A bald man stood on a black warship drifting in space.
This warship had already left the core battle zone of the Capital Star, and the drifting in space seemed exceptionally dull.
"Colonel Qi, donāt tell me you havenāt noticed somethingās off here. Even someone as rough as me can sense it," the bald man said, looking at the vast starry sky, chewing gum expressionlessly.
"The will of the higher-ups in the Military Department, even if I speculate recklessly, wonāt get any better results. As soldiers... arenāt you and I just weapons in the hands of the country?"
The gentle-faced young man gazed ahead, his tall stature making his military uniform appear even more upright.
The two were standing on the bridge of the Eighth Tier Hidden Land Battleship, with a group of officers silently operating the ship behind them.
"Iām not... Iāve already resigned," Ruan Xiongfei muttered, touching his bald head and curling his lips.
Hearing this, Qi Longxiangās eyes sparkled with a smile, shaking his head, "Captain Ruan, if you truly got rid of your soldier identity, given your nature, it would probably be more painful than if someone killed you. Now youāve been following my Special Service Fleet and are about to leave the Capital Star Ring, do I really need to spell things out for you?"
Seeing Qi Longxiang gesture vaguely above with his right hand, Ruan Xiongfei waved his hands, "Alright, alright, I havenāt fully resigned, okay?"
"Hahaha, Captain Ruan is indeed an interesting person."
"You pretending not to understand when you do is really annoying, always speaking in circles," Ruan Xiongfei remarked gruffly, finding people like Qi Longxiang the most headache-inducing.
"Captain Ruan, the longer you stay in the quagmire of the Capital Star, the deeper you sink. Now, I really... admire you," Qi Longxiang smiled, though his eyes were unusually calm.
Though seemingly prestigious as the Chief Staff Officer of the Staff Department, real power was curtailed by many, and now... some matters didnāt even bother with excuses, directly indicating he needed to stay out of them.
[Is it just because Iām too hard to control?]
Qi Longxiang gazed at space indifferently, a trace of disdain flashing in his eyes.
Ruan Xiongfei turned his head, looking at this extraordinary talent regarded as the best in the history of Dingchuan Academy, a trace of regret flashing in his eyes.
"People have always thought youāre the best graduate to emerge from the younger generation of Ding Chuan. But the further you are from the Capital Star, the less you understand the stringent rules here. The jealousy of those useless people would make it difficult for someone as ambitious as you to stand out."
"No wonder Captain Ruan is renowned as a hero. I too once fantasized about traversing the starry sky like you, revenging freely, but sometimes things are beyond our control."
"Itās good for a man to have a bit of ambition," Ruan Xiongfei said, curling his lips.
At this moment, a major hurriedly ran over, handing a communicator to Qi Longxiang, "Colonel, a communication from the Military Departmentās General Staff, confidentiality level A."
After speaking, he bowed slightly to Ruan Xiongfei, "Captain Ruan."
"Lin Hao kid, Iāve been on board for days, and youāre only greeting me now?"
Lin Hao, the major responsible for freshman training when Mu Fan entered, heard this and immediately wore an apologetic smile. That tough and competent demeanor he showed in front of others immediately vanished. "Itās a rule of the fleet. If I break it, Iām afraid of Colonel Qi. Captain Ruan, this messageās confidentiality level is A, and Iām not qualified to eavesdrop. Iāll apologize to you later."
"Hahaha, go, go," Ruan Xiongfei said, laughing heartily at Lin Haoās trembling chicken-like appearance in front of him.
After Lin Hao left, Ruan Xiongfei turned to Qi Longxiang, "Iāll go stay over there, you go ahead."
"No need, this communication isnāt S-level confidentiality, so Captain Ruan doesnāt need to avoid it."
Qi Longxiang gently pressed his palm, indicating Ruan Xiongfei didnāt need to leave, and then he directly answered the vibrating Sky Communication in front of the bald man, ensuring the video capture direction avoided Ruan Xiongfei.
A middle-aged man with a major general rank appeared on the screen. Seeing Qi Longxiang salute, he nodded and said in a deep voice, "Long Xiang, thereās a disturbance detected in the G-2366 defense zone. Thereās a clue suggesting abnormal energy reactions there. The Special Service Fleet you lead is the nearest, quickly go and investigate. Itās urgent. Iām waiting for your report at the Military Department."
"Yes, General."
Qi Longxiang calmly saluted, the screen turned off, and he picked up the shipās command communicator.
"Adjust coordinates to the G-2366 defense zone, be alert, reduce speed by 20%."
"The conversation was so straightforward, and youāre... openly defying orders?"
Ruan Xiongfei was somewhat stunned; this kidās handling of the conversation was even more decisive and efficient than he imagined. Receiving an urgent notice and instead of accelerating, he slowed down.
He had always thought this kid was a die-hard loyalist to the Federation.
The person just now was a high official in the Third Military Departmentās Staff Department, ranked two levels higher, supposedly Qi Longxiangās direct superior.
"Both sides know very well. Recently some positions in the Staff Department have opened up, so naturally, I canāt stay in the Capital Star. Captain Ruan, do you believe that before I reach that defense zone, there will definitely be other coordinates sent over?"
Qi Longxiang smiled nonchalantly.
"I believe it! But your attitude, I havenāt seen a second one in two years."
Ruan Xiongfei grinned, giving a thumbs-up.
"What about two years ago?" Qi Longxiang made a light-hearted joke.
"Haha!"
The two laughed heartily together.
Buzz~
Buzz~
Ruan Xiongfeiās right wrist vibrated continuously.
Qi Longxiang gazed at the vast starry sky outside the window and said casually, "Your comrade is contacting you."
Ruan Xiongfei raised his wrist speechlessly. With the secret communicator of the S-team, anyone could be fooled, but not this spiritually powerful near-genius who had already broken through the Fifth Tier.
Taking out a hexagonal communicator, Ruan Xiongfei pressed his thumb, his right ear twitching slightly.
Then a trace of doubt flashed on his face.
After closing the communication again, Ruan Xiongfei looked puzzledly at Qi Longxiang, "My comrades have already reached the Capital Star? Why didnāt I receive any news earlier?"
A rare ripple flashed in Qi Longxiangās eyes, usually as calm as water. He tilted his neck slightly, seemingly scanning Ruan Xiongfei for a moment.
Then, with an unusually certain tone, he calmly said, "Clearly, someone doesnāt want you to receive the news."
Hearing this, Ruan Xiongfei was momentarily stunned, with intense light flashing in his eyes. After a moment, he lowered his head in thought.
Qi Longxiang stood quietly aside, saying nothing.
After a full two minutes, Ruan Xiongfei finally lifted his head, "Colonel Qi, I wonder if your fleet is willing to lend me a transport ship?"
"Not looking for Instructor Zhou Yang? The message is very clear now, and it bypasses the Military Departmentās pursuit. However, your coming and going would likely invalidate the location. Are you sure you want to give it up?"
"Iāll talk about it later. Iāll go have a look first," Ruan Xiongfei replied affirmatively.
"Alright... no loans." Qi Longxiang smiled and shook his head.