The twelve-meter-long small transport craft left the belly of the pirate ship and slowly entered the atmosphere of the brownish-yellow planet.
From the co-pilot's seat, Yang Ming watched the vast expanse of yellow sand below, a sense of belonging mysteriously welling up inside him.
He thought of his hometown, a deep homesickness surfacing in his heart.
However, this sense of homesickness was quickly diluted by Mimili, who was wearing a tight-fitting spacesuit and piloting the ship. She knew how to show off her figure.
"Here, take this, Hanton."
Kolev, sitting in the back, handed over a metal face mask with a sophisticated air purification device.
Kolev smiled and said,
"I just checked the latest news from Cole Port and the Sherman Empire. They haven't gone public about our jailbreak. They simply reported a riot at Cole Port Prison, resulting in the death and injury of more than a dozen guards and prisoners.
"Later, I'll try to see if I can buy any intelligence about you. If your little lover made you into one of the dead or injured prisoners to deceive the Imperial Military Intelligence Bureau, that would be interesting."
"That's useless, Lina will continue to track my whereabouts. She just doesn't want any other intelligence services to notice the presence of her prey."
Yang Ming donned the mask, his voice gaining a metallic quality:
"From now on, don't call me by Hanton's real name. Call me by my alias... call me Yang Ming."
"Yang Ming?" Kolev called out.
"Uncle Yang Ming? It seems Uncle Hanton still rolls off the tongue better."
Mimili's sweet voice reached Yang Ming's ears, causing a hint of itchiness in his heart.
'She's my niece.'
'And a star widow.'
Yang Ming reminded himself internally, while saying aloud, "Whatever you like."
A thin energy shield appeared around the transport, not only blocking out the high temperatures caused by friction but also preventing the spacecraft from vibrating too much.
The gravitational acceleration of this planet was slightly greater than Earth's, which posed no burden to Yang Ming.
Having set foot on solid ground once again and feeling the sensation of sand enveloping the soles of his boots, Yang Ming couldn't help but murmur, "Finally standing on land again."
"Has Uncle Hanton been traveling in space for a long time?"
Mimili asked beside him, already wearing her metal mask. Her burgundy hair was tied into two braids resting on her shoulders, and she had a laser gun adorned with punk elements slung over her shoulder.
"Yes, it's been over a year since I last stepped on soil," Yang Ming said with a smile, "I always feel a sense of familiarity here."
"Keep up, everyone!"
Kolev's voice came from the edge of their masks, where a miniature speaker was hidden. It not only altered the wearer's voice but also served as a communication device for the team.
Kolev muttered, "We need to leave before Kimo arrives, to avoid confronting him head-on. That could escalate the situation beyond our control."
"Let's go."
Yang Ming walked ahead with his hands behind his back, calm and unhurried, gradually reducing his stride to increase the gap between himself and the three people in front.
And his tall figure, in Mimili's view,
Was exceedingly elegant.
...
This planet was named Olhaif, located on the edge of the second arm of the Milky Way, and for now served as the largest black market in this sector of space, as well as a temporary hub for pirates to exchange information.
The wily pirates always liked to change market locations, and Olhaif was just one of the black market's many stops.
This pattern reminded Yang Ming of the collective festival activities he took part in as a child in his rural hometown—the bustling market days when those despicable vendors swindled him out of his pocket money with inferior toys, also periodically changing their trading spots.
This habitable planet did have residential areas.
As Yang Ming passed over the top of a dune, he looked out at two cities on the horizon.
One city lay within a semi-transparent dome, with skyscrapers abounding, and the environment looked superior, with flying vehicles shuttling back and forth.
The other was exposed to the threat of wind and sand, consisting mostly of underground buildings with a tall wall on the perimeter to block the sand, and only a few flying vehicles passed by occasionally.
The black market they were headed to had nothing to do with these two cities.
Descending from the sand dune, they were met with an expanse that served as a plaza, dominated by two transport ships being loaded; crossing the plaza would lead them to the black market—located in a man-made canyon covered with sand.
A narrow entrance just seven or eight meters wide was marked with signs forbidding flying vehicles. Two or three dozen guards wearing a variety of outfits and armed with laser guns chatted and laughed.
Someone recognized Kolev and exclaimed his name in surprise; Kolev raised his hand in acknowledgment.
Like a revered old leader among the pirates.
Soon, news of Kolev's appearance spread throughout the canyon, and even some elder folks voluntarily appeared on both sides of the straight streets to greet and chat with Kolev.
Yang Ming also breathed a sigh of relief.
Kolev was highly esteemed, which would greatly assist him in carrying out his next plan for the spacecraft.
Yang Ming saw many children and adolescents here.
Their skin colors varied, and the ambition and desire in their eyes were completely unmasked.
The sparse buildings along the street were actually spaceships that had opened their rear cargo holds; their main bodies were buried in the sand, ready to blast away the sand and take off in case of danger.
These crafty pirates.
It didn't take long before they arrived at a shop with a rotating light cabinet, resembling a barbershop. Kolev found an old acquaintance there and embraced him warmly.
The shop owner was a corpulent man, his head wrapped in a scarf to keep out the sand, wearing a thick protective suit, with remains of what looked like ketchup at the corners of his mouth. He began to complain as soon as he caught Kolev.