Zhuang Fangyi

CODENAME: Zhuang Fangyi

GENDER: Female

AUTHENTICATION: Hongshan Academy of Sciences

DOB: August 7

RACE: Kylin

[ORIPATHY INFECTION STATUS]

Oripathy negative, based on medical examination reports.

[INTEGRATED PHYSICAL EXAMINATION]

PHYSIOLOGICAL STRENGTH: Standard

COMBAT SKILL: Standard

TACTICAL ACUMEN: Excellent

ORIGINIUM ARTS ASSIMILATION: Outstanding

Operator Zhuang Fangyi serves as the Viceroy of the Wuling Scientific Developmental District and also the Tianshi in charge of the Novel Xiranite-based Materials Project. Upon recommendation from the Hongshan Academy of Sciences, she entered into cooperation with Endfield Industries to conduct rift-related research.

My meeting with Tianshi Zhuang concluded with striking efficiency. She reviewed the cooperation agreements quickly, raised no questions or objections, and signed without hesitation — as though she were simply confirming a next-day onboarding notification, not committing to a partnership that would shape the next ten years and beyond. Where does such unconditional trust come from? Perhaps the Endmin has the answer.

— Martin Marvin Malen, Assistant, HR Division, Endfield Industries

Ever since Tianshi Zhuang came aboard the Dijiang, there's been one more workaholic buried in the labs.

The Tianshi approaches her work with great enthusiasm. Every day, she packs her schedule herself, ticking off each task without wasting a second. Her home back in Wuling City stays spotless — so clean it feels as though no one has ever lived there. In contrast, her lab is cluttered with personal items, as if that's where life actually happens.

If not for HAS stepping in and ordering a mandatory break, Tianshi Zhuang would never have put down her work. Some feared that the sheer amount of work would soon leave Tianshi Zhuang collapsed at the lab bench. What they failed to realize was that she actually found the lack of work to be more unbearable.

On the first day of her forced vacation, she gave an illusion of rest. But soon, restlessness crept into her expression, and stillness gave way to anxiety. She started pacing up and down the beach, worrying about everything back in the lab.

With each passing day of the break, her mood grew heavier. By the end, Tianshi Zhuang who could barely get out of bed kept murmuring these words: "The lab ... I need to get back to the lab. The results could come in any moment. I cannot waste any more time."

After the break was finally over, she returned to the lab with a smile so radiant that people thought she had a really beautiful vacation. In truth, she was only glad that the ordeal by vacation was over. Even Perlica, another widely recognized workaholic, was astonished by Tianshi Zhuang's professional commitment.

There is a reason she works the way she does. She isn't the only one waiting for the results. The entire HAS, and Talos-II itself, are watching her progress closely.

As rift disasters grow ever more frequent and devastating, every moment Tianshi Zhuang spends at work carries the possibility of a new solution. Her time is no longer hers alone, but generously sacrificed for those who have lost homes and lives to the rifts. She dare not, and she cannot allow even a second to go to waste.

"I really like Tianshi Zhuang, but I don't seem to know her well." Every operator who worked with her feels this way.

Tianshi Zhuang's past is easy to trace. Any visitor to Wuling City can get the basics from a local tour guide or receptionist. For those who wish to know more, simply dig deeper into the archives of the Tianshi Bureau Academy to peruse her publications, though reading them all takes some dedication. And those who manage to do all that would have a clear picture of the Tianshi — A scientist deeply immersed in her work, a Viceroy who has dutifully served Wuling for a decade.

If you wish to set aside Tianshi Zhuang's titles and know her personally, seek out an opportunity to be her coworker. Most people describe their first impression of her as the soothing gusts of Wuling City in March: gentle, comforting, and refreshing. As a coworker, Zhuang could unravel even the most recalcitrant of problems. She would be the cool midsummer breeze that takes away frustration and restores balance. The comfortable peace would last until your experiment hits a bottleneck. And then you'd sense a storm quietly brewing beneath her composed exterior.

Her speech would change. It becomes quick and relentless, like a sudden downpour of which few can keep pace. Her stride would quicken. Every step a violent gust, sending reports flapping and fluttering off the tabletops. And finally, her problem-solving would transform. Like a blitz, she strikes directly at the source of the issue to completely shatter it, a guiding flash of light in the face of doom and gloom.

Soon enough, the problem is no more. The storm subsides.

You might think you know Tianshi Zhuang after several tumultuous rounds of collaboration. But as you catch your breath, you would realize that you only saw her scholarly side of Her Viceroyalty more clearly. And then it hits you: she never talks about herself. Not to you, not to anyone.

You had stepped into the eye of the storm — and found nothing but stillness.

DOCUMENT: Hongshan Evening News Vol. 8

Obituary

Surgeon Zhuang Hanqing, a distinguished scholar at Hongshan Academy of Sciences, passed away due to illness last Sunday at 6:23 AM at Hongshan First Hospital, aged 42.

A family memorial and farewell service will be held this Thursday in the main hall of Hongshan Funeral Home.

Contacts: Her brother Zhuang Changqing; sister Zhuang Daiqing

Communication Log

Zhuang Changqing: Has anyone seen Fangyi? I've been busy all day. Just realized she's not in the mourning hall.

Zhuang Daiqing: Don't worry. I'm with her now.

Zhuang Changqing: That's a relief to hear... I'm glad you're here. She's just a child, and this is such a heavy loss.

Zhuang Changqing: Ever since Hanqing passed ... she hasn't said a word. You know the girl better than me. Has she said anything to you?

Zhuang Daiqing: No... She won't speak to me either.

