When Qin Jingzhou and Ling Jing left this world, Hua Country had already established three semi-automated mining production lines on Mars, as well as a fully functional biosphere for vegetable cultivation and livestock raising. Even the interstellar "shuttle" between Blue Star and Mars was now in operation.
It's worth mentioning that the power plant on Mars was a joint project by Mi Xiaoxiao and Gu Zhiyuan, while the ecological system was the work of their only son.
That's right, their only son was the Fate’s Son, the one in whom the World Will had placed tremendous hopes.
The little guy had an air of self-importance right from birth, but unfortunately for him, his thoroughly upright parents teamed up to "teach him a lesson." Of course, it wasn’t a real beating—it was about making him understand there was always someone better out there.
During elementary school, he couldn’t outperform his uncle Gu Sheng’s second son, even though his uncle was the only “ordinary” person in the family. Let alone trying to compete with his nearly-legendary grandfather and his grandfather’s girlfriend.
After deeply realizing that he’d be an ordinary person without working hard, the Fate’s Son finally settled down for good.
He developed the biosphere at only twenty-two.
So, when Qin Jingzhou and Ling Jing settled up their mission with the World Will, its mood was obviously excellent.
Through the two people’s Systems, the World Will praised them both highly. The reward to Ling Jing was double the agreed amount, and as for Qin Jingzhou—he received a nondescript little stone.
The moment Qin Jingzhou saw the stone, his eyes widened with shock. “This is for me?”
Through the System, the World Will said, “This is what you deserve.”
Ling Jing, curious, clung to Qin Jingzhou’s arm and asked, “What is it?”
She had never seen him react with such visible emotion.
Qin Jingzhou blinked. “It’s a star core.”
Ling Jing’s eyes went wide. “If the conditions are right, is this the legendary star core that could grow into a plane?”
Qin Jingzhou smiled. “Exactly.”
The World Will added, “Some unscrupulous Transmigrator knelt under the hand of the Fate’s Son I’d picked, and the Fate’s Son found this little stone among the spoils of victory. He had a hunch it was special but didn’t know what it was for, so he turned it over to me. I have no use for it, so I’m giving it to you as a red packet.” And, as they parted, she genuinely invited, “Come visit me when you can!”
After accepting the World Will’s invitation and flying far away, Ling Jing finally asked, “Will this help you advance?”
“I can’t use the star core directly, but I can hand it over to the World Will of the Spiritual Realm.”
Ling Jing instantly understood, smiling. “Then it’s practically guaranteed!”
Qin Jingzhou laughed as well. “Halfway there, perhaps. Why don’t we each pick a mission and try to collect the rest of what we need to advance?”
Ling Jing turned to ask the System, “Do you have any high-paying task worlds?”
Her System answered, “You want to take a bounty mission? There happens to be a rescue mission right now. Take it?”
Ling Jing looked at Qin Jingzhou. “Shall we?”
Qin Jingzhou couldn’t possibly say no. “Let’s go.”
The brand-new mission world once again had no spiritual energy, and its technological level was comparable to the middle of the Ming dynasty.
None of this posed a problem. The problem was that this world’s main continent—its status even higher than Eurasia in Qin Jingzhou’s own world—corresponded to the Americas, where most of the land stood above three thousand meters in elevation. Even by later-era standards, it was barely suitable for human habitation.
Which meant that more than ninety percent of the world’s population lived on the main continent. The country they needed to head to, Great Zhou, accounted for more than sixty percent of that main continent’s population.
If Great Zhou was plunged into disaster, one could easily imagine the blow it would deal to the World Will. Naturally, the World Will issued the bounty mission…only if something was happening to Great Zhou.
The World Will’s message was concise. Great Zhou had already perished three times in a row and appeared to be heading toward a fourth destruction… She couldn’t accept this! Nor could she bear it!
The World Will’s grief and indignation were contagious.
Qin Jingzhou and Ling Jing gathered together to read over the story outline the World Will handed them.
As for “perished three times in a row,” to be precise: after Great Zhou’s demise, the new king who succeeded was unable to hold his throne and perished within “a single generation.” The next new king to replace him likewise met the same fate, again having “a single generation to ruin.” And now, the one who had taken over after him… was clearly about to meet his end as well.
In other words, besides the monarchs who ended Great Zhou, the next three successors had all been singled out as Fate’s Sons by the World Will. Each utterly failed its expectations and investment. After being stabbed in the back three times, the World Will decided to go all in and call for outside help—who could blame her?
After accepting the mission, the World Will reminded them, “There are two other Transmigrators in my world. One has a medical System—that’s what you two would call the female lead, a transmigrated woman—and the other is a gravely wounded visitor from another world. I don’t see any problem with either of them. How you handle it is up to you.”
Qin Jingzhou and Ling Jing exchanged a glance and smiled. If even the World Will had no issue, going in and wiping those people out without cause clearly wasn’t right.
They each took on their assigned roles and entered the mission world.
This time, Qin Jingzhou’s identity was Jiang Jingzhou, the deposed monarch of Great Zhou.
To start with the original host’s family situation: his original Empress died in childbirth, leaving him with a sickly Crown Prince.
Don’t be fooled by the appearance of deep affection. After his original Empress died, the host never remarried. In truth, his feelings for his Empress were average, and his concern for the one and only child she left behind—the fragile Crown Prince—was about the same. He looked indifferent, but in his heart, he was full of contempt.
