Because a sudden pile of things came up, Feifei had to stay for a meeting, so their plan to go home together was delayed by another day.
Yu Lian found himself with nowhere to go again all day, so he had no choice but to drag his luggage back to the dorm. As soon as he entered, he found his three roommates playing gaia ol online together. He immediately dropped his luggage and shouted, "Add me!"
"No way! No, don't show up! No, you'd better not go online! Just seeing that divine gear the Misses from the Student Union pieced together for you will make me lose it!" Roommate A, Luo Ming, wearing a holographic helmet, shouted. But perhaps his voice was too loud and distracted him, as the Saint Shield that his MT Paladin was supposed to pull up failed, and then the Flamewrath boss's Flame Slash instantly depleted more than half of his red bar, leaving his character in a stiff state.
With the MT in such a state, the fate of Roommate B Ris's Elf War Dancer and Roommate C Lu Ke's Human Mage was naturally sealed.
Half a minute later, a total wipeout.
"That's why I've always said, these holographic games should block all external information," Ris said loudly, taking off his helmet.
"That's impossible. What if someone tries to pick your pocket while you're playing, or stabs you in the butt?" Lu Ke said, "Also, more importantly, if you put all five of your senses under the control of a computer, then are you playing the game, or is the game playing you?"
This was a philosophical question, and everyone was too lazy to answer. Yu Lian smiled and said, "Alright, alright, playing games is fake anyway, want to play something real?"
"...You, you, you, are you finally going to make a move on us?" Luo Ming clutched his collar and shrank behind the bed.
"I'm telling you, whether it's the boxing ring, the shooting range, or the power armor simulation cabin, we are absolutely not going!" Ris waved a spatula, loudly conveying his unyielding spirit.
"Yes! Even if you say one against three, we're not going," Lu Ke said expressionlessly.
"No, not this time, it's sailing! Boarding the ship!"
"O-open bed? I'd go if it was driving..."
In short, after Yu Lian's three minutes of patient (coercive) persuasion (reasoning), he finally had his first batch of crew members apart from the girls from the (former) Student Union.
Yu Lian didn't think these three guys were irreplaceable talents, after all, he hadn't heard their names in the future. Moreover, according to his memories from this life, their abilities were only within the scope of ordinary people, qualifying them as competent military academy graduates, but nothing more.
However, since they had been roommates for four years, even raising paramecia would have developed some affection, so he was quite looking forward to fighting alongside them one last time.
Additionally, Yu Lian's memories also told him that girls like Zhi Xia, Lilia, and Daina from the Student Union, and even Feifei herself, seemingly did not enter military service and were not well-known in later generations.
Only Miss Annie Romanova, the former leader of the biker gang, remained in the military and later became a famous star Navigator. Perhaps she found flying a warship much more interesting than flying a motorboat.
So, let Annie be the main helmsman.
Yu Lian quickly determined the first important position for his Hong Fang (Red Team), without any sense of guilt for nepotism.
The first future SR crew member, obtained!
However, the number of people is completely insufficient! Ordinary expendable crew members are fine; although his popularity isn't great, if absolutely necessary, he could still have the girls act as signboard girls, holding signs and acting cute to easily attract one or two hundred people.
But some important positions, such as Weapons Officer, Main Gunner, Navigator, Communicator, Radar Operator, Chief Engineer, Assault Team Leader, etc., all require talent...
I can't possibly be the esteemed Captain and also double as a gunner and assault team leader, can I?
There are certainly excellent talents in these areas at the academy, but Yu Lian didn't think he could compete with Wien. Moreover, if the personnel were not limited to their own school, the opponent would definitely use all their connections to recruit people from various specialized academies.
Yes, if Wien knew his opponent was himself, he would definitely show such initiative! Yu Lian had that much confidence.
After all, everyone has their specialty. Although Central Defense University is known as the top military academy in the Commonwealth, it is ultimately more focused on management and command. Yu Lian didn't think that a better Navigator could be born here than at the New Mawei Naval Academy, or a better mechanic than one graduated from the Brisbane Military Engineering Academy.
