To Freedom Star, both Zhong Yun and Qin Liuxing cheered, finally escaping the monotonous life of being confined to a small space. Even Zhong Yun, with his tenacious nerves, felt his spirit flagging from the drudgery of those days.

After they moved into the ultra-luxurious suite, Zhong Yun lay back with contentment, murmuring, "Finally, I can roll around without restraint." "Ten thousand stars to Freedom Star," came Qin Liuxing's shriek from another room. Indeed, without Freedom Star, they didn't know how much longer they would have been stuck in that cramped cockpit.

Hearing Qin Liuxing's outburst, Zhong Yun smiled faintly, yet a question began to stir in his mind: why did the advanced civilizations still permit the existence of Freedom Star? Information about Freedom Star surfaced in his memory.

Freedom Star was a profoundly unique place, unique because of the very word 'Freedom.' It belonged to neither advanced civilizations nor those of the mid-to-low tiers. It was an untamed territory, ignored by all.

In fact, Freedom Star served as a bridge connecting advanced civilizations with those of the middle and lower stages. The laws established by the Cosmic Federation prohibited direct communication between intermediate civilizations of different stages, and also between intermediate and advanced civilizations.

Ostensibly, this was to preserve the unique characteristics of each civilization, but Zhong Yun harbored deep suspicion regarding the true motives of the thirteen Arbitrating Nations when they enacted this law. Progress only came through exchange; even an Earthling understood that simple truth.

Claiming preservation of unique civilization traits was pure nonsense. As beneficiaries, the advanced civilizations naturally did not wish for more nations to compete with them; it was their method of ensuring their dominant position.

While the universe's resources were supposedly infinite, the emergence of more advanced civilizations meant one more competitor, and thus, one more danger. From the perspective of the advanced nations, imposing restrictions on intermediate civilizations was perfectly logical.

Yet, Freedom Star was the exception. Here, regardless of one's nation, as long as one possessed sufficient wealth, many restricted items could be acquired—perhaps a technology exceeding one's national tier, mechas, or even warships.

If one wished to help their nation skip several years of development, this place was a shortcut through Zhongnan Mountain. Here, energy was the universal currency, and Origin Stones were the hard currency.

However, many intermediate civilizations were impoverished. Zhong Yun remembered how, back when the Hongxian Federation had just advanced to the second stage of intermediate civilization, he had only managed to find a mere handful of Origin Stones in the national treasury.

Previously, Zhong Yun assumed Freedom Star was a channel deliberately maintained by the thirteen Arbitrating Nations, or perhaps even established by them. But now, it seemed things were far more complicated.

Engaging in such smuggling operations, every Freedom Star should be rolling in riches. Yet, during the advanced civilizations' 'Hunting Campaigns' of the previous few years, Freedom Star had not been purged, which was truly astonishing.

Take the Freedom Star where Zhong Yun was currently situated—it fell within the sphere of influence of the Red Feather Federation. That the Red Feather Federation allowed its existence was utterly peculiar.

Not only did this Freedom Star persist, but it flourished increasingly. Amidst the gruesome 'Hunting Campaigns,' Freedom Star became a sanctuary, a haven where countless survivors from intermediate civilizations flocked.

And the vast majority of these refugees were wealthy individuals. Zhong Yun grew more convinced that these Freedom Stars were anything but simple.

He had overlooked this aspect before; he should engage with them upon his return. Musing for a while, Zhong Yun slowly drifted off to sleep.

He slept for a full ten hours. Upon waking, he felt completely refreshed, his vital energy fully restored.

He roused Qin Liuxing, who was sleeping in the adjoining room, "Come to the main hall." "What is it? You have to call me now," Qin Liuxing grumbled, yawning as he reluctantly got up.

This was the best sleep he'd had in months, and being woken felt deeply irritating. However, he dared not disobey Brother Yun, so he threw on his clothes and headed to the hall.

Seeing Brother Yun already seated there, he asked, "Brother Yun, what's the matter?" "Take out your sister's crystal coffin," Zhong Yun said, calmly retrieving a stack of vials and bottles from his mecha key and placing them on the table before him. Qin Liuxing froze at the request.

He retrieved a crescent-shaped mecha key from his person—it contained an eight-star mecha left by his father, though his current strength was insufficient to pilot it. His sister's crystal coffin was stored within.

He brought out the crystal coffin and knelt before it. Looking through the transparent lid, the Second Miss Qin rested peacefully, as if merely asleep.

Qin Liuxing traced the surface of the coffin lid, his eyes reddening. "There is something I have kept hidden from you," Zhong Yun's voice broke the silence.

Qin Liuxing wiped his eyes and looked at him, his expression puzzled. "My name is not Yun Zhongyu, and naturally, I am not an adventurer," Zhong Yun replied with an air of ease, yet his eyes were fixed intently on Qin Liuxing's face.

"Ah?" Qin Liuxing exclaimed in surprise. "Then Brother Yun...

what is your real name?" "My real name is Zhong Yun, and my true identity is that of an emperor of a nation." "Ah!" Qin Liuxing cried out joyfully. "Brother Yun became an emperor so young!" Seeing that there was no pretense in his reaction, clearly coming from the heart, Zhong Yun finally broke into a smile.

"I concealed my identity out of necessity; it wasn't to deceive you intentionally." Qin Liuxing waved it off carelessly. "I understand." To him, what Brother Yun was called, or what his status was, mattered little.

He had already betrayed the Qin family and likely could never return to the Andu Empire. However, he felt not a shred of longing for the Qin family or the Andu Empire.

