Chapter 542: Nothing Is Free In This World
Hearing what the staff member said, the other staff member moved closer and examined the screen.
The moment he read the data, he muttered, "Could the satellite be malfunctioning again because of the planetary cracks?"
"This… I'm not sure." Said the first staff member.
While the two of them were trying to figure it out, another staff member walked past them. When she glanced at the screen, her eyes widened in surprise.
Standing behind them, she said, "How could that missing badge appear there?"
Hearing this, both male staff members turned to look at her at the same time. The first one asked, "Do you know something about this badge?"
The female staff member nodded and explained, "Yes. I remember Captain Yao gave his badge to the Eldest Young Lady before. It has been more than a year since then, and I had completely forgotten about it. But seeing it appear again on the map, I suddenly remembered."
As soon as she said this, the two male staff members jumped to their feet and exclaimed in realization, "The sender is the Eldest Young Lady!"
At first, the female staff member was confused by their reaction, but then she realized the significance of what had just happened.
Pushing the files in her hand to one of the male staff members, she shouted while running out of the main control room, "You two, try to contact the Eldest Young Lady and prepare the rescue mission immediately! I will inform Commander Fu now!"
Hearing this, the two male staff members came back to their senses and hurriedly contacted Yao Ran and informed the agents.
A few minutes later, the female staff member burst into Fu Zongshang's office without knocking.
Seeing her panting as she tried to speak, Fu Zongshang frowned slightly and asked, "What happened?"
The female staff member took a few deep breaths before saying, "C–Commander Fu. The Eldest Young Lady—we found her!"
The moment she said this, Fu Zongshang stood up excitedly and asked, "Where is she? Has the young lady contacted us?"
The female staff member nodded and replied, "A few minutes ago, a distress signal appeared on the map. This distress signal came from Captain Yao's badge. The location where this distress signal appeared is The Ark's headquarters."
Fu Zongshang was a little confused after hearing that and asked, "From Yuechuan's badge?"
The female staff member nodded again and explained, "Yes. Captain Yao gave his badge to the Eldest Young Lady more than a year ago. Just now, a distress signal suddenly appeared in our system, and it came from that badge. We believe the sender is the Eldest Young Lady herself."
Upon hearing this, Fu Zongshang quickly commanded, "Send a team to pick her up immediately!"
The female staff member saluted and responded, "Yes, Commander!"
After she left the office, Fu Zongshang called Long Yu. The moment the call connected, he said, "Long Yu, we found the Eldest Young Lady."
A second later, Long Yu's anxious voice came through. "Where is she? Is she alright?"
"At The Ark's headquarters. We don't know her situation right now. I have already sent a team to pick her up," Fu Zongshang replied.
"No need. I will go there myself," Long Yu said before abruptly ending the call.
Standing up from the couch in the living room, Long Yu looked at his team and announced, "They found Ran Ran at The Ark's headquarters. I'm going to get her now."
Before he could take a step, Shi Xuan stood up and said, "Captain, I will go with you. It will be faster with my teleportation ability."
After a few months since they had returned from The Ark's headquarters, Shi Xuan's spatial element ability had improved significantly, increasing his teleportation range.
Combining his teleportation skills and Long Yu's flying speed, they could reach The Ark's headquarters in less than two hours.
Eager to reunite with Yao Ran, Long Yu agreed. "Alright. Let's go."
With his approval, Shi Xuan placed a hand on Long Yu's shoulder, and both of them vanished from the villa.
Watching them suddenly disappear, Xu Ruihan exchanged glances with the others and said, "Now that Yao Ran is back, Gao Shuwei will likely return as well. We need to accelerate our plans. I'm afraid a battle with him is inevitable."
Hearing this, the others nodded in agreement and continued discussing their strategy.
Meanwhile, as Long Yu and Shi Xuan rushed to The Ark's headquarters, Yao Ran had already left the area. Seeing that there were no more ruins in sight, she took out an electric bike and rode it.
After traveling for a while, Yao Ran finally spotted a group of survivors in the distance. Observing them from behind, she pondered for a moment before deciding to approach them and gather information.
As she drew closer, one of the survivors noticed her.
Before Yao Ran could greet him, he raised his hand, and a fireball appeared on his palm. Glaring at her, he shouted, "Stop right there!"
As soon as he spoke, the other survivors also turned around and activated their abilities.
Seeing their wary expressions, Yao Ran stopped the electric bike and raised her hands. She calmly said, "Don't attack. I just want to ask you a few questions."
The man scanned her from head to toe for a while before saying, "Nothing is free in this world."
Realizing that he wanted supplies, Yao Ran nodded. "What do you want in exchange for answering my questions?"
The man thought for a moment, then asked his friends in a low voice, "Can we trust her?"
One of his friends whispered, "I don't trust her. But her clothes are clean, and she looks healthy. She must have supplies."
Another added, "She doesn't have baggage and can ride an electric bike. She must be a spatial ability user."
Listening to his friends, the man nodded. "She dares to travel alone and has enough to eat, so she must be strong. Stay alert and be ready to fight."