Honkai Impact

"All right, this is the four-star Stigmata, Attila (B), the lower piece. Back in my ti—among the dozen or so Stigmata I knew, Attila (B) was the strongest offensive four-star Stigmata, bar none!"

Ling Feng nearly let the word "era" slip out. Fortunately, he was quick-witted enough to change course in time. Otherwise, with Mei's clever and attentive nature, she definitely would have noticed!

However, Ling Feng was clearly overthinking it. Mei's mind was still a little muddled and in the midst of recovering. She had not even heard much of what Ling Feng said, only catching that it was the four-star Stigmata Attila (B)!

"Phew..."

Mei let out a relieved breath. Although the feeling just now had been extremely pleasant—pleasant enough to make one reluctant to let it end—she had not forgotten what she was doing. The Stigmata...

Mei could clearly feel an unknown yet scorching power surging through the place where Ling Feng had Imprinted the Stigmata. This sensation was completely unlike anything a two-star Stigmata could bring. It was the feeling of absolute power!

"I'll wait for you in the living room!"

Considering that Mei had not put on anything over her upper body yet, Ling Feng conscientiously left the room. He was not in a hurry anyway. Mei would definitely be able to sense that power!

Very soon, Mei got dressed and came downstairs with the other two. She was wearing a loose outfit that made it easier to move around while also being more comfortable!

"Mei, how does it feel?"

Seeing how energized Mei looked, Ling Feng did not need to guess the result, but he still had to ask symbolically, right?

"It's amazing!"

Mei looked at her right hand, lightly clenched it into a fist, and closed her eyes. "I'm not entirely sure, but I can feel that if I activate the Stigmata, my combat power can increase by at least double. And this is only a lower-piece Stigmata. If I gathered the upper and middle pieces too, wouldn't that make it even stronger?"

"No, you're thinking too much!"

Ling Feng shook his head with a smile. "Stigmata that directly increase all combat power are relatively rare. Most increase only part of one's combat power, or they are utility-type Stigmata. Attila (B) is already the four-star Stigmata that boosts combat power the most, but a full Attila set is not as powerful as you imagine. Of course, Stigmata also vary from person to person. Some people become very strong when they equip them, while others may not necessarily become stronger!"

"Even so, I'm already very satisfied..."

Opening her eyes, Mei directly activated the Stigmata on her back with energy. The Stigmata pattern immediately emitted a dazzling red glow, and the power within its markings directly reinforced Mei's body. At once, Mei felt confident that she could cut down anything. If she had possessed the boost of this Stigmata before, she might really have been able to slash apart those mechs!

"Mei, is it really that powerful?"

Although Kiana could not feel what Mei was feeling, as a Valkyrie, she could naturally see the changes in Mei's body, as well as the energy fluctuations from when the Imprint had been completed. Everything pointed to this being a powerful Stigmata—an extraordinarily powerful one!

"Mm, it's very powerful!"

Mei forcibly suppressed her urge to go test it at the training ground immediately, but she still looked at Kiana excitedly. "Kiana, you should get one Imprinted too. With this Stigmata, you'll definitely pass the B-rank Valkyrie assessment!"

"Eh... this..."

Kiana immediately looked somewhat hesitant, though she was even more conflicted and embarrassed...

Power—she really wanted it, but...

Just half an hour ago, she had said she would not let this guy Imprint one on her. And now...

No, absolutely not. Even if she wanted one Imprinted, this guy had to beg her to let him do it. In any case, she absolutely could not lower her head. This was not merely a matter of Stigmata—it was a matter of dignity!

"No, I don't need it!"

Kiana deliberately snorted to show that she did not need it, though inwardly, she was actually miserable. She knew very well that the moment she said that, forget tonight—she would not be getting a four-star Stigmata for at least several days...

"Then I won't Imprint a four-star Stigmata on you either..."

Ling Feng did not hesitate to affirm Kiana's words!

"Ling Feng, how about we..."

Faced with this situation, Mei was the most anxious one. She remembered the conflict between the two of them earlier, and Kiana had made her words so absolute that Mei did not even know how to help...

"Mei, that's not what I meant..."

Seeing that Mei seemed to have misunderstood something, Ling Feng immediately smiled. "What I mean is, Kiana, you're still a C-rank Valkyrie. You probably can't bear the power of a four-star Stigmata yet. So, I can try Imprinting three-star Stigmata on you, one at a time, until you feel like you can't take any more!"

That was right. Ling Feng had absolutely no intention of sulking with Kiana. Making Kiana suffer a setback might feel satisfying for a moment, but it did not seem to have any meaning. Instead, it would only make his relationship with Kiana more distant, and Mei and Bronya might see him as a petty person!

