First Interstellar Guide Chapter 46: Flame Nine-Tailed Fox

Chapter 46: Flame Nine-Tailed Fox

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

Yu Ran hadn’t been idle on the starship. He had been using his mental tendrils to sense the emotional fluctuations outside. He could clearly feel the growing anger of the monsters. When Lu Zexuan rescued one sentinel after another and severed their limbs, the monster’s rage reached its peak—especially from the two “hills” he had observed earlier. They must be the leaders.

This was a strange collective animal. From the high altitude of the starship, Yu Ran couldn’t see their specific appearance, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that they were similar to the red-eyed spiders he had encountered in the Triangulum Galaxy—

They possessed high intelligence, great patience, and obeyed the commands of their leaders. The obedience and discipline of the entire group were even stricter than that of human armies.

When Yu Ran initially explored the ground with his mental tendrils, they didn’t react at all, even fooling Yu Ran himself. But when Lu Zexuan led the team deeper into their territory, all the monsters suddenly launched a fierce attack. Their strategy of “luring the enemy deep and catching them in a trap” was no less inferior to human tactics.

Lu Zexuan, exhausted, risked his life to save every member of the Eagle Special Forces. This kind of captain was truly admirable.

At this moment, Yu Ran had only one thought—those who carry the firebrand should not perish in the snow.

Lu Zexuan had saved so many people, but now he was in trouble. Yu Ran couldn’t just watch Lu Zexuan sacrifice himself here! So, without hesitation, he piloted the airship and rushed forward. High-intelligence creatures should be dealt with by guides!

Yu Ran flew the airship calmly, his right foot pressing down on the accelerator. In an instant, the airship’s speed reached its peak. Everyone saw the blue flames beneath the airship draw a beautiful arc in the sky like a shooting star, then disappearing into the distance.

In the eyes of the sentinels, his actions seemed like suicide.

Tang Ce, who was hovering above the “hills,” saw an airship rushing into the midst of the monsters. In the blink of an eye, it was engulfed by countless claws. Before he could react, he heard Mohr’s anxious shout through his earpiece, “Ranran, come back!”

“…Ranran?” Tang Ce snapped out of his daze. “Damn! Was that Yu Ran just now?!”

Yu Ran, the marshal entrusted to his protection, had actually charged down like that? Tang Ce immediately turned the airship around, wanting to go and rescue him. However, the claws suddenly connected, forming a dense defensive barrier. He couldn’t break through for a moment, and it wasn’t appropriate to bomb them heavily either.

Tang Ce shouted anxiously through the earpiece, “Yu Ran! What’s going on? Come back now!”

Yu Ran furrowed his brow, turned off the wireless earpiece, and threw it aside. The dense mass of claws resembled a purple ocean, concealing whatever lay beneath. 

At this moment, Lu Zexuan’s eyes were bloodshot. His hand gripping the electromagnetic knife shook continuously, his muscles tensed, and the White Eagle, exhausted, had disappeared from the mental world, along with his ability to fly.

The snowy mountains in his mental landscape were violently shaking, seemingly on the verge of collapse. The sentinel felt the surrounding scenery gradually blur, the whole world spinning, with only the glaring blood remaining in his eyes.

The blood continued to spread, threatening to engulf him…

Lu Zexuan tightened his grip on the electromagnetic knife and mechanically swung it left and right. The claws that came close to him were all severed, but the attacks became more fierce. With one careless move, Lu Zexuan’s left shoulder was instantly pierced by a claw, leaving a bloody hole.

Sharp pain radiated from his shoulder. With a roar, Lu Zexuan slashed the claw into pieces! However, he knew he couldn’t hold on for too long. Perhaps this was the fate of a sentinel? One day, a sentinel would become berserk or even distorted due to excessive ability consumption, turning into a monster. He couldn’t become a monster.

Once an S-class sentinel became distorted, they would crazily attack other humans. After distorting, he might regain his ability to fly and could possibly fly into the sky, killing his Eagle Special Forces comrades… even killing Yu Ran.

