Author: 易修罗 / Yi Xiu Luo

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 123

The executioner approached Ling Xing with a syringe filled with a transparent liquid. The death penalty on Tianxiu didn’t bring pain to the condemned, nor did death bring despair; in some ways, it was perhaps the lightest extreme penalty in this galaxy.

Ling Xing closed his eyes calmly and silently recited a prayer in his mind.

He had been a devout believer all his life and hoped that after he left, God would protect Jing Yu in his place. He promised it wouldn’t take much time.

Outside the Nightmare Hall, everyone’s gaze subtly lingered on Jing Yu, their hands secretly clutching soul crystals, ready to rush up and subdue him if he showed any inclination to break in.

Long Yin checked his terminal. The execution time was very brief, and it was almost time to look up and bid farewell to Ling Xing’s soul.

But just then, a flash of white light appeared in the distance. Long Yin thought he was seeing things, but when he turned his head, the spot where Jing Yu had been standing was now empty, leaving the well-trained soldiers around him astonished.

“How… How is that possible?!”

Even Long Yin’s voice changed.

“He’s a Lone Star, isn’t he?”

Ling Xing opened his eyes, equally shocked to see Jing Yu suddenly before him, and the Nightmare Hall personnel were so frightened that the syringe fell to the ground.

“You… How could you…”

Ling Xing stood up, his hesitantly raised hand slowly touching Jing Yu’s chest.

A life for a life, the symbol of emotions reaching their zenith, only possible when the emotional value reached ten stars, the ultimate energy that could be released.

“How could you possibly learn this? You are a Lone Star.”

Beneath his palm, Jing Yu’s body was slowly becoming transparent, light spots fluttering around him like butterflies with blue wings, some lightly kissing the back of Ling Xing’s hand.

Jing Yu lowered his head, grabbing Ling Xing’s hand placed on his chest, just as Ling Xing had done to him countless times before, and with an inorganic voice and expressionless face, Jing Yu said to Ling Xing, “I’m uncomfortable.”

Ling Xing couldn’t help but laugh, tears streaming down from the corners of his eyes with his laughter. He had said this to Jing Yu a thousand times, and finally, he heard Jing Yu say it to him.

“Don’t worry,” he said. “I’ll come to find you right away.”

Finally, a soul flew away from the top of the Nightmare Hall. Long Yin stiffly followed the trajectory of the departing soul, the owner of which was obvious.

“Lieutenant General…” an aide called out softly below, seeking instructions on what to do with Ling Xing, but was met with a thunderous shout from Long Yin.

“Shut up!”

Ling Xing wiped away his tears, turned to the executioner with a smile, and asked, “Excuse me, do you still have that thing? Please give me another injection. We must hurry; my Qizhu is waiting for me at the purification pool. Not only do we need to be reborn on the same day of the same month of the same year, but we also need to awaken on the same day.”

Soon, a second soul flew from the Nightmare Hall, following the first’s path straight to the purification pool. Long Yin took a heavy step back, his carefully laid plans coming to naught on this day.

Ling Xing and Jing Yu’s story in this life came to an end here, but the story between them was far from over.

Years later.

In the deserted Section G of the base, a person appeared out of thin air. The moment he materialized, he pulled out a device and targeted the surrounding surveillance cameras, clicking a few times. The screens in the monitoring center flickered and then froze, stuck on the previous image. Unless one looked closely, it was impossible to tell they had been blocked.

Ling Xiao breathed a sigh of relief, knowing he would jump to this kind of place. Fortunately, his wit had made him prepare in advance. He glanced around to confirm no one was nearby before he carelessly walked over to the Ling family’s energy pod, which displayed a name he was all too familiar with—Ling Xiao.

“I’m already lying here.” Ling Xiao affectionately embraced the energy pod, pressing his ear against it to listen to his own heartbeat.

“Grow quickly, so when you wake up, you can see that guy next door wake up too. He’s annoying, always acts aloof. You’ll go to an academy together, fight, intern, and maybe end up bonded… But I won’t spoil it for you; whether it’s good or bad, it’s all part of your life. You should experience it for yourself.”

