First Interstellar Guide Chapter 101: Extra 2: Spirit Fox Legion

Chapter 101: Extra 2: Spirit Fox Legion

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

After Lu Zexuan became the deputy leader of the Spirit Fox Legion, he could see Xie Ran every day at work. Although everyone knew they were a couple, they couldn’t show affection in front of their subordinates. During work hours, they maintained a professional and responsible attitude.

The Spirit Fox Legion finally recruited 50 sentinels with A-level or above, and there were also 50 guides. As the first special legion in the Federation with an equal number of sentinels and guides, their every move attracted widespread attention from the outside world.

On October 1st, Xie Ran organized the first general assembly of the Spirit Fox Legion. He wore a well-tailored military uniform, with a tall and extraordinary posture, reminiscent of his mother, General Xie Xi. Lu Zexuan accompanied him, wearing the same military uniform. The sight of the two walking side by side excited many sentinels and guides in the audience.

The legion members below stood in formation, saluting in unison, “General!”

Lu Zexuan and Xie Ran returned a standard military salute to them.

Xie Ran spoke loudly, “Welcome everyone to join the Spirit Fox Legion. I am Lieutenant General Xie Ran, the commander of the legion, and this is our deputy commander, Lieutenant General Lu Zexuan.”

Warm applause erupted from the audience.

After the applause subsided, Xie Ran continued, “The Spirit Fox Legion was established this year and has the fewest members among all the legions in the Federation, but our responsibility is extremely important. As the first diplomatic legion in Federation history, we need to visit other planets in the universe and establish communication channels with alien life forms, which is of epoch-making significance. Each and every one of you is one of the finest warriors of the Federation. I hope that in the future, we can take care of each other and move forward together!”

Xie Ran, only twenty-six years old this year, became the commander of the legion at a young age. Perhaps inheriting his mother’s talent, he appeared calm and decisive on stage, with the demeanor of a great General. Lu Zexuan looked at his handsome figure and felt even more admiration and affection for him.

After Xie Ran finished speaking, he looked at Lu Zexuan and said, “Now, let’s have General Lu say a few words to everyone.”

Lu Zexuan walked to Xie Ran’s side and said, “The mission of the Spirit Fox Legion is to explore alien planets and establish dialog with alien life forms. We will face many unknown dangers in the universe. Human understanding of the universe is very limited, and there have been instances of alien life forms invading our planet, nearly causing the tragedy of the capital star’s fall. Therefore, we must remain highly vigilant and never underestimate the enemy.” Lu Zexuan glanced across the audience. “All sentinels, step forward!”

At his command, the fifty elite sentinels of the Spirit Fox Legion stepped forward in unison.

Lu Zexuan continued, “Protecting guides is the duty of sentinels. From now on, I am the direct commander of the Spirit Fox Legion Sentinel Special Forces. You must obey my orders and ensure the safety of the guides. Understand?”

The sentinels responded in unison, “Understood!”

Lu Zexuan nodded. “Very good.”

He looked at Xie Ran and thought, “I’m done speaking, General Xie.”

Xie Ran smiled faintly and said to the audience, “You have one day to prepare. Tomorrow morning at 8 o’clock, everyone will gather at the landing pad on the 100th floor of the White Tower. Dismissed!”

The two walked away side by side, while the soldiers below continued to watch their backs.

Someone whispered, “They’re so in sync!”

“Can I say I’m melted by their eye contact?”

“Cough, are you here to serve in the Spirit Fox Legion or to eat dog food?”

Just then, a girl’s clear voice rang out, “Serving in the legion and shipping CP aren’t mutually exclusive!”

Beside them was the nimble Hummingbird.

Some people recognized her and ran over excitedly, saying, “Sis Bird, why are you also joining the Spirit Fox Legion?”

Hummingbird chuckled, “The Spirit Fox Legion opened recruitment, so I signed up.” As the number one fan of Ranran and Lu Zexuan’s CP, she couldn’t miss this excellent opportunity to enjoy some dog food. Although there were many comrades in the Eagle Special Forces, she wanted to protect Ranran more.

