"One Emanator of Nihility and one Bloodsin Wraith? Leave now and no one gets hurt, otherwise you'll all die!" Chen Li declared, wielding the two "blades" of the all-severing [Myriad Phenomena Severance], his tone filled with cold indifference.
"What an energetic young man. What's he doing over there now?" the hoarse-voiced old man asked casually, watching Chen Li, who was holding a strange weapon and staring at the black sun in the sky, muttering something under his breath.
"Perhaps he's contemplating another one of his fantastical plans," Acheron replied, shaking her head.
"What do you mean, 'fantastical plan'? In your eyes, is it really so unreasonable to fly into the depths of that black sun and devour it?" Chen Li asked, dismissing the [Myriad Phenomena Severance] and walking toward his two temporary companions.
"Not unreasonable, but impossible," Acheron said, shaking her head.
After all, that black sun was "Nihility" itself. It was close enough to see, yet as distant as the edge of the sky.
IX, the Aeon of Nihility. It believed the essence of the multiverse was nothingness, and thus existence was meaningless. So it simply stayed there, never moving. But the Aeon of Nihility was perhaps the strongest of all Aeons, because everything would eventually return to nihility...
Chen Li felt the cosmic layout of the Aeons was somewhat similar to Vill-V's conceited personas. Because every persona was a genius, every persona developed conceit. In the end, Vill-V's conceited personas could even account for half of the total talent of all her personas combined. And the Aeon of Nihility was that ultimate conceited persona.
The Aeons of the universe share a 'stone' of power, and the Aeon of Nihility alone takes up half of it.jpg
"Let me formally introduce myself. My name is Chen Li, a Curio Forger," Chen Li said to his two temporary companions.
"Acheron. A mere traveler."
The Emanator of Nihility, "Acheron," whose true name was Raiden Wangchuanshou Mei. Her entire homeland had perished under the reflection of "Nihility" IX, and because of this, Acheron was cursed to become a Self-Anniliator. She saw herself as the guardian of the underworld, standing watch over the path to the abyss of Nihility, guiding every soul unwilling to fall into nothingness back to their original world.
Theoretically, the Aeon of Nihility shouldn't have an Emanator, because IX never glanced at anyone. It was faceless, formless, and had no will to speak of. IX blanketed everyone equally; it was just that some had walked further under its shadow, becoming stained with more of the [Nothingness]. That was all.
"Tielnan. A Galaxy Ranger," the old man said.
"You say my idea is impossible, but aren't you two also staying here for your own strange reasons?" Chen Li asked, glancing at the Bloodsin Wraiths on the Dead Sea.
When mortals walk a Path, it is like crossing water in a small boat, leaving a winding trail and pushing out ripples of countless possibilities. Compared to the fleeting life of a human, these waves take a long time to calm. And among them, some leave such a strong trace of their existence that their own reflections remain in the crests of these waves.
Those were the shadows on the surface of the distant sea—the [Bloodsin Wraiths].
They were the obsessions of Pathstriders, born from the shadow of IX. They saw themselves as the original actors, unknowingly repeating the actions of the deceased from their past lives. They were born from nihility, and to nihility they would go, living a life devoid of meaning.
"Tielnan, you want to ferry these former companions, even though they are merely Bloodsin Wraiths. And Acheron, you choose to help Tielnan in your pursuit of the meaning of nihility. Since both of your ideas are so nihilistic, it's only normal for my idea to be a little nihilistic too, right?" Chen Li said with a shrug.
But this group of empty phantoms had once been Tielnan's important companions, a group of fellow Galaxy Rangers. Tielnan stood here to deliver them, to ferry these lost souls. And Acheron remained here to help him.
"You have a point. How could an ordinary person set foot in this place? Everyone who comes to this Dead Sea has their reasons," Tielnan nodded slowly.
"Don't say that. I'm different from you two. I just got lost and ended up here," Chen Li shook his head frantically.
"Seeing you reminds me of a former companion... Are you also a Nameless?" Acheron suddenly asked, noticing the enthusiastic expression on Chen Li's face as he gazed at the black hole in the sky.
"Why do you ask?" Chen Li retorted. (Erudition Value +1)
Acheron's question attracted not only Chen Li's attention but Tielnan's as well. Tielnan himself had once been a Nameless, a former guard of the Astral Express. He had chosen to disembark at Penacony and became one of its outstanding generals during wartime, but later went missing after a Swarm disaster. He was fortunately rescued by the Galaxy Rangers and joined them in the battle to slay the Lord Ravager Zulo.
"I once had a friend, a young Nameless girl. She planned to travel into the depths of 'IX,' to walk a path deeper and farther than Akivili's..."
"I take it she failed," Chen Li said.
"Mhm." Acheron slowly sheathed the longsword she had partially drawn. Her memory wasn't very good, but drawing her sword helped her recover her memories, making them clearer.
No miracle had occurred. That friend had simply and calmly dissolved into a pool of stagnant water.
"But I believe she never regretted her choice," said the old Nameless, Tielnan.
"Mhm," Acheron nodded again.
