Chapter 360
"Don't overthink it. This guy just hid himself because he didn't want the hassle. It's not your fault." Ai Yue reached out and patted Pardofelis's head. "Alright, can you relax now?"
"That's right, don't worry, I'm here!" Despite her hair being ruffled by Ai Yue into a mess, Pardofelis proudly puffed out her chest. "Even though Brother Yue isn't with you, you still have me. I can definitely protect you!"
After a series of investigations, Pardofelis finally confirmed one thing: with her current strength, she could actually rank among the top in the Stellar Train and even the entire Star Sea.
This means that one has suddenly transformed from someone who needs to be protected to someone who can protect others, and one's importance has increased dramatically, which is incredibly exciting.
Pardofelis has even begun to fantasize about herself suddenly stepping in to save the day when everyone is in danger, which is why she seems to be a little sleep-deprived lately.
In conclusion, with Pardofelis as their protector, March 7th and the others put aside their last remaining doubts, then bid farewell to the two and left the train.
"Aren't you going down for a walk?" After watching everyone disappear into the crowded Star-chasing Sea, Ai Yue turned to Himeko beside him. "You were the one who stayed behind on the train last time. I thought you'd come with us this time."
"It would be a lie to say we don't want to get off, but before the situation becomes clear, someone has to stay behind to secure a way out for everyone, right?" Himeko smiled, then looked at Ai Yue, "Of course I know that with you here, we don't have to worry about these things, but we can't rely on you for everything."
"Understood. Then please wait patiently for a while." Ai Yue looked outside and nodded slightly. "The problem will be resolved soon."
Himeko looked at his profile, a slight smile appearing on her face, but she didn't say anything more.
Although she hadn't spent much time with this man, she already knew that he never broke his promises.
Meanwhile, March 7th and his group also faced a difficult choice.
"Where should we go now?" March 7th looked at Dan Heng and Tingyun, who was disguised as Himeko. "We can't just go straight to that... General, can we?"
Before heading to the Luofu Xianzhou, March 7th did some research and learned that the highest-ranking person in charge of each immortal ship in the Xianzhou Alliance was a general, and the current person in charge of the Luofu Xianzhou was "General of the Divine Might".
Speaking of which, although there are only six immortal ships, why are there seven generals?
Recalling the title "Seven Generals of the Emperor's Bow," a hint of doubt couldn't help but appear on March 7th's face.
"Obviously not, because we can't pinpoint the general's location, and while the Stellar Train is renowned, that reputation alone isn't enough to secure a direct confrontation with the general." Dan Heng grabbed Xing, who was looking around, and analyzed, "Currently, we have two options."
"The first method is to find someone who can introduce us to the general and use their connections to meet him." After a pause, Dan Heng analyzed, "This method is rather difficult because we are new here and lack the necessary connections. The only thing we can utilize is Miss Tingyun's connection."
"Eh, me?" Tingyun paused for a moment, then shook her head helplessly. "I really want to help in this regard, but now that I've lost my identity as Tingyun, even if I could find someone I used to be close to, I'm afraid it would be difficult to convince them to believe us."
Given the existence of a fake Tingyun who holds the entirety of Tingyun's life, the real Tingyun, who has lost her memory, seems more like a counterfeit. Even if someone is willing to believe in her authenticity, they probably wouldn't dare to present her to the general without substantial evidence.
"Then there's only the second option left. Although it's riskier, the situation is urgent, and we can't hesitate any longer." Dan Heng nodded in agreement, then brandished his ever-present spear, "Strike Cloud). "Let's make some noise until someone of sufficient importance comes to deal with us."
Wait, wait a minute?
Seeing Dan Heng calmly say such a thing, March 7th was dumbfounded—how could she have forgotten that the reason Dan Heng's position on the train was "guard" instead of "secretary" or something was because although he looked calm, he was actually a hothead!
"Want to fight?" Xing, who had just been trying to break free from Dan Heng's grasp and run around, immediately lit up when she heard this. She also pulled out her weapon, a baseball bat. "Count me in!"
"Isn't there a safer way?" Seeing that the two people who were about to make their move had already attracted a lot of onlookers, March 7th felt a headache coming on and quickly looked at Tingyun beside him, "Miss Tingyun, why don't you say something?"
"Uh, me?" Tingyun pondered for a moment, then picked up the briefcase that Himeko had given her before she got off the train. "This humble woman will certainly act according to her abilities and will not hold back any of you benefactors."
That's not what I meant by saying that!
March 7th was speechless, unable to offer any valuable suggestions. Her gaze fell on the last person, only to see a gleam of eager anticipation in Pardofelis's eyes, clearly indicating that she also agreed with Dan Heng's opinion.
No, there are five of us in total, can't we even muster one brain?
It was only on March 7th that she realized why she had lingered before getting off the bus, and why she had hoped that Ai Yue would come with her—it was because there wasn't a single reliable person among the people present!
Just as she was about to give up and join in, she suddenly felt the ground beneath her feet begin to tremble slightly.
"W-what's going on?" March 7th instinctively pulled out his weapon, looking around, only to find that there seemed to be some commotion not far away. "What happened?"
"It seems like a powerful energy erupted," Pardofelis, the most powerful and perceptive person present, immediately locked onto a certain direction, her ears perking up slightly. "This energy reaction... it has a rather unpleasant feel to it."
"A feeling of disgust?" Dan Heng paused for a moment, then seemed to realize something, his expression changing slightly. "Could it be... the star core?"
Before March 7th and the others could explore the possibility of this happening, reality soon confirmed Dan Heng's conjecture.
A black and gold ripple spread out from afar at an extremely fast speed. Wherever it went, the earth trembled, equipment short-circuited, and even people felt their vision go black for a moment, followed by intense pain such as headaches and chest tightness.
Along with this energy reaction, numerous strange and grotesque things appeared. They remained silent, making no sound, yet simultaneously launched indiscriminate attacks on the crowd.
"It's a Rift Monster!" March 7th naturally wouldn't mistake these things he'd encountered once before on that icy planet, and his eyes widened in disbelief. "It really is a star core eruption!"
"Never mind that, saving lives is the priority!" Dan Heng decisively hurled his spear, piercing the body of a monster not far away. He then looked at Pardofelis beside him, "Miss Pardofelis, please go and save them. If ordinary people are harmed by these Abyss creatures, they will quickly be assimilated into monsters!"
"Understood!" Pardofelis didn't waste any words, instantly transforming into a streak of light and disappearing from the spot. "Leave it to me!"
Clearly, Pardofelis was filled with motivation after realizing that someone needed her.
"But we're clearly not enough on our own!" March 7th raised his hand and unleashed a volley of arrows, pinning several densely packed monsters to the ground. "If only Brother Yue were here."
As soon as she finished speaking, she felt a warm current suddenly surge into her body, giving her a powerful boost.
On March 7th, he looked up and saw a pure white ripple spreading out from the opposite direction of the star core eruption, instantly sweeping across the entire Star-chasing Sea and continuing its momentum to spread further into the distance. Wherever the white light reached, the Rift Monsters instantly turned to ashes, and in the blink of an eye, the chaos in the Star-chasing Sea was quelled.
This light not only shattered the attack of the Abyss creatures, but also infused the panicked people with power, allowing those who had been attacked by the Abyss creatures and were beginning to show abnormal reactions to gradually return to normal, and their wounds began to heal.
"It was Brother Yue who made a move!" Seeing this, March 7th breathed a sigh of relief. "Great, we should be safe now, right?"
"March, don't speak yet." Dan Heng quickly interrupted March 7th, a subtle emotion flashing in his eyes. "This matter isn't over yet, it's best not to jump to conclusions."
"What do you mean! You think I'm a jinx?!" March 7th keenly sensed something from Dan Heng's attitude and put her hands on her hips. "The power of the Star Core has been dispelled by Brother Yue, how could there be a new enemy at this time? I don't believe it!"
However, as soon as she finished speaking, several screams came from afar again. When everyone looked over, they saw that a group of armored people covered with branches and leaves had appeared again.
They were armed with sharp weapons and slashed at anyone they saw; they were clearly not to be trifled with.
