Chapter 1: Conscription

"That's how it is."

"Go back and get ready."

The principal, dressed in a black uniform, crossed his hands and looked at the frail boy in front of him, a trace of sympathy flashing in his eyes.

"I've been... included in the conscription quota?"

Lin Yuan's expression froze for a moment.

He had just traversed to this world not long ago and hadn't yet had time to adapt.

And then he received this shocking news.

For an ordinary student like Lin Yuan,

conscription wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

The government was always generous with its military spending.

Even as a conscript, one could expect decent treatment.

But that was during peacetime.

Now, there were rumors of alien invasions at the border star systems.

Many speculated that this conscription's purpose was to act as a frontline reserve.

In the Starry Sea Era of 2.6 million years, the Cosmic Human Alliance had carried out fervent interstellar expansion, occupying one galaxy after another, inevitably coming into contact with other racial civilizations.

Resources were finite, and in the struggle for various cosmic resources,

human civilization initiated a series of conflict wars.

The alien civilizations who were driven away...

all kept a watchful eye on human civilization, launching counterattacks whenever they found an opportunity.

"This is troublesome."

Lin Yuan's mood sank.

He knew very well that although human civilization, overall,

held absolute superiority in wars against most alien civilizations,

on some battlefields, things were not always smooth sailing.

The alien civilizations deep in the starry sky were ferocious and violent.

Their individuals were unimaginably powerful.

Tearing apart battleships with bare hands was no exaggeration.

Even with fully armed human soldiers,

the average mortality rate reached twenty to thirty percent.

In addition,

due to the confidentiality of the war,

all soldiers participating in the eradication of alien invasions were forbidden from communicating with the outside world.

Localized star sky wars typically dragged on for hundreds of years, which was not unusual.

So, Lin Yuan being selected for conscription,

even if he survived the confrontation with alien races,

he estimated that he would spend the rest of his life on cold space battleships,

never again touching the land and oceans of a life planet.

Lin Yuan took a deep breath, "Principal, is there a way to negotiate? My parents are relying on me to support them in the future, and I have a younger sister..."

The principal tapped the desk, speaking solemnly, "Rest assured, by actively responding to the government's conscription policy, your family will be properly cared for."

"Your father will be promoted one level in his current position, your mother will be given a respectable job in the district."

"Your sister will have all her tuition fees waived, and after turning eighteen, she will have a slot for advanced study at a higher education institution."

"...So they've even considered my afterlife arrangements in detail?"

Lin Yuan pursed his lips, feeling an indescribable complexity inside.

To be fair, the conditions were reasonable.

His father was at a career bottleneck, which most people struggled to overcome for decades.

His mother was currently unemployed, and getting a respectable job would greatly improve their family living conditions.

As for his sister... a slot for advanced study at a higher educational institution was something money couldn't buy.

His sister could attend an advanced institution, which meant a promising future was not out of the question.

But.

But.

But.

*Why did all this have to be built on my sacrifice???*

Lin Yuan had only inhabited this body for a few days, and although he had completely assimilated all its memories,

he still felt an unspeakable resistance in his heart to this "sacrifice myself for the happiness of my family" scenario.

"I still preferred life on the planet..."

Lin Yuan fell silent for a moment, unable to help but speak up.

Once he became a soldier, everything would be subject to military management.

If he waited until then to refuse, it would be too late.

Though refusing now probably wouldn't do much good either.

"Lin Yuan, serving the government is an obligation we citizens should fulfill,"

"Moreover, this conscription is part of a mandatory policy, and being selected... well, no matter how much you don't want to go, it won't make a difference."

"Besides, young man, what's so bad about venturing out? Being able to see aliens that only appear in textbooks is something ordinary citizens could never achieve in their lifetime."

"If you could earn some merit, perhaps in the future you might be assigned a position back in the military district."

"This is a rare opportunity for advancement."

The principal patiently comforted Lin Yuan with a few words.

"But..."

Lin Yuan opened his mouth, trying to say more.

But the principal waved a large hand, "Alright, you should go out, spend more time with your family these days."

Under the principal's gaze, Lin Yuan stood up and left.

Outside the door,

over ten students around Lin Yuan's age were waiting in line.

After Lin Yuan came out, a student immediately went in.

"Classmate, what's the principal calling us for?"

A dark-skinned student hurriedly grabbed Lin Yuan's arm, whispering in inquiry.

"You'll find out when you go in."

Lin Yuan sighed and walked away without paying attention.

Before meeting the principal, Lin Yuan hadn't expected to be included in the mandatory conscription quota.

Last week,

Lin Yuan learned about the mandatory conscription news from a reputable media broadcast on the planet.

However, he hadn't paid much attention at the time.

The scope of mandatory conscription included the entire Canglan Star and several dozen surrounding life planets.

Canglan Star had a resident population of fifty billion,

but the number of conscription slots allocated to Canglan Star amounted to only a few hundred thousand.

In terms of probability, being selected for mandatory conscription was a one-in-a-hundred-thousand chance.

Such a slim chance, Lin Yuan hadn't taken it to heart at all.

But reality was full of unexpected events,