March 7th turned to Himeko with a look of surprise, seeking confirmation.
"Himeko-jie, do you really have a twin sister?"
Seeing that March 7th actually believed Rider's words, Himeko couldn't help but laugh and cry at the same time. She reached out and gave March's forehead a fierce poke. March 7th covered her forehead in pain, looking at Himeko in confusion.
"You silly girl, if I really had a twin sister, wouldn't I have told you all long ago? But... understanding it that way isn't exactly wrong either..."
Himeko shot a glance at Rider. Rider understood and smilingly confessed her true identity.
"Alright, I won't tease you anymore. My true name is Murata Himeko. Like your Uncle Yang—that is, Welt Yang—I come from Earth. I am your Himeko-jie's counterpart from another world. Due to a series of coincidences, I became Fu Zhu's Servant. For your convenience, just address me by the code name 'Rider' from now on."
March 7th clutched her forehead, and both she and Dan Heng blinked in bewilderment. Then, March suddenly whipped her head around, looking at Fu Zhu with a speechless expression.
"I just knew you had a passive skill that guarantees you bring back a beautiful woman whenever you go out on a solo operation!"
Pfft...
Xing couldn't hold back a laugh. She patted Fu Zhu on the shoulder and gave him a thumbs up.
"Old Bro, a very nice passive skill."
Fu Zhu's face was covered in black lines. These were all just coincidences; how could she call it his passive skill?
Ignoring her boyfriend's retort, March 7th turned her head and happily extended her right hand toward Rider.
"Welcome to the Astral Express, Sister Rider! I'm March 7th, the Astral Express's... photographer!"
Dan Heng also nodded politely at her. "I am the Guard of the Astral Express, Dan Heng. Please take care of us, Ms. Rider."
"Thank you."
Rider reached out and shook March 7th's hand briefly. She was very fond of these little guys in front of her; they reminded her of those lovely students at St. Freya Academy. Especially in Xing and March 7th, she saw shadows of Kiana—both so optimistic and... cheerfully silly.
After Himeko waited for both sides to get acquainted, she clapped her hands, gathering everyone's attention.
"Alright everyone, since we're all here, we should hold a brief meeting regarding the Express's next stop. Let's all move to the party car."
Rider pointed at herself with some doubt. "Do I need to participate too? This kind of meeting..."
Before Rider could finish, Himeko interrupted her with a smile.
"Even though you haven't been on board for long, you are now a member of the Express too, aren't you?"
Hearing Himeko say this, Rider laughed as well and nodded.
"Mn."
As the group prepared to move, Fu Zhu spoke up first.
"You guys go ahead. I'm going to go get Chadwick."
With Fu Zhu's reminder, everyone remembered that Chadwick counted as having boarded the train as well. Even though he had never actually stepped foot on the train and had been sent elsewhere by Fu Zhu the whole time, just as Himeko said, he was also a member of the Express.
Himeko nodded. "Okay, we'll wait for you in the party car."
"Alright."
Fu Zhu used Yamato to slice open a spatial tunnel leading to the Radiant Feldspar and stepped inside.
---o---
In a specially excavated dock outside the Dreamscape of Penacony, the Radiant Feldspar was quietly berthed. Quite a few Penacony locals were busy moving various materials up and down. Inside the Radiant Feldspar's command room, Chadwick was constantly operating the computer screen, occasionally directing the people below to debug machines and install equipment.
At that moment, a spatial tunnel suddenly opened behind him. Chadwick turned around to see Fu Zhu crawling out of it and heaved a sigh of relief.
"Sir, scaring people like this is quite bad. I'm old, my heart can't take it."
"Is that so? I feel like you're still in your prime, Doctor."
Fu Zhu jokingly flattered Chadwick. Chadwick shook his head with a laugh, then refocused his attention on the computer screen.
Fu Zhu walked over and took a glance at the screen. Seeing content he didn't understand, he asked straightforwardly, "What is this?"
Chadwick fell silent for a moment, then very calmly uttered a name: "[Imaginary Collapse Pulse]."
Fu Zhu paused upon hearing the name, then turned to look at Chadwick in disbelief.
"Doctor, didn't you say you didn't want this technology to appear and harm anyone ever again?"
