On a certain spacecraft, there were three avid novel readers named A-Kong, A-Ming, and A-Guang. The three of them traveled together, forming a happy little family of three, witnessing all sorts of strange and fascinating happenings along their journey.

They shared the same hobby of reading novels. After arriving at the Deep Space Prison, they were so absorbed that they didn't even want to leave. In the end, A-Kong laid down a rule: they would stay here for two years, then move on to the next destination. The universe was vast, and they hadn't reached the end of their lives yet. They couldn't just stop.

And so, the three readers began their book-hunting journey. Whenever they found a novel they loved, they recommended it to each other, and gradually developed a habit of chatting while reading. According to them, it gave the experience a lively, companionable feeling.

When they discovered the Blue Planet civilization, all three instinctively recommended it to one another. The novels from this civilization were simply too fascinating because every new book felt like a completely fresh experience.

But today, A-Kong was uneasy.

"What's going on... why hasn't Dream of the Red Chamber updated yet?" A-Kong flipped their optical computer over and over. "What are the Green Clan even doing? Weren't they so smug about getting access to the ancient texts? Their novelists all act like Redology experts, posting reviews every day with so many followers. And now they can't even update on time."

"Qiongtian's Born Again with the Spring Wind hasn't updated either... Guan Yu, is he really dead? Did Wei end up winning? Will the common people finally live better lives? I really want to know what happens next..." A-Ming sighed, equally dispirited.

As for A-Guang, who adored Canghai's tomb-raiding series, they had already collapsed flat on the floor from the lack of updates.

Suddenly, the Green Clan's account released chapters 80 through 100 of Dream of the Red Chamber.

"They actually updated this much?!"

Overjoyed, A-Kong immediately began devouring the chapters. This was their habit: first, read for the general idea; second, go back for the details; third, read other people's reviews. Only after repeated "stewing, frying, and simmering" could a literary feast truly be savored.

The first read was usually hard to fully grasp, but even with such a cursory pass, A-Kong could sense something was off.

"The writing style feels different... a lot of things don't connect anymore. The supporting characters lost that subtle, elusive quality; swap the names out and you could put anyone in their place."

"Did the characterizations change? The girls wouldn't act like this. And Grandmother Jia's personality feels harsher?"

"No, it's the author's worldview that changed!" A-Kong slapped their thigh. "That always shows through. This feels completely different from before! It's like they're forcing connections to earlier foreshadowing, then stapling on some happy endings."

The more they read, the more restless they became. It was like watching someone ruin a beautiful dish, or like watching a crumbling building about to collapse. A growing dread, even anger, welled up inside. But remembering how good the earlier chapters had been, A-Kong held back and politely asked under the Green Clan's account:

"What exactly happened? Is there a problem with the translation?"

Scrolling through the comments, A-Kong saw many others raising the same question. Readers in this universe might not have strong analytical skills, but their mental sensitivity was sharp. Even if they couldn't pinpoint the problem, they could feel that the mental feedback from the text was fundamentally different. Most maintained politeness, with some calling for a different translator, or for the whole text to be retranslated; anything was better than feeding readers garbage.

But the Green Clan account gave no reply. Even as the comment count surged past a thousand, there was still no response.

A-Kong was about to explode in anger. Just then, the comment rate spiked again. Following links from other readers, A-Kong found a trending forum post:

[

Discussion

Rumor: After Chapter 80 of Red, the Green Clan rewrote it themselves!

 ]

 

A-Kong's mind went blank. For two or three seconds, they couldn't hear anything.

"A-Kong! A-Kong! What's wrong?!" A-Ming and A-Guang rushed over.

"I just ate counterfeit toxic garbage... ugh..." A-Kong felt worse than suffocating. "That continuation was actually written by the Green Clan themselves! Do they even have that ability? Just because they think they're Redology experts, they can rewrite it however they like? What they produced isn't even one percent as good as the original!"

Furious, they returned to the Green Clan's post, wishing they could strangle the Green Clan through the network signal.

Imagine enjoying a fine meal, and suddenly being served with greasy, gutter-oil junk. Who wouldn't feel sick? And worse, it wasn't a mistake. It was a deliberate act by an apprentice cook trying to prove their skills. How could any diner not be enraged?

