While the two were talking, the other Sentinels had already found suitable branches in the woods and hurried back.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh…
Blurred afterimages of Sentinels came charging back, moving so fast that Ye Lingxi couldn’t even tell who was who.
When the afterimages came to a stop, she found herself surrounded by a circle of seated Sentinels.
Each of them held two branches in their hands.
Similar in thickness, similar in length, whittled neatly—like pairs of… chopsticks…
Ye Lingxi stared at them, dumbfounded.
Shi Qi was the first to lean over the hot pot, mimicking what Ye Lingxi had just done, using two branches to pick up a piece of luncheon meat.
First try—he missed, and the meat fell back in.
Second try—he squeezed too hard, and the meat split in two.
Third try—he finally managed to pick up half a piece of luncheon meat and bring it to his mouth.
Then his eyes flew wide open.
“Mmph!”
He let out a muffled exclamation of surprise, still chewing as his hand reached for the next piece.
The other Sentinels joined in as well.
Those who were good with chopsticks picked up food with steady precision.
Those who weren’t so skilled sent food flying through the air, but with their speed, they always managed to catch it accurately.
No one spoke.
Only the sounds of chewing, and the occasional low hiss from something too hot or too spicy.
Ye Lingxi watched them in a daze—twelve tall, imposing men with strange tattoos crawling across their faces, gathered around a single self-heating hot pot, fighting over the food inside.
Shi Qi and Pei Jin’s chopsticks clamped onto the last fish ball at the same time. The two exchanged a glance, sparks flying from their eyes.
Both pairs of chopsticks exerted force simultaneously, sending the fish ball flying into the air.
The next instant, Mingzhou’s chopsticks shot in from the side, neatly catching the fish ball and delivering it to his own mouth.
Shi Qi: “!!”
Pei Jin: “!!”
Ye Lingxi: “…”
She suddenly felt like laughing.
So vampires did eat human food after all.
Or—she wasn’t entirely sure they were vampires.
But every single one of them definitely wasn’t fully human. Of that, she was absolutely certain!
The hot pot was soon scraped clean—not even a drop of broth remained.
At the very end, Shi Qi even picked up the outer shell of the self-heating pot containing the heating pack, bringing it to his lips as if to drink the water inside. Ye Lingxi lunged and grabbed his hand just in time.
“You can’t drink that!” she shouted, snatching it away in a panic. “There’s quicklime in there! Drinking that could kill you!”
Startled by her sudden movement, Shi Qi obediently let go. His silver lashes fluttered as he looked at Ye Lingxi with an innocent expression—like a big silver-furred dog that had been scolded without understanding what it did wrong.
Meeting those eyes, Ye Lingxi let out a helpless sigh. She pulled the heating pack out of his hand and tossed it aside, then pointed at her own mouth and waved her hand, signaling that this wasn’t edible.
Shi Qi understood. He nodded obediently, then flashed her a wide grin—a smile so bright it looked like he’d just received some incredible reward.
With the food finished, the Sentinels set down their chopsticks—or rather, their branches—with satisfaction and rose to their feet in unison.
Before Ye Lingxi could react, she saw twelve tall, burly men line up in front of her, moving in perfect synchronization. They raised their right fists and struck them heavily against their left chests.
Thump!
A deep, powerful sound, like the beating of an ancient war drum.
Ye Lingxi was stunned by the display.
What were they… doing?
The next second, all twelve men spoke at once:
“We thank the Guide for her hospitality!”
“On this Desolate Planet, we are willing to serve as the Guide’s reserve food supply, sustaining the Guide with our blood!”
“As long as we live, we will never let the Guide go hungry!”
“We swear in the name of the Seventh Army Special Operations Unit!”
“We swear by the honor of the Sentinels!”
Thunderous voices, overwhelming presence.
Ye Lingxi couldn’t understand a word, but she was thoroughly awed.
She swallowed hard, trying to figure out what she should say at a moment like this.
