Three hours later, with Li Aozi’s help, Caral Snail requisitioned a speedboat using the president’s authority and left the fleet, heading towards a planet nad ’Ziluo’ in the Red Pupil System.
The fleet commander, Dalian, quickly noticed the ship’s movent but seeing it was under presidential authority for a special mission, he didn’t say anything. For safety reasons, he dispatched two reconnaissance ships to escort it for a while.
[Switching to automatic cruise mode]
"Speaking of which, what exactly are we going to do?"
Caral Snail turned his head curiously to the boyish Li Aozi.
"Ordinary thods don’t make enough money. I need so special ans."
Li Aozi, with his fingers intertwined and legs crossed, sat back with his eyes closed, seemingly resting.
"It always feels like you know everything..." Caral Snail scratched his head.
"Just think of as a prophet," Li Aozi opened one eye and smiled at Caral Snail, "You can even consider an omniscient god."
"Though it sounds a bit undermining... even a god would need to rely on others."
Caral Snail retorted,
"Since coming from Azure Star, you’ve often acted alone. We Descenders feel like you’ve abandoned us."
"It’s just that you are too weak right now, and can’t keep up with ," Li Aozi responded.
"I just think, Li Aozi, aren’t you too lonely?"
Caral Snail scratched his cheek,
"You could try relying more on others, but you always face everything alone. From an immigrant to becoming the local president without saying a word, we are still benefiting from your success... You don’t have to be so solitary."
"In the ocean called the starry sky, no one is an island. Even gods must be closely connected under the call of the Starry Abyss. Even the complex society is composed of countless atomized citizens, and every narrative cannot be described without the individual microscopic strength."
Li Aozi said calmly,
"If I have soone to rely on, I hope it’s you."
After speaking, he closed his eyes again, continuing to rest, seemingly also adapting to his implanted gear’s body.
"...What a thing to say."
Caral Snail shrugged,
"I’m just chasing your footsteps... If you trust too much, it’ll be pressuring."
[Prompt: The spaceship has entered orbit, switching to descent mode]
"We’re here," Li Aozi said blandly, "(2346, 5674), land at these coordinates."
"Got it." Caral Snail entered the coordinates Li Aozi provided without question. The speedboat slowly adjusted its angle, deploying camouflage and magic shields to offset the red heat from atmospheric friction.
[Altitude decreasing...]
[Braking initiated...]
[Smooth landing at target location]
Sss...
The spaceship lit up with the teleportation array, and Li Aozi and Caral Snail stepped out, landing on the alien terrain.
Caral Snail was fully ard, wearing a tightly sealed helt, surveying the surroundings. They had landed in a forest.
This seed like an ordinary Earth-like planet, with green trees, red flowers, and flying birds. The creek flowed gently, winding around the stones, occasionally making pleasant tinkling sounds.
"Hmm, why does the natural environnt here seem better than Baizhu Star?" Caral Snail wondered.
Li Aozi answered calmly,
"Because it is. Industrial pollution is minimal here, and the technological level doesn’t surpass the atomic age."
"I see..."
Caral Snail nodded, then activated concealnt magic to hide the spaceship.
"The air here is non-toxic and abundant. Remove your helt and hide your gear."
Li Aozi, now dressed in ordinary clothes, said,
"We don’t need to engage in much combat."
Caral Snail, trusting him, took off his armor, now wearing casual clothes like Li Aozi, looking like a slender young man.
"Where do we go next?"
"Follow ."
Despite it being his first visit to an alien planet, Li Aozi navigated Ziluo Star effortlessly.
He picked up a pebble, struck a colorful-feathered bird from a tree, and told Caral Snail it was a Hayabusa Dove, a plump and delicious forest bird that couldn’t fly but reproduced in large numbers, safe to hunt and eat.
While walking, he collected so berries and deliberately gave Caral Snail so herbs for making healing items.
Then, he led Caral Snail on a hike through the forest, up a mountain, where they ’coincidentally’ found an abandoned camp with useful cookware, salt, and animal fat. They could live and cook there, sleeping in sleeping bags.
"Hmm, your cooking skills are pretty good."
Li Aozi, gulping down a mouthful of at soup made by Caral Snail, brightened up and said in a youthful voice,
"Who taught you to cook? You handled this well with just salt."
"Garidon taught ," Caral Snail replied, cracking an egg into the pan, "Though his food often has issues, the few dishes I tried were quite good."
"Maybe he’s just unlucky."
Li Aozi chuckled, his black hair hanging smoothly as the firelight tinted his face orange, his gray eyes sparkling like zircon, bright and clear.
Though he knew Li Aozi was male, Caral Snail still stared dazedly for a mont, avoiding eye contact.
"...Li Aozi, why did you choose to co with you?"
"I needed a strong bodyguard."
Li Aozi, resting his face on one hand, had a mature, handso deanor. As a boy, he had a more gender-neutral beauty, with delicate features and skin as smooth as silk. He looked like a fragile doll that might break with the slightest breeze.
For so reason, Caral Snail thought Li Aozi’s face resembled soone else’s.
"Due to special circumstances, this body cannot have any super genes. I didn’t even assign it the Sovereign pathway."
Noticing Caral Snail’s stare, Li Aozi seed to read his mind, smiled, and said,
"You noticed, didn’t you? This face looks like soone else’s, right?"
"Hmm... I thought so before. Even in this youthful form, you don’t have a particularly androgynous look." Caral Snail nodded, asking bluntly, "I feel like you’ve incorporated so female genes..."
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