As for the consorts… This was a subject the System had to mutter about for quite a while. The original host’s “favorite” was Consort Han, who, as it happened, had tangled “ill-fated relationships” with all three of the Fate’s Sons who had each “perished in a generation.”
Consort Han Xuerou was known as the first beauty in Great Zhou. Legend had it that any man who laid eyes on her, regardless of age, would fall for her.
The rumor grew more exaggerated with every telling, and inevitably reached the ears of the host.
The host, greatly intrigued, summoned Han Xuerou. Seeing for himself that she truly was a great beauty, he resorted to coercion and forced Han Xuerou into the palace.
The truth was, Han Xuerou herself had not wanted to enter the palace. She was a bit of a romantic, born into a powerful family but not caring much for status, longing for a husband whose heart resonated with her own.
However, she never conveyed that wish to her elders, so she had no choice but to enter the palace and serve the monarch.
Once in the palace, she realized the Emperor was not her dream husband. Though disappointed, she did nothing—after all, she had to consider the hundreds of members of her family.
She didn’t go out of her way to flatter the Emperor, but she did manage to be well-behaved and sensible.
After a few years of doting on Han Xuerou, Emperor Jiang Jingzhou gradually lost interest.
He had forced Han Xuerou into the palace but did not treat her well, which infuriated many of Han Xuerou’s admirers.
These admirers formed a network. Ostensibly, they wanted to teach the Emperor a lesson, to make clear that great families could not be slighted, but in fact, many ambitious ones among them used this collective indignation for their own clandestine machinations.
Soon, Han Xuerou’s father submitted a memorial, saying that he had learned his daughter was out of favor and neglected the Emperor’s esteem, and in his fear and guilt, he wished to send his youngest daughter into the palace to broaden His Majesty’s heart.
Jiang Jingzhou naturally agreed.
Han Xuerou’s little sister was Han Xuening. The young lady entered the palace with a purpose and an army of advisors behind her. She humbled herself at every turn and did everything imaginable to gain favor, easily coaxing Jiang Jingzhou into an obsession with cultivating immortality. Already weary of politics, Jiang Jingzhou soon let loose entirely, often dragging Han Xuening to the palace observatory for drinking, revelry, and swallowing alchemical pills.
And those pills? They were made by the state preceptor recommended by Han Xuening.
The pill recipes called for ingredients that were obviously designed to provoke misery and public outrage, such as abducting young boys and girls from the populace…
At this point, the System was indignant. “So stupid! If he doesn’t lose his kingdom, who will?”
Qin Jingzhou simply laughed. “There was an emperor back where I come from, Emperor Jiajing, who was also obsessed with immortal cultivation. He was clever enough, but even his obsession with pills and Dao led the palace maids to conspire to assassinate him…” Sitting upright, he once again used his own spiritual energy to patch up the battered body of the original host. “First, have the Inner Attendants send those children home. Give each of them a silver ingot to calm their nerves.”
His arrival was well-timed, for the original host hadn’t yet had time to do anything terrible to the children—losing the people’s support at that point had been crucial.
He stood up, wrapped his cloak around himself, and pushed open the window directly.
A rush of cold air drove away the indescribable sickly fragrance lingering in the bedchamber.
Hearing movement, the Inner Attendants quickly appeared. Just as they were about to serve him, another attendant rushed up to the door and suddenly knelt down, tears streaming. “Your Majesty! Please come see the Crown Prince!”
At present, the Crown Prince of Great Zhou was the visitor from another world.
Qin Jingzhou paused for a moment, divined the situation, and said, “Lead the way.”
The Inner Attendant kneeling on the floor was terrified, frozen in expression.
He thought that with Consort Han absent, the guards would turn a blind eye to his presence here.
But what would it matter if he saw the Emperor, really? Most likely, he’d just be turned away. Maybe he’d be dragged off for a beating… Still, he had to try, because the Crown Prince was such a good person… Even if it cost him his life, he accepted it… To think that His Majesty… had agreed…
Seeing this, Qin Jingzhou couldn’t help but laugh. “What’s wrong? Have I thrown you off your game?”
The original host had always been fond of witty banter in private, so this didn’t feel out of character at all.
The attending Inner Attendants and maids—and even the guards outside—were astonished. Ever since His Majesty had fallen under Consort Han’s spell and become obsessed with immortal cultivation, it was as if he had become a different person. Now, was he suddenly himself again?
The closest Senior Eunuch to the Emperor was so moved, tears flowed down his cheeks at once.
Qin Jingzhou said, “What are you crying for? Prepare the imperial carriage to the Crown Prince’s residence, quickly!”
As he stepped into the Eastern Palace, the smell of medicine rushed up to him. Qin Jingzhou frowned slightly and advanced. On the bed, a young man as thin as gold leaf, just barely alive, was struggling to look at him.
He quickly moved forward, leaned in, and whispered softly, “Xiao Qing.”
The Crown Prince’s eyes immediately brightened, as if in one last burst of strength, and he sat up abruptly, flinging himself into his father’s arms, murmuring, “Dad!”
Before he could say another word, he coughed up a mouthful of blood, spilling it all over his father’s robes.
Qin Jingzhou wiped his son’s lips with his sleeve. “That’s quite the memorable greeting you’ve got for me.”
Xiao Qing’s lips were still stained with blood, but his smile was vivid and bright.