The ship was massive—so large that standing beneath it made one instinctively lower their voice.
Zhao Wan'er slowly circled the hull, examining every angle with a professional eye.
"This…" she said at last, disbelief coloring her tone. "This ship was assembled from those three—
The T2 Hyena, the T2 Gray Wolf, and the T2 Devil Crocodile?"
She finally understood the sense of déjà vu.
Nearly ninety percent of the hull structure mirrored the Devil Crocodile-class medium interstellar battleship. The weapon mounts and firing layouts resembled those of the Hyena-class destroyer, while several performance modules carried the unmistakable signatures of the Gray Wolf cruiser.
It was a patchwork.
Yet it didn't feel crude.
"Yes," Zhao Chen admitted openly.
He couldn't yet reveal the existence of the T3 Blizzard-class blueprints, but the fact that he had assembled a starship himself was impossible to hide. The warehouse exchange records alone ensured that.
"And you've been doing all of this… alone?" Zhao Wan'er asked slowly. "For half a month?
"When did you learn starship assembly?"
Disassembling three vessels and reconstructing them into a single functioning ship was no trivial task. Even more terrifying was the question of whether the systems could truly synchronize.
Zhao Chen smiled and pointed at the ship. "I have plenty of secrets.
"Besides our captain curriculum, I taught myself a bit of starship engineering."
He paused, then added lightly, "And since this is my first ship, I've already named it.
"Blizzard Zero."
Zhao Wan'er repeated the name softly. "Blizzard… Zero?"
It was a strange designation—especially for a vessel that looked like a battleship, cruiser, and destroyer fused into one.
"Are you absolutely certain it can even start?" she asked sharply.
Her gaze hardened. "Zhao Chen, I know how you feel about Jiang Shasha. But she isn't worth this.
"Our territory is already on the brink. You and I used the last of our family's resources to study here.
"If we don't graduate successfully, there's no future—no chance to revive our star system."
Her voice trembled despite herself.
"If you're expelled, the title will be reclaimed. You think you'd be worthy of our parents' spirits?"
She grabbed his wrist. "I'll find my best friend. Her family has influence. We can negotiate with Zhang Haoran and cancel the duel."
She pulled.
Zhao Chen didn't move.
Instead, he stepped forward and lifted Zhao Wan'er into his arms.
"A-Ah—what are you doing?!" she exclaimed, cheeks flushing.
"Come," Zhao Chen said simply. "I'll show you."
He carried her through the old internal corridors, metal walls bearing scars of past battles, until they reached the bridge.
The bridge was modest—barely a hundred square meters—and shrouded in darkness.
Zhao Chen set her down and walked alone to the captain's chair. He sat, then rested his hand on the right armrest.
'Highest authority detected…'
'Identity verification in progress…'
'Captain: Zhao Chen.'
'Verification complete.'
A crystalline control console rose silently before him.
Zhao Chen pressed several commands.
'Starship initialization sequence engaged.'
'Main control system starting…'
'Energy systems online… 10%… 30%… 60%…'
Lights flickered on.
The bridge illuminated.
The giant vessel trembled—then awoke.
'Transmission systems: test complete.'
'Weapons systems: test complete.'
'Auxiliary systems: nominal.'
One mechanical report followed another.
Zhao Chen's first starship came alive.
'All functional modules operational. Remaining energy: 19%.'
Zhao Chen clenched his fist.
Success on the first activation.
Even with his confidence, he hadn't dared expect that.
"It… actually started," Zhao Wan'er murmured.
"How is it?" Zhao Chen asked, stepping down and resting a hand on her shoulder. "Not bad, right?"
She snorted. "Starting is one thing. Combat effectiveness is another.
"Zhang Haoran's ship is a T2-class vessel. You really think this… thing… can beat it?
"What if it falls apart before the fight even begins?"
"Sister," Zhao Chen said with mock offense, crossing two fingers, "have a little faith.
"Ten minutes."
She shot him a look. "Ten minutes? Since when did you start bragging?"
Then she frowned. "And you're alone. You don't even have a crew. How do you plan to fight?"
Snap.
Zhao Chen clapped his hands, eyes lighting up. "That's it.
"No wonder something felt off when I started the ship."
Zhao Wan'er pressed a hand to her forehead. "I should really go find my friend before you destroy your life."
"Wan'er," Zhao Chen asked eagerly, "what's the fastest way to recruit a crew?"
She sighed but explained anyway.
"There are three main channels. First, students from other departments—navigation, engineering, logistics.
"Second, retired Imperial veterans. Reliable, but expensive.
"Third…"
She hesitated.
"Unregulated sources. Slaves. Prisoners of war, former pirates, captured crews."
She added quickly, "The academy provides official channels for this, but most people only assign slaves to menial labor."
Zhao Chen had already connected his ID card to the academy network.
A recruitment interface unfolded before his eyes.
His gaze locked onto a small option in the corner.
Slaves.
He clicked.
Lists scrolled past.
Then his pupils shrank.
He stopped.
"…Found it."
Without hesitation, Zhao Chen confirmed the exchange.
This time, payment came from his personal account.
Zhao Wan'er watched him close the interface, a strange satisfaction on his face.
Her heart sank.
"What," she asked slowly, "did you just do?"