In this world, apart from his deceased grandfather, only his sister and Brother Yun had treated him with genuine kindness. Since his sister had passed, naturally, he would follow Brother Yun.

Therefore, whether Brother Yun was called 'Yun' or 'Zhong Yun'; whether he was an adventurer or an emperor—it made no difference. His gaze fell upon the collection of vials and bottles on the table before Zhong Yun, and he asked curiously, "What are these things?" "These are for waking your sister up," Zhong Yun's attention had already returned to the bottles on the table.

Qin Liuxing's mind buzzed; he thought he had misheard. He grasped the edge of the table.

"Brother Yun, you... you said wh...

what?" Zhong Yun looked up, meeting his eyes, a smile playing on his lips as he spoke each word deliberately: "Your sister... she is not dead." Like a bolt of lightning striking overhead, Qin Liuxing stood stunned.

The news was too shocking; his mind went blank for several seconds. In a dizzy spell, he regained clarity, his entire body trembling uncontrollably.

"Tell... tell me, Brother Yun, you...

you aren't lying." Qin Liuxing panted, his eyes blazing with an almost unbearable hope. Zhong Yun nodded solemnly.

Qin Liuxing suddenly shot to his feet and rushed to the crystal coffin. "Sister, wake up, Sister..." After calling out several times, he turned back to stare at Zhong Yun.

"Brother Yun, why isn't my sister waking up?" "Once she consumes this potion, she will wake up immediately," Zhong Yun said, mixing over ten different reagents to yield a small vial of colorless, transparent liquid, which he gently swirled. Then he stood up and walked to the crystal coffin.

Qin Liuxing quickly moved aside, craning his neck to watch, his face etched with anxiety. Zhong Yun opened the lid and carefully poured the potion into the Second Miss Qin's mouth.

He placed one hand on her forehead, and a ring of violet light began to glow beneath his palm, enveloping the Second Miss Qin's body. After a moment, the violet light retracted, and Zhong Yun pulled his hand back, focusing on her face.

Qin Liuxing waited on the side, burning with impatience. Having witnessed the entire process, he wanted to ask if it was done, but he dared not speak, terrified of interrupting him and causing the effort to fail.

Suddenly, the serene eyebrows on the Second Miss Qin's face twitched slightly. With a soft moan, she opened her eyes.

"Ah—" Qin Liuxing clamped a hand tightly over his mouth, looking in disbelief at the familiar eyes he thought would never open again. "So hungry," was the Second Miss Qin's first utterance upon waking.

"Only this?" Looking at the bowl of thick, sticky rice porridge Zhong Yun presented, the Second Miss Qin's eyes widened, displaying utter incredulity. She felt capable of eating an entire ox, and she was deeply incensed by this man's stinginess.

"Sister, I'll go buy you lots more good food," Qin Liuxing eagerly prepared to bolt out the door. His sister was miraculously alive again, filling him with an explosive joy, and he volunteered immediately to fetch provisions.

Zhong Yun grabbed him back and told the Second Miss Qin, "You can only eat this." Seeing Zhong Yun's insistence, Qin Liuxing dared not argue, only glancing apologetically at his sister. The Second Miss Qin reluctantly took the bowl and began to sip the porridge in small mouthfuls, pouting and muttering under her breath, "Vile brute, stinking brute..." Zhong Yun acted as if he hadn't heard.

Despite her extreme hunger, the Second Miss Qin ate with elegant delicacy. Soon, the bowl of porridge was empty, and she held the empty bowl up to Zhong Yun, her eyes filled with longing.

"More?" Zhong Yun inquired. The Second Miss Qin nodded vigorously, like a chick pecking grain.

Zhong Yun took the bowl and walked into the kitchen. Seeing Zhong Yun leave, Qin Liuxing leaned closer and whispered, "Sister, don't blame Brother Yun.

He seems harsh on the surface, but he's actually very good to you." The Second Miss Qin rolled her eyes. That brute was deliberately tormenting her; she wouldn't believe he was good to her if he were to swear on it.

When Qin Liuxing saw her disbelief, he said, "This porridge was cooked by him personally." "Ah?" The Second Miss Qin paused in surprise. Just then, Zhong Yun turned back from the kitchen, the bowl in his hand emitting wisps of hot steam.

This second bowl seemed subtly different from the first. As the Second Miss Qin ate, her mind grew hazy, and a memory of that night surfaced...

That night, Zhong Yun had suddenly materialized in her room, startling her badly. She thought he intended some foul play and was about to scream, only to find herself completely paralyzed.

Just as she despaired, thinking she could not escape his clutches, he spoke a single sentence: "If you don't want to marry Young Master Zhao, I can help you?" She had frozen at his words, then nodded almost without hesitation. She loathed that man surnamed Zhao to an extreme degree; she would rather die than marry him.

"You are willing to pay any price? Including severing ties with the Qin family?" Zhong Yun's voice was like that of a demon.

Her body trembled. Recalling the Qin family that had birthed and raised her, she hesitated.

However, the scene from earlier flashed through her mind—the words of Uncle Bai, who had always shown her great affection: "As a member of the Qin family, you must dedicate everything to the clan, whether you wish it or not." At that moment, she finally understood: no matter what she had done for the Qin family, in their eyes, she was merely a tool. Her gaze hardened; she nodded without reservation.

Afterward, Zhong Yun left her with a vial of medicine, instructing her, "Write a will, then drink this, making it look like suicide. You may not trust me, but this is your last chance." With that, Zhong Yun departed as lightly as a phantom.

In a moment of bewitchment, she had actually drunk the contents, even though it came from her enemy. She couldn't fathom why she had obeyed him.

But clearly, she had succeeded. First published.