Space Station

"Thank goodness, you're awake," March 7th said with a pleasant surprise.

"Ugh..." The grey-haired girl blinked in confusion. "Where is this? And who... are you?"

"I'm a researcher at the Herta Space Station, you can just call me Xiao Xi. As for the other two, they are Nameless from the Astral Express, Dan Heng and March 7th."

Seeing that something was wrong, Xiao Xi explained patiently, "How are you feeling now? Do you remember your own name?"

The grey-haired girl clutched her forehead, struggling to clear her thoughts from a blank memory. "I... I remember I should be called Stelle. As for the rest, I'm sorry, I can't remember anything."

"Is that so? That's rough, having to deal with something as unlucky as amnesia," March 7th sighed.

"Everyone, now is not the time for idle chatter. The crisis at the Herta Space Station hasn't been resolved, and it's not safe here. We should prepare to move out."

Dan Heng's words pulled the conversation back from the tangent it had taken between March 7th and Stelle.

When they set off, Stelle specifically brought along a baseball bat she found nearby, claiming that the moment she saw it, she felt as if a mission were calling out to her.

By the time March 7th and the others reached the elevator, Dan Heng had already found Arlan in the monitoring room.

"Xiao Xi, thank goodness you're alright! Nameless from the Astral Express, were you invited here by Lady Herta to help?" Arlan asked with a hint of surprise.

Dan Heng nodded and replied, "The Herta Space Station is under attack. Since the Express is docked here, we naturally cannot stand by and watch."

"Regardless, thank you for stepping in to help. I'll unlock the elevator permissions for you right now." With a few operations from Arlan, the elevator finally started up smoothly.

Although the members of the Antimatter Legion looked like monsters, they were not without intelligence, and naturally, quite a few Voidrangers were lying in ambush at the elevator entrance.

Without a moment's hesitation, Xiao Xi raised her hand and unleashed a surge of Path power. A golden torrent directly engulfed the Antimatter Legion monsters, clearing the entire hallway of Voidrangers in an instant.

"Wow, that was so cool! I didn't expect you to be so powerful, Xiao Xi!" March 7th's surprised voice rang out, her tone filled with admiration for the scene.

"Don't marvel just yet. Let's take this opportunity to leave before they surround us again," Dan Heng said in a low voice.

Along the way, the group passed through the station's corridors without further incident and finally reached their destination.

Herta Space Station — Master Control Zone

After Xiao Xi and the others arrived at the Master Control Zone, they saw the Astral Express navigator, Himeko.

March 7th waved excitedly at Himeko, "Himeko, we finally found you! We found Stelle on the space station, along with this researcher, Xiao Xi."

Himeko greeted them with a smile, "Hello, I am the navigator of the Astral Express. You can call me Himeko."

"Hello, Himeko. It's a pleasure to meet you. March has told us quite a few stories about you," Xiao Xi said with a smile.

"Oh, right, Himeko, I still need to report to Station Master Asta to let her know I'm safe. I won't chat with you for now, see you in a bit."

Watching Xiao Xi hurry off toward Asta, Himeko couldn't help but laugh, "Xiao Xi, is it? She's quite a spirited girl, isn't she?"

"She sure is! Himeko, you wouldn't believe it—Xiao Xi just wiped out an entire corridor of Voidrangers in one go. It was quite the spectacle," March 7th couldn't help but exclaim after hearing Himeko's words.

"Indeed, she is very capable," Dan Heng added with a nod.

On the other side, Xiao Xi had already found Asta, who was currently managing the evacuation and organizing defensive operations in an orderly fashion.

Xiao Xi waited until Asta had finished giving her orders before asking, "Station Master Asta, I'm back. How is the situation on the station?"

"Xiao Xi, I'm glad you're safe. Remember not to wander off by yourself again," Asta cautioned.

"As for the situation on the station..." Asta's tone grew a bit dejected, "The damage to the station is severe, and the researchers' morale is not optimistic. Panic is beginning to spread."

