19: Space pirates, cannon debut

Day 7 of the Spaceship Calendar.

Interstellar Route.

The massive silver-rank destroyer silently glided through the deep void like an elegant silver giant shark.

On the bridge.

Gu Pingsheng sat in the command chair, holding a freshly brewed cup of Blue Mountain coffee.

Steam rose gently, carrying a rich aroma.

Gu Nian sat in the adjutant seat nearby, her fingers flying across the holographic keyboard as she cross-referenced today's inventory list.

Lin Qinghan stood behind Gu Pingsheng, her perfect figure outlined by black Nano Light Armor, her hand resting on the hilt of the blade at her waist, her gaze warily scanning the star map ahead.

Everything seemed calm.

Until—

“Beep! Beep! Beep!”

The piercing alarm suddenly shattered the tranquility.

The holographic screen in the center of the bridge instantly turned red.

[Warning! Hostile target lock detected!]

[Warning! Unidentified armed spaceship interception detected ahead!]

Gu Pingsheng didn't even raise an eyebrow, merely blowing gently on the foam atop his coffee.

“They're here.”

He said calmly.

As if waiting for a late guest.

The screen flashed.

Three aggressively designed spaceships suddenly jumped out of the previously dark starry sky.

They were typical Modified Gunboats.

Their hulls were welded with all sorts of messy armor plates, painted with garish red paint, and the most conspicuous feature was the huge white skull emblem on the bow.

Space Pirates.

In this lawless world of the void, they were the most rapacious hyenas.

“Zzzzt—”

The communication channel was forcibly cut into.

A coarse, arrogant voice boomed throughout the bridge.

“You fat sheep up ahead! Listen up!”

A One-Eyed Dragon with a fleshy face and a blind eye appeared on the screen.

He was brandishing a laser gun, backed by a group of shrieking pirates.

“Stop the ship immediately! Kill the engines! Open the hatch!”

“Hand over all your supplies, energy blocks, and women! Everything!”

“If I'm in a good mood, I might even let you dogs live!”

“Otherwise...”

The One-Eyed Dragon sneered and made a throat-slitting gesture.

“We'll blow you and your ship to dust! Kill all the men, and take the women back as sex slaves! Hahahaha!”

...Lower deck, Civilian Zone.

This voice was transmitted clearly through the broadcast to every corner.

The girls who were lining up for breakfast instantly fell into chaos.

“Ah—! It's pirates! It's really pirates!”

“It's over, it's over! We're going to die!”

“Wuwuwu... I don't want to be captured... I don't want to...”

Fear spread like a plague.

Although they had experienced zombies and monsters.

But those were monsters, beasts without intelligence.

But pirates... they were human.

They were humans more cruel and perverse than beasts.

Especially upon hearing the phrase “take the women back,” all the girls' faces turned pale with fright.

That fate was more terrifying than death.

Liu Ruyan huddled in a corner, trembling all over.

She had only recently been released from the isolation room, and her nerves were already fragile.

Now that she heard the pirates had arrived, her mind was filled with images from horror movies.

“Gu Pingsheng... can Gu Pingsheng stop them?”

She desperately clutched the corner of her clothes, her knuckles white.

Although she hated Gu Pingsheng, at this moment, she wished for him to win more than anyone else.

Because if Gu Pingsheng lost, they would all be lambs to the slaughter... Bridge.

Facing the One-Eyed Dragon's bluster, Gu Pingsheng didn't even lift an eyelid.

He took a sip of coffee, savoring the lingering sweetness after the bitterness.

“These are pirates?”

He put down the cup, his tone tinged with disappointment.

“The lines are too cliché.”

“And they're too noisy.”

He turned his head and looked at Lin Qinghan behind him.

“Qinghan.”

“Yes.”

Lin Qinghan stepped forward, her eyes cold.

“That newly installed cannon, you haven't tested it yet, right?”

Gu Pingsheng pointed to a red button on the control panel.

