Jiang Ye typed rapidly on the screen.
The first item was to disseminate the details of the current incident to the entire army, reminding other units to guard against electronic parasites.
Second, he placed an order for three hundred thousand sets of universal biohazard suits.
These universal biohazard suits were originally exclusively supplied to the Galactic Empire's military, and later, various planetary armed forces could also order them from the military. The suits enveloped the entire body, capable of defending against various biohazards such as toxic gas, toxic powder, toxic water, bacteria, viruses, and parasites. They were equipped with an anti-piercing layer, rendering ordinary shrapnel ineffective, let alone the bites of parasites. Considering the strong biting force of the electronic parasites, Jiang Ye also ordered three hundred thousand pairs of leg guards for the soldiers to wear on their calves, just in case.
Third, he needed to connect with the research team dispatched to Meteorite Star.
The research team had already assembled over three hundred individuals, all leading figures in their respective fields. Essentially, all available elites had been mobilized. Jiang Ye urged them to expedite their research on the electronic parasites. Once breakthroughs were achieved in their research, the situation of the Meteorite Star conflict could fundamentally change.
Of course, to provide the scientists with the necessary resources, the troops would also need to capture some samples of the electronic parasites. This was simple; after killing so many Prison Tigers, dissecting a few corpses would yield a large number of them.
Fourth, he was to report this matter to Li Nannan.
This had become Jiang Ye's habit: when encountering a situation, he would report it to Li Nannan, as she was often effective. Firstly, Li Nannan had fought on many planets and was surrounded by seasoned veterans, possessing extremely rich experience. Secondly, she had access to a vast array of resources and would proactively offer assistance when the situation warranted it.
After finishing his tasks, Jiang Ye turned around to look.
Cen Yemeng had changed into a sheer, see-through dress and was lying on the windowsill in a seductive pose, gazing at her husband. Her figure was graceful, and her face was impossibly beautiful.
"It's quite late," Jiang Ye scratched his head. "This electronic parasite issue is still very troublesome, and we need to maintain our energy for work. How about... we rest?"
Cen Yemeng pouted in dissatisfaction. "Husband, do you know? I have a switch on me."
"A switch?" Jiang Ye was taken aback.
"It's around this position," Cen Yemeng reached out and scratched her side. "Normally, the switch is off, and I can handle various tasks very calmly, even contemplating philosophy. But whenever your warm large hand rests on the switch, ah, the switch turns on."
"When the switch is turned on, the hormones in my body surge towards my head, my brain feels like it's on fire, and my internal organs also undergo changes. At this point, I can't think about anything; my mind is a mess, and I only think of you." Cen Yemeng stared intently at her husband. "If you don't turn the switch off again, I definitely won't be able to sleep well, and I'll be very haggard when I wake up tomorrow morning, like a robot that's run out of power."
Jiang Ye let out a long sigh and walked to the windowsill.
...
Five in the morning.
Jiang Ye was awakened by a soft, smooth hand patting his face.
Cen Yemeng sat by the bed, holding her phone. "Li Nannan has replied to you."
Jiang Ye's groggy eyes immediately cleared. He threw off the covers and sat up, taking the phone to read the message.
To his surprise, it was an unusually long message, filling the entire phone screen.
Li Nannan: "The electronic parasites on Meteorite Star are..."
Li Nannan: "The Meteorite Star parasites are from many years ago..."
Li Nannan: "Meteorite Star worm..."
Fifteen consecutive messages, repeating the same phrase over and over, with the wording becoming increasingly fragmented, eventually devolving into garbled words.
Jiang Ye was bewildered. He checked the message time; it was five hours ago.
He directly called Li Nannan.
The first time, she didn't answer.
Just as Jiang Ye was about to call a second time, Li Nannan called him back.
"Commander, what is that pile of messages you sent me?" Jiang Ye asked. "Are you alright?"
"I had too much to drink," Li Nannan's voice was slurred, indicating she had just woken up from a hangover. "Wait a moment, I need to recover..."
Jiang Ye was speechless.
No wonder the messages were so incoherent; she was talking nonsense.
Li Nannan made groaning sounds for a while, with sounds of blankets rustling, suggesting she was struggling to get out of bed in a dazed state.
Jiang Ye waited for a full five minutes before she spoke again.
"The electronic parasites on Meteorite Star are an older model. The company that produced these parasites years ago has since gone bankrupt, and a lot of data was lost. Many other planets used similar parasites around the same time, and they all experienced some problems to varying degrees, but only Meteorite Star experienced an outbreak of beast tides."
"Want dumplings for breakfast?" Li Nannan asked.
Jiang Ye frowned. "What did you say?"
"Nothing, I'm still a bit groggy..." Li Nannan said, and then suddenly made a retching sound.
Jiang Ye's expression was awkward. "Don't rush to speak, Commander. Please get up and drink some warm water to soothe your stomach and recover."
The sound of water being poured could be heard from Li Nannan's end, followed by several gulps.
"Have your people collect a few kilograms of electronic parasites, preferably capture a few live specimens, and send them to me. The Galactic Empire has specialized parasite laboratories that can assist with research," Li Nannan continued. "Your troops are currently only fighting Prison Tigers, which are very low-level animals, all muscle and no brain. You might encounter dark energy creatures later, and those are the real priority."
"Dark energy creatures?" Jiang Ye was stunned.
"They are a type of plant, with a very complex scientific name. It's something like the Zou Wenhua-Yan Qing Asymmetrical Dark Energy Giant Flower family of plants, named after the scientists who discovered it. Our troops call them 'Big Mole Flowers'," Li Nannan said. "Mature specimens of these plants are as tall as two stories, with a large ring of coral-colored stems. From an aerial view, they resemble the mouth of a star-nosed mole."
Cen Yemeng, listening nearby, quickly searched on her phone and found a picture of a star-nosed mole.
"These Big Mole Flowers act as a channel for dark energy. Hundreds of tons of dark energy pass through them daily, like a flood through a riverbed, and a small portion of this energy is absorbed by them," Li Nannan said.
"You are truly very knowledgeable," Jiang Ye seized the opportunity to flatter her.
"It's not that I'm knowledgeable; this thing is very famous. It's a landmark plant in dark energy research, much like the tobacco mosaic virus in virology or peas in genetics. Years ago, scientists Zou Wenhua and Yan Qing discovered that these plants are found in many places in the universe, but they can grow without external sunlight and water, defying the conservation of mass and energy, which is very peculiar. Further research revealed that they grow by absorbing dark energy," Li Nannan explained.
"What harm do they cause?" Jiang Ye asked. "Since they're plants, wouldn't burning them with fire kill them?"
"These plants have special abilities, the specific mechanisms of which I'm not entirely clear on," Li Nannan said. "One is hallucination; animals that approach the Big Mole Flowers have a certain probability of experiencing hallucinations. Another is signal interference. There have been instances where Big Mole Flowers infiltrated the spaceship channels of infantry squads and communicated with the soldiers. Since they could converse with the soldiers, they must have understood human language at the time, possessing extremely high intelligence."
"Are there many of these things on Meteorite Star?" Jiang Ye felt a cold sweat breaking out. "Why are you only telling me this crucial information now? Shouldn't you have informed me earlier?"