by <unknown>
"However, the most unpardonable ones of us have been properly judged by the law of the federation. We have served decades in the dark prisons on alien planets and dug out minerals as high as mountains to answer for our crimes.
"In the fierce battle yesterday, a lot of our brothers also acted fearlessly and righteously and, to some extent, saved the entire federation!
"Enough. Both legally and morally speaking, all the debts that we owe to the Flying Star Sector in the past and the Star Glory Federation today have been paid back with interest! From this moment on, we can be liberated from the shadow of the past. We are absolutely free. No country can ask us to sacrifice ourselves, no fate will ever restrain us, and no force will ever stop us!"
The old space pirates as well as their children and grandchildren all held their breath and clenched their fists, listening to the roars of the alpha wolf.
"Freedom—that's the new meaning that we will endow to the name 'space pirate'!
"The space pirates in the past were just a bunch of worthless garbage who only bullied the weak. Even the 'Pirate Potentate' and the 'Supreme Space Pirate' were nothing more than the leaders of groups of scumbags.
"But in the new era of the grand universe, a new type of space pirates can certainly be born. That will be us!
"Even the demons, the culprits of the Great Dark Age who were irreconcilable with humans, could change themselves and accept the cheers of the people in public. Why can't the space pirates pilot the fastest starships in the universe, control the most powerful crystal cannons, drink the most delicious wine, wave the sharpest chainswords and vibration sabers, and be the freest men in the entire sea of stars?
"Look!"
Bai Xingjian's finger was like a super heavy cannon dozens of meters in diameter when he pointed it at the depths of the stars.
"There lies our path. That is where we will fight to our heart's content!
"At the center of the cosmos, the Imperium of True Human Beings and the Alliance of the Holy Covenant, two of the greatest superpowers in the history of mankind, are colliding brutally. The place has been on fire for a thousand years, and it is the best natural playground for the space pirates!
"There are countless broken starships waiting for us to collect and upgrade ourselves. There are countless panicked troops that we can deceive and trick. There are thousands of resource planets whose defense arrays are riddled with holes for us to take advantage of. There are even chances to sneak into the most important arsenals of the Imperium and the Covenant Alliance to arm all our brothers to the teeth!
"Do you not want to enjoy the wonderful world at the center of the sea of stars?
"Do you not want to witness the legendary, bizarre alien species?
"Do you not want to see how soul-stirring it will be when ten thousand of the most powerful starships in the entire universe fire their destructive cannons together?
"Do you not want to find the relics of the Supreme Emperor and the Blood God, the unparalleled experts of mankind ten thousand years ago, and retrieve their unrecorded techniques or even remove their armor and see their rotten bodies with your own eyes?
"Do you not want the high and mighty people of the Imperium and the cold and ruthless citizens of the Covenant Alliance to know your name and tremble in fear the moment they hear 'space pirate'?"
Bai Xingjian's questions were like tides each higher than the last until they finally consumed the entire sky. The heart of every crew member was smashed hard.
Ravenousness beamed out of their deeply hollowed eyes, and swallowing sounds were coming from their throats, as if they had already torn off a piece of most delicious meat from the Imperium or the Covenant Alliance and were trying to stuff it into their belly.
"Yes, we do!"
"We want it more than anything else!"
"The child's play at the edge of the cosmos is not fun at all. The space pirates should focus on greater jobs. Even if we must die, we will lay our bodies on the most precious treasures of the Imperium and the Covenant Alliance!"
Never-ending howls echoed in the wolf pack.
"In that case, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Bai Xingjian grinned. "Stars are the destiny of every man. Look. How brilliant the stars at the center of the cosmos are! Come with me and rob the light of the stars for ourselves. We are the strongest space pirates in the three thousand Sectors!"
Glamourous radiance spread out from the bridge. Under the effect of the Grand Illusionary Land, mysterious ripples revealed themselves.
The cabin wall and the facilities around were all gone. They seemed to be floating directly in space, surrounded by the profound and splendid stars.
The ex-soldiers of the Big Bai Fleet, the second Deep Sky fleet of the federal army, and the new space pirates who had been revived could no longer hold back their ambitions, desires, and pride that had been sealed for a hundred years under the brilliance of the stars. They roared desperately at the top of their voices and bared their claws and teeth in every cabin as if they were lightning.
"Let's go to the center of the cosmos to have some fun!"
"Let's loot the Imperium and the Covenant Alliance. Even if we encounter the extraterrestrial devils, we will loot their underpants. We are the most magnificent and the freest space pirates in the whole universe!"
"Stars are our destiny. Even if I must die, I will die on the star that is the brightest!"
"Long live freedom! Long live the space pirates! Long live the commander!"
Like thousands of rivers congregating into an ocean, all the voices gathered into the same echo in the end.
"Long live the commander! Long live the commander! Long live the commander!"
Bai Xingjian pressed his arms hard for a long time with all his strength before he finally managed to hold back the zealous howls of the wolves.
