Su Qing'an, How Many Times Have You Reincarnated?

Su Qing'an stared at the person before her, sensing the strange emotions spreading through her chest, and remained silent.

It was as if the scorching sun released scattered light and heat inside the glass bottle, yet it was unable to vaporize or melt through the fragile outer shell. Only the extremely terrifying heat drew the temperature from the outside in from within the shell, scorching out an irresistible desire.

For him as a whole person, the pain and sorrow that gnawed at his bones, meridians, and blood was still bearable.

However, if it is merely an empty shell that has barely restored some of the emotional mechanisms and frameworks, then there is absolutely no patience for it.

He lowered his eyes blankly, gazing at the strings of the zither, his fingertips hidden in his sleeve trembling slowly, as if he couldn't understand his current predicament.

A gentle nature and lingering common sense prevented this feeling from spreading.

Then.

The boy's dark eyes were lifeless as he stated in a light tone:

Please leave.

[Never.]

As the immortal pondered the words, feeling the relief and sorrow they brought, he suddenly understood the person's feelings: the chilling sense of being forgotten by a loved one, as if buried under heavy snow, unable to escape no matter how many magical powers one possesses, only able to sink into the soft and lonely snow, experiencing a mixture of emotions.

Hearing the man's reply, the girl seemed to awaken completely from that inexplicable dream. She paused for a moment, her fingertips, which had been caressing the red string, quietly slipped away, and her lips moved as she answered:

"That's fine then."

Those are real memories, real emotions, and real past experiences.

This is an answer given from the depths of the soul and instinct, an indelible mark that even Udu-dust could not peel away.

The world is full of wonders.

Fu Hua can define it as an accident and coincidence evolved by the interweaving of time and quantum entanglement, or she can define it as destiny, to explain the memories and emotions that seem as if the world line has been reversed and restarted.

But this happened too fast, and too abruptly.

Even without thinking about why the other person actually appeared before her, she still had to give herself some time to process the enormous amount of information and the extremely complex and pent-up emotions filling her chest.

On the other hand, the fact that he would remove Udu-dust's cognitive interference and directly talk to him on the spot was already an action taken on a whim.

After calming down a bit, this action will not be repeated a second time.

At the same time, if the other party truly intends to forget about you, staying here would be an inappropriate act.

At least... in similar circumstances, Su Qing'an never put himself in a difficult position.

The immortal looked back at the crowd who had already broken free from the zither's influence and the ability to think. Her eyes lowered, and her crimson feathers fell like rain, erasing all memories of this moment and extending the memory of the zither for a few seconds, leaving no flaws.

In the past, I would have simply left without interfering further.

However, Fu Hua was in a state of turmoil, and she found it difficult to completely distance herself from the boy with whom she had developed an ambiguous relationship in her memories. Therefore, she could only erase the memories of the guests present so that the Martial Arts Gathering continue.

In that case, it's best to keep an eye on him for now.

Xiao Xuan looked at her slightly reddened eyes, feeling confused.

But she only floated obediently beside him for a moment before she couldn't help but blink her big eyes and start muttering to herself:

"She played the piano so beautifully! In those few minutes, I felt like I had toured the entire Capital City and tasted all the delicious food here."

"Then, when I came to my senses, I saw you talking to her."

"What did the immortal and that Master Su talk about? Did he think she was very talented and wanted to take her as a disciple?"

Fu Hua asked softly:

"Does Xiao Xuan want me to take him as my apprentice?"

Xiao Xuan said carefree:

"Of course, that would make it even more lively."

"And with her around, just playing the piano feels like eating lots of delicious food, isn't that wonderful?"

The Armed Puppet circled the girl a few times before noticing her hair, which was almost touching the ground. She tilted her head, stared intently at the girl's face, and asked:

"Hey, your hair is down, where's your hairpin?"

The immortal did not reply. She glanced at the red rope on her fair wrist and the dangling key, but ultimately did not change the new form that Udu-dust had shaped himself. Instead, she used a piece of pale blue silk that slid out from her sleeve to tie her long hair back into its original shape.

The Tome of Cangxuan did not pay attention to the other party's silence.

Rather, this is Fu Hua's most common way of communicating with herself.

She continued to participate enthusiastically in the ongoing Martial Arts Gathering, remaining as energetic as ever.

Clearly, the distortion and rendering of the world line, combined with the objective fact that it has a full charge, makes this little guy even more lively than during the Tang Dynasty.

The guests were forced to take the legendary Master Su a famous Chinese scholar) seriously.

Initially, most people regarded this person as a dispensable lucky draw or gimmick, believing that the claim of Legend of the Immortal was nothing but false rumor.

After all, there are too many conflicting and unsettling rumors circulating in the martial arts world. Not to mention that there are often busybodies who like to spread nonsense and fabricate stories, there are quite a few cases where some short-sighted people mistake them for truth.

Furthermore, rumors can spread like wildfire, and cases of using others to commit murder are countless.

The news that truly attracts the attention of renowned figures in the martial arts world or even those with some knowledge is either something they have personally witnessed, something that has been vouched for by a reliable and prestigious person, or something that they have judged and found to be plausible.

