"Is this really going to work?"
Thinking about what she was about to do, Baiheng's toes began carving a three-bedroom apartment out of the ground beneath her.
"Guaranteed to work," Chen Li nodded.
"You're not lying to me?"
"When have I ever lied to you?"
"...The Sky-Faring Commission rises, and Tingyun shall be queen!" Baiheng clenched her fists, forced down her shame, turned into her spirit form, and stood at the entrance of the Sky-Faring Commission, shouting in a small voice.
"Louder! Didn't you have breakfast?" Chen Li's voice echoed in her ear.
"The Sky-Faring Commission rises, and Tingyun shall be queen!" Baiheng yelled.
"Very good! Full of spirit!"
"Strange. Yukong, did you hear something?"
Inside the Sky-Faring Commission, Kitsune Saiguu looked quizzically at the Foxian young madam beside her.
Although her companion was still a maiden, her wifely aura was incredibly strong—perhaps even a little too strong.
Yesterday, Kitsune Saiguu had been forgotten on the Xianzhou by Chen Li and was almost taken home by Yukong, which is how the two became acquainted.
After resolving the matter of the Empire in the Akame ga Kill! world this morning, Kitsune Saiguu returned to the Xianzhou in the afternoon, spent some Strale on gifts, and came to the Sky-Faring Commission to chat with Yukong.
"I didn't. But are you sure you don't want to consider a position at the Sky-Faring Commission? We have an internship available. If you're suited for the job, you can become a full-time employee after a month," Yukong said, listening intently but hearing nothing out of the ordinary.
"No need. I've already found my long-lost brother from another mother on the Xianzhou!" Kitsune Saiguu shook her head.
She still needed to hurry and watch more advertisements.
"By the way, Yukong, do you have any friends or anyone you'd like to resurrect?" Kitsune Saiguu asked.
"Friends?" Hearing this, Yukong's eyes darkened.
Did she? Of course, she did.
How could anyone live in this world without one or two people they cared for? If an old friend passed away, it was only natural to wish for their return.
Yukong had a comrade-in-arms named Caiyi.
In her youth, Yukong had been a pilot who had seen countless battles. Her excellent record had earned her the position of Helm Master, but she stopped flying after a brutal war. After Caiyi was sacrificed in that same exceptionally tragic conflict, Yukong gave up her life as a pilot, reined in her personality, and took on the full responsibilities of the Helm Master.
Yukong's adopted daughter, Qingni, was actually Caiyi's daughter.
Incidentally, this was the same war of Abundance in which Danshu had lost her friend, Yufei.
The war had led Yukong to ponder a difficult question: The Starskiff pilots had suffered heavy casualties to hold back the forces of Abundance, yet when Lan the Hunt appeared, the Aeon effortlessly annihilated all the enemies. Did that mean the efforts of the hundreds of thousands who had been sacrificed were all in vain?
One could only say that Lan's arrow back then had left a deep psychological scar on many people of the Xianzhou.
"Kitsune Saiguu, why do you ask such a thing? Bringing the dead back to life goes against the natural order. Do not stray onto the wrong path," Yukong said with great concern after a moment of distraction.
For some reason, Yukong felt that this fellow Foxian before her was different from all the others, giving her a very special feeling. Yesterday, seeing her in apparent difficulty, Yukong had felt a spontaneous urge to help.
"Don't worry, I would never believe in talk of resurrecting the dead. It was just a passing thought, an idle question," Kitsune Saiguu said, waving her hand dismissively.
She knew Yukong had likely offered to help her because of her own inherent skill, [Hakushin's Royal Demeanor], which made her seem like a noble in distress.
But since she had received kindness, it was only natural to repay it.
Beep beep. Just then, Yukong's communication terminal chimed.
"Speak of the devil. One of my juniors just suddenly asked me if I had anyone I wanted to resurrect..." After glancing at the message, Yukong found it to be a great coincidence and mentioned it to Kitsune Saiguu as an interesting anecdote.
"You must not believe it. Bringing the dead back to life goes against the natural order. Your junior might not have ill intentions, but they could have been deceived," Kitsune Saiguu said repeatedly.
Yukong felt those words were a bit familiar.
Aren't you... just repeating what I said?
"Here, take it back!" Baiheng tossed a strangely shaped Curio back to Chen Li.
"Careful with that. Although it's a negative Curio, it can be very useful if used correctly." Chen Li caught the fox statue.
"Are you sure no one else could hear my voice?"
"No one belonging to the Sky-Faring Commission could. It's a case of 'the one involved is the one in the dark'."
"Fine, but will this thing really work?"
"Of course. The effect of this Curio is that if you can make a fox speak a specific phrase, you can get a designated target a promotion."
A Foxian counted as a fox, so there was no problem.
"What a strange Curio. What about the side effect?"
