From the Abyss of Stars

55. Actually, I Didn’t Go to College Either

 

After leaving Dmitry’s residence, Li Aozhi and Qiu Ran headed straight to Dr. Chen Siqi’s clinic.

 

Along the way, Qiu Ran was silent, her eyes filled with complex emotions, contrasting with her usual honest and optimistic demeanor.

 

"Feeling disappointed?" Li Aozhi glanced at her, noticing her low spirits. He casually asked.

 

"I used to think that our family of six, squeezed in a junkyard, spending every day either fixing cars or scavenging for scrap, was already a miserable life."

 

Qiu Ran looked at the shivering, pale wanderers of the outer world who had never been exposed to artificial sunlight and pursed her lips:

 

"I wanted to make a comparison to feel better about my own life, to feel that I was happy. But I didn't. Even my life, as bad as it is, depends on the Four Nations for security... Li Aozhi, if there were no Four Nations, would these people be better off?"

 

"No."

 

Li Aozhi said firmly:

 

"Without the Four Nations, there would be more small nations. To survive, they would start more wars. The people of the outer world would be taken as cannon fodder and laborers, building walls until their bodies became part of the wall."

 

"So, does that mean the Four Nations are right in what they are doing now?" Qiu Ran asked, confused.

 

Smack!

 

Li Aozhi raised his hand and knocked on her head.

 

"Ouch!"

 

"Why do you think it's either right or wrong?"

 

Li Aozhi put on his mask, his voice becoming muffled and low through the respirator:

 

"There is no such thing as right or wrong in this world. From emperors and presidents to ordinary people, everyone is just getting by."

 

"But," Qiu Ran hesitated for a moment, "if we're only supposed to get by, wouldn't humanity have been fine staying in the Stone Age? I mean, if just getting by is the goal... is it really necessary for us to develop to where we are today?"

 

"Of course, you think times don't change?"

 

Li Aozhi didn't care:

 

"If you don't keep up with the times, you'll be left behind. But in the end, it's like a marathon. Most people just want to run along with the crowd, not falling too far behind, but not rushing too far ahead either."

 

Li Aozhi spread his hands:

 

"Life is a marathon. There are few who really want to fight for first place. Most people just don't want to fall behind, so they try their best. But sometimes, no matter how hard you try to reach the finish line, it's just someone else's starting point."

 

Qiu Ran lowered her head, Li Aozhi's words making her mood even lower.

 

"But sometimes, people running in the crowd will look up and imagine themselves crossing the finish line."

 

Li Aozhi put his hands behind his head and said casually:

 

"Everyone has thought about it. Who are you to stop someone from dreaming and striving? Those so-called noble runners were placed closer to the finish line by their fathers. Even if they crawl, they can do it faster than us."

 

"That's why, when someone starting from zero surpasses them with their blood, sweat, and will, their nobility and arrogance will seem so petty and ridiculous."

 

The corners of Li Aozhi's mouth under the mask lifted unconsciously. When he stirred up the galaxy as a 【Starfall Master】, no one would question the existence of this profession anymore.

 

Challenging the powerful is the highest achievement of the weak. The ascension of a new king must be built on the corpses of the old kings.

 

"The only difference between people is life and death. Just sprint ahead. Because I am in a lower position, I can use any means to take down those arrogant bastards. Those standing at the finish line have no right to stop us from using all means to take victory."

 

"In a race, if someone jumps the gun, the race loses its meaning. We should give all the runners stimulants and make those who jumped the gun pay the price. After dealing with them, we can restart the race."

 

Li Aozhi turned his head and looked at Qiu Ran:

 

"I've been chatting too much with Nomi lately, my speech is a bit unfiltered. Sorry about that."

 

Pfft!

 

Qiu Ran stared at him for a moment, then suddenly laughed:

 

"Hahaha... Mr. Li Aozhi, you're quite good at telling jokes, aren't you? Life is a marathon, if someone jumps the gun, give the others stimulants... What kind of twisted logic is that? That would turn the race into a contest of whose stimulants are stronger. Everyone becoming addicts isn't a good thing..."

 

As she laughed, she suddenly fell silent, her gaze sweeping over the wanderers sleeping in the sunken ship.

 

"I feel it's wrong, but I have no way to refute you. If life is destined to be a race, I also hope my family can be closer to the finish line."

