Flame-Scion: Where the Hell Am I? Is This Still Inside Xia Ling? / Flame-Scion: Pacing, Spinning, Rolling Around

"Otherwise, you might not be able to use it with confidence against the erosion of a Herrscher Core, right?"

In the following days, Theresa was not pulled into the dream again.

However, this does not mean that Hi-maru intends to let her go. In fact, Hi-maru is also planning something big.

It created a clone, planning to find a way to parasitize Xia Ling's body the next time she enters her dream.

After all, you can never have too many bodies to use, especially since this Xia Ling seems to have some connection with the Elysian Realm.

If it could use this to find a way to enter the Elysian Realm... Hi-maru didn't dare to imagine what that scene would be like.

Meanwhile, in the Elysian Realm, Elysia and Sakura are also ready.

After Elysia finished talking with Sakura, although it was unclear what Elysia had said, both Vill-V and Xia Ling could sense that Sakura was in a very excited state.

Just how excited was he... well, that's a question for Mobius, who was able to control the Corrosion Virus to some extent.

After Rin learned to manipulate the Corrosion Virus to a certain extent, with her help, Mobius was able to do more things using the Corrosion Virus.

For example, the entire training process of Bell can be "live-streamed" through remote control, or you can communicate with Bell by inputting text and then outputting a simulated personality.

This development has also had some consequences...

"Sakura! I already told you, I can't directly control those viruses, I can only transmit some information through them!"

"I know, so I didn't want to trouble the Doctor to do anything more. I just wanted to... watch over her."

Sakura emerged from the shadows, her eyes fixed on the newly installed screen in the Mobius Laboratory, which was broadcasting Rin's live situation in the Stigmata Space in an extremely abstract pixel.

As for Ling, this small change also raised some questions.

"Why... has Sister Mobius suddenly become so much nicer these past two days?"

After another misoperation, looking at Mobius calmly explaining the mistake to her, Ling asked in confusion.

"..." Glancing at Sakura beside him, Mobius frowned and silently manipulated the virus to respond.

"It's nothing, I've just been in a very good mood these past few days."

Chapter Sixteen: Hi-maru: Where did this come from? Is this still inside Xia Ling's body?

Compared to the Elysian Realm's massive support team, Xia Ling also invited a heavyweight player.

"Hey, Xia Ling, is this your new doll? It looks so pretty!"

Seeing the exquisitely crafted and adorable doll in Xia Ling's arms, Theresa suddenly felt that her HOMU was no longer appealing.

"I borrowed this from a friend... Never mind, it's not important."

Xia Ling was about to explain, but seeing that Su seemed to be truly embracing the role of a puppet without saying a word, Xia Ling didn't continue. Instead, she changed the subject. "Theresa, today we're going to completely resolve your problem. Are you nervous?"

"Hmph, don't really treat me like a child. This is nothing to me."

"Besides, you were the one who took action. Shouldn't I be the one asking you that?"

Theresa crossed her arms and looked very confident.

"And we also have this."

Theresa patted the Golden Cross beside her. "I brought the Judas' Vow with me. If you really run into any problems, I, the headmaster, have a secret weapon."

"Don't worry, with me here, I'll make sure nothing happens to you."

Xia Ling knew what the secret weapon Theresa was talking about was. Admittedly, the Divine Prayer Barrier was indeed a powerful weapon that could guarantee Xia Ling's safety, but if it was used, Theresa might be the one who got into trouble.

"So..."

Xia Ling put on the special edition helmet from Vill-V, opened her arms to Theresa, and winked.

"Come here, give me a hug?"

To Xia Ling's surprise, this time Theresa did not run away shyly, but instead responded to her hug earnestly.

"I'm sorry, it's clearly my own problem, but I'm making you risk your life to solve it."

"So be careful. If something really goes wrong, prioritize your own safety. I'm not that fragile. Whatever it is, it definitely won't be able to take me down in a short time."

"Wow, I didn't expect Theresa to be so frank for once."

Xia Ling looked at Theresa, who had buried her face in her chest, with surprise, and smiled as she touched the Stigmata's back.

"Don't worry, although this guy is nominally the Herrscher of Corruption, he's really not as strong as you guys think."

"So, nothing will happen."

As soon as she finished speaking, Xia Ling's body went limp, and she lost consciousness.

"Hmm? Is that guy going to connect to Theresa's dream again?"

Within the Stigmata Space, Hi-maru sensed the movement in reality and his spirits jolted.

"Wait, something doesn't seem right."

Hi-maru discovered the problem.

"Theresa doesn't seem to be asleep... Did she come directly to the Stigmata Space?"

"Directly connecting to the Stigmata Space? Is she planning to commit suicide? Even with Yae Sakura's help, she can't possibly get rid of me."

"Or... does she have some secret weapon?"

Now, Hi-maru was a little confused. The reason it couldn't defeat Theresa was that it wasn't sure how much power Theresa could unleash after she began to unleash Vishnu's devouring instinct.

But this Xia Ling... her physical strength is not strong, and she has no mental protection at all. How did she dare to come to the Stigmata Space to fight me head-on?

However, considering that the other party might have some hidden methods, Hi-maru did not intend to put the other party into the Stigmata Space. After all, there was still Yae Sakura here. If he really lost most of his power, Yae Sakura would not let go of the opportunity.

Sensing that the other party was trying to open the "door" to the Stigmata Space, Hi-maru no longer hesitated and directly manipulated his part of his power to link with Xia Ling's ability.

The other party seemed quite surprised by Hi-maru's response, and in a way, this could be considered another form of mutual attraction.

