Just as astonished as Ruan Mei was the Blood of Abundance—more precisely, the Emanator of Abundance, Shuhu.
What is going on? How did Herta suddenly self-crown and become an Emanator of Erudition?
Is self-coronation really that easy? Is this right? No, completely wrong.
In the past, when Shuhu had still been one of the Elixir Seekers, he had seized countless miracles of Abundance from other civilizations, yet he had never succeeded in self-coronation or taken another step forward on the Path of Abundance.
It was only after he encountered the Pharmacist in person and requested Their blessing... that the generous Aeon bestowed grace upon him, allowing him to achieve the rank of Emanator.
Moreover, according to Shuhu's understanding, within this stretch of the cosmos, the vast majority of Emanators had attained their status through the blessing of an Aeon. The seven generals of the Xianzhou were such examples.
Only a very small handful had completed self-coronation.
And Herta was one of them... something Shuhu had never anticipated.
After all, as the will of an Emanator of Abundance, Shuhu could clearly sense that Herta's life aura was exceedingly young. She had not even lived a single Amber Era. Even by the Xianzhou calendar, she was merely eighteen years old.
Such a brief span of years, yet she had completed self-coronation. It was inconceivable—almost to the point of defying reason.
After a long silence, Shuhu lifted his gaze toward Herta, who had completed her self-coronation, then toward the Xianzhou Luofu. Inwardly, he thought:
She told Ruan Mei to hold out for fifty-six seconds, saying there would be a turning point... That turning point likely wasn't the Xianzhou Alliance's Luofu general, Jing Yuan. She was referring to herself—about to complete self-coronation and ascend.
This time... can I truly revive?!
At that moment, unease once more began to rise within Shuhu's heart.
Far away, Celenova also sensed the change in Herta's aura. Her eyes opened, and the halo above her head began shifting colors at a rapid pace.
In the midst of a war of Destruction, she completed self-coronation and became an Emanator of Erudition.
The more Celenova observed, the more she felt Herta shared a certain affinity with the Destruction faction... It was a pity that Herta had already rejected her recruitment twice.
But upon further thought, Celenova could understand why Herta had refused to join Destruction. Herta had already reached the critical juncture of self-coronation on the Path of Erudition—how could she possibly abandon it?
After that inward sigh, Celenova swiftly contacted Phantylia within the already shattered Yongmei Star System, informing her that Herta had completed her coronation.
"I can see it." Phantylia's expression was extremely grave as she responded inwardly.
"You have already obtained the blessing of Abundance. Why does your mood remain so heavy?" Celenova's voice carried confusion. "By all logic, acquiring a miracle of Abundance should have greatly increased your strength. Even if Herta and Jing Yuan joined forces, they should not be your match."
"Yes, you're right. Under normal circumstances, that would be true." As Phantylia spoke, her expression grew darker and more twisted. "The problem is that what I fused with is not a miracle of Abundance at all. There isn't even a trace of Abundance's aura within it. Although it granted me a slight enhancement, the increase is minimal—not even five percent."
"Not a miracle of Abundance? Then what exactly did you fuse with?"
"Who knows? In any case, it's far less useful than I imagined."
"..."
Hearing this, Celenova recalled the scene she had sensed earlier—the God Tree absorbing the life force of an entire True Chrysalis Swarm Planet and countless billions of insects before condensing into a fruit. She could not help but say:
"The divine tree absorbed innumerable life forces of Propagation. It should indeed be a miracle of Abundance. However, the vast majority of that miraculous power had already been infused into the fruit... the very fruit Herta just consumed."
Phantylia's expression darkened further.
"Damn it. I should have stopped Herta from eating that fruit. Missing it means I can no longer take another step forward."
But just as Phantylia lamented, the general of the Xianzhou Luofu had already spoken.
"Miss Herta, congratulations on breaking through the boundary and completing self-coronation—ascending from a high-tier Pathstrider to an Emanator. Now, let us join forces and reverse the tide!"
"Of cou—"
Herta was about to agree.
But at that very moment, the Antimatter Legion's assault intensified, interrupting her words and halting her attempt to coordinate with Jing Yuan.
Phantylia adjusted her emotions and let out a cold laugh toward Jing Yuan.
"Hmph. So what if Herta has completed self-coronation? I am not the only Lord Ravager present. There is also Celenova. With Celenova's Antimatter Legion here, Herta has no chance of interfering in our war."
"—Jing Yuan, prepare to die! Today, a general of the Luofu shall fall and be replaced!"
"Phantylia, today will be the day of your defeat. Once you fall, I will confine you within the Ten-Lords Commission, to remain among the many heliobi."
Jing Yuan raised the long blade in his hand and pointed it at Phantylia.
At the same time, the golden divine spirit behind him also lifted its blade, assuming a battle stance.
The clash was on the verge of erupting.
Yet at that instant, a resonant hum echoed through the battlefield.
It was the self-destroyed Starcrusher Swarm King returning—more precisely, reviving. It now stood beside the ambrosial general Jing Yuan, prepared to join forces with him against the Lord Ravager Phantylia.
A flicker of astonishment passed through Jing Yuan's eyes.
"What is this?"
Tap. Tap.
Ruan Mei stepped forward and spoke calmly.
"Now that Herta has completed self-coronation, she can operate the upgraded Super Herta Astral Computer 2.0 with far greater efficiency. Just moments ago, she used its computational power to completely seal the Irontomb virus' influence upon the biological sun-computer.
"I can once more wield my full strength. Skaracabaz—bring destruction upon Phantylia."
"Roar!"
The massive Propagation Swarm King bellowed and charged at Phantylia, unleashing a Swarm King Cannon.
Seeing this, Jing Yuan felt a strange sensation well up within him.
To think that in my lifetime, I would fight alongside a Swarm King...
Truly bizarre.
Nevertheless, he now had an ally. This was the best opportunity to repel—or even slay—the Lord Ravager Phantylia.
With that thought, Jing Yuan swung his blade without hesitation.
"Strike—without mercy."
In an instant, the colossal divine spirit behind him moved as well, bringing down a thunderous heavenly judgment upon Phantylia.
The Swarm King Cannon and the divine blade descended together. Even Phantylia was forced to evade their combined assault, retreating momentarily before assuming a serious stance and engaging in full battle.
The fight grew ever more ferocious.
At the same time, Herta utilized a portion of the underlying Chrysos Heirs code of Amphoreus gifted by Cyrene to suppress the Irontomb virus. Ruan Mei returned to her peak condition at last and could finally unleash her full power.
Biological astral computer—overload. Full-power release!
Ruan Mei · Biological computational functions—unsealed!
Enhancement—sun!
Enhancement—Ruanruan!
At that moment, the Yongmei sun—already transformed by the Solar Radiance Gene and having reversed the situation—grew even more ferocious. It could now suppress the two demonic stars, Rahu and Ketu Mirage, pressing them down relentlessly.
As for Ruanruan, it broke free from the miserable state of being chased and battered by the Borisin fleet, its body shrinking under sustained assault. With the support of Ruan Mei's power as an Emanator and the overloaded computational capacity of the biological astral computer, its form began to expand once more.
In mere moments, it returned to its original size—comparable to Jupiter. The storms within its body intensified drastically, allowing it not only to counterattack the Borisin fleet, but even to whip their warships like spinning tops.
It could be said that with Herta's completion of self-coronation and her more efficient use of the Super Herta Astral Computer to suppress the Irontomb virus, the overall situation had already begun to reverse.
Far away, Celenova also noticed the shift in momentum and could not help but think inwardly:
Phantylia... You said that once you made your move, I would no longer need to dispatch additional Antimatter Legion forces to sing the symphony of Destruction.
But now it seems I must continue gathering my troops.
Only then can I complete the full symphony of annihilation and return all things to ruin.
Yet just as Celenova was thinking this, the star rail of the Yongmei Star System trembled once more.
New reinforcements arrived—on Herta's side.
A colossal mechanical battleship descended, its exterior shaped like an immense interstellar screw.
The ruler of Planet Screwllum, the 76th Seat of the Genius Society—Screwllum—had arrived in the Yongmei Star System.
At the same time, a Strategic Investment Department warship bearing the logo of the Interastral Peace Corporation, with the colossal hammer of the Amber Lord engraved upon its prow, entered the battlefield.
Within that vessel were members of the Ten Stonehearts—and Jade.
In addition to those two great ships, another vessel marked with the traces of Trailblaze arrived. Upon it stood a frail, elderly man, a hat resting upon his head.