He then turned to the neighboring energy pod, where Ying Feng’s name was prominently displayed. This time, Ling Xiao pressed the open button, and the pod slowly opened, revealing Ying Feng asleep inside.

“How long has it been since I’ve seen Ying Feng in his fledgling state?” Ling Xiao mused, remembering the small figure who liked to keep a cool face. He smiled involuntarily as he leaned over the edge of the energy pod, tracing the familiar arc of Ying Feng’s cheek with the back of his knuckles.

“I miss you, you know that?” he whispered softly.

Ying Feng’s body wasn’t fully materialized yet and was slightly transparent to the naked eye. Once the transparency disappeared completely, he would be able to wake up from the energy pod.

Even though he knew Ying Feng couldn’t hear him, Ling Xiao kept talking. “I’ve come to give you a gift that I really don’t want to give you.” He took out the seed and waved it in front of Ying Feng. “Do you like it?”

He answered himself, “I know you must like it. You value it more than anything in this world, to the extent that you ignore the person in front of you. Am I the fool, or are you, for not placing an instruction manual next to the peach pit?”

Ling Xiao held the seed in front of him one last time. “To think, I’ve been jealous of this little thing for so long, and in the end, it’s me who’s putting it into your energy pod. What have I been after all these years?”

After pondering, he held the seed in his palm, closed his eyes, and concentrated his mental power. Moments later, a deep blue light radiated from his hand, vanishing in an instant.

Having done all this, Ling Xiao sighed. “Don’t blame me for wasting life. I had to find a reason to give it to you. I hope my soul can protect you through tough times when needed.”

This time he finally bent down, picked up Ying Feng’s hand, and placed the seed solemnly in his palm, securing each finger over it. The seed was now in his palm, no longer at risk of falling out.

Ling Xiao prepared to shed tears over Ying Feng’s energy pod, mockingly wiping at his eyes where not even a shadow of moisture existed.

“Okay, I admit, thinking I’ll see you soon only makes me want to laugh with joy. I can’t even pretend to be sad.”

“How many years has it been since we last met?” Ling Xiao counted on his fingers. “Ten years, twenty years, thirty years… Oh, I can’t remember. It’s been so long. You didn’t bond with someone else, did you?”

He silently leaned against Ying Feng’s pod, feeling that it wasn’t right. “Your lover from a past life sent you such a big gift; it wouldn’t be proper for your lover of this life to do nothing. I must also give you something.”

Ling Xiao fished out a soul crystal from his sleeve, activated it in the palm of his hand, and produced a banana. He peeled the banana and swallowed it in a few bites, then neatly stacked the banana peel on Ying Feng’s chest.

“This hint is obvious enough. Find someone who likes bananas, and he will be your destined partner in this life.” Ling Xiao seriously completed this gift-giving ritual. The thought of Ying Feng spending his fledgling period holding a banana peel, pondering its significance under the bright moon every night, made him laugh so hard he almost couldn’t stand up.

As he laughed his hardest, Ying Feng’s energy pod suddenly lit up with a red light, accompanied by a harsh alarm.

“What’s happening?!” Ling Xiao was startled, and the sound of rushing footsteps soon came from afar. He immediately dodged into a hidden spot. Zhi Shang and the base researchers arrived one after another. Ling Xiao peered out from his hiding place and almost cried out excitedly upon seeing the reincarnated Dr. Zhi Shang.

“Why is there a banana peel here?” Zhi Shang asked with a frown, pointing at Ying Feng’s energy pod. The others looked at each other in bewilderment. They were all seasoned employees of the base; who would throw a leftover banana peel into an energy pod?

Zhi Shang picked up the banana peel, and the alarm stopped immediately. Ling Xiao was dumbfounded. Why didn’t the peach pit cause any trouble, but his banana peel was discriminated against?

“Go back and check the surveillance!” The crowd left again. No one noticed Ling Xiao hidden in the corner. Ying Feng’s energy pod was closed again, as if nothing had happened, but Ling Xiao knew something extra had been added there.

“Past life lover vs partner of this life, it seems like a tragic defeat from the start.” Ling Xiao wiped away his futile monkey tears, and the moment he raised his hand, he saw his body become transparent. He was about to travel through time again, hoping to see Ying Feng this time.