"After getting promoted, the person will either face a mortal crisis or encounter a great calamity."
"???"
"Tingyun has to return to the Xianzhou and pass a trial before she can be promoted. And when Tingyun returns to the Xianzhou, she might not even be the real Tingyun. The one who'll have bad luck won't be the real Tingyun, so it doesn't matter," Chen Li explained.
"Then why did I have to be the one to shout it? Isn't your servant, Kitsune Saiguu, also a fox? I'm Jingliu's servant." Baiheng more or less understood the logic Chen Li had just laid out.
Based on the conversation between Chen Li and Tingyun, one could deduce that the person returning to the Xianzhou using Tingyun's identity would likely be the Lord Ravager, Phantylia.
"Because you are a legendary pilot in the history of the Luofu's Foxians! That's another one of this Curio's restrictions. It only works if the fox who speaks has a close connection to the current event," Chen Li said.
Because the effect of getting a promotion was genuinely great, it meant that this negative Curio, which Chen Li had acquired from the recycling bin a long time ago, was bound to have more restrictions and greater side effects.
Otherwise, why would it be called a negative Curio?
A negative Curio was one that could drag you down at a critical moment or pull you into the abyss!
However, negative Curios had another benefit: while they couldn't help you, they could definitely harm others.
In theory, Baiheng could even use this Curio on Jing Yuan and shout: "The Xianzhou rises, and Jing Yuan shall be king!"
After Jing Yuan overcame numerous trials and tribulations, he might even be promoted to Marshal of the Xianzhou Alliance!
But the higher the promotion, the greater the trials one would face.
Jing Yuan's life might not be tough enough for that.
Moreover, this Curio required a "one-life clear."
If you died in the middle of it, the trial would be interrupted, and the promotion would naturally be nullified.
But that was fine. Jing Yuan's life might not be tough enough to see him promoted from a General of the Xianzhou to the Marshal of the Alliance.
But Phantylia's life was definitely tough enough to get Tingyun promoted from an Amicassador to an official candidate for Helm Master of the Sky-Faring Commission!
As a Suiyang, Phantylia was extremely durable anyway.
By the same logic, if someone like an Aeon of the Hunt was willing to use a method of presence-stripping to disguise themselves as Jing Yuan, they could also take his place in the trials to be promoted from General to Alliance Marshal...
But wouldn't that be turning the tables a bit too drastically?
Perhaps... the Aeon of Elation would be willing to take that job?
[Aha, the Aeon of Elation: Me? Become the Marshal of the Xianzhou Alliance? For real?!]
"Hiss... It seems like it's not entirely impossible," Chen Li's eyes lit up when he heard the little sprite's snarky reply.
The very proposition sounded delightful.
Jing Yuan had always insisted that if Chen Li forged a Curio to suppress the Mara-Struck condition, he would have a chance of becoming the Alliance Marshal, but he knew Chen Li would never want the position.
The Alliance Marshal was out, but what about Hua? That was a question.
Of course, Chen Li wasn't actually interested in being the Alliance Marshal. He was simply interested in "Hua."
And the reason for his interest was purely for the fun of it.
"What are you thinking about? You look so happy." Seeing the irrepressible smile on Chen Li's face, Baiheng asked.
"I was thinking, since we can exploit the bug of Phantylia replacing Tingyun to have Phantylia help Tingyun become the successor to the Helm Master, could we have the Aeon of Elation disguise himself as Jing Yuan and take his place as the Alliance Marshal? Or Aha doesn't even have to do it himself; he could just pick a random Masked Fool on the Xianzhou to do it..."
"Stop your audacious thoughts!" Hearing Chen Li's blasphemous declaration, Baiheng's fur nearly stood on end.
Seriously, dude...
If you don't become an Emanator of Elation, the Aeon of Elation must be blind!
"Is that so audacious? I don't think so. Baiheng, don't you want to see your old friend take another step forward? I think Jing Yuan would very much like to be the Alliance Marshal," Chen Li said.
"I don't. Not at all. With that kind of thinking, you might as well consider if this thing can be used on you. For example, you're an Emanator of Equilibrium now. Could it promote you to become the Aeon of Equilibrium?" Baiheng changed the subject.
I'm sorry, Aeon of Equilibrium.
I'm about to do something despicable!
"What are you thinking? Didn't you hear what I just said? This is a promotion of position, not of strength. And power relies on an organization. If you insist on saying that an Aeon is the emperor of a Path and an Emanator is the prime minister, it's not entirely wrong... Someone could probably try it, but their life might not be tough enough," Chen Li said, shaking his head.
Besides, even if you wanted to become an Aeon, you shouldn't pick Equilibrium. Being the Aeon of Elation at least lets you have fun every day. Being the Aeon of Equilibrium means you actually have to manage the affairs of the entire universe.
