"Master System Detection: Normal..... Conduction System Testing: Normal ...... Energy System Testing: Normal ...... The air pressure system of each cabin is detected and tested: normal ....... Engine Detection: Normal...... The first level is activated, and the low-power deflection shield is turned on......" A soft female voice sounded in the main control room inside the "Prince", "Current azimuth: Gaia System Y-114-144596-RT, Standard Galaxy Coordinates: ........ Destination: Earth Federation ----Y-105-180086-VZ-4"

The pilots were busy maneuvering the behemoth and starting to move forward, outside the supreme command room, a large group of heavily armed elite soldiers wearing CMC exoskeleton power light armor and equipped with the most advanced multi-functional blaster rifles stood still outside the door of the command room, a woman about forty years old was staring at a middle-aged man with brown hair and blue eyes with a fat face, and soon, the woman sighed slowly, and she turned her thoughtful gaze to the outside of the glass cover of the vacuum next door, Countless stars dotted the black starry sky outside the glass cover, neither near nor far away, unchanged for eternity.

In outer space, whether it's a port or a starship, it's hard to have a concept of day and night, especially the longed-for Princess, who has been sleepless day and night before the Prince's launch.

"The Prince will arrive at the Earth Federation in six to eight days," sat across from the woman's uncle, a brown-haired middle-aged man rubbing his tired eyes anxiously, having slept only a few hours each day for the past three days in order to mobilize the fleet as efficiently as possible. ”

The princess was a little dissatisfied with his half-perfunctory answer, "What if there is an accident?" She asked sharply, "The accident of the Federation is no ordinary accident, uncle ......"

The black hand scratched his fat chin, "I have sent countless "reconnaissance sentinels" to the Earth Federation, and there are no other anomalies in the information they have fed back to me for the time being, and the thirteenth fleet has also sent their "reconnaissance sentinels" to the surrounding subspace channel nodes, there is no anomaly at present, and most of this incident only happened on Earth. ”

"I don't want to hear the word 'mostly,'" Ji Rui stood up suddenly, her haggard face even more angry, but she quickly pressed down, "Did they try to land on Earth?" “

"On two occasions, Lille (Commander-in-Chief of the Thirteenth Fleet attached to the Second Fleet) said in his report to me that he had sent their fleet's most advanced "unmanned reconnaissance sentinels" to try, but as soon as they got closer, they crashed, and then they sent various types of drones, but none of them were spared, and he had planned to arrange for soldiers to try to land the frigate into the Earth's atmosphere, but was persuaded by others. “

Ji Rui's fingers clenched tightly, and there were a few deep nail marks in the palms of her hands, "So they haven't made any progress so far." ”

"Nobody can understand the essence of that hood, it's amazing. Someone proposed to bombard the energy shield with a large number of nuclear warheads," the black hand casually pulled out a document from the communicator, "The scientists at the Institute of Deep Space Research on Earth are estimating whether the energy released by a large-scale nuclear reaction will affect the inside of the hood, considering that there are still a large number of imperial citizens on the earth, Lille does not dare to implement this plan easily, no one dares to ensure that a nuclear reaction will have any bad effects on the energy shield, and no one is sure how many nuclear warheads will be needed to break the energy shield, Ji Rui, we dare not try this method easily." What he said was obvious, this is what Lille meant, and this is what he meant, "There are ten billion citizens in the Earth Federation, and most of the relatives of the Thirteenth Fleet also live on Earth, so we must be cautious." ”

"You've only thought of a way that you're not sure of until now," Ji Rui's eyes were red, which made the black hand as an uncle a little uneasy, he rarely saw his niece cry, he had never seen the tears of this seemingly strong woman since she gave birth to his most precious daughter, and now, she looked very helpless, and the joy she had when she arrived in Ciri twenty years ago was diametrically opposed to the two expressions, but both wept.

The Black Hand didn't know how to comfort him, so he had to remain silent. He usually boasts that he has a way of dealing with the women he meets in the bright lights, but he can't say a word to his niece.

After a long time, he said to Ji Rui, who was silent and weeping, "When we arrive, maybe they will have already figured out a way to open up, Ji Rui." ”

Ji Rui was suddenly enraged by his words, and her dry voice roared into an unprecedentedly sharp scream, "My only daughter's life and death are uncertain, but you can only make me think about it, I begged Pal to let you lead the fleet, so that you can comfort me as a big man, uncle?" Her words caused the two of them to fall into an even colder silence, and after a long time, Ji Rui stood up, "I'm sorry," she whispered to her uncle, "I'm out of shape, uncle, I want to go to the sanctuary to pray for Xi Rui." ”

The Black Hand nodded heavily, "Pray for Ciri for me too, I sincerely hope that she is safe and sound." ”

The Sanctuary is the Prince's prayer area for all religious believers, and is located on the upper deck of the aft half of the Prince's hull, which is quiet and secluded, and is a place of prayer for all believers who believe in the Galactic Mother. As she went to the Sanctuary, she was constantly saluted by the crew, and she collected her mood, repenting of her gaffe and thinking about her own thoughts. Blaming no one helped, and the only thing she could do right now was to pray.

