While keeping watch, the Cloud Knights continued practicing the moves Pei Guang had taught them. Although the techniques looked bizarre, they were surprisingly effective.
As for how they worked? Who cared about that? The people of Xianzhou were all about practicality—if it worked and wasn't dangerous, they'd use it without hesitation.
Meanwhile, Pei Guang, feeling like he didn't have much else to contribute for the moment, approached Kafka.
She was standing by the door, watching the Cloud Knights perform their routine. She had to admit—after traveling through so many worlds, this was the first time she had found genuine entertainment without actively seeking it out.
When she saw Pei Guang approach, she spread her arms wide. "Your promise has been fulfilled. And you even gave me a performance I never expected to witness. Feel free to do as you please~"
Looking at Kafka's open arms, Pei Guang quipped, "If this were not the first 'run', I'd definitely take full advantage of this moment. But to avoid locking out the peace route, I think I'll leave this 'difficult task' to Stelle!"
With those words, Pei Guang stepped aside. Behind him, Stelle grinned mischievously, extending her hands as she slowly walked toward Kafka.
Seeing her expression, Kafka sighed and closed her eyes.
This time, Pei Guang's group didn't get any rare drops from Kafka or Blade. Instead, Kafka dropped a simple firework effect.
Stelle returned to Pei Guang's side. "Ah Guang, no luck this time—just one drop between the two of them."
Pei Guang shrugged. "Not a problem! As long as there's something, I'm happy. Now that this mission's done, let's head out."
Stelle cheered, "Let's go, let's go! So where to next?"
Pei Guang thought for a moment. "Since we're already here at the Divination Commission, let's explore a bit more. We didn't have time to check every corner before. Now that we're free, let's see if we missed any materials, equipment, or items."
March 7th pumped her fist. "Yay! More adventuring!"
Stelle seemed excited too but quickly remembered something. She turned to Pei Guang with a bit of concern. "Wait—what about them? Are we just leaving them to get captured by the Cloud Knights?"
Pei Guang replied casually, "Of course we are. Our mission was to prevent the Cloud Knights from interrupting their process—not to help them escape Xianzhou. Since we didn't get a mission to escort them out, that just means they have their own ways and confidence to leave."
Stelle was momentarily confused, but then it hit her—this was Kafka they were talking about. Getting captured by the Cloud Knights wouldn't be a problem at all. After all, Silver Wolf was still lurking somewhere on the Xianzhou.
If they really needed to escape, Silver Wolf could probably teleport them out in the blink of an eye.
In fact, Kafka had considered this already. That's why she wasn't worried at all about being surrounded or captured. They had a backup plan.
And compared to the prophecy, where they had to pay a steep price to escape after Stelle refused to help, Pei Guang's intervention meant they could now slip away without any losses.
Being "captured" while Pei Guang was around also helped Stelle's group continue operating smoothly on the Xianzhou. After all, if the Cloud Knights couldn't even keep prisoners in custody, how could they blame the Trailblazers for it?
Meanwhile, as Pei Guang's group explored the Divination Commission, they stumbled upon treasure chests that Fu Xuan had ordered her people to leave behind.
For any player, treasure chests were among the most exciting discoveries—and Pei Guang was no exception.
Fu Xuan might have thought the contents were average, but to him, they were treasures.
First, there were plenty of credits. And let's face it—what's the point of opening a treasure chest if there's no money inside?
Next, there were all kinds of food, drinks, equipment, and items—mainly shoes, gloves, helmets, clothes, and bracelets.
All in all, Pei Guang felt pretty satisfied with the loot they found at the Divination Commission after leaving Kafka.
Nine chests so far wasn't bad. However, after glancing at his mini-map, Pei Guang estimated that about one-third of the area was still unexplored.
By the time they finished exploring everything, Pei Guang figured they'd probably uncover at least a dozen treasure chests in total.
While Pei Guang and his group were happily exploring, his phone suddenly rang.
Instinctively, Pei Guang picked it up, only to see a flood of vibrating messages from Herta.
Herta: "Are you there?"
Herta: "Are you there??"
Herta: "Come test it!!"
Herta: "Hurry up! I've got a mission for you!!!"
The messages kept coming, one after another. Judging from how quickly Herta was spamming him, Pei Guang could tell that she was extremely anxious. However, he also noticed that the first message had been sent back when they entered the Ambrosial Arbor and fought the Lord Ravager.
After realizing he couldn't receive signals during that time, Herta had waited for a while. But since she'd been closely monitoring events on the Luofu, she had already seen the Emanator's head mounted on the prow of the Xianzhou and had noticed the Arbiter-General's weapon transformation.
Still, what did that have to do with her?
Herta had previously run tests using data from Pei Guang, with Silver Wolf acting as the carrier. The results were completely unexpected. Now, with all four members of the Genius Society simultaneously upgrading and maintaining the Simulated Universe, Herta was eagerly awaiting Pei Guang's participation—hoping his tests would yield even more critical insights.
Pei Guang stopped walking and sent a message back.
Pei Guang: "I'm not here. What's up?"
Herta: "Get over here! I need you to run a test."
Pei Guang: "Test what? Test you?"
Herta: "Why would I need testing? It's the Simulated Universe. We've made adjustments based on your data. Come test it. Afterward, I'll give you something nice."
Herta then sent a few pictures.
Herta: "You'll be able to obtain special planar ornaments crafted just for you. Think of them as auxiliary gear that can significantly boost your stats. So? Interested?"
After the previous Simulated Universe backup crashed, Herta had called in Screwllum to assist. Ruan Mei and Stephen had collaborated remotely. From the time Pei Guang left Herta's Space Station until now, she had finally finished upgrading the Simulated Universe.
Originally, the Simulated Universe was designed to uncover the mysteries of the Aeons. It was intended to use Stelle as a test subject—having her embody the Trailblazer Aeon, Akivili, and interact with these highly social Aeons.
After all, Stelle had a Stellaron inside her, was a Trailblazer, and carried multiple layers of influence. She was bound to yield results.
And she did—significant ones, even. But compared to what Pei Guang's data had revealed, her results paled in comparison.
Just one set of data and a backup model from Pei Guang had already produced vast amounts of information about the Aeons. More shockingly, during the previous Simulated Universe tests, Herta had witnessed the birth of an Aeon.
And it wasn't just the birth of an Aeon—that alone would've been shocking enough. According to the Simulated Universe's data, this Aeon was controllable. It had self-awareness and wasn't bound by the Paths.
This result completely overturned many of Herta's theories, and the data had even alarmed her three collaborators.
The upgrade of the Simulated Universe had been so groundbreaking that even Nous, the Aeon of Erudition, provided considerable support.
With four geniuses who could upend the galaxy working together—plus Nous's assistance—Herta managed to complete the upgrade in just seven days.