The insects have never truly been defeated.

Could the Shadowless Whale truly exist?

Lu Chen was filled with doubt. Yet, this scene was being broadcast live for all to see. In no time, a myriad of ships flocked to the area, each releasing their most elaborate killer lures into the surrounding misty sea. Some unleashed giant worm baits shaped like pythons, others used carefully prepared balls of marbled meat, swarms of lobster bait, and all manner of artificial electronic lures. There were even live baits—some so advanced they could hardly be called bait at all, functioning more as automatic fish-catchers with forcibly hooking mechanisms.

Lu Chen considered himself an experienced angler, but he had never witnessed such a spectacle. Suddenly, a massive horn-shaped ship burst into flames and spiraled out of control, plunging into the depths of the misty sea. Many live streams quickly identified the ship:

“That’s the Minotaur Adventurer Group’s Horn!”

“It’s a half-star beast ship built from the shell of a giant longhorn beetle. How could it suddenly catch fire and lose control at this juncture?”

“Isn’t it obvious? The Horn is faking a crash to secretly hunt the Shadowless Whale!”

“Outrageous! Isn’t the Anglers’ Alliance going to do anything?”

“No wonder they lost to the Guernica Beastmasters and were shamelessly rejected when they tried to join them…”

“Where are the patrol ships? What are they waiting for—go apprehend them!”

In an instant, countless fishing vessels sounded their alarms to report the incident, and chaos erupted.

Lu Chen was surprised as well. “If the Guernica Beastmasters were really interested in the Shadowless Whale, would they not even send a single ship?”

The patrol ships of the Anglers’ Alliance hesitated, repeatedly issuing warnings to the Horn but making no move to pursue. Whether they were unwilling to venture recklessly into the depths of the misty planet, or simply reluctant to provoke the promising Minotaur Adventurer Group, no one could say.

Before long, two Imperial Sea Wolf-class patrol ships, ostensibly dispatched to apprehend the Horn, plunged into the misty sea. Yet, once inside, they activated their advanced sonar systems rather than chasing the Horn—they too were searching for the Shadowless Whale!

The other adventurer ships couldn’t stand it any longer; they reeled in their lines, packed away their bait, and sped into the depths of the mist. In moments, the entire misty planet was thrown into utter turmoil.

Good. The more chaos, the better, thought Lu Chen. If fortune favored him, he wouldn’t miss out; if not, there was no need to fight for what wasn’t his.

He was still enjoying the unfolding drama when Aili’s voice came through: “Captain, an icebound object resembling an interstellar insect has been spotted ahead!”

Interstellar insect? The number one bait for the Shadowless Whale? Lu Chen turned sharply, adrenaline surging.

“Retrieve it immediately!”

Aili quickly maneuvered the ship’s robotic arm to haul a meter-long, irregular block of ice aboard. After de-icing, sterilization, and disinfection in the outer chamber, it was sent to the rear hold.

Lu Chen entered the rear hold and found a black locust over a foot long. Other than its dark color and massive size, it looked much like an ordinary locust.

[A male interstellar locust in hibernation, cultivation level ten. A subspecies descendant of the interstellar insect race, these social spiritual insects are extremely cold-resistant; their wings can absorb solar energy to withstand the cold and, using interstellar dust, are capable of flight through space. No insect core detected; spiritual blood is uniform, and their blood possesses some corrosive properties.]

“It’s still alive… and its blood is corrosive. Can this thing really be used as whale bait?”

Regardless, Lu Chen had it refrozen to keep it in a dormant but viable state. Still, one locust would not suffice. Since these were social insects, there were bound to be more nearby. If they were descendants of the nomadic insect race, there ought to be a hive mind, perhaps even a queen locust.

If he could capture a queen, what trouble would there be in catching the Shadowless Whale?

With this realization, Lu Chen’s thoughts cleared. He immediately piloted his ship to patrol several nearby star systems, monitoring for faint LIDAR signals within the interstellar dust.

