Chapter 92: Stelle Wants to Accept a Disciple
The morning sun crested the horizon, casting a soft, golden glow over the exhausted group and finally dispelling the lingering, abyssal chill of the Night Kingdom.
Standing amidst the sprawling, open fields of Natlan, they took deep, greedy breaths of the crisp morning air. The scent of freedom and sun-baked earth washed over them, finally allowing their tightly wound nerves to unravel.
Stelle stared blankly at the translucent blue screen hovering in her vision. Her eyes locked onto the pitifully low point balance displayed on her Chat Group interface. Her shoulders slumped.
"This chat group is so incredibly stingy!" she groaned, turning to complain to March 7th. "It's even worse than Madam Herta's Simulated Universe! And they had the nerve to call this a 'simple' difficulty?"
"We literally just survived a life-and-death plunge into the abyss! We fought several massive, grueling battles, and this is the reward?" She clicked her tongue in sheer indignation. "Tsk! Dan Heng's last mission was a total walk in the park compared to this!"
She hung her head, a visible, gloomy aura of absolute poverty seeming to emanate from her drooping frame.
"I finally understand what true destitution feels like," Stelle mumbled, her voice muffled as she buried her face in her hands. "Maybe I should just change my name to 'Penniless'. Because right now, I'm definitely the absolute poorest member in this entire group." She sighed, utterly dissatisfied with her meager earnings.
A short distance away, the proxy siblings from New Eridu—Wise and Belle—were entirely unfazed by the point payout. Instead, they were completely captivated by their new environment.
Wise surveyed the sweeping landscape. It was a stark, vibrant contrast to the neon-lit concrete jungle of New Eridu. His sharp gaze traced the rolling hills and settled on the distant, majestic silhouette of the Stadium of the Sacred Flame. A rare, genuine gleam of curiosity lit up his usually calm eyes.
"This place..." Wise murmured, adjusting his posture. "It's completely different from the oppressive atmosphere of the Hollows, and it's nothing like the desolate Outer Ring back home. The air here is incredibly clean."
Belle stretched her arms high above her head, taking a deep, refreshing breath. A bright, relaxed smile spread across her face. "Mm! The sky here is so huge! My vision feels completely unobstructed, and the sunlight is actually warm and comfortable. It's really nice to just... come out for a walk like this, isn't it?"
"Lumine—!"
A familiar, high-pitched wail shattered the peaceful morning air. Paimon launched herself forward like a tiny, panicked cannonball, slamming directly into Lumine's chest. The little floating companion clutched desperately at the Traveler's clothes, aggressively rubbing her tear-stained face against the fabric.
"Wuwah! Paimon was so, so scared in there just now! Thank goodness we're all okay!"
Then, as if a switch had been flipped, Paimon's head snapped up. "Oh, right! Lumine! Hurry and take out the Gourmet Tablecloth! Paimon feels like she could eat an entire roasted wild boar right now! After surviving such intense battles, we absolutely have to properly reward everyone with a massive feast!"
Her large eyes sparkled like stars, overflowing with an insatiable, bottomless longing for food.
Lumine caught the little guide easily, her hands gently patting Paimon's back to soothe her lingering adrenaline. A fond, albeit helpless, smile touched the Traveler's lips.
"Hold on, Paimon. Just wait a little longer," Lumine coaxed softly. "We just completed a massive rescue operation. We pulled Kachina out of the Night Kingdom, but we haven't officially reported the situation to Mavuika yet. Setting up a full picnic right here in the wilderness would be a bit too impolite."
She raised a hand, pointing toward the magnificent, towering structure of the Stadium of the Sacred Flame in the distance. "Our top priority right now is to return to the Stadium and give our report."
Nearby, the Natlan quartet—Iansan, Chasca, Mualani, and the newly rescued Kachina—were finally beginning to shake off the lingering shock of the devastating strike they had witnessed moments prior.
Iansan's brow furrowed deeply. Her sharp, calculating gaze swept across the clear sky and the jagged peaks of the surrounding mountains, searching for any lingering traces of energy.
"That strike just now..." she muttered, her voice tight. "That pure, overwhelmingly vast Geo elemental power... it was utterly astonishing. In all my years in Natlan, I have never sensed such a dominating Geo presence. Who in the world could that be?"
Her tone was laced with a heavy mixture of sheer disbelief and ingrained warrior's vigilance.
Chasca crossed her arms, nodding thoughtfully as the wind tugged at her hair. "The energy output far exceeded anything I could have imagined. And..." She hesitated, lowering her voice slightly. "...though it might sound deeply disrespectful to say out loud, I feel as though even the Pyro Archon herself couldn't unleash such a concentrated, devastating attack."
Mualani and Kachina exchanged wide-eyed glances. The young guide and the little warrior both saw identical reflections of deep shock and utter confusion in each other's expressions.
Lumine observed the varied states of her multiversal companions and the Natlan natives. Clapping her hands once to draw their attention, she raised her voice over the morning breeze.
"Everyone, whatever questions or theories you have about what just happened, please put them aside for now. We need to head back to the Stadium of the Sacred Flame."
"Mavuika is still anxiously waiting for our news," Lumine continued, her golden eyes shifting to the exhausted little warrior. "And Kachina desperately needs to undergo a formal medical examination and get some proper rest."
Her voice rang clear and firm, carrying the natural, obvious authority of a seasoned leader who had guided countless groups across the stars.
The Traveler's grounded words finally snapped the Natlan natives out of their reverie, serving as a stark reminder that their primary objective was not yet fully complete.
Wise and Belle nodded in easy agreement. For the two sibling proxies, traveling anywhere in this vibrant, magical world was simply a thrilling, novel experience—like unlocking and exploring a massive, hidden map in a brand-new video game.
