Check out my new translation!
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The Aeon Nous came quickly and left just as swiftly.
THEY had only appeared because of the humanoid anomaly named "Sol Mercer" represented in this universe. After learning he harbored the ambition to become an Aeon, THEY no longer found it necessary to stay.
Allowing him to grow naturally was enough—if THEY simply lowered its gaze, THEY would witness everything THEY would've wished to see.
At this moment, Sol also snapped back to reality. He first accepted the Genius Society invitation letter, then silently stared at the Herta puppet in front of him.
"The new Emanator of Erudition. I hear you were looking for me?"
The Herta puppet, bursting with expressive attitude, displayed an arrogant, superior posture—one that made people want to see her cry.
The puppet was exquisitely beautiful, wearing a black beret, her face delicate and soft.
If not for the mechanical seams at the joints, she could easily be someone's girlfriend.
Perhaps—even with the seams, it didn't matter?
After all, human degeneracy truly had no limits.
"I saw you just now, Aha."
Sol rolled his eyes, speaking with clear exasperation.
Although this puppet perfectly imitated Herta—adorable, beautiful, steeped in that proud little gremlin attitude—
He wasn't blind. Even while deep in thought earlier, he could still perceive his surroundings.
After Nous left, he distinctly saw the multiple masks that appeared next.
["You caught me. Aha really lost face."]
The puppet stuck out her tongue, her neck bending ninety degrees like some lifeless corpse.
Then she burst into a cloud of five-colored ribbons and dazzling lights as a strange terracotta-red mask took the stage.
This mask was only sized for a normal human to wear, not a colossal shape like Nous's star-sized form.
Not because Aha lacked power—Aha simply preferred appearing this way.
Aha liked it, so Aha did it!
"…"
Sol was speechless.
The grand movement coach of the Aeon of Elation… was acting like a four-star fox emperor?
This was way too ridiculous.
["What are you worrying about? Powerful human, you should punch the mask in front of you!"]
["Smash it into cotton! Twist it like rubber!"]
The mask pranced energetically around Sol like a lively sprite, chattering nonstop, goading him on.
Pow!
Sol punched it without hesitation.
He had dozens of resurrection chances, and his respawn point wasn't in the World of Star Rail—he had set it in New Eridu.
Even if an Aeon acted like a clown in front of him, he would still punch them once.
The mask bent like rubber, soft as cotton, shooting across space like a meteor, screaming through the galaxies: ["Aha got punched! Aha has no face left!"]
THEIR voice echoed across the star systems, though aside from the Aeons who noticed, perhaps only a few monkeys would respond.
At that instant, another identical mask floated beside Sol, loudly mocking the one that got punched away:
["So weak! Why is it so weak? Not-so-powerful human, let's laugh at it together!"]
["HAHAHAHAHA!"]
The infectious laughter spread across the cosmos—but only one human was present to appreciate it.
Sol wasn't surprised. With an Aeon's ability, this was barely a trivial acrobatic trick.
And Aha truly lived up to the name—overwhelmingly elated.
He steadied his emotions, gazed at the unpredictable being, and said, "Great Aeon of Elation, are you trying to find joy in such a childish way? How low-level."
"Why not send me to a livelier star system, and allow me to show you real elation?"
He admitted it—he was absolutely trying to get Aha to transport him.
If he traveled to the Herta Space Station on his own, who knew how long it would take? Better to let Aha play courier and deliver him instantly.
["That sounds like a fun idea. You look full of entertainment. Aha agrees."]
The mask nodded theatrically before giggling. "Do you want to go to the Herta Space Station? Let Aha give you a ride."
Sol shook his head. "If you phrase it that way, then it definitely won't be the Herta Space Station."
Nothing spoken by this being should ever be trusted.
After fighting Aha's masks dozens of times in the Simulated Universe, he thoroughly understood the Aeon's unpredictable prankster nature.
On the contrary, if Aha said that he wouldn't go to the Herta Space Station, the Aeon would be more likely to send him there.
"No face at all…" The mask drooped like a child whose thoughts had been seen through.
How tragic—THEY had been exposed.
Being seen through by a mortal—That was way too embarrassing… sob sob.
["You thought WE was sad? HAHA, fooled you!"] the mask suddenly burst to life. ["Even if you say that, WE still won't send you to the Herta Space Station!"]
A colorful toy gun appeared from thin air, its trigger clicking on its own in the vacuum.
Pop!
A burst of ribbons wrapped around Sol, and several beams of intense light shone on him, placing him at the center of a grand stage.
Sol sensed a powerful energy trying to transport him. Strong, but not irresistible.
But this was likely intentional—Aha probably wanted to see him stumble around lost during teleportation.
The gap between a ninth-tier being and an eighth- tier one was as vast as heaven and earth, impossible to overcome.
So, Sol relaxed, offering no resistance.
In an instant, he vanished.
["I send you on the path of Trailblaze—follow the tide of the era! Aspiring Aeon-to-be, be grateful to the great Aha!"]
Ke-ke-ke-ke!
Even though space lacked a medium for sound transmission, that eerie laughter still echoed across the cosmos.
When everything finally calmed, the galaxies fell silent.
The vast starry sky cracked like shattered glass, revealing a majestic figure crowned in frozen brilliance.
The moment it appeared—
Space, time, everything seemed to freeze. The entire universe fell into a silent stillness.
The silhouette dominated the heavens, a blurred form shaped by countless shards of icy mirrors.
THEY wore a crown forged of crystalized beads of frost, THEIR facial features an enigma composed of intersecting prisms—every tiny facet reflecting true history.
The Aeon of Remembrance—Fuli.
The one who records all that has passed, wishing to remake the world at the time of Finality.
Nous's spectacular appearance was worthy of record; every action of an Aeon was an event that shook the universe.
Thus, Fuli arrived—and gained a precious new memory.
Four Light Cones formed in that moment.
They were perfect compositions, their imagery and meaning intertwined.
[The Visitor From Afar]: A young man sits alone in the void, quietly contemplating as starlight flows around him.
[Ambition to Ascend]: The young man questions the Aeon of Erudition and receives the secrets of ascension.
[The Aeon's Foolery]: A terracotta-red mask dances and laughs beside the youth, while another streaks across the distance like a meteor.
[On the First Day, He Set Out]: One figure vanishes into a silent vacuum; another appears aboard a train traveling through the stars.
Four powerful five-star Light Cones were thus completed.
It was unimaginable—three Aeons appearing one after another in such a short span of time. These lofty divinities rarely manifested; even the Aeon of The Hunt, kindest to mortals, usually conveyed THEIR oracle with light-arrows rather than showing THEMSELF.
THEY were welcoming a new possibility. A universe whose ending had always been clear was now becoming chaotic.
But some remained unmoved—Qlipoth of Preservation raised the colossal hammer and forged the Celestial Comet Wall.
Nanook of Destruction lowered THEIR gaze briefly, then turned away. Born only for endless ruin, no change mattered to THEIR will.
Abundance spread THEIR gospel. The Hunt followed. Harmony preached to the world. Equilibrium disturbed the cosmic scales…
The universe seemed to have undergone a tremendous shift—but nothing has ever had happened yet.