The Iron Ore No. soon caught up with the Sentinel Level that had been towed away.
Its engine was completely destroyed, and even with professional maintenance personnel and repair tools, it would be impossible to fix the engine within a few hours.
Especially in the circumstances of engine failure, where the entire ship lost its life-support system, relying only on ship protective suits that could barely last two to three hours for maintenance.
All the people on the ship could do was essentially wait for death.
So Chen Ming merely limited its speed a bit to keep it in place, then continued onward to catch up with the half-destroyed Destroyer of Dusk.
Similarly, using the towing equipment to gradually decelerate it, changing direction and taking it back to the side of the Sentinel Level.
The next step was to cut open the armor of the Sentinel Level’s hull using mining lasers, exposing the interior of the Sentinel Level.
After cutting a section of the ship’s armor, the first thing Chen Ming saw was the bodies of the crew members.
Most of them wore ordinary temporary protective suits, losing temperature and oxygen within just a few hours and dying in space.
The only one wearing a heavy protective suit capable of maintaining activity in a vacuum for a long time had a blood hole in their chest, killed not by the Electromagnetic Spear, but by their own crew’s gun.
This was best for Chen Ming, as he intended to keep the intact Sentinel Level, and with everyone dead, he wouldn’t have to bother dealing with them.
What remained for him was just to have the Iron Ore No. continue taking his spoils to a hidden corner of space, temporarily stashing them away.
After all, it wasn’t clear when the Space Station’s dock, which was damaged, would reopen; even if they were transported back, there wouldn’t be a secure place for storage, and energy would need to be spent on guarding them.
So, it was better to first find a place in space to store them, and bring them back once the Space Station could receive incoming ships again.
However, the location for stashing things needed to be somewhat discreet, so they wouldn’t be discovered by other passing ships.
After controlling the Iron Ore No. for a busy while, Chen Ming suddenly heard a knocking sound at his ear.
He immediately gave the Iron Ore No., which had already dragged the spoils to a safe location, the order to return, stood up, and went to the door of the locked workspace to ask, "Who is it?"
"Human Resources Department."
Hearing a somewhat familiar voice, Chen Ming immediately opened the door.
At the door was someone Chen Ming had just met in the Human Resources Department that morning.
Seeing Chen Ming still wearing a protective suit in the management bureau was a bit surprising, but he quickly recalled the day’s events and asked, "Are you the one who just started today?"
"Yes." Thɪs chapter is updatᴇd by ɴovᴇl_Firᴇ.ɴet
The Human Resources person peeked into the workspace, ensuring Chen Ming was alone there, waved a hand to Chen Ming, and said, "Come with me, your maintenance plant has a big job to do."
Chen Ming didn’t refuse, following behind and asked, "What big job?"
"Recovering the debris from the recent battle."
Chen Ming immediately perked up; recovering debris was undoubtedly a good job, and he might have a chance to obtain something he urgently needed.
However, due to certainty he had to maintain his demeanor, he continued with a facade of someone who hadn’t surfaced and asked, "Is it over?"
The management bureau person nodded and said, "Yes, it’s over. We won on our side, and Dusk definitely won’t be able to return in the near future, so the battlefield needs to be cleaned up quickly."
"Are we using the Space Station’s ship?"
"Yes, the management bureau will assign engineering ships to you. Also, do you have the contact information of your other colleagues? Get in touch and work out a plan with your plant manager."
Chen Ming agreed casually, but he didn’t have the contact information for anyone besides Old Wu and the plant manager. They certainly didn’t need Chen Ming to worry, so Chen Ming didn’t make a move.
The management bureau person didn’t say anything seeing this, continuing to lead him to the Space Station’s No. 30 space arm, opposite the No. 1 space arm.
This was the backup dock of the Space Station, usually in a closed state and only activated in emergencies.
At this time, a few ships, scattered here and there, had already docked on the just-started dock.
Meanwhile, in the maintenance plant at a similarly positioned place, Chen Ming could see the plant manager, Old Wu, along with two other people there, starting up the equipment of the backup maintenance plant.
As Chen Ming walked closer, he immediately noticed the plant manager with a dark face, and next to him, Old Wu’s complexion was just as dark.
The bald Maintenance Master Chen Ming had seen before was constantly smoking cigarettes one after another.
Old Wu’s assistant, called Xiao Wen by him, stood beside them, filled with horror and fear.
Noticing Chen Ming approaching, he seemed even more frightened, with emotions aside from fear, a hint of disgust seemed to flash across his eyes.
Chen Ming slightly furrowed his brows, a bit puzzled about what was happening.
He quickly stepped forward, greeted Old Wu, the plant manager, and then asked, "What happened?"
The plant manager, who had been staring at the equipment, suddenly turned his head at Chen Ming’s voice, his expression slightly easing, but only a little.
He sighed and said, "There are only six living people left in the maintenance plant now— you, us four, and the deputy plant manager."
Upon hearing this, Chen Ming furrowed his brows even tighter and hurriedly asked, "What happened?"
The plant manager explained, "Someone locked the emergency exit of the maintenance plant. When Dusk’s ship attacked the Space Station, everyone still in the maintenance plant didn’t have time to escape and were mostly burned to death by the aftermath."