Soon after,
“Hello—hello, hello! Attention, all passengers—the Astral Express is about to jump—the Astral Express is about to jump! Please fasten your seatbelts, Pam!”
Pam’s voice came over the intercom.
Star found a seat and sat down, while Jiang Lin sat opposite her, observing her from time to time.
A moment later, Pam’s voice came again.
“The jump is about to begin. 5... 4... 3... 2... 1...”
As Pam’s voice faded, the Astral Express began its jump.
Soon after, Jiang Lin suddenly felt a change in his surroundings.
Jiang Lin frowned slightly, “Mnemic?...” Just then, Himeko entered the observation car.
“There’s something I need to tell you in advance.”
Jiang Lin stood up and asked, somewhat puzzled:
“Is it about Penacony?”
Himeko nodded, took out a music box, and continued:
“This is the ‘invitation’ the Astral Express received. Listen to it.”
Jiang Lin didn’t hesitate, took it directly, and opened it. A gentle voice emerged, accompanied by beautiful background music:
“We cordially invite the esteemed guests of the Family to Penacony to partake in a grand banquet with other guests.”
Jiang Lin frowned slightly. He listened carefully again and finally confirmed a certain conjecture:
“There’s something wrong with this background music.”
Himeko smiled faintly and nodded in agreement:
“Indeed. There are some dissonant notes in this background music. I transcribed these noises and found that they perfectly match the gravitational wave frequency of the Astral Express during its jump.
And using the spatial curvature of the Astral Express engine as the key, I obtained a message:
‘Witness the impossible in dreams, seek the legacy of the Clockmaker, father of Penacony, and then answer: Why does life sleep?’”
Jiang Lin nodded, not saying much, and Himeko spoke again.
“This precisely indicates that this journey to Penacony will definitely not be smooth sailing.”
“I understand. Do the others know about this?”
“March 7th and Dan Heng already know. As for Welt, he seems to have some other matters to attend to.
And Star... she seems to have fallen asleep.”
When Jiang Lin looked at Star again, he found that she was indeed asleep on the sofa.
After Himeko finished speaking, she left, and Jiang Lin continued to observe Star.
Soon after, the Astral Express stopped... Jiang Lin was a little puzzled... Had they arrived?
Just then, the Conductor came walking with small, quick steps.
“Attention, passengers, the Astral Express has arrived at Penacony.”
Then, Pam said with a hint of emotion:
“The frontier prison of yesteryear has now transformed into this luxurious hotel.
Although I’m curious about Penacony’s current appearance, I can’t disembark from the Astral Express, so you’ll have to experience it well for me, Pam.
Pack your luggage; you can disembark at any time, Pam. Remember to find passenger March 7th at the back; she’s waiting for you all to depart together.”
Star woke up at this moment, looked at Jiang Lin, then at Pam, nodded, and stood up, intending to go with Jiang Lin to find the others to disembark.
But Jiang Lin didn’t notice any abnormality in Star; she didn’t shed tears as in the original plot. Perhaps... it was because that was a dream?
Jiang Lin didn’t intend to go together. He asked Star:
“You go first. I’ll disembark with you all later. By the way, did you dream anything just now?”
Star shook her head: “I didn’t dream anything.”
Jiang Lin lowered his head and pondered for a moment: “Never mind, you go find the others first.”
Star didn’t ask any more questions, turned around, and went to find March 7th and Dan Heng.
Jiang Lin walked to the window, looked at the luxurious Penacony, and carefully felt it again... Hmm, it was indeed reality, not a dream... After a while, everyone disembarked together... At the entrance of Penacony, there were countless tourists from all over the galaxy, and many Family members were inspecting them.
Finally, it was the Astral Express Crew’s turn. Jiang Lin personally witnessed March 7th’s suitcase being rummaged through four or five times.
Everyone underwent very strict questioning before completing the check-in procedures.
When it was Jiang Lin’s turn, the Family member looked at Jiang Lin’s information, stunned a moment, then reacted, asking with some uncertainty:
“Are you... Mr. Jiang Lin?”
Jiang Lin nodded and then replied:
“My name is indeed Jiang Lin. Why? Is there a problem?”
The Family member then respectfully said:
“No, there isn’t. You may enter, but please do not bring any dangerous items.”
“I think I myself am quite dangerous.”
Jiang Lin looked at the Family member and said calmly.
“You... don’t joke. Please come in! Please come in...”
Jiang Lin didn’t say much and directly entered the green aisle opened by the Family.
