"Yes. The Express has been commissioned to send a passenger back home. We're just resting up in Penacony for a while before we depart."
After Welt finished speaking, the audience in front of the screen immediately grew curious.
Because after the Penacony chapter ended, the main story of Honkai: Star Rail continued unfolding at a tight pace.
Based on the information shown at the beginning, some time had passed between the end of the last event and the opening of this episode.
This mysterious traveller was most likely picked up by the Astral Express during that period.
Who could it be?
Just as the audience was eagerly speculating, Welt was already walking with Sunday toward the next part of the street.
He wasn't simply out for a stroll; he was also watching over this traveller.
Once they reached the end of the street, the scene suddenly shifted.
And the guessing audience finally saw a figure they had never imagined.
Tingyun! Her appearance was far too familiar.
So much so that the viewers momentarily thought they were hallucinating.
After all, it hadn't been long since Ruan Mei revealed she had revived Tingyun.
But before the shocked audience could even react, the surprises continued.
On screen, Sunday, who was following Welt, furrowed his brows and said uncertainly, "The guest you mentioned… are you referring to this lady…?"
"Or do you mean…"
"These?"
As Sunday murmured in confusion, the camera finally revealed the full view.
On an empty, quiet street, countless Tingyun's were standing there!
The audience, who had just been shocked by Tingyun's revival, were now completely stunned.
...
: ???
: What the hell??!!
: Hold on, Boohoo! Why are there so many Tingyuns?!
: Huh??? One, two, three, WTF there are so many Tingyuns!
: Something feels… very wrong??!
: Damn it! I knew reviving Tingyun was going to cause bugs! Sure, she got revived, but the number of revived units turned into negative integers…!
: Ruan Mei: just tell me, did she revive or not?
: Aaaaah who cares! So many Tingyuns! One for each person, everyone gets a Tingyun!
...
While the comments went wild, Welt also jolted in shock.
"This… shouldn't be happening?"
"It was fine when I left."
A sense of guilt rose in his heart. If that mecha toy hadn't distracted him and made him leave, maybe this bizarre situation wouldn't have occurred.
Just as Welt was thinking that, the scene suddenly switched.
...
The screen returned to the Astral Express.
Himeko was speaking with a mysterious visitor. It was Screwllum!
The audience, still not recovered from the shock of the countless Tingyun's, were stunned once again by the sudden appearance of Screwllum.
"I heard the next stop, the Express has already formed a partnership with the Black Swan?" Screwllum asked, well-prepared.
"They only provided an option. How did you know about this? Did Miss Herta tell you?"
Himeko was initially surprised Screwllum had come, but when he asked that question, she immediately understood.
This genius was also very interested in that mysterious world, Amphoreus.
She continued, "That world exists outside the sight of all people, so I contacted Herta hoping that she could provide more information."
Screwllum said mildly, "Perhaps that isn't the only reason?"
Himeko was straightforward. "Indeed, there's another reason. Miss Black Swan mentioned that Amphoreus is a world influenced by three Paths, and one of them is Erudition."
Screwllum reasoned, "Logically speaking, ordinary Pathstriders should not leave traces within the Mirror of Recollection."
Talking with someone intelligent made Himeko feel much more relaxed. She nodded and said, "Which is why this matter is likely tied to an Emanator, maybe even an Aeon, so I wondered if you geniuses had any clues."
Unknowingly, their conversation had already revealed several shocking pieces of information about Amphoreus.
One: the Mirror of Recollection.
Two: the world-tier status of Amphoreus.
...
: The Mirror of Recollection has such high requirements! Ordinary Pathstriders can't leave traces, so the ones it can record must basically be Emanators!!
: No no, it said ordinary! Special Pathstriders might still work!
: But either way, this almost guarantees Amphoreus is a world of extremely high rank!
: If this is true, won't the Express' adventure on Amphoreus be insanely difficult?!
: This is basically telling us Amphoreus' lower limit!
: Don't tell me, won't just one Emanator appear? Maybe… three Emanators?!
: Holy crap! Don't tempt me! Penacony had one Emanator (Huang Quan), and I almost died. If Amphoreus brings out multiple Emanators I'm going to explode with excitement!
: And the more Emanators appear, the more secrets we'll get to learn!
: Stop! I'm getting too hyped!!
...
Just a few lines of dialogue, and the audience had already started crafting a whole epic in their heads.
The appeal of Honkai: Star Rail's story isn't quite the same as typical web novels.
Using web novels as an example, many readers look forward to the protagonist's power progression.
Star Rail does have its own power system, and each time the Express gains new strength, viewers feel satisfied.
But it also has another, even stronger appeal: Mystery-solving.
This enchanting worldbuilding has deeply taken root in the hearts of the audience, filled with countless layers of fog.
Any new secret uncovered, anything built on the lore, instantly brings immense satisfaction.
The two elements complement each other.
This is why, when Acheron displayed the Path of Nihility in Penacony, viewers were so satisfied.
They saw overwhelming power and a glimpse into the secrets of the Aeons.
And the appearance of Emanators usually means that more secrets about their Path's Aeon will be revealed.
And now, it's almost certain, Amphoreus will feature more than one Emanator!
This naturally sends audience expectations skyrocketing.
On screen, Screwllum nodded and said, "I understand your reasoning. Unfortunately, the members of the Genius Club rarely come and go, and most have already perished at the hands of the Silent Lord. Therefore, I too know nothing about Amphoreus."
Himeko wasn't surprised by this, Herta was the same.
"However, after listening, Miss Herta actually became interested. She said she was very intrigued by the Remembrance Path's… peculiar experiments."