The story that "[Master Su possesses the Legend of the Immortal and needs to find someone to help her cultivate her mind in order to enter the path]" was originally fabricated by Li Shishi, so its credibility is questionable.

Even if the Courtesan herself initially intended to use Master Su's appearance as bait, it was nothing more than that of a mysterious Qi technique. Since even the instigator believed this, naturally no one with any insight would deliberately think it was true.

Initially, those who came were drawn by the imperial edict, but later it became a herd mentality where a group of people followed suit.

Li Shishi guessed that among the famous figures in the martial arts world who initially announced their participation in the Martial Arts Gathering, there must have been shills hired by powerful figures, which truly opened up the opportunity.

Therefore, even Yue Maiden Sword Jiang Rongyue, who came here specifically for the Qi Technique, was only here to try her luck and join in the fun.

It's impossible to have high expectations for this Master Su.

What reclusive sect disciple wouldn't know to play the zither in a brothel?

The mere fact that she is a courtesan makes people unconsciously look down on her, and thus less likely to believe in the claim of Legend of the Immortal.

After all, the long history of the Immortal Chi Yuan, the numerous contributions he made to the Shenzhou, his importance, and his all-powerful abilities all destined him to a sacred and lofty status.

People who have inherited the skills from their ancestors, even if they don't master the techniques they've been taught, will still be proud of it and would never come to brothels to play music and make a living.

The portrayal of the Manas consciousness is simply illogical.

Even though the boy didn't intentionally use it to oppress, apart from a few pioneers, even mindless Honkai Beast in this world would be forced to undergo forced indoctrination and emptiness due to the difference in their status, thus achieving an effect similar to being immobilized.

For the few martial arts practitioners present who could rival Emperor-class opponent, this could only be described as a dimensional reduction attack.

The warriors present, having undergone the initial screening, were now mostly composed of weaklings. Each of them had fought to the death against enemies or demons, and thus understood just how terrifying the effect of this music truly was.

For half a minute after the music stopped, the entire hall was almost completely silent, just as before.

Finally, someone spoke up, breaking the silence.

She was a young girl with an ancient sword at her waist.

Jiang Rongyue's skin was fair, her lips were rosy, and her brows carried an air of chilling coldness, yet this aura of distance was softened by her peach-blossom eyes. She gave a respectful bow to the silent "girl" who had her fingers hidden in her sleeves, and asked politely and earnestly:

"Could you please play it again, Master Su?"

Su Qing'an endured the burning heat slowly rising from every corner of her chest and body, driven by a strange intuition that craved her to engage in other activities to distract herself and dispel the craving that clung to her like a bone-deep sore.

For this reason, the boy did not look at the source of the sound, but simply nodded in agreement. His fingertips emerged from his sleeve and landed on the strings, once again producing clear and melodious music.

The members of the Martial Arts Gathering calmed their minds beforehand, wanting to see if they could ignore the music, guard their concentration, and not be swayed by it.

But this was clearly futile. Under the influence of All living beings Manas consciousness, both the Stigmata Ones and ordinary warriors were too equal to all beings, and they all entered a dream that would only shatter when the music stopped.

Fu Hua was prepared this time. Crimson light slowly spread from the bottom of her pupils. Her powers autonomously locked her consciousness, and the Honkai Energy shield unfolded to physically separate the music from her, thus exempting her from the passive influence of the Manas consciousness.

She did not look at Su Qing'an on the stage again, but instead sorted through her complicated memories and emotions, considering what attitude and specific actions she should take towards him.

As Xiao Xuan said, it might be a natural way to bring the two closer by taking him as a disciple, a method similar to what he remembered.

From this perspective, it is necessary to incorporate the other party's current situation into the framework of thinking.

First, considering that his gender was concealed and he became a courtesan in Zhen'an Ward, Su Qing'an currently has no real relatives, no memories of the past, and is likely not skilled in martial arts.

Considering that the other person's original personality makes it difficult for them to accept the current situation of being a male prostitute, it is best to take into account the possibility that their values and perceptions are different from before.

From this perspective, Su Qing'an not only forgot her, but also forgot himself.

But this is a very strange thing.

Fu Hua initially synthesized and extracted information from those memories, and came to her own conclusions.

According to this logic, this phenomenon should not occur.

First, she divided the timeline of the two memories into two, one and two, in terms of sequence.

When he first met Su Qing'an, he was undoubtedly just an ordinary person who would turn to [Ashes] under the Honkai.

So the ending was just as he had imagined. Knowing his own fate beforehand, he chose to leave the shelter alone to avoid harming her.

The result was predictable.

Connecting this with Su Qing'an's candid confessions to him that day, one can discover information related to the [reboot phenomenon].

In other words, the boy's original world did not Honkai.

This suggests that Su Qing'an may have originated from another Leaf World, but for some unknown reason, she came to Canghai City shortly after the Third Honkai Outbreak and ultimately met her demise.

But he still survived and retained his full cognition and memory.

Herein lies another point that contradicts the initial assessment.

That is, Su Qing'an did indeed have a legitimate identity and all her past experiences during that era, and she even had parents and corresponding relatives.

