Yu Jin studied the girl in front of him.
Fair was fair—Yin Yao was undeniably beautiful. Her bearing was even more striking, no wonder Tang Yunxuan had just about lost his mind earlier.
But still…
"What on earth is Senior Yin playing at?"
Yu Jin couldn't figure it out. He thought it over, and still came up blank.
In his three years at university, he had barely crossed paths with her a handful of times.
Honestly, Yu Jin doubted she even knew his name.
"…Wait a second."
He suddenly froze, glancing at Tang Yunxuan beside him—whose eyes were practically begging him to accept Yin Yao's application on the spot.
"Damn it, this simp is contagious!"
"I almost fell into one of life's three biggest delusions—thinking she joined because she liked me!"
"Maybe she really just loves the environment. Maybe she just wants to promote a clean and healthy global village!"
With that thought, his unease vanished.
"No problem," Yu Jin said evenly. "To join, you just need to fill out an application form. Once you pass the assessment, you'll officially be a member of the Environmental Club."
"Thank you."
Yin Yao accepted the form, her voice soft.
Then, without hesitation, she sat down right beside him, pulled out a fountain pen that clearly wasn't cheap, and began filling in the form with swift, graceful strokes.
"Huh?"
"She even brought her own pen?"
Watching her, Yu Jin realized he had underestimated her "Save the Earth" conviction.
A talent like this—definitely worth having in the club!
Meanwhile…
Across the way, Dance Club vice president Yu Pan'er looked like her whole face had crumpled. She seemed on the verge of tears.
"President… President…"
"You're really quitting the Dance Club?"
At those words, Yin Yao paused for a moment, as if suddenly remembering. She lifted her head toward Yu Pan'er:
"Almost forgot. Get me a withdrawal form."
Yu Pan'er: "…"
The lecture hall fell into several long minutes of silence.
Scratch, scratch.
The sound of pen against paper echoed in everyone's ears.
Freshmen or upperclassmen, it didn't matter—every eye was on Yin Yao, who had calmly filled out a withdrawal form before moving right on to the Environmental Club application.
Their faces showed every shade of disbelief.
"What's going on?"
"Why would Yin Yao quit the Dance Club just to join… the empty Environmental Club?"
Nobody understood.
Especially the new members who had joined the Dance Club purely because of her—they felt not just confused, but utterly lost.
On the other side, where no one else could see—
Yin Yao's pen flew across the page, but her eyes shimmered with relief and satisfaction.
Success!
She had done it!
The first step toward getting close to Yu Jin—done!
No one knew.
Just half an hour ago, she had been struggling to survive in the wasteland world. For the sake of an "Infection Crystal," she had died, devoured by a Tier-3 Mutant Beast King—the Shadow Panther. Her body had been obliterated.
But…
Heaven had given her another chance.
When she opened her eyes again, she had been reborn.
Reborn before the invasion of the game Wasteland into reality.
Reborn into this still-peaceful world.
"Today is September 2nd. There are exactly seven days left before Wasteland invades Blue Star."
"When that day comes, nearly half of humanity will be forcibly transported to an alien wasteland, where they'll fight to survive…"
As she filled out the form, Yin Yao calculated quickly in her head.
Seven days.
With seven days, what could she do?
Armed with the knowledge from her previous life, she could seize countless resources ahead of others once the wasteland began.
But…
The greatest, most precious resource of all sat right beside her, lounging with one leg crossed over the other.
He was the lord of Dawn City, the strongest and safest sanctuary in the wasteland.
He was the first to ever ascend to Tier-9 evolution.
He was the nightmare of infected and beasts alike, the one who had single-handedly slaughtered a tide of a hundred thousand infected creatures.
Back then, in that desperate world, when Yin Yao had been nothing more than a lowly refugee, she had only glimpsed him once from afar.
But his name had already spread across the entire wasteland.
Yu Jin.
That was why—
The moment she accepted her rebirth, she immediately began seeking him out.
And so, she had come here.
To this recruitment fair.To this Environmental Club.
To begin step one of holding onto his thigh—getting close, creating a bond.
"You done?"
Yu Jin's voice pulled her back. She jolted slightly, body shivering on instinct, then hurried to finish writing.
Moments later, she capped her pen and let out a long breath.
"All done."
She handed the filled-out form to Yu Jin.
He raised his brows and took it.
One glance—and his face froze in astonishment.
[Name: Yin Yao][Department: Finance][Year: Senior][Past Honors—][Three-time consecutive recipient of National Scholarship][Grand Prize, International Collegiate Mathematical Modeling Competition (Top 0.3% globally)][Published environmental economics paper in Nature sub-journal as first author (Age 19)][Created the "Yin Financial Model" during sophomore exchange at Cambridge; included in business school textbooks][Social Influence—][Sole heiress of the Yin Conglomerate (Ranked #1 among Forbes Asia's Top 10 Conglomerates)][United Nations Youth Environmental Ambassador (Youngest appointee in history)][Led the Aurora Project in clean energy, personally awarded by state leaders][Seven patented environmental technologies included in national strategic reserves][Invited to Davos Youth Leaders Summit at age 16][Special Background—][Father: current head of Yin Conglomerate, richest man in Daxia][Mother: head of Currency Bureau, Daxia Bank][Grandfather…]
…
Normally, Yin Yao never spoke openly about her family background.
But clearly—
For Yu Jin, this was no ordinary situation.
So much so that—
For the first time, she had spelled out her terrifying lineage in black and white.
If there had been more space on the form, she could have written even more…
"Ahem!"
Yu Jin quickly folded the form and stuffed it into his pocket before Tang Yunxuan could peek.
He wasn't stupid—he knew that information like this couldn't just be lying around.
But seriously, to apply for a tiny little Environmental Club, was all this really necessary?
One line after another, so explosive that anyone reading it might think she was applying for the U.S. presidency…
"Did I pass?"
Yin Yao's eyes sparkled as she asked.
Yu Jin: "…"
…He wanted to ask—who on earth would dare not approve after reading that résumé?
"You didn't."
He shook his head firmly.
Then added, "According to tradition, every applicant must pass a simple assessment."
Yin Yao blinked in surprise. Tang Yunxuan, on the other hand, looked as if he'd just been hit by lightning.
"Old Yu, y-you—"
Yu Jin ignored him.
Looking at Yin Yao, he spoke seriously:
"The assessment is simple—"
"To prove your dedication to the Environmental Club, you need to collect one full bag of trash within the grounds of Jiangcheng University!"
"Of course, if you're free right now, Vice President Tang and I can accompany you to complete the test immediately."
The room fell into stunned silence.
Hundreds of students exchanged bewildered looks, throats audibly gulping.
Tang Yunxuan, who had just been overjoyed at Yin Yao's decision to join, now looked like his soul had left his body.
Yes, yes, technically the "trash-picking assessment" had been a rule set by the club president four generations ago.
But still!
This was Yin Yao!
The fact that she was even willing to join the Environmental Club was a miracle—and Old Yu was actually making her "pick up trash" by the book!?
Yu Jin's words left Yin Yao dumbfounded for a moment.
Then, suddenly—
The goddess with the unimaginable background broke into a bright, dazzling smile.
"Alright!"
"Then please, President Yu, Vice President Tang—take me to pick up trash!"