Yu Lian felt not embarrassment, but terror. For Feixue 48, now their enemy, the ferry's location was too convenient, perfectly within the firing range and arc of its side-mounted turbine laser array. It was so convenient that a slight slip of the hand by any gunner could eliminate them.
I still have my best years ahead of me; to die like this would be too frustrating.
Yu Lian gritted his teeth and quickly made a decision. Something must have happened on the Azure Princess, and no matter what, he had to go and see.
After making up his mind, he felt much lighter. Just as he was about to do something, he saw Horatio Wien still looking bewildered, so he slapped him directly. Yu Lian indicated that there was no need to be polite with a grown man; the sooner he regained his senses, the sooner he could be a useful tool.
The slap was quite hard, and Wien's half of his face instantly turned red, which matched his hair color quite well. He blinked, and then his senses returned. Covering his face, he gritted his teeth and said, "Me? You! You actually hit me! Not even my father has ever hit me!"
"Then you'll have to get used to it from now on! To be so bewildered by such a small thing, this is a great humiliation! My future Marshal brother! I'm just making sure you remember it more clearly," Yu Lian said as a matter of course.
Wien gritted his teeth but had to admit that Yu Lian had a point, so he couldn't say anything more.
Wait, what did this guy just call me? "Future Marshal"? Uh, this guy actually has good taste! Haha...
Yu Lian didn't pay attention to the other party's face, which was alternating between green and red. He fumbled around in the cabin and found the storage compartment door for the spare space and survival suits.
These space survival suits were quite similar to the spacesuits Yu Lian had known in his previous life, only they looked lighter and were equipped with oxygen and a certain power device. An ordinary person wearing one could survive in space for a considerable amount of time, and even travel short distances. This way, even if a ship was completely unsalvageable after an accident, it could at least buy time until rescue arrived.
Theoretically, all ships should be equipped with survival suits in quantities equal to or even exceeding the crew size, as stipulated by the Galactic Civilization Council in the "Navigation Safety Act."
However, just as the lifeboats on the Titanic were definitely not enough for all passengers, civilian ships certainly wouldn't have enough survival suits. In most cases, having a fifth of the required amount was considered a sign of integrity from the ship's owner.
Fortunately, the ferry Yu Lian and Wien were on belonged to the military, so no matter how exaggerated, there should be enough for the few people on board.
Yu Lian patted the cabin door, and a light screen flashed on it, showing icons for fingerprint or password unlock. He paused, then, with his fist wrapped in spiritual energy, he smashed it, pulled, and dislodged the entire door.
Wien watched, feeling both inspired and annoyed. Inspired because he felt it was manly enough and suited his taste; annoyed because it wasn't him doing it. As someone who was always the center of attention, he suddenly felt like his thunder had been stolen.
Despite this, Wien knew that although he was strong and proficient in combat, he was still just an ordinary human and couldn't tear down a metal door with his bare hands. Although he was envious, jealous, and resentful, that was all he could do.
There were ten space suits in the warehouse, and this small ferry could seat thirty people... which was actually better than Yu Lian had expected. He visually estimated the distance to the Azure Princess in the distance, confirmed the distance between them, and then prepared to put on the suit.
However, Yu Lian had never worn this kind of "old-fashioned" space survival suit before, so he was a bit clumsy. At this moment, Wien walked over without a word and began to help.
"Hmph, you've been on the ground for so long that you don't even know how to wear this thing anymore? You'll probably only be able to stay on the ground in the future," he scoffed while skillfully helping Yu Lian fasten the buckles on the back of the space suit.
"Yes, the only thing I've worn on a ship so far is an Emblem Machine."
...
Although Wien really wanted to pick up the helmet next to him and smash it directly on the other person's head, he held back. Clearly, after this battle, Horatio Wien had made significant progress in self-control, which was truly commendable!
After helping Yu Lian get dressed, he picked up a space suit for himself and prepared it with movements three times faster than Yu Lian's.
"Do you know what I'm going to do?" Yu Lian couldn't help but ask, watching the other person's actions.
"You're going to board the Azure Princess, right?" Wien sneered, "I'm not so dull that I can't even figure that out."
..."What if I told you to return to the ship and wait?"
"Yu Lian, I'm not your subordinate; I don't have to obey your orders," Horatio Wien said. "Besides, although I'm not a spiritual energy user, my scores in combat, shooting, and space engineering operations are all A. I won't hold you back."
As soon as he said this, he regretted it a little. What did he mean by "hold back"? Saying that made it sound as if he was already prepared to be Yu Lian's subordinate.
Wien gave himself twelve mental slaps, but continued in a stiff tone, "You have important people on that ship. So you have to go personally to confirm their safety, right?"
Yes! Feifei... and Uncle Wang, just waiting like this doesn't suit my personality, Yu Lian thought.
