Chapter 11: Eleventh Day of Lying Flat

Lu Yuan did indeed have a way to leave the Desolate Planet, and he truly could help others leave as well.

The simplest method, for instance, would be to go onto StarNet, hijack some general’s account, and send a message stating he was on the Desolate Planet.

Whether the other party believed it or not, they would certainly send someone to investigate.

If he didn’t want to expose himself, he could use a slightly more complex method. For example, building a mecha.

With his manual dexterity, this wasn’t a difficult task. To be honest, if he had enough materials, building a spaceship with his bare hands wasn’t beyond him either.

He could even choose to fleece some space pirates. He could trick a gang of pirates into coming to the Desolate Planet and then sneak onto their ship.

But, just as Lao Tong had said, why should he help Siming leave the Desolate Planet? Not only was there no benefit to him, but he would also lose a playmate for nothing. The loss outweighed the gain.

Lu Yuan let his thoughts wander as he continued to listen to the conversation between Siming and Lao Tong.

“Based on the fact that I don’t cause him trouble?” Siming’s voice was low, carrying a strange hint of a smile. “Not exactly. Mostly, it’s because he’s the type of person who is indifferent to the vast majority of things. And I… I’m not exactly a good person. I can take advantage of a temperament like his.

“I might not be able to get him to teach me proactively, but he won’t mind me ‘stealing’ his skills – if I’m capable of stealing them, that is. As long as I don’t get in his way, he won’t care what I do, what I learn from him, or how I borrow his strength.”

…Is that so?

Lu Yuan reflected for a moment and gave a helpless smile. It seemed he really was that kind of person.

However, leaving the Desolate Planet by one’s own strength was no easy feat.

Lu Yuan truly couldn’t imagine how Siming could possibly leave. He certainly wouldn’t teach Siming how to access StarNet, so it was unlikely Siming could contact the outside world directly. As for building a mecha himself…

Even if Siming could gain some understanding of mechas, warships, and the universe through Lu Yuan’s games, trying to build a flight vehicle from scratch to cross the vastness of space to reach other planets remained extremely difficult.

Even Lu Yuan didn’t believe he could have become a self-taught genius capable of interstellar navigation without textbooks or a teacher.

“You’re the same, aren’t you?” On the other side, Siming’s voice continued.

“As long as you follow his rules…” He paused, then said, “You can receive his protection without paying a price.”

“It’s still a bit different,” Lao Tong said calmly. “If he weren’t here, you wouldn’t have wanted to kill me either – you moved against me to test him, and to punish me for withholding information about him.

“But even so, you didn’t truly intend to kill me. After all, Zhu Rong is still here.”

“True enough.” Siming laughed helplessly. “You really are lucky, being chosen by Zhu Rong to be her nanny. You just found a random place to settle down, and then a massive windfall like Lu Yuan falls right out of the sky.”

“So who exactly is Zhu Rong?” Lao Tong asked. “I’ve raised this child for ten years; can’t you tell me now? Given the current situation… in this place, it’s not like I can use her to blackmail you for anything anymore.”

“…She,” Siming hesitated slightly before saying, “It’s a long story.”

“Make it short.”

Siming pondered, then said, “Ten years ago, I found a mecha.”

Lu Yuan’s eyes snapped open.

“A mecha?” Lao Tong was also surprised.

“Yes, the kind of mecha from the game Zhu Rong chose. Outside the Desolate Planet, these things actually exist. Mecha mobile units are a vital part of the interstellar battlefield.”

After that brief explanation, Siming continued, “There was a woman inside that mecha. Her machine was damaged and she didn’t know how to repair it. Combined with her heavy injuries, she knew very well that she couldn’t leave the Desolate Planet.

“But she was pregnant. So, she used the restoration fluid in the mecha to barely cling to life. She lived for another six months or so and gave birth to a child. That was Zhu Rong.

“A newborn definitely couldn’t survive on the Desolate Planet. She entrusted the child to me. In exchange, during the final period of her life, she taught me a great deal of knowledge about the outside world.

“I was grateful. When she was dying, I asked if she had any final wishes I could help fulfill. She said she hoped Zhu Rong would live.

