Chapter 250 - 250: March 7th! Surrender and Become an Aether Spirit!

"There is no rush. We will be staying on the Xianzhou Luofu for quite a while," Himeko said, a gentle curve forming on her lips as she took a sip of her coffee. "You have more than enough time to slowly design your own rooms." She paused, setting her cup down on the saucer with a soft clink. "By the way, you should have seen the news from Belobog, right?"

"I saw it!" Bai Heng's fox ears twitched, her eyes sparkling with unhidden excitement. "I want to go see it too!"

"No problem. I'll take you there in a bit," Leon agreed readily, stretching his arms behind his head.

Serval, leaning against the nearby wall with her guitar case slung over her shoulder, naturally had to return as well.

To be completely honest, the Landau sibling was only now truly realizing just how absurdly convenient the Space Anchor network was. If she had known the Trailblazers could use these spatial tethers so casually, she wouldn't have spent so many sleepless nights agonizing over whether to board the Astral Express in the first place. Distance was a joke. She could return to Belobog for a cup of afternoon tea whenever she pleased, no matter how many lightyears the Express traveled.

After a brief moment of packing their essentials, Leon gathered Bai Heng and Serval. A flash of azure light enveloped them, folding space itself, and deposited the trio directly onto the freezing snowfields of Jarilo-VI.

Bai Heng exhaled, watching a puff of white mist form in the freezing air. She wrapped her arms around herself, her gaze sweeping across the frost-kissed landscape in pure astonishment. "Is this Belobog? It truly is a world buried in wind and snow!"

The biting chill was a stark, shocking contrast to the warm, humid, and perpetually spring-like climate of the Xianzhou Luofu.

The snowfield stretching out before them seemed endless, a vast expanse of blinding white. Frigid winds howled, carrying fine, needle-like snow that brushed against their cheeks. Naturally, Jarilo-VI's extreme climate had long since been drastically improved by Leon's previous interventions. The interior of Belobog was no longer the freezing, desperate sanctuary it once was.

Yet, Leon had specifically chosen this desolate snowfield as their landing point for a very practical reason—to activate the dormant Space Anchor buried beneath the frost, ensuring easy transit for future visits.

"Let's go. Belobog is just over there." Leon pointed a finger toward the towering, steam-powered outline of the city looming in the hazy distance.

"I wonder how people living in such a harsh environment celebrate their festivals?" Bai Heng tilted her head, looking at Serval with a bright smile. Her fox eyes crinkled with eager anticipation. "No matter the world, a grand celebration surely won't be lacking in all kinds of delicious food, right?"

In truth, the Foxian pilot didn't know much about Belobog's culture. Her knowledge was limited to whatever she could scrape together from the interstellar network. It was through that very same late-night internet research that Bai Heng discovered Leon had specifically developed a wildly popular video game called Honkai: Star Rail to chronicle and replicate their Trailblaze journey. She found the entire concept absolutely fascinating.

Upon passing through the heavily guarded city gates and stepping onto the bustling, stone-paved streets of Belobog, Leon pulled out his smartphone and tapped a quick message into the Astral Express group chat.

Leon: I've brought Bai Heng and Serval to Jarilo-VI. Where are you guys?

Stelle: That was fast, bro! We're busy collecting Aether Spirits—

Caelus: Step aside, trash panda. I've already claimed the championship title for this festival.

Bai Heng peered over Leon's shoulder at the screen. "Aether Spirits? What kind of fun thing is that?" She turned her curious gaze toward Serval.

The blonde rocker shook her head, strands of hair swaying with the motion. "I'm not too sure either. Maybe it's a new project in collaboration with the Corporation?"

She certainly hadn't heard the term tossed around back when she still lived in Belobog. But then again, considering the Aeon Qlipoth had just recently cast Their divine gaze upon Cocolia, the Interstellar Peace Corporation (IPC) executives probably wouldn't dare to pull any shady stunts on this planet anytime soon.

Bronya: Leon, welcome back to Belobog.

Bronya: We are currently collaborating with the IPC to promote a planetary event called "Aether Wars."

Bronya: Simply put, it uses Aether Copying Technology to record the data of any creature you've encountered into an Aether Coin. You can then print that data out as a physical entity to battle other players.

Sitting in her grand office within Qlipoth Fort, a rare, genuine smile spread across Bronya's face as she typed out the messages. The arrival of Stelle, Caelus, and March 7th had already delighted the young Supreme Guardian, but with Leon absent, a faint, lingering sense of regret had gnawed at her heart. Now, her favorite person had finally arrived too.

Serval: That sounds incredibly interesting.

Reading the chat, Serval's mechanic instincts flared with genuine intrigue. This reaction was entirely expected. After all, in Leon's original game timeline, Serval was a prime championship candidate for Aether Wars. Though, in reality, her role functioned much like a gym leader in a certain monster-catching franchise—existing primarily to hand out progression badges to eager players.

