At this moment, that towering phantom projection in the sky seemed to be a humanoid figure cloaked in starlight, radiating an ancient aura of freedom, exploration, and boundless possibility.
In Lucian's eyes, the countless streams of starlight flowing across its outline made it appear both distant and eternal, as though it had stepped straight out of a forgotten myth from the dawn of the cosmos.
Sadly, it only lasted for a second before dying once again.
It felt like someone rapidly flicking a light switch on and off, flashing into existence for the briefest instant before disappearing again.
And in that fleeting moment of existence, Lucian suddenly felt an indescribable weight settle upon his body.
Yet calling it heavy was not entirely accurate, for it did not force him to bend beneath its pressure. Calling it light, however, was even less accurate, because he knew very well that he was utterly incapable of bearing such a weight.
It was less a burden on the body and more a pressure imposed directly upon existence itself, as though he were momentarily standing before something infinitely greater than himself.
'As expected of an Aeon. When your very level of existence is on a completely different scale, the gap between us is basically heaven and earth...'
Because that single moment alone had already left him with a distinct sense of mental exhaustion, Lucian felt that if he had not possessed conceptual abilities, he truly would not have been qualified to contend with an Aeon at all.
At this moment, a faint throbbing ache lingered within his mind, making it feel as though he had stayed awake for several days straight without rest.
'Wait, this mental exhaustion should count as a debuff too, right...? Let's try using BGM.'
In the next moment, Lucian casually played a local song on his phone before activating BGM, allowing himself to become immersed in the domain it created. In an instant, the familiar melody echoed around him, instantly washing away much of the discomfort clouding his mind.
Feeling that the preparations were complete, he then activated Existence Anchor once more.
*WOOOOO—!!!*
Once again, the familiar roar of a train echoed across the surroundings—the sound seemed to travel endlessly through space itself, carrying with it a sense of movement and adventure that was uniquely associated with the Path of Trailblaze.
Akivili's phantom projection reappeared high in the sky, and just like before, it flickered into existence for a brief instant before immediately dying again.
However, this time was clearly different.
Lucian no longer felt that draining sense of mental exhaustion.
Even after activating Existence Anchor a second time, his mind remained clear and steady.
'Yep, as expected, this ability syncs with BGM. If that's the case, I don't gotta worry about mental strain anymore.'
Unfortunately, his understanding of and connection to Akivili were still far too shallow.
At most, he could only make Akivili briefly flash into existence, revive for barely 0.1 seconds, and then die again almost immediately.
It was like trying to light a dying ember with only a single spark.
He did not even know whether Akivili remembered those 0.2 seconds from earlier.
Regardless, as Lucian's memories and understanding of Akivili deepened in the future, the duration should naturally become longer as well.
Honestly, even this was already more than enough.
It should be noted that Akivili was an Aeon. Even a single second of THEIR existence was enough to solve ninety percent of problems. For ordinary beings, one second might pass in the blink of an eye, but for an Aeon, one second was enough to influence countless outcomes.
In other words, by using Existence Anchor, Lucian could potentially gain several more Aeon-level helpers in the future.
Of course, that was under the premise that THEY were actually willing to help him.
Moreover, every time he activated Existence Anchor, he had to maintain absolute focus, leaving nothing in his mind except the designated 'target.' Any distraction whatsoever would likely interfere with the activation of this conceptual ability.
Rather than wasting time repeatedly activating countless 0.1-second hard controls on himself, it would obviously be more practical to find ways to extend the duration of that 'existence.'
After a period of experimentation and testing, Lucian gradually figured out the conceptual ability's basic operating principles.
Simply put, the more thoroughly he understood a target, the lower the consumption required, the longer that target could remain in existence, and eventually, perhaps they could even exist permanently without any consumption at all.
Needless to say, the relationship was surprisingly straightforward.
Understanding created a connection, and the connection strengthened existence.
Honestly, that function immediately reminded him of a certain phrase: "A witness exists to witness, and a recorder exists to remember."
As long as someone was remembered, they would continue to exist forever. Even if their body vanished, traces of them would still remain within the memories of others.
Meanwhile, while Lucian was amusing himself with that thought, the world had already become far more lively.
Because the two train-like roars from earlier had echoed across the skies so loudly that it was impossible for people not to hear them, countless people across the entire world instinctively raised their heads at the strange sound.
And naturally, many of them had also caught sight of the towering phantom that had briefly flickered across the sky. Even though it had appeared for less than a second, it had still left a deep impression on many witnesses.
"Did you guys see that? Something just flashed in the sky. I swear I've seen something like it in a book before—looked like the Aeon of Trailblaze!"
"You're imagining things—that was probably just thunder. Weird sounds during storms are totally normal. Trust science."
"I saw it too! It looked like a head wearing some kind of locomotive mask. It seriously looked like Akivili from the history books."
"It was probably some research institute doing lightning experiments or something. Either way, I don't buy it. Akivili's been gone for ages, so why would THEY suddenly show up on some tiny backwater planet like ours?"
"Exactly. Historical records say Akivili was super low-key and usually appeared in human form, but that thing was flashing around in the sky like it wanted everyone to notice it, so there's no way it was Akivili. It was definitely just someone trying to get attention."
"Believe it or not, tomorrow those clickbait media accounts are definitely gonna start posting stuff like, 'Akivili has revived, the Trailblaze never dies,' and then they'll scam a bunch of idiots into following the Path of Trailblaze and losing all their money, hahaha."
