For an unknown amount of time, Huo Yin gradually regained consciousness. He cracked open his eyes and then struggled to sit up.
He found himself sprawled in a wasteland, surrounded by barren ground and dust silhouettes. The air crackled with radiation, creating a harsh environment.
'Is he back?' Huo Yin thought, clenching his fist to feel the warmth in his palm. He quickly turned around and saw the figure he'd been searching for sitting beside him. A wave of relief washed over him; he hadn't lost her after all.
"You're awake so early? Are you alright?" Huo Yin held Yuan Chu close, shielding her from radiation with a cloth wrapped in an energy field. She seemed injured.
Due to stellar evolution, everyone on Blue Star has developed a degree of radiation resistance. Some individuals are even completely immune.
However, the harsh living conditions on Blue Star remain a constant threat. Every nation is doing everything it can to terraform the environment.
"Hold on, what the hell was that?"
Huo Yin whirled around, his senses on high alert after hearing a scream pierce the silence. He saw Feng Chengxiu looking dejected, standing in a shallow pit.
Huo Yin: "Feng Chengxiu?" How the hell did he come?
Not far away, Su Mo, Tully, Sa Bu, and Jiang Pengfei emerged from the ground.
A look of surprise crossed Huo Yin's face. He quickly checked his locator. Relief washed over him as it confirmed: That they were not on Creation Star.
"Is everyone back?" Su Mo asked, his voice laced with curiosity.
Jiang Pengfei fiddled with his device. "Seems like it," He confirmed.
"Picked up a nearby signal unlike anything we've encountered since the stellar event. Not Creation Star."
"A nuclear space source can only transport one person, right?" Feng Chengxiu glanced around, noticing their car, suspension system, and tents had all been teleported nearby.
Huo Yin turned to face Yuan Chu. He caught a glimpse of the Xuaji butterfly perched on her shoulder. A thought flickered in his mind: "Is it because of it?"
"Yeah," Yuan Chu simply nodded.
The Xuanji butterfly, having been the sole feeder of space nuclear source energy for several months, had achieved a breakthrough - level 13.
This allowed it to create a wormhole large enough to transport ten people through space.
Tully nuzzled against Yuan Chu and tugged at her sleeve with her shiny eyes, seeming to be seeking comfort.
"I have said it," Yuan Chu said gently, stroking Tully's head. "Don't worry."
Tully dipped her head in a brief nod, her messy hair momentarily obscuring her eyes with a fleeting, almost ghostly shimmer.
Huo Yin glanced at Yuan Chu as she touched Tully's head. His mind raced with possibilities, his heart pounding in his chest.
A memory surfaced. Yuan Chu reassured him with a gentle 'Don't worry' when he mentioned his friend, Hua Zang. Could it be...?
Excitement flickered in Huo Yin's eyes, but he quickly masked it. He didn't dare voice the question that burned in his mind, fearing a negative answer.
"Where are we?" Feng Chenxiu brushed the dust off himself haphazardly and scanned his surroundings.
"This must be near the southwestern border, one of the most irradiated areas in the country," Huo Yin explained, though his voice lacked its usual confidence.
"The locator signal frequency changed, throwing off our position. It seems we've been traveling south. That puts us somewhere near the former city limits."
"Alright, then let's move!" Feng Chenxiu's voice boomed with renewed enthusiasm, his spirits high and lifting those of the others around him.
Driving a hover car, the team marched towards the nearest city. Driving half an hour, they did not see a single person.
Hope City, once a prosperous industrial center south of the military zone, thrived with its well-developed transportation network.
However, the radiation fallout led to mass migration and a gradual economic depression. By the time Huo Yin left, only a few thousand residents remained, struggling to survive.
"What's that?" Feng Chengxiu pointed, his surprise evident as he gestured towards the dust swirling in front of the mountains of garbage.
"Has the city already been abandoned?"