When the Family member saw Jiang Lin leave, he also quietly left, and soon another Family member came to take over his work.
At this moment, Jiang Lin came over to Star and March 7th, deciding to wait for Dan Heng for a bit... March 7th looked at Jiang Lin, somewhat puzzled:
“How did you get through so easily? We had over a dozen checkpoints, big and small, along the way.”
Jiang Lin thought for a moment and replied:
“Perhaps the Family members saw that I looked relatively kind and not like a dangerous person.”
March 7th was a little unconvinced: “Do I look like a dangerous person?”
Dan Heng also arrived at this moment.
Star then motioned for the group to walk together. March 7th, pulling Star, took the lead, while Jiang Lin and Dan Heng walked behind.
After they all entered the lobby, March 7th said with emotion:
“This hotel lobby is too spectacular. All those densely packed rooms must accommodate so many people!
I wonder which room is ours? Let’s go, let’s go. Uncle Yang and the others must be queuing at the front desk. Let’s quickly meet up!”
Then, March 7th saw Himeko and Welt and ran over first... The remaining three were not in a hurry; instead, they first observed the hotel lobby. It must be said, it was indeed very spectacular.
At this moment, March 7th turned back to the three of them, somewhat flustered, and said:
“You guys, hurry up, it seems something’s not right...”
Seeing this, the three of them didn’t delay and went to the front desk where Welt and Himeko were.
March 7th was puzzled at this moment... “Look, why are so many people gathered at the front desk? Could it be that we’ve run into trouble again right after disembarking?”
“Don’t worry, March 7th, let’s go see what’s going on with Mr. Welt first.”
Dan Heng spoke up to comfort her at this moment.
At this time, Jiang Lin thought of Aventurine. He carefully looked around and indeed found a handsome young man with short golden hair and luxurious clothing in the crowd.
As the group approached, they also heard Himeko and Welt’s conversation.
Ellie: “I’m sorry, but the system indeed does not have those two names you mentioned.”
“The information received by the Astral Express stated that rooms had been reserved for us. Please check again.”
Himeko said with certainty.
Ellie replied helplessly: “Alright, I’ll check for you again.”
Then she turned around and checked again.
“Hmm... Astral Express, four platinum rooms... specifically for Mr. Welt Yang, Ms. Himeko, Ms. March 7th, and... Mr. Dan Heng. Indeed, there are only reservation details for the above four individuals.”
Ellie turned back to Himeko again.
Star spoke at this moment: “It’s over, Jiang Lin and I will have to sleep on the floor...”
Welt pondered for a moment, then said:
“I understand. No wonder Star and Jiang Lin’s names aren’t here; they hadn’t boarded the Astral Express when we replied to the Family.
Is there a way to temporarily add two rooms?”
Himeko also spoke:
“These two are new passengers of our Astral Express. We can vouch for their identities.”
Ellie placed a hand on her forehead, looking very troubled:
“This... If you suddenly say that, I’m afraid...”
Star, to avoid sleeping on the floor, also cooperatively took out her roaming visa... “No, I’m not questioning your identity, it’s just...”
Ellie said anxiously, as she didn’t have that much authority, but the Astral Express was also an esteemed guest of the Family... Moreover, she always felt that the one named Jiang Lin seemed somewhat familiar, as if she had seen him somewhere before, but deep down, there seemed to be a hint: she didn’t know him... Just then, a confident voice came:
“It’s just that it’s the eve of the Symphony of Harmony, the most important time of every season in Penacony.
And with the Family’s invitation, guests from all over the galaxy are crowding this place... Hotel security is already stretched thin, and there’s no room for error. For something like this to happen suddenly, it’s really not something this young lady can decide.
Astral Express Crew, don’t make it difficult for her.”
As that figure approached, the Astral Express Crew all recognized him; it was Aventurine... Welt, seeing this, had a wary look in his eyes but spoke directly:
“It is indeed our problem that caused you inconvenience, and we are deeply sorry, Mr. Aventurine.”
March 7th, meanwhile, whispered to Jiang Lin and Star... “It’s that bad guy who was cut by Ms. Acheron... He wouldn’t be here to cause trouble, would he...”
Jiang Lin said calmly: “Maybe he’s here to help...”
“Ah? Really or fake?”
March 7th asked, somewhat suspiciously.
At this moment, Himeko took over Welt’s words and spoke to Aventurine:
“I heard that the Interastral Peace Corporation also received an invitation to Penacony. Mr. Aventurine, as the Corporation’s representative, indeed possesses an extraordinary demeanor.
