A beautiful day in Solaris starts with playing Big Two.
"Zane, things outside the city haven't been peaceful lately. Be careful when you're out there."
"Got it, got it, don't worry about me, Sister Taoqi. I might look like this, but I'm actually pretty strong."
The morning sunlight spilled across the land, illuminating the figure of a snow-white-haired boy. His emerald-like eyes blinked, clear and bright, sparkling with lively energy.
Without hesitation, he rolled up his sleeves, revealing pale and slightly thin arms, then proudly flexed his not-so-developed biceps.
At that moment, the sun was slowly rising in the east, its golden light gently brushing over the boy's fair and handsome face.
Standing nearby, the pink-haired woman took it all in. Seeing the boy's cute and playful behavior, she couldn't help but gently shake her head, a doting smile appearing at the corner of her lips.
She sighed inwardly, 'This child… everything about him is good. Not only is he handsome and graceful, but his personality is especially gentle and considerate. It's just that he's a bit too jumpy and needs someone to keep him in check.'
"Alright, alright, you're the strongest in Solaris, okay?"
"Sister Taoqi, I'm not a kid anymore. Don't talk to me like you're coaxing a child.", Zane pouted in dissatisfaction, raising his fist angrily. For a proper man, being called "small" by a woman was a big taboo.
"But I've watched you grow up. In your big sister's eyes, no matter how you much grow, you'll always be a child."
Taoqi rested her long blade on her somewhat slender shoulder. Her soft, delicate body contained strength as firm as a rock.
"I'm about to head back to the border front. The whole Jinzhou hasn't been very peaceful lately, so don't go too far. While I'm not in the city, if you run into trouble, go find Lady Changli."
Just thinking about that elegant, phoenix-like woman whose hair tips had faded slightly due to her resonance ability made Zane shiver.
"Ahaha, Teacher should be pretty busy… I'd better not bother her… Sister Taoqi, I'm heading off first. You stay safe too…"
Watching the boy flee in a panic, Taoqi sighed helplessly, then turned to look toward the shadow beneath the city wall.
"Lady Changli… are you sure he will be alright?"
At the far end of Taoqi's gaze, a mature and graceful figure slowly stepped out from the shadows.
Her long peach-pink hair cascaded like a waterfall, and due to her resonance ability, the ends had gradually faded into a snow-like white.
On her exposed skin, one could clearly see red scorch marks left behind by flames. Though they looked somewhat fierce, they strangely gave off an extremely warm aura.
She wore a snow-white dress, its hem gently swaying in the wind, as pure as a blooming lily.
In sharp contrast to that pure white was the black outer layer she wore, perfectly outlining her graceful figure and adding a touch of cold elegance and authority.
Further down, her long legs, wrapped tightly in black stockings, were slender and soft, with smooth, natural lines, yet filled with strength.
The woman stepped forward with long strides. Her gaze remained fixed on Zane, who was gradually disappearing in the distance. A trace of subtle relief and emotion flickered in her eyes.
Only after Zane's figure completely vanished from sight did she lightly press her lips together and smile, speaking softly, "That child… has already grown to a level we can't even begin to imagine…"
Taoqi tilted her head in confusion, but Changli only shook her head gently, clearly not intending to explain.
———
Meanwhile, Zane, who had fled in a hurry, ran quite a distance before finally stopping once Jinzhou City was no longer visible behind him.
With an invincible shift, he darted into the nearby bushes, waited for a moment, and only after confirming no one was chasing him did he finally relax completely.
"That scared me to death, seriously. I clearly felt Master's presence just now. But luckily I'm one step ahead, ran fast enough."
"If she caught me, I'd definitely get dragged back to study something like 'If the heart does not understand how to govern chaotic times, one must not be entrusted to make laws…' with Sister Jinhsi."
Just thinking about that senior sister bent over a desk taller than a person gave Zane a headache.
Zane waved his right hand lightly in the air, and a blue interface appeared before his eyes.
