This was the first time Zero saw the Aeon of "Preservation."
How should he put it? The level of light pollution was much worse than the summons Lan had given him.
Zero did not look closely. He only glanced once and then lowered his head, focusing on adjusting the camera settings.
The Nameless widened their eyes and opened their mouths. They hesitated, wanting to turn around and look straight at the Aeon, yet fearing the blinding light.
Zero spoke to remind everyone.
"Don't move around. This is a rare chance to take a photo with an Aeon."
Hearing this, everyone immediately calmed down.
Zero raised the camera again and pressed the shutter at the group and the Aeon.
Very soon, they heard a deafening sound like a giant hammer striking.
The Nameless forgot that the camera was still taking pictures. They all opened their mouths wide and looked at the people beside them in disbelief.
"This is really a special experience!"
"How do we even say this? Happy New Year?"
"We actually took a photo of an Amber Era!"
When Akivili saw Eric put down the camera, he urged him, "Come on, Eric, you can't miss the chance to take a photo with an Aeon!"
The conductor rushed over at great speed and bumped into Zero's feet.
Pom-Pom put both hands on the waist and spoke in a very firm tone. "Quick, give me the camera."
Bacchus also joined the commotion. Pulling and dragging, they finally dragged Zero over.
Akivili was still worried, afraid that the best friend would miss this special moment.
However, Qlipoth standing outside the train spoke little. His followers put in endless effort, searching across the star sea and buying all kinds of stones, wood, or other rare metals.
They filled entire ships with priceless treasures and delivered them all before the Aeon.
Unfortunately, a giant beast does not pay attention to insects flying beside it, and the Aeon is the same.
Qlipoth at the edge of the universe silently swung the giant hammer day after day, building the subspace crystal wall.
Akivili knew many Aeons, and even had good relationships with some of them.
This time, the one he encountered was Qlipoth, and he had even used the train to crash into the other party's creation.
Akivili was not sure whether Qlipoth would respond. With a try-it-out mindset, he took a few quick steps to the window.
"Wait, Qlipoth..."
The Aeon swung the giant hammer to repair the hole in the creation. Just as he was about to turn and leave, he heard Akivili's voice and paused.
Seeing this, Akivili continued, "This was an accident, I'm really sorry for the trouble… Could you wait a moment?"
The Aeon did not respond, nor did he leave.
Akivili laughed.
Since Qlipoth did not speak… he would just treat it as agreement.
"Qlipoth, thank you so much..."
Akivili jogged back to his position, with Bacchus on one side and his best friend on the other. He stood on tiptoe and hooked an arm around each of their shoulders.
The conductor glanced at them. From left to right, the heights of one Aeon and two people decreased step by step.
Pom-Pom looked again. On the surface the Aeon showed nothing, but in fact he was struggling to raise an arm to hook around Eric's neck.
That posture must be very uncomfortable.
Zero hesitated and asked, "Should we squat down for the photo?"
Akivili shook his head and said firmly, "No, we'll take it like this."
Pom-Pom held up the camera and said coldly, "First row squat down, you're blocking the people behind."
Akivili gave a wronged "oh" and squatted down together with the two people beside him.
He still kept his arms around their shoulders, but this time the movement looked much more natural.
Pom-Pom moved quickly and soon finished taking the photo.
The Nameless turned around one after another and looked at the Aeon outside the train.
They traveled with Akivili, the most human-like Aeon. They had originally thought that chatting and laughing with him and drinking together would be the most precious story of their lives.
They never expected there would be an extra surprise.
For most of them, this was the second Aeon they had ever seen.
He looked as if he were forged from countless irregular rocks.
But why did he look brighter than the sun?
They stared without blinking. At last, through the blinding light, they glimpsed the truth.
If the rocks were Qlipoth's body, then the dazzling, flowing, boiling magma that seemed ready to burst out with each movement was the blood of the god.
Everyone held their breath and stared, ignoring the discomfort in their eyes from looking directly at the bright light, watching Qlipoth.
Unlike the others, one Aeon and two people went to a corner to settle old accounts.
Akivili rolled up the sleeves and grabbed Bacchus, his gaze moving up and down, thinking about where to start.
