Chapter 25: The Ultimate Dual Flight [Note: The previous combined chapter counts as two chapters; chapter numbering has now advanced!]

Lu Chen boarded the Octopus, beginning to work his magic. He connected a spiritual pattern network cable to the flight control system of his wristband. Since he had already cracked the gateway of the spiritual-magnetic array on the Leonin, all that remained was to synchronize the Octopus’s flight control frequency with it.

Soon, the Octopus regained radar, engine, and flight control systems. The wall lamps flickered to life, illuminating the once dim cockpit. Lu Chen glanced around; even with the lights on, the Octopus’s cockpit remained oppressively sinister, making it uncomfortable to be inside.

Gloria, however, unexpectedly praised it:
“I never thought the cabin design would have such style.”

Lu Chen paused, turning to look at Gloria. He mused that a succubus’s aesthetic was indeed peculiar. He could tell this was a pirate ship specialized in hunting other vessels, not built for obstacle navigation.

Lu Chen had to pilot the Octopus himself.
He said to Gloria,
“You can return to the Leonin.”

Gloria looked bewildered.
Lu Chen had been aboard barely two minutes, connected a single cable, barely tinkered, yet had repaired the engines and flight controls?

“There are so many spider threads here. If I pilot the Leonin, I might not make it out safely. I'd rather fly this ship—if I break it, I won’t feel bad.”

Lu Chen waved dismissively.
“No matter which ship you fly, I'd feel bad. I want you to go back to look after Ellie, not to pilot.”

“Then who will fly the Leonin?”

“I’ll pilot both ships at once.”

Gloria tilted her head, staring at Lu Chen incredulously.
“What, you want to double-fly?”

“Yes, that’s right.”
Lu Chen wasn’t about to argue with a succubus; otherwise, he’d easily be dragged into dubious territory.

“I’d like to see how you manage that!”
Gloria rummaged through the Octopus’s fridge, grabbing some wine, drinks, and sweets, packing them up and returning to the Leonin.

Lu Chen studied the Octopus in detail.

This ship was powered by four level thirty engines—two for flight, two for driving its eight mechanical arms. In normal flight, the large front of the ship led the way, the eight arms trailing behind, reminiscent of a squid’s migration.

Lu Chen swiftly cracked the flight control system, forcibly acquiring piloting rights for the Octopus. He started the engines, and the Octopus slowly set off. He adapted quickly, though he was somewhat unfamiliar, so the speed was not particularly fast.

He set the Leonin to follow remotely, trailing behind the Octopus, flying automatically.

On the main screen, the host continued his passionate commentary.
“The crew of the Octopus has collectively surrendered… They provoked the contest only to apply for withdrawal. These pirates have no spine, a disgrace to their kind.”

“Wow… everyone, look! The Octopus has successfully started its engines—the Primal Star Vault Adventurers have pulled off a forced ship capture!”

“I’ve hosted flight trials for years; I’ve seen ships actively destroy others, and I’ve seen survivors escape after an attack. Today is the first time I’ve witnessed a successful counter-capture!”

The host grew more excited as he explained why counter-captures were so rare.
“Firstly, usually only powerful ships attack the weak; the attacked rarely even escape, let alone counter-kill, and counter-capture is even harder. Secondly, after capturing the opponent’s ship, it’s difficult to pilot two ships and complete the trial, much less earn a ranking. So most ships, even those hiding their strength, either flee quickly or counter-kill the attackers, rarely attempt to seize their ships.”

“It’s clear the Primal Star Vault Adventurers not only counter-captured the enemy ship—they aim to finish the trial and perhaps even earn a good placement.”

“They didn’t just seize the Octopus—they cracked the spiritual-magnetic array’s bindings, freeing both ships’ engines and flight control systems… Such feats have occurred before, but only with high-level backup servers and long hours of brute-force hacking.”

“It seems this little Primal Star Vault group has not only a gifted beastmaster and a formidable female sword spirit, but also a genius spiritual mechanic who can crack arrays with his bare hands.”

