256. Please Bury Me, Hua.

The screen abruptly stopped.

Immediately, the deepest darkness transformed into a curtain that surged into the depths of the soul.

The girl's consciousness vanished into nothingness and emptiness in an instant, embraced by a grand embrace as vast as an apocalypse, as deep as the Milky Way, or as dark as a black hole.

That was... an indescribable horror.

There was no emotion, no response, no sound, and no light.

Time stood still, and all things were lifeless.

The vast, lush forests whispered secrets about the Black Abyss, while ancient creatures from the distant past told tales of secrets originating from the deep sea.

Madness, loneliness, confusion, despair.

Su Qing'an's body lost its original form, and his flesh and bones proliferated irregularly and wantonly. His blood, like a flowing spring, meandered into rivers, irrigating the soil of the [Divine Kingdom].

The furnace called Humanity is not qualified to nurture anything above the level of the End-of-Law class Genetic Realm.

To attempt to ascend to godhood with flesh and blood is to inevitably pay a cruel price.

As genes ascend and evolve through different levels, the unbalanced essence of life begins to move towards equilibrium.

The 72-hour limit has been successfully broken.

At this moment, Su Qing'an, who belongs to the Soul State, can no longer manifest himself; the definition of the flesh and blood body has become blurred after the genes enter the sublimation stage.

The immense distortion, far more thorough and terrifying than any previous transformation experienced by a Fusion Warrior, almost declared that he had lost his right to be human.

But the boy had long since lost the luxury of caring about such things. The level and essence of his genes were climbing to an unprecedented level, and his activation level was increasing wildly at the same time. Almost the instant that the [Divine Kingdom] made contact with the body and began to contract inward, chaotic fragments of consciousness proliferated and were born.

Su Qing'an possesses a strong sense of self, a unique life form that is naturally endowed with the ability to eternally prove itself and preserve its personality until the end of time.

If he so chooses, he can naturally remain unaffected by the consciousness generated by his genes.

However, this premise was no longer valid from the very beginning when he stood here to carry out genetic modification.

In order to achieve a complete sublimation of meaning, in this process, the [thought] and the Soul State cannot appear in the world in an objective form.

Otherwise, this genetic modification will once again be dragged on for an indefinitely slow period before it can be successful.

Therefore, the only path that lies before us is to entangle ourselves with the pure self and the consciousness of genetic activation.

Su Qing'an is qualified to engage in a long-term struggle with the genetic will that strives to reach even greater heights.

Fu Hua, who could be forcibly entered into a war on a different level through Soul Link, was different; she didn't even have the ability to directly confront the essence of this genetic will.

The girl's consciousness was hazy, clearly only from the perspective of an observer, but the Meme- like, unreasonable filth seemed to reflect and interfere with the edge of her soul, dragging it into a slippery, dark swamp, gradually causing it to lose the desire to breathe.

It whispers softly in your ear and loudly instigates in your mind.

It seemed like gentle persuasion, but it was also harsh and piercing.

It was as if it possessed a definite physical form, interfering with her limbs in material form, controlling her actions against her will, or like an invisible and colorless consciousness, thus infiltrating her soul, twisting and kneading her emotions, forcibly immersing her in a strange piety and joy.

"It's time to go, Hua."

The boy's clear, cold voice was like a strong wind tearing through the clouds, creating gaps that allowed the warm sunlight to slowly fall.

The pitch-black vision and the synchronized memories peeled away like weathered sand.

The frantic murmurs were torn apart, revealing the true nature of the realm of the soul.

The girl's consciousness vaguely awoke, yet a distinct sense of confusion remained. Ignoring the endless expanse of Abyss Flower around her and the ancient, magnificent splendor of the hall, she looked towards the silent figure at the very top, following the direction of the voice, and whispered:

"I don't want to."

Su Qing'an sat upright in the center of the Soul Hall, beneath him a throne constructed of blood and bone.