"Brothers, today is the day we are reborn and given a new life. So, it is necessary for us to change the way we address each other."
He smiled and said, "We no longer belong to the federal army or any other regime in the sea of stars. I am not a 'commander' anymore. Of course, I would rather not be called by weak names such as 'Captain Bai'. You may call me…"
He sipped the iced juice slowly and allowed the long-expected sweetness to circulate in his mouth for a long time before he swallowed it. Then, he finally declared, one word after another, "You may call me… Boss Bai!"
Zhi! Zhi!
On the top of the grass hat that was extraordinarily huge on his head, a tiny door was suddenly opened, and a mouse made of crystals and machinery crawled out. It crouched on Boss Bai's head and looked at everybody in ignorance.
"Move forward, the Big Bai Pirate Gang." Boss Bai drank up the iced juice and burped in great satisfaction. He patted his belly and announced, "To where the stars are brightest!"
Chapter 1834: Juniors |
As the reborn Pirate Potentate lunged at the stars, the capital city of the Star Glory Federation was also embracing a new dawn.
The first morning glow that ripped apart the dark clouds had appeared in the sky, and the golden, red fire was rising on the horizon. However, most of the sky was still enveloped in darkness. The temperature was close to zero, as if the dark night had been frozen. There was no telling how much longer it would take before true brightness came.
For all the middle school students, especially the boarding students, it was a night that they would never forget.
The evacuation for teenagers had begun the previous day. Children in kindergartens, elementary school, and some middle high schools were the first to be evacuated.
However, before all the middle school students were moved to the underground fortresses, the evacuation operation somehow came to a halt. A lot of soldiers of the federal army were simply dispatched to the schools as guards, making the hotblooded, agitated boys and girls spend a sleepless night in the forest of guns, cannons, and blades.
Everybody knew that the competition that would decide the fate of the
federation was ongoing in the sky, but the news about the space battlefield was still strictly blocked. The announcement of the federal government was getting old, too, when it repetitively asked the citizens to stay at home or school, listen to the command of the federal army and the police, and maintain basic social order. All the veterans and Cultivators whose spiritual roots were awakened were required to report for duty at the nearest army station or sign up on the Spiritual Nexus and wait for their mission.
As for the outcome of the final battle, none of the kids knew it yet.
"Fatty, hurry, hurry!"
"Big Head, keep your voice down. I wouldn't have brought you with us had I known that you were so clumsy. Nobody will get away if you cause any noise!"
"Jump. Jump already! The three of us are all holding up for you down here. Why did you bother to come with us if you dare not jump?"
In a remote corner of No. 29 High School in the capital city, on an inconspicuous wall, three boys and a girl jumped off in a row.
The girl seemed to have twisted her ankle when she jumped down and moaned in pain, which only raised even more complaints from the boys.
Then, the fat boy carried the girl, and the four of them snuck toward the downtown area carefully and stealthily.
The four high school students were all in the most energetic and ambitious age. Their parents were all members of the federal army, and they had all grown up listening to the battle tales of the federal army and the Cultivators. They had absolutely no doubt that one day, or even maybe that day, they would take over their parents' flags and become the heroes in new stories.
Tiny hairs had just grown out of the boys' lips, and the girl's had already risen up last summer like a balloon that had been filled with air. Yet, they felt that they were grown-ups who were qualified and capable enough of doing something great—anything great.
Their classmates had been caged in the dormitories a whole night, like a bunch of squeaky chickens that were locked in an impregnable box, and were almost suffocated. Therefore, the four of them had volunteered to go outside and get some updates of the latest situation.
"We are going to the federal square in the downtown area. It is very close to the Federal Media Center. All the latest news will be displayed on the main light beam in the federal square."
Pretending to be sophisticated, the four high school students had explained their plan to their classmates.
"Besides, even if we cannot learn anything from the federal square, we will know what is happening based on the movement and morale of the army on the street."
Just like that, the four high school students snuck out and strutted off.
Having the hope of all their classmates on their shoulders and savoring the ecstasy of breaking school rules, they were almost jogging when the two completely different feelings turned into fresh and stimulating strength.
The capital city was the opposite of what they had seen during the day.
Traffic control had been implemented in the sky. The overwhelming rivers of shuttles were no more. Only the armed shuttles of the military were swooping like iron eagles now and then.
Temporary barricades had been established on the street. A lot of crystal tanks had parked nearby. Construction materials and spiritual puppets were standing by, too, and could upgrade the sites into semi-permanent barricades anytime, showing the determination of street battles and not leaving anything to the Immortal Cultivators even if the capital city was razed.
The glass windows of the glamorous skyscrapers were all blocked by plate armor. Like wordless tombstones, they told the resolution of the federal people in silence.
"Look!" the girl suddenly explained while pointing at something far away.
The boys followed the direction of her finger, only to discover that a hundred pillars of light that were higher and thicker than skyscrapers rose up amid the skyscrapers.