That was the core weapon system unlocked after the spaceship was upgraded to silver-rank.

[Twin-Linked Photon Cannon (Purple · Rare)]

[Description: An energy weapon critically enhanced by the Hand of God. Extremely long range and immensely strong penetrating power.]

“Perfect, someone delivered themselves right to us as targets.”

Gu Pingsheng leaned back in his chair and made a 'go ahead' gesture.

“Test it out.”

“Don't let these few flies ruin my mood.”

Lin Qinghan nodded.

She walked up to the weapon control panel, her slender fingers sweeping across the screen.

“Weapon system activated.”

“Target locked: Enemy flagship.”

“Charging initiated.”

Following her commands, the entire spaceship vibrated slightly.

The armor plates on both sides of the bow slowly slid open.

Two thick cannon barrels, emitting a faint blue light, extended out.

Those were the fangs of death... Opposite.

On the pirate ship.

The One-Eyed Dragon watched the silver-white spaceship not only fail to stop but actually extend its cannon barrels, causing him to momentarily freeze.

Immediately, he burst into wild laughter.

“Hahahaha! Look, brothers! This fat sheep actually wants to fight back!”

“With those two glorified sticks?”

“Blast them for me! Smash their shields! Let them know who they're messing with!”

“Yes! Boss!”

The pirates shrieked and pressed the launch button.

“Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!”

Several red laser beams shot out from the pirate ships, striking Gu Pingsheng's spaceship.

However.

Just as the lasers were about to hit the hull.

A layer of light blue barrier suddenly appeared out of thin air.

[Phase Shield (Blue)]

“Zzzzt—”

The lasers hit the shield like raindrops hitting glass, only stirring up faint ripples before dissipating.

Not even a scratch was left behind.

The One-Eyed Dragon's laughter abruptly stopped.

He widened his single eye, watching the scene in disbelief.

“Wha— What kind of shield is this?! How can we not break through it?!”

Before he could react.

On Gu Pingsheng's spaceship, the two faint blue cannon barrels had finished charging.

The glow grew brighter and brighter, finally turning into a blinding pure white.

A terrifying energy fluctuation could be felt even across the void.

The One-Eyed Dragon's heart suddenly constricted.

An unprecedented sense of mortal danger flooded his mind.

“No good! Quick, get aw...”

The word 'ay' hadn't even been shouted out.

Lin Qinghan pressed the launch button.

“Boom—!!!”

There was no sound.

Because sound cannot travel in a vacuum.

But on everyone's retina, an indelible mark was left behind.

Two thick white light beams instantly tore through the dark void.

Fast.

Too fast.

So fast that not even an afterimage could be clearly seen.

The light beams instantly pierced the pirate flagship in the middle.

Like a hot knife slicing through butter.

That thin layer of armor plate was as fragile as paper before the Photon Cannon.

Immediately after.

Came a dazzling fireball.

The pirate flagship exploded mid-air, turning into countless burning fragments.

Along with the One-Eyed Dragon and dozens of pirates inside, it was instantly vaporized.

Instant kill.

A complete and utter instant kill.

The remaining two pirate ships were stunned into silence.

They watched their boss, who had been incredibly arrogant moments before, turn into space junk in the blink of an eye.

That visual impact was simply devastating.

“Run! Hurry and run!”

“This is a monster! This is a regular army warship!”

The two pirate ships turned tail and fled, their engines spewing long plumes of exhaust, wishing they had two more legs.

“Trying to run?”

Gu Pingsheng looked at the two red dots desperately fleeing across the screen and sneered.

“Since you came, stay.”

“Qinghan, continue.”

“Yes.”

Lin Qinghan adjusted the cannon barrels expressionlessly.

“Charging complete.”

“Fire.”

Two more flashes of white light streaked across.

In the distant void, two more brilliant fireworks bloomed.

The world became quiet... Lower deck, Civilian Zone.

A deathly silence.

All the girls gaped, staring blankly out the window.

They had seen the scene moments ago clearly.

