Chen Weiyin and Ulf Bernstein are working with their comrades on the scientific expedition to pack equipment and load garbage. They must ensure that their arrival and departure do not leave any pollution on the mysterious planet.

Although the discovery of cyanobacteria has confirmed that it is indeed a pollutant for human interstellar navigation, it is another indication that life can exist on this planet without sunlight. The planetary structure revealed by a global man-made earthquake in early mid-June has been haunting the leader Bernstein, and the "strange material" buried 100 meters below sea level is fascinating and helpless.

"The Federation's troops couldn't have come at a better time." In the communication system, Bernstein complained to his assistant Chen Weiyin, "I really want to stay here and do research." ”

"No way, Professor, we must obey the army." Chen Weiyin comforted her teacher and superior, "They are thinking about our safety. ”

"I don't understand, our expedition has nothing to do with military affairs, how could it turn into a war with the Perseus Commonwealth?" Bernstein continued to complain.

"At first, I didn't understand it, but now I've figured it out." Chen Weiyin said, "That layer of what you call a 'strange substance' is completely invulnerable. If we can analyze its composition and structure, and learn how to make it, or mine it directly, it will be the most effective protective armor in the human world. ”

Chen Weiyin's words inspired Bernstein, and he immediately said with a sudden realization: "You are right, the Senate and the army should take a fancy to this." But he soon felt that something was wrong, and after moving a bin to the carrier of the robot, he added: "But it doesn't make sense to think that way." How can you call us to develop resources of military value? ”

Bernstein was a member of the Senate and the Roman Academy of People's Sciences, and was a member of the "Antnest" research group in New Rome. But his research has basically nothing to do with war, and is almost always pure astronomy, interstellar physics, planetary environment and other basic disciplines. If the Senate knew that this interstellar planet contained this "strange substance" that could not be penetrated by particle cannons and laser beams, then it would definitely send its own expedition team and experts from the Academy of Engineering.

Chen Weiyin didn't answer immediately, wearing heavy unarmed power armor, her movements seemed a little sluggish. On the one hand, she is not comfortable with this kind of interstellar exploration work, and on the other hand, she is thinking about whether to tell what she knows. But soon, she told Bernstein, "Professor, there's something I haven't told you and Ziyue. Before I left, my father told me that there were already many people in the engineering academy who agreed that 'Antnest' meant a strange substance, and that it was probably on this interstellar planet. ”

"But your father is not a member of the 'Antnest' research group, and he is not a member of the Academy of Engineering." Bernstein immediately raised an indirect question. He knew Chen Weiyin's father, Chen Jiaming.

Chen Jiaming served in the Senate and the Roman People's Academy of Engineering, and he had a very loud-sounding title, "Academic Secretary of the Imperial Academy of Engineering". But in fact, his daily work is to sort out the materials for the academicians, prepare experiments, and serve tea and water. Of course, the people who can do chores for academicians are not ordinary, as if they are serving the engineering academy that pays more attention to the application of science and the practicality of technology, and they need more precise minds and diligent hands and feet.

"You know, my father wouldn't say anything." Chen Weiyin said with a tone of defense.

Bernstein heard the other party's tone and hurriedly said, "Please don't misunderstand me, Chen." I didn't mean that. I would like to say that since the academicians of the Academy of Engineering have reached such a consensus, they should have sent an expedition a long time ago. As you know, we weren't here because of these 'strange substances'. ”

"I don't know. Perhaps they are more concerned with the technical problems at hand than with the unattainable or even illusory 'Antnest'. Chen Weiyin speculated.

"Yes, the Academy of Sciences is engaged in research that will not be used until decades or even centuries later, but the Academy of Engineering always faces many technical problems that need to be solved urgently." Bernstein responded, "The devil knows what 'Antnest' will be, and it's just a rumor made up by some good do-it-all." ”

"You already doubt the possibility of the existence of 'Antenest'?"

"Yes. After all these years, we don't even know what it is! Bernstein sighed, "Liu Changchun, who allegedly discovered 'Antnest', and his descendants did not reveal much meaningful information. ”

"Then how do you explain the layer of matter under our feet? I think there is some truth in the perception of the Academy of Engineering. Chen Weiyin put forward his own point of view.