"This is... Mara-struck!" Dan Heng recognized these people at a glance, and his expression changed drastically. "How did they get here?"
"March, you've got some skills!" Xing exclaimed, grabbing March 7th's hand as she watched the scene unfold. "Quick, quick, wish me ten consecutive triple yellows!"
"I wish you a perfect score every time!" March 7th abruptly shook off Xing's hand, her cheeks puffed up with anger. "Am I really a jinx?"
"Don't just stand there!" As another streak of light flashed past them, Pardofelis's voice reached their ears, "Come help me, I can't manage alone!"
"That's right, stop them!" March 7th reacted instantly, drawing his bow and arrow, conjuring intense cold air and white light, then firing a huge arrow that transformed into an ice storm, freezing many monsters in place. "Everyone, attack together!"
Even before March 7th spoke, Xing charged out like a wild horse. The baseball bat in her hand glowed, and she swung it left and right, knocking a large Mara-struck to the ground in the blink of an eye. Tingyun also clumsily operated the transformable drone, providing assistance from behind.
Dan Heng lagged behind the others by a step, a strange look appearing on his calm face, clearly indicating that he had thought of something.
Does this mean he achieved his plan?
Chapter 42 Now let's settle both old and new grudges together.
As it turns out, Dan Heng's somewhat... well, particularly brutal plan did indeed achieve its goal in this strange way.
After the Stellar Train initially resisted the Mara-struck's offensive, more and more people quickly joined the battle. After all, people who can do business in the universe either have some skills themselves or hire some skilled people. Apart from ordinary tourists, most of them are not weak people who only know how to run away.
Not to mention that there were already soldiers maintaining order on site. Although their strength may be slightly inferior to that of the regular army, such assistance is already very valuable.
With this barely cohesive team and the nameless guests' attack, the group actually managed to get reinforcements. When the Cloud Cavalry of the Luofu Xianzhou entered to wipe out the Mara-struck, the people trapped at the Star-chasing Sea Wharf suffered almost no harm.
Even the few injuries they sustained were mostly accidental, caused by their own frantic escape. After all, the injuries from the first wave of energy eruption from the star core had already been healed by Ai Yue.
Such an astonishing result naturally attracted great attention from the Palace of Astrum. As the headquarters of the Luofu Divination Department, it manages the port operations of the Star-chasing Sea, and the safety of the Star-chasing Sea is naturally an inseparable responsibility for them. They had already prepared themselves for heavy casualties, but they did not expect the ending to be so good that it felt somewhat unreal.
As the backbone of this spontaneous resistance, the people on the Stellar Train naturally received special attention from the Divination Department. After the Cloud Cavalry took over the order at the scene, they were invited to the Palace of Astrum as guests, partly to better uncover the truth of the matter, and partly to express their gratitude.
"Welcome, everyone on the Stellar Train." They were greeted by a fox-woman with pointed ears and a commanding presence, clearly holding a high position, yet her tone was gentle. "My name is Yukong, and I am the captain of the Divination Department. On behalf of the Luofu Xianzhou, I thank you all for your timely rescue and for quelling the disaster."
As she spoke, her gaze swept over the group of people in front of her—two human girls, a cat-girl, a human adult woman, and a man wearing a straw hat and whose face was covered with a veil.
Out of professional habit, she subconsciously felt that the person who concealed their appearance was suspicious. However, since the Stellar Train had helped the Luofu Xianzhou avoid a media storm, she couldn't question the other party's identity at this time, both morally and logically.
"Wow, the captain of the Divination Department must be a very powerful figure, right?" March 7th couldn't help but whisper to Xing beside him, "The plan is going even more smoothly than expected, we've made contact with the big shot so quickly!"
"Your Excellency, there's no need for such formalities. Acting bravely and righteously is a tradition of our Stellar Train." As the only adult on the surface, Tingyun, disguised as Himeko, had to step in to negotiate. "It's good that no one was harmed... However, it seems the disaster on the Luofu Xianzhou isn't limited to the Star-chasing Sea?"
