"Bana Bana Bana, Bana Bana Bana."
Bang!
A gust of wind swept in, blowing away a group of oddly shaped little monkeys without the slightest resistance.
The Herrscher of Sentience stomped her foot hard, grabbed a monkey lying on the ground playing dead, and swung it left and right.
"Why are there monkeys everywhere in this damn place? Is this a whole monkey nest or what?!"
With a whoosh, she tossed the monkey far away and finally exhaled.
"And I still don't know where those guys ran off to. We came in properly, and we got separated immediately. What the hell is this thing…"
Relying on Fu Hua's many years of battle experience, and thanks to her slightly stabilizing mood, it wasn't hard to recognize this as a type of spatial transfer method.
But the consciousness in this body right now was the Herrscher of Sentience.
Everyone knows that while the Herrscher of Sentience has excellent combat experience in normal situations, that only applies to actual battles.
Puzzle-solving games are not suitable for the great Herrscher of Sentience.
"So they want to split us up and defeat us one by one, huh? Hmph. I hope those guys don't get beaten before I find them."
The Herrscher of Sentience sneered.
"Oh my, my, look at what I've found. A little grey-fur bullying tiny monkeys. Little grey-fur, do you know another little grey-fur?"
Her feet, painted with bright red nail polish, stood out sharply in this lush green forest.
That mischievous red outfit was painfully conspicuous among the greenery, especially because that red was right in front of her.
"Who are you?"
Faced with someone this overly familiar, the Herrscher of Sentience replied irritably.
If she hadn't sensed that this suddenly appearing person had no malice, only… the vibe of watching a show…
"?" The Herrscher of Sentience swore that if she had sensed even a little hostility, the moment this girl showed her face she would've been greeted by her righteous iron fist.
"That Hatguy contacted a bunch of Galaxy Rangers. Are you one of them?"
The Herrscher of Sentience sized up Sparkle from head to toe, her face full of doubt.
This girl… no matter how she looked at her, she didn't seem like a Galaxy Ranger.
Don't underestimate the great Herrscher of Sentience' perception.
Sparkle gave her a very strange feeling.
It seemed to lie somewhere between evil and lawful.
Fu Hua's fifty-thousand-year knowledge archive actually had a word for this, Chaos.
"Galaxy Ranger? No, no, no. Although I would love to be one of them, I've found a profession that suits me even better."
Sparkle leaned forward slightly, raised her right index finger, and wagged it lightly.
"And that is, the most dazzling, shining, brilliant director in the entire universe, Director Sparkle!!!"
"…???"
The Herrscher of Sentience tilted her head slightly, clear eyes filled with confusion.
"So… your job is being a director? Then what are you doing here?"
"But of course, a grand performance is about to begin, and it needs the best director." Sparkle clapped lightly and giggled.
Have directors nowadays become this bold? She actually dared to walk right up to her.
The field of directing was outside Fu Hua's knowledge.
Even back in the Previous Era she had barely touched this profession; the closest related thing she'd dealt with was art and media.
Or… maybe directors in the universe and directors in her own world weren't even the same species?
The Herrscher of Sentience could not understand.
However, the Herrscher of Sentience had a good habit: if she couldn't understand something, she just stopped thinking about it.
"I don't care what you do. Anyway, this place is dangerous. If you wander around and something happens to you, I'm not responsible."
She snorted proudly and turned away.
"…" A cold wind blew through the air. No reply.
Unable to hold back her frustration, she turned her head, only to find that the red fox girl who had been standing right in front of her moments ago had vanished.
"Where'd she go? Forget it. Not my problem. I'd better go find the others."
Shaking her head, she quickly tossed aside all thoughts of Sparkle.
The urgent matter was to find the others before they got taken out, and regroup with the rest.
....
A similar situation was unfolding in different places.
Dr. Primitive had long prepared a welcome ceremony, quietly waiting for his esteemed guests to arrive.
On another plain, a vibrant grassland teemed with playful little monkeys.
As an Intellitron, Screwllum looked rather out of place amidst the group of monkeys.
His calm gaze shifted as he observed the surroundings.
The moment he entered this world, he sensed something was off.
He could have left immediately, but chose not to.
His intuition told him something here was unusual. As for what exactly…
"Conclusion: The entire world is illogical."
Screwllum's database stored astronomical data from across the cosmos, life planets, barren planets. Screwllum's storage module was among the most advanced in the universe.
Within the shortest time, he had processed all received information.
"Very faint, but detectable. This constructed world is connected to somewhere else. Reasonable deduction: this planet has countless similar worlds, all connected to a single location."
Screwllum believed Dr. Primitive would not do pointless things.
This was the recognition of one genius toward another. Therefore, Dr. Primitive's recent grand actions now had a breakthrough point.
He was nurturing something, or perhaps attempting to achieve some purpose. Everything would remain unknown until the curtain rose.
....
Interastral Peace Corporation.
The Ten Stonehearts.
Topaz and Numby lowered their eyes, minds quiet.
Mm, Boothill's petition conveniently passed through their hands.
So they simply applied their professional skill, going with the flow.
Jade's green eyes quietly fell on the student she had personally taught. She sighed helplessly.
Oh well. It wasn't anything serious anyway. Outside major issues, the IPC's bottom line was always flexible.
For example, internal employees colluding with outsiders for personal gain, as long as it brought enough benefit to the IPC, the IPC wouldn't mind.
And the ones with grudges against Boothill were mainly from the Market Expansion Department.
Most Galaxy Rangers with grudges against the IPC had also clashed with that same department.
They weren't very popular even inside the IPC. Causing trouble for the Market Expansion Department was a guaranteed win for several other departments.
After thinking for a moment, Jade spoke: "Right now, quite a few Galaxy Rangers have gathered in the star system where Dr. Primitive is located. Upper management is paying very close attention to this situation. Do you two have anything to say about it?"
Seeing the topic return to something serious, the two straightened their expressions. After thinking for a moment, Topaz spoke first.
"The IPC should've already sent people over, right?"
Jade nodded slightly. "Half a system-cycle ago, the fleet the IPC had prepared in advance set out and is heading to the site."
Efficient as always.
Topaz was not surprised. She already knew the IPC was arranging a fleet, after all, they were also involved in this matter.
But that fleet's mission wasn't to join the battle, nor was it for the sake of galactic justice.
They were simply going to see if they could pick up anything useful right at the moment the battle ended.
If the situation allowed it, they wouldn't mind taking Dr. Primitive away, so long as Dr. Primitive was driven into a corner, with no strength left to resist the IPC fleet.
And Jade had summoned the Ten Stonehearts for more than just that.
"According to intel sent back from the scene, Dr. Primitive has set up multiple worlds inside the planet that resemble the Penacony dream-bubbles, effectively blocking the any IPC' advance. This is completely different from the methods he used the last time he appeared. We have reason to suspect this is another dangerous experiment by Dr. Primitive."
Jade's expression grew increasingly grave as she spoke.
"Dr. Primitive… aren't all of that guy's experiments aimed toward Atavism? Don't tell me it's another memetic-virus type?"
Opal recalled the Monkey Meme that had appeared in Penacony.
With Dr. Primitive creating worlds similar to the Penacony dream-bubbles again, it was hard not to make the connection.
"In any case, destroying Dr. Primitive's scheme benefits us. I don't want to be doing business peacefully only for a monkey to fall from the sky and make customers think I'm running some kind of zoo."
The Stonehearts came for their own benefit, and Dr. Primitive's actions infringed on the interests of more than just a few of them, so dying once was exactly what he deserved.
Jade tapped the solid tabletop lightly with her jade-like finger, a thoughtful look in her eyes.
Boothill and Rappa… they couldn't be reached.
As a side note, even before Topaz and Aventurine had half-closed their eyes and let the approval pass, Jade had already gotten in touch with Boothill and Rappa and formed a cooperative agreement...
If necessary, they would provide support. Now that they couldn't be contacted… did this count as a "necessary moment"?
....
"Damn bananas, what the hell is this stupid banana thing?!"
At that moment, Boothill was losing his mind kicking an innocent roadside tree.
"Evil Ninja Osaru's ninjutsu is impossible to guard against. I didn't expect even Ninja Silvergun Shura to get caught off guard."
Rappa's expression was serious as she examined Boothill for abnormalities.
But no matter how she looked, even using her special ninjutsu, she couldn't see what exactly was wrong with him.
After the tree was kicked two-thirds of the way down, Boothill finally stopped venting and joined Rappa in trying to figure out what the hell had happened to him.
"Could it be that bastard secretly tampered with my synesthesia beacon? That would really be something… If he dares show himself again I'll shove bananas down his damn throat, I've had enough of this crap!!"
"Ninja Silvergun Shura, please calm yourself. Let me think of a way… Ah! I have one!"
"…Huh?" Boothill stared dumbfounded at Rappa.
"Sis, it's only been a minute and you already thought of something, bana? For real, bana? Lemme say this first, if it's one of those weird methods of yours, I'm not doing it. Bana."
If Boothill had confidence in anything, it was his ability to judge weirdness.
He had to admit Rappa was a qualified Galaxy Ranger, but she was too qualified, those methods that clearly weren't normal?
"Don't worry. If I'm suggesting it, it must be feasible. Please listen carefully, Ninja Silvergun Shura."
Rappa nodded slightly, her expression serious. "I observed that after we left that ninjutsu domain, we never stepped into any traps set up by Evil Ninja Osaru. Based on what I know of him, he should have placed barriers at the boundaries of each ninjutsu domain. If I use a certain ninjutsu technique, I should be able to-"
Click!
Before she finished, the sound of a revolver loading echoed sharply through the air.
"In that case, what's there to talk about? We'll just blast our way through!"
Bang! Bang! Bang!!
With several crisp gunshots, a dark-red crack suddenly split open in the barrier before them.
A foreboding aura leaked out from within, enough to make an ordinary person hesitate.
But the two present were not ordinary, they were Galaxy Rangers.
"Come on, let's go see what that bastard is messing with now. Boothill cracked his neck, bones popping loudly.
He strode forward, his belt clattering.
Seeing this, Rappa quickly followed.
One after the other, they stepped through the ominous crack, preparing for whatever danger lay beyond.
A flash of white light, both raised their guard.
In front of them was… Silver Wolf playing a game?
"Heh, heh! Final crit!!"
The kill sound effect echoed unnaturally loudly in the area.
Beside her, a stylish lady stood elegantly, smiling as she watched Silver Wolf demolish the game with obvious cheats.
The two were silent at the same time. Hmm, Boothill wasn't unfamiliar with the two before him.
Their faces were printed right beside his on the IPC wanted list, and their bounties were higher than his… which honestly annoyed him a bit.
"Look, our guests have arrived."
After Silver Wolf put away her game console, Kafka turned slightly, giving them a small polite smile.
"Heh, who's friends with you? The famous Stellaron Hunters showing up here… what, business not going well so now you're joining the Galaxy Rangers for side jobs?"
Even though the two were wanted criminals with bounty amounts that had several zeros, the word fear didn't exist in Boothill's vocabulary.
And besides, he himself also had several zeros on his own bounty, so technically they were all in the same business.
"Alright, ladies, you didn't come here just to play games, right? If you've got something to say, spit it out. That'll be best for all of us."
Boothill narrowed his eyes, adopting his usual overly familiar tone.
The Stellaron Hunters, these people only chased after Stellarons. Could there be a Stellaron in this cursed place?