Fesili handed her the nutrient solution he had brought. Muxi took it, a look of slight resignation on her face.
She typed on her communicator: "Nutrient solution again? I’m getting sick of drinking this."
Watching her reaction, Fesili’s lips curled into a faint smile. He replied, "Your body is weak right now, so you need to rely on this to replenish your nutrients. Once you're feeling better, I’ll get you something else to eat."
Muxi puffed out her cheeks, but she still obediently opened the nutrient solution and began to drink it slowly. Fesili sat by the bedside, watching her quietly, his eyes filled with a tenderness that was hard to detect.
After a while, Muxi finished the drink and typed out a line on her communicator: "How long have I been asleep?"
"Two days!"
Muxi hadn't expected to have slept for so long.
Fesili had much to attend to and didn't stay long. After giving her a few instructions to rest well, he stood up, ready to leave. A flash of disappointment crossed Muxi's eyes, but she nodded understandingly.
After Fesili left, Muxi got out of bed; she wanted to see what was happening outside. Stepping out of the starship, she was met with an unfamiliar, desolate landscape, with rows of tents set up on either side. The soldiers were busy with their tasks in an orderly fashion.
Seeing her emerge, everyone stopped what they were doing to greet her. "Hello, Miss Muxi!"
The soldiers were deeply grateful to this female who had saved them so many times. Muxi’s cheeks flushed from their solemn salutes. She returned a rather clumsy military salute. Seeing this, the soldiers didn't show the slightest bit of mockery.
Muxi walked slowly along the path between the tents, looking around with curiosity. She saw various medical devices set up in some tents, where medical staff were diligently treating wounded soldiers and changing dressings. Other tents were filled with weapons and equipment, with several soldiers carefully wiping and checking them.
As she walked on, she arrived at a relatively open space where a few soldiers were engaged in simple combat training. Their postures were agile, and their movements were swift. Muxi couldn't help but stop to watch, her eyes filled with admiration. To maintain training even in such harsh conditions—such discipline, carved into their very bones, was truly admirable.
The soldiers sensed her gaze and began to train even harder, as if wanting to show their best sides in front of her.
Deputy Commander Zhou saw her alone and ran over enthusiastically to greet her. "Where are you going, Miss Muxi? Do you need me to accompany you?"
With the Commander away, he wanted to seize the opportunity; he really liked this delicate yet formidable female.
Muxi smiled and typed on her communicator: "No, thank you. I’m just walking around."
The deputy commander felt a little disappointed at being turned down, but he still responded with a smile. "Alright then. I'll arrange for two soldiers to follow at a distance; they won't disturb you."
Muxi nodded, not refusing his kindness, and walked in the direction Xixi (her mental entity) indicated. After walking for about twenty minutes, she saw Fesili ahead, directing soldiers as they dug into the earth.
Seeing her approach, he said a few words to the nearby soldiers and walked over. "Why aren't you resting more?"
Muxi shook her head and typed: "I've been lying down for two days. I wanted to move around."
"Where are you going? I’ll go with you!"
Muxi waved her hands to refuse. She felt that since she had woken up, Fesili had become much more enthusiastic. Having such a cold, aloof commander suddenly act so warm toward her left her feeling a bit overwhelmed.
"There's no need. You're busy!"
"They can handle things. Let’s go!" Fesili didn't allow for refusal and walked off ahead.
Thinking about what she wanted to do, Muxi didn't push back again. The two walked side by side. At first, the atmosphere was subtly awkward; Muxi would glance at Fesili from time to time, wondering about the reason for his change in attitude.
Fesili seemed to notice her gaze and turned his head to look at her. "What are you looking at?"
Muxi blushed, shook her head, and dared not look at him, lowering her eyes to stare at her own toes. Fesili didn't press the matter further; he simply slowed his pace to match hers.
...
Muxi stopped in front of a small mound of dirt. Fesili, thinking she was tired, asked if she wanted to rest. Muxi shook her head, pointed at the mound, and typed: "Could you please dig this open for me, Commander?"
Though puzzled, Fesili did as she asked, his fingers partially shifting into his beast-form. Muxi watched his furry white claws, finding them quite novel, and stared without blinking, wishing she could touch them.
After Fesili had been digging for a few minutes, the thing beneath the ground was revealed: a grey-brown circular object, about the size of a soccer ball.
"What is this?" Fesili had never seen one before.
"Earth mushroom. It’s edible."
Muxi mused to herself: *Is this the good stuff that boosts Mental Power that the heroine finds in the original book?*
Fesili looked at the grey-brown earth mushroom with suspicion; it was his first time seeing one. "Are you sure it’s edible? It doesn't look like normal food."
Muxi quickly typed an explanation on her communicator: "It really is edible. Don't let its lack of fragrance fool you; it doesn't taste bad when cooked."
Despite his lingering doubts, Fesili saw the look of certainty on Muxi’s face and nodded. He called over a few soldiers to help carefully dig up the earth mushrooms. Watching the soccer-ball-sized mushrooms, Muxi’s eyes sparkled, as if she could already smell their savory sweetness.
She typed again: "I’ll cook them myself later so everyone can have a taste and improve our meals."
Fesili’s light grey eyes flickered with surprise; few females knew how to cook. "You're going to cook?"
Muxi nodded firmly.
Once they had finished digging, Muxi returned to the camp with the haul. Along the way, many soldiers volunteered to help. With so many people, it was impossible for her to handle all the mushrooms alone, so she left the cleaning to them. Water sources on the barren planet were scarce, and they only had what they brought with them, which was very limited; no one dared to waste a drop.
She hovered nearby, explaining how to clean and slice them. Other soldiers gathered around to look at the large, grey-brown mushrooms, all wearing expressions of doubt and harboring deep skepticism about whether the things were actually edible.
"Can you really eat this? It looks so strange," a young soldier muttered.
"Yeah, I've never seen anything like it. Won't we get sick?" another agreed.
"Everything on a barren planet is heavily contaminated. Won't there be problems if we eat it?"
"We can't even drink the water here; can this really be eaten?"
Seeing their reaction, Muxi hurriedly typed: "It isn't poisonous. It’s safe to eat."
Even though Muxi was sincere, the soldiers remained skeptical. Just then, the camp's doctor walked over. He looked at the strange earth mushrooms with equal curiosity.
"Since everyone is worried, I’ll take them for testing. We’ll eat them once they're cleared," the doctor said.
Muxi nodded and handed them over, "Troubling you, Doctor Tang!"
Tang Yi smiled. "It’s my duty!"
Tang Yi hurried toward the starship with a few mushroom samples, heading straight for the testing lab in the medical bay. Muxi and the soldiers waited while cleaning the rest, their eyes darting toward the starship from time to time, feeling both curious and anxious.
After a long while, Tang Yi emerged from the starship with an expression of disbelief, holding the test report in his hand.