Although they ventured into the world, what they gained was freedom.
If he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, Lu Chen would never have believed that in the vast universe, there could exist a half planet, nonchalantly orbiting its star.
It wasn’t just any half—it looked as though a sword had sliced it cleanly in two, leaving one lonely hemisphere drifting along its planetary path. The other half was nowhere to be found.
Lu Chen thought to himself, “Lonely Northern Hemisphere” had not deceived him.
Its northern hemisphere resembled the surface of any normal planet, with broad farmlands and sprawling modern cities. The southern half, however, was a perfectly flat mirror-like ocean, upon which thousands of sandy islands were scattered like stars.
If the islands had indigenous natives, they would surely have reached the same conclusion as the old gods: the world is flat.
Beneath the sea, the planetary core had been excavated, leaving an enormous mining pit.
That the planet could maintain its magnetic field, gravity, and stable orbit and rotation despite losing its core was entirely due to a planetary formation.
The internet claimed this was perhaps a cutting-edge mining technique.
Lu Chen found the explanation dubious. Slicing open an entire planet wasn’t as simple as blasting one apart with a planetary annihilator—it required solving countless engineering challenges and consuming vast amounts of spiritual energy. What kind of minerals could possibly justify such an effort?
Yet this was precisely Lu Chen’s destination.
He had arrived at an interstellar outpost in a star sector where several trade routes converged—the Thousand Islands Sea.
This outpost, under the jurisdiction of the Crownless Nation, touted itself to passing adventurers and tourists as: the only perfectly flat ocean in the universe.
Lu Chen had long suspected his persistent failure in fishing was due to magnetic field distortions and the curvature of water surfaces. The Thousand Islands Sea might be the place to finally prove himself!
The Leonine docked outside the atmosphere of the Thousand Islands Sea, greeted by an honor guard of six escort frigates, which ushered the vessel to the central plaza of the northern hemisphere.
The king—Devor Penan, famed as the “benevolent dictator”—had already erected a grand awarding platform in the plaza, accompanied by a crowd of beautiful princesses, personally welcoming Lu Chen and his companions.
The ceremony was lavish to the extreme.
On either side: flowers, applause, and media cameras. From the crowd came shouts—
“Hero of Saion Star!”
“Ellie is number one in the world!”
“So cute, help!”
“Please debut, Ellie!”
“Gloria! Gloria! Gloria! Gloria! Gloria!”
The more Lu Chen listened, the stranger it felt.
His name was called only once, quickly drowned out by the tidal waves of support for Ellie and Gloria.
Fan culture, truly absurd!
He glanced sideways.
Ellie hadn’t dressed up—she wore a crisp student uniform, only adding a blue flower-shaped hairpin. Because she was nervous, she nearly walked with matching hands and feet…
It looked a bit comical, but also gave her an endearing charm.
Gloria wore a swordswoman’s indigo cloak, paired with a close-fitting purple evening dress. Her tall, voluptuous figure somehow made this hellish ensemble appear divine.
She radiated both arrogance and allure.
Lu Chen himself, by contrast, wore a men’s suit Gloria had bought for herself but never worn… It fit poorly.
Despite his striking features and distinctive aura, he found nothing special about himself, resembling a chauffeur carrying bags for two goddesses.
Fortunately, the focus of the dignitaries was all on him.
Lu Chen stepped to the center of the platform, warmly shaking hands with the Penan king, whose height and girth both measured two meters.
“Captain Lu, you honor the Thousand Islands Sea with your presence. Forgive us for not welcoming you sooner.”
Countless cameras turned to the center of the stage.
For a moment, Lu Chen felt as if he were about to appear on national news, making him a bit nervous.
“You honor us, Star Lord.”
King Penan laughed heartily.
“Haha, what’s a Star Lord with only half a planet? I still prefer being called king.”
“Your Majesty, you are too gracious.”
“Not every recipient of the Idealist Medal receives such treatment. Captain Lu is especially unique.”
“Oh? What makes me special?”
“Special because all my daughters adore you.”
As he spoke, a dozen princesses behind him waved at Lu Chen with radiant smiles.
Lu Chen hadn’t expected to finally have fans.
And each princess weighed at least two hundred pounds—one equals two!
Clearly, his fans were far weightier than Ellie and Gloria’s.
King Penan then personally decorated Lu Chen with the Idealist Medal and delivered a speech full of praise.
