The Last Sentinel

Despite the criticism, life goes on.

Inside the massive cockpit of the Red Fist, several people looked up at the star map of the route on the rusty, mottled projection map.

The entire star map was hazy and gray, and at first glance it looked as if it was shrouded in a layer of gray fog, with dense, spider web-like channels constantly flashing on the star map.

Dian Wei rubbed his head and said, "Boss, why is this star map so grayish?"

Several people looked at Ye Feng.

In the captain's seat, Ye Feng was holding a tattered captain's logbook. While flipping through the logbook, he said without looking up, "Because interstellar travel doesn't take us through the visible matter universe, but rather the dark matter universe."

Xu Chu asked, "Boss, what is the dark matter universe?"

Ye Feng paused for a moment, then asked, "Have you seen Warhammer 40?"

Hua Xiaobai said, "I've seen them, boss! I've seen Warhammer! Helmet! Mankind! West Sea!"

Ye Feng lowered his head and said, "The dark matter universe is equivalent to the fusion of the web and the subspace. There is no Nagor, evil, treacherous, or strange in the dark matter universe of our universe."

Hua Xiaobai asked, "Does that mean the dark matter channel is safe?"

Ye Feng looked up and blinked. "Safe? Look at those little vortices on the dark matter star map, those tiny black vortices—those are places where accidents frequently happen!"

Everyone looked at the hazy star map. Not to mention, among those densely packed roads and canals, countless black vortexes, as thin as hair, could be clearly seen. Some of these black vortexes merged together to form a dark black domain.

Old Liu, the King of Hanzhong, couldn't help but ask, "Boss, as you said, what caused these accidents along the star chart routes? They can't all be cosmic disasters, can they?"

"These are all masterpieces of intelligent life!" Ye Feng flipped through the captain's log. "The captain's log clearly records that the dark matter universe is a typical no-man's-land. Neither our Blue Star civilization, nor the Trisolaran civilization, the Lord of the Rings civilization, nor the Singer civilization's official fleets will enter here. The rules of the Star River Treaty civilization are not followed here; only the law of the dark jungle prevails. Every cruise ship entering the dark matter universe is an armed hunter. If they encounter other cruise ships, generally speaking, whoever fires first wins!"

Eighty-Brother stroked his mustache and muttered to himself, "Does this mean we can rob others too? We're all bandits, killing without caring about the consequences!"

Hua Xiaobai said, "Mengde, calm down. We haven't even successfully navigated a single dark matter voyage. Going straight to steal it is like trying to take off before you've even learned to walk! Isn't this a bit too hasty? You have to take things one step at a time..."

At this moment, Ye Feng interrupted Hua Xiaobai, "There's no time to eat it all at once. We have to bite the bullet and head onto this Grand Line now."

Hua Xiaobai was taken aback. "Boss, what do you mean by 'must'?"

Ye Feng put down the captain's logbook, pointed at the star map in front of him, and the hazy star map suddenly magnified under his finger's gesture, enveloping the roof of the cockpit.

Looking up at the rooftop, the blue anchor point Earth shines brightly in the star map.

Not far from Earth, a vast, dense river of gray dark energy came into view, with a red countdown timer on it: 43 minutes 52 seconds, 43 minutes 51 seconds, 43 minutes 50 seconds...

Brother Eighty pointed to the red countdown timer and asked, "Boss, what's this countdown for?"

Ye Feng said, "We must ride the solar wind into the dark matter channel when it arrives. If we miss it, we'll have to wait until next month."

Hua Xiaobai asked, "Is this shipping route safe?"

Ye Feng stretched out two fingers, and the hazy dark matter channel suddenly shrank, with countless chilling red exclamation marks and black vortex death crosses appearing around it.

A red exclamation mark indicates severe danger.

The black cross marks the dead shipwreck zone.

The map zoomed out, and the screen was filled with red exclamation marks, a feeling that sent chills down one's spine. What was even more astonishing was that there was also a description of this waterway.

Name of the route: Grand Line

Corona Borealis, Hercules, Centaurus, Lyra, Crux, Andromeda, Sirius.

Value of the route: The most important and greatest route in the Milky Way, and also the busiest route. It has a stable periodic solar wind that is rare in the Milky Way, which can propel any dark matter spacecraft to travel through it and arrive at its destination accurately. It connects almost one-third of the most important planetary ports and docks in the Milky Way!

