Lan Li nearly leaped from the tree, thankfully stopping himself before the movement sent him tumbling back down. Had he moved, he would have fallen from that ten-meter height, splattering into a pancake before any rescue could arrive.

The tension in his chest eased. He peered down from the treetop, but seeing no one, the relief overwhelmed his exhausted body. Moments later, he drifted into unconsciousness.

When Lan Li next opened his eyes, he found himself swathed as if he were a mummy, lying on a rack.

It wasn't truly a bed, just a makeshift frame constructed from a few iron bars, topped with a plank—the very definition of destitution.

A hero fallen on hard times.

Lan Li thought internally. His body was bound so tightly that, save for his eyes, he couldn't move an inch, feeling as if his body wasn't even his own.

Annoyed, he strained, attempting to roll over.

"Ah, the pain!" The sharp sting faithfully relayed by his brain made him cry out.

Lan Li sulked inwardly; he truly hated crying out in pain—it was so humiliating.

Just then, he heard footsteps.

Lan Li managed to turn his head slightly. A youth, dark-skinned and draped in a drab, grayish piece of coarse linen, walked in. Lan Li frowned again. Was this some feral child from an undeveloped planet?

Lan Li stubbornly tried to ignore the situation, deciding to feign sleep.

The linen-clad youth glanced at him, his eyes deep and black. "If you're awake, keep your eyes open."

Lan Li felt an instantaneous flush of embarrassment, as if pierced by a sudden realization. He opened his eyes and looked sheepishly at the youth.

The linen youth reached out and pressed down on him, right on the spot that had been crushed against the tree. As the youth applied pressure, Lan Li nearly burst into tears.

"Pain!" Lan Li managed to gasp out, his face scrunched up around his eyes, nose, and mouth.

"Oh, not bad. I thought you'd be a complete mummy," the linen-clad youth quipped. Seeing the tears welling in Lan Li’s eyes, he unexpectedly smiled. "Don't cry. Anyone else in this state would have died already; you're lucky." As the boy spoke, he picked up a grimy, perhaps unwashed piece of cloth nearby, dampened it, and gently wiped Lan Li’s chapped lips.

Lan Li desperately wanted to turn his head away in disgust, but moving even that much was difficult in his current state. He could only passively allow the linen youth to use the soiled rag to clean his mouth, his eyes radiating resentment and revulsion.

The linen youth finished his task and walked out again.

"Pah, pah." Lan Li loathed the taste of the water that had touched his lips, but he was far too dry; the moisture had long been absorbed. He could only console himself internally. "I was such an idiot just now! Why didn't I tell him to send me to the Starfield Hospital? If I stay in this place any longer, my injuries might worsen, and I really could die!"

Lan Li muttered to himself for a while, but the linen youth didn't return.

A loud alarm blared in his mind.

What if this linen youth was in league with the Overlord Pirates? What if he was pretending to rescue him, only to bind him like a mummy so he couldn't escape? Then they could threaten the Lan Clan for ransom...

This thought sent Lan Li into a fit of anxiety. When the linen youth finally walked back in, Lan Li was already drenched in sweat. "Little brother, could you trouble yourself to take me to the Starfield Hospital?"

"Hospital? There's no such thing here." The linen youth stared at Lan Li as if he were an alien specimen. "This is a junction planet between the Angel Star Domain and the Pirate Star Domain. Both sides call it the Devil Planet. Hardly anyone comes here. A doctor was once kidnapped here; he died within three months."

Lan Li: (* ⊙ o ⊙ *)? "Devil Planet?"

It sounded terrifying.

The Devil Planet had too infamous a reputation. Someone from the Lan Clan had perished there once, back when he was small; he only remembered the steward mentioning it once.

He couldn't believe he was currently on the Devil Planet.

This meant the linen youth before him was a resident of the Devil Planet?

Lan Li suddenly felt immense respect for him.

A youth who could survive on the Devil Planet must be incredibly formidable!

Rumor had it that the Devil Planet was extraordinarily rich in resources. Many had tried to colonize it, but none had ever returned alive.

Later, a biologist stumbled upon the place accidentally and wrote numerous chronicles. After his death, a scholar acquired these writings, finally peeling back a corner of the Devil Planet's true nature—its myriad of horrifying and bizarre flora and fauna.

The Devil Planet's true danger lay in its invisible traps: things unseen and unfelt, yet seemingly omnipresent. Armies sent to mine resources would mysteriously vanish in entire platoons, let alone ordinary resource extraction teams.

Eventually, due to the planet's strategic location, various factions kept a close watch. To quell interstellar disputes, the Unified Command took control of the vital transportation lanes leading to the Devil Planet.

The linen youth said, "Yes, if it weren't for the local plants, those burns you sustained would have finished you off long ago."

Lan Li: "..."

His eyes shone with brilliant light as he gazed at the linen youth, brimming with adoration.

Before, he had only perceived the youth as dirty, dark, and lacking refinement. Now, he saw him differently: a superb skeletal structure, neither too thin nor too stout, eyes full of vitality, perfectly toned arm muscles, and an ineffable aura.

The linen youth felt a chill under the directness of Lan Li's gaze. "Master is calling me." With that, he turned and walked out of the room.

After he left, Lan Li pondered. Based on this alone, it was impossible for the youth to live so casually on the Devil Planet. The exploratory forces sent by various legions were all composed of individuals supremely gifted in both wisdom and courage.

Yet, no one else had come to check on him.

The youth had just mentioned his "Master." Could his Master be some great figure? Yes, that must be it.

He recalled his grandfather saying that the Solar Star Domain held many reclusive masters who could single-handedly contend with mechs or even small battleships using only their physical bodies. Could his Master be one of them?

He yearned to witness such power!

The more Lan Li thought, the more certain he became. Subconsciously, he tried to nod in agreement, but the movement jarred a nerve, eliciting another yelp of pain.

Alas, if only he could step out of this room to see what the Devil Planet looked like.

Never mind. He needed to deal with his injuries first.

The high temperatures had severely burned his skin.

He could only remain on the rack, enduring the daily creak the plank made whenever he managed to turn over, feeling like a mummy. He often harbored the terrifying thought that the plank might crack one day, turning him into a tumbling gourd...

A month of torment passed in this manner.

Every day, the linen youth diligently changed his dressings, brought him food, and assisted him with bodily functions on the rack.

At first, Lan Li was utterly humiliated and furious.

How could he allow himself to be naked in front of another person?

But the linen youth showed absolutely no reaction, viewing his body and his small appendage with the detachment one reserves for a slab of pork.

The young master Lan Li was once again profoundly depressed. Was he truly that pitiful?

The linen youth was a man of few words. The only thing he divulged was his name: An Junlie.

An Junlie had a Master whose name was unknown. He was reportedly an interstellar nomad, frequently drifting between various star domains, rarely staying in one place for more than three or four weeks. It was only because of Lan Li’s incident that he had lingered on the Devil Planet for this long.

An Junlie’s taciturn nature was unbearable for the young master Lan Li. So, he incessantly chattered about the Lan Clan, interesting tales from space, the political struggles between various legions, and his encounters with pirate bands.

An Junlie listened and finally offered a comment: "The Overlord Pirate Group? Never heard of them. Are they formidable?"

Lan Li was so enraged he wished he could spring off the rack and beat the insolent youth.

Hateful fellow, so tactless.

He argued defensively, "They had huge numbers! I was in one mech, fighting so many of them alone—that’s impressive, isn't it?"

An Junlie paused for a moment of contemplation. "My Master’s highest recorded achievement was taking down six battleships single-handedly."

Lan Li snapped, "Your Master is your Master!"

An Junlie pointed a finger. "My highest record is four frigates taken down by myself."

Lan Li: "...Are you trying to end our friendship?"

An Junlie shot him a sidelong glance and turned, exiting the room.

Watching his retreating figure, Lan Li thought wistfully that if he hadn't fallen to this planet, if he hadn't met An Junlie, he might still be an arrogant fool who didn't know the immensity of the world.

There is always a higher mountain beyond the mountain, and a better person beyond the person—this saying was undeniably true.

Lan Li silently clenched his fists. In the future, he, too, would strive to become incredibly powerful, just like An Junlie's Master!

Recently, his body had improved significantly. He could now roll over on his own. From that position, he could see the room's door and the trees outside, but not the ground below.

He suspected the room he was in was located high up in a colossal tree!

Lan Li desperately wanted to venture out and confirm this. As his health improved, he grew eager. Now, he was simply waiting for An Junlie to bring his medicine and tell him when he could finally get off the rack.

However, this day, An Junlie was unusually late.

Lan Li waited, cycling from hopeful expectation to disappointment, then to helplessness, and finally, consumed by the terror of hunger, he prayed to the heavens for An Junlie to arrive quickly.

Simultaneously, darker thoughts began to creep into his mind.

The Devil Star System was horrifying. What if An Junlie had ventured out and fallen into an unknown fissure, or encountered some ferocious local creature?

He longed to leap up immediately and go search for him.

The sky was already darkening.

Lan Li lay pitifully on the rack, resembling an abandoned puppy, tears shimmering in his eyes. He resolved that if An Junlie didn't return, their friendship was over!

Just then, An Junlie appeared in the doorway.

To give him more space, An Junlie usually left that door ajar.

When An Junlie’s linen-clad silhouette filled the entrance, Lan Li’s tears nearly burst forth. Damn it, he had waited an entire day, nearly starving this young master to death.

But before he could utter a complaint, he noticed An Junlie's expression was gravely wrong.

An Junlie didn't even carry the food tray.

There was a fierce glint in An Junlie's eyes, mixed with an indescribable sorrow.

Lan Li was startled and immediately swallowed his complaints. "Hey, An Junlie, what's wrong?"