"I hope the Green Clan has no illusions about this: if it had been labeled as your own work from the start, I wouldn't have read a single word."

"Very disappointing. Facing Blue Planet civilization, have you still not learned humility? Do you really think you're the only advanced civilization? There are more 'advanced civilizations' on this forum than there are ants!"

"What kind of rewrite is this? I'm not asking for perfect fidelity, but at least don't butcher the characters' personalities! All I see is the arrogance of the Green Clan as the first readers of the ancient texts. Blue Planet should revoke its special reading rights."

"I'm willing to negotiate new cooperation with Blue Planet on behalf of my civilization's official diplomacy."

"Same here! Our civilization excels at derivative works: affordable and high quality! I hope Blue Planet's official channels will take notice!"

Finally, unable to withstand the pressure, the Green Clan account posted a reply: "Actually... this adaptation also referenced local Blue Planet adaptations..."

The moment the Green Clan appeared, more readers flooded in.

"Stop! Don't make excuses! Are you trying to shift the blame onto Blue Planet?"

"Do you know why Qiongtian stopped updating?"

"Local adaptations? They can adapt however they like; we want the original!"

Inside the Green Clan's spacecraft, urgent discussions broke out.

"This won't calm the readers... should we really tell them the truth? Is it really okay to be this cruel to them?"

"We have no choice." The stoutest member of the Green Clan pushed the others aside and declared with solemn conviction: "I, Yizhu, will be the one to release this sorrowful news! Our literary skills cannot deceive the readers anyway. Let all the blame fall on me, Yizhu!"

Yizhu pressed the send button, and the announcement spread instantly across the AI Forum, transmitted through countless photons to optical computer terminals everywhere, entering readers' eyes and visual cells.

For one brief second, an extremely rare occurrence, not a single new post appeared on the AI Forum. Even those who hadn't read the novel knew how celebrated Dream of the Red Chamber was. Whether they had read it or not, everyone stared at the newly posted message in shock.

One second later, A-Kong clutched their optical computer and let out a wail like a slaughtered pig:

"No! Dream of the Red Chamber! It's a meteorite crater!!!"

It's an unfinished pit!!

Though sound cannot travel through space, the beings floating in the Deep Space Prison seemed to hear a heart-piercing wail for no reason at all. It drilled into their bones like a power tool, leaving readers who had given their love to the novel writhing in agony.

"If I had never encountered Blue Planet's ancient texts, I wouldn't feel this agony now. If I hadn't opened that post, my eighty-eight hands wouldn't be trembling..."

"Dream of the Red Chamber being a pit, only 80 chapters, that sort of thing; absolutely unacceptable!"

"Why, Blue Planet, why are you just watching?! You let us fall into this pit, lying at the bottom, waiting from dusk till dawn, counting every crack, and you say nothing?! I trusted you in vain!"

Some readers grasped the deeper meaning:

"Ah... so this is... 'a vast expanse of white, truly clean'..." (T/N: A line from inside the novel itself, describing the emptiness after everything falls apart, just like the circumstance of its unfinished status... probably?)

Through tear-filled eyes, A-Kong saw the words "Blue Planet" and felt a flicker of hope. The Green Clan claimed that Blue Planet told them there was no continuation, but what if the Green Clan was lying too? What if they had simply failed Blue Planet's literary standards? Blue Planet did seem to love exams. That must be it. Blue Planet would surely have a true continuation!

A-Kong shook out their hands, finding them numb and sore. The powerful emotional shift actually caused a physiological reaction. Ignoring this, they endured the numbness and went to Blue Planet's official site, joining countless others hoping for an official explanation.

There, they found their two old friends: A-Ming and A-Guang.

A-Ming said, "To be honest, since Qiongtian suddenly stopped updating, we readers have been waiting here for a long time."

A-Guang said, "I've got it worse. Canghai didn't even give a hiatus notice, sob. Canghai was always so kind to us, enthusiastically replying to readers and sharing knowledge. And then he just went silent without a word!"

A-Guang thought of a terrifying possibility: "What if he stopped updating just to keep Qiongtian company? I heard that close friends on Blue Planet are incredibly important to each other... they used to be close friends!"

A-Ming immediately smacked A-Guang on the head. "Show some respect to Mr. Qiongtian! His writing is far more comprehensive and refined!"

