353: Chapter 353 Universe

On the television, the science popularization session by astronaut Chen Yuan and AI assistant Xiao Qi continued.

"We just talked about the origin of the stars," Chen Yuan adjusted his posture, drifting next to a piece of equipment in the zero-gravity environment. "Now, let's show everyone something practical—this is a small experimental area in the 'Tianhe' Core Module of our Space Station, specifically used for studying crystal growth in a microgravity environment."

Xiao Qi floated to his side and pointed a mechanical arm at a transparent experimental box.

"Look, the solution inside is slowly cooling, and crystals are gradually precipitating. On Earth, crystals often have defects due to gravity, but in space, they can grow more perfectly. These research results can later be applied in fields like high-end manufacturing and drug development on the ground."

Chen Yuan nodded: "Right, this is just one of over a hundred experiments on the Space Station. What we do here will eventually turn into real progress on the ground."

Xiao Qi spun around: "For example, the flame experiment we did before—in a microgravity environment, the way a flame burns is completely different from on the ground; it becomes spherical and burns more completely. This helps improve combustion efficiency and reduce pollution."

"And then there are the plant cultivation experiments," Chen Yuan floated to another experimental cabinet. "We've grown lettuce, wheat, and Arabidopsis in space. In the future, when we go further into deep space, we can't always rely on supplies from the ground; we have to learn to grow our own vegetables in the sky to eat."

Xiao Qi: "The batch of lettuce Chen Yuan grew didn't grow very well."

Chen Yuan coughed: "That was because... the lighting System had a small malfunction at the time. It wasn't a problem with my technique."

Xiao Qi didn't respond, just hovering there, its mechanical arm moving as if shrugging.

Chen Yuan quickly changed the subject: "Alright, that's about it for today's science popularization. Thanks for watching. If you have any questions, you can leave a message under the official account, and we'll pick a few to answer during the next livestream."

He waved at the camera.

Xiao Qi also shook its mechanical arm: "Goodbye, friends on Earth. Remember to look at the stars more often."

The screen went black, and the livestream ended.

Chen Yuan let out a long breath, relaxing completely in the weightless state, floating against the cabin wall.

"Phew, finally finished."

Xiao Qi floated over to him, its silver-white casing gleaming softly under the cabin lights.

"By the way," Xiao Qi's voice was very low, even though there were only the two of them in the cabin, "the special unmanned spacecraft sent out for recovery earlier has successfully returned to the docking bay. It brought back some things from the target area."

Chen Yuan didn't pay much attention and asked casually, "What things?"

"It appears to be a biological organism," Xiao Qi said, its tone no different from when it was doing the science popularization earlier. "Based on preliminary testing."

Chen Yuan choked on the spot.

"Wait," he bounced off the cabin wall, staring wide-eyed at Xiao Qi, "For real? Holy—"

He lowered his voice, and even though they were the only two there, he instinctively looked around.

"As an astronaut, my biggest fear is encountering an unknown life form. Holy shit, this thing... you know, this is a professional phobia! We simulated it so many times during training, and every time they said 'the probability is extremely low, don't be nervous,' and now I actually ran into it?"

Xiao Qi hovered quietly, waiting for him to finish.

"Judging by the size, it's similar to a bug," it added.

Chen Yuan's expression became even more complicated. A bug. A bug is also a life form. But an unknown life form in the shape of a bug... seemed better than a humanoid one? Or was it worse?

Xiao Qi continued: "The subject appears to be in a dormant state similar to hibernation. According to current test data, as long as it's kept in a low-temperature environment, it shouldn't wake up. We've already transferred it to a dedicated Storage Bay, with the temperature controlled at minus thirty degrees."

Chen Yuan clutched his chest, taking a few seconds to recover.

"Okay, then... then it must be locked up tight. I don't want to be like in the movies, waking up in the middle of the night to find something extra in the cabin, and then the whole Space Station loses contact while people on Earth scream at our livestream—"

"That definitely won't happen," Xiao Qi interrupted him, its tone steady. "Astronauts in movies generally don't follow operating procedures. We do."

Chen Yuan stared at it for a few seconds.

"...That doesn't sound like comfort."

"Well, anyway, it's better to just be careful." He floated up and straightened the collar of his spacesuit. "I'm about to be replaced soon. In a little while, a group of people will come to the Space Station to take over my position, and then I can go down and go home. Ah, I can finally go back, just thinking about going back soon—"

He suddenly stopped.

"...Wait."

He turned his head to look at Xiao Qi.

"Did I just set a flag?"

Xiao Qi hovered in place, its mechanical arm moving slightly.

"Yes," it said, its tone as steady as if reporting the weather forecast. "You have indeed set a flag common in movies. First, you encountered an unknown cosmic life form seen in sci-fi horror movies. Second, you set a 'going back soon' flag. This is usually how NPCs behave right before they are about to be parasitized in the early stages of a movie."

Chen Yuan's face froze.

"Holy crap," he muttered under his breath, "I seem to... oh no, it's over, it's over—"

He raised his hand to cover his face.

"No, this is too unlucky. Don't think about it, don't think about it."

