“You made a Stellaron?
For real?”
March 7th’s eyes went wide as saucers, her voice brimming with disbelief.
“A Stellaron…
is that something you can just whip up on a whim?”
She planted her hands on her hips, her face practically screaming ‘Don’t you dare mess with me.’
And then, the very next second, she saw a dark glimmer coalesce in Xu Zixuan’s palm—a Stellaron radiating an ominous aura was slowly taking shape in his hand, crimson energy swirling within it.
“Here.
Want one?
I’ll give it to you.” Xu Zixuan grinned impishly and gestured as if to toss the Stellaron toward March 7th.
“Waaaah…
I believe you!
I believe you, okay?!
Get that thing away from me!”
March 7th hastily backpedaled two steps and hid behind Himeko, only the top half of her head peeking out.
“Just teasing you.
Such a scaredy-cat.” Xu Zixuan let out a light laugh and casually dismissed the Stellaron into thin air, as if it had never existed at all.
The onlookers who had witnessed this scene fell into a brief silence.
Asta’s face was etched with shock—this was the first time she had ever learned that Stellaron could actually be artificially created.
Dan Heng said nothing, but a flicker of astonishment passed through his eyes as well.
Himeko furrowed her brow slightly and gazed at Xu Zixuan, deep in thought.
“Um…
what exactly is a Stellaron anyway?”
Just then, Stelle raised her hand high, blinking like a curious student eager to ask a question.
“Ha?
You don’t know what a Stellaron is?” March 7th didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
“Then why were you acting so shocked earlier, saying ‘There’s a Stellaron inside me’?”
“Well, I saw how shocked all of you looked, so of course I had to play along.” Stelle answered with righteous conviction.
“Exactly!
If all of you were shocked and we were the only ones not shocked, how antisocial would we be!” Caelus nodded vigorously in agreement from the side.
“That’s an excellent question.” Xu Zixuan smiled and began his explanation.
“A Stellaron can infect different worlds by disrupting the flow of imaginary energy.
The IPC, based on its proliferative and destructive characteristics, named it the ‘Cancer of All Worlds.'”
“This substance spreads through the universe in a manner similar to cancer cells, causes Fragmentum phenomena, and spawns monsters with assimilative and corrosive properties.”
“Oooh…” Stelle and Caelus simultaneously revealed expressions of sudden enlightenment.
“You understood that?!” March 7th asked curiously.
“Nope!” The two shook their heads in perfect unison.
“Imagine you’re playing an incredibly complex jigsaw puzzle.
Every piece fits perfectly together.”
“Then, suddenly, someone forcibly jams in a piece whose shape and pattern are completely wrong.”
“Not only can this piece not be placed anywhere, but it also causes all the correct pieces around it to shift out of alignment, ultimately collapsing the entire puzzle, making it impossible to continue—that is what a Stellaron does.”
Himeko picked up the explanation at just the right moment, her voice gentle.
“And the mission of our Astral Express…”
Himeko’s voice grew firm and filled with a sense of purpose.
“Is to find these wrong pieces, remove them from the puzzle of each world, and allow those worlds to resume their proper, natural course.”
Xu Zixuan watched Himeko.
As she explained things to Stelle and Caelus, her expression was tender and utterly elegant.
A trace of a smile, as if thinking “These two kids, honestly,” lingered on her face.
Himeko also noticed Xu Zixuan’s gaze.
She tilted her body slightly, turning toward him, and the corner of her mouth curved into a beautiful arc.
It was as if she were asking him, “Am I right?”
Xu Zixuan: Yes yes yes, absolutely right.
Big sister, you’re killing me!
No wonder so many people called Himeko “foster mother.” This kind of aura fit Xu Zixuan’s aesthetic tastes far too perfectly.
Himeko faced Xu Zixuan with a smile, but her mind was racing with thoughts.
No one in the universe knew the true origin of Stellarons for sure.
But Xu Zixuan had just whipped one up by hand right before her eyes.
That was simply beyond absurd.
“Ha?
So does that mean…
we’re the bad guys?”
Caelus was also taken aback.
Stellarons were bad.
If he was a Stellaron that had gained sentience, wasn’t he also bad?
And the Astral Express Crew specialized in dealing with Stellarons!
Ah!
Oh no!
Were they here to collect the two of them?!
Faced with Stelle and Caelus’s nearly jumping out of their skins in shock, Himeko paused briefly, then let out a knowing, affectionate chuckle.
“Hehe…
how could that be?”
She gently shook her head, her tone warm and resolute.
“What matters has never been ‘what you are,’ but ‘what you choose to become.'”
Her gaze rested gently on Stelle and Caelus, carrying an unquestionable trust.
“The Stellaron itself is indeed a disaster.
But you—Caelus, Stelle—you are different.”
“You are not the disaster itself.
“Like a container holding a kindling flame.
The flame itself may be dangerous, but the container, through its own will, can decide whether that fire is used for destruction or to illuminate the path ahead.”
Hearing Himeko’s words, both Stelle and Caelus let out a simultaneous sigh of relief.
What a relief!
So they weren’t here to collect them after all!
They’d been scared half to death!
“Alright, alright.
Let’s not get sidetracked.”
“Asta, do you think once Herta hears this news, she’ll come wagging her tail all the way over here?”
Xu Zixuan spoke with keen interest.
There were two whole things here that would pique the real Herta’s interest, after all.
Silver Wolf counted as one.
Stelle and Caelus having Stellarons shoved into them with zero rejection reaction counted as another.
Asta: Has it occurred to anyone that you whipping up a Stellaron by hand might also count as one?
“Alright.
I’ll contact Madam Herta.”
“I’m sure Madam Herta will be most intrigued.”
Asta smiled.
Just as Asta was composing her message to Herta, a piercing alarm blared.
Asta quickly looked at the virtual screen before her.
The screen displayed a Doomsday Beast attacking Herta Space Station’s protective barrier.
“ROAR!”
With a thunderous howl, the Doomsday Beast’s claw tore through the space station’s protective shield as if it were paper.
“Whoa, a Doomsday Beast…”
Sensing danger, Xu Zixuan swiftly moved the others in front of himself for protection.
Seeing Xu Zixuan promptly retreat to the very back, the group fell silent once again.
If the situation weren’t so urgent and the timing so wrong, March 7th would have been fully prepared to launch into a tirade of complaints.
“You all evacuate immediately on the Express.
I’ll stay here.”
In this critical moment, Asta spoke without the slightest hesitation, her voice carrying an unyielding resolve that brooked no argument.
“But…”
March 7th, Stelle, and Caelus all stopped in their tracks involuntarily, turning worried gazes toward Asta, their faces filled with hesitation.
A sharp glint flashed through Himeko’s eyes.
She swiftly assessed the situation—if she wasn’t mistaken, the Doomsday Beast’s true target was very likely Stelle and Caelus, who carried Stellarons within them.
At this moment, leading the entire team in evacuation was the optimal course of action.
“Let’s go.”
She issued the command without a moment’s hesitation, her voice clear and resolute.