Chapter 11: Ning Xia

In addition to alien races, there are also exotic beasts and ancient creatures lurking in the universe.

Therefore, the human race faces a great crisis. In order to survive, humanity on the home planet split into two factions.

One faction is responsible for preserving a pure bloodline, refusing to intermarry with alien races or undergo genetic modification, living in seclusion for generations.

The rest of humanity chose genetic modification and intermarriage with interstellar humans, becoming thoroughly "interstellar humans."

However, they did not expect that while such unions made the talents of the majority stronger, they also left behind drawbacks.

To cut their losses, the Empire drove out a large portion of humans with chaotic bloodlines, leaving behind only those with stronger beast-race genetic traits.

As for the group that was driven out, they pioneered and reclaimed many habitable planets, establishing the Federation.

From then on, the two major human powers stood in opposition.

When confronting exotic beasts or ancient cosmic creatures, they could cooperate, but in times of peace, the arguments never ceased.

The Empire’s beast-race bloodline is strong, but their development of mental power is relatively weak; their strength lies in physical ability.

While Federation citizens can also undergo beast-transformation, they have never been able to fully utilize this ability to its 100% potential. Ultimately, it is because the energy within their flesh and blood has not been fully developed.

However, their mental power development has reached its peak; the current Marshal of the Federation is a young male with SSS-level mental power.

The two sides look down on each other.

The Empire considers Federation citizens to be "mongrels"—yes, that is exactly how insulting the term is.

After all, the most primitive genetic strains of the beast race all live in the Empire.

Meanwhile, Federation citizens look down on the Empire’s imperial power and bloodline-supremacist ways, feeling that they live too luxuriously and comfortably, lacking any grit.

In short, the conflict is long-standing.

In this song, Lan Yuyan saw a peaceful and prosperous age, a scene where elders cherished the young and the young respected the elders.

Thinking of his own parents, he, who had not felt tears for many years, suddenly felt a stinging sensation in his nose.

He used his optical computer to dial a number.

A young voice came through the line, "Brother Lan, do you have any instructions?"

"Help me look up the contact information for Miss Jiang Qin, who is ranked 73rd on the new song chart."

"Received!"

After hanging up the optical computer, Lan Yuyan listened to the song several more times. He had a premonition that this little female would definitely become a hit.

If he didn't have the time, he would have wanted to buy a spaceship ticket to Blue Star to hear a live version.

***

At this moment, Jiang Qin was just stepping onto the stage.

She was surprised to see that almost all the booths in the bar were full.

What was going on?

Was the bar having a promotion? It couldn't possibly be because of the song she had uploaded only a few hours ago, could it?

However, she adapted quickly. After all, back on Earth, many internet-famous spots were like this; once they became popular, they would be packed with people.

She guessed that their bar had now become an interstellar internet-famous spot.

After settling her emotions, she raised her slender hands, her fingertips dancing leisurely on the black and white keys, and her red lips parted slightly.

"A tranquil summer, The sky is dotted with stars, There is a longing in my heart, Longing for your face..."

An Zeyu had also come tonight, and at the request of his fans, he had started a live stream.

He was currently sitting in the booth closest to the stage, squinting his eyes and swirling the drink in his hand.

[With this atmosphere, even the inhibitors in this cheap little bar seem high-class. If you didn't know better, you'd think this was some high-end club.]

[Brother Yu is really putting on a show.]

[What are cicadas?]

[Heh, don't you know? Let me educate you all. Cicadas are an ancient type of insect belonging to the Cicadidae family. That's right, they are the same as the Zerg today that have big wings and can attack you with sonic waves.]

[...Hiss, cicadas? Never mind then.]

[Okay, as someone who has half a foot in summer, I suddenly feel a chill all over, as if it's suddenly winter.]

[The cicadas in ancient times weren't like that. Haven't you watched the documentaries? Low houses with red bricks and white walls, two big trees in front of the door, a summer afternoon, cicadas chirping, a bamboo rocking chair swaying inside the house, and a radio telling stories.]

"The sky is dotted with stars, There is a longing in my heart, Longing for your face, I can pretend not to see, Or I can secretly miss you..."

As Jiang Qin entered the zone, her mental power began to radiate, and the males around her immediately felt a sense of clarity and refreshment.

They felt as if they were experiencing first love.

It was green, romantic, and innocent...

On a summer night, the stars in the sky twinkled, the cicadas chirped, and a girl tasting love for the first time lay on her bed, sweetly missing her lover.

Everything was silent, only the heart was stirring.

Looking at Jiang Qin on stage, wearing a floral dress with her hair braided and hanging down, everyone felt as if they could hear the sound of their own heartbeats.

Thump, thump, thump—one beat after another.

A mix of bitterness and pain, intertwined with a hint of sweetness and joy.

You Wei clutched his chest with a complex expression.

He knew, of course, that he hadn't fallen in love with Jiang Qin; after all, he had once had a deeply cherished lover, and he had only ever been moved by her in his life.

But he was experiencing the taste of love right now.

Because Jiang Qin's singing had once again drawn their mental seas into her mental world.

Everyone was empathizing with her emotions.

It was a very cheerful song, Jiang Qin's voice was very sweet, and the affection in the lyrics was pure, without any distress.

The reason they felt bitterness and pain was due to their own issues.

When interstellar people hear such pure emotions, their first reaction is bitterness and sorrow, because most of them have never experienced such feelings.

They were categorized the moment they were born, and defined even further after awakening at age three. Many males have never experienced the taste of love.

What they have more of is weighing pros and cons, and responsibility.

As the last note fell, Jiang Qin smiled and said, "This song is called 'Ningxia'."

"Little female, I love you!!!" A heart-wrenching shout came from one of the booths.

His companion immediately covered his mouth, pinned him down, and apologized awkwardly, "I'm sorry, he might be drunk on inhibitors. I'll drag him away immediately."

Daring to flirt with a female in public—his friend was likely courting death. At this moment, he just wanted to save his friend's life.

Jiang Qin wasn't angry.

After all, she had been a celebrity in her first life, and there were many times when she was chased by fans saying they loved her.

However, because she was young, most fans would shout things like "Daughter, Mommy loves you," or "Daughter, Daddy loves you," or "Brother/Sister loves you."

So she knew this male had no malicious intent; it was just the feeling of a fan getting carried away.

Seeing the man's anxious expression, she smiled and said, "It's okay, I know you don't have any malicious intent. But could you call me by my name next time? I don't really like being called 'little female.' By the way, my name is Jiang Qin."

Even though she was a beast-race female, it still felt a bit strange.