Chapter 27: Unfazed by Closeness, Staying Calm and Cool

The man was hit by Xie Jianxun’s nail gun. He let out a shrill scream of pain, convulsed on the ground, and blood surged from the tear in his flesh around the nail head, soaking the small patch of yellow-brown sand beneath him.

“What is this thing!” the man screamed, struggling in agony. Before long, he passed out—likely due to the anesthetic built into the nail head.

Xie Jianxun thought to himself that it was just something the man had never seen before.

Basero cleaved through a swarm of bugs, thinking the man was about to run.

But when he turned his head, the man was already lying on the ground.

Basero stared in stunned silence for a moment before wondering what use he even had.

Xie Jianxun activated the device on the nail gun, contracting the nail head’s expansion mechanism so it no longer hooked into the muscle, allowing it to be retrieved back into the chamber.

Facing the curious gazes, he casually explained, “Nail gun. Normally used for quick movement or climbing to vantage points. Precise range of twenty meters, effective up to fifty—can’t go beyond that because the built-in steel cable is only that long.”

The caravan captain fell silent for a moment, wiped his face, and said, “I thought we went out today to fight.”

Alex turned sideways and gestured to the bugs on the ground that had been sliced in half but were still clinging to life, half-dead: “Come on, fight.”

On the way back to the city, Xie Jianxun and Alex walked at the front, with One following behind.

Basero held one end of a rope in his hand; the other end was tied around the arsonist.

Later, feeling that dragging him was too slow and he couldn’t keep up with the pace ahead, Basero simply hoisted the arsonist over his shoulder and walked on.

Ahead, the two young men walked side by side.

Their steps were unhurried, leaving clear footprints one after another, with the arsonist’s muffled curses trailing behind.

Xie Jianxun recalled the man’s mention of “heretic” and wondered if he should ask.

But soon, after a moment of silence, Alex took the initiative: “He should be one of the Research Society members. My mother was once a member too.”

The Research Society—Xie Jianxun remembered Delin mentioning this group. They weren’t good people, apparently.

Alex smiled, though there was no mirth in his eyes: “The Research Society’s full name is the Golden Insect Clan Research Practice Society. It started as an underground group studying insect clan weaknesses, but it gradually changed flavor. Some members came to believe that the insect clan was the ultimate form of evolution.”

This group worshiped the insect clan, willing to carve up their own flesh to feed the bugs, even sabotaging city sewer structures to let the insect clan invade.

They firmly believed the insect clan possessed wisdom unmatched by humans.

They saw it as the embodiment of cosmic matter, creations of stellar radiance, bodies pure and flawless—and they were convinced that higher insect clans and an insect clan civilization existed in the world.

Xie Jianxun asked curiously, “How did he control the bugs to attack us just now?”

Alex scoffed, “That little trick… Just scout ahead in advance, coat yourself in insect-repellent ointment, and use vibrations to lure the bugs out of their burrows. Using quicksand to escape was somewhat clever.”

Xie Jianxun couldn’t imagine it. “You can escape from quicksand?”

“Under the quicksand is probably an insect nest. As long as he could hold his breath and had the ointment on, he wouldn’t die,” Alex said.

Xie Jianxun, who had once competed in breath-holding countdowns, fell silent.

Xie Jianxun stammered, “That, uh, heretic thing…”

Afraid it might be a sore spot, he asked hesitantly, his eyes fixed unblinkingly on the young innkeeper’s face. If Alex showed even a hint of a frown, he planned to change the subject immediately.

However, Alex gave him a speechless look.

“It really is unwarranted disaster—my mother was in the Research Society, but I’m not.”

He paused, then turned to look at Basero following behind: “He is.”

Xie Jianxun: “Huh?”

The guy came to kill you, but in the end, you’re not the one?

Wait, then who is?

…

Back in the city, the Patrol Troops at the gate took the man away after verification. They were all questioned repeatedly as well.

The truth was easy to verify. Even with Golden City’s low tech level—bottom-tier even among border planets—surveillance was widespread.

This man was a traitor and cultist who had deliberately set fires in the city.