"It's all my fault for not preparing the station's defenses better... If the Astral Express hadn't come to support us, we would have been in real trouble."

"It's alright. Now that we know the problem, we can fix it later. I can help, too," Xiao Xi comforted her softly.

"Mm, thank you, Xiao Xi. I'm sorry for the trouble."

Just as Xiao Xi was preparing to help Asta stabilize the situation, a bestial roar suddenly echoed through the air.

Seeing the massive creature, Asta's pupils constricted, and she said in a grave tone, "That is... that is the Antimatter Legion's planet-destroying weapon, the Doomsday Beast. How is it here?"

There was no time to be shocked by how such a weapon had appeared on the station. The Doomsday Beast was already on the verge of breaching the interior. Xiao Xi turned to warn Asta while rushing toward the scene, "It's about to attack! Station Master Asta, please be careful, I'm going to help."

By the time Xiao Xi arrived, Stelle and March 7th were already standing their ground on the platform.

Seeing Xiao Xi arrive, March 7th, who was holding her ice-blue bow, turned and said, "Xiao Xi, thank goodness you're here to help! Stelle and I really couldn't hold this big guy off on our own."

Seeing the two in a precarious position, Xiao Xi didn't hesitate. She manifested golden chains in her hands, which lashed out at lightning speed to bind the Doomsday Beast's three pairs of wings.

"Now! March, Stelle, attack it!"

The Doomsday Beast, unable to move while bound by the chains, took the full force of their combined attacks.

However, this only incited the beast's ferocity. It flapped its wings with all its might, dragging Xiao Xi forward a few steps. In that split second, the Doomsday Beast's mouth gathered a dark golden laser, firing it straight at them.

"Xiao Xi, March, look out!" In that critical moment, Stelle rushed forward, shielding everyone without a second thought.

"Stelle...!"

Stelle felt a sharp pain in her body. Her companions' worried voices seemed to fade into the distance, and countless bizarre, fragmented images flashed before her eyes.

In the chaos, she seemed to hear Kafka saying something to her, "Set off... reach... that ending."

Suddenly, all her senses left her. Opposite her stood a pair of dark eyes, filled with killing intent, as if flowing with molten gold.

Under the gaze of those golden eyes, Stelle felt as if her very thoughts were freezing over. The Stellaron within her was incredibly active at that moment, as if it were about to burst out of her body.

From the outside, golden threads instantly enveloped Stelle.

The energy index surged rapidly; the explosion of the Stellaron was now imminent.

Misfortunes never come singly. Under the influence of those eyes, Xiao Xi felt a sudden, inexplicable headache, and the Path power within her body erupted violently.

"Ugh." Clutching her forehead, Xiao Xi couldn't help but let out a muffled groan.

"Stelle, Xiao Xi, how are you both? Please, don't scare me like this!" March 7th frantically steadied Xiao Xi and shouted up toward Stelle, who was suspended in the air.

"My apologies, I am late." A steady, masculine voice rang out. A middle-aged man appeared, tapping his cane against Stelle's forehead.

The scattered energy was successfully gathered under Welt's assistance, and the state of the Stellaron was stabilized once more.

"Phew." Xiao Xi let out a long sigh of relief, feeling her own condition improve significantly along with it.

Once the crisis was averted, March 7th hurriedly supported the unconscious Stelle and Xiao Xi, moving them to a safe place to rest.

Meanwhile, in another dimension.

"Hope, what is your purpose in coming here?" Nanook of Destruction said in a deep voice.

"Destruction, do you not already know what you have done to my human aspect? Or are you choosing this moment to provoke me?" A distant, ethereal voice replied.

"Your human aspect is still too weak. I did not target it intentionally, as you should be well aware."

"What does that matter? The matter began because of you, and I must seek justice for 'myself.' Besides, is it not natural for Destruction and Hope to be at odds?"

BOOM. The Path powers of Destruction and Hope collided directly. In a dimension unobservable to others, a brief war of gods erupted.