"This immense power, who are you?!"
Stellarons were known for their vast Imaginary Energy and unique abilities, but before this man, its proud Imaginary Energy paled in comparison. The Imaginary Energy stored within it was like a firefly before the moon, its scale incomparable. It was nearly on par with an Aeon's.
This made the Stellaron, which had intended to corrupt him, instantly abandon its plan.
'What the hell is this?!'
"It can even speak." Leon was somewhat surprised; the Stellaron he had obtained from his family before couldn't.
'It seems the one from my family was already ruined,' he thought, continuously pouring Imaginary Energy into it. 'Such items shouldn't have their own consciousness; they should be mere numerical values.'
"Gurgle gurgle gurgle!" The Stellaron let out a strange cry.
Just as it had overwhelmed others with vast Imaginary Energy, Leon repeated the process. Soon, the Stellaron fell silent, its consciousness clearly and completely erased. He stored it and hurried back. Yaoqing seemed to be crying.
...
Back on Humboldt, when Leon returned after collecting the Stellaron, he found Yaoqing with furrowed brows, surrounded by injured people. They lay on the ground, each bearing wounds and blood. Their faces, without exception, twisted in pain, yet held a hint of relief.
The planet Humboldt could be perfectly described as an "industrial wasteland." The sky here was perpetually dark, almost never seeing sunlight.
But now, within this small area, morning light indeed fell from the sky, illuminating the injured. It was healing their wounds, compensating for the world's harshness.
Leon looked up. He saw that the one "cosplaying" as the sun in the sky, showering these people with morning light, was Ikka. The stout white colt had a mark of the Sky Fire Seed constantly alight before it. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, this was the source of the morning light.
He withdrew his gaze and refocused on Yaoqing. She was half-kneeling, hands clasped, praying devoutly for the people before her. Leon noticed the faint sweat at her temples, which made it clear that what she was doing was not a simple prayer.
The Twelve Golden Progeny, as the original twelve factors, were actually the manifestations of the Destiny concepts known throughout the Simulated Universe. It had to be said that Zandar, the first of the Genius Club, had casually created twelve highly complete manifestations of Destiny.
Among the eighteen Destinies, Yaoqing did not simulate The Abundance, which also implied that even if she served as a healer, her capabilities couldn't be judged by her outward appearance. Simulating The Preservation, everything she did always bore the indelible mark of The Preservation as its driving force.
So, after he upgraded her from data to life, Yaoqing naturally became a Preservation-aligned Destiny traveler. Not just her, all Twelve Golden Progeny were the same; their abilities were intact, or rather, preserved.
After all, in Amphoreus, they were the manifestation of that Destiny, and their actions always represented the corresponding ideals. It wasn't strange that they could become Destiny travelers after the upgrade. The word "preserved" was used because some of the original materials forming their external abilities had been changed.
Take Ikka, for example. In Amphoreus, it was a winged beast created by Zandar, then simulated and run by the computer Iron Tomb, finally coming into existence. Now, Ikka was the manifestation of Yaoqing's own Destiny abilities. After the data was erased, it shouldn't have continued to exist, but Destiny was such a domineering thing.
The power Ikka used to heal came from Yaoqing. In other words, on the surface, it seemed like the stout colt was working hard while Yaoqing reaped the benefits, but in reality, Yaoqing was the primary contributor, while Ikka merely channeled her power!
Don't ask why it wasn't The Abundance but could heal. If The Abundance was innate and the purest form of selflessness, then Yaoqing was the one who protected others. After stepping onto the path of medicine, she also embodied the selflessness of a doctor. Wasn't that a form of The Preservation? Without a doubt, compared to the Interastral Peace Corporation, Yaoqing was more suited to The Preservation!
"Quick, come! Stonewall is awake!" A commotion erupted nearby.
Leon turned his head to see the more than ten children he had saved, along with those rescued by his light arrows, gathered around a man. The middle-aged man struggled to sit up.
"What is this...?" He held his head, his abdomen wrapped in numerous bandages.
"Stonewall!" A group of children, their eyes tearful, surrounded him.
No one present had injuries as severe as Stonewall's. If he could escape the clutches of death, it meant the others were likely safe and sound. Clearly, this was as it should be.
