Out of caution, while tailing the marauder fleet, she had left a Spotter in every star system. These Lord Bugs possessed basic intelligence and animal instincts, knew how to hide and keep out of sight, and had exceptional scouting and exploration abilities. They were also Lord Bugs, capable of transmitting information across light-years to their Overmind, Xia Li, in real time through the hive mind established by the Leviathan's Nest.
At that moment, however, what she received was a warning signal.
So who the hell had shown up now?
Through the hive mind, Xia Li shared the vision of a Spotter over a hundred light-years away. All she saw was the fading light of forty or fifty warships slipping into a jump channel at the edge of a star system and vanishing in an instant.
It had happened too quickly. Even with Xia Li's eyesight, she hadn't been able to tell whose warships they were. But she knew that the star system where the Spotter was located was the Cornflower Gamma system, just two jumps from New Lushun. If that fleet really was heading here, then it would need only one more jump to reach New Lushun.
For a high-speed warship or a passenger liner, that meant less than half a day of travel. If she tried to retrace her route and slip away now, there was a very good chance she'd run straight into this unidentified fleet.
At this point, Xia Li's mind was clearer than ever.
She guided her Leviathan along the edge of the star system, slowly gliding toward the gravity-well channel on the other side—the one leading into the heart of the Commonwealth colonies.
That way, she could keep the battlefield under surveillance while still being able to make a quick getaway if necessary. She knew