Ling Buchen came over with Bo Jingshan. When Ling Buchen saw He Yu raise his head, his eyes lit up and he quickened his pace. In just a few steps, he arrived in front of him, squatted down, and softened his voice.

“He Yu, are you okay?”

He Yu shook his head.

“I'm fine.”

Ling Buchen paused. He wanted to say something, but felt somewhat uneasy and didn't know how to phrase it. He carefully observed He Yu's expression.

Looking at him, He Yu's gaze remained calm and without ripples.

“Are you worried that I'm sad?”

He smiled.

“No, I'm not sad at all.”

Just like when he killed the Ice Beast, he wasn't sad.

Because sadness was useless.

He had killed the Ice Beast.

He had killed Ghost Li.

They were already dead. Was he supposed to cry a few times afterward?

—Instead of wasting time being sad, it was better to do something useful.

—When one was inside the game, one wrong step led only to death.

Ling Buchen froze briefly, then smiled too. His smile was simple and honest, but his eyes were full of admiration.

As expected of He Yu!

Behind him, Bo Jingshan spoke. His voice was low and hoarse, magnetically deep.

“Hello, He Yu.”

He Yu looked up at him, and their eyes met.

He Yu smiled lightly, the corners of his mouth curving.

“Hello, Bo Jingshan.”

As a former special forces soldier, Bo Jingshan had always been one of Blue Star's greatest hopes and one of those who had received special training.

Unlike Ling Buchen, he hadn't had much luck.

At the start, he had little combat power as well.

Yet he had fought his way here alone.

That alone proved he possessed an unshakable will, intelligence, and extraordinary ability.

Of course, that was personality.

Aside from personality, what He Yu saw most clearly was Bo Jingshan's appearance.

He was a very handsome man, radiating the aura of a true tough guy.

If Zhen Xing had a somewhat rogue-like appearance and Eugene carried an evil charm, then Wanrenzhan was pure arrogance and savagery.

Though Bo Jingshan was also a tough guy, he was completely different from Wanrenzhan.

He exuded righteousness.

At over one hundred ninety centimeters tall, he wasn't considered especially tall by Federation standards, but his temperament gave him more than enough presence.

He Yu only estimated his height briefly before looking away.

—He had already calmly accepted the fact that his height had no advantage.

Seeing He Yu smile and seemingly treat him well, Bo Jingshan relaxed. His brows loosened, and his stern expression softened.

It wasn't as though he had never interacted with people from Blue Star before.

He had met Zhao Pingqi and Gao Jianming.

Only five people from Blue Star had survived until now.

Zhao Pingqi had completely refused to cooperate with him.

Gao Jianming had even fired cold shots from behind.

Ling Buchen was the only exception.

Originally, Bo Jingshan had worried that the “number one in popularity” He Yu would be cold or unwilling to trust others.

Unexpectedly, his attitude was surprisingly pleasant.

He Yu patted the floor beside him.

“Sit.”

Bo Jingshan walked over and sat down.

He wore military green clothing.

As someone from Blue Star, nobody disliked that color.

And as a soldier, even while sitting, Bo Jingshan remained perfectly upright, his whole body tense.

He Yu tilted his head to look at him.

Just like when he had first met Ling Buchen, there was no generation gap between him and Bo Jingshan.

With just one look, He Yu understood—

These were people he could trust.

“Turned off your livestream?” He Yu asked.

During the transfer station period, contestants had the right to close their livestreams.

It was one of their few freedoms.

Of course, most contestants didn't. More screen time meant more votes. If viewers became unhappy because a stream was closed, fewer votes meant less insurance.

The two nodded.

One sat on each side of He Yu.

He Yu tilted his head and carefully sized Bo Jingshan up.

Seeing this, Ling Buchen immediately shifted positions and sat in front of them, forming a triangle.

Blinking innocently, he said,

“He Yu, why are you staring at him? He's boring.”

Bo Jingshan remained motionless.

Because He Yu was looking at him, he sat even straighter, as though he were being inspected by a superior.

Standard military posture.

Standard expression.

He Yu asked,

“You were an exceptionally good special forces soldier?”

Bo Jingshan nodded and met his gaze.

“Yes. I was number one in my unit.”

—So, could they cooperate?

Before Bo Jingshan could ask, He Yu stroked his chin and suddenly understood.

“Oh, I see. <I'm a Special Forces King of Soldiers>?”

Bo Jingshan: “?”

He froze, his eyes somewhat blank.

Ling Buchen burst out laughing.

“Hahaha!!”

He laughed so hard he nearly doubled over and even gave a thumbs-up.

Bo Jingshan looked at He Yu in shock, wearing an expression that said he truly hadn't expected this. He opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say.

Ling Buchen had practically praised He Yu to the heavens. Combined with his identity as the “most popular contestant” and the one who had suppressed Federation elites, Bo Jingshan had always thought He Yu was an extremely serious person.

Who would've thought...

He seemed to be somewhat unreliable.

Just like Ling Buchen.

As soon as that thought appeared, He Yu's expression turned serious. He pushed his glasses and calmly asked,

“So, you came to seek cooperation?”

Bo Jingshan was caught off guard by the sudden change and nodded blankly.

—Did he really have to switch moods so quickly?

He Yu said simply,

“Sure.”

Bo Jingshan froze again. After a long moment, he said,

“A lot of people are paying attention to Blue Star. Blue Star seems to be in danger...”

