"Trying to give me a hand?"
Leon looked at the tragic scene before him, guessing at Aha's intentions.
He wasn't sure if he had an aimbot.
He just felt he had a wildcard, waiting for the right moment to transform and cash in on all the hooks he'd laid out!
He would win!
"You sure know how to pick 'em."
Whatever Leon wanted to do, or whatever idea he had, he had to see it through!
That's what his stats were for!
The strong are meant to do as they please!
Leon looked up at Zulo, who was locked in a fierce struggle with the Swarm and the Rangers.
Aha had said this welcoming gift was carefully chosen for him.
He didn't believe it at first, but now he did.
He certainly wouldn't turn a blind eye and do nothing about the events recorded in this Memory Bubble.
These were people who had sacrificed themselves for the revolution, partners from the same faction as him.
The strong backing the weak—this wasn't just the creed of the Galaxy Rangers, but also a fine tradition of "The Hunt."
If you beat up the young ones, the old ones will come for you.
What's so impressive about an "Emanator" like Zulo bullying a few Pathstriders? Taking him on would be a real test of skill!
Aha was certain he would want to intervene and change this, and certain of his nature to realize any thought that crossed his mind.
Upon realizing his future self was powerless to affect the past, he would never resign himself to fate. Instead, he would brute-force his way through with overwhelming stats.
Leon raised the Vanquisher, its crosshairs settling on Zulo.
There were only two stats that could crush this situation.
One was the "Counter-Time Strike."
To him, using an external item to clear his mind was well worth it.
A bullet isn't a talisman; it's pointless if you don't use it when you need to.
And the other option, besides the "Counter-Time Strike"...
Leon took a deep breath, his gaze resolute!
Was to unleash the potential he was always meant to have!
To turn the mechanism that had always been hidden within him, yet never grasped, into his actual stats!
Aha's intention was clearly the latter.
Leon closed his eyes.
The current situation inexplicably reminded him of how he felt when he "heard Memokeepers had Meme Bodies immune to all physical attacks."
Why couldn't he force a kill against the "physical immunity" debuff? Were his stats not high enough?
If it were him, he could do it!
In that instant, Leon's thoughts achieved clarity.
He slowly opened his eyes. The brown irises were silently overlaid with gold, and against this backdrop, his pupils ignited like burning embers.
What's the point of all this anxiety?
If he wanted to use it, he could definitely use it!
How could he not have a "Causality" ability? Don't underestimate his bond with "Lan"!
An enemy that can't be defeated? He didn't understand the concept!
Whether you're in the past or the future, if you cross him, you'd better be prepared for his revenge!
To the death!
Can't do it? Why can't I do it?!
If it's me, I can do it!
Potential, come forth!
The idealistic "Path" reached its zenith the moment Leon's conviction became unshakable!
A colorless and formless arrow gradually materialized on the bowstring!
Leon drew the string by feel!
To others, it looked like he was drawing an empty bow, but in his own hands, he held the only arrow capable of breaking the stalemate tightly between his fingertips!
Without a doubt, he had firmly grasped the theory that could kill Zulo. All that remained was to put it into practice!
"Causality."
This mechanism was no longer just a vague hypothesis but had transformed into his genuine stats!
"Why can't it be done? If it's me, I can do it!"
An immeasurable fluctuation of "The Hunt" radiated from Leon, expanding outwards. The mere aftershock of its light effortlessly annihilated the Swarm!
"What is...?"
La Mancha suddenly sensed an abnormally powerful aura of "The Hunt," one not inferior to Zulo's.
"An Emanator?"
La Mancha looked back in disbelief. Leon was standing there.
This time, it wasn't like before when no one could see him.
After mastering "Causality," his consciousness not only transcended the Memory Bubble but used it as a springboard to truly return to this point in the past!
Don't ask how. Just assume he rewound the clock.
"An Emanator... a Ranger's Emanator..."
La Mancha was stunned.
It was common knowledge that all Emanators of "The Hunt" were in the Xianzhou Alliance; the path of the Rangers had never produced a true master.
La Mancha looked at Leon, with only a single thought in his mind.
—"The Reignbow Arbiter has come to their aid"!
"Hahaha!"
La Mancha couldn't help but laugh, a laugh of triumphant relief.
How could an Emanator of "The Hunt" just suddenly appear out of nowhere?
