Interstellar Survival: Invasion

As I showered in the gentle purple light of Sirius A, a sorrowful shriek pulled me back to reality. I saw the blue fish that Zhang Xingxing was mounted on with Titan in its grip waiting for us. Blueflash wailed mournfully at it, and the three fish wailed together to mourn their dead companion.

"Old Du's mount sacrificed itself to cover our retreat. It self-detonated to slow down the black monster," I explained to Zhang Xingxing.

"The black monster was one of the big whirlpool's many forms," Titan said.

"That is consistent with my and Old Du's analysis. We did not expect the whirlpool to appear in the form of a living creature," I said.

"The biodiversity of this world is beyond our imagination," said Zhang Xingxing. "Fortunately, you're fine. I was worried that something bad would happen to all of you."

"Don't worry. Who am I? I won't fall so easily," I declared confidently.

Zhang Xingxing rolled her eyes and ignored me.

When the fish were done mourning, Old Du climbed onto Blueflash's back. Titan returned to Bao'er's mount, and Dodo stayed in Toruk's grip.

"What are the coordinates of Terror Island? Now that we are high above the clouds, we can't see the sea anymore. We can't even get too close to the sea because that whirlpool monster is still raging down there," I said to Titan.

"Like the big whirlpool, the island is constantly shifting as well. Everything on this world's sea is ever-changing," Titan said.

"You might as well not say anything. Without even knowing Terror Island's location, you lured us here?" Zhang Bao'er complained.

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"We will only have a chance of finding it by coming. Overthinking things will never solve anything," Titan retorted.

"Stop arguing. Canyue, while waiting for you guys, I noticed something new," Zhang Xingxing said.

"What is it? Tell us," I said anxiously.

"I noticed that below the clouds to the southeast, the colors seem to be different. When I scanned with my laser probe, there seemed to be an energy source there," Xingxing said.

"Really? That's excellent!" I was overjoyed to hear that.

"Dodo, perform another scan and verify my discovery," Zhang Xingxing commanded.

"Roger. Commencing scan immediately," replied Dodo, who was still hanging from the fish's claws.

"Dondon? Where's that little fellow?" Now that the battle was over, I suddenly realized that the little fellow had suddenly gone silent.

I quickly opened my bag and saw the little guy obediently gazing at me with its big eyes.

"Little fellow, did the battle earlier scare you?" I muttered as I lightly stroked Dondon's head. I took the chance to give it a pack of space crackers.

Dondon started eating joyfully, telling me that it was completely fine with its blinking eyes.

"Scan result back. Fifty kilometers to our southeast is a big energy reserve. The area of the energy source is roughly 30 square kilometers," Dodo said.

"That's the same size as Terror Island as per the legends. Perhaps it's Terror Island. We're not far from it now!" said Titan in excitement.

"To avoid losing the island due to its constantly shifting nature, check your equipment and prepare to set off to the southeast immediately," Zhang Xingxing commanded.

After checking our equipment, I found that Old Du and I had 42 percent of our energy remaining and no nuclear warheads left. Zhang Bao'er and Zhang Xingxing had 70 percent energy and two nuclear warheads left per person.

"Old Du and I are running low on energy. We need to proceed to the next phase of the plan as soon as possible," I said to Zhang Xingxing.

"Follow Dodo's directions. Turn your suits off for now. Move out!" Zhang Xingxing commanded. With me and Blueflash as the vanguard, the team flew southeast.

Above the clouds, the air was fresh and the scene was legendary. It almost felt like the stormy area below the clouds was an entirely different world. Before long, we arrived at our destination. Looking at the furious storm below us, we braced ourselves for yet another thrilling mission.

"Turn on your suits. Old Du and I will go first. The rest of you will go after us," I said to Zhang Xingxing.

Zhang Xingxing nodded with a confident look in her eyes. I then steered Blueflash and dove right into the berserk clouds. Blinding lightning flashes constantly lit up my surroundings even as the deafening thunderclaps rumbled on and on. Hailstones the size of bricks also madly struck my energy shield as we descended. Under the protection of technology, I passed through the thick layer of clouds. A small island filled with energy appeared before my eyes.

Below the layer of clouds was an island with the outline of a basin. It was ringed by a series of towering mountains that reached for the clouds. The mountains were so steep and sleek that it did not seem possible to find a footing anywhere.