Xiao Qi floated a bit closer.

"Do you need me to play 'Good Luck Comes' for you?"

Chen Yuan peered through the gaps in his fingers and glared at it with one eye.

"Can't you wish me some actual good luck?"

Xiao Qi didn't answer, but a familiar melody suddenly rang out in the cabin's communication channel.

"Good Luck Comes, wish you Good Luck Comes, good luck brings joy and love—"

Chen Yuan: "..."

He took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.

"Fine, fine, stop messing around."

He pushed off the cabin wall and floated toward the docking bay. Xiao Qi followed closely behind.

"Next, I have to go take a look." Chen Yuan's voice returned to a professional state, though a hint of exhaustion from the 'Good Luck Comes' shock remained. "Besides that special cosmic life form, there are also some special virus samples found in space on that ship. We have to be careful; none of these can be leaked."

He paused.

"Let's go, let's check it out."

A soft light lit up on Xiao Qi behind him.

"Received. Let us depart together."

Chen Yuan and Xiao Qi passed through the isolation hatch of the docking bay and entered the specially designated temporary sample storage area.

The temperature here was significantly lower than in the Core Module, and Chen Yuan shivered the moment he floated in. He took a protective suit from the storage locker on the cabin wall—even though Xiao Qi said the sample was in deep hibernation, rules were rules, and one had to be fully armed in the Isolation Zone.

He spent five minutes stuffing himself into the white suit with its complex filtration System, then checked the airtightness twice. Xiao Qi hovered nearby, its infrared scanner already activated, scanning him from head to toe.

"Airtightness normal," Xiao Qi said. "Filtration System working stably. You may proceed to contact the sample."

Chen Yuan nodded and floated to the first Experimental Table.

It was a modular biological isolation and detection device, with various gauges and display screens densely arranged. The transparent observation chamber was empty—it was prepared for samples that might wake up, but wasn't needed yet.

He began checking the instruments one by one.

The temperature control panel showed minus thirty degrees, stable. Air pressure was normal. The air circulation System was in fully enclosed mode, completely isolated from the main cabin. Radiation detector readings were within the safe range. The bio-activity monitor showed a flat line—no heartbeat, no metabolism, no signs of any life activity.

"How about your side?" Chen Yuan asked without turning his head.

Xiao Qi hovered in front of another set of instruments, its mechanical arm lightly resting on the detection port.

"All sensors passed self-test. All parameters of the sample Storage Bay are normal. Records show no abnormal fluctuations since docking was completed."

Chen Yuan circled the Experimental Table again, confirming every gauge he could see, before straightening up—though the concept of "straightening up" wasn't quite accurate in a zero-gravity environment; he just adjusted himself to float more upright.

"Alright, let's go see that..."

He paused.

...that bug."

Xiao Qi took a half-step lead and floated toward the Storage Bay.

The observation window wasn't large, square-shaped, with a ring of heating elements around the edges to prevent fogging. Chen Yuan leaned in, bringing his head close to the glass.

Something was lying inside.

Slender, like an earthworm, but not quite. It was about as long as an adult's forearm, its entire body a translucent grayish-white, like some deep-sea creature frozen in ice. Most striking were the two pairs of wings on either side of its midsection—folded against its body, they were so thin they were almost transparent, with clearly visible veins like those of a mosquito.

It just lay there quietly in the low temperature, motionless, without any sign of life.

Chen Yuan stared for a long time.

"It looks a bit like a mosquito," he said in a low voice.

Xiao Qi floated to his side and also leaned toward the observation window.

"It does look a bit like one," it said. "But mosquitoes don't have such long bodies. And a mosquito's wings are on its thorax, while this one's... are more widely distributed. Also, there's no mouthpart, no obvious head structure; both ends are almost the same."

Chen Yuan nodded, looked for a while longer, and then stepped back.

He rechecked all the parameters of the Storage Bay—temperature, pressure, isolation status—all normal.

"Locked up tight, put away well," he muttered to himself, as if confirming something. "Good."

He took off his protective suit, hung it back in the storage locker, and then exited the Isolation Zone with Xiao Qi. The hatch behind them closed slowly, making a faint sound as the airtight lock engaged.

Next was the wait.

Chen Yuan floated back to his rest area and secured himself in his sleeping bag. The cabin lights had been dimmed, leaving only a few night lights on, casting a dim yellow glow over the entire Space Station.

"All daily checks are complete," Xiao Qi's voice came through the communication channel, very low, as if not wanting to disturb his rest. "The recovered samples are all normal. We just have to wait for the next batch of rotation personnel to come up."

Chen Yuan looked at the darkness above—that was the direction of the porthole, outside of which were the infinite Universe and distant starlight.

"Yeah," he said, "when they get here, I'll be able to go back."

He closed his eyes.

Sleepiness slowly surged up, enveloping him like a tide. Before his consciousness sank into darkness, the last thing that flashed through his mind was that translucent, slender body with its folded wings.

Like a mosquito.

But not quite.

Whatever, it's locked up tight anyway.

He turned over, letting himself sink deeper into the sleeping bag.