Leon withdrew his gaze. But why... Everyone wept with joy at his awakening, except for one person who still looked worried. Was Yaoqing "crying"?
"Leon..." Yaoqing softly called his name.
"I clearly... saved them..." She lowered her eyelids, her tone filled with helplessness.
She could heal wounds, but she couldn't cure despair.
"But why..."
According to Cyrene, Yaoqing was a cultured doctor. When facing patients troubled by pain, she would never show a depressing or sad expression. But now, she was the opposite.
Following her gaze, Leon also found the reason. Stonewall was awake, but these other people showed no signs of waking up. Some were only lightly injured, which was very strange.
Leon suspected the Stellaron was to blame. Soon, the abnormalities on their bodies confirmed his suspicion. Only then did the grotesque crack creatures appear on these people, sometimes human, sometimes monster, shifting back and forth.
Stellarons would transform the things and spaces they came into contact with into special crack creatures. These creatures generally existed as a form of erosion. They seemed to retain the memory and habits of the original, but their expressions were vastly different, often showing strong exclusivity.
But scholars who studied the cracks had warned: the objects eroded by the cracks and their originals should be regarded as two completely unrelated existences. Any fantasies about them would lead to serious consequences. If this continued, it wouldn't be long before these people truly became crack creatures.
It was the Stellaron's doing, but not entirely. Thinking this, Leon looked again at the group of over ten people on Ginevra's side. They had nothing special about them, but there was nothing wrong with them. A Stellaron wouldn't treat people differently.
It was possible these people were contaminated by the Stellaron before he collected it, and then its influence ceased. However, this possibility wasn't high. Because he collected the Stellaron very quickly, and if its contamination was ongoing, it wouldn't make such a difference at this moment.
'Do these people not want to live?' At least, this was the situation Leon intuitively felt. The group of over ten people on Ginevra's side had a strong will to live because they had each other, their family ties anchoring them, so they would try their best to grasp the opportunity to live.
But these people lying on the ground lacked that consciousness. They did not possess the same fervent will to live as Stonewall. Yaoqing's treatment was effective. But because of these people's personal reasons, it didn't take hold, and even gave the Stellaron an opportunity.
Yaoqing was silent. If this first journey was to end like this, it wouldn't be a pleasant one for her, as it reminded her of her helplessness when Amphoreus was covered by the Black Tide.
'If the sunlight dims due to fate, then I will replace it and heal the world's morning light.' But when she chose to close the sky with her body, the morning light she transformed into only gave Amphoreus a little more time to struggle before death. In the end, it was still covered by the Black Tide, and she hadn't saved anyone.
Yaoqing possessed the essence of a Nameless. 'Even if the galaxy is shrouded in twilight, we must still illuminate the long night.'
"What do they need?" Leon asked.
"They..." Yaoqing paused, her expression complex, "need a future."
These people didn't want to live. Fundamentally, this era was forcing them to die. At least on Humboldt, living was more painful than dying for them; they couldn't see a future at all.
The group on Ginevra's side wanted to live because they still had family ties as anchors, but the people lying here now were basically alone. They had no ties, and it could even be said that many were waiting for an opportunity to die.
Yaoqing could understand their thoughts, which made her want to change them even more. In a certain cycle, she had once encountered two opposing families. Their children had eloped, and their ancestors had been enemies on the battlefield.
These two enemies saw each other as irreconcilable as the sun and clouds. They said, "The feud between families is like the difference between the sun and clouds—impossible to reconcile."
Yaoqing replied, "I will use my fate to prove to you both that the sun and clouds can also reconcile one day."
After Yaoqing took over the divine power of 'Sky,' the sun and clouds successfully reconciled, and she fulfilled her promise.
'You see,' she thought, 'nothing is absolutely impossible.' But to witness the impossible being broken, one must first survive.
Yaoqing had discussed this issue with her father before, and his answer at that time had decided the path she would take for the rest of her life.
'Father, why were our ancestors indulging in war?'
'Because they only have a sad past.'
'Then why are we healing the pain?'
'Because we have a future that needs to be cherished.'
