Evolution - Chapter 109
Chapter 109
While those guys were busy cursing Yu Zhiyao and frantically cleaning up their mess, Ji Changqing and He Qingzhi were engaged in wilderness survival.
They had been trapped in a dark, sunless cargo hold, with only a makeshift restroom and a few dim night lights on the ceiling and walls.
It was just enough to keep them from being completely blind.
It seemed this group was accustomed to treating people like cargo. The hold had been modified with three-tiered bunk beds, each a narrow slab sixty centimeters wide and two hundred centimeters long. The entire space was crammed with people; a quick count of the beds revealed there were nearly six thousand.
Only one meal was provided each day. It was, one might say, in the transporters’ best interest to keep their “cargo” hungry. Facing a group of able-bodied men weak with hunger was far safer than facing a group of strong, skilled ones.
Ji Changqing and He Qingzhi had communicated in secret. Of the people here, just over three thousand were from Huantu Prison—likely those who had been made to “disappear” or were declared dead over the past year.
The other nearly three thousand might have come from other prisons or been randomly captured from various planets.
The distinction between the two groups was clear.
The people from the prison were all men in their prime, numb and indifferent. The other three thousand, however, included men, women, the elderly, and children. While some were numb and indifferent, most were filled with terror and unease.
She had always thought that with the Alliance’s advanced technology, things like human trafficking should have been eradicated long ago.
She never expected to encounter it here.
He Qingzhi quietly explained to her, “These people were probably captured by space pirates.”
Ordinary people certainly wouldn’t dare to abduct others on Alliance planets, not even with expert hackers to intercept comm signals. Kidnapping was easy, but in the Alliance, the buyer and seller in human trafficking were equally culpable. Without powerful backing, who would be foolish enough to try something so risky?
It was too easy for things to go wrong, and when they did, a whole chain of people would go down.
With no individual buyers, the transactions could only be between organizations.
And when it came to organizations, space pirates were the obvious choice. In the vastness of space, they could raid merchant ships, steal their goods, and then sell the crew as cargo. It was all in a day’s work.
The time lag involved made it much more difficult for the Alliance to investigate and conduct rescue operations.
Moreover, most of these people were destined for the Empire, where buyers paid well and there were no repercussions. Why leave a trail of trouble in the Alliance?
Ji Changqing’s gaze darkened. “Putting together a team to go after space pirates, dog-eat-dog style, actually sounds pretty interesting.”
He Qingzhi couldn’t help but smile.
“That would mean giving up everything. Could you do that?” Being an outlaw wasn’t easy; they all had too many ties.
Besides, a team capable of taking on space pirates wouldn’t be easy to assemble or maintain.
“In the military, there are plenty of opportunities to lead troops against space pirates. I remember Major General Xie’er discovered your planet while on a mission to eliminate them.”
Ji Changqing said no more. She couldn’t very well tell He Qingzhi that she thought blasting these evil-doers to bits with a single shot was far too merciful, could she?
It had to be said, the physiques of Alliance citizens were truly excellent. Despite the harsh living conditions and only one meal a day, they endured without any major issues.
Even Ji Changqing, who had been covered in wounds at the start, had stubbornly bounced back, avoiding any fatal infections on the journey.
By her count, after about eighty-six days of travel, the cargo ship suddenly landed on a desolate planet.
One by one, the sallow and emaciated “piglets” were driven off the ship. Herded by squads of armed guards, they were forced to fend for themselves on a planet with an extremely harsh climate and environment.
The gravity on this desolate planet was 1.8 times that of a habitable world like Blue Star. When the wind wasn’t blowing, you felt as heavy as a lead weight; when it was, flying sand and stones made you feel as light as a kite.
It was truly an experience of ice and fire!
The people from Huantu Prison fared better. After all, they were all Physique Level 7 or higher. Though it was difficult, they could still travel across the barren landscape in groups.
The other ordinary people, captured and sold by pirates, were in a much worse state. Most were below Level 6, a mix of men, women, and children. With every vicious gust of wind, a few would simply vanish, swept up into the sky.
When they returned to the ship that evening for a headcount, a dozen people were missing. The man in charge of the count was unconcerned, but when he reported the numbers, the leader of their group looked grim.
That night, Ji Changqing and He Qingzhi slipped into the ventilation ducts and went their separate ways to explore the ship.
She got her bearings and began crawling cautiously and slowly toward the cockpit.
Thank heavens these people had sent them out to survive in the wild. She’d managed to get a rare full meal and no longer felt like she was walking on clouds from hunger.
She crawled for about fifteen or twenty minutes before she heard voices. She quickly stopped, pressing her ear to the duct to listen carefully.
“They make us do everything. What about the people over there? They want the bigger cut but won’t lift a finger!”
“Alright, stop with the foolish talk. Without them, we’d have been eaten alive long ago.”
“Why the hell did we stop here? The supplies we have now will only last a month.”
“Yeah, and it’s not easy to resupply.”
“In this godforsaken place, making those piglets find their own food… isn’t it normal to lose a few? Why give us a hard time over it?”
“Are we supposed to find food for them?”
“Weren’t the people over there supposed to be responsible for our safety? So let them protect us! How did the piglets’ safety become our problem?”
…
A chaotic stream of complaints from four or five people.
Ji Changqing knew that “over there” referred to the two other medium-sized warships, the kind with a maximum capacity of three thousand.
Today was the first time they had been let out of the cargo ship, so naturally, she needed to keep her eyes and ears open.
But she still wasn’t sure of the exact number of enemies.
After they had vented their frustrations, a deep voice spoke up. “Enough! This problem isn’t hard to solve.”
Ji Changqing listened for a while longer. After the man who claimed it wasn’t a difficult problem finished explaining his solution, he dismissed the others. “Keep an eye out these next few days. Once we’ve picked the right people, things will be much easier for us.”
The others left, laughing and making sure to suck up to him.
“The boss is brilliant!”
“Don’t worry, boss, we’ll get it done right!”
…
You can’t get fat from a single bite. Wary of attracting attention by being gone for too long, Ji Changqing retreated the way she came as soon as the group dispersed.
He Qingzhi returned not long after.
The two didn’t rush to exchange information. There would be plenty of opportunities the next day while they were out foraging for survival.
No need to draw attention to themselves.
Within a week, through various means, they had a basic understanding of the situation.
To conduct this kind of business, the ship naturally couldn’t take official routes. With no warp points and constant detours to avoid detection, they had been traveling for three months and still hadn’t left the Alliance border.
Just then, their superiors had informed them that the transaction was canceled and ordered them to find a temporary place to lie low.
That was why they had landed on this desolate planet.
However, the planet’s natural resources were scarce, and their captors didn’t dare give the “cargo” powerful weapons, making self-sufficiency a challenge.
According to past practice, this batch of cargo should have been sold off within another month. The sudden cancellation meant they were now needed for something else.
Otherwise, their captors wouldn’t be so tense about losing a dozen “goods” in a single day.
The next day, while tracking prey, the two met up to exchange intelligence.
“These people don’t even know why they’ve stopped or how long they have to wait here. The two warships have probably gone to procure supplies,” He Qingzhi said quietly, sharing his observations. He then posed a guess. “If you discovered a mole, but couldn’t get much hard evidence right away, what would you do?”
Force them to rebel.
The thought flashed through both their minds simultaneously.
“They must have made their move.”
“We just don’t know how far they’ve gone.”
Ji Changqing smiled. “They know the other side won’t let us go. Now that we’re here, how far do you think they’d go?”
The answer was obvious: they would act swiftly and decisively, forcing the traitors’ hands.
Forced into a rushed defection, the traitors wouldn’t have time for thorough planning. They would have to reconsider which people and assets they could take with them. The more chaotic the situation, the more likely they were to make mistakes.
This was the small window of opportunity the Alliance was creating for them.
The traitors had to abandon most of the people and resources they had originally planned to take. To ensure they could still live well after defecting, they couldn’t be without manpower.
That meant they had to cherish this last batch of “cargo.”
Canceling the transaction was a logical consequence.
After all, the people from Huantu Prison were all Level 7 or higher. With some careful selection, they could form a reasonably capable fighting force.
This was the last bit of help the Alliance could offer them. From here on out, they were on their own.
The two of them pondered how to complete their mission beautifully.
So, first, let’s set a small goal?
After all, a clear goal was needed to formulate a concrete plan of action, rather than just stumbling around blindly and hoping to hit something.
But how to set that goal was a delicate matter.
Kill this batch of traitors? Obtain evidence to uproot their entire network in the Alliance?
Or could they aim even higher?
He Qingzhi stared at Ji Changqing for a long moment. “The most urgent thing right now is that you need to change your identity.”
An Alpha certainly had a distinct gender advantage in the Empire, but a female Alpha named Ji Changqing would have absolutely no chance.
The moment they discovered she was still alive, the first thing they would do is kill her.
Ji Changqing understood his meaning and turned to ask, “You’re not changing yours?”
“I’m not.” He Qingzhi’s gaze was profound. “We’re different. It’s better for me not to change.”
Ji Changqing understood.
Compared to her, He Qingzhi was far too familiar to these people.
“Besides,” he added, “the He family might not be clean. If they’re all in this together, they will definitely search for me.”
Without a thorough investigation, a good disguise might be enough to get by. But if they really started digging, the risk would be too great.
So, it was better for Ji Changqing to assume a new identity while he remained as he was.
An Alpha had a distinct gender advantage in the Empire, but an Omega had its own advantages, too. If the He family had truly defected together, they would never be willing to lose a valuable asset like him and would go to great lengths to find him.
They discussed a few more things in low voices. Finally, Ji Changqing said to He Qingzhi seriously, “You have to protect yourself. We’re here to risk our lives for the mission, not our bodies.”
He Qingzhi looked at her, speechless. “What on earth are you thinking?!”
Don’t you know the most criticized thing about the Empire is that Alphas can mark Omegas without any scruples? Risk his body my ass!
If he really did sacrifice his body, he would subconsciously obey the Alpha who marked him. The first thing he’d do is sell you out, okay?!
With the limited information they had, they decided to put aside their grander ambitions for now and focus on achieving their first small goal.
They would select someone from the enemy’s team—someone with a similar build, physique level, and gender—and arrange for them to die, so that Number 220702 could die as well.
This would allow Ji Changqing to smoothly infiltrate the enemy ranks as “one of their own,” which would slowly open up the situation and allow her to gather more information.
Just then, a crisp sound came from nearby.
It was the sound of someone stepping on overly weathered rock, causing it to crumble.
The expressions on Ji Changqing and He Qingzhi’s faces changed drastically. With a silent “holy shit,” they lunged from two different directions, one from the left and one from the right!
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