Bacchus covered his backside with both hands and glanced carefully at Zero, speaking in a pitiful tone. "Don't hit here, anywhere else is fine."
Akivili's pupils shook.
'Wait, best friend, what exactly did you do?!'
He subconsciously moved one step in the opposite direction of Zero.
Zero could not help but darken his expression. "What nonsense are you talking about?!"
He clearly only punched Aha in the stomach, okay. Why does Aha ruin his reputation every day?
Bacchus timidly covered his backside, his tone extremely aggrieved, "Eric, I'm not talking nonsense! I just don't want to get hit in that spot…"
Zero, "..."
'Aha, you really outdid yourself.'
Once Akivili heard this, he relaxed.
So Aha had deliberately made him misunderstand.
Looking at that overly youthful face, Akivili could not bring himself to hit hard. While no one was paying attention, he cornered Bacchus and flicked his forehead hard ten times.
Bacchus widened his eyes, as if he had never expected Akivili to let the matter go so lightly.
Akivili kept a cold face and warned Bacchus, "If there's a next time, you leave the train."
Bacchus covered his red forehead and nodded rapidly.
From the corner of his eye, Zero glanced at Qlipoth, who was still standing there surrounded by many Nameless.
"He still hasn't left? Akivili, do you want to take a photo with him alone?"
As he spoke, Zero took out the jade communicator and opened the camera.
Akivili shook his head. "Let's take it together."
Zero did not refuse the suggestion.
Previously he had only seen the true body of Lan, the Aeon of "Hunt." This time he had seen Qlipoth, the Aeon of "Preservation," which could count as something worth photographing to remember.
Using game terms, he should save this special game CG.
Zero switched the camera to selfie mode and raised the jade communicator.
The persistent Bacchus squeezed in and appeared in the frame.
Zero took more than a dozen photos in a row.
After finishing, he put away the jade communicator and automatically ignored the noise Bacchus was making beside him.
Zero only sent the photos to Akivili.
Since it was a special game CG, it should be shared.
After picking through the dozen photos, he selected the one where Bacchus took up the least space and posted it on social media.
In the photo, he stood shoulder to shoulder with Akivili. Behind them stood the silent giant made of irregular rocks, and in one corner of the photo was a blurry half-face of Bacchus.
Very soon, he received many comments.
[Hua: ...]
[Guanliang: ...]
[Mati: As expected of the Marshal]
[Chanzhen: Your outfit is as handsome as ever~ The silver tie pin matches the tie very well~]
Zero automatically ignored the praise from his subordinates. Scrolling down, he saw Zandar's comment.
[Zandar: Looks like you like Him very much. When you have time, come visit me. You'll see many interesting things]
Zero, "..."
'Fragments of an Aeon, right?'
He put down the jade communicator. Beside him, Akivili sincerely expressed thanks to the Aeon of "Preservation."
Zero looked up and examined Qlipoth. After watching for a while, he still could not figure out where the head was among that pile of rocks.
Unable to find a vital point, he lost interest and looked away. He started chatting with Bacchus, and the two guessed how the conductor would celebrate the new Amber Era.
Bacchus thought Pom-Pom would bring out the fine wine stored in the train warehouse.
Pom-Pom happened to pass by and, hearing this, said irritably, "Then you, a minor, can't drink either, pa."
Bacchus then went to bother the conductor, sticking behind Pom-Pom like glue.
Akivili finished his one-sided conversation with Qlipoth. He watched the Aeon leave, then said to Zero with emotion, "Qlipoth is pretty easy to talk to."
Zero, "…Did He talk to you?"
Akivili said cheerfully, "No, but the train crashed into His wall and He didn't say anything..."
Zero's mouth twitched slightly.
Akivili, Qlipoth ignored you completely, how did you conclude He's easy to talk to?!'
Then Zero thought again. That was Akivili after all. That was someone with connections across the star sea and extreme social confidence. Talking one-sidedly to an Aeon was nothing unusual.
The conductor returned, bringing out fine wine that had been stored for many years and distributing it to the Nameless.
Pom-Pom held a cup of juice and sat to one side, quietly listening to the Nameless chatting about beautiful sights never seen and adventures never experienced.
Soon, they returned to the previous topic.
