Chapter 158

Ai Yue pulled out the armor drive and inserted it into his belt, then snapped his fingers. "Target: The Moon."

27

Chapter Twenty-Seven: It's Time to Get Rich Through Hard Work

"I never imagined I'd be able to go to the moon one day..."

Even after standing on the platform of the Space Bridge, Pardofelis still seemed somewhat dazed. "When I first heard Brother Yue say something like that, I thought he was joking!"

Born a homeless child from Twilight Street, she may have fantasized as a child about whether there was a pure land on the moon where people could live happily. However, Pardofelis was more realistic. At that time, she thought more about going to a place with more rich people so that she could steal more valuable things.

"But why the sudden decision to go to the moon?"

Mobius looked at Ai Yue beside him, "I thought you didn't like it there."

Before the project led by Sue was launched, Mobius always thought that the project would be personally led by Ai Yue. After all, the moon is a place that many scholars yearn for. Because it has an environment that is completely different from Earth, there are countless projects waiting to be explored there.

However, Ai Yue seemed to show a resistance to the moon. Although he did not express this emotion openly, Mobius still managed to glean this information from Ai Yue indirectly.

"Things change over time,"

Ai Yue smiled and didn't continue on the topic. "Alright, everyone get ready. The Space Bridge teleportation might be accompanied by severe dizziness, so be careful not to throw up in your armor."

Ai Yue naturally couldn't tell Mobius that the true coordinates of the Cocoon of Finality were actually somewhere in the Imaginary Space corresponding to the moon, and the reason he didn't want to get close to the moon was because he was worried that his appearance would cause some uncontrollable changes.

The worst-case scenario is that the already damaged remnant of the Herrscher of the End on the moon will be suddenly activated, and then slap him, killing him, the biggest uncertainty factor.

But things are different now. He wields the power of the "Herrscher of Binding," meaning he has been observed by the Cocoon of Finality. Under these circumstances, if the Cocoon of Finality wants to do something to him, he will sense it and won't have to worry about being ambushed by Cocoon of Finality.

Now that we have a guarantee, we can use this method to try and fish out the Cocoon of Finality.

It's important to understand that after a series of failed plans, the Cocoon of Finality is perhaps in its weakest state in history. This means that trying to make contact with the other party at this time is actually the safest option.

So even if the moon wasn't originally on the travel itinerary, Ai Yue will still make a trip there soon.

As the Space Bridge device was activated, the two ring-shaped components began to rotate. Once their frequency reached a certain level, a dazzling white light gradually enveloped everyone standing on the platform.

The teleportation via the Space Bridge is not as problematic as the virtual Teleportation Gate that Ai Yue researched; in fact, it feels like being thrown into a washing machine.

Although Ai Yue reminded everyone that this was just a hallucination caused by spatial dislocation, the dizziness still really affected everyone's senses, causing a variety of physiological reactions.

The most exaggerated one was probably Mobius. She was almost overwhelmed by this feeling, turning into some kind of fluid and swaying inside the armor. As a result, the armor, which had lost its human support, collapsed to the ground, giving people a feeling of a horror movie.

As the white light gradually dissipated, the sensation finally subsided, and Mobius quickly returned to normal before anyone noticed, thus preventing a second wave of panic.

Once everything finally returned to normal, everyone was able to see their surroundings clearly.

They had arrived at a completely unfamiliar place. All around them were dilapidated buildings and ruins, and in the distance was a barren land filled with dust. Even through the armor, they instinctively held their breath, trying to prevent themselves from inhaling the dust.

"Is this the moon?"

Pardofelis's tone was clearly disappointed. "It feels almost the same as that wasteland next to Twilight Street."

"After all, it's a planet devoid of life and lacks the potential to give rise to life, so its desolation is to be expected."

Aponia, standing nearby, said, "However, these ruins seem to prove that someone had been working on the moon long before we arrived."

"According to historians' research, advanced civilizations existed on Earth before us, and they, too, were destroyed by Honkai collapses."

Mobius picked up the conversation, "If we can't defeat the enemy called Honkai, perhaps in the end we can only leave such traces... no, perhaps we won't even be able to leave traces of this extent."

Thinking about how few ancient civilization sites can be found on Earth, Mobius's tone became somewhat somber at the end.

