Earth-Splitting Strike / Three Whole Hours

So, he needed someone to give him a push."

"But wouldn't that put too much pressure on him?

"And if we did that, wouldn't it give the Herrscher, who would be skilled at stirring up internal human conflict in the future, an opening to exploit?"

Although Theresa was surprised that Otto had such immense faith in Gwen, recalling the information she had just seen still made her frown as she asked.

"Indeed...

"That is why I am only pushing him forward step by step, rather than throwing him straight into the center of the world.

"If he is unwilling, then there is still Bianca.

"Although her personality is a little too straightforward, she has already set foot on this path.

"The only difference is whether she carries this world forward alone, or has someone walking beside her."

"..."

Listening to Otto's heavy words, filled with a sense of mission, Theresa fell silent once more. Yet images of her battle against Sirin more than a decade ago surfaced in her mind—the other girl's overwhelming strength...

"Little Theresa, Finality will not stop advancing simply because we are softhearted. Give them a little more pressure now, and they will have it a little easier in the future."

Gently rubbing Theresa's little head, Otto softly comforted his granddaughter, whom he had not seen in years.

"Phew..."

Comforted by Otto, Theresa, whose emotions were incomparably complicated, let out a long breath. She drained the remaining half cup of bitter melon juice in one go, as though tossing her tangled feelings beyond the clouds. Then she looked up at Otto, her eyes carrying a trace of undisguisable unease.

"Then... Grandpa, I have one last question... Kiana..."

Back then, Theresa had helped Siegfried defect, but gave up because Otto claimed that Kiana had been recovered by Schicksal forces. Later, when her request to visit Kiana was refused, she ultimately left for the Far East.

Although Theresa had long treated Otto's words from back then as an excuse to deceive her, now that so many things had been overturned, could this matter perhaps also...

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Bounty

I've been sorting out the outline, so I'm opening a bounty. I sincerely ask everyone for your support. Even just joining in the fun is fine—I'm deeply grateful to every reader willing to read this book.

Starting today, it will last for one week, ending next Sunday night—

One extra chapter for every 50 monthly tickets,

One extra chapter for every 50 blades,

One extra chapter for every 5,000 in donations.

Come on, don't go easy on me. Give me plenty of motivation to write extra chapters. Thank you all in advance.

Ground Splitting Slash

"Kiana..."

Hearing Theresa mention that name, Otto's smile grew a little wider—

"Don't worry, my little Theresa. Your beloved goddaughter has grown up very well; I can guarantee you that.

"It's just that she is currently carrying out a plan concerning humanity's survival, so she cannot reunite with you yet..."

"..."

Theresa looked into Otto's eyes for a long while, but ultimately found nothing there. She let out a soft sigh, then lifted her chin and put her hands on her hips.

"Then I'll believe Grandpa one more time. If you lie to me again this time, I really won't talk to you anymore."

"Mm, Grandpa promises. This time, it is absolutely true."

Hearing Theresa's words, which were somewhat adorably childish yet still serious, Otto solemnly nodded. He gently stroked Theresa's little head and answered earnestly.

"Hmph, then Theresa will believe Grandpa one more time~"

Receiving Otto's assurance, the tense expression on Theresa's little face finally blossomed into a smile, just like it had back then.

Seeing the smile on Theresa's little face, Otto revealed a gentle smile as well.

Yet Otto could not help sighing inwardly once more—

My dear little Theresa, you still trust people far too easily...

Otto had finished fooling... enlightening Theresa, while Gwen's battle on the other side was gradually nearing its end—

Inside the virtual training room, Mount Taixu, once lush with forests and filled with birdsong and fragrant flowers, looked as though it had suffered a massive earthquake and was now utterly unrecognizable.

On Mount Taixu, whose sharp edges had been ground away by Ganesha, Gwen watched Ganesha charge at him once more from afar and tightened his grip on the greatsword in his hand.

Although Gwen's strength had improved again compared to half a month ago, it was still not enough for him to defeat Ganesha.

Even though the Ganesha simulated by the virtual laboratory still differed from the real one due to technological limitations, it was not something Gwen could challenge at his current level.

Remembering how Fu Hua had activated the Key of Domination in the manga, Gwen did not deliberately stall the fight or search for the simulated Ganesha's weakness in hopes of defeating her. Instead, he directly faced the pressure she brought, wanting to see whether he was one of those lucky people—or rather... a genius.

Yet even as he faced Ganesha's unstoppable offensive head-on with all his strength, the Xuanyuan Sword in Gwen's hand did not undergo any further changes or fully complete its special transformation.

His body was already nearing its limit, and Gwen no longer had the spare attention to care about the Xuanyuan Sword's changes.

Compared to that, Gwen wanted to know what kind of result he could achieve by facing Ganesha alone right now—

"Ground Splitting Slash!"

With a low shout in his heart, Gwen swept forward with the greatsword in his hand, which was wreathed in a bright yellow glow and held vertically against the ground.

As the greatsword cut through the air, the earth split apart inch by inch. A bright yellow blade of light rose from the ground and swelled with the wind.

Ground Splitting Slash of the Ground Splitting Blade: cleave prison, drive away darkness, destroy in furious earth, and renew the land.

Although Gwen had not figured out how to use the Xuanyuan Sword over the past few days, as the Five Elements power within him grew, he gained a faint, indescribable realization.

As his understanding deepened, some information that had clearly come from the Light Shadow Stone quietly appeared in Gwen's mind.

Although Gwen still could not fully understand the meaning of those things, that did not prevent him from combining them with his own use of power to unleash this move.

