Chapter 85: Sunburn and Fishing
At every city gate, loudspeakers played the same announcement on an endless loop.
“Attention, Dazzling Star residents. Please take precautions against sunburn. Wear your sun-protective jackets and avoid exposing large areas of skin to direct sunlight. Attention, Dazzling Star residents. Please take precautions against sunburn…”
The broadcast was loud, yet not a single Dazzling Star resident paid it any heed.
Even though stretching an arm into the sunlight quickly turned their fair skin pink, bringing a faint stinging sensation, every silver-haired, pale-eyed Dazzling Star resident still reveled in the sunshine, letting its rays bathe their bodies without restraint.
Fortunately, the announcers were long accustomed to it.
After all, whenever they broadcast, “All residents, please prioritize your own safety in battle. It’s better to bring back fewer prey than to come home with more wounds,” none of the Blue Sea people listened to that either.
The good news was that, while most Dazzling Star adults would rather endure the sting of sunburn than keep their skin covered, they refused to let the children do the same.
“Sylvia, Julian… Don’t take off your sun-protective clothing. Put it back on properly. You’ll get sunburned!”
Twenty-five-year-old Liam tried his best to put on a stern expression as he scolded the two eleven- or twelve-year-old children.
The three youngsters obediently pulled their arms back into their UV-protective jackets.
“But your arms are uncovered too.”
Keeping a straight face, Liam replied,
“That’s because we’re adults. Our skin is rougher than yours, so we’re not as afraid of the sun.”
It was a lie, of course.
Blue Sea had long since thoroughly studied the physiology of the Dazzling Star people. Perhaps as an adaptation to the cold, they were born with exceptionally fine, thin outer skin. Their skin retained moisture extremely well and aged very slowly. Whether children or adults, whether they spent their days doing hard labor or not, their skin remained delicate and remarkably soft.
In theory, people with such genetics ought to be highly sensitive to sunlight.
Yet, at least for now, every Dazzling Star resident greeted the sun with overwhelming enthusiasm. Simply feeling the warmth of their new environment was enough to fill them with excitement.
Liam gazed at the dazzling sun, his eyes nearly filling with tears.
Everything about this felt nothing short of miraculous.
When the sudden blizzard and catastrophic drop in temperature had wiped out their family, Liam—being the oldest among the younger generation—had borne the responsibility of keeping his younger siblings, nieces, and nephews alive.
He had been chosen as the family’s protector.
Normally, the families scattered across Dazzling Star rarely interacted with one another. But if a family was destroyed for some reason, other families would usually be willing to take in its orphaned children.
Adults, however, were a different matter. Grown men and women were seen as potential threats.
At most, another family might accept one or two adults.
So whenever a family on Dazzling Star found itself facing a disaster that was unlikely to spare most of its members, everyone would choose a single adult to serve as the protector. Under the cover of the family’s final stand, that protector would escape with the children and make for the nearest neighboring family.
But back then, Liam had led more than a dozen children through every nearby region they could reach…
…and never found another living Dazzling Star resident.
Not one.
Every single family had been wiped out.
Liam had no idea when they had fallen. The endless snow and thick ice had buried all traces of what had happened.
They wandered for what felt like an eternity, exhausting every last scrap of food and every drop of water, yet still failed to find a single survivor—or even one building left standing.
Outwardly, Liam had remained calm, reassuring the others.
But inside, despair had already begun to take root.
He knew that their most likely fate was to collapse into the endless snow…
…and never rise again.
Then, everything had turned into something that felt like a dream.
A train burst through the raging blizzard, arriving before them and carrying them away.
Inside the train were warmth, food, clean water…
…and countless other Dazzling Star people.
As the train carried them into that vast city—so magnificent it seemed like a miracle itself—the howling blizzard that could once be heard even from the warmth of shelter disappeared completely.
Something had changed.
The train attendants removed the heating equipment from the carriage and slid the doors open.
One of the Blue Sea attendants smiled and said,
“Looks like we’ve arrived somewhere warm.”
It was a kind of warmth Liam had never experienced before.
Not the warmth of bundling up in thick layers—where you weren’t cold, but your body always felt weighed down.
Nor the warmth of a heated room, where the constant heat made you drowsy and left every breath feeling a little stifled.
This was a gentle warmth that let you take off your winter coat, peel away layer after layer of clothing, and fill your whole body with an inexplicable sense of ease.
Dear God…
During the journey, Liam had listened as the train attendants explained that they were traveling to the Kingdom of God and that they worshipped a great Creator God.
At the time, he had been bewildered.
He was still trying to process everything he had heard, feeling that he would need time to understand it all.
