Great, I'm surrounded by villains.

This was a typical leading question. Even if Duan Mingyuan had no connection with the rebels of the United Front, these photos and the shocking death toll would inevitably arouse sympathy, and even make people want to condemn the Iron Guard Consortium fleet's inhumane orbital gun strikes.

This would put Duan Mingyuan on the side of the rebels.

In Owl's opinion, this is the best way to use journalism in this era of information explosion - every piece of news reported is the result of careful screening by reporters and editors-in-chief. Although they are all facts, they can lead to completely different interpretations depending on the angle of interpretation and the way of expression.

The entire universe is experiencing a butt fight.

In fact, few people care what the truth is. People just want to read what they want to see in the news.

For example, in this case, people hoped to get an affirmative answer from Duan Mingyuan, such as nice words like "My heart is with the people of the United Front."

Owl has long mastered the secrets of journalism. Everything he does is never a fight for the truth, but a response to the expectations of the readers of Peace Dove Daily.

This was a rare opportunity, and he didn't want to give it up. "According to the latest news received by the newspaper yesterday, the direct conflict between the Iron Guard Consortium and the United Front has turned five planets into 'death stars' without any signs of life. What do you think about this?"

"False news."

"No, this is real data. If you have any objections to this, I can show you the first-hand intelligence of the United Front."

"Then the next question."

Apart from these two sentences, you can't say anything else, right?

The owl's eyelids twitched violently several times.

"Okay, let me ask you another question. How long do you expect this war to last?"

"Until it's almost over, next question."

"You never directly answered any questions from beginning to end!" It was difficult for Owl to remain calm. The man in front of him was not only a politician, but also a master of nonsense literature. "What about this highly anticipated Sixteen-Star Summit? Do you plan to put the issue of the United Front on the table during the summit? As far as I know, the high-pressure policies implemented by the Iron Guard Consortium in recent decades have caused dissatisfaction among many people, and many people call this war an 'anti-corporate war'. I just want to let you know that there are still many of your supporters in this universe. Don't you plan to say something to them?"

Duan Mingyuan listened leisurely to Owl's increasingly intense tone. He really wanted to persuade the other party not to be anxious.

However, considering that the other party had come from afar, Duan Mingyuan still felt sympathy and this time he did not try to evade the question with a few words.

He straightened his face and replied, "You know, I'm just focusing on what I have at hand. I know it's tough, so I wish them good luck and let's see what happens next."

The interview is over.

This answer became the last straw that broke the camel's back for Owl. Without even enjoying the Ranger's exquisite refreshments, the reporter from the Peace Dove Newspaper angrily left the ship and returned to his aircraft.

But he didn't give up.

This will become a follow-up report - no matter how proficient Duan Mingyuan is in nonsense literature, after the Sixteenth Summit begins, he will definitely express his and Blue Star's position, unless their trip is just for tourism.

Although spots are precious, the newspaper should be able to get a reporter spot to enter the summit venue.

"it's a pity."

Jiu Yue sat opposite Duan Mingyuan and said, "These are the snacks I carefully selected."

Mr. Owl missed the delicious food from Blue Star and failed to become a delicacy, which made her very regretful.

The regretful way was to pick up the plate of braised duck tongues, put it on your knees and chew it with relish.

Another regret was that Mr. Owl did not interview her. When September returned to the kitchen to get tea, she was ready. She carefully selected several representative stories about ogres.

But soon, her attention shifted to braised duck tongues.

Mr. Mingyuan was right. Instead of worrying about the people on the united front, they should focus on the matter at hand. "Mr. Mingyuan, try it. This braised duck tongue is delicious!"

She handed the duck tongue to Duan Mingyuan across from her, her eyes full of anticipation, "What do you think? Is the spicy feeling exciting?"

"As you know, spicy duck tongue is usually spicy."

?

September tilted her head, and a big question mark appeared on her little head.

She didn't know what Duan Mingyuan was talking about.

Mr. Mingyuan...is it broken?

Just as she was hesitating whether to take Duan Mingyuan back to the room and check him from head to toe, the latter finally returned to normal and commented, "It tastes good."

