Chapter 1: Transmigration

The filthy, chaotic refugee camp reeked of a foul stench. The open ground was packed with small shipping containers, with people constantly coming and going, showing clear signs of living and habitation.

Inside one cramped, humid container, Song Qiu lay flat on the floor, staring blankly at the ceiling.

“Squeak—”

An animal's cry sounded beside his ear.

He rolled over and continued staring into space, ignoring it.

After an unknown amount of time, a sharp pain twisted through his empty stomach.

He was hungry.

“Squeak, squeak—”

The noise grew louder and louder.

With a resigned sigh, Song Qiu grabbed a stone from beside him and hurled it with practiced ease, hitting his target perfectly.

It was a mutated rat, so fat that its body was nearly as large as his forearm.

Song Qiu climbed to his feet, picked up the barely conscious rat, and tossed it into a cage in the corner.

The cage already held dozens of similar rats.

Those at the back were long dead, their brain matter mixed with dried blood—obviously beaten to death in moments of extreme terror. The newer rats near the front were relatively intact.

Judging that he had collected enough, Song Qiu grabbed the cage and left the container.

A week ago, he had been nothing more than an ordinary college student diligently working on his graduation project.

One moment he had been staying up all night writing his thesis.

The next, he had transmigrated into a garbage dump that stank to high heaven.

After gathering information for several days, he learned that this place was called Blue Star.

Blue Star was a world rebuilding after a catastrophe.

It was divided into five Special Zones, each governed independently. Some were even subtly hostile toward one another.

Everything outside those zones was collectively known as the slums.

After the disaster, humanity had also evolved into three secondary genders:

Male and female, Alphas, Betas, and Omegas.

As for Song Qiu, he had become a complete nobody—without identification, household registration, or a home.

A homeless scavenger living in the slums.

Even more ridiculous was the fact that he had transmigrated physically.

His original Earth body had crossed over intact.

Since Earth humans had neither scent glands nor pheromones, the locals automatically classified him as a Beta.

Song Qiu desperately wished all of this was just a dream.

Not for any grand reason.

Just because of his graduation project.

He had spent an entire month pulling all-nighters to finish it.

Couldn’t fate at least let him submit it and receive his diploma before throwing him into another world?

Unfortunately, reality gave him no time to grieve.

The biggest problem now was figuring out what to eat every day.

Fortunately, the First Military Academy had begun its annual recruitment drive this week.

Every day, free relief porridge was distributed.

One meal a day.

Various unidentified ingredients were mixed together into a dark, lumpy mass that scratched at the throat when swallowed.

It tasted terrible and wasn't filling.

But it was free.

Song Qiu loved it.

Because if he didn't drink it, he'd have to eat rats.

Mutated rats.

Big, fat ones.

Many people in the slums liked eating rats.

To them, meat was meat.

Most of them would never taste quality meat in their lives.

These mutated rats were large, muscular, and surprisingly popular as a rare treat.

Eating rats...

Song Qiu shuddered.

He couldn't imagine doing it.

He would rather starve to death.

A stronger wave of hunger hit him, accompanied by painful stomach cramps, and he quickened his pace.

Containers crowded both sides of the road.

Military patrols could be seen at regular intervals.

Rumor had it they were maintaining order during the recruitment period.

The soldiers were all powerful Alphas, each over six feet tall.

Occasionally a Beta followed at the rear of a squad, visibly weaker than the Alphas.

As for Omegas—

You never saw them in these wild lands outside the military zones.

Blue Star had preferential policies for Omegas.

From birth, they received numerous government subsidies that continued until adulthood and marriage.

Their lives could be described as smooth sailing from beginning to end.

But Song Qiu was a "Beta."

None of that had anything to do with him.

As he walked, he considered his current situation.

Today was the final day of admissions for the First Military Academy.

Anyone under eighteen could undergo a mental-power test.

According to rumors, those with an A-rank or higher could enroll if they passed the subsequent examinations.

The problem was the registration fee.

One hundred Star Coins.

And Song Qiu didn't have a single coin.

The rats he had been catching these past few days weren't nearly enough.

He could only place his hopes on something he had found while scavenging.

Maybe it would fetch enough money.

The general store wasn't far away.

He arrived shortly.

The owner was also a Beta.

A burly man with a thick beard and a rough appearance.

Song Qiu set the cage on the wooden counter.

"Boss, how much can these sell for?"

The blood on the rats was still fresh, showing they had been caught recently.

The owner looked surprised.

"That's quite a lot. You caught all these yourself?"

"Yeah. For some reason, these rats keep running to where I live."

"Maybe you've got some special charm."

The owner laughed.

He clearly didn't believe it.

Even low-level mutated creatures usually avoided humans.

People had trouble catching them on purpose.

Why would they willingly run into someone's home?

Song Qiu merely smiled and said nothing.

The owner worked quickly.

After skinning and weighing them, the total came to 30.8 jin

"Thirty point eight. Let's call it thirty."

He unlocked a safe and took out several heavily worn Star Coins.

"Thirty coins."

It was the first time Song Qiu had encountered such creative math.

Speechless, he accepted the coins.

Then he took out a small cloth pouch and pushed it across the counter.

"What about this?"

The owner opened it.

Inside were several tiny seeds.

"What are these...?"

"Seeds I found a few days ago."

A century earlier, Blue Star had suffered a devastating catastrophe.

Most plants and animals had mutated, becoming dangerous and highly aggressive.

Only a handful of plants remained uncontaminated.

But they had lost the ability to reproduce.

The seeds Song Qiu had found belonged to one of those uncontaminated plants.

The owner's eyes lit up.

Carefully cradling the shriveled seeds, he could barely contain his excitement.

These were treasures.

If they could be cultivated successfully, they would be worth a fortune.

His eyes darted around before he said,

"Look at how dried out these seeds are. Growing them won't be easy. How about this—I'll give you two hundred coins. I'll take the loss."

"Forget it. I'm not selling."

Song Qiu immediately grabbed the pouch and turned to leave.

The man was obviously trying to cheat him.

The owner panicked.

"Hey, wait! Five hundred! Five hundred coins, okay?"

Without changing expression, Song Qiu replied,

"Eight hundred."

"Six hundred! Six hundred, alright? Who in these slums has more money than that? I really can't go higher!"

The man had a point.

And Song Qiu urgently needed money.

After a moment's thought, he said,

"Seven hundred. Not one coin less."

"Fine, fine, you little vixen. Seven hundred it is!"

The owner reluctantly opened his safe and poured a pile of Star Coins into the cloth pouch before handing it over.

"Go on, get out of here. This deal's ruined me."

His face was full of exaggerated pain.

Song Qiu rolled his eyes internally.

The man was clearly making a huge profit while pretending to suffer.

Anyone could tell those seeds would sell for far more once resold.

Clutching the money pouch tightly, Song Qiu rushed toward the busiest part of the settlement.

He had money now.

Time to register!

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

Meanwhile, the shopkeeper rubbed the newly acquired seeds between his fingers, already planning how to make a fortune.

What he didn't notice was a tiny sprout silently emerging from one of the seeds.