Chapter 290: Historiography
A strike from an Aeon is truly devastating and unstoppable. No matter how massive the Xianzhou ships were, they would have been instantly turned into the most beautiful dust in the cosmos. It takes an Aeon to fight an Aeon.
Lan, the Aeon of the Hunt, intervened and saved the Xianzhou. He was a bit late, however. The ships were severely damaged, but thankfully, the casualties were low.
"Hmm hmm hmm~~"
Suixing hummed a carefree tune. She was sitting atop a giant True Swarm Bug, her long, slender legs crossed. It was an Emanator-level insect of Propagation, worthy of being her steed.
The Aeon of the Hunt gets a wheelchair, so she needs a proper mount too.
SKREEE—
The Propagation Emanator let out an instinctive, excited roar. To become the steed of an Aeon was an incredible honor.
"Dan Heng, your Vidyadhara race can't reproduce, right? Maybe you should go ask this new Aeon of Propagation for help," Hoshi said, watching the Aeon standoff while pulling out a bag of popcorn from her room.
"..." Teacher Dan Heng was silent. Suixing of Propagation had just crashed the Xianzhou ships, which had Vidyadhara on board. Was this really the time to ask for a favor?
"Himeko, who's gonna win?" Little March asked curiously. She wasn't nervous at all; after all, their boss (Akivili) was up front taking the heat.
"They probably won't fight," Kenji said, entering the cabin with Ruan Mei. "If they were really going to, Lan wouldn't just be standing there. He would have already 'gifted' Suixing a few 'rockets' (arrows) and become Propagation's 'Number One Patron'."
"Godfather, Godmother, you two can create Aeons. Can you make me an Aeon, too?" Hoshi asked expectantly, blinking her clear eyes.
Himeko and the others were stunned. The Aeon of Propagation was actually created by these two? That news was mind-blowing.
"I can," Kenji replied. "But what would you do if you became an Aeon?"
"Flex on everyone!" Hoshi replied without a second thought. Once you have power, you've gotta show it off.
Kenji put a hand to his face. What a simple, honest reason.
"Mr. Kenji, I think it's best if we don't give Hoshi any Aeon powers," Himeko said with a resigned smile.
Hoshi was already completely "abstract" (unhinged). Who knows how much trouble she'd cause with that kind of power.
In the cosmos, the silence was broken first by Suixing. "Lan of the Hunt, I heard you've been relentlessly pursuing Yaoshi, the Aeon of Abundance. How about I help you two... propagate a new life together?"
Every faction that was still conscious was completely dumbfounded. Where did this piece of "historiography" (fanfic) come from? The Hunt pursuing Abundance? Spicy!
The Masked Fools were howling with laughter, their eyes shining. This was real fun—Aeon-level gossip!
"Cease this nonsense!" Lan's aura fluctuated violently. He was clearly thrown off balance by Suixing's shocking claim.
It only takes one mouth to start a rumor, but he'd have to wear out his wheelchair trying to debunk it. Especially with so many "fun-lovers" (chaos-seekers) around.
"I'm not spouting nonsense. Although it's difficult for life forms like Aeons to reproduce, my Path of Propagation can certainly be of use," Suixing said in a measured tone.
"Heeheehee, Aha 'officially endorses' this 'marriage'!" Aha appeared, a masked figure in a suit. Beside him stood Sampo (Cold-Legs Uncle) and the bratty Sparkle, also wearing suits.
"I'm investing in this project!" Any time, any place, Aha of Elation was there to stir up trouble.
"Boss, why did you drag us here!?" Sampo's smile was strained, about to collapse. Lan's gaze felt like a sharp arrow, making his insides ache.
Dammit! I was minding my own business on Jarilo-VI, and Aha just had to grab me and bring me here.
Sparkle, on the other hand, was unfazed, still enjoying the show. This spot was perfect. Aside from the Aeons, she was the hottest thing in the room.
"Elation, get lost!"
At moments like this, Lan despised chaos-seekers (and Gods) most. He drew his divine bow and fired an "arrow" straight at Aha—a "gifted rocket."
"Heeheehee, still no sense of humor."
"But hey, thanks for the gift, buddy!"
Aha caught the arrow and stuffed it right down the front of his pants, leaving Sampo and Sparkle completely stunned.
As expected of the Aeon of Elation, doing what no one else would dare. He wasn't even afraid of it exploding in there.
Lan was speechless. He took the crashed Xianzhou ships and left. It wasn't his first time dealing with the infuriating Aha. The guy was just a shameless, thick-skinned pest.
"This is Aha's most glorious chapter! The Hunt was scared away by Aha," Aha muttered to himself. Anyone who missed the actual event would probably believe him.
"Oh, Aeon of Elation... this new Aeon of Propagation is looking right at you. Is there, perhaps, a connection between you two?" Sparkle asked bluntly, clearly chasing the thrill.
Woman, stop it! Sampo's heart leaped into his throat. You needed some serious backing to gossip about Aeons, and he didn't have any!
Boss Aha had it, but he wasn't about to be the one to get popped.
"Yes, that's right. The original Aeon of Propagation was Aha's child," Kenji appeared, suddenly taking on the role of a fictional historian. "Back in the day, Aha poured his power into a single insect. By pure chance, before that insect died, it split off another insect, which later became the Aeon of Propagation, leading to the Swarm Disaster."
Aha: "?"
Aha was stunned. That happened? The Aeon himself didn't even know about it.
Everyone: "?"
What kind of "historiography" (fanfic) was this? It was so wild it nearly smoothed the wrinkles in their brains.
The "insect" part was right, and the "Aeon power" part was right... but connecting them like that? That was just ungodly.
"Hmm?" Kenji suddenly looked up. He sensed a mysterious gaze land on him. It was Mythus, the Aeon of Enigmata.
Holy crap. I just made up some random nonsense, and it attracted Mythus?
Mythus: Let's have a look. Is that the smell of "historiography" (aka "fake history")... Oh, it's Aeon-level fake history.
Mythus (Watching intently): Stare~~~
Normal fake history is one thing, but fake history involving an Aeon? I must check it out. Which 'treasure' (Aha doesn't count) dares to make fun of an Aeon? I must have a taste.
If I like what I see, making them an Emanator is no problem.
Mythus: Hmm? He's stronger than me. An Emanator slot isn't good enough. I'm outta here, outta here.
One glance was all it took. Kenji was terrifyingly strong. Yeah, forget about making him an Emanator of Enigmata.
Mythus of Enigmata vanished, leaving not a trace behind.
"My man, that was good." Aha gave him a thumbs up. That piece of "historiography" was truly wild; the universe had never heard that one before.
The key was, the story was half-true. He had given his power to an insect, hoping it would get into the Genius Society. But Tayzzyronth had absolutely nothing to do with that insect.
Half-truth, half-lie. It was damn convincing.
"Aha, are you sure Tayzzyronth's birth... had nothing to do with you?" Kenji asked, his tone full of meaning.
The birth of the Aeon of Propagation was almost certainly manipulated by some 'grandmaster'. Even if it was by chance, the one most likely to play such a grand game was an Aeon. And Aha, who loves to seek fun, was a prime suspect.
"Ehe~ Aha has no idea~"
Aha just smiled, saying nothing. Heh. He knew plenty. He just wasn't talking.
Cold-Legs Uncle wore a numb expression. Knowing all this stuff... can I really get out of this alive? I haven't even written my will yet!
...
The image got censored again.