“Hehehe, no need to thank me, no need to be so polite, it was truly my honor to have you all join me for a meal…”
She didn’t even know what she was saying—just being polite.
When she finished, seeing that the twelve Sentinels were still staring at her with burning gazes, she closed her eyes, steeled her nerves, and gave them a cupped-fist salute before launching into a completely serious string of nonsense:
“We who roam the martial world pay no heed to trivial formalities—meeting is fate!
All you heroes and champions, sharing a table with me today is a blessing from the heavens.
I’m new to these parts, unfamiliar with the land and the people. I’m honored you didn’t turn your noses up and were willing to grace my humble meal—that’s doing me a great favor!
I live by one rule: when you’re out in the world, the more friends you make, the smoother the road.
If there’s ever anything you need my help with, just say the word. I won’t claim I can walk through fire or climb a mountain of blades, but running errands or lending a hand—I won’t hesitate! Alright then… the mountains remain green, the waters flow forever. Make yourselves at home, please, please…”
As Ye Lingxi’s voice faded, an eerie silence fell over the wilderness under the night sky.
The Sentinels remained frozen in their chest-thumping salute, but the expressions on their faces…
What is the Guide Excellency saying?
She sounded so serious and earnest…
And she said so much…
They couldn’t understand—had they missed something extremely important?
All the Sentinels’ gazes fell upon Mingzhou and Lin Chuan, their eyes silently asking, What do we do? How should we respond to the Guide Excellency…
Mingzhou and Lin Chuan exchanged a look.
After a moment, Mingzhou lowered his arms and walked over to Ye Lingxi, his pitch-black eyes meeting the girl’s gaze.
He wore an apologetic expression and said, “Your Excellency Guide, we cannot yet understand your language for the time being.” However, our Personal Terminals have recorded everything. Once the language analysis is complete, whatever commands you have, we will surely obey.”
He paused, then continued, “As for the food just now, thank you for your hospitality. On this Desolate Planet, we will do our utmost to protect your safety and attend to your daily needs.
At present, we have no food suitable for you here. Starting tomorrow, we will sustain you with our blood until we find food that suits you.”
…
On the wilderness, the night grew deeper.
The blood-red moon rose to its zenith, casting a faint crimson glow over the barren land, coating everything in an eerie red sheen.
Ye Lingxi yawned.
From midnight last night until now, she had gone over twenty hours without sleep.
Earlier, her nerves had been wound too tight to notice, but now that she was fed and watered, drowsiness surged in like a tide. Her eyelids began to droop, and her head kept bobbing downward.
Mingzhou noticed her state.
He stepped forward and crouched down in front of her, keeping himself at eye level with her.
Ye Lingxi forced her eyes wide to look at him, her sleep-fogged gaze carrying a hint of inquiry.
Mingzhou met those misty eyes, and his voice unconsciously softened further.
“Lord Guide, it’s late, and it’s cold outside. Let me take you to rest inside the ship.”
He raised his hand, pointing toward the aircraft quietly parked not far away. Its slightly worn silver-gray hull gleamed with a cold light beneath the blood moon.
“There’s a rest area on the ship. It’s a bit crude, but it has a bed and a climate control system—warmer and more comfortable than out here.”
As he spoke, he gestured—pointing at the ship, then pressing his palms together against his cheek in a sleeping motion.
“You are a Guide; your body isn’t like ours Sentinels. You can’t just sleep out in the wilderness. If you catch a chill and fall ill, there are no medical facilities here—it would be very dangerous.”
“The captain’s quarters are clean. You can sleep in my bed. I’ll be on watch tonight, so I won’t come in to disturb you.”
Having said that, he remained in his crouched position, gazing at her gently, waiting for her response.
Ye Lingxi blinked, watching this man with black tattoos covering half his face chatter on seriously in a long stream of gibberish, complete with various hand gestures.
She didn’t understand a single word.
But she understood the sleeping gesture and the motion pointing toward the ship.
Was he… telling her to go sleep on the ship?
Ye Lingxi’s drowsiness was instantly scared half away.