Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Huainan was brimming with anticipation, her jaw dropping in awe from the moment she stepped onto the starship.

This colossal vessel, nearly blotting out the sky, rendered everything on the garbage planet utterly insignificant. Its massive thrusters emitted a faint blue glow, and the curved wings partially enveloped the sleek hull. Even the thorn totems etched onto its surface appeared chillingly sharp under the dim light.

Her gaze remained fixed on the steel behemoth before her—this was Huainan’s first glimpse of a complete starship. The garbage planet was littered with wreckage, and she had only ever been able to piece together an image from the broken fragments of machinery.

After being cleared by the guards, Huainan cautiously stepped into the alloy passageway, following the sudden appearance of a virtual guide until she reached the main cabin. When the door slid open, her eyes were met with a dazzling array of flickering screens and two seniors of exceptional temperament and even more striking looks.

She had already met Senior Bernard, but today, she was still captivated by his sunlit presence. As for the other senior, his appearance seemed even more captivating.

His fiery red hair was alluringly wild, and a pair of sparkling green eyes casually turned to glance at her.

A born enchantress, captivating all.

His slender frame was slightly shorter than the alpha beside him, yet his every gesture exuded an innate nobility.

Both undoubtedly hailed from aristocratic families.

Huainan’s eyes flickered briefly. Though Senior Ansel was remarkably handsome, his face was marred by abrupt scars that had, over time, faded into reddish marks. These jagged scars stretched from the outer edge of his right eyebrow across the bridge of his nose, with one even extending directly to the corner of his mouth, making them quite noticeable.

"Hello, Senior Bernard. Hello, Senior Ansel."

"I’m Huainan."

Bernard instantly broke into a grin, opening his arms to welcome Huainan and guiding her to sit at the control panel.

"We were just talking about you. Ansel happens to have an extra Repair Pod to spare—a mid-tier one at that."

Hearing this, Huainan sprang to her feet in delight.

"Thank you, both of you!"

Bernard shrugged, his tone light.

"Thank Ansel. This starship is his, the Repair Pod is his—I’m just here to help out."

Ansel, who had been named, didn’t refute it. Instead, he spoke to Huainan calmly.

"A Pseudodragon Bug’s skeleton costs 10 million credits on the market. A mid-tier Repair Pod is 5 million. The rest will be transferred to your terminal."

"No, no! That’s too much!"

Huainan waved her hands wildly in refusal. Not only was the Pseudodragon Bug’s value already gone, but the weapon wasn’t even a necessity for the two seniors. On this resource-scarce planet, even a shady dealer like Hanni dared to sell defective goods at exorbitant prices. If not for the seniors’ help, she wouldn’t have had a chance to buy a Repair Pod within three days.

"Relax, kid. The materials are rare, and your skills are legit—it’s easily a 4-star piece. Even at the lowest market price, it’d still be worth over 6 million. We’re not overpaying—it’s a fair trade."

Ansel, with his fiery red hair, quietly listened as he ran his fingers along the short blade, seemingly in agreement.

Seeing the seniors’ kindness, Huainan stopped refusing. She was indeed broke at the moment, and their help was invaluable. After hesitating for a long while, she ventured,

"Seniors, why not hand the weapon over to me? As long as I have the materials, I can upgrade it further."

"I don’t know the price of a 5-star weapon, but I’d like to use this as a way to thank you."

The moment her words shifted, Bernard’s previously warm expression suddenly turned dead serious.

"Junior, are you sure you’re not joking?"

He pointed at the short blade in Ansel’s hand, his tone full of skepticism.

"Setting aside mechas, modern weapons fall into two categories: energy blades and mechanical weapons—and then there are Rune weapons."

"Rune weapons require a Runesmith with exceptional mental control and rune-carving skills just to inscribe the runes and embed energy stones, let alone handle the actual work."

"That’s why 3-star and above Rune weapons are so expensive. Now, you’re telling me you can do it yourself?"

"I have no choice but to question the validity of your claim."

Faced with Bernard’s sharp questioning, Huainan instantly looked down.

How did she acquire such skills?

Truthfully, under normal circumstances, she shouldn’t have this ability. But life was unpredictable, and no matter how unbelievable it seemed, she had someone watching her back.

On Huainan’s left wrist was a weird pocket dimension—one that could store items and had once held a small gift left behind by an advanced civilization.

A five-year deadline.

During these five years, Huainan could choose one survival skill from categories like medicine, weaponry, or intelligence. Though there were many options, she needed to survive, so she had no choice but to pick arms-making.

