Chapter 188: Blue Star

After the meal, they all went back to their rooms to rest. They were all physically and mentally exhausted from being so busy.

But Luo Xiaoying didn’t feel tired. In fact, she was incredibly excited.

‘From now on, I’m a department head!’

‘The head of the Bomb Defusal Department, no less! Mom, Dad, and my older siblings would be so happy for me if they knew.’

Filled with excitement, Luo Xiaoying was still buzzing with energy. She opened her Star Ring to make a video call to her parents.

The call connected almost instantly. Upon seeing their daughter, the middle-aged couple immediately choked up.

Heaven knew how worried they had been while watching the live broadcast. They were afraid their daughter wouldn’t be able to complete the mission, afraid she would die on S12 Star.

After the bomb was successfully defused, the two of them had wanted her to leave the service and come home. It was just too dangerous.

Their family might be a little poor, but at least she wouldn’t be risking her life.

“Mom, Dad, I have some great news to tell you!” Luo Xiaoying said excitedly.

“What great news?”

“I’m going to be a department head! Not only that, I’m also going to the Capital Star!” Luo Xiaoying’s voice rose several notches as she spoke, and it was clear she was truly overjoyed.

‘A department head? Going to the Capital Star?’

For a moment, her parents were stunned.

“So you got promoted?” they asked hurriedly. “And you’re going to work on the Capital Star?”

“Yes!” Luo Xiaoying nodded emphatically. “Once I start earning Star Coins, I’ll bring you both over from C07 Star.”

“Yes, yes, that’s wonderful! Our daughter has really made something of herself.” The two of them shed happy tears. ‘Not only did she survive, but she even got a promotion. This is just wonderful.’

The three of them talked for a long time until, utterly exhausted, Luo Xiaoying passed out on the sofa in the warship’s lounge.

When her parents saw she had fallen asleep, they quietly ended the video call.

Lin Jingjing’s group only stayed on S12 Star for two days before heading back, because Lu Shaoyu had discovered a new lead.

With a new lead, Lin Jingjing and Mo Xuan couldn’t sit still.

They took their team and returned by warship that very evening.

Returning to the Monster Investigation Bureau late that night, Lin Jingjing didn’t even stop to rest and rushed straight to her office, where Lu Shaoyu was already waiting.

“Spit it out,” Lin Jingjing said, her eyes fixed on Lu Shaoyu, urging her to report what she’d found.

“We’ve tracked Huang Bo Lin’s warship to its destination planet,” Lu Shaoyu said, clearing her throat and speaking quickly. “It’s heading to a planet that isn’t recorded in the Empire’s official registry.”

“However, this planet used to have another name: Blue Star.”

Blue Star…

‘Wait—Blue Star!’

Lin Jingjing’s eyes flew wide. ‘Blue Star… could it be *the* Blue Star I’m thinking of?’

“Do you have a picture of the planet?” Lin Jingjing shot up from her seat, her eyes as wide as saucers, her voice audibly trembling.

Lu Shaoyu was startled by her reaction, noticing the look of tense anticipation on Lin Jingjing’s face.

‘Is it because she’s just that excited?’

“I do…” Lu Shaoyu replied, then hurriedly opened her Star Ring to display the image for Lin Jingjing. The moment Lin Jingjing saw the picture, her hands began to tremble uncontrollably, and her voice became choked with emotion.

“It… it really is Blue Star.”

It took Lin Jingjing several minutes to compose herself. Once she had, she managed a smile and said, “Send me that image. And continue with your report.”

Lu Shaoyu nodded, sent the image, and then began to describe the situation.

“Blue Star vanished from cosmic history for over a thousand years. We don’t know how Huang Bo Lin managed to find it and turn it into his secret base.”

“Now that Blue Star is his secret base, it must be teeming with mutant beasts and the other monsters he’s been experimenting on.”

“If we go to Blue Star rashly, we’ll be at a severe disadvantage.”

Lin Jingjing had already started to tune out. Her gaze was fixed on the image, on the blue-and-white planet suspended in the blackness of space.

She could feel her eyes beginning to well up.

Lu Shaoyu continued talking, but when Lin Jingjing didn’t respond, she glanced over and saw that her captain’s eyes were glistening.

They were tears.

Lu Shaoyu’s heart skipped a beat. ‘Why did Captain Lin suddenly start crying?’

‘Did I say something wrong?’

“Captain Lin,” Lu Shaoyu called out softly, “are you all right?”

Lin Jingjing waved a hand. “I’m fine.”

“You can go. Compile your findings into a file and send it to me.”

Lu Shaoyu nodded, thinking Captain Lin was probably just embarrassed and wanted to be alone.

After Lu Shaoyu left, Lin Jingjing’s gaze remained fixed on the image on the large screen. The more she looked, the deeper the sense of connection she felt.

“I never thought I’d see Blue Star again,” Lin Jingjing murmured to herself.

After arriving in this world, they had all searched the Star Network for information about Blue Star.

Unfortunately, despite searching for a long time, they had only found scattered fragments and mentions.

Too much time had passed; the people of this era no longer knew of Blue Star.

Some even denied its existence outright.

The information was scarce and contradictory, making it impossible for them to know for sure if the planet even existed anymore.

But now, seeing the image Lu Shaoyu had shown her, Lin Jingjing was finally certain.

Blue Star was real.

Lin Jingjing raised a hand to wipe the tears from her cheeks. A smile spread across her face; it was clear she was genuinely happy.

“It’s so good that Blue Star still exists,” Lin Jingjing said with a smile.

She forwarded the image to their five-person group chat. The moment she sent it, the chat erupted.

[Shi Feng]: Blue Star?!

[Shi Feng]: Holy crap, that’s home!

[Gu Kaiwen]: Where is it?! What are Blue Star’s coordinates!

[Gu Kaiwen]: I need to go back to Blue Star.

[Feng He]: AHHHHH, SO BLUE STAR IS REAL! DID WE REALLY TRANSMIGRATE TO THE FUTURE INTERSTELLAR ERA?

[Mo Xuan]: It would seem so.

The group went wild in the chat. Just like Lin Jingjing, they were overcome with excitement the moment they saw the picture.

They wished they could go to Blue Star that very second to see their long-lost home.

Lin Jingjing forwarded the file Lu Shaoyu had compiled to the group as well. After opening and reading it, they began spamming the chat with angry emojis, one after another.

[Gu Kaiwen]: Damn it! That’s our planet! How did it become his secret base?!

[Shi Feng]: HE’S SO DEAD. I’M GOING BACK TO BLUE STAR.

[Lin Jingjing]: That’s why we need a solid plan to take Blue Star back!

[Lin Jingjing]: I’m going to be the governor of that planet, and that’s final!

They chatted for who knows how long. The group chat only fell silent as dawn began to break. Each of them lay in bed, staring at the picture.

Their hearts were a maelstrom of emotions. It was so blue, so beautiful.

Just looking at the picture filled them with an overwhelming sense of familiarity.

Lin Jingjing stared at it for a long, long time before she finally succumbed to her exhaustion and fell asleep.

And as she slept, she once again entered the Spiritual World.

The little animals inside were overjoyed to see Lin Jingjing.

They all scampered over to crowd around her.