Chapter 26: Extra 1
1.
“The tenth year of the apocalypse was a crucial turning point in human history. This period is a key focus, appearing in every annual exam, regardless of your major.”
An old professor lectured on the podium, and the students below diligently took notes.
The students in this class were unusually active; this was their favorite part of history.
“Little Flower and the Abyss met in this year!” a student whispered to their deskmate.
“Wrong! They were reunited!”
The professor chuckled, waiting for the students’ discussion to die down before continuing.
“From this year onwards, the nine human bases developed rapidly. Although the apocalypse continued, with extreme weather events still occurring, humanity had developed effective countermeasures and was actively working to restore the planet.”
“In the face of repeated natural disasters, humans even developed the capacity to protect most life on Earth, even from the effects of mutated creatures.”
“We have restored humanity’s glory.”
As for the mutated creatures, those with any intelligence knew to cooperate with humans for survival. The rest basically lived at humanity’s mercy.
“Alright, you all know the rest, so we’ll move on to self-study…”
“Professor Mo, why don’t you tell us about what happened back then?”
Three hundred years old and long retired from the Research Institute and the Human Alliance Decision-Making Group, Mo Cheng tirelessly told this story again and again, year after year.
After class, she packed her things, left the school, and walked through several streets before turning a corner. A huge botanical garden appeared before her.
Since the tenth year of the apocalypse, the Seventh Base had rapidly developed, surpassing the previous six bases. Its original site was now the central district, mainly housing research institutes and universities.
This botanical garden was the largest green space in the central district.
“Sister Mo.” Lin Ling was basking in the sun at the entrance of a small wooden house in the botanical garden. Seeing Mo Cheng arrive, he greeted her with a smile.
Mo Cheng, looking at the eternally youthful Little Flower, chuckled. “Considering how you look, Little Flower, you could call me Grandma now.”
Lin Ling grumbled, “That would mess up our seniority.”
“Is the Abyss not here today?”
At the mention of this, Little Flower’s expression turned gloomy. He complained to the former director of the Research Institute, “Those humans at the institute called him in to work overtime again. So annoying.”
“In a couple of years, we’ll find a different job.”
Before this, Little Flower had opened a cake shop. The Abyss even specifically learned how to bake cakes, but every time a customer came, Little Flower had already eaten almost all of them.
Little Flower felt that this wouldn’t do, so after two years, the cake shop closed down.
Then, Little Flower dragged the Abyss to open a flower shop.
Every day, Little Flower would revert to his plant form and hide among the ordinary flowers and plants, waiting for the Abyss to open the shop in the morning and find him.
But soon, the flower shop also closed down.
Little Flower looked at the withered seedlings in his shop in shock, then at the culprit, the Abyss.
The Abyss declared righteously that these flowers and plants weren’t his Little Flower, so why should he water them?
The Abyss insisted this was his bottom line, he would never compromise!
Little Flower was depressed. He felt that life was long, and if he didn’t do something, he would feel out of sync with everyone else.
After all, human lifespans were increasing rapidly, and the retirement age was constantly being pushed back. Everyone was working hard, striving for the future of humanity, the future of the planet, for a better tomorrow!
“Th-then let’s find a job too.”
Little Flower, holding the Abyss’s hand, asked Mo Cheng for a favor and actually found a job, disguising his identity and blending in with the humans.
Lu Jiajia, who later discovered Little Flower’s identity, scoffed, saying that Little Flower didn’t know how good he had it. She wanted to see what was so great about this job.
It was absurd!
Lin Ling’s job was to manage the botanical garden. He just had to walk around the garden every day and record the status of the plants.
After finishing his work in the morning, he could lie down in a rocking chair or on a swing in front of his little wooden house, take a nice nap, and wait for Shi Changyuan to get off work.
Little Flower loved this job, after all, the lunch break included a three-course meal with soup and a two-flavor ice cream!
Today’s ice cream was strawberry and blueberry.
But the Abyss’s job didn’t seem to be going so well.
Originally, Mo Cheng had also arranged a leisurely position for him through connections, where he could just laze around, do some casual research, and maintain his disguised identity.
But the Abyss was too capable, or rather, too knowledgeable and a quick learner. Coupled with his own resources, before she knew it, Shi Changyuan had worked his way into the core research group of the institute.
He was even showing signs of becoming the next team leader.
Having reached this position, overtime was inevitable.
Mo Cheng listened to Lin Ling’s grumbling, made a mental note, and immediately called the research institute after leaving. She told them to let him off work early and increase his benefits, or his wife would make him quit!
The institute was confused: “He’s already reached this position, he’d quit just because his wife told him to? That’s not how love works! Besides, he’s contributing to humanity!”
Mo Cheng smiled enigmatically and sent them the original “Plan to Save the World with Love” document from three hundred years ago.
They didn’t understand at first, until they saw the name of the plan’s protagonist written in a small corner at the very end of the hundreds of pages—Shi Changyuan.
From then on, the Abyss never worked overtime again.
“See, complaining works.” Little Flower, smug, hugged his Abyss, took off the glasses perched on his nose, and kissed his eyes.
“Mm, clever Little Flower,” Shi Changyuan returned the kiss and praised.
After three hundred years, the Abyss’s compliments remained the same.
Lin Ling nestled in Shi Changyuan’s arms, playing with the Abyss’s slightly long, unkempt hair.
“Here are your glasses.”
Little Flower put the glasses back on Shi Changyuan, carefully arranging the metal chains on both sides.
Shi Changyuan had noticed that Little Flower seemed to particularly like his researcher attire, especially the glasses. Every time he came to pick Little Flower up after work, Lin Ling would take off his glasses, play with them for a while, and then put them back on him.
So, the Abyss took advantage of this. If he went too far with Little Flower the night before, he would wear his glasses the next morning to coax him awake. Little Flower, still sleepy, would always agree to anything.
Little Flower knew in his heart that he just liked this look!
Not only this outfit, he had also been eyeing the uniform of the Human Alliance Military Academy for a long time. In a few years, when he got tired of this look, he would make the Abyss work at the military academy, just for a change of clothes, hehe.
