159. Black Abyss, White Flower.

Australian branch, underground research institute.

Mei gazed at the Herrscher Core suspended in the center of the Soul Steel Collider and asked softly:

"Mr. Su, assuming the plan to create the Divine Key using this Herrscher Core goes smoothly, you may completely possess everything she has."

Su Qing'an sensed the subtle connection between herself and that core, and the Abyss Flower domain in the Soul Hall swayed peacefully accordingly.

His eyes were lowered, and his lips moved slightly.

"Half of her power resides within me; even if I were to create the anticipated Divine Key, I fear it would only grant me the power of [annihilation]."

Mei said softly:

"That's why, besides you, there is no other suitable candidate to be the owner of this Divine Key."

"Only in your hands can its power remain complete."

Su Qing'an recalled that scene from the Stigmata Space.

Even if he were to burn out the rest of his life in that one moment, the Divine Key, named Jizo Mitama, still could not be pulled out even a fraction. The boy at that time was restricted by the shackles that did not adapt to the Divine Key, and was thus completely shut out.

In the end, it was Yae Rin who sacrificed her own consciousness and soul to create a new sword hilt, which gave him the ability to change the outcome.

While things seem very different now than they were then, the essence remains the same: it still relies on others' self-sacrifice to achieve what appears to be a good ending.

Now, the weight on Su Qing'an's shoulders has not diminished in the slightest due to her own wear and tear; on the contrary, it has been increased even more.

He responded:

"I will use this Divine Key."

Because... this is a responsibility that cannot be escaped.

Mei pondered the undeniable weight of those words, spoken in a seemingly casual tone, and said earnestly:

"I will succeed. After that, do you have any ideas on what to name it?"

A curse that can never be escaped, Abyss Flower blooming in the Soul Hall.

[Obliteration], [Creation].

The boy murmured to himself, his mind filled with complex emotions:

"Black Abyss, Abyss Flower."

He took a deep breath, swallowing all his emotions and sighs, and responded calmly:

"Let's call it... Black Abyss White Flower, that's the name it was meant to be."

Mei murmured the name and agreed:

"The Sixth Divine Key, Black Abyss White Flower."

Su Qing'an suddenly whispered:

"But it is the first Divine Key that is about to be born."

If I hadn't participated in anything in this world, would things still be unfolding the way they are now?

He was certainly not preoccupied with whether his impact on the world was positive or negative; once he got involved, those concerns were no longer relevant.

This was the first time Su Qing'an had sensed a certain reality of being involved in this world line.

The Divine Key is something that can be passed down to the next era; even calling it a national treasure cannot fully express its significance.

Now, having personally participated in its creation and even... the story behind it, Su Qing'an is forced to consider a question.

That is, do I still possess the ability to change the future even more?

From the very beginning, the boy's only thought was to become Fusion Warrior, survive with Fu Hua until the next era, and face the end of this world.

At the time, I thought this was the best possible outcome.

Without perfect Stigmata, without developing [Udu-dust • Critical], and without pushing Honkai Energy micro-management to its limit, the future that Su Qing'an could reach was at most limited to this.

This is an undeniable reality.

Now that he has developed [Udu-dust • Critical], possessed half of the Herrscher of Death's powers, gained immunity to Honkai Energy, and is even about to wield the Divine Key, he has more choices.

The Finality, the Finality.

Regardless of the eventual outcome, he wanted to see just how immense and unparalleled that undeniable despair could be.

The things that evoke the deepest fears are often those that contain unknown elements; an inflated imagination and invisible boundaries are the root of fear.

While the Finality may indeed be unparalleled, witnessing it firsthand will ultimately yield some substance beyond vague concepts.

In fact, regardless of arrogance or not, Su Qing'an should be more concerned about another issue.

That is, if the Honkai is successfully defeated in this era, the next era that should have existed will truly vanish into thin air, becoming a future history annihilated in the changing world lines.

This is not impossible. According to past records, the civilization at that time was only one step away from defeating the Honkai.

That is, the Finality.

Even with this final boss, the Previous Civilization had found some ways to deal with it, but unfortunately, due to various factors, they were unable to achieve victory.

In Su Qing'an's worldline, countless variables and details already exist. Whether the advantages accumulated through these information gaps and changes can ultimately amount to enough to change the future is still unknown.

At least, it's not entirely impossible.

But once the world has passed through the trials, peace will prevail.

The place the boy truly regarded as his hometown was destroyed by his own actions. The scene of everyone gathering together, laughing and talking, will be extracted as [Ashes] from the flames, falling into the attic of memory, never to be traced again.

However, if he were to deliberately extinguish the hope of this era due to this selfishness and delusion, or even simply do nothing, it would be a selfish act that he could not tolerate.