..........................................

After dealing with the reporters from the Peace Dove Newspaper, the next week's sailing was smooth.

During this journey, there were no encounters with space pirates, nor were they blocked by the terrifying space creatures that were rumored.

On the bedside table in Duan Mingyuan's room lies a book called "A Guide to Dangerous Creatures in the Universe", written by a famous interstellar adventurer. Recently, Jiuyue has been reading this book every night with his head buried in the quilt. When there are tense scenes, the little fox keeps crawling into his arms, and its tail will wrap around his calves like a rope.

There are still many unknown creatures in this universe.

From swarms of locusts that cover the sky like a plague to space piranhas that are larger than planets, this book records many cosmic creatures that have defeated corporate fleets.

Duan Mingyuan felt that September had made a great contribution to the smooth journey.

As an interstellar explorer, he suggested that every flagship could invite a Ruihu on board when setting sail. The Ruihu's innate good luck would protect the flagship from dangerous cosmic creatures or various disasters that could not be explained by science.

In this process, Duan Mingyuan understood why so many people suffered from navigation syndrome.

Interstellar travel is not as romantic and beautiful as people imagine. During the voyage, the concepts of time and space will gradually blur. Everything outside the window will no longer change. Only the constantly changing numbers on the console will remind them that they are getting closer and closer to their destination.

The clever star, the exquisite hometown.

A planet that gave birth to countless outstanding mechanical masters.

The briefing said that the summit site was one of the richest cities in the entire universe, but when the Ranger approached the surface of the planet, Duan Mingyuan and everyone on board felt that they had been defrauded.

The Blue Star people's imagination of wealth is beaches, oceans, and magnificent five-star hotels. However, what comes into view at this moment is only a desert.

"Are you sure the navigational beacon is correct?"

The third prince asked, gazing at the endless desert.

There were still three days until the opening ceremony of the summit, and he had already made a plan. After the Ranger landed, he would stay in the super five-star hotel in the Artful Throne, let Caidie change into the swimsuit he carefully prepared, and fully enjoy the vacation time in a foreign country.

Interstellar travel is really exhausting.

But now, not only can we not find any super five-star hotels or open-air swimming pools, we can't even see a ghost on the surface of the earth.

"The sign shows that this is the Jiqiao Star."

Upon hearing this, the crew members immediately turned their attention to Linglong. After all, there was a native of Jiqiao Star among the group.

“That’s not what’s in the photo.”

Linglong was as confused as everyone else. She took out the photos she brought from home and showed them to everyone.

Over the past few decades, the planet Jiqi seems to have undergone tremendous changes, so that all you can see across the entire planet is endless desert.

After flying close to the ground for nearly twenty minutes, the group found the first town.

The small town is located in the center of the desert. With dilapidated mud houses and residents living in groups of three or four, the air is filled with a desolate atmosphere.

Duan Mingyuan parked the Ranger in the open space outside the town. When he got closer, he found that people in the town seemed to still use animals as a means of transportation. There was a shabby pickup truck parked next to the largest house in the town, but it seemed to have been scrapped for a long time.

Seeing Duan Mingyuan and others approaching, the people in the town swarmed over and surrounded them as if they had seen their saviors.

There was constant sound of prayers and discussions.

The people in the town have dark skin, chapped lips, and many people are suffering from varying degrees of dehydration.

"Water, do you have any water on your aircraft?"

"We can trade it with things from town."

,: "Take whatever you like, just give us water..."

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 248 Oasis

Duan Mingyuan and others were treated as guests of honor, but despite this, the people in the town had nothing to offer them. The best food the residents could offer was a breadstick that was hard enough to be used as a weapon to hurt people. It was so hard that only Jiu Yue could bite it.

Bland and tasteless, not tasty at all.

The above is September’s evaluation of the small town’s food.

Breadsticks with some dried meat that has been dried to the point where you can’t even tell what it’s made of. This is a treat only VIPs can enjoy.

Because Duan Mingyuan brought water.

Water represents hope, allowing them to struggle a few more days in this miserable world.

