Chapter 253: Dark Star's Proposal

Dark Star, who only had a head left, already had wildly fluctuating emotions. Yesterday, he was stimulated by Glazed Star again. The feeling of being "NTR'd" to his face made him ruminate on it all night, leading him to be even more unhappy.

At noon, exquisite specialty foods were laid out on the dining table. Li Yu sat in the main seat, while Dark Star was placed on a plate next to him, staring at Li Yu who was stuffing himself.

"This soft and mushy thing is really quite good, very delicate in the mouth. I'll take some back when I leave," Li Yu chewed the pale white food, loudly praising it.

It was only him here. Daniel was patrolling the perimeter to avoid being scared by Dark Star.

"Hehe..." Dark Star gave his daily cold sneer. Just as he was about to make a few sarcastic remarks, his expression suddenly underwent an obvious dramatic change. He glanced at Li Yu, who was tasting the delicacy, and seemed to hesitate.

Li Yu keenly noticed Dark Star's abnormality and narrowed his eyes. This old fellow's expression was wrong; the magnitude of the change was too exaggerated.

Dark Star wouldn't forget that he was right beside him. Such an obvious emotional fluctuation meant either something major had truly happened, or he was deliberately trying to attract his attention.

"What's wrong, Bro?" Li Yu asked with concern.

Dark Star was already immune to Li Yu's address. Now it was one 'Bro' after another, but when he took action earlier, he hadn't been soft-hearted.

"?" Li Yu was somewhat suspicious, glancing at Dark Star who only had a head left: "Your Smart Terminal was smashed, how do you know?"

"They have my spores on them," Dark Star was concise and to the point, not discussing the matter too much, changing the subject: "Their location isn't far from Ordos, they should be trying to contact me right now."

"If they can't contact me, I'm afraid they will descend on Ordos directly, adding unexpected variables to the current situation."

This old fellow was indeed deliberately attracting my attention just now.Li Yu didn't know what Dark Star was plotting, so he pretended to be relaxed and said, "What does that have to do with me? The more chaotic the current situation is, the better."

Dark Star frowned, glancing at that detestable face, suppressing his pent-up frustration and said, "Are you interested in cooperating?"

"Cooperating?" Li Yu truly didn't expect to hear these two words from Bro Dark Star's mouth.

"Did... your brain stem get damaged from the beating? Or has your IQ dropped due to the lack of fresh blood supply?"

Hearing this, Dark Star's heart flared with anger again... The lack of fresh blood supply indeed caused his emotional fluctuations to be a bit large.

But for his plan, he could only suppress his anger and say, "Although I want to kill you, in the current situation, cooperation is the best choice."

"Oh?" Li Yu raised his eyebrows: "Let's hear it..."

"First, put aside our personal grudges..." Dark Star's first sentence made Li Yu want to laugh. The two of them were almost beating each other's brains out, and now they actually wanted to put aside their grudges?

Dark Star ignored Li Yu, who was holding back his laughter, and continued, "You need to survive. Although Return Star treated you as an abandoned Pawn this time, this kind of thing can't happen multiple times in a short period."

"When those two A-Tier Lifeforms arrive, the Return Star Fleet won't intervene directly. They will deploy Space Blockers and various weapons to prevent the opponent from escaping."

"During this time, it will be the most dangerous period for you."

Dark Star's logic was clear. He summarized the information he had obtained in a short time and came to this conclusion.

Li Yu nodded. Outsiders didn't know his trump cards, so it did seem to be the case.

Dark Star closely followed with the most crucial sentence: "And I can help you evade this period. Briefly holding off two A-Tier Lifeforms is not a problem for me at all."

"It's enough to hold out until the Return Star Fleet arrives. Once they arrive, they cannot turn a blind eye to you."

Procedural deflection and turning a blind eye were fundamentally different.

Li Yu's reputation in Return Star was currently high. The Return Star Fleet could use Excuses like 'no time to support' or 'support is on the way' to deal with external Public Opinion.

But the result of turning a blind eye was completely different. No commander was willing to take this risk.

"You want to help me?" Li Yu couldn't help but chuckle softly. "It'd be good enough if you don't turn around and join the team besieging me."

Dark Star wanted to shake his head but found the action very awkward, so he could only give up and say coldly:

"You are my target, yes, but the [Apostle] is even more so. If I can't kill you, there's always next time. But if I don't get the [Apostle], I will be in a lot of trouble."

Borrowing Dark Star's power? Li Yu stroked his chin, considering this possibility.