He clearly didn’t want to live, so he was swiftly thrown into prison, rushed through trial, and sentenced soon after.

As expected, they were implicated too and spent two days in confinement before being released after the investigation.

The duty miss recognized Xie Jianxun.

Seeing him emerge from confinement, she blurted out in surprise, “Which of your boyfriends blew up the street this time?”

Xie Jianxun replied listlessly, “A new one. You haven’t met him.”

The miss realized and glanced at One, pretending she hadn’t said anything.

After leaving confinement and the guard station, the sun was weakened by the shadows of the buildings but still blazed fiercely.

Basero had left confinement ahead of them. He stood at the door, hands in pockets, one leg bent.

The young caravan captain had an ice pop in his mouth, squinting as he watched them slowly emerge from the lobby interior.

Xie Jianxun looked around: “Where’s Alex?”

Basero: “Gone to find someone to redecorate the inn. Want an ice pop?” He pulled out a new one and offered it to the two of them; One shook Its head and refused.

Xie Jianxun took it, mimicked his pose, and took a sharp inhale of the icy chill.

Back at the inn, Alex was absent. The resident employee mister had returned and was busy cleaning his room.

Suddenly, Basero said to One, “Think it over more, yeah?”

One didn’t respond. Xie Jianxun turned back curiously and asked, “About the bodyguard thing?”

Basero slurped his ice pop: “Don’t rush to refuse. It’s not a bad deal. The City Lord’s Mansion will reward the Fruit Grove Independent Regiment finders. If you agree, our caravan can convert part of the reward into golden fruits for you.”

Xie Jianxun: “What’s the use of that?”

Basero laughed: “Oh, my Little Rose, it’s hugely useful. You didn’t think buying a Transport Port ticket meant you could depart anytime, did you? Plenty of people ahead who bought tickets are waiting for spots.”

You still had to wait for a spot after buying a ticket?!

“It’s a cargo ship after all—seats are severely limited, sometimes taken by cargo. So a ticket is just a numbered queue slip. Only when your turn comes can you board.”

He persuaded patiently: “Gentlemen, taking golden fruits directly to the City Lord’s Mansion gets you extra Transport Port tickets.

“It’s like reserving a spot in the cargo hold just for you and your golden fruits… Isn’t that better than buying an expensive ticket and queuing until the end of time?”

In the evening, near quitting time.

Delin peeked around and noticed his pretty young colleague was distracted.

That was normal. If he hadn’t just figured out a blueprint and wasn’t buzzing with excitement, he’d probably be thinking nothing but clocking out.

Still, it didn’t stop him from caring: “Boss, is there something wrong with this blueprint?”

He presented it with both hands, grinning.

Xie Jianxun snapped back and denied hastily: “No, no, the blueprint is completely correct.”

Delin: “Then why have you been staring at it for ten minutes without finishing?”

Sigh. Xie Jianxun let out a long breath.

He considered his words: “Here’s the thing—I want to go on a business trip lately…”

Delin paled in shock: “You agreed to that caravan captain and are going to die in the desert?!”

Xie Jianxun: “…”

How did you guess so quickly and accurately?!

Delin read it on his face.

The young man mimicked him with a long sigh, in Old Man Desmond’s tone: “You’re so young—worth it to take on this deadly job…?”

“They’ve gone in and out of the desert many times, with plenty of experience, and it’s a joint exploration,”

Xie Jianxun defended. “We repair techs stay in the rear, no fighting or deep ops—low risk.”

Delin: “…”

His expression was like looking at a stubborn kid making excuses.

Xie Jianxun deflated and muttered, “I don’t actually want to go that much…”

Delin: “This isn’t trivial. Ask a reliable elder.”

Xie Jianxun looked at him expectantly: “Got any advice?”

Delin: “My advice is… just slack off safely in the city, eating and waiting to die. Why go far to eat sand, dirt, and northwest wind?”

The young man spread his hands, admitting he was such a slacker: “Mechanical blueprints are enough hassle for me—don’t make it worse.”

“Magm’s is a decent choice too.”

Alex gripped a rag, wiping the wooden shelves without looking up.

