Chapter 681: Cooperation: Sweet Dreams and the Holy Grail (49)

Xing felt an unprecedented fatigue; she was about to take a break when she saw the man in blue and the man in red from earlier standing together, apparently discussing something.

Seeing Xing, Lancer stepped forward and greeted, "Isn't this our Miss Xinghe? I was going to mix you a drink, but considering you're still a minor, I'll pass."

"I feel that my current life is fake," Xing said bluntly.

Lancer: "What a coincidence, isn't it? I sometimes think I shouldn't be a space station security guard."

"So, you want to board the Starry Sky Train?"

Xing nodded: "Exactly."

"People like you, clerks who want to board the train, a few appear each year, but when the time comes they all inevitably back down," Archer said calmly. "They understand they're merely trying to escape a burdensome life, not embark on an adventure that could cost them their lives at any moment."

"So, which kind are you?"

——

Battle of Twin Cities.

It seems the threshold to board that train is lower than we imagined.

Jie Si crossed his arms, leaned against the workbench, and frowned slightly. "But the danger level is hard to gauge; after all, whether it's Beloberg, Luofu Xianzhou, or Pinokangni… they're only a small part of the train's voyage life. However, Viktor, the train you hoped would dock on the Rune Continent, with the aim of someday following it to a more technologically advanced star system to treat diseases—that, I think, could be realized."

"More importantly, this," Viktor said, pointing to the deep‑blue crystal sphere embedded on the workbench. "It's a Hextech Crystal, containing extremely unstable arcane energy. According to our previous calculations, the power we can currently wield is only a tiny fraction of what's inside this sphere; limited by Piiertewofu's technology, we cannot tap the deeper arcane energy."

You mean, if the chance arises, we could hand this thing over to Ms. Black Tower or Mr. Luosi Gumu for study, and through their work develop a more efficient, stable Hextech technology that fully exploits the crystal?

Viktor nodded.

He is Piiertewofu's prodigy, yet the geniuses of the city‑state are separated from the geniuses of the cosmos by an entire vast galaxy.

If, in his candle‑like life blown by the wind, he could witness the birth of perfect Hextech and apply it to improve Zaun's environment, reuniting the two city‑states, that would be the scene he wishes to see before death.

"If it's those two geniuses, it's certainly doable. The Genius Club members can develop pulse weapons that can erase dozens of star systems; researching Hextech crystals is a piece of cake. The power of arcane… I'm sure it would pique Ms. Black Tower's interest."

——

"I yearn for an unknown adventure," Xing said resolutely, voicing her true feelings.

"Staying as we are is fine; there will be someone more suitable anyway, I'm just an insignificant mortal," Archer shrugged. "Regret? Who in this world never regrets? But if everyone hesitates because of them, I think there would be no heroes left."

"Even without knowing the road ahead, some still set out to chase a wish. It's indeed foolish, but that very foolishness gave rise to Nameless Guests, Pioneer, and heroes. The figurine you carry is proof that a certain hero once existed."

Archer pointed to the ancient evil‑god figurine hanging at Xing's waist.

"Do you know what this is?"

"Just a clumsy craftwork. Yet because of someone's naive wish, it left a record in history," Archer said. "The train may have already departed, or maybe not, but if you truly wish to walk this path, so what if there's no train?"

"If you truly consider yourself a Nameless Guest, there's only one thing you need to do."

Xing understood his meaning, nodded, and said, "I should set out!"

Xing ran through the space station, chasing the train that was pulling away, and countless clerks stepped forward, calling out to her in unison:

"To the lab! To the cafeteria! Go fishing, go watch a movie!"

"Is life in the space station not good? How many people would envy your life here?"

"There's no antimatter legion here, no abundant spawn, this is the most stable haven in the universe."

Xing also realized something was preventing her from leaving; she had to evade them.

——

Some Science's Railgun.

"How strange… this scene is really unsettling."

Inside the Tokiwadai Middle School dormitory, Bai Ji Heizi instinctively crossed her arms; a scenario that only appears in horror movies, when placed in a hallucination, truly doesn't fear making Xing feel uncomfortable.

It's like locking a bird in a cage, yet flying is a bird's instinct; since Xing has embarked on the 【Pioneer】 destiny, she cannot be willingly trapped forever. Such false tranquility only works on ordinary people, right?

"But if there really were a place where I could live comfortably, that'd be nice~ especially if I could be with Sister every day~" Bai Ji Heizi smiled brightly, snuggling up to Mei Qin, her arm naturally looping around her sister's shoulder, like a pampering kitten.

For most ordinary students, Academy City is just such a place…

Ordinary people wish for stable, comfortable lives, but the premise is that the Caster wants to restrict "ordinary people." In Mei Qin's view, the Caster naturally assumes that those so‑called "heroes" are essentially ordinary people—yet forgets why they became heroes.

Can a comfortable, stable life make Xing give up being a hero?

—Don't belittle heroes, okay!

——

"Stop moving forward; the Nameless Guest's future is only void and despair."

"Do you think you're special? Those Nameless Guests who are superior to you… whether Tie Ernan or Kai Er Beike, they were all swallowed by the dark deep space and never returned!"

Xing crossed her arms and, triumphantly, laughed, "So, you finally admit… I'm a Nameless Guest?"

For a moment, all the voices that had spoken to her fell silent; they no longer spoke.

This time, Xing smoothly passed through them, reached the rear Curio Room, and found the bat that belonged to her.

She had once thought she would never again have the chance to grasp it in her lifetime.