Chadwick let out a sudden laugh.
"Sir, I said I didn't want this technology to appear, and naturally, I didn't want it to harm innocent people. That is true."
"Then why... are you installing it on the Radiant Feldspar?"
Fu Zhu didn't understand. He had been very clear with Chadwick that he needed Chadwick to modify the Radiant Feldspar to give it combat capabilities so it could be useful at certain moments in the future. But Chadwick installing the [Imaginary Collapse Pulse] on the Radiant Feldspar now... the implication was self-evident.
Chadwick stopped his hands on the control panel, took a deep breath, and turned to face Fu Zhu.
"Sir, the events from before, as well as my conversations with Madam Herta and Mr. Screwllum, made me understand one thing. Once this technology is born, it will inevitably be used. Just like the IPC used it for experiments that resulted in the loss of innocent lives across several star systems. But in contrast, take you, Sir. You possess power far greater than it, yet you do not use that power to slaughter the innocent. On the contrary, you save those who have nothing to do with you."
"This made me understand that power itself is neither good nor evil. What kind of result it creates depends on the person using it. In the past, it committed sins because of me, so I hope it can also save other lives because of me. I also believe in you, Sir, that you will never misuse it. That is why I installed it on the Radiant Feldspar."
Fu Zhu fell silent after listening. After a long while, he said only one word.
"Thanks."
Chadwick shook his head with a smile, then shifted the topic to other matters.
"Did you come to find me suddenly to ask about the modification progress of the Radiant Feldspar? It's mostly done. It can take off at any time; right now, it's just undergoing final debugging."
"Although I am concerned about the Radiant Feldspar, I came to find you for a different matter, Doctor. The Astral Express is about to head to its next stop. Doctor, you are also a member of the Express. I hope you can participate in this meeting and give us some advice."
Chadwick couldn't help but furrow his brows. It wasn't that he minded Fu Zhu calling him a member of the Express, but rather that Fu Zhu hoping he could give advice meant only one thing.
In his eyes, Fu Zhu was powerful and intelligent; ordinary matters wouldn't stump him. But for him to hope that Chadwick could offer advice meant that the Astral Express's next stop was definitely not simple.
"Is there trouble?"
Fu Zhu hesitated but nodded. He quickly walked to a table, took a piece of paper, and wrote down Elio's prophecy and other matters he wanted to entrust to Chadwick. Then he folded it, sealed it in another envelope, and handed it to Chadwick.
Chadwick took the sealed envelope but didn't open it. He knew very well that since Fu Zhu had sealed it, it meant he didn't want Chadwick to see it himself just yet.
"Doctor, regarding the contents of this letter, I hope you will wait until the Express crew enters the next destination before opening it."
Chadwick's eyes narrowed slightly. After thinking for a moment, he probed, "A prophecy regarding the future?"
This wasn't hard for him to guess. Fu Zhu's caution, combined with his [Finality] Path, allowed Chadwick to guess the nature of the content immediately.
Fu Zhu nodded. Chadwick took a sharp breath, then carefully put the letter away in his pocket.
For Fu Zhu to entrust him with such a heavy matter, it certainly wasn't simple.
Fu Zhu waited for Chadwick to put it away before nodding with satisfaction.
"Let's go, Doctor. As for what happens next, you'll know when we get to the train."
"Mn."
Fu Zhu opened a spatial tunnel again, and the two stepped in together, returning to the train.
When the two pushed open the door to the party car, everyone inside was chatting. March 7th and Xing were eagerly lying on either side of Rider, watching her mix colorful fruit juices and alcohol together.
"Sister Rider, this looks so pretty! Can I have a sip?"
March 7th looked at the cup of blue cocktail Rider had mixed with greedy eyes. It matched her color scheme exactly; it was practically custom-made for her!
"Of course. This color suits Little March the best."
Rider smilingly placed the cocktail in front of March 7th, then placed a cup of gray cocktail in front of Xing.
March 7th joyfully accepted the cocktail, while Xing looked at the gray drink in front of her with a suspicious expression.
"Why does Little March's look so pretty, but mine is gray?"
"Doesn't it match your hair color perfectly?" Rider teased, ruffling Xing's hair.