The Stellaron might have given them a sweet dream. But staying in the mountains was wrong. The era, even if temporarily dire, would surely improve in the end, so never let the sorrow of the era become your own sorrow.
Do you want to see that era, that future? That era without oppression and injustice, that future without exploitation and exploitation! Yaoqing wanted more people to answer yes.
Just as Amphoreus welcomed salvation, she had proven with her own fate! That era, that future, it would definitely come!
"Where does the future come from?" he asked again.
Yaoqing was slightly stunned, pursing her lips. "The future... comes from change."
Change the status quo, change the era, and the future will naturally follow.
"What does change need?"
"It needs unity, and... the power to influence the situation!" Yaoqing answered without hesitation.
To make changes, one must have the corresponding power. The rules of the galaxy were actually very simple: whoever had the bigger fist was right, just as Leon always followed the principle that the person with higher stats was right.
Most Destiny travelers were zealots, and their ideals could not be easily changed. Whether it was the destructive ideal of The Destruction, which insisted on annihilating the entire galaxy, or Yaoqing's benevolent ideal of caring for the world and willing to light the way forward with her own body. It was the same.
"Your stats?" Leon walked towards her.
"...I don't have them."
Although the ideal was grand, it was somewhat laughable for her to speak of changing the era so boldly. At least, one had to be an Emanator to even qualify.
"If your stats aren't enough, then borrow mine." Leon reached out to her, the confidence radiating from him so flamboyant. As if there was nothing in the world he couldn't do.
Yaoqing unconsciously placed her hand in his palm. For some reason, at this moment, she suddenly felt the burden on her shoulders lighten.
When faced with a person who always delivered on his words, never broke promises, and found no task too difficult, his personal charm had already reached its peak, almost unconsciously. Western-style succubi were succubi, and Xianzhou-style succubi were also succubi. Yaoqing found herself a bit distracted.
A person's ability was always limited. If one person couldn't do it, then relying more on others would be fine, just as Amphoreus had ushered in an era of heroes. This era had already arrived, she thought. She had proven it with her own fate to Humboldt.
Yes, not only Amphoreus—he was the savior everyone was waiting for. The person who could change this era had already been born, in the Third War of Abundance.
"Even the most capable support needs a strong damage dealer, I tell you," Leon smiled at her, then took all the "causality" from Yaoqing.
"I will become the god!"
Even if he could be the primary damage dealer and assist, a dedicated healer wasn't a true main damage dealer. When it came to high difficulties, it was still a bit weak. Naturally, it had to be paired with a true main damage dealer.
Of course, a group of moderately powerful characters shouldn't try to join in the fun. Even if Luo Xi chopped with his scythe until exhaustion and knocked his head until it was broken, it wasn't as good as Ikka's single charge.
Just as beauties were only meant to be owned by the strong, supports were only truly effective when paired with powerful damage dealers.
"Hmm..." Yaoqing didn't understand what he was saying.
When a person's charm reached its peak, any quirks only became an added bonus. After getting her nod, Leon let go of her hand.
Then, he stood in front of the people lying on the ground.
"Why die?"
The Hunt and Terminus, two Destinies, began to activate and intertwine from Leon's body.
"It's just a future; watch me create one for you with stats!"
When the old man came, the blue sky came. With the help of the two Destinies, everyone's causality was materialized at this moment!"This powerful force, are you?!"
Stellarons are famous for the massive Imaginary Energy within their bodies, as well as some unique abilities.
But before this man, the mustard-seed energy it prided itself on didn't count for anything at all.
The Imaginary Energy stored within its body was like a firefly facing the bright moon in his presence; the magnitude between the two simply could not be mentioned in the same breath.
It was a magnitude almost indistinguishable from an "Aeon".
This made the Stellaron, which had originally intended to bewitch him, obediently dispel its thoughts in an instant.
—How the hell is it supposed to fight this?!
"It can actually still speak."
Leon was somewhat surprised by this; after all, the Stellaron he had previously obtained from The Family couldn't talk.
"It seems the one from The Family was trained early on."
Thinking this, he continuously poured the usable Imaginary Energy into it.
