However, it had to be said—it was a great opportunity to draw aggro.
A grand rebellion was quietly brewing, but no one knew that behind this future carnival lay nothing more than a grand funeral.
And a vicious scam.
Chlorine Sodium had suddenly started looking forward to this mission····
P.S. Staying up late to write is so exhausting. As expected, after going home, my sleep schedule is still the same as before. Whimper whimper, collapses.
Section 16: Different Masters, Same Tablet
Several days later.
"What are your Originium Arts, Big Sis?"
"Nothing much. I can merely distort the emotions of the living things around me to a certain extent."
"That sounds amazing."
"Actually, it's nothing special. At most, I can affect people's emotions. Of course, nonhumans are fine too, though the effect isn't very good."
····· this was what Big Sis meant by "the effect isn't very good"????
The howl of something tearing through the air dragged Yelena back from her brief memories.
White claws swept past her side. Yelena dodged, twisted her body, and the biting cold instantly froze the attacker that had pounced at her into a block of ice.
It was a snow wolf—or, more precisely, she was currently facing a whole pack of them.
"Ah, another free kill."
On a treetop at the other end of the forest, Chlorine Sodium sat and watched everything happening below.
"The advantage is ours. All together now."
That was right. The pack was now under Chlorine Sodium's control. With a slight wave of her finger, the wolves, which had originally been scattered, quickly regrouped and charged at Yelena.
Under Chlorine Sodium's influence, the creatures' natural instinct to seek benefit and avoid harm had become unbearably restless. They no longer avoided danger at all, instead biting at any other species they saw, just like zombies.
Even the animals' physical abilities had mutated. A faint purple light glimmered in all the wolves' eyes, making them extremely eerie.
Although Yelena possessed powerful Originium Arts, under the enemy's fearless assault, one or two snow wolves still broke through the Death Zone created by the extreme cold and nearly left several claw marks on the girl.
However, this Death Zone forged from the frigid air was indeed incredibly powerful. At least, none of those that entered it came back out alive. The pack grew smaller and smaller as the battle continued, but Yelena's weakness was time.
The consumption of powerful Originium Arts was terrifying as well. If she did not burn through her life force and relied solely on her stamina, Yelena would quickly run out of strength if she tried to hold out alone until reaching the Death Wall.
Yelena could not afford to drag things out, but the reality was that her opponent loved stalling. After all, it was a tactic too.
Who cared about martial honor?
Seeing the pack charge again in a tightly packed formation, Yelena hurriedly thickened the Death Zone before her to stop them from approaching.
The crowded assault became fragile and powerless within the zone colder than winter itself. If things continued like this, it seemed the wolves' offensive would completely collapse.
It was working.
Yelena focused as much of her attention as possible on the scene before her, paying even closer attention to the distribution of her stamina.
However, as the saying went, acting decisively meant giving yourself away, while hesitating meant defeat. The key to victory was···
----to deceive! Go, ambush them!
In a corner unseen by anyone, a lone snow wolf leaped out of the woods and appeared behind Yelena!
The packed assault looked like a suicidal attack, but in reality, it was merely using these cost-free cannon fodder to draw Yelena's attention, forcing her to concentrate all her attention and strength in front of her. The vacuum behind her had become a fatal weakness.
This was the common flaw of mages: poor close-quarters combat ability!
"Go for it, Yelena! Miaoulaye, Ba Yabulaire!!"
A roar came from behind. The snow wolf suddenly leaped up. Yelena only realized the danger behind her at that moment, but she no longer had time to reconstruct her Originium Arts. In an instant, the Death Zone created by her Originium Arts before her collapsed as well.
--
--
"So, are we eating wolf meat tonight?"
"Most of them are frozen solid, and there's no way to thaw them, so we can only eat this."
At night, dots of surviving light flickered across the desolate snowy plain.
Ursus really did seem to have a vast land and sparse population. There were traces of human activity here, such as abandoned villages.
They were run-down and dilapidated. The roofs of many houses had even collapsed under the weight of the snow and wind. The people had long since moved away, leaving behind this ruined village isolated by the blizzard.
That was convenient for Yelena. After all, there were only Yelena and Chlorine Sodium here, so finding a house that was still livable was not difficult.
"It's so hard····"
After chewing for ages without being able to bite through the meat in her mouth, Yelena looked at the roasted wolf meat in her hand with disdain. Yet she could not bear to throw it away, so she could only continue gnawing at it.
"Eat as much as you can. After all, you wiped out the entire pack."
Chlorine Sodium had a good appetite today. Of course, that was mainly because she had consumed some Honkai Energy. The wolves had not actually been controlled by any kind of Originium Arts—what a joke, she did not know any Originium Arts. She had merely spread Honkai Energy around to influence the pack. Everything had only been for training Yelena in a safe environment.
"What do you think of the results of today's training?"
The silver-haired girl asked.
"Think?"
Yelena had never attended school and did not quite understand this kind of word Big Sis used.
"Um···· For example, your shortcomings. Where do you think you were lacking in battle?"