Yu Ran’s face flashed in his mind. Lu Zexuan suddenly realized that he was particularly unwilling to let go of this person. They had just begun to get along, and he hadn’t had the chance to tell Yu Ran… that he kinda liked him, and he wanted him to be his exclusive guide… and that his White Eagle also liked being with Yu Ran’s little fox…

But it was too late.

These words, perhaps, could only be buried deep within the planet with his death forever.

Lu Zexuan closed his eyes. Rather than becoming a bloodthirsty monster, killing countless comrades, it was better to solve himself before going berserk. That way, he could die with a bit more dignity. His comrades might not find his bones. In that case, bury his uniform in the martyr’s cemetery, next to his brother’s grave.

Lu Zexuan summoned the last bit of strength, trembling as he picked up the electromagnetic knife, aiming it at his own heart.

However, before the blade could be swung, two burning red tentacles suddenly descended from the sky like vines, instantly entwining his body—

Lu Zexuan opened his eyes in confusion. He saw a flying ship with the emblem of the Eagle, breaking through the dense claw encirclement, heading straight towards his location!

At the moment the ship arrived, a familiar face appeared in his sight. Clear heterochromatic pupils, no longer innocent but filled with determination and sharpness.

Yu Ran leaped from the flying ship, followed by the red fox behind him, suddenly enlarged many times, with nine flame-like tails soaring into the sky! Countless red mental tendrils rapidly extended and spread from the palm of Yu Ran’s hand. Like a surging tide, they fiercely attacked the brain of the leader in the center of the beast pack. In almost an instant, the terrifying mental tendrils completely engulfed the creature’s consciousness—

“Howl, howl, howl—” The beast emitted a painful roar, as if the entire world was trembling. Within five seconds, the surrounding claws seemed frozen, simultaneously ceasing their attacks.

Yu Ran stepped through the blood and filth on the ground, quickly approaching Lu Zexuan. With his nine-tailed fox behind him, he erected a flame-made barrier, firmly enclosing both Lu Zexuan and himself. The enormous nine-tailed fox burned with flames, majestic like a god up high. And Yu Ran emerged from the flames, his face calm, his steps firm. He no longer looked innocent, but instead resembled a seasoned and resolute Federal special forces soldier!

Lu Zexuan stared at the scene in astonishment, wondering if he was hallucinating. This is… Yu Ran?

Only when Yu Ran’s clear voice sounded in his ears, “General Lu, do you need me to protect you?” 

Lu Zexuan was speechless. The sentinel exhausted its energy and finally lost consciousness, falling straight to the ground.

Yu Ran immediately reached out to support him. He sat down, letting Lu Zexuan half-lie in his arms. Yu Ran looked at the unconscious man, a hint of unnoticed tenderness flickering in his calm eyes…

Lu Zexuan was severely injured, with even his shoulder penetrated by a large hole, blood flowing continuously. While quickly stopping the bleeding with military gauze he carried, Yu Ran commanded in the mental world, “Red Fox, focus on defense. White Fox, hasten the healing.”

The two foxes responded in unison, “Yes, master.”

The unconscious sentinel’s mental defense wasn’t strong, and the S-class White Fox soon broke through Lu Zexuan’s mental shield.

Suddenly, countless black mists emerged from the depths of the snowy mountains, shrouding the sky over the snow-capped mountains like dark clouds. The snow-capped mountains ahead were crumbling, and White Eagle also fell into a coma due to exhaustion, its wings drooping as it lay halfway up the mountain.

Yu Ran made a decisive decision, “You go awaken White Eagle, I’ll dispel the black mist!”

The little White Fox heard its master’s command, and its body suddenly enlarged several times. It agilely ran towards the summit of the snowy mountain, its furry tail gently sweeping over White Eagle, trying to awaken the comatose eagle.