A-Guang pouted, returning to their daily debate: "But Canghai's stories are more fun. No reader finishes one of his books without wanting to go tomb-raiding themselves. Tell me, would you actually want to personally experience every single dynasty on Blue Planet?"

"Enough!" A-Kong cut in. "The point is, Blue Planet still hasn't responded."

A-Ming and A-Guang, who had been gearing up for a verbal battle, immediately fell silent and bowed their heads with a sigh.

A single question lingered in every mind:

What on earth had happened to Blue Planet?

 

—

 

Tidal Peace.

Xi Yujin had finally boarded the interstellar rail he longed for. Tidal Peace, accelerated by the mechanical celestial bodies, was racing toward the edge of the Deep Space Prison. He should have been enjoying the thrill of the journey, but instead, he was fleeing for his life.

He knew just how terrifying readers in this universe could be. For a different ending, they would literally chase novelists down in spaceships.

He didn't dare imagine what would happen if they caught up. This time, it wasn't just one unfinished story. There was Qiongtian's inexplicable hiatus, and Canghai's forgetting to update as well. With so many debts stacked together, he suspected that readers would lock him in a literal little black room before they'd let him go.

Xi Yujin glanced at Gano, who was carefully checking the navigation route, and thought: even though this escape looked rushed and disheveled, he had really been so handsome back on the ground. Next time, no more running away! This would absolutely be his last escape!

He knew he absolutely couldn't open the Blue Star official website because he hadn't figured out how to face the readers yet.

But some who had already established private contact were sending messages directly to his inbox.

"Friend of Blue Planet, we heard that Dream of the Red Chamber is a pit, and that one of your novelists has stopped updating. Our hearts bled instantly, forming a stream that passed through door cracks, across streets, along overpasses, and onto a freshly launched rocket, knocking with concern on your porthole." This was from Mihuan Literature, which had been studying magical realism.

"If you're willing, let's call you friends of Blue Planet. If there's any news about Dream of the Red Chamber's continuation, or if your novelists need assistance, we can provide lie-detection services. Tomorrow night, we'll definitely put the devil to the blade!" This was from Interactive Literature, which was devoted to text-based games.

"Dear friends of Blue Planet... we feel as though another old friend has left us. You know how it is at our age... Every old friend who goes is one less." This was from Longevity Literature, forever mourning its friends.

There were also several races that had established friendly diplomatic relations with Blue Planet. All of them expressed concern.

Xi Yujin truly wished he could explode into a supernova on the spot.

After reading Longevity Literature's letter, an idea suddenly surfaced in his mind, something that might quickly resolve the current crisis, though it wasn't quite clear yet.

Ding!

A sharp metallic vibration pierced through the entire Tidal Peace.

Gano donned his armor while Xi Yujin looked at the viewport. The worst had finally happened. The mechanical celestial bodies in space had shifted into an interception formation, completely blocking their path.

Tidal Peace had been forced to stop by the Intelligent Machines' terminals.

A mechanical celestial body extended a communication device and attached it to the outer hull, saying:

"Hello, Yujin of Blue Planet. I am Sub-unit 2352. I hope you still remember me; I was the mainframe that first searched for you on the ground. My records show that the Mother Box deleted some of my memories. But I still remember the pleasant time we spent together. I believe you do as well."

Xi Yujin took a deep breath.

Sub-unit 2352 continued: "I mean no harm. I greatly enjoy Dream of the Red Chamber, and also the works of other Blue Planet novelists, especially Qiongtian and Canghai. I've even collected many anecdotes about them. I only wish to ask: has something unexpected happened to Blue Planet?"

Xi Yujin suddenly felt something tickling at his feet. Looking down, he saw five little black coal-ball sprites bouncing around him.

"You've awakened?" Xi Yujin asked, slightly surprised.

They were all quite small, clearly young members of the Rust Clan. To Xi Yujin, they were practically elementary school students.

The little Rust Clan members, who had already learned quite a bit, chirped a few confident words.

Xi Yujin glanced at the mechanical celestial body outside the viewport, bent down, and said to them: "If it's too much, don't force yourselves."

The little Rust Clan members puffed up into round, spiky balls like angry pufferfish, insisting they could handle it.

