Chapter 347
Chapter Twenty-One: Why Do You Seduce Everyone?
No matter how unwilling Pardofelis was, she couldn't refuse Mobius's conditions.
After all, she knew very well that she had already caused Ai Yue a lot of trouble, and if she continued to make trouble, things would obviously end badly.
Although Pardofelis believed that Ai Yue would always find a way to solve the problem, she did not want to cause him any more trouble because of herself. So, even though she knew that Mobius's so-called rotation was not just with her, but with many people, Pardofelis still agreed with tears in her eyes.
Fortunately, Mobius was familiar with the train's rules, and had even studied them in detail. Therefore, he didn't make things too difficult for Pardofelis. He simply limited the rotation to inside the train, so that when they boarded the train, they could be considered as visitors, which was completely in accordance with the train's regulations.
"Wait, didn't we already discuss this?" Ai Yue's expression turned subtle upon hearing this. "If that's the case, why is it necessary to switch with Pardo?"
Bringing people on board was something Ai Yue had discussed with the other passengers from the beginning. Although there were some restrictions, if Mobius and the others only wanted to stay on the train for a while during the journey, then it was perfectly fine, so there was no need to take turns with Pardofelis.
"I guess someone is starting to wonder, but I've already given the answer," Mobius said, as if he had anticipated Ai Yue's question, and after a moment, he gave a subtle smile. "This is specifically to prevent someone from eating it all by themselves."
After saying that, the video ended, leaving Pardofelis, on the verge of tears, looking pitifully at Ai Yue.
Ai Yue could only give her a helpless look, then silently dialed the communication line on Earth and handed the microphone to her.
Clearly, more details regarding the rotation will require direct communication to finalize.
After confirming that the two sides had begun communicating, Ai Yue quietly slipped out of the carriage.
His intuition told him that it was best not to get involved in this matter, or he would be in big trouble.
"Is the matter resolved?" Seeing Ai Yue return to the observation car alone, March 7th couldn't help but ask with concern, "Uh, Brother Yue, don't be too harsh on Pardo..."
"Don't worry, why would I make things difficult for her?" Ai Yue shrugged, then couldn't help but smile subtly. "As for what others will do, I can't say."
March 7th was clearly unaware of what had happened, but just as she was about to press for more information, Dan Heng wisely stopped her, preventing her from continuing the conversation.
Clearly, after the Amber Lord incident, Ai Yue's status was upgraded again, and therefore his freedom on the train was greatly increased.
As it stands, as long as he doesn't suddenly decide to blow up the train or violate the Trailblazers' rules, everyone can pretend they don't know anything else.
After all, they had already heard about Ai Yue's romantic problems when they were sightseeing on Earth.
"You've come at the perfect time. We were just about to discuss the train's next direction," Himeko said with a smile, changing the subject as she sat down with a few cups of coffee. "Once Pardo returns, we can begin the vote."
"She...I'm afraid she won't be able to come anytime soon," Ai Yue said, glancing at the coffee Himeko had placed in front of him. He subtly shifted his weight back. "What are the alternative plans?"
Pom-Pom, who was cleaning not far away, couldn't help but perk up her ears when she heard this topic.
"First, we'll jump according to the original star map of the Stellar Train, tracing Acheron's footsteps. This is our most important journey so far," Himeko said simply. "According to this plan, our next stop is a planet called 'Yarilo-VI'."
"According to records, the last time we went there was thousands of years ago," added Dan Heng, the train's guard and secretary. "The current situation of Yalilo-VI is unclear, so I suggest we make thorough preparations before we depart."
At this point, Dan Heng suddenly glanced at Ai Yue, then corrected him, "Alright, going over like this shouldn't be a problem."
According to Dan Heng, who is familiar with Ai Yue's deeds, with Ai Yue present, other preparations seem unimportant.
"I've contacted the Herta Space Station; they might have some relevant information," Himeko said, while focusing her gaze on Ai Yue. "Also, the station's owner just sent me a message, asking about you, and it seems he wants to invite us over."
"The space station's owner sent a message personally? Not Miss Asta?" March 7th's eyes widened upon hearing this. "And how did she know about Brother Yue's affairs?"
Ai Yue's boarding of the train was a secret, currently known only to the Stellar Train and some members of the company. However, the Herta Space Station is an independent force, and unless someone from either side leaked the information, theoretically the other side could not possibly know of Ai Yue's existence.
"Ms. Herta, the owner of the Herta Space Station, is a member of the Genius Club. I think she might be related to this matter," Dan Heng analyzed from the side. "After all, we all know that the Aeon of Intellect is paying special attention to Mr. Ai Yue. Perhaps the news leaked from Him."
