From the Abyss of Stars

78. Assault Horizon

 

"Counterattack the Abyss Humanitarian Relief Organization headquarters?"

 

In the underground clinic of the Sikkim settlement, Dr. Chen Siqi, with an aluminum pipe in her mouth, looked at Li Aozi in astonishment.

 

"I thought you were just a madman, but you're also an idiot."

 

"Your cultural literacy is on par with Naomi's."

 

Li Aozi retorted, spreading his hands.

 

"Don't worry about anything else. I want to know how to access the second and third layers of the shelter from you."

 

"Aren't you familiar with the terrain?" Dr. Chen Siqi looked at him unexpectedly. "I've never been to the second layer. As a doctor, I'm only allowed to move between the first and third layers—the third layer houses the reactor, the production line and experimental field for the products Abyss sells to the outside world, and a secret passage to the Frost-Plated Republic."

 

"Wait, a passage to the Frost-Plated Republic?" Qiu Ran, who was caring for the boy with a broken leg, was shocked and immediately squeezed past Li Aozi, leaning on the table. "Is it really a passage to the Frost-Plated Republic? Where does it end?"

 

"No mistake, it's definitely the Frost-Plated Republic. I've seen people from Law Three (Frost-Plated Republic National Security Guard) several times. Unlike Law Four, Law Three handles foreign affairs, responsible for supporting warlords and comprador regimes beneficial to the Frost-Plated Republic."

 

Dr. Chen shrugged.

 

"As for the endpoint, you'd have to ask the Subway Brotherhood."

 

"Subway Brotherhood..." Li Aozi pondered. "So they bought the rights to use parts of the old subway from the Subway Brotherhood. No wonder Law Three operates this way..."

 

No wonder players clashed with Law Three agents worldwide in his previous life. You could find Law Three agents in every corner of Blue Star.

 

The Frost-Plated Republic's 'Law' spy system was meticulously categorized.

 

Law One: Defend the republican constitution firmly. It was later restructured into the presidential guard, only obeying the president's orders, with the best equipment and intelligence support.

 

Law Two: Strictly protect the national economy, responsible for law enforcement and investigation of foreign capital and economic cases, under the Frost-Plated Republic government.

 

Law Three: Eliminate all external threats, under the military's jurisdiction, with relatively independent armed forces. At its peak, 13,000 agents were deployed globally, mainly monitoring and managing the Frost-Plated Republic's vassal states, colonies, and outer settlements.

 

Law Four: Always maintain women's rights, an independent intelligence and law enforcement agency with search and enforcement powers, essentially to maintain presidential power. The lower ranks were mixed, but the higher-ups were all elites.

 

Unlike Law Four, who handled internal investigations, Law Three agents were pure villains and killers. They were fewer in number but committed heinous acts, from overthrowing governments to instigating warlords to grow 'crops,' turning many thriving countries into hell on earth.

 

Li Aozi wasn't surprised by the presence of Law Three agents. Backed by the Frost-Plated Republic military, it was clear Abyss Humanitarian Relief could obtain military weapons, indicating military support.

 

What surprised him was that the Subway Brotherhood, known for its high moral standards, was in contact with the Frost-Plated Republic.

 

Scavengers, the Green Base, and the Subway Brotherhood were the three infamous outer land organizations, with the Subway Brotherhood being the most popular.

 

Scavengers only dug through garbage, claiming to protect relics of the old era, without caring where these relics came from.

 

The Green Base was an extreme ecological preservationist group, dedicated to greening the sunless outer lands. Anyone who dared to touch their painstakingly grown trees would be chopped up and turned into fertilizer—though one could guess how those trees were grown.

 

In contrast, the Subway Brotherhood was an organization filled with allure. They emphasized pragmatism, avoiding conflict, valuing technology, knowledge, education, unity, and development, establishing neutral transit stations in the developed underground railways of the old era.

 

Each subway station was a shelter, providing refuge and survival for the outer land people, though not for free.

 

As an outer land organization, the Subway Brotherhood naturally loathed the four nations and warlords. They were collectivists, with every bullet and tooth accounted for by the Brotherhood's headquarters committee.

 

Unexpectedly, the Subway Brotherhood also traded with the Frost-Plated Republic. Should it be said they were truly pragmatic?

 

"If I use that passage, I can go back to see my family..."

