108: Terror — The Fierce Star Beast (Part One)

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The moment everyone heard that this cruise ship was floating in outer space, a chill ran through them all… Indeed, they couldn’t deploy combat robots; if the ship got damaged, who could possibly survive in the vacuum of space? Even if you managed to survive outside, who could withstand the explosion of the ship or the pressure difference between the inside and outside?

The bald man urgently asked, “Zi Gui, what trouble have you run into?”

Zi Gui shook his head. “I’m not sure, but it seems to be some kind of bizarre cosmic beast—terrifying beyond words…”

“A cosmic beast?” Everyone was puzzled.

Zi Gui explained, “You can think of it as a monster or a magical beast, but this one can survive in space, devour anything, and its size is enormous. That’s why we call it a cosmic beast.”

Mu Tou said, “Wait, I think I get it. You joined this interstellar voyage, but on the space cruise ship, you encountered the cosmic beast, and it’s hunting you down?”

“Half right,” Zi Gui replied. “The beast isn’t just after me—it’s after everyone!”

Gu Feng asked, “What kind of beast is it? With your strength, can’t you handle it?”

Zi Gui’s face darkened. “The beast is elusive; I still don’t even know if the form I saw was its true body.”

Everyone felt uneasy. Mu Tou said, “As an heir of a prominent family, you must have bodyguards. Where are they?”

Zi Gui laughed awkwardly, “Who ever brings bodyguards when chasing girls?!”

…Everyone broke into a sweat. This guy was willing to risk his life for a woman.

Mu Tou sighed helplessly, “At least tell us the details, and what kind of cosmic beast you encountered.”

Zi Gui nodded and briefly recounted his story.

He had been chatting up a beautiful woman who was boarding the cruise for the interstellar trip, so he quickly bought a ticket and followed her aboard. After the ship entered space and completed two spatial jumps, suddenly an unknown object shot out of the void at incredible speed, striking the ship violently and crippling its operating system. Then the object vanished without a trace.

While everyone was repairing the ship, strange things happened—first the pilots and navigators vanished without a trace, then passengers began disappearing one after another. It was then discovered that some bizarre creatures had appeared on the cruise—snake-like monsters, but many times the size of normal snakes, as thick as two men, with petal-shaped mouths capable of swallowing a person whole. They were grotesque and terrifying.

What was worse, there wasn’t just one—these monstrous serpents appeared in packs, often multiple striking out at once, their full length unseen, their true size unknown.

Hearing Zi Gui’s account, Yaxin and Mu Siyu both gasped in fear, their faces pale. Mu Tou recalled that women were often naturally afraid of snakes and similar wild beasts, and hurried to say, “Xin Yi, Siyu, why don’t you both enter the ‘Harem’ realm? These monsters probably rely on numbers, so they shouldn’t threaten us there.”

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Yaxin nodded, saying, “If there’s any danger, I’ll come out to help you!” A flash of light appeared and she vanished into the ‘Harem’—since she had signed a symbiotic contract with Mu Tou, entry and exit were effortless.

Mu Siyu responded, “I’ve faced disgusting zombie beasts before. What’s there to fear about this cosmic beast?”

Mu Tou didn’t push her, “If you feel scared or in danger, I’ll bring you into the ‘Harem’.”

Mu Siyu nodded.

At that moment, heavy footsteps sounded outside the room. Zi Gui peered through the iron door’s glass and opened it joyfully, “Jona, great, you’re safe! Come this way!”

Mu Tou and the others looked toward the corridor. Four burly men, clearly bodyguards, escorted a stunning blonde woman quickly down the hall.

This woman had golden hair and blue eyes, with an alluring figure—especially her beautiful legs, straight and supple—truly a rare beauty. No wonder Zi Gui was smitten. Seeing him call, she hurried over. “Zi Gui, are you alright? I thought the beast got you!”

Zi Gui patted his chest confidently. “How could that be? A man as strong as me? That beast would run the moment it saw me. By the way, Jona, are you scared? From now on, I’ll protect you!”

Jona laughed brightly, like a blooming flower, “My father assigned four bodyguards to me. I trust them more.”

The four bodyguards sneered at Zi Gui, thinking, “Another guy trying to woo our lady.”