 

Qiu Ran took a deep breath, walked forward, and chatted with Li Aozhi side by side:

 

"Actually, I’m also selfish."

 

"I don't think so," Li Aozhi said casually. "You still have two younger brothers and a younger sister to support, right? Including your parents and yourself, you have to support six people."

 

"Now that I think about it, I probably don't have to support six people," Qiu Ran said calmly. "My dad's lung cancer can't be treated without money, so he will die sooner or later. My mom's back can't handle physical labor, she's been bedridden for a long time. She'll probably find a chance to end it herself. If I go back, I only need to support my younger siblings."

 

Li Aozhi was stunned.

 

"Hmm? What's wrong?" Qiu Ran looked at Li Aozhi, puzzled, then thought of something and smiled. "It's okay. I have Arcane abilities now. I can protect them or find a better job. Supporting four people won't be a problem."

 

"No, I mean, such big things happened to your parents—" Li Aozhi was interrupted by Qiu Ran.

 

"It's nothing. For people like us living in a junkyard, surviving this long is already a blessing." Qiu Ran patted Li Aozhi's shoulder. "Mr. Li Aozhi, you're from the Red Arrow Empire, right? I heard that as long as you're willing to work hard in the Empire, you won't starve. I envy that."

 

"Not really. The internal competition in the Red Arrow Empire is very fierce. To get a higher position and pay, many officials work overtime until they die suddenly. The whole Empire is a furnace that burns its citizens' lives as fuel. Once a life ends, it no longer generates light and warmth."

 

Li Aozhi said frankly:

 

"Do you know Alcaran? It's a subsidiary country of the Empire. Every year, 300,000 repeat students do whatever it takes to get into the Empire's worst university because even a simple dishwashing job in the Empire pays three times more than a white-collar job in their own country."

 

"Thinking about it that way, I don't really like my homeland either. The President always talks about protecting women's rights—but it's just the rights of female bosses and officials. My mom broke her back working and couldn't even get health insurance."

 

Qiu Ran sighed:

 

"Sometimes I fantasize that my younger siblings can go to college and become civil servants and teachers."

 

"Then they could have a car, live in a 60-square-meter public rental apartment, so the family wouldn't be cramped. In the office, they wouldn't have to climb high and low every day, dealing with heavy metal pollution and ionizing radiation to find sellable parts. With labor contracts protecting them, they would work from nine to five, with an hour's break in between. It would be so happy."

 

"After working 18 hours a day, my brain is foggy, and I can't do anything. Squeezing on a spring bed with my teenage siblings. Being woken up by the sound of trains at midnight. If there were only eight hours of work time, we could even watch TV, go to the gym to play tennis and do gymnastics... Hmm!"

 

She suddenly stretched lazily, stopped fantasizing, and smiled at Li Aozhi:

 

"If I keep thinking like this, I feel like I want to go back to Frost-Plated."

 

"Then go back. After we finish all this, leave the Abyss Humanitarian Relief Organization, and I'll send you home." Li Aozhi turned his head. "But your Arcane ability is quite useful. Can you give it to me? I have the ability to absorb others' Arcane abilities. Better me than someone else—"

 

"No way! I'm counting on this ability to make money with teppanyaki!"

 

Qiu Ran punched Li Aozhi's waist angrily:

 

"You're just craving my superpower, right? Don't even think about it. Before my siblings go to college, I'll use this ability to earn tens of thousands and buy them a house in the capital of Frost-Plated, one for each!"

 

Li Aozhi said quietly, "You can't afford it. Housing prices in Twin Star City’s Seventh Ring are 30,000 Debi per square meter."

 

"Hey, didn't you just say no one can stop people from dreaming and striving!" Qiu Ran feigned anger. "I'm angry! I'll steal the car while you're sleeping."

 

"You're so kind. I still have tens of thousands of Debi in the Abyss Humanitarian Relief Organization, and you didn't steal it."

 

"Really? Tens of thousands of Debi? That would take five years of work without eating or drinking..."

 

Bang!

 

As Li Aozhi and Qiu Ran were teasing each other, a door on the left suddenly kicked open. A woman with a cigarette holder walked towards them slowly. She raised her mechanical hand and pointed to a sign on the wall:

 

【Patients inside, keep quiet】