With the [Kryptonian Experience Card], surviving was certainly not a problem. And based on surviving, he had to consider how he could obtain benefits.

The [Apostle] was his target, but with the Stellar Brilliance Empire Exploration Team and the Meteor Fleet present, he also had to deal with Strength King and Laser Man. Trying to Fish In Troubled Waters would probably be very troublesome.

The [Kryptonian Experience Card] only lasted for one hour, which was a bit rushed on time.

If he didn't have to use the [Kryptonian Experience Card] when facing the two A-Tier Lifeforms, then his time would be slightly more abundant.

However... this Old Fellow Dark Star couldn't be trusted easily.

"The Stellar Brilliance Empire Exploration Team, the two A-Tier Lifeforms hunting you, and I belong to three different factions." Dark Star was still analyzing for Li Yu, attempting to persuade him:

"Facing the Return Star Fleet, we might unite, but facing you, it's not worth us uniting."

"When I stand in front of you, they will consider me an enemy."

"A very sincere speech..." Li Yu looked down at Dark Star on the plate. "Then what do I need to pay?"

The feeling of being looked down upon by Li Yu in a plate made him extremely uncomfortable, but he had no other way and could only answer: "Let me go, let me repair my body."

Li Yu listened to this condition that was barely a condition, but didn't immediately agree, instead asking:

"After repairing your body, how long will it take for you to have conventional combat power?"

Dark Star's heart jumped violently, but he said calmly: "At least three days. The newly generated body is not enough to support me in intense combat."

"Oh..." Li Yu nodded: "In other words, you can fight."

"What do you mean?" Dark Star questioned.

Li Yu shrugged: "Nothing much. I'm prepared to cooperate with you, but the time and place for you to repair your body can only be chosen by me."

"If the time is too late, I simply won't have the combat power to resist," Dark Star gritted his teeth.

"Don't you still have me? Don't worry..." Li Yu wasn't prepared to release Dark Star early. Currently, the [Titan Colonization Armor] wasn't by his side; releasing Dark Star would be asking for trouble.

Dark Star wasn't someone with an unyielding backbone either. The deterrence of the person behind him seemed quite significant, leading him to prefer cooperating with Li Yu to gain freedom, in order to scheme for the [Apostle].

Thinking of this, Li Yu couldn't help but chuckle: "If I knew it would be like this, why bother ambushing me in the first place? Otherwise, with you in the dark and me in the open... you might really have been able to kill me."

Dark Star felt a bit depressed and didn't want to bring this up. He pretended not to hear and continued, "Let me contact the Logistics Team interfacing with me. They might still be able to provide some help."

This group of people responsible for interfacing with Dark Star came from the Star Glory Empire. They might know how to open the Titan Ruins, and in front of him, Dark Star couldn't pull any Unexpected Trouble anyway.

Throwing him a Smart Terminal, Dark Star used a derived pink material hand to dial an encrypted link.

It didn't take long for the other party to connect. The tone was slightly urgent, yet also seemed relieved: "Lord Dark Star, you've finally replied. I thought something had happened to you."

Poking a Sore Spot. Dark Star's face darkened, and he gave a perfunctory reply, "Handling some matters. Where is your location?"

Dark Star was the Boss, they naturally didn't dare to press further, replying: "We are near the Ordos System, coordinates are..*..."

If the entire Ordos System were viewed as a flat plane, the other party's location would be in the northwest, still a distance away from entering Ordos Prime's range.

"Master, their location is correct..." Claptrap locked onto the other party's location through the Communication Link and displayed it on the holographic projection.

Moreover, Gods unaware, ghosts unknown, he left a Sub-Body in the other party's control system, slowly breaching their firewall.

The other party was piloting a large battleship, their Strength wasn't too strong, mainly running errands for Dark Star.

At Li Yu's signal, Dark Star was forced to ask the other party if they knew the method to open the Titan Ruins.

Unexpectedly, the other party actually did know. This was told to them by the person behind Dark Star before they came. It seemed they truly entrusted Dark Star with a heavy responsibility.

This was also quite normal. Dark Star was, after all, an A-Tier Lifeform. Although across the long ruling Timelines of many top civilizations, A-ranks were not considered rare.

But it didn't mean they were worthless. Equipped with manpower and resources, scheming for a Titan Ruins still had a very high chance of success.

Unfortunately, the other party didn't seem to anticipate the current situation.

"...A special Titan Code is required. The Stellar Brilliance Empire Exploration Team should currently be decrypting it..."

They didn't have the means to decrypt it, but the Stellar Brilliance Empire Exploration Team did.

So they only needed to wait for the Stellar Brilliance Empire Exploration Team to finish decrypting, and then play 'The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind it'.

Yesterday, Li Yu had asked Glazed Star what exactly the Titan Ruins were. It couldn't really be a treasure trove left by the Titan Civilization, right?

According to Glazed Star's answer, most of the extant Titan Ruins were places where weapons were forged or high-level equipment was stored.

The former Titan Civilization was extremely prosperous, so Titan Ruins were scattered throughout the entire known Universe.

...

Many fragments converged together, gradually revealing the true picture of the whole puzzle. The Citizens on the Ordos planet continued to live leisurely, just as usual.

His Excellency the Governor General, who had given up on himself, still hadn't left. It wasn't that he was determined to Go Through Thick and Thin with Ordos.

But rather, if he fled Ordos, the only outcome would be being sent to the trial court.

...

Two days later, the Meteor Fleet hidden outside the Ordos System, the Stellar Brilliance Empire Exploration Team, and even Dark Star's Logistics Team, all stared intently at the Holographic Screens.

A Spaceship, making no attempt to hide—or rather, unable to hide, as its dilapidated hull was already covered in patch marks and couldn't possibly deceive the many high-level Scanners—drove openly into the Ordos System.

The last time a Spaceship drove into Ordos, it was Li Yu descending. And as for who it was this time, it went without saying.

In the dilapidated Spaceship, Strength King and Laser Man had completely changed their appearances. Who knows how many twists and turns they went through to arrive here.

"Don't be impulsive. This place is far from simple. Return Star's fleet and the Empire's Exploration Team are hidden somewhere," Strength King reminded, looking at the increasingly excited Laser Man.

Laser Man didn't care: "A pool of troubled waters is just right. Everyone is Lying Dormant. If we don't stir things up, who knows how long it'll drag on."

The moment the dilapidated Spaceship landed on the Ordos planet, the entire Meteor Fleet went into action.

In the Withered Starry Sky, battleships gradually emerged one after another. The distant star's light was refracted by the bright silver hulls, and their Propulsion Engines spewed blazing tail flames.

Elton issued an order in the Command Center: "Send Small Aircraft to deploy Space Blockers around Ordos. Do not approach before the Blockers are fully formed."

One by one, Small Aircraft flew out, rapidly approaching Ordos Prime.

"...Your Excellency Commander, the Queen Bee Squad hasn't obtained any information, and the other Artificial Intelligence on Ordos's network has also disappeared."

Elton frowned tightly. He hadn't figured out what was hidden on the Ordos planet, and the targets had already arrived. This was highly likely to cause unknown variables.

But the targets were already in the trap; he couldn't just watch helplessly.

At the same time, in the Stellar Brilliance Empire's Exploration Vessel, David looked at the fleet that suddenly popped out, his expression also very unwell.

"...According to the data, the other party is Return Star's Meteor Fleet. The Commander is Elton Ramos, who has had multiple large-scale war command experiences and has also killed individual A-Tier Lifeforms..." A Subordinate reported loudly.

David stared at the Holographic Screen, his voice cold: "Just whose subordinates are those two A-Tier Lifeforms, to actually use us as a Gun to deal with the Meteor Fleet."

The moment the Meteor Fleet appeared, David also understood The Whole Story. Li Yu was the bait, used to hook those two A-Tier Lifeforms.

And the reason those two A-Tier Lifeforms dared to come despite knowing it was a Trap was because this was the Ordos System, where the Stellar Brilliance Empire Exploration Team was searching for the Titan Ruins.

So they weren't afraid of the Meteor Fleet's ambush at all.

The only problem now was whether Li Yu choosing the Ordos System was an accident or deliberate.

If it was an accident, it was fine. If it was deliberate, David's eyes flickered, and he immediately ordered:

"Do not move for now. Wait for the best opportunity to strike, we must deal a fatal blow to the Meteor Fleet."

Even if David was furious, he couldn't just Stand By Idly and do nothing about the Meteor Fleet.

Because they needed to obtain the Titan Ruins, it was impossible to watch the Meteor Fleet descend on Ordos Prime and remain indifferent.

This was an inevitable conflict between the two sides, and also the source of Laser Man's confidence that the Empire's Exploration Team would make a move.

"...How much longer until it's decrypted?" A hoarse voice came from the shadows of the Command Center, making the Staff Member responsible for reporting subconsciously shudder.

David, however, was not surprised. He glanced at the Smart Terminal and said, "It's almost done."

(End of this chapter)