Instructor Behemoth turned and slipped into the foremost carriage, leaving behind the youths on the platform with varying expressions.
Some completely broke down, unable to accept having to stay in this place with an extremely high Death Rate for three years, falling to their knees and wailing loudly;
Some muttered to themselves, full of self-pity, complaining about why they had to leave their parents alone back then, about being abducted, and then grumbled all the way to their home planet’s Security Bureau, even blaming their families.
Others, upon realizing their numbers were near the end, instantly turned pale and were at a loss.
Of course, there were also those who silently accepted the reality and took the initiative to walk toward the train.
Among them, the brown-haired boy in tattered clothes walked the fastest, nearly reaching the carriage door.
He stepped onto the train’s footboard, suddenly turning his head to look at the panorama of people on the platform.
A faint, almost imperceptible smile curved at the corner of his lips.
The platform lights were not harsh; rather, they were gentle.
On the collar LCD screen strapped to his gaunt body, propped up by his shoulder blades, was a conspicuous number.
[0001]
“Designated villain.”
“That smile is kind of creepy.”
“I bet he’s the male second lead, calling fifty cents!”
Comments streamed rapidly. The camera first zoomed out to reveal a wide-angle shot of nearly ten thousand youths on the platform.
Some curious viewers took screenshots and zoomed in, surprised to find not a single “template face” among them.
Each person’s appearance, physique, and reactions were different, like a truly existing crowd.
This “great discovery” was quickly posted to the Forum, sparking a wave of discussion.
After the panoramic shot, the camera swiftly zoomed in again, focusing on a dozen or so individuals.
It seemed to hint at their unique identities.
A chubby boy with a big belly, sitting on the ground and sobbing uncontrollably;
A black-haired boy clutching his right wrist tightly with his left hand, his right hand still trembling uncontrollably;
A yellow-haired boy, his whole body scorched black and hair curled, struggling to get up from the ground;
And a composed girl wearing shorts, silently staring at the number on her collar LCD screen—the Purple Short-haired Girl…
Yun Ruoxi had been watching the anime screen in the upper right corner of her vision, and she immediately recognized these four.
They were the Main Cast of the first season of Starlight.
Among them, the Purple Short-haired Girl was the true heroine, named Zi Jiu.
“So the next ones must be the protagonists?” she thought.
After finishing the first season, the enemy opposing the protagonists in the training camp was Number 0001, along with the Main Cast of four. The next focus would naturally be on the Main Cast.
However, contrary to her expectations, the camera did not shift toward Lin Zhen but instead slowly zoomed in on her.
Yun Ruoxi sensed it keenly, quickly adjusting her expression and voluntarily walking toward Lin Zhen.
Since the audience mistook her for the heroine, she didn’t mind exploiting this misunderstanding a bit longer to deepen their impression of her on camera.
Even if she would be exposed later, gaining a little extra popularity was still worth it.
“Lin…um”
Yun Ruoxi had just opened her mouth, her words unfinished.
Lin Zhen suddenly reached out and gently covered her mouth, causing the girl’s cheeks to flush red instantly.
“Sweet sweet sweet, the second episode already has sugar, nice.”
“Heh, the more sugar in the beginning, the sharper the knives later. It’s the sugar-knife conservation law, just wait.”
“Don’t cut the little loli!”
“Shh.”
Lin Zhen lowered his voice, “Call me by my number from now on—1046. Look over there.”
He pointed to a boy convulsing from an electric shock farther away.
“He just refused to comply, repeating his own name, so the collar shocked him.”
“The 1046 collar has monitoring functions?” Yun Ruoxi feigned surprise at just the right moment.
Heh, in truth, she already knew. She was deliberately leaving a flaw to solidify her persona.
“Yeah, probably. 9992.”
Lin Zhen smiled, “See? Remembering numbers isn’t that hard. Just pause before speaking and run it through your head first.”
“But my number…” Yun Ruoxi pointed at her collar, disappointment written all over her face.
