The Journey

On the morning of December 26, 2013, at 10:05 AM.

Changkong City.

The number of Mortals encountered along the way was countless. In the narrow streets, Su Qing'an could no longer outrun them with the speed and power of his Kawasaki H2R. Most other routes were impassable, destroyed by the immense size and destructive power of Temple-class Honkai Beasts and Chariot-class Honkai Beasts.

Because of this, he had to hide his Kawasaki H2R and proceed on foot.

In areas with more Mortals and fewer Honkai Beasts, Su Qing'an could still advance without injury. The distance to Senba Academy was not far, but the increasingly dangerous enemies made it difficult for him to move.

He easily severed the approaching Mortals with the blade of [Calming the Tempest], wrapped in Honkai Energy. The substance, which could no longer be called flesh and blood, emitted an unpleasant odor. With the State of Still Water and the accumulation of kills, Su Qing'an was no longer shaken by killing Mortals.

He didn't have time to dwell on whether it was a trivial matter of desecrating a corpse.

For Su Qing'an, dealing with Mortals was far simpler than facing Honkai Beasts. The Taixuan Style could unleash most of its power against these humanoid monsters.

However, even so, without the ability to channel Honkai Energy to cover the sword's body, even a well-made sword like [Calming the Tempest] would become chipped after cutting through bones harder than a normal human body dozens of times.

Su Qing'an realized that controlling Honkai Energy caused mental fatigue. Theoretically, the Honkai Energy cycle established through Soul Essence consumed such a price, which was also normal.

Therefore, upon realizing this, he began to consciously conserve his use of Honkai Energy, no longer emitting Honkai Energy like sword qi from his sword.

That was the 'form' within Void Sword Qi, consisting of four lines: Guard, Transform, Initiate, and Open, totaling twenty-one forms.

Since there were no reference samples, his learning was not as perversely fast as normal martial arts.

For now, he could only attack by emitting Honkai Energy similar to sword qi from the blade.

And because he only controlled the Honkai Energy on the blade, it did not affect his combat. In battle, to prevent the weapon from chipping, he had been wrapping Honkai Energy around the surface of the blade.

Although he had memorized most of the routes in Changkong City, unrecorded routes had already appeared before him.

This city had become a veritable steel jungle, with dangerous Mortals and terrifying Honkai Beasts roaming within, destroying the city's buildings and preying on the few humans who survived due to their Honkai Energy resistance.

Even Su Qing'an himself was only in the middle of the food chain. Compared to some Honkai Beasts that preferred to act in groups, he was undoubtedly much weaker.

He would die from severe weakening of his combat power if he was hit in a part that affected his mobility or a major artery causing significant bleeding.

Adrenaline secreted rapidly in this atmosphere. His sword swings remained unchanged in force and speed even after nearly a hundred strikes.

At this moment, he expressionlessly hid at the turn of an alley. The Mortals in the vicinity had already been killed by him. He chewed food, replenishing his consumed stamina. His backpack contained supplies for about two days of food and water.

According to the plot, the events in Changkong City were very brief, ending in about ten hours.

Therefore, his preparations were quite sufficient.

However, with the Honkai outbreak occurring three months in advance, the so-called plot had become unreliable information.

Blindly trusting the plot was no longer advisable.

Therefore, if necessary, approaching supply points like supermarkets to replenish food and water was a prudent measure.

Putting the half-full water bottle back into his bag, his short rest time was over. Su Qing'an never put down [Calming the Tempest] in his hand.

He opened the manhole cover at his feet. The manhole cover was adorned with patterns of Qingyue Temple architecture and cherry blossoms, which seemed to be a common manhole cover culture in this country.

The routes he had memorized included the city's sewer map. Every night, he had repeatedly memorized it to maintain the accuracy of his memory, so that it could be used for escape.

This manhole cover's location led to the sewer route near Senba Academy. Honkai Beasts seemed to have an innate desire for destruction. Within two hours of the Honkai outbreak, Su Qing'an had already changed routes several times, but they were all blocked by collapses caused by Honkai Beasts.

According to calculations, the previously collapsed sewers and this route leading to Senba Academy did not conflict.

Theoretically, it was only a few thousand meters away, but the swarms of Assault-type Honkai Beasts near the academy became an insurmountable obstacle for him.

Su Qing'an discovered a habit of Honkai Beasts, or perhaps an instinct of creatures?

The weaker the Honkai Beast, the more they liked to act in groups, and the stronger the Honkai Beast, the more they liked to roam alone.

Therefore, for Su Qing'an, the Knight-class and Chariot-class Honkai Beasts, with their greater size and strength, were not as dangerous as the Assault-type Honkai Beasts that preferred group actions.

Theoretically, the location of Honkai Beasts has no pattern; no one can guarantee that Honkai Beasts won't appear in the sewers.

Even if many Assault-type Honkai Beasts were roaming there, it would not be a low-probability event.

However, compared to the visible and insurmountable danger before him, he was more willing to take a gamble that the sewers would be safer.

At least, larger Honkai Beasts could be detected early in the quiet environment of the sewers, allowing him to escape.

He had already spent over an hour, and he had no more time to waste. Su Qing'an understood that Satou Yunona's only chance of survival was to possess Honkai Energy resistance, survive the initial surprise attack, and be protected by Kiana as she left Senba Academy.

However, according to the plot that could be referenced, Kiana and Raiden Mei (Herrscher persona) fought each other, eventually successfully awakening Raiden Mei's self-awareness, leading to a happy ending.

But if Satou Yunona truly survived, she could also die at any moment from an indiscriminate area-of-effect attack by Raiden Mei.

The power of a Herrscher was too terrifying. Theoretically, if she wanted to, she had the ability to destroy the entire city directly.

The closer he got to Senba Academy, the more his fear grew. It was a panic of life being beyond his control and a despair suppressed deep within his heart.

He, who was so weak that even a Temple-class Honkai Beast couldn't kill him, how much room would he have to exert himself even if he participated in battles of that scale?

Even Kiana, who was destined to awaken Raiden Mei in the original timeline, it was uncertain whether she could achieve such an outrageous feat in reality.

In the end, this was reality. Even Kiana Kaslana, the protagonist, only had a high survival rate, but there was still a risk of death.

Understanding all of this, Su Qing'an entered the sewers and advanced towards Senba Academy without hesitation.

Fear, despair, and cowardice were forcefully suppressed by him as he silently recited the Sword Heart Technique. His extreme control made him appear calm and decisive.

Ice-blue floating ice slowly formed in his Mind Lake.

When the Mind Lake completely freezes over, that is when the Sword Heart realm will reach Dustless.

At that time, the risk of transforming into a Mortal will also arrive.

"I'll worry about that kind of thing when it happens," he muttered silently to himself.

He was just an ordinary person.

But ordinary people have their own resolve, and ordinary people have their own courage.

Humanity's anthem is an anthem of courage, and humanity's greatness is the greatness of courage.

The young man who understood everything and comprehended all, yet still chose to press forward under a heavy burden, was no longer the same person who had first arrived in this world.

For Satou Yunona, who might be hiding alive in some corner, Su Qing'an was undoubtedly her hero.