57. Xia Ling: One More Look and I'll Explode

Clad in Scale Cloak, Xia Ling's figure swiftly moved through the space.

The Helios's sailing speed wasn't very fast, and it would take quite a while to get there from the Salt Lake Base.

Considering that he left Fu Hua a secret manual on how to get along with Sirin, perhaps the situation on Mount Tai Xu will change significantly compared to the original storyline.

At this point in the story, even though only half of the Herrscher have appeared, the overall situation can almost be considered settled.

In this situation, it's pointless for her to worry about whether the plot will change. After all, even the Origin Elysia, has been handed over to her, so she needs to take on the corresponding responsibility.

So... let's start by easing Fu Hua's "family relationships." Given Sirin's personality at this stage, even if Seele were to step in, let alone herself or Elysia, the outcome would probably be different.

Xia Ling was quite confident about this, after all, Sirin was a good child.

Besides... we can't Fu Hua to keep rolling around in Sirin's minefield like in the original work.

With "wonderful hopes" for the future, Xia Ling hurried towards Mount Tai Xu.

"Ah, there's another one here."

Sirin ran over quickly and picked up a red feather from the ground.

A bewildered Fu Hua emerged from the feathers, quietly watching Sirin.

"I am your original self, and now I need to retrieve my memories."

The illusion within the feather nodded, transforming into a wisp of Honkai Energy that flowed into Sirin's body.

"Look at her, I wish you were as sensible as her."

Sirin crossed his arms, seemingly expressing his dissatisfaction.

Fu Hua didn't speak. She looked at Mount Tai Xu, as if she was recalling something.

"Ugh... The memory of this feather is so hard to recall. Liu Ling Er Wo Shan (Four) Dad (Eight/) Master Spirit #*Dream Eat..."

Sirin's face showed a look of disgust; it seemed that this feather did not hold any pleasant memories.

Before I could recover from the feeling of eating ginger that looked like it was actually shredded potatoes, a roar from Honkai Beast came from not far away.

"Honkai Beast? I haven't seen those fat Chi Yuan since I came back, how come I ran into this thing first?"

Sirin reached out and squeezed, and the Chariot-class Honkai Beast immediately fell silent.

"Wow... this isn't an isolated case; there seem to be quite a few nearby."

Upon reading the Honkai Beast's memories, Sirin's face showed surprise.

"There should be a village nearby. If, as you say, there are quite a few Honkai Beast around, then this village..."

Fu Hua paused for a moment.

"I say, what does that village have to do with us? So much time has passed, it's probably been razed to the ground by Honkai Beast long ago. Besides, we should be more focused on finding my memories now..."

Sirin sighed after glancing at Fu Hua's hesitant expression.

"Alright, since you're so eager to go... then let's make the trip."

The village is not too far from Mount Tai Xu; you can even see the huge statue of the Scarlet Crow Immortal directly from the village... although the statue's imposing chest is somewhat inconsistent with historical facts.

Within minutes, Sirin followed the Honkai Beast's memories to find the village. Sure enough, the village was basically just ruins, and it seemed that at least an hour had passed since they were destroyed.

"See, I told you this place was probably deserted by now..."

Sirin unleashed the Tai Xu Sword Qi, instantly piercing through several Honkai zombie who were approaching him.

"The only thing we can do now that we're here is to get some revenge on them..."

"There is a surviving child here."

Fu Hua's voice suddenly came from not far away.

"What?"

Sirin immediately became serious. With a flick of her sleeve, she swept away all the Honkai Beast and Honkai zombie around her in an instant.

Upon arriving at Fu Hua's side, Sirin indeed discovered a little girl on the verge of death.

Purple lines had already appeared on her body, spreading at a speed that even surpassed the extent of Kiana's initial erosion.

"She has been corrupted," Fu Hua said, standing to the side.

"... She hasn't been transformed yet."

"But the extent of this erosion..."

With Fu Hua's experience, she could naturally see that this girl was beyond saving. Honkai Energy had begun to take over her body, and if she was lucky, she might become a Honkai zombie before long.

"Shut up!"

Sirin interrupted Fu Hua with some irritation. This was the first time she had ever gotten angry at Fu Hua over something that had nothing to do with her.

As Sirin got closer, he could clearly see how deeply the girl had been corrupted, and he also understood why Fu Hua had said she was beyond saving.

Tell me, what happened here?

Sirin asked softly.

"Just now, many people suddenly went mad; they turned into white monsters, hacking and slashing everywhere..."

"Save me, sister, I don't want to die..."

"Just now, do you mean what happened today...?" Fu Hua pondered, but the little girl did not answer her question.

"Wait for me to come back, okay?"

Sirin had already placed his hand on the little girl's forehead, and the girl nodded obediently and fell into a deep sleep.

"This is probably not the kind of salvation she wanted."

"But I have no other choice. At least in this respect, I'm relatively good at it."

Sirin stood up.

"Let's go look around and see if there are any other survivors."

This time, she took the initiative to request a search and rescue operation.