The Galaxy Rangers hadn't produced one in so many years, yet one was born today at this critical moment. "If that's not the aid of the Reignbow Arbiter, what is?"
Big or small, when trouble arises, they truly take action. This is the charm of "The Hunt"!
"A Nameless?"
Ternan exclaimed in surprise. With such a huge commotion, he had certainly noticed the sudden change on the battlefield.
But unlike La Mancha, his attention was on the ticket on Leon's collar.
"Akivili, are you watching over me...?"
Ternan was momentarily lost in thought, murmuring to himself.
The silver ticket symbolized a friend of "The Trailblaze."
Whenever a new navigator of the Astral Express took office, they had the right to slightly modify the "Nameless" ticket or add new things to it.
However, most navigators were unwilling to alter this heirloom, with only a few open-minded ones daring to add small embellishments.
If you didn't look closely, the ticket on Leon's collar was no different from his. But on closer inspection, you would find slight differences.
It was the original version, a product of the era when "Akivili" still existed.
After the passage of time, it was now considered out of print.
Although he had never heard of Leon's name, the fact that he possessed such an ancient ticket suggested what an authoritative senior he must be.
Aha: What, thinking about me?
Year 2 of the Genwa Era, Astral Express...
"Where did this Emanator of The Hunt pop out from?"
Zulo was baffled.
Unlike the joyous Galaxy Rangers.
Facing a group of Pathstriders and the Swarm was one thing, but now facing an "Emanator" directly... he was really in for it.
"Miracle God, go to hell and tell them my name!"
As the words fell, just as Leon was about to draw his arrow, a pressure far exceeding his own power level suddenly obstructed him, stopping his hands in their tracks!
Leon's brow furrowed tightly.
He had never felt so powerless.
In just that one instant, his stats had been completely suppressed.
The one who intervened had stats far, far above his own!
He had only ever experienced stats of this level from "Lan"!
Leon wanted to see who had interfered.
He struggled to look up, the shimmering, reflected light causing him to instinctively half-close his eyes.
A tall, humanoid being, forged from pure, ice-blue glaze and crowned with six-pronged antlers, appeared in his line of sight, its aura like that of an emperor.
—The Aeon of "Remembrance," Fuli!
The image stirred a faint memory in Leon's mind.
He'd seen it a few times by chance when playing the Simulated Universe before; it seemed to be an "Aeon" as well.
"You want to protect him?" Leon asked calmly.
As if even if Fuli said yes, he would still strike without any hesitation.
Fuli was silent.
"I asked the wrong question."
Leon figured an "Aeon" was unlikely to intervene for someone's sake; after all, not all of them were as approachable as "Lan."
"Is it this memory you want to protect?"
That previous Emanator of Remembrance called "Oblivion"—he had thought her ghoulish appearance was her own performance art, but now it was obvious she was cosplaying this being.
In other words, this was the Aeon of "Remembrance."
If that was the case, it would explain the current situation.
Him, from the future, preparing to kill the past Zulo on behalf of the past Galaxy Rangers—in Fuli's eyes, this action was probably no different from altering established history.
It wasn't strange that it would draw an intervention.
Fuli still said nothing.
But the pressure on him lessened considerably, as if silently acknowledging his words while also giving him a wordless warning.
Retreat, and you will be unharmed.
"The Hunt never compromises. Neither do I."
Even before an "Aeon," Leon had no intention of backing down.
A Galaxy Ranger never bullies the weak, nor do they fear the powerful!
"On the river of time's reverse flow, ten thousand immortals retreat; an Aeon cannot defeat the tears of resolve!"
You can't half-draw an arrow.
Leon wouldn't retreat. He still had an ace up his sleeve!
With two superpowers in hand, forget one "Aeon"—even if all eighteen showed up, he would stand his ground and draw this arrow today!
Leon would remember the humiliation of having his stats crushed today!
Just wait. Give him some time to grow, and his stats might not necessarily lose to Fuli's!
As his words fell, the Vanquisher flashed with an azure radiance.
Leon suddenly felt all the pressure on him vanish, replaced by a feeling of powerful support.
Sensing something, he looked back.
An astral projection of "Lan" had appeared high above behind him at some point, now in a standoff with "Fuli."
Lan was backing him up, just like that time against Phantylia.