But the moment sunlight poured into the train…
Liam became one of God’s faithful.
God had saved them.
God had taken them in.
God had brought them to this magnificent world, where miracles could be found everywhere.
Only after stepping off the train did Liam learn that, while they had remained safely aboard, a war had been raging outside.
Unease immediately gripped him.
He should have been fighting.
Even back on Dazzling Star, if he joined another family as an adult, he would have had to prove his courage and fearlessness in battle.
Newcomers always had to work harder to earn their place.
Yet Blue Sea had kept them securely sheltered far behind the front lines the entire time.
“What? You want to fight in the war?”
When Liam volunteered to get off the train and join the battle, the black-haired conductor burst into laughter.
“Kid, just look at yourself. You’ve gone hungry for at least three days. Look how pale you are. I’d bet you haven’t had a proper meal in a month. Sending you onto the battlefield would be no different from murder.”
Liam pressed his lips together.
“Then… what can I do? We just drank so much hot water and ate biscuits. How am I supposed to repay that?”
The conductor gently patted him on the shoulder.
“You don’t have to repay it. That was all free. It’s relief food. Everyone we rescue is entitled to a share.”
Liam stood there in a daze.
He couldn’t understand.
To the people of Dazzling Star, food was unimaginably precious. Aside from one’s parents or other immediate family, even relatives would only lend each other food—they would never simply give it away for free.
“B-But why?” he asked, still trying to make sense of it. “The lady earlier said food is precious here too.”
The conductor smiled.
“We’re all followers of our Creator God. No matter how precious food is, how could it ever be more important than a person’s life?”
Once again, Liam found himself confronted with something he couldn’t quite understand.
But it didn’t take long for him to realize that, in Blue Sea…
…followers were the same as family.
That was why a newcomer like him, who possessed absolutely nothing, could still qualify for a government loan, receiving enough contribution points to support himself for two months before he had done a single day’s work.
That was why children under fifteen, like Julian and Sylvia, could attend school free of charge. Even if Liam and the other guardians were unable to raise them, the Blue Sea government would take responsibility for bringing the children up.
That was why…
…they had a family once more.
Liam had been staring at the sunlight for so long that tears welled up in his eyes.
He lowered his head and quietly wiped them away.
By now, he knew they were on a world called Green Billow Star.
It was a place filled with both danger and opportunity. Bringing its abundant resources back to Blue Sea would make their city even stronger.
Blue Sea did not require every resident to venture out on expeditions. Instead, it simply opened volunteer registration.
Many Blue Sea residents assumed that the physically weaker Dazzling Star people would mostly choose to remain safely within the sanctuary.
In reality, however, a great many of them signed up.
There were several reasons for this.
For one, the people of Dazzling Star absolutely loved Green Billow Star’s environment. The temperature alone was enough to make them long for the world.
For another, their so-called “weakness” existed only in comparison to the people of Blue Sea. They had grown up in a world where survival depended on hunting. Why would they be afraid of venturing into the wilderness?
Moreover, Dazzling Star people were naturally devoted to protecting their families and caring for their loved ones. After becoming part of Blue Sea, they quickly realized that, with the city’s current territory, it was impossible to be completely self-sufficient.
Only by bringing back large quantities of resources from the outside world could Blue Sea maintain its residents’ current standard of living.
That was a way of life they were already familiar with.
Back on Dazzling Star, they had also needed to gather resources—such as item cards—from outside every single day just to survive.
Far from being afraid, they were eager to get started.
After all, life on Dazzling Star had never offered conditions this favorable.
Not only could they set out with full stomachs, but the elderly and the children could remain safely in the rear. Even if they returned empty-handed, Blue Sea would still ensure they had enough to live on.
They, too, wanted to contribute more to their new family and help make it stronger.
Liam was one of them.
In his eyes, there was no question that his younger siblings, nieces, and nephews should stay safely behind the front lines.
They were still too young.
His oldest younger sister was only fifteen—still of school age in Blue Sea. Although the harsh realities of the apocalypse meant she would have to combine her studies with part-time work, to Liam, that was already a wonderfully happy life.
Now that more than a dozen of his loved ones could live safely in the rear, Liam believed it was his responsibility to venture out, gather resources, bring them back to the family, and do his part to make Blue Sea stronger.
The reason he deliberately exposed his arms to the sun, enduring the stinging sensation, wasn’t simply because he longed for sunlight.
He wanted to find out whether Green Billow Star’s sunlight would affect his ability to function, and whether his skin would gradually adapt after prolonged exposure.
Liam was certain the other Dazzling Star people were thinking the same thing.
They were hunters.
Having arrived in a brand-new hunting ground, it was only natural to first survey the environment and learn everything they could about it.
