The next morning, Lin Luo brought the girls to the open ground behind Mahoran Academy. At this moment, no one else was there besides them. Although the matter of the Starlight Avenue didn't need to be kept secret, he didn't want to make too big of a fuss.

"Manifest the Book of Covenant!"

Because the number of contracted individuals had increased, the Book of Covenant was no longer monochrome like before; it was now a vibrant mix of black and white, interlaced with color. Its cover displayed the ripples of water, the brilliance of the starry sky, and even reflections of time and space... visually, it was quite miraculous.

Let alone the young women who had never seen the Book of Covenant, even Mikoto and Iveli displayed looks of wonder, gathering around to observe. A few even started touching it. However, although they could see and feel it, they couldn't take it or open it—just like their World Heart. As for Lin Luo... well, he couldn't see or touch it either.

"Say, don't any of you want to leave?" Seeing the girls chattering around the Book of Covenant, and Xiao Ber even lifting her pseudo-Holy Sword as if to strike, Lin Luo was instantly speechless. He quickly tucked the little one into his Command Seal space and then grasped the Book of Covenant.

At his words, the assembled girls all turned away, looking embarrassed.

The next moment, the Starlight Avenue descended.

Lin Luo stepped in first, followed without hesitation by Iveli, Mikoto, and Mercury. Sakuya and Kinoka passed through smoothly. Setsuna and Chou Rin'ne, being subordinates of the Contractors, also entered easily. However, when Chachamaru attempted to enter, she was repelled.

"Why is this happening?" The girls were instantly confused, all turning their gazes toward Lin Luo. "Didn't you say Chachamaru could come in too? Why was she bounced back?"

Lin Luo nodded. "Chachamaru can indeed enter, but her method was wrong." Saying this, Lin Luo extended his hand and pulled her over... there was no rebound effect; she entered smoothly.

"What's going on?" Seeing this, the girls' heads were filled with question marks.

"Because Chachamaru is a robot," Lin Luo explained. Only he and his Contractors, and those fundamentally connected to the Contractors, could enter the Starlight Avenue. Any other lifeform could not.

But Chachamaru was not a living being. Even though she possessed her own consciousness and soul, essentially, she remained a machine. Just as the clothes Lin Luo and the others wore weren't repelled by the Starlight Avenue, machines wouldn't be either—provided, of course, they had physical contact with Lin Luo and the others.

Otherwise, the Starlight Avenue would deem everything external as hostile and repel it. This was the essence of the Starlight Avenue's absolute defense: any being not connected to the Contractor, or anything not acknowledged by the Contractor, would be rejected. Not even a single leaf could enter on its own.

But if Lin Luo and the others acknowledged it, it was different. Now that he was holding Chachamaru's hand, to the Starlight Avenue, it was no different than Lin Luo holding a piece of clothing.

For example, Cha Cha Ling Zero and Iveli's other maids currently existed within the Time Room, which Iveli carried on her person. When Iveli entered the Starlight Avenue, they entered along with her. Conversely, if the Time Room wasn't being carried by Iveli, they absolutely could not have entered.

"So that's how it is." The girls suddenly understood. Simply put, only two categories of entities could enter the Starlight Avenue: those with an essential connection to Lin Luo or the Contractors, and non-living objects that were touched and acknowledged as harmless by their bodies.

"Then let's set off," Lin Luo nodded, and the Starlight Avenue lifted off the ground, advancing toward the Divine Kingdom.

...

At this very moment, in the Sky City, Rin Tohsaka stepped through the teleportation circle from a certain floating island back into the central courtyard, her expression somewhat grave. She simply could not comprehend why that floating city had suddenly vanished and then reappeared, looking like it had been salvaged from a world war.

Hugging one arm across her chest and stroking her chin with the other, Rin Tohsaka paced the courtyard with a grim expression, pondering deeply like a scholar.

"Say, can you stop pacing? It's dizzying!" Beside her, Misaki Shokuhou lay on a lounge chair wearing a three-piece swimsuit, looking up to remove her sunglasses and grumble discontentedly.

"I'm thinking about something, don't bother me," Rin Tohsaka said with a stern face.

"Tsk, this girl definitely reads too much Sherlock Holmes," Misaki Shokuhou shook her head, sighed, put her sunglasses back on, and walked over to the massive swimming pool nearby, diving in.

"Thinking about what? It must be Lin Luo summoning it," Mugino Shizuri said, sitting at a table and sipping a drink. "Didn't Sakuya and Xiao Ber disappear suddenly too?"

"I know that, of course," Rin Tohsaka replied with slight displeasure. Even the biggest idiot could guess who was pulling the strings; besides, she was a powerhouse, not an idol. But she had to find the reason why Lin Luo could summon the floating city; otherwise, she wouldn't feel settled... Why? She had been on that floating city before and found tons of treasure; how could she be content with all that suddenly vanishing?!

