After the kalpas were crossed and the clouds of war dispersed, Fu Xuan summoned a starskiff to send the Star Rail team and the Express crew back to the Exalting Sanctum.
Although the prime culprit of this great calamity had been expelled, the event had not yet completely concluded.
The Ambrosial Arbor had stopped growing.
The Zeperion Beam that Tiga-Stelle fired at the main root of the Ambrosial Arbor was not unleashed casually. She had utilized the resonance between the Stellaron spirit and the Stellaron to pinpoint the approximate location of the Stellaron within the Arbor. That beam was actually aimed at the Stellaron.
The resulting explosion after the hit destroyed part of the Ambrosial Arbor's main root and sent the Stellaron directly into a dormant state. Only then was the Ambrosial Arbor rendered unable to use the Stellaron to absorb infinite Imaginary energy nutrients, thus ceasing its growth.
However, the Abundance Spirit Beasts and Mara-struck Ingenium that had already been spawned would not cease to wither away. They remained active in the root zones of the Ambrosial Arbor throughout the Luofu, growing and spreading driven by instinct. The Xianzhou needed to deal with these lingering disasters.
Two days later.
At the Grotto-Dust Inn, on the fifth floor, which had been completely booked out.
"Although I was exhausted after that big battle, I feel completely refreshed after a good sleep! This young lady has been revived to full health!"
March 7th stretched her beautiful limbs, extending her body in a lovely stretch.
After transforming into Ultraman Ace, she had started with Ultra Forbidden Arts and barely used any small skills throughout the fight, with every move designed to be fatal and dismembering. She had been drained to the last drop, and after returning to the inn, she slept for over twenty hours.
"I feel like my whole body is full of power now, and my camera feels like it's been charged too. Speaking of which, I suddenly remembered there were so many exciting moments I didn't capture."
March 7th's eyebrows drooped as she lowered her head to glance at the slender middle finger of her left hand, which was now bare; the sensation of the hard object was gone.
The super invincible, giant, damn-cute Intertwined Fate spirit had gradually turned into a pufferfish, puffing up its cheeks angrily and sizing up Caelus, who was being fed by Leylah, with resentful little eyes.
It was all Caelus's fault!
He didn't explain it to her properly beforehand, and as a result, she missed the opportunity and failed to capture the key footage of her transformation into Ultraman Ace.
More importantly, clearly it was a ring used for transformation, but Caelus had made it look like a marriage proposal. It made her thoughts fly wildly like dandelion seeds in a large empty field swept up by a bomb blast. The little deer in her heart was ramming around—but, as it rammed and rammed, after she turned into Ultraman, she didn't know where the little deer had run off to.
That big dummy!
Suffering the gaze of those resentful little eyes, Caelus frowned sharply, immediately tracing the line of sight back to March 7th.
"Ah Qi sulks without saying a word; I wonder where I have failed to please you?"
Caelus's expression changed, becoming melancholic. He took small, mincing steps, raised his hand in an orchid finger gesture, and let soft, thread-like whispers float from his mouth, filled with resentment like ripples on autumn water:
"Look at your eyebrows frosted with frost, truly enough to freeze a person to death. The corners of your mouth are pursed like the tip of a knife; I fear you wish to scold me a few times and poke a few holes in my heart with hurtful words."
"Pfft... Hahaha!"
Stelle couldn't hold back her laughter. On Little March's exposed, fair swan-like neck, one could almost see goosebumps rising.
Welt and Dan Heng, on the other hand, wore twisted expressions, their cheeks twitching as they both stopped eating.
"Eek~ What is that tone of yours!"
March 7th shuddered all over.
Caelus closed the distance in three steps taking two, scuttling close. March 7th subconsciously retreated a few steps, then reacted and stood firm, her face slightly red as she forced her small eyes to stare down Caelus.
Caelus sighed sorrowfully, walked two steps around March 7th, raised his eyes, and said plaintively:
"It must be that I am an eyesore, provoking Ah Qi's unhappiness."
Caelus pinched his throat to make his voice sound affectedly sentimental:
"With this helpless, wandering, pitiful fate of mine... from today onwards, I shall change my profession from Trailblazer to Drifter."
March 7th completely lost her composure under Caelus's twisting and turning tone, shivering all over. She grabbed Caelus's arm directly.
"Stop talking to me in that weird way!"
Caelus took slow, deliberate steps, placed the palm pinching the orchid finger beside his cheek, hummed, and shook off March 7th's hand, his tone desolate:
"Since Sister says so, it is Brother who is at fault."
"You teased me so much earlier, can't I just glare at you a couple of times?"
Little March put her hands on her hips. He was too bad. Prepared to glare with eyes.jpg.
"Look, I just said a few more words, and Sister acts like this."
Caelus complained.
Just as March 7th's scalp went numb and she clenched her fists, unable to stop herself from giving Caelus two heavy punches, Caelus rapidly switched states.
"Ah Qi."
A deeply affectionate tone, like a poor boy chasing a rich girl in a TV drama. He knelt on one knee, and a dark blue box appeared in his hand, featuring exquisite embossing or a gold-stamped logo, its texture high-end.
The ingenious opening mechanism allowed one to feel a sense of ceremony the moment the packaging was opened.
"~! W-W-What are you doing again?"
March 7th instantly felt fireworks exploding in her brain, buzzing, and her small face flushed red in a flash.
Previously on the battlefield, the naturally serious atmosphere and the absence of people around—combined with March 7th's slow brain processing—meant she hadn't quite reacted. But now, Dan Heng and Uncle Yang were watching!
As for Stelle, vigilance must be increased at this time...
"Old Seven, do you want a husband?"
