So tired!
The moment Cheng Li woke up, she raised a hand and rubbed her aching head. “Ugh, I spent the whole night dreaming. My head feels swollen and painful, and I’m a little dizzy too.”
Yuan Mu looked at her head, then at her legs, puzzled. Shouldn’t it have been her legs hurting and numb instead?
The next second, Cheng Li cried out in horror, “Oh my god, my legs have gone numb!”
Yuan Mu immediately panicked. “Try standing up and see.”
Seeing how anxious he looked, Cheng Li suddenly remembered how she’d rested his head on her lap before going to sleep last night. She instantly understood what had happened and relaxed at once, even turning around to comfort him instead. “It’s fine, they’re just numb. I’ll walk around a bit.”
Supporting herself against the wall, Cheng Li got to her feet and slowly moved through the crowded gym. By chance, she caught sight of Yuan Mu’s frustrated expression.
This boy didn’t seem nearly as cold and hard as he looked on the outside.
Perhaps out of guilt, Yuan Mu’s attitude toward Cheng Li softened a little. He even took the initiative to introduce her to the Chaos Star System, teaching her how to distinguish nebulae and how to observe the sea of stars.
Cheng Li was like a sponge, absorbing every single thing Yuan Mu said with desperate eagerness. Leaning against the window, she immediately put what she learned into practice, chattering nonstop as she analyzed the nebulae and starfields outside. Out of every ten things she said, five or six were wrong. Whenever that happened, Yuan Mu would mercilessly put on a stern face and say, “Wrong.”
Cheng Li never felt embarrassed by it. Instead, she smiled and asked, “How was it wrong? What part was wrong?”
Yuan Mu would point everything out one by one, correcting her while inwardly wondering: they had both become disabled on the very same day, so why was there not even a trace of dejection in her? Not even the slightest hint of sadness or despair?
Cheng Li had no idea what Yuan Mu was thinking. Taking advantage of the fact that he was willing to talk to her, she bombarded him with questions. As long as Yuan Mu was awake, she refused to leave him alone.
Yuan Mu questioned her once again, “How did you even get into the First Military Academy?”
Cheng Li looked guilty. “It couldn’t possibly have been cheating. You know how strict the exam halls are.” The more advanced technology became, the harder cheating was anywhere.
“Then why don’t you even know basic common knowledge?” Yuan Mu frowned. “You lost an arm, not your brain.”
“Young man, how can you be so fierce to your girlfriend? Even after you lost both your legs, your girlfriend still stayed by your side and took such good care of you. You should be grateful.” The middle-aged woman nearby couldn’t stand it anymore and spoke up for Cheng Li.
Yuan Mu’s expression stiffened. Pressing his lips together, he stopped talking.
Cheng Li smiled at the woman. “He just has a sharp tongue and a soft heart. He’s only upset because I’m not living up to his expectations.”
The woman nodded in understanding, then turned to Cheng Li and said, “Don’t feel too bad either. Everyone’s brain is wired differently. If you’re a little slow, then you’re a little slow. As long as you learn bit by bit, you’ll get there eventually.”
The corners of Cheng Li’s mouth twitched. “Mm-hm, you’re absolutely right.”
Looking at Cheng Li and Yuan Mu, the woman sighed sympathetically. “One of you lost an arm, the other lost his legs. Life really hasn’t been easy for you two.”
Cheng Li nodded. “Exactly. It’s been really hard.”
Yuan Mu glanced at her, not expecting to hear the word “hard” come out of her mouth at all.
“No matter how hard life gets, as long as people work together, they can get through it.” The woman’s face clouded with worry. “But right now… I wonder what these star pirates are planning. They’re not asking for ransom, and they haven’t said a thing. My family’s waiting for me back home. If they can’t find me, they’ll be worried sick. What about you two? Where were you headed? Did your families know you were leaving?”
Cheng Li also put on a worried expression. “There’s an elder with us on the starship too. I wonder how he’s doing right now.”
“They should be fine.” The middle-aged woman patted Cheng Li’s hand. “Those star pirates haven’t tried to kill us, and they even give us one bottle of nutrient solution a day. That means they want us alive and well.”
Hearing that, Cheng Li looked toward Yuan Mu. Maybe he had been right. The star pirates really were planning to send them to mine Blue Key Stone ore.
But if they were going to mine…
Cheng Li looked at Yuan Mu. She still had both legs and one arm left, but what could Yuan Mu do?