Therefore, two possibilities can be derived.

First, Su Qing'an, whom he initially met, lied.

Second, for reasons unknown, the boy who was resurrected merged with or replaced his counterpart in a parallel world from that era.

The immortal chose to believe the second possibility.

That person wouldn't lie about something like that.

Following this line of reasoning, we can discover a problem as we begin to explore the issue.

Suppose that Su Qing'an is resurrected in some mysterious way every time she dies, and that this resurrection even ignores the timeline and jumps through time.

Could this answer the question of how someone who died in the Nine Nether could reappear in the present, which is theoretically the "past"?

According to this conclusion, Su Qing'an should not have regressed in age, nor should she have lost her memories or some abilities related to herself.

But Fu Hua soon noticed a problem.

So what makes her think that this kind of "resurrection" comes without a price? The similarities between the two cases are completely unsupported by any theoretical or rule-based basis.

Just because there was no price to pay in the past doesn't mean there won't be one in the future.

At the same time, there is another problem that the girl doesn't want to think about but has to think about.

Su Qing'an...

How many times has it been reincarnated?

How many times has it been forgotten?

In what ways and how many times have we been killed by this cruel world?

She certainly had no basis to conclude that the memories she received were all about that person.

Based on the limited experience we have had, it wouldn't be surprising if another wave of memories suddenly appeared.

In this situation, even without these internal factors, let alone the fact that Fu Hua has been clearly interfered with and affected by this strange emotion, she would still be unable to ignore the existence of this person for this reason.

The Immortal Chi Yuan is currently in a state of extreme anxiety.

In order to understand Su Qing'an as well as possible, she even used Udu-dust to modify the memories of these people, and took the opportunity to extract all the relevant information using "[Master Su]" as a keyword, thus obtaining a key piece of information.

Su Qing'an only rose to fame about twenty days ago. Before that, her only known experience was that she was dug out of the snow at the entrance of Grand Temple of Merit by a Courtesan named Li Shishi, and there was no trace of her after that.

The timing of this event is quite subtle, corresponding to the time when I first regained my memories and the day the Tome of Cangxuan suddenly became fully charged.

With her highly efficient use of the Key of Consciousness, Fu Hua had gained an incredibly deep understanding of the memories from both timelines, and within just a few minutes, she accurately grasped the other party's true state.

That is to say, Su Qing'an lost a large part of his memory for unknown reasons, and he had only recently been [resurrected], arriving in this era just twenty days ago.

Fu Hua has begun to realize that the anomalies surrounding herself and the Tome of Cangxuan are all due to the arrival of the other party.

Her own emotions seemed to precede her understanding; during the previous process of slaying demons and monsters, she had already developed anxiety, displeasure, and even a strong desire to rush to the Capital City.

This immortal, who has fought against the Honkai for thousands of years, should have been reflecting deeply on his future and the future presented in his memories.

But now Fu Hua could only focus her attention on the boy she had never met in theory, and she couldn't help but feel her heart wavering at the potential possibilities hidden within him.

If her emotions hadn't become numb over thousands of years, she might not have been able to view this matter with such a rational attitude and mindset, much less have she been able to so easily walk away.

Regardless of one's personality, under intense stimulation and emotional influence, any impulsive behavior is possible.

In a sense, it's just like the subtle change that occurred when Fu Hua met Su Qing'an.

After meeting Fu Hua, the boy also developed an irrepressible desire for her.

The difference lies in the fact that the reasons for the changes are fundamentally different.

Su Qing'an's fingertips trembled slightly as she stroked the zither, and a dangerous glint seemed to flicker in her dark pupils. With the aid of the State of Still Water, all the organs and muscles in her body were forcibly brought back to a seemingly calm state.

He silently sensed the uncontrollable thirst and hunger originating from the depths of his soul and even his body, as if a great fire was burning and flickering within him, slowly causing his already dwindling rationality to break down.

This body, which is only thirteen years old, is essentially a product of the fusion of Planetary-class embryo and its own physical body.

In other words, he can now be described as a cub of Planet-class Honkai Beast, in a primitive stage where he desperately needs to accumulate nutrients.

Every time Little Feather wakes up, she insists that it go out and devour Honkai Beast, and that's the reason behind it.

Only by accumulating sufficient nutrients can one truly awaken and acquire the abilities and essence relevant to the Planetary-class.

Otherwise, at this moment he would just be an extremely weak human cub, unable to show any extraordinary abilities.

This makes the current situation quite clear.

As Fusion Warrior left over from Previous Civilization, Fu Hua possesses an immeasurable amount of nutrition provided by the Honkai Beast genes within her.

In his shattered, empty shell state, he simply couldn't resist the deep-seated craving for sublimation and... the purest form of appetite.

Eat her.

Eat her.

Eat her.

The vibrant colors in the boy's eyes finally transformed into a sea of stars, the strings he had brushed with his fingertips snapped, and he stretched out his palm to the Immortal Chi Yuan far below the pavilion.

Here.

The [Stigmata] revived, drawing upon the Heaven and Earth Qi to create a blade of frost, unleashing a strike as powerful as a river surging backward, marking the prelude to the war.