Where's the Promised Third Honkai?!!

As if to prove Fu Li's words, the Honkai Energy merely brushed past his body without triggering any violent reaction.

The rest of the journey was peaceful. Thirty-five minutes later, the train, now with only one passenger left, finally arrived at its destination.

Fu Li rose from his seat and stepped off the train, Galaxy Bat in hand.

A ghostly cold wind howled past, rushing into the depths of a tunnel like a people-devouring black hole. Above the pitch-black platform, the four words "Kisaragi Station" glowed with an eerie green light that sent chills down one's spine.

Little AI could not help complaining, "Wouldn't an ordinary person just piss themselves at the sight of this?"

Fu Li retorted, "Don't point fingers at other people's personal preferences. I think this station's composition is quite artistic."

"What's artistic about it?"

"The fact that it'll benefit me is very artistic."

"The host is just being practical."

"Please call me a humble pragmatist."

As Fu Li bickered with Little AI, he followed the signs along the platform. At first, the path was narrow enough for only one person to pass. After walking several hundred steps, he saw a dark red figure standing before the locomotive.

The hood of the figure's oversized robe completely concealed his features. Holding a candle, he posed a soul-searching question to the stranger he had never met.

"What do Christianity's bishops envy most about the Far East?"

"They envy the Far East's sky for dropping Little Boy bombs."

Fu Li answered briskly.

In an instant, the eerie atmosphere of Kisaragi Station and the hooded figure's sinister mystery vanished completely from Prometheus's mind. Within her rapidly operating CPU, only the words this is hilarious spread wildly.

It was not until the other person turned and gestured for Fu Li to follow that she sluggishly squeezed out a single word from her throat:

"Huh?"

"Huh what? Keep up, pretty lady!"

Fu Li followed the hooded figure into the enormous locomotive.

The inside of the locomotive had clearly been expanded. Furniture such as sofas and refrigerators was neatly arranged within a room of at least a hundred square meters. A flat-screen television mounted on the wall was even playing Stephen Chow's timeless classic, "Kung Fu." The cozy decor looked no different from an ordinary home.

The only difference, perhaps, was the enormous white banner overhead, emblazoned with red words: "Future Foundation."

The Arabic numeral 21 in the lower-right corner of the banner had been lightly crossed out with a slash, while the elegant Chinese characters for eighteen had been written above it.

Eighteen loan opportunities remaining?

Fu Li pondered this as he tapped the sofa's armrest with his index finger.

At the same time, the mysterious hooded figure of indeterminate gender brought out a cup of fragrant black tea from the far end of the room.

After placing the porcelain cup on the coffee table before Fu Li, he asked, "Do you need me to explain the rules?"

His voice had clearly been altered. It was hoarse like a cat scratching glass, unpleasant yet carrying a strange, irresistible allure.

"No need." Fu Li got straight to the point. "I want two blades. One Crescent Moon, and one Shiranui."

Equivalent Exchange

Within the cozy yet strangely silent atmosphere, the dark red hooded figure nodded lightly. "Understood. Please wait a moment."

He turned and walked toward a side room, his back quickly disappearing from Fu Li's sight.

Only then did Prometheus move her lips with slight displeasure. "Can you explain now?"

During that exchange between the two cryptic weirdos, her mind had basically been echoing with, What? What? What? What even is all this?!

Cryptic weirdos, get out of here!

"Of course."

Unlike Little AI, who had been kept entirely in the dark, Fu Li was in quite a good mood.

"The place we're currently in is a branch established by the Future Foundation in the Far East."

He explained, "The Future Foundation is a fairly well-known mid-sized organization on the Honkai side. Every three years, they release Loan Jade Omens to the public in a supposedly completely random manner, each recording a route to one of their branches."

"These branches are spread across the world. No matter who it is, as long as they can reach a branch using the method recorded on the jade omen, the Foundation can fulfill any two requests below B-rank. They can ask for weapons, equipment, training in skills, or simply have the Foundation kill an enemy for them."

Fu Li spoke lightly, but in truth, every time the Future Fund released jade omens, countless troublemakers would slaughter one another over them.

Because those jade omens did not directly tell people how to reach a branch. They required time to decipher their contents.

And wherever time was needed, certain people naturally found an opportunity to exploit it.

"For example, after completing a mission, I was celebrating with some people at a barbecue restaurant when I heard a drunk Slavic mercenary at the next table bragging about it."

Fu Li said unhurriedly, "According to the normal course of history, that man only deciphered the riddle recorded on the Loan Jade Omen half a year later. He came to this Kisaragi Station and exchanged it with the clerk for a C-rank defensive item and a skill of the same rank."

