I Don't Admit It

The silver-white Phantom sailed smoothly into the warp channel. In an instant, the view outside the window was filled with bands of colorful light. Countless energy particles streaked wildly past both sides of the ship, as if the universe had been put on fast-forward.

The AI steward's electronic voice echoed in the cockpit: "Entering Public Warp Channel B97. Estimated travel time: 72 hours. Current flight status: stable. Energy remaining: 98%."

Su Rui sat in the pilot's seat, her back pressed tightly against the chair, her face ashen.

She stole glances at the back seat from time to time.

Ye Chuan was leaning against the soft leather sofa, resting with his eyes closed. His profile looked exceptionally serene, illuminated by the streaming lights outside the window.

Lin Xi was sitting cross-legged on the carpet, holding up her terminal and endlessly recording the warp lights outside.

As she filmed, she muttered softly, "Who gets it, guys? The view outside is just unreal. If this gets over ten thousand likes, I'll film the aliens of the Ten Thousand Races Alliance for you tomorrow."

After recording a few videos, Lin Xi looked up and saw Su Rui's half-dead expression. She immediately turned off her terminal and leaned over.

"Don't be so nervous."

Su Rui's body gave a violent jolt. She turned her head and squeezed out a smile that looked like she was trying harder than if she were crying.

"I-I'm not nervous."

Lin Xi blinked. "You say that, but your hands are vibrating on silent mode. You're shaking worse than the cafeteria robots."

Su Rui looked down at her hands and fell silent.

Lin Xi comforted her with genuine sincerity, "Don't worry, it's very safe to follow Mr. Ye."

Su Rui was just about to breathe a sigh of relief.

Lin Xi continued, "When I went to the Alpha Space Station with Mr. Ye before, we met a lot of bad guys, and even some Divine Punishment Squad, but Mr. Ye just casually took care of them all."

She added, "Even the super-powerful Starfall Fleet was completely subdued by Mr. Ye, wasn't it?"

Lin Xi patted her chest. "With Mr. Ye here, there's no danger to be afraid of."

Hearing this, Su Rui's tense nerves finally relaxed a little.

That's right. If even the Starfall Fleet and the Starry Sky Behemoth were no match for Ye Chuan, a mere Ten Thousand Races Alliance shouldn't be able to hurt him.

Yes.

That should be the case.

As long as she was obedient, didn't seek death, didn't talk back, and didn't pull any stupid stunts in front of the big shot, she should be able to make it back alive.

She was just about to open her mouth to thank her.

But Lin Xi naturally added a follow-up: "Though, I did write my will in advance. It's saved on my terminal's cloud drive, and the password is my birthday."

The smile on Su Rui's face instantly froze.

Wrote... a will?

Lin Xi even thoughtfully said, "If something really happens, remember to help me tell my parents not to miss me too much, and not to come looking for me, because they won't find me anyway."

Su Rui's expression began to lose its soul. At this moment, she was no longer the superwoman of the Federation, but had fully embraced the mindset of cannon fodder.

Lin Xi thought for a moment and delivered another blow, "Sister Su Rui, you should write one too, just in case."

That little bit of security Su Rui had just built up was instantly kicked into the cosmic trash can by those words.

So, you thinking it's safe is one thing, but writing a will in advance is another, huh?

So is it safe or not?

It was like a paradox. They were safe, but not entirely safe.

Su Rui opened her mouth but couldn't squeeze out a single word for a long time.

Finally, she could only dejectedly turn her head back, looking at the brilliant warp lights ahead, her eyes gradually growing hollow.

It is over.

I am really dead this time.

Even this little girl who had followed Ye Chuan for so long had her will ready. A random passenger like herself probably wouldn't even make it to the end credits.

Goodbye, Mom.

Goodbye, Federation.

The universe—

She was only fifty thousand years old, still in the prime of her youth...

Lin Xi looked at Su Rui's suddenly lifeless back and tilted her head in confusion.

"Sister Su Rui, what is wrong?"

Su Rui's voice carried a hint of a sob. "N-nothing."

She paused, then added in a small voice, "I am just a little spacesick."

For the next two days, Su Rui felt like every day was a year.

She didn't dare to sleep, didn't dare to eat, and didn't even dare to breathe too loudly.

She was terrified that she would say the wrong thing, trigger some hidden death flag, and be casually twisted into a pretzel by Ye Chuan.

Ye Chuan, meanwhile, spent most of his time resting with his eyes closed, essentially AFK. To be precise, he was offline most of the time.

This dormant state actually made Su Rui even more nervous.

