'Yu Qingtu' snatched the mask from Sparkle's hand and tossed it aside without a second glance.
"Madam, that power doesn't seem to belong to you."
A voice, laced with something dark—part Destruction, part Elation—emerged from the flickering shadows of a nearby streetlamp.
'Yu Qingtu' turned. The newcomer wore a crisp suit, a hat adorned with dice, and carried something in their right hand. A Lord Ravager.
"Lord Ravager Asat Pramad? What brings you here? The final boss making an early appearance?"
Asat Pramad stepped fully out of the shadows, removed their hat with a polite bow, and spoke unhurriedly.
"A Fool who has returned from the ancient depths of the Sea of Quanta—no, more precisely, a genius who is also a Fool."
"We can form a temporary partnership. After all, you too walk the Path of Destruction. You seek to destroy the world that took everything from you."
'Yu Qingtu' only smiled faintly. She had no interest in this Lord Ravager. After all, these beings were even less trustworthy than Fools.
Like Phantylia, who had deceived the Fools time and time again.
"Not interested. I don't need you to complete my revenge. Understand, you reeking dice—abandoned by both the Trailblaze and Elation?"
At those words, Asat Pramad's playful smile vanished. A shudder ran through their entire form.
Ripping open old wounds and pouring salt on them.
A chilling smirk spread across Asat Pramad's face.
"Heh. Elation can no longer bring joy to the world. It has degraded into cheap numbness. He turns suffering into entertainment. Before we reach the end, Elation is already dead."
With a casual wave, Asat Pramad reduced half the streets of Duomension City to rubble.
"She—the Navigator—is gone. He—Akivili—has fallen. They—the Nameless—have betrayed. The Trailblaze route will ultimately fall."
"Embrace the Imperator Insectorum. Walk the Path of Destruction among the stars. One day, you too may reach that moment."
With that, Asat Pramad's form faded away.
"Genius who is also a Fool... in this Phantasmoon Game, we will still make our move."
...
Elsewhere, at Herta Space Station, Asta stared at the mountain-high checklist in her hands. She held her head, letting out a rare, continuous sigh.
Herta Ninety-Nine and Peppy looked at her in confusion.
"What's wrong, Asta?"
Asta handed the checklist to Peppy and Herta Ninety-Nine. They took one look.
It was filled with wedding venue arrangements: gold-nanmu carved door frames, gilded vermilion gauze, silk brocades, and countless other items. Many of them were things they had never even heard of. Some were priceless—so rare they couldn't be bought at any price. Even Asta, the heiress of the Thousand Star Group, felt a pang of helplessness.
"Sigh. A wedding between two geniuses... the first of its kind in the entire universe. Tell me, where am I supposed to buy all this? The Luofu? The Yaoqing? The Yuque?"
Herta Ninety-Nine and Asta exchanged helpless glances.
Sweat beaded on Herta Ninety-Nine's brow. She clutched her clothes, barely daring to breathe.
Asta was funding the wedding, but she, Herta Ninety-Nine, was the officiant. One misstep, one thing that displeased Madam Herta, and she would likely be formatted. Sigh. This was harder than being a puppet counting stars on the platform without a care in the world.