Author: 易修罗 / Yi Xiu Luo

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

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Chapter 130

Zhu Yue reluctantly appeared on the screen. Having used the Huoxiu people for his purpose, he no longer wanted any involvement with them.

“Tai Er, didn’t we agree to take what we need? Why are you contacting me again?”

The man called Tai Er said angrily, “You said there was only one Soul Tree in all of Tianxiu, but why did a new one appear after one was destroyed? Their lighthouse is still lit!”

“How is that possible?” Zhu Yue’s face changed. “I have never heard of a second Soul Tree.”

“If you don’t believe it, you can see for yourself,” Tai Er said furiously. “We knew nothing about history and only acted against our ancestors’ teachings to create the Lone Star by believing your words as an ancient Tianxiu person. But if we can’t take back our planet, how am I supposed to explain it to the people? Not to mention the many voices that already oppose us!”

“I see,” Zhu Yue said impatiently. “I’ll take a look and then figure out a solution.”

“No need for your solutions,” Tai Er refused rudely. “No matter who you were, now you are one of the artificial humans. Who knows if you are feigning allegiance, actually here to annihilate us.”

Zhu Yue found it amusing. “If I wanted to annihilate you, would I have helped you create the Lone Star?”

“But the artificial beings you created are far inferior to those of Tianxiu. What can they do except rush to their deaths?”

Zhu Yue caught his insinuation. “What do you really want?”

“Simple.” Tai Er leaned forward, his arms straight on the console. “I want intelligent beings like you. Only then can we contend with the current Tianxiu people.”

Zhu Yue lowered his head and let out a few muffled laughs, annoying Tai Er.

“What are you laughing at?”

“Laughing at how, after such a precedent, you could still have such a ridiculous idea. No wonder history repeats itself with people like you who overestimate themselves continually appearing. Tai Duo, who opposed this plan back then and fled with his family overnight, probably never imagined his descendants would turn out like this.”

“Cut the crap!” Tai Er retorted. “You failed back then because you bet all restraining conditions on the royal bloodline. The dynasty ended, and the artificial beings inevitably rebelled. We will not make the same mistakes.”

“Huh,” Zhu Yue sneered. “Without the royal bloodline, you want to use your mixed blood? Look in the mirror. No true ancient Tianxiu person has red eyes. Your ancestors intermarried with the local Huoxiu people, and after thousands of years, your generation barely retains a surname. The Tianxiu gene is almost gone. The ancient Tianxiu couldn’t do it, and you think with your abilities, you can control the Lone Star with real intelligence?”

“Who are you calling a mongrel!” Tai Er glared. “Even if the ancient Tianxiu people were formidable, they were only at the level of a thousand years ago. So much time has passed since then, and technology has undergone earth-shattering changes. What they couldn’t do, we might be able to.”

Zhu Yue shook his head and sighed with a mocking laugh. “Do you know what the ancient Tianxiu people were like? We couldn’t shoulder burdens or carry things with our hands. Many things you think are easy, we had to rely on machines to accomplish. But it’s also because of this that our wisdom is much stronger than you imagine. The civilization of ancient Tianxiu is no less than that of any nation today. Now, you have a strong physique, but compared to your ancestors, you’re more than just a little stupid. That’s fair. You can’t have everything; you always have to make choices.”

Tai Er, mocked to his face, stood back, his gaze darkening. “I knew it. At the time of your near death, I shouldn’t have saved you but should have directly taken your genes for research. Since you’re completely opposed, then there’s no need for us to cooperate any longer.” He turned to a researcher beside him. “Recall AA-001.”

“Wait a minute!” Hearing Zhu Yue inevitably trying to stop him, Tai Er lowered his head, a sly smile curling at the corner of his mouth. AA-001 stood expressionless beside Zhu Yue. Although he had been following Zhu Yue as Zhen He since he was created, he would still prioritize the commands of his original master.

Zhu Yue was calculating something in his mind, and after a long time, he said, “The earliest Lone Stars evolved from the Tianxiu people, so they could easily accept our genes. But your genes have undergone too many changes; forcibly transplanting them, I don’t know what would happen.”

