Absolutely legitimate Star Iron, I've awakened the Underworld System?

However, Bai Qiong firmly believed that everything she had done was to save this world from falling apart!

It's all for the sake of justice!

Just as Bai Qiong finished showering and dried her hair, her phone, which was on the bedside table, suddenly vibrated, and several new text messages popped up on the screen.

Bai Qiong picked up her phone and saw that the sender's name was "Wild".

“Wild? Who is that?” Bai Qiong frowned in confusion.

He opened the text message; the content was very simple:

[Wilde: Hello, Lord White Dome.]

[Wilder: Let me introduce myself. I'm Wilder, an employee of the Strategic Investment Department at Interstellar Peace Corporation. You are a major client of our company, so I had Director Toppa give me your contact information. I hope you don't mind.]

[Wild: I'm contacting you today to recommend a video game.]

Bai Qiong frowned upon seeing this.

Toppa... how did he leak his information again? Last time it was Scott, this time it's this guy named Wilder.

It seems I really need to find an opportunity to give her a good beating with a big baseball bat, lest she misbehave again.

Bai Qiong replied

[Bai Qiong: A game? What game? Is it exciting? Can you teach me how to log in?]

[Wild: Deng Duanglang? What does that mean? I've never heard of it...]

[Wilder: Our game is called "Etherfront," a major cosmic-level cultural brand jointly created by the company's marketing department, in collaboration with Interstellar Interconnect Network and Interstellar Peace Film & Television.]

Upon seeing the words "Ether Front," Bai Qiong instantly understood.

This is the event mission from the Starry Sky Railway, where you can capture Aether Spirits and battle NPCs. The story text also makes many references to Pokémon.

Although the story text is quite interesting, the event content is essentially still within the turn-based framework of Starry Sky Railway, and the Ether Spirit attributes obtained are fixed and not random.

This is also a disappointing point.

However, now that we've traveled through time, this Ether Front event should be more interesting than we imagined. At least the Ether Spirits we can obtain shouldn't be limited to just a few fixed ones.

Wouldn't it be wonderful to become a fully-fledged, open-air being, a humanoid ethereal spirit?

Thinking of Cheng Luren's bare jade feet, Bai Qiong couldn't help but rub his hands together in anticipation.

[Bai Qiong: I've heard of your product, it's that card-collecting battle game, right?]

[Wild: You've heard of it, that's great! If you're interested, why not visit the Rivet Town Commercial Plaza in Arillow-VI to learn more!]

[Wilde: We're hosting the EtherWarriors offline fan festival, "StarCraft Showdown Celebration," right here! Please come check it out!]

[Bai Qiong: Then I'll definitely come!]

Putting away her phone, Bai Qiong prepared to go to Belloberg to see what was going on.

At this moment, a system notification popped up in front of Bai Qiong.

[A reminder to the master: the storyline of this "Ether Front" will be vastly different from what you expect. Please be prepared.]

"The plot of this world is already unbearable to watch, so what's different this time?"

Bai Qiong asked curiously in his heart.

[Due to the influence of special memetic contamination, this Ether Front will be much more difficult than the original storyline, and its content and format will also be greatly changed.]

[At the same time, there will be different rewards and punishments for defeating or losing an opponent.]

"Are there rewards and punishments?"

Bai Qiong scratched his head, somewhat confused by the system's explanation. [Ahem... I've seen Master's memories. It's actually similar to a Pokémon eroge you played. After defeating the opposing trainer, you can advance to base. Conversely, if you lose... you can only let the opponent advance to base.]

[This meme contamination is extremely unique; in layman's terms, it's DLC content installed on top of the Otherworld memes.]

[The DLC portion of the opponent's character can only be removed after defeating them and reaching base.]

[Of course, the basic meme elements from the other world cannot be removed; you'll need to put in more effort with Mirror Flow, Master.]

Bai Qiong's lips twitched slightly after hearing this. "No, what kind of nonsense is this? Why do I have to do that kind of thing no matter whether I win or lose? What's the difference...?"

[Don't think like that, Master. Only by winning can you advance the plot. If you lose, you will be exploited an extra time.]

Without earning "anime points" as a reward, losing too much might be too much for your body to handle.

[So, for the sake of your kidneys, keep winning, master.]

After reading the system's prompt, Bai Qiong nodded thoughtfully.

So that's how it is.

At this point, we have to borrow a line from Ash Ketchum!

If we win, you'll be the only one who gets to base? No problem! But we won't lose!

Upholding the dignity of the male protagonist in harem novels and adhering to the principle of male supremacy is our inescapable duty!

Thinking of this, a strong belief rose in Bai Qiong's heart.

Bai Qiong quickly dressed and left the room.

Inside the carriage, March 7th was sitting on the soft sofa, hugging a cushion, idly scrolling through her phone. When she saw Bai Qiong come out, she immediately looked up, her bright eyes filled with a hint of doubt and curiosity.

"Hey, Bai Qiong, where are you going?"

March 7th's voice was a little naive, yet it carried a sweetness unique to young girls, "You're not going to sneak away and disappear again, are you?"

Bai Qiong walked over to March 7, gently ruffled her soft pink hair, and explained in a gentle tone, "This isn't anything dangerous. I'm just going to play a game that the company is promoting for me. Ever since I paid off Belloberg's debt and became a major client of the company, they've been paying close attention to me."

He took out his phone, pulled up the text message from Wilder, and showed it to March 7th. "Look, the company recommended a new game called 'Etherfront' and invited me to an offline event in Belleburg."

