Two months had passed since the Astral Express left the Spiral Nexus.
In the observation car, Wei Qing and Granholm stood by the window, talking as the starsea flowed past like a slow river of light.
After Herta suddenly collapsed that day, the crew had planned to wait for her to wake up and offer a proper apology before leaving. No one understood the mechanism behind her fainting, but given the circumstances, it felt… connected to the Express.
Ruan Mei had checked her and calmly said Herta needed quiet recuperation—and advised them not to linger.
And, truthfully, the Express didn't have the luxury to wait.
"Where's Pom-Pom?" Yi Qing's gaze swept the empty car.
Ever since last week—since they'd told Pom-Pom the destination of this warp—he'd been sulking.
Understandably so.
They were heading toward IX, the Aeon of Nihility.
And the "invitation" was from a Lord Ravager.
Pom-Pom's mood was practically written into the train's air.
"In the control room," Granholm said, his voice sounding a little stronger than before. "Still angry. He thinks we shouldn't accept Phantylia—no, Fenghuo's invitation."
"Not like we have a choice." Wei Qing shrugged. "If we don't go… you'll regret it, old man."
"…Yes." Granholm fell quiet for a moment. Something complicated flickered across his weathered face.
Who would have thought that by the end, this train that had crossed countless Amber Eras would be left with only two Nameless—plus one passenger—and all of them were Self-Annihilators?
Granholm sighed.
"Fenghuo… before Qingzhou appeared, he was widely regarded as the strongest Lord Ravager in the universe."
He looked at Wei Qing, serious now.
"His invitation feels like bargaining with a tiger. Yi Qing—do you think he can be trusted? Even if only as a temporary non-aggression?"
"Trust?" Wei Qing considered. "We don't walk the same road, but when it comes to Nihility specifically… I don't think there'll be a problem."
"Oh?" Granholm was surprised.
He expected some profound rationale.
Instead Wei Qing said:
"Because he can't beat us."
Granholm blinked—then laughed, shaking his head.
"You… are blunt."
"Just being honest." Wei Qing spread his hands. "Fenghuo is strong, but he's still one person. We have Acheron, who's basically his equal. You—experience for days. And me—your navigator who's… reasonably fight-capable."
"If he's rational, he won't pick a death match with us before knocking on IX's door. It gains him nothing."
Granholm didn't fully relax.
"But what if he contacts other Lord Ravagers? Sets an ambush?"
"The chance exists," Wei Qing admitted, "but it's low."
He looked out into the starfield.
"That place is IX's domain. We're Self-Annihilators—we can endure Nihility better than most. But others? Different story."
"This is IX's Nihility. Even Emanators don't get to ignore it."
"And besides," Wei Qing said quietly, "Fenghuo wants the grand act—knocking on the door. With that kind of terminal goal, tangling with us really would be a waste of time."
Granholm followed his gaze. His eyes softened, then hardened again.
"Yes… a goal."
No matter what, this journey needed an ending.
Then Wei Qing frowned slightly.
"Wait, old man. Didn't Fenghuo say he'd wait a year? Your lifespan is running out—why rush?"
"Because it's running out," Granholm answered with eerie calm. "If my flame is going to die, I'd rather it burn on the road to an answer than gutter out in silence."
He paused, then added, almost wryly:
"I also meant to find the train a proper place to 'retire' before I die."
Wei Qing was quiet for a beat, then nodded.
"Stop saying stupid things. Quit putting 'death' in every sentence."
A small, furious voice cut in.
"Pom-Pom doesn't allow you to say unlucky things, Granholm passenger!"
Pom-Pom stomped into the observation car with hands on hips. He was trying very hard to look stern, but the round body and tiny voice made the authority… adorable rather than frightening.
Granholm turned and smiled gently at the companion who'd stayed with the Express through uncountable eras.
"Pom-Pom, I'm only stating facts."
The car fell into silence.
Pom-Pom had seen innumerable farewells.
That didn't mean he could accept them calmly.
Especially not now—when the Express might not awaken for centuries after its coming sleep.
"I don't care!" Pom-Pom's voice wobbled. "I don't care! Granholm passenger, you just aren't allowed to say it!"
"All right, all right." Granholm chuckled helplessly and rubbed Pom-Pom's head. "Our Conductor Pom-Pom is the boss. I'll listen."
Wei Qing watched, lips curling.
He was about to say something to lighten the mood—
When the system's cold chime rang in his head.
[Ding! Special Main Quest complete. Revenge successfully executed.][Reward distribution begins.]
Wei Qing's eyes brightened.
Finally.
So Herta had woken up.
That day, after he'd "adjusted" something in Herta, the system hadn't immediately marked the quest complete. He hadn't been worried—what he'd planted needed time to ferment.
But just as he wondered what the reward would be—
Something unexpected happened.