“Additionally, she said she knew I desperately wanted to leave the Desolate Planet – after hearing so much about the world outside, no one wouldn’t want to go out and see it. So she wished me the chance to fulfill my dream, and said she hoped that when I left, I could take Zhu Rong with me.

“She said she was certain Zhu Rong had inherited the talent of both her and her husband. If given the chance to study mechas, she would surely become the finest mecha pilot… Looking at it now, at least in terms of gaming, Zhu Rong’s talent is indeed quite good.”

“…”

Lao Tong remained silent for a long while before seizing on a point that wasn’t exactly the main focus: “A pregnant woman could still go to the battlefield?”

“Normally, of course not,” Siming said. “But the war was critical at the time. The Zerg had launched a sudden invasion, a massive force that was almost unstoppable. Even the old Marshal, Lu Zhongli, died in battle on the front lines.

“On the battlefield, the presence of mecha mobile units is crucial, but mecha pilots are rare, difficult to train, and suffer the highest casualty rates. In a state of extreme manpower shortage, almost all mecha pilots at the time were sent to the front. She had only just become pregnant then, so it wouldn’t have affected her combat effectiveness much. She volunteered for the front lines.”

“Oh…” Lao Tong sighed. “The Zerg… they sound terrifying. I wonder how things are now.”

Well…

The Zerg were gone now.

Lu Yuan couldn’t quite describe what he was thinking, but he stopped listening to their conversation and withdrew his mental power.

Goudan looked at him. “Why did you suddenly go quiet?”

“Mm,” Lu Yuan let out a breath and shook his head. “It’s nothing.”

Goudan looked at him searchingly. At times like this, he was actually quite sharp. “You went to peek at what Siming was doing, didn’t you!”

“…” Lu Yuan nodded. “Yes.”

“And you call me out? You’re a control freak yourself.” Goudan snorted, though he made no effort to hide his own curiosity. “So, do you know what he wants to do?”

“He wants to leave the Desolate Planet,” Lu Yuan answered briefly, reaching out to snatch the tablet from Goudan’s arms. “Time for you to go. It’s late.”

“But my time for tonight isn’t up yet!” Goudan’s attention was instantly diverted, his eyes wide.

“Who told you to stop focusing on your show to watch us play games?” Lu Yuan was cold and heartless as he began to exit the drama interface, but then he paused in surprise. “Huh? You changed shows? ‘The Mad Band’?”

“I changed it ages ago. You don’t care about me at all.” Goudan stood up reluctantly, muttering, “I plan to make my next drama about a band.

“Didn’t a new trash ship come a couple of days ago? It brought some musical instruments. A few kids really liked them and have been practicing there every day. The kids look decent enough, so I talked to them and decided to make them the leads for the next drama.

“Oh right, I told them you sell sheet music and records here. I told them to come buy from you if they need anything. If they show up, remember to give them a discount! Those are my protagonists!”

“…Fine.” Lu Yuan shook his head as he listened. “Congratulations, your cast of protagonists has expanded again. Sooner or later, everyone in this place will be one of your protagonists or the inspiration for one.”

Goudan always drew material from the things happening around him and turned them into dramas. Consequently, anyone in the vicinity who had something slightly unusual happen to them became the inspiration for a character – and anyone who looked good enough became a lead in Goudan’s shows.

Siming, for instance, had been targeted by Goudan from the start simply because he was handsome.

“What’s wrong with that?” Goudan had already reached the door. As he opened it, he looked back and tilted his head. “Every person’s story is unique.”

“…”

Lu Yuan didn’t answer. Only after Goudan had walked far away did he suddenly give a soft laugh.

“Yeah,” he sighed, murmuring to himself. “Every person’s story is unique.”

“…What a pain.”

Casually grabbing a reader from nearby, Lu Yuan deleted the content inside, logged onto StarNet, and downloaded some new files to import.

Then, he adjusted the roof to transparent mode and closed his eyes, pillowed by the vast river of stars.

–

The next day.

Siming, who had played games for half the day without winning a single time, was about to take his leave when Lu Yuan stopped him.

“I heard the conversation between you and Lao Tong last night.” Meeting Siming’s confused gaze, Lu Yuan asked directly, “You want to leave the Desolate Planet?”