"Heehee, Aha wasn't wrong about you!"
The next moment, a sphere composed of various masks also appeared beside "Lan," cackling madly.
"Go on, go fight Fuli! If Fuli fights back, Aha will be the first to run!"
"Aha" fanned the flames. Despite the words, its position undoubtedly showed it was on Leon's side.
The two "Aeons" stood to his left and right, like two great guardians.
Even when facing two beings of the same rank, "Fuli" still showed no change in expression.
It simply watched him indifferently, as if waiting for him to make a choice.
To retreat, or to continue.
"What I want to do, I will do. No obstacle will stop me!"
Leon gave his answer.
He drew the Vanquisher's string again. The "Causality" arrow reformed, and within his unquenchable golden eyes, the flames of an indomitable will burned and danced!
There were two lines in the Xianzhou's "Universal Chronicles."
Vengeance boundless, a hunt without end, how many seasons has the Arbiter seen?
When he chose to leave the Xianzhou and roam the cosmos as a Ranger, he had, in a true sense, fulfilled the first line.
And now, he was about to fulfill the second!
—The celestial arrow nocked, golden eyes ablaze, the Reignbow Arbiter never looks back!
Fuli remained silent, but it seemed to have no intention of interfering again.
It had appeared here for two reasons.
First, to stop a transgressor from unilaterally altering a concluded history, turning a recorded "Memory" into apocrypha!
The formless, colorless arrow shot from the bowstring!
Leon released the arrow without hesitation. Feeling a sense of relief, the corners of his mouth turned up slightly.
The takeoff was a bit rough, but he'd managed it.
"Is this Emanator of The Hunt a comedian?"
Zulo couldn't see the three "Aeons." He only saw Leon draw an empty bow, becoming a comical archer, and couldn't help but point and laugh.
But in the next second, he felt his heart suddenly pierced by something unseen.
"What the hell?"
Before Zulo could even finish his question, his entire being vanished completely!
"Causality."
As its name implies, the ability allows one to find a person's "effect" on any timeline based on its "cause"!
Leon's arrow had directly struck the moment of Zulo's birth.
A person happens to find a real gun on the road.
Young and fearless, he pulls the trigger. No one dies, no one is hurt, and he thinks he fired a blank.
But later, when he is thirty or even older.
He's walking down the street as usual when he hears a faint whistling sound behind him.
He stops and turns around.
The bullet from so many years ago hits him right between the eyes.
This is a good way to describe "Causality."
The moment Leon acted,
"Fuli," the master of "Remembrance," also acted!
A blinding, ice-blue light enveloped the world!
Second, to help a capable individual modify history, elevating the altered "Memory" to the status of official record!
When the light faded, "Fuli" had also departed.
"Lan" and "Aha" left along with it.
"How rare. So 'Fuli' acknowledged you after all."
Aha's presence had left, but not completely like the other two "Aeons." As they say, mostly gone.
"What do you mean?" Leon didn't understand.
Honestly, he was completely unharmed and had no idea what "Fuli's" sudden action was for.
"Heehee, if Aha mercifully tells you, will you come to like Aha?"
Aha's tone clearly indicated it knew everything.
Leon heard this and immediately replied.
"'Fuli' was helping you get the altered future recognized as the official history," Aha said with a giggle.
"Without the help of 'Mythus,' no matter how much you meddled, you would only ever change this small fragment within the Memory Bubble.
"In reality, Zulo would still be killed by the Galaxy Rangers, and they would still die in that battle."
"But with 'Fuli' acknowledging the 'Memory' you changed, the nature of it is completely different."
"This means history has truly been altered."
Aha kindly explained.
"In other words, Zulo is now well and truly dead by your hand, and in reality, this group of Galaxy Rangers also survived the battle."
"To put it more simply, everything you just did here will be reflected one-to-one in reality. It's no longer an illusion."
Aha laughed heartily.
______
🔥 New chapters are up! 🔥
Running a 25% off sale on my P... (Walnutchan)!
✅ Read 40 chapters ahead of everyone else.
✅ Get cool exclusive stuff and updates!
Let's hit these goals:
🎯 100 Powerstones = 1 extra chapter for the public!
🚀 80 MEMBERS = 5 extra chapters on all stories for supporters!
👻 P - Walnutchan