"It doesn't make sense." Bernstein firmly denied that "there is no direct connection, even logically, between the two. At least from all the information we have so far. Although this interstellar planet was discovered by us during our exploration of 'Antnest', and we have a preliminary understanding of its internal structure, know that it is contaminated by the creatures of our human world, and know that she has a layer of 'strange matter' that we cannot drill with our existing technical means, this does not mean that she is related to the legendary 'Antnest'. ”

After Ulf Bernstein finished speaking, he turned to look at his assistant, only to find that more than a dozen points of light appeared in the chaotic sky, descending at high speed.

At the same time, the communication system came the anxious warning of the commander of the Marine Corps of the New Roman Empire: "Ladies and gentlemen, the enemy is coming, immediately put down what you are doing and return to the landing ground immediately!" The enemy is coming, immediately return to ......"

Before he could finish his words, he was immediately drowned out by a powerful explosion.

The area around the landing site of the expedition was already under heavy attack, and the missiles and bombs falling from the sky accurately hit the temporary field defense line around the landing site, destroying the few ground strongholds of the new Roman Imperial Army. Even three aerospace planes that were delivering equipment to the research ship were destroyed.

Robb personally led fifteen Marines to land directly in the center of the landing site.

These Perseus Federation Interstellar Marine Corps suits, although they penetrate the dense atmosphere with parachutes and rocket boosters to help slow them down, are still hot on the surface, and are emitting steaming heat.

"Don't move, we, the Immortal Interstellar Bundeswehr, are now officially taking over this planet!" Through the international civil communication channel, Robb issued a warning to the other side.

As soon as the words fell, the approaching missile warning device rushed up, and the Federation Marines immediately dispersed. A missile whizzed down from the front and exploded rapidly, striking the scattered Marines with a strong impact.

"Bastard! Kill him! Robb exclaimed angrily and hatefully. At the same time, he raised the particle cannon on his right arm and opened fire quickly at the Imperial Marines who fired the missiles.

I saw a bright light passing by, and the New Roman Marines three hundred meters away in front of them immediately turned into dazzling fireballs, which quickly dissipated with the sound of explosions.

The remaining New Roman marines also quickly engaged in a counterattack. A fierce exchange of fire began between the two sides on the heights of the landing site.

The "Zhiyuan" aerospace plane arrived in time to release 32 other officers and men of the Marine Corps. The Bundeswehr marines completely gained the upper hand and soon overwhelmed their opponents, smoothly taking control of the landing site.

Almost the entire landing team of the New Roman Empire fell into the hands of Robb, and more than fifty scientific workers and captured soldiers lined up in five rows to receive the victor's lecture.

"Welcome to freedom." "You are all the elite of the human world, and this is a great opportunity for you to break away from tyranny and dictatorship and serve the bright ideals of all mankind," Robb said to these fearful enemy personnel. Therefore, do not be afraid, as long as you obey our commands, the laws and traditions of the Federation will ensure that you are treated more favorably than before. ”

Although it was all clichés, Robb still had a full sense of satisfaction. He captured a group of scientists, worth far more than the average trophy.

At this time, someone reported on his military encryption channel: "Sir, two New Roman personnel are fleeing about five kilometers to the east. Judging by thermal imaging, it seems to be the power armor of scientists. ”

"Don't fire, chase immediately, catch them alive." Robb immediately instructed.

Then he turned to order his subordinates: "Please get on the plane and pick up the 'Zhiyuan', scientists first." ”

"Yes, sir." After receiving the order, his subordinates immediately led people to escort the prisoners to the plane in batches.

Robb instructed one of the soldiers to follow him and quickly leave to the east of the landing field to support the pursuit of the escapees.

Chen Weiyin and Bernstein were far from the landing site.

When the landing site was attacked, Chen Weiyin immediately shouted: "Professor, we have to escape, we can't go back." ”

After saying that, she immediately threw down her belongings, ran to Ulf Bernstein, who was already stunned, and pulled him into the distance.

"Where are we going?" Bernstein asked as he ran away with Chen. His voice trembled violently, perhaps from the high-speed movement of the power armor, or perhaps from the panic.

"The enemy attacked our landing site, and it must have been reconnoitred a long time ago." Chen Weiyin explained, "Anyway, we will go back now, and we will either be killed or captured by them. Let's find a place to hide first. ”

"But where are we going to hide?" Bernstein seemed a little overwhelmed, and he was a master of celestial bodies, but he was not good at the things that mattered to his life.

It's mostly plain, and there's not much to hide. But more than 20 kilometers to the east, there is a large basin, surrounded by hills and mountains, where there is a lot of hidden terrain.