"Well, although Ms. Herta didn't say it explicitly, judging from the hints in her words, it's clearly related to Boshizun." Himeko nodded. "So, what do you think, Ai Yue? Should you go to Yalilo-VI first, or accept Ms. Herta's invitation to go to the Herta Space Station?"
Without much thought, Ai Yue made his choice. "There's no rush at the Herta Space Station, let's go to Yalilo-VI first."
Himeko and the others were unaware of the situation regarding Ariro-VI, but Ai Yue was.
Although Yalilo-VI no longer holds much value for Ai Yue, leaving only a star core, it doesn't have a high priority compared to other regions that can access different Destiny Star Gods. However, considering the current environment of the people on that planet, Ai Yue still decided to intervene as soon as possible.
In contrast, the Herta Space Station is probably not yet at the point where it will be targeted by the Antimatter Legion, let alone see the appearance of the Stellaron Hunters. In that case, it's acceptable to wait a little longer.
Even if the Herta Space Station is about to be attacked by the Antimatter Legion, the Black Tower itself seems to be overseeing things there, so these guys probably won't gain much advantage.
It's unclear whether the Stellaron Hunters's plan can succeed under these circumstances.
"Although I'd love to see a new planet, Brother Yue, are you really not interested in the Herta Space Station?" March 7th asked, camera in hand. "What if Boshizun has something very important to discuss with you?"
Originally, Black Tower was a powerful figure in March 7th's eyes, someone who was rarely seen. But now that Ai Yue has appeared, March 7th feels that Black Tower is just average. However, the Star God behind him is still someone who needs to be taken seriously.
"Then let Him wait a bit." Ai Yue waved his hand, looking nonchalant. "Don't worry, I guess He's just being curious. There's nothing urgent. If it really comes down to it, I'll personally handle Arilo-VI. We can finish this quickly without delaying anything."
"In that case, let's vote." Himeko nodded with a smile. "Considering the relationship between Pardofelis and Ai Yue, her vote will count as yours, is that alright?"
"Of course." Ai Yue nodded. "Then, counting March 7th, Yalilo-VI will have three votes."
"Looking at it this way, it seems we don't need a vote anymore; we can just apply the majority rule," Dan Heng nodded in agreement. "Also, I think we can go directly to Yalilo-VI."
"In that case, it's settled then." Himeko nodded with a smile, then looked at Pom-Pom, who had somehow joined the group. "Thank you for your trouble, Train Conductor, to prepare for the jump."
"Leave it to me!" The train conductor immediately put away the cleaning kit, proudly puffed out his chest, and announced, "Passengers, please prepare yourselves!"
As Pom-Pom's countdown continued, Ai Yue returned to his own carriage. By this time, Pardofelis had already ended the communication, but she looked listless, clearly indicating that the result was not ideal.
Seeing Ai Yue return, she silently buried her head in his arms, then clung to Ai Yue, even wrapping her tail around his legs, as if they were about to part ways.
"Alright, it's not like we're kicking you off the train," Ai Yue patted her back reassuringly. "Besides, compared to them, at least you're a recognized anonymous passenger on the train, able to move around openly and honestly, isn't that great?"
Pardofelis was silent for a moment, then lifted her head from Ai Yue's embrace. "That's true, isn't it?"
She was an optimistic person by nature and was good at self-consolation, so after a short while, she was completely cheered up.
"Anyway, Sister Snake and the others still have their own schedules to work for a while, so this time is all mine!" Thinking of this, Pardofelis's tail couldn't help but wag again. "Time is tight, Brother Yue, should we..."
She didn't finish her sentence, because the jump began the next second.
When everything returned to normal, Ai Yue had already brought her into the observation car. Under the watchful eyes of everyone, even if Pardofelis had the thickest skin, she couldn't possibly utter those lewd words.
However, no one was paying attention to the two people who had suddenly appeared, because outside the car window, an unfamiliar planet was hovering.
It was a planet almost entirely covered in ice and snow, so much so that it was difficult to spot any color other than white and blue when viewed from space.
"Yarilo-VI, according to the train's records, was a lush and vibrant planet..." Himeko murmured to herself, gazing at the scene before her. "Have such enormous changes occurred here in just a few thousand years?"
Ai Yue also gazed at the planet, his brows furrowed slightly, but he remained silent.
He could sense that some indescribable special power was hidden within this planet. It seemed to have some similarities to the power of destiny, yet it gave people a completely different feeling. It was like some kind of chaotic mixture, and for a moment it was difficult to find a suitable adjective.
Is this the star's core?
If that were all, Ai Yue wouldn't be so frowning. After all, he already knew about the existence of the Star Core before he arrived. Although the nature of this thing is unclear, since Himeko and Welt both have ways to control it, he naturally wouldn't be unable to handle it.
