StarCraft: Everyone wants the Queen

Chapter 246 Gossip

Even with their highly advanced technology, the Zerg cannot avoid the pollution caused by the extraction of raw materials.

Shen Qingqing silently noted down one improvement after another, completely forgetting that she had originally come here to explore with Ge Yuan.

Her heart was filled with nothing but hope for the continued development of the Zerg.

Shen Qingqing and Ge Yuan stood on the huge vortex-shaped mining area that had been mined and looked down. They could hardly see the location of the mine shaft. It was only when Ge Yuan reminded Pancreas that they realized it.

"That's the mine shaft? It looks so small," Shen Qingqing said, looking at the tiny point of light below, no bigger than a grain of rice.

"After we go and see for ourselves, we won't think that way anymore," Ge Yuan said, finding a place to sit and looking at the countless mines billowing black smoke.

"How are we going to get down? Are we going to have to rely on our own two legs?"

"Honey, bus number 11 has been out of service for a long time. Let's take the elevator."

The elevators, jingling and jingling with copper bells, slowly ascended. Hundreds of elevators surrounded the mine, used to transport miners to the mine shafts.

After the two of them left the elevator and walked for a while, they finally arrived at the mine.

The Zerg were busy moving between the tracks, pushing carts, carrying shovels, and driving small drilling rigs in and out of the mine.

At the top of the towering mine shaft, several huge searchlights illuminated the entrance and exit as if it were daytime.

Standing under the searchlight, Shen Qingqing stared blankly at the searchlight, which was taller than two of her combined.

Standing before the mine, they were as insignificant and unremarkable as ants trying to change nature, yet they were able to subtly alter the environment with the weakest of intentions.

"Does the mine operate at night too?" Shen Qingqing noticed that almost all the Zerg here were busy, and a dark moon was already hanging above the mine.

Ge Yuan nodded. "Of course, the mine operates 24 hours a day. Our Zerg have a high energy demand right now, so the miners work in shifts, mining day and night. What you see is one of the largest mines in the Third Mining Area, mainly supplying iron ore. Occasionally, minerals like malachite and diamonds can also be mined, but those are very rare, at least not often seen on Wangxing."

Shen Qingqing nodded thoughtfully, then followed Ge Yuan into the mine.

As soon as she entered, she felt a wave of heat hit her.

The air was thick with dust and the smell of metal, and the roar of machinery and the clanging of picks against ore made her ears tingle.

"Stay close, don't get lost." Ge Yuan turned back and reminded her, then led Shen Qingqing through a narrow passage and headed deeper into the mine.

The inside of the mine is completely different from the entrance. The light inside is much dimmer, with only the faint glow of the scattered miners' lamps hanging in the cave.

Shen Qingqing carefully followed behind Ge Yuan. The ground under her feet was uneven and covered with small pebbles, and it was a bit slippery. If she walked too fast, she would inevitably fall.

The two fluorescent green insects slowly walked deeper into the area, their feet slippery as if they were oiled, making their shoes spin around.

Left with no other choice, Shen Qingqing and Ge Yuan supported each other to maintain their balance and continued walking deeper into the area.

The air inside the mine grew increasingly stuffy, even the fierce Zerg were finding it hard to bear.

As they ventured deeper into the mine, Shen Qingqing discovered that some of the Zerg were wearing masks and operating machines to mine ore.

The sharp auger drill bit collided with the hard rock wall, sparking violently. Fragments of rock flew everywhere, and thick stone mist spread throughout the cave.

The stench made her throat uncomfortable, and Shen Qingqing couldn't help but cough twice. Ge Yuan quickly led her away, preparing to choose a passage with a less pungent smell.

The drill bit, which was drilling, suddenly stopped.

The drill bit, red-hot from friction, gradually cooled and turned black in the damp mine.

The Zergman jumped off the machine and rushed to the two of them.

"Give."

Looking up along the arm, you can see a very tall Zerg.

Without saying a word, the Zergling stuffed two masks into their arms and started chatting with them.

"You just arrived, right?"

He spoke calmly, regardless of whether Shen Qingqing and Ge Yuan were listening or whether he knew them or not, and just stood there talking to himself.

"It's not easy to adapt when you first arrive here. The environment in the mining area is harsh, and colleagues often develop respiratory illnesses due to inhaling too much dust. However, the Zerg are very adaptable, and they'll be fine after a few days of rest."

Shen Qingqing and Ge Yuan put on masks and thanked the unknown insectoid creature.

The mask was quite thick, making the sound a bit muffled.

But the Zergling still managed to tell from the sound that the two in front of him were female.

He was somewhat surprised, "Judging from your physiques, you two don't seem to belong to the miners' group!"

Ge Yuan narrowed her eyes, and a deep voice came from inside her mask, "We are the search unit, responsible for the safety inspection of the mine here."

“I see,” the Zerg said, his expression gradually calming down. “I was wondering why they would send such a… uh, slender Zerg down into the mine. So he’s in charge of inspecting the mine. Nice to meet you.”

While the drill was cooling down, the male Zerg man started gossiping as if he had opened a floodgate.

Perhaps because he didn't often encounter Zerg in the mines, the male became unusually talkative after seeing the two of them.

He talked at length about everything from the mining accidents he had encountered these past few days to recent news about Wang Xing.

"Oh right, have you guys heard anything about the Queen Insect lately?"

Upon hearing the name "Insect Mother," Shen Qingqing stiffened slightly, but still tried to remain calm as she spoke, "No, why would I suddenly think of asking about this?"

"Oh, it was just a casual remark," the male seemed a little shy, scratching his head sheepishly. "I heard that the Queen returned to the King Star three months ago, but she hasn't left the Temple since. The insect race is very worried about the Queen's situation and wants to know if she's unhappy because she was kidnapped."

"Abduction?" Shen Qingqing was even more confused after hearing this. "What abduction?"

"You don't even know this?" The male instantly gave the female, who was several heads shorter than him, a look of disdain. "Don't you use the internet? You've never heard of this."

But he had finally encountered these two Zerg, and he was determined to tell them everything this time, otherwise he wouldn't be able to sleep during his shift.

So he lowered his voice and said, "I heard this from other insects. They say that when the Insect Queen left Wangxing, she was kidnapped by a very beautiful pink-haired female. Luckily, Lord Andor intervened in time to save the Insect Queen, otherwise... tsk, she probably would have been taken advantage of by that female..."

The male sighed as he recounted the incident, and upon seeing a wisp of pink hair falling behind Ge Yuan, he pointed directly at her hair and said, "See that? It's pink hair like that. It's said that the female who tried to abduct the insect queen also had pink hair like that..."

Ge Yuan's fist hardened.