"Firefly, could it be that... you're afraid your identity might cause some kind of impact on me?"
Yun Fan asked tentatively.
Sure enough, just as the boy had expected, Firefly's delicate body subconsciously trembled slightly upon hearing his words.
"So it really is like that."
The boy couldn't help but laugh wryly, yet a warm current involuntarily surged in his heart.
He hadn't expected that what Firefly thought of first wasn't her own terminal illness, but the safety of him—this Emanator of [Causality]. As expected, Firefly really was very gentle.
Thinking this, Yun Fan couldn't hold back. Under Firefly's somewhat shy and annoyed gaze, he reached out his arms and gently embraced her.
"Firefly, I've discovered that I like you more and more."
"Since I've already come to know everything about you, now... I also want to show you everything about myself."
"Huh? Fan, what are you sayi—"
For a moment, Firefly couldn't react to what Yun Fan's words truly meant. Just as she was about to open her mouth to ask further—
Suddenly, a profoundly mysterious power of laws bloomed from the boy's body. At the same time, far away on the Xianzhou Luofu, his true body also opened its eyes, gazing deeply toward the direction of Penacony, the star of festivities.
"Firefly... please allow me to show you my entirety as well."
Yun Fan's Aeon true form murmured to himself. Then, the power of [Causality] surged explosively. A Causality Imprint lit up within his pupils.
The power of [Causality] surged toward Penacony, drawing the girl's consciousness into that phase space.
"Where is this...?"
In merely a daze, Firefly realized that the boy in front of her had already vanished. At the same time, the place she now found herself in was no longer Aideen Park, but a space resembling the cosmos.
"Where am I? Fan! Fan!"
The somewhat bewildered girl shouted Yun Fan's name loudly. Unfortunately, her voice seemed to be isolated by something and could not be transmitted.
Just as the girl felt full of loss, as if sensing something, she abruptly turned to look behind her.
Buzz—!
Gazing at the majestic figure before her, Firefly's pink-blue eyes couldn't help but widen slightly. Her small mouth nearly formed an 'O' shape.
What appeared before Firefly now was none other than Yun Fan in his Aeon form. Under the enhancement of Path power, the boy's body was currently radiating boundless light.
In his Aeon state, Yun Fan exuded an incomparably pure divinity. Every gesture and movement displayed supreme honor and magnificence.
"So that's how it is... Fan, you really are the Aeon of [Causality]—Lord Reincarnation Sovereign..."
Perhaps hearing Firefly's words, the great deity's face—for the first time—showed a smile. Then, the vast power of the [Causality] Path surged toward Firefly like a tide, all pouring into the girl's exquisite body.
"Mm...!"
Yun Fan did not stint on his power. As the power of [Causality] infused her, the girl felt a sense of ease and relief surging into her heart.
It was a lightness from the soul level—a sensation the girl had never felt since the day she was born.
Amid the infusion of [Causality]'s power, in a daze, the girl heard Yun Fan's gentle yet unquestionable voice.
"In my capacity as the master of the [Causality] Path, I bestow upon you the power to transcend all things. From this moment forth, you shall be an Emanator of my body."
"Firefly, from this day forward, you need no longer live for war. Henceforth, bearing the blessing of [Causality], live for yourself—live more calmly, more freely."
...
Buzz buzz buzz—! Alert! Alert!... High-risk energy detected...!
Alert! Alert! High-risk energy detected! Imaginary energy readings skyrocketing...! Upper limit unclear, upper limit unclear!
Within the Stellaron Hunter headquarters spaceship, alarm sounds from the security monitoring system rang out one after another, echoing throughout the massive vessel.
"What is it with these days?! Even playing a game isn't peaceful anymore."
Silver Wolf grumbled verbally without mercy, but in reality, nervous sweat had already beaded on her forehead. The hacker girl's eyes were glued to the continuously rising energy readings on the screen, her adrenaline levels surging.
What the hell was going on?! Just a couple of days ago, Firefly's body had only shown increased hormone secretion—how had it suddenly erupted with such powerful Imaginary energy today? It had already reached the monitoring system's limit.
One must know that this spaceship had been seized by the Stellaron Hunters from an Interastral Peace Corporation executive. Afterward, with modifications by Silver Wolf, Elio, and the others, it was no exaggeration to say that this ship now possessed the pinnacle of galactic technology.
Yet the power suddenly surging within Firefly had exceeded even the machine's monitoring limit.
And the limit the machine could monitor... was Emanator level...
"Kafka! Hurry and contact Elio! Ask him what the hell is going on! Is this within his calculations?"
"Got it—Silver Wolf, hold on for a bit!" Kafka naturally also realized the severity of the situation. Her willow-like brows furrowed deeply as she prepared to use special means to contact Elio.
"This is not within my expectations."
Before Kafka could even initiate the connection, a black cat suddenly leaped in from the doorway and landed in front of Firefly's medical pod.
"Elio, what is this situation? Firefly won't... something won't happen to her, right?" Seeing this, Kafka canceled the contact request and asked Elio with a grave expression.
"It's currently impossible to judge. As you know, ever since that deity was born, the future and the past have been locked with a padlock. Even with the power of [Finality], I can no longer accurately glimpse any corner of the future—I can only sense a rough outline."
Elio said with self-mockery. Ever since the [Causality] Path had been opened, his so-called title of "slave of fate" had become nothing more than an empty name.
Unable to see the future, unable to script the scenario—how could he still dare call himself a "slave of fate"?
"Not good!"
Just as Kafka and Elio stared fixedly at the medical pod, their CPUs running at full speed to find any solution, Silver Wolf—who had been continuously monitoring Firefly's bodily data—suddenly shouted. Then, in a frantic rush, she said,
"Firefly's power inside her body is about to reach its limit. I'm afraid the next moment... the next moment it's going to explode!"
Sweat covered Silver Wolf's forehead. Such an enormous amount of Imaginary energy was probably already enough to destroy a small star system...
"No other choice—Kafka, use your Spirit Whisper technique. See if you can temporarily suppress the runaway power in Firefly's body!"
Elio spoke up. At this point, they could only try anything and hope for the best.