Not long after the two left, a figure gradually emerged from the foot of Mount Tai Xu.

Looking at the smoke rising from the village in the distance, Xia Ling sighed.

"Phew... I'm still a bit late. I hope things go smoothly on their end."

"This village... ah, it's the story of that little girl."

"I wonder how far Fu Hua and the others have progressed. Never mind, let's not undo the invisibility for now. With Herrscher of Sentience's Mental Perception, she will sense my presence the moment I take off my cloak."

"Hmm... Let's find out where they are first, and then observe them for a while, just to... check how well Fu Hua has learned."

"I hope she and Sirin get along fairly well."

A halo slowly emerged from the top of the cloak of the Scale Cloak.

Xia Ling activated her all-area sniping ability, not to snipe anyone, but to use this detection to find Fu Hua and Sirin's location.

She quickly identified her target.

Chapter 57 Xia Ling: One more look and it will explode

By the time Xia Ling found them, Sirin had already swept away all the Honkai Beast around them. Although no survivors could be found, killing these Honkai Beasts could be considered as avenging them.

Meanwhile, Sirin and Fu Hua had returned to the little girl's side. After a conversation, Sirin used her ability to create a dream for the child that would allow her to live a fulfilling life, which could be considered... end-of-life care.

(So they haven't finished this part of the story yet; looks like I arrived too early.)

Xia Ling stood aside, quietly watching the two of them.

(Perfect, let me secretly observe what's going on with Sirin right now.)

"You haven't said much just now, you must have something to say."

Sirin stood up from beside the girl and looked at his own stone statue in the distance.

"It's okay, I'm already in a bad mood, what you say won't make it worse, just say it."

Sirin's voice carried a hint of melancholy.

(Sirin seems to be in a bad mood? Well, that makes sense; watching life slip away before your eyes, no normal person would be in a good mood.)

Xia Ling never considered that it might be because the plot hadn't changed, and continued to watch silently from the side.

Fu Hua stood behind Sirin, looking at her back as she spoke.

"I have deployed numerous Xuanyuan Swords and Feather Dust on Mount Tai Xu, so ordinary Honkai are unlikely to have any impact on this place."

(?)

"And after our arrival, the Honkai erupted. This means there's only one explanation..."

(???)

(No, buddy?)

"... alright."

Before Fu Hua could finish speaking, Feather Dust's phantom suddenly became transparent and thin.

"I can shut you up with just one thought, and I can make you disappear with ease."

"You are a Feather Dust, a Herrscher from the previous generation. I should have destroyed you immediately. You should not have listened to a single word you said."

"But I respect you. I allow you to exist independently and to stay by my side. You should show respect for my respect."

"Don't try to disturb my thoughts."

Sirin's voice was somewhat out of control, and even Xia Ling could sense the grievance in her tone.

She turned and walked away, and the force that had firmly bound Feather Dust dissipated with her.

Behind her, Xia Ling's expression had changed from one of confidence to one of utter disbelief.

Her lips twitched slightly. Looking at Fu Hua, who seemed completely oblivious to how wooden she was, Xia Ling tried her best to calm her blood pressure, which was about to explode.

(No, Fu Hua, you... didn't even look at the guide I gave you?)

(Calm down, Xia Ling, calm down. Fu Hua must have her own reasons for doing this. Maybe she just wants to take this opportunity to test how much Sirin knows about her current situation. Fu Hua has 50,000 years of experience, you have to trust her...)

(... Forget it, I can't believe a single thing.)

(Fu Hua can't be... really that dense, right? I'd better follow her and keep an eye on things...)

Sirin, who wasn't in a very good mood, strolled around Mount Tai Xu. Her earlier "action" had created an awkward atmosphere between her and Fu Hua.

Of course, she was just a little embarrassed. In fact, Fu Hua wasn't concerned about that at all. Her mind was still preoccupied with how to make Sirin realize that she was a Herrscher.

However, Sirin thought Fu Hua was angry because of her silent and pretentious behavior. So, along the way, she kept trying to find topics to talk about with Fu Hua.

"There's a sense of Honkai here too... How dare they run wild on my turf? It's rare for me to come home, so a thorough cleaning wouldn't hurt, don't you think?"

"Mount Tai Xu has never experienced such a strong Honkai Energy reaction before..."

Fu Hua's words made Sirin pause for a moment. She remained silent for a while, and at the same time, she neatly cleaned up the Honkai Beast.

"Moving around can make you feel refreshed, both physically and mentally. What do you think?"

"No, I don't have a physical body right now, so I can't feel anything."

"..."

(...)

Sirin fell silent again, as did Xia Ling beside him.

Xia Ling silently activated the system.

[Host? What happened? I'm still working on that thing you mentioned before...]

(Don't rush to work on that thing yet. Help me find the text transcript of the "Crossing the Dust" scene; I need to check it.)

[Uh, host, although I do have a Honkai Impact 3rd system built into me...]

(You can decide Originium Ingot to deduct.)