The Envoy of Abundance from Onphalus

　"Used to it."

　Russell gently answered Dan Heng's slightly probing gaze on Jin's behalf.

　Just then, the train conductor, Pam, with her short legs, hurriedly ran from the conductor's office into the observation car, her two long ears standing straight up in anxiety.

　"Urgent notice! Urgent notice!"

　Its voice carried an unprecedented seriousness.

　All eyes immediately turned to it.

　Pam stopped and took a deep breath: "The train has just encountered an unknown strong interference! The warp drive has been forcibly shut down! The system shows that the source of the interference is locked on our upcoming destination—Yaliluo VI!"

　"But we're lucky, we just happened to land right next to this planet."

　It pointed out the huge viewing window with its little paws.

　Outside the window, a planet completely encased in thick ice floats silently in deep space, reflecting the cold glow of stars.

　It resembles a giant ice ball abandoned in a corner of the universe, lifeless and pale. This is a far cry from the vibrant planet Arillow-VI described in think tanks as having once possessed azure oceans and green continents.

　"Based on the preliminary scan and system diagnostic results,"

　Pam's tone carried a hint of unease, "Unless the root cause of the interference on Yalilo VI can be completely resolved, the train will not be able to safely start its warp drive again and leave this star system!"

　The cold, icy images of the planet were reflected in the pupils of every nameless passenger, and the unknown challenges and chill seemed to seep into the warm carriage through the viewing window.

　……

　Chapter Ninety-Eight: Life Requires Self-Reliance

　Himeko gazed at the planet completely encased in ice outside the observation window and let out a long sigh: "Thousands of years have passed... and Arillow VI has become like this. It used to be so vibrant."

　Her fingertips unconsciously rubbed against the warm coffee cup.

　On March 7th, he leaned close to the window, his face almost pressed against the cold glass, his breath condensing into a small patch of white mist on the glass.

　"Huh? This huge, white ice ball is our target? It looks so cold! Are there really any living people up there?"

　She shrank her neck, as if the chill had penetrated the train cabin walls.

　Russell stood a short distance away, his eyes slightly closed for a moment before opening them, a faint light seeming to shimmer in his jade-colored eyes.

　“There is a breath of life, though faint. I can…hear it.”

　He paused, his voice steady, "Many voices are pleading, mostly illusory murmurs, but also interspersed with earnest calls for relief from illness and healing. They are struggling to survive in the bitter cold."

　"Wow!"

　March 7th immediately turned to Russell, her large eyes filled with astonishment, "Mr. Russell! You can hear sounds from so far away? That's amazing! And... what exactly are they asking for? Can you hear them clearly?"

　"nature."

　Russell nodded slightly. "As I said, most of it is unrealistic fantasy. Very few is real suffering and the desire to survive. In such an environment..."

　His gaze also fell on that frozen planet, "To be alive is a miracle in itself."

　"what!"

　March 7th exclaimed in surprise, a look of sympathy on her face, "Then aren't they living such a pitiful life? Trying to survive in such a cold place... just thinking about it makes me feel like I'm going to freeze!"

　She instinctively hugged her arms tighter.

　Just then, Xing closed his eyes, clasped his hands together, and muttered something to himself.

　Russell's gaze landed precisely on her with a helpless smile: "Star, don't wish to me that you'll find more trash cans in the future. I'm the Envoy of Abundance, not a wish-granting machine."

　"Instead of making a wish to me, you might as well make a wish to Ah."

　So Star prayed to Aha to find more trash cans. But Aha didn't seem to respond.

　Xing froze instantly, scratching his head awkwardly and letting out a silly "hehehe" laugh.

　"Hey!"

　March 7th immediately glared at Xing, looking disgusted, "What kind of person would make such a strange wish!"

　Russell explained gently: “Listening to the prayers of living beings is part of fulfilling the destiny of abundance, and is... one of my daily tasks, Little March.”

　Xing's curiosity was piqued, and she leaned closer to Russell and asked, "Don't you find it noisy to hear all these sounds every day? Doesn't it make your head buzz with other people's chatter?"

　"it's not true."

　Russell shook his head. "Prayers with cluttered minds and unkind desires are like background noise that I naturally ignore. Truly earnest voices that can penetrate distance and clearly reach me are few and far between. Besides,"

　He added, "The distance is too great for me to perceive."