March 7th: It's super interesting! Look—

[March 7th sent an image of a glowing, high-tech Aether Coin to the group.]

March 7th: Through this coin, you can save creatures you've seen as Aether Spirits! Then you can collect, train, and battle them! It's super fun!

Leon stared at the glowing screen of his phone, rubbing his chin in deep thought. He had a vague impression of the Aether Wars event from his past life, though the exact details were a bit fuzzy. He remembered it playing out like a classic game of Pokémon. But hearing March 7th describe the mechanics out loud... he couldn't help but draw a different parallel.

Wait a minute. Why the hell does this sound exactly like absorbing Echoes in Wuthering Waves and summoning them to fight? He shook his head, chuckling at his own intrusive gamer thoughts. I'm losing it.

March 7th: The IPC actually understands Aether Copying Technology too? I thought that was something only those crazy hackers from Punklorde could pull off.

Bronya: The core technology itself does indeed originate from Punklorde. However, through the combined efforts and vast resources of the IPC and the Intelligentsia Guild, the Corporation has preliminarily mastered Aether Editing technology.

Bronya: Although they cannot yet arbitrarily tamper with the fabric of reality data like those elite hackers... the Guild researchers claim that day will eventually come.

For this grand festival, Bronya had leased out Belobog's Old Weapons Testing Ground to the IPC—or rather, established a highly profitable collaboration. The Aether Wars Competitive Association traditionally held massive tournaments for players across the universe at the end of every competitive season. It was a time when players from countless star systems gathered to exchange tactics and battle for glory.

However, due to the lingering Stellaron blockades affecting certain interstellar routes, this particular festival had been temporarily shifted to a primarily online viewing mode. But for the die-hard spectators and local enthusiasts who insisted on experiencing the thrill in person, the offline venue remained open. The heart of the action was right at the Old Weapons Testing Ground.

Bai Heng: I see! It sounds really interesting.

Leon: So, let me get this straight. Through the Aether Coin, you can save the data of any creature you've seen and then print it out for battle? Does that include humans?

Somewhere near the snowy outskirts of the city, Stelle stared at the last line on her phone screen. She slowly raised her head, her golden eyes narrowing with mischievous intent. Her gaze landed squarely on March 7th, who was happily humming a tune beside her.

A second later, Caelus also raised his head from his device, his eyes locking onto the pink-haired archer with the exact same predatory focus.

To collect suitable Aether Spirits for the upcoming tournament, the trio had just returned from a grueling expedition through the Corridor of Fading Echoes. Leon's casual question acted like a chaotic seed, instantly taking root and sprouting into a glorious, terrible idea within the synchronized minds of the two Trailblazers.

March 7th suddenly stopped humming. A chill that had nothing to do with the Jarilo-VI weather crept up her spine. She shifted uncomfortably under the intense, sparkling stares of her two companions. "What... what do you guys want to do?" she stammered, clutching her camera tightly to her chest.

"Nothing," Stelle said, her voice entirely too flat.

"Just had a great idea," Caelus added, cracking his knuckles.

The two spoke in perfect, terrifying unison, their coordination so seamless it seemed as though they had rehearsed this exact villainous monologue for weeks.

"You guys aren't thinking..." March 7th took a sudden, panicked step backward, her boots crunching in the snow. "You guys aren't trying to collect my data to turn me into an Aether Spirit, are you?!"

Stelle and Caelus slowly turned to look at each other. A silent, unspeakable understanding passed between them in that single glance. In the very next second, both of their lips curled upward at the exact same angle, revealing identical, thoroughly evil grins.

"Hehehe... March 7th," Stelle chuckled darkly, rubbing her hands together like a cartoon villain as she slowly closed the distance. "Just give in to us—"

"Surrender and obediently turn into an Aether Spirit! Join us in the competition!" Caelus shouted, flanking the poor girl from the opposite side to cut off her escape route. Their pincer maneuver was flawless.

"No way—!" March 7th shrieked, spinning on her heel and sprinting for her life. Her skirt drew a frantic blue arc in the freezing air as she bolted down the snow-covered street, closely pursued by two cackling Trailblazers.

[Group Chat Interface]

Bronya: Um... that probably wouldn't work, right?

Bronya: Aether Spirits are essentially just physical manifestations of data. I have reviewed the official battle registry, and the entities recorded are all Fragmentum monsters or various local wildlife... there don't seem to be any humans on the roster.

Even through text, there was a distinct hint of uncertainty in the Supreme Guardian's tone. After all, she wasn't a professional researcher from the Intelligentsia Guild; this was merely a logical conclusion based on her administrative observations.

"See that! See that!" March 7th skidded to a halt, panting heavily. She spun around and hopped triumphantly in front of Stelle and Caelus, shoving her glowing phone screen dangerously close to their faces. "Bronya said it! Humans won't work! So back off!"

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