Reality.
Siberian Duck's livestream.
The story reached the battle against the Voidrangers in front of the elevator.
"Oh, come on! The second March said that, I knew monsters were going to show up!" Siberian Duck immediately complained when monsters suddenly appeared in the cutscene.
She soon entered combat, with Jiang Yu still available as a trial character.
Dan Heng, March 7th, Stelle, and Jiang Yu stood on the battlefield.
Although the two Tramplers had enormous health pools, Jiang Yu made the fight much easier.
Then came a cutscene showing the four working together for the first time.
"Whoa! Jiang Yu opened with a jumping slash! He seems to really trust the Astral Express Crew. They really are from the same hometown-Dan Heng immediately coordinated with him! March and our girl reacted pretty fast, too! Their teamwork is so good!"
The fluid teamwork in the cutscene had Siberian Duck exclaiming in delight, while comments rapidly scrolled across the screen.
[Tang Seng Washes His Hair with Rejoice: Oh damn, that was so cool!]
[Wind Boy Solo Fan: That's a sword immortal for you, opening straight away with a jumping slash!]
[Aha's Emanator: Lol, Arlan got his weapon stolen.]
[Little Yu Is My Child Betrothed: How are they so in sync?]
Then the story reached the moment when an army closed in and Jiang Yu unleashed his power.
"Holy shit! How is he that cool?" Siberian Duck exclaimed.
[Feed If You Don't Give: Could this be... Niten Ichi-ryu?]
[Check My Match History: Nope, it's Last Breath!]
[Zaun Survivor: Wrong! A sword in his left hand, a saber in his right-that's two weapons. This move is called the Dual-Sword Slide Tackle.]
[Little Yu Is My Child Betrothed: Fear not, I'll handle this! My husband is so cool!]
[Kamisato Ayaka's Dog: If only they made this the Anemo Traveler's burst in that other game.]
The cutscene soon reached the appearance of Himeko's suitcase and March 7th's delighted cry.
The moment that two-character name reached their ears, it stirred memories in the Honkai players watching.
[Big Sis Himeko: What? Who?]
[I Can Do Anything: Is this for real?]
The cutscene continued until Himeko appeared.
The chat instantly went wild.
Besides comments marveling at Himeko, cries of "Mom" flooded the screen.
March 7th's subsequent attempt to shift the trouble onto someone else was even more hilarious.
[Little Fish's Sword: March, I never knew that was what you were thinking.]
[Wild Little Bunny: March, you pretty girl, your conscience is rotten to the core!]
The story soon reached Arlan's departure and Himeko's introduction.
When March 7th asked Stelle and Jiang Yu whether they knew about the Astral Express, Jiang Yu raised his hand and bounced on-screen, saying, "I do! I do!"
"Seriously, Little Fish is way too cute for a sword immortal!" Siberian Duck watched Jiang Yu with the sort of gaze one might give a little animal. "How can he just hop around like that!"
[My Pee Is Yellow: Thaaanks, already came.]
[Shut-In Honor Student: He's just like me trying my hardest to raise my hand and answer the teacher's question.]
[Huang Ergou Next Door: Oh my god, you actually answer teachers' questions?]
[sfdjoifei: May I ask which teacher's questions you're answering? I have tons of teachers giving lessons here. Join the group: 7343*****...]
The story continued. Jiang Yu seized his chance to "counterattack" March 7th, who stubbornly refused to concede, while Dan Heng silently stepped between them.
"All right, all right! Our sword immortal Little Fish won't take even the slightest loss! The moment he sees an opening, he returns the favor to contestant March 7th!"
Siberian Duck narrated the story like a sports commentator.
"Contestant March 7th has chosen to ask Master Dan Heng for help. Oh my god! Master Dan Heng has entered the arena! Instead of helping March 7th, he's separated her from Little Fish. He's made his position clear through his actions!"
[Aha's Emanator: Lol, March 7th froze up on the spot.]
[Wind Boy Solo Fan: Master Dan Heng looks like he's saying, 'Don't corrupt my kid.' This is so adorable!]
[Slacking Off All Day: Dan Heng: "March, keep your distance. Don't corrupt my kid."]
[OUI,HGO: Dan Heng silently stood between them. He said nothing, yet somehow said everything.]
After that brief farce, the story moved on to the conversation with Asta, ending with Asta asking Jiang Yu to stay behind.
"It's over. Asta asked Little Fish to stay. You don't even have to think about it—he's about to get saddled with a massive debt," Siberian Duck said.
[China Jerk-Off Fan: I'm back after getting off. Poor Little Fish, having to start paying off debt at such a tender age.]
[Little Fish Is My Childhood Betrothed: Asta, come at me instead! I'm willing to suffer in Little Fish's place!]
[Happiness Vending Machine: Okay, okay, so you swing both ways and want to snag two at once, huh? Your scheming is so obvious it's hitting me in the face.]
The story paused there. Siberian Duck then unlocked team setup and warping, so she spent a while working through more beginner tutorials.
Only after doing some pulls and leveling up did Siberian Duck resume the missions.
Since Jiang Yu had left the team after Asta asked him to stay, she no longer had access to his trial version.
Siberian Duck's current team consisted of Brother Gepard, Old Yang, Seele, and Himeko.
Meanwhile, Jiang Yu's conversation with Aha was not shown in the story.
Inside the game.
As previously agreed, the Astral Express Crew walked around the space station, reassuring its researchers and helping wherever they could.
They helped Hinkel calibrate the telemetry satellite, then comforted Abraham, who was deeply anxious and spoke as though he were performing in a stage play.
After helping the space station's researchers, they returned to Asta, ready to report on the situation.
"Huh? Lead Researcher Asta, where's Jiang Yu?" March 7th asked when she failed to spot him nearby.
"He seems to have gone looking for you. Apparently, you didn't run into each other." Asta blinked, quickly piecing together the situation.
"Huh? Why is that kid running around!"
At that moment, the entire space station suddenly shook violently!
Countless virtual screens flooded into view before them. Scarlet exclamation marks seared their eyes, and an unending alarm echoed in their ears.
Looking up, they saw a huge screen appear, displaying the culprit behind their current predicament.
Outside the space station, a gigantic claw was forcing its way through the station's outer defensive barrier! Its owner was a winged dragon that looked like a heap of piled-up bones and rearing corpses!
Fragments of an ancient beast were driven by countless intertwined, tormented souls and a murderous urge to destroy, while surging pulses of energy filled its dark matter engine.
As they stared at the terrifying beast in space, a name surfaced in everyone's mind.
Doomsday Beast!
Asta immediately told the Astral Express Crew to leave aboard the train while she stayed behind.
Himeko acted decisively, immediately pulling Stelle away, while Dan Heng called the hesitant March 7th along.
The Supply Zone's protective barrier clearly could not withstand the Doomsday Beast's attacks for long. The Astral Express Crew had to evacuate as quickly as possible.
Before you continue