 

Qiu Ran was momentarily tempted, but then realized the passage was at the bottom of the Abyss Humanitarian Relief Organization. To cross it, she would have to do as Li Aozi suggested.

 

"Just fight all the way through."

 

Li Aozi said calmly.

 

Although he had cleverly killed the Beta-level (β, the second Greek letter) Cannibal using the storm disaster earlier, Li Aozi felt it was enough.

 

Whether it was Alpha-tier strength or the psionic ability 【Sever Life】 that greatly restrained healing abilities, Li Aozi was confident in dealing with the Professor.

 

"But..." Qiu Ran hesitated.

 

She wasn't good at fighting, and she didn't even have a main profession.

 

"Qiu Ran, I can get you into the passage, even onto the subway—I have connections with the Subway Brotherhood."

 

Qiu Ran's eyes lit up.

 

"Really? Thank you so much—"

 

Li Aozi raised his hand.

 

"But, your psionic ability belongs to me."

 

Li Aozi didn't make deals at a loss. Unless it involved principle issues, he usually didn't bother considering others.

 

As a player in his past life, he didn't resort to killing and looting, out of respect for Qiu Ran's character and her help in repairing vehicles along the way.

 

After all, his psionic pod could extract psionic abilities from freshly deceased bodies.

 

To put it bluntly, if not for this psionic ability, who would want to take a powerless person on the road?

 

"No way."

 

Qiu Ran firmly refused.

 

"Without this ability, I can't survive."

 

"Then stay here with Dr. Chen."

 

Li Aozi turned to Dr. Chen Siqi.

 

"What have you decided?"

 

"Honestly, I'd be happier than anyone if you attack Abyss... but I really can't help. The second and third layers of the Abyss Humanitarian Relief Organization require permissions from Dr. Anna and Head Nurse Nordley. Without permissions, you can't access the elevator."

 

Dr. Chen Siqi tapped the table.

 

"As for going down through other means, I can only tell you it's impossible—why do you think it's called a shelter? Abyss Heavy Industries was an industrial group in the old era specializing in nuclear war shelters. Even nuclear bombs couldn't destroy it, and you think manpower can? That's underestimating nuclear weapons."

 

"Moreover, the second layer of the shelter is already 110 meters below the surface. Due to the low temperature, this is permafrost requiring diamond drill bits to excavate."

 

Dr. Chen Siqi concluded.

 

"Apart from the central elevator, you have no other way to enter the lower two layers."

 

"No stairs or emergency passages?"

 

"There are, but they're well hidden. I couldn't find them. You'd have to ask the designers of these permanent shelters from the old era."

 

Li Aozi frowned.

 

The situation wasn't optimistic, but he nodded.

 

"Still doable, not difficult. Defeat Head Nurse Nordley and Dr. Anna, and we can get to the bottom layer."

 

"Your arrogance will get you killed." Dr. Chen sneered. "Head Nurse Nordley and Assistant Dr. Anna are not simple. They might be hiding their strength, waiting for the Professor to fall and seize power..."

 

Li Aozi was noncommittal.

 

He had seen Nordley's panel; she was just an Alpha-tier warrior with no implants or prosthetics, not a threat.

 

But Dr. Anna was always low-key, rising quickly after the Professor's fake death, managing everything efficiently—it was hard not to suspect she had prepared for this.

 

However, Li Aozi was still confident.

 

"This information is enough."

 

Li Aozi tossed two military bullets and turned to leave.

 

"Hey," Dr. Chen called after him. "Weren't you going to get the cure for the disease from the Abyss Humanitarian Relief Organization? Why suddenly turn against them?"

 

Li Aozi didn't stop, speaking without looking back.

 

"Because of the babies, that's enough."

 

Dr. Chen was stunned. She glanced at the boy with the broken leg on the bed and nodded.

 

"Indeed, that's enough."

 

Qiu Ran was still conflicted. Dr. Chen sighed.

 

"Living in the outer lands for so long, I've almost lost my humanity. It's ridiculous... humans now have to go to a place like the Frost-Plated Republic to maintain their humanity."

 

Qiu Ran's eyes glimmered. She looked at Dr. Chen.

 

"Li Aozi seems to like children. He had a good relationship with Dimitri's grandson before..."