Some people across the world believed what they had seen, while others dismissed it completely. Arguments, speculation, and countless theories also quickly began spreading across the internet.
Most still chose to judge the entire incident from a rational and scientific perspective. Sometimes, however, excessive rationality only caused people to overlook the truth standing right in front of them.
===
In the same city, inside the university library, Himeko had been quietly burying herself in piles of research materials for most of the afternoon when a sudden train-like roar startled her badly enough to pause.
In that instant, the pen in her hand stopped moving, and her attention was immediately pulled away from the dense academic papers spread across the desk.
Looking confused, she subconsciously raised her head and looked out through the library's glass windows. Yet aside from the dark sky outside and the faint reflections of the library lights on the glass, she saw nothing unusual.
"Was that thunder? No... it sounded more like a train whistle..."
*WOOOOO—!!!*
As soon as Himeko finished speaking, another roar echoed across the sky, and this time, she happened to be looking toward the distant horizon.
At that exact instant, she saw a familiar yet strangely unfamiliar phantom flash across the faraway heavens before vanishing without a trace. Although it had only appeared for a fraction of a second, the image became deeply engraved in her mind.
As someone who followed the Path of Trailblaze, she instantly recognized that figure as the Aeon of Trailblaze—an existence that should have existed only within the pages of ancient historical records.
Many years ago, Akivili had once arrived on this planet during THEIR journey and saved it from disaster. However, after THEY departed, THEY never returned—not even until the day of THEIR fall.
Himeko abruptly shot to her feet, knocking over the chair behind her without even noticing—the sharp noise immediately attracted the attention of several nearby students, yet she paid them no mind whatsoever.
At this moment, her beautiful face was completely filled with shock and uncontrollable excitement.
"Akivili... it was Akivili!"
Looking like someone possessed, Himeko rushed out of the library and ran toward the direction where she had sensed the presence earlier. Her hurried footsteps echoed through the campus pathways as she searched frantically all around her, drawing countless strange looks from passing pedestrians and students.
Unfortunately, aside from drifting clouds and scattered stars, the sky remained completely empty—there was no sign of the phantom she had witnessed earlier.
'Was it artificially created...? Right, Akivili fell long ago, so how could THEY possibly come back to life?'
Himeko lightly patted her cheeks, feeling that she had probably spent too much time reading and had exhausted herself to the point of seeing things.
Her reaction was understandable, considering that she had been spending nearly every day immersed in historical records, engineering theories, and everything related to the Trailblaze.
Or perhaps somebody was actually conducting some kind of lightning projection experiment nearby, considering that ninety percent of the world's so-called mysterious phenomena could ultimately be explained through science.
As for the remaining ten percent, those belonged to the domain of the Aeons.
===
Early the next day, not long after she stepped out of her dorm, Himeko heard rumors that the university had hired a brand-new professor and had even introduced an entirely new elective course.
"Himeko, I heard the new professor is insanely handsome, so let's go check out his elective course together. A ton of people are already heading over there just to see him."
A female classmate excitedly invited Himeko along, her eyes practically sparkling with anticipation.
Obviously, she did not actually care about the course itself and simply wanted to see the handsome professor.
University girls were basically all the same in that regard.
"So what if he's handsome? It's probably just another boring old-fashioned course. I'm not interested."
Himeko merely shook her head and rejected the suggestion without hesitation.
Honestly, she had no interest whatsoever in men, as the only things she truly cared about now were adventure and following in the footsteps of the Path of Trailblaze.
Only by properly mastering interstellar travel dynamics could she one day build a spaceship capable of sailing through the cosmos and pursuing the dreams she had cherished since childhood.
Compared to that dream, all those rigid and lifeless majors held absolutely no appeal for her.
"But what if it ends up being a subject you actually like? Plus, you're so pretty that the new professor might kinda pay extra attention to you. If that happens, graduating's basically guaranteed."
"Heh. If that's the case, then I want to go even less."
In the end, after failing to persuade Himeko no matter what she said, the female classmate eventually gave up and left with several other female friends to admire the handsome professor together.
Himeko, meanwhile, continued walking toward the teaching building according to her original schedule.
However, the moment she arrived and noticed a course titled 'Introduction to Otherworld Humanities,' her interest was instantly piqued.
'Otherworld? Is this course specifically about the cultures of other planets?'
Himeko's eyes immediately lit up.
In fact, she had always been fascinated by the outside universe and the distant planets beyond her own world.
Unfortunately, she currently lacked the ability to personally reach them, which was why this course practically struck straight at her deepest interests.
Ultimately, after only a brief moment of hesitation, she changed her plans and decided to attend it.
However, the moment she pushed open the door and stepped into the large lecture hall, she froze completely in place.
At this moment, the hall was packed with several hundred students.
At least eighty percent of them were female, causing the massive lecture hall to become so crowded that even the aisles were overflowing with people. Some students had even arrived early enough to occupy seats along the walls and near the entrances.
"Do this many people really like courses about other planets...?"
Himeko muttered under her breath with a speechless expression, her gaze then landing on the young man standing calmly at the podium.
In that instant, everything became clear.
It wasn't that the girls were interested in courses about other planets at all—they were interested in the ridiculously handsome professor teaching the course.
"Hm? Himeko, didn't you say you weren't coming? Weren't you supposed to have no interest in men?"
===
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