It was back...
That familiar feeling had returned!
Blade and Dan Heng stared at the enormous trench between them.
Someone neither of them had expected to see had returned.
Jingliu.
Why would she come back at a time like this?
For what purpose?
What reason could she possibly have?
"Your name is Blade now, isn't it?"
Jingliu's gaze was cold.
"If you've got nothing better to do, then leave. You're not needed here."
She had no intention of bringing along a nearly unkillable raid boss.
Against a Lord Ravager, Blade's swordsmanship would be practically useless.
On the other hand, Dan Feng's successor was necessary to open the path to Scalegorge Waterscape.
"It's you..."
Blade would never forget Jingliu.
Whether it was during the days of the High-Cloud Quintet...
Or the hundred deaths she had bestowed upon him afterward.
She was etched deeply into his memory.
"Why are you here?"
Compared to Blade, Dan Heng's thoughts were much simpler.
Blade was a Stellaron Hunter.
His appearance wasn't surprising.
But Jingliu's presence felt completely out of place.
"I came at someone's request."
Jingliu answered calmly.
"To slay Phantylia."
Originally, she had no intention of involving herself in this matter.
The Stellaron crisis had nothing to do with her.
The only reason she had chosen the Luofu was because Jing Yuan was the one in charge here.
Had it been another Xianzhou ship, she and Luocha might never have been granted such an opportunity.
"Everyone."
Jing Yuan slowly approached, Yanqing at his side.
"There are more pressing matters. Any reminiscing can wait until later."
His eyes swept over Dan Heng and Blade.
The High-Cloud Quintet had gathered once more.
Yet it was under circumstances nobody would have wished for.
Yingxing had succumbed to mara.
Jingliu had become a wanted criminal.
Dan Feng had committed one of the Ten Unpardonable Sins and shed his scales in rebirth.
Baiheng...
Had long since perished.
Of the original five, only Jing Yuan remained unchanged.
At least, on the surface.
"Your appearance wasn't in the script."
Kafka looked toward Jingliu.
"Are you sure you want to get involved? Aren't you worried about creating a bad ending?"
She wasn't particularly pleased about Jingliu's participation.
Granted, the former Sword Champion would undoubtedly increase their chances of victory.
But her involvement would also reduce the Astral Express's contribution to the event.
"Or perhaps it only creates a bad ending for you?"
Jingliu shot Kafka an icy glance.
Phantylia had already lost to her once.
Now she was severely weakened.
Jingliu's participation could only improve their odds.
How could it possibly make things worse?
As for mara...
She no longer had any.
The Ambrosial Arbor held no influence over her now.
Kafka merely smiled.
She offered no explanation.
Still, she wasn't determined to exclude Jingliu.
After all, Dan Heng was here too.
And he was no longer the old Imbibitor Lunae.
He was now a member of the Astral Express.
"The Luofu's affairs have reached their final stage."
Jing Yuan's gaze settled on Kafka and Blade.
"The two of you should leave now. The mercy I can offer extends only this far."
Even if the Stellaron Hunters hadn't caused much destruction on the Luofu, they were still unwelcome guests.
The only reason Jing Yuan was letting them go was because of their relationship with Su Ran.
Otherwise, they would already be on their way to the Shackling Prison.
"Blade. We're leaving."
Although the script had already deviated in several places, Kafka had no intention of introducing even more variables.
This was where she and Blade were supposed to exit the stage.
If they stayed, the future might change even further.
Blade cast one last cold glance at the three of them.
For a brief moment, he had considered remaining.
As one of the former High-Cloud Quintet, fractured though they now were, he didn't want to become the sole exception—the only one absent besides Baiheng.
But he understood the importance of Elio's script.
This operation existed to build a connection with the Astral Express.
A small sacrifice now would prevent a greater failure later.
Suppressing his unwillingness, Blade turned and left with Kafka.
"Your mara..."
Dan Heng looked at Jingliu with visible surprise.
In his understanding, she had long since fallen to mara.
Yet now she appeared perfectly rational.
Before today, he had never met Jingliu personally.
But he knew what mara-struck individuals were supposed to look like.
"It's been cured."
Dan Heng fell silent.
The Xianzhou could cure mara now?
Even though he no longer considered himself a Xianzhou native, a trace of happiness still surfaced in his heart.
"Why aren't they here yet?"
Inside Scalegorge Waterscape, Su Ran sat atop a small stool he'd placed on a stone pillar.
Below him stood a blooming Ambrosial Arbor flower.
At its center burned a mass of golden flames.
Beside him, the Tsaritsa waited patiently.
Since there weren't any suitable chairs available, sitting on the same tiny stool as Su Ran would risk an embarrassing wardrobe malfunction.
And sitting directly on the stone pillar didn't look elegant either.
So she chose to sit sideways on Su Ran's shoulder while waiting for the spectacle he had promised.
Still, the surrounding seawater made the place feel damp, salty, and noisy.
If not for the conspicuous flames below, she would have started wondering whether she'd been tricked.
"What is that?"
"The big thunder I promised to show you."
Su Ran looked down at the flames.
"In other words—the mastermind behind this entire Xianzhou crisis."
He was honestly looking forward to Phantylia's upcoming performance.
"Is she asleep?"
"No."
Su Ran shook his head.
"She has been awake the whole time."
The Tsaritsa immediately rolled her eyes.
"If she's awake, then why is she completely ignoring us?"
"And when you were flying around setting traps above her earlier, how did she not notice?"
This place might be huge, but they weren't exactly subtle.
Surely the mastermind wasn't the type who never looked upward?
"The power of Remembrance."
That was why Su Ran could act so fearlessly.
Not only had Phantylia lost a portion of herself already...
She had also been injured by the Starcrusher Swarm King not long ago.
By any standard, she was currently at critically low health.
The only question was whether the Ambrosial Arbor's power could restore her.
Even if it healed all her injuries, her Destruction Path authority probably couldn't be restored to its original state.
Using the Arbor's Abundance power to compensate for the Destruction power she'd lost...
That, however, might actually make her stronger than before in some respects.
Still—
Jingliu had joined the battle this time.
Which meant Phantylia definitely wouldn't be able to dominate the opening stages like she had in the original storyline.
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