"I don't know. Let's run ahead, there is a mountain ahead, and we may be able to hide there. Chen Weiyin said and subconsciously turned his head, in fact, the monitor in the helmet had already shown that no one was chasing within five kilometers behind.

Due to their strong power of moving and armor, they can run at speeds of more than 80 kilometers per hour on flat ground. Ten minutes later, they reached the hilly terrain and turned into this rugged mountainous terrain.

Chen Weiyin and Bernstein slowed down and walked through the mountains. The mountains here are the same as those seen elsewhere before, and the surface is covered with jagged rocks, and the mountains are abrupt.

"We've got to find a place to hide." Chen Weiyin said as she searched the surrounding terrain. The images projected by the EM terrain scanner on the helmet display show that the surrounding terrain has no caves or other suitable terrain for hiding.

"Chen, I don't think it's a good idea to hide." Ulf Bernstein said after Chen Weiyin.

"I don't want to be a prisoner of the Union Army."

"But we left our companions behind." Bernstein felt guilty.

"We can't protect ourselves, Professor. We don't have any weapons, we can't do anything but escape. Chen Weiyin said helplessly, "We can hide for several days and wait for the Imperial Army to come to the rescue." ”

As he spoke, the scanner found a large gap behind a large rock. Chen Weiyin immediately walked behind the stone to check.

Sure enough, there was a small hole in it. But judging from the detection of the scanner, the space inside is very huge.

"Professor, what did I find?" Chen Weiyin exclaimed excitedly, and then led Bernstein into the hole.

The hole behind the large rock was narrow enough for only one of them in power armor to pass through. But as you go inside, the space grows larger and larger. Relying on the imaging of the electromagnetic wave scanner, the two of them could clearly see the situation in the cave without turning on the searchlight.

The imaging of the electromagnetic wave topographic scanner showed that this cave, which was darker than the outside, was a dome-shaped space with a diameter of nearly 50 meters, and the walls of the cave were very smooth, with almost no protrusions. The bottom of the cave is funnel-shaped, slightly inclined towards a circular platform in the center with a protrusion of less than ten meters in diameter, about half a meter.

"It's not like a naturally formed cave." Bernstein said.

"Under certain conditions, flowing water can wash out a cave of this shape." Chen Weiyin disagrees, "Many planets have natural caves with strange shapes. ”

"You think it's washed out by running water?" "But the water on this planet has apparently disappeared completely." ”

"Professor, I'm afraid we can't discuss this now. I think we'd better turn off the scanners and radio communication systems so as not to reveal our whereabouts. Chen Weiyin suggested.

"If they find the cave, they can still find us." Bernstein said worriedly.

There is no leakage of radio signals, and as soon as the Union Marines enter the cave, they can be analyzed from their surroundings with the help of thermal imaging systems. They can even be found by turning on a visible searchlight. Because the inside of this cave is empty, there is really no place to hide.

"You reminded me." Chen Weiyin realized the limitations of this cave, "Either we go out and find another place." While the enemy may not be chasing after them now. ”

"Okay." Ulf Bernstein had no choice but to agree, and in the escape he could only follow his young and energetic assistants.

So, Chen Weiyin took Bernstein and quickly drilled out of the hole.

They were just leaving, but they didn't notice that in the middle of the cave behind them, the round platform was quietly rising. Imaging from the electromagnetic topographic scanner has shown this change, but in an environment where they can't see their fingers, Chen Weiyin and Bernstein are not as vigilant as the Interstellar Marines, and they can't keenly monitor all the sensor changes in the midst of intense exercise.

Chen Weiyin and Bernstein burrowed out the mouth of the cave behind the large rock and continued to the east along the mountain canyon, looking for a place to hide.

The farther east, the deeper the mountains, the more rugged the ground becomes. Judging from the surrounding mountains, most of the terrain was eroded by flowing water, but now, all the water on this planet has disappeared without a trace.

"Chen, did you say that the disappearing water has something to do with that layer of 'strange substance'?" Although on the way to escape, Ulf Bernstein is obsessed with his attention to the planet.

"You mentioned this before." Chen Weiyin responded politely. Her mind was already on searching for hidden terrain and enemies who might catch up.

Bernstein continued, however, in a discussive tone: "The water vapor in the atmosphere is not enough to explain the fate of the liquid water on the planet's surface, so the water is likely to go underground." However, there is a layer of something 50 kilometers thick underground, which prevents us from detecting. It now seems likely that the water was concentrated in that 'strange substance'. ”

They staggered through the mountains, unaware of the darkness surrounding them, where a group of two-legged monsters was rapidly approaching.