“Aren’t you the one who claims to be from a high-intelligence race? Can’t you solve even this problem?”

“Fine.” Zhu Yue agreed, perhaps for some purpose, very straightforwardly. “But I need time.”

Only then did Tai Er look satisfied. “I hope you won’t make me wait too long.”

On Tianxiu, 35,000 EAU away, the people intent on rebuilding their homeland were unaware that the enemy’s ambitions had swelled to uncontrollable proportions. The return of Ta Yun and Fei Jing was probably the only good news in a series of bad news for Fu Yao. However, when he found Ta Yun had grown a full head taller than himself, his initial joy turned to disdain, affecting his attitude towards Fei Jing as well.

“What are you doing back here, wanted criminal?”

Ling Xiao, unaware of their familiarity, tried to mediate.

“Fei Jing came back specifically after hearing about the situation here. Give him a chance to redeem himself.”

“He comes back now; where was he before?” He turned to the principal and asked bluntly, “Are you better yet?”

The principal, probably not expecting Fu Yao to care, replied, “No.”

“That’s good.” He signaled to Nie Yun. “Take Fei Jing and detain him for a couple of days.”

Everyone was speechless; only Nie Yun helplessly shook his head. It seemed the relationship between these two would probably never improve.

“Is there some bad news?” Ying Feng, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up, having noticed Fu Yao’s mood had been off since earlier. Fu Yao gave him a knowing look. “The Huangxiu people have declared war on us.”

“What?” Ling Xiao remembered that years ago, because of Ying Feng’s matter, Fu Yao personally led an expedition against Huangxiu and ended it with their surrender.

“They’ve torn up the surrender agreement and have occupied all our mining points near the Huangxiu region. Every time there’s turmoil, Huangxiu is always the most restless. It’s not surprising they’re the first to jump out this time. But what I’m most worried about now is the possibility of other planetary forces joining in. If they unite against us, with our current strength, I must say it would be somewhat difficult to handle.”

Seeing Ling Xiao’s expression grow heavy, unlike his usual self, Ying Feng asked, “What’s wrong?”

Ling Xiao decided to tell everything he knew. “Descendants of the ancient Tianxiu scientists once said that if we stay within our own territory and behave, the Soul Tree will continue to produce souls, increasing our population. But if we repeatedly cross borders and expand aggressively, the birth of new souls will decrease and eventually stop completely.”

“Is that so? No wonder the birth of new souls has been growing so slowly for a thousand years… But why wasn’t such important information passed down by our ancestors?”

“Because time has blurred many truths. Our birth, the man-made species, the origin of the coming-of-age ceremony, and the essence of forming bonds… Our ancestors hoped we would live on as true humans, so over the years, the truth has been concealed through generations of unintentional or deliberate hiding.”

“Yue Ying said something right—the civilization we’ve created now is built on lies. Except for a few, the vast majority are kept in the dark. Now that new Lone Stars have emerged and declared war on us, I think it’s time to let people know the truth. To know who created us, who we are fighting against, why we are fighting, and not to live forever in deception.”

“But the truth is so shocking. Have you considered the public’s psychological capacity to handle it?”

“A race that can endure the universe’s cruelest and most inhumane battle of the coming-of-age ceremony, what pressure can possibly bring us down? What’s most important is, I don’t want the efforts of our ancestors in overcoming their instincts through generations to be wasted. The coming-of-age ceremony is a cruel fate imposed on us, never a survival of the fittest by natural selection. It is the greatest resistance against fate by the past Tianxiu people, who repeatedly killed their loved ones. The formation of bonds is the proof of their deep love.”

“Although everyone here lacks past memories, we are all participants in history,” he said, looking intently at Ying Feng. “Taking sovereignty from the ancient Tianxiu people and overcoming instincts in the coming-of-age ceremony, anyone here could have played a decisive role. Every step taken by each Tianxiu is inseparable from all of us. To deny history is to deny ourselves. We created history for a brighter future, and that’s something to be proud of, with no need for concealment.”

“Whether natural species or man-made creations, after seeing these four thousand years of silhouettes, I genuinely feel proud of my people. I believe our compatriots, after knowing the truth, will share my sentiments.”

