Ruan Mei's question was… annoyingly vague.
"Omen Vanguard… and the Four-Not-Yet Doctrine…?" Screwllum repeated, his tone measured. "My database contains only scattered references—mostly tied to prophecies treated as 'omens of apocalypse.'"
"Ruan Mei, why bring these up?"
"And why connect them to that Lord of Silence?"
Ruan Mei set her teacup down with unhurried calm.
"Not long ago, the Lord Ravager Qingzhou appeared on the Luofu and exposed that he and the Stellaron Hunter 'Asam' are the same person. You've all heard the news, I assume?"
Everyone nodded.
Herta clicked her tongue and took over, as if she'd been waiting for her cue.
"Mm. Some details are inconvenient to share—we made certain arrangements with the Xianzhou Alliance—but I can tell you this."
"On that day, the Lord of Silence, Polka Kakamond, and the Alliance Marshal were both involved in the operation to hunt down Qingzhou."
Screwllum's interest visibly sharpened.
"An operation to hunt Qingzhou? From what I know, it did not succeed. Yet both the Lord of Silence and the Xianzhou Marshal moved at once… That is an excessive level of force."
He paused, then added in a quieter register, as if turning a model over in his mind.
"Still… if Qingzhou truly qualifies as a 'Pre-Aeon' candidate, then his strength would be difficult to estimate in the first place."
Herta shrugged.
"None of that is the point."
"While we were still on the Luofu, we received an anonymous signal."
"At the time, we didn't have the bandwidth to deal with it. But now we've confirmed it—this signal came from the Lord of Silence."
"A signal from her?" Wei Qing spoke up.
He'd assumed it was simple provocation. But judging by the way these two geniuses were talking, they'd extracted something real from it.
Ruan Mei nodded lightly.
"Yes. That level of encryption and Intelligence-grade methodology… only a member of the Genius Society could execute it."
"As for the possibility that another genius did it, we ran exclusions. The likelihood is below 1.8%."
Wei Qing asked, "So what did she say?"
"The message was brief, and wrapped in multiple layers of encryption. Herta and I only finished decrypting it recently."
Ruan Mei's answer was strikingly concise.
"Four characters: Omen Vanguard."
"Omen Vanguard…" With the earlier question already on the table, no one reacted too strongly.
It was a name that had only begun to spread in recent times—one increasingly stamped with the mark of "Finality."
But for Wei Qing, that organization was anything but simple.
From what he remembered of the future, the so-called "Four-Not-Yet Doctrine" was something that they had popularized.
Screwllum continued, "According to my records, Omen Vanguard is an extremely elusive organization. Their footprints appear across multiple star systems, yet they remain consistently untraceable."
"They seem devoted to disseminating prophecies."
"Initially, no one cared. But beginning last Amber Era, their prophecies started to come true with increasing frequency. That is why they were labeled 'Finality.'"
Ruan Mei gave a small nod.
"Yes. And the Four-Not-Yet Doctrine was the earliest prophecy they spread—also their most representative and core 'end-times' thesis."
"Herta and I agree: if Polka Kakamond deliberately drew attention to anything, it could only be this prophecy—one that may decide the future of the universe itself."
"…Four-Not-Yet Doctrine?" A voice cut in bluntly.
Acheron.
Right. Acheron, as a Self-Annihilator, cared about almost nothing beyond her own objective. She'd lived long stretches detached from the world, her memory worn thin by the Path itself—so it made sense that she didn't know this.
Ruan Mei paused for half a beat, then explained.
"It's a prophecy first proposed by Omen Vanguard. According to them, the universe will reach 'Finality' under the influence of four Paths."
"Four Paths?" Acheron tilted her head slightly—rare interest glinting through the usual emptiness.
Ruan Mei continued evenly.
"Yes. They claim Finality is not a single event. It is four distinct Paths—separate, yet converging—driving the cosmos toward an end."
Acheron asked again, "Which four?"
"I'm afraid we don't know." Ruan Mei shook her head.
