First Interstellar Guide Chapter 38: Lu Zexuan’s Mental Landscape

Chapter 38: Lu Zexuan’s Mental Landscape

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

On May 9th, the two-day enlistment for the new year of the Federal Legion ended smoothly. As usual, due to the provisions of “voluntary adjustment,” the number of new recruits recruited by the four major legions remained balanced.

The admission threshold for the Eagle Special Forces is a Sentinel grade A or above. Those who meet the requirements are not many to begin with, and coupled with a high casualty rate, some who qualify are hesitant to apply.

Only three people signed up this year, which already satisfied Lu Zexuan. All three were personally recruited by Lu Zexuan.

In addition, General Lu Tingyu also transferred two experienced veterans from his own guard camp to assist Lu Zexuan. The recent situation has been unstable, and he worries about his son’s safety. He sent over trusted aides with A+ combat capabilities.

As a result, five Sentinels arrived at the Eagle Special Forces at once. Though the number was small, each one was an elite, significantly boosting their strength.

Mohr did not submit a retirement application, and there were no new guides sent over from the Guide Association.

Lu Zexuan found Mohr and said, “Actually, you can take this opportunity to rest. I’ll have the association send another guide to replace you.”

Mohr shook his head with a smile. “Going back to work at the Capital Star is just seeing ordinary patients in the hospital. I prefer staying here.”

Lu Zexuan asked, “Are you worried about me?”

Mohr didn’t deny it.

Frowning, Lu Zexuan said, “My mental landscape is actually fine. It has been stable over the years, and the past events don’t affect me much. You don’t need to worry.”

Mohr asked back, “If it’s really fine, why did you say… if one day, you go berserk, to kill you at once?”

Mohr stared into Lu Zexuan’s eyes, who stiffly looked away. Indeed, he said those words himself.

Mohr sighed and said, “We’ve known each other for so many years. I know your temper well. You’ve never let a guide help you carefully sort through your mental landscape. Once the accumulated negative shadows explode, the consequences will be unimaginable. At least… let me bring Yu Ran out, it’s not too late even if I retire.”

Lu Zexuan fell silent for a moment, then nodded. “Alright, thank you for your hard work. How’s Yu Ran doing recently?”

Mohr smiled and said, “He’s the smartest intern I’ve ever seen. During these days at the White Tower with me, he has learned most of the treatment methods for various cases. I believe he’ll be able to treat independently soon.”

Thinking of the diligent little guide, for some reason, a warmth rose in Lu Zexuan’s heart.

That night, after returning to the dormitory, Lu Zexuan and Yu Ran went to bed early.

Late at night, Lu Zexuan suddenly had a nightmare. The terrifying scenes in the dream made him shiver, struggling to get up but finding himself trapped in a series of nightmares. It felt like a giant stone pressing down on him, preventing him from getting up. It was dark all around, unable to see what was happening, but he felt like there was a pair of hands pulling him, dragging him into the mud… constantly falling.

Lu Zexuan frowned in discomfort, cold sweat forming on his forehead.

After a while, a pair of warm hands gently touched his forehead. Following that, soft green vines appeared in his dream. The vines were vibrant and strong, instantly entangling him, pulling him up from the mud.

Lu Zexuan suddenly woke up, meeting a pair of clear eyes.

Yu Ran asked with concern, “Are you okay?”

The sweat had soaked through Lu Zexuan’s pajamas long ago.

The scenes from the nightmare seemed like an ominous omen, the cold, dark mud almost engulfing him completely. Luckily, Yu Ran pulled him out just in time.

Rubbing his throbbing temples, Lu Zexuan took a deep breath to calm himself down before saying, “I’m fine, just a nightmare.”

Yu Ran’s hand still rested on his forehead, looking at him with worry. This intimate contact made Lu Zexuan’s ears slightly warm. “…How did you wake up?”

Yu Ran explained, “Guides can sense emotions. I sensed that you were in great pain in your sleep, so I woke up. When I came over, I found you trapped in a nightmare. I tried to enter your mental landscape, but as an S-level Sentinel, your mental defenses are very strong. I couldn’t break through for a moment, so I could only try to wake you up through surface consciousness.”

Waking someone up from a nightmare wasn’t difficult for a guide.

But Yu Ran didn’t see what exactly troubled Lu Zexuan in the nightmare, nor could he help him sort out and treat it.