"Isn't this exactly what we've been trying to avoid?"

Eden walked to the side and reached out to touch the traces left by human hands. "What a beautiful architectural style. This must be a civilization with a development trajectory that is significantly different from ours."

"Why are you all so pessimistic?"

Of the group, only Ai Yue maintained his smile. "Don't worry, the Pre-Civilization failed because they didn't have me. But since I'm here, they will definitely..."

Before he could finish speaking, he was interrupted by the flustered Prometheus II flying over, "Doctor Ai Yue, you once told me that I should stop you immediately if you say such things."

At the same time, footsteps could be heard not far away.

Hearing footsteps on such a desolate planet, where theoretically no living people exist, is actually a terrifying thing. For example, Pardofelis was already so frightened that she hid behind Ai Yue. However, the other party appeared in everyone's sight. It was Su, who was assigned by Ai Yue to work here.

"Welcome to the moon, everyone."

As Su approached, he also connected to everyone's communication system and was able to transmit his voice, "How do you feel seeing this scene before you?"

"You seem to be a little late,"

Mobius retorted bluntly, "Is your research base really that far away?"

"After all, we need to preserve the integrity of the site, so our chosen location is indeed far away from here,"

Sue didn't seem to care about Mobius's attitude. "Please come with me. The environment in the base is definitely better."

"May I stay here a little longer?"

At this moment, Eden, who was standing nearby, said, "I would like to admire more of the traces left by previous civilizations."

"Sure."

Ai Yue nodded. "Number Two, I'll trouble you to stay and keep Eden."

"Leave it to me."

Number Two nodded, then floated beside Eden. "Miss Eden, my database contains all the current research literature on previous civilizations. If you have any questions, I might be able to help you."

Eden smiled and nodded in thanks, "Then I'll leave it to you."

Ai Yue and the others followed Su away from there, but at the last moment, Ai Yue suddenly turned his head as if possessed and took one last look at Eden.

The most dazzling star of humanity's golden age stood on that empty platform, gazing into the distance. Above her was the infinite universe, and all around her were the ruins of civilization. It wasn't a particularly brilliant composition, but it was deeply imprinted in Ai Yue's mind.

In the original storyline, Eden also had the opportunity to live until the next civilization emerged with the help of the Divine Keys, which allowed All Things Dormant. However, she refused this opportunity that countless people dreamed of and chose to end with the civilization she loved. In the last moments of her life, she sang her last song.

Such scenes only exist in the text descriptions in the story and are not accompanied by any CG, but at this moment, Ai Yue thought of this scene.

Only when Eden was out of sight did Ai Yue turn his gaze away. He looked up and found Aponia looking at him.

The other person's voice reached his ears at that moment. "What are you thinking about?"

"Just some trivial matters."

Ai Yue smiled and said, "Humanity will definitely defeat the Honkai."

"Certainly."

Aponia paused for a moment, then nodded slightly. "I've never doubted that, because that's what you said."

As someone familiar with Ai Yue, Aponia knew very well that the other party's sudden remark must mean that he had thought of something he couldn't tell anyone else, something that had been weighing on his mind.

So she would also tell Ai Yue that no matter what happened, she would always stand by his side.

The spiritual exchange was only a fleeting moment, so the interaction between the two did not attract the attention of others. With the combined effect of the armor's performance and the low gravity environment of the moon, the group soon saw the lunar research base established under Su's supervision.

Although it has only been a few dozen days since Su took over the project, the research base has already grown to a considerable size. From a distance, one can see many drones busily at work.

"Is Queen controlling this place as well?"

Mobius, standing to the side, couldn't help but ask.

"Yes, there is a Queen branch here, which is responsible for 70% of the work in the entire research base, including but not limited to expanding the base, mining minerals, and exploring unknown areas."

Ai Yue nodded. "By the way, the work here is easier, so Queen often asks me to move the mainframe to the moon."

Mobius could only give a subtle look. "You're still not doing enough work. I suggest you transfer to help Vill-V with the ashes."

"Welcome to the Fifth Research Institute."

As the group entered the base, Su also voluntarily deactivated his armor, saying, "The base has a life support system, so there's no need to use the armor."

After being disinfected in the isolation ward, the group finally entered the base.

"Wow, we're free!"