Half a day passed.

Within a storm-ravaged, starless asteroid belt, his treasure map finally indicated a target. Treasure, here of all places? Sometimes fate smiled upon the unintentional.

At that moment, Aili called out excitedly, “Captain, a swarm of locusts detected ahead!”

Lu Chen turned to the radar display. The swarm numbered only a few hundred—low-level interstellar locusts, not the target highlighted by his treasure map. However, their flight path aligned perfectly with the map’s marker.

So, there really was a queen!

If he could capture her, perhaps he could truly fish for the Shadowless Whale—assuming it existed and hadn’t already been caught by someone else.

As for the chaos on the misty planet, things hadn’t yet descended into all-out conflict; there was no opportunity for him to scavenge the aftermath. Even if the Shadowless Whale was taken, capturing the queen would allow him to establish an insect nest factory, produce corrosives—or even industrial products like Blue Moon cleaner or toilet disinfectant upon return. How marvelous would that be?

“We’ll follow them discreetly.”

The Leonin promptly shut down its radar and entered silent running. They tailed the migrating swarm for two hours, finally reaching a nondescript rocky planet hidden within the storm.

Lu Chen’s treasure map indicated the target was underground on this very planet.

Since this was a drifting asteroid belt, not a single illuminating star brightened the sky; the entire world was shrouded in darkness. The Leonin maintained blackout and silence, following the swarm into a strange, steep canyon. The locusts dove into a pitch-black cave and vanished.

Lu Chen had no choice but to anchor the ship.

Aili, perhaps uneasy in the darkness, reminded him, “Captain, if we stop in the canyon, we’re likely to be attacked by a swarm!”

Lu Chen spread his hands. “If we’re destined to be attacked anyway, isn’t it more efficient to limit our exposure to one front and let the defensive array conserve spiritual energy?”

Aili looked confused. It was Gloria who interpreted for her: “The captain means that since we’re here, we’re not leaving until we get the treasure. Retreat isn’t an option.”

Just as expected, in the darkness, the thunder of countless wings filled the air as the interstellar locusts swarmed in a tidal wave toward the Leonin.

Lu Chen had already maxed out the ship’s defensive array. Instantly, the hull rang out as though pummeled by hail, bursts of fire lighting up the night. The locusts’ shells were incinerated to ash; their blue-black blood vaporized by the high-energy barrier.

With a level-thirty array, the Leonin could easily withstand these locusts, who rarely exceeded level ten. Unfortunately, their numbers were overwhelming. Even though most of them weren’t much of a threat, their relentless assault stretched on for over ten minutes, steadily draining the ship’s spiritual reserves. Meanwhile, the vaporized blue blood shrouded the hull, its heat generating a corrosive effect on the ship’s surface.

Looking out at the endless, unfeeling swarm sacrificing themselves against the ship, Lu Chen couldn’t help but recall the final scene from the TV adaptation of The Three-Body Problem: faced with the Trisolaran’s dimensional attack, Da Shi said amidst a sky full of locusts, “The Trisolarans see us as mere insects, but they seem to have forgotten one thing—no one has ever truly defeated the insects.”

That truth held just as strong in the Milky Way.

Despite the dimensional attacks from humanity’s cultivation civilization, the nomadic insect race had survived, leaving their descendants’ swarms across the universe, wreaking havoc in the border stars and becoming one of the four great disasters of the new era.

Aili, still uneasy in the dark, instinctively moved closer to Lu Chen and Gloria.

“The hull can only hold for another half hour before reaching its limit… Should we abandon the asteroid?” Aili asked nervously.

Lu Chen remained calm, turning toward the rear hold. “I’ll go treasure hunting. The two of you cover me—Aili, you handle the ship and the swarm; Gloria, protect Aili.”

With that, Lu Chen donned his level-thirty engine armor and leapt from the ship, vanishing into the sea of locusts.