"Let's go. We've got at most ten minutes to run: let's explore while we move!"
Their pursuers had withdrawn, making this the perfect window to explore and advance.
Pei Guang led the way, and the trio followed the corridor until they reached a massive door shaped like a keyhole.
"I've come to find you."
Floating white text appeared before the door, accompanied by a familiar voice. Pei Guang pieced together the clues from Misha, Clockie Boy, and everything he had learned so far, then pushed the door open and stepped inside.
He looked around. The room was huge, but it ended in a dead end.
Firefly was the first to notice the abnormality. "This place is… a dead end? Look at the structure of the walls—don't tell me we have to go around through the walls?"
Pei Guang scanned the area and nodded at her question. "Seems like it. But that's fine, it's just climbing. We're professionals at that. Though… look over there."
Following Pei Guang's pointing finger, Firefly and Stelle faintly saw a cluster of black mist.
Stelle: "Is that that thing?"
Pei Guang shook his head. "No, this one's smaller and thinner. But it's probably similar. Judging by the direction… it's right on our path forward."
Stelle: "Do we fight or sneak past?"
Pei Guang: "Fight! Let's see what it drops."
Stelle: "Alright!"
Firefly also pulled out the transformation device Pei Guang had given her. But just as she was about to transform, Pei Guang pressed her hand down.
"Hold on. You'll be our backup: stay hidden for now. If it's a small fry, we can take care of it easily. If it's a boss, you'll be the one to save us."
Firefly: "Got it. Leave it to me."
Stelle: "Then let's go!!!"
With that, Stelle plopped down on the floor and, in the blink of an eye, shot up the wall at lightning speed.
Watching how smoothly Stelle climbed, Firefly's face flushed slightly as she glanced at Pei Guang and asked quietly, "How should I get up there? Um… are you going to carry me?"
Pei Guang looked at her, confused. "Huh? You're with us now, right? We're teammates—my aura skill works on allies. As long as we're on the same side, it activates."
"But before…"
Pei Guang: "Before, you were an NPC. Now you're a teammate. The system treats it differently. Come on, give it a try! My aura skill's fun: it lets you move three times faster without any slowdown, as long as you're not using your feet on a solid surface. Super easy! Look—"
He demonstrated by sliding up the wall with his backside, then lying flat on the ground, and finally even bouncing off the floor headfirst, boing, boing, right up the wall.
Firefly: "…"
She'd experienced some of his antics when he'd carried her before, but doing it herself was a completely different feeling. Normally, she'd just stand there silently, watching him in disbelief.
Pei Guang noticed her silence, glanced at her skirt, then nodded knowingly after a moment of thought.
"I get it. You'd feel embarrassed, right? In that case, how about this—you get in the trash can, I'll carry you?"
Pei Guang pulled out a trash bin and motioned for her to get in.
Firefly looked at the bin for a moment, then shook her head. "It's too big, it'll block your view and make it harder for you to move. Just carry me normally. That way, your view isn't blocked, and I can still help you fight!"
Pei Guang: "Alright then."
He didn't think much of it. Carrying someone while running wasn't anything new for him: he was used to it.
But Stelle, hearing that, immediately perked up, and in her mind, she could practically hear an abacus clattering away.
"So that's an option?!"
She was astonished.
Before Pei Guang could even lift Firefly, Stelle rushed over, eyes sparkling with excitement. "I can help in combat too! So… how about you carry me too?"
Pei Guang looked her up and down, then shook his head. "No room. If I carry anyone, it can only be Firefly."
Stelle glanced at his head thoughtfully. "That's fine! You can carry her in your arms, and I can ride on your back! Yeah—if I'm up there, I can act as your eyes and spot enemies ahead!"
Her expression was serious and focused.
Pei Guang considered it carefully: it actually made sense. Carrying one person or two wasn't that different. And having Stelle act as a scout would make them more flexible.
This wasn't just a random thought: his aura worked so that as long as he wasn't using his limbs on a solid surface, he gained triple movement speed and complete immunity to all slow effects, whether external or self-inflicted.
