Honkai Star Rail: I Created A Chat Group With The Aeons Chapter 114 114: The Astral Express Is the Strongest Faction

"It's simple."

Kafka's smile vanished, replaced by a calm, clear tone that cut through the quiet of the Parlor Car.

"This Stellaron—it has nothing to do with us."

"But the Xianzhou has already pinned the bla on the Stellaron Hunters," she continued, her gaze sweeping over every face in the room. She paused, letting the weight of her words settle. "My companion, Blade, has been detained by the Cloud Knights. I want to bring him back, resolve this Stellaron crisis, and clear our nas."

As her voice faded, a tense silence descended upon the Parlor Car.

Dan Heng, who had been standing silently to the side, felt his eyelashes tremble almost imperceptibly at the ntion of the na "Blade." A ripple, subtle but distinct, disturbed the placid surface of his usually calm eyes.

"Nothing to do with you? Who would believe that!" March 7th planted her hands on her hips, her expression a mask of suspicion. "How can there be such a coincidence? The Stellaron just erupted, and you conveniently pop up right after."

She turned to her companions, seeking their support. "Besides, it's not like we're friends. Whether the Stellaron Hunters are innocent or not… what does that have to do with us?"

"Exactly," Caelus agreed with righteous conviction. "What's in it for us?"

Serval couldn't help but turn her head and whisper to Leon, "So… the main point is whether there's a benefit?" She had a feeling Caelus hadn't quite grasped the core of the issue. Of course, it was also possible the boy was deliberately joking around, trying to diffuse the tension between Hiko, March 7th, and the holographic woman before them.

'He isn't that smart,' Leon thought with a private smile.

"However, you could understand it that way," Leon said aloud with a chuckle. "After all, our Astral Express has always been a crew of 'galactic good guys.'Since we know the Xianzhou Luofu is in trouble, we were planning to go over and take a look anyway." He leaned back, the picture of ease. "It's only human nature to ask for a few'benefits' while we're at it, right?"

"No way! I don't want to listen to her…" March 7th puffed out her cheeks, stubbornly holding her ground. "The Xianzhou Alliance is super powerful, can't they handle a single Stellaron? We're the Astral Express Crew, not 'Stellaron Sealing Specialists'!"

"You can certainly stay out of it," Kafka replied, her tone unhurried and steady. "While the Stellaron has not yet contaminated that airspace, you could initiate a jump and leave. You can head to the next world."

Her tone shifted, a faint, almost theatrical sigh coloring her words. "But in ti, the star rail leading here will once again be blocked by the cataclysm on the Xianzhou Luofu. I can tell you what the future will be like—"

She looked around at everyone, her gaze finally landing on Hiko's face. "If you do not go to the Luofu, the Stellaron will eventually erode the entire Xianzhou. On that ship… about half of the inhabitants will perish."

Kafka paused, her voice laced with a trace of subtle probing. "Brave and fearless Trailblazers… kind-hearted souls… I assu you won't just sit idly by?"

"And that companion of yours, Blade—he won't be spared either, right?" Hiko cut in, her gaze sharp as she looked directly into Kafka's eyes.

"As for that…" Kafka smiled, a fleeting, mysterious curve of her lips. She offered no direct answer. "No comnt."

She raised a hand and flicked her wrist. A stream of light, like a miniature nebula, blood in the air of the Parlor Car, resolving into a string of coordinate data.

"The coordinates are here. Everything is up to you to decide."

Her gaze swept over Stelle and Caelus, lingered on Leon's face for a fraction of a second longer, and the corners of her lips curled into a faint but genuine arc.

"Although the goals we pursue are completely different… the orbits of the stars will eventually intersect."

"Goodbye."

The phantom gave a slight nod, then dissipated like mist into the flowing starlight of the Parlor Car, leaving only the string of coordinates floating quietly, flickering with a dim blue light.

"Kafka… hmmph. Pom-Pom doesn't like her. There's a dangerous scent on her, Pom." The Conductor wrinkled its nose before puffing out its chest and speaking with great seriousness. "However, the Path and goals of a Trailblazer must be chosen by the Trailblazers themselves… This is the creed of Lord Akivili, Pom."

As it spoke, Pom-Pom looked at Stelle and Caelus, as if trying to impart so ancient, sacred belief to the two still-young pioneers.

Of course, Leon knew exactly what was going on.

"How could the powerful Xianzhou Alliance fall into crisis because of a single Stellaron?" Welt shook his head, his tone carrying a rational skepticism. "I don't entirely believe Kafka's words."

"The Xianzhou Alliance… is it really that strong?" Stelle, Caelus, and Serval asked almost in unison, their eyes wide with curiosity.

Although Serval had seen the na in various data logs, she still didn't have a concrete understanding of its power. As for Stelle and Caelus, they had never actively sought to learn about the various factions scattered across the universe.

"Let's put it this way…" Leon chuckled, taking over the conversation. "The Xianzhou Alliance is one of the few factions that can directly 'borrow power' from an Aeon."

He paused for dramatic effect, a playful glint in his eyes. "If you provoke the Interstellar Peace Corporation, they can't just summon Qlipoth, the Amber Lord, to deal with you. But if you provoke the Xianzhou Alliance… they can actually ask Lan, the Hunt, to bestow upon you a very, very big arrow."

"So you can imagine," he concluded, "the Xianzhou Alliance is definitely a faction that most others are unwilling to provoke."

"Wow… they can actually contact an Aeon directly?" Serval's eyes widened in astonishnt.

She thought of her ho, Belobog. They had unilaterally worshipped the Amber Lord for centuries and had never once received a direct response. Yet the passive protection of the Preservation had been enough to sustain their world for over seven hundred years. The idea that the Xianzhou Alliance could simply call an Aeon was on a completely different level of power.

Stelle and Caelus both wore matching expressions of pure amazent.

Leon just smiled and didn't explain further.

'In fact,'he mused,'the Astral Express is even more amazing… in the past, present, and future. It once had two Aeons as passengers. Now with here, who knows if we'll pick up a few more in the years to co…'

"Precisely because of this, I don't think a Stellaron is likely to pose a real threat to the Xianzhou," Welt said, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "Unless… the Stellaron Hunters lied, or there is a more troubleso problem hidden on the Xianzhou Luofu."

Leon nodded in silent agreent.

He knew the truth. If the Astral Express Crew didn't go to the Xianzhou Luofu, the worst-case tiline would unfold. Phantylia would succeed, and General Jing Yuan would fall in battle. Before dying, Jing Yuan would entrust the Lightning-Lord to Jingliu. Witnessing his death, Jingliu would succumb completely to the Mara, borrowing the remnants of Tayzzyronth's Propagation and the power of Lan's Hunt through the Lightning-Lord. She would eventually ascend among the Lord Ravagers, becoming a terrifying existence that embodied the Paths of Abundance, Hunt, Destruction, and Propagation all at once. Then, she would turn and utterly obliterate Phantylia, who wielded the powers of both Abundance and Destruction.

Of course, this was just one branch among countless possibilities—and one of the most chilling endings that the absence of the Astral Express could trigger.

"Then," Hiko clapped her hands lightly, the sharp sound pulling everyone back from their thoughts. "Let's decide our next course."

Although she didn't think Kafka was being entirely honest, the intelligence was too significant to ignore. Leaving the choice to the crew was, perhaps, the most appropriate way forward.

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