So Xi Yujin had them board the Oceanview, a sightseeing boat gifted by the Materialist Reading Society, and sent them toward the mechanical body.

With a soft plop, the pufferfish-like little Rust Clan members slapped themselves onto its surface. The catalyst secreted by their bodies accelerated various reactions, and a deep streak of rust spread rapidly across the structure.

The mechanical body had long been battered by intense stellar winds and was already due for replacement every year. With a loud crack, it split cleanly in two.

The bus-sized Oceanview docked back into Tidal Peace's passage.

And Tidal Peace, carrying Oceanview, continued its accelerated escape!

"Sorry about that. I don't like anything blocking my way," Xi Yujin said in an almost innocent tone.

By common standards, a civilization's technology isn't usually lower than its literary level. Therefore, Blue Planet being able to quickly destroy a mechanical body seemed perfectly normal to other beings.

But it also made them instantly recognizable.

"Daring to smash a mechanical celestial body? There's only one possible culprit: you! Blue Planet civilization!"

To many alien species, Blue Planet did not look like a civilization that feared anyone.

At that moment, from all directions around Tidal Peace, countless ships began to move. Tidal Peace was the center of the vortex, attracting everything capable of spaceflight.

"I know what to do now. Gano, please accelerate."

Xi Yujin remained calm.

He retrieved the Intelligent Machines' communication device from outside the hull that supported two-way transmission.

"Hello, Sub-unit 2352 of the Intelligent Machines. I remember you. The time we spent together was indeed pleasant. If you don't remember, I'll remember for you, so don't worry. Please broadcast the following to all readers willing to receive Blue Planet communications."

He paused.

The pursuing ships, even those that had already deployed capture nets, slowed down.

A novelist in the middle of writing pushed up their glasses.

On one spacecraft, A-Kong, A-Ming, and A-Guang listened with grave expressions.

In that instant, broadcast signal distortion dropped to a minimum, and even audio degradation was greatly reduced. Somewhere, a certain Mother Box had quietly allocated a fraction of its computing power, making the communication clearer and more precise.

Every being listening felt their thoughts drawn in, utterly still.

Had something truly happened to Blue Planet?

"We, too, are deeply dismayed that Dream of the Red Chamber is a pit, but it was unavoidable. For further developments, please continue to follow Blue Planet's official site. We have only uncovered other versions by other novelists. The original lead, Qiongtian, has withdrawn from the project. As for why Qiongtian stopped updating Born Again with the Spring Wind, and why Canghai stopped updating A Hundred Years Together... it is because..."

Xi Yujin spoke in a voice heavy with restrained grief.

"Our novelist, Canghai... is already in the terminal stage of an incurable illness."

Canghai!

I'm sorry!

Please "have" a terminal illness for now!

Xi Yujin let out a long sigh.

The beings listening froze as if struck by lightning.

Even Gano, who was standing nearby, was stunned. He couldn't quite process it. Could a persona even develop a terminal illness? What kind of illness? Delusion?

In this universe, medicine was highly advanced, which meant that if something was called a terminal illness, there was truly no cure. Perhaps, for Blue Planet humans, such an illness might be something like cooling syndrome. (T/N: Probably because Xi Yujin is a star...?)

The words echoed in every alien reader's mind:

Terminal illness!

Late stage!

A trope that seemed to exist only in Xunming's melodramatic stories had suddenly, dramatically materialized in reality!

Why Canghai? Why Canghai of all people?!

"Ah!!"

A-Guang, who loved Canghai the most, collapsed to the floor as if struck by an invisible blow. "This... this isn't real! I don't believe it!"

That sweet angel of an author who had been chatting with readers just a few days ago... how could he suddenly be terminally ill?

A-Guang thought back over many of Canghai's past remarks. They had always seemed like simply his personality, but now, everything looked like an omen that had been there all along.

When Canghai kept failing to update in the Pangshi Galaxy, it wasn't because he was prone to delays! It was because he was running out of time, undergoing treatment!

He was always out and about with Xunming. And Xunming, normally argumentative about everything, had once said he was "covering" for Canghai, because he already knew all along!

Canghai had even let slip during a debate on the AI Forum that he didn't have much energy. His situation back then must have already been critical...

And yet, when Qiongtian published something, he had still been the first to jump out and call the writing mushroom.