It's better for this kind of item not to have its own consciousness; he would just flush it out with raw stats.
"HooHooHooHoo!"
The Stellaron let out a strange cry.
Just as it uses massive amounts of Imaginary Energy to flush people into idiocy when seizing their bodies, Leon repeated this process.
Soon, the Stellaron ceased its movement; obviously, its spiritual intelligence had been completely eradicated.
He stowed the Stellaron away and then rushed back.
Yaoqing seemed to be crying.
...
Humboldt.
When Leon rushed back after recovering the "Stellaron", what he saw was Yaoqing with lowered brows and eyes, and people with various injuries lying all over the ground.
They lay on the earth, every single one of them covered in blood.
The expressions on their faces were, without exception, extremely painful, yet they surprisingly carried a somewhat relieved look.
The planet of Humboldt could be completely described by the words "industrial ruins".
The sky here was often gloomy, or rather, there were basically very few times one could see sunlight.
But now, although it was only this small area before his eyes, dawn light was indeed spilling down from mid-air, shining upon these wounded patients.
It was healing their wounds, making up for the suffering left upon them by the world.
Leon looked up.
He discovered that the one cosplaying the sun in mid-air and scattering dawn light for these people was Ikka. Directly in front of the fat white colt, a mark of the sky's tinder remained constantly lit.
If nothing unexpected happened, this was the origin of the dawn light.
He retracted his gaze and let it fall upon Yaoqing once more.
Yaoqing was half-kneeling on the ground.
She had her palms pressed together, praying for the people before her with incomparable piety.
Leon noticed the faint sweat on her temples.
From this point alone, one could see that what she was doing was not as simple as just a sentence of prayer.
The Twelve Golden Progeny.
As the twelve factors of their Progenitor, they are actually embodiments of the concept of "Paths" known to all in the Simulated Universe.
Truth be told, Zandar is indeed worthy of being the first seat of the Genius Society; he casually created the Twelve Path Embodiments with an extremely high degree of completion.
Among the eighteen Paths, Yaoqing does not simulate "The Abundance". This also tells us that even if she has milk, one cannot judge a profession by appearance.
She simulates "The Preservation". Everything she has always done definitely has the shadow of "The Preservation" as its source of motivation. So, after being sublimated from data into life by him, Yaoqing naturally became a Pathstrider of "The Preservation".
It wasn't just her; the Twelve Golden Progeny were all like this.
Their respective abilities were all present, or rather, preserved.
After all, in Amphoreus, they were the embodiment of those "Paths", and their actions always represented the relative philosophies.
It is not strange for them to become Pathstriders after sublimation.
The reason the word 'preserved' is used is that the raw materials that shaped parts of their external abilities have been changed.
For example, Ikka.
In Amphoreus, it was a creature named 'Winged Beast' fictionalized by Zandar, and then simulated and run by the computer Iron Tomb.
Only in the end did it manage to exist.
But in the present, Ikka is the manifestation of Yaoqing's own Path ability. After the data was erased, it shouldn't have continued to exist, but the Path is just such a domineering thing.
The power Ikka uses to heal comes from Yaoqing.
In other words, on the surface, the fat colt looks tired while Yaoqing is the dog who wins by lying down, but in reality, Yaoqing is the one with the 13.0 rating.
Ikka 3.0 is the lying-win horse!
Don't ask why she can heal when she isn't "The Abundance".
If "The Abundance" is innate and the purest selflessness, then Yaoqing exists to protect others.
Embarking on the path of studying medicine and incidentally embodying the selflessness of a healer—how is this not a kind of "The Preservation"?
Undoubtedly, compared to the Interastral Peace Corporation—Yaoqing is more fitting for "The Preservation"!!
"Quick, come here! Uncle Stonewall has woken up!"
A noisy commotion came from the side.
Leon turned his head. The dozen or so children he had just saved, as well as those saved in passing by his arrow of light, gathered beside a man.
The older man sat up with difficulty.
"I am...?"
He covered his head, his abdomen wrapped in many bandages.
"Uncle Stonewall!"
A bunch of children surrounded him, crowding around him with tears in the corners of their eyes.
No one present had heavier injuries than Stonewall.
