Escape!
Yang Ming's ears buzzed continuously, and dizziness accompanied by a strong urge to vomit overwhelmed him.
The moment the red hoop erupted, Yang Ming already sprinted for an escape, but he still couldn't avoid the influence of that red light.
"Valkyrie has escaped!"
He yelled at the top of his lungs.
Many men and women nearby began to vomit, some precision instruments emitted faint electrical arcs, and screams and shouts erupted intermittently.
Seven or eight men and women in white laboratory coats surged toward the cabin where Valkyrie was; their eyes shone with a faint red light, their expressions devout.
Valkyrie had long secretly taken control of the researchers who were most closely associated with her!
Yang Ming ran straight to the nearest emergency fire escape, and didn't forget to slap the alarm bell on the wall, letting the shrill alarm sound throughout the entire research ship.
'I can only help you guys this much.'
Rushing up the spiral staircase, he climbed hundreds of steps in one breath before Yang Ming heard screams coming from below.
Direct gunfire!
Three horizontal safety gates were rapidly closing, cutting off the spiral staircase, with the topmost right under Yang Ming's feet.
'Can these alloy gates, capable of resisting high-energy laser beams, stop Valkyrie?'
At that moment, Yang Ming felt utterly insecure.
The walls transmitted the calm voice of a broadcaster, announcing refuge tips, urging all departments to prepare for evacuation, and marking the positions of the lifeboats.
Soon, the ship started to tremble slightly, and the battle in the lower deck grew intense.
Perhaps because the act of climbing stairs was too vigorous, it aggravated old injuries; as he ran, Yang Ming's eyes began to fill with blood, his ears buzzed, and waves of intense dizziness hit him.
He had no intention of stopping.
The concussion intensified, but with the medical means of interstellar civilization, it wasn't much of an issue.
But if he slowed down and Valkyrie caught up, his head would be shaved off!
His robust physique played a key role, allowing Yang Ming to rush directly to the top level of the safety passage.
He barely made out the nearby exit.
The dizziness grew worse, making it nearly impossible to stand.
But when Yang Ming saw the safety gate ahead that was slowly closing, he took a strong step forward, dove forward, and barely rolled inside.
Ding, ding ding—
The noise was like a dozen coins spinning in a metal bowl, ringing continuously beside Yang Ming's ear.
Yang Ming thought of something, pulled out the small pocket, and poured out the capsules Doctor Lina had given him, squeezing two and swallowing them down.
Then, he lay down on the floor, eyes closed, gasping heavily.
The ringing in his ears lasted a good while.
Yang Ming's breathing gradually stabilized; the veins on his forehead slowly receded, his body drenched in sweat.
He raised his hand to cover his forehead, the dizziness receding like flowing water, his chest no longer stifled, and his mind became exceptionally active.
'Was there a steroid in that medication? The effect is strong.'
When Yang Ming got up, he had to support himself against the wall, but after walking more than ten steps, his body had returned to normal.
According to the information in Hanton's memory, his current location was very close to the command bridge, and there should be no more safety gates ahead.
Yang Ming's pace gradually quickened.
Warnings of disasters continuously came from the walls, and the embedded displays showed prominent red words.
Of the three lifeboats, one was located in an outer storage near the command bridge, able to hold a hundred people.
Including the guards, there were usually only about forty to fifty people on the command bridge, so the probability of successfully boarding a lifeboat from here was the highest.
Of course, the best outcome would be to persuade Kigrov to abandon Valkyrie and eject the lower deck's laboratory quickly; boarding a lifeboat would be the worst-case scenario.
—The lifeboat did not have jump capability, and being on the border of the Empire's territory, there was a risk of being stranded in space.
After walking along the silver-gray corridor for a long time, two doors bearing the Empire's emblem came into view.
Entry required biological recognition; he pressed his palm on the control panel to the left, and the two large doors slowly slid open.
It was like the voice of a starving electronic announcer in a small area:
"Third officer arrives on the command bridge."
Quite impressive.
If the engine room, housing the jump drive, was the heart of the spacecraft, then the command bridge was its brain.
Yang Ming quickly stepped inside and surveyed the environment.
This research ship obviously spent all its budget on the laboratory in the lower deck; the command bridge could be described as quite shabby.
Directly ahead was a connected arch window, outside of which was the best view of the stars the entire ship could offer, and to the left and right were control panels, enough to scare anyone with claustrophobia, with their rows of buttons causing the scalp to tingle.
A dozen men and women in Empire military uniforms sat straight at their posts, calmly and concisely passing information, listening to commands, and pressing buttons.
—They were responsible for controlling the navigation of the spacecraft and the real-time monitoring of the spacecraft's overall condition.
Behind these operators was a closed and transparent
fire control cabin; inside sat several middle-aged military officers controlling all types of weapons on the spacecraft.
Above the fire control cabin was the main control desk, standing just where Yang Ming was now looking for—Kigrov, along with the captain and several high-ranking crew members.
Directly in front of Kigrov was a one-sided projected screen wall, showing a chaotic view of the lower deck without any blind spots.
Yang Ming looked down and moved forward, not caring whether he had the qualifications to go to the main control desk or not, quickly stepped up the stairs, and stood behind a few 'superiors'.