---o---
"Rest assured, everyone on the Express. The Xianzhou Alliance is already on its way. The Luofu and the Yaoqing will serve as the vanguard and rendezvous with you first. As for Fu Zhu's current situation… we'll get the details from Ms. Himeko once we arrive."
"Understood."
Jing Yuan ended the call with Himeko, his brow furrowed as he stared at his phone's screen until it automatically went dark.
"Jing Yuan, what's happened to Fu Zhu and the others?"
Feixiao, who had been focused on the radar screen, turned to ask him.
Jing Yuan nodded, a troubled look on his face that he couldn't shake.
"According to Ms. Himeko, the three of them lost all contact after entering Amphoreus. Aside from Fu Zhu making a brief return trip midway, there has been no other news. What about your side, Feixiao?"
Jing Yuan looked over at the radar screen Feixiao had been watching. A dense cluster of red dots occupied more than half of the display.
Feixiao crossed her arms, her eyes fixed on the screen with a frown.
"I didn't expect the Battle of the Gods Fu Zhu mentioned to actually begin. To think we'd run into the fleet of the Lord of Annihilation, Celenova, here. We don't know if they've spotted us, but it looks like they're heading towards our destination."
Feixiao stared at the movement of Celenova's fleet on the screen, then glanced at Jing Yuan.
"What's the plan? How about I go and meet her? See if I can stop Celenova's fleet outside the Amphoreus system."
As Feixiao said this, her eyes were filled with eager anticipation.
Jing Yuan looked up at the screen, lost in thought.
Intercepting Celenova's fleet outside of Amphoreus would certainly be beneficial for protecting the Astral Express crew.
"It's worth a try."
Seeing Jing Yuan agree, Feixiao couldn't help but break into a wide grin. Just as she was about to take off her coat to go and face the legendary Lord of Annihilation, Jiaoqiu rushed over from the other side, looking frantic.
"This is bad, you two generals!"
"What is it, Jiaoqiu? Weren't you responsible for contacting the other Xianzhou ships?"
Jiaoqiu nodded, his face etched with anxiety.
"Just now, as I was making my routine contact with the other ships, a message came from General Yaoguang of the Xianzhou Yuque. She said, 'I have performed a divination for the upcoming battle. The hexagram shows that [Finality] is approaching Amphoreus. Be careful!'"
"[Finality]?" both Jing Yuan and Feixiao repeated in unison.
They exchanged a shocked glance. Why would [Finality] be heading towards Amphoreus?
Even Nanook had only sent one of his Lords of Annihilation to lead the charge. Why would the Aeon of Finality come in person?
What could possibly be on Amphoreus that would be worthy of a personal visit from an Aeon? Or was it that this Aeon also intended to participate in the Battle of the Gods?
Jing Yuan's brow furrowed deeply. If it was just a Lord of Annihilation, the Xianzhou Alliance could handle it. But if their opponent was an Aeon, one careless move could spell doom for the entire Alliance.
"Jiaoqiu, did Yaoguang explain why the Aeon of Finality is coming in person?"
Jing Yuan had hoped to get more information from Jiaoqiu, but to his surprise, Jiaoqiu simply shook his head.
"It's not the Aeon of Finality!"
"Not the Aeon of Finality?" Jing Yuan was stunned. When one spoke of [Finality], the first thought that came to anyone's mind was the Aeon. After all, that was the Aeon of [Finality]. Could it be an Emanator of Finality?
"It's a black dragon! General Yaoguang calls it the Dragon of Finality!"
---o---
Meanwhile, in a vast sea of stars, a colossal, sky-blotting starship was advancing rapidly toward the star system containing Amphoreus, surrounded by dozens of Doom Beasts.
Inside the starship, Celenova was in a remote conference with several of her colleagues.
"Still no sign of Phantylia, Guiji?"
"Heh, you think she's that easy to find? Ever since that trip to the Luofu, there's been no news of Phantylia. I had assumed the rumors spreading across the universe about her being sealed in the Nether by Fu Zhu were just that—rumors. But now, it seems they might be true."
"The Nether… can it be found?"
"No. I've tried every method. I can't even connect to that plane called the Nether. Although I'd love to take a trip to the Luofu, the Luofu and the Yaoqing have been in close contact recently. It would be difficult for even me to slip past two Emanators of The Hunt unnoticed. I'm afraid Phantylia won't be able to join us this time."
Celenova listened quietly to Guiji's words and then shook her head.
"No matter. [The Trailblaze] is also on Amphoreus. Once the iron curtain is broken, we can just capture Fu Zhu directly, have him open the gate to the Nether, and then rescue Phantylia."
Guiji felt that made sense.
"Alright, I'll pack up and head over to join you then."
"Mm."
Just as Celenova ended her call with Guiji, an Anti-Matter Legionary soldier entered, prostrating itself behind her and speaking in a garbled, incomprehensible tongue.
"You say a lifeform is rapidly approaching us? Just send a few hands to deal with it. Don't let it impede the fleet's advance."
The Legionary nodded and quickly departed.
Celenova watched it leave, then pondered for a moment before waving her hand. The screen before her flickered, displaying a projection of a pitch-black starry sky. Within this expanse, lit by only a few sparse stars, she could faintly make out a colossal dark silhouette moving swiftly.
"What is this…"
Before Celenova could identify the figure, a beam of energy shot directly towards it. The light from the beam illuminated the dark sea of stars, allowing Celenova to see the true form of the silhouette—it was a dragon, entirely pitch-black!
"A dragon? The Dragon of Finality?"
Celenova was somewhat bewildered. She couldn't understand why the Dragon of Finality, a being that had only recently appeared in the universe and had already ascended to a level equal to the Aeon of Finality, was here.
Before she could puzzle it out, a strange event occurred on the screen.
The energy beam that should have struck the Dragon of Finality suddenly dissipated into particles as it neared its face.
The dragon, however, continued to fly forward, flapping its wings as if nothing had happened. It wasn't even provoked by the sudden attack, acting as if it had merely been brushed by a breeze during a leisurely stroll.
But the few Doom Beasts dispatched to deal with it didn't see it that way. They charged towards the shadowy dragon in unison.
However, just as they were about to attack, the Dragon of Finality merely gave them a passing glance. The fast-moving Doom Beasts instantly froze in place.
Before Celenova's very eyes, the few Doom Beasts disintegrated into countless particles, becoming part of the cosmos once more.
Watching this, Celenova's expression changed drastically.
"Is this the power of the Dragon of Finality? But why does it also carry a faint shadow of Nihility?"
Author's Note:
PS: Let me clarify something. In my story, the end of the Honkai world does not mean the end of all parallel universes. It only signifies the end of the universe where the Honkai story took place. After all, the Sea of Quanta connects to countless worlds. It wouldn't make sense for everything to be gone just because one universe is.
tl/ps: let me know if used the wrong name. its really hard to match the name the author uses:-: