Meteor Fall Master in the 'Starry Abyss'
Chapter 68: Actually, I’ve never been to college either.

Chapter 68: Actually, I’ve never been to college either.

After leaving Dmitry’s residence, Li Aozi and Qiu Ran headed straight for Doctor Chen Siqi’s clinic.

All the way, Qiu Ran was silent, her usual simple and optimistic demeanor replaced by a complex expression in her eyes.

"Feeling greatly disappointed?" Li Aozi glanced at her and sensed Qiu Ran’s low spirits. He asked casually.

"I used to think our family of six, crammed in a junkyard, fixing cars and rummaging through scrap all day, had a miserable life."

Qiu Ran looked at the shivering Wanderers from the Outer World, their paleness a result of never having been exposed to artificial sunlight, and pursed her lips:

"I wanted to make a comparison to console myself, to feel that I was fortunate. But I don’t feel that way; even a life like mine relies on the Four Nations for protection... Li Aozi, if there were no Four Nations, would they be better off?"

"No."

Li Aozi stated emphatically:

"Without the Four Nations, there would be even more small countries; seeking a livelihood, they would wage more wars, and people from the Outer World would be taken as cannon fodder and forced labor. They would build bricks and walls until their own corpses also became part of these walls."

"Then, is what the Four Nations are doing now correct?" Qiu Ran asked, bewildered.

Slap!

Li Aozi raised his hand and knocked on her head.

"Ow!"

"Why do you think that if it’s not right, it must be wrong?"

With his mask on, Li Aozi’s voice, filtered through the respirator, became muffled and hoarse:

"There’s no such thing as right or wrong in this world. From the Emperor and President down to the common people, everyone is just muddling through."

"But," Qiu Ran hesitated for a moment, "if we’re only supposed to do that, would it have been enough for humanity to have stayed in the Stone Age? I mean, if it’s just about getting by... Did we really need to develop to where we are today?"

"Of course, do you think the epochs never change?"

Li Aozi was unconcerned:

"If you don’t keep up with the times, you’ll be left behind by the times. But frankly, it’s like a marathon; people really just want to run in the crowd, not far from each other, neither to be the last nor too far ahead."

Li Aozi spread his hands:

"Life is a marathon; actually, very few people truly want to compete for first place. Most just don’t want to fall behind, so they exert all their strength. But sometimes, even if you sprint with all your might to the finish line, it’s just the starting point for others."

Qiu Ran bowed her head, her mood continuing to sink with Li Aozi’s words.

"But sometimes, those who are in the crowd also lift their heads, imagining the moment they cross the finish line."

Li Aozi casually said with his hands behind his head:

"Everyone has entertained that thought. Who are you to stop them from their delusions and efforts? Those so-called nobles, they were placed by their forebears closer to the finish line from birth, they could crawl faster than us."

"That’s why, when someone who started from zero surpasses them with their own sweat and will, their nobility and arrogance seem so petty and laughable."

The corners of Li Aozi’s mouth curled involuntarily beneath his mask. When he, as the Meteor Fall Master, stirred the Galaxy, no one would question the significance of his occupation.

Challenging the powerful is the most arrogant achievement for the weak. The coronation of a new king must be built upon the bones of the old.

"The only difference between people is life and death; just sprint, that’s enough. Precisely because I’m at the bottom, I can do whatever it takes to bring them down, these bullheaded fools. Those standing at the finish line have no right to stop us from using every means to snatch victory."

"In a race, if someone jumps the start, the race loses its meaning. We should give every contestant a stimulant, make those who cheated pay the price. After dealing with them, we can race again."

Li Aozi turned his head and glanced at Qiu Ran:

"I’ve been chatting too much with Nomi lately; my words aren’t very eco-friendly, please excuse me."

Pfft!

Qiu Ran gazed at him for a moment, then suddenly burst into laughter:

"Hahaha... Mr. Leoz, aren’t you quite the jokester? Life is a marathon, and if someone jumps the start, just give everyone else a stimulant... What kind of twisted logic is that? In that case, won’t the competition just become about who has the more potent dope? Everyone turning into junkies wouldn’t be a good thing, right..."

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

"I feel this isn’t right, but I don’t have any way to refute you. If life is destined to be a race, then I also wish my loved ones could be closer to the finish line."

