Chapter 1386: and translation of chapter title

"Sounds quite ceremonial." Hugh curled his lip.

"Yeah, anyway, this is the last of the fourteen systems; no one can predict what will happen after the Iron Tomb is born." Mother Milk gripped the steering wheel, her gaze calmly fixed ahead, "Let's take it step by step."

——

"I still don't understand why it's me."

""Star… are you worried that the responsibility on your shoulders is too heavy? Relax, maybe the answer isn't that complicated." Xilian said, "Just as you've seen, all those crowned with the title of hero in Wujia Luo are also flawed mortals. They merely appear exactly where the world needs them, at the right moment.""

""Just as after thirty million ages of stagnation, it is your arrival that sets Wujia Luo's fate in motion again. This is no coincidence, but the inevitability of the 'Pioneer.'" Xilian placed her hands behind her back, gave a faint smile, "A person's character is their destiny; when you chose to board that train, your heroic journey… had already begun.""

After listening to Xilian finish saying all that, Star let out a long sigh.

""Let's set out; we will save everyone.""

""This promise… feels heavy." Xilian nodded firmly, "But I believe in you, Star. The burden borne by the Pioneer is indeed weighty.""

""In that case, Star, having saved so many worlds, you must already be used to the hero identity. Perhaps along the journey you could tell me those stories; then they could become our shared memories.""

""Let's forge ahead. Just as before, let us create a future worth remembering.""

Having said that, Xilian turned and left the second floor, preparing to depart. But just as her silhouette vanished from sight——

A chill.

A stabbing chill came from behind.

""It seems you two are ready to set off. Then this scenery before you, sir, truly deserves special cherishing——"

The speaker was Laigushi, yet Star looked around and saw no trace of it.

""After all, the time left for you to enjoy alone is running short.""

""…Laigushi?!" Star frowned, "You dare to come looking for me?""

""It's a pity to disturb your leisure. To fully express my apology, please do me the honor of coming to my abode… so I may fulfill my duty as host.""

——

Demon Slayer

""Wow… how did this guy suddenly appear? He scared me like a ghost!""

Zenitsu was startled by Laigushi's sudden voice, instantly becoming alert, "It-it-it, is it going to attack Star?! This is… kidnapping?!"

Tanjiro's brows were furrowed; he knew full well that trying to kill Laigushi inside Wujia Luo was utterly impossible.

No, even if Laigushi's physical form appeared before Star and was blown apart, it wouldn't die. As a sentient mechanism of the same type as the Screw Gum, if it wishes, its consciousness could probably be transmitted from one end of the galaxy to the other in just a few seconds.

Tanjiro never doubted.

""It's probably not meant to harm her." Tanjiro speculated, "Given Laigushi's authority in Wujia Luo, her conversation with the two geniuses has likely already been heard by it. Star's role now is more that of a 'bridge'—a bridge connecting the two geniuses and the Astral Express.""

""Huh?" Inosuke couldn't help but shout, "It's about to bring out the Iron Tomb—what's the point of talking? If we're going to fight, let's just get on with it!""

Xiaoqi chuckled lightly: "Heh, you wouldn't understand, would you? This is 'courtesy before force.'"

Inosuke jumped up from the ground, the nostrils of his boar headgear blowing out a rough breath: "What's there to be 'courteous' about? Just go straight to 'force force force' with it!"

""Hmm, I think in Laigushi's eyes, Star might still be a hot potato." Tanjiro averted his gaze from the excited pig-pig, looked up at the sky, "Star is both a 'Destruction' pathfinder and carries a star core within her. Even if it could kill Star, it couldn't avoid or eliminate the star core's effects in a short time, right? But if we keep her, she'll surely find trouble for herself in this Recreation of the World.""

The star core is the cancer of myriad worlds; even Lady Black Tower needs instruments to keep it under control. Tanjiro speculated that if killing Star caused an active star core to appear directly inside the scepter…… that might be the 'variable' Laigushi least wants to see.

——

Star opened her eyes to find herself in a pitch-black world.

No, not completely pitch‑black. She blinked, her vision gradually adjusting to the gloom, and details of the "world" began to appear bit by bit before her eyes.

Beneath her feet lay a dense tangle of electronic wires and pipes, crisscrossing like the blood vessels of some colossal creature. Countless screens were scattered around the conduits—big and small, of various shapes—some slumped in the pipe gaps, others hanging mid‑air from cables, their displays buzzing with complex code.

And above……

Scattered among them were specks of "Starlight," but Star, looking closely, realized they weren't ordinary stars; they were darker, flickering points of light. It seemed countless similar screens were embedded in the darkness, like tens of thousands of silent eyes.

""What… is this place?""

Star crouched to examine the screen beside the road, and beneath the dense code she found a few characters she recognized:

>>>PoleMos600, Power Source: ██, Titan Authority: Conflict, Path: ███<<<

She then checked the other screens, which in turn displayed information about the sky, gateways, and the Death Demigod. In a daze, Star seemed to see Xuedie and Tibao standing before their respective screens.

Star tried to touch the screen at the end of the road, but almost at the same moment a strange sensation surged through her whole body……

She felt ██████

""Anomaly level: Star.""

""Execute: record command.""

A cold mechanical sound came from the screen.

""Heh, did you get startled?""

Star turned around, only to see Laigushi calmly standing behind her.

""This place is the boundary between Wujia Luo and the real world, the viewing gallery where I observe this experiment; you may also call it… 'Beyond Myth.'""

Laigushi paid no heed to her wariness, instead walking straight up to one of the monitors and saying lightly, "What you see before you is the true appearance of the Eternal Realm and the twelve Demigods after shedding the guise of 'epic.'"