No Matter What, Hua Was Hua.

"He's dead," the woman said softly, glancing at his expression.

Su Qing'an's fingertips twirled the feathers in his palm, his expression remaining unchanged, as if he were listening to something trivial.

"Yes, I know."

"There's nothing to be sad about. Living in a world like this, you'll inevitably face the same despair sooner or later."

The failure of the Previous Civilization sealed this fate.

The Finality...

In that despair, dying young might not be such a bad thing.

The boy then stopped the conversation, raising his head politely and saying:

"The medicine in your uncle's body must be very precious. It allows him to leave in peace after seeing me. Thank you."

Himeko sat opposite the boy, backlit, her red hair cascading in graceful arcs over her knees and the hem of her black skirt, her face obscured by the light, making her expression indistinct.

Thanks...

Is this the kind of lingering sentiment one might utter when faced with another separation of life and death in such a situation?

Moreover, for Himeko, who understood the source of the drug in Fu Xiuran's body, this word of gratitude was not something she could easily accept.

In the initial stages of Mei and Seele's deal, Himeko, who was far away on the Mu Continent guarding the front lines, knew nothing about it, and it was impossible for him to dissuade them.

Even so, she still saw it as a kind of dereliction of duty.

The woman was speechless for a moment. She couldn't bring herself to talk about Seele, nor could she accept the words of thanks with a clear conscience.

Himeko could sense a strange change in the person in front of her compared to Su Qing'an when Canghai City was intact.

However, the brief exchange was not enough for her to see through what was hidden beneath the surface.

Himeko asked:

"You've only Awakened for a day, is there anything you're not used to?"

Su Qing'an wasn't surprised by her arrival, but he still asked:

"The medical bay and that other floor have nothing that can transmit signals."

Himeko understood the other person's question and responded softly:

"It's just not on the floor you're on."

"Hmm," he said.

Six months have cleaved a long road.

Even though Awakened for a day, Su Qing'an should have had countless things she wanted to know, but Himeko was met with a long silence.

She took the initiative to start a conversation:

Now that you're back, do you have any plans to do anything?

The current Su Qing'an is beginning to diverge significantly from the impression he previously had of her.

The boy sitting opposite was very quiet. The coldness and sorrow that had been there in his dark eyes were gone. Even when he gazed at the gradually cooling corpse, all he could see was an empty emptiness.

But this only made Himeko more uneasy.

Because I can't understand it.

She couldn't understand the boy's changes, and this uncertainty was the source of her unease.

A Martial Immortal is enraged and completely irrational is terrifying enough.

He truly cared about nothing, completely stripped of all human emotions, and without any restraint, he was a calamity.

Himeko was unable to evaluate Su Qing'an, whose behavior and thought processes were completely unpredictable.

The boy's fingertips rubbed against the Udu-dust. This strange sensation, somewhere between reality and illusion, somehow made him feel a little better, as if an invisible warmth was being transmitted from this medium to his heart, giving him a subtle comfort.

He looked up at Himeko and said softly:

"There exists a void link between the soul of the Herrscher's physical body and the Honkai Consciousness."

"Once this link is severed, the human side of the soul and personality will once again take control of this Herrscher's body."

Himeko was taken aback by this unheard-of theory.

But after carefully recalling the strange occurrences during the battle six months ago, the woman was immediately taken aback.

From Himeko's own words, he finally understood why Su Qing'an risked his life to fight the Third Herrscher, and he finally understood...

Why was the boy's gaze upon that corpse so lifeless and cold?

Because from the very beginning, he fought with the intention of severing this link and saving it.

Su Qing'an never intended to kill the Third Herrscher; the outcome he desired was far more difficult yet also more hopeful.

If successful...

There is a certain possibility that the Third Herrscher could turn from an accomplice to the Honkai into an ally helping humanity fight against Honkai.

What left Himeko speechless was that she didn't believe it was absolutely impossible.

Himeko was one of the first researchers to lead the use of Honkai to fight Honkai, and she developed the first armor to use Honkai to fight Honkai.

The deeper a woman's understanding of the Honkai is, the more she comprehends its power, and the more she recognizes that Honkai Consciousness is not omnipotent.

If the Honkai Consciousness could truly achieve perfect control over everything related to Honkai, then humanity would have already faced utter defeat long before now.

It's like a large game with rules, and the consciousness of calamity cannot fully control it; calamity itself is part of the rules.

So if the Third Herrscher really did sever its connection with the Honkai Consciousness...

Even if the higher-ups believe that it involves huge risks, the tangible benefits and the hope of shaking up the war situation make it necessary to implement this plan.

Furthermore, Su Qing'an's presence ensures that the worst-case scenario of the Third Herrscher going berserk again can be suppressed.

But... it's too late now.

Continuing to extrapolate further is pointless.

At this moment, Himeko, having learned this important information, felt no pleasure whatsoever; she could only feel an even more chilling coldness.

That Honkai Fission Bomb destroyed far more things than I had initially imagined.

She suppressed her turbulent emotions and asked:

"You succeeded?"

Su Qing'an gazed into the distance and said softly:

"I failed."

"Because of the Honkai Fission Bomb."

Himeko remained silent for a long time, stunned as she came to understand the feelings the boy had when he dug open the corpse and extracted the Herrscher Core.

For Su Qing'an, the one who died from the Honkai Fission Bomb at that time was not some despised Third Herrscher.

Instead, it was a girl who successfully dragged herself out of the mouth of an evil spirit.

The boy's voice filled the room, each word clear and indifferent:

"Don't worry, I won't do anything unnecessary to those people."

"She's dead, that's a fact."

Even if you kill them all, it won't change the outcome.

Su Qing'an glanced at the woman's face. Her Amber eyes reflected a translucent quality in the backlight, making them appear soft and gentle. The hidden concern and deep melancholy within them were just like Murata Himeko from 55,000 years later, making one momentarily lost in thought.

But the undulating waves within his Mind Lake, once calmed, had returned to a deathly stillness.

The feelings of nostalgia have been worn down to just a few scattered sparks, unable to ignite any budding emotion.

The boy lowered his gaze and stopped looking at her. He said softly:

"If Seele and Fu Hua are alright, I will honor our promise and join the Moth to Fire."

"I will participate in the battle as appropriate, provided that I retain my autonomy and do not encounter the same situation again."

It's strange, it's unusual.

For a moment, Himeko found herself unable to comprehend the somewhat unfamiliar Su Qing'an before her.

It would be wonderful if Martial Immortal Herrscher willing to reconcile with the higher-ups, and it would be even more cause for celebration if such a being joined the Moth to Fire.

This means that the risks of high-difficulty battles will be greatly reduced, and with Su Qing'an's guidance, it is not impossible for several more warriors to emerge who are similar to Fu Hua in skill.

Despite the seemingly promising future, Himeko was unable to feel any joy. She silently gazed at the boy's indifferent expression and dark, unfathomable eyes, as if staring at a doll gradually stripped of all emotion.

His gaze only shifted occasionally when he looked in a particular direction.

Su Qing'an now...

Can he really be accepted by Seele and Fu Hua, the two people closest to him?

Himeko didn't know the answer.

The boy didn't care about the other person's silence; he simply stated it as a matter of routine:

"Regarding the relationship between the Herrscher's physical body and the Honkai Consciousness, I hope you can convey this message to the higher-ups. Although the Honkai Consciousness will be more prepared after that failure, and its methods for dealing with these things will be much less effective than before, if a breakthrough is found and something similar happens, it will still be a loss for our side."

"I'm not sure what stage you've reached in manipulating Honkai Energy with human bodies, but regardless of the stage, a stable Herrscher- level individual combatant will always be an extremely scarce resource."

"The Honkai Fission Bomb cannot kill Herrscher in their normal state."

"If I'm not mistaken, the Herrscher born in Orank, New Zealand, is the Fourth Herrscher."

After receiving the woman's nod of approval, Su Qing'an analyzed:

"The higher-ups launched the Honkai Fission Bomb before the Herrscher even hatched, killing her?"

Himeko nodded. She didn't think the official choice was wrong. Even the attempt to stop the Honkai Fission Bomb in Canghai City was based on the premise that Su Qing'an had great value and even more potential, which led her to make such a choice.

But Orank is different.

Himeko hated putting life on a scale to measure numb numbers, but the reality was that if the Honkai Fission Bomb hadn't been launched, the number of deaths and injuries caused by the Fourth Herrscher would have far exceeded this figure.

With the overall situation barely stable, it would not be a wise choice to create unexpected complications and attempt to kill Herrscher using other means.

Honkai Fission Bomb cannot be used indefinitely, nor can they be used indiscriminately; everyone knows these taboos.

The higher-ups aren't fools who can't see this potential danger; the most advanced AI-assisted calculations are enough for them to understand that this approach is merely a short-sighted solution.

Therefore, in addition to continuously optimizing the various effects of the Honkai Fission Bomb, a secret experiment centered on Dr. Mei has been secretly conducted. However, before the research results are available, the Honkai Fission Bomb remains the only option for humanity to fight against the Herrscher.

Ignoring the Little Feather that had floated back to its head and started playing dead again, Su Qing'an concluded:

"The next Herrscher will find the Honkai Fission Bomb less effective than before."

"Herrscher will only get stronger."

Himeko's heart sank; this profoundly significant judgment left her with no intention of remaining silent.

She asked:

"Aside from the fact that the Herrscher are becoming increasingly powerful, is there any other evidence to prove this?"

Su Qing'an said softly:

"I found the Third Herrscher's relic in the ruins of Canghai City. The power she left behind ensured that the relic remained intact even after Honkai Fission Bomb."

