Starry Sky Railway: Starting with a furious outburst at Aha

Following Bai Lu's footsteps, the two arrived at Jinren Lane and stopped at a corner of a house.

"Is this it?" Zhou Yuan asked, frowning.

The place in front of us doesn't really look like a house. It's sandwiched between two houses, with a total width of less than a foot. There's no roof, and it can only be sheltered by the eaves of the other houses. Once it rains, most of the house will definitely get wet.

Roars and gurgling sounds came from inside the room, accompanied by a bitter smell of Chinese medicine.

There was a dilapidated door panel standing on the outermost side, which seemed to have been salvaged from the junkyard and discarded by others.

This exterior is even more outrageous than those rental properties in big cities that Zhou Yuan encountered in his previous life.

dong dong!

Bai Lu removed her mask and knocked on the door. Soon, a girl's joyful voice came from inside, followed by the clattering of a cane.

"Is that Sister Bailu?" The door creaked open, and the person who opened it immediately came into Zhou Yuan's view.

She was quite pretty, but her long black hair was messy and dull, and her clothes were so worn that they were unrecognizable; one could only vaguely make out that it was a pink coat.

The most striking feature was the girl's left leg, which appeared to shrink from the thigh down, becoming extremely small, forcing her to use crutches to move forward.

"Hello, Sister Bailu and big brother I don't know, please come and save my mother."

The girl was overjoyed and quickly made way for him to enter, thus allowing Zhou Yuan to officially glimpse the scene inside.

The phrase "bare walls" is insufficient to describe the place, as the front and back of this "home" were blocked off by wooden planks.

In this home, which occupies less than twelve square meters, there is a bed, a shelf, a stool, and a stove made of bricks, just like children playing house.

Following the direction the girl pointed, Zhou Yuan saw the girl's mother.

She was no longer recognizable as a human being, her body entangled in growing vines, and she was struggling incessantly on the bed.

She was bound by an iron chain, which kept her firmly locked to the bed and prevented her from breaking free.

"How could it be so serious!" Bai Lu's expression changed the moment she saw her, and she quickly walked over.

"His pupils have changed... he has almost no self-awareness," Bai Lu muttered to herself, her hands moving non-stop as she took the gourd from her waist and poured out a capful of pure white liquid.

A flash of purple light appeared, and lightning traveled from Bai Lu's fingertip into the slurry, turning it transparent. It then dripped onto the girl's mother's face, which was completely covered by vines.

However, the areas touched by the transparent liquid only spread out for a moment before suddenly covering up again as if stimulated.

"This..." Bai Lu stopped moving and clenched her fist.

"Brother, please sit down." Zhou Yuan couldn't understand medicine, so he stood aside and observed. Suddenly, the girl handed him the only stool in the room.

"...Thanks."

Zhou Yuan felt his heart skip a beat as he watched the girl, leaning on her crutch, walk to the bubbling pot and laboriously lift a ladle to stir the Chinese medicine inside.

"Sister Bailu, my mother always says this medicine is too bitter and she can't drink it. What should I do?"

"Haha, she always says she can't sleep because she's tied up, but every time I try to untie her, she absolutely refuses."

Bai Lu did not answer, standing motionless like a sculpture in front of the girl's mother's bed.

After a moment, Zhou Yuan couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong? Have you run into some trouble?"

He turned his head and suddenly noticed that Bai Lu's eyes were red.

"I...I can't cure her." Her head was lowered, and her voice was barely audible. The girl was focused on brewing the medicine and didn't notice at all.

"Why?" Zhou Yuan asked.

"She has completely turned into a demon, even the strongest medicine is ineffective... I can't save them."

Zhou Yuan understood that "they" referred to the girl and her mother.

Seeing that the time was right, the girl quickly took a bowl of Chinese medicine and carefully moved it to the bedside.

"Mom, the medicine is ready."

However, the mother on the bed did not return to her original state as before; she was still covered by those hateful weeds.

"Sister Bailu? How is my mother?"

"I'm...I'm sorry! I can't save her!! I can't save her anymore!" Bai Lu could no longer contain her emotions, and tears streamed down her face like strings of pearls.

Bai Lu's statement that the condition was incurable was tantamount to sentencing the girl's mother to death.

Snapped!

The girl's hand trembled, and the medicine and bowl fell to the ground, splashing everywhere.

She was silent for a few seconds, then suddenly reached out and wiped away the tears from Bai Lu's eyes: "It's okay, Sister Bai Lu, I knew this day would come."

She actually started comforting Bailu instead.

"Mom knew this day would come, and she taught me to be strong from a young age... I'm not crying now, so she must be leaving with a smile... right?"

She should have kept quiet, because once she did, Bailu cried even louder.

Zhou Yuan was also affected by this emotion, but he couldn't find the words to comfort him.

The demonic affliction that has plagued the Immortal Ship for thousands of years—how could he possibly cure it so easily? There was nothing he could do now but remain silent.

Finally, with the girl's comfort, Bailu stopped crying.

Only then did Zhou Yuan learn the girl's name—Lin Ling.

Lin Ling's face showed no sadness. She inquired about the next steps: "Sister Bailu, what will the Alliance do with my mother?"

Will Mom be taken away?

Bai Lu could only nod silently.

The Immortal Boat shows no leniency towards demonic yin; once a demon is diagnosed as beyond redemption, it will be thrown into the incinerator and burned to ashes.

"Ok."

Lin Ling's voice rang out in a neutral tone, and the three of them fell silent as if they understood each other perfectly.

Just then, a shout rang out from outside.

"Was this delivered by Lin Ling?"

"Wait a moment, I'm coming." Lin Ling responded, stumbled over to open the door, and came back with a palm-sized cake in her hand.

"Now that the cake has arrived, Sister Bailu and Brother Bailu, why don't you eat it together before you leave?" She smiled, holding up the small cake.

As she cut the cake, she explained to the two of them:

"My mother kept saying she wanted to eat cake before she fainted, so I asked the old man next door to buy one online. The shop owner didn't charge me after hearing about our situation. He's a really nice person."

"I heard from the grandpa next door that my mom used to love sweets, but she hasn't had any since I was born. It's a pity... she can't have any more."

Hearing Lin Ling's words, even the sweetest cake tasted like cardboard in his mouth. Zhou Yuan's vision blurred, and Bai Lu choked up several times.

After finishing the cake, the group sat on the ground, each lost in their own thoughts.

At this moment, Zhou Yuan spoke up: "Lin Ling, do you have anywhere else to go?"

"Of course, big brother," Lin Ling said with a smile. "Don't let my small size fool you, I'm hardworking and can earn more than two thousand credits a day."

"If I work hard, I can save up enough money to buy my mom a new...box."

"...Do you want to follow me from now on?" Zhou Yuan asked.

"Where to?" Lin Ling asked Zhou Yuan, puzzled.

“Go...to work,” Zhou Yuan said. “I’ll give you a job.”