Xing instantly felt a bit indignant. "Then Sister Rider, you have to make a black one for my Old Bro! Because he has black hair!"
Rider couldn't help but chuckle. "Pfft."
Just as the two were about to drink their cocktails, Himeko walked over grumpily and confiscated both their glasses.
"Kids aren't allowed to drink alcohol."
Saying that, she glared at Rider with exasperation. "Rider, don't give the kids alcohol."
Rider raised both hands innocently. "Just a taste wouldn't hurt, right?"
March 7th and Xing also looked at Himeko pitifully. "We're not kids anymore!"
Himeko shook her head. In her eyes, the two would always be children.
"Himeko is right. We're about to take action; drinking will delay things."
Fu Zhu walked over, conveniently took the two cocktails from Himeko's hands, and downed them both in one go.
Himeko glanced at him and Chadwick beside him, then smiled and said, "Since everyone is here, let's begin. Welcome back to the train, Dr. Chadwick."
Chadwick nodded with a smile.
The navigation meeting began. However, Rider, Black Swan, and Sunday did not participate; they sat on the side listening. They all felt that they had just boarded the train and were unfamiliar with it, so they didn't plan to join the discussion. Himeko didn't say much about it either. Conductor Pom-Pom walked over to announce the three options for the itinerary.
"The Express has three options for the next destination. The first is [Ocean Planet] Lusaka. The second is [Agate World] Melusine. The third is the suggestion brought up by Ms. Black Swan: [Eternal Land] Amphoreus."
After hearing the three locations given by the Conductor, the Express crew began discussing noisily. Two of the worlds were recorded in the databank, and [Trailblaze] had reached them before, so they weren't unfamiliar. Only the last one, Amphoreus, was a place even [Trailblaze] had never reached, and the databank had no clues about it.
While everyone was hesitating, Fu Zhu was the first to speak up and make a decision.
"I abstain."
These words stunned everyone. March 7th looked at Fu Zhu in confusion.
"Why are you abstaining? Is it because you're conflicted?"
Fu Zhu nodded. "You guys just vote. No matter where you decide to go, I will always be by your side."
Xing scratched her head in confusion and muttered, "Old Bro, why are you suddenly being so serious?"
"Just being careful. You guys vote."
Everyone looked at Fu Zhu strangely, but since he abstained, they respected his decision. After a round of discussion, the group finally decided to head to Amphoreus.
Hearing this decision, Fu Zhu couldn't help but sigh inwardly. He had held onto a fantasy that maybe they would choose a different world. Even though Elio said there would be a great calamity if they didn't go to Amphoreus, Fu Zhu still hoped the others wouldn't personally risk the danger.
Once the destination was decided, Chadwick immediately looked at Black Swan, who had been listening on the side.
"Ms. Memokeeper, since Amphoreus was your suggestion, you should tell us why it's Amphoreus. What exactly is Amphoreus?"
Black Swan saw Chadwick directing the topic to her, stood up, and nodded.
"Naturally. First, regarding the question of why: capturing leaked [Memories] is my duty. And Amphoreus, as reflected in the Mirror of the Garden of Recollection, shines like a jewel in a display case. I have no reason to sit by and watch it. As for the second question..."
"I don't know much, but one thing is certain: Amphoreus is a place where three Paths are intertwined. Ordinary Pathstriders leave no traces in the mirror, so..."
Before Black Swan could finish, Chadwick immediately cut in.
"So what you mean is, Amphoreus has given birth to at least three Emanators?"
Black Swan nodded with a smile.
"Or perhaps even the traces of Aeons themselves."
Himeko and the others couldn't help but reveal a flash of shock in their eyes after listening to the conversation.
Fu Zhu, on the other hand, wasn't too worried. If it were just Emanators, things would be much easier to handle. Compared to the Ender Dragon, whom he was destined to fight, Emanators seemed somewhat insignificant.
However, he had one point of concern.
"Which three Paths?"
"One of them is [Erudition]. And one, everyone should have guessed, is [Remembrance], as it can reflect the [Memories] of Amphoreus. As for the final one, I regret to say that Fate is miserly in revealing its bottom card. I do not know what it is either."