"Alright, Professor, now is not the time to discuss this planet." Chen Weiyin looked a little impatient, "It's imperative that we find a hiding place first." ”

"I'm sorry, Chen." Bernstein said apologetically.

"Oh, Professor, you don't have to apologize. I also know that you value scientific research more than your own life, but we ......"

Chen Weiyin stopped suddenly, not only did he not finish his words, but also stopped. She noticed that on the image of the electromagnetic wave topographic scanner, two images flashed in front of her. The two images appeared and disappeared so quickly that she couldn't make an immediate judgment.

If it's something like a stone, it's impossible to flash it in a flash, but if it's a living thing, the thermal imager will sound an alarm.

Bernstein saw Chen Weiyin stop and hurriedly asked, "What's wrong?" ”

"Did you see that, Professor? The terrain scanner imaged, and two things flashed in front of it. Chen Weiyin said, her voice becoming a little frightened.

"What?" Bernstein didn't notice the anomaly in the scanner's imaging, but he was keenly aware of the serious problem, and then asked, "Could it be a Union Marine?" ”

Chen Weiyin hesitated for a moment and replied, "No, it's unlikely." Their words should warn us. ”

At this moment, Bernstein also felt frightened, but soon he said in an excited tone, "Alien creatures?!" ”

"I think we'd better not move yet. Stay here and observe. Chen Weiyin said boldly.

She wasn't very scared of a surprise attack by the Bundeswehr, and her status as a scientist kept her safe for most of the war. But in the face of this mysterious interstellar planet, and the unknown on it, she is terrified.

"If it's really an alien creature, it's an unprecedented discovery." Professor Bernstein said happily that there was no panic at all.

"Not all discoveries will lead to good news." Chen Weiyin is not as optimistic as her mentor, "Listen, what's the voice?" ”

The sonar of the power armor was playing the rustle of rolling sand and gravel coming from around them, while spectrally displaying a kind of infrasound that was mixed in with it.

"Someone's coming...... And infrasound? Bernstein exclaimed in amazement.

At the same time, he turned on the visible searchlight of the power armor and began to search the surroundings.

"No, Professor, that would make us more dangerous!" Chen Weiyin exclaimed.

As soon as she finished speaking, she saw that in the bright light, seven two-legged creatures had appeared less than fifty meters in front of them.

"Oh my God, what's that?" Chen Weiyin exclaimed again.

"Creatures on an interstellar planet!" Bernstein also exclaimed, his voice filled with the excitement and excitement characteristic of new scientific discoveries.

Despite the distance, the camera system was able to capture clear images of Bernstein's power armor thanks to the intense glow. It is a bipedal that is nearly two meters tall and has very muscular legs with a shuttle-shaped body that is visibly raised on both sides. However, they do not have a distinct head, and have a sharp horn in front of their torso. They also don't have organs like eyes, ears, or even where they breathe. The monsters are covered in scales that resemble pangolin carapaces.

The creatures did not make any further moves, and even when exposed to the intense light of the searchlight, they remained in an upright position, standing still in place.

"They don't look friendly." Chen Weiyin's voice trembled obviously.

"Calm down, Chen." "When you first come into contact with outsiders, almost every creature will be on high alert. ”

As soon as he finished speaking, the bulging parts on both sides of the seven creatures' bodies burst almost simultaneously, spreading a pair of "wings".

With the help of power armor and camera systems, Chen Weiyin and Bernstein quickly saw that each "wing" was actually composed of a dozen sharp knife-like substances that reflected cold light. The knives are embedded in a crankshaft with the tip pointing outwards and rapidly rotating along the crankshaft at high speed.

"Professor, is this a high level of security?" Chen Weiyin asked in horror.

These unknown creatures, which suddenly appeared on an extremely oxygen-deprived and dark interstellar planet, are clearly preparing to launch an attack on them. Completely unarmed, they are now in extreme danger.

Sure enough, before Professor Bernstein could answer Chen Weiyin's question, these monsters with high-speed spinning knives began to rush towards them.

Their legs move in a way unlike any bipedal creature ever seen, with their thighs moving lightly forward in large radiance, and their lower legs, driven by their thighs, rotate like wheels along the joints that connect to them. So they're very fast.

"Run, run!" Chen Weiyin shouted in panic. But perhaps because of excessive fear, she stood still and couldn't move.

Fifty meters is nothing more than a fleeting distance for an alien monster running on wheels.