The Astral Express was about to depart.
But before the train made its jump—
A few people from the Xianzhou Luofu came to see them off one last time.
The first was Sushang.
Because of her connection with Dan Heng, and as a member of the Cloud Knights, she naturally came to send them off.
The second was Bailu.
Bailu clearly didn't want them to leave.
However—
After Evan gently patted her head several times, the little dragon girl finally managed to hold back her reluctance.
They even made a promise.
When the next Xianzhou Martial Ceremony arrived—
He would definitely come back.
And with that—
All matters on the Luofu were finally settled.
The Astral Express was ready to depart.
"Ahhh, finally!"
"Next stop—Penacony!"
"But Evan, how did you know that beforehand?"
March 7th was still curious about that.
"I guessed."
"Just answer me—was I right or not?"
"Right! Way too accurate! Did you secretly know in advance?"
"But that doesn't make sense. You only boarded from Jarilo-VI, how could you guess so precisely?"
"Please. A Nameless visited Jarilo-VI long ago. Didn't you know that?"
"You think I'm as clueless as you, little dummy?"
"Who are you calling a dummy?!"
"You, obviously."
"Grrr! Evan! I'm going to bite you to death!!"
"Bite me? How exactly?"
Teasing March had already become the train's daily entertainment.
Everyone on the train was used to it.
Dan Heng quietly turned toward the window.
Himeko watched with a smile while sipping coffee.
As for Welt Yang?
He simply adjusted his glasses and enjoyed the show.
Stelle, meanwhile, didn't care about any of it.
Unless it involved trash cans.
She was busy listening to music on her phone.
"Mend your pace, sway to the beat~
Hands up, embrace who you wanna be~
We're reaching heights unseen~
Feel the fire deep within~"
"Hm?"
Evan froze for a moment after hearing the song.
Then he asked,
"Stelle… the song you're listening to…"
"It's from Robin's album!"
"She's Penacony's biggest interstellar pop star!"
"You didn't know that?"
Stelle rolled her eyes.
"I know the song."
"I was asking… what day of the week it is."
"Day of the week?"
March and Stelle looked at him strangely before answering.
"Sunday. Why?"
"Sunday… huh."
"Then everything makes sense."
Sunday.
Of course the song was playing.
Somewhere out there, someone was probably streaming his sister's songs nonstop again.
It was a joke from another world Evan remembered all too well.
But March and Stelle obviously had no idea what he meant.
"???"
Evan didn't bother explaining.
They hadn't even reached Penacony yet.
"Attention passengers!"
"The train is about to make a warp jump!"
"Please hold onto the handrails!"
"Especially Passenger March 7th!"
Despite Pom-Pom's repeated reminders—
March still shouted "Woohoo!" every single time before a jump.
"I really hope nothing weird happens during the jump this time!"
"The last time those Borisin beast ships appeared, it scared me to death!"
"Relax," Evan said.
"If anything happens, we have Mr. Yang."
"And Himeko's here too."
"Plus our cold-faced little Azure Dragon over there."
While comforting March, Evan secretly stared ahead with concern.
After all—
March's prophecy ability had basically been confirmed.
Wherever she went—
Something always happened.
Golden light of the Path of Trailblaze wrapped around the Astral Express.
The train accelerated.
The subspace barrier shattered.
The silver rails reconnected.
The journey of Trailblaze continued.
BOOM—
"Wait—what?! March, you and that sweet mouth of yours!!"
A violent explosion echoed.
Everyone looked forward.
Then they saw it.
In the void ahead—
A massive insect opened its mouth and fired a destructive energy wave directly toward the train.
"Holy crap! A star-devouring bug!"
"Should we attack?"
The moment the crew recognized the creature—
Everyone was shocked.
"It's a spawn of the Path of Propagation!"
"That thing's huge!"
"We should eliminate it immediately!"
Before anyone could react—
Dan Heng was already preparing to charge with the Cloud-Piercer spear.
But suddenly—
Clap. Clap. Clap.
"Aha! So you are the Nameless of the Astral Express."
"A truly beautiful group of Trailblazers."
"I have witnessed your beauty."
"The universe shines with elegance…"
"Like paint blooming across the cosmos."
"You… are truly beautiful."
A red-haired man suddenly appeared inside the train.
Meanwhile, outside the train—
Space had turned pitch black.
"A Knight of Beauty?"
Evan frowned slightly.
Star-devouring bug.
Follower of Beauty.
Right.
He recognized him instantly.
Argenti.
The Knight of Beauty.
A man who showed up wherever the plot needed him.
Jarilo-VI.
The Xianzhou.
Penacony.
Who knew where he might appear next?
Argenti and the Knights of Beauty were, without exception—
Good people.
If Evan remembered correctly—
Argenti had once rescued IPC employees trapped in a cavern while searching for Idrila.
Later his ship got caught in a blocked region.
Then—
He accidentally collided with the Astral Express.
And began his endless compliments.
"Lady, please allow me to praise your beauty."
"You resemble a flower blooming upon a winter snowfield."
The man radiated an aura that was almost impossible to refuse.
March immediately stepped back several steps in alarm.
The Path of Beauty was one of the strangest Paths in the universe.
The Aeon of Beauty—
Idrila.
Some records described the Aeon as androgynous.
Others said Idrila appeared like a mirror.
The definition of beauty itself was infinite.
For example—
Xipe, the Aeon of Harmony, believed order and unity were beautiful.
Nanook, the Aeon of Destruction, believed destruction itself could be beautiful.
Beauty was subjective.
Thus it created diversity.
Everyone saw Idrila differently.
And the pursuit of beauty—
It was a fundamental instinct of life.
Because of that, the Path of Beauty was extremely broad.
Even its followers were divided into factions.
One faction—
The Knights of Beauty.
Honorable knights who traveled the universe spreading Idrila's name and searching for the lost Aeon.
Because Idrila had vanished.
Another faction—
The Mirror Holders.
They believed that if Idrila's relics were gathered—
The Aeon of Beauty could be resurrected.
Thus they wandered the cosmos searching for fragments of divine beauty.
"I told you March's mouth was magical."
"See? We got rear-ended again."
March shot Evan an annoyed glare.
Stelle stepped forward curiously.
Argenti turned toward them again.
"Ah! Another beautiful lifeform!"
"I have yet to introduce myself."
"My name is Argenti."
"A knight of the Knights of Beauty."
"May I have the honor of knowing your names?"
After a brief round of introductions—
The crew finally understood what happened.
Argenti had indeed collided with the Astral Express due to an accident.
Then—
The massive star-devouring bug swallowed them all.
Along with a rather arrogant IPC employee trapped nearby.
Argenti continued enthusiastically,
"My apologies for the abrupt question."
"But I must ask…"
"As fellow beings of the cosmos…"
"Have you ever heard of the Goddess of Beauty—Idrila?"
"Uh…"
March was completely stunned.
Stelle didn't know how to answer either.
Argenti continued passionately.
"The Knights of Beauty travel across countless worlds."
"Spreading the name of Beauty throughout the universe."
"We discipline ourselves through faith."
"Temper our bodies."
"Protect honor."
"Just as I praise the beauty of this humble potted plant—"
"What I seek is a meeting."
"A resonance of ideals."
"A conversation between souls."
March and Stelle exchanged cautious looks.
They decided—
Silence was probably the safest response.
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