Planet ACG 21 was shrouded in a thick, black fog. Only after the landing shuttle had made it through these Stygian clouds did Xia Fei finally get a good look at the entirety of the warship graveyard.
The surface of the planet was littered with an uncountable number of spaceships, which came in all sizes.
Spaceships of different shapes and colors were all piled up and lay in heaps across the ground. Some had already rusted and decayed until they were barely identifiable as ships, and there were even some that had plants growing on them, looking completely rundown.
The landing shuttle whizzed past the wreckage of a warship which was over a hundred kilometers long, its hull broken into two halves right down the middle. The size of it spoke of the spacecrafts past glory when it was still in use.
Even though these spaceships had long since turned into nothing more than useless rusty metals, Xia Fei was still taken aback by the wide variety of space vessel styles that could be found here. This was a rare sight to behold no matter what planet it was.
The landing shuttle slowed as it descended on an open clearing, letting Xia Fei, as well as several other passengers, disembark.
Right across was the spaceport terminal. The inhabitants clearly knew how to reuse and recycle, for this place was actually an old warship which had been repurposed as a terminal, and the landing apron was the flight deck of a large warship.
Xia Fei carried his backpack and followed the crowd toward the terminal.
There was no one taking care of the spaceport, and everything was in disuse. From start to finish, he did not catch sight of any uniformed staff.
A stretch of rusted fence surrounded the spaceport, though portions of it had already fallen, allowing anyone to enter and exit the place as they pleased.
There was a dirt road leading out of the spaceport, and a hovercar came zipping by on this road, creating a gray, dusty trail behind it which remained in place for a long time.
Hmm. Why isnt there even a taxi around at all? Xia Fei put his backpack down and lit a cigarette, standing beside the road and having nothing to do aside from hoping that a cab would appear.
The others who had disembarked from the shuttle with Xia Fei all climbed aboard two hovercars and swiftly departed, leaving just him all alone at the roadside.
Xia Fei carried his backpack again and prepared to make the trek to the city. He was a Speed Ability user, so he was undaunted by such a distance. It was just that he was unfamiliar with this place, so he had no idea which direction he should be heading toward.
That was when a ramshackle, yellow hovercar did an emergency break right in front of him.
The cloudy dust enveloped Xia Fei entirely. Finding it difficult to breathe inside it, he covered his mouth and coughed several times.
A dark-skinned man in his twenties whistled, then hailed for him to get in.
This man was scrawny, and considering the shade of his skin, Xia Fei had nearly missed that there was someone in the drivers seat.
The man flashed a bright smile which showed a pair of yellowing teeth. Hop in. Youre lucky that I happened to be passing by the spaceport, or else youll likely spend the night out here in the wilderness today.
Xia Fei considered his offer before hopping into the passenger seat with his backpack. The hovercar let out an ear-piercing rumble and soon speeded down the road.
This hovercar did not look too different from the ones found on Earth, except that it had a jet-powered engine installed in the trunk and storage placed in the hood. It had four extensions around the frame, with each having a thick circular disk, which served as this vehicles magnetic levitation device.
Are you here to buy a spaceship? asked the dark-skinned man.
Xia Fei nodded. How did you know?
Isnt it obvious? Why else would anyone come to such a place if not to buy a spaceship? answered the chap matter-of-factly.
There are three kinds of people who go to a warship graveyard to buy spaceships. First are those poor blokes who cant afford new spacecraft so they end up coming here. Theres basically no way to earn anything from such people. Second are those who know those warship graveyards are where they can buy spacecraft parts with the best performance at the lowest price possible. Such people have a vast knowledge of spaceships, so theres no way to earn much from them, either.
Third are those black men. Of course, Im not talking about their skin color but how they cant risk legitimacy. Such people are unable to purchase what they need through official channels, so they opt to come here, instead. Theres profit to be made doing business with this type, but one must be careful not to risk their lives in the process. Which sort are you?
Xia Fei chuckled. Care to guess?
The man looked at his attire. You dont like spaceship-savvy judging from your young age. Its even less likely for you to be a young master, so I guess youre someone with not enough money but needs to get a ship.
Xia Fei laughed and did not say a word.
Have you found a place to stay? asked the man.
He shook his head. Nope. Do you have anywhere good to recommend?
Bro, today must be your lucky day bumping into me. It just so happens that I know a small, decent inn that isnt too pricey, though there are no girls there. The man threw Xia Fei a shifty glance as he spoke.
Far in the distance, Xia Fei could finally see the outline of a city.
Actually, calling it a city was a bit of an exaggeration. In terms of size, this city was more like a large town. Several uneven dirt roads ran through it, and both sides of the road were spaceships after spaceships, which had been discarded onto this planet. The people in this town all stayed in these abandoned spaceships.
A quick scan of both sides of the road and Xia Fei saw names like Pan-Universal Shipping Company and Galaxy Modification Private Limited. These shopfronts were all in various states of disrepair and dilapidation, though their names sounded rather impressive.
One such company, which went by the name of Pinnacle Spaceship Assembly, had a bench placed in front where a brawny, scarred man sat. This person immediately stood up and waved enthusiastically when he saw the old hovercar driving by. Xia Fei could not make out what this person was shouting, but it must have been something to make the dark-skinned man stop his ride.
However, the man merely waved his hand and continued driving along.
Dont say I didnt warn you, but the shops you see in the city are all out to fleece you foreigners who know nothing about spaceflight. Its best if you stay far away from them. The real proper factories will all be located far away from the city, sincerely said this dark-skinned fellow.
He did not sound to be lying, so Xia Fei could not help but view him in a different light. Though he had a face, which looked like he was up to no good, he was not actually a bad person. It was quite a headache hearing the man speak, however, for he had been talking nonstop throughout their journey spanning over an hour.
The hovercar came to a stop on a deserted street. The man pointed to the left side and said, This is the place. Tell my mom that I will be out sending a few night clients today so dont wait up for me to have dinner.
Xia Fei alighted from the hovercar and walked toward the direction the man pointed out. He saw a warship, which had been converted into an inn, up ahead, and there was a wooden sign hanging from the entrance: Just Like Home Inn.
The glass door was polished until he could see his reflection, and the floor looked as if it had been polished by someone too, with not a bit of dust or dirt on it.
Finding such a clean place of lodging in this place was truly quite a difficult task.
The dark-skinned man started his hovercar again and was about to leave when Xia Fei hurriedly asked, Whats your name? I havent paid you yet!
The names Sonny, and just hand over the money to my mom! The man waved and sped off.
Xia Fei made his way toward the inn even as he patted the dirt and grime from himself. The white T-shirt he was wearing had almost turned black by then.
Knocking on the glass door, he saw a dark-skinned woman in her fifties walking over, her filled-out figure twisting as she came and greeted him with an affable smile.
Sonny sent me; your son said that hell be sending some night clients, so hes going to be back late, reported Xia Fei.
The woman very warmly brought Xia Fei into the establishment, using a duster made of cloth strips to tackle his dusty self.
This place here is just too dirty. Come on in and take a shower.
Sonnys mother led him to a room on the second floor. The entire inn was silent. There did not seem to be any other customers aside from Xia Fei, which clearly showed that this inn did not enjoy very good business.
The room was very small, providing just a single-size bed and a metal cabinet. There was even an unknown green plant placed on top of the table.
Xia Fei was already content with such conditions. He was not particularly picky when it came to his food and lodging; all he needed was just a bed to sleep in and a warm meal to eat.
After taking a shower, Xia Fei lit a cigarette. He was sitting on the head of his bed, smoking, when he heard knocking at the door.
Opening up, he saw Sonnys mother standing outside with a laundry basket. Hand your dirty clothes over; Ill wash them for you.
Xia Fei quickly shook his head. Theres no need. Ill wash them myself.
Without saying another word, Sonnys mother pushed him aside, entered the room, and placed the clothes he had tossed to the ground into the basket. Even his undergarments were not spared. Men ought to do important things. Leave things like washing clothes to the womenfolk.
Not giving him any chance to get a word in, Sonnys mother turned and left. She reminded him even as she walked off, Dinner will be served at 7 p.m. Were eating bacon and potatoes tonight.
Xia Fei helplessly watched her leave, feeling grateful for this warm-hearted aunt. Sonnys household looked to be fairly trustworthy.
At 7 p.m. sharp, Xia Fei made his way downstairs and saw that a bowl of golden yellow potatoes had been placed on the dining table; the steam coming from this dish looked particularly inviting, especially next to a plate with fatty yet lean streaks of bacon.
After the bumpy ride from the spaceport to his destination, Xia Fei had long since worked up quite the appetite, and seeing that there was no one around, he picked up a whole potato with the intention of shoving it right into his mouth.
No stealing a bite! Xia Fei had no idea where Sonnys mother had yelled from, but the potato in his hand had already entered his mouth by then, and it happened to get lodged in his throat.
Xia Feis face went red as he choked on his food. He kept patting his chest before finally managing to spit out that potato.
That was when Xia Fei realized that there was a young child of around ten years of age standing beside him, staring at this strange foreigner with uncertainty.
Why swallow it whole instead of biting it? The youngster wondered.
Ahem Xia Fei was rendered speechless and could feel his cheeks flushing warmly.
During dinner, he learned that the youngster was Sonnys brother, Nemo.
Xia Fei had wolfed down his meal, patting his stomach in satisfaction as he pulled out a cigarette from his dimensional ring and began to smoke.
You may look thin, but youve actually got such a big appetite. Its good to eat plenty; boys ought to eat and sleep more so that they will have the strength to do the heavy lifting. Sonnys mother was full of praise for Xia Feis appetite.
The sound of a hovercar coming to a halt could be heard from outside and hearing the almost train-like commotion it created, it was apparent that Sonny was back.
The man stepped into the dining room, sat himself down without another word, and started eating with much gusto. By the looks of things, he was not feeling very happy.
Didnt you say that youd be driving some night clients? asked his mother.
Sonny inhaled a large piece of bacon as he answered, Those people went back on their word and hired Fatty Luos car, instead.
Oh, thats good, too. Its best if you avoid doing business with such night clients. None of those people are dependable; who knows? You might just end up losing your life in the process, remarked his mother.
Xia Fei abruptly understood that the night clients that they had been referring to were actually criminals and bandits who avoided seeing the light of day.
Thinking about this a bit more, Xia Fei suddenly spoke. Sonny, would you be interested in making a deal with me?