"This... I regret to inform you of this matter." Yukong paused for a moment, then said stiffly, "This is an internal matter of the Luofu Xianzhou. Since you are all tourists, we have no reason to ask you to worry about us."
Seemingly realizing that his tone had been a bit too harsh, Yukong paused for a moment, then smiled slightly, "Please don't worry, everyone. Although some problems have occurred, the Luofu Xianzhou will definitely be able to resolve them smoothly and won't cause you too much trouble."
"Of course we believe in the capabilities of the Luofu Xianzhou, but as the saying goes, many hands make light work," Tingyun smiled slightly, "Besides, we are not entirely ignorant of the inside story... What is currently troubling the Immortal Ship is a star core, isn't it?"
"You..." Yukong's expression changed slightly. Although she had tried her best to control her emotions, she couldn't help but reveal a flaw, which confirmed Tingyun's argument. "And how did you know that?"
"Your Excellency seems to have forgotten that we are the ones who witnessed this event firsthand." Facing Yukong's questioning gaze, Tingyun chuckled and replied fluently, "The Stellar Train's footprints are all over the starry sea. Of course, we have seen and dealt with many such things. Naturally, we can tell at a glance."
While this statement isn't entirely true, it's not entirely without merit. After all, even if the passengers on the Stellar Train hadn't received prior warning, they would have understood the cause of the incident after witnessing what happened.
"I apologize, it seems I was being overly suspicious." Faced with Tingyun's impeccable answer, Yukong looked at her with a subtle gaze, then suddenly spoke, "Forgive my rudeness, I didn't ask your names earlier. May I ask who you are?"
Perhaps it was just her imagination, but she felt a sense of familiarity emanating from the person she was meeting for the first time.
"My name is Himeko, and these gentlemen are..." Tingyun naturally didn't forget her current disguise and smoothly introduced herself, while also introducing the others to Yukong, "Well, is Lord Yukong now willing to share the inside story?"
Incidentally, Dan Heng did not use his real name, but instead used a pre-prepared alias, "Bai Heng".
"This matter is of great importance, and whether or not I can tell everyone the inside story is probably not a decision I can make." Yukong shook his head slightly, but did not rule out the possibility. "However, everyone's thoughts are indeed correct. The source of the disaster just now was indeed a star core."
Seeing that Yukong to be relenting, Tingyun immediately pressed on, "Then..."
"Miss Himeko, as I've already said, this matter is not something I can decide alone," Yukong interrupted her immediately, clearly understanding what she was trying to say. "Of course, please remain calm. I will report this matter to the General. Whether it's about the Star Core or your rewards, I believe the General will give you a satisfactory answer..."
What was the reply?
Before she could finish speaking, she was interrupted by a slightly lazy voice. Everyone turned to look and saw a virtual projection slowly approaching.
The newcomer had white hair, wore an elegant and exquisite military uniform, and had a scroll hanging at his waist; he was clearly no ordinary person.
However, compared to his imposing attire, the eye that wasn't covered by his bangs revealed a hint of laziness, making him look like some idle young master.
However, the fact that he could appear here so casually shows that he was clearly not as frivolous as he appeared.
"General." Upon seeing this person appear, Yukong quickly bowed in greeting, "These are the nameless guests who lent a helping hand during the turmoil at the Star-chasing Sea."
"So you're the nameless passengers of the Stellar Train. I've heard so much about you." Upon hearing Tingyun and the others' identities, the white-haired man addressed as General immediately became serious. "I am Jing Yuan, the Cloud Cavalry General of the Luofu Xianzhou. I hope that your arrival and the misfortune you've encountered has not affected your impression of the Luofu Xianzhou."
"No, not at all," March 7th muttered softly, then glanced at Yukong again. "The factors influencing the impression are someone else entirely."
Yukong clearly heard the complaint; her lips twitched twice, but she ultimately decided to pretend she hadn't heard it.
As the captain of the Divination Department, the responsibilities she bore forced her to adopt such a cold and hard attitude, and she had long been aware that she was not understood by others.
"Haha, that's good, that's good." Jing Yuan wisely ignored the second half of March 7th's sentence, and nodded with a smile. "So, what happened just now? Could you tell me in detail?"
