Captain, we’ve made the news again! [Please keep following!]

Nanyuanzi extended his Golden Cudgel, propping up a massive elliptical spatial bubble. Blue spiritual flames enveloped the wrecked Imperial Special Ops ship, shrinking it as it was drawn inside the bubble. In a flash, the runes on the Golden Cudgel blazed and vanished from the starry sky before Lu Chen’s eyes.

Lu Chen let out a sigh of relief.

At last, the Leonin had successfully shaken off both the Justice Hunter and the Imperial Special Ops vessel.

Aili thoughtfully poured Lu Chen a glass of iced black tea, and reminded him, “Captain, Senior Nanyuanzi seems to have left your fly drone behind…”

Hearing this, Gloria was immediately displeased.

“We agreed it was worth several thousand credits! Wait, maybe he just forgot. Hurry, catch up with him!”

“You think he's as careless as you?” Lu Chen shot her a sidelong glance as he raised his teacup.

Then, analyzing calmly, he said, “Perhaps the Association won't report this incident at all, but will instead secure a hush fee from the Empire. Wouldn't that be a perfect outcome? I underestimated the relationship between the Adventurers’ Association and the Empire. After all, the Association is a business alliance. If they want to grow and remain stable, they can’t possibly risk open hostility with the Empire or the New Federation.”

“Then you won’t get any extra benefits out of this?” Gloria hugged her bag containing 3,300 spirit stones all the more tightly.

Lu Chen took a sip of tea and sighed. “Maybe we’ll get a large amount of adventurer points instead.”

“Captain! The bounty on Sion Star has been withdrawn!” Aili, ever attentive to the Association’s official website, checked it frequently even while reading or studying, hoping for news about the Primal Star Vault Adventurer Team.

Soon after, she exclaimed excitedly, “Our adventurer points just doubled—from five thousand to ten thousand!”

“As expected…”

No cash reward for me, after all… Lu Chen thought helplessly. If they had paid him, that would’ve been incriminating evidence; the Association would never be so foolish.

“They added five thousand more points—did they give a specific reason in the notes?”

“Yes, it says: ‘The Primal Star Vault Adventurer Team exposed the Sion Star bounty trap. The Adventurers’ Association will negotiate with the Sion Star government to rescue the trapped adventurers as soon as possible.’”

“Good heavens, listen to that—between the lines, Sion Star is being thrown under the bus again!” Lu Chen muttered, rolling his eyes as he scrolled through the Association’s news feed.

There was nothing new from Sion Star yet.

Nearby, Gloria sat at the edge of the lounge table, gently stroking her round belly, an expression of utter contentment on her face.

“Why don’t we contact ‘Federation Free Stars’? The Federation and the Empire are sworn enemies. Maybe they’d be interested in publishing this story and we could make some money,” she suggested.

Lu Chen considered it and found it a reasonable idea. “Let’s give it a try. But don’t get your hopes up. The Federation isn’t as aggressive as it once was—now that the Empire isn’t attacking them and they can’t strike back, they’ve become complacent.”

“One can see it online—their society is overly liberalized, the youth have lost their fighting spirit, and the dream of liberating the galaxy is long gone. ‘Federation Free Stars’ used to publish tales of war heroes, but now it’s little more than a humanoid photo magazine. I hear the most popular things in the Federation these days are cutting-edge entertainment and live streaming.”

“What do you have against entertainment? Back in the day, I tried to be a star myself. Unfortunately, I was too beautiful—my looks undermined my acting and singing. After I killed a few lecherous directors and producers, I missed my shot at stardom!” Gloria stretched languidly, her round belly arching seductively, then turned and went to shower.

Lu Chen curled his lip—she talks a good game…

Aili continued her studies, while Lu Chen sat at the lounge table and logged onto the ‘Federation Free Stars’ homepage.

The front page made him wonder if he’d stumbled onto a disreputable site.

The headline was still about the Guernica Beastmasters’ Corps making the “New Generation 100,000” list.