Of course, she wouldn’t actually get the chance to protect Ranran, since General Lu and General Xie were inseparable and would surely personally protect him. However, just being able to see the two of them in the Spirit Fox Legion was satisfying enough for her.

Many people gathered around, gossiping about the relationship between Xie Ran and Lu Zexuan.

Back in the office, Xie Ran once again went over the expedition arrangements, making sure nothing was overlooked before finally feeling at ease. After careful discussion, the first planet for the Spirit Fox Legion’s expedition was chosen as Planet S107 in the Dorado system.

Initially, the Eagle Special Forces were sent there for investigation but were surrounded by alien creatures disguised as plants due to negligence. Xie Ran risked exposure to save Lu Zexuan by charging into the group of monsters, revealing his nine-tailed fox form to Lu Zexuan for the first time. Later, the Eagle Special Forces returned safely to the capital star and were tasked with capturing the alien creatures there for research. They caught two small monsters, and Xie Ran had conversed with them, confirming that mental communication was possible.

Moreover, when he saved Lu Zexuan, he had also hypnotized the leader of the creatures. The mental energy of that leader was not as strong as that of the Spider Queen or the tendrils Octopus, so Xie Ran should be able to handle it.

Xie Ran decided to return to Dorado because the planet held special significance for the Federation. The rare mineral resources detected by the Survey Bureau could help upgrade human transportation equipment such as starships and spacecraft, speeding up space travel. Furthermore, when he released the two small monsters back to their homeworld, he sensed that their desire to attack was not very strong. If captured by humans, they would probably cry pitifully and might be able to reach a cooperative agreement through negotiations.

If successful, it would be a major historical breakthrough for the entire Federation.

Lu Zexuan fully supported Xie Ran’s decision, and after careful consideration, they formulated a detailed expedition plan.

That evening, Xie Ran returned to the Xie family residence and bid farewell to his aunt, “Aunt, this is the first official visit to an alien planet since I became the commander of the legion. I don’t know how long it will take, so take care of yourself.”

Although Xie Chen was reluctant to see him go, she knew Xie Ran couldn’t stay at home forever. He had his own career and dreams. She hugged Xie Ran lightly and said, “You must also be careful and stay safe.”

Xie Ran replied, “Don’t worry, the Spirit Fox Legion has just recruited 50 excellent sentinels, and Zexuan is leading them personally. He has extensive experience in combat with alien creatures over the years. Moreover, the planet we’re going to this time is not unfamiliar to us, so there shouldn’t be any problems.”

Xie Chen breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this and said, “Alright, then I’ll be here in the capital star, looking forward to your triumphant return.”

***

On October 2nd, 500 years after the founding of the Federation, under the leadership of General Xie Ran and General Lu Zexuan, the Spirit Fox Legion officially set off to visit the Dorado star system. At 8 o’clock in the morning, everyone arrived on time in front of the “Spirit Fox” starship at the landing pad of the White Tower.

The starship had sleek flame-colored patterns on both sides, resembling the nine tails of a fox. The entire starship was red and white, symbolizing Xie Ran’s dual spirit body of the white fox and the nine-tailed fox. This starship was specially developed by the Federal Mech Engineering Department for the Spirit Fox Legion.

Due to the small number of members in the Spirit Fox Legion, the “Spirit Fox” starship was the smallest among the five main legion ships. It boasted extreme speed and agility in combat, equipped with a large number of heavy firepower weapons capable of instantly destroying a city. As the starship set off, the flame-colored tails would sway gently, resembling a lively fox leaping between intergalactic spaces.

Xie Ran really liked the appearance of this starship and said in his mind, “From now on, we’ll be working here.”

Lu Zexuan nodded, “Yes, I hope this starship will accompany us until we retire.”

The two smiled at each other and walked onto the starship side by side.

The soldiers had already gathered, and when they saw them, they stood in neat rows and saluted. Xie Ran returned the salute to everyone and said, “The destination of this departure is Planet S107 in the Dorado system. Let me briefly introduce the situation of the target planet.”