 

"Babies are pure, knowing who is kind to them and who harbors mal

 

ice, unlike adults. Adults don't understand anything, stubborn and hypocritical, utterly useless."

 

Dr. Chen Siqi smirked.

 

"For the babies, for the children—humans should be this way. I'm a doctor who saves lives and heals the wounded, and yet I was taught a lesson by a scavenger. It's embarrassing, it's clearly my duty... Hey, silly girl, what's with that expression?"

 

"I..." Qiu Ran hesitated. "I don't know what to do. I want to go back and see my family. My brothers are probably taking the college entrance exam. I want to settle them well. For me—family is everything. But..."

 

"But what?"

 

"I can't fight at all. I also don't want to lose my psionic ability. Without it, I'm just a regular girl fixing cars, dismantling parts, and cleaning them up to sell at the junkyard."

 

Qiu Ran hung her head dejectedly.

 

"I know the Abyss Humanitarian Relief Organization has done a lot of bad things... but they've helped me a lot too. I can't go against them, and I don't want to hurt anyone."

 

"Then what do you want to do?"

 

"I want to go home, but—"

 

"Then why are you dilly-dallying here?"

 

Dr. Chen rudely put her feet on the desk.

 

"You're an adult, you don't need anyone's permission to do what you want! If you want to go home, the scavenger has offered a deal, give up your psionic ability."

 

"But without my psionic ability, I'll—"

 

"Which is more important?"

 

Dr. Chen coldly asked.

 

"To get something, you must be prepared to exchange something. There's no free lunch. If it comes to it, sleeping with that man is better than being so hesitant now."

 

Qiu Ran's face turned red with embarrassment, angrily refuting.

 

"I would never do that. I'm poor, weak, and have no combat ability, but I have dignity."

 

"Since you won't sell your dignity and don't want to give up your assets, if you're a woman, figure it out yourself. Even if you have to crawl, crawl out of the outer lands!"

 

Dr. Chen raised her middle finger, cursing.

 

"You just want to use your status as a woman to gain sympathy and hitch a ride—damn, stop thinking men will help you. You're a person, a woman with hands and feet, not much worse than a man. Seriously, damn it!"

 

Qiu Ran's face was flushed, trembling not with anger, but because Dr. Chen's words deeply touched her.

 

—Women of the Frost-Plated Republic always claimed they were better than men, yet lazily relied on men's strength.

 

Selling her body or psionic ability to get Li Aozi's help—if she did that, what difference would she have from those lazy women of the Frost-Plated Republic?

 

"Thank you, doctor."

 

Qiu Ran's chest heaved violently. She bowed deeply and quickly left.

 

I can't rely on others... others are not obliged to help me.

 

"Mr. Li Aozi!"

 

Qiu Ran ran, traversing the ship's corridor.

 

She kept asking for Li Aozi's whereabouts, finally reaching Dimitri's house.

 

"Li Aozi? He took some books from me and left."

 

Old Dimitri puffed on his pipe. He didn't light it because of the children. Thinking for a moment, he said.

 

"He bought some gunpowder and chemicals, probably preparing for a big fight. He hasn't gone far."

 

Before he finished, Qiu Ran had already run off.

 

"Wait for me!"

 

Her eyes grew more determined.

 

She had no combat ability, but Li Aozi bought a lot of gunpowder. Her psionic ability would surely be useful.

 

She had to seize this opportunity herself. Since Li Aozi was going to break into the Abyss Humanitarian Relief Organization, fighting to the end, she had to prove her worth in fighting alongside and sharing the burden.

 

Running fast, her headscarf came loose, revealing her dignified face. Many wanderers showed interest, but no one dared to act.

 

This was also thanks to Li Aozi... Qiu Ran knew.

 

It was Li Aozi's actions and impressive feats last night that allowed her, a powerless woman, to enjoy protection because of her companion's status.

 

Without Li Aozi's skills, she would have been captured by Law Four long ago... and possibly faced treason charges, affecting her siblings' future.

 

She remembered when they first arrived at the camp, and Li Aozi instantly killed three cannibalistic wanderers.

 

Without his decisive action, she would have been divided like a cake, with someone probably even critiquing her toes and organs.

 

She had unknowingly... received many favors.

 

"Huff... huff..."

 

She reached the surface, her speed making her breathless. Looking around, she couldn't see the familiar off-road vehicle.

