I was so scared that I put all my points into health.

The central fountain in Elparan City reflected a rainbow of light, and the twelve stages were being transformed into a rotating dining table. I tiptoed to avoid the Yeti dolls from "The Chronicles of Everfrost" rolling around on the ground, while a dwarf engineer dressed as the "Golden Guardian" sprayed starlight powder onto the barbecue grill with his mechanical arm, instantly filling the air with a strange smell of caramel mixed with ambergris.

"Lord Raine!" The goblin from the logistics team burst through the crowd, his chef's hat sizzling. "The cosplayer from 'The Shadow Demon Chronicles' shot a Shadow Poison Dart into the dessert table!" I looked in the direction he was pointing. A five-meter-tall Black Forest cake was oozing violet syrup, and the oak tree model of the "Druidic Codex" on top of the cake suddenly blossomed and bore fruit—the blueberry-like fruits sprouted mechanical tentacles as they fell to the ground.

System notification: Spatiotemporal pollution source detected.

"It is recommended to consume 5000 gratitude points to activate the purification process."

Current gratitude level: 4921

As I swatted away the warning pop-up, the second princess's maid was squeezing through the crowd with a gilded tray. The tray, which should have contained the Star Crystal awarded for Best Prop, now held three tap-dancing puddings. "Master Silas said this is a side effect of time acceleration..." she began, but before she could finish, a cosplayer's gear armor from *Mechanicus* suddenly disintegrated, hundreds of wind-up parts forming the defiant message, "Come and get me!"

Suddenly, the rumble of gears meshing echoed from the awards stage. The "Time Guardians Alliance," composed of twelve alchemists, manipulated a pocket watch magnified twenty times, grinding across the red carpet. As the minute hand swept across the dessert area, it unleashed a fountain of chocolate, pouring a galaxy-like cocoa river onto the score of "Starfall Wars." Master Thorne, the leader, tossed the nebula ribbons from his tutu, and his modified glitter dust caused chibi-style character icons to float above each cosplayer's head.

"This is the ultimate romance of alchemy!" Master Silas's voice came from inside the pocket watch. I watched as the hour hand pierced the siren model of "Dark Tides," and the tentacles that were supposed to appear 270 days later suddenly began distributing macarons, each dessert with a miniature spacetime magic circle appearing on its surface.

Suddenly, the VIP section lit up with a deep blue starlight. President Winnie put down her milk tea cup, and the emblem of the Star Church spun into a halo in her palm. As the halo disappeared into the out-of-control pocket watch model, the gears suddenly began playing the theme song from "The Ranger's Tale"—clearly the "Divine Automatic Karaoke" she had invented last week!

“Mr. Ryan.” President Winnie’s skirt swept across the icing on the floor, and stardust condensed into question marks in her hair. “Don’t you think the Chronos Merchant Guild’s booth… has an extra music box that shouldn’t be there?” I turned my head and looked. Deep inside the stall filled with antique clocks, there was indeed a music box engraved with the emblem of the Gear Cult, which was rotating automatically.

By the time I finished dealing with the rampaging desserts, the moon was high in the sky. I slumped down by the fountain, munching on a rock lizard skewer, when suddenly a figure in black robes wearing a bird-beak mask appeared in the water's reflection. A bronze gear slipped from his sleeve and landed with a "clink" at my feet, the ancient Elvish script engraved on its inside gleaming eerily in the moonlight—"When the eighth track breaks."

(Foreshadowing: Gear Cult emblem music box / Star trail crack at the bottom of President Winnie's milk tea cup)

Player Log - Special Event Edition

Japan's Cherry Blossom Samurai Group

"Look at that samurai cosplayer!" Hideki, a college student from Osaka, was controlling a ronin character, with a "Ne Zha 2" themed amulet hanging from the hilt of his sword. His teammates were using fire magic to create moving ukiyo-e prints in the sky, with each falling cherry blossom exploding into carp streamer fireworks.

American Steam Brotherhood

Mechanic Kevin incorporated his iconic Loki look into his gear-shaped armor, with a hexagonal light wheel floating behind him continuously playing popular TikTok dances. Suddenly, a fan popped up on his live stream screen asking, "Can you perform making hamburgers using alchemy?" So, a steam grill that sprays cheese waterfalls appeared on stage.

China·Xuan Niao Pavilion

The streamer, "Nuomi Tuanzi," dressed in a modified Hanfu-style fairy dress and holding a folding fan, described the spectacle: "Fellow fans, does anyone understand?! This cyberpunk-style lion dance mecha perfectly blends elements of the planetary engine from 'The Wandering Earth'!" She suddenly pointed to something and exclaimed, "Quick, take a screenshot! That alchemist's beard is dancing to 'Gokuraku Jodo'!"

Gratitude Points Lottery Announcement

This week's prize list

1. Phonograph (disguised as a copper telescope)

2. Space-compressing backpack (disguised as a picnic basket)

3. Elemental Affinity Ring (disguised as a candy ring)

4. Star trail map fragments (mixed into children's puzzle pieces)

5. Spoiler-proof veil (disguised as a masquerade mask)

Special Note

"Duplicate draw of pepper spray (Chapter 193 prize) detected. Enabling the anti-duplicate function requires 5000 gratitude points, which you currently do not have enough of."

Next chapter preview: Chapter 198 The Astrological Code at the Bottom of the Milk Tea Cup

- The music box hides a time loop trap

President Winnie discovered that the foam in her milk tea formed star trails.

- Newcomer: Antique dealer "Mr. Pocket Watch"

- The key prop "Broken Reed" triggers a chain reaction.

This chapter took: 3 game days (real time + 0.43 days)