After receiving the coordinates from Himeko, Qi Zhimu prepared to head to the Master Control Zone with March 7th.
"Don't you need to rest for a bit?" March 7th asked with concern.
"I'm fine. I don't need a guide to get the authorization from the puppet. You can find a place to rest first."
"Alright then, contact me if you run into any problems," March 7th laughed.
Having walked for so long, she did feel a bit tired.
Upon arriving at the Master Control Zone, the two temporarily parted ways.
Qi Zhimu followed the coordinates. A few minutes later, a petite figure appeared in his sight.
The moment he saw the profile of that puppet's face, he froze on the spot as if struck by lightning.
Long-sealed Remembrance of a past life flooded his mind like a bursting dam, flashing before his eyes.
A certain girl in his Remembrance bore at least a seventy percent resemblance to the puppet's face.
Her name was... Herta.
Past life Remembrance gradually unlocked, and unforgettable emotions surged across time and space, merging into his current consciousness.
Qi Zhimu slowly finished processing a portion of his core experiences.
So, in his past life, he was like that...
So this was how it felt when the Remembrance of two lifetimes merged.
Qi Zhimu didn't know how long he had been standing there, still lost in thought, not even noticing the puppet walking up to him.
"Hey! Hey? Are you stupid?"
The familiar yet strange voice pulled Qi Zhimu back to reality.
He looked down with a complex gaze. To confirm this wasn't just a coincidence, he asked as if casually:
"The planet below the Space Station... it's called the Azure Star, right?"
"Himeko couldn't have found a fool to tease me, could she? You're already on this Space Station, and you don't know the planet below is the Azure Star?"
"I just wasn't sure..." Qi Zhimu shook his head.
The Azure Star he saw before he died would actually be more appropriately named the Ice Star based on its appearance.
The Herta Puppet's expression suddenly became quite colorful.
After confirming once more that the portrait sent by Himeko was correct, she irritably tossed an authorization card toward Qi Zhimu.
"Here's what you wanted. Goodbye—no, let's never meet again."
Before she even finished speaking, the Herta Puppet turned and left decisively, completely failing to notice Qi Zhimu's increasingly complex gaze.
"Don't you remember me?"
"Huh? Who do you think you are? Why should this genius remember you?" The puppet didn't even look back.
"My full name is Qi Zhimu."
"Never heard of it."
"..."
Watching the puppet return to its original position and then fall silent, Qi Zhimu fell into deep thought.
For him, the end of every life was a brand new starting point.
But for Herta, with whom he had once established a deep bond, things had long since changed.
Time changes many things. A few years, ten years, or several decades are enough to completely transform a person.
Let alone hundreds of years?
He speculated on several possibilities.
Possibility one: Herta had long since forgotten him.
Two: The puppets were flawed in various ways, and their Remembrance might not be consistent with the original body.
As for the remaining possibilities, they came from external influences: environment, human factors, or even the Aeons.
However, Qi Zhimu leaned toward the second possibility.
He wouldn't jump to conclusions before seeing the original body with his own eyes and getting an answer.
But if the result was exactly as it appeared now, then he would choose to respect and offer his blessings.
After all, he was a person of the past. People must always look forward; he didn't want to bind others to the past.
There was no need to force a continuation of past ties.
Herta would have new circles, and perhaps even a beloved.
Just as he would encounter different people in this life and establish new bonds.
It was also impossible to deny his current life's connections because of shadows from his past life.
For example, that Halovian girl who had once straightforwardly confessed her feelings to him under the bright moonlight.
Developing feelings through shared hardships was undoubtedly a cliché trope, yet it was also the most sincere and simple.
Not forming unnecessary emotional connections with employers and those around them was a basic ethic and rule in the mercenary world.
He couldn't give the girl an answer.
At least he couldn't back then, and he couldn't now either.
And then there was that little girl he saved over ten years ago, who had now rapidly grown into a wealthy lady among the IPC's Ten Stonehearts...
Various complicated thoughts persisted for a long while until a confused voice came from behind him.
"Lord Zhimu, what are you doing standing here in a daze?"
Qi Zhimu snapped back to his senses and looked toward the source of the voice. There were three girls: two in pink and one in gray.
"I was just thinking about some old matters. Miss Stelle, you seem to be doing better?"
"Maybe my constitution is special. I took the Doomsday Beast's ultimate move to the face and I'm actually fine," Stelle laughed, full of energy.
March 7th took the opportunity to introduce them: "Stelle, this is Lord Zhimu, the passenger currently traveling with us."
"Hello, hello."
"Hello to you too..."
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, the two were introduced.
Asta's gaze fell on the authorization card in Qi Zhimu's hand, and she felt relieved.
"Station Master Asta, may I ask you something? About... Ms. Herta's puppets." Qi Zhimu's expression was normal.
"Please, go ahead."
"What is the relationship between the puppets and her original body? Do they share Remembrance in real-time?"
"Well..."
Asta thought carefully and said uncertainly:
"I can't say for sure. I only know there are puppets in many places on the Space Station, usually placed in areas convenient for her to handle affairs. She controls them remotely when needed."
"You haven't seen Ms. Herta's original body?"
"I've seen it a few times."
"How is it different from the puppets? In terms of personality or behavior?"
"Her appearance is more mature; otherwise, I didn't feel much of a difference," Asta answered truthfully based on her own impression of Herta.
She didn't think of hiding it; after all, this wasn't a secret on the Space Station at all, and many staff members knew.
Besides, how many people would dare use this information to cause trouble for a genius?
"In other words, all the puppets currently on the Space Station are in remote-control mode?" Qi Zhimu asked meaningfully.
Asta: "They have been in recent years. Using 365 days a year as a reference, most puppets are in standby mode for more than 320 days."
"I see. Thanks for clearing that up," Qi Zhimu gave a mysterious smile and then sent an electronic document to Asta.
"This is?"
Asta opened the document, her face showing surprise.
Although she didn't fund the construction of the Space Station, she had been paying for subsequent developments out of her own pocket ever since she became the Station Master.
Therefore, she had a good understanding of all aspects of the Space Station.
What Qi Zhimu sent was unexpectedly an improvement plan for the Space Station's external defense system.
From energy operation logic to weapon layout and procurement, it was a full hundred pages, detailed to a terrifying degree.
Even with just a glance at some of the improvement ideas, one could see their extremely high feasibility, far surpassing the current plans.
Asta looked up, her face filled with various shades of shock.
She seemed to be asking: why go to such lengths?
Seeing her confusion, Qi Zhimu said nonchalantly:
"My principle is to do as much work as the payment I receive. Station Master Asta is generous, so if I don't do what I should, I'd feel guilty."
"Additionally, Ms. Herta and I have some history. Consider this plan a gift for her."
"A meeting gift?" Asta said subconsciously.
"Or perhaps a parting gift."
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