However, after Nero slapped the control panel... Nothing happened.
The three pilots silently stared at Nero. "..."
"And then?" the assistant asked.
"And then... there's no then!" Nero answered honestly.
The three pilots turned to look at the panel, then turned back and said with a smile, "The instruments still aren't moving. Didn't you fail to fix it…"
The experiences of both sides, and the reasons that drove them to act, were different, so misunderstandings were bound to happen.
To the three pilots, Nero's behavior was clearly the same as a naughty child.
Even so, they still suppressed their frustration and said to Nero in a calm tone, "Child, thank you for wanting to help, but leave this to us."
"If you're really interested in repairing ships, come to the Sky-Faring Commission to find us in the future. We'll introduce you to Master Gongshu of the Artisanship Commission and let you study there."
From this, it could be seen that the three pilots were good people.
But Nero was clearly thinking in a different direction. After lowering his eyes and thinking for two seconds, he confirmed his answer and said, "The reason for this result is very simple. The ship isn't broken at all. What's causing this situation should be an external reason."
After saying that, Nero raised his head and looked around.
It seemed like something flashed twice again, though he did not know whether it was outside the ship or inside.
It was the same as what he had seen earlier when he was about to come to the cockpit.
This situation made Nero frown slightly. Once might be a coincidence, but now it made people suspicious.
Although there was no solid evidence, Nero's intuition still told him something was very wrong.
Unfortunately, this kind of intuition could only remind himself to stay alert. It was hard to rely on such a subjective feeling to make others also start guarding against something that might not even exist.
If he were on the train, it would be fine. Everyone was familiar with him, so his reminder would probably work.
But now… after all, he did not usually interact much with these people. They would probably trust their own judgment more.
As for Tingyun… it was still difficult. They were not as familiar as he was with Stelle and the others.
He let out a quiet sigh in his heart. Nero suddenly missed the days on the train.
At the same time, he felt a bit of sympathy for Dan Heng.
'Thinking about it, when going out on adventures, Dan Heng probably felt similar to how I feel now.'
Although he did not have to worry about trust between companions, there were still plenty of other things to worry about.
'You've worked hard, Dan Heng.'
———
Just as Nero was feeling sympathy for Dan Heng, inside the train's database, Dan Heng, who was checking the archives, suddenly raised his head.
Stelle, who was helping organize materials and standing nearby, noticed Dan Heng's sudden movement.
She turned to look at him and asked, "What's wrong?"
"No, nothing." Dan Heng shook his head. "I just suddenly felt like I heard Nero talking about me."
Stelle shrugged. "Nero has been gone for several days already. How could you hear his voice?"
After saying that, Stelle suddenly paused, "I miss nero... What about you?"
Dan Heng, "Not much…"
"Really?" Stelle started making funny faces, then sighed exaggeratedly and said, "I thought you didn't come out to see Nero off because you were hiding in the archives secretly wiping your tears."
Dan Heng, "..."
'I was avoiding the Whistling Flame Merchant Guild… Although as long as I don't step onto the Xianzhou it won't be a big problem, once Nero returns to the Xianzhou, someone will inevitably ask questions.'
'And if the news spreads along the merchant routes, it might attract other things and bring harm to everyone on the train.'
'That said…'
'This guy is really asking for a beating sometimes.'
Suppressing the urge to pull out Cloud-Piercer, Dan Heng raised his hand and knocked on Stelle's head.
———
Nero did not know that his companions on the train were "fighting" because of him. Right now, he was being pushed back to Tingyun's side by the three pilots.
The development of things was not very good. Aside from himself, no one else had noticed those flashes of light that seemed to appear and disappear, or whatever they were.
Not even the three pilots closest to him had noticed.
After pushing Nero to Tingyun's side, the young assistant said, "Lady Tingyun, please keep an eye on this child."
Tingyun blinked and nodded.
At that moment, a call came in.
"Main ship, this is Team One. The inspection of the outer hull has been completed. There is no damage to the hull, and no cosmic creatures are attached to it."
After receiving this news, the people in the cockpit froze.
They blinked and all turned their heads to look at Nero at the same time.
Two minutes ago, this child had said that there was nothing wrong with the ship itself.
'By the way, what's with this kid's proud look?'
'That's way too arrogant!'
Without receiving a reply from the main ship, Team One outside continued, "We are now preparing to check the surrounding environment."
"Perhaps we have encountered some kind of cosmic phenomenon, or perhaps we are being affected by something."
"For example, the offspring of the Swarm Disaster progenitor. The dust on their bodies can cause hallucinations."
"In addition, we have discovered other ships near the merchant guild. They appear to be vessels of the Family."
"No high lethality weapons have been found, only some self defense cannons. If the main ship turns thirty degrees to the left, you should be able to directly observe the target fleet."
Team One's communication ended.
As they said, after the call ended, they began monitoring the surrounding environment.
Inside the cockpit, Nero spoke first, "In that case, why don't we try to communicate with them?"
"Maybe they're experiencing the same situation as us. And if our fleet can approach theirs, that would also prove that the problem isn't with our ship, right?"
Nero's suggestion was reasonable, and no one refused.
Moreover, they had been busy here for a long time and truly had no clues.
So the three pilots began operating the ship to turn left.
Sure enough, they discovered the Family fleet parked not far away.
The company's ships were rigid and orderly. The Xianzhou ships had an ancient elegance. The Pure Beauty ships were delicate and magnificent with a retro artistic feel.
The Astral Express was solid and steady, carrying the romance of traveling far away.
And the Family's ships looked noble and luxurious, filled with a dreamlike color of an ideal nation.
After that, the three pilots controlled the ship to approach the Family fleet, then stopped at a certain distance.
The Family ships also slowly turned, clearly having noticed them.
Then, before the three pilots could operate anything, the ships on the Family's side lit up their signal lights in a rhythmic pattern, requesting to establish communication.
The Xianzhou ship also lit up its signal lights in a certain rhythm and pattern, responding to the message sent by the Family fleet.
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