The boy seemed to understand what Himeko wanted to know while he was hesitating to speak, and he responded calmly:

"In the seconds before the Honkai Fission Bomb hit, I severed most of the links, rendering the Third Herrscher's powers ineffective. That's why she died."

"Himeko, both victories of the Honkai Fission Bomb were the product of a series of coincidences. The Honkai Fission Bomb alone could not reach the limit of Herrscher's power."

"To fight a complete Herrscher, the Honkai Fission Bomb alone is not enough."

The other person's reply deepened that strange sense of alienation. The boy who had politely and meticulously tidied the corpse's appearance with a sorrowful expression was now separated from the person in the present by an invisible wall, drawing completely different paths.

Himeko couldn't delve into the meaning behind it; she understood that perhaps the only people who could change him were the two he still cared about.

But her womanhood and responsibilities only allowed her to focus more on other information, she sighed.

"This concerns the survival of humanity. The other project teams have been pushing the plan forward with all their might, but it will probably take more than a day or two to see real results."

Himeko had temporarily decided not to delve into the details of certain information with Su Qing'an, and changed the subject, saying:

"You came here to find Seele and Fu Hua?"

Su Qing'an did not deny it:

"Um."

The woman pulled back the virtual screen, revealing a world map.

After she entered the corresponding number, a red dot flashed slightly.

Immediately, the macroscopic map shrunk dramatically, revealing a detailed map down to the kilometer level.

Himeko's fingertip touched the red dot on the luminous blue virtual map, and the corresponding information flowed out like water, clearly reflected in their eyes:

[Mission: Defeat the Honkai Beast that are hindering the construction of the armory.]

[Executors: Fu Hua, Carole Pepper, Shiyu Qiluo.]

"As you can see, she is on a mission in the edge of Yakarta."

Su Qing'an was not surprised that Fu Hua would choose this path.

This was her original destiny, and after a half-year of slumber due to unforeseen circumstances, it was only natural that she would return to her predetermined path.

"Where's Seele?" he asked.

Himeko said:

"She's at the Moth to Fire's branch in Australia; it's about a five-minute walk to see her if you'd like."

"Should I notify Fu Hua to return first? Although these are extraordinary times, her position in Yakarta is not irreplaceable. Her presence is only to save some resources for remanufacturing mechanical soldiers, which is not a difficult matter."

Su Qing'an was silent for a moment after hearing this, then he said softly:

"I'll go and deliver the message myself."

"I didn't want her to know about her uncle's situation under those circumstances, and then return alone."

"Besides, Hua's personality is actually rather old-fashioned. Even if she knew this news and chose to rush back, she would still feel embarrassed about her dereliction of duty. So I will clear out a portion of the Honkai Beast in Yakarta at once and then bring her back. Please help me preserve my uncle's remains."

Himeko nodded in agreement, and then asked:

"Shouldn't we go see Seele first?"

Su Qing'an hesitated for a moment, then shook her head and said:

"Although that child is very well-behaved, she is actually quite clingy at heart. I think about six months has allowed her to get used to me not being around."

"Instead of breaking this long-established habit now, I'd rather leave and go find Hua."

"Why don't we wait until this matter is settled before giving her a surprise?"

Himeko felt slightly relieved upon hearing the subtle fluctuation in the boy's words.

Su Qing'an now seems to be in a state of emotional numbness due to a personality defect, thus becoming completely rational.

Such cases can identify similar situations, but they are rare.

The key difference is that while similar mental illnesses are usually accompanied by other changes, the teenager seems to have only lacked emotions, without losing his or her former empathy or cognitive abilities.

This is not in line with common sense, and being not in line with common sense means that we cannot use normal thinking and solutions to address the problem.

However, Su Qing'an's attitude towards the two of them remained caring and attentive, which was enough for Himeko to suppress her previous unease.

Regardless of her personal views on the boy, Himeko's primary stance was based on her responsibilities and position; she had to consider Su Qing'an's unstable nature for the sake of the Moth to Fire.

Even so, in that brief moment of peace, a deeper sense of guilt welled up in the woman's chest.

She felt fortunate that the reins on Su Qing'an were still in place.

Such thoughts and thought processes... are things that I used to despise.

Himeko gave a helpless smile and looked at the boy softly, saying:

"I've already taken care of the necessary procedures for her; you can leave now."

"But when you see Fu Hua, you might be surprised by her changes. She's not the same person she was six months ago."

Su Qing'an smiled, a faint, almost imperceptible smile, fleeting like a cherry blossom falling.

The boy's eyelashes drooped, and the Little Feather on his fingertips were playing a game of self-balancing spins, as if hoping that the smile on his lips would linger a little longer. It looked comical yet very cute.

He said softly:

"No, it won't."

"No matter how things change, China is China."