In the days since he came into this world, Su Qing'an has come to understand that many beautiful things still exist. He can understand the unquenched flame in the hearts of the warriors Moth to Fire. He has witnessed Mei, as well as many people like Mei who have never rested and have sacrificed themselves for that beautiful future.

These efforts, bit by bit, these blood and bones that have gathered into mountains and seas, and these hundreds of millions of compatriots who are still alive, all prove that no matter how much dross exists in the process, that kind of future is the world that everyone hopes to reach.

Therefore... no matter what, Su Qing'an will do everything in her power.

This was the only way he could act without going against his conscience, but it was also a path destined for tragedy no matter what.

But the existence of that curse left the boy with no choice but to reach the end where there was no way out, and then try to find another way.

Su Qing'an composed himself and asked softly:

How fast is the production of the Divine Key progressing?

Mei thought for a moment and replied:

"The crafting process and underlying theory for the Divine Key have already been proven effective. If no major errors are discovered during the practical process, it can be completed in a month at the latest, and a week at the earliest."

Su Qing'an nodded and said:

"If Kevin's experiment is combined with the Black Abyss White Flower's abilities, the results will be much more reliable."

"If the progress on the Divine Key goes smoothly, I suggest waiting until then before continuing the experiments."

Mei asked:

"This is also a problem I've considered, but the Honkai Energy tides around the world are currently exhibiting different levels of rhythm. According to Prometheus's calculations, in the worst-case scenario, the Seventh Herrscher will randomly appear in any corner of the world within just one month."

"Waiting for the implementation of the Divine Key before conducting experiments will, no matter how smoothly things go, be severely hampered by the one-month constraint."

Su Qing'an frowned and said:

"Is it at least a month? Based on previous indications, this interval seems rather long."

Mei pondered the specific values of the Honkai Energy, feeling a bit of a headache. Assuming this wasn't a feint, the law of Herrscher growing stronger and stronger would likely be fully realized this time. She stated:

"Therefore, we need to consider other combat forces besides you."

Su Qing'an did not refute her response. In fact, both of them understood that the current Martial Immortal had long lost the qualifications and abilities to fight normally.

This shackle did effectively restrain the swordsman's heart, but it still couldn't change the painful aftereffects left after killing Seele.

The trembling and shaking when gripping a sword can be forcibly restrained and controlled with the State of Still Water, but the mental state when encountering an enemy cannot be erased through forced effort.

This level of mental illness qualifies for mandatory retirement even among the currently understaffed Moth to Fire individuals who are desperately seeking opportunities to work), demonstrating just how dire his current situation is.

Mei, who was in the same boat, felt she had no right to persuade the other party. She could only turn a blind eye to it for the time being and put her bet on Kevin Kaslana in order to reduce the pressure on Su Qing'an and gain more room for error.

Su Qing'an remained silent for a while; he understood better than anyone the extent of his actual combat capabilities.

This is not modesty or recklessness, but an undeniable reality.

His physical functions were no longer impaired, but the boy who was forcibly restrained from collapsing through so-called punishment was essentially already mostly broken. In reality, this method of maintaining Kenshin was too abnormal and could hardly be considered normal.

The conclusion is simple: Su Qing'an is unable to wield his sword.

Or to put it more bluntly, he lost the ability to fight due to mental health issues.

Even if I force myself to do it, the result will probably only be that the emotions that have been building up will burst forth, completely destroying the abnormal state that is restraining my sword heart, leading to an even worse outcome.

Su Qing'an, who is self-aware, is the person who should most support the early commencement of the Fusion Warrior experiment.

Or rather, given that he was no longer able to safeguard the current civilization and prevent more areas from becoming hell on earth, he had to admit that the current situation was not conducive to starting the experiment only when everything was perfectly prepared.

Su Qing'an was silent for a moment, then said affirmatively:

"Then let's begin the experiment. Even without using the Divine Key, the power of [Creation] is not unusable."

"At least from the perspective of helping Kevin's experiment, the role that the other half's power can play is not indispensable."

Mei was stunned. In fact, she still found it somewhat unbelievable that Su Qing'an was able to obtain power.

The essence of power has always been something that current civilizations fear and dread. Utilizing such a magnificent power through the Divine Key, formed from the Herrscher Core, is the best solution one can imagine.

However, it is somewhat illogical for someone like Su Qing'an to rely entirely on himself and abandon all external things to embrace things.

This event is outside the knowledge system of the Honkai system reconstructed from the remains of past knowledge, but figuring out all the unsolved mysteries in a limited time is inherently inefficient, so the girl has no intention of studying it in depth.

Mei simply felt that the reason the other party could obtain power, besides Seele, must also be due to some special quality of the person herself, which she still subconsciously attributed to that inexplicable soul.

Therefore, her questioning is similar.