“This worthless news has been the top headline for a month!” he muttered. He glanced over—Guernica’s commander was a phoenix-type humanoid, a man more beautiful than most women, reputed to be equally popular with both genders and highly charismatic. Three years ago, he’d set off alone across the Pangu Corridor, gradually earning fame and attracting numerous beastmasters from the Empire’s Tier-3 Allies, forming a fleet dozens of ships strong.

Rumor had it his real goal was to create idol figures, lure talent from the Empire, and craft a glamorous image for the Federation. Still, his appeal to both men and women was a bit too avant-garde.

In truth, the Empire was cultivating idols as well—there was that tale of the Silvermist Princess…

Lu Chen idly browsed the latest Federation news. He had to admit that the stars of the Federation each had their own charm, exuding style and allure—and wore very little.

He lingered far too long before recalling his real purpose.

Immediately, he sent an email to the ‘Federation Free Stars’ editorial team, detailing the Imperial Entertainment Weekly’s nefarious deeds and attaching some evidence.

And then… nothing. Not a ripple.

Not that Lu Chen had expected much from this anyway.

…

The Leonin’s great adventure continued as they set off once more.

Lu Chen spent some time disabling the Imperial fly drone’s tracker, so they wouldn’t be followed again.

Only then did he discover that the drone had a biologically active core, with a highly advanced neural network—no wonder it could download and copy the Heart of the Galaxy virus.

After disabling the tracker, Lu Chen tucked the little drone into his new storage pouch; it might come in handy someday.

He’d already given the old pouch to Aili for her pills, spirit plant seeds, and frozen beast embryos…

Disabling the fly drone’s tracker had been taxing. Feeling the rare urge to shout, Lu Chen decided to take a shower.

Only then did he realize a whole day had passed, and Gloria was still soaking in the bath.

He could hear her melodious snores and smell the bubble bath even through the door.

Resigned, Lu Chen knocked. “I need to shower. Are you done yet? Aren’t you afraid your skin will wrinkle?”

Gloria answered sleepily, “If you want to shower, just go ahead. The bubble bath’s opaque—you won’t see me anyway. I’m asleep, won’t peek at you. What’s so interesting about your body?”

“I’m not that desperate for a shower,” Lu Chen muttered, shaking his head and turning away. He’d try again later.

From behind him came Gloria’s languid voice: “Next time, why not get a bigger tub? Then all three of us can bathe together, and no one gets in anyone’s way.”

“You shameless succubus! Don’t distract me from my cultivation!”

A day later.

Miraculously, Lu Chen received a reply from the ‘Federation Free Stars’ editorial department. They considered the matter highly significant and proposed meeting with the Primal Star Vault Adventurer Team at the Federation’s forward territory—Little Rucker Planet—to discuss details.

“Little Rucker Planet?” Lu Chen searched the name.

It turned out to be a renowned entertainment and tourist world, a major revenue source for the New Federation.

Just then, Gloria finished her two-day bath and, having digested the wine in her stomach, emerged. She plopped herself down at the edge of the lounge table, leaning over to peer at Lu Chen’s wrist-screen.

“Don’t hesitate—Little Rucker is a lot of fun. A bit of R&R would do us good!” she urged.

Lu Chen glanced at her and almost forgot he even had Gloria aboard.

She’d changed into a sweater and hotpants, her hair scented with shampoo, and her snow-white thighs were less than ten centimeters from his hands…

The beige sweater only accentuated her curves, with a silly heart printed on the chest. The ultra-short denim shorts made her crossed legs look even whiter and longer—plump and smooth.

Lu Chen resisted the urge to touch, and quipped, “Sweater on top, shorts below—what season is this supposed to be? Who dresses like that?”

Braiding her hair, Gloria replied, “Women are out-of-season creatures. Ask Little Ai if you don’t believe me.”

Aili looked over from afar and said seriously, “Even I, as a girl, think Gloria’s outfit is really pretty. I imagine any normal man would like it.”

Well then—so I’m not normal? Lu Chen tried to keep a straight face. “I prefer Aili’s pure schoolgirl look.”

Gloria was stunned. “Isn’t that even more perverted?”

Aili turned pale with fright, her blue eyes wide with panic and innocence—like a fragile, helpless girl terrified of being ravished.

Half a day later.

“Captain, it looks like… we’re in the news again!”