Qiu Ran took a deep breath, stepped forward, and started to chat with Leoz in an on-and-off manner:

"Actually, I’m also quite selfish."

"I don’t see it," Leoz replied casually: "Don’t you still have to support two younger brothers and a sister? Including your parents and yourself, that’s six mouths to feed by yourself."

"Thinking about it now, I probably don’t need to support six people," Qiu Ran said with utmost calm: "Dad’s lung cancer likely won’t have the money for treatment and will die sooner or later. Mom’s back won’t hold up from physical labor, and she has been bedridden for a long time. She’ll probably find an opportunity to end herself. If I go back, I just need to take care of my brothers and sister, right?"

Leoz was momentarily stunned.

"Hm? What’s up?" Qiu Ran looked at Leoz in confusion, thought of something, and smiled: "It’s alright, I have Arcane Energy now. Protecting them, or finding a better job, supporting four people won’t be a problem."

"No, I mean, your parents are going through such big troubles—," Leoz started, but was interrupted by Qiu Ran.

"No worries, for us who mix in the junkyard, being able to live this long is already very fortunate." Qiu Ran patted Leoz’s shoulder: "Mr. Leoz, you’re an Imperial Natizen of the Red Arrow Empire, right? I heard that as long as Imperial Natizens are willing to work hard, they won’t go hungry. I’m quite envious."

"That’s not necessarily true, the internal competition in the Red Arrow Empire is indeed quite fierce. Officials who work overtime to death trying to achieve higher status and pay are not few. The entire Empire is a furnace fueled by the lives of its Citizens. Once life stops, it can no longer generate light and warmth."

Leoz confessed openly:

"Do you know Alkalan? It’s a subordinate nation of the Empire. Every year, there are 300,000 students who repeat a year, using any means necessary to get into the Empire’s worst university. All because even working as a simple dishwasher in the Empire, the monthly salary is three times that of a white-collar worker in their own country."

"In this way, I actually don’t have much affection for my own nation either. His Excellency the President always talks about protecting women’s rights— but in actuality, it’s just the rights of female bosses and female officials, right? Since despite my mom’s broken back, she never got medical insurance."

Qiu Ran sighed:

"Sometimes, I fantasize that my brother and sister can get into university and then become civil servants and teachers."

"Then we could have a car to drive, live in a 60-square-meter public rental house, and the family wouldn’t be so cramped. Working in an office means not having to climb up and down every day, braving heavy metal pollution and ionizing radiation to search for sellable parts. With the protection of a labor contract, working only from nine to five with an hour’s break in between, thinking about it just feels so fortunate."

"After working 18 hours a day, I’m so dizzy and can’t do anything, squeezing on a picked-up spring bed with my teenage brother and sister. I’m even startled awake by the train next door in the middle of the night. Speaking of which, with only eight hours of work, there would even be a TV to watch, and we could go to the gym to play tennis or do gymnastics... Mmm!"

She suddenly stretched, putting an end to her daydreaming and chuckled at Leoz:

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

"Then go back. After all this is done, after leaving Mingji Humanity, I’ll escort you home," Leoz turned his head, "However, your Arcane Energy is quite useful, can you give it to me? I have the ability to absorb others’ Arcane Energy, better me than someone else—"

"No way! I’m still counting on using this ability to make money from grilling teppanyaki!"

Qiu Ran huffed and punched Leoz on the waist:

"You’re only talking to me because you’re coveting my superpower, right? Don’t even think about it, before my brother and sister get into university, I definitely need to use this ability to make a few hundred thousand and buy them each an apartment in the capital of Frost Plated!"

Leoz said despondently: "You can’t afford it, the housing price in Twin Star City’s seventh ring is 30,000 Derbies per square meter."

"Oh, didn’t you just say something about why stop people from dreaming and striving!" Qiu Ran feigned anger: "I’m mad now! When you’re asleep, I’ll just quietly drive the car away."

"How kind you are. Actually, I still have several thousand Derbies in Mingji Humanity, and you’re not robbing it and leaving."

"Really? Several thousand Derbies, that’s like working for five years without eating or drinking..."

Bang!

While Leoz and Qiu Ran were teasing each other, the door to the left was suddenly kicked open. A woman with a cigarette in her mouth walked slowly toward them, raising her mechanical prosthetic hand and pointing to the sign on the wall:

[Patients inside, keep quiet]