"For example·· being able to see behind me?"
The girl's disdainful gaze shifted from the wolf meat to the other girl.
"Don't call me despicable. This is called tactics. As the saying goes, 'My heart and actions are clear as a mirror; everything I do is for gaining points.' As long as it's for victory, nothing is strange. Besides, don't answer a question with another question."
Chlorine Sodium reminded her coldly.
"And haven't you felt the limits of a mage?"
"···· think I have."
"Then that's it."
"Yes. Through these days of training, I've understood one principle: the more you want to achieve victory, the more you realize your own shortcomings····"
Oh, come on. Wait, this wasn't how it was supposed to go! Wasn't I supposed to say that line?!!!
"Are you planning to stop being human, Yelena?!"
Chlorine Sodium hurriedly stole the famous line her opponent might say next. She had a feeling that if she followed up by asking, "What are you trying to say?" the other girl would turn into a Dio-like character, let out an incomprehensible "Wryyyyyyy," and start expanding her own delusions. That would be so beautiful it would be impossible to look at.
As long as I steal your lines, you can't go off-script and stop being human!
"????????"
However, all this earned her was a puzzled look from Yelena. Big Sis would always occasionally do things she could not understand.
"Ahem. What I mean is that mages ultimately have their limits. Only by ceasing to be a mage can you possibly surpass those limits."
"So?"
"So···"
The girl slowly extended her right hand, clenched into a fist.
"Use inch force against your enemies."
"Huh?"
"I mean, I'll teach you a new technique····"
----a technique called Heaven Splitter.
P.S. I went to scan a contract, but I got back late! I posted late too. Luckily, I hurried back. If I hadn't made it in time, I'm afraid I would have lost my recommendation. Whimper whimper.
Look how considerate I'm being. How about giving me a few votes? Heart heart.
Section 17: The Prologue, About to Begin
Do you remember? It was one morning.
A taciturn Valkyrie from Schicksal's European Branch always appeared there, and a white-haired girl was always by her side.
The Valkyrie belonging to the Great Pontiff of Schicksal's headquarters, Fu Hua, and her student.
Kiana Kaslana.
Of course, to be precise, she was the one who had replaced the original soul.
From that moment onward, after gaining Fu Hua's trust, Chlorine Sodium had already begun learning fist techniques from her.
"Every master of a school has their own areas of expertise. No one is omnipotent, and that's perfectly normal."
Fu Hua said this.
"What about you, Teacher?"
"Me?"
Fu Hua adjusted her glasses with one finger.
"I'm invincible."
············
"This inch force is an ancient close-range striking technique from the East. It emphasizes the explosive release of power over a short period."
The memories were already distant, but imitating it a little was still no problem. After all, Chlorine Sodium could be considered to have half a foot inside the sect, even if she had ultimately never had the time to undergo Fu Hua's final examination.
"Although you need to learn etiquette before learning to fight, I temporarily can't teach you that part for certain reasons. But it's all right."
The girl placed her joined fingertips against a freshly erected wooden post.
"I'm a practical fighter, so dealing with the urgent problem comes first."
Yelena imitated her and placed her fingertips against another wooden post.
"Don't rush. There are no shortcuts with this, and you also need to use it flexibly. After all, I'm not teaching you a single school. Inch force is a modern, improved product that combines the strengths of a hundred schools with technology. It no longer has much to do with ancient martial arts."
As she spoke, the girl merely adjusted the angle of her palm slightly before suddenly clenching her fist. It appeared to be pressed tightly against the wooden post, with no room whatsoever to generate force.
However, the next moment, after a sound of concentrated breath, it was as though thunder had erupted from flat ground. Within that tiny span of space, an incomparable force was unleashed!
A layer of air blasted outward, blowing away the snow packed around the wooden post.
The seemingly sturdy wooden post only developed fine cracks on the surface, but the tearing sound from within showed that the wood had already split apart completely from the inside.
"The meaning of inch force lies in its practicality in actual combat. No matter when or where, no matter the distance, it can unleash power in a short time and strike the opponent."
Plain and unadorned, without any pretension, yet ferocious and filled with hidden killing intent.
Recalling the words of her first true mentor, Chlorine Sodium slowly continued.
"'Inch force, inch control; strike hard, break through hard.' Of course, ancient martial arts were meant to be used with weapons. For example, modern inch punches are meant to be paired with spears, swords, or sabers. But it wouldn't be practical for you to get those things right now, so learn the basics first. We'll talk about the deeper aspects when you get the chance later."
The more Chlorine Sodium spoke, the more excited she became. She almost wished she could bring out her true body right now, find a bear, and beat it to death to demonstrate.
There was nothing she could do about it. She genuinely liked close-range striking techniques.
Or rather, she still loved that time in the past.
Even though that time had been beautiful, it had also been brief.
After all, what was false would always be false.
"So·· you remember it?"
After finishing, the girl looked at Yelena again. At that moment, Yelena's mouth was open wide enough to fit an orange inside.
Before you continue