“Don’t worry, numbers can be changed. For now, focus on dealing with what’s in front of you. Hurry up and get on the train; don’t get shocked for breaking orders.”
Lin Zhen spoke while subconsciously reaching out to ruffle her hair, as he used to do with his little siblings.
But his hand stopped halfway in midair.
This wasn’t his hometown. This was the hell Instructor Behemoth had mentioned—
A battle camp.
And this wasn’t the group of little followers who scavenged with him, but a strange girl he had only recently met.
He fell silent and slowly withdrew his hand.
“What’s wrong, 1046?”
The girl seemed to notice and turned to look at him with concern. Her red eyes glimmered in the sunlight.
“Nothing.” Lin Zhen smiled and shook his head.
The two boarded the middle carriage, one after another. The camera lingered on them briefly before sweeping to other important characters.
Yun Ruoxi glanced over them, matching their appearances with descriptions in the first season’s rough outline—then slowly closed her eyes.
This time, Instructor Behemoth hadn’t struck hard, perhaps because the formal training hadn’t yet begun.
Everyone who had been shocked to the point of being unable to stand was roughly lifted by soldiers and stuffed into this huge steam train.
Woo—!
The long whistle blew as the train slowly pulled away from the platform.
Accompanied by the clattering sounds, the world outside the station revealed its true form.
This was an almost undeveloped, primitive planet.
Dense forests covered the entire land, with towering ancient trees hundreds of meters tall everywhere.
Strange-shaped birds and beasts occasionally startled from the woods.
This planet had two suns; the sunlight was especially harsh and dazzling, but the clouds were unusually thick.
The steam train now ran just beneath the cloud layer.
Looking back, the platform was actually suspended in the air, and the tracks floated in the sky by some strange technology.
“Aroo—!!”
Suddenly, a mountainous Giant Tortoise Monster tore through the earth, letting out an earth-shaking roar at the airborne train!
The next second, the entire train shook violently.
A solid Energy Shell shot out from nowhere, precisely hitting the giant tortoise and instantly blasting it into a shower of fragments!
Blue tortoise blood mixed with flesh and entrails poured down in a torrent, creating a rainstorm.
The passengers inside, who had been excited by the scenery moments before, instantly fell silent, pulled back to the cold reality.
They were not here to admire the natural landscape but to enter hell for training.
Zzzzzt zzzzzt zzzzzt……
After a burst of electric noise, the train’s speakers suddenly crackled to life.
“Welcome to Pandora-35 Planet. Don’t worry, over the next three years… you will surely come to love this place.”
The train passed through the forest; the view outside the window abruptly changed into a vast, bleak snowfield.
A brilliant sky gently released falling snowflakes.
The temperature inside the train plummeted sharply, nearing below zero.
No one felt like enjoying the scenery now. Everyone rubbed their hands and stomped their feet, shivering.
Yun Ruoxi, dressed only in a long skirt, was freezing badly.
She curled up in the corner of the carriage, hugging herself tightly, her lips turning blue and trembling with the train’s shaking.
“Don’t lean against the carriage wall; it’ll be colder.”
Given the situation, Lin Zhen couldn’t take care of everyone and could only look after Yun Ruoxi beside him.
“If you don’t mind… you can lean on me first.”
“Okay.” The girl weakly nodded and gently rested her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes.
“Her identity as the heroine is confirmed already; Lin Yun stock is going straight up today!”
“(Rubs chin) So this is a romance show, huh?”
“Wuwu, I want a boyfriend as warm as Lin Zhen too.”
“Wake up! Your body temperature is the same as Lin Zhen’s—37°C. We’re all warm-blooded animals; who’s afraid of who!”
The train continued, passing the snowfield and then crossing a vast sea.
Next came a scorching hot desert…
Cold and hot alternated, day and night fluctuated.
Sometimes violent storms and rain, sometimes raging blizzards.
After several hours of travel, the passengers felt as if they had experienced all four seasons and an entire day-night cycle in a single ride.
They had been thoroughly “educated” by Pandora-35’s bizarre and ever-changing climate.