But the Corporation willing to send you to Penacony, I presume, is not to be an enemy of the Astral Express.”
Aventurine’s tone was calm, yet full of confidence:
“Of course not. I can help you resolve this issue, after all, if I can gain the friendship of a genius and the Astral Express, it’s definitely a win-win deal.”
Then he looked at March 7th:
“Also, my dear young lady, next time you speak, you could speak a little softer; I can hear you...”
March 7th awkwardly scratched her head, silently shielding the others in front of her.
Jiang Lin pondered to himself. He hadn’t detected the aura of the Cornerstone on Aventurine, presumably it had been taken by the Family.
Jiang Lin was somewhat hesitant at this moment, whether to steal it or snatch it... Well, in Jiang Lin’s eyes, one of his purposes in coming to Penacony was the Cornerstone.
After all, obtaining the Cornerstone in Penacony was much easier than at the Corporation’s headquarters.
Moreover, Jiang Lin was clearly aware of the enormous scale of the Corporation. If the Corporation was determined to be his enemy, it would cause him no small amount of trouble.
So, if the Cornerstone was lost in Penacony, as long as he didn’t leave obvious evidence proving he did it,
Then the Family would have to take most of the blame... Even if he was genuinely “suspected,” it wouldn’t matter much... After a moment of thought, Jiang Lin decided to sound out Sunday later. What if Sunday was willing to give it to him directly?
During this time, Welt and Himeko had also engaged in talks with Aventurine.
After all, Aventurine was not an enemy for the time being, and he also intended to cooperate with the Astral Express.
Although everyone on the Astral Express was still wary or hostile towards Aventurine, at least for now, the Astral Express had not paid anything.
Aventurine also kept his word. He said to Ellie:
“Miss, you’ve seen it all. For my sake, please let this young lady check in as well.”
Aventurine pointedly looked at Star, but his peripheral vision never left Jiang Lin.
“Also... Mr. Jiang Lin, if you don’t mind, I can offer you my room.”
But before Ellie could speak, another voice came.
“Everyone, please calm down. The Family cannot let esteemed guests enter the dream burdened.”
Two figures walked over: Sunday and Robin... “Look who’s here—Sunday, the most handsome man in Penacony, and Robin, the universe-renowned singer.”
Aventurine spoke with a slightly flippant tone, but deep in his eyes, hidden were vigilance and seriousness.
“I apologize for the wait, Mr. Aventurine. We can discuss our matters later, in private.”
Then Sunday looked at Jiang Lin:
“Mr. Jiang Lin, I have added you to Penacony’s permanent VIP list. The Family will always reserve a room for you, and I will have someone escort you there shortly.”
Then, Sunday looked at Himeko and Welt:
“Please rest assured, I will personally arrange accommodations for the Astral Express Crew and upgrade your room types as compensation.”
While Himeko and Welt were chatting with Sunday, Jiang Lin pulled Star aside.
Star was a little puzzled: “What’s wrong? Did you find a problem?”
Jiang Lin looked at Star and asked seriously:
“Just now... did you see a bellboy named Misha?”
Star was even more puzzled.
“Misha? Who’s that? I don’t know him.”
Star’s answer undoubtedly further convinced Jiang Lin that this was not a dream, but genuine reality.
“Nothing, let’s go. Once Himeko finishes talking, we’ll go directly to the room arranged by the Family.
By the way, send me your room number later.”
Jiang Lin pondered for a moment. He wanted to see how much difference there would be between reality and dream... and he also wanted to know to what extent the Taiyi Dream could reach.
After all, most of the Penacony plot in his previous life was Star’s dream in the Taiyi Dream, and now it was reality... After the two returned, they heard March 7th’s exclamation:
“It really was a roller coaster. Since Mr. Sunday guaranteed it, we can finally check in normally, right?”
Dan Heng looked at the two: “You’re back. Good, let’s go.”
Then, after the group completed their final registration with Ellie and received their Dream Passports, they each went to their respective rooms.
However, a Family member personally escorted Jiang Lin in another direction.
Upon arriving at his room, Jiang Lin carefully inspected it, and after confirming there were no issues, he began to appreciate the guest room.
Hmm, it was very high-end and luxurious. He just wondered how the experience differed from other rooms.
At this moment, Star sent a message.
“Lian Jie Da Zhao: 666666, wow, why is my room still open...”