Huo Yin was not sure, after all, he had left a decade ago.
"It shouldn't have," Jiang Pengfei hesitated. "There's some relatively new-looking metal garbage here. It seems like someone might have thrown it away recently."
Huo Yin's brow furrowed, and a wave of ominous foreboding washed over him.
To solve pollution problems, Huaguo faces serious risks if it prematurely stops or slows down the migration of certain factories.
However, the country is committed to a green future, and absolutely will not create an insurmountable obstacle in this situation.
"Should we deploy a drone for reconnaissance?" Jiang Pengfei suggested.
"Alright."
A moment later, a jellyfish-like object flew out the window, scouting the city's landscape.
The monitor screen flickered to life, displaying a clear picture of the landscape ahead.
Mountains of garbage stretched for kilometers, gradually giving way to a few scraggly green shrubs and sparse patches of hay. A tattered road, barely recognizable, led deeper into the city.
Huo Yin cannot recognize the city anymore.
A metal building stood on the shoreline, its cold gray form contrasting with the vastness of the sea. Shuttle trucks transporting a variety of materials rumbled by.
Pale and thin workers toiled diligently at the site. A few neatly dressed supervisors stood nearby, occasionally barking orders or kicking at something on the ground.
The workers' clothes were emblazoned with the flag of Dahlia Country, which also fluttered on many of the buildings.
Huo Yin watched all of this with a dark glint in his eyes.
"Captain, take a look at this." Jiang Pengfei pulled up the Huaguo national map on his electronic device.
Several coastal cities have been seized by a larger, more powerful country and turned into industrial wastelands. The Huaguo people who originally lived in these cities have become cheap labor for the new government.
Anti-radiation drugs, regularly distributed by the Dahlia Congress, held the key to survival.
For the Huaguo people, particularly those with families, the allure of these life-saving medications proved too strong. Despite their desire to resist, they were ultimately forced to yield.
Two Level Seven Botanists, working for a division controlled by Dahlia, cultivated plants that could both absorb radiation and serve as a source material for anti-radiation drugs.
However, the Dahlia government distributed a defective version of this drug, offering only a couple of weeks of protection. Despite the drugs' shortcomings, the Huaguo people had no choice but to rely on them.
After all, in their own country, who else could produce such a resource?
“Very good,” Shen Huo Yin said in an awe-inspiring tone. His gaze fell coldly upon the tall, ugly metal city, flames of anger flickering in his eyes.
“What is your plan?” Su Mo asked.
Huo Yin pondered for a moment before calmly replying, “I want to tell them... I’m back.”
Late at night, a few shadows flitted across the mountains of garbage. Silence surrounded them, broken only by the chill of the night air.
Huo Yin dropped to one knee, placing a hand on the ground. His palm pulsed with green light, and a root shot out. Visible to the naked eye, it grew at an alarming rate, spreading rapidly across the surrounding area.
Rooted in the barren earth, the once-mighty garbage mountain was now a compressed mass of filth beneath.
Adjusting its temperature and absorbing radiation, Huo Yin aimed to breathe life back into this withered world.
Sweat beaded on Huo Yin's forehead as his muscles tensed. His keen eyes, sharp as a hawk's, gleamed in the night.
A surge of fatigue washed over him. The once impressive range of several meters covered in rampant plant growth now seemed insignificant.
'Not enough, not enough!' He thought.
Consumed by rage, Huo Yin felt a fire burning in his heart, a desire to incinerate all the filth around him. Zhu Zhu's plants, responding to his intense emotions, began to undergo a disturbing transformation.
They grew at an unnatural pace, their shapes twisted and their colors warped. Some even started to exude a toxic aura.
A sense of unease hung heavy in the air. Everyone felt it, a reluctance to stop Huo Yin. But then, a hand settled gently on his shoulder.
The faintest warmth radiated through him, a subtle comfort that seeped into him. It offered a meager solace against the storm of anger and sadness raging within him.