March 7th curiously took the phone, carefully reading the text message, muttering to himself: "Ether Front... Interstellar Victory Celebration... Rivet Town Commercial Plaza..."

Bai Qiong patiently explained, "I've heard of this game before. It's basically about using a technology called ether copying to record the creatures you've seen on coins, then printing them out for battles..."

He deliberately concealed the content related to meme contamination and the other world, since such things were too complicated to explain and might even make the meme contamination worse.

We can't let our lovely little March get polluted any further!

Upon hearing this, March 7th's eyes lit up instantly, and she exclaimed excitedly, "Wow! Such amazing technology! It sounds like so much fun! I thought only that little girl from Star Core Hunter had this kind of technology, I didn't expect the company to have it too!"

She grabbed Bai Qiong's arm and shook it playfully, "Bai Qiong, Bai Qiong, I want to go too! Take me with you!"

Seeing San Yueqi's excited expression, Bai Qiong's lips curled up slightly. He took her soft little hand and said with a smile, "Okay, let's go together!"

What could be more fun than adventuring in the Starry Sky Railway world with your girlfriend?

Moreover, in the original storyline, it was March 7th who accompanied the protagonist on his journey to catch Aether Spirits, pass through gyms, and reach the path to becoming champion.

The two left the train carriage hand in hand.

Belloberg, the town of Rivets.

March 7th's gaze swept across the hurried crowd, then pointed to a company employee in uniform standing on a street corner, constantly looking around, and said, "Bai Qiong, do you think that shifty-eyed guy in the uniform is the one who sent you the message?"

The crisp sound of March 7th interrupted Bai Qiong's thoughts.

Following the direction of March 7's finger, Bai Qiong saw a blond young man in a Rivettown company uniform holding a phone, his eyes scanning the surroundings as if searching for someone.

"It must be him."

Bai Qiong nodded to March 7, picked up his phone, and was about to send a message to confirm.

Unexpectedly, before he could make a move, the young man in uniform seemed to have suddenly spotted his target. His eyes lit up, and he quickly walked towards Bai Qiong and San Yueqi.

"Excuse me, are you Mr. Bai Qiong? I'm Wilder!"

The young man walked up to Bai Qiong, his face immediately beaming with a warm smile. His voice trembled with excitement as he said, "It's alright if you don't recognize me, but I recognized you immediately! Your photo has been widely circulated in our strategic investment department, and seeing you today, you're even more handsome and dashing than in the pictures!"

Bai Qiong's lips twitched slightly.

Strategic Investment Department? Widely circulated?

Although Bai Qiong had vaguely learned from Scott that he was now being closely monitored within the Belloberg Interstellar Peace Corporation, he was now under special scrutiny.

However, being recognized so enthusiastically and praised for his "handsome and dashing" appearance still made him feel somewhat embarrassed, even a little... socially awkward.

He waved his hand, trying to make his expression appear natural, and said, "Let's skip the formalities and get to the point about what you mentioned in your text message. What exactly is this 'Interstellar Victory Celebration'?"

Unaware of Bai Qiong's embarrassment, Wilder continued enthusiastically, "That's an excellent question! This celebration is actually a large-scale competitive event held by the 'Etherfront Arena Association' at the end of each season as a way to give back to its players—a tournament open to players from all over the universe!"

He paused, seemingly to emphasize the special nature of this celebration, and added, "Originally, according to the plan, this celebration was supposed to be a large-scale offline competition and carnival. However, as you know, the Star Core is currently blocking interstellar pathways, which has affected many interstellar routes. Therefore, in order to ensure that all players can participate smoothly, the association has temporarily changed this celebration to an online viewing mode."

"Online viewing mode?"

March 7th tilted his head, and the novel group member asked with some confusion, "Since it's an online viewing event, what are we even doing here?"

"No, no, no! Miss, you've misunderstood!"

Wilder quickly waved his hand and explained, "Although the main focus is on online viewing, in order to accommodate enthusiastic viewers who insist on experiencing the celebration atmosphere in person, our company has specially applied to set up a small offline venue in Belleburg, specifically to provide services for attendees!"

He pointed to the bustling crowd around him and said proudly, "Look, although it's a temporary venue, the atmosphere is still very lively! Moreover, we've prepared a variety of offline activities to ensure that every attendee leaves with a great time!"

As he spoke, Wilder pointed to a huge electronic screen not far away, which was playing a trailer for the game "Etherfront" and various event previews.

"Collect, battle, nurture, upgrade"

This is the core gameplay and slogan of our game, "Etherfront"!

Wilder pointed to the scrolling slogans on the screen and said excitedly, "How about that? Doesn't it sound exhilarating?!"

Looking at the various futuristic creatures on the screen, March 7th's eyes gleamed with excitement. He nodded repeatedly and said, "Mmm! That sounds really interesting! Um... Etherfronts, how do you play it? Where can I play this game?"

"Haha, you must be Miss March 7th? It seems you're quite interested in our game too!"

Upon hearing March 7's words, Wilder became even more enthusiastic, saying, "Without further ado, since you two are both interested in Etherfronts, I'll take you to the Celebration Service Hall first. Registering a game account there will allow you to begin your Etherfronts journey!"

He gestured for Bai Qiong and San Yueqi to follow him, "Come with me, this way please! The celebration service hall is not far ahead!"

Bai Qiong and San Yueqi exchanged a glance, both seeing anticipation and curiosity in each other's eyes.