On the afternoon of the third day, the Phantom was about to exit the warp channel.

Just then, a piercing alarm suddenly blared throughout the cockpit.

Warning! Warning! The warp channel ahead is forcibly locked down! Unknown energy interference detected!

Warning! Zeus Transit Space Station has closed all entry and exit channels! Safety risks exist in the current area!

Su Rui's face changed. She immediately threw herself at the control panel, her fingers flying across the keyboard.

"What is going on? Why would the Zeus Space Station suddenly lock down the channel? I already notified them before we left!"

She pulled up the real-time communications for the space station, but the screen only showed static.

Before she could react, the ship's external radar started blaring crazily again.

Warning! Five unidentified armed star shuttles detected approaching rapidly! Locked on by enemy weapons!

Su Rui suddenly looked up and out the window.

She saw five pitch-black armed star shuttles emerge from the shadows of the warp channel.

The next second, a gruff voice came through the public channel.

"Listen up, little ship ahead! We are the Hulk Pirate Gang! Cut your engines immediately and hand over your core energy crystals!"

"Or else we will blast you into cosmic dust!"

Su Rui's face grew even uglier. "A pirate gang?"

"This is a public channel. How could space pirates dare to rob anyone here?"

She took a deep breath, opened the public channel, and her voice turned cold.

"I am Su Rui, Vice Speaker of the Human Federation!"

"Clear the channel immediately, or the Federation will dispatch a fleet to wipe out your entire pirate gang!"

Su Rui thought that announcing her identity would make the other party hold back a little.

Unexpectedly, the other side laughed even more arrogantly.

"Vice Speaker of the Federation? Hahahaha! What tremendous luck!"

"I never thought we would catch such a big fish!"

"Do not give me that Federation crap. This is the lawless zone of the Zeus Space Station. Even if the Speaker of the Federation came here, he would still have to pay the toll!"

Su Rui's face darkened.

The other party continued to roar, "Cut the crap! Hand over the core energy, or die!"

As soon as the words fell, a red laser shot out from the pirate ship's main cannon, slamming ruthlessly into the Phantom's energy shield.

"Bang—!"

The spaceship shook violently, and the shield value instantly dropped by 30 percent.

Su Rui hastily piloted the ship to evade.

Their departure had been far too rushed; this star shuttle had not been equipped with an escort fleet.

She looked back at Ye Chuan.

"Mr. Ye Chuan! What do we do? They are really opening fire!"

Ye Chuan slowly opened his eyes and slightly tilted his head.

"So noisy."

He did not even stand up.

The next second, those five star shuttles exploded simultaneously.

Like glass beads crushed by an invisible giant hand, they instantly turned into countless tiny metal fragments, scattering into the pitch-black universe.

The entire cockpit instantly fell dead silent.

Su Rui stared dumbfounded at the metal debris outside the window.

Just like that, they were gone?

That was how it ended?

Not even a cutscene?

Lin Xi also leaned close to the porthole.

Wow! Mr. Ye is so amazing! How did they suddenly blow up?

This time, they didn't even see Ye Chuan make a move!

Ye Chuan didn't answer.

He simply reached out a hand and gave the empty air a gentle squeeze.

A piece of still-burning metal debris suddenly changed direction, flew in from outside the window, and hovered in front of Ye Chuan.

Clinging to the debris was a translucent phantom of a soul.

It was none other than the incredibly arrogant pirate captain from moments ago.

At this moment, not a trace of arrogance remained on his face; it was completely replaced by absolute terror.

Spare me! I will never do it again! I know I was wrong! Please let my soul go!

He begged for mercy with practiced ease.

Ye Chuan's voice was flat: Let me ask you, why did the Zeus Space Station blockade the warp channel?

The pirate captain did not dare hide anything and hurriedly said:

It is because a week ago, a spacetime rift appeared in the nearby dark nebula!

He spoke at rapid-fire speed: Rumor has it that inside the rift is the ruin of a destroyed ancient civilization, and there are lots of treasures inside!

So all the nearby factions rushed over. The Zeus Space Station was also jointly taken over by several major factions. They blockaded the channel to prevent unrelated personnel from entering!

Ye Chuan raised an eyebrow: An ancient civilization ruin?

A hint of interest finally appeared in his eyes.

What kind of civilization?

The pirate captain hastily shook his head: I, I don't know the specifics either!

I only heard others say that there are many strange stone steles in the ruin, carved with text no one recognizes, along with some treasures that can make people stronger!

I think they are called... Cultivators?

Yes! Cultivators!

Cultivators.

A cultivation civilization?

Ye Chuan pondered for a moment.