The children, however, were much more innocent than the adults.
The youngest, Julian, simply couldn’t resist his longing for the sunshine. His amber eyes sparkled as he looked pleadingly at the adults.
“Just for a little while. Please let us stay in the sun for just a little while.”
Sylvia looked up at her older brother with the same hopeful expression.
“Please, Big Brother. Just one minute. We won’t get sunburned.”
Nearby, several Blue Sea residents were stretching and warming up. When they witnessed the scene, their eyes nearly popped out of their heads.
The two Dazzling Star children looked no older than seven or eight by Blue Sea standards. Their silky silver-white hair framed soft, fair little faces, and their large pale eyes seemed to sparkle in the sunlight itself. Watching them quietly tug at the adults’ sleeves and politely beg for permission was enough to melt anyone’s heart.
They weren’t even allowed to stand in the sunshine…
…yet instead of simply yanking off their jackets and sprinting away before the adults could catch them, they obediently and sweetly asked for permission.
The zipper was right there.
They could have reached out and pulled it down in an instant!
Several Blue Sea parents who had brought their own children outside were just beginning to look envious.
Then they glanced down.
Their own kids had already vanished.
The Blue Sea parents: “…”
Looking up again, they saw that the three Blue Sea children had already dashed over to the two Dazzling Star youngsters in the blink of an eye.
“We’ll help you!”
The three Blue Sea children were overflowing with enthusiasm. In one swift motion, they helped the two Dazzling Star kids out of their jackets, then quickly crouched down and hoisted them onto their backs so they could bask in the sunlight more directly.
“How’s this? Can you feel the sun now? Want to be even higher?!”
Liam: “…”
The Blue Sea parents: “…Put those children down right now!!”
Julian and Sylvia were just as bewildered. Feeling the faint sting of sunlight on their skin, they happily squinted their eyes into smiles.
“Thank you. We’ve had enough sun.”
The Blue Sea children blinked.
That fast?
‘Just a little while’ really meant just a little while?
Though puzzled, they obediently set the two Dazzling Star children back on the ground. Then, amid their parents’ furious shouting, they hurriedly helped them put their jackets back on.
“What are you doing?! Dear God! When are you ever going to stop disappearing the instant we look away?! I only blinked and you… Just you wait! I’m telling your father and mother! And your teacher too… I’m so sorry. We truly apologize. The children are all right, aren’t they? They didn’t get sunburned, did they?”
Several burly Blue Sea parents rushed over in a panic, scolding their own children first before apologizing profusely to Liam.
The sheer intensity of their apologies left Liam at a loss.
“N-No, they’re fine. They were only in the sun for ten or twenty seconds. Your children were just trying to help…”
“Really? They’re all right? You’re sure?”
The Blue Sea parents carefully examined the two Dazzling Star children’s complexions. Only after confirming that they were still standing there, lively and perfectly fine, did they finally breathe a sigh of relief.
On average, Dazzling Star people were actually stronger fighters than the Velvet Star people.
The problem was that their appearance was incredibly misleading.
Every one of them had fair skin, spoke gently, possessed mild and unhurried temperaments, and treated everyone with kindness.
From adults to children alike, they all looked so fragile that the Blue Sea parents couldn’t help worrying that their own rambunctious kids might accidentally b*lly the Dazzling Star children without even realizing it.
B*llying the weak was something that, in Blue Sea, would get you nailed to the pillar of shame.
The leading parent rummaged through her pocket and pulled out a paper-wrapped slab of jerky about the size of a palm.
It was nothing fancy—just plain strips of meat, lightly salted and smoke-dried.
She stuffed it straight into Liam’s hands.
Because she felt so guilty, she forgot to control her strength. The force of it actually made Liam stagger backward, and she hurriedly caught him before he could lose his balance.
“I’m so sorry. My younger sister is far too unruly. Please accept this as an apology.”
The other parents stepped forward as well. Some produced the same kind of jerky, some offered signal flares made from snow beast dung, while others took out a handful of candies. Before Liam could even react, they stuffed everything into his arms.
Now suddenly laden with a pile of gifts, Liam’s face flushed bright red.
“N-No, really, you don’t have to! The children were only playing. How could I accept something this valuable? There’s no need—really, there isn’t. This is far too much.”
“You really don’t want them?”
Seeing him refuse, the Blue Sea parents simply took everything back.
Yet as they watched Liam’s reddened face and heard him speaking so softly and politely, their fondness for him shot through the roof.
The Dazzling Star people… are really good-looking.
Strange. They don’t look intimidating at all, but just looking at them somehow makes you feel… comfortable.