Shortly after the Wuling Science Station incident, Tianshi Zhuang was entrusted with managing several temporary shelters. Under her command, a strong line of defense between the disaster site and the safe zone was quickly established. She also provided essential support to personnel deployment, disaster site remediation, and supply distribution.

Her exceptional performance during the disaster impressed the HAS leadership. Despite many other qualified candidates, they insisted on entrusting her with the rebuilding of Wuling Science Station.

Under such pressure, Tianshi Zhuang immersed herself completely in research on Xiranite. At times, she even caught herself wishing she were a machine that never needed rest.

In a sense, she already was one. The lab's countdown clock for Blight rupture simulations governed her every move, each tick tightening her focus. When the crisis eased, tension gave way to activity as she buzzed between the lab and the Monitoring Center like a fully wound-up clockwork doll.

It was a period when she sacrificed much ... and missed even more.

Then one day, something unexpected shifted her perspective. She looked up from her work, perhaps just to stretch, and overheard a conversation.

"I'm starving, I really want hot pot..." said a newly joined Tianshi, acne still dotting his youthful face. Another Tianshi responded indifferently, "Stop thinking about food. You're here to do research."

The young Tianshi gulped his coffee, patted his cheeks, and muttered, "Right. This isn't home. I should keep my mind on the mission."

Tianshi Zhuang herself recalled how she felt dizzy and stunned by this incident, as though struck by a fierce bolt of Tianshi Lei Fa (Thunder Arts).

When the dizziness faded, she clearly realized what she had neglected — the piles of food tins, stale air, exhausted faces, some colleagues curled up in corners asleep, and another opposite her with a back crooked after spending long hours at the lab bench. Desperately she searched for something green, only to find the glow of her terminal screen.

She rushed outside in search of living green, but the pear trees along the path were close to shedding their wilted flowers. The daily routine of work kept her so trapped that she never noticed them in full bloom.

In a lapse of stupor she had a flash back. There was a time when everyone gathered around her as she drew straight lines and gentle curves to draft a city upon a sheet of paper.

What did she say then?

She said Wuling City would be a home for everyone.

So why had she forgotten?

She had no answer for that.

But she knew one thing: Better late than never.

That evening, every Tianshi in the Academy heard Tianshi Zhuang's call. She raced through every departmental buildings as though possessed, loudly calling out for everyone to leave the labs and admire the falling pear blossoms. Many were taken by surprise and did not know how to respond, so she went door to door and urged everyone to seize what remained of spring. And when even that failed, she threw open the windows and let the petals drift into the offices.

When people later spoke of that day, some laughed and said Tianshi Zhuang had worked herself out of her mind. She would only smile and say that she had worked herself to clarity.

[Graduation Speech]

"Hmmm... Greetings, everyone. I am Zhuang Fangyi from the Class of ██. It is truly an honor to stand here today on behalf of my fellow graduates.

"I'm the youngest amongst you. Even fellow students who just enrolled are two years ahead of me. So I'd like to begin by thanking everyone for your care and support throughout these years.

"Thank you for helping me reach the top shelves when I couldn't. Thank you for always saving me a front-row seat for the lectures. Thank you for holding back your frustration even when experiments stalled...

"Most of all, although everyone spoiled me with loving exceptions usually reserved to a younger sibling, none of my ideas or suggestions were ever brushed off as childish. I skipped many years in school and lost the chance to befriend peers of my age. But in return, I gained invaluable friendships with those older than me. I missed out on one kind of companionship, but received guidance, mentorship, and trust from another.

"Now, my next step is to continue my studies at the Hongshan Academy of Sciences. The colleagues I meet there are likely to be even more experienced... I also hope to learn from them and build new friendships..."

[Eulogy]

"I am keenly aware that many among you are far more suited than I to stand here today and deliver this eulogy for those we have lost. In the presence of parents, sons and daughters, lifelong companions, and loved ones ... I am but a mere youth.

"I was the youngest member at the Science Station. The reason I could convey our longing on behalf of everyone is a result of your patience, guidance, and care...

"I have made a journey blessed with support from all sides. I often asked my experienced peers how I might repay the trust and sincerity they showed me. They would always smile and tell me that doing my work and honoring the expectations placed upon me were the best means of repayment.

"Though they are no longer with us, the trust they invested in me has not waned, nor has their faith in the Xiranite project. I understand that this is the moment to repay them in full...

"And faithfully I shall bear those hopes and expectations upon my shoulders."

Orientation Speech

"Greetings, everyone. It is a great honor to welcome you to Wuling, where you have chosen to commit your most beautiful years to the laboratories, to this place, and to the forefront of our fight against the Blight and the Rift.

"I know many of you chose Wuling because your parents and elders who sacrificed everything for the Science Station... Seeing your young, eager faces brings back memories — I sat where you are seated right now, and listened to your parents and elders who led me onto this path.

"I once thought their greatest gift to me was the scientific achievements they had spent their lives creating. Now I realize the gift includes you who arrived at Wuling — who answered their call to follow their footsteps.

"I once believed that the best way to honor their memories was to stay on that path and reach, without hesitation, the ideal future they dreamed of. Now I understand that I must also lead those who follow, to guide them onto that path and help them envision the future...

"Thank you.

"Thank you for choosing to walk this path with me."

Recording: New Operator Welcome Party

"Am I tipsy already? Maybe a bit... But this isn't right. I only had a little..

"Is this the ninth? Hmm ... maybe it's a bit too much.

"You know, the last time I felt this happy was when I first arrived at the Science Station. They threw me a welcome party too.

"I was very young back then so I only had juice. But I felt tipsy just the same, watching them toast cup after cup and laugh without worry. The mood was perfect.

"Today ... feels just like that again. The future is laid out before me, waiting for me to step forward.

"What more is there to say? Nothing... Just being happy is enough."