Staying Alive Cautiously in the Celestial Realm and Becoming the Strongest

[Alert! Alert, the ship is entering Level One emergency status. Passengers, please do not leave your cabins!]

The emergency notice made Wang Chen's gaze sharpen, a sinking feeling welling up inside him.

Emergency protocols for civilian spacecraft are divided into five levels, with Level One being the highest level of danger—usually signifying that the vessel is on the brink of destruction or under attack by interstellar pirates.

The former is highly unlikely, as a space cruise liner like the Distant Star has an extremely high safety rating; fatal accidents due to internal malfunctions are exceedingly rare, as rare as winning the lottery.

But interstellar pirates? They're a cancer that has plagued the Empire for centuries!

The existence of interstellar pirates dates back a long time, splitting into countless groups and factions of varying sizes—parasites akin to bloodsucking horseflies, intermittently taking bites from the vast body of the Empire.

Every year, numerous merchant ships, cargo vessels, and cruise liners fall victim to pirate raids, resulting in significant losses.

The Empire's high command is deeply frustrated with the pirate scourge, but eliminating them has proven extraordinarily difficult. Even after exhausting every effort to destroy a few groups, new ones swiftly emerge.

For centuries, the Empire has poured massive amounts of manpower and resources into resolving this malignant issue, yet the problem remains unresolved.

It is said that many interstellar pirate groups receive support from the Stars Alliance, which opposes the Holy Light Empire. Some even function as organizations directly established by the Alliance.

Additionally, numerous aristocrats, financial oligarchs, and members of the Empire's elite have unverifiable but undeniable connections with some pirate organizations.

The situation is incredibly complex.

Wang Chen never imagined that this ordinary trip would put him in the crosshairs of interstellar pirates.

It really feels like winning the lottery.

Just his luck!

After detaching the interface device, a new message promptly popped up on the cabin's wall-mounted screen.

[Emergency status has been revoked.]

It's over?

Wang Chen blinked in mild surprise.

But his sharp intuition told him things were not so simple, nor was this an error in the ship's alert system.

After contemplating for a moment, Wang Chen swiftly retrieved his longsword from his backpack.

This standardized longsword was the only weapon he owned. Though it was the cheapest mass-produced product, it still gave him a slight edge in self-defense.

But when Wang Chen attempted to open his cabin door to investigate, his heart sank heavily.

The cabin door was locked!

Wang Chen tried several times, but the door remained unresponsive. Even the touchscreen control panel on the wall seemed dead—it didn't react no matter how he operated it.

Such a scenario could only mean one thing: the Distant Star Space Cruise Liner's central systems had been taken over entirely by outsiders, who subsequently rejected all passenger command requests.

The cabin Wang Chen was in had essentially become a cell!

He had become a bird in a cage.

Yet even in such a dire situation, Wang Chen did not lose his composure.

He attempted to reconnect to the Star Sea Network but found that every interface device in the cabin, including his personal terminal, was in a state of data blackout, barring all external communication.

Seeing no hope there, Wang Chen thoroughly searched the cabin for anything useful.

Unfortunately, there was nothing.

At least, nothing that could help him get out of his current predicament.

Right as Wang Chen was rummaging through the cabin, the door suddenly opened on its own, revealing a shadowy figure at the entrance.

Wang Chen whirled around abruptly, coming face to face with the uninvited guest.

The intruder was encased head-to-toe in black combat armor, holding a high-energy assault rifle. The blue fire flickering behind the visor of his helmet exuded a hint of mockery and derision.

"Well, what do we have here? A little chick from the Garrison Army, huh? Looks like you'll taste pretty damn good!"

The man pointed the pitch-black barrel of his rifle at Wang Chen, a grating voice issuing from his helmet: "Get on your knees and call me Daddy, and I might just let you kiss my ass!"

Wang Chen noticed the flaming skull insignia emblazoned on the intruder's chest plate.

It was the hallmark symbol commonly used by interstellar pirates!

He couldn't help but smile.

In that exact moment, Wang Chen suddenly stepped forward, his tightly gripped longsword tracing a dazzling arc of light as it slashed viciously toward the foul-mouthed pirate.

The pirate warrior, though dismissive of Wang Chen, had extensive combat experience and quick reflexes. He immediately pulled the trigger.

As for Wang Chen's sudden assault? The pirate didn't take it seriously in the slightest.

After all, the combat armor he wore was resistant to small high-energy weapons at close range. Even if he stood there and let Wang Chen hack at him, it would take three days and three nights to breach its defenses.

Meanwhile, one shot from his rifle would obliterate Wang Chen into pieces!

But just as the high-energy rifle was about to discharge, his head was sent flying high into the air.

Wang Chen's sword had sliced through the pirate warrior's neck like a hot knife through butter, cleaving through the armor and decapitating him in one fluid motion.

Ordinarily, Wang Chen's standard longsword wouldn't even scratch military-grade combat armor—not to mention even civilian-grade protective gear might be unscathed.

However, Wang Chen had infused the sword with the powers of the second level of the Heavenly Dragon Vajra Method, amplifying it with the might of Second Ring Spiritual Energy, creating this miraculous outcome!

Crack!

As the pirate's lifeless body crumpled to the ground, Wang Chen's longsword shattered piece by piece, falling apart into countless fragments.

The weapon had endured far beyond what it was designed to handle—a triumphant retirement of sorts.

But Wang Chen's crisis was far from over. He quickly grabbed the high-energy assault rifle that had fallen to the ground.

In the Empire, the emphasis on martial skills and perpetual wartime circumstances led to a strong focus on national defense education. All students were required to undergo basic military training upon turning fourteen.

Wang Chen's past self, while just a student, had experience handling an assault rifle and knew the basics of its operation.

However, as soon as Wang Chen picked up the rifle, he realized it was useless—he couldn't unlock it due to mismatched biological data.

In other words, the high-energy assault rifle was equipped with biometric authentication, restricting its use to its registered owner.

In Wang Chen's hands, it was nothing more than a hunk of scrap metal!

Damn it!

Wang Chen cursed under his breath, discarding the rifle and drawing the pirate's sheathed sword instead.

He would've loved to strip the pirate's combat armor and wear it himself. Even without a helmet, it would significantly bolster his defense.

But there was no time to spare.

Wang Chen could already hear voices from outside: "Justin, are you alright?"

More than one pirate had infiltrated the first-class cabin area. Clearly, they had information on the passengers, which explained how the one Wang Chen had just killed knew his background.

This just got messy!

Lowering his body, Wang Chen crouched. The moment a second pirate appeared at the doorway, he leaped forward like a swift leopard, slashing toward the intruder's legs with his sword.

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First chapter delivered.