The fact that he could escape from death's door meant there was a high probability the others were safe and sound.
Clearly, it should be like this.
Leon retracted his gaze.
But why...
Everyone was weeping with joy for his awakening, yet there was one person who alone remained full of sorrow.
Why is Yaoqing "crying"?
"Leon..."
Yaoqing called out his full name softly.
"I clearly... saved them..."
She lowered her eyelids, her tone filled with powerlessness.
She could heal wounds, but she couldn't cure despair.
"But why..."
Hearing Cyrene say it, Yaoqing is a healer of great refinement. When facing patients intruded upon by pain, she would never reveal an expression that made people feel depressed or sad.
Now, she was acting uncharacteristically.
Following her gaze, Leon also found the cause.
Stonewall had woken up, but these people before his eyes showed not a single sign of awakening.
Some even had only minor injuries; this was very incorrect.
Leon felt it was the "Stellaron" playing tricks.
Before long, the anomalies appearing on these bodies confirmed that it was indeed true.
Phantoms of Fragmentum monsters with distinct appearances emerged on these people, shifting between human and monster, back and forth.
The "Stellaron" transforms the matter and space it contacts into special Fragmentum creations.
These creations generally exist in the form of corrosion. It seems they retain the memories and habits of the prototype, but their behavior is vastly different, often expressing strong exclusion.
But scholars studying the Fragmentum have issued warnings: Objects corroded by the Fragmentum and their prototypes should be regarded as two completely unrelated existences, and any fantasies held toward them will lead to serious consequences.
If this continues, I fear there isn't much time left before these people truly become Fragmentum monsters.
It was the "Stellaron" playing tricks, but it wasn't entirely its doing.
Thinking this, Leon looked toward the dozen people with Ginevra again.
There was nothing peculiar about them, not a single anomaly.
The "Stellaron" doesn't pick and choose its dishes based on the customer.
It's also possible that before Ginevra's group could be polluted by the "Stellaron", the process came to a halt because he recovered the "Stellaron".
But this possibility isn't high.
Because his speed in recovering the "Stellaron" was extremely fast; pollution wouldn't depend on just this moment.
"These people don't want to live?"
At least, that was the situation Leon intuitively felt.
Ginevra's group of ten or so had a very strong will to survive. Because they still had each other as family to hold onto, they would strive with all their might to grasp a chance at life.
But these people lying on the ground did not have that consciousness, nor did they have that breath of wanting to live that Stonewall had.
Yaoqing's healing was effective.
But because of these people's personal reasons, it failed to take effect and even allowed the Stellaron to exploit a loophole.
Yaoqing remained silent.
If the first journey had to end with this kind of conclusion.
Then this first journey was actually not pleasant for her, because it reminded her of her powerlessness when Amphoreus was destroyed by the Black Tide.
"If the sunlight dims due to fate, then I will take its place and heal the world's dawn."
But when she chose to seal the sky with her body...
The dawn she transformed into only gave Amphoreus a little more time to struggle at death's door.
In the end, it was still destroyed by the Black Tide, and she failed to save a single person.
Yaoqing possessed the essence of a Nameless.
"Even if the galaxy's twilight is vast and hazy, one should still illuminate the long night."
"What do they need?" Leon asked.
"They..."
Yaoqing paused, her expression complex. "Need a future."
These people didn't want to live.
In the final analysis, it was this era forcing them to die. At least in Humboldt, their living was simply more suffering than death; they couldn't see a future at all.
Ginevra's group wanted to live because they had the bonds of kinship as an anchor, but the people lying in this place now were basically all alone.
Without cares or attachments, it could even be said that many were waiting for an opportunity to die.
Yaoqing could understand their thoughts, so she wanted to change their thoughts even more.
In a certain cycle, she had once received a pair of enemies.
Their children fell in love privately and ran away; their ancestors had forged a blood feud on the battlefield.
The views this pair of enemies held toward each other were simply irreconcilable.
They said: "The family grudge is like the difference between the scorching sun and dark clouds; it cannot be dissolved."
Yaoqing replied: "She would use her fate to prove to the two that even the scorching sun and dark clouds have a day of reconciliation."