The jet-black branches, like snakes, surged from the gaps in the stark white bones, slowly but firmly embedding themselves into the person's flesh and blood, gradually penetrating deeper, greedily and insatiably absorbing nutrients, joyfully sprouting and growing.

This is a manifestation of the entanglement between consciousness and soul, which are activated by genes.

The boy gazed at the empty scales beside him, where no more butterflies danced. His eyes were lowered, his dark pupils growing increasingly indistinct. Thick fog swirled around him, and colorful arcs of light flickered erratically.

It resembles a galaxy, or perhaps the entire universe.

This is why he was unwilling to look at Fu Hua. He had only glanced at her when she entered the Soul Hall, and her consciousness was almost dragged into an abyss from which she could never escape.

While the reason for this was that Udu-dust's connection with him was briefly severed, it was enough to show just how dangerous this place was.

If that Udu-dust were also here, sharing this extremely complex information and erosion with me, then in the end, the spirituality and consciousness that had been painstakingly born would probably be corrupted to the point of being no different from death.

I am currently like an ancient deity in an epic, whose gaze cannot be met directly; merely looking into their eyes risks my soul being condemned to eternal damnation.

Su Qing'an closed his eyes, dispelling the continuously expanding and frantically growing genetic consciousness, and softly replied:

Let's go.

"In a little while, I won't be able to protect you anymore."

The girl's expression was stunned, her lips moved as if she wanted to say something but hesitated. The man sat on the throne in the center of the empty hall, lonely and high above.

The different levels of the soul are particularly evident now that the other can no longer conceal them.

That slightly aloof, sacred, and solemn aura is the natural impression it gives to the outside world.

Beneath the so-called throne lay a mass of writhing blood and bone, the proliferating keratin and variegation confined beneath the man's feet by an inexplicable force field.

Su Qing'an lowered her eyes, her eyelashes pressed motionless against her eyelids, allowing herself to be slowly devoured by the demonic and eerie thing.

It's so empty and vast here. Apart from a patch of Abyss Flower that never fade, there's only a scale holding a few round beads. It's so desolate and cold.

The boy's eyes remained closed, and dark lines gradually spread and climbed across his face. A mere glance was enough to convey a chilling fear and a profound sense of emptiness.

Just as this person initially decided, he should never have stepped into this field in the first place.

This is a battle that no human being in the world can participate in.

Having embarked on this path with his Soul Lifeform as his foundation and reliance, he is already gambling with a different level of resources. Any resources and accumulation below this level are like a piece of waste paper, having no weight whatsoever.

Fu Hua was not unaware of this; her act of coming here was itself quite willful.

The girl wanted to respond with something more willful, but the restraint and composure she had developed as a warrior over the past two years had forcibly erased any naivety that came with her age.

She understood that even though her connection with Udu-dust was not broken at this moment, the power of consciousness could not protect her.

Forcing someone to stay is pointless except for distracting them.

At this moment, the entire Moth to Fire and even the upper echelons of humanity are probably aware of this earth-shattering genetic modification.

This in itself is already a major event that can affect the world.

Judging from the fragmented memories and images that were just synchronized, if the genetic modification completely fails, not to mention the specific fate of the subjects in this experiment, the subsequent consequences will be even more disastrous.

Even though she didn't understand it herself, Fu Hua could roughly grasp what the worst possible outcome would be.

That indescribable, gradually escalating to a bizarre level of genetic activation consciousness clearly aims to replace the boy's self at this stage.

If it succeeds, the resulting Honkai Beast will be the highest-level Honkai Beast in history. Coupled with the [Creation] and sublimation effects naturally embedded in Su Qing'an's soul, it's uncertain whether the Herrscher that follow will be even more terrifying than this crisis.

The underlying core of Prometheus's current instructions is now quite clear.

The Moth to Fire must constantly monitor Su Qing'an's mental state.

At the same time, they were also prepared to annihilate it in advance, depending on the situation.

The Honkai Energy Fission Bomb that Canghai City received demonstrates the official's extreme sensitivity to risk control and crisis awareness.