"Then... what if you strengthen this Curio and use it on Tingyun? Doesn't she want to usurp Phantylia's identity? Phantylia is a Lord Ravager, an Emanator of Destruction. Is there a chance she could become the Aeon of Destruction?" Baiheng continued.
I'm sorry, Aeon of Destruction.
To prevent the flames of war from reaching my old friend, I'm about to do something outrageous to you.
"That... is somewhat possible." Chen Li thought for a moment and realized it wasn't impossible.
Negative Curios could be strengthened into positive ones, as long as you added enough crystals.
So, the promotion could be upgraded from being about authority to being about power.
And the trials encountered during the promotion could perhaps be offset with the Elation's Die.
One grants tribulations, the other solves problems. It was the classic unstoppable force versus immovable object scenario.
Who would ultimately win would depend on whose code was more advanced!
"Baiheng, your existence is a blessing to all the Emanators in the Honkai: Star Rail universe!" Chen Li patted her shoulder.
The idea Baiheng gave him might not guarantee that all Emanators had an equal chance of becoming an Aeon, but it could grant all Emanators an equal acceptance of death.
Want to become an Aeon? Let's see if your life is tough enough!
Perhaps this fox statue could be used for assassination!
"I'm not that great..."
"Did you think I was complimenting you?"
"Wasn't I?"
"Of course not!"
"Speaking of which, if an Aeon were to be promoted, what would they become?"
"...Baiheng, why don't you change your name? Change it to 'Aeon Killer'."
"Why?"
"Promote an Aeon? I'm afraid even an Aeon's life isn't tough enough for that."
"Then what is above an Aeon?"
"The Imaginary Tree? Then I feel there might be several levels between an Aeon and the Imaginary Tree, but maybe not."
It was like the relationship between a Pathstrider and an Aeon. You could say there was an Emanator in between, or you could say there wasn't.
An Emanator was just a stronger Pathstrider, after all.
"I hope that when Tingyun becomes the Aeon of Destruction in the future, she won't forget about us old partners," Baiheng sighed.
"..."
Theoretically speaking, being able to survive an encounter with a Lord Ravager meant Tingyun's life was indeed very tough.
Chen Li hoped that one day he would see Tingyun ascend to godhood and then deliver her ascension speech: "I, Tingyun, became the Aeon of Destruction not through any other means, but solely because my life is tough!"
The stronger Tingyun became, the more secure one of his self-service meal tickets would be!
As for Herta, the Emanator of Erudition?
Chen Li guessed that Herta wasn't interested in becoming the Aeon of Erudition, but she was very interested in understanding Aeons.
The thought processes of geniuses were always quite clear.
Especially Herta's.
Just as Chen Li was about to leave the Sky-Faring Commission with Baiheng, the sky of the Xianzhou changed!
Chen Li looked up at the originally pink sun in the sky. "It" was gradually retracting its light.
"Has Elysia finally passed the Trial of Pure Beauty? That's great news." Seeing this, Chen Li couldn't help but feel happy for his friend.
Today, he finally didn't have to keep paying the renewal fee for Elysia's projection.
And his Friends Circle, which had been occupied by Elysia's projection for so long, could finally be returned to him.
Elysia had been thrown into the Friends Circle by Chen Li and then kicked up into the sky.
This meant that Chen Li hadn't been able to use his Friends Circle for a considerable amount of time, which was why he had nearly had a heart attack from that monkey's paw earlier today.
Who wouldn't be scared, waking up to see a claw crawling all over the floor and almost crawling onto them?
And when Chen Li was fighting those Aeons like Ouroboros, he had also used a projected Friends Circle.
"Thank goodness, that pink sun is finally setting! Damn you, Masked Fools!"
"I actually thought the pink sun was quite nice."
"Why?"
"I don't know why, but recently there's been a surge in customer traffic from outworlders at the Xianzhou's shops. But they all leave dejectedly after making their purchases."
"I wonder why that is? It's so hard to guess."
"Indeed."
For the people of the Xianzhou, the sky had finally brightened. But for Argenti, the sky had finally collapsed.
"No!" Argenti held his spear, looking at the gradually fading pink sun, and cried out with a loneliness that felt like standing in a public phone booth on a cold winter's day, hearing the goddess on the other end of the line say, "Don't contact me anymore. I'm afraid Charlotte will misunderstand."
A lament, a yearning, a sob, a plea~~
"It's time to find my dear friend. I wonder where he is now." But Argenti quickly found another destination. He took out the Friends Circle terminal Chen Li had left him and made a video call.
"This beautiful lady, do you acknowledge that the Goddess of Pure Beauty, Idrila, is unparalleled in her beauty?"
When Argenti arrived at the Sky-Faring Commission and met up with his dear friend, his eyes lit up upon seeing the pink-haired young woman by his side.