Himeko finished speaking.
Screwllum displayed the same attitude: "When I spoke with Herta, she also extended an invitation to me. Researching the Path of Remembrance is something I look forward to as well."
"Conclusion: If you need assistance, you may contact me anytime."
Thus, the two of them made a deal right there on the ship.
During the Trailblazing journey, the Express would share intelligence with both Screwllum and Herta, two geniuses.
And in return, the research results of the two geniuses would be shared with them as well.
After finishing this discussion… Himeko felt much more at ease.
But neither she, nor Screwllum, nor the audience watching from beyond the screen realized that this journey to Amphoreus was not just about Emanators or Aeons.
"Speaking of which, during this time, the Express met Ms. Ruan Mei through Herta, and brought back a Leviathan's remains for her, this unexpectedly led to a connection."
"But… no one expected that at Ms. Ruan Mei's place, we would meet someone from our past."
Himeko looked off into the distance with a faint melancholy, her voice growing quiet.
Screwllum had heard a bit: "The experiences of that lady can be called miraculous. Perhaps this is the fate of organic life. So, the Express sent her back home out of moral obligation?"
Himeko shook her head. "Half and half. She herself suggested stopping at a station before returning home to settle her thoughts. After all… to the Alliance, her identity is extremely special."
The audience suddenly understood.
So that was it… The matter of bringing Ruan Mei the remains of a Leviathan had been mentioned earlier.
Was it during that process that they encountered Tingyun and brought her aboard the Express?
And Himeko's final sentence… It made many Tingyun-fans silently feel distressed.
Resurrection is a joyous thing.
But that damned Lord Ravager, Phantylia… when she destroyed Tingyun, she also destroyed Tingyun's experiences and past.
At that moment, the camera shifted away from Himeko and Screwllum, back to that Penacony street filled with thick, heavy clouds.
As someone who always ranked high on the "most beautiful characters" list…
A single Tingyun on screen was pleasing to the eye.
But an entire group of Tingyuns standing there? That was a little terrifying.
Some audience members with PTSD from earlier scenes were already getting cold sweats.
Faced with so many carefree Tingyuns, each doing their own thing…
March 7th and Stelle stood obediently behind Welt, wearing expressions like: "I have no idea what's going on, but I'm deeply shocked."
Welt took a deep breath."Someone tell me… just what is happening here?"
March 7th scratched her head awkwardly."I… I can't really explain it. But it has nothing to do with me or Stelle, we were just wandering around the domain with Tingyun, and… uh…"
"Basically, right after you left, we took Miss Tingyun around to sightsee."
"As a result, we met a Pepeshi, who said he was filming a 'Don't Laugh Challenge,' and he gave us candy that makes you laugh the moment you eat it!"
"I told him not to mess with us, but Stelle insisted on trying it. And… well… you know…"
The more March 7th explained, the quieter her voice became. "Then… then the two of us ate the candy and laughed ourselves rolling on the ground. When we finally recovered, w-we discovered Miss Tingyun had already… multiplied into a whole group!"
As March 7th spoke, Welt's hand rose to his forehead, his expression full of black lines.
The audience completely lost it.
...
: Hey! What kind of explanation is that?!
: Seriously?! The 'Don't Laugh Challenge' has invaded Honkai: Star Rail?!
: This excuse is so lazy, HAHAHAHA!
: I can already imagine it: the two of them laughing on the ground, and Tingyun eating one candy herself and then, boom, instant replication.
: Ah yes, turns out Star Rail also has its own trio of uncontrollable laughers.
: All this because of the Don't Laugh Challenge, leading to a map full of Tingyuns!
....
While the comments joyfully joked, Welt turned his head to look at Sunday.
At this moment, Sunday appeared on screen as his extremely gentle, harmless facade.
It seemed that aside from Welt, no one else, including Stelle and March 7th, could see through Sunday's disguise.
"Do you have any idea what's going on?" Welt asked.
"The dreamscape is a world made of memories.This situation is most likely caused by her brain being highly sensitive, and after stimulation, scattered memory fragments separated and formed individual entities." Sunday replied calmly.
Welt originally hadn't expected much, but was surprised to find that Sunday actually gave a coherent and precise answer, straight to the core of the issue.
As if he had personally experienced something similar before!
But since Sunday was being helpful, at least it proved this level was still manageable.
Welt thought for a moment and said: "You can drop the disguise now."
Sunday froze, then nodded. "Wonweek, help me remove the disguise."
Under the confused gazes of March 7th and Stelle, Wonweek closed his eyes.
A second later,
March 7th covered her mouth in shock: "Y-y-you! What is going on?!"
Stelle's eyes widened: "So I'm still dreaming?! Oh no! Jingliu save me!"
Their reactions made Sunday sigh, unsure how to explain.
Walter calmly stepped forward to tell the two the whole story.
After listening, March 7th and Stelle finally let out a long breath.
"Scared me to death… I thought we had to fight again."
"And who's this guy next to him?" The two looked at Wonweek.
"This… is an old acquaintance of Sunday. "Welt introduced.
Wonweek, full of interest, examined the two and took the initiative to greet:
"Hello! A beautiful lady, and… hmm! An even more heavyweight figure. I've heard the stories of the two of you."
"Ah, not really." Stelle scratched her head, grinning. "It's mostly because the Express is great."
"Uh…" March 7th stared at him suspiciously.
Anyway, compared to Sunday, the most urgent matter right now was figuring out how to merge all these Tingyuns back into one big Tingyun.
But before they could act, all many Tingyuns had already started causing chaos on their own!