Even now, despite Su Qing'an's terrifying transformation, the authorities are still using various means to confirm his mental state, which is enough to show that under the pressure of the inevitable terrifying crisis, their decisions are becoming increasingly bold and risky.

Different times, different policies.

Different stages require different methods.

However, this still has its limits. Fu Hua can believe that Su Qing'an will eventually overcome the difficulties with her willpower, but she may not be able to believe that the authorities, who do not have clear means to confirm whether the other party retains their self-respect, will choose extreme measures.

So after calming down, the girl quickly sorted out her thoughts and clearly understood what was most important and what she could do.

She said:

"I need a signal or tool that allows me to accurately determine whether you still retain your sense of self after leaving this place."

The boy pursed his lips upon hearing this and said softly:

"Hua, pick a bunch of Abyss Flower."

"This is the sign and manifestation of the [creative] power choosing my soul as its vessel, and the essence of this power is a mysterious existence possessing spirituality and rules."

"It possesses an extremely keen insight into those who truly recognize its users."

"If my thoughts are corrupted and polluted, then this bouquet of Abyss Flower will be tainted."

"When it completely loses its whiteness, it signifies the end."

"And if my soul were to simply perish, it too would disintegrate into nothingness."

He paused, then continued:

"Regardless of the outcome."

"At that time, I will be nothing more than an empty shell to the outside world, no longer possessing the concept and definition of Su Qing'an."

"If that day ever comes..."

Su Qing'an smiled, his eyelashes trembling slightly, and his lips parted to utter words of farewell:

"Please send me to my funeral, Hua."

The words had barely left his mouth.

A bunch of Abyss Flower broke off naturally and drifted in the silent wind, brushing against the young woman's palm. Before she could even feel the coolness of the petals touching her skin, or have any time to react, she was already forced to leave this Soul Hall.

Turn out to be...

If Su Qing'an is willing, she doesn't even have the right to be willful.

She stared blankly at the arc of light cast into the hall, still holding the illusory Abyss Flower in her hands, seemingly not even real, and remained silent for a long time.

Sorrow and helplessness meet, loneliness and anger intertwine...

The complex emotions pent up in my chest are beyond description.

At this moment, the frozen Mind Lake is like a glacier gradually melting in July, turning into a clear river, suddenly rising and falling with waves.

Yet, for some reason, my mind gradually calmed down, and my emotions seemed to fade and freeze at the most peaceful and serene moment. The waves crashed like a silver bottle breaking, but the sound gradually softened.

The lake is disappearing.

The waves are receding.

Ultimately, the Mind Lake ceased to exist, and what remained was an invisible mist.

The vast emptiness, the vast emptiness.

This state of being, which was once sought but not obtained, and now achieved naturally, was something he understood after entering the depths of that person's soul.

The girl's expression was indifferent, her eyes lowered, showing neither sadness nor joy.

She suddenly curled her lips into a sarcastic smile that held an unspoken meaning.

So this is what the extreme realm is like.

I used to think that once I reached this level, I would have the qualifications and abilities to be on par with it.

But time flies, and reaching the Great Void in two years is perhaps considered very fast.

But...

She reached out her fingertips and gently knocked on the door, but the response was faint and barely perceptible.

--The right to push it away still doesn't exist.

Fu Hua had never understood so clearly the fact that the gap between herself and that person lay between two dimensions.

If that distance is one that most people cannot even approach in a lifetime, is it possible to find a way to close it over a hundred or even a thousand years?

If the Realm of Great Void is the ultimate goal of this method, then the visible path ahead must truly become impassable.

Is it possible for her to forge a completely different path on her own?

With this... a lifespan that's almost cursed and endless.

But before that,

The girl clutched the embers of the fire, which had not yet warmed up, and whispered:

"Su Qing'an, you are not allowed to die."

She was like a tender child, pursing her lips, holding the ethereal and light Abyss Flower in her hands, and softly murmuring:

"You're not allowed to lose to that kind of thing."

The Soul Hall, upon the throne.

