Xia Chujian didn't speak either. She and her roommates were scanned by the Airship's Mechanical Intelligence to confirm their medal numbers and verify their identities before being allowed on board.
Because they arrived early and had high rankings, they were assigned the best room.
Unlike the base, where they lived in double-decker beds, here they each had their own bed.
The room was quite spacious and even had its own bathroom.
They happily lay down, planning to catch up on some sleep.
They had woken up too early in the morning, and the excitement from the night before had kept them from sleeping much.
They slept for three or four hours.
When they woke up, they were already in space.
The Interstellar Airship had reached the high-altitude starfield of Kanli Star.
Soon, a robot brought them lunch.
As Xia Chujian and the others ate, they watched a virtual display screen appear in the center of the room.
Pei Zijing's image appeared on the virtual display.
He said, "Elite students, you have arrived in space."
"I can now announce your specific military mission."
With that, his image disappeared from the virtual display, replaced by what looked like a documentary about a tropical rainforest.
The half-person-high virtual display showed a dense, almost impenetrable green landscape.
The sky was blue, and white clouds floated by, looking no different from their Beichen Empire's planets.
But when the camera turned to the ground, they immediately noticed the difference.
Beneath the sky, ninety percent of the planet was covered in plants of various colors.
Occasionally, there were a few scattered areas with fewer plants, showing yellowish-brown or dark-black soil.
But these places were like a drop in the ocean, flashing before their eyes.
Then, they saw towering trees rising into the sky.
These trees looked strange, not very similar to the trees of the Beichen Empire.
For example, some branches formed their own systems, with not a single leaf to be seen.
The shape of these branches resembled succulents, and their colors were rich and varied. Some were a vibrant pink, like the afterglow of a rain shower.
Others were like deep blue gemstones from the deep sea, their precious light flowing, dazzling and warm.
Still other branches were reddish-orange, like the midday sun, burning with fierce flames.
Even more branches were pure white, like sculptures made of Ice Crystals, breathtakingly beautiful.
Some trees had leaves, but these leaves were different from those of the Beichen Empire. They were like wings, green wings, fluttering in the breeze.
These trees grew so densely that they were very tall in order to compete for sunlight.
The branches and trunks of various colors were also covered with dense green vines, hanging down from top to bottom, like hammocks in the forest.
The vines were covered with dense flying flowers, forming a waterfall of flowers.
Sunlight filtered through the gaps between the treetops, making it impossible to see the ground, because the trees were too close together.
These dense branches and leaves formed a thick barrier, and the air was filled with moisture.
Occasionally, round raindrops could be seen rolling on the leaves.
In this dense forest, very large, brightly colored birds occasionally flashed across the screen.
They were so fast that even under this high-definition camera, only colorful afterimages could be seen dancing among the treetops, emitting cheerful chirping sounds.
Below the trees, large reptiles occasionally darted past.
Compared to their enormous bodies, their speed was disproportionately fast.
Looking further down, bizarre rocks stood on the ground.
They were covered in a thick layer of moss.
As the camera swept across, the moss emitted a green glow in the dark forest clearing.
The scene was breathtaking, something they had never seen in the Beichen Empire.
Xia Chujian couldn't help but exclaim, "...This is where we're going for our Special Military Operation? Where is this? It's so beautiful!"
Her three roommates nodded in agreement.
It really was too beautiful!
Chu Qingjuan said, "We've been to quite a few planets, but we've never seen such a beautiful place!"
At that moment, the camera on the virtual display shifted.
It no longer focused on the towering trees and flying vines, but on the clearings.
It was a patch of deep black earth.
But at a glance, the blackness wasn't the kind that indicated fertile soil suitable for cultivation.
It was the kind of blackness that looked like it was covered in waste slag and coal.
A figure appeared on the virtual display, moving from afar.
When they saw the figure clearly, the four of them gasped.
They didn't know if the creature on the virtual display should be called a "person."
Because it had two heads, four arms, three legs, and a dorsal fin running down its entire back!
But its heads were indeed human heads.
Its arms and legs were also human arms and legs, the only difference being the number, and the dorsal fin.
Humans didn't have two heads, four arms, three legs, and a dorsal fin, but this thing had it all.
And its height was only about 1.5 meters.
Mao Yonggui said in surprise, "...Is this a Humanoid?"
Xia Chujian was thinking the same thing, wondering which fish Gene it contained.
Then Pei Zijing's voice appeared as narration.
He said, "What you are seeing now are the native inhabitants of this resource star. They call themselves the 'Shang People'."
"Shang, as in the Shang that means death."
If Pei Zijing hadn't explained, they really wouldn't have known which "Shang" he meant.
Now that they knew, they all felt strange.
There were people who called themselves "dead people"?
