An Unexpected Clue

Military equipment usually took stability into consideration. One could even find that a lot of military equipment looked rather old-fashioned.

But when it came to space pirates, performance and firepower were what mattered. They would even sacrifice stability to modify their own ships, turning them into monsters. Otherwise, even if a Sixth-Tier Civilization spacecraft had been pulled out of Warp Flight by temporal distortion, its engine should not have malfunctioned.

That space exoskeleton device was armed to the teeth. It looked hideous, without the slightest hint of aesthetic appeal, yet it resembled a hedgehog. Just one of them could probably match the firepower of a small warship.

Especially the last of the four exoskeletons. He was holding a huge "gun barrel" in both hands, making him look especially ferocious.

Bzzz~

A communication came through the public channel.

"Kid, you should know what we're after. We're principled pirates. We only rob wealth; we don't take lives, and we won't take your ship either. As long as you obediently take us to the place where you obtained the Spirit Crystal, we'll let you go."

A soul-voice that constantly shifted through different codes rang out, leaving Xuan Ye somewhat stunned. He then connected to the channel and asked with some puzzlement,

"You really want to go there?"

"Of course! You really are hiding a secret! Just take us there, and we'll definitely keep our promise and let you go!"

"Then I really ought to thank you."

Xuan Ye scratched his head, seemingly quite grateful for their "kindness."

"Haha, since you understand, hurry up and open the hatch to let us in. Or do you want us to force our way in?"

Hearing Xuan Ye's praise, the speaker seemed rather pleased with himself.

"There's no need to open the hatch. I'll just take you