As if 「IX」 had descended upon the galaxy.
Everything turned to nothingness in an instant.
If the previous series of actions or manner of speaking were just speculation.
Then at this very moment, when the scene truly entered their eyes, after many people's brains stalled, all that remained was the purest shock.
Guinaifen couldn't help but cover her mouth, even forgetting to play her game.
Inside the Astral Express.
Himeko and Mr. Yang looked at each other, and finally, it was Mr. Yang who couldn't help but let out a long sigh of relief first.
He pushed up his glasses, his expression four parts serious, three parts contemplative, and three parts astonished.
After all, in Penacony, they had personally come into contact with Firefly and knew her true identity.
So there was no doubt.
"Miss Firefly is the Stellaron Hunter, Sam."
Himeko looked at Welt, and the latter returned an affirming expression.
Having been the first to realize that the game Author wasn't simply making things up, Himeko and Welt also realized one thing.
If he even knew the fact that Firefly was Sam, then perhaps this Stellaron Hunter...
Was real!
"Although I knew that child had many secrets, I didn't expect such a big one," Himeko rested her chin on her hand.
Beside her, Welt's expression was somewhat conflicted:
"Although I don't want to jump to conclusions without knowing the other party's specific identity."
"However, some of the information overlaps in a way that is far too eerie."
Everything had completely fallen into chaos.
Himeko and Mr. Yang, who originally just wanted to see what the other party was up to, now realized that the other party's identity seemed far from being limited to the interior of Amphoreus.
Or rather, there was a high probability he wasn't as simple as a local!
Even the things he grasped far exceeded those of a power like the Astral Express, which frequently participated in top-tier conflicts.
While he became even harder to fathom, it seemed the number of people he could correspond to had also decreased; this was the only good news.
Whoosh—
Just then, the carriage door opened.
A familiar figure stood there in a hurry; it was undoubtedly Sunday.
"Sorry to disturb you two again," Sunday's tone remained calm. "There's new information."
"It's about Robin, my sister."
Welt and Himeko immediately looked over, as if they had seen some kind of Deliverer.
...
[Incredible, this is simply divine...]
[Is Order's Dream really not chasing me? The entire fusion process was actually completely seamless.]
[It's fake, right? This ultimate skill's special effects must be fake. Is the Author trying to commit suicide, so he's deliberately provoking the Stellaron Hunters?]
[Wait, are you telling me that Sam, known as the most violent, brutal, and cold-blooded among the Stellaron Hunters, is actually a young girl?!]
[Holy crap—!!!]
[It's exploded, this has completely exploded. Are you telling me she? She is the Stellaron Hunter Sam!]
[Children, this isn't funny. I said back then that Sam was something like a weapon that required human piloting, and you all said I was delusional. Now it's practically confirmed.]
[Is there anything crazier than this? I can't tell, I really can't tell!]
[You're telling me those domineering lines Sam said when attacking in those videos were actually shouted by Firefly inside...]
[My god!]
Unknowingly.
Xu Qiong's game titled "honkai: star rail" had been topping the charts one after another, defeating many rising blockbuster games.
A rare sight of millions of players online simultaneously.
Although not a large number in the galaxy, it finally gained a fixed reputation.
Rumors also began to spread wildly throughout the universe, including the Xianzhou Alliance, Penacony, and even the IPC and many other factions who received word.
It was hard for anyone to associate.
Sam, who has the second-highest bounty among the Stellaron Hunters and is the strongest in terms of raw combat power, is actually an innocent and cute-looking girl?!
This revelation was so explosive people thought Aha had manifested in the world.
If this were fake, the players had no doubt that the game Author would be Glanced at on the spot and directly ascended to an Emanator of Elation; after all, he had toyed with the entire galaxy!
However.
In fact, Xu Qiong indeed toyed with the entire galaxy.
...
Inside Amphoreus, in Aohma Holy City.
Xu Qiong stood by the balcony, leaning on the marble railing, looking down at the entire territory of Okhema.
The post-war people were immersed in the heat of reconstruction, refurbishing houses, tidying streets, embracing, rejoicing, crying, and discussing when the distant tomorrow would arrive.
Perhaps it wouldn't be far off.
Aside from the remnants of the Iron Tomb still stirring in this virtual world, as well as the black tide, Okhema remained peaceful.
Phainon was sparring with Mydei; the two, dripping with sweat and beaming with smiles, were ready to head out of the city at any time to hunt down the remnants and see who was better.
Hyacine followed beside Anaxa, holding a book in her hands; the two were discussing going to the library to borrow materials for their recent research, preparing to head toward the stars.
Agy originally planned to open a tailor shop, but since the current crisis hadn't been completely resolved, it was temporarily put on hold.
But the site had already been selected with Tiresias's company!
He believed her future designs would surely cause a sensation everywhere in the galaxy.
Cipher could only be tied to Aglaea's side; seeing her frustrated look as she tried to escape but couldn't always made Tiresias chuckle.
And Keluida, accompanied by Hathur, was pointing at the sky outside.
Who knows if she was saying something again about conquering this or that once she went out, or even promising to grant Hathur a piece of land.
And of course, there was Castorice.
Xu Qiong taught her how to write books and encouraged her to give the story a perfect ending!
To this, although Castorice was somewhat introverted, she agreed with great confidence!
Finally, Xu Qiong shifted his gaze back to Cyrene.
One second, two seconds, just quietly watching her as she slept peacefully.
She seemed unable to hear any sound from the outside world, and no one would ever be able to wake her up.
Perhaps the sweet dream was too fragrant; just as she said, in the dream, 'we' will never be apart, so she didn't want to wake up, right?
"Actually, I went to the future a long, long time from now and experienced all sorts of adventures."
"Finally, I have the chance to tell you the truth of the world like this."
"Heh, but don't worry, this time everything will change because of you."
Under the stars, Xu Qiong spoke:
"I fooled the Astral Express, fooled the Stellaron Hunters, fooled the Xianzhou, the IPC, The Club..."
"I fooled the Aeons and the Rules above Them, just to give you the tomorrow you never had."
She was the only one without a tomorrow.
Her tomorrow was yesterday.
In this fictional Amphoreus, Xu Qiong understood everything she had said.
But at this moment, with a crisp 'ding' in his ear.
He knew that this time, the result would truly be different from before.
"Is that enough?"
[Ding! The Cosmic Shards you have collected have exceeded ten thousand for the first time.]
[Please purchase the abilities, resources, and other items you need from the randomly refreshed Event Shop...]
[Note: Spending Cosmic Shards allows for a refresh]
[Ability 1]
[The Brain of a Genius: Grants you a brain comparable to a Genius Society Member, which will allow you to step onto the Path of Erudition and eventually ascend to an Emanator of Erudition after completing certain achievements.]
[Ability 2]
[Authority of Abundance: You will gain one use of the authority possessed by the Aeon Yaoshi, granting any organic life the ability of immortality.]
[Ability 3]
[Random Path: You will randomly master a Path that you desire most in the depths of your heart. It might be an existing one, a weak one, a powerful one, one that has long since fallen, or... one that does not yet exist.]