The mayor collected most of the exchanged water and only gave a small portion to the townspeople who were severely dehydrated. After completing these tasks, he returned to Duan Mingyuan and others.

"We will never forget your great kindness."

The white-haired old man's eyes were filled with tears, as if he was a man in despair grabbing a life-saving straw.

In the past half month, they have experienced a process from hope to despair - the flagships passing through this planet did not stay in the town for even a second, and all went to the Mechanical Throne without exception.

"What happened to this planet?"

Jiu Yue asked. Although she was the queen of evil and should have been the spokesperson for the villains, she felt a little bit sorry after seeing the current state of the town.

The mayor sighed and filled in the blanks for everyone that were not mentioned in the Chamber of Commerce briefing.

After the massive rebellion ended, Jiqiao Star welcomed a period of peace. The execution and exile of the rebels completely destroyed the local people's desire to resist. After the fleet of the Flash Flag Chamber of Commerce left, the nobles of the throne introduced a series of strict policies, recruiting young and strong youths in various settlements and using them as cheap labor.

The young people who were conscripted not only had to do a lot of labor every day, but also often went hungry. If they slacked off at all, they would be beaten and scolded. Many people died under the cruel whipping.

Despite this, the residents of the planet endured it.

Until, suddenly one day, an execution ceremony changed everything on this planet.

The sinner's limbs were nailed to wooden stakes, and there was not a single intact part of her body, which was enough to show that she had gone through inhuman torture before being executed.

The woman was accused of being a thief who stole the secret treasure of the Mechanical Planet during the great rebellion.

But even though he experienced countless tortures every day, the criminal never gave in and did not reveal anything related to the stolen treasure to the nobles.

However, just as the executioner poured oil all over her body and walked towards her with a torch, the sinner suddenly laughed, and faced all the people watching the execution, and talked about the secret treasure.

She hid the secret treasure somewhere on this planet, and she claimed that she had cracked the secret hidden in the treasure. That secret was enough to overthrow the entire mechanical throne and bring those high and mighty nobles down to earth.

The rebellion never really ended.

Sooner or later, someone will know the secret treasure she buried and use the secret of the treasure to take back what belongs to them.

"If it's just the resistance of the local residents, it should be extinguished in no time."

The elderly mayor said that he was also an eyewitness to the execution ceremony.

However, it was not only the Mechanical Aliens who witnessed the execution ceremony, but also some forces from different civilizations in the universe.

More and more people came to this planet in search of treasure, including space pirates. The guards of the Artful Throne were defeated under the bombardment of the flagship. At the end of the dispute, the ruler activated a mechanism called the "Golden Hourglass", which destroyed the structure of the entire surface of the planet and turned it into a desert unsuitable for living.

The ruler and his minions then retreated into their throne room, leaving the desolate and ruined planet to anyone who tried to lay hands on it.

"I see."

The third prince understood.

There was a problem with the location of their forced landing. The rulers on the planet Jiqi hid in the throne, and hid the richest city on the planet in it.

“This town is almost at its limit.”

The residents of the town not only have to face drought, scarcity of supplies and disease, but also have to be wary of foreign predators.

The mayor took out a map with the location of the Mechanical Throne marked on it and said, "If you want to go to the Mechanical Throne, please follow the direction marked on the map. This is the territory of the Oasis. Your forced landing just now may have alarmed them. In order to avoid unnecessary trouble, please leave as soon as possible."

"oasis?"

"It is an organization formed by space pirates and mercenaries on the planet Jiqi."

Under the banner of rebuilding the planet, they are actually engaged in the business of robbery.

Residents in the oasis must regularly provide water and other resources to the organization in exchange for their "protection."

The water these outsiders traded to them should be enough to cover the next delivery date.

"Isn't this just a gangster?"

Jiu Yue scolded that the gangsters on Blue Star also collected protection fees in this way.

But the mayor's reminder came a little late after all.

The noise coming from outside the door made his face change drastically, and he said hurriedly, "You guys hide quickly, I'll deal with them!"

"It's no use. The Ranger is parked outside the town."

The third prince said.