"That's the key problem. Omen Vanguard's description of the 'Four Ends' is extremely vague. What circulates publicly is only the title and a few ambiguous fragments."
"We only know this: their prophecy insists there are four Paths that will guide the universe to its terminus. But which Paths, and in what form… they refuse to clarify."
Herta folded her arms.
"Hmph. Classic smoke and mirrors."
"But if even the Lord of Silence went out of her way to send 'Omen Vanguard' through a heavily encrypted channel, then the organization—or the Four-Not-Yet Doctrine they preach—is absolutely not trivial."
"She was warning us."
Wei Qing asked, "A warning? You think she sensed some impending danger tied to the doctrine?"
"What else would it be?" Herta lifted an eyebrow. "She doesn't fire signals for fun. She must've seen something."
There were countless doomsday prophecies circulating in the galaxy, and Herta normally treated them like background noise.
"This is different," Ruan Mei said softly. "Polka Kakamond's warning, plus Omen Vanguard's prophecies steadily coming true… we have to take it seriously."
Then she looked to Granholm.
"Granholm, as the former navigator of the Astral Express, you've charted countless regions. Have you heard of similar prophecies?"
Granholm considered for a moment, then answered slowly.
"The Express recorded many 'end of the world' prophecies across the stars. Most were fabricated."
"As for the Four-Not-Yet Doctrine… I've heard the name, but I never followed it."
His gaze sharpened slightly.
"Still, if the Lord of Silence issued a warning, then this is no small matter. Have you found anything concrete?"
Herta and Ruan Mei exchanged a glance.
Herta stepped forward and tapped the air, projecting a luminous screen filled with icons representing the many known Paths.
"We tried reverse inference," Herta said. "If Omen Vanguard claims four Paths lead to Finality, then we list every known Path and—"
She made a slicing motion.
"—we eliminate."
Wei Qing asked, "And your conclusion?"
He was genuinely curious. In this era—centuries before the mainline events—could these two geniuses crack the riddle early?
Herta answered without hesitation.
"No definitive conclusion."
"Too many possibilities."
"Destruction obviously makes the shortlist. But even something like Propagation could qualify—Tayzzyronth is dead, but the Swarm legacy is still out there. Who's to say Propagation won't surge again?"
She paused, eyes sweeping the room.
"That said… we can name a few Paths with higher probability."
"Destruction. Ruan Mei and I agree: if the Four Ends are real, Destruction is almost certainly one of them."
Ruan Mei nodded.
"Nanook's Destruction is, by its nature, a negation of cosmic order."
"The Path and its factions pursue the end of all things. If the universe must reach Finality, Destruction is almost guaranteed to be one link in that chain."
She hesitated—then added the part that made Wei Qing's scalp prickle.
"And we suspect that if Finality is tied to Destruction, then Qingzhou's existence will have significant influence within it."
Wei Qing: …What?
What did that have to do with him?
The way they were analyzing him, it was like he was sitting in a defendant's chair, listening to prosecutors build a flawless case for crimes he hadn't committed.
He coughed and forcibly steered the conversation.
"So aside from Destruction… what are your other candidates?"
Herta shot him a look, clearly displeased at being interrupted.
But before she could launch into her next chain of reasoning, Acheron spoke again—quiet, flat, and razor-straight.
"Nihility."
Everyone looked at her.
Acheron lifted her eyes. The pale violet in her gaze held no emotion—only a statement of fact.
"If all things end, then Nihility is also possible. IX… is itself a form of Finality."
Herta nodded, surprisingly quick to agree.
"It's on our list."
"Nihility dissolves existence and erases meaning. In a sense, it is even more absolute than Destruction."
"If the Four Ends prophecy describes the universe's ultimate fate, then Nihility is extremely likely to be among them."
Wei Qing pressed, "And the rest?"
"Nothing solid." Herta spread her hands. "Destruction and Nihility are the two with the highest probability. As for the other two…"
Her expression soured.