"Speaking of which, I do seem to have a strong affinity with the Trailblaze," Chen Li nodded. After all, his transmigrator talent was all about constantly trailblazing into different worlds. Thinking about it, he suddenly felt that Akivili needed to step aside and let him take over the position of Aeon of Trailblaze.
"But your actions lean more towards Gluttony. What possessed you to think of eating the black sun?" Acheron asked, puzzled.
"Perhaps it's just my appetite acting up? Because that black sun smells really delicious," Chen Li said, looking up at it.
"..." Acheron fell silent.
She had wandered the galaxy and seen countless Self-Anniliators and seen countless Doctors of Chaos, but not a single person who had come into contact with Nihility thought it smelled delicious. That thing, [Nihility]... even the Aeon of Gluttony wouldn't eat it, would they?
"Speaking of which... Tielnan, all these Bloodsin Wraiths on the Dead Sea were once your companions, and they were sacrificed in the crusade against the Lord Ravager Zulo, right?" Chen Li looked at Tielnan.
"That's right," Tielnan nodded. The Galaxy Rangers had become famous for their successful assassination of Lord Ravager Zulo, but no one, besides those who were there, remembered the price. This was precisely why Tielnan wanted to deliver his companions' souls—he believed these Galaxy Rangers were heroes in life and should not be reduced to puppets of Nihility in death.
"Then tell me... if your companions' spirits are watching from the heavens, would they rather be ferried away just like this, or would they want to kill another Lord Ravager?" A an idea suddenly sparked in Chen Li's mind.
"That... I don't know." Tielnan's once-firm resolve to deliver his companions' souls suddenly wavered.
"But your question should be meaningless, shouldn't it? After all, this is the Dead Sea, and there is no Lord Ravager here for us to take revenge on," Tielnan said after a long pause, shaking his head.
"Who says it's meaningless? And who says there's no Lord Ravager to take revenge on?"
"Hmm?"
"Allow me to introduce myself. I come from a century in the future. I have a close personal relationship with General Jing Yuan of the Xianzhou Luofu. In the near future, an Emanator of Destruction, the Lord Ravager Phantylia, will use a Stellaron to attack the Xianzhou. If no one stops her, half the Xianzhou will be destroyed, and countless lives will be lost," Chen Li declared.
"The Xianzhou Luofu? Followers of the great Lan? So, are you here to ask for help?" Tielnan's thoughts became a bit muddled.
Tielnan, the deceased former Nameless. That's right, Tielnan was already dead. The one here was Bloodsin Wraith Tielnan. And Tielnan's obsession was to deliver his fallen comrades. As one of the two major factions of the Hunt, the Galaxy Rangers had always held a favorable opinion of the Xianzhou.
"Ask for help? Yes, exactly, I'm asking for help." Chen Li thought this suggestion was excellent, so he decided to go with the flow.
Ask for help? No one can make Chen Li ask for help! Unless her thighs are really white! No, wait, unless they have an Entry Chen Li really wants!
But the one before him was Bloodsin Wraith Tielnan. Playing hardball with him was useless, but a soft approach might work. The Galaxy Rangers were a righteous group that traveled the cosmos punishing evil and promoting good. They revered [Lan]'s method of using violence to quell violence and praised Lan's decisiveness in slaughter. Like Lan, they believed that the kindness and justice of the universe must be upheld through individual actions, and they continuously journeyed between planets on a crusade to hunt down evil.
Wherever there is injustice, there are the Galaxy Rangers! "Asking for help" was an excellent pretext.
And while it was a bit dark... the thought of a group of Bloodsin Wraiths, shouting about friendship and bonds, cursing Lord Ravager Zulo, all while beating up Lord Ravager Phantylia, made Chen Li want to laugh.
Ahem, must not laugh. This is a very serious matter!
"How can you prove your identity?" Tielnan asked.
"Will this do?" Chen Li summoned the Longbow of Peace. At this moment, the bow was still brimming with the power of the Hunt.
"A blessing from the great Lan?" Feeling that cold and resolute power unique to the Aeon of the Hunt, Tielnan no longer doubted Chen Li's identity.
"If it's possible, I am willing to go with you. But I do not know the thoughts of these friends of mine," Tielnan became hesitant.
As Galaxy Rangers who had dared to assassinate a Lord Ravager knowing it was a suicide mission, their courage and determination to fight injustice were beyond question. Even as Bloodsin Wraiths, they had not forgotten their original purpose. After all, a Bloodsin Wraith was the obsession of a Pathstrider; they endlessly repeated the actions of their past lives! But faced with his companions who had already died once, Tielnan, who held the obsession of delivering their souls, could not accept this cross-temporal request for help on their behalf.
"You don't know? Then just ask them." Chen Li produced a card from somewhere.
"What is this?"
"This is a card imbued with the power of miracles. It holds the great power to make any living being or object answer one question for you. I now entrust it to you," Chen Li said, handing the [Then I Ask You] Miracle Card to Tielnan.
Tielnan looked at Chen Li, then at Acheron, and finally at the figures of his companions wandering on the Dead Sea. After a moment's pause, he took the card and walked towards the Dead Sea.
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