On the shattered ground, the bright yellow blade of light swelled wildly in the wind. By the time it reached Ganesha, it was already several zhang tall.

The next moment, the blade of light, several zhang high, collided with Ganesha, who seemed like a meteor falling from the sky. A terrifying boom resounded in every direction, forming sound waves in the air that were almost tangible.

Mighty Honkai Energy and the power born from the earth collided with utmost ferocity in that instant. Dazzling light erupted from the point where they met, turning the entire world into a vast expanse of white.

Even Gwen, the one responsible for it, instinctively turned his head and closed his eyes.

At that moment, Gwen suddenly felt dazed.

When he opened his eyes again, the dim sky before him, darkened by the dust Ganesha's rampage had thrown into the air, was gone. What greeted him instead was the bright lighting of the control room.

"This is..."

Instantly realizing that he had exited the simulation, Gwen looked toward the control console beside him and met Fu Hua's gaze.

"The simulation system crashed."

Fu Hua pushed up the red-framed plain glasses on her nose, allowing the glare on the lenses to conceal her eyes, then succinctly said,

"Although the virtual training room can already simulate Emperor-class Honkai Beasts, it still has flaws due to insufficient data sources and certain technical issues.

"During your battle, the simulated Ganesha underwent changes that exceeded its computational capacity.

"Furthermore, the attack you launched at the end itself contained certain variations that the system could not reasonably calculate.

"Under the combined effect of both, the simulation system ultimately rebooted."

"I see..."

Listening to Fu Hua's explanation, Gwen nodded in realization, but he was not overly worried.

Although the Ground Splitting Slash Gwen had just used was not a conventional manifestation of Honkai Energy, it could be attributed to the Xuanyuan Sword.

After all, one of the Key of Domination's characteristics was converting absorbed Honkai Energy into natural forces such as lightning, flames, and frost.

Although the Xuanyuan Sword in Gwen's hand was still only a half-finished product, halfway through its transformation, it could still serve as an excuse for his use of the Five Elements power.

Compared to explaining the power he had used that exceeded the system's calculations, Gwen was more curious whether Fu Hua had seen anything in his Ground Splitting Slash just now.

However, before Gwen could ask, Fu Hua spoke first.

"That strike just now... was very good.

"It seemed to be power drawn from the earth. However, this is the headquarters' floating island after all, so its power may have been somewhat reduced..."

As she spoke, Fu Hua realized that, as the descendant of a Divine Land martial arts family, she should not possess such discernment. She quickly changed the subject.

"And being able to unleash such a strike may mean that you, Gwen, already possess the qualifications to wield the Xuanyuan Sword's power. You merely lack an opportunity to completely master it."

"Mm..."

Hearing Fu Hua's words, Gwen raised his brows, and some of the doubts lingering in his heart were swiftly resolved.

He raised the Xuanyuan Sword, which had taken the form of a greatsword, and said with a sigh,

"An opportunity...

"I wonder when I'll find that opportunity."

"There will be such a day..."

Fu Hua smiled and motioned for Gwen to sit to the side and rest. She even helped him grab a bottle of energy drink to replenish the energy he had just expended.

After taking a mouthful of the cool energy drink, Gwen immediately felt much more refreshed. Leaning back in his chair, he closed his eyes to rest.

Yet amid the comfort brought by that coolness after utter exhaustion, Gwen overlooked the "music" that had begun playing at some unknown time...

Three Hours Long

Although Gwen had overlooked it, Kevin in the Sea of Quantum sharply noticed the "music" Fu Hua had quietly played—

"This is... Divine Melody?"

Although it was somewhat different from the Divine Melody he was familiar with, Kevin still recognized what that strange "music" was...

Thanks to the unusually stable connection today, Kevin in the Sea of Quantum was able to take in everything Gwen did today.

Gwen's performance in the virtual training room had been decent, but only decent.

Compared to that, Fu Hua, his former comrade, drew much more of Kevin's attention.

Although Fu Hua's strength seemed to have declined severely, she was at least still alive and well.

Even though her personality did not seem to have improved much and was still the same as it had been fifty thousand years ago, she had at least learned to tell a few lies without changing her expression.

Looking at Fu Hua like this, an indescribable feeling rose in Kevin's heart. It was hard to put into words, but it did not seem bad either.

However, despite his inward sentimentality, Kevin immediately noticed the Divine Melody Fu Hua was playing.

Kevin was no stranger to Divine Melody. It was also a modification technique from the Previous Civilization, except it targeted the brain and could enhance the human body's adaptability to Honkai Energy.

However, compared to the Flame-Chaser technology, which had an extremely high mortality rate, Divine Melody's success rate was even lower.

"At the gathering a thousand years ago, Danzhu seemed to mention that she was trying to improve Divine Melody for Fu Hua..."

A long-distant memory suddenly flashed through Kevin's mind. He formed a guess but did not speak to interrupt, wanting to see whether Divine Melody would work on Gwen.

Gwen now possessed latent stigmata, Honkai Beast genes hidden in his bloodline that could be activated with a single injection of Hyper-Mutation Factor, and already had a Divine Key in hand. If Divine Melody could work as well...

Even Kevin, who had long since made his decision, could not help but entertain a thought that he himself would condemn as unrealistic...

When Gwen opened his eyes again in the virtual laboratory, he felt somewhat dazed.

In his haze, Gwen felt as though he had taken a nap beside a lake. A breeze brushed across his cheeks, carrying a faint floral fragrance, while his heart was like the lake's surface, rippling softly with the passing breeze before quietly returning to stillness.

Vaguely, Gwen felt as though something had changed within him, yet he did not know where that change had occurred.