The Astral Express.
"???"
"What is this?!"
March 7th stared at her phone in shock as she scrolled through the news feed.
"What's wrong? What's wrong?" Stelle leaned over, eager to see what had caused such a reaction.
March 7th read the headline word by word: "Penacony has completely lifted its ban on Honkai: Star Rail and is offering benefits to all players visiting Penacony..."
Stelle immediately pulled out her phone to verify the news.
But she didn't even need to search—the story had already skyrocketed to the top of trending topics!
As she scrolled through the comments, her expression shifted from surprise to excitement, and finally to sheer enthusiasm.
"According to the comments, Penacony's dreamscape—The Golden Hour—is handing out tons of Star Rail top-up vouchers! There are also battle passes, both the big and small ones. If you grab them, you can exchange them with The Family for real rewards!" March 7th chimed in, equally amazed.
"Penacony is the complete opposite of what it was before! Sleepless Night is playing everywhere—it's practically become the place's theme song now..."
"Players from all over are planning to head to Penacony!"
"Let's go too!"
"Perfect timing—the Express already received an invitation from The Family. We can vacation there while playing the game. Sounds like paradise!"
Seeing Stelle and March 7th so excited, Welt reminded them, "Based on the information we have, other unknown factions will also be heading to Penacony besides us."
"For example, the purple-haired woman, Sam of the Stellaron Hunters..."
"And the IPC's envoy, Aventurine of the Stoneheart," Himeko added.
"Right... We may be guests, but we shouldn't treat this purely as a vacation."
March 7th, however, remained optimistic.
"Judging from the Sleepless Night video, it doesn't seem like we'll face any major crises. It's probably more about watching these factions scheme against each other."
"For that... Clockie's legacy or something?"
"But now that they've all been exposed in the story, they've gone from covert to overt. They probably won't dare make any big moves, right?"
"I bet this arc will be sunny, lighthearted, and fun~"
Ding—
A notification chimed from March 7th's phone.
She glanced at it, blinked, then looked again.
[Yu Ling: Honkai: Star Rail Version 2.0 is now live! Embark on your Trailblazing journey to the land of dreams—Penacony!]
"So soon?!"
---
Penacony.
Hotel Lobby.
The moment Guinaifen arrived, she was awestruck by the grandeur of The Reverie Hotel.
"Tsk tsk tsk..."
"Hey everyone in the stream! Your girl Xiaoguizi is currently at The Reverie Hotel in Penacony!"
"Look at this decor!"
"Look at these doors!"
"Look at these speed bumps!"
"Look at these ad screens!"
But before she could even step fully into the lobby, several sharply dressed men in sunglasses spotted her—as if they'd been waiting for her arrival.
They quickly approached!
Guinaifen's heart skipped a beat.
"Didn't they say The Family already lifted the ban on Star Rail? Why am I being targeted the moment I arrive...?"
"Or is streaming not allowed here...?"
"Is Xiaoguizi's Penacony stream about to end before it even begins...?"
"I was just about to head to Penacony, but Xiaoguizi is taking one for the team."
"Run, Xiaoguizi! If The Family catches you, they'll assimilate you into their ranks!"
"You don't even realize you're a galaxy-level entertainment streamer now!"
"There are bad apples in the crowd!"
The Family members stopped in front of her.
But instead of confrontation, the woman leading them removed her sunglasses and smiled warmly.
"Hahaha... You must be the famous interstellar streamer, Xiaoguizi, right?"
"Welcome to Penacony!"
The other members chimed in unison: "Welcome! A warm welcome!"
Guinaifen was stunned.
What kind of show were they putting on?!
The woman continued, "We're your fans! We feel off if we don't watch your streams every day."
"Finally meeting you in person!"
"You're even prettier than in your videos!"
But Guinaifen wasn't about to fall for sweet talk. Her guard was up immediately.
"Hold on, hold on!"
"What exactly do you want?"
"We're members of the Iris Family. We'd like to discuss a collaboration regarding your stream."
"Simply put, we'd like you to help promote us—run some ads, that kind of thing."
"If you're willing, we've already prepared a luxury VIP suite for you. We won't interfere with your activities at all—just mention our Iris Family's services here and there..."
Guinaifen examined the contract and documents the woman handed over—identification, business permits, and so on.
After confirming there were no traps, she nodded slightly.
"Seems pretty good. I don't see a reason to refuse."
"Wonderful!"
"Then our collaboration is settled."
"Oh, Miss Guinaifen, could we also get your autograph?"
Guinaifen smirked.
So that's what they were after?
"No problem."
Just as she was about to sign—
Ding-dong.
Her phone chimed.
At the same time, the Iris Family members' devices also buzzed or pinged with notifications.
Their expressions shifted.
This familiar feeling...
Could it be...?
Before they could check, excited shouts erupted from the hotel lobby!
Tourists everywhere stood up in unison—some even cheered in excitement!
"It's here! It's here!"
"Yu Ling dropped the update!"
"Version 2.0 is live!"
"Do you know how long I've waited for this moment?!"
"Damn, Yu Ling, how did you know I got paid today?!"
...
Guinaifen saw the notification and gasped.
A version update?!
Today of all days?!
Penacony lifts its ban on Honkai: Star Rail, and Lin Yu drops a major update right after?
A coincidence?
No way it's a coincidence!
"Yu Ling wants all players in Penacony to experience the new story firsthand?!"
"Wahhh... Yu Ling, you—!"
"Why no teaser? Why drop it so suddenly every time?!"
"If I'd known, I would've stayed on the Xianzhou instead of coming here!"
Hearing Guinaifen's lament, the Iris Family woman quickly reassured her.
"Don't worry about streaming, Miss Guinaifen!"
"The room we booked for you was prepared with this in mind."
"It's equipped with professional streaming gear."
"You can still go live with Honkai: Star Rail's new story right away!"
"By the way... we're looking forward to it too."
Guinaifen brightened. "You guys really thought of everything, huh?"
"Is this the power of The Family?"
"Then what are we waiting for? Xiaoguizi can't wait to dive into the new story!"
"Experiencing Penacony in-game while actually being in Penacony... The immersion this time is off the charts!"
To be continued…