Xia Chujian was a little afraid of supernatural things, and couldn't help but say, "...They're not alive? Are they really dead people?"
Apparently, many people had this question.
Before long, Pei Zijing's voice rang out again, explaining to everyone.
"These people are not dead. They are living beings, but they are no longer normal humans. They are mutated human species, and can only be considered Carbon-Based Lifeforms."
"They call themselves the 'Shang People'. It is said that in ancient times, they had some connection with humans, so they also call themselves people."
Xia Chujian patted her chest and said with a smile, "As long as they're not dead people, that's fine..."
Mao Yonggui, Chu Qingjuan, and Sang Yadi glanced at her and laughed.
Mao Yonggui joked, "Chujian, don't tell me you're afraid of ghosts..."
Xia Chujian smiled, "...Guess!"
She always responded with "Guess!" when she didn't want to answer a question.
Mao Yonggui didn't ask any more questions and continued watching the virtual display screen.
The virtual display screen now showed images of these strangely shaped Shang People killing each other.
Some of them had only one head but two bodies.
Others had one head, one upper body, but four lower bodies.
Still others had their internal organs hanging outside their bodies, with their insides like empty tubes, devoid of anything.
It was like watching a "human organ arrangement and combination spectacle."
But without exception, these Shang People all had a blade-like dorsal fin on their backs.
Xia Chujian felt disgusted when she first started watching.
But as she watched, she got used to it.
Because from the images, it seemed that these people had no Mental Strength.
They used very primitive wooden sticks and stone tiles to fight each other.
And the places they lived were mostly dug-out caves in the ground, half above ground and half underground, like dugouts, with thatched roofs, extremely crude.
These Shang People, who didn't seem to be many, fought quite a few "battles."
In almost every scene, they were killing each other.
Xia Chujian couldn't help but think of the natives she had seen on Eze Star.
They didn't have time to kill each other, because every minute and every second seemed to be spent fighting those Remnant Species monsters, striving for the right to survive.
But these strange Shang People were constantly scheming against each other, using various methods to kill their own kind.
Just when everyone was almost tired of watching these chickens pecking at each other, the camera shifted again.
This time, they saw a Shang Person slowly rising from behind the trees.
It seemed like he suddenly grew taller.
But after a while, they saw that it wasn't that he had grown taller, but that he was riding on the back of a strange creature.
From a distance, the creature looked like a giant fish.
It was at least a hundred meters long, with patches of colorful patterns on its back, as if painted in an oil painting, but it also had fleshy wings.
With a casual flap of its wings, it flew upwards.
And the Shang Person sat on the fish's back, rising higher and higher.
When he was higher than the branches of the trees, he directed the flying fish to fly to the place where he had been fighting with other Shang People.
This Shang Person had three heads, looking in three directions.
He also had six arms, each grabbing the dorsal fin on the fish's back.
Then one arm tugged at a dorsal fin, and the flying fish immediately opened its mouth.
A yellow, sticky liquid spewed out of the flying fish's mouth, drenching another group of people.
That group of Shang People immediately twisted all over, quickly dissolving into lumps of flesh.
Then the remaining Shang People cheered and shouted, constantly kowtowing to the Shang Person riding the flying fish in the sky.
The four people in the room felt like throwing up as they watched.
Pei Zijing's voice sounded again.
"This Special Military Operation is to hunt down these big flying fish!"
"Remember not to get entangled with the local natives, our purpose is just to catch the fish!"
"These flying fish are called Wanshou, and there are Wanshou flying fish of various colors, but the snow-white Wanshou flying fish are the most precious."
"Finally, the military performance will be evaluated according to the number and quality of the flying fish captured."
"Not only can it be converted into military merits, but it can also be converted into subsidies!"
"The value of this Wanshou flying fish is one inch of gold per pound of meat!"
"Each team must hunt at least one Wanshou Flying Fish!"
"If you don't hunt one, you can't return!"
The three roommates looked at each other, all excited.
Catching a few fish could earn so much military merit and money; it was simply too good to be true! Xia Chujian blinked.
Based on her experience as a Bounty Hunter, these Flying Fish called "Wanshou" were probably not that simple.
If they were worth so much money, their value must be far greater than the gold they could be exchanged for.
This is the third update. Throw out your Moon Tickets, my darlings! There will be a new update at 12:05 tonight.
P.S. Even in the Interstellar Era, gold is still a general equivalent. As for why, you can look up the origin and formation process of this heavy metal.
-----------
This high quality machine translation is powered by: https:// randomtranslator.com/
To read the full translation, as well as more than 444+ fanfic and original translations or request new translations, check out: https:// randomtranslator.com/
You can also join the RandomTranslator community on Discord to connect with other readers: https:// discord.gg/NSWvfN7vua
-----------