"Too many candidates. Propagation? Gluttony? Abundance? Even Elation? With so little information, their odds are all roughly comparable."
A short silence followed.
Wei Qing thought to himself.
He knew more about the "Four Ends" than anyone in this room—at least, more than they did.
Destruction and Nihility were part of it.
But beyond one Path that hadn't even been formally revealed in the storylines he remembered… Harmony also hadn't been explicitly raised here.
Still, he had no intention of handing that information over freely.
He brought the discussion back to the practical.
"Then why share these theories with us?" Wei Qing asked. "What do you want the Astral Express to do?"
Herta answered bluntly.
"Simple. Share intelligence, and stay alert."
"The Express has traveled farther than any of us and made contact with more civilizations and anomalies than we could ever manage."
"If you encounter any leads tied to Omen Vanguard or the Four-Not-Yet Doctrine, share them immediately."
Ruan Mei's tone carried rare gravity.
"Polka Kakamond's warning is not baseless."
"We suspect Omen Vanguard's activities are more frequent and more hidden than current records indicate. If multiple factions keep information flowing, we may detect danger earlier."
As the new navigator, Wei Qing responded on behalf of the Express.
"I'm afraid we can't commit to a long-term information network."
Seeing their expressions tighten, he continued before they could object.
"It's not unwillingness. It's the Express's condition."
"At this moment, the Astral Express has only two Nameless left—myself and Granholm."
"And the Express is about to enter a long hibernation period. We came here precisely because we want to find any possible avenue of maintenance before it sleeps."
Herta frowned. But Granholm's near-vanishing life signature, plus the heavy, tired presence of the Express itself, made it hard to push.
"…Hibernation," Herta echoed. "Your old relic really does need a major overhaul. But—"
She turned sharply to Wei Qing.
"You're an Emanator of Trailblaze. Can't you use your power to nourish the Express?"
"I tried." Wei Qing didn't dodge it. "It's a drop in the ocean."
"The damage is conceptual—directly tied to the Trailblaze Path falling into dormancy. My power can relieve symptoms, not reverse the root."
Ruan Mei's gaze grew thoughtful.
"Conceptual wear… an interesting framing."
"If we analyze it from the essence of the Path, we may find a way to ease it."
She looked at Wei Qing, her voice gentle—almost earnest.
"Yi Qing, may we board the Astral Express and assess it directly?"
"Perhaps with the three of us together, we'll find details that pure perception can't capture."
It was a suggestion—and, quietly, a request.
Ruan Mei had brushed against most known Paths in one form or another, but Trailblaze had always remained out of reach. She had no intention of letting an opportunity like the Express slip by.
Herta immediately lit up, all the doom-talk forgotten.
"Exactly! The Express is one of Akivili's greatest miracle constructs. Its mechanics and structure have to be full of secrets!"
"Let us take a look. Maybe I get a flash of inspiration and solve it on the spot!"
Wei Qing exchanged a glance with Granholm.
Their purpose in coming here had been precisely this.
After a brief pause, Wei Qing nodded.
"If you're willing, the Astral Express will welcome you. The train isn't in good condition, though—if our hospitality falls short, please forgive it."
"No problem!" Herta snapped back, already itching to move. "I'll send a few puppets ahead for preliminary scans and baseline data collection. Ruan Mei and I will prep the equipment and models we might need."
At her command, several miniature Herta puppets stepped forward.
"You—go to the Express," Herta ordered. "Standard procedure. Collect baseline readings and prepare real-time uplink."
"Understood, peerlessly beautiful Lady Herta!" the puppets replied in chorus.
Ruan Mei returned to her private lab to prepare.
Given her long-standing collaboration with Herta, securing a few rooms within Herta's domain was trivial.
This space, unlike Herta's cold efficiency, felt quiet and refined.
But Ruan Mei didn't begin sorting equipment immediately.
Instead, she walked to a display shelf filled with living specimens—carefully cultivated "byproducts" of her research into lifeforms and Path interaction, and also her most reliable sources of inspiration.