 

Snow mixed with fine rain rendered everything bleak and covered all traces.

 

They were gone.

 

Thud.

 

Qiu Ran knelt, exhausted, on the snow, looking at the vast snowfield, unable to see any light in the red-black Evil Calamity clouds.

 

She missed the chance...

 

This missed chance might never come again.

 

It was because she was too weak and hesitant.

 

Qiu Ran held her head, missing the chance to return home and repay the favors. From now on, in Li Aozi's eyes, she might be seen as an ungrateful person.

 

How could I be so foolish?

 

She knelt in the snow, head down, not knowing what to do.

 

She might stay in the outer lands for the rest of her life, hoping... her siblings could live well.

 

Qiuyu and Qiu Ping were smart kids. They would surely get into college and become upper-class people able to afford a D2000 Snow Wolf hover car.

 

Qiuyun, though not studious, was beautiful, articulate, and diligent in housekeeping. She would find a good match.

 

"Qiuyu, Ping'er, Yun'er, all of you must live well—fly over the Frost-Plated Republic's sky with dignity. It's spacious there, and you won't smell the rust of steel."

 

Qiu Ran prayed earnestly.

 

"Do well in the college entrance exam. Even if I'm not with you, eat well, drink water daily, and wear more clothes in the cold..."

 

As she spoke, her vision blurred.

 

She would never see them again.

 

"Wah..."

 

Her nose tingled, about to cry out loud.

 

Thud!

 

The headlights suddenly lit up, illuminating her figure in the dark night.

 

"Hey—"

 

Naomi, sitting on the car roof, looked interested.

 

"Keep crying, silly girl. Why did you stop?"

 

Qiu Ran stared at her dumbfounded.

 

"You, didn't you leave?"

 

"No. Just finished shopping for food, all synthetic junk. Why is the outer land so different from the Rose Army?"

 

Naomi swung her legs, and through the strong light, Qiu Ran vaguely saw Li Aozi reading in the front passenger seat.

 

"But Li Aozi, this fool, insisted on turning on the lights while watching the show—hey, one of the few good things about the outer lands is visibility less than 10 meters for ordinary people."

 

Naomi's teasing made Qiu Ran realize the truth.

 

"Naomi, Li Aozi..."

 

Qiu Ran covered her face.

 

"Why tease me—so embarrassing..."

 

"Because I told a certain Mr. Li, who prefers anonymity: silly girl is strong, give her a chance."

 

Naomi jumped off the car, leaned down, patted Qiu Ran's face, and teased.

 

"Don't cry, smile. You look dumb when you cry, and with frozen tears, you look even dumber."

 

"I wasn't crying!"

 

Qiu Ran hurriedly wiped her face, making it messier. The cold made her cry more.

 

"I—"

 

Thud.

 

Before she could finish, Naomi suddenly hugged her tightly.

 

"Alright, alright..." Naomi whispered. "I can't stand people like you, dumb and clumsy, yet strong and hardworking—so stupid."

 

Qiu Ran's eyes widened, feeling the warmth from a stranger, finding it... unbelievable.

 

Naomi patted her shoulder, comforting.

 

"Don't cry, the outer lands don't believe in tears. But if you're sad and hurt, I can give you a hug—just this once, no exceptions."

 

She buried Qiu Ran's head in her arms, then whispered in her ear.

 

"My family is all dead. You must protect yours."

 

Then, she let go and climbed back into the car.

 

Qiu Ran knelt in place, still savoring Naomi's words.

 

So it was Naomi who helped her get this chance.

 

Her nose reddened again, tears welling up.

 

Honk, honk—

 

"Hey, you idiot—why are you still dawdling?"

 

Naomi's cursing came from the car, followed by a casual tone.

 

"Get in, silly girl."

 

Qiu Ran quickly wiped her face, stood from the snow, her frozen legs firmly on the ground. She lifted her head, walking steadily to the car.

 

As she passed Li Aozi in the passenger seat, she felt light and easily opened the car door, sitting in the back.

 

"Where are we going now?"

 

Qiu Ran shivered, hugging herself.

 

"Do we have enough fuel?"

 

"Don't ask where we're going, ask where the fight is."

 

Naomi pulled the handbrake, shifted gears, and smiled.

 

"Comrades, the real battle is just beginning!"