Stuffing a fried dough stick into her mouth in three bites, wiping her mouth, Stelle approached March 7th enthusiastically with the demeanor of a veteran village cadre:
"Just say the word, and this guy is yours."
"Cough, cough, cough!"
Welt, who was drinking soy milk, choked and sprayed it out directly, nearly splashing onto Dan Heng opposite him. Fortunately, Dan Heng was prepared; no longer hiding his High Elder identity, he directly used water control arts to block it.
"Stelle! What nonsense are you spouting!"
March 7th's eyes darted around, quickly scanning the hall. She was relieved only after confirming Bronya wasn't there.
'White' Seele hadn't gone down to the Phantylia dungeon instance with everyone earlier but had gone to help treat the injured Xianzhou people, so Bronya hadn't consumed much energy in the battle with Phantylia.
Silver Wing was currently in the Honkai World. Big Bronya's body was controlled by Little Bronya's consciousness; she had gone to find Seele. This was also Fu Xuan's request: Seele and Bronya—or more precisely, Black Abyss White Flower and Jizo Mitama—could suppress the Mara-struck condition to a certain extent.
"Wait, this ring looks a bit familiar?"
Her dodging gaze glanced into the box, and March 7th reacted belatedly. Looking closely, she realized it was the same model as the ring on the Star Rail's finger.
"Isn't this the spatial ring Ms. Herta custom-made for you guys?"
"I asked her for another one. The Ace ring is disposable and can't exist permanently. This one is given to you as compensation."
Caelus stood up from the ground, no longer playing the fool.
Although spatial folding technology wasn't considered rare, there really weren't many factions that could apply it to ultra-small items. Overall, it was still very precious.
"Spatial ring... Hmm, w-well okay then. It can hold quite a lot of stuff. This young lady will accept it!"
A spatial ring counts as a normal gift, right?
It was just that Caelus putting it on for March 7th personally—and on her middle finger at that—made her feel a subtle shyness.
"The middle finger represents engagement. Old Seven, you can't love me and leave me!"
"Stelle! You guy, talking nonsense again!"
The Stellaron spirit looked like a smiling village cadre seeing the most compatible couple match up, only to be chased and bonked on the head by the embarrassed and angry March 7th.
The two young girls chased and fled, frolicking around Caelus. After a while, a panting March 7th sat down, grabbed a black shadow raccoon, and rubbed the black shadow's head vigorously.
"Detestable Stelle!"
Venting a bit, March 7th picked up the dim sum on her plate and ate in small bites, like a cute little squirrel.
While eating, the group chatted about the situation on the Luofu. Reviewing the situation and summarizing experiences were excellent qualities of a Nameless.
"What's wrong, Uncle Yang? Did you think of something?"
March 7th noticed Welt crossing his hands and falling into deep thought.
Welt nodded, and after pondering for two seconds, he spoke:
"There are still many mysteries regarding the sequence of events of the Ambrosial Arbor's rising, but I am currently more concerned about another matter. Do you remember we previously discussed the reason why Seele and Bronya came to this world?"
"Suspected crossing phenomenon caused by a Stellaron?"
Dan Heng crossed his arms, leaning against the wall.
"Speaking of this matter, look at this... I'm sending it to the group."
Caelus seemed to suddenly think of something, taking out his phone to open a video and forwarding it to the 'Family Loving Each Other' group.
"This is... a Goblin?"
Opening the video, Welt's expression became subtle.
For this type of low-level monster that frequently appeared in anime works, Old Yang could recognize it at a glance.
In the video, a green, short, and small monster baring its fangs and brandishing its claws attacked a Xianzhou native, only to be beaten to its knees. If the Cloud Knights hadn't arrived in time, it would have been beaten to death.
In the eyes of the Xianzhou people, the Goblin was an unknown creature. Unsurprisingly, it would be dragged to the relevant biological departments of the Alchemy Commission for research.
"This shouldn't be a creature of the Luofu. Is it possible that this is also a crossing phenomenon caused by the Stellaron?"
Caelus's expression was serious, but he was chuckling in his heart.
The Stellaron was really useful!
Whenever there's an abnormal phenomenon, just pinning the blame on the Stellaron is the right move!
"There is indeed such a possibility."
Welt nodded. Did the Stellaron randomly cause creatures from other worlds to descend? The Ambrosial Arbor becoming strange, and those eyes of Phantylia—were they also mutations caused by the Stellaron?
After all, there had never been a precedent of a Stellaron coming into contact with the Immortal Traces of Abundance before.
"I feel like I've swiped through a lot of news related to fraud recently."
Stelle's finger slid back and forth on her phone screen.
"Someone spread fake news that Ambrosial Arbor pollen would trigger a strange disease, leading to Wind-Guard Grass Pills in pharmacies being bought out."
"A solitary elderly person was scammed out of their property deed by someone pretending to be their son who hadn't returned from business for thirty years."
"A large number of Outworlders bought fake medicine of longevity, which was actually Scalegorge Waterscape seawater mixed with soothing goat milk, advertised as granting longevity upon drinking. These scammed Outworlders didn't even dare to speak up."
Under normal circumstances, fraud cases weren't non-existent, but lately, they were too frequent!
Caelus rubbed his chin with his palm, estimating that the Zuowangdao, who were familiar with the Xianzhou's condition, had started to play their tricks.
Should he go look for them?
Caelus was somewhat interested in the Zuowangdao's fundamental cultivation method, the Scripture of Deception. The more means of deceiving people, the better.
But trying to pluck members of the Zuowangdao from the vast sea of people was a bit difficult!
____
________________________________________
If you want more chapters, please consider supporting my page on (P). with 50 advanced chapters available on (P)
👻 Join the crew by searching Leanzin on (P). You know the spot! 😉