After removing her armor, Pardofelis couldn't help but shudder. "The lunar environment is definitely not comfortable. It's much better indoors!"

Pardofelis has very keen senses, so she had a hard time adapting to the unfamiliar environment of the moon, which is completely different from Earth. As a result, she was somewhat listless throughout the journey. Now that she has returned to her familiar environment, she has finally become active again.

How have things been lately?

Ai Yue then began to look around the base. "You haven't been overworking, have you?"

Due to the special environment of the moon, very few people are able to come here, so there is currently a shortage of manpower. Su alone has to take charge of many things at the same time. Ai Yue saw that Su looked a little tired after being disarmed, which is why he asked such a question.

"Actually, it's not too bad. Although the drones sometimes have difficulty understanding my commands, they are quite efficient at work."

Su smiled and said, "But Doctor Ai Yue, the most crucial issue you gave me is currently making no progress, which is why I'm so worried about it."

"Didn't I tell you that it didn't matter?"

Ai Yue waved his hand, "It would be best if there were results, but it doesn't matter if there aren't. You'd better not waste too much energy on it."

At this point, seemingly unwilling to continue the discussion, Ai Yue changed the subject, "What's the situation on the moon now?"

"The Honkai Energy concentration is extremely low; you could even say there's almost no trace of Honkai."

Su tapped a few times on the control panel, projecting a map. "The few readings are all concentrated at the site of the ancient civilization; the other places are harmless."

"And then what happens after you've set up camp?"

Ai Yue continued to ask.

"No, you should also have records of the data samples on your end."

Su scratched his head, a hint of confusion appearing in his gentle expression. "We even had to start using backup plans because the Honkai Energy we collected was so little. Fortunately, the moon is rich in resources, so we don't need to worry about energy for the time being."

But then he smiled and said, "In addition, we have also extracted many valuable resources on the moon, which can be transported to Earth once the Space Bridge is officially put into use."

As he spoke, he turned on another projector to show everyone the various resources collected from the moon.

"Wait, is that a gemstone?"

Pardofelis hadn't paid much attention to these things at first, but after glancing at them, she spotted something that piqued her interest and her eyes widened as she leaned closer. "And there's more than one?"

"Yes, after all, the moon has abundant mineral resources, and they have hardly been mined."

Su smiled and pulled up a few pictures. "It might be a bit difficult around here, but if we go further out, we might even find an open-pit mine."

"Ughhhhhh!!!"

Looking at the pictures Su showed her, Pardofelis was so excited her tail practically thrashed like a propeller. She suddenly turned to Ai Yue and exclaimed, "Brother Yue, let's go dig for gems!"

"OK."

Ai Yue didn't dampen Pardofelis's enthusiasm, but nodded, "The routine inspection is done, so now it's time for private time."

28

Chapter Twenty-Eight: You can't just pick this up.

As it turns out, mining is indeed a technical skill.

Pardofelis excitedly led Ai Yue and his group to explore the desolate surface of the moon, searching for areas where gems might be found. However, she chose several locations, but ultimately returned empty-handed.

This doesn't mean that the places she chose didn't have anything good; quite the opposite, in fact, the drones detected all sorts of resources at her chosen locations, but none of them contained the gems she wanted.

"That's not right, how could it not be there?"

After a series of disappointments, Pardofelis couldn't help but start to wonder, "I had a feeling there would be something good down there. My intuition wouldn't lie, would it?"

"Your intuition is right, there's a titanium mine down there,"

After looking at the data provided by the drone, Ai Yue shrugged. "In terms of quality and quantity, this titanium ore is much more valuable than gemstones."

As a metal with extremely high performance.

"But I want the gem!"

Pardofelis was fixated on sparkly things and clearly had no interest in metallic ores. "Gemstones, gemstones, where are the gemstones?"

"If all else fails, we can just use the map Su gave us to find it."

Ai Yue watched as Pardofelis began chanting the incantation and couldn't help but laugh, "Why bother with all that?"

"That won't do! It's a rare opportunity, and we won't find anything good if we just follow someone else's map!"

Pardofelis declared confidently, "What I want is a unique treasure!"

After saying that, she suddenly realized something and turned to look at Ai Yue: "Uh, Brother Yue, you'll stay with me, right?"