Although He Yu didn't know him, Bo Jingshan had quietly observed He Yu all this time, along with the other contestants.

Naturally, he knew about He Yu's “special abilities,” the Blue Star techniques everyone was discussing—Taiji and Absorbing Stars Art—and today's topic—

The energy system.

He didn't think He Yu had brought danger to Blue Star.

He was simply curious.

What exactly did He Yu intend to do?

Someone so intelligent—

Could he really be unaware of the consequences?

“Blue Star has always been in danger.”

This was said by Ling Buchen.

His voice was calm.

It wasn't a sigh.

It was simply a conclusion.

After speaking, he looked at He Yu.

“You have a plan, don't you?”

He Yu stood up and softly said,

“I do. But it requires Blue Star's cooperation. I've already covertly told them how the energy system operates. If they fail to understand it before the Universe Federation acts...”

He Yu shook his head.

“Then no one can save them.”

He flipped open his notebook and tore off a page.

“Still, I don't think they're that stupid. Hopefully sending us into this competition to gain attention was the only stupid thing they ever did.”

After saying that, he offered no further explanation.

Throwing the paper toward them, he said,

“If you're cooperating with me, then listen to me. I dislike fools who constantly question me.”

“Take it.”

“Memorize everything.”

After speaking, he walked away.

The two stared blankly at his retreating figure.

Once He Yu had gone farther away, Bo Jingshan lowered his head and looked at the thin sheet of paper.

The handwriting was elegant and beautiful.

Blue Star characters flowed neatly and gracefully.

Just like the man himself.

Astonishing.

Bo Jingshan's pupils contracted and he suddenly raised his head.

He Yu had already gone far away.

He turned to discuss things with Ling Buchen, only to find him staring at He Yu's back, blinking repeatedly while muttering softly—

“He really attracts people...”

Bo Jingshan: “?”

—His teammates from the same planet all seemed to have some sort of problem.

He Yu continued walking.

Toward another corner.

Yes, from one corner to another.

At the same time, faint footsteps followed him.

He Yu stopped and spoke calmly.

“You came.”

Zhen Xing slowly walked up in front of him.

“You knew I was coming?”

He Yu merely smiled.

Zhen Xing understood.

Not only had He Yu known, he had intentionally left Ling Buchen and the obviously familiar Bo Jingshan behind just to wait for him.

Curious, Zhen Xing asked,

“Then do you know why I came?”

The two stood close to avoid others overhearing.

To look into Zhen Xing's eyes, He Yu had to raise his head.

Zhen Xing wasn't very talkative.

But whether it was his phoenix eyes, his short blue hair, or his gaze—

Everything about him gave the impression of a quick-thinking man.

Looking into those phoenix eyes, He Yu raised an eyebrow.

“You, the lone wolf Zhen Xing—besides pursuing strength, what else do you pursue?”

Zhen Xing rubbed his nose.

“I'm also curious about you.”

“Talk business,” He Yu said.

Time was limited.

He had no intention of chatting.

In the past, Zhen Xing had constantly challenged him to fight. Later, after discovering that He Yu's strength wasn't what he had imagined, he stopped mentioning it.

Yet his eager gaze still revealed his obsession with combat.

Zhen Xing's eyes lit up.

“I want to know if your energy system is real.”

He Yu asked in return,

“You can't judge that yourself?”

“I understand.”

Zhen Xing nodded and looked at him eagerly while rubbing his hands together.

“Then can I learn it? I'll pay any price.”

Tilting his head, He Yu looked genuinely curious.

“You should be close to SS-rank already. Aren't you afraid you'll lose your strength if you abandon the combat power system?”

With a serious expression and bright phoenix eyes, Zhen Xing replied,

“If the new system is stronger than the combat power system, then I'm willing to learn.”

—Strength was his lifelong pursuit.

He Yu shook his head.

Many Federation experts had only strength in their minds.

Their thinking was simple.

Even outside, they were probably viewed as useful weapons.

Seeing He Yu shake his head, Zhen Xing thought he had been rejected.

Immediately taking a step forward, he said anxiously,

“I really want to learn! You can ask anything of me!”

“Anything?” He Yu raised his head and suddenly smiled.

They were already standing close.

The moment he smiled, Zhen Xing froze.

He stared blankly at him.

Then his ears twitched and gradually turned red.

After a while, he answered softly,

“Mm.”

He Yu said,

“Then before the finals, listen to me. How about that?”

Zhen Xing froze.

For some reason, hearing that request left him strangely disappointed...

Raising an eyebrow, He Yu asked,

“Not willing?”

Zhen Xing immediately said seriously,

“I am.”

Besides, whenever they entered the same instance before, they had all...

Listened to He Yu.

Since He Yu intended to cooperate until the finals, he wasn't going to betray him halfway.

So this condition was practically effortless.

He Yu flipped open his notebook and tore off another sheet covered with writing.

“Take it.”

“This is energy and its applications. You can cultivate it first. As for the later parts, you can either explore them yourself...”

He smiled meaningfully.

“Or exchange something with me later.”

Taking the paper, Zhen Xing watched He Yu turn and leave.

After only a glance, his eyes lit up.

“Is this Blue Star's inheritance?”

After a pause, he added,

“I turned off my livestream.”

He Yu stopped and looked back.

“No.”

“I just summarized it.”

“No one has tested it yet.”

“Good luck.”

Zhen Xing: “?”

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