That beam of light piercing the galaxy.

That exploding fireball.

Did their spaceship fire that?

“O-Oh my god...”

Tang Xiaoxiao swallowed, her voice trembling.

“This is way too powerful...”

“One shot... just one shot...”

The desperate fear from moments ago instantly vanished.

Replaced by an unprecedented sense of security.

And a deep sense of shock.

So, their spaceship was already this powerful?

So, that man was already powerful to this extent?

“Is this... a silver-rank destroyer?”

Zhao Min pushed up her glasses, the look behind the lenses utterly fanatical.

Following such a powerful person, why worry about survival?

Liu Ruyan slumped onto the floor, looking at the wreckage outside the window, her expression incredibly complex.

Fear, awe, relief... and a deep sense of powerlessness.

She finally understood how ridiculous her previous petty actions were in Gu Pingsheng's eyes.

Like an ant trying to trip an elephant.

He didn't even need to lift a finger; he could wipe her out with just a breath... Bridge.

Gu Pingsheng put down his coffee cup.

“Alice.”

“Present, Master.”

“Send out the drones to salvage the spoils.”

“Although they were blown up quite badly, there should still be some remnants.”

“Yes.”

Several small engineering drones flew out from the belly of the spaceship, heading toward the wreckage zone like diligent little bees.

A few minutes later.

A series of notification sounds rang out in Gu Pingsheng's mind.

[Obtained: Damaged Engine Parts x50]

[Obtained: Low-Quality Energy Blocks x20]

[Obtained: Pirate's Stash (Gold Coins x1000)]

...Mostly trash.

Gu Pingsheng felt somewhat uninspired.

Just then.

A golden notification suddenly popped up.

[Congratulations to Player Gu Pingsheng for achieving the First Kill of a Space Pirate in the entire region!]

[Region-wide Announcement sent!]

[Received Special Reward: Pirate King's Treasure Map Fragment (1/3)]

Treasure Map?

Gu Pingsheng's eyes lit up.

This was definitely a good item.

Generally speaking, items with the word "King" in them signify great opportunities.

He flipped his hand, and a piece of tattered parchment fragment appeared in his palm.

It was drawn with blurry lines and symbols, showing only a portion of a star map.

“Only one-third...”

Gu Pingsheng stroked his chin.

Fragments like this wouldn't be easy to assemble.

But... he had a cheat.

“Hand of God, activate.”

Gu Pingsheng had a thought.

A burst of golden energy instantly enveloped the parchment.

[Target item is being sublimated...]

[Critical hit judgment in progress...]

[Ding! Super Critical Hit triggered!]

[Item sublimation successful!]

[Pirate King's Treasure Map Fragment (1/3)] -> [Complete Pirate King's Treasure Map (Gold · Legendary)]

The golden light dispersed.

The previously incomplete fragment actually completed itself automatically!

It turned into a complete, ancient sea chart glowing faintly gold.

The lines on it were clearly visible, marking dangerous whirlpools and hidden reefs.

And in the very center of the chart, there was a conspicuous red skull mark.

Next to it was written a line of small text:

[A secret location where the Heritage of the Old Era is buried.]

Gu Pingsheng looked at the map, the corner of his mouth curving into an arc of ecstasy.

A complete Treasure Map!

If others knew about this, they would probably be so envious they'd cough up blood.

While others were desperately fighting for fragments, he achieved the complete set in one go.

“It looks like our next destination is decided.”

Gu Pingsheng lightly tapped the red skull mark with his finger.

Just then.

Gu Nian suddenly pointed at the screen and gasped.

“Captain! Look at this!”

Gu Pingsheng followed her finger.

He saw that the location of the red skull mark on the newly generated Treasure Map... completely overlapped with the coordinates where Gu Nian had previously discovered the mysterious buyer stockpiling energy crystals!

“That's interesting.”

Gu Pingsheng narrowed his eyes, a sharp glint flashing within them.

“It seems we aren't the only ones eyeing this juicy prize.”