Just then, Rin Tohsaka suddenly spotted a familiar white light appearing in the distant sky. Her eyes immediately lit up. Not only she saw it, but Mugino Shizuri and Misaki Shokuhou, who was doing the backstroke in the pool, also saw it.

When the Starlight Avenue landed in the central courtyard, Rin Tohsaka immediately rushed forward. She intended to properly question Lin Luo, but as soon as she took a step, her expression froze. Because she saw... so many women inside the Starlight Avenue!

Eight of them! There were eight! This guy... Rin Tohsaka's brow twitched uncontrollably. She recognized three of them, but that was beside the point; there were five complete strangers. With her intelligence, she naturally understood what was going on, and an unidentifiable anger rose from the depths of her heart.

"Oh my, oh my, looks like some people are going to be in trouble now," Misaki Shokuhou had climbed out of the pool, throwing a robe over herself as she walked over, emitting a sarcastic tone that only made Rin Tohsaka angrier.

As for Mugino Shizuri, she gave Shokuhou a sidelong glance, as if to say: You're one of those 'some people,' aren't you?

On the other side, as soon as they stepped out of the Starlight Avenue, everyone except Mikoto, Iveli, and Mercury stood stunned. Even Sakuya looked surprised. Although Lin Luo had told them about the Sky City before, hearing about it was one thing; experiencing it firsthand was another. The grandeur of the Sky City brought them immense shock.

"Ah, that's the floating city from back then!" Suddenly, Kinoka exclaimed, pointing in one direction. The other girls turned, and immediately spotted the massive fortress that had defeated the Creator's Tomb Keeper Palace. And there wasn't just one; there were twelve floating cities, surrounding this Sky City like guardian deities.

Furthermore, the endless, enormous Rainbow Bridge above the Sky City made them gasp in wonder. Looking at it, it seemed as if the Rainbow Bridge connected the two ends of this world.

And the wonders on the Sky City—like cherry blossoms that never withered, inverted waterfalls, miraculous fountains, and endless snowflakes under a clear sky—immediately captivated the hearts of the young women.

"Setsuna, let's go see the cherry blossoms," Kinoka seemed the most excited. Regardless of Setsuna's agreement, she immediately grabbed her hand and ran toward the clusters of ever-blooming cherry trees.

Chou Rin'ne's excitement was clearly no less than Kinoka's. She had long looked forward to the Sky City and was certain this world would not lack the materials she needed. With eyes full of ecstasy, she immediately dashed off toward a certain area, calling out to Chachamaru along the way.

Chachamaru looked towards Iveli, seemingly seeking permission. Iveli waved her hand dismissively, and instantly, Chachamaru followed Chou Rin'ne and ran off.

The only one who didn't move was Sakuya. Although the scenery of the Sky City was spectacular to her, Gensokyo also had no shortage of strange sights, or perhaps, bizarre events. Thunderstorms in winter and lotus blossoms in summer were almost daily occurrences. Let alone cherry blossoms that never withered, she had even seen a never-setting crescent moon, so she quickly calmed down.

"Yo, Rin, Mugino, Shokuhou, long time no see," Lin Luo greeted the three girls opposite him enthusiastically.

"Yo... you stop with the 'yo'!" Rin Tohsaka scolded sharply and rushed in front of Lin Luo, immediately launching into her verbal assault mode. "How do you plan to compensate me for my losses?!"

"What losses?" Lin Luo looked utterly bewildered.

"Of course..." The young woman's face flushed red as she started to speak. As a poor young lady, she couldn't tolerate treasure she had secured suddenly vanishing, but if she said it in public, she would surely be mocked by everyone, which would only make her angrier.

"Of course what?"

"Of course... In short, you must compensate me for my losses!" The young woman's face crimson, she decided to stop caring about reasoning. "In short, you must compensate me for my losses!"

"...Fine, I will compensate you next time," Lin Luo said helplessly. Although he didn't know what had happened, Miss Rin being tsundere could be quite troublesome, so he agreed for now. As for how to compensate her, as long as he compensated her with that kind of thing or this kind of thing, it would probably blow over.

Next, Lin Luo gave the girls a brief introduction. After all, only Sakuya was present, and the others on this side hadn't fully arrived yet—he didn't know where everyone else had scattered. A grand introduction would have to wait until later.

Looking at Sakuya, Mugino and Shokuhou were slightly better, but the poor young lady felt immense pressure. She was an optimistic and positive person, but this maid standing before her seemed even more carefree and graceful than she was. Moreover, she had a nagging feeling she had seen this maid somewhere before, perhaps in old wallpaper discarded by Yui while cleaning... Ah, never mind, none of that mattered.

What frustrated Miss Rin the most was... another one with a chest larger than hers! A