Chapter 7

Wu Ying had a vague sense of the reason behind it. The people of Blue Star had been at war for so long that, in their pursuit of victory, they had cast aside all their hobbies and preferences. In the end, they had saved Blue Star from the depths of misery. Today, more and more seeds were seeing the light of day in the Seed Bank, and perhaps one day in the future, this society would become the kind of place she loved.

She quietly found the link to the Seed Bank, registered, and her holographic projection entered the facility that had been carried through centuries of exile by the people of Blue Star.

The Seed Bank recorded the names and appearances of plants, with entries varying in detail—some had preserved image data, some only simple drawings, and some just descriptions.

Peonies, tree peonies, wisteria, daffodils... those familiar flowers were now kept in rows of individual compartments, each holding either shriveled seeds or dried branches.

Would these beautiful flowers truly never grace the world again?

Plant science—Wu Ying suddenly remembered this field of study. She exited the Seed Bank and clicked on the official introduction of the College of Plant Science. It stated that plant science served two purposes: first, to study the characteristics of interstellar plants and assist Blue Star in exploring the universe, and second, to research Blue Star's heritage plants and contribute to the planet's strategic food reserves.

Oh, so it seemed that most producers of nutrient solutions needed professional knowledge in plant science. I see.

So, could she study it just to grow flowers?

It was feasible! The description didn't say she couldn't. She saw that some people who studied it just lazed around at home afterward, so if she could make a contribution, why not?

Whatever—when it was time to act, she acted. Wu Ying clicked the registration button directly. Fortunately, the College of Plant Science only required that entrants be awakened individuals, and she happened to meet that condition.

She hadn't even carefully looked at the curriculum. Having something to study at all was good enough—a near-illiterate person couldn't find a job otherwise, let alone grow flowers.

Of course, Wu Ying hadn't overlooked her pathetically low mental power. By the way, could the search engine here directly search for "what to do about mental power level"?

Never mind, she'd try it. Wu Ying tapped away on her Light Brain, and the first post that popped up read: "Awakened individuals with low mental power should stay in protected zones."

What nonsense, Wu Ying pouted, quickly closing the post and reporting it: "Content causes discomfort!"

So that method wouldn't work. She clicked on her contacts page, which held only a few pitiful names. Her eyes landed on Asher's avatar—it seemed to be the system default image.

Without much hesitation, she typed: "Asher, my mental power is too low. What should I do?"

She sent it without a second thought, treating him like a search engine. She hadn't even changed the wording, only added the form of address.

Now came the time to await his reaction. Wu Ying was eager to know how he'd respond—would he be impatient?

She wasn't entirely sure why Asher had agreed to the marriage arrangement, but her initial assessment was that he was a silent type, hard to communicate with but fairly tolerant. Just how tolerant he was—that was what Wu Ying wanted to test.

After a while, Asher replied. He said she could find Federation-certified mental power training classes on the Federal University website.

Wu Ying immediately perked up. That was exactly what she'd wanted to find. It turned out the Federation's internet cleanup was so thorough that she could only find such classes on the university site.

"Thanks, hubby~"

She didn't care about his reaction, quickly sent him a message, and dove into the university website. The academic forum had a dedicated section for free courses, offering many classes—mostly tutoring for students who were falling behind. Mental power training was a hot topic; the moment Wu Ying entered, she saw numerous training classes already full.

Terrifyingly expensive, with high tuition. A month ago, she wouldn't have dared to sign up.

Now, she'd pick whatever was most popular!

One look at the requirements: "Mental power level C or above, with prior training experience."

Wu Ying was stunned. Setting aside the "prior training experience" part, she didn't even meet the first requirement.

Sorry, my mistake.

Wu Ying calmed down and decided to observe first. These mental power training classes seemed numerous, but they were further divided into levels based on the instructor's ability, focus, and personality.

During trial lessons, many instructors used technical terms she didn't understand at all. If she'd blindly enrolled, she'd probably be hopeless. It wasn't that she had a weak foundation—she had none at all. So she couldn't take classes with prerequisites. And she couldn't take large classes either; her situation was somewhat special. She couldn't sense her mental power at all, so she needed a meticulous, attentive instructor for one-on-one coaching.

With her needs clear, she quickly filtered out many courses, leaving only one—Teacher Nova. According to the introduction, she'd just retired from the military and become a teacher, and notably, she'd explicitly stated that she didn't focus on attack-oriented training.

No wonder no one signed up for her class. The Federation universally favored aggressive mental power.

Wu Ying didn't act impulsively. She first chatted with Nova. Matters of mental power required caution, after all, since it was probably quite important.

She was still deliberating when a communication request suddenly flashed on her Light Brain—it was Asher. Wu Ying thought for a moment and accepted. His serious, stern face appeared on the screen.

Asher looked at the pale chin on the holographic display, silent. After a moment, Wu Ying finally mastered interstellar video calling and adjusted the screen to face her directly.