Surrounded by the ring of mountains was a lava lake with a surface of about 30 square kilometers in size. Here, the final energy source of the white dwarf unleashed its final roar as the lava boiled and rolled, hinting at the power it once had.

The temperature of the lake reached 6,000 degrees Celsius, far beyond the limits of our suits. The sleek mountain cliffs ensured that we wouldn't be able to even land, forcing us to hover above the island. This was Terror Island, which we had been looking for.

"Does anyone see the two-headed monster?" Zhang Bao'er asked.

"I have been scanning non-stop with my probe. No discovery so far," I replied.

"My guess is that the beast is probably hiding in the lava lake. It will only show itself upon being disturbed," Zhang Xingxing said.

"Sirius B's life forms are constantly shifting. The two-headed beast might be existing in an entirely different form now. Tread carefully, everyone," Old Du reminded prudently.

"Yes. Don't stop scanning. Locate the beast as quickly as possible before looking for a spot to land," Zhang Xingxing commanded.

At this time, the prophecy case carried by Zhang Bao'er suddenly shook violently as if it had encountered the summons of a companion. It even started emitting a howling sound.

"Canyue, Canyue, the case is shaking violently," Zhang Bao'er called out to me.

"Calm down, Bao'er. Keep your eyes on the case. Let us know the moment something weird happens," I said.

"If the case is suddenly shaking, it means that we are nearing our destination," said Old Du.

"Yes, I think so too. But I can't find anything at all," I replied.

"Canyue, Canyue, Titan wishes to speak to you," Zhang Bao'er said.

"Connect the call," I replied promptly.

"Canyue, according to the legends of us Brightlings, Nommo had come here on his spaceship to harness the energy he required to explore the universe. If Nommo's ship can land, there must be a suitable landing spot," Titan said.

His words struck me like lightning. If Nommo's ship could land, we would be able to land as well by finding the landing spot. We might even be able to find more clues regarding the energy source from the landing spot.

We continued flying around the island, but after repeated scans, we still found nothing. Every single cliff stood perfectly straight, and the island itself was akin to a bucket, with a lake of lava in the middle. There was nowhere to land.

"This is not possible. We must have overlooked something," Old Du mumbled.

"Perhaps the landing site itself constantly shifts as well?" I guessed.

"That's probable. This is a world where everything is possible," Old Du said.

To better search for the landing spot, Zhang Bao'er and I started flying at a low altitude, hovering only 300 meters above the ground. The air at that altitude reached over 100 degrees in temperature with the lava lake below us constantly bubbling and boiling. I could hear Blueflash's breathing grow heavier due to the harsh environment, as though its stamina was not going to keep up with our activity. 

After searching for about half an hour, we still found nothing. When everyone was dispirited, Dondon suddenly started calling out to me.

"Did Dondon sense something?" I said to Old Du.

"Search this area one more time," Old Du replied.

We then carpet-searched the area in great detail. Suddenly, I noticed a unique lava flow at the foot of one of the mountains. That lava flow was gold in color. Against the backdrop of red lava, one could easily miss it if one wasn't careful. I immediately scanned it with my probe. According to the readings, the gold lava had a temperature of 500 degrees Celsius. It was within the endurance limits of our suits.

"Found it!" I shouted in excitement. "This might be the landing site."

Old Du notified Zhang Bao'er and Zhang Xingxing. Shortly after, the team was reassembled.

"A golden lava flow with a low temperature exists here. I believe there might be a cave or something suitable for landing behind it," I said to Zhang Xingxing.

"Yes, there is a large empty space behind the curtain of lava," said Dodo after a short simulation using the data it had gathered.

"Excellent!" Zhang Xingxing said. "Cover Titan and the flying fish with our energy shields and go through the lava."

Having received the command, I activated my energy shield. Just as I was about to perform as asked, I saw Zhang Bao'er take a step forward and rush into the golden lava flow, vanishing behind it.

"This kid must have gone crazy. Is he being competitive about something like this?" I said.

"We have been taking the lead in everything else. He probably wishes to perform something heroic for once," said Old Du.

"Canyue, come on in! This is a nice place!" Zhang Bao'er's voice rang out from my earpieces.

With our two flying fish in tow, we went through the golden curtain without any hesitation. A massive cavern appeared before us. The cavern was spacious and empty. At the inner part of the cavern, piles of shiny diamonds could be seen, giving the cavern enough illumination that we could see with our naked eyes. This was a sealed cavern big enough to hold a spaceship. At one corner of the cavern, we saw a small flying vehicle.