Elio's emotions were running high.
He rattled on, pouring out every scrap of intel and every half-baked theory he'd observed to 'Huohuo'.
For Elio—and even for Terminus—this uncertain worldline was the very outcome they had been desperately seeking to no avail.
Facing a future that was right there, within arm's reach yet perpetually untouchable, Elio found it damn near impossible to keep himself from coming over to demand an explanation.
I mean, it's one thing if you succeed and everyone's happy; it's another if you fail outright and we just chalk it up to a lesson learned.
But right now, you're stuck in this limbo—not quite a failure, not quite a success. Talk about a cliffhanger.
"So, what exactly did you do back then?"
All the grumbling and questioning eventually boiled down to that single question.
'Huohuo' was feeling a bit uncertain herself now. It wasn't that she didn't know what she'd done; she was wondering just what it would take to reach that future Elio kept talking about.
Back when multiple Aeons had stepped in to call a halt at the same time, the path she saw didn't exactly look as rosy as Elio described.
However, after she had completely merged with the light of Nexus, the very meaning of that light had undergone a shift. It was a change distinct from the nature of a Path.
If she had to pinpoint where the possibility of that specific future originated, that was the only thing she could think of.
But that was the snag. It was a very straightforward problem: the Path of Hope might have been carved out, but it was patched together using the power of several other Paths.
This meant that if this Path so much as twitched, it would directly affect almost every existing Aeon.
If that power wasn't allowed to grow, 'Huohuo' couldn't fathom any other way to make Elio's elusive future a reality.
"It went something like this..."
'Huohuo' gave Elio a brief rundown of the situation back then, along with a few of her own guesses. Elio fell into a long, heavy silence.
"..."
Even in his wildest dreams, Elio hadn't expected the situation he'd spent countless hours theorizing about to be such a mess. And the reason she'd stopped was actually out of concern for the safety of the universe as it stands.
Well, this is awkward...
Elio couldn't help but lift a paw to scratch his head.
Just as 'Huohuo' said, perhaps the key to breaking the cycle of Finality lay in the altered power of light within her. But the problem was that this power had to play nice with the other Aeons, meaning it had to stay sealed inside her for now, unable to spread to the rest of the Giants of Light.
Otherwise, if Noa were to awaken, the universe would descend into chaos ahead of schedule.
Sure, a total universal reset—tearing everything down to build it back up—might actually bypass Finality.
But surviving a Great Purge like that... how was that any different from the other grim possibilities he'd gambled on?
"Ugh, what a headache. Since the future you've created bypasses Finality, I can't see it clearly. I have no idea how to trigger this miracle."
Elio figured that since he could observe such a future, the route had to be viable—or at least, it wouldn't carry as heavy a price as his recent deductions suggested.
The problem was his blurred vision. If he couldn't see it, he couldn't act. But if he didn't act, that future would never truly land. He was stuck between a rock and a hard place.
'Huohuo' looked down at Elio, who had suddenly lost all his strength and flopped onto the ground. She reached out and patted the black cat's head.
"Look on the bright side. At least you know which direction to work in to overcome Finality."
"You're being a bit too optimistic. The possibilities of the future are never fixed; even the tiniest change can send everything spiraling down a completely opposite path." Elio lifted an eyelid to glance at 'Huohuo'.
"You might think this seed is yours, and that you can activate it whenever you find a way, but even then, there's no guarantee the resulting future will look like the one I saw today."
'Huohuo' simply shrugged. She didn't disagree with Elio's theory; that was just the way the world worked.
But the fact remained: they couldn't do anything right now. There was no point in thinking otherwise.
"I know that, obviously. But things are what they are. If we aren't optimistic, what else is there? Just go do whatever it is you usually do. If I think of a way later, I'll take the initiative to contact you."
"Sigh... I really envy your optimism. Is this what Elation is like?" Elio let out a feline sigh.
He felt like this girl had absolutely no sense of urgency. Then again, considering her age, he could understand why.
'Huohuo' let out a soft chuckle but didn't answer. She took a closer look at the black cat.
Her data on the Path of Finality was sparse, and she didn't know much about it. Now that her perspective had shifted, Elio—who used to look like an ordinary black cat—seemed different in her eyes.
But with her limited understanding of Finality, she couldn't quite put her finger on what made him so special.
"So, are the Stellaron Hunters going into retirement?"
"Hardly. We'll keep doing what needs to be done. Even if we can't reach that specific future, we can at least make the futures we can see a little better." Elio shook his head with a sigh, reining in the restlessness in his heart.
