Kiana said this as she took out her phone and drew a rough sketch on it.
Ouyang pushed up his glasses. Before he could say anything, March 7th spoke up.
"Kiana, did you read some strange work? Those are obviously donkey ears."
"Benefactor, this little one is a member of the Fox Clan. I can guarantee that these are proper fox ears. Even if what you drew isn't a donkey's ears, they're rabbit ears. They definitely aren't fox ears."
"Nonsense! Foxes' ears are obviously long!"
As Kiana's voice fell, Tingyun suddenly felt her head grow much heavier. The gazes of the people before her also became rather strange.
"Benefactors, why are you all looking at me like that? Is there something on top of my head?"
Seeing them merely stare at her with increasingly peculiar expressions, Tingyun began to panic.
Tingyun had always cared deeply about her appearance. Besides her clothes and makeup, she spent a great deal of time every day combing her tail and tidying her ears. Sometimes, she even visited professional Fox Clan grooming salons for the best possible care.
Unfortunately, the Cloud-Knights escort had already left after bringing them here. Aside from Tingyun, only the Express crew remained.
Even if Tingyun wanted to ask, she was too embarrassed to say anything.
Fortunately, she carried a small mirror and a wooden comb made from Yellow peach wood so she could keep her appearance in order at all times. Unfortunately, the moment she took them out, Tingyun's scream echoed throughout the entire dock.
Even the few Cloud-Knights who had just left thought Tingyun had been attacked again. They hurriedly turned around and rushed back toward the dock.
This day became Tingyun's nightmare—and the nightmare of countless members of the Fox Clan as well.
The Xianzhou was covered in countless heart-wrenching wails that day.
Fortunately, the effect lasted for an extremely short time. The "donkey-eared" Tingyun returned to normal immediately after she picked up the mirror and looked into it.
It had happened so quickly that she wondered if she had merely been exhausted lately and suffered a hallucination.
"Could it be that I'm hallucinating?"
Tingyun checked several more times. Only after confirming that her ears had not changed did she relax and invite everyone aboard the Star Skiff.
"By the way, do you need a license to pilot a Star Skiff? Would a Star Destroyer license work?"
Tingyun was just about to say that, as a ferrymaster, piloting a Star Skiff was an essential skill in her line of work.
But Kiana's second question left her unable to react for a moment.
What in the world was a Star Destroyer?
Who in their right mind learned to pilot a Star Destroyer? And did such a thing even require a license?
This had struck a blind spot in Tingyun's knowledge, leaving her brain frozen and her thoughts momentarily stalled.
Meanwhile, far away, Asta—
"Achoo! Who's talking about me? Let me see... Nobody in these groups has been discussing me lately. Could it be that I bought another Star Destroyer, so someone started a new group to talk about me?"
"That shouldn't be it. This time, I used a new account to buy the Star Destroyer, and I parked it near the planet I bought for Peppy. Could Kiana be missing me?"
"I wonder if Kiana has suffered any hardships. Is she running short of pocket money? Waaah, I want to call her, but it hasn't been that long. Would calling her so soon disturb her travels?"
"Himeko too. She said she'd bring Kiana back for a visit, so how did they end up starting another journey of Trailblaze? My Kiana, my Kiana Cat!"
Thinking of this, Asta lost all interest in her work. She returned straight to her room, hugged a white cat plushie, and began rubbing her face against it.
The scene returned to Xianzhou Luofu.
Ever since they boarded the vessel, Tingyun had noticed that March 7th and Kiana, who were usually lively, had not said a word. Even the other two, who were already quiet by nature, remained silent.
If not for being a "civil servant" of Xianzhou Luofu, Tingyun would have worried that the people behind her had become ghosts. Otherwise, why had none of them spoken after boarding?
Tingyun felt as if a cat were constantly clawing at her heart, making it impossible for her to calm down and pilot the ship properly.
She knew that she must not get distracted while piloting, but in the end, she could not resist. She glanced at the people in the back row from the corner of her eye.
She found the three of them gathered neatly around Kiana, whose mouth had been covered with a strip of pink tape.
She had seen that tape when the group introduced themselves earlier. It seemed to have been taken out by March 7th. Could Kiana have said something strange again and been punished by March 7th?