After all, Yu Ran still played the role of an “intern guide.” In Lu Zexuan’s eyes, he had at most grown to a B-level. Forcefully breaking through the mental landscape of an S-level Sentinel would immediately expose his abilities.

Lu Zexuan quickly calmed down. Actually, Mohr’s concern was not unreasonable. Over the years, he had been troubled by nightmares from time to time. In the past, he had always managed to get through them on his own, waiting until dawn to wake up naturally.

But today, Yu Ran helped him.

That feeling of someone catching you just as you were about to fall, pulling you out of the mud…

Made him feel warm.

This is the power of a guide, isn’t it? Even though Yu Ran’s power is still somewhat weak, he decisively helped him.

Lu Zexuan felt complex emotions. He suddenly wanted to hug the guide in front of him, but he was afraid of startling Yu Ran, so he forcibly restrained himself.

It seemed like men didn’t want to show their vulnerability in front of Yu Ran. He lowered his eyes and said softly, “I’m fine now, you should go to sleep.”

Yu Ran whispered, “Actually, if you have anything on your mind, you can talk to me. Keeping things bottled up inside for too long can lead to illness. Mohr told me that you never let anyone help you sort out your mental landscape, is that right?”

Lu Zexuan closed his eyes and didn’t answer. He just didn’t want others to see the unpleasant memories deep in his mind.

Yu Ran’s hand still rested on his forehead, and the mental tendrils didn’t leave. “Don’t worry, I’m here. Although my mental energy is not strong, our compatibility as guide and sentinel is as high as 98%. If one day you need my help, I will definitely help you.”

Lu Zexuan looked at him.

Yu Ran’s expression was very serious, as if a guide doctor was looking at his sentinel patient.

However, that gentle, kind gaze made Lu Zexuan’s heart tremble slightly.

—He said, “Don’t worry, I’m here.”

This sentence suddenly made Lu Zexuan feel particularly relieved.

“Do you trust me?” Yu Ran said slowly, “Can I take a look at your mental landscape?”

Lu Zexuan was speechless.

Yu Ran felt a bit embarrassed. “With my current mental energy, I can’t forcibly break through your mental barriers unless you voluntarily remove your defenses.”

Voluntarily remove his defenses? Lu Zexuan fell silent.

Over the years, he had many teammates, but since there was no guide to treat him, his mental world had always been lonely and cold.

He had seen too much life and death, and he knew that one day he would follow in the footsteps of those predecessors. As an S-level sentinel, once he went berserk, it would be extremely difficult to treat. Either he would turn into a murderous monster, or his comrades would execute him on the spot.

He thought he only had these two outcomes.

But now, Yu Ran came to his side, and he suddenly realized—there was actually a third path for him to take.

His compatibility with Yu Ran was as high as 98%. When that day came, Yu Ran would definitely help him.

Just like now, when he had a nightmare, Yu Ran didn’t hesitate to expend mental energy to wake him up.

Yu Ran would do his best to save him.

And he was willing to use his own life to protect Yu Ran.

Perhaps, this was the inseparable bond between sentinel and guide?

Before, he thought this bond was boring and didn’t want to be tied to any guide.

But now, he suddenly felt that if it was Yu Ran, having this bond between them was actually quite nice.

Lu Zexuan closed his eyes and finally made a decision, “Alright, come in.”

The sentinel’s ears reddened. This was the first time he voluntarily removed his mental barriers in front of a guide and allowed the other to enter his mental landscape.

He was always proud and didn’t want his secrets to be seen by others. But this time, he let down his guard for Yu Ran.

He was willing to trust Yu Ran.

As Lu Zexuan voluntarily removed his barriers, Yu Ran’s green mental tendrils smoothly entered the sentinel’s mental landscape.

He was stunned.

—In front of him was an endless expanse of snow-capped mountains.

One towering snow-capped mountain after another connected to form a vast, majestic, and desolate landscape with no end in sight.

This was the widest mental landscape Yu Ran had ever seen.

A giant eagle spread its beautiful wings, soaring freely between the snow-capped mountains. Sensing the arrival of the little white fox, it let out a pleasant cry.

In the mental world, the eagle was even larger than a starship in reality, and its outspread wings could cover the sky.

However, compared to Lu Zexuan’s exaggerated mental landscape, the eagle seemed very small.

And standing on the snowy ground below, Yu Ran and the little white fox, in front of the majestic snow-capped mountains… appeared as tiny as ants.