Things had come to this; he had no choice but to trust her. "I'll take your word for it this once. Don't let me down, young Aeon."
'Huohuo's' lips curled into a smirk. She spread her arms wide with confidence. "Have a little faith. You don't need a reason to believe."
Watching her act so smug, Elio's paw twitched. He really wanted to jump up and give her a good scratch.
"...I can't help but feel you weren't being serious just now."
"Heh, you wouldn't understand~"
"Sure, sure. I guess I don't." With that, Elio gave a deep stretch, stood up, and turned to leave.
Before he vanished, he glanced back at 'Huohuo' and then toward Scalegorge Waterscape.
"That Lord Ravager who's eyeing the roots of the Ambrosial Arbor... while it wouldn't be an issue if you handled her yourself, it's best to leave her alive. As a 'special event,' she's an excellent choice."
"...I don't recall saying I was going to deal with her?" 'Huohuo' rubbed her chin, puzzled.
That Phantylia would be after the Arbor... well, it was expected.
Though it was a bit odd she didn't just pick a different target. Wasn't that Lunar Embryo over at Yaoqing better? It was certainly more intact than the Arbor.
'Huohuo' had noticed Phantylia's trail, of course, but since the woman was just hiding and not doing anything, 'Huohuo' felt it would be poor form to bully a lesser being by just slapping her into oblivion.
At most, she'd planned to leave a warning or leak some intel to Jing Yuan before she left.
It was a bit of unspoken etiquette among Aeons: a little help is fine, but don't personally step onto the field to squash people.
I mean, even when the Hunt strikes at the Denizens of Abundance, it waits for the Xianzhou to send out a signal. Do people really think the Hunt can't see what's happening?
Those eyes aren't for show; it's just a matter of not intervening directly.
Elio chuckled. "There isn't much difference, really. It just means that doctor from Amphoreus might have to work a little harder."
"?" 'Huohuo' tilted her head. "Does that mean she'll target Hyacine, and I'll end up intervening because of a plea for help?"
"No. She doesn't dare move right now. However, in some worldlines, you just straight-up swat Phantylia to death."
Having said his piece, Elio didn't linger. He turned and vanished.
As for 'Huohuo', she looked toward Phantylia's location.
The woman had come to the Xianzhou disguised as an outworlder, slipping into the Alchemy Commission under the guise of studying. Just as Elio said, Phantylia really didn't dare to act recklessly right now.
The friendship between the Xianzhou Alliance and 'Huohuo' was common knowledge.
Phantylia knew that if she caused trouble and the Alliance "summoned" her friend, she'd be a goner.
'Huohuo' wasn't like the Hunt; the Hunt rarely descends, but 'Huohuo' was the kind of person who would start a company on the Luofu.
No one wanted to bet on the whims of an Aeon of Elation.
Phantylia was definitely going to observe carefully before making any long-term moves. And because she was acting so timidly, 'Huohuo' hadn't bothered with her at all.
As for now... since Elio had personally asked to leave her as an Elite Boss for the Astral Express, there was even less reason to act.
Still, business is business. She'd leave something with Hyacine for self-defense later.
As for Dan Shu, who was already a bit extreme... she had been relying heavily on Originium lately, which meant her every move was right under 'Huohuo's' nose.
If she still ended up being seduced into joining the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus despite that, then the woman was truly beyond saving.
--+--
Meanwhile.
Phantylia, disguised as a visiting outworlder doctor, felt a sudden, intense surge of danger.
It was so powerful that she felt as if she would have dropped dead on the spot if she'd made one wrong move. This overwhelming premonition nearly made her bolt right then and there.
What happened? Who was watching her? Or had some crisis capable of killing her just brushed past the Xianzhou Luofu?
A thousand thoughts raced through Phantylia's mind.
She didn't think she'd been spotted by an Aeon, because in her eyes, if one had found her, they would have either swatted her or dragged her away. That fleeting sense of dread didn't feel like being "discovered."
Could it be the Marshal of the Xianzhou? Or perhaps General Jing Yuan was watching her?
Should she retreat?
Phantylia quickly snapped out of her shock. She apologized to the people around her while weighing whether to withdraw.
Her goal on the Xianzhou wasn't entirely about the roots of the Ambrosial Arbor. She wanted to drive a wedge between the Vidyadhara and the Alliance.
Since the Vidyadhara's reproduction issues seemed to be seeing a preliminary solution, those restless elements within the race were starting to have ideas of their own.
Phantylia had planned to exploit that. But now...
She was getting cold feet.
She started wondering if it might be better to move her operations to a different ship.
--+--
T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL