Honkai: Star Rail, Marrying Acheron Upon Landing

Yet within this 'nothingness,' a blood-red killing intent relentlessly pressed upon Lin Shuang's will.

Acheron watched as Lin Shuang stood frozen in place.

She lightly loosened her grip, resheathed her long blade, and reined in her power.

As expected...

Acheron carefully sensed the power of The Nihility. For some reason, the erosion from The Nihility had stopped.

Not only had it stopped, but its influence on her was also slowly receding.

She didn't know how far it would recede, but even when she used her full strength and invoked the power of the path of The Nihility, it hadn't returned.

This unsettled Acheron.

Her sense of taste had returned. Even... she felt she could remember more things recently.

Was it because of meeting you?

Calm restored, Acheron looked at Lin Shuang, who was still being affected by the power of The Nihility, and couldn't help but raise her hand to gently caress her cheek.

The trace of power she released wouldn't cause any harm to Lin Shuang's body. However, it could display her killing intent and aura, closer to her full power.

Such tempering was more effective for Lin Shuang.

Even if Lin Shuang failed, she would only be incapacitated for half a day. With her here, nothing would happen to Lin Shuang.

Acheron's fingers traced her cheek, her gaze fixed on the vacant blue pupils as she murmured to herself:

"If there's any difference between now and the past... it can only be meeting you. Is all of this related to your ritual?"

Since meeting Lin Shuang, Acheron had been shocked more than once.

If it were just a coincidence, why would so many miracles happen after meeting Lin Shuang?

No one could predict, The feeling of a person who had been futilely fighting The Nihility for a long time, suddenly finding themselves no longer sliding into the abyss.

The lapse in composure from a few days ago was Acheron's true self, and her current calm was merely an outward restraint due to the uncertainty of the outcome.

Yet, even so, the moment this guess surfaced, Acheron couldn't help but want to touch Lin Shuang, even harboring a desire to possess her.

After coming into contact with the Stellaron, will I have to part ways with Lin Shuang?

Previously, they had discussed this during their rest.

Acheron had her own destination, while Lin Shuang had yet to establish her pursuit in this world.

Facing this question, Lin Shuang had given an answer:

"My power isn't enough yet. Staying by your side would only make me a burden forever, and that's not what I want. Didn't you say you'd be going to Penacony for the Harmony Festival in a while? We'll meet again then."

The Harmony Festival in Penacony was something Acheron had mentioned herself during their casual chat.

She had also brought up other famous places in the universe.

At the time, Acheron hadn't thought much of it, but now, she felt a pang of regret.

Just then.

Acheron suddenly noticed that the rings Lin Shuang wore on her hand flickered twice, even without direct light shining on them.

Following this, Lin Shuang broke free from the power of The Nihility and suddenly opened her eyes.

This scene caught Acheron's attention.

Lin Shuang, with her eyes now open, still felt a lingering fear of the power of The Nihility.

That forced descent, the continuous loss of perception and cognitive ability, was truly terrifying.

Even though Lin Shuang knew this was likely a trial set by Acheron, she found it difficult to shake off the influence of The Nihility.

Just moments ago, when Lin Shuang felt she was about to break, she suddenly saw two points of light in her vision.

Then, she was abruptly freed from the power of The Nihility and awakened from her stupor.

Acheron observed Lin Shuang intently. Based on her perception just now, Lin Shuang had been on the verge of succumbing and falling completely.

Yet, right after the rings suddenly flashed, Lin Shuang, who should have fallen, logically broke free.

"That power just now was The Nihility, wasn't it?"

Lin Shuang looked up at Acheron, proactively bringing up The Nihility.

Recently, Acheron had inadvertently revealed a lot of information.

And today, Acheron's use of the power of The Nihility likely meant she was prepared to discuss the matter.

Just as Lin Shuang had guessed, Acheron nodded:

"My power comes from the path of The Nihility, and Pathfinder is just a convenient identity."

After speaking, Acheron paused and then asked proactively:

"Just now, how did you break free? I thought you would fail."

Lin Shuang was also taken aback for a moment. Hadn't Acheron just deactivated the power of The Nihility because she was about to fail?

"Didn't you deactivate the power of The Nihility just now, which is why I woke up? When I couldn't hold on, two flashes of white light appeared before my eyes, and then I regained consciousness. It wasn't you?"

Twice, white light.

Acheron keenly caught the keywords, which matched the reaction of the rings on Lin Shuang's fingers that she had just observed.

Speaking of which… in the photos from a few days ago, the rings seemed to be glowing as well.

