The Akasha Terminal's Warning  

The morning mist over Port Ormos was shattered by the sound of firecrackers. Ling Feng stood on the balcony of the shop's second floor, looking down at the bustling crowd below—Eremites burning incense before the Deshret obelisk, Akademiya students clutching their *Interdimensional Elemental Reaction Hypothesis* theses, and Eremite mercenaries stuffing Fungi back into cages as they tried to sneak inside. 

"Three hundred limited-edition 'Academic Lucky Bags'!" The moment Lumine struck the gong, the crowd surged toward the counter like a tidal wave. Just as the first box containing a *Harry Potter* Sorting Hat was handed out, the Akasha Terminal blared a piercing alarm in everyone's ears. 

**[Warning! Detected forbidden knowledge contamination!]** 

**[Coordinates: Port Ormos Warehouse 7. Initiating quarantine protocol—]** 

The Adventurers' Guild receptionist with green earrings walked through the frozen crowd, her heels clicking against the floor tiles with inhuman precision. When her fingertips touched the Deshret obelisk, the inscriptions twisted into ancient Sumeru script: **[Who are you?]** 

"Just an ordinary receptionist." Katherine smiled politely, but a stream of emerald data flickered in the depths of her pupils. "According to Akasha Terminal Regulation 3721..." 

"Regulations don't say receptionists can decipher Deshret's codes barehanded," Ling Feng interjected, subtly rolling a red pill toward the edge of the counter. It was his "insurance," prepared overnight—it would automatically absorb energy fluctuations if Nahida came into contact with anything related to Irminsul. 

The moment Katherine bent to pick up the pill, the glaze lily in her hair suddenly bloomed. Ling Feng's heart sank—this was the exact variety he had gifted Zhongli in Liyue! 

"Explain this." Katherine projected a hologram showing *Minecraft* blocks devouring reality. "And the incident this morning where Eremite mercenaries ran naked through the port—they said they ate candy that made them invisible." 

"That's a side effect of *Harry Potter*'s Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans!" Ling Feng held up a lab notebook. "Look, the 47th test says 'may randomly trigger Disillusionment Charm'..." 

Before he could finish, the red pill in Katherine's hand dissolved into light and entered her mouth. Lumine's gasp caught in her throat—the receptionist's body was fading, countless emerald branches spreading from under her skirt, fragments of Sumeru City's millions of dreams flickering on the branches. 

"Irminsul... is polluted?" Nahida's true consciousness floated in the data stream. She saw crimson roots entwining the leylines, The Doctor's grinning face splitting the tree trunk, and Scaramouche piloting the Shouki no Kami to cleave the roots in half. 

Only three seconds passed in the real world. Katherine staggered against the counter, her shell cracking. Outside, Akademiya scholars seized the moment to shout, "Shut down this black market spreading forbidden knowledge!" 

Cyno's lightning spear shattered the sword of the first guard to charge in, but more Eremites, controlled by the Akasha Terminal, flooded in. Ling Feng watched helplessly as a scholar used a *Naruto* sealing scroll to steal a shelf, while another stuffed *Death Note* into his robes. 

"In the name of the God of Wisdom!" Nahida spoke through Katherine, but the Akasha retorted sharply: **[Denied! Detected illegal consciousness access!]** 

The real Katherine suddenly convulsed and collapsed, revealing intricate Khaenri'ah machinery inside. The crowd erupted: "A puppet! The Akademiya is spying on us!" 

Nahida's consciousness was trapped in the Akasha's void. As the crimson roots were about to touch her core, Ling Feng's voice pierced through: "Catch!" 

The red pill reassembled into a *Matrix*-style code mirror in the data space. Nahida saw each of her choices splitting into parallel timelines: in Timeline A, she chose to destroy the blind box shop, and Irminsul's corruption accelerated; in Timeline B, she allowed Ling Feng to exist, and The Doctor awakened Scaramouche seven years early... 

"This isn't prophecy—it's a probability cloud." She suddenly understood, tapping the mirror's surface. All timelines converged at a single point of starlight—the *Clannad* light orb glowing in Ling Feng's backpack. 

In the real world, Ling Feng was pinned to the ground by the Matra. As he struggled to reach the counter's hidden compartment, Lumine suddenly lifted the *Doraemon* Anywhere Door rug. Nahida's consciousness returned through the light orb's channel, and Katherine's shell instantly repaired itself. 

"Evidence." She calmly opened her palm, and the Akademiya's forged complaint letters turned to ash in the flames. "Regulation 134 states that unauthorized modification of Akasha Terminal data is punishable by—" 

Cyno's lightning spear was already at the lead scholar's throat. 

After the crowd dispersed, fragments of Nahida's consciousness flickered on the Deshret obelisk: **[How many futures have you seen?]** 

"Fewer than you, but more than most." Ling Feng wiped the shattered counter, noticing Lumine repairing the bite marks on the *Animal Crossing* manual. The sea breeze carried a torn scrap of paper—a corner of the Akademiya's secret documents, bearing the faint words "God-Making Project." 

Lumine suddenly pressed her hand over his bloodied one. "Next time you lie, remember to hide the *Death Note* test records better." She pointed to his sleeve, where a corner of paper with the Grand Sage's name peeked out. 

The port's fog thickened, swallowing the shadows of Eremite mercenaries moving Khaenri'ah parts.