On the seventh day after Momoshiki was sealed, Star-Celestial Island regained its former peace, but tension hung in the air. The Otsutsuki threat had not receded; the shadows of the Third and Sixth Fleets hung over them like the sword of Damocles. Beside the Starwell, Lin Ye, Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, Karin, and the three leaders of the People of the Stars-Stardust, Starfall, and Starlight-sat in a circle, with the ancient star chart Zhixue had left spread out in the center.
The star chart was not paper, but a thin, glowing sheet of Star-Celestial Crystal. Touching it unfolded a miniature universe within one's consciousness. Through his Jōgan, Lin Ye could clearly see seven faintly flickering points of light in the vast sea of stars. Three had already dimmed, representing Earth, Star-Celestial Island, and the Eye of the Whirlpool ruins, which had just been marked as "contact established." The remaining four points lay in different star regions. One kept emitting rapid red pulses-a distress signal.
"Among the markers Lady Zhixue left, this location," Stardust said gravely, his fingertip hovering over the pulsing red point, "is where the Starfire Covenant was signed-the Ring of Oaths space station. A thousand years ago, seven civilizations that had escaped Otsutsuki enslavement, including the People of the Stars, swore there to aid one another. But later, Otsutsuki pursuit and internal mistrust reduced the covenant to a name alone, and contact with the station was lost for centuries. Now its signal has resumed, and it's a distress signal..."
"Meaning there may still be survivors there. Or it's a trap." Sasuke gazed at the star chart with his White Jōgan, starlight reflected in his silvery-white pupils. "The signal pattern is regular but weak, like a preset automated program. Its power may also be nearly depleted."
"Either way, it's the