Lu Chen was nearly floating from the flattery.
In his previous life, he hated empty platitudes. Now, spoken about himself, he found them unexpectedly pleasant.
No wonder leaders love them…
Afterward,
King Penan hosted a royal banquet for Lu Chen and his companions in the Star Lord’s residence.
Lu Chen covertly overheard the guests’ whispers and discovered that it was a paid banquet, with only the royal family and Lu Chen’s group dining for free.
The other guests were major local politicians and business tycoons.
They had come to take photos with the idealist, seeking to build connections.
This seriously impacted Lu Chen’s enjoyment of the meal.
After all, it was a seafood feast worth thousands of spirit stones.
Taking photos? The king didn’t share profits with him, and these people disrupted his meal. If he couldn’t eat his fill, wouldn’t he lose out?
Eat, eat everything!
As long as it doesn’t kill him, he would eat himself half to death!
Still, Lu Chen could see that King Penan, as the ruler of a star, was willing to humble himself and make petty profits by such means, showing he hadn’t monopolized planetary resources or levied exorbitant taxes…
If he were an expert at hollowing out the planet and exploiting the people, who would care about banquet fees?
In fact, King Penan was called a dictator online by capitalists and hostile forces.
But countless citizens spoke up for him, calling him the benevolent dictator, turning “dictator” into a term of respect.
His enemies smeared him as bloated and corrupt, but seeing his daughters, Lu Chen realized obesity was the Penan family’s genetics.
Women are vain creatures; truly wealthy women seldom are overweight.
Their wealth allowed them to eat nutritious, fresh, delicious, low-calorie, expensive food.
How could they be fat?
Whether in his previous life or on Rust Star, the wealthy women Lu Chen had seen not only had good figures and stylish dress, but looked like goddesses.
None were bumpkins like these princesses…
It was said that the Thousand Islands Sea’s security forces had a large budget, and King Penan was both a money-maker and a penny-pincher.
Besides the medal and banquet, Lu Chen received a heap of local crafts and paintings from the princesses.
The gifts were so numerous they were worth a hundred spirit stones in total.
At the banquet, Lu Chen had expected to see the Thousand Islands Sea’s tourist highlight, the Mermaid Dance.
Instead, he witnessed a performance of mechanical tank dancing, personally performed by the princesses for him.
Guests’ expressions were stiff, inwardly demanding refunds, losing all appetite for food and drink.
Food was saved!
Perhaps due to the reverse fan filter, Lu Chen felt the princesses’ tank dance was not bad.
Though they were too plump, their constitution was good, their movements agile and lively, with a genuine sense of mechanical rhythm.
Lu Chen ate and drank his fill, even rising, unable to resist joining his fan princesses in dancing.
A spirit engineer doing a mechanical dance—why not?
Ellie covertly activated her bracelet camera to photograph Lu Chen.
Gloria, feeling a headache, bluntly questioned the king:
“I heard the Mermaid Dance here is famous, Your Majesty, why fob us off with mechanical dance?”
The king held his wine cup, long un-sipped, and sighed helplessly:
“Miss Gloria, you may not know. In recent years, the Imperial Entertainment Weekly and the Galactic Animal Protection Organization accused us of enslaving merfolk, forcing us to terminate all mermaid performances in the Thousand Islands Sea. In truth, we always signed performance contracts—mermaids’ pay for dancing and acrobatics far exceeded the average wage here. Unable to perform, they fell back into poverty, which is now a major social issue in the Thousand Islands Sea. I’m at my wits’ end.”
Gloria was irritated.
“So you’re forcing them back to the sea?”
The king drained his cup and snorted coldly:
“They returned to the sea, but gained freedom… At least that’s what the animal protection association claims.”
Just after finishing his dance, Lu Chen perked up at the mention of mermaids returning to the sea.
“If there are more wholesome services, I’d happily support their business.”
The king was stunned, only understanding “wholesome” after a moment, then laughed aloud:
“Captain Lu is a great hero, young and handsome—anything unwholesome is free, let alone wholesome!”
Gloria, tipsy and flushed, suddenly felt a pang of jealousy.
“You’re already perverse enough, and now you encourage him? Merfolk aren’t even mammals—how could anything unwholesome happen?”
Lu Chen frowned, thinking: It depends on whether it’s mermaid top, fish bottom, or fish top, human bottom.
Ellie quietly tugged Gloria’s sleeve and whispered:
“Gloria, please don’t say any more, aren’t you tempting the captain?”
“Huh?”
Gloria tilted her head, failing to grasp the meaning.
After the banquet,
The Crownless Nation’s main media outlet, Light, requested an exclusive interview with the Primitive Star Dome Adventurers.
Lu Chen was unfamiliar with the outlet.
Besides, he disliked being the media focus and politely declined.
The king, surprised, hurriedly pulled Lu Chen aside:
“Light pays idealists a thousand spirit stones for exclusive interviews—don’t miss out!”
Only then did Lu Chen recall that on the True Spirit Continent, the Imperial Entertainment Weekly offered a mere hundred spirit stones for interviewing him as a hero medal recipient.
A dog wouldn’t take it.
Gloria, sharp-eared, overheard the thousand spirit stone offer and patted Lu Chen’s shoulder.
“Don’t be too aloof, Captain. Trust in Light.”
One phrase reignited Lu Chen’s childhood sentiments.
He decided to give it a try.
Before the interview, he asked the bearded director:
“Should I memorize answers in advance, are there any sensitive words?”
The director reassured him:
“Rest easy. With so much darkness outside our country, these outdated practices must be abandoned. As an idealist, answer however you wish—we only want authenticity.”
Lu Chen finally relaxed.
But then the director added:
“Don’t worry—anything inauthentic will be cut.”
Lu Chen was speechless…
Still, this was standard practice in the media world. Nothing to complain about—the final edit mattered most.
This actually put him at ease; he could say anything, and mistakes would be edited out.
Soon, Lu Chen and his companions boarded Light’s interview ship.
The studio even had some volunteer students.
In their eyes, Lu Chen saw the same faith as the Saion Star people.
The host was a well-dressed middle-aged woman.
She was quite pretty, just a bit too serious, holding a stack of paper files that reminded Lu Chen of the scorpion woman.
After brief pleasantries and instructions, the interview began.
Host:
“Over a month’s journey to reach here, and so much public attention. What are your thoughts?”
Lu Chen:
“Ellie, you go first.”
Ellie seemed fearful of the camera.
“I’m sorry, I don’t have any thoughts and can’t answer questions. Whatever the captain thinks is what I think, whatever he says is my answer. Host, I’ll just sit and listen to you all talk, okay?”
Host:
“Don’t be nervous, Ellie. That’s already your most authentic answer.”
“And Gloria?”
Gloria:
“I feel I haven’t gained enough traffic, and my conversion rate is pitifully low.”
The host was baffled.
“What conversion rate?”
Gloria:
“Turning attention into money, of course! Just like you in media—you want to convert traffic into public support and cohesion. I want to convert traffic into cash. I hope to open a streaming account soon—everyone remember to send gifts!”
She shamelessly made a heart gesture to the camera.
The host was momentarily stunned.
“Authenticity is good, but Gloria’s a bit too authentic… That’ll lose fans.”
“Huh?”
Gloria was surprised and asked urgently:
“Then tell me—how can I avoid losing fans?”
The host smiled, offering no advice.
“By giving your fans more exciting adventures—exposing imperialist evils, earning another idealist medal, for example…”
Gloria looked disappointed, muttering:
“That’s too exhausting. I prefer something for nothing.”
Lu Chen: “……”
The host turned to Lu Chen.
“And you, Captain?”
“What about me?”
Lu Chen was nearly nodding off.
Host:
“What thoughts do you have about the journey?”
Lu Chen:
“Oh… My thought is, being an adventurer is dangerous. If you have a choice, don’t venture into the Pangu Corridor, because many who set out are not seeking adventure but laying traps to harvest adventurers.”
Host:
“With the Black Dragon incident exposed, Captain Lu, saying this might make people think you’re trying to reduce competition.”
Lu Chen:
“I’m just expressing my opinion—who cares what others think? Honestly, luck played a huge part in my journey. If I did it again, I’d have earned even more.”
Host:
“For confidentiality, we don’t usually ask about talents and abilities. But Captain Lu, what do you think is the most important ability for adventurers?”
Lu Chen:
“Money… If you don’t have it, you have to accept interviews.”
Gloria slapped Lu Chen’s leg.
“Answer properly.”