These rings were probably not ordinary items. Could they help one escape the erosion of The Nihility?

She glanced subtly at her left hand, then shook her head and said:

"It wasn't me. As far as I was concerned, if you failed, you would have just slept for half a day. I didn't intend to withdraw early."

"Then that's strange. Could it be that I'm exceptionally talented and just broke through during the fight?"

Lin Shuang scratched her head in confusion, thinking that her talent in this area was also quite impressive.

Acheron remained noncommittal. She suddenly asked:

"Lin Shuang, what significance does the ring you gave me hold in the ritual?"

"Significance?"

Lin Shuang looked at Acheron in confusion, wondering why she would suddenly change the subject to this.

However, she was no longer as nervous as she had been before.

"It's just a token to signify the completion of the ritual. Anyone who sees it will know that you've undergone the ceremony… Of course, this is only the case in my hometown. It doesn't have any special meaning."

"Is that so."

Acheron nodded, her right hand subconsciously touching the ring on her left ring finger. It was unclear whether she accepted this explanation or simply didn't intend to press further.

Volume 1: Chapter 11 Lin Shuang: I Sincerely Want to Be Friends With You Now

Lin Shuang and Acheron rested in silence for a moment.

After Lin Shuang's expression recovered, Acheron spoke again:

"Continue?"

"Uh…"

Lin Shuang was stunned for a moment, but after thinking about it, she nodded, agreeing to Acheron's proposal.

Then Lin Shuang was beaten again.

And she once again sank into the power of The Nihility, unable to extricate herself.

This time, Acheron not only monitored Lin Shuang's condition.

She also took off the glove on her left hand herself.

Not long after, Lin Shuang's ring flashed with brilliance once more, freeing Lin Shuang from the power of The Nihility.

If it had only happened once, it could have been a coincidence. However, considering her own situation and Lin Shuang's repeated escapes from the influence of The Nihility, both accompanied by the flashing of the rings.

Acheron tentatively concluded that the rings Lin Shuang had given her might possess some peculiar power.

Moreover, Acheron had also experimented with her own rings just now and found that the rings on her hands produced the same effect.

This power could indeed contend with The Nihility.

Having reached this conclusion, even Acheron's eyes, which should have been as calm as the abyss, began to tremble slightly.

As for Lin Shuang, who had regained consciousness.

At this moment, she felt that her condition was a bit unusual. Twice now, just as she was about to fall, she had suddenly managed to break free. While this ability might not be flashy, it could save her life at critical moments.

"Lin Shuang, how did you feel just now?"

"It was the same as before. I just felt a few flashes of light, and then I suddenly woke up."

"Before you broke free from the influence of The Nihility, your ring reacted."

"A coincidence, perhaps…"

"Is it?"

As Lin Shuang replied, she naturally noticed Acheron's gaze fixed on the ring.

Could Acheron really think that the ring had played some role?

Impossible, absolutely impossible.

After all, when the system gave it to her, it explicitly stated that these rings were just ordinary trinkets.

Even if there was a connection, Lin Shuang would rather believe that the ring was merely displaying a special effect.

The real power came from something else.

For example, a Herrscher Core.

Since she already had a glowing toy sword, what was one more little ring toy?

Lin Shuang, at least, didn't think the rings could be used for anything else.

Beyond being able to adjust to the wearer's finger size, she had no other expectations for them. It would be more worthwhile to hope Acheron would go easy on her during training.

Judging by Acheron's attitude, she seemed to believe that the ceremony she held and the rings she was given at the end possessed some kind of power.

And she had deliberately mentioned 'The Nihility'.

She couldn't possibly still think her sense of taste had returned because of her, could she?

This gave Lin Shuang a real headache.

She already felt terrible about tricking Acheron into the wedding ceremony, even scolding herself in the middle of the night.

If Acheron also believed that the changes in her were due to their incredibly simple wedding ceremony and the pair of rings...

That would be too much...

If she accepted that kind of goodwill, she'd truly be slapping herself in the face every time she woke up at night.

Considering Acheron was about to debut in the story, perhaps something was already planned to happen during this time.

"That's right. If the rings have any other abilities, I'll definitely tell you. After all, this kind of ceremony only works for me. The rings were just symbolic even during the ritual."

Feeling guilty, Lin Shuang couldn't help but explain further as she watched Acheron sitting to the side, silently touching her ring finger.

However, Acheron merely raised her gaze and smiled gently.

She stared into Lin Shuang's eyes, her purple pupils like molten ice, exuding an unusual charm.

"Mhm, I know."

"..."

Know what, you know?!