"It's like this, General..." Yukong quickly recounted the events to Jing Yuan, using objective language and descriptions without any personal bias. "... Since you've arrived, I'll leave the rest to you. The Divination Department has many matters to attend to, so please allow me to take my leave."
After saying this, she bowed slightly to the crowd and then turned back to her seat.
"Please don't mind, everyone. With what has happened on the Luofu Xianzhou, Yukong, as the captain of the Divination Department, is also overwhelmed with troubles and under immense pressure." Jing Yuan said with a smile, speaking up for Yukong. "Moreover, regarding the Star Core, I must make it clear from the outset—my attitude is actually the same as Yukong's."
"Huh? Why is it like this?" March 7th was greatly disappointed. "I thought the General would be easier to talk to."
"It is indeed a bit heartless to treat the benefactor who just helped the Luofu Xianzhou with such an attitude, but I still hope everyone can understand that this matter concerns the reputation of the Immortal Ship." Jing Yuan's attitude was unexpectedly direct. "If we can't even handle a mere star core and need to accept the train's help, then if word gets out, people will start to question the capabilities of the Luofu Xianzhou."
"So there's another layer of consideration..." The words were so straightforward and easy to understand that March 7th quickly accepted them. "Thinking about it carefully, it does seem to make sense... Wait a minute!"
She suddenly looked up at her companions. "Have we forgotten something important?"
"If it's just about a star core, perhaps you're right." Tingyun stepped forward at that moment, showing no fear even when facing the general who commanded a celestial ship. "But what if this matter involves more than just a star core?"
"Oh?" Jing Yuan blinked, a look of interest on his face. "It seems you all know far more than I imagined."
Tingyun smiled slightly, about to open her mouth, but suddenly seemed to sense something and abruptly closed her mouth.
The next second, a familiar voice came from not far away. "Oh, you're finally back! This trip was really scary!"
That was Tingyun's voice.
Meanwhile, Ai Yue, who had been waiting on the train for some time, finally got what he was looking for. He disappeared from the train without a sound, and no one knew where he went.
Only Pom-Pom seemed to sense something and looked up, her face full of confusion. "Huh? It's one thing for Ai Yue's passengers to leave... but why did they take a section of the carriage with them?"
At this very moment, in Liuyun Ferry, a blond-haired stranger is wandering around.
The Divination Department reacted swiftly. Faced with the dual threats of the Star Core and the Medicine Master's Legacy, they not only quickly evacuated the crowd but also sealed off the port at an extremely fast pace, turning the once bustling port into a desolate wasteland.
Even so, some people still manage to slip through the cracks and wander into this dangerous area; the blond stranger carrying the enormous coffin is clearly one of them.
Despite his best efforts to evade the monsters' pursuit, his unfamiliarity with the terrain ultimately led to him being cornered by several Mara-struck Medicine Master's Legacy.
However, at this critical moment, several beams of light suddenly descended from the sky, striking the monsters before them and sealing them inside, forming something resembling Amber encasing insects in resin.
At the same time, a figure suddenly appeared next to the blond stranger, patting him on the shoulder. "Hey, are you alright?"
"You, who are you?" The stranger was clearly taken aback by this sudden turn of events. He had almost decided to reveal his abilities just now, but was suddenly rescued. He was momentarily stunned. "Thank you for saving me, sir. I am..."
"Forget the pleasantries," Ai Yue waved his hand to interrupt the other person, carefully observing this guy who looked almost exactly like Otto, and couldn't help but reveal a subtle smile, "If you really want to thank me, how about lending me that thing on your back to play with?"
"You..." Whether it was because he sensed Ai Yue's extraordinary nature or due to other factors, the stranger's eyes suddenly became wary. "Who exactly are you?"
If it weren't for the slight fear emanating from the coffin behind him, he probably wouldn't have realized, no matter how hard he tried, that this seemingly easygoing man possessed terrifying power that was unimaginable to ordinary people.
"Look at how stingy you are," Ai Yue said, waving his hand when he saw how afraid the other person was. "Never mind, we'll talk about it when you're willing."