Gilded golden light of Preservation erupted violently from beneath the shadows of Nihility, endlessly surging. The Astral Express, buried beneath suffocating darkness, once again emerged, cloaked in a radiant barrier, stubbornly resisting Nihility's encroachment.
It pressed ever forward, inching closer to the Aeon of Nihility.
But unlike Aha's earlier playful push forward, Preservation only protected the Express, providing no extra propulsion. The train relied solely on its original power to move, swift but insufficient against the oppressive forces at play.
Perhaps Preservation's half-hearted assistance stemmed from its lack of willingness.
Yevenko glanced down at the stone he'd pulled from his inventory, then turned to Tom, who had just returned to his side.
"Tom, the propulsion's all up to you now."
They'd already attracted IX's attention; speed was now vital. They had to close the distance instantly.
Tom nodded vigorously, sprinting to the rear of the Express. From behind his back, he pulled out the special strength-enhancing milk Yevenko had given him earlier, gulping it down in one breath.
Instantly, Tom's body swelled with exaggerated muscles, growing twice his original height, his muscular contours ridiculously defined.
Proudly flexing his biceps, Tom watched gleefully as his muscles bulged comically, rapidly stacking higher and higher until they pierced the sky.
Above, a wolf-shaped shadow emerged from the darkness, perfectly landing atop Tom's absurdly towering muscles.
Immediately, a new, enormous Tom-arm sprouted from the muscle stack, flexed, and punched the wolf-shadow into oblivion.
Satisfied, Tom nodded confidently.
Retracting his massive muscles, he planted both hands firmly against the train's back, mustering every ounce of his newfound strength, and shoved with all his might.
BOOM—!!
The resulting shockwave thundered through space. Without even using its own power, the Astral Express blasted forward, driven by Tom's brute strength, cutting a clear path directly toward the Aeon of Nihility.
In fact, he wasn't pushing—it was more like Tom carried the train forward on his shoulders.
The shadows of Nihility couldn't halt their progress.
However, with every passing second, the milk's effects waned rapidly. Tom's muscle mass gradually returned to normal, while Nihility's shadows thickened ahead, becoming more and more difficult to penetrate.
Panting heavily, Tom struggled forward, sweat dripping profusely.
Seeing this, Yevenko hesitated briefly, considering using the second bottle of enlargement milk he'd drawn earlier.
If I use it now, I'll lose one of my biggest trump cards when directly facing IX.
Staring ahead at IX, now looming ominously close, Yevenko clenched his jaw.
He hurried to the rear carriage, sliding open a small window. Protected by Preservation's barrier, it was safe enough even within the vacuum of space.
Instead of enlargement milk, he pulled out another bottle—[Tom and Jerry's Jointly-Prepared Milk]—and quickly handed it to the now nearly-exhausted Tom.
"Tom, this is shrinking milk. Can you manage to throw this directly onto IX?"
Tom eagerly took the milk. He wouldn't disappoint his master's expectations. Enthusiastically, he flexed his biceps again—
—but this time, instead of inflating, his muscle deflated comically like a punctured balloon.
Embarrassed, Tom revealed his full eight-tooth smile and scratched his head sheepishly.
Just then, a massive, grotesque shadow beast materialized suddenly, violently crashing into the weakened Preservation barrier.
CRACK—!!
The shield splintered instantly like a web of glass shards.
The terrifying beast appeared directly behind Tom, who sensed imminent danger and spun around to face it.
At the sight of the monster's horrific visage, Tom's entire body leaped several feet into the air. Eyes popping out on springs, heart leaping halfway out of his chest, fur shifting rapidly from blue to purple, then grey, and finally falling off completely—
—he collapsed stiffly onto the cosmic floor.
Scared to death.
A ghostly-blue Tom-spirit floated free of his body, checking himself frantically. Realizing his predicament, he stretched his ghostly neck anxiously and gulped nervously.
He immediately tried to dive back into his own body, only to realize he'd already begun uncontrollably floating upward. Even worse—the milk bottle had been thrown upward as well.
Panicking, Tom's body released another spirit, which quickly grabbed the first ghost's tail, preventing it from floating away.
Seeing this, the first Tom-spirit hatched a plan, urgently whispering instructions to the second spirit.
Nodding eagerly, a third spirit emerged, then a fourth, and a fifth—forming a chain that stretched upward, allowing the first ghost to finally reclaim the milk bottle.
Targeting IX in the distance, the spirits bent together in a grand arc. Summoning all his ghostly strength, Tom flung the milk directly toward IX.
The massive black-purple Aeon barely noticed the tiny white droplet land on its form, pausing slightly in confusion—
—and instantly, IX's colossal body shrank dramatically.
For reasons unknown, a strange sensation surged through IX, something unfamiliar: a sense of threat.
Instinctively, IX responded by truly unleashing its boundless, unimaginable power.
Simultaneously, Tom felt his physical body shaking as consciousness returned.
Suddenly aware of this, the countless Tom-spirits rushed frantically downward, rapidly re-entering Tom's body.
Tom blinked awake to find himself already cradled in Yevenko's arms.
Yevenko, meanwhile, noticed IX's reduced strength. At this rate, IX's power would soon become minimal.
But this weakening was temporary; IX would recover quickly.
Thus, IX had to be driven away—forced back along its original path to avoid destroying other star systems.
Without hesitation, Yevenko redirected the remaining Preservation energy. No longer protecting, it now served solely as fuel, injected directly into the Astral Express.
At the same time, the Express's doors erupted in dazzling gold brilliance. Vast waves of Trailblaze energy enveloped the entire train—
—for at this moment, Yevenko challenged the greatest unknown imaginable:
Nihility itself.
The train's speed increased dramatically—faster and faster—like a comet hurtling toward a planet, releasing every ounce of its energy as it collided directly with IX, now furiously unleashing its weakened power.
BOOOOOOM—!!!
Space erupted in blindingly radiant white brilliance. Though sound couldn't travel through space, every being across the cosmos felt the tremendous force of this collision.
A force rivaling the clash between Aeons themselves.