So, rather than sulking with Kiana, it would be better for him to take the initiative and let the matter go. That way, Kiana could obtain Stigmata and become stronger, while he lost nothing. Besides, after this incident, Kiana would probably be too embarrassed to target him again, right? This was a huge win, okay?

True victory was not necessarily about defeating your opponent. It was about allowing yourself to gain the greatest possible benefit—that was true victory. And lowering your head did not necessarily mean defeat either. After all, Ling Feng was a Valkyrie who had thoroughly studied the work titled Emotional Intelligence!

"I... I don't want that..."

Kiana still found it difficult to speak up, so she blurted out a refusal... and then regretted it immensely...

Kiana: "..." Aaaah, what the heck am I saying...

Mei: "..." I want to cry...

Mei really wanted to cry. Her best friend was far too difficult to deal with...

"I... I mean, I don't want a three-star Stigmata. Give me a four-star one!"

Fortunately, Kiana was not particularly dumb, and her mind immediately turned the corner. She snorted. "I'm not weaker than Mei, so why would I want a three-star one? I can handle a four-star one too. Of course, if you... if you find that I can't handle it, you can switch it to a three-star one. But before that, I want a four-star one Imprinted first!"

Ling Feng glanced at Mei, who returned a helpless look. Then, the two of them sighed at the same time...

"Ahhh... w-wah... It's... it's really so comfortable, ahh... G-gentler... ahhhhh..." And so, another kind of incredibly seductive sound rang out through the apartment...

Moreover, Kiana did not have Mei's self-control. She moved several times midway through, causing mistakes in the drawing, so they could only start over from the beginning...

Of course, it was also possible to make corrections and continue drawing afterward, but that would weaken the Stigmata's abilities to a certain extent. It could even cause a four-star Stigmata to display only three-star capabilities. These were the most common imperfect Stigmata!

In fact, most Valkyries used imperfect Stigmata. That was because machine Imprinting was almost incapable of achieving perfection, while manual Imprinting was difficult and required completion in a single attempt without any mistakes whatsoever. Therefore, in most cases, even if a mistake was made, one could only correct it and continue, because as Mei had said, laser Imprinting really hurt—hurt like hell...

Too Tired at Night, Skipping Class During the Day!

Probably because he had used up too much energy last night, or because he had gone to bed too late, Ling Feng didn't attend class today. Anyway, he was an assistant, so it didn't really matter whether he went to class or not...

Mei came over to call him once as well, but after confirming that Ling Feng still wanted to sleep, she didn't continue waking him. She put breakfast in the microwave to keep it warm, then went to class with Kiana and Bronya!

Normally, Kiana might have dawdled around and gone to class looking distracted and extremely unwilling, but today was different. Today, she was incredibly excited because she had become stronger!

Although she still had some resistance toward Ling Feng's method of imprinting Stigmata, she had to admit that four-star Stigmata were truly powerful. She could hardly wait to test her combat strength at the training grounds, then take the B-rank Valkyrie promotion assessment. If she could successfully advance to B-rank Valkyrie, that would be wonderful!

After arriving at the classroom, Kiana kept happily flipping through her book. Who knew whether she was actually taking any of it in? In any case, flipping pages was the right thing to do...

"Hey, Idiot Kiana, what are you grinning so foolishly about this early in the morning?" Seeing Kiana constantly giggling to herself, a girl behind her asked curiously. Since the start of the school term, this was the first time she had seen Kiana come to class looking so happy!

"Hmph, none of your business, Yuqi. I'm happy, okay!"

Kiana decisively chose not to say anything. Although she did want to show off a little, it wouldn't be any fun if she did so now!

Yuqi: "..."

"You really have no ambition at all. You've still been a C-rank Valkyrie ever since enrolling. I honestly feel sorry for Mei, having to be on the same team as you!"

Yuqi looked at Kiana with displeasure and snorted. "Honestly, an outstanding Valkyrie like Mei should be on the same team as me. That would raise our team's combat power by at least a whole level!"

"That's right!"

Another girl seated beside Yuqi spoke up as well. Her name was Baizhi, a Valkyrie on the same team as Yuqi. "You're obviously so weak, yet you insist on sticking with Mei. You're not only wasting your own time, but also wasting Mei's talent!"

"I... I'm not! It's just... just..."

Kiana wanted to argue, but she couldn't find anything to say in rebuttal. They weren't wrong, after all, and both of them were B-rank Valkyries—far stronger than she was...

"Please don't make wild guesses!"

At that moment, Mei stepped in and said with a smile, "I'm the one who wanted to be on the same team as Kiana. It's not like Kiana insisted on clinging to me, and Kiana has always been working hard!"

"Eh... Fine, just pretend we didn't say anything..."

Yuqi sighed helplessly and said no more. Though she was still somewhat displeased with Kiana, Mei was willing, so what could she say...

"By the way, what were you doing last night?"

Yuqi suddenly thought of something else and looked at Kiana with some hesitation. "I think I heard some very strange sounds coming from your apartment, and they went on for more than an hour..."

"Well..."

Baizhi also said curiously, "I remember the Class President said yesterday that an assistant had joined your team, right? You weren't..."

"Absolutely not!"

"What are you talking about?"

Kiana and Mei refuted her at the same time. Then they glanced at each other, their faces slightly red. Had what happened last night really been discovered? But they couldn't blame Ling Feng, because they simply hadn't been able to hold themselves back...

"Really? That seems a little suspicious..."

Seeing Kiana and Mei's expressions, Yuqi grew even more suspicious...

"Hm? Suspicious!"

Baizhi nodded in agreement. It was indeed strange—Mei, who had always been so calm and composed, was actually blushing. Wasn't that practically telling everyone that something had happened last night?

"Come to think of it, I heard sounds last night too... And if it wasn't what we're imagining, then what exactly were you doing?"

Another girl spoke up. Although she didn't live with Yuqi and the others, she could still hear the sounds coming from Team 233's apartment...

"I told you, it was absolutely not that kind of thing! Stop making wild guesses!"

Kiana couldn't help standing up to argue. She even pulled out her handgun and shouted furiously, "If anyone keeps talking nonsense, I won't be polite!"

Everyone: "..."

Mei: "..."

This time, Mei didn't stop Kiana. Although nothing had happened last night, imprinting Stigmata was rather embarrassing to talk about. After all, Ling Feng hadn't used a laser pen to imprint them; he had done it with his fingers. Those suggestive sounds had also been made during the imprinting process...

Therefore, Mei didn't want to say anything or explain. But... the next time they imprinted Stigmata, they absolutely had to close all the doors and windows, and preferably set up a soundproof barrier too...

"Alright, alright, everyone back to your seats. Class is starting!"

Fortunately, Himeko arrived at that moment, and everyone quickly quieted down. After all, it was Teacher Himeko—and she was an A-rank Valkyrie. Not someone they could afford to provoke...

Himeko calmly placed her books on the desk. Noticing that someone seemed to be absent, she asked, "Kiana, didn't that assistant on your team come?"

"He was too tired last night. He still wasn't up when we left, so he probably won't be coming!" Kiana answered honestly. Assistants skipping class was common enough anyway, so there was no need to cover for Ling Feng!

"Pfft... Too tired..."

Yuqi immediately burst out laughing. "Just as I thought. And you said there was nothing going on—he can't even get up..."

Kiana: "..."

Mei: "..." Why were you so honest at a time like this...

"That makes sense. Alright, class is starting!"

Himeko also knew what had happened in Magic City last night, so she couldn't be bothered to pursue the matter of Ling Feng skipping class. Besides, to be honest, she probably wasn't qualified to hold an S-rank Valkyrie accountable—though he was only a former S-rank Valkyrie...

Just setting stuff up.

First of all, this is the Honkai Impact 3rd setting. The established details may change, but they won't change too much!

Secondly, don't ask why the stigmas of the Previous civilization are the same as the stigmas of the current era. It's because I don't want to make up stigmas I don't even know. Using the ones from Honkai Impact 3rd is fine. As for why exactly, that'll be explained later! (The same goes for Divine Keys!)

Also, the protagonist's amnesia isn't a plot hole. It's simply because the author is lazy and doesn't want to write too much about the Previous civilization!

Why did Tesla appear at St. Freya Academy? Simple—I just like this character. And I already said some settings will differ from the original, so don't fuss over such details!

Cover

Also, when is my Seele coming out? I'm going to chop all you line-cutters to death!

Lastly, starting today, there won't be any more updates this month. Whatever it is, we'll talk about it next month!

March 31, 2019!

For some reason, the group this idiot author made before can't be joined, so here's a new one. If this one still doesn't work, then forget it... 667082393! (*~rǒ~)

Additional note: the drop rates for this skin are way too real. If I spend even one more cent, I'll chop off my hand!

Chapter 17: A Tesla-Style Slacker Life!

"Go on, what did you need me for?"

In Tesla's laboratory, she was fiddling with a pen, sitting in her chair with a smile on her face and one leg crossed over the other as she looked at Ling Feng!

"I want to know what kind of work you do at the academy. Also, can you repair damaged memories?" Ling Feng didn't beat around the bush and straightforwardly stated why he had come!

After getting up and eating the breakfast Mei had left for him, Ling Feng had been thinking about the gods. After repeatedly checking, he had confirmed that his memories were basically intact; he simply knew nothing about matters related to the gods!

So Ling Feng was extremely curious about it. He always felt it was something very important. After wandering around the academy for a few laps, he finally decided to come ask Tesla for help. After all, this girl was a scientist...

"Memories? So your memories really were damaged?"