"Are you looking for a mental power training instructor? Don't mess around. Mental power involves the core of the human body. Any mistake and you'll end up living in a nutrient pod."

This was the first time she'd heard him speak such a long sentence, and it scared her. Did he mean she could become a vegetable?

"Then what should I do? I want to improve, but my mental power is too low. I enrolled in plant science—did you see it?"

Asher nodded. All payment bills were synced to him, so of course he knew.

On the screen, Wu Ying's amber eyes shimmered, her slender brows furrowed slightly, her face showing obvious worry. She tugged at her sleeve, looking at a loss and dependent.

Something stirred in Asher's heart. He saw the leap of life in her once more.

"Wait for me to come back."

Wu Ying tilted her head in confusion and pressed, "You're coming back to help me? Can you also be a mental power training instructor?"

Her tone rose at the end, words tumbling out quickly, like raindrops pattering against him. Asher turned his head away, explaining, "Not as an instructor. I'll test your mental power's strength and characteristics, then find a suitable instructor."

"Great, thank you."

Wu Ying said it sincerely. She and Asher had no emotional foundation to speak of, yet he still considered her situation. Meeting him was a stroke of luck.

Asher, seeing the matter settled, was about to end the call, but Wu Ying started chatting. Asher had been away for a long time; she'd only just figured out Yuanji Star's rotation defense system, and she didn't know when he'd return. Since he'd called, she couldn't miss the chance to "build the relationship."

She talked about the recent changes at home and asked him many questions, from Beta Star's weather to infrastructure, from the neighbor lady's job to her own future plans. The more she spoke, the more animated she became, not even noticing that Asher's replies were extremely brief, sometimes not answering at all.

Wu Ying finally stopped, her mouth dry, and belatedly realized Asher's reaction was flat. She didn't dwell on whether she was being annoying and directly asked, "What's wrong? Don't you like it? I got too excited. There's so much here I've never seen, and I have no one to talk to, so..."

Wu Ying tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, lowered her head slightly, curved her lips into an apologetic smile, and suddenly became shy and timid.

She was beautiful, every move graceful, her voice sweet and soft—gentler still, it could melt anyone.

Asher met her sparkling gaze. A voice urged him to say something, or the consequences might be serious.

"Sorry. Keep going." The first part was an apology for his lukewarm reaction; the second was his response to Wu Ying's enthusiasm.

Wu Ying's smile widened immediately. She'd gotten what she wanted, so naturally she gave a positive reaction.

When she smiled, it was as if spring bloomed on her face—fair skin, rosy lips, white teeth, and a pair of amber almond eyes perfectly placed. All the spring hues melted into her gaze, soothing and refreshing.

"So when are you coming back? I'm so eager."

She whined naturally, her voice stretching like she was before her parents, so effortlessly. Asher frowned, turning his face away again after just bringing it back.

"One week."

The answer was brief and firm. Wu Ying nodded with a hint of regret. "Alright, I'll wait for you."

Asher hummed in acknowledgment, thinking how to end the call. But on the screen, Wu Ying shifted, ready to continue. Just as she opened her mouth, Asher said, "Busy. I'm hanging up."

Wu Ying could only nod and end the call.

She sat cross-legged, tallying her gains. She'd been longing to build a relationship with Asher, and this call could edge the progress bar forward a step.

Most importantly, he could help her find a training instructor. With his mental power being so high, guiding her should be a piece of cake.

Everything was on track. She hopped with light steps, ready to find something to eat. "Jiujiu, Jiujiu, make me lunch!"

"Understood. Switching to butler mode."

Jiujiu's mechanical voice sounded, its processor taking about 0.11 seconds to bring up a two-page menu.

"Hello, Master. Based on the available ingredients in Beta Star's inventory, you can enjoy the following dishes. Please make a selection."

Recipes were probably the most completely preserved heritage of Blue Star. Once robot technology matured, one of the first projects was cooking, striving to recreate the authentic flavors described in the recipes—and with remarkable success.

"Great, I want braised pork ribs, a fish soup, and a vegetable—let's go with corn."

Wu Ying ordered assertively, then leaned back to wait. Joy!

The cosmic delivery was fast. By the time Jiujiu finished chopping the ribs, the missing ingredients had arrived: fresh corn and live fish. Wu Ying observed that although they bore the same names, the genes had clearly been altered. The corn kernels were larger and triangular, and the fish seemed to be a new breed.

A mutant fish or an interstellar fish? Since she had time, Wu Ying used her Light Brain to look it up. Learning about the environment through daily life was also a way to understand the world.

Just as she was marveling at the richness of interstellar species, someone sent her a message—it was Nova. Earlier, Wu Ying had been searching for instructors online, and they'd exchanged initial details. Because Asher had said he'd handle it when he returned, she'd let it go, but now Nova had taken the initiative to contact her.