Groundwater

"Danzhu! Watch out for falling rocks!"

Unable to spare a hand to protect Danzhu, Chi Yuan could only do her best to warn her.

She should have woken Xu Yanwu before coming to the rescue. Then it would not have become this dangerous.

"Roar—!"

After its attacks repeatedly failed, the Annihilation Spirit let out a shriek of rage. The rocks at the top of the cave wall finally could not withstand the impact of the shriek, and a boulder wide enough to hug came crashing straight down at the running Danzhu.

"Danzhu!"

Chi Yuan could not help being distracted. The Annihilation Spirit seized the opportunity and struck her in the chest, knocking her to the side.

Ugh... They probably would not get any flatter, right...

"Fuck your grandpa! Get the hell away from her!"

An enraged roar exploded through the cave. A long spear gleaming with silvery-white light shot in from the cave entrance, viciously piercing the falling boulder and pinning it to the wall, sending dust flying everywhere.

Xu Yanwu himself came racing in from the cave entrance, fury written all over his face. The deadwalker actually stopped attacking the moment he appeared, retreating a short distance in fear.

"U-Uncle Xu Yanwu! Save us!"

Danzhu was so frantic that tears nearly spilled from her eyes. "Hurry and help Chi Yuan!"

"I'm fine. Xu Yanwu, take Danzhu and leave first. Leave this deadwalker to me." Chi Yuan climbed up from the ground with a trace of blood at the corner of her mouth. Although her body had been enhanced by Mutagenic Factors in the previous era, taking an attack head-on still hurt badly.

Xu Yanwu fell silent. Was this Annihilation Spirit really that strong? It had been pretty easy when I played the Side Story before.

Or was Chi Yuan's combat ability stronger five thousand years later?

Damn it, was understanding the Honkai world through games and comics alone really too far-fetched?

"Chi Yuan, you're injured. You should take Danzhu and leave. Ordinary deadwalkers won't pose much of a threat to you two."

Xu Yanwu's expression darkened as he beckoned. The Silver Dragon Spear pulled free from the wall and flew back into his hand.

"If the cave collapses, I've got plenty of ways to deal with it. You two don't." Xu Yanwu scowled. "Why aren't you leaving? Do you really want all three of us buried here?"

"...Danzhu, let's go first."

Chi Yuan left with Danzhu, leaving Xu Yanwu and the Annihilation Spirit staring each other down.

"Listen up, Annihilation Spirit. Today, I'm going to... Hey, hey, hey?! Why are you running?!"

Xu Yanwu had originally wanted to throw out a threat, but halfway through, he saw the Annihilation Spirit turn and flee without the slightest hesitation, leaving him only the sight of her curvy back.

"You think you can get away, damn it?! I practiced throwing darts for a long time back then!"

Feeling humiliated by the Annihilation Spirit's escape, Xu Yanwu angrily threw the Silver Dragon Spear again as though it were a dart.

Then the spear flew past the Annihilation Spirit, smashing apart a large section of the cave wall and making her shudder in fright.

"..."

Xu Yanwu was not discouraged at all. With a wave of his hand, he pulled the spear back again.

"It's fine. That was just a mistake. Look how accurate that throw was when I saved Danzhu..."

"So just die already!"

"Ora ora ora ora ora..."

---Cave Entrance---

"Danzhu, what are you looking for?"

After escorting Danzhu to the cave entrance, Chi Yuan saw her anxiously searching around and asked with concern.

"It's gone! It's gone!"

Danzhu looked panicked. "Chi Yuan, the clay figure I just made for you is missing!"

"A clay figure? This one?"

Chi Yuan took out the clay figure Xu Yanwu had colored, which she had casually picked up along the way. "I found it on the road just now."

"That's great! Thank you, Chi Yuan!"

Danzhu immediately threw her arms around Chi Yuan's neck and cheered.

"Do you like this clay figure that much?"

Chi Yuan asked.

Danzhu looked a little shy. "Because... because it's a clay figure of Chi Yuan."

"...?"

"Chi Yuan is reliable and cool, and kinder to me and my sister than anyone else. My sister and I both like Chi Yuan the most!" Danzhu said happily, having clearly forgotten all about Xu Yanwu, who was chasing the Annihilation Spirit inside the cave.

"I want to pass down your story... so everyone can know you. I hope everyone can like you!"

"Danzhu, you..."

Just as Chi Yuan began to feel a little touched, Danzhu added, "But with that face of yours, reaching that goal will be a bit difficult. You should rely on the Secondary Setting I gave you instead!"

"..."

"Come to think of it, why hasn't Uncle Xu Yanwu come out yet... He's so slow..."

Heaven had mercy—Danzhu finally remembered Xu Yanwu, who had stayed behind to hold off the Annihilation Spirit for them.

Though there was not the slightest hint of concern for Xu Yanwu in her words...

Still, she remembered him eventually, did she not...

"F--k—"

"Hm?" Chi Yuan's ears twitched. Had she heard something coming from inside the cave?

"Danzhu, did you hear something?"

"No?"

Danzhu tilted her little head and listened carefully. "Eh? It really does sound like there's something?"

"Fu—ck—"

"The sound's getting closer? It sounds like someone is shouting..."

"Fuck fuck fuck fuck!"

A string of shouts came from inside the cave.

"It's Uncle Xu Yanwu! He ran out!"

Danzhu excitedly waved at Xu Yanwu. "Uncle Xu Yanwu! Over here! Hurry and come—"

"Stop waving and run!"

Before Danzhu could finish, Xu Yanwu had reached the cave entrance. He scooped Danzhu up with his left arm, pulled Chi Yuan into his right, and ran away from the entrance without stopping.

"Xu Yanwu! What are you doing?! Let go!"

"Y-you-you-you..."

"Stop yelling! Groundwater is spraying out!"

Xu Yanwu had no time to care about the two girls in his arms twisting the soft flesh at his sides. He had run out to escape the groundwater gushing from the cave...

"You..."

Before Chi Yuan could finish, she saw spring water blasting from the cave entrance behind them as though it were coming out of a faucet. The opening was so large, yet it was still spraying water out. Chi Yuan could not imagine how much groundwater had surged up.

"What exactly did you do?! Why is groundwater spraying out of the cave?!"

"Stop pinching me! I'll tell you, okay..."

That was five minutes ago...

Xu Yanwu had followed the Annihilation Spirit all the way to the deepest part of the cave. Facing the trembling, fleeing Annihilation Spirit, he had just pulled his thick, long Silver Dragon Spear—once again stuck crookedly—from the lowest layer. Just as a Life and Death Bond.avi was about to unfold, he saw water begin to seep from the spot he had just pierced through... and then... pfft...