"Based on the fundamental calculations, driving power is not simply a matter of consuming a large amount of Honkai Energy."

"The fundamental reason why the Divine Key is said to be adaptable is that only those who possess a wondrous wavelength that can be adapted to it can communicate with and utilize power through the assistance of the Divine Key."

Are you really confident that you can wield power without resorting to these methods?

Su Qing'an responded:

"Hmm, I have a way."

"Seele has established a mechanism within my soul that is different from the normal one, which can be used to exercise autonomous power."

Mei asked:

"And the price? It only grants you the mechanism, meaning you have the ability to drive it, but your soul as the vessel of power is already incredible enough. Driving it further will definitely have other consequences."

"Furthermore, how do we solve the basic Honkai Energy supply problem? With the current level of civilization's technology, there is no Honkai Energy reactor that can supply enough power to activate the power. The power of the two is not even in the same league. I don't have time to solve these problems yet."

Su Qing'an didn't try to hide anything; he replied:

"The cost is a significant one-time depletion of soul power, but this can be recovered quickly, so it's not a major issue. As for Honkai Energy... I've stored up a lot through my battle with Seele, enough to use it at least a few times."

The new foundation within the Soul Hall and the Abyss Flower Domain intertwine to construct a large-scale mechanism capable of autonomously leveraging power. Aside from this initial known outcome, Su Qing'an also made some attempts and drew further conclusions during the past few days while gazing at the butterflies in that Abyss Flower Domain.

The most crucial information is that while autonomously activating one's powers is not the problem, the moment one truly leverages those powers and utilizes them, consciousness is forced to bear the immense pressure that arises from them, indirectly causing the Soul Essence to continuously and drastically decline.

Activating [Udu-dust • Critical] itself consumes Soul Essence, which means that the idea of using [Creation] to complement the [Stigmata] ability in battle has failed before it can be put into practice. The two cannot coexist during battle.

Even so, it was more than enough to provide care for Kevin's experiments.

Mei understood this perfectly well.

On the other hand, regarding matters of power, she did not want to deliberately mention them unless necessary, as the impact of Seele Fulei's death on Su Qing'an was too terrifying.

She could no longer discern whether Seele's choice was beneficial or detrimental. Su Qing'an's physical limitations had been addressed, but her mental state had deteriorated into an indescribable illness, rendering her unable to fight normally.

Whether looking at the long term or the current situation, it's difficult to judge which situation is more correct; perhaps only time will tell.

Mei doesn't intend to dwell on this. She can only do what she can at this stage, and besides, given their own circumstances, perhaps neither of them has the right to worry about the other.

She said:

"Prometheus had already prepared everything in advance, Kevin is in the training room next door, so the experiment can begin soon."

Su Qing'an nodded in agreement, and said softly:

"Hopefully, we can achieve the desired result."

Mei was engrossed in her tablet, controlling the flow of data. Her lips moved slightly as she murmured:

"It won't fail, because... I've staked everything I have on it."

The boy looked at her increasingly pale face and felt somewhat worried.

Mei's health deteriorated, and even the deliberate use of [Stigmata] to absorb the tangled Honkai Energy not bring her relief.

Perhaps the most urgent thing to do is to immediately create the Black Abyss White Flower and use the power of the Herrscher of Death to alleviate the other party's physical condition.

However, due to the current situation, this matter will have to be delayed for at least another week, and even if the other party feels uneasy, I am no longer able to offer words of comfort or try to dispel it.

Su Qing'an understood that the most important thing was not the Fusion Warrior Project itself, which had been in preparation since the beginning.

Instead, it was Kevin Kaslana, who was the experimenter.

Don't worry, I won't let anyone around me die again.

These were the words the boy had wanted to say but couldn't utter in that instant.

But what powerful guarantees can one offer when they can only watch helplessly as those around them are Honkai by the Honkai?

Even if you were to say it aloud, it would only be a joke, offering no solace whatsoever.

So Su Qing'an ultimately remained silent. He simply waited quietly with Mei for Kevin's arrival, gazing wistfully at the ever-blooming Abyss Flower, as if something worth anticipating still resided within them.

In the end, the two butterflies remained silent as always, circling back and forth on both sides of the scale, like a lifeless, dry well that could no longer flow, unable to respond to anyone's expectations or wishes.

The heart in the chest then conveyed an inescapable grief, urging the cold blood to flow through the limbs and bones, reminding the self of the reality of still being alive.

I'm still alive...

Lately, Su Qing'an has been repeatedly trying to understand this reality in her dazed state, and her irises, which are almost pure black, have become even darker, only appearing less dim under the refraction of light.

Kenshin's cracks are constantly spreading, yet he is constantly restrained and brought back by self-punishment. When will it end?

Perhaps.

There is no end.