Lu Chen:
“With money, you can buy top-tier equipment, hire powerful crew, compensate for any weakness. For adventurers without funds, it’s a dimensional strike—no matter how talented you are, you can hardly resist. That’s the power of money.”
Host:
“So you lack money—how did you find two teammates who, in my view, are very strong?”
Lu Chen:
“If you really don’t have money, looks can help a bit.”
Gloria, unhappy, suddenly pinched Lu Chen’s handsome face, pulling it sideways into a disk.
“You’re shameless. Host, is this guy handsome?”
The host glanced at Lu Chen and smiled:
“I think he’s quite handsome.”
Gloria was speechless.
“As a host, you must be impartial—how can you be swayed by a mere man?”
Host:
“Doesn’t that prove Captain Lu is handsome?”
Gloria was tongue-tied, forced to change the subject.
“Can looks feed you? I’m no less beautiful, yet why am I still so poor?”
The host shook her head and smiled bitterly, unsure how the interview had devolved into play-acting.
“Everyone knows Captain Lu invested in the group with his technical skills, and Ellie and Gloria joined with their own abilities, step by step. Discussing appearance is too modest of you.”
Lu Chen:
“Yes, yes, you’re absolutely right.”
Host:
“I’d like to ask your views on the Black Dragon incident, or from a technical perspective, whether the two videos could be faked?”
Lu Chen:
“Regardless of authenticity, soon a new batch of ‘greenhorns’ will flood the Pangu Corridor, necks stretched out for the scythe.”
Gloria glared at him.
“There you go again—what’s wrong with a lively adventure scene?”
Lu Chen:
“Even if the videos are real, such a small atavistic Black Dragon has only scientific value—not enough to fill a tooth gap, certainly not enough to make you immortal… If you’ve already set out, I suggest enjoying the adventure, don’t obsess over dragons or phoenixes. The more you fixate, the easier you are to harvest. Play it safe—earn less if you must, don’t push so hard. If everyone thought like this, all the traps along the way would be avoided.”
Gloria:
“Just an interview, and you’re acting like a life coach?”
Ellie, at some point, had already taken out her little notebook…
Lu Chen:
“I’m paid for an interview—I must say something, unlike you, freeloading.”
The host smiled.
“Clearly, Captain Lu has some humanitarian concern as an adventurer—no wonder he won the Idealist Medal… In that case, I’d like to ask, what do you think of the social system on Saion Star? What could be improved?”
“That’s beyond the scope.”
Lu Chen didn’t know how to answer.
“The Saion Star system has endured for a thousand years without falling, so it must have its merits. Improvements? The elder sister could be a bit harsher to enemies. Beyond that, I hope Saion Star can find ways to boost artistic creativity, export great works, thereby raising national confidence and institutional pride. The impact of art spreads far more than this interview.”
Host:
“Does a lack of parental love negatively affect children’s development, or artistic ability?”
Lu Chen:
“Perhaps. More investment in education is needed, letting mentorship replace parental affection. Besides, with no marriage or children, no favoritism, Saion Star possesses the purest forms of love and friendship… Its lag in art stems mainly from lack of cultural confidence, and too much focus on STEM education.”
He thought a moment, then added:
“Of course, Saion Star’s games are quite fun, but they’re too niche and hardcore for cultural propagation.”
Gloria, a gaming enthusiast, rarely agreed with Lu Chen.
“Absolutely—Saion Star’s games aren’t even dog-friendly.”
“Hope the elder sister sees this interview.”
The host smiled, then asked:
“I’m curious—how did you three meet? Any early stories to share?”
Lu Chen:
“Rather than meeting, it was more like…”
Two hours of interview passed in a flash.
Lu Chen was surprised not to feel bored—he enjoyed it.
He essentially got a thousand spirit stones for free.
…
After the interview, with payment in hand, Lu Chen gave Ellie and Gloria each two hundred fifty spirit stones as pocket money, letting them shop freely.
The remaining five hundred he entrusted to Ellie, asking her to buy Marrow Cleansing Pills and Healing Spirit Pills.
Gloria complained the pocket money was too little and suggested:
“Let’s sell that old level-40 armor on the ship. Its engine is high-level, but it’s not luxury, takes up too much space, and its combat power is average. Next time we need armor for an expedition, I’ll go with you—aren’t I better than armor? I don’t even burn spirit oil, and can chat with you… Just be generous with spending money, and if the universe ends, I can give you children. Isn’t investing in women better than steel?”
Lu Chen was startled, thinking: The return rate on steel is ten thousand times higher than investing in women—if the universe ends, who cares about having kids!
“Fine, fine, if the armor fetches a good price, I’ll consider it.”
Satisfied, Gloria took Ellie shopping.
Thus concluded Lu Chen’s award activities.
King Penan didn’t even offer accommodation, merely suggested he visit the islands in the southern hemisphere.
Lu Chen intended to go fishing for leisure.
But not yet.
First, he had to sell equipment at the second-hand market.
Lu Chen piloted the Leonine, landing in the Mechanical City southwest of the royal capital.
It resembled the Cage Port of Saion Star, with large modification equipment seemingly imported from there.
There was a dedicated second-hand market, even an auction house.
Lu Chen wondered if, having just won a medal and appeared on TV, he might fetch higher prices at auction.
He drove the Leonine to the auction house.
Paid a hundred spirit stones for rent.
Stood there.
Displayed his spoils.
Level-40 combat armor.
Level-40 retractable minotaur lance.
And various other loot scavenged from the Minotaur.
The organizers announced to the whole venue: These spoils are from exposing the evil deeds of Imperial Entertainment Weekly, just awarded the Idealist Medal by the Crownless Nation, and celebrity from Mist Sea Star—
Lu Chen.
The crowd’s mood was instantly ignited.
But soon everyone was asking where Ellie and Gloria had gone…
Lu Chen ignored them.
The organizers continued: These spoils come from the 66th place on this year’s Rising Star List—the Minotaur.
Alas, excitement aside, interest in the loot was low. All ended up bought by second-hand merchants.
Combat armor was common, sold for three thousand eight.
The lance, being custom, went for only one thousand two.
Other loot combined fetched only a thousand.
Lu Chen earned a total of six thousand spirit stones—a full little chest!
Auction-wise, he didn’t sense any premium.
It was a normal price.
Clearly, the buyers were rational, not giving him any celebrity filter—only paying what things were worth.
Leaving the auction house, Lu Chen tallied his assets:
From the Saion Star welfare home, three thousand three.
Interview earnings, a thousand, already spent.
Auctioning loot, six thousand.
Plus a thousand from the scorpion woman, deposited in the adventurer bank account.
Lu Chen’s disposable spirit stones now totaled ten thousand three hundred!
“Whew, finally a ten-thousandnaire.”
Besides this, Lu Chen’s tangible assets were:
Level-30 modified ship.
Level-30 treasure-collecting armor.
A phantom cat.
A demon-slaying sword.
A nuclear-powered fishing rod.
A shadow whale pearl fused in his elixir field.
And a level-20 motorboat Gloria had snatched from the Rust Star police, just ridden off.
“Barely over a month, not bad!”
Lu Chen was quite satisfied.
Then he found a ship modification plant.
Spent three hundred spirit stones to have the ship’s spirit pattern framework rewired, personally designing new patterns.
The aim: to allow his spiritual power to flow smoothly to every part of the ship.
Thus, in critical moments, he could diffuse his spiritual energy throughout the vessel, achieving short-term total ship invisibility!
All settled, it was dawn the next day.
Lu Chen piloted his ship back to the royal capital’s central plaza, calling Ellie and Gloria to hurry.
Soon, Gloria returned riding the motorboat.
She was laden with bundles of clothes, cosmetics, and Ellie’s textbooks stacked into a small mountain, needing straps to secure it all.
Ellie handed Lu Chen a big box of pills.
“Captain, here are the pills you wanted. The store gave us a twenty percent discount for being Primitive Star Dome members.”
“Ellie is ever reliable!”
Lu Chen took the pills and asked Gloria:
“You shopped all night and this is all you got?”
Gloria smiled mysteriously.
“That’s plenty—we bought lots of beautiful swimsuits.”
“Huh?”
Lu Chen thought he’d misheard.
“Why would star adventurers need swimsuits?”
“Dummy, this is the Thousand Islands Sea, obviously for playing beach volleyball!”
Gloria roared as she drove the motorboat into the ship’s rear bay.
Lu Chen and Ellie quickly followed.
“Who said anything about beach volleyball?”
Gloria, delighted with her decision:
“You’ll surely catch nothing fishing, so you’ll end up playing with us anyway. The independent sand islands here are unique—we must settle it with a beach volleyball duel!”
(End of chapter)