[Otherworld Summon]
[Summons until guaranteed 5-star character: 2 pulls remaining.]
Looking at the blood-red numbers, Zane couldn't hold back his frustration. "Wahh, so I really hit hard pity? Which idiot designer set this drop rate? Did they secretly nerf it or something?"
Grumbling, he closed the gacha screen, opened his backpack, and dumped all the beast meat, blue feather butterflies, and luminous stones into the system exchange interface.
[5 Beast Meat exchanged for 5 Star Sound]
[30 Night-Respite Incense exchanged for 30 Star Sound]
[3 Blue Feather Butterflies exchanged for 3 Star Sound]
[16 Luminous Stones exchanged for 16 Star Sound]
[Current Star Sound: 319]
"My turn, time to pull!"
As Zane tapped single summon, a streak of purple light shot into the sky.
[Obtained: Phoenix Healing Pack ×1]
[Summons until guaranteed 5-star character: 1 pull remaining. Current Star Sound: 159]
Looking at the system interface filled with those grim numbers, Zane was speechless. The last bit of hope in his heart finally died.
Leaving aside why a Phoenix Healing Pack would appear in the system pool, as someone with severe obsessive tendencies, being just 1 Star Sound short of the guarantee made his whole body itch like ants were crawling all over him.
"No way, today I, Zane, won't sleep until I hit pity!"
Closing the system, Zane raised his head and looked around.
"Hmm… looks like I ran near Yunling Valley. Good thing the valley is rich in resources, enough for me to scrape the place clean."
Thinking as he went, Zane headed deeper into Yunling Valley.
But after only a few steps, a strange aura surged into the sky from the valley entrance.
The originally clear sky was instantly covered by waves of dark clouds. A cold, chilling wind mixed with thick, sticky air enveloped the entire valley.
The next second, Zane, who was not a Resonator, felt as if something had grabbed his throat. Even simple breathing made the muscles in his body cry out in pain.
"This feeling… the Etheric Sea?"
Zane raised his head and looked upward. Beneath layers of cloud seas, a bizarre layer of black seawater floated. From the ground, one could even see white waves constantly churning.
If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes in this life, Zane would have thought anyone claiming there was an ocean floating in the sky had gone mad after encountering something indescribable.
"I need to help the patrol evacuate the civilians…"
Zane shook his dizzy head and bit the tip of his tongue, using the pain to force himself to stay awake.
Although ordinary people would also react to this thing, cases like his, where it directly caused allergy-like symptoms, were not just rare, they were basically nonexistent.
"If I remember correctly, the patrol on duty near Yunling Valley today… Yangyang and Chixia…"
Affected by the Etheric sea, the Pangu terminal had turned into scrap again. It couldn't send or receive messages, and he couldn't contact anyone.
In the hands of Resonators, the Pangu terminal could be used like a Poke Ball to store and release Echoes. In Zane's hands, it was at best just a mobile phone.
There was only one entrance to Yunling Valley, so it was easy for Zane to identify the path.
The Etheric sea would generate Tacet Fields, and Tacet Fields would produce monsters.
But fortunately, newly formed Tacet Fields had a period of "dormancy." During this time, they were relatively safe.
To put it plainly, it was the calm before the storm.
In fact, Zane didn't feel too worried. Compared to Chixia, who was impulsive and basically a walking incident trigger, Yangyang, who was steadier and more cautious, could usually avoid most potential dangers to a large extent.
However, as the saying goes, "ideals are full, reality is disappointing."
Just as Zane was about to relax a little, suddenly, a gust of wind swept past, carrying with it the sharp, crisp sounds of weapons clashing.
In an instant, a chilling killing intent spread like a plague, blending with the already thick air and creating an atmosphere of suffocating fear.
"Ahhh, I knew nothing would go right today!", Zane shouted irritably while roughly rubbing his slightly messy white hair, which had become disheveled from the pain.
Then, without hesitation, he broke into a sprint, shooting toward the rocky terrain like an arrow released from a bow.