Chapter 376: Meteor

6 p. m., the Moon.

Inside the pure white Jade Rabbit Cabin, Jiang Xia was rapidly tapping the keyboard; before him were the constantly flashing astral switches, and the massive energy of the galaxy was continuously being drawn into the Jade Rabbit Cabin.

In the unfathomably deep universe, a huge solar halo was slowly rising, forming a shimmering arc on the horizon that illuminated the Moon's craters, sinkholes, and ruins with crystal clarity.

Today truly was perfect weather for a sunbath, but sunbathing on Earth and being baked on the Moon are two different things; twisted heat waves filled the entire Jade Rabbit Cabin, the Kamen Rider division became like a furnace, and the people inside were like dumplings about to be steamed, each clad in a spacesuit.

Among them was JK, whom Ruyue Xian Tairan had pulled into the Kamen Rider division; Jiang Xia had merely greeted JK, and he, as Scorpio, took JK to experience what an information leak feels like.

He used the Scorpion Tail to instantly cut a carrot into perfectly equal cubes for cooking, but at that moment the carrot was in JK's hand, and afterward JK fell silent when facing him.

"Teacher, is it over?" Fengcheng Meiyu stretched out her plump hand, "I can already feel the heat."

This twisted high temperature, without a doubt, was caused by the astral switches; on the Moon, a temperature that requires a spacesuit to block is not a natural phenomenon—it is the power of the No. 20 flame switch, and at the same time many astral switches of various functions were also being unlocked.

Only Jiang Xia could unlock so many switches at once; after all, he is the one who possesses the Earth Library, and such a feat is a piece of cake.

"Almost done; the data of the astral switches are largely common, so activating them together is indeed feasible," Jiang Xia, now in the form of Scorpio, resisted the flame switch's power.

In this situation, of course one cannot brute‑force resist with a flesh body; not being afraid doesn't mean one should forgo protection. The Star Disciple Switch is meant to help humans adapt to the harshness of space, and it must be used for its proper purpose.

"Why does only this switch have such a massive energy reaction? Could it be another switch that can alter Fourze's appearance?" Ge Xing Xian Wu stared at the flame switch through his transparent helmet.

"There are forty astral switches in total, every ten forming a special node, which can also be understood as a special form of Fourze. No. 10 is electric, No. 20 is flame, Nos. 30 and 31 represent magnetism; undoubtedly these can boost Ruyue's combat ability dramatically," Jiang Xia pressed the final Enter key with his claw.

Flame ripples swept through the Jade Rabbit Cabin, like ripples across a calm pond brushing over everyone; after the unbearable scorching, an indescribable icy, refreshing sensation followed, like gulping an entire bottle of cola mixed with clear ice cubes under a 36 °C sun, the chill prompting them all to sigh in relief.

"All right, it's over. Switches No. 1 through No. 31 have all been successfully unlocked; take off your spacesuits. The temperature here has returned to a comfortable 23 to 26 °C for the human body."

"Really, next time I'll definitely choose to stay on the Moon; it was just too hot."

Fengcheng Meiyu placed her spacesuit helmet on the table, fanned herself vigorously with a fan printed with her own picture, her slightly lengthened hair clinging wetly to her fair skin; she really should have followed the advice, otherwise she wouldn't have ended up looking so disheveled.

"What a pity, there won't be a next time; most of the switches have already been unlocked," Jiang Xia shook his head.

"The flame switch possesses extremely robust fire‑resistance; it can not only emit flames through a weapon in hand but also absorb flames and convert them into its own power."

"It's truly amazing, Teacher, solving so many switches at once," Ge Xing Xian Wu said, his joy evident as he gazed at the row of switches; each switch was like his most treasured treasure, and unlocking so many made him as happy as a child.

"Hmm, when Ruyue returns, we can let him try more," Jiang Xia flashed a malicious grin. This quantity of switch experiments seemed to give him many opportunities to train Ruyue Xian Tairan's combat methods, which should be fun. In theory, these switches should have been gradually developed through various incidents and, when battling Star Disciples, selected from existing astral switches as the optimal weapons against them. However, under the threat of Jiang Xia's exile, Hayami Kohei's awakened supernova caused the astral development pace to lag, so a balance was needed.

At that moment, cheerful familiar footsteps sounded from outside the Jade Rabbit Cabin, and Ruyue Xian Tairan, wearing a black jacket with his hair spiked like an aircraft nose, rushed straight in; his black briefcase traced a graceful arc through the air and landed on the table.

"Teacher, I made another friend today; he's also a transfer student, just transferred this afternoon, and I even went to see Sanpu today; his girlfriend already told me how to persuade him back," Ruyue Xian Tairan said as soon as he entered the Jade Rabbit Cabin, eager to share today's events with Jiang Xia.

A person's desire to share is arranged according to closeness of the relationship; if someone constantly shares their experiences or feelings, it means they value you.

"Ruyue, I'd love to hear what you actually did today, but you should change the habit of bringing strangers into the Jade Rabbit Cabin," Jiang Xia said, then looked toward the cabin's door, "The guest hiding outside, you may come in now."

"What! A stranger is coming in?"

"Found out?!"

Two different voices spoke almost simultaneously, both terrified, yet the terror in their tones conveyed completely different messages. The Kamen Rider members instantly grew wary; although they didn't each grab weapons ready to act, an unknown person eavesdropping from the doorway made them feel threatened.

The person lurking outside to eavesdrop never expected that after so much training, on the very first day of the mission they would be discovered.

"Who's there! Come out quickly, or we won't be polite to you, in the name of the queen," Fengcheng Meiyu grabbed the hamburger in her hand.

Chengdao Youmu picked up the fries, aiming at the main door.

The hamburger and fries, of course, were not food but machines powered by astral switches, merely resembling fast food in appearance.

"Sorry, I just saw senior Xian Tairan come in… your storage locker's door seemed open, so I slipped in, but don't worry, I closed it right after entering," the young man in a brown‑yellow coat said timidly, head lowered.

"Liuxing, is that you?" Ruyue Xian Tairan exclaimed.

"Ruyue, introduce yourself," Jiang Xia sized up the unfamiliar visitor.

His handsome face showed a hint of hardness, his clean skin had a marble‑like texture, yet the delicate aura about him completely masked that, giving the impression of a student too shy to speak loudly to others.

"His name is Shuo Tian Liuxing, an exchange student who came from Subaru High School today. Teacher, this is the friend I just met," Ruyue Xian Tairan patted his shoulder.

He looked at the Kamen Rider members, who still seemed skeptical, and bowed ninety degrees, "Sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop; I just didn't know what to do. I was afraid of disturbing you by entering, but I'm genuinely curious what this place is."

(End of Chapter)