He hadn't used The World.
Yet time still… stopped.
The observation car froze.
Everything solidified into stillness.
And when Wei Qing recovered—
He was standing in a boundless white space, with no horizon, no edge, no direction.
[You did well.]
A voice like countless harmonious chords resonating together filled the whiteness.
Wei Qing looked up.
A figure appeared—wrapped in a gentle halo.
As it resolved, it was a blue-skinned woman with three heads.
The form was strange—yet the aura around her was overwhelmingly comforting, like returning to something vast and safe.
Wei Qing didn't need an introduction.
His soul recognized her.
Harmony. Xipe.
One of the "four ends."
"Xipe…" Wei Qing's mind tightened. Why now?
And why praise him?
Did Harmony also have a grudge against Herta?
That made no sense.
"I only finished a petty revenge," he said cautiously.
Xipe's response was not what he expected.
[I have been observing you.]
[You walk many Paths at once, yet you are not torn apart by their contradictions. Instead, they form a delicate balance within you. That is rare harmony.]
[Differences are softened. Gaps are bridged. Individual wills—whatever their original motives—eventually contribute to the harmony of the whole. This is what I wish to see.]
Wei Qing's thoughts raced.
"I don't understand," he said bluntly. "Most of what I do is self-interested. It doesn't match what you represent."
[An individual's desire is also part of the whole.]One of Xipe's heads tilted slightly, almost like a smile.[As different notes, even when dissonant, may still compose a grand symphony.]
[So I bring you a gift… and recognition.]
The three heads faced him together, radiating warmth so vast it felt frightening.
[Harmony may be one path that leads to the End—yet the End is not what Harmony desires.]
[Accept this Harmony.]
A gentle power gathered toward Wei Qing like a warm tide.
[Go. Continue your journey.]
[Before the final End arrives, let the symphony grow richer. I look forward to it.]
The white space receded like surf.
Wei Qing's awareness snapped back—
The observation car resumed.
"…So, Pom-Pom, don't worry," Granholm was still speaking, still rubbing Pom-Pom's head, as if nothing had happened.
Wei Qing stood still, fists clenched, feeling the new Harmony within him.
It was real.
"Yi Qing?" Granholm noticed his expression. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing." Wei Qing released his hands and smiled. "Just… thinking how unpredictable things are."
Pom-Pom eyed him suspiciously, then huffed.
"You two have to be fine, Pom-Pom says! Or Pom-Pom… Pom-Pom will really be angry!"
Wei Qing gave a dry laugh but didn't answer.
His mind was noisy in a new way.
He sat down on the couch, alone for a moment.
It was getting ridiculous.
After the system awakened, his Paths multiplied like they were being handed out for free.
And the main story's era was still hundreds of years away.
Yet in mere decades, he'd become someone entirely different.
Destruction. Hunt. Abundance. Finality. Nihility. Trailblaze.And now—Harmony.
And in the Omen Vanguard's "Four Ends" prophecy…
Harmony was indeed one of the roads to the End.
Why did Xipe grant him this?
Was it genuine approval—hoping he'd play a "harmonizing" role at the End?
Or… something else?
Especially the line Xipe left behind:
Harmony may lead to the End, but the End is not Harmony's wish.
It sounded similar to Nihility—IX also had no "wish," no active malice.
Only Destruction—Nanook—was the true antagonist.
Wei Qing muttered internally, So this is the "revenge reward"? Attract an Aeon's gaze?
The system, as usual, stayed silent.
Wei Qing sighed, rolling his shoulders, preparing to adapt to the new power—
When a figure approached.
"What are you thinking about?"
Acheron's cool voice sounded beside him.
At some point, she'd entered the observation car and stood in the shadows with her blade cradled in her arms.
"Wondering if this trip is an appointment… or an execution," Wei Qing joked.
Acheron was silent for a moment, eyes calm.
"You won't die."
Wei Qing blinked, then chuckled. "That confident? It's IX, plus an unclear Fenghuo."
"Because it is IX." Acheron sat beside him. "To Self-Annihilators, that is not a gallows."
She paused.
"As for Fenghuo—his goal is pure. Before reaching the end, he will not allow noise to ruin his trial."
Wei Qing studied her profile.
"You know him well?"
Acheron shook her head slightly.
"Not well. But I walk Nihility. I understand that kind of obsession."
Wei Qing murmured, "Obsession… That's more likable than those who live on schemes."
Acheron didn't respond.
In the past two months, she'd mostly stayed in her room, almost never coming out.
Today, she seemed to have had something to do—
But after talking to Wei Qing for a moment…
She forgot.
It was awkward.
But it was true.
"…Mr. Yi Qing." Acheron tilted her head, lilac eyes studying him. "Your aura is different today."