Huo Yin's eyes gradually cleared. He turned, and there stood Yuan Chu beside him, silent. Her entire form seemed to faintly glow, like a night elf bathed in moonlight.
Her left hand unfolded, revealing a spectral spur flower vine that pulsed with an otherworldly light.
Huo Yin watched her, his eyes gleaming.
"We're together," As Yuan Chu brushed her hair back, a spark of clarity ignited in her eyes. A green light pulsed within her, spreading outwards.
The mutated plants, once distorted and dull, began to slowly revert. They revitalized, their branches swaying gently. Bise, reflecting the pale moonlight, their leaves shimmered with a renewed vitality.
The air, previously thick with a murky miasma, gradually filled with the fresh, clean fragrance of Qinren flowers.
A fat raindrop splattered on Huo Yin's brow. He tilted his head back, gazing upwards as the rain fell in a steady rhythm. Each drop cleansed the grime of the journey, washing away the impurities.
'Huaguo country, I'm back.'
---
The storm had passed, leaving behind a clear morning sky adorned with a vibrant rainbow, a promise of a new day.
Despite the hardships, the residents of Flower City rose early. One by one, weary figures emerged from their dwellings, ready to face another day of toil.
A collective gasp rippled through the crowd as they looked up. The once-barren landscape beyond the city walls was now awash with verdant green. And towering over it all, magnificent Trees of Heaven pierced the sky!
Everyone was shocked, almost unable to believe their eyes. They hadn't seen such healthy, lush vegetation in years.
"My God, what is this?"
"Am I dreaming?"
The entire city was awakened. People were on their feet, screaming and rushing outside.
A patch of barren land transformed overnight. Grass sprouted, trees shot up, and vines snaked across the ground. Flowers bloomed, their dew-kissed petals scenting the air.
"Ah-" Someone collapsed onto the wet grass, tears streaming down their face.
The tears seemed contagious, spreading through the crowd like a wave. Soon, everyone was weeping.
This miracle brought not only shock and surprise but also a flicker of hope.
Huaguo country finally boasts its high-level botanist!
Huo Yin's return brings rejoicing to the Huaguo government on the brink of collapse.
To demonstrate their strength, or at least show they possess the level nine botanist, the government dispatched an elite team to grandly welcome him back.
Oppressed for too long, the people needed an outlet for their despair. They were also desperate for hope.
Despite Huaguo's importance and the people's enthusiastic welcome, Huo Yin's decision to return to the spotlight means he'll face plots from external forces.
Huaguo's micronational power and international standing were lost once before. However, to Huo Yin's surprise and delight, the government, facing immense pressure from the capital, is throwing its full support behind him.
Ordinary people's power is limited; the real threat comes from the changing dynamics within the national culture.
The first concerns Huo Yin's entourage. Therapist Feng Chengxiu is normal. Su Mo is reticent, Jiang Pengfei seems like an otaku, and Sa Bu appears to be a hermit.
These three, despite their odd pairing, prefer solitary activities like early morning walks. However, their frequent visitation of 'Ghostly Tully' made her a target for spies.
By the time Yuan Chu sensed danger, it was too late for a rescue.
Su Mo was visiting Tully as usual when he suddenly picked up on someone's murderous intent and immediately sent a distress signal to Huo Yin and Yuan Chu.
Their timely intervention prevented the attack, though they were unable to fully stop it. Su Mo escaped, but Tully was captured.
"Captain, there's trouble! Tully's in danger! We need to save her!" Su Mo rejoined his team, his voice filled with urgency.
"They have at least ten people, and they're not afraid to hurt Tully."
Yuan Chu looked at one direction: [Too late.]
Su Mo's heart plummeted. It was too late.
'Those people won't survive this,' Su Mo thought grimly.
'Why did they target Tully? Did no one know that the violent deaths of those with strong spiritual connections are the true horror?'
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