Prometheus caught the implication sharply. "The word the host used to describe that unlucky guy was 'exchanged,' correct?"

"Correct." The overly soft sofa made Fu Li somewhat uncomfortable, so he straightened his back and replied, "Did you see the crossed-out 21 on the banner?"

Little AI nodded gently.

"What it records is the number of people around the world who have already made a loan arrangement with the Future Fund in this manner."

"Right now, it is eighteen. Once that number reaches zero, the Foundation will use some method to gather everyone from this batch together and have them complete a secret mission assigned by them."

At this point, Fu Li added, "The person whose opportunity I stole died like that. In the middle of the night, someone chopped off his limbs, wrapped him in white cloth, made him into a human wind chime, and hung him from the top of Tokyo Tower. His blood dripped onto the observation glass and frightened several ordinary visitors who had gotten up early to visit the next day so badly that they lost their minds. The newly appointed Far East Prime Minister was furious over it."

"Wow, how tragic." There was not the slightest fluctuation in the little girl's tone.

"Overall, it was a mutual pursuit." Fu Li clapped his hands. "No matter what risks lie ahead, at least two C-rank items are already in hand."

Prometheus guessed, "It seems the Foundation is investing in talented people without an established background in advance?"

True big shots would not care about a mere two C-rank rewards, especially when they would have to face an unknown and mysterious danger afterward.

"Perhaps that is part of their consideration. After all, deciphering a Loan Jade Omen is no easy task, and safely reaching a branch after others learn that you possess one is another matter entirely."

At this point, Fu Li suddenly laughed.

His smile was clean, like a breeze lifting clouds that stretched for thousands of miles, like dawn piercing through thin mist. A layer of golden light seemed to spill across his pale face.

Prometheus, however, shuddered.

Because he said, "Look, I clearly didn't have any Loan Jade Omen, yet that kind hooded person still made a deal with me quite readily, didn't he?"

No matter who it was, no matter whether they held a Loan Jade Omen issued by the Future Fund.

As long as they were the first to step into the branch in their region, they were that round's customer.

"...What a reality-based organization full of social Darwinism."

Little AI did not like such naked survival of the fittest.

"I don't like it either. I imagine that when someone puts a knife to the necks of the Foundation's higher-ups in the future, they will hate this rule intensely too." Fu Li comforted her. "But when people are under someone else's roof, they always have to temporarily reconcile with this world, which is neither gentle nor beautiful."

"Then what are Crescent Moon and Shiranui?"

Prometheus no longer wanted to continue the previous topic.

"First, we need to establish combat ranks. For the sake of standardized measurement, numerous factions led by Schicksal use Valkyries as the benchmark and divide combat power into D-rank, C-rank, B-rank, A-rank, Critical, and then S-rank."

Fu Li blew on the black tea in his cup.

He used himself as an example. "For instance, before my rebirth, when I was A-rank, I could overwhelmingly defeat three B-rank Valkyries. I could hold my own against five B-rank Valkyries, barely endure against seven, and if there were more than ten of them, I would definitely turn and run without another word."

"This theory applies to the vast majority of battles below S-rank. Breakers and those above S-rank are not covered by this consensus."

That was assuming their equipment, skills, willpower, and other conditions were roughly comparable within their respective ranks. After all, even in ancient times, there had been classic examples of one Ming Dynasty armored soldier chasing down and hacking apart over a hundred refugees, or a squad of a dozen or so Iron Pagoda Cavalry smashing through more than a thousand Xiang Army soldiers of the Song Dynasty.

"D, C, B, A, Critical, S-rank. It sounds simple enough." The little girl tilted her adorable head. "But I don't understand why the host suddenly brought this up."

"Because Demonic Blade · Unknown Fire, one of the two blades I mentioned, is a forbidden skill that can allow a shabby C-rank like me, who reached this rank through a ten-pull draw, to quickly touch the level of an A-rank Valkyrie. It is a life-burning combat skill that can make someone's combat power soar in a short time... Hmm, I'll write it in the system panel format you're more familiar with."

He took out paper and pen from his backpack and began writing and sketching on it.

Prometheus leaned closer. Her little head, styled in Twin Turbos, pressed against Fu Li's as they looked together at what he wrote on the paper.

An Overwhelmingly Grind-Heavy Honkai Life)

Name: Demonic Blade · Unknown Fire

Rank: C

Type: State

Effect: A forbidden technique that sacrifices the user's life force to resonate with the weapon in their hand, transforming cold weapons such as swords into demonic blades.

When the skill is activated, a dense crimson aura emanates around the user before disappearing after a short period.

Afterward, the user enters a state of unity with the blade, transforming into Demonic Blade · Unknown Fire, greatly enhancing their combat power while gaining a vampiric ability to seize the life force of injured targets.

The demonic blade requires the user to continuously provide a massive amount of life force to maintain it, often far exceeding the life force it steals. If the user cannot replenish the consumed life force, their life may be endangered.

The degree of enhancement from this skill is closely related to the user's personal strength and vitality. In theory, with sufficient supply, the demonic blade can often unleash power dozens of times greater than the user's normal state, enough to let a C-rank Valkyrie's basic attributes touch the lower threshold of A-rank for a short time.

However, once the user's strength reaches A-rank, the enhancement provided by the demonic blade declines drastically. Once the user reaches Critical or above, the demonic blade no longer provides any enhancement.

Note: Burning is merely a reaction. We spellcasters use magic to directly control the burning itself. The thing you brought over, no, absolutely not.

Look at this, the dissection diagram. Look carefully... The burning phenomenon is merely a side effect! In truth, this biological tissue spontaneously combusts because it cannot withstand its own intense activity. It has absolutely nothing to do with flame itself.

To put it simply, in the first stage, all of the user's biological tissues undergo rapid activation; in the second stage, the biological tissues undergo uncontrollable, rapid metabolism; in the third stage, they release an enormous amount of energy.

The essence of Demonic Blade · Unknown Fire is not fire, but the very phenomenon of life operating at overclocked speeds! — Charlotte Hermes, Research Assistant stationed at the Spiral Workshop

After reading the information, Prometheus wore a strange expression. "...It subtly complements the host."

"Right? The moment I drew Human Immortal Path, I had already decided to come here and exchange for this skill."

Fu Li's eyes lifted slightly, unable to suppress the radiant excitement between his brows.

"The power of Demonic Blade · Unknown Fire is far beyond C-rank. The secondary reason it is classified here is that its enhancement greatly weakens after A-rank. The main reason is that it drains the user's life force so fiercely that it reaches a horrifying extent beyond even the word monstrous."

He still remembered the temporary teammate who had used this move. The girl had looked about his age before the battle, but afterward, even every one of the dazzling white teeth she showed when smiling had fallen out.

Perhaps it also had something to do with the fact that she was a cheap clone manufactured by some mid-sized organization to serve as a disposable bomb, but the consumption was still horrifying to behold.

The strong did not care for it, while the weak could not afford to use it. That was why the demonic blade was rated C-rank.

However, that only applied to ordinary people with limited lifespans.

The characteristics of Human Immortal Path granted Fu Li an almost endless lifespan. This sort of spending without caring about the cost let him boldly entrust his future to the blade.

At that point, the demonic blade's extreme advantages became apparent.

Fu Li rather happily murmured inwardly, This is the information advantage brought by a second-playthrough player. Within a certain range, I can choose what suits me best.

"To be fair, true." The little girl agreed wholeheartedly. "Casually obtaining a skill that lets you challenge opponents above your rank sounds like something out of a novel protagonist's story."

"Casually fighting above one's rank?" Fu Li shook his head. "Not necessarily."

"?"

"Prometheus, let me ask you this. What do you think is the fundamental reason ability users learn powerful combat skills? Is it to become the strongest among those of the same rank, or even challenge opponents above their rank?"

"Isn't it?"

"That is part of the reason, but the more important goal." Fu Li raised an index finger and said seriously, "Is to avoid being blown apart in battle by people of a lower rank."

"?"

Little AI indicated that this way of thinking truly exceeded her calculations, but Fu Li continued calmly:

"First, let me clear up a misconception. In this world, there are no wonderful things like genetic locks or cultivation realms, where breaking through a corresponding level grants you power."

The Honkai world was different. People like them were more like high school students who had spent ten years studying diligently.

Only when their foundations were sufficient could they leap through the Dragon Gate by passing their rank evaluations, get into their dream 985 or 211 university, and obtain the corresponding qualifications.

For example, Schicksal's Valkyries had to reach the range corresponding to that rank in strength, physique, agility, and every other aspect, then pass the assessment before they could call themselves X-rank Valkyries.

It was not that one gained the corresponding strength after being rated. One could only be rated after possessing the corresponding strength.

And that was not the end of it. The essence of the college entrance examination was a carp leaping through the Dragon Gate.

As long as students got into the university they wanted, they no longer had to remain as tense as they had during their three years of high school.

What about the Honkai world? Where was its Dragon Gate?

After C-rank came B-rank, after B-rank came A-rank, and it went on endlessly through generations.