What are the exact coordinates of the spacetime rift?

The pirate captain quickly rattled off the coordinates: It is in the center of the dark nebula, coordinates X-739...

Many factions have already gone there. There are people from the Myriad Races Alliance, the Federation Expeditionary Team, and, and many other smaller factions!

Ye Chuan nodded. You did well.

Hehehe, then, then can I...

Before the pirate captain's soul could finish, it instantly turned into a wisp of blue smoke and dissipated into the air.

Ye Chuan looked at Su Rui: Change the coordinates.

Su Rui froze for a moment: To where?

Ye Chuan said calmly: Zeus Space Station.

Su Rui asked subconsciously: Are we not going to the Myriad Races Alliance anymore?

Ye Chuan leaned back on the sofa, his tone leaving no room for argument.

We can go to the Myriad Races Alliance anytime.

He looked out the window at the pitch-black starfield. Let's go check out that cultivation ruin first.

Su Rui did not dare object in the slightest and hurriedly modified the warp coordinates on the control panel.

O-okay.

The Phantom changed direction and flew toward the Zeus Space Station.

Three hours later, the spaceship slowly sailed into the docking port of the Zeus Space Station.

This was a massive space station floating in the universe. With a diameter of over ten thousand kilometers, it was still considered a small-scale space station.

We are here.

Mm, let's go down and take a look.

Upon stepping off the spaceship, a wave of noisy clamor instantly washed over them.

The air was filled with all sorts of strange smells.

Shops and stalls lined both sides of the streets.

The sounds of peddling, arguing, and fighting all mixed together.

A few three-headed aliens were drinking by the roadside.

A creature covered entirely in tentacles was peddling unknown organs.

Oh, handsome, wanna try our cosmic girl services? We have got a super chick with five asses, a lizard-like person sidled up to Ye Chuan.

Ye Chuan: ...

You have five asses, does that mean I have five... ahem. Get lost.

You got it.

Mr. Ye, where are we going now? Su Rui asked.

You and Lin Xi go ask around for information about the spacetime rift and the cultivation ruin. The more detailed, the better.

Su Rui paused. Ah? Just the two of us?

She glanced at the fierce and malicious-looking aliens around them, feeling like her life was already starting to flash before her eyes.

Ye Chuan raised an eyebrow: What? Is there a problem?

Su Rui immediately shook her head: N-no problem!

How could she dare have a problem?

Her biggest problem was that she did not dare have a problem.

On the other side, Su Rui led Lin Xi carefully through the chaotic streets, first finding the Federation's local office on the Zeus Space Station.

Upon seeing the staff member on duty, Su Rui completely dropped the demeanor she had in front of Ye Chuan. She puffed out her chest confidently and solemnly took out her ID:

I am Su Rui, Vice Speaker of the Federation Council.

We were just attacked by a pirate group in the warp channel. We have already defeated their five pirate ships. Report this news back to the Federation.

Got it, the staff member replied lazily.

Su Rui was stunned. Wait, what kind of attitude was this?

What was her status? What was his?

The man said absentmindedly: Miss Su, aren't pirate attacks completely normal? This kind of thing happens every day at the Zeus Space Station. We can't do anything about it.

Su Rui turned pale with anger: What do you mean? A pirate group is robbing people in a public channel, and you are actually ignoring it?

Are you even a member of the Federation?

The other party sneered: Do something? Like what?

There are only three of us here, and we don't even have a decent spaceship. How are we supposed to fight those pirates?

He waved his hand, his tone full of apathy.

If the Federation actually cared, they would send more people. I only make a meager salary, I have wanted to quit for a long time.

If you are so capable, go wipe them out yourself.

Alright, alright, if you have no other business, hurry up and leave. Don't interrupt my drinking.

Su Rui trembled with rage, but there was nothing she could do.

It seemed her prestige was completely worthless here.

Lin Xi tugged at her arm: Forget it, let's just go ask around for information first.

Su Rui took a deep breath, forcefully suppressing the anger in her heart, and nodded.

...

The two left the office and passed through several portals, arriving at the liveliest bar in the space station.

The bar was filled with foul smoke, and all kinds of aliens were sitting at the counter drinking.

Su Rui found a corner booth and told Lin Xi to wait there.

She walked up to the bar herself and said to the bartender: Two glasses of juice.

The bartender was a lizard-headed alien.

He glanced at Su Rui and held up three fingers: Three hundred Myriad Race Credits.

Su Rui asked, Will Federation credits not work?

Nope. No one here recognizes the Federation. Did you come from the Human Federation?

...