　Himeko put down her coffee cup and looked earnestly at Russell: "Mr. Russell, how do you respond to these prayers that truly reach your ears? Isn't abundant blessing supposed to grant every request?"

　Russell's expression became calm and profound: "For me, practicing abundance is not about indulging every life's desires without restraint."

　"Life is like a seed,"

　He stretched out his hand, his palm seemingly supporting an invisible force. "It needs to accumulate its own strength, break out of its shell, and weather the storms to grow strong. Sometimes, excessive intervention can stifle its resilience."

　He paused, his tone becoming heavy: "Unlimited help is not necessarily a blessing. Abundant blessings may be intended as compassion, but the result... often leads to distortion."

　“I once passed by a planet where people prayed to the apothecary for food that would never be lacking.”

　"and then?"

　March 7th eagerly pressed for an answer, and Xing also perked up her ears.

　"The pharmacist responded."

　Russell's voice lowered, "They got the food they wanted, a continuous supply. But..."

　"Just what?"

　March 7th asked nervously.

　"However, their insatiable gluttony was ignited. They ate frantically, consuming too much of the bounty contained within them... In the end, their bodies twisted and deformed, transforming into terrifying monsters of flesh and blood."

　Russell's gaze seemed to pierce through time and space, seeing that hellish scene: "They devoured each other... until the entire vibrant planet was completely transformed into a writhing, wailing, enormous lair of flesh and blood."

　The observation car was silent, save for the low hum of the train engine. March 7th's face was pale, and Hoshi's joking expression vanished.

　"When I descend upon that planet and purify that twisted nightmare,"

　Russell continued, his voice carrying a cold scrutiny, "From their surviving documents, we know that they were not lacking food when they first made their prayers."

　"They are just...lazy, craving something for nothing, hoping for divine mercy to bestow everything upon them. All they want to do is enjoy themselves."

　"My God..."

　March 7th murmured, still shaken, "This was too terrifying..."

　"My path will not grant favors to such greedy souls."

　Russell’s tone was resolute: “What I did was to reach out and help people out of the abyss of suffering that they could not possibly overcome, and to guide them to find their own way out, rather than forcing them to grow too fast.”

　"The blessings that the Medicine Master sows throughout the universe are a microcosm of this—His compassion is boundless, but the consequences... are often regrettable."

　"but me,"

　A sharp glint flashed in his eyes. "A large part of our responsibility is to clean up those who abuse blessings and ultimately turn them into calamities."

　"The universe praises my benevolence and generosity, but my blessings are only bestowed upon those who struggle in dire straits, suffering hardships they truly cannot overcome on their own. As for those who have the ability but only desire to reap without sowing?"

　He gently shook his head. "They will only be marked by me and never respond. Because I can already foresee the mess they will create after gaining power, and in the end, I will still be the one to clean it up."

　"So it's better to cut this kind of thing off at the root. Helping a bunch of greedy people will only tarnish the reputation of Abundance in the end."

　Walter Young adjusted his glasses and nodded steadily: "I agree with Mr. Russell's point of view. The value of life lies in its own strength and will to find a way out. Excessive intervention and correction from external forces often backfire."

　Himeko picked up her coffee, took a small sip, and turned her gaze back to the lifeless ice ball outside the window. Her tone was grave: "It seems... this expedition won't be easy."

　As if to confirm her words, the train conductor, Pam, with her short legs, hurriedly ran into the observation car, her long ears taut with seriousness.

　"Attention passengers!"

　Its voice carried an undeniable sense of urgency: "The train has encountered severe interference, the warp drive has been forcibly shut down, and preliminary diagnostics indicate that the source of the interference is located at Yaliluo VI Pa!"

　Pam pointed with her little paw at the giant ice ball outside the window: "This means our train will be stuck here indefinitely until the source of the anomaly on the planet is completely resolved, Pam! So—"

　It surveyed every nameless passenger in the carriage, "We need a few brave passengers to get off and solve this problem!"

　"Ugh……"

　March 7th sighed dramatically, his shoulders slumping, "There's no need to guess what the source of this interference is."

　Walter added at the opportune moment, bringing up the screen of his portable device, which displayed complex scan waveforms and striking red indicators: "The preliminary deep scan analysis results are in. The anomaly's root energy characteristics... are highly consistent with the star's core."