He closed his eyes, and bizarre colors streamed past rapidly. Wars and peace, stray bullets and daisies, heroes and thieves, smiles and tears—all turned into long and narrow lines, slipping through his fingers in an instant. No matter how spectacular it was in any era, it would become the past in the next.

Yet, it was these fleeting wisps that came together to form history, build foundations, and support the present of the entire Tianxiu. Every soul that existed today was a part of the past; they were the history of this country and also its future.

Ling Xiao opened his eyes again to find himself in a desolate place, with no human constructions in sight.

“Where is this?” he asked himself. The landing points of his past travels were usually near his soul, but he was sure that he had never been here in this life.

“Ah, that is…”

But when he clearly saw the alien flying object not far away, it exploded violently. The blinding white light made the daylight even brighter. After the explosion, flames roared at the site.

Ling Xiao was startled. At the same time as the explosion, he saw a blue light rising from the ground, forming a half-arc on the surface, obviously protecting something or someone inside.

He ran over quickly. Without his elemental soul crystals, Ling Xiao had to brave the fierce fire and enter the center of the explosion. The area was littered with the wreckage of alien bodies, many beyond recognition. There was a body still intact, eyes closed, lying on the ground. Ling Xiao’s eyes widened when he saw him.

“Ying Feng!”

He dragged Ying Feng out of the blast zone without hesitation. The latter was in a deep coma, severely injured, especially the right arm, which was slightly deformed due to the injury, and the palm covered in congealed blood—Ling Xiao didn’t know that the blood was his own and thought that Ying Feng’s palm had been cut.

Now Ling Xiao understood why he had jumped to this place. It was indeed where his soul was. Just minutes before, the fragment of his soul he had infused into the peach pit had acted, protecting Ying Feng in the explosion and saving him from disaster.

Ling Xiao couldn’t afford to think further; he pulled out all the healing soul crystals he had, activated them, and placed his hands glowing with white light on Ying Feng’s chest. Gradually, he called Ying Feng back from the brink of rebirth, his mental power draining from his body bit by bit until it was overdrawn.

The seriously injured Ying Feng slowly opened his eyes and saw Ling Xiao, who was healing him with all his might. Ling Xiao’s mental power had reached its peak, even capable of utilizing a level seven healing soul crystal. But how could Ying Feng know this? He was just a first-year military school student, and so was Ling Xiao at that time. With a confused heart, Ying Feng sat up and looked at Ling Xiao’s clothes, which didn’t belong to this era.

Seeing Ying Feng awake, a millennium of longing made Ling Xiao unable to help himself; he lunged forward and embraced him tightly. He had waited too long for this moment; all words seemed pale in comparison; only this action could express his inner feelings at this moment.

The hug ended, and Ling Xiao smiled foolishly as Ying Feng belatedly noticed his deep gray eyes.

“Your eyes…” he said, puzzled.

Ying Feng’s eyes were still the deep, unfathomable black that Ling Xiao was used to. However, Ling Xiao’s eyes had turned deep gray, a color only found in fledglings. No wonder Ying Feng was surprised.

Just as he was about to explain to Ying Feng, he heard him continue, “Your body…”

Ling Xiao raised his hands in surprise, quickly seeing the ground beneath them through his hands. What kind of fast travel was this? It was too fast!

No, that’s not right! There was still something important he hadn’t explained!

“Ying Feng, the peach pit is…”

…It’s from a lover from a past life who stole it in your previous life and gave it to me to pass on to his lover’s reincarnation. For this, they both paid with their lives. I personally put it into your energy pod. Most importantly, it’s not a peach pit; it’s a seed from the Soul Tree. Don’t just bury it carelessly!

Why didn’t they give him more time to finish such a refined summary!

Ling Xiao spun in the river of time. Wars and peace, stray bullets and flowers, heroes and thieves, smiles and tears all rushed at him. What would come next? He didn’t know. Stepping out from here, he was about to enter another era—one that belonged to Ling Xiao and Ying Feng—

—a brand new unknown.

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