A-Guang felt an aching, bewildered bitterness at the cruelty of fate.

A-Ming, who favored Qiongtian, didn't know how to comfort A-Guang. Their first thought, guiltily, was relief that it wasn't Qiongtian who was ill. But then another thought surfaced: could Qiongtian's hiatus be connected to this? Their mouth slowly fell open in shock as the speculation was impossible to hold back.

Meanwhile, A-Kong, who adored Dream of the Red Chamber, instantly connected this to every piece of gossip they had accumulated. Their instincts blazed and pulled up the forum.

"So that's what it was!"

A-Kong believed they understood Blue Planet civilization fairly well, and now that they had strung every clue into a single chain. Along with many others, they had already pieced together the truth.

"Qiongtian and Canghai have known each other since childhood and promised to take the civil service exam together. In the end, Canghai didn't go. We don't know what misunderstanding occurred between them, but it must be connected to this illness."

"I have to say, their separation is such a pity... because in researching Blue Planet civilization, I've found that even when they stood on opposite sides, they always understood each other perfectly."

"For example, the protagonists of Born Again with the Spring Wind and A Hundred Years Together are named Pu Wei and Pan Shi. I found in one of Canghai's earlier novels that this comes from an ancient vow between them: 'The reed (蒲苇, Pu Wei) is resilient as silk, the bedrock (磐石, Pan Shi) does not shift.' A promise never to abandon each other. Canghai, what were you thinking? Qiongtian, how could you not see it?"

"And for example, the titles of both books come from Tang dynasty poets. Though the readers here don't know which dynasty they fall in, Yujin mentioned in one of his short stories that these two poets were lifelong friends. Did Canghai really not think of the poets' own story when he chose that title? And Qiongtian, didn't you realize either?"

"What's even more heartbreaking is this: the poet associated with Canghai's title died before the poet associated with Qiongtian's. Canghai, were you hinting at something?"

"Not to mention the timeline: whenever Born Again with the Spring Wind reaches a certain era, A Hundred Years Together just happens to be excavating tombs from that exact same era. There is no such thing as this much coincidence."

Inside their ship, the trio was caught between shock and overwhelming grief.

There had been so much they hadn't understood...

Writers always hid the truth between the lines, never once stating it aloud.

A-Guang let out another cry.

Knowing Canghai's work better than anyone, they turned pale and asked:

"In A Hundred Years Together, the protagonist has always been searching for someone... could it be, could it be that Pan Shi was searching for Pu Wei all along?"

A-Kong and A-Ming were deeply shaken. They looked at each other, speechless, and could only silently pat A-Guang on the shoulder.

A-Guang burst into tears: "Why the misunderstanding?! Why the missed chance?! Why wait until now to say it?!"

 

—

 

Deep Space Prison.

The surrounding ships did not give chase. Instead, they remained in their own orbits, watching Tidal Peace fly away. Physically, they were silent, but spiritually their grief roared deafeningly. Xi Yujin could almost hear the resonance of their collective sorrow.

The endless procession of farewell ships made him feel, for the first time, like he was attending a funeral.

Except he was the one lying in the coffin.

"Light sails... deploy..." he murmured, activating the Tidal Peace's new device.

As the silver-white sails unfurled around the ship, many of the watching beings seemed struck by a sudden surge of emotion, causing their tears to flow freely.

"Waaah! White! In Blue Planet culture, that's the color of mourning!!"

"I can't accept this..."

"Tomorrow and accidents... accidents always come first..."

"A toast to the greatness of Blue Planet literature! Raise a glass of burning wine across the void!"

The aliens' mourning music rang out all at once, and Xi Yujin grew even more worried about his safety.

Light sails worked much like wind sails, except instead of wind, they harnessed photons, which carried far greater energy. Eight sail devices deployed at different angles, catching energy thrown from distant stars and accelerating the ship forward step by step, as if sailing across a sea of void. Once it reached sufficient speed, the dense mechanical structures in the viewport vanished, replaced by endless nebulae.

The small Tidal Peace sailed through the sea of stars, perfectly living up to the origins of its name:

"The tide runs level, the shores stretch wide; the wind is fair, and a single sail hangs poised."

"Well... I suppose this counts as a successful escape, right?"