After walking for ten minutes, the door of the sanctuary opened for her, and inside was a small stone statue of the Mother of the Milky Way, who was sitting on her knees on top of the three-headed demon dragon, gazing at the visitor gently, and two holy priests who were reciting the scriptures, they closed their eyes and quietly accepted the prayers of each visitor along with the stone statue of the Mother Galaxy. For thousands of years, Our Lady has always blessed the hearts of every believer, and Ji Rui hopes that she can give her spiritual inspiration, so that she can face it strongly, and hopes to give Ciri an invisible power in the dark, so that she can survive every crisis.

As she prayed, the two Templar priests opened their eyes and got up and walked out of the Sanctuary, and soon they walked in with the Burning Crystal, a symbol of sacredness.

Some kind of gentle sea-blue flame slowly burned on the crystal, which meant that the soul of the Holy Mother was watching the pure heart, so she stayed a little longer to participate in the ceremony. She didn't recognize the two Holy Clergy, who seemed to be very religious, about Parr's age. The two worshippers blessed the Seven Gods with their round and cheerful voices, and the work was done properly, but Ji Rui found herself nostalgic for the Holy Priest in the Sanctuary where she prayed next to the star, and the small, trembling tones of her old age always gave peace and strength. The old priest had been dead for many years, and if he were alive, he would have listened patiently to what had happened to Ciri and felt her feelings, and he would have known how much his daughter meant to him, and he would have been able to teach her how to get rid of the haunting nightmare and drive away the lingering shadow. Now, on this cold and merciless ship, the old holy priests, mother, and father are gone, they have always known everything, but now I am the only one left, and even my lover Pal, who has always been with me, has left me, and I do not understand anything, and I do not even know where my responsibilities lie. If I don't even know this, how can I fulfill my responsibilities?

When she stood up, Ji Rui's knees were stiff, but she had not been enlightened. Perhaps she still needs to come tonight, and only true piety can impress the Virgin, she thought, or it may be in vain.

The Prince crossed channel node after channel and sailed through the endless starry sky, while the fleet that swept through the spaceport like locusts followed it like a swarm of bees following the brood. Every time the chronograph announced to her the passing of another day and night, another futile depression was added to Ji Rui, who knelt in the sanctuary and prayed every day, deaf to anyone who wanted to see her, nobles, merchants, planetary speakers, and governors of the star fields. She led the Obscuring Fleet, an invincible fleet loyal to her husband who had sworn to protect her, but for now, she was terrified, and the enemy she harbored in her heart was far from being matched by this fleet.

"You ought to meet them," the Black Hand had admonished her, "you are the wife of Parr, the Prince, the Governor and Speaker of two-thirds of the Empire's Western Regions, and your crew, and let them see your voice, and they will understand who they are fighting for." ”

Ji Rui stared wearily at the statue of the Virgin, and she looked at each believer with the same tenderness as ever, "For whom?" She turned her head away from looking at the merciful Virgin, but retorted sharply in a skeptical tone, "Uncle, I have not been blinded by the thought of my daughter, look at these nobles, dusty servants, thousands of miles away, look at these speakers, sweet words, respectful and obedient, they are men of men, the leaders of every planet, do you really think they are fighting for Parr, who has almost never lived, or for me, a woman who has no power to fight, who do you think they are fighting for?" I have come to tell you, it was for their wives and their sons and daughters, and for the sake of protecting their homeland from the destruction of the Second Fleet, that they had crossed the galaxy in battleships, and had gathered under the banner of the Second Fleet, and had fought in its name, and to cheer for its coming, and now that I had to fight for my daughter, you could not help me, nor could the Second Fleet help me, nor could the elite of the nobility gathered under my husband's banner help me, and I had to turn to the gods, uncle," she said at last, stubbornly in the tone of a girl, "Let me be alone,"

The Black Hand was helpless against his stubborn niece, as before, her stubbornness was both likable and annoying, and the Black Hand sighed softly and turned away helplessly.

The prayer went on day and night, and she heard too many voices from the crew, including her uncle, her cousin, her other relatives, and her husband's trusted men, but she persevered, and in fear and longing, she drew closer to her daughter.

Finally, they approached the Earth Federation in a long and brief period of time......