A dense array of branch-like plants appeared on the holographic screen in front of them. Xie Ran pointed to the deep purple “plants” and said, “These things that look like trees are actually the claws of an alien creature. They live in colonies, possess high intelligence, and have a tribal leader. Once, they disguised themselves as plants and launched a surprise attack after humans ventured deep into their territory, almost wiping out the entire Eagle Special Forces at that time.”

Xie Ran paused and continued, “We must treat alien creatures with awe and not act recklessly. After arriving at Dorado in the afternoon, all sentinels will follow General Lu’s command, and all guides will accompany me.”

Everyone yelled out, “Understood!”

The Spirit Fox starship swiftly made its way through space, and after six hours of travel, they arrived at the Dorado star system precisely at two in the afternoon. As the starship hovered over Planet S107, Lu Zexuan deployed drones for reconnaissance and indeed found that the alien creatures were still disguised as plants, motionless on the ground, as if asleep.

Xie Ran whispered, “Get ready to move.”

Lu Zexuan nodded and turned to the others, “Lin Fengyao, Kalman, and Kaiser, each lead a team. Form a triangular formation and cover the advance. Now, let’s split into groups. Each sentinel is responsible for protecting one guide. Remember, keep the altitude of the ships above 100 meters and do not initiate any form of attack on the alien creatures!”

“Yes!” The legion’s sentinels and guides immediately began grouping up, with two people sharing one ship.

Lu Zexuan also boarded a ship with Xie Ran, personally acting as his guard.

The nearly fifty ships of the Spirit Fox Legion formed a triangular formation and departed, flying at a low altitude of 100 meters.

Xie Ran’s voice came through the wireless earpiece, “All guides, extend your mental tendrils to the ground and find the brains of these creatures. Note that their brains are spherical with large eyes.”

Everyone immediately followed suit. However, it seemed that the brains of these creatures were buried underground, and the guides searched for a long time without success in making a connection.

Lu Zexuan said quietly, “You handle the ship. I’ll lure them out.”

Xie Ran looked at him and said, “Be careful.”

Lu Zexuan gave him a reassuring look and jumped out of the ship. His shoulders suddenly spread out into huge white wings as he dove towards the ground like lightning, wielding an electromagnetic blade that traced a sleek arc in the air.

The pretending-to-sleep monsters sensed the approach of humans and immediately launched an attack!

Below the ground seemed to be surging with movement. From above, the entire planet seemed to be experiencing a severe earthquake. One after another, monsters jumped out, their branch-like claws waving wildly. Under the protection of their claws, one could faintly see their spherical heads.

After feigning an attack and “activating” them, Lu Zexuan promptly retreated. He quickly flew back to the ship, and with a sharp S-shaped turn in the air, Xie Ran smoothly caught him.

The two were already mentally connected and didn’t need to say much. Lu Zexuan jumped back into the cockpit, taking control from Xie Ran. Xie Ran immediately extended his mental tendrils, the red ones floating like ribbons in the air, quickly connecting to the brain of one of the monsters.

At the same time, the other guides of the Spirit Fox Legion swiftly extended various colored mental tendrils to connect with these creatures. The sentinels piloted the ships, protecting the guides from attack. Thus, the guides could focus their minds on communicating with the creatures.

“Hello, we are humans from the Phoenix star system.”

“Don’t be alarmed, we mean you no harm and won’t attack you.”

“Please calm down.”

The power of mental communication among the guides was indeed formidable. After dozens of guides simultaneously used mental suggestion and emotional calming abilities, the group of monsters, who were originally ferociously attacking them, gradually calmed down.

One small monster suddenly said, “I know that person, he once released me.”

A female guide’s voice came through the earpiece, “General Xie, there’s a small monster here who claims to know you.”

Lu Zexuan immediately steered the ship over, and Xie Ran connected to its brain, sensing a familiar feeling. He saw memories in the creature’s mind about the Eagle Special Forces and himself releasing it. The screen in front of him also showed a picture of the creature on the ground with teary eyes.

Xie Ran smiled and said, “It’s you? Haven’t seen you in half a year, why are you still such a crybaby?”

The small monster choked up and said, “I’m scared! Aren’t you here to capture us?”

Xie Ran reassured him, “No. Look, we didn’t bring those large nets this time, and we’re not attacking you. Be good, tell me, where is your leader? I’d like to have a chat with him.”

