Barren Star – Chapter 14
by Little PandaShare blessings together, scatter when there’s trouble.
(Implies that people are willing to stay together during good times but tend to separate when difficulties arise.)
The room was silent and still.
After a long time, Hua Zhuoyu raised her hand and gently brushed the cheek that had been kissed. Her eyes were deep, with unclear emotions.
“Maybe you could be a bit bolder.”
Ning Buyi was very thirsty. She couldn’t find the answer but didn’t dare to go further. Her gaze followed Hua Zhuoyu’s fingers and landed on the warm, cool, smooth lips, then quickly looked down to hide her panic.
Isn’t it just looking at a woman? Why panic? It was a pure, polite light kiss! Ning Buyi thought aimlessly and secretly scolded herself in her heart.
Luckily, the “chirp chirp” sound came, freeing Ning Buyi from her embarrassment.
Reaching out to catch the fluffy Feng Jiu dumpling, Ning Buyi rubbed its furry belly, then reached out to remove the vegetable leaf hooked on its foot. After getting used to the base, little Feng Jiu became bolder, patrolling the territory, looking like the second owner of the base.
Hua Zhuoyu watched Ning Buyi, for once not teasing her. She reached out to brush her hair, her fingertips touching the slightly warm earlobe. After little Feng Jiu appeared, the blush finally receded quickly. She thought to herself whether she shouldn’t go too far, but her face showed no emotion.
“Chirp chirp, chirp chirp, bug.”
Little Feng Jiu couldn’t speak yet, Ning Buyi used to treat her chirps like songs. But this time, from a series of high-pitched chirps, she heard a word.
“Is it talking now?”
“Did little Feng Jiu say bug?”
Ning Buyi and Hua Zhuoyu spoke in unison. After exchanging a glance, Ning Buyi nervously said, “What kind of bug? Could it be a sandworm? Didn’t we already spread poison outside the base?” The huge sandworms and their green, corrosive blood left a big shadow in Ning Buyi’s mind. Now, when she thought of “bug,” all she could see was that black hole-like wriggling mouth.
Little Feng Jiu tilted its head, blinking its cute little black eyes. With a flap of its wings, a bug no bigger than a fingernail was “blown” out, landing weakly on the coffee table.
Ning Buyi had only a little knowledge about interstellar creatures, but according to her past world’s knowledge, this little bug on the coffee table should be called a “bee.” This was like thinking of something, and it just appears. But—a bee is a weak form of the insect race, which means the base has been found by the insect race, right? Is it just this one, or are there others outside? The barren star isn’t worth the insect race’s risk unless they are chasing Hua Zhuoyu.
“Do you have anything to say?” Ning Buyi cleared her throat, looking at Hua Zhuoyu with a faint gaze.
Hua Zhuoyu stared at the weak “bee,” thinking she could easily crush it with a hand in this form. After a while, she looked away, crossing her arms, “Maybe it came for me.”
“You should be more confident, drop the maybe,” Ning Buyi said sarcastically.
Hua Zhuoyu was silent for a while, then asked, “What do you plan to do?” Being exposed to the insect race is worse than being known by interstellar people.
Ning Buyi said sincerely, “There’s an old saying, ‘Share blessings together, scatter when there’s trouble.’ Of course, I won’t be so heartless, but with your skills, you can find and deal with the insect race on your own, right?”
Hua Zhuoyu shrugged, “Sorry, I can’t.” The barren star is full of strange rocks and yellow sand. Finding a few uncertain little bugs on such a big planet is like finding a needle in a haystack.
Ning Buyi chuckled, but she wasn’t planning to push everything onto Hua Zhuoyu. She pointed at the weak little bee and said, “In this form, can’t it communicate?”
Hua Zhuoyu lifted her eyelids slightly, “You’re underestimating it. The insect race is not like little Feng Jiu.”
Little Feng Jiu: “?” It tilted its head, realizing that Hua Zhuoyu was looking down on it, and flapped its wings to jump onto Hua Zhuoyu, wildly pecking at her hair. Hua Zhuoyu sighed, grabbed little Feng Jiu’s tail feathers, and lifted it upside down. The creatures from the beast star are troublesome, even their young ones are not likable.
Dangling like a swing in Hua Zhuoyu’s hand, little Feng Jiu first chirped in protest, then turned to pitiful crying, with tears glistening in its little black eyes. When Ning Buyi rescued it from Hua Zhuoyu’s hand, it switched to wailing like a human baby. Ning Buyi got a headache from the noise and glared fiercely at Hua Zhuoyu, “How can you bully little kids?” As soon as she finished speaking, she noticed Hua Zhuoyu’s messy hair and couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
Hua Zhuoyu: “…” She simply let her long hair down, letting it fall over her shoulders. She decided not to argue with this person and the little one. Taking out a bottle shaped like an hourglass from her space button, she picked up the little bee from the coffee table and tossed it inside. Then she reached out to Ning Buyi, “Nutrient.”
Ning Buyi fished a nutrient stick from her pocket and handed it to Hua Zhuoyu, curiously asking, “What’s that hourglass bottle for—”
“Type I bottle for the insect race,” Hua Zhuoyu replied, tearing open the nutrient pack and pouring it into the hourglass bottle. The once motionless bee soon began to struggle, and the bottle’s glass walls twisted, but the nutrient liquid inside quickly decreased. Once the liquid was gone, a long string of sharp curses came from the bottle.
Ning Buyi: “…”
Hua Zhuoyu, calm and composed, dropped a pill into the hourglass bottle and started shaking it. Under the violent shaking, the pill quickly turned into a strange red powder, floating inside the bottle. The little bee, which had just recovered after drinking the nutrient, became weak again.
“Insect repellent,” Hua Zhuoyu explained, noticing Ning Buyi’s gaze. The insect race is indeed a warlike species, preferring to fight to the death rather than transform into a bee form. But just because they don’t want it doesn’t mean others can’t make it happen. Hua Zhuoyu got her hourglass bottle and insect repellent from the military. “This special medicine can cut off the mental connection between the insect race and the insect king. Although it can’t train an insect soldier, it can turn them into worker bees after brainwashing.” Humans don’t match the beast civilization in physical strength or the insect civilization in reproduction and numbers. To maintain balance with them, they can only rely on technology.
Seeing that Hua Zhuoyu has a way to deal with the insect race, Ning Buyi felt relieved and said righteously, “Having worker bees isn’t important. What’s important is ensuring the stability of the base.”
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