The ivory pillars of light rose to the sky like barrels vertical to the ground, piercing through the dark clouds into the sky.
Even the intense dark clouds could not withstand the power of the light pillars. Tremendous waves spread out, as if they would be completely shredded in the next second and reveal the blue sky.
"Are they cannons?" The girl's voice was shaking as she was deeply awed by the splendid view.
"No. It is the defense array of the highest level in the capital city," the boy who was shortest and wearing a pair of round glasses said. "My dad mentioned it before. Such a defense array can open a super enormous spiritual shield more than three kilometers in diameter, which is strong enough to withstand a bombardment from beyond the atmosphere for… at least twenty-four hours."
The teenagers all fell silent.
They recalled the frantic rumors from the previous night again.
It was said that if the expedition army of the Imperium of True Human Beings truly won the space battle, they would swagger in the sky of the capital planet.
They did not need to launch an assault on the ground at all. It was more likely that they would pull tremendous enormous meteoroids and install the cheapest engine units behind them before bombarding the capital city and the main industrial cities accurately with the meteoroids. No street battles were needed at all for them to destroy the people's will.
"Anyways… we will win." The fat boy waved his arms. "If the sky is lost, we will retreat to the mountains for some guerilla warfare. Ten years, twenty years, fifty years. We will take back the federation one day!"
"Exactly!" One of the boys, whose head was particularly big, said thoughtfully, "Think about it. It took thirty thousand years for the humans to take back the universe in the past. What's the big deal about several decades? We will win… eventually!"
Freezing coldness found its way into their collars and sleeves, making the four teenagers shudder hard.
But they did not stop because of that. Instead, they continued walking forward against the wind.
After only a short while, when they passed by an artificial lake, they discovered, somewhat to their surprise, an old man next to it.
The old man was covered in metal from head to toe, and even his face was a cold mask, suggesting that he should be a spectral Cultivator who had lost his body in an accident.
The reason they thought that he was an 'old man' was because his movements were rigid, as if he had become so rusted that he might fall apart at any moment.
When they saw the old man, the old man was doing a thing that was quite common usually but extremely strange at a moment like this—he was feeding birds.
There were a lot of birds near the lake. A lot of people often dropped by to feed the birds, too.
But none of them had ever attracted as many birds as the old, weary spectral Cultivator. Not only did they show up around him, they even landed on him as if they were naturally intimate with him and not scared of the cold, mechanical body at all.
"That is impressive. How did he do it?"
"A war is going on. Why is someone feeding birds here? Who is he?"
The teenagers discussed the scene with great curiosity when rumbling laughter erupted from the metal chest of the old man, which shocked all four teenagers.
The old man laughed blatantly and soul-stirringly as if he were the only person in the world. The whole lake was filled up by his laughter. Even the overwhelming dark clouds were ripped by the wild laughter and emitted golden brilliance!
While he was laughing, the old man's voice and scent gradually died down.
He had been squatting on the ground to play with the birds, but he could not hold his heavy body anymore and fell to the ground. The big head lowered inch after inch.
"Grandpa!"
Anxiously, the girl was the first to move forward, and the three boys followed her closely to carry the old man. But the old man simply waved his hands at them, hinting for them not to get close.
"Danger," the old man said in a clear voice.
Then, black flames surged out of his metal skull.
The black flames raged and struggled hard, as if a certain discontent and hateful force was being burnt and obliterated!
As the force perished, the last vitality of the old man was finally gone. He was like a golden match that turned gray after being burnt up.
When the girl finally supported the old man to his feet, she only heard him saying something weird in a blurred voice. Then, no voice was uttered ever again from the hollow metal chest.
The boys waved and shouted on the street. Three minutes later, the police and the federal army finally came. Soon, the ambulance arrived.
It was supposed to be a common case of the sudden death of a senior, which was even less surprising when the victim was an old and weary spectral Cultivator.
But after the doctors opened the metal skull of the old man and discovered traces of brain cells inside, the case became weird.
The police searched for the number on the old man's artificial body, only to find that it was an illegal body that was not registered in the authorities, and the case became even trickier than before.
"You said that he said something weird before his death. What was it?"
The police officers frowned and stared at the four panicked, overwhelmed teenagers.
The teenagers looked at each other in bewilderment. The old man's last words were too complicated for them to comprehend.
"Don't be nervous. Let's think about it slowly. Even if you do not understand the meaning, you can still just repeat the syllables to me. It is very important for us to confirm the identity of the deceased," a female officer said to them gently but firmly.
The teenagers scratched their faces and still could not figure out what it was. Their faces were all blushing.
Right then, glittering roars echoed on the horizon, and the sun finally broke free from the boundary of darkness and rose high into the sky.
Cheers and noises came from the downtown area. Certain great news seemed to be spreading across the entire city, the entire planet, and the entire federation in a boiling storm.