Smiths hammered out the blade’s foundation, Runesmiths inscribed runes using enchanted silver, and on top of that, Huainan could use her mental energy to imbue the weapon with simple damage enhancements, giving it extra punch.

After five years of nonstop grinding, Huainan had just scraped by and swallowed most of the knowledge within the time limit. Now, it was just a matter of working out the kinks.

"Enough."

Just as Huainan was about to make something up about a mysterious mentor, Ansel shut Bernard down.

When the two turned to him, he lifted the blade with his fingertips and handed it to Huainan. His thick lashes fluttered slightly, revealing his calm green eyes.

"Huainan, I’ll be waiting for good news."

Huainan’s eyes widened in surprise—she was shocked he trusted her so easily. After a long pause, she gravely accepted the weapon from his hand, her voice firm.

"Senior Ansel, I won’t let you down."

Bernard, who had been interrupted, wasn’t angry. Instead, he shot Ansel a knowing look before his lips quirked into a grin, his face lighting up once more.

"Alright, alright, I'm the bad guy again. We'll trust you this time, junior sister. We’ll be waiting for your good news."

With that, he beckoned to Huainan.

"In that case, let's go ahead and get your evaluation done early. No need to wait for formalities."

"After all, chances are you're the only one who qualifies..."

"Got it. Thanks, Senior Bernard!"

***

With everything settled, Huainan went through a series of quick evaluations for physique, mental strength, and potential—all roughly at standard C-grade or above. More detailed data would have to wait until they returned to school for further testing.

Once she got her pass, Huainan didn’t linger and left the starship immediately.

By the time she got home, Torr was already asleep, his tangled black hair flopped over his eyes. The tickling strands must have bothered him, as his gaunt little face was all scrunched up.

Huainan gently brushed his hair aside, only to turn and meet the pitiful stare of a pair of animal eyes. Faced with Ao Ting’s silent accusation, she just hugged him reassuringly before recalling him to her mental domain.

She pulled out the Repair Pod and walked back to the bed, carefully adjusting her grandfather’s clothes one last time.

The oval-shaped Repair Pod had a sleek design. As its shielding opened, the sea-blue repair fluid shimmered with silvery ripples, shimmering like a sea of stars from afar.

Huainan lifted her grandfather’s frail body and carefully laid him inside the narrow container. She watched as the Repair Pod slowly closed, inch by inch, until it vanished completely from sight.

Back when Huainan first woke from the haze, she found herself abandoned in the heart of the wasteland.

The raging sandstorms and blistering radiation nearly devoured her small body whole, not to mention the crawling monsters lurking everywhere! After a desperate escape, she could only hide in the crevice of a rocky outcrop, left half-dead—until her grandfather found her. Without him, she wouldn’t have survived.

Whatever anyone else claimed, her grandfather and Torr would always be her family.

After a long moment, Huainan finally steadied herself. She stashed the Pod in her storage space and began packing.

In a few days, she and Torr would be leaving. There was still much to do before then—she owed Old Buck a proper goodbye and had to square things with that cheat Hanni!

Time flew by. On the final day, just as Senior Bernard had predicted, no one else on the junk planet met the standards. When Huainan boarded the starship, every eye in the crowd burned with jealousy, wishing they could take her place.

This was their one shot to flip their fortunes!

But it was futile. Unlike the regular three-year admissions cycle of other planets, this kind of "charity-style enrollment" only happened once every thirty years. And only Foster Federal University, the Federation’s number-one school, had the authority to let students from remote regions bring family members along.

That was life on a junk planet—full of sorrow.

To hide Torr from their gazes, Huainan draped a cloak over him and kept him close. At the last moment, she glanced down at Old Buck’s grumpy face and waved goodbye.

Old Buck just snorted and looked the other way.

"Huainan! You little brat! I’ll kill you—AAAAAH!"

The furious roar came before its owner. Just as the guards were about to close the hatch, a wild-eyed Hanni came barreling over like a mad bull, his hulking body bulldozing toward the ship. His bloodshot eyes locked onto Huainan, and he scrambled for the ship, ignoring the crackling energy fields!

Old Buck just grimaced and hauled him back by the scruff.

Others might fear him, but not Old Buck.

"Oof!"

"Old Buck, why’d you pull me?!"

"Quit your howling! Have some dignity!"

From a distance, Huainan couldn’t help but laugh at the sight of Hanni’s flailing like a flipped turtle, his jowls shaking. As the hatch sealed shut, she leaned out and shouted:

"See ya, lardass! Don’t thank me!"

"AAAAAH! Huainan, you little brat! I’ll kill you! Get back here!"