That was outside Tingyun's concern, however. With the source of her unease gone, she focused on piloting the Star Skiff toward their destination.
But her guess was wrong. It had not been March 7th who sealed Kiana's mouth. It had been Ouyang.
His instincts told him that he absolutely could not let Kiana speak again. Xianzhou Luofu was a massive spaceship, and Tingyun was piloting the Star Skiff. If Kiana said something strange again—
If something happened to the Star Skiff, their journey could be declared a failure.
Even if they survived, they would probably be badly battered.
March 7th and Stelle had been assigned to keep an eye on Kiana.
It was just like what had happened at St. Freya Academy. Theresa had originally thought that she alone would be enough to keep an eye on her niece, but Himeko had proven completely unable to keep her under control.
It had only been with Mei, Bronya, Rita, and Fu Hua joining in that they had managed, barely, to keep Kiana under control and prevent her from causing a major disaster.
After disembarking, Ouyang deeply realized that his decision had been absolutely correct, because the Star Skiff Haven Central Harbor was already in complete chaos.
And the culprit was the white-haired ball of fluff behind him, who was currently looking around with great curiosity.
Chapter 57: Could Jing Yuan Yuan be planning to let me take over his position?
Tingyun had originally intended to properly introduce the place to everyone. But when she saw the situation at the Star Skiff Haven Central Harbor, she froze, completely forgetting her official duties.
Only when a Fox Clan girl from the Ship Lord's Department approached did Tingyun understand why the place had descended into chaos.
She also realized that the scene she had seen in the mirror had not been an illusion.
Just now, the ears of every member of the Fox Clan throughout the Star Skiff Haven Central Harbor, all of Xianzhou Luofu, and perhaps even the entire universe—regardless of age or gender—had briefly turned into "donkey ears."
For the Fox Clan, appearances could be described as handsome men and beautiful women. The male Fox Clan members were all refined and dignified, while the women were all breathtakingly beautiful.
Thus, appearances were not what the Fox Clan cared about most. What they compared instead was the care they devoted to their ears and tails.
Just now, the ears the Fox Clan took pride in had turned into "donkey ears." Some members with poor mental resilience, or who cared deeply about their ears, had been unable to withstand the shock and passed out.
Those with steadier dispositions had still suffered a heavy blow. Even though the transformation had lasted only a short while, it had completely shattered the composure of every member of the Fox Clan.
"Miss Tingyun, that's what happened. With so many Fox Clan members unconscious, and many of those who remained awake suffering severe mental trauma, they were unable to handle their work. As a result, many physicians from the Alchemy Commission were also forced to make emergency house calls."
"It's already become a complete mess."
Behind Tingyun, the others exchanged glances. Under Ouyang's warning gaze, everyone pretended that they had nothing to do with it.
Especially regarding Kiana's ability, Ouyang had even taken out his phone and laboriously typed out a message.
Welt Yang: Never reveal Kiana's ability. If Xianzhou investigates, the Express crew may be blacklisted by the Xianzhou Alliance. We might even attract the attention of an Aeon.
March 7th: But Miss Tingyun knows that Kiana said those words. What if she investigates later, or realizes something is wrong when she thinks about it herself?
Kiana: It's fine. Just say it was the work of the Aeon of Joy. I'm merely an ordinary Pathstrider, and I only obtained my power recently. If they think it was my ability, just blame the prankster. After all, that's exactly the kind of thing he would do.
Everyone fell silent.
But Kiana's excuse really was too perfect. A certain prankster really could have done this, and it was not as if he had never caused similar incidents before.
As for the possibility that this might alarm the Hunt Aeon, Lan, whom the Xianzhou revered as Lord of the Bow—
It probably would not go that far. An Aeon should not be so petty.
If Aha had been there, he probably would have already turned into an ordinary person, jumped out, and teased Lan.
Aha: Hahaha! Lan isn't petty? That's the funniest joke I've heard in years. With Lan's ability to hold a grudge, once you're on his list, he'll immediately fire a Light Arrow at you.
Especially those Abundance followers who worship Yaoshi. Even if they're sixty-four light-years away, the moment they show the slightest sign of movement, Lan will attack without hesitation and have the Xianzhou Alliance clean up and purge them afterward.