Zi Gui glanced at the four men. “I’m not doubting your strength, but the more of us, the better chance we have against that beast.”

Jona said, “Enough talk. We need to find the escape pods and get out. That beast is terrifying, and our weapons can’t stop it.”

In front of a beauty, Zi Gui’s wisdom fluctuated wildly—sometimes stepping up, sometimes down. This time, he was on a rise and shook his head. “Jona, don’t use the escape pods unless absolutely necessary. Their life-support can only sustain a human for a month. If no ship passes by in that time, we’re done. Besides, if the beast can infiltrate a massive cruise ship like this, how could a few escape pods possibly outrun it?”

Jona frowned thoughtfully. A tall black bodyguard said, “Miss, he has a point. We probably have to deal with that beast first.”

Jona pondered, “But this is a civilian ship with ordinary protection. The steel used can’t withstand laser weapons. If we accidentally puncture the hull, the consequences could be disastrous.”

Unexpectedly, the bodyguard drew a pistol. “Miss, don’t worry. We won’t use energy weapons. We brought conventional firearms before boarding. These powder-based weapons won’t damage the ship.”

Mu Tou was stunned to see the ordinary pistol, thinking how he hadn’t brought any conventional weapons himself—though many existed on Earth, they were heavily regulated.

Just then, the bald man handed Mu Tou a six-shooter machine gun. “A collectible of mine. Perfect for this environment!”

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Mu Tou, though never having used such a machine gun, had seen it in military magazines and quickly figured out how to operate it.

The four bodyguards were delighted upon seeing the weapon. “With this, we can handle the beast for sure!” One turned to the bald man. “Brother, do you have more of these? Give us some! We’ll pay well.”

“How many?” the bald man glared. “This is an antique. I only have four.” He then pulled two six-shooters and several bags of ammo from a space bracelet and tossed them to the guards. “Use sparingly! I’m not selling them. Return them when done!”

Jona’s eyes sparkled upon seeing the bald man retrieve such large items from the bracelet. “Is this… spatial folding technology? Who are you to wield such advanced tech in a bracelet?” In this sci-fi realm, similar spatial storage tech existed but was still experimental, restricted to military and warships. Jona mistakenly thought the bald man had mastered a rare and advanced form of spatial folding.

Zi Gui hurriedly said, “They’re all my friends… This isn’t the time to discuss new tech. Let’s take care of the beast first!”

Jona glanced at the bald man and fell silent.

Since there were only four six-shooters, the bald man gave two to Jona’s bodyguards and kept one each for Mu Tou and himself. Gu Feng didn’t handle tech well; magic came naturally to him, so carrying a machine gun felt cumbersome.

Mu Tou was indifferent but excited to use a conventional weapon after recently acquiring various skills. Following Zi Gui’s plan, the two groups merged. Jona and Mu Siyu were placed in the center for protection. The bald man, large and fierce-looking, naturally became the leader. Mu Tou and two bodyguards took point.

Without a ship layout, their first goal was the control room to find the ship’s schematics. Then they would gather survivors and try to find an engineer to at least get the ship’s engines running, ensuring a safe return.

Zi Gui relied on memory to lead the group to the control room. Seeing Jona and her bodyguards tense and cautious, he reassured her, “Don’t worry, Jona. These friends of mine aren’t ordinary people. With them here, you’re absolutely safe!”

Zi Gui wasn’t lying. Apart from himself—rated a modest C by the system—the bald man and Mu Tou were both at A-level, nearly S-level with a show of force, and Gu Feng was an S-level being. With their protection, Zi Gui felt secure, though he couldn’t resist teasing Jona occasionally.

Jona simply smiled faintly in return. She could tell these men were extraordinary; remaining so calm in such peril showed they had every reason to be confident.

They passed through corridors and stairwells cautiously, finally arriving at a locked steel door.

“We’re here… This is the control room,” Zi Gui sighed, reaching to press a nearby switch.

“Be careful…” Mu Tou and Gu Feng shouted sharply.

Above the switch was a single-person-sized ventilation hole, originally covered by a steel mesh. At their shout, the mesh suddenly snapped away with a “pop,” and a black, slick, snake-like creature darted out at incredible speed. Its head spread open like petals, revealing a disgusting mouth dripping saliva and layers of sharp, curved teeth…