Chapter 12: Twelfth Day of Being a Salted Fish

Siming froze for a moment, then smiled. “So you really can hear everything that happens in this area.”

“…No, it’s through Mental Power.” This was a relatively high-level application of Mental Power. Lu Yuan gave a brief explanation before adding, “I only hear things when I specifically focus on listening.”

“So why did you suddenly want to listen to us yesterday?”

“Hmm… because Goudan and I were talking about your purpose for staying here, and I wanted to be sure.” Lu Yuan didn’t hide it. To him, this wasn’t something worth hiding in the first place.

While eavesdropping wasn’t exactly moral, he wasn’t someone with particularly high moral standards to begin with. Now that he had entered his ‘salted fish’ state of idle relaxation, he had begun to let himself follow his whims even more. If he wanted to listen, he listened; if he wanted to speak, he spoke.

In the span of a few sentences, Siming had already shaken off his initial catch-off-guard state. He organized his thoughts, having a faint inkling of what today’s conversation would be about.

“Yes, I want to leave the Desolate Planet. On one hand, it’s to get Zhu Rong out; on the other, I want to go out and see the world myself,” he said.

“And then?” Lu Yuan asked. “I mean, what do you plan to do after you get out?”

His words already carried the assumption of “after getting out.”

Siming was no fool. He immediately understood what Lu Yuan was hinting at, and he couldn’t help but feel a surge of pleasant surprise—after all, he hadn’t expected Lu Yuan to be willing to help him leave. However, he also became increasingly cautious.

This was an opportunity.

In a sense, it was an opportunity he had created himself.

Even he couldn’t say for sure whether he had an ulterior motive when talking to Lao Tong last night, or if his subconscious hoped those words would inadvertently reach Lu Yuan’s ears. After all, through the process of playing games, he had already guessed that Lu Yuan must be someone who had been on the battlefield.

Letting Lu Yuan know Zhu Rong’s story could only benefit him. But he couldn’t just rush up and take the initiative to tell it… that would be too calculated.

So he had to take a roundabout route.

He hadn’t expected that his first attempt at speaking about it would actually be heard by Lu Yuan.

Clearly, Lu Yuan had been moved and was considering sending them out.

“Sending Zhu Rong to the military academy is the first thing. You heard our conversation, so you should know that.” Siming answered the most certain part first—stating the obvious to buy himself a moment to weigh his next words.

The chances of Zhu Rong being sent out were high, and the reasons were solid. But he was different.

If he couldn’t convince Lu Yuan, there was no guarantee Lu Yuan wouldn’t just send Zhu Rong out alone. Although Siming felt that Lu Yuan was a man of efficiency who might as well send a few more if he was sending one, it wasn’t a certainty.

But would his reasons move Lu Yuan?

“Then there’s myself.” Siming closed his eyes briefly and said, “Actually, I’m not sure what I’ll do once I’m out. I won’t join the military. Although Zhu Rong’s biological mother helped me a great deal, that’s no reason for me to inherit her profession. I’m not suited for it anyway.

“Mostly, I just want to see what the world outside really looks like.”

He paused. “I’m sure you aren’t interested in my past, so I won’t say much. In short, I established an organization. Lao Tong is a member, and Zhu Rong… is a bit of an exception.

“I led this organization across many parts of the Desolate Planet. Ever since I heard about the outside world, I’ve been curious. What exactly is the difference between the Desolate Planet and the outside? With so many planets, why is it that only the Desolate Planet is abandoned?

“Legend says the Desolate Planet is where the Empire exiles criminals, so it’s filled with sin and garbage. But I’ve never seen a single criminal exiled here—that’s just a legend.

“The Desolate Planet is indeed chaotic and lawless, but it’s not because the people here have sinful genes. It’s because there is no civilization here. The Empire denies the people here the right to have a civilization.

“It’s strange, isn’t it? Why would the Empire harbor such hatred for a plain, barren, and destitute planet? And why, while hating it, do they never forget to sustain its life? You should know, if not for those occasional Garbage Ships, the people here would have died out long ago.

“Oh, speaking of which, as a side note-“

He suddenly realized something and interjected, “Watch out for the Garbage Ships. Those ships don’t just dump trash; they also function as monitors for various regions.

“I’ve seen it more than once. The Garbage Ships don’t just drop ‘garbage’; they drop massive amounts of bombs, leaving nothing alive in their wake. A place like this, which has become so orderly, might have already been targeted.”

“…” This was indeed information Lu Yuan didn’t know. Looking at it this way, the Empire’s surveillance of this planet was far tighter than he had anticipated.

The Empire had been fighting the Zerg for ten years, yet they still had munitions to waste on the Desolate Planet… it was truly mind-boggling.

Lu Yuan narrowed his eyes slightly, a dark glint flashing through them. He suddenly remembered Goudan mentioning that musical instruments appeared in the “garbage,” and a few grim suspicions formed in his mind. He nodded and said, “Thanks.”

“Actually, it won’t affect you,” Siming shook his head. “The Empire wouldn’t be willing to throw anything too expensive down here. Wiping out a small area doesn’t require very powerful weapons.”

“Mm.” Lu Yuan nodded, signaling for him to continue.

“Over these ten years, I’ve discovered many suspicious points and contradictions,” Siming said. “For example, the Desolate Planet should have once had energy resources, but they were depleted long ago. For another, the Desolate Planet once had a very prosperous civilization. Some legends that circulate outside are recorded here as well, even passed down as heritage.”

He looked up at Lu Yuan, his expression becoming increasingly solemn. “The biggest reason I want to go out is actually that I want to see where the Garbage Ships depart from and who commands them. I want to know who caused the Desolate Planet to become what it is today.”

“I will…” His eyes flashed. “Kill him.”

An intense, cold killing intent suddenly erupted, only to be quickly reined in under Lu Yuan’s calm gaze. Siming changed the subject, his tone lightening. “I haven’t thought about what comes after that. Maybe I’ll return to the Desolate Planet.

“I was born on the Desolate Planet. Even though it’s not a great place, I’m still willing to build it up. My goals aren’t that big. I think a place like this is quite nice. If the entire Desolate Planet could live like this, I’d be satisfied.

“Of course, if everyone on the Desolate Planet could have games to play…”

He glanced at the nearby shelves. “Novels and TV shows to watch, music to listen to, that would be even better. It doesn’t matter if the StarNet won’t let us play; we can create our own! As long as people don’t keep showing up to destroy our order and achievements, I think our Desolate Planet can be very prosperous!”

“…” Lu Yuan looked into his eyes and said nothing.

Siming lowered his gaze and thought for a moment, then gave a relieved smile. “That’s about it. Maybe the plan should be more detailed, but I haven’t thought that far ahead yet, and I can’t just make it up on the spot.”

“…It’s quite good.” Lu Yuan was just a bit stunned because Siming’s thoughts and plans were different from what he had expected.

He reached out and tossed the e-reader he had prepared the night before into Siming’s arms. “Mecha manufacturing methods. You can give it a try. If there’s something you don’t understand, don’t come asking me; I’m too lazy to answer.

“You can go ask Old Fourth-you’ve lived here long enough to know who Old Fourth is, right?”

“I know.” Siming began to laugh.

He was actually someone who smiled often, but perhaps because of his narrow, fox-like eyes¹, or perhaps because his aura was too roguish and sinister, his smiles always seemed insincere, carrying a murky sense of scheming.

But this time, his gaze was incredibly pure.

Lu Yuan keenly caught that look.

His fingers curled unconsciously, and he finally let out a sigh.

-Who would have thought this guy had such dreams… and such ridiculous ones at that.

Translator’s Notes