As for Yaoshi?
Yaoshi: Lan? Who's that? Is he someone I've blessed? I don't know him.
Still, the incident did not grow too serious. After less than half an hour, order returned, and Tingyun finally remembered that she had brought people with her.
"Sorry for the wait, benefactors."
"When apologizing, you need to show your sto—"
Before Kiana could finish, she was greeted with another silence package.
Fortunately, Tingyun had grown used to it. She merely smiled and brought the group to the Palace of the Divination for registration.
Under normal circumstances, she would also have needed to report to Yukong. However, the general had once said:
"If you see the person in this portrait, let them pass directly. This is my will, and Lord of the Bow's as well. If you encounter her on the Luofu, bring her straight to me."
In truth, Tingyun also had a little scheme of her own.
When she brought the group to the Palace of the Divination and met Yukong, the head of the Ship Lord's Department, she found that Yukong seemed to be busy.
Only after seeing Tingyun bring people over did Yukong stop her work and look over the group.
In the end, just like Tingyun before her, Yukong's gaze became fixed on Kiana and could no longer move away.
As the head of the Ship Lord's Department, Yukong had also received Jing Yuan's summons.
Yukong glanced at Tingyun.
Tingyun nodded toward Yukong.
"Miss Kiana, the general wishes to see you. May I ask if you have the time?"
"Careful, Kiana. This might be a trap!"
In the end, Kiana still agreed to go and see what Jing Yuan wanted with her. Could it be that he's tired of being general and wants this lady to take over for a while?
But if that happens, won't a certain Supreme Diviner cry and throw a fit again?
Thinking of this, Kiana suddenly felt that the scene would be quite interesting. If she really saw Fu Xuan, she could tease her a little.
If she were not worried about being beaten, Kiana would have liked to see if she could pick up the tiny Fu Xuan and run away. The ropes behind her would be such a waste if she did not use them to carry her around.
After Kiana left, Yukong asked the others why they had come. But when she heard that the Express crew intended to help the Xianzhou resolve its Stellaron crisis, she refused outright.
She even intended to detain them. After all, the Express crew had appeared at far too convenient a time, and Silver Wolf had helped them arrive so smoothly.
Fortunately, Jing Yuan's projection appeared in time, sparing the Express crew from imprisonment.
This "surprise force" had finally arrived, and the chess game could finally officially begin.
That was what Jing Yuan thought. But when he remembered that he would soon meet the girl favored by Lord of the Bow, his thoughts suddenly changed. He decided to formally meet the members of the Express crew as well.
"So you were thrown out?"
Kiana listened to March 7th recount what had happened, completely unable to make sense of it.
"Yeah. Fortunately, you didn't leave too quickly, or we wouldn't have known where to meet up."
"By the way, Kiana, do you know who the general of Xianzhou Luofu is? Why were Tingyun and Yukong both so shocked when they saw you? They even took you to meet the general before we had explained anything."
"I don't know. Could Jing Yuan Yuan be planning to let me take over his position?"
"Cough, cough."
Tingyun, who had been forced to work overtime and come guide them, hurriedly coughed several times, signaling that they should stop talking.
She secretly complained to herself:
"Benefactors, you really dare to say anything. Fortunately, that Supreme Diviner isn't here, or wouldn't she be furious by now?"
Chapter 58: Jing Yuan? Jing Yuan Yuan?
"But who's Jing Yuan Yuan?"
"Jing Yuan Yuan is the general of Xianzhou Luofu. Don't you know, March 7th?"
"No, I don't. Why did you think I would know?"
Sensing that the topic was veering further and further off course, Tingyun hurriedly spoke up and steered it back on track.
"Benefactors, please stop. The general's name is Jing Yuan, not Jing Yuan Yuan."
For some reason,
after hearing Tingyun's words, March 7th suddenly felt that something was about to happen.
The many questions she had originally wanted to ask also remained unspoken.
When Tingyun had just brought them there, she had already heard shouting coming from inside the room.
But Tingyun was not particularly surprised.
There was nothing she could do. The Supreme Diviner of the Luofu simply had a bad temper.
Before you continue