### **The Celestial Oath's Embrace**
The *Celestial Oath* glided through the cosmic void, its hybrid engines humming a lullaby of starlight and silence. For the first time since the Devourer's fall, Lin Tian and his companions breathed. The ship's luxury defied reason—a floating palace with gardens of eternal cherry blossoms, zero-gravity hot springs fed by nebula vapor, and an AI chef that synthesized immortal delicacies.
"Three months to Andromeda," Lin Xue announced, sprawled on a hover-sofa in the observation deck. Her neon-pink hair clashed with the holographic starscape. "No apocalypses, no assassins, no betrothed drama. Just… *this*."
Xia Qingyue sipped frostfire-infused wine, her icy aura thawed by the ship's ambient qi. "Enjoy it. The universe will try to kill us again soon."
---
### **Week 1: Gardens of Eternity**
The ship's biosphere became Luo Mei's sanctuary. She traded her combat armor for silk robes, meditating beneath synthetic moonlight as silver qi threads wove themselves into intricate mandalas. Lin Tian found her there one evening, her stern demeanor softened.
"You're smiling," he noted.
"The ship's qi matrix mimics my hometown's mountains," she said, not opening her eyes. "I'd forgotten what peace felt like."
He joined her, their qi resonating—a harmony of void and silver. Neither spoke. They didn't need to.
---
### **Week 3: The Arena of Whimsy**
Lin Xue hacked the ship's training module, transforming the combat simulator into a chaotic playground. The group battled pixelated kaiju, raced through asteroid fields on qi-powered hoverboards, and endured Xia Qingyue's "Arctic Survival Challenge," which devolved into a frostfire snowball fight.
Ji Yanling watched, arms crossed, until Lin Tian dragged her into a zero-gravity dance-off. "Starborn elites don't *dance*," she protested, but her laughter betrayed her as she spun through holographic stardust.
Later, tipsy on celestial mead, Lin Xue slurred, "If the universe ends tomorrow, at least we had this."
---
### **Month 2: Echoes of the Past**
Xia Qingyue cornered Lin Tian in the ship's library, where ancient codices floated like ghosts. "You've been quiet. The ring's message bothers you."
He activated the hologram of Li Ningshuang—her fractal armor, her defiant glare. "My parents abandoned me to fight a war I'm now inheriting. And this 'consort'… she's a stranger."
Xia Qingyue's frostfire flickered. "We're all strangers until we're not." She hesitated, then revealed a memory crystal. "Your mother gave me this. For when you doubted your path."
The crystal projected Ji Meiling's final moments—fleeing Xingyu with infant Lin Tian, whispering, *"Live, my son. Love. Even if the universe demands war."*
---
### **Month 3: The Calm Before**
On the eve of their Andromeda arrival, the crew gathered in the hot springs. Steam curled around them as the AI served ambrosia dumplings.
"Remember the Patriarch?" Lin Xue snorted. "Dude probably never took a bath in his life."
"Or the Devourer," Luo Mei added. "It could've used a spa day."
Lin Tian leaned back, watching galaxies swirl beyond the glass dome. "Whatever comes next… thank you. For this."
Xia Qingyue's foot brushed his under the water. "Don't get sentimental. We still have to survive your fiancée."
---
### **A Signal in the Static**
As the others slept, the ship's AI alerted Lin Tian:
***Anomaly Detected: Andromeda Border.***
The screen showed a derelict fleet—Eclipse Syndicate insignias scorched off, hulls clawed by something *organic*. Amid the wreckage floated a survivor's pod, its interior glowing faintly… with frostfire.
"Xia Qingyue," Lin Tian muttered. "Why does this look like your work?"
The AI chimed. ***Incoming Transmission: Li Ningshuang. Priority: Urgent.***
Her hologram flickered, battered but unbroken. "Lin Tian? If you're alive, meet me at the **Graveyard of Titans**. And bring a wedding gift—like an army."
---
### **Epilogue: Threshold**
The *Celestial Oath* breached Andromeda's outer rim, its shields shimmering. Ahead loomed the Graveyard—a skeletal graveyard of dead starships, their husks orbiting a black hole.
Lin Tian stood at the helm, his relaxed posture replaced by the Void Sovereign's resolve. "All hands, ready. The interlude's over."
Xia Qingyue ignited her frostfire. "Let's go collect your bride."
As the ship dove into the chaos, Lin Tian's ring pulsed—a final message from his parents:
***"Trust her. And yourself."***