　In an instant, almost everyone's eyes in the carriage focused on Xing. Xing was secretly reaching for a small cookie on the table when she felt everyone's gaze and froze instantly.

　She blinked innocently and raised her hands: "I absolutely didn't do it! I swear! I... I'm just a newborn baby!"

　She tried to defend herself using the new vocabulary she had learned.

　March 7th couldn't help but chuckle, walked over and patted Xing's shoulder hard, almost making her stumble: "Pfft... Nobody said you did it! Everyone's just curious—"

　She leaned closer to Xing, scrutinizing him from head to toe, her eyes filled with inquiry. "How did you manage to stuff such a dangerous star core inside your body and still be alive and kicking without a scratch? That's just too unreasonable!"

　Xing immediately straightened her back, proudly put her hands on her hips, and raised her chin slightly: "That's because—I'm exceptionally talented! I'm different from everyone else!"

　His tone was self-righteous and assertive.

　March 7 rolled her eyes and decided to give up arguing with this genius: "...Fine, you're amazing."

　Himeko coughed lightly, gracefully steer the conversation back on track: "Alright, children. Now, let's get down to business."

　Her gaze swept over the eager March 7, the composed Danheng, the curious Xing, and the newly joined Russell and Jin.

　"Who is willing to board the Yalilo VI to solve the problems of this planet and get our train moving again?"

　Chapter Ninety-Nine: A Turning Point in the Script.

　Walter Yang and Himeko patiently explained the knowledge about the star core to Hoshino, who was still somewhat confused.

　Xing nodded as if she understood, but it was unclear whether she truly understood or was just pretending.

　"This pioneering mission is entrusted to you—Xing, March 7th, and Danheng."

　Himeko's gaze fell on Hoshi, her tone gentle yet unquestionable.

　"The mission objective is very clear,"

　She pointed out the window to the enormous, snow-covered planet, "Find the source of the calamities and spatial distortions on this planet—its core—and bring it back to the train. Leave the rest to us."

　Xing immediately shook his head vigorously, casting a pleading look at Russell beside him.

　Russell replied calmly, "Life's growth lies in self-breakthrough. You are still inexperienced; going out and exploring is perfectly acceptable, even if it's just a thrilling adventure."

　"Oh, don't worry, it's just a star core!"

　March 7th bounced over cheerfully, patted Xing's shoulder hard, and encouraged her, "It's not like we haven't solved things before! Relax, Xing!"

　Xing forced a smile.

　"That's right."

　March 7th, hands on hips, exuded confidence: "We've even dealt with those terrifying behemoths like the Doomsday Beast, so a mere Star Core is nothing!"

　Hoshino, at her wit's end, turned to Himeko for help. Himeko smiled and said, "Someone has to stay on the train, right? Otherwise, Pam will be lonely."

　"and,"

　She added with an encouraging look in her eyes, "Just like Mr. Russell said, a seed must sprout on its own for life to be resilient."

　"Go ahead. If you encounter any insurmountable difficulties, contact the train immediately and we will go down to provide assistance."

　"So...it's still not our turn this time?"

　Walter Young, standing to the side, adjusted his glasses, a hint of disappointment in his voice.

　"Young people should always be given opportunities to be independent."

　Himeko smiled and reassured him, "There will be plenty of big occasions for us to shine in the future. Why don't you go and talk to Danheng first? He must be very interested in the ecology and other aspects of this planet... which is rarely recorded in the think tank's data."

　Xing could only nod, and pulled along March 7, who was still chattering and comforting her, to find Danheng, who was quietly flipping through documents at the other end of the carriage.

　"Miss Himeko sent us to find you,"

　Xing said to Danheng, "They say there isn't much information about this planet, and they'd like to hear your opinion?"

　Dan Heng closed the data panel in his hand, raised his eyes, and said calmly, "Yalilo-VI is mentioned in the early files of the Interstellar Peace Corporation. It was once a prosperous planet. However, about seven hundred years ago, contact with the company headquarters was suddenly cut off for unknown reasons."

　"The existing records about it are extremely limited, only mentioning that it suffered some kind of global disaster that caused drastic environmental changes. The ice and snow we see are probably just the surface."