Her eyes drifted past vibrant samples and finally settled on a small pot of white flowers that looked almost ordinary.
It was a flower created by quietly drawing in a trace of Qingzhou's Abundance aura.
It wasn't particularly useful—mostly it soothed the mind and lifted the spirit.
Yet before each major research phase, Ruan Mei had formed a habit: she would come here and touch it, letting her thoughts settle into their sharpest, calmest state.
She extended a slender finger and brushed the petal.
A familiar Abundance presence rose like a faint breath.
It always steadied her.
"Qingzhou… Yi Qing…" she murmured, the two names circling her tongue.
The Astral Express's new navigator—Yi Qing.
At first glance, there was nothing obvious.
But as their conversations continued, an inexplicable sense of familiarity refused to fade.
Not the face. Not the voice.
Something deeper.
The occasional micro-pause in his speech. The way he handled Herta's aggressive probing. Even subtle preferences in how he tasted the pastries.
The details overlapped with Qingzhou in a way that felt… statistically uncomfortable.
"Is it just an illusion?" Ruan Mei asked herself softly.
Her contact with Qingzhou had never been truly "deep." Much of it came through the severed arm and the research around it.
But at her level, "intuition" was built from massive unconscious processing—signals too small to name, but too consistent to ignore.
If they truly were the same person…
Why masquerade as the Astral Express's navigator?
Akivili had long since fallen.
And if he could somehow become an Emanator of Trailblaze anyway…
That would be absurd—enough to make countless Pathwalkers die of envy.
Just as Ruan Mei allowed herself to dismiss the thought—
A presence appeared behind her, silent as a thought slipping into the mind.
"Lady Ruan Mei," a voice said, amused and unhurried.
"Do you have a special fondness for my Abundance?"
Ruan Mei's entire body jolted.
She didn't turn immediately, but the serene aura around her snapped into vigilance in an instant.
Slowly, she pivoted—
And saw the figure standing at the entrance of her private lab.
Wei Qing.
Not "Yi Qing."
Wei Qing—restored to his original appearance.
Ruan Mei: "???"
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 165)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter220)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter125)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter250)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 220
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 185
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass Volume2/20
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 248
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 230
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 154
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player Volume4/40
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 125
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 67
Uma Musume: From Beginner 145
Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 85
Uma Musume: I Want All 120
I Can Copy Unique Skills 115
Summoning an Evil God, but the 75
Supernatural Multiverse 110
My Harem Is Indescribable 100
Jujutsu Kaisen: Heroic Spirit 105
"I'm just a Valkyrie passing through." 67
Uma Musume: Today Is Another Romantic Battlefield 105
Still playing traditional Honk 80
The Most Filial Son Under Heav 85
What Should I Do After Switchi - Volume2/3
Reincarnated as a Demon, Skill 78
Hell-Difficulty Dungeon? 55
Transmigrated as Sukuna 80
Checking In in Demon Slayer 85
The Reincarnating Trainer of Tracen Academy 100
I Refuse to Become a Heroic 85
My Best Friend Into a Slime? 80
A Saiyan Stands Above Marvel 90
What Do You Mean by Using a Lab Mod to Be the Hero? 75
Tanya Starts from Re:Zero 80
Why did they assign me to Uma 75
MYGO Beauties 70
DanMachi: Emiya the Giant Hero 70
The Gacha Merchant Who Started 80
Honkai's Otherworld? Wait—Who Are You People?! 80
Emiya Shirou, Determined to Slay Every Curse and Evil Spirit 57
The Uma Musume Who Became 55
I'm Definitely Not the King of 60
After Maxing Out Every Class 45
Naruto: I'm Konoha's Local Men 35
Honkai: World Modulation Mode 34
I, the Elden Sword Saint 27
Dio Brando Is Challenging FGO 24
No One Knows Pokémon Better 18
I, Sakazuki, Won't Go Down Tha 20
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