If Stelle rode on him, she technically wasn't using her limbs to move on a solid surface either. So in theory, she'd get the triple-speed buff too.
He himself had triple speed already, add Stelle's triple speed on top of that, and that'd make a terrifying ninefold movement speed. Just thinking about it made Pei Guang's scalp tingle.
Plus, since this state ignored all slowing effects, the three of them together would basically become a super-fast mobile fortress. Not a bad plan at all.
Pei Guang: "It's definitely feasible. Climb on! Oh, and try moving while you're up there. If your triple-speed buff stacks with mine, we'll hit ninefold speed. It's not an attack-speed buff, but faster movement means faster strikes too—it's still scary."
Stelle's eyes lit up. "Huh? Then if Firefly rides on me, she'd get a twenty-sevenfold buff, right?"
Pei Guang: "You're a genius. Firefly, what do you think?"
Firefly thought seriously for a moment before replying, "I think that's not a good idea. If we go that fast, we'll just crash into the wall: it'll hurt our combat ability. I think this setup is just right. Don't you agree?"
Pei Guang nodded. "Yeah. The room's big, but the doorway's narrow. Stacking three of us would make us too tall, and having Stelle handle both front and rear attacks would be too much. Let's stick with this."
Stelle: "I can't wait anymore! I'll form the head!"
She leapt up and landed on Pei Guang's back.
At first, she'd planned to be carried piggyback, but that wasn't comfortable, so instead, she just sat on his shoulders, wrapping her legs around his neck, War-Flaming Lance and bat in hand.
Feeling her thighs clamp tightly around his neck, Pei Guang suddenly choked and gasped, "Hiss—ease up! I'm about to suffocate!"
What soft thighs, what sweet scent of a girl—Pei Guang didn't feel any of that.
All he could feel was how hard it was to breathe with Stelle squeezing his neck.
Stelle: "Hehe, it's a dream—you don't need to breathe. You're lying."
Pei Guang: "Oh, right. Not only do we not need to breathe, we don't even need a heartbeat. Fine then, just don't strangle me to death."
Stelle: "No~ I'm gonna squeeze you~ squeeze you~ squeeze you~"
While bickering with Stelle, Pei Guang sat down on the floor, spread his arms, and pulled Firefly into his embrace.
Then he shouted, "I'll form the legs!"
Firefly had been hoping to get carried by herself, and when she saw Stelle join in, she felt a tiny bit sulky. But seeing the ridiculous scene before her, her playful side kicked in too.
Since she first became aware, she'd never imagined she could act this crazy one day.
The future… she didn't know. But right now, she just wanted to form the chest!
"Then… I'll form the chest."
Pei Guang: "Excellent! Armor fusion!"
Stelle: "Armor fusion!"
Firefly: "Armor fusion!"
Pei Guang: "Let's go! Let the enemy witness our friendship and bonds!"
Stelle looked down at Pei Guang. "Then the question is—what should we call our armor?"
Pei Guang: "Let's name it Trailblazer One! Member of Trailblazer One: the Galactic Swordman, Pei Guang!"
Stelle: "Then I'm the Galactic Baseballer!"
Seeing the two of them so excited, Firefly felt that if she didn't say something, she'd be missing out. "Then I'm… the Galactic Armor Knight?"
Pei Guang: "Not bad, not bad! Too bad March isn't here. If she were, the four of us combined would be unstoppable!"
Stelle: "It's fine. Next time we face a strong enemy, March will probably be with us. Then we can all combine together."
Pei Guang: "Well said. I can already imagine how terrifying we'd be once we fuse!"
Firefly wanted to complain about how absurd the scene was, but even she had never seen anything like this before. She had seen people stack together, sure, but the thought of Pei Guang racing ahead while carrying all three of them—
Pei Guang: "Perfect! For the sake of the beautiful galaxy, Trailblazer One, move out! Wicked villains, prepare for our judgment!"