Perhaps her gaze was too direct. Yuan Mu’s face darkened as he gritted his teeth. “I can pick up ore.”
Cheng Li nodded. “Then we can team up when the time comes. We can help each other out.”
Yuan Mu: “………”
“Your lips are cracked.” Cheng Li suddenly pointed at his mouth.
Yuan Mu’s body instantly tensed, though he pretended nothing was wrong. “I’m fine.”
“Drink some water.” Cheng Li held the water she had just gotten to his lips. “Drink a little. Later I’ll carry you to the restroom. If you keep refusing to drink, your body won’t be able to take it.”
Yuan Mu stared fixedly into her eyes. Only after realizing there was nothing in them but concern, without even a trace of mockery, did he slowly take the water from her.
Yuan Mu drank three large cups of water in one go.
“All done?” Cheng Li asked.
Yuan Mu gave a quiet hum. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” Cheng Li crouched down in front of him. “Get on. And wrap your arms around my neck. I might not be able to hold you steady, so don’t mind it.”
Yuan Mu looked at the slender back in front of him and silently leaned onto it. His arms circled around her neck, hands clasping together in front of her chest as he muttered in a muffled voice, “I won’t.”
Without his legs, Yuan Mu weighed less than a hundred jin. Carrying him wasn’t particularly difficult for Cheng Li, and she quickly made it to the restroom.
Still carrying him on her back, Cheng Li walked straight inside. She activated the toilet’s automatic cleaning program, and only after confirming it was spotless did she lower Yuan Mu onto the seat.
“I’ll wait outside the door. Let me know when you’re done,” Cheng Li said.
Yuan Mu’s cheeks burned hot. More than embarrassment, what he felt was humiliation. He answered softly with a “Okay.” His voice was so quiet that if Cheng Li didn’t have sharp hearing, she probably wouldn’t have caught it.
She stepped outside and closed the door behind her, thinking that for Yuan Mu, falling from the First Seat of the Alliance’s top military academy to a cripple incapable of taking care of himself must have been unbearably painful.
Three more days passed as the starship continued its voyage. Suddenly, the entire vessel began to shake violently. Cheng Li, who had been stretching her body, lost her balance and stumbled sideways.
With a thud, she crashed into Yuan Mu, who had been trying to catch her. Their heads knocked together.
Cheng Li hissed in pain, rubbing her forehead as she looked up at Yuan Mu. Seeing the dark expression on his face, she thought he was angry and was about to explain when she heard him say, “The starship has entered the Chaos Interstellar Region.”
Cheng Li narrowed her eyes slightly. After Yuan Mu’s explanations over the past few days, she had gained a rough understanding of the Chaos Star System. It was called “Chaos” because from the outside, it looked like nothing but chaos. Not only was its true appearance impossible to see with the naked eye, even the Alliance’s most advanced technology couldn’t probe its real form. Any starship or mech that entered the Chaos Interstellar Region would immediately lose all signal, and anything captured by recording devices became nothing more than a hazy expanse of gray-white fog.
The Chaos Interstellar Region contained countless planets. Mysterious and lawless, it was a haven for filth and corruption, the favorite refuge of criminals and star pirates alike.
“Once we enter the Chaos Star System, can we still get out?” Cheng Li asked.
Yuan Mu shot her a gloomy look. “What do you think?”
Cheng Li’s heart tightened. “Will the Alliance send people to rescue us?”
Yuan Mu fell silent. Only after a long while did he finally say, “Every year, the Alliance sends people into the Chaos Star System, but very few ever make it back out alive.”
“Then doesn’t that mean this is a one-way trip for us?” Cheng Li blurted out.
Yuan Mu nodded heavily. “You could say that.”
“How about we just join the Chaos Interstellar Region instead?” Cheng Li suggested.
Yuan Mu looked at her empty right sleeve, then at the empty space where his legs should have been. “I doubt they’d take cripples like us.”
Cheng Li: “………”
The starship lurched violently the entire way. Watching the meteors streaking past outside the window, Cheng Li’s heart stayed lodged in her throat. If the ship accidentally slammed into one of them, wouldn’t they all end up dying together?
She remained on edge for an entire day and night. Only after the starship landed safely did she finally let out a long breath of relief.
Hearing her exhale, Yuan Mu assumed she had been frightened. He wanted to say something to comfort her, but the moment his gaze fell on his empty pant legs, bitterness spread across the tip of his tongue, and not a single word could come out.