On the other side, at the platform.
The fierce battle with the Doomsday Beast had come quickly, and its end was just as swift.
The Doomsday Beast, whose massive form loomed over the entire platform, tilted its head back. Just as it seemed heavily wounded and about to fall, it suddenly spat out a terrifying beam of energy, aimed straight at March 7th below.
"March!"
The energy beam was too fast; by the time Himeko and Dan Heng reacted, it was already too late to save her.
The blinding light that was about to consume her reflected in March 7th's eyes; she didn't even have time to instinctively raise her arms.
In that split second, a gray-haired girl named Stelle suddenly spread her arms and shielded her.
A similarly terrifying energy erupted from in front of Stelle, clashing with the Doomsday Beast's attack.
In the minds of everyone present, the same image surfaced simultaneously.
A tall figure looked down upon all living beings, its majestic golden pupils releasing a suffocating pressure of destruction.
"Take this!"
A sudden roar approached from afar, snapping everyone back to their senses.
A blurred figure streaked through the air in an instant, appearing ghost-like beside the Doomsday Beast's head, and swung the strange weapon in his hands and smashed it down hard!
The massive force slammed the Doomsday Beast's head aside, stopping its continued attack.
However, the situation on the ground seemed even more dire.
A blinding light shone from Stelle's chest, as terrifying energy that felt capable of destroying the Space Station rapidly built up.
Qi Zhimu's pupils constricted. Before he could take action, that energy suddenly exploded—
"Holy crap!"
He had no intention of tanking the energy shockwave head-on, so his figure flickered and vanished.
The Doomsday Beast was swept up by the violent energy, its massive body crashing into a black hole that had appeared behind it at some unknown time.
Stelle knelt on the ground, her face contorted in pain, as the Stellaron within her reached the brink of its final eruption.
Just as the prelude to destruction was about to play out, a man appeared. With a mere tap of his cane on Stelle's forehead, he restored her to a state of calm.
With the crisis averted, Qi Zhimu shouldered the a type of chinese lute in his hand, looking at Welt with an expression that said "as expected."
Indeed, every member of the Astral Express Crew possessed extraordinary skills.
His gaze swept over several familiar figures before resting on the gray-haired girl lying in March 7th's arms.
A fresh face. Judging by her outfit, she didn't look like a Space Station staff member either.
Forget it, it's not important.
March 7th held Stelle worriedly. "Mr. Yang! She..."
Welt adjusted his glasses. "She's fine now. Let's talk elsewhere."
Seeing the Astral Express Crew carrying Stelle back, Qi Zhimu hesitated for a moment before following them.
On the way, March 7th finally regained her composure and asked about his experience.
It turned out that after Qi Zhimu sensed the Doomsday Beast's presence, he had rushed over without stopping, arriving just in time to witness that moment of peril.
She only then realized that Qi Zhimu had a history with Destruction.
"Sorry about that. I was bringing her back to the Master Control Zone at the time and didn't think about your grudge with the Antimatter Legion."
"It's fine. Who's this girl?" Qi Zhimu asked.
"Stelle... Not only do we not know who she is, she doesn't even know who she is herself."
"Oh, so she has amnesia," Qi Zhimu quipped casually, noticing March 7th staring at the object in his hand.
"The weapon you just used to bash the Doomsday Beast... it couldn't be..." March 7th said weakly.
"Yeah, that's the one."
Qi Zhimu generously handed the a type of chinese lute to March 7th and smiled.
"Don't be fooled by its appearance as an instrument; it really is an instrument, but it also has a hidden identity as a curio. It's incredibly durable!"
"Just like the ones at my waist, no matter how much you mess with it, it will never break."
Dan Heng frowned inwardly, feeling that the cracked, unrecognizable jade pendant at Qi Zhimu's waist looked somewhat familiar.
Had he seen it somewhere... or was it from Dan Feng's incomplete memories of his past life?
Qi Zhimu didn't notice Dan Heng's gaze and continued talking to March 7th.
"Compared to playing it, I find it more useful as a shield or a brick. In all these years of taking commissions, it's blocked quite a few fatal blows for me."
March 7th examined it with a look of wonder. Tapping the surface produced a crisp sound, clearly indicating it was hollow wood.
And those thin strings... It was hard to imagine that such an elegant and delicate-looking instrument was actually a curio that wouldn't break no matter how it was mistreated.
"If Ms. Herta saw this, she'd probably be quite interested, right Himeko?"
March 7th joked with a smile and returned the a type of chinese lute.
Qi Zhimu took it back instinctively, but his thoughts drifted far away because of a certain keyword in March 7th's words.
Ms. Herta?
...That sounds so familiar.
Qi Zhimu didn't want his past life experiences to affect his new reincarnation, so he temporarily sealed his past memories, only retaining the basic gains from each life, such as knowledge and skills.
The universe was vast and boundless; even the rarest names were not lacking in people who shared them.
Until he saw the person themselves, his sealed memories would not easily resurface.
Mm-hmm, I remember why it sounds familiar. Genius Society #83, Yelena mentioned her a few times.
"What does it matter if a genius is interested?" Qi Zhimu asked, puzzled.
"She loves collecting all sorts of strange curios, though most of them are just left to gather dust in the storage rooms of this Space Station," March 7th replied.
"So the Space Station belongs to her?"
"Yeah, you actually didn't know?" March 7th's eyes widened.
"No one told me along the way." Qi Zhimu shrugged.
"Forget it, it's not important. I know Ms. Herta's personality. Even though the Antimatter Legion is making a fuss today, as long as they don't smash her precious little trinkets, she probably won't even spare them a glance."
"Then what's the point of her building such a large Space Station?"
"To house her followers and curios, I guess. And... as far as I know, she didn't seem to spend a single cent to build this place."
"That makes sense. With the dazzling golden brand of a 'Genius,' even the Corporation would shamelessly try to curry favor. With the Corporation's wealth, they could build as many Space Stations like this as they wanted."
Qi Zhimu put away the a type of chinese lute and sighed with his arms behind his head.
"If I were a genius, I wouldn't have to live such a miserable life wandering the universe."
Hearing this, March 7th gave an awkward but polite smile.
"Keep it up... Although only 84 geniuses have been born in the entire universe since the ascension of the aeon of erudition, you never know."
"Just kidding. There's nothing wrong with being a free and easy little nobody. Pursuing serious academia isn't for me."
Qi Zhimu laughed and changed the subject.
"March, you know Asta, right?"
"I do, why?"
"I want to talk business with her. I'd like to improve the security of this Space Station, which is currently as flimsy as paper. According to you, she should be the one in charge here now."
"Sure. Once we've settled Stelle in, I'll take you to see her. Maybe you'll even get to see Ms. Herta. Even if she doesn't want to manage Space Station affairs, she should at least come to collect the curio she commissioned us to find."
"Whether I see Herta or not doesn't matter. Geniuses are all arrogant; why would she notice a marginal nobody like me?" Qi Zhimu said noncommittally.
"Emmm..."
For some reason, hearing Qi Zhimu's words, March 7th felt a strange premonition welling up in her heart.
She脫口而出.
"It's hard to say. Your actions in protecting the staff earlier were so brilliant. What if Ms. Herta takes an interest in you and wants to recruit you as a Space Station guard just to save herself some trouble?"
"Take an interest in me? Hahaha, how is that possible?"
Qi Zhimu laughed, not taking the words to heart.
End of Chapter 240PreviousNext ChapterAll chapters