What truly surprised him was the familiar aura emanating from this planet.
"Brother Yue, you noticed it too, right?" Pardofelis whispered in Ai Yue's ear, "Why is there an aura of Power of Light on this planet?"
Yes, besides the energy reaction and destiny power of the star core, Ai Yue also sensed a third power on this planet, which was the Power of Light originating from him.
But why?
The source of this power is Ai Yue himself. Unless he bestowed it upon someone else, theoretically, the same thing shouldn't exist in the universe. But he has never been to Yalilo-VI, so how could he have left traces of the Power of Light here?
Could it be Vita?
Thinking of this, Ai Yue immediately contacted Vita: "Vita, are you busy?"
"Hey, Ai Yue?" Vita seemed a little surprised by Ai Yue's sudden call, and her tone betrayed a hint of guilt. "Uh, I'm actually quite busy, so if there's nothing else, I'll hang up now..."
"I'm not here to settle scores with you, don't worry." Ai Yue knew without a doubt what the other party was feeling guilty about, so he went straight to the point, "I have a question for you. Have you ever been to a planet called Yalilo-VI, or Belobog?"
"Yarilo-VI? Belobog?" Vita repeated the planet's name, seemingly lost in thought. After a moment, she replied, "I don't recall ever hearing that name before, and I checked the Starferry's travel routes, but there are no records of it, so I probably haven't been there... What's wrong?"
"It's nothing, just confirming." Ai Yue nodded thoughtfully, then added, "Also, go to the Herta Space Station and wait for me—I need to talk to you."
The fact that Pardofelis and the others had tricked her was clearly not something she could just let go of—someone like Vita, with so many cunning ideas, needed to be dealt with every now and then to prevent her from causing any more trouble.
After leaving those words, Ai Yue ignored Vita's wails and ended the communication. Then, his gaze towards the planet before him held a renewed interest.
If it wasn't the power he left behind, nor the result of Vita's intervention, then there's only one possibility.
Did the "Radiant Flow" that illuminated the entire universe when Ai Yue ascended to godhood perhaps have some interesting interaction with this place?
Chapter Twenty-Two: What a Dreamlike Worldline
"I never imagined something like this would happen."
Ai Yue sat at his large desk, fiddling with the golden sphere in his hand and muttering to himself.
If he hadn't revealed it, probably no one would have imagined that the seemingly precious golden sphere in his hands was actually the "cancer of all worlds," the star core, which had disrupted the entire universe, caused endless disasters, and left a legacy of calamity for hundreds of years.
However, the culprit that had almost completely destroyed the entire Yalilo-VI was now lying quietly in Ai Yue's palm, being casually tossed and played with by him. It had obviously lost its original power and had been completely sealed away.
Even so, some people still watched the trajectory of this small ball with trepidation, fearing that even a moment of instability would cause it to erupt again and wreak havoc on the world.
For example, the blonde woman standing next to Ai Yue, and the gray-haired girl half a step behind her.
"Mr. Ai, Mr. Ai Yue..." After holding on for a few seconds, the blonde woman finally couldn't withstand the terrifying pressure and said with difficulty, "'Star Core' is far too dangerous. Are you really alright?"
Cocolia Land—as the person on this planet currently suffering the most from the Star Core, she probably knows best how harmful it is. At this moment, watching the culprit that turned Yalilo-VI from a lush and prosperous planet into an icy wasteland being manipulated by Ai Yue (literally), she honestly felt her legs go weak.
"Don't be so nervous, Cocolia. This thing is really harmless now." Ai Yue looked at the familiar-looking woman, shook his head with a smile, and then simply tossed the star core over. "You can try it yourself if you don't believe me."
Then he saw Cocolia catch the star core with trembling hands, and her legs went weak as she was about to kneel down—luckily, Bronya Landra, the girl standing next to her, helped her up, thus preventing her mother from being embarrassed.
Even so, Cocolia was under immense pressure. She looked at the star core in her palm and managed a weak smile, but cold sweat had already covered her forehead.
"... Sorry, should I have made that kind of joke?" Seeing Cocolia walking on thin ice, on the verge of a PTSD attack, Ai Yue also stopped smiling and took the Star Core back. "It seems your mental state needs some time to heal."
Realizing that this behavior was no different from a horror movie for Cocolia, Ai Yue stopped playing with the Star Core and put it away.
Sure enough, after she could no longer see the star core, Cocolia gradually returned to calm.
It's not fair to blame her for being too fragile. After all, the danger of a star core is truly outrageous, far beyond what ordinary people can withstand. In the original storyline, Cocolia at this point in time had already been corrupted by the star core, ultimately standing completely against Belobog and being defeated by the Nameless Guest and others as a boss.
Now, although she has been able to fight against the Star Core with the help of unexpected forces, she can hardly escape the seductive voice that the Star Core keeps whispering in her ear. Under these circumstances, Cocolia's reaction can be considered to be resolute.
Of course, strictly speaking, it's not entirely her doing.
Cocolia looked at the man in front of her, her eyes flashing with confusion—on the one hand, she still couldn't figure out his methods, and on the other hand, she hadn't quite recovered from the whole situation.
About half an hour ago, while he was teaching Bronya how to become a qualified Supreme Guardian, this man who called himself Ai Yue suddenly appeared in this office.
Aside from giving his name, he didn't engage in any further communication. He merely glanced at me before using an inexplicable method to drag me to the wilderness outside Belobog.
But even more unbelievable things were yet to come. Before Cocolia could fully recover, she saw Ai Yue easily "dig out" the star core and turn it into a golden sphere in his palm.
She found it difficult to describe the scene in words, because it was so exaggerated that all language paled in comparison.
Golden light instantly blotted out the entire sky, and violent tremors came from beneath our feet, as if a violent energy was brewing inside the planet, about to erupt and tear it apart.
During this process, for a fleeting moment, Cocolia experienced a kind of hallucination. She heard those seductive voices again, but this time the voices no longer cared about conveying those nonsensical things to her; instead, they were filled with fear and horror.
Then... everything returned to calm, except that the man now held a golden sphere in his hand; everything seemed no different from before.
It was only then that Cocolia realized that since Ai Yue appeared, the voice that had once bewitched her had never been heard again—except for that terrified scream just now.
And then, we arrived at the present.
Although Cocolia still doesn't know who this mysterious man is, everything that just happened tells her that the man, at least, has no ill intentions towards her or Belobog.
Even setting aside reason, she felt an urge to get closer to him, an urge that seemed almost instinctive, and if she wasn't careful, it would compel Cocolia to take a step toward Ai Yue.
Fortunately, Cocolia was always good at self-control, which allowed her to barely restrain her impulse.
"My affairs are not important," Cocolia, her rulerly side finally kicking in after calming down. She quickly organized her thoughts and then cautiously began, "Regarding this world, may I ask you a few questions?"
"Speak freely," Ai Yue gestured with his chin and replied casually, "But you'd better hurry, because I suspect you'll soon be needed outside to appease them."
Recalling what she had just experienced, Cocolia couldn't help but smile bitterly, but that bitterness quickly dissipated. After all, the biggest threat had been eliminated, and things should only get better from now on.
"Although the star core has disappeared, this planet was once attacked by the Antimatter Legion," Cocolia said without much pleasantries. Her long-standing hardships had instilled in her a habit of getting straight to the point. "After the cold wave recedes, will we face the same situation again?"
"Possibly, but don't worry too much." Ai Yue nodded. "The harsh climate won't disappear anytime soon, and I'll help you too."
Both the cold wave and the Abyss creatures were the work of the Star Core. It was precisely this terrifying climate that swept the globe that stopped the Antimatter Legion's attack, barely preserving a spark for this planet. Now, as the climate gradually returns to normal, it is clearly not impossible for those monsters that were once frozen by the extreme cold to make a comeback.
However, how could Ai Yue not have thought of what Cocolia could think of? In fact, he had already prepared for this. As for what choice the other party would make, that would have to wait and see.
"I'm willing to believe you," Cocolia nodded without hesitation, a reaction that even she found somewhat difficult to accept. "Well, then, is there anything we can do to repay you?"
At this point, Cocolia's expression became somewhat subtle, but she continued, "You solved our greatest problem; you could say you saved the world. For this, we must repay you."
While these words were sincere, they also revealed Cocolia's hidden thoughts. Through Ai Yue's reaction, regardless of what he was asking for, one could see what kind of person he truly was.
As Cocolia, she was deeply grateful to Ai Yue, but as the Supreme Guardian protecting the entire Belobog, she also had to consider the people, lest the world, having just escaped one threat, fall into another abyss.
Thinking of this, Cocolia suddenly felt powerless again—the opponent's ability to seal the star core so easily was beyond her comprehension. If Ai Yue truly harbored ill intentions towards this planet, could she really protect the people with just herself and that trump card?
"Don't be nervous, this is nothing to me," Ai Yue naturally saw through Cocolia's scheme. He shook his head slightly and put it another way, "Rather, you probably don't have anything here that I'd like, but I'll take the star core, is that alright?"
This wasn't the first time Ai Yue had dealt with this kind of ruler. He knew very well that Cocolia tended to overcomplicate things and were deeply convinced of their own ideas. If things didn't go as she imagined, she would lean more towards her own thoughts.