Meeting at the Summit

"Zhou Yi, I'll come find you in Huadun later."

That evening, Qin An brought dried insects and met Zhou Yi on the rooftop, earnestly preparing for a formal farewell.

Initially, Zhou Yi subconsciously refused. She couldn't stand sentimental scenes; back on Earth, she always skipped the endings of skits.

Why say goodbye? I'm not dead yet.

But in the end, Zhou Yi compromised. She couldn't help it, Qin An had brought way too much dried insect...

Zhou Yi touched her own noticeably bony arm and helplessly sat with Qin An on his family's rooftop.

Qin An's family was wealthy, so their rooftop was sturdier. If it were Zhou Yi's own rooftop, she wouldn't have dared to go up there.

"Got it. Study hard at school."

Zhou Yi didn't take Qin An's words about visiting her later seriously. Once Qin An reached a new place, met new friends, and saw a wider world, he'd quickly forget old friends.

"The D71 Star Block will dissipate soon, and the relocation fee is ten thousand Star Coins. I know it's tough for your uncle and aunt to earn money, and I've saved some of my allowance over the years..."

Qin An was a few months younger than Zhou Yi. He had followed her around since childhood, and his feelings for Zhou Yi's parents were more like those for an uncle and aunt than ordinary neighbors.

"Enough."

Zhou Yi knew what Qin An meant and stopped him from continuing.

"There's still almost a year left. I'll find a way."

"Alright, but if there ever comes a day when you need my help, you must find me! I'm afraid of pain if I have to go through fire and water, but any problem that money can solve, I can solve for you!"

The sixteen-year-old Qin, the rich kid, began his grand pronouncements. He had no idea at this point what price he would have to pay for his youthful recklessness in the future.

"Okay, I'll remember that," Zhou Yi replied with a smile.

The graduation holiday was shorter than any before, and the children were busier than usual.

Because it involved new fields of knowledge, parents who could afford it would hire private tutors for their newly awakened children during this holiday, striving to give their children a head start before school began.

Zhou Yi's family didn't have the means to hire a teacher. Besides, with a D-class talent, there was truly no need to hire one...

A slow bird can fly by working hard, but if its wings are congenitally disabled, there's no need to force itself.

However, Zhou Yi was, after all, a Chosen One with a growth-type Star Weave, not the lowest tier of talent.

Within the short one-month holiday, she could already skillfully manipulate her Star Power.

Her expanded meridians had gradually stabilized, and her Star Power circulated in an orderly fashion. Although Zhou Yi didn't know the exact numerical value of her Star Power, after the last energy core replenishment, she could feel that her energy had increased at least fivefold compared to before. It was a qualitative leap!

Star Power could only be detected by specialized instruments. Mech schools would test students' Star Power values every semester.

"I wish I could try out a mech right now."

Zhou Yi spread her hands, and a bright light flickered in her palms.

Currently, known Star Power could only be applied by humans to mechs. The greater a person's Star Power, the stronger the power they could unleash when using a mech.

It was as if the human, the brain at the core within the mech, had absolute control; the Star Power within the human body was the maximum power the mech could unleash.

"I wonder how the practice mechs Huadun sent to students are. I'm really a bit impatient."

As Zhou Yi anticipated, the start of the school year soon arrived.

"Mom, Dad, you just stay here on the D71 Star Block. Before it dissipates, I'll definitely find a way to get our whole family to a better place."

Before leaving, Zhou Yi briefed Zhou Jiang and Tang Zhen. After a year here, she had gradually gotten used to not being an orphan.

When she spoke of making money, she wasn't bragging. Her Star Weave now had three star points, giving her the basic ability to craft Star Weaves.

Only when she got to Huadun and could experiment with mechs would she surely find a way to make money.

Zhou Yi's words moved Zhou Jiang and Tang Zhen to tears. Only after Zhou Yi had walked far away did Zhou Jiang raise his hand to wipe his eyes.

"What did our daughter mean by that? How will she make money? A girl going to a strange place alone, I hope she doesn't go down the wrong path."

Tang Zhen also wiped her eyes upon hearing this. "Don't worry. From the back, only we, her biological parents, could recognize she's a girl. All the bad paths are blocked; there's no opportunity."

It really was the closest people whose words could be the most cutting.

But it wasn't Tang Zhen's fault. Zhou Yi was so thin it was as if she hadn't developed, and she had even cut her hair short to her ears for convenience.

Whether viewed from the front or the back, Father Zhou's worries were indeed excessive.

Of course, Zhou Yi didn't know any of this. At this moment, she was already standing under the Star Ship station sign, waiting.

As a public transportation tool, the price of Star Ships was very affordable.

Charged by distance, it would cost Zhou Yi ten Star Coins to go to the adjacent Star Block, taking three hours. No rip-offs.

With a large backpack on her back, Zhou Yi boarded the Star Ship and soon traveled through the universe at light speed.

This was the first time Zhou Yi had left the D71 Star Block in the year she had been here.

The vast majority of people never left the Star Block they were born on in their entire lives.

Although adjacent, the distance between Star Blocks was still very far. Zhou Yi watched the D71 Star Block become smaller and smaller, eventually disappearing from her sight.

The universe outside the Star Block didn't seem completely dark; instead, it was filled with flashing lights. Some were huge Star Blocks, but more were various forms of transportation, even mechs.

You don't even need to deliberately distinguish them; the fast ones are private Star Ships, the slow ones are public transport, and those that zip by almost like a beam of light, too fast to see clearly, are Mechs.

"Is this your first time on a Star Ship, young lady?"

Just as Zhou Yi was staring intently out the window, an old man next to him struck up a conversation.

"Mm."

Zhou Yi usually couldn't be bothered to talk to strangers, but this old man, despite his simple clothes, looked quite kind. Upholding the fine virtue of respecting the old and cherishing the young, Zhou Yi replied.

"Are you heading to school? Huadun?"

The old man continued.

Hearing this, Zhou Yi became a little wary.

"How did you know?"

"Don't be nervous. Your age and attire clearly indicate you're going to school. I'm familiar with most of the schools certified by the Interstellar Alliance. There are only a few that this Star Ship passes by, and they're all D-class. Huadun is the closest school to your boarding point, so there's no reason you wouldn't choose it."

The old man tried to help Zhou Yi relax. The defensiveness in the young girl's eyes was obvious, and he regretted perhaps startling the child by striking up a conversation so abruptly.

"Who are you?"

Zhou Yi asked back. There was no reason for the other party to know so much about him while he knew nothing about him.

"I am..." the old man paused.

"My name is Zhuang Mu, an educator."

"I'm Zhou Yi, a student."