Wei Qing's heart tightened. Her perception was sharper than he'd expected.
"Different?"
"What could possibly be different?"
"Maybe I spent two months lying flat and my mindset got lazier?" he tried to wave it off.
He assumed Acheron might simply forget.
He was wrong.
Acheron stared silently.
A few seconds passed before she spoke again.
"Not mindset."She said it plainly."Your Paths are fuller."
Wei Qing: "…"
This woman's intuition was terrifying.
Before he could decide how to explain, Acheron didn't press. It was as if she only needed to confirm it for herself.
Then—
She took Wei Qing's hands.
Her hands were cold, but the faint pulse at her fingertips carried the dead-quiet rhythm of Nihility.
"…Uh, Miss Acheron?" Wei Qing blinked. "What is this?"
He should probably yell "help," shouldn't he?
Acheron didn't answer.
She simply… listened.
As if she was sensing something through him.
After a long moment, she spoke.
"Your Paths are loud."
"Loud?" Wei Qing raised a brow. "Paths can be loud?"
Acheron nodded.
"Most people's Paths are singular and pure. Even those with multiple Paths usually have one main voice and the rest as echoes."
"But you are different."
She searched for a description, then chose one anyway.
"Too many voices speak at once."
Wei Qing felt a chill.
He'd just gained Harmony.
Shouldn't that make things more harmonious?
Yet to Acheron, it was louder?
"So what are you trying to do?" Wei Qing asked carefully.
Only then did Acheron seem to realize her grip might be impolite.
"…Sorry. I didn't mean to pry into your secrets."
"I've walked Nihility too long," she added quietly. "I sense existence more sharply than most."
"…I understand." Wei Qing tried to be casual. "Now can you let go?"
Acheron didn't let go.
She looked at him with a stubbornness that felt almost… childlike.
Then she said softly:
"I heard it."
Wei Qing's gaze sharpened.
"Among your voices… one is quiet."
He understood instantly.
Harmony.
The Path that calms, aligns, bridges.
For someone steeped in Nihility for too long, it would be… alluring.
"Can it quiet the others?" Acheron asked directly, almost naïvely.
Wei Qing looked at her and didn't answer immediately.
Instead he asked:
"Do you want them quiet?"
Acheron hesitated, then nodded—then shook her head.
"Not disappear," she said, pressing two fingers lightly to her temple.
"Just… too loud."
"Walking. Remembering. Forgetting. Over and over."
"Things I shouldn't remember won't leave. Things I should remember slip away."
"It's… chaotic."
Wei Qing finally understood.
This wasn't curiosity.
This was her asking for help.
Among all Paths, if anything could offset Nihility without erasing her…
Harmony was one of the few candidates.
But for someone as deep as Acheron, even an Emanator of Harmony might not do much.
Still—
Wei Qing wasn't normal.
And he had nothing to lose by trying.
"I can try," he said. "But I can't promise results. Your Nihility runs too deep."
Acheron nodded gently.
"Thank you. That's enough."
She still didn't let go.
Wei Qing exhaled and reversed his grip, holding her cold fingers.
He closed his eyes and focused on the newborn Harmony inside him.
The moment Harmony reached her—
Acheron trembled.
At first, there was no reaction.
Then, slowly, her expression softened.
Her lashes fluttered.
For the first time in a long time, her face looked… eased.
Like an endless tension loosening.
Minutes later, Wei Qing withdrew the power.
"How is it?" he asked.
Acheron opened her eyes as if waking from a dream.
Her lilac gaze looked slightly clearer—less hazy than usual.
"…Much quieter," she said softly.
"And… comfortable."
She didn't say the next sentence.
I want more.
She could feel emotions returning—just enough to know how easily that would be misunderstood.
Acheron released his hands and stood up. She bowed politely.
"Thank you."
Wei Qing chuckled. "It's nothing. But…" He tilted his head, teasing. "Next time you want help, just say it. You don't need to—uh—hold my hands like you're afraid I'll run."
Acheron paused, as if only now realizing how improper she'd been.
She lowered her gaze.
"…Sorry. I'll remember next time."
Wei Qing opened his mouth to respond—
And Acheron stepped forward and grabbed his hands again.
Wei Qing: "???"
"I remembered," she said.
"…You remembered what?" Wei Qing tried to pull away. No luck.
Acheron's grip tightened slightly.
"I remembered what I came to find you for."
"Okay." Wei Qing went carefully. "And what would that be?"
Acheron didn't let go.
She looked at him—steady, direct.
"We're close."
Wei Qing's smile faded a fraction.
"Close to what?"
Acheron answered simply:
"I can feel IX."
"We've arrived."
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
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Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 165)
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TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
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I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter250)
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I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
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Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
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Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 248
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
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Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
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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
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Uma Musume: Today Is Another Romantic Battlefield 105
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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
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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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