Green mental tendrils in Yu Ran’s hands swiftly extended.

Countless tentacles, like a scattering group of snakes, flexibly rushed towards the depths of the snowy mountain. They accurately pounced on one clump of black mist after another, rapidly dispersing those surging shadows!

As the dense healing tendrils spread between the snowy mountains, the number of black mists decreased, and the dark clouds covering the mountains gradually dissipated, allowing sunlight to shine on the summit once again.

The snow-capped mountain, which was on the verge of collapse, stabilized at that moment.

—Thankfully, he arrived just in time.

Lu Zexuan’s consciousness remained intact, and he didn’t fall into a berserk state. The snow mountain didn’t collapse, so treating the situation wasn’t too difficult.

Yu Ran breathed a sigh of relief, retracting the mental tendrils from the depths of the snow mountain, softly calling out in his mind, “Lu Zexuan? Are you awake?”

The Lu Zexuan in the mental world slowly regained consciousness. The man looked at the greatly enlarged White Fox and the nine-tailed fox supporting the flame barrier in silence for a long time. Was he… still dreaming?

Yu Ran calmly said, “This isn’t a dream; I’ve come to save you.”

Lu Zexuan’s eyes were filled with confusion. “…How do you… have two spirit bodies?”

Yu Ran quickly replied, “Time is limited, I can’t explain it in detail right now.” He looked earnestly at the sentinel half-lying in his arms, his voice in the mental world unusually gentle, “Lu Zexuan, please trust me once more. I’ve never had any ill intentions towards you.”

As he finished speaking, Yu Ran suddenly took out a disposable blood collection needle given to him by Mohr, and forcefully pierced his own arm. Blood flowed out through the tube, emitting a familiar scent of guide essence.

He collected a tube of blood, then pinched Lu Zexuan’s chin and fed it directly to him.

Lu Zexuan was speechless. The sweet and metallic taste of blood was like an oasis to the energy-depleted Lu Zexuan at that moment. Their guide essence compatibility reached an astonishing 98%. For Lu Zexuan, Yu Ran’s guide essence was a lifesaving elixir.

Lu Zexuan felt his energy rapidly recovering, and the previously listless White Eagle finally became active. Realizing he was lying in Yu Ran’s arms, Lu Zexuan immediately stood up, turned to look at him, his gaze extremely complex.

Yu Ran’s mental tendrils were still attached to Lu Zexuan’s forehead. He looked at Lu Zexuan and earnestly said in the mental world, “I’ll explain later. My mental hypnosis on that monster leader can only last for 5 minutes. We need to break out before it wakes up and return to the starship. Also… whatever I did to save you, it must remain secret to others; it’s a matter of life and death for us.”

Rare trust gleamed in his eyes.

Lu Zexuan looked into his eyes, feeling complicated, not knowing what to say for a moment. Yu Ran had two spirit bodies. He actually single-handedly piloted the flying ship and rushed into the encirclement of monsters to save him! His flame nine-tailed fox, using mental attacks, instantly subdued the terrifying beast pack leader?! His White Fox, also several times larger than usual, swiftly dissipated the black mist within the S-class sentinel mental landscape. This was definitely not a B-class healing ability!

One flame attack, one forest healing, both spirit bodies were so powerful.Yu Ran, who are you really?! Lu Zexuan’s mind was full of questions; he couldn’t even believe everything he saw.

But nearby claws were stirring, seemingly about to awaken—now wasn’t the time to discuss these matters; they could be torn apart by the waking monsters at any moment.

Lu Zexuan took a deep breath and made a decisive decision, “Alright, let’s leave first.”

The next moment, the energized White Eagle reappeared above his head, and the man’s shoulders suddenly spread white wings. Lu Zexuan reached out and embraced Yu Ran, leaping into the air like an arrow, soaring high above, leaving the beast pack far behind.

Under the astonished gazes of all the sentinels…Lu Zexuan flew back to the Eagle starship with Yu Ran.