"Speaking of which, what kind of gifts do rich people give? Do they really give vacation planets?"
Akivili subconsciously looked at Eric.
Pom-Pom followed the Aeon's gaze and looked at that person.
He thought maybe this Nameless might be very rich.
Akivili had once reminded Pom-Pom to take extra care of this Nameless.
The man did not join the topic. He kept his usual indifferent expression, half-lowered eyes, and took a sip of wine.
What do rich people give?
After talking for a long time, they still did not reach any conclusion.
Even Pom-Pom soon forgot the question.
Three days later, when Akivili led the Nameless back onto the journey of "Trailblaze," leaving a small portion of Nameless behind, Pom-Pom finally learned the answer.
The conductor stared blankly, holding a broom.
On the train, a well-dressed, uninvited guest came looking for Eric.
While chatting, the guest reported one enormous number after another.
Eric stayed silent for a moment and asked, "Strale?"
The guest took out a handkerchief to wipe the cold sweat from his forehead and carefully said, "You must be joking. It's credit points…"
Eric shook his head and sighed. "Please leave."
The guest looked embarrassed and got up to leave.
Pom-Pom stood frozen for a long time.
He thought maybe it was Eric's private matter.
In the afternoon, another guest came uninvited.
Pom-Pom felt uneasy and stayed in the observation car where they were, secretly observing the two.
The guest smiled warmly and enthusiastically stepped forward to shake Eric's hand.
After sitting down, the guest said a number even larger than the previous one in an extremely calm tone.
Eric asked the same question. "Credit points?"
The guest shook his head. "Strale. This is the budget given by the board. Strale is secondary. I mainly want to ask for your thoughts."
Eric replied, "Forget the Strale."
The guest looked thoughtful.
"I understand. If it were you, I could offer my entire fortune. But if it's the Nameless and those stones, wanting to exchange for company shares…"
He showed an apologetic expression and shook his head.
"Forgive me for speaking frankly. I believe this trade is not equal."
Pom-Pom sharply caught the words "Nameless." He held his breath and focused on listening to their conversation.
They looked at each other. The guest sighed deeply, looked around the observation car, then quickly withdrew his gaze and forced a smile.
"It seems you like the Nameless very much. Otherwise you wouldn't consider them so thoroughly. If word of this spreads, not only the Galaxy Rangers, even I would become jealous of them."
Eric only said, "There are far more stones than you imagine."
The guest fell silent for a moment, then said, "How about changing the trading partner? The Galaxy Rangers perhaps? I can offer six percent."
Before Eric could speak, he muttered to himself, "According to Xianzhou tradition, the number eight has special meaning. Then let's change it to eight percent, and one percent."
Eric nodded with a calm expression.
The guest picked up the communication device, tapped on the screen a few times, and handed it to Eric.
"The other share transfer agreement… you intend to?"
Eric looked up at the silent Pom-Pom and beckoned him over.
Pom-Pom slowly moved over and then had his arm firmly grabbed by Eric, who pressed him to sign the document.
The conductor suddenly remembered the earlier unanswered question.
'What kind of gifts do rich people give?'
'Not destroyer ships, not vacation planets.'
'But shares of the Interastral Peace Corporation.'
Pom-Pom's head was in chaos. He could not recover for a long time and only vaguely heard the guest say to Eric, "I still remember the agreement between our Family and you."
"As long as you need us, we will go through fire and water for you. If we break this oath, we will die without a burial place."
"Now, I think we can add one more sentence."
"If we harbor disloyal thoughts, our souls will fall into hell with no release."
"We have always been waiting for you, waiting for the day you rule the star sea."
Zero, "..."
Pom-Pom came back to his senses and heard the words "rule the star sea," immediately opening his mouth wide.
He carefully looked up at the person beside him, but could not see any emotion on that face.
When the guest reached the door, he suddenly asked, "I have always wanted to ask you a question. Where exactly do I fall short compared to that child named Hua?"
Zero, "..."
There is really no need to make men obsessed with acknowledging him as a father.
And there is no need to make women obsessed with marrying him either.
They are close partners who have cooperated for thousands of years. There is absolutely no need to use this kind of method to get closer to him.
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