"Enough with the nitpicking. I've got a question: Everyone in [Wildfire] knows where Svarog's lair is, so why do we need you as a guide?" Seele asked.
"Heh~ Specialization, my dear. Miss Seele, have you ever been inside Svarog's base?" Sampo flicked his hair.
"Have you?" Seele shot back.
"Uh, well, no… but I've scoured the Mechanical Settlement top to bottom, gathered plenty of clues. I guarantee I'll be a big help!" Sampo patted his chest, assuring the group.
"Didn't peg you for a tribe snooper."
"Hey, that's harsh! [Wildfire] gave me a job, and I'm just doing it diligently. Heaven and earth as my witness, I, Sampo, am all heart!"
"Alright, alright, we believe you. Just lead the way already."
"Wait~ One more thing, Miss March. If you don't want me as your guide… our great Boss Adrian's been to the Mechanical Settlement too. Why not ask his opinion?" Sampo deftly shifted the topic to Adrian, sipping his milk tea.
"If the journey feels too long, I can take you straight to the destination," Adrian offered. Gotta show off occasionally, or he'd really look like a slacker.
"Right! Bronya and Seele haven't seen Teacher Adrian's skills yet, have they? Teacher, use that move!" March 7th chimed in.
"Huh? What're you talking about, March?" Stelle was confused. She was part of the Express crew—how was she out of the loop?
"Simply put, Adrian has teleportation abilities. We can reach the Mechanical Settlement faster," Dan Heng explained for the three who didn't know.
"Hmm~ I'd prefer if you called it the Gate of Myriad Paths," Adrian said.
Tearing open the void was just one form. The Gate of Myriad Paths crossed countless realms—one moment at The Herta Space Station, the next back on the Xianzhou Luofu. Way handier than warp jumps.
Stelle had an epiphany. Wasn't this the [Eternity] curio she'd seen in the Simulated Universe? It skipped regions, teleporting straight to the end!
File #888, Curio Name: ???, Notes: None, because no one's ever seen it. The most mysterious curio in The Herta Space Station… aside from Herta, no one knew its origin, not even a clear image existed.
Such an unknown curio, yet Herta added it to the Simulated Universe, assuring Stelle that seeing it would make her laugh.
Eagerly, Stelle explored the Simulated Universe and finally saw it.
"Pfft~"
Herta was right. Who'd guess such a mysterious curio… was just a trash can!
Stelle suspected Herta made it for her. Too absurd.
Afterward, Stelle shared her experience with Herta.
"So? This secret's just for you. Keep it hush," Herta's puppet said, explaining why Stelle saw a trash can.
"Its form depends on what looms largest in your heart. A trash can… you're really into those."
"What did you see?" Stelle asked.
"Guess." Herta's puppet logged off, unresponsive.
"Hey! Don't leave me hanging, riddler! Get out of The Herta Space Station!"
…
A crisp snap pulled Stelle back. A faint door appeared before them.
Its hinges bore etchings of star tracks and time, each crack symbolizing an unfinished journey.
When moonlight tilted at a certain angle, the ground glowed with phosphorescent markers, pointing to light leaking through the door's seams.
No answers lay beyond, only ever-branching paths, like dice cast by a god, eternally poised in mid-fall.
Sampo's face soured. Don't tell him Blake had this ability too. If so, escape was impossible.
A cheater on the other side? No way to play.
March 7th covered her mouth, about to gasp when…
Crack!
The door shattered into stardust, vanishing before their eyes.
Master Adrian, busy for one second, chose the old-school way—tearing open the void.
For a plain Mechanical Settlement, this was overkill. People might think they were warping to another star system.
Sure, the energy cost was near zero, but it was still a tiny loss, so he stopped.
Using powers too strong, beyond an Emanator's scope, risked dropping his Aeon facade. Gotta be cautious.
"Back to basics—very Teacher Adrian," March 7th teased.
"I think you're just plain lazy!"
…
Inside the cathedral, Blake and Freesna locked eyes.
Uh… did they just let something slip? Too excited, they'd indirectly revealed Adrian was on the Xianzhou Luofu.
Judging by Tingyun's reaction, she'd figured it out. No point hiding it now, and she seemed to know Adrian, which made things easier.
Honesty time. As THEIR devout followers, over-concealing was blasphemy against THEM.
The great Lord of [Eternity] would understand!
"Miss Tingyun, now that you know THEIR identity, any thoughts?"
This was what Blake and Freesna were most curious about.
"Hmm…" Tingyun pondered. Seeing their eager expressions, even her clever tongue hesitated, unsure how to respond.
"I never imagined Mister Adrian was the fabled Eternal Heavenly Monarch. I've been under HIS care many times."
"But… even knowing HIS true identity, to me, HE's still the laid-back Mister Adrian who works less than an hour a day."
"As a child, I was fortunate to witness HIS miracle…" Words alone weren't enough. Tingyun wished she'd brought that never-ending milk tea.
"Sorry to interrupt, Miss Tingyun… could you repeat that last bit?" Blake asked.
"Uh, the laid-back Mister Adrian?"
"The one before."
"Works less than an hour a day…"
"AAAAH! That's it!" Blake collapsed, trembling with excitement.
As the Church's Bishop, Blake knew Adrian's whereabouts. As HIS follower, disturbing HIM casually was a no-go.
But… Blake couldn't suppress his longing to see HIM. He'd once disguised himself as an archaeologist, with a stand-in priestess, and visited the Xianzhou Luofu.
Now that he thought about it, he'd met Tingyun then, too focused on seeing Adrian to notice much.
Sadly, at the milk tea shop, he saw "Closed" on the door. Blake was crushed.
Closed? In other words, HE rejected his visit.
HE was Blake's everything. Exaggeratedly put: the world rejected him…
Recalling this, Blake felt sorrow. His Church clearly wasn't excellent enough to attract HIM.
Now, Blake finally understood the reason! HE hadn't rejected him!
Freesna, watching Blake's sudden meltdown, shuffled away in disdain.
"Hah, false god's agent… bound by emotions in the end. Pay him no mind, Miss Tingyun. Fate's loom weaves us together—don't hesitate, don't waver! Let's set out at once!"
Tingyun tilted her head. "If you two wish to see Mister Adrian, I'm afraid you'll be disappointed. HE… left the Luofu days ago."
"What?"
…
Mechanical Settlement, seeing neatly arranged milk teas on the stone table, everyone turned to Adrian.
"How much milk tea did you give that kid?"
"So jealous of Clara. I want that treatment too."
"Too much sugar's bad for you," Dan Heng noted.