Fortunately, as a reborn person, the biggest golden finger is familiarity with history!
Thanks to the turbulent yet magnificent future, it finally gave the grassroots, who were not "born" well, a chance to grow into towering trees. Perhaps this is the only good thing about war?
Yu Lian could completely seek out and team up with those famous people who had proven their abilities in later generations but were currently unknown, or even studying in obscure academies.
...Of course, they might also be half-finished products. However, since they could become famous, it at least indicates they have talent in that area, which is better than blindly looking for second or third-rate individuals to fill the numbers.
Moreover, it would particularly satisfy his celebrity-collecting habit. Observers from beyond the Great Universe would understand, right?
What's more, leading a group of "rabble" to defeat a group of high-born elites would be immensely satisfying, and might even genuinely impact society.
...Yes, since a small goal has been set, an impact on this society is necessary, but Yu Lian currently doesn't have a very complete plan and can only take it one step at a time for now.
Thus, in the hours after February 1st, Yu Lian spent his time organizing his future data and screening reliable candidates he could recruit. He didn't even bother to pay attention to the details of the "Welier Peeping Incident" that later spread throughout the entire school.
The next day, Yu Lian, with a thick notebook full of notes, once again carried his luggage to the school gate to wait for Feifei.
This time, no more unexpected incidents occurred. They successfully left and began their last long vacation before graduation.
The two arrived together at Moon City and then took a small shuttle to the nearest orbital space station.
As mentioned before, it is said that "to protect the sacred natural and human environment of the Earth Mother Star," the Commonwealth Government later issued a law prohibiting interstellar passenger ships from directly entering Earth's atmosphere—of course, large cargo ships and warships were not included, as logistics and the military prioritize efficiency.
Therefore, to arrive at Earth from an exoplanetary system, one must first transfer at Moon City, and then, according to the Moon's orbit, take a shuttle to an orbital space station.
Finally, they would take an orbital elevator directly down to Earth.
Of course, if one was truly in a hurry, interstellar passenger ships could also dock directly at an orbital space station. The facilities there are complete, and immigration procedures can also be handled, but due to their smaller scale, they cannot dock with super-large passenger and cargo ships.
There are a total of twenty-four such orbital space stations, each connected to a major city on Earth's continents.
After half an hour on the shuttle, Yu Lian and Feifei finally arrived at Orbital Space Station No. 2, the Laurel. Directly below it was Pearl City, the largest city on Earth, located on the East Asia continent.
Wearing the Moon People's uniforms and holding student IDs that were almost equivalent to military officer IDs, they passed through security in less than 5 minutes via a special channel.
Although called an orbital elevator, it was actually a vast space resembling a ship's passenger cabin, and descending to Earth only took a little over ten minutes.
When Yu Lian, living a second life, walked out of the orbital elevator's terminal and breathed the Earth's air, he felt a moment of bewilderment.
His gaze passed through the terminal's parking lot, revealing a vast expanse of lush green forest. At the end of the greenery, further in the distance, countless skyscrapers could be seen.
They were truly a massive cluster of colossal buildings that reached into the sky, like the towering giants of primordial times.
In the sky, airships slowly drifted, like a group of tired and lazy fish. Dense, massive light screens flickered in the sky, displaying various advertisements and news items, forming a colorful yet bizarre surreal picture.
Even in broad daylight, the dazzling and magnificent spectacle was more than just light pollution; it was clearly becoming cyberpunk.
He confirmed again that it was truly not his hometown. Yu Lian sighed, feeling a bit down.
Feifei said, "The train ticket is for 2 PM, so we can walk around first and have lunch here. How about beef hotpot?"
Yu Lian had no objections and stated that his mood had improved.
They first took the indoor rail transit to the Light Rail Passenger Station, wandered around the nearby commercial street, and then found a beef hotpot restaurant with a high rating and moderate prices on a food website, finding a quiet spot to sit down.
They had just started ordering when they heard a news report from the nearby television.
"The pride of the Blue Star Commonwealth, Miss Serena Mao, the 'Spirit of Stardust,' has achieved great success with her Suspended Arm concert and is about to return to Earth!"