“It reminds me of that saying: geniuses often appear in the most humble gear.”

Beside him, the female host felt the male host’s attention was all on the Leonin and deliberately reminded him:
“Mr. Jiang, how is the battle ahead progressing?”

The male host hurriedly switched the feed.
“Before this, the battle between the Greatsword Shuttle and the Electric Eel ended early. Both ships, presumed contenders for first, were shocked when they saw the Leonin resume flight after capturing a ship. Forced to abandon their rivalry, they continued onward.”

“However, the previous fight was so fierce, both ships were heavily depleted and damaged to varying degrees. With their flight control systems and radar disabled throughout, now they can only rely on their captains’ spiritual power to forcibly drive the engines—progress is slow.”

“The Electric Eel is a living star beast; besides engine flight, it can also fly using spiritual power and is currently faster, having overtaken the Greatsword Shuttle… If no miracle occurs, the Electric Eel will take first place in this trial.”

No sooner had he spoken than the split-screen showed bursts of fire, followed by a thunderous boom!

“It’s happened, a miracle has happened!”

“Almost simultaneously, the Dragon Seeker exploded violently. A miniature lifeboat shot out from the firestorm at impressive speed, but its flight was erratic, careening like a headless fly…”

“There, the lifeboat has encountered the Leonin and the Octopus—Prince Tali has locked onto the Leonin, trailing behind.”

“It’s worth reminding everyone that if the flagship is destroyed, the crew can complete the trial by piloting the lifeboat.”

“No airbags were found at the Dragon Seeker’s explosion site, yet it had eighteen crew members… hmm…”

Lu Chen admired Prince Tali—a ship that fine, blown up just like that, truly too wealthy.

He sent Prince Tali an audio message:
“Thank you for your information—it helped me unexpectedly acquire the Octopus. As gratitude, you may follow the Leonin for free.”

Prince Tali did not reply.
Lu Chen thought, with eighteen people crammed into such a tiny lifeboat, the prince was likely faint from the crush.

The host’s commentary returned to the Leonin, following Prince Tali.

“The Octopus is picking up speed—it seems Captain Lu is now accustomed to the new vessel.”

“The Octopus, the Leonin, and the Dragon Seeker lifeboat are now flying in a chain through the web of spider silk, quickly approaching the Electric Eel and the Greatsword Shuttle ahead.”

“They’re closing in—they’re about to catch up!”

“Excellent, they’ve overtaken the Greatsword Shuttle… The Shuttle watched helplessly as three ships passed it, making no move to attack. Besides extensive damage and an inability to continue fighting, it fears the reverse ship-capture tactics of the Primal Star Vault.”

“The Electric Eel is accelerating, but the Octopus is closing the gap even faster…”

“Come on, faster, faster, overtake the Electric Eel!”

“Only about ten seconds remain to the finish line… The Leonin is currently in first place, the Dragon Seeker lifeboat is second, the Electric Eel is third!”

“Ten, nine, eight, seven, six… Oh no, the Greatsword Shuttle, desperate for a top-three position, fires again at the Electric Eel.”

“The Electric Eel suddenly whips its tail and turns, counterattacking with the legendary Thunder Cannon!”

“My god, the Greatsword Shuttle is hit and explodes, all crew out of the contest… At this stage, the Electric Eel still had a trick up its sleeve!”

“The Electric Eel itself is exhausted; its crew have disembarked, riding flying fish to tow the ship… Fortunately, the finish line is within reach.”

“All right, the contest is over. Congratulations to the Leonin, the Dragon Seeker, and the Electric Eel for securing the top three in this flight trial!”

“These are also the only three adventurer teams to finish the contest.”

“What a fierce match, full of unexpected twists… The greatest miracle belongs to the Primal Star Vault Adventurers, who will surely spark widespread discussion—perhaps soon we’ll see them in the news.”

“Let’s hope they stay safe after the contest… after all, they’ve cost many gamblers their fortunes.”

“The next flight trial will begin in half an hour. We’ll be right back after the break!”