[Name: Su Qing'an] [Gender: Male] [Strength: 18.3] [Agility: 19.4] [Physique: 20.6] [Soul Essence: 39.11] [Honkai Energy Resistance: 30 (Low/Limit)] [Technique: Taixuan Style] [Evaluation: Your combat ability far exceeds that of an ordinary human, and your Honkai Energy resistance has reached the limit of a normal human male. Aside from the special nature of your Soul Essence, you already possess enough Honkai Energy resistance to survive normally in areas with high concentrations of Honkai Energy.] [Message: Your soul possesses a special quality. After enduring death twice, it automatically ascended to four times that of an ordinary person. Make use of this sole bargaining chip to survive in the post-apocalyptic world of Honkai.]
After six weeks of nonstop tempering of his Sword Heart, Su Qing'an discovered that everything about him had reached its limits.
The growth of his body's three-dimensional attributes had slowed more and more. He had reason to suspect that once his attributes reached 25, the body-enhancing effect of the modified Void Sword Qi would almost completely disappear.
His Honkai Energy resistance, meanwhile, had remained fixed at 30. No matter how he tempered his Sword Heart, it had no effect. Even the limit that the modified Void Sword Qi granted by the gods could reach was merely the limit of his own physical shell.
In essence, the Void Sword Qi's ability was merely to let a worm break out of its cocoon and become a butterfly. To advance any further required crossing the gap between different levels of life.
At present, Su Qing'an could see no possibility of breaking through this limit. This meant that, because his above-average Soul Essence had caused him to establish an excessively immense Honkai Energy cycle, he would not dare break through to the State of Still Water's next stage, Beyond Still Water.
The limit of his Honkai Energy resistance determined the upper limit of his Sword Heart.
He could faintly sense that if he broke through to Beyond Still Water, there was a risk that his body might transform into a Zombie.
Thus, after understanding this limit, he could only reduce the time he spent cultivating the Sword Heart Technique and remain at the limit of the State of Still Water.
Even if he forced his way into Beyond Still Water, he guessed that the Honkai Beasts he could defeat would be limited to one to three lower Honkai Beasts below Temple-class.
Honkai Beasts were roughly divided, from weakest to strongest, into seven types: Assault-class, Knight-class, Ballista-class, Chariot-class, Temple-class, Emperor-class, and Judgment-class.
Among them, Assault-class, Chariot-class, Knight-class, Ballista-class, and Temple-class all belonged to the lower Honkai Beasts, while Emperor-class and Judgment-class were upper Honkai Beasts.
Aside from the Honkai Emperor, the ceiling of combat power among lower Honkai Beasts, even the enormous Temple-class Honkai Beasts were already terrifying opponents that he could not defeat.
Therefore, he had no intention of risking becoming a Zombie to break through to Beyond Still Water for an increase in combat power that could not guarantee his safety completely.
As long as he could get into St. Freya Academy, he would be temporarily safe.
He would no longer be like now, with the Grim Reaper seeming to pursue him every day, leaving him constantly on edge with his life hanging by a thread.
He feared battle. He feared the injuries and pain that might soon arrive.
At the same time, however, his terrifying self-control allowed him to maintain his ordinary exterior. The closer the arrival of the Honkai drew, the more unstable his emotions became.
Anxiety and unease, fear and anger, hatred and loneliness—all of them were thrown into the flames of his Mind Lake and turned into blazing fuel.
That allowed Su Qing'an to calm down and return to a state of stillness.
There were still three months. He could make more preparations. Don't panic. Don't be afraid. No matter what he faced—even life and death—a martial artist should face it calmly.
Recalling the old man's teachings, the young man's restless heart gradually settled.
A month before the Honkai erupted, he would find a way to send Satou Yunona's entire family to another city.
Satou Yunona was, apart from Kiana, the person he was most familiar with in this world.
In his memories, because she was one of the few people who could appreciate Su Qing'an's skill at making coffee, she had been Su Qing'an's only friend.
And now, he sincerely regarded Satou Yunona as a friend as well.
He did not need a reason, did he? When someone was trapped in a world where they did not fit in at all, treating a person who knew them, understood part of them, and could casually talk, joke, and fool around with them as an important friend was only natural.
Recently, he had been investigating gangs with sufficient reputation, morality, and power. He planned to pay part of a deposit and have them kidnap her family and take them directly to a distant city.
After confirming that everyone was safe, he would pay the rest in full.
If conditions allowed, he felt that Shenzhou would be quite safe.
The idea was crude, but it was currently the most convenient and efficient solution.
He did not believe he could persuade them to leave Changkong City with his eloquence. Putting himself in Su Qing'an's shoes, he would not agree to such an absurd proposition either.
If he really could not find a gang or other organization he could trust,
he would try simply throwing money at them to make them leave Changkong City. As long as he came up with some excuse and the money was enough, accomplishing this should not be difficult.
As long as he got her out of Changkong City, even if the city turned into a hellscape, Su Qing'an could bear the psychological burden caused by the deaths of more than 2.3 million people alone.
In a world like this, merely surviving already required giving one's all. Having enough leeway to protect one's friends was an even greater blessing.
A few days earlier, he had deliberately found an excuse to let Mei and Kiana meet ahead of time. In the game's story, Kiana had practically fallen in love with Mei at first sight. Only after reaching maximum affection would she persist in trying to save Raiden Mei, allowing the bond between them to form later.
It had also made Mei's Herrscher personality controllable.