After Yaoqing took over the "Sky" divine authority.
The blazing sun and the dark clouds successfully reconciled; she successfully fulfilled her agreement.
You see, nothing is absolutely impossible.
But to witness the impossible being broken, one must first manage to live on.
Yaoqing had once discussed this problem with her father.
And it was her father's answer at that time that decided the path she would walk for the rest of her life.
"Father, why do the ancestors indulge in bitter battles?"
"Because they only have a sorrowful past."
"Then why are we soothing the pain?"
"Because we still have a future that needs cherishing."
The Stellaron might have given them a sweet dream.
But staying in the mountain is wrong.
The era, even if it is temporarily broken, will definitely get better in the end. So, never let the sorrow of the era become your own sorrow.
Do you want to see that era, that future?
That era where there will no longer be oppression and injustice, that future where there will no longer be exploitation and squeezing!
Yaoqing wanted to make more people answer "Yes".
Just as Amphoreus welcomed salvation, she has used her own fate to prove to Humboldt!
That era, that future—it will definitely come!
"Where does the future come from?" he asked again.
Yaoqing was slightly stunned, pursing her lips: "The future... comes from change."
Change the status quo, change the era, and the future will come naturally.
"What does change require?"
"It requires unity, and... the strength to influence the situation!"
Yaoqing answered without thinking; to make a change, one definitely must have corresponding strength.
The rules of the galaxy are actually very simple.
Whoever has the bigger fist is right, just as Leon always upheld that those with high stats are correct.
Most Pathstriders are lunatics; their philosophies cannot be easily altered.
Whether it is a bad philosophy like Destruction insisting on destroying all light in the galaxy, or a good philosophy like Yaoqing caring for the world and wishing to use her body to illuminate the road ahead.
It is all the same.
"Do you have those stats?"
Leon walked toward her.
"...I don't."
Although her philosophy was such, for her to speak of the great task of changing the era was indeed a bit laughable.
At the very least, one had to be an "Emanator" to be qualified.
"If your stats aren't enough, then, borrow mine."
Leon reached out his hand to her. The confidence radiating from him was so brazen.
As if there was nothing in the world he couldn't do.
Yaoqing subconsciously placed her hand in his palm.
For some reason, in this instant, she suddenly felt the burden on her shoulders lighten.
When there is a person who does what he says, never breaks a contract, and cannot be stumped by any matter no matter how big...
His personal charisma had already arrived at the peak unknowingly.
A Western-style succubus is a succubus, and a Xianzhou-style incubus is also a succubus.
Yaoqing was somewhat in a trance.
A person's ability is ultimately limited.
If one person can't do it, then just rely on others a bit more, just as Amphoreus welcomed an era where heroes came forth in large numbers.
This era has long since arrived.
She thought, she has already used her own fate to prove to Humboldt.
Yes, not just Amphoreus—he is the savior everyone has been looking forward to.
The person who can change this era has long since been born, born during the Third Abundance War.
"Let me tell you, a functional healer still needs to bring a Carry."
Leon smiled at her, then took over all this "Causality" from Yaoqing.
"I will become the God!"
Even if one can carry and support, no matter how strong a functional healer is...
Ultimately, they aren't a true Carry. It's still a bit weak when going solo on high difficulty.
Naturally, one still has to be paired with a Carry.
Of course, a bunch of 'Medium Cups' shouldn't join in the fun.
Even if Seele hacks until her scythe is weary and knocks her head until it breaks, it isn't as high as a single impact from Ikka.
Just as beauties are only fit to be possessed by the strong, supports are only fit to be possessed by the 'Large Cups'.
"Mhm..."
Yaoqing didn't understand what he was saying.
When a person's charisma reaches the peak, no matter how many peculiarities he has, they will only become bonus points.
After receiving her nod, Leon released her hand.
Then, he stood in front of this pile of people lying on the ground.
"What's with all this dying?"
"The Hunt" and "Terminus", two Paths began to stimulate and entangle on Leon's body.
"It's just a future; watch me create one for you with raw stats!"
Master Leon has arrived, and the clear sky has arrived.
With the assistance of the two Paths, everyone's Causality materialized at this moment!
____
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