Then, just as he had planned, Hi-maru successfully reversed the erosion of Xia Ling's "body," and then directly poured the clone he had created in advance and a portion of his power into it.

Having done all this, without even checking the other party's reaction, Hi-maru hurriedly severed the connection between the Stigmata Space and Xia Ling.

"A person without any mental protection or resistance to erosion would absolutely not be able to withstand so much Corrosion Power, not to mention that there is also an avatar of mine personally directing it."

"Now... all I need to do is Astra Yao."

On the other side, Xia Ling was also dumbfounded by Hi-maru's actions.

"No, buddy?"

"Why is it so cooperative?"

Seeing that Hi-maru quickly responded with his ability, and then sent over a large part of his power along with a clone, he immediately closed the door.

Xia Ling was dumbfounded.

"It even closed the door, giving its clone no chance to go back. It really made me cry."

"After all, Hi-maru spent most of his time in the seal, so it's normal that his mind isn't very mature."

"Moreover, there is an almost chasm of information gap between us."

Su's voice echoed in Xia Ling's mind.

"Next, we just need to wait for Rin and Hi-maru to decide the winner."

"Well, judging from the number of Corrosion Virus that have 'reproduced' in your body so far, the probability of Rin losing is very small. In addition, Mobius has taught you in detail how to use the Rin Corrosion Virus, so there is no need to worry too much."

"During this time, I will also protect the safety of your consciousness. Although the main battlefield is the virtual machine created by Vill-V, the probability of the Hi-maru entering your body still exists."

Su's voice was as steady and reassuring as ever.

Returning to the perspective of Hi-maru, who had already entered Xia Ling's "body," also sensed that something was wrong.

Although it hadn't corrupted many people since birth, and its few victories were Previous Civilization, it knew that the situation after corrupting others should never be like this.

Here, he neither found Xia Ling's consciousness nor sensed much Honkai Energy, which was definitely not a normal situation.

What made Hi-maru the most uneasy was that it was surrounded by a feeling that was both familiar and strange.

This aura was somewhat similar to his own, but Hi-maru knew very well that he had never had such a strange form of Corrosion Power, and the current generation's Herrscher of Corruption could not possibly have descended at this time.

So...

At this moment, Hi-maru sensed danger and tried to find the way it had invaded, only to find that it was surrounded by darkness.

Only a few ominous green hues still flickered with fluorescence.

"Trying to run away? Too bad, it's too late."

A voice that was extremely familiar to Hi-maru rang out from all around.

The pale green virus began to gather together, forming a cartoon avatar that was indistinguishable from Bell's face.

Chapter Seventeen: Hi-maru: Pacing, circling, rolling around

"You are... Rin?"

Hi-maru's voice was distorted with terror.

Of course, it could never forget that sound.

It has realized that this is a complete trap.

Most of Bell's consciousness should have been erased by the passage of time. Although it knew that Bell might still exist somewhere in the Herrscher Core, because Bell herself also has the nature of the Herrscher of Corruption, and its main target has always been Yae Sakura, it did not spend a lot of time to completely remove Bell's traces.

As for why Ling is so energetic now, it's obvious that it's related to Xia Ling, or rather, to the Elysian Realm behind her.

Unfortunately, it was too late.

Although it didn't know where the power on Bell, which was almost indistinguishable from erosion, came from, it knew its defeat was inevitable just by the sheer number of these powers.

"You guessed right, then..."

Are you prepared to pay the price?

A hunt is underway in the battlefield customized by Vill-V.

Perhaps in terms of ability, the Corrosion Virus is somewhat inferior to the original Herrscher of Corruption.

However, when their powers are roughly equal, the contest between the two becomes a simple contest of numbers.

The Corrosion Power that Hi-maru sent in was naturally no match for the Xia Ling brand culture dish that Vill-V and Mobius had tailored for them.

The helmet served two purposes: firstly, to isolate the battlefield, and secondly, to rapidly replicate Corrosion Virus, which was then continuously delivered into the "battlefield" through Xia Ling's abilities.

With the help of Su, Mental Perception Fusion Warrior with experience in combating corruption, Hi-maru's attempts to escape and hide will be quickly detected, and he will be instantly surrounded and annihilated.

It can only be said that, faced with the corrosive power that poses a great threat to memory, the Herrschers have used every means at their disposal to try to nip it in the bud.

After several hours of thorough cleaning and searching, Rin had completely corrupted Hi-maru's clone.

To prevent a resurgence, Rin didn't make the same mistake as Hi-maru, failing to finish the job completely. With Vill-V's help, Rin erased Hi-maru's existence from the inside out.

For Vill-V, who has experience making Black Box, this kind of work is second nature and she can handle it with ease. Even without on-site guidance, she can still come up with a foolproof plan.

After everything settled down, with Su's help, Xia Ling and Ling were finally able to meet.

"Um... Nice to meet you, Rin."

Looking at the pink-haired little girl in front of her, who even seemed a bit timid, Xia Ling couldn't quite reconcile her with the powerful Ling from earlier.

"Hello, Sister Xia Ling..."

"Um... thank you... I really... sob..."

Facing the heroes, even the core members, of this rescue plan, Ling was clearly very excited. However, her long-term autistic life had made her forget how to interact with people, and she could only ramble on with words of thanks.

Seeing Ling looking helpless, with messy green symbols popping up all around her, Xia Ling couldn't help but find it amusing.

If Hi-maru saw that Rin, who was chasing it just like Chijie, was so nervous that she looked like this, I wonder what he would think.

"Okay, okay, I appreciate your thanks."

Following how Elysia usually comforted her, Xia Ling skillfully hugged Ling and stroked her hair.