The lead parent thought for a moment.
“How about this? You’re heading out to sea too, right? So are we. Why don’t you come with us? Let’s call it making friends after our little misunderstanding.”
Liam had barely finished processing the whirlwind of gifts being thrust into his hands and then taken back…
…when he found himself being invited instead.
Wait…
I don’t think we ever fought. How is this ‘no discord, no concord’?
Before he could make sense of it, the lead parent pointed toward the boat that several of them were carrying.
“We’ve got our own boat, you know. No waiting in line for the public ones~”
Liam hesitated for a moment before nodding shyly.
“Then… I’ll gladly take you up on your offer. Sorry for imposing.”
“Not at all! Not at all!”
The Blue Sea parents cheerfully led Liam along, reminding their own children as they walked,
“The Dazzling Star people have never seen sunlight before. They might get sunburned, so you mustn’t do that again. They could get hurt. Don’t bully them, okay?”
The three Blue Sea children froze for a moment.
One of them reached over and took the two Dazzling Star children’s hands.
“I’m sorry. We didn’t know. Does it hurt?”
The moment their hands were taken, Julian and Sylvia both blushed bright red.
It was the first time they had ever met someone who, upon their very first meeting, held their hands so naturally—someone whose affection for them shone through so openly.
Embarrassed, Sylvia answered in a tiny voice,
“It doesn’t hurt. It wasn’t your fault. We wanted to feel the sunshine ourselves.”
Wow…
The Blue Sea child holding her hand was completely dumbfounded.
I almost got her hurt… and she isn’t even mad at me.
She’s so pretty. So adorable. She’s like one of those little lambs from TV dramas.
The child immediately perked up and made an enthusiastic invitation.
“Let’s go play together! My mom made me lots of fishing rods. I’ll share them with you. Here!”
She handed over several thick, heavy fishing rods.
The moment Sylvia and Julian took them, their wrists sank under the weight. Fortunately, although they felt heavy, they were still light enough for the two of them to carry.
The oldest of the Blue Sea children darted from left to right, then ran ahead of them, bubbling over with excitement.
“My name’s Cheng Anjing! What’s your names?”
“I’m eight years old. How old are you? Have you turned seven yet?”
“Do you know how to fish? Big Sis can teach you! I heard we’re all supposed to catch Holy Bombs when we come out here. Do you know what Holy Bombs are? Look, my big sister has a picture on her phone. They look like this.”
Julian stood there in a daze, feeling as though his ears couldn’t keep up with the flood of words.
Sylvia, being a year older, managed to respond to a few of the questions.
“I’m twelve… so I think I’m the big sister.”
“Oh!”
Cheng Anjing answered brightly,
“Then Little Sis will teach you!”
“Look! You just do this—throw the hook into the water like this!”
One moment, Sylvia saw Cheng Anjing standing in front of her.
The next, Cheng Anjing had already swung Sylvia’s fishing rod and cast the hook into the water for her.
…When did she even pull the rod back?
Before Sylvia could process what had happened, the fishing rod in her hands suddenly jerked downward with tremendous force.
She nearly lost her grip.
Fortunately, Cheng Anjing quickly grabbed the rod together with her.
“Big Sis!! Come help me! We’ve got a big one!!”
Ten minutes later, with the combined efforts of the Blue Sea parents…
…a Holy Bomb was hauled ashore.
Along that stretch of coast, more than a hundred Blue Sea residents had been waiting in line for boats. Out of boredom, many of them had been idly “fishing” with their rods while they waited. They had all been craning their necks to watch the commotion.
Then, almost at the same moment…
Every single one of them felt a heavy tug on the line in their hands.
“Quick! Someone help! I can’t hold it!”
“Over here! Over here!!”
There was no way the Blue Sea residents waiting in line were going to miss out on this excitement.
They came running at full speed, packing together into a dense crowd. One person grabbed another, everyone pulling together with all their might to drag whatever they had hooked out of the water.
“A Holy Bomb?! You caught a Holy Bomb!”
“This one’s a Holy Bomb too?!”
“Dear God! Another Holy Bomb!”
“They’re all Holy Bombs?!”
Not far away, Cheng Qisheng was watching as groups of believers boarded their boats one after another.
Suddenly, he sensed a familiar fluctuation ripple through the Chain of Faith.
It was the unmistakable kind of disturbance that occurred whenever a Luck-type Transcendent activated their ability.
<< _ >>
**TN
How is this ‘no discord, no concord’? – The Chinese idiom “不打不相识” literally means “no acquaintance without a fight.” Here it’s used jokingly to mean we’ve had an amusing little incident, so let’s be friends now, even though no actual fight took place.