Due to renovations, the shop had more dust, so they spent extra time cleaning daily.

“Compared to other caravans, he’s relatively aggressive as captain sometimes, but that’s in the past. Honestly, you’d be better off joining Basero’s group. I bet he’d pay to have a repair tech hanging back.”

“No work for you here with the renovations. Going out for a bit isn’t bad.”

Xie Jianxun shoveled down fried rice—Alex had added butter-mixed potato mash and chickpea paste this time, making it stickier and softer, though it sometimes clogged the throat.

Alex was noncommittal: “Joint exploration anyway—same no matter which group.”

Xie Jianxun finished, wiped his mouth, stood with his plate.

“I’ll ask One’s opinion. Basero invited It to be bodyguard, right?”

He put the plate in the sink, returned to the storage room. One sat on the bed’s edge, focused on a book borrowed from Alex’s shelf.

Hearing him enter, the Mechanical Puppet looked up and smiled at him.

“Come on, sir, what do you think?”

Xie Jianxun sat beside It, elbow on Its knee, leaning in attentively. “I trust you have the answer more than I do.”

One closed the book and set it aside.

It didn’t answer right away, instead posing a new question: “Do you want to see the place where I used to live?”

The past? Xie Jianxun paused.

“That year, during the insect clan invasion outbreak, my ship and an entire contingent of soldiers were deployed to this planet, where we fought a defensive war against the insect clan.”

Its voice was flat and emotionless, with a distinctive synthetic magnetism.

“The ship stayed in the desert a long time—advancing by day, patrolling by night. I served as patrol soldier too, spending long solitary nights in the desert… And that ship, our base then, sank into the desert.”

One gave a faint smile: “I believe it’s still there. I’d like to show you.”

Xie Jianxun said seriously, “The desert’s dangerous, with bugs.”

One: “Exterminating the insect clan is the order issued to us by the Main Brain. My chip still holds combat records. No need to worry about the rest.”

It leaned down, affectionately pressing Its forehead to Xie Jianxun’s. Xie Jianxun’s eyes widened.

A moment later, Xie Jianxun left the storage room.

He felt a bit odd, but couldn’t pinpoint why.

The body heat from being too close?

Xie Jianxun touched his cheek with the back of his hand.

Good—no fever. Xie Jianxun, you’re great: calm, composed, unflappable!

He quickly regained his cool, sat by the floor-to-ceiling window in the inn’s first-floor lobby, lazily basking in the sun.

After a thought, Xie Jianxun dialed a comm number. The other side picked up immediately.

“Mr. Alex,”

Xie Jianxun leaned against the wall, saying lightly, “Do you know Mr. Magm’s phone number?”

A death glare came from ahead.

The young innkeeper stood at the front desk, phone in hand, expression grim, gaze shooting straight at him like a laser.

After a long pause, words squeezed through clenched teeth: “Do you have to call right in front of me?”

Fifteen minutes later, Magm pushed open Slieberlich’s doors. Xie Jianxun shook his hand reservedly and politely.

They sat at a small round table by the window and discussed details of heading into the desert.

Magm warmly welcomed Xie Jianxun’s joining and promised the trip would follow Joint Group decisions—no rash moves, no infighting, maximum safety for logistics.

Xie Jianxun was satisfied and signed the contract on the spot.

They agreed to follow team command after the City Lord’s Mansion announcement, preparing to enter the desert.

Ten minutes after Magm left, Basero burst into the inn like a whirlwind.

He first grinned at the not-so-happy-faced Alex, then cheerfully signed a team contract with One.

The caravan captain beamed: “Perfect now—both of you going, so no worrying about each other.”

Alex said, “Doesn’t the City Lord’s Mansion often release exploration news? Why is everyone so excited this time?”

Basero hinted obliquely, “This time is different. They say the fruit grove’s area is unusually large… you know what I mean.”

As if a code word had been mentioned, Alex snorted coldly and lowered his head.

Xie Jianxun looked over the contract twice.

Come to think of it, this trip out would probably take ten days to half a month before he returned, so he needed to ask Old Man Desmond for leave in advance…

Or rather.

Even if he came back, his life in Golden City would come to an end.