It had been ridiculous when playing the game, but that was how the game's story was set up. Players loved it, too. They could complain all they wanted, but they still played on.
If reflected in reality, however, the logic was not nearly so fun or simple.
Kiana's sexual orientation might be toward women, and Raiden Mei might also be her type.
But after initially learning about Kiana's personality, Su Qing'an still believed that one brief encounter would not be enough for Kiana to act this way.
Therefore, so as not to stray from the original script, he chose to challenge Raiden Mei and propose the so-called tutoring arrangement. His goal was to safely join the group, reach the ending in which Herrscher-personality Raiden Mei was defeated by Murata Himeko, and everyone went together to the safe haven of St. Freya Academy.
In truth, Beichen Ichi-ryu had terrible compatibility with Honkai Beasts. Even if Su Qing'an learned it, it would not be of much use in future battles.
He simply was not good with words. He could only find an excuse to fight. With their impressions made slightly deeper, the two people who would have had an excellent relationship in the future should form fairly good first impressions of each other, making it possible for such a request to be accepted.
In fact, Raiden Mei and Kiana had indeed formed a good impression of each other. When Raiden Mei said that Kiana was her junior from the same school and refused to charge her, their relationship rapidly improved.
Cook really was specially effective against Kiana. Satou Yunona had known Kiana longer, yet their treatment was completely opposite.
The former was blamed for everything every day, causing Kiana to constantly issue her death notices with an expression of disdain and indifference. The latter, meanwhile, was affectionately called Mei-Mei by Kiana, who wore a bright smile.
Their ways of showing affection were completely different.
Raiden Mei was accustomed to polite yet distant behavior, but recently, she had also begun showing a gentle and intimate side in front of Kiana.
Perhaps this was fate. Whether it was Kiana, who had wandered for years, or Raiden Mei, the heiress of ME Corp, neither of them found it easy to become friends with others. Yet they could effortlessly open each other's hearts, as if they had known each other at first sight—a fantastical connection.
The plot should not change too much this way, right?
Inside the dojo, Su Qing'an returned [Calming the Tempest] to its sheath, ending the day's sword practice, and thought this to himself.
After that, as long as he settled Yuno's affairs, he could face the Honkai with complete peace of mind.
The young man, who was accustomed to keeping his face expressionless when alone, rarely revealed a slightly happy, genuinely heartfelt smile.
Then, in the next instant,
Su Qing'an's smile abruptly froze. It was a familiar sensation, one he could recall as clearly as yesterday.
An incomprehensible wavelength and a terrifying energy fluctuation capable of destroying living beings suddenly erupted across all of Changkong City at that moment.
The Honkai Energy cycle established by the Void Sword Qi became more active than ever. In such an environment, he could easily control the Honkai Energy in the surroundings if he wished.
Moreover, his body felt no discomfort.
He had survived.
He had survived his first encounter with the Honkai.
But the young man's hands were trembling, without the slightest joy or excitement at surviving.
The Honkai eruption had come early? Three whole months early?
This shouldn't be happening. He told himself.
This shouldn't be happening. He said inwardly.
You've got to be kidding. You've got to be kidding. You've got to be kidding.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
"Shi... fo... luo... ye... zhe... luo... zhe... luo... mo... mo..." The young man closed his eyes and gritted his teeth as he recited the Sword Heart Technique. Since he had grown accustomed to silently reciting it during cultivation, this was the first time he had spoken the Sword Heart Technique aloud again.
He enunciated every syllable with such force that each word seemed to be laboriously chewed, as if he wanted to bite and tear at the flesh of his enemy.
After a full two minutes, his Mind Lake was forcibly stilled, and the ferocious expression on Su Qing'an's face vanished completely.
The young man's face was calm and cold. Only the hand gripping his sword had fingers clenched so tightly that the joints had gone slightly white.
Raging helplessly was an undesirable negative emotion. What was done was done; calmly assessing the situation was the correct approach.
Yes, that's right. Su Qing'an should be like this. He should calm himself completely and control all his emotions perfectly.
Endure. Endure. Endure.
His Mind Lake suddenly roiled violently, and icy-blue shards of ice formed within it.
Under the relentless, intense emotions that Su Qing'an could no longer control, the State of Still Water came within a single step of Beyond Still Water. The progress he had always struggled to restrain was violently shattered out of its cage by this accident.
Fuck you!
If Satou Yunona died, I would kill your entire family, Cocolia.
And while I was at it, I would collect the debt owed by the more than 2.3 million souls who died.
At 8:45 a.m. on December 26, 2013, the Third Honkai Outbreak erupted in Changkong City.
...---...---...
The woman sat bolt upright as she stared at the picture frame in her hands. She had waist-length golden curls and purple eyes that were so indifferent they seemed mechanical. Her beautiful doll-like face wore an habitual solemnity and harshness.
She wore a Russian military uniform, with a red-based white shawl trimmed with a fur collar draped over her shoulders. She gave the impression of a stern soldier, yet the purple gemstone earrings she wore shattered that impression while lending her an air of dominance.
The woman set down the picture frame and gazed toward the eastern horizon.
She knew that her actions made her like an evil spirit from the abyss, perhaps even far more vicious and cruel than one, yet her heart remained indifferent, without the slightest ripple.
When had it begun? Some part of her seemed to have already broken.
She spoke into the communicator. "Begin the plan."
The evil spirit named Cocolia issued the order. It was like a butcher skilled in dismembering an ox, about to harvest the intact heart hidden within an animal's body.
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