"Eh? But I feel that my beauty and that of the Goddess of Pure Beauty, Idrila, are on par with each other! If possible, I would really love to meet Idrila. She must be a very beautiful girl," Elysia couldn't help but say when she heard the man before her mention Idrila.
"This beautiful lady, like us, possesses a pure heart and the blessing of Pure Beauty. The feeling she gives me is very similar to the pink sun that was hanging in the sky just now. May I ask the lady's name?" Argenti asked politely after speaking with Chen Li.
"Her name is Elysia. In fact, she was the pink sun in the sky just now. She was undergoing the Trial of Pure Beauty."
"I see. I can feel that this lady's longing for the Goddess of Pure Beauty, Idrila, is no less than our own. Dear friend, you are truly surrounded by talented people," Argenti praised.
"Emm..." If Argenti put it that way, he really wasn't wrong.
Chen Li never underestimated Elysia's pursuit of beautiful girls.
And the Aeon of Pure Beauty was very likely a world-class "beautiful girl." If her true form were to appear, she would naturally not escape Elysia's clutches.
After all, what bad intentions could Elysia have? She just wanted to appreciate the beauty of a beautiful girl.
"What an adorable girl. You must be Baiheng. I've been watching you from the sky, moving with Chen Li and Jingliu. It made me so envious of him."
"Hello, Elysia." Like most people, Baiheng found it difficult to accept Elysia's enthusiasm at first.
That was just how Elysia was. Her passion for humanity was often so high that it made people suspect she had ulterior motives.
They might even suspect her of being a "pink on the outside, black on the inside" type.
"What cute ears. May I touch them?"
"Just a gentle touch."
But after spending some time with her, you would discover...
If you cut Elysia open, she was still pink on the inside.
Elysia and Baiheng chatted happily, and Chen Li and Argenti also had a good conversation.
"So you mean, as long as I'm willing to watch advertisements, I can resurrect someone I have a connection with and genuinely wish to bring back?"
When Argenti first learned about the Revival Card link, he was instantly astounded.
"Yes. So, is the first person you plan to try and resurrect the Aeon of Pure Beauty?" Chen Li asked curiously.
"Such an act is not of Pure Beauty. Pure Beauty is everywhere, free. Do you also believe the rumors of Idrila's demise?"
"It seems you are one of those Knights of Beauty who does not believe?"
"Pure Beauty is everywhere. And this Curio of yours has come at just the right time..."
"What? You have someone you want to resurrect other than the Aeon of Pure Beauty?"
"Yes, it's like this. On my way here, I met an outworlder girl selling herself to bury her father. Out of sympathy, I gave her all the Strale you gave me. Now it seems I can perhaps reunite the father and daughter," Argenti said.
"Oh... You're so kind-hearted, Argenti." As he talked with Argenti, Chen Li didn't forget to ponder: Does a relationship of charity count as a connection?
"Speaking of which, the outworlders on the Xianzhou really do come from different places. I never knew that '[No-last-name]' could actually be a surname. It was the first time I'd heard of it," Argenti said, his eyes wide with wonder.
"That's a last name? Then what are their first names?" Chen Li was suddenly curious.
"I forgot to ask the young lady's name. When she saw the Cloud Knights arriving, she quickly gathered her belongings and fled. She was probably afraid of causing trouble for the Xianzhou's Cloud Knights. She's such a good person. I did see her father's name on a notice board, though. It was Sampo No-last-name."
"???"
Argenti was truly the most peculiar person Chen Li had ever met. No matter where he appeared or what he did, it never felt out of character.
For example... getting scammed by a Masked Fool!
Running away at the sight of the Cloud Knights, having no last name, and being named Sampo?
Wasn't this clearly a Masked Fool?!
And it was definitely not the Masked Fool named Sampo!
"Damn you, Masked Fools!" Chen Li cursed under his breath.
Why was he so angry? Because the money Argenti had was given to him by Chen Li!
"Hmph, the Xianzhou is truly a great place. The money here is so easy to scam," Sparkle said, tossing a pouch of coins in her hand.
The main reason Sparkle was able to get to the Xianzhou so quickly from elsewhere was that she ran into an acquaintance who gave her a ride.
Such a smooth start made Sparkle feel that she was destined to achieve great things on the Xianzhou!
For example... find some time to pull off a big stunt and give the Xianzhou a grand performance!
As everyone knows, when you're a Masked Fool in a tavern, you can be dead, but you can't be without a show!
"Sigh, I wonder what kind of sacred being the Masked Fool who dyed the sun pink is? I'd really love to meet them," Sparkle hummed happily as she skipped down the street.
"Hiss." A gust of wind blew past, and Sparkle subconsciously wrapped her arms around herself.
For some reason, she felt a little cold.
---o---