He was the Clockmaker. He was also Mikhail—a veteran Nameless of the older generation. Upon learning that Herta had fallen into crisis, he firmly believed she must not be slain by the Antimatter Legion or the Borisin.
After all, Herta maintained cooperation with Penacony. Only by continuing that collaboration and developing Penacony's Memoria and Dreamstones could Penacony become the city of dreams within the cosmos.
And beyond these three factions, the Stellaron Hunters—aligned with Terminus—also descended.
The Destiny's Slave, Elio, had foreseen that a war not meant to occur had erupted here.
If not halted, this battle might become the prelude to a war among Aeons—triggering that cataclysm ahead of its destined time.
Should that happen, the script of the future would fall entirely into chaos. Thus, the Stellaron Hunters had to intervene.
The 76th Seat of the Genius Society. The IPC's Ten Stonehearts. A veteran Nameless Trailblazer. The Stellaron Hunters.
Four factions descended.
All of this was sensed by Celenova. From it, she realized something clearly:
This newly risen genius, Herta, truly knew how to cultivate alliances. In less than a month since becoming a genius, she had already forged ties with so many factions—enough to bring them to her aid.
This time... there was truly no way to kill her.
Such a thought inevitably surfaced in Celenova's heart.
...
At the same time, Screwllum—having just arrived in this star region—was deeply shaken by the devastation of the Yongmei Star System, a star system at the edge of the cosmos, and by the scale of the war.
Information log: Present on the battlefield are demonic stars of Abundance, a Xianzhou warship of The Hunt, the Propagation · Starcrusher Swarm King, the Antimatter Legion · Celenova, Lord Ravager Phantylia. The Irontomb virus also permeates the air, causing even a mechanical entity such as myself to experience danger.
The circumstances are far too terrifying.
Miss Herta, Miss Ruan Mei—what have you done to provoke the targeting of so many factions?
Yet even amid his astonishment, Screwllum had no intention of retreating. According to his calculations, Herta's side might not lose this battle.
After all, he could sense that Herta had already completed her coronation and become an Emanator of Erudition. Though this fact astonished him, it also meant that with Herta and Ruan Mei, plus the Xianzhou general—and himself—they now possessed a chance of victory.
Meanwhile, aboard the IPC vessel, Jade gazed upon the state of the Yongmei Star System and felt her heart quake.
The aura of Lord Ravagers is present—and not just one, but three?!
There is also an Emanator of Abundance, along with Abundance's forces.
This star system has descended into utter chaos.
No. Diamond must be informed. Even as one of the Ten Stonehearts, I may not be able to exert much power—even with a Cornerstone.
After reaching this conclusion, Jade immediately contacted Diamond and reported the situation.
"Ah?"
After hearing the report, Diamond was utterly dumbfounded.
"Three Lord Ravagers jointly targeting Herta? And they've even joined forces with an Emanator of Abundance? That's absurd."
"And you're telling me the ambrosial general is fighting alongside Propagation against a Lord Ravager? That's equally outrageous."
"Diamond, I'm not lying. Check the footage. It's unedited—no AI fabrication."
Jade swiftly sent a video.
After watching it at triple speed, Diamond quickly replied.
"Wait for me. I'm coming immediately. I suspect Miss Herta and Miss Ruan Mei have developed something capable of strengthening cosmic order and maintaining universal peace. That must be why three Lord Ravagers are targeting them."
At that moment, Diamond departed the IPC headquarters at Pier Point and set out for the Yongmei Star System.
Meanwhile, the veteran Nameless Mikhail, upon seeing that Herta was safe—and had even completed self-transcendence to become an Emanator of Erudition amid the chaotic battle—could not help but adjust the hat atop his head.
"As expected of a genius. In such a short span of time, she has taken another step upon the Path of Erudition and completed self-coronation as an Emanator."
"In that case, perhaps this old man need not exhaust the last of his life force to assist."
...
Hidden within the Yongmei Star System, aboard the Stellaron Hunters' vessel, Elio, Kafka, Silver Wolf, Blade, Sam · Firefly, Stelle, and the others observed the battlefield.
Especially Elio.
It had already begun examining the future ramifications of this war. Very quickly, it arrived at a discovery that left even itself in utter astonishment.
The origin of this conflict traced back to its own decision—to allow the Blood of Abundance sealed within Blade's body to be handed over to Herta.
It was precisely because of that decision that Shuhu's will had unexpectedly revived.