"Me too!" Wien shouted, then said a little flustered, "I mean, I have an uncle who is also a guest on the Azure Princess, and I must go save him!"
Yu Lian looked the other person up and down, thought for a long time, and couldn't think of any reason to stop him. He nodded, "Be careful to protect yourself, and don't die in a place like this!"
If the future leader of the 830 Party, the future Commander of the Volunteer Army, were to die in a place like this, it would be too ridiculous.
Yu Lian walked to the outer cabin door, tapped it twice lightly, and then nodded to Wien. Both of them put on their helmets simultaneously.
Wien suddenly realized that they should still be some distance from the Azure Princess, and they couldn't possibly get there with the space suit's propulsion. Just as he was about to ask, he saw Yu Lian had already pulled open the cabin door.
He had no idea how Yu Lian had opened the cabin door, and he didn't have time to think about it. The airflow carried his entire body towards the door. Horatio Wien subconsciously tried to grab the handrail on the ship, but stopped himself before his reflex could take over, letting his body be carried away and fly.
The scene in Wien's vision spun, but his brain remained calm and focused enough to quickly activate the stabilizers and propulsion device the moment his space-suited body left the ferry.
When the pressure in the ferry's cabin reached a certain point, the ship's central control finally reacted, regained control, and quickly closed the cabin door.
It was only then that the ferry's pilot finally reacted and quickly opened communication to the passenger cabin: "Uh, Yu Lian, Wien, you said the passenger cabin lost pressure? How are you? Huh? Yu Lian? Wien? You...? You..."
The pilot looked at the empty passenger cabin on the screen and shivered, still worried if the two of them had been sucked into space.
He had just been startled by his own thought when a warning from Feixue 48 appeared again on the communication channel!
"Retreat! To a safe distance!" The warning from the other side was very concise.
The pilot felt that even if he wanted to discuss the issue of missing persons on board with the other party, they would definitely not listen and would certainly open fire. So he could only grit his teeth and shakily steered the ship away.
We all know that there are over twenty thousand people on the Azure Princess. Apart from the working and security personnel, all the passengers are high-ranking officials and nobles, commonly known as members of high society.
However, we must also know that high society itself has levels. The more ordinary members of high society are now all confined to the grand ballroom on the middle deck of the Azure Princess. As for the remaining more important two hundred-plus people, they were escorted to the bridge by Brigadier General Morey.
Among these important figures were Duke Fisu and Krel Belmont, representing the Empire and the Alliance respectively, Nishita Chairman and his wife, and of course, our Nockham President.
Perhaps choosing only the noblest of the nobles would be too politically incorrect. Therefore, these two hundred-plus hostages also included media personalities, such as the evening's host, Miss Lola, and some reporters. In addition, there were some elderly, weak, women, and children who looked particularly easy to sympathize with, such as several mothers holding infants.
And for example, the most beautiful person Present, Miss Fina Li.
They were not subjected to any abuse, merely fitted with electronic handcuffs.
The President no longer had the spirited demeanor of a few minutes ago. His face was ashen, and he squatted silently among the crowd, as if one step away from being weathered away.
In contrast, Nishita Chairman looked more like a big shot, maintaining his composure from beginning to end, and even his hair didn't seem to be out of place.
"Don't act rashly!" he whispered to his wife.
"I'm not stupid." Melary lady raised the handcuffs on her hand and sighed softly.
Feifei used the shadows of the crowd to conceal her gaze, glanced at Melary lady not far away, and then began to secretly observe the mastermind of this incident, Brigadier General Morey.
At this moment, he was expressionlessly manipulating an instrument.
A middle-aged man in a suit stood not far from him, his head pointed at by two soldiers' guns, but he seemed fearless, rambling incessantly: "Frank, we're friends, aren't we? Frank, listen to me, it's not too late to turn back. Do you understand? Nothing is worth a righteous and fearless warrior like you going down this path! We can talk this through. Look, Mr. President is here, and Nishita Chairman is here, we can talk this through."
The President buried his head, burying it even deeper. Nishita Chairman, on the other hand, nodded with a reserved smile. Regardless of whether he was cursing inwardly, his outward appearance was truly impeccable.
"Frank, everyone here is innocent. Please release them. I can stay and talk with you seriously," the Chairman said.
Brigadier General Morey showed an expression for the first time, looking at the Chairman with a sinister smile, and said, "Thank you very much, Chairman. I also very much hope to have a Frank discussion, in front of everyone..."
He tapped the instrument in his hand, and a light screen popped up, instantly displaying a conference room. On the screen, the Vice President, Prime Minister, other members of the Cabinet and the National Security Council, as well as the head of the Commonwealth's uniformed services, Marshal Alvin, the Minister of Military Orders, were all seated.
"Gentlemen, I don't want to waste your valuable time playing guessing games. Let's be Frank," Brigadier General Morey said with a smile.