"Senior, it's so beautiful here!"
On Jarilo-VI, Firefly looked up at Wei Qing with unconcealed excitement.
It was her first time seeing snow.
A vast, white expanse—soft as powder—melting the moment it touched her palm.
It was freezing, but it was also… strangely wonderful.
Since she awakened in this era, several decades had already passed.
Yet Firefly still looked exactly the same as she had back then, unchanged in the slightest.
It wasn't because "Glamoth soldiers" had unusually powerful genes. If anything, as mass-produced artificial humans, their lifespan in the old days had been short.
The real reason was Wei Qing's blessing.
Just like how the Xianzhou people once prayed to Yaoshi and obtained longevity—Firefly had effectively undergone the same transformation.
If anything, she could now be considered "Xianzhou-like"… except with one key difference:
She didn't carry the curse of mara.
Which meant her longevity, in practice, was even more stable.
"We really are in a different kind of world," she murmured, eyes sparkling. "Snow like this… I only knew it from records."
"It does have its charm," Wei Qing replied calmly. "But don't forget why we're here."
"Yes, Senior!" Firefly immediately straightened her posture, trying hard to look composed—though the curiosity in her eyes refused to disappear.
It had been nearly half the lifespan of a short-lived species since the two of them had joined the Stellaron Hunters.
To be honest, Wei Qing hadn't initially wanted to join at all.
He already understood what Finality was doing. As a retrocausal Aeon, it didn't truly "want" to kill him in the ordinary sense.
And Wei Qing had never been interested in Elio, the Stellaron Hunters, or their so-called script.
But right when he was about to refuse—his "idiot system" dropped a new main quest on him.
[Detected a major convergence of worldlines!]
[The universe is approaching an apocalypse. As the savior, how can the host stand idly by?]
[Main Quest Issued: To prevent the coming end of the universe, join the Stellaron Hunters and persist until the main storyline begins.]
Wei Qing had frozen on the spot.
This was the first time he'd received a main quest that long-term.
Join the Stellaron Hunters… and persist until the main story begins?
He knew what that meant.
There were over seven hundred years to go.
And worse—judging by the system's wording, without the Stellaron Hunters, the universe might actually end.
Elio had also told him that because of Wei Qing's existence, the old script had lost stability—and only if Wei Qing joined would the script regain "coherence."
So if he didn't join…
The universe would die?
It sounded narcissistic, but when you lined everything up… it really did point in that direction.
Back then, Elio had said this, in that maddeningly casual tone:
"Come on. If Finality really descends and the universe ends… you won't be able to run either."
Annoyingly, Wei Qing had to admit it made sense.
If there was even a chance to avoid universal collapse, he didn't want to watch everything burn.
So the Destruction Emanator—for the sake of saving the universe—had joined the Stellaron Hunters.
"Wei Qing, Firefly—why are you two just standing there?" a crisp female voice called out.
"We're about to arrive."
She was an IPC employee from the Construction & Logistics division.
And yes—at least on paper—she was now their coworker.
This mission's target was Jarilo-VI, a planet that was originally supposed to enter the main stage much later in the timeline.
In the present era, Jarilo-VI hadn't yet been fully cut off from the galaxy. The war against the Antimatter Legion still raged, but with IPC support, the planet was at least… still alive.
This time, Wei Qing and Firefly weren't sneaking in as stowaways like before.
They were posing as IPC staff and walking straight through the front door.
And honestly?
The IPC was unbelievably incompetent—barely better than the Luofu's Diheng Commission.
He'd only made the slightest move, and they'd swallowed the disguise without even chewing.
"Understood, Senior."
Wei Qing casually pulled Firefly closer by the shoulder and gave the woman a slightly apologetic smile.
"The two of us… we've never been to a planet with an environment like this. We got a little curious."
Their cover identity was simple:
A pair of siblings from a remote system, assigned by the IPC to Jarilo-VI to conduct environmental adaptability assessments.
The woman glanced at Firefly's cheeks, flushed red from cold and excitement, and chuckled.
"Fair. The snow outside Belobog really is something."
"But work first. We'll hand you over to the local branch, get your permits and data. After that, you can sightsee all you want."
The three of them followed the IPC flow of personnel into Belobog.
Belobog—the last human bastion on Jarilo-VI.
Beyond the walls, massive gears and steam pipes loomed like bones of an industrial beast, radiating stubborn endurance.
Inside the city, the climate was another world entirely. The great geomarrow heating core kept temperatures barely livable.
But even warmth couldn't chase away the tension in the air.
There were plenty of pedestrians, but most walked with their heads down, moving quickly. Smiles were rare. What filled the streets instead was worry—about the endless fighting beyond the walls—and a complicated mixture of reliance and unease toward the IPC troops stationed everywhere.
The IPC insignia hung from many buildings, displayed beside Belobog's own gear emblem.
The pairing looked… unnatural.
You didn't need to think too hard to understand it:
Even if Jarilo-VI survived with IPC help, it was hard to imagine it not becoming an IPC dependency in the end.
"This way." The woman clearly wasn't new here. She led them through several streets and stopped at a building with unmistakable IPC design language.
Uniformed employees went in and out with mechanical efficiency, faces stamped with corporate neutrality—and fatigue they couldn't fully hide.
"I heard you two volunteered for Jarilo-VI?" the woman said during the handover, conversational.
"People here are desperate to get transferred out. And you came willingly. Didn't you hear about the war?"
"We want experience on special projects," Wei Qing replied evenly, sounding exactly like any ambitious corporate rookie aiming for promotion.
The woman shrugged and handed him two ID cards and a data slate.
"Fine. Good luck. Here are your temporary permissions and the regional map you'll be evaluating."
"Remember—only move in the green-marked 'safe zones.' Do not approach the wall defense line. Breaches can happen at any time."
"Understood. Thank you, Senior." Wei Qing accepted the items smoothly.
Firefly mimicked him as well. "Thank you."
And just like that…
They were in.
Wei Qing glanced down at the ID card in his hand.
Then, almost imperceptibly, he curled the corner of his mouth.
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 115)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter108)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter82)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter144)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 70
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 99
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 95
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 99
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 92
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 47
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 44
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player 43
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 26
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 32
Uma Musume: From Beginner 26
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