Caution: The Grand Line, as the most important high-speed passage in the Milky Way, has long been influenced by various interstellar forces. The struggle for the Grand Line and its tax revenue has always been the core of open and covert competition among various civilizations in the Milky Way. When entering the Grand Line, in addition to being careful about your own safety, you must also be wary of the wrath of the major powers. Never watch any interstellar battles. Staying far away from them is the only way to ensure your survival.

Hua Xiaobai said, "This kind of route is like a real-life, space-based battle royale! Just thinking about it is exciting! No wonder you brought the mecha, boss! You were truly prescient!"

Ye Feng deeply reflected on his actions, realizing, "I didn't bring enough. I should have brought all thirty-odd dogs I keep!"

Brother Eighty, is it too late to go back and call the dog?

Ye Feng waved his hand, "It's no use, it's too late. Let's leave it at that. At least we've got the mecha, our biggest asset. If we really encounter something we can't beat, then we'll fight our way through the dark matter world and return to the observable universe. In principle, as long as we leave the dark matter world, the other side will stop chasing us. This is also the escape method for most dark matter channel ships."

Everyone looked up at the countdown on the Grand Line, the atmosphere eerily silent.

A bunch of clueless country bumpkins are about to embark on an interstellar voyage. To be honest, none of them, including Ye Feng, are confident.

Ah Fei rubbed his face. "Big brother, to be honest, I've never been on an airplane before, and now I'm going to take a spaceship to the dark matter universe. It feels like a dream!"

Ah Yu said, "I also feel like I'm dreaming! I feel so uneasy!"

Liu Bei said, "If you feel guilty, read more books. Didn't I bring you a copy of the Spring and Autumn Annals?"

Ayu took out the Spring and Autumn Annals and began to study it carefully. As he read, he stroked his long beard and felt a sense of peace.

Ye Feng opened a bottle of wine and chatted idly with the guys in the chat group.

Ye Feng: Guys, this is my first time on an interstellar voyage, I'm so nervous.

Master of Machines: What's the panic! Stand up straight! Don't embarrass yourself!

HarmonyOS's most heartfelt message: "When you step onto this platform, it means you've already got your ticket. Be bold, work hard! Every tremor in your very being is an encouragement to you!"

Immortal God of Magic: Weren't you the same when you first joined the Human Alliance? You thought the Human Alliance was high and mighty, unapproachable, and that you were just an ordinary deliveryman, from the very bottom of society, how could you be worthy of being a member of the Human Alliance? And now! You think the Human Alliance is just a makeshift organization, you look down on it completely!

Great Love Immortal King: Two horizontal lines and one vertical line mean "do it," two slashes and one force mean "get it done!" What's the rush! You see us universe lords and primordial emperors all so calm and collected, do you think there's anyone in your universe with a higher level of prestige than the guy in this group?

Wuji Demon Lord: Kill! Kill a glorious era! Kill a bright future! Ahahaha! The Grand Line, the Dark Matter World—this is where the strong belong! So-called laws are nothing but ropes that imprison the strong; only when those ropes are removed can your peak form be revealed!

Ding--

The cockpit of the Red Iron Fist trembled, and a mechanically synthesized AI female voice resounded, "Ten minutes remaining. The solar wind is approaching. Shall we set sail?"

Ye Feng crushed the aluminum can, his eyes resolute. "Set sail!"

A mechanical AI female voice resounded, "[Red Iron Fist] Engines at full power, assisting in the rise of the solar sails, solar wind capture radar at full power, star map navigation activated..."

Time passed minute by minute.

"three!"

"two!"

"one!"

"Captain, please open the dark matter portal!"

As the Red Fist suddenly shuddered, the meteorite on the satellite where the spaceship was docked exploded!

Ye Feng took the rusty key and twisted it violently. The dark matter energy around him was transmitted to the entire spaceship through the key. The huge spaceship quickly turned into dark matter and became a hazy gray layer!

In front of the spaceship, a huge and terrifying cosmic rift opened up, and within the golden-white crack, one could vaguely see the howling dark golden solar wind and cosmic tides!

The Red Fist, like an iron fist, charged into the rift. Swept up by the dark golden solar wind, its solar sails were fully drawn and burning red, resembling a giant ship of fire, sailing into the Grand Line with the cosmic tides and solar storms.