The creature looked at Xie Ran suspiciously, “Really? You’re not here to capture us?”

Xie Ran coaxed gently, “Trust me, didn’t I release you properly last time?”

After pondering for a moment, the creature hesitantly said, “Okay, I’ll take you to see my mom.”

In the group of monsters, one suddenly began crawling in a certain direction. Lu Zexuan piloted the ship to follow, and Xie Ran followed it to the depths of the group of monsters, where they saw a noticeably small creature.

Unlike the leaders of other creatures, this one seemed smarter the smaller it was? Xie Ran connected to the leader’s brain and spoke gently, “Hello, sorry to disturb you. We are humans from the Phoenix star system and would like to talk to you about something.”

A cold voice came through in his mind, “Humans? After we drove you away last time, you dare to come again?”

Xie Ran said, “Last time there was a misunderstanding. We need a black ore on this planet. That ore is of no use to you, correct?”

The leader hesitated, “That useless rock? You want those stones?”

Xie Ran replied, “Yes, we want those stones. Let’s negotiate terms. Establish a safe zone and allow humans to send troops to mine the ore on the planet. You can’t attack humans in the safe zone, and humans won’t invade your territory. As an exchange of interests, we can provide you with some things you need.”

After careful consideration, the leader asked tentatively, “We need water. Can you provide it?”

***

The news of the Spirit Fox Legion’s visit to the Dorado star system has sparked widespread attention from the federal media and the public. This was the first time the Spirit Fox Legion, under Xie Ran’s leadership, visited an alien star system and engaged in exchange with extraterrestrial beings. People were unsure; what if the aliens refused to negotiate with humans and instead launched an attack? Wouldn’t it be very dangerous for the Spirit Fox Legion?

Marshal Qin Xiao, General Xie Chen, General Lu Tingyu, and President Harrison anxiously awaited news from the Spirit Fox Legion. They all thought Xie Ran would have to go through a bloody battle to return.

No one expected that, just after one day, Xie Ran would safely return to the capital star with good news. “The creatures on Dorado lack water and requested an equal amount of water in exchange for their useless ‘rocks’. I negotiated the boundaries of a safe zone with them and promised that humans would not cross it. Now, it’s time for us to fulfill our promise.”

Everyone was stunned. The negotiation was successful? It only took one day!

Different species couldn’t communicate verbally, but guides could communicate mentally. Xie Ran had indeed established a mental communication channel with the alien beings, avoiding war and sacrifice, and obtained the most needed resources for humans through peaceful means, through the exchange of interests.

Not a single person was sacrificed. Not even a single bullet was wasted!

President Harrison shook Xie Ran’s hand excitedly, “Fantastic! Thank you, General. You truly deserve the title of Ambassador!”

Qin Xiao also approached, smiling, “This is a great start for the Spirit Fox Legion.”

Xie Chen looked at her nephew with relief. Unconsciously, Ranran had grown up. He single-handedly established the Spirit Fox Legion, opening a new era of intergalactic diplomacy led by guides. Wouldn’t her sister and brother-in-law in the afterlife be proud?

Xie Ran and Lu Zexuan exchanged a glance. The negotiation went so smoothly because this was the third time they had dealt with the creatures on Dorado. Xie Ran understood them better and knew they weren’t a vicious species with strong aggressive tendencies, so he could reason with them and exchange interests. In the future, facing unknown planets and unseen creatures might not be as smooth. But at least, there was now a mental communication channel, which could avoid many unnecessary wars.

The Spirit Fox Legion successfully reached an agreement with extraterrestrial beings without losing a single soldier—a groundbreaking piece of news that quickly spread throughout the federation. Many people became loyal fans of Xie Ran and Lu Zexuan, and the Spirit Fox Legion became a praised diplomatic powerhouse in the federation.

The names of Xie Ran and Lu Zexuan were destined to be written together in the federation’s history books. Perhaps hundreds of years later, people would still remember that there was once a pair of sentinel and guide lovers who traveled to various planets as diplomats. Their miraculous experiences in the universe would become the stuff of legends for future generations to marvel at.