“Brilliantly said!” A voice came from behind, and everyone turned around to see two people in different white uniforms walking towards them, the earlier statement having been made by the one in the lead.

Ling Xiao recognized both of them and called out their names. “Dr. Heng He! Assistant Yu Quan!”

“Yu Quan is no longer an assistant researcher,” Nie Yun corrected him. “He is now the chief researcher of the base.”

“Really?” Ling Xiao exclaimed with surprise. “That’s great! Dr. Zhi Shang and Dr. Yao would be very happy to hear this.”

As the two approached, Heng He pushed up his data glasses on the bridge of his nose. “I heard what you just said, and I think it makes a lot of sense. I can capture your experiences in history in the form of images and sound and upload them to the mainframe. This way, every citizen of Tianxiu can know their true origin as if they experienced it firsthand. As for the merits and demerits of the blood pact, it should be up to them to judge. I also hope that after witnessing history, they will, as you said, feel proud of their race.”

Everyone unanimously turned to Fu Yao for his opinion. After a brief hesitation, Fu Yao nodded in agreement, then turned to Yu Quan, who had come with him.

“What are you here for?”

Even after being promoted to chief researcher, Yu Quan’s poker face remained unchanged.

“I also have a very important discovery. Since the enemy is of the same species as us, why, when they die, do their souls forsake the nearby and travel across half the galaxy back to their planet instead of being summoned by our lighthouse?”

No one had thought of this question. “This… isn’t that normal? The species created by the Huoxiu people must be different from us…”

Yu Quan’s usually unflappable eyes seemed slightly smug. “So, based on this phenomenon, I’ve modified the lighthouse’s recognition range. If the enemy invades again, their souls will belong to us after they die, sparing them the trouble of a weary journey.”

This was indeed great news, especially for Tianxiu, which had just permanently lost a large number of souls. Nothing could be more uplifting.

“I’m starting to look forward to the arrival of the Huoxiu people.” Ling Xiao voiced everyone’s thoughts.

Fu Yao’s eyes once again lit up with fighting spirit. “Good, Ling Xiao and Heng He, go back to the Genetics Center; everyone else, follow me to the base to check on the progress.”

Their location was already within the boundaries of the base, and Ling Xiao and Ying Feng quickly followed Heng He underground to the Genetics Center, which remained intact despite the near-catastrophic attack on the surface.

“Are you ready?” Heng He placed a helmet-like device on Ling Xiao’s head.

“Yes!” Ling Xiao nodded firmly.

“Then let’s start.” Heng He activated the device, and the events of the past four thousand years replayed in Ling Xiao’s mind. On the nearby screen, the data upload progress bar appeared.

“It was you.” Ling Xiao, who had been recalling the past with closed eyes, suddenly said with a smile.

“What?” Ying Feng asked.

“It was you.” Ling Xiao opened his eyes slightly. “The person who played a key role in seizing sovereignty from the ancient Tianxiu people, in overcoming instincts at the coming-of-age ceremony, was you.”

He looked at Ying Feng affectionately. “Thank you for everything you’ve done for me—from four thousand years ago to now, you’ve always been my pride.”

Ying Feng looked back at the unusually serious Ling Xiao and suddenly asked, “Don’t you regret it?”

“Regret what?” Ling Xiao was puzzled.

“Accepting the memory upload.”

“What’s there to regret?” Ling Xiao was a bit baffled.

“Because now everyone knows, for these four thousand years, you’ve always lost to me, not winning even once.”

Ling Xiao: “…………”

Ling Xiao: “??”

Ling Xiao: “!!!”

“Ahhhhh!” Realizing what had happened, Ling Xiao cried out and rushed to check the device, seeing the progress bar at 98%, 99%, and finally 100%, indicating the upload was complete.

“Why didn’t you remind me earlier!” Ling Xiao, frustrated, shook Ying Feng by the neck, repeating the question over and over.

In the background, the decision-making “program” was running at high speed: Is it an attack? Or flirting? Should it be stopped or let it happen? Attack? Flirting? Attack? Flirting?

Forget it! Can you just admit you’re human and stop playing with the system!

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