At that thought, he froze.

He had already grown accustomed to this peaceful life—wiping tables and sweeping floors under Alex’s directions, handling Delin’s headache-inducing little problems amid his constant yelling. Now, suddenly leaving this quiet little city felt somewhat unreal.

But he was just a passerby; he always had to leave eventually.

After all, he was, uh, a big shot with nine figures in pocket money on his Light Brain.

Soon, the City Lord’s Mansion released the official announcement.

Almost the entire city was buzzing about this newly discovered Golden Fruit Forest. Rumor had it that the City Lord’s Mansion had lost several reconnaissance drones before getting back the coordinates.

Magm also sent a communication, asking if Xie Jianxun was prepared, and forwarded him a list of supplies to procure.

“The team prepared your share, but we’re not sure how much you need,” the tall, burly caravan captain’s voice came through slightly distorted in the comms. “This is the list of already-purchased supplies. Anything else, you can buy yourself—the team will reimburse it.”

Xie Jianxun glanced at it and didn’t need anything.

He said warmly, “Thanks, I’ll take a look.”

Xie Jianxun smiled and agreed, then ended the call.

He gripped the handrail of the monorail with one hand, got off at his stop, and arrived at the entrance of the Mechanical Repair Shop.

Desmond, who had been missing for several days, was unexpectedly back in the shop, lounging lazily on his recliner and sipping tea. Delin sat beside him, repairing a difficulty level three precision part under his verbal guidance.

The small shop was still sweltering hot, with the air conditioning only cooling a tiny patch on the top of people’s heads.

As the shop door opened and closed, the young man muttered, “I already saw it—the announcement. You’re leaving in a couple days, right?”

The shopkeeper old man called out, “I saw it too! Aren’t you gonna think it over? Exploring the desert is so exhausting!”

He got off the recliner, and Xie Jianxun was surprised to notice that he looked much more haggard than before. Had he been pulling all-nighters caring for someone critically ill?

Xie Jianxun sat down at his own workbench and thought for a moment.

“There are a lot of things I need to do. I can’t avoid going just because it’s dangerous.”

He smiled. “So, Old Man Desmond, I’ll have to leave in a few days… I mean, quit my job.”

Desmond said indifferently, “I know, it’s just a business trip, right? A few days, and Delin can cover… huh?”

As he said this, both of them whipped their heads around, staring at Xie Jianxun in shock. They hadn’t expected him to directly request to resign.

Xie Jianxun said, “I’ve taught Delin how to read basic blueprints. He’ll grow quickly soon enough. The shop won’t miss me.”

Delin said in surprise, “After you come back from the desert, you’re not continuing?”

Xie Jianxun didn’t hide it. “I’ve saved up enough for my ship ticket. It’s time for me to go.”

At the end of the workday, Desmond gave his two apprentices red envelopes, saying they were overdue from when they’d started taking jobs independently—better late than never.

Xie Jianxun held the red envelope, a bit at a loss.

Desmond avoided looking at him. The shopkeeper old man was still a little angry, pursing his lips and rolling his eyes upward forcefully, as if that was the only way to express his feelings.

His student’s wings weren’t even fully grown yet, and he was already rushing off to venture into the wider world—what a worry!

For all his words, he still noticed the nail gun Xie Jianxun pulled out from his Light Brain.

He took the nail gun, examined it up and down for a moment, and his brows gradually furrowed.

“Made it yourself? Interesting.”

Desmond gave his sharp critique of Xie Jianxun’s homemade nail gun. “What the heck is this? The explosive power meets standards, but this detailing is shit-tier. It’s a miracle it even works. Show me the blueprints.”

Delin leaned over to look, puzzled. “I think it’s pretty impressive…”

“That’s why you still need more practice, kid.”

Desmond glanced at Xie Jianxun. “Leave the thing here with me first. I’ll fix it up for you—take it tomorrow. Hmph, you’ve got a lot left to learn.”

Xie Jianxun grinned and went along with it. “Yes, yes, yes. If there’s a chance in the future, please teach me more, Old Man Desmond.”

The countdown to entering the desert: one day left.