The three members of the Astral Express crew were quick to fall in line. Dan Heng adjusted his bracer, his expression as calm and unreadable as ever. "Indeed. That is the most logical course of action."
March 7th immediately brightened, her camera already swinging from her hip. "Right, right! And maybe we can make even more new friends at this stadium place! Let's go, let's go!"
Although Stelle desperately wanted to squat in the dirt and complain about the Chat Group's unforgivable stinginess for at least another hour, the prospect of meeting Natlan's "important figures" piqued her chaotic curiosity. She temporarily shelved her plans to legally change her name to 'Penniless' and dusted off her coat.
With their goal set, the eclectic, multiversal group began their trek toward the Stadium of the Sacred Flame.
As they walked along the sun-drenched dirt paths, Lumine took the opportunity to properly introduce their bizarre rescue squad to Kachina. She spun a convincing cover story, explaining how these "immortal disciples" hailing from the distant land of "Liyue" had responded to her urgent request, crossing multiple treacherous regions just to come to her aid.
As Kachina listened to the tale, her large, already bright eyes welled up with an overwhelming mixture of gratitude and pure admiration.
Her small, dirt-smudged boots carried her up to each member of the rescue team. She bowed deeply to every single one of them, her voice trembling slightly with raw emotion. "Thank you all! Thank you, everyone! Thank you so much for risking your own lives to dive into the Night Kingdom to save me!"
Reaching into the small, woven pouch at her waist, the young warrior carefully withdrew several pieces of warm-toned, flawlessly pure Natlan specialty gems. With careful care, she pressed one radiant stone into the hands of each of the five off-worlders who had answered the Chat Group's emergency summons.
"These are some pretty stones I collected before everything happened," Kachina explained softly, looking up at them through her bangs. "Although they probably aren't very valuable to amazing people like you, I hope you'll accept them as a small token of my appreciation."
Her smile, though tired, was incredibly sincere and heart-meltingly warm.
The off-worlders looked down at the beautiful, glowing stones resting in their palms, and then back at the small, bruised girl standing before them. Despite enduring unimaginable fear and hardship in the abyss, she remained remarkably strong, polite, and full of light. A deep, obvious warmth welled up in the chests of everyone present.
Wise and Belle exchanged soft smiles as they watched the heartwarming exchange. A few paces ahead, Iansan and Chasca cast deeply approving glances at the young warrior's display of honor. Mualani simply stepped close, gently patting Kachina's shoulder in silent, proud affirmation.
Stelle, however, was struck by a completely different kind of inspiration. She clutched the glowing gem to her chest, staring down at Kachina as the gears in her chaotic mind began to turn at breakneck speed.
Determined, incredibly grateful, tragic backstory... wait a minute! Stelle's inner voice gasped. Isn't this the exact, textbook description of the perfect apprentice that a legendary hero takes under their wing in those wuxia novels?!
Her golden eyes practically ignited with stars. Stelle dropped into a deep squat with terrifying speed, moving so fast she kicked up a small cloud of dust. Kachina flinched, startled, as the tall, gray-haired woman instantly snatched up her small hands in an iron grip.
"Kachina! You are absolutely amazing!" Stelle declared, her voice booming with dramatic intensity. "Do you want to become my official disciple? I will pass down my peerless, heaven-defying martial art to you—the legendary 'Fire Dance Whirlwind'! It's those insanely cool, fiery attacks I was swinging around with my sword earlier. Once you master it, I guarantee you'll be able to walk sideways through all of Natlan without anyone daring to stop you!"
"Pfft—!"
March 7th was the first to break, bursting into a fit of giggles. She quickly stepped forward, grabbing the collar of Stelle's coat and attempting to drag the overly enthusiastic Trailblazer backward.
"Hey, hey, hey, Stelle! Down, girl! Don't scare the poor kid half to death!" March scolded playfully. Releasing Stelle's collar, she planted her hands firmly on her hips, adopting an exasperated, 'let me educate you' expression.
"Besides," March continued, tapping her chin. "Kachina uses Geo elemental power, right? Your precious 'Fire Dance Whirlwind' is obviously completely Pyro-based. The elemental attributes don't even match! How are you supposed to teach her? Are you going to force the poor girl to completely abandon her Vision and switch to Pyro training?"
March 7th's logical retort was precise, forceful, and utterly devastating to Stelle's grand martial arts fantasy.
Stelle froze, utterly stunned by the flawless logic of March's argument. She slowly turned her head, looking down into Kachina's wide, bewildered, yet innocently curious eyes. Then, she mentally pictured the towering, explosive pillars of flame generated by her Fire Dance Whirlwind.
She blinked. Geo... Pyro... Wait. It seems... perhaps... indeed, they really don't match at all?
Releasing Kachina's hands, Stelle awkwardly scratched the back of her head, letting out a sheepish, hollow chuckle. "Uh... yeah, I guess you have a point. Never mind, then. Just pretend I didn't say anything."
Although she had been forced to temporarily abandon the grand idea of taking Kachina as her first official disciple, the burning desire to "find a worthy successor" refused to extinguish in her heart. As she stood back up, she began to mumble softly to herself, completely lost in her own delusions.
"It doesn't matter. I'll definitely find a disciple eventually," Stelle muttered, nodding sagely to herself. "How can a great, multiversal hero like me not have a proper disciple to carry my bags? Every single legendary master in the wuxia novels has at least one overpowered disciple to inherit their legacy and beat up arrogant young masters..."
Amidst Stelle's bizarre, whispered aspirations for her future "disciple enterprise" and the relaxed, echoing laughter of the multiversal group, the towering, magnificent gates of the Stadium of the Sacred Flame finally loomed large before them, promising safety and the end of their long journey.
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