Chapter 87: Leap of Faith

【Respected Navigator, you have arrived at a new world】

【Remaining stay time: 4 days】

Standing on an endless, desolate plain, he gazed at the towering mountains surrounding him, seeing not a single sign of life.

Alvin was utterly stunned.

Wait a minute—new world?

Shouldn’t this be the Marvel Universe? How did I end up in a new world? This makes no sense!

“Navigator, what’s going on?”

【Respected Navigator, since you did not select an anchor world prior to transit, the Navigator’s default setting has prioritized a new world as the transit target】

“...”

Alvin broke into a cold sweat, his mind going blank.

All those years hunting geese, only to get pecked in the eye by one?

This is like the old man eating arsenic—deliberately trying to shorten his life!

“Why didn’t you ask me?”

Alvin was furious. This time was different—no preparations, no warning, and he’d been dumped into a new world while at his absolute lowest!

What if I run into something monstrous? What then?

【Respected Navigator, the system asked for your input but received no clear response.】

Oh… I misjudged the Navigator system.

Alvin shut his eyes in pain. Back then, chased by the Hellfire Dragon, he’d barely escaped being reduced to ash—he had no time to think about anything else.

Who could have predicted such a blunder?

“Wait… where did the transit energy come from?”

Alvin suddenly realized the most critical question: transit to a new world should consume energy.

But since returning, he hadn’t recharged at all!

【Energy sourced from your armor’s core reactor】

That explains it… no wonder the stay time is only four days!

This isn’t entirely the Navigator system’s fault. When designing this armor, he had authorized the Navigator to use the armor’s core reactor energy under certain emergency conditions.

But then came an even worse message.

【Atmospheric oxygen levels are low; contains unknown components!】

【Gravity level: preliminary assessment similar to Earth】

【Warning! Warning!】

【Core reactor energy insufficient!】

Unknown components?

Amidst these utterly alien readings, Alvin’s spine chilled—he felt an unstoppable wave of dread surge from his lower back to the crown of his head: “What the hell did they dump me on?!”

【According to comprehensive analysis… you are currently in an extraterrestrial environment unknown to humanity.】

The knot in his chest finally unraveled.

Looking again at the towering mountains, the barren, desolate valleys and plains, Alvin finally understood why not even a single bird flew overhead.

Last time, it was a lifeless desert.

This time, they just tossed me onto an alien planet, didn’t they?

What kind of survival limit is this?

Complaining won’t change reality.

Alvin touched his cracked faceplate, frowned, then suddenly asked the soul-deep question: “Navigator, since transit locations are never fixed, is there any chance I could appear in a black hole or deep space?”

【Respected Navigator, such scenarios will not occur】

【Arrival location in a new world ensures the Navigator will not die from such extreme conditions】

Alvin exhaled slightly.

He’d always feared being dumped into a location guaranteed to kill him—like a black hole.

But at least now, it seemed the Navigator system adjusted transit points to avoid such extremes.

No wonder he could still breathe in this alien environment.

Even though the armor detected unknown components in the air, as a denizen of the Underhive from the Warhammer universe, his survival adaptability far surpassed that of 30th-century humans!

Compared to the Underhive’s radiation and toxic fumes, even an alien planet was a paradise.

“Since survival isn’t an issue, next… I should explore and figure out where exactly I am.”

Based on past transit experiences, Alvin was certain of one thing: this place must be tied to a ‘plot’!

Whether it was the black-robed Inquisitors’ alley in New York during his first transit, or the Afghan desert in the Marvel Universe during his second—both fell within a ‘plot’ framework.

In other words,

This unknown planet is also tied to a ‘plot’.

“Let me think… what plots take place on alien worlds?” Alvin began climbing the mountain ridge, aiming for the highest point to survey his surroundings, while mentally scanning relevant stories.

But unfortunately, there were too many alien-world stories.

Dozens at least met the criteria—trying to identify this world’s true identity in such a short time, with no distinguishing features, was daunting.

Soon, Mark V lost all power.

Alvin reluctantly removed it, reverting it to suitcase form, and stowed it in his personal space.

From here on, he was on his own.

Fortunately, his Underhive-trained body could endure long treks. After swallowing a few energy bars to replenish strength, he finally reached the summit.

From above, it was unmistakably an alien wasteland.

Beyond the endless mountains and low, heavy clouds, there were no discernible features.

Yet just as Alvin began to feel disappointed, a structure—clearly artificial, bizarre in shape—came into view.

It looked like a primitive village.

A ring of circular rock formations surrounded it, resembling a wall built by early humans; the central structure resembled an inverted bowl, roughly dozens of meters tall.

“Huh… this feels oddly familiar.”

Alvin squinted, studying the strange structure. A sense of recognition stirred—he’d seen it before, but couldn’t place it.

As Alvin strained to recall where he’d seen it, a deep engine roar suddenly echoed from above the clouds!

Boom!

The low, heavy clouds churned violently!

Gales howled like a flood cascading down, violent airwaves surging and churning—the distant sound rapidly approached, the engine’s roar deafening!

Alvin reacted instantly, leaping behind a massive boulder to hide, then watching the clouds.

The next moment, a massive spacecraft tore through the clouds!

Its design was intensely sci-fi: four enormous engine nozzles extended forward, the main cockpit resembling a quadrupedal creature.

The giant vessel flew over the peak; its crew never noticed Alvin hidden beneath the boulder.

In the instant they passed each other,

Alvin’s sharp eyes clearly saw—inside the main cockpit of the giant ship—were humans, unmistakably with European facial features.

Then the ship headed straight for the ruin.

He watched as it landed not far from the ruin, kicking up a storm of dust and debris that surged into the sky.

“Definitely human!”

Though he confirmed the pilots were human, the information was still too scant—he still couldn’t be certain.

Alien planet, humans, spacecraft?

That combination yielded dozens of possibilities—but to uncover the truth, he needed more data or clearer markers.

“Heh, imagine if they found out there was another human on this planet—would they faint?”

Alvin mused with interest.

Now that he’d found his target, the next plan became much simpler.

After a brief rest, the pounding headache had eased considerably; painkillers had temporarily stabilized his injuries.

But clearly, this wasn’t sustainable—he had to infiltrate the spaceship soon.

A spacecraft capable of space travel would likely have a medbay—perfect for replenishing Mark V’s energy and possibly repairing it.

“Alright, rested enough.”

Feeling his psychic energy had partially returned, Alvin strode to the cliff’s edge.

Then, slowly closing his eyes, he spread his arms as if embracing invisible air: “Who else but me could do a leap of faith on an alien planet?”

With those words, Alvin leapt off the cliff.