before.

The alarm once again filled the bridge, but this time, no one cried out in alarm.

They all stared dumbfounded at the center of the vortex, where a massive shadow was slowly emerging… "What is that?

!

" a Lan Xing merchant screamed in terror.