The boy ignored the thorns and vines that pierced his limbs, his eyes fixed on the winding stream of bright red blood flowing at his feet, speechless.

The throne has an intricate structure and a cold, aloof appearance.

The white bones were piled up like a castle, and the layers of flesh and blood were like interlocking locks.

The anomalies and matter within are the crystallization of the soul and the activated consciousness of genes, which is why they can ignore the rules of space and physics and exhibit such a bizarre appearance.

Simply put, it is both the arena for this tug-of-war and the medium that serves as a buffer.

At the beginning, Su Qing'an believed that this experiment might not be able to reach the threshold of the Planetary-class.

But when faced with the reality, his thoughts quickly changed.

At this moment, the external sublimation stage is still in its early stages, but the activation level of genes has already exceeded the limits of previous records and reached a level of complexity never before witnessed.

This is less a distinct self-awareness and more a vast and indescribable flow of information.

The levels above the End-of-Law class gene seem to be like the things behind that door deep within one's soul.

The difference lies in the fact that these two are roughly at the same level, but they are not on the same path.

The current gene activation demonstrates the success of the experiment by showcasing its own dangerous levels.

From this perspective, no matter how dire one's circumstances, this can be considered a fortunate thing.

In fact, Su Qing'an thought the same way.

This was only the initial stage, yet [Nian] already experienced genuine sensory fatigue, which is enough to show that the other life essence endowed by the final genetic modification will temporarily supersede the special nature of the Soul Lifeform, allowing the material body of the self to be preserved even in the sublimation of the Ascended State.

The boy's pupils were deep and colorful, with a hazy mist rolling like clouds and dragons.

After a long silence, it seemed that he was still immersed in the massive flow of information and unable to extricate himself.

After a while.

He murmured softly, as if in response:

"Then we won't lose."

Outside world.

The massive corpses of Honkai Beast piled up like mountains, and under the absorption of [Divine Kingdom], they scattered across the sky. In an instant, the already enormous individual corpses, combined with their sheer number, blotted out the sun and dimmed the light.

Kevin gazed at the strange [Divine Kingdom] that stood apart from the rest of the world. The view from within was still visible to the outside world. He was gradually losing the ability to describe just how bizarre and absurd the scene before him truly was.

It's hard to call that the birth history of a species. Even comparing it to the ecology and appearance of the Honkai Beast, it's difficult to convince people that the existence located in the center of the [Divine Kingdom] can be called a living being.

At the very beginning, during the process of the boy's body being reconstituted, it still vaguely retained the outline of a human.

However, it quickly degenerated into a form similar to the giant dragon-like Honkai Beast like Benares and Chiyou. Its size and lines were too huge and bloated. The gradually deformed body began to spread to the head with many tentacles. The hard scales slowly turned into a gelatinous substance, and the Dragon Wings that swept across the sky like blades slowly withered, like withered plants.

This bizarre monster's flesh and blood are spread throughout the [Divine Kingdom], as if they were intimately intertwined with it.

This did not surprise onlookers.

The very phenomenon of the [Divine Kingdom] shrinking represents this possibility.

That is, to make it part of the boy's body.

But this was only the initial stage, as the corpses of Honkai Beast, whose total size was several times larger than theirs, were completely devoured.

This being, which could still be called a monster, no longer has distinct limbs. It has lost its seemingly sharp claws and mouthparts, and stripped away all the scales and composite silken structures that could serve as defense, characteristic of Chi You's creatures.

It still maintains the characteristic of connecting heaven and earth with flesh and limbs, as established with the [Divine Kingdom].

However, its true nature is no longer clearly visible to the outside world.

"Su Qing'an" is undoubtedly still undergoing sublimation and transformation, but the conceptual level of this [transformation] is so profound that outsiders cannot see the truth within it.

This signifies that its life level has reached a stage where it is on par with the Soul Lifeform.

Unless deliberately revealed to the world, it exists in a different dimension from other living beings and cannot be observed.

And in this indescribable, unobservable sublimation.

It's still going on.