The voice of the White Eagle sounded in his ears, “Welcome to General Lu’s mental world! Most S-level sentinel mental landscapes are oceans, grasslands, or caves. Only my master has snow-capped mountains! I can’t even count how many there are, isn’t it cool?”

Yu Ran didn’t know what to say. It was indeed cool.

But once the snow-capped mountains collapse, it’s the most uncontrollable situation!

Yu Ran felt a headache for the first time—what should he do now?

His original plan was to pretend to destroy Lu Zexuan’s mental landscape when the time came, destroying and rebuilding it, and then reaching a cooperation agreement with Lu Zexuan to infiltrate the inner workings of the Dark Night organization and root out the mastermind hidden in the abyss.

Yu Ran alone had limited power, but with the assistance of S-level sentinel Lu Zexuan, the chances of success would be much greater.

He wasn’t afraid that Lu Zexuan would betray him, because once the landscape was destroyed and rebuilt, he would be able to see all the secrets of the sentinel’s mental world.

But now, what he saw was endless snow-capped mountains.

Rebuilding so many snow-capped mountains? That wouldn’t be easy!

Why did Lu Zexuan’s mental landscape have to be snow-capped mountains? Even if it was the sky, cracks could be repaired, clouds could regenerate, but how would they deal with a collapse of snow-capped mountains?

Yu Ran had never seen such a mental landscape before.

No wonder no guide could help Lu Zexuan thoroughly sort out his mental landscape—the difficulty of sorting out snow-capped mountains was just too high.

But Yu Ran never gave up, and for him, high-difficulty tasks were also a challenge. Anyway, there was still time, and he could slowly think about how to deal with these snow-capped mountains…

Seeing Yu Ran stuck at the foot of the mountain, Lu Zexuan said softly, “Did it scare you? It’s a bit cold here, and the scenery is rather monotonous. If you’re not comfortable, you can leave first.”

Lu Zexuan’s voice was cautious, as if he were showing his most precious secrets to someone experiencing their first love.

However, neither of them realized this.

While Yu Ran was thinking about how to deal with the snow-capped mountains, Lu Zexuan was worried that Yu Ran would be frightened. Standing at the foot of the towering mountains, many people would feel fear because once the snow-capped mountains collapsed, they would completely engulf the guide in the scene. If they weren’t careful, both would perish together.

Would Yu Ran be afraid? Lu Zexuan worriedly thought.

The next moment, he saw Yu Ran smile and say seriously, “The mental landscape of an S-level sentinel is indeed magnificent. This is the most beautiful snow scene I have ever seen. And your White Eagle is much larger than reality, soaring freely on the summit of the snow-capped mountains, it’s really handsome.”

This praise from Yu Ran came from the heart.

Lu Zexuan’s mental landscape indeed surprised him. Perhaps this sentinel’s potential was far more than he had thought.

White Eagle, “……!!!”

You really know how to praise people!!!

White Eagle happily flew down from the mountaintop, circling around Yu Ran several times. Lu Zexuan also breathed a sigh of relief. Because he was in a good mood, sunlight streamed down from the sky, shining on the snowy ground, and the scene was truly as beautiful as a fairyland.

Yu Ran quickly scanned around but didn’t find any obvious black fog or shadows. However, he was well aware that surface-level negative emotions were relatively easy to treat—while the shadows hidden deep in the mental landscape were the biggest threat.

What was the deep-seated unease buried in Lu Zexuan’s heart? Yu Ran couldn’t touch it now, nor could he forcibly activate his S-level healing abilities to search deep in the snow-capped mountains. He could only slowly figure out a solution.

Yu Ran withdrew his thoughts and let the little white fox play around at the foot of the mountain, saying, “I’m glad to see your mental landscape. Today, I really opened my eyes. By the way, you had a nightmare and didn’t sleep well earlier. Do you want me to hypnotize you and help you have a good sleep?”

Lu Zexuan nodded, “Okay.”

Yu Ran began to hypnotize him.

Lu Zexuan felt as if a gentle breeze blew through his mental world, dispersing all the bad memories and emotions. His whole body felt warm, as if he had returned to the cradle of his childhood, making him drowsy.

After a while, Lu Zexuan fell asleep, and White Eagle also landed on the mountaintop to rest.

Watching the man sleeping soundly on the sofa, Yu Ran sighed softly in his heart. Lu Zexuan, it’s because of me that you were dragged into this and became the experimental target of that organization. I will find a way to save you.