A blade was taken out of nowhere by Morr and placed flat on the table, waiting for Gu Yan to accept it.
It was an exquisite Tang-style horizontal saber. Its proportions and appearance were both flawless. The dark silver scabbard concealed the blade within, yet even so, one could still sense its sharpness. Simply sitting there, it radiated a fierce edge.
Set into the end of the hilt was a colorless gemstone—it was actually a Quasi-Herrscher Core.
"This was made by the master. The material is Mutated Soul Steel."
Gu Yan was startled.
Soul Steel could block Honkai Energy, while Mutated Soul Steel did precisely the opposite, serving as a "key." The two had no other connection.
In the hands of a Herrscher, Mutated Soul Steel was a true divine weapon. Only the Herrscher of Reason possessed the conditions needed to create it.
"Mutated Soul Steel can carry Honkai Energy perfectly. It's the weapon best suited to you." Morr's tone held no goodwill.
So she noticed how helpless I was back then? Gu Yan gave a bitter smile.
"She still..." He fought down the ache in his heart and stammered, "Is she alive?"
At that moment, he did not even know what answer he was hoping for. Alive? Then would she continue opposing humanity?
Dead? He truly did not want that to be the outcome either.
Come to think of it, no one had ever given Gu Ji a chance. Everyone had simply assumed that she deserved to die.
Morr did not respond. She only stared into Gu Yan's eyes, as if she wanted nothing more than to tear him apart and devour him alive.
Her silence and her gaze explained everything.
"Live well." Morr's voice carried killing intent, but she did not act. Instead, she gritted her teeth and said it.
Gu Yan fell silent, put away the blade, and turned to leave.
I will. I'll live well.
"Excuse me, thank you."
Morr spoke softly to the person in front of her, with such politeness that it was hard to believe.
"Who the hell... Uh, sorry, sorry. Go ahead!" The man was just about to lose his temper, but the moment he turned around and saw Morr's face, his tone changed instantly. A flash of amazement passed through his eyes.
Although the man had been extremely rude, Morr was not angry in the slightest. She merely walked past him. She was inside the passenger cabin of an airliner, apparently looking for her seat.
When her gaze swept over a certain spot, the corners of her mouth lifted slightly, and she walked straight over.
"You're late. If you'd taken any longer, I would've left on my own." Ji took off her sunglasses, revealing her pale blue eyes. She glanced at Morr, then continued looking at the scenery.
"Mas... Sister, I'm sorry. I... I was wrong." Morr lowered her head and crossed her hands in front of her like a child who had been scolded.
"Did you give him the blade?" Ji chuckled softly and gestured for Morr to sit down.
"Mm!"
"Then that's fine. I'm going to sleep for a while. Wake me when we arrive." She opened her hand, and earplugs and a pillow appeared in it.
"Huh?" The master chose the window seat. Wasn't that so she could look at the scenery?
As if she knew what Morr was wondering, Ji glanced at her like she was an idiot. "What's so interesting about this? I've even been outside the atmosphere. Do you think I'd still care about this?"
As she spoke, she lowered her voice, afraid that someone else might hear. "Human transportation is so lame. I'd rather sleep!"
"..." Morr did not dare make a sound. She merely lent Ji her shoulder in silence.
"If you want to ask something, ask."
"Didn't you say... you wanted to experience human life?"
"Idiot. I just wanted to see what that stupid little brother planned to use to protect these ants."
The implication was clear: He wants to protect humanity, doesn't he? I'm human too, so come protect me.
Morr blinked. As a "child" whose consciousness had existed for less than a month, she obviously did not understand any of that.
But whatever the master said was right.
Ji said no more and closed her eyes to rest.
She had said it before: humans could not kill her. As long as her consciousness was not erased, then as the Herrscher of Reason, she naturally possessed the ability to construct anything—including her own body.
The Second Herrscher would take up her baton, and Ji would be able to retire after completing her mission.
That was the mercy of a god.
The cabin was extremely quiet. Morr actually fell asleep first, still clinging tightly to Ji's left arm.
"Wow! Snow, snow!"
On the Siberian ice fields, Morr shouted excitedly like a child.
"Tsk. How embarrassing." Although she was not afraid of the cold, Ji still wore a black sweater. Watching Morr roll around in the snow, she felt like pretending she did not know her.
Fortunately, there was no one nearby.
"Master, snow!" Morr pointed at the ground as if she were sharing some precious treasure.
"I know." Although Ji had never truly seen snow before, it did not move her in the slightest. Her expression remained as indifferent as ever.
"Snow!"
"I know."
"Snow!"
"If your brain is broken, I'll replace it for you."
Morr drooped and buried her head directly in the snow.
This idiot...
Ji felt as though she were taking care of a child, and the indifference on her face almost cracked.
She scooped up a handful of snow with both hands, kneaded it into a ball, and threw it at Morr. With her accuracy, there was no chance of missing.
Thump!
"Waaah! T﹏T"
The snowball struck Morr squarely in the back of the head. She sprang up, and snow slipped through her collar and into her clothes, icy cold.
Seeing that there was no one around except the master, she realized who had ambushed her.
"I get it! The master wants to have a snowball fight!" Morr's eyes lit up. She crouched down, formed a snowball, and threw it at Ji—
Thump!
Just as the snowball neared Ji, she smacked it apart with one palm. Morr's attack had been blocked!
"Hehe, as expected of the master. Watch me make an even bigger one!" It was obvious that Morr was a reckless fool.
Ji stood where she was with a half-smile, watching as Morr piled snow together and compressed it into a ball.
Soon, Morr's masterpiece was complete: an enormous snowball four meters in diameter!
"I'm going to attack, Mas—" Morr excitedly lifted the giant snowball, then looked toward Ji and froze in place.
Ji was standing behind a cannon with a 155-millimeter caliber... No, a snow cannon, pouring an entire barrel of snow into it.
"Morr, what were you saying?"
"..."
Spare me, master!
Winter in Siberia was bitterly cold at night.
Amid the howling wind, the lights of a small inn radiated warmth, drawing lost travelers in to enjoy a cozy winter night.
The young man at the front desk cradled a cup of coffee. He needed to work through the night, receiving guests and preparing hot food for them. This was not merely business; sometimes, it was also a matter of saving lives.
Bang!
The door was opened by someone arriving, but the cold wind was not nearly so gentle. It barged inside, and the young man at the front desk could not help shivering.
"Welco—"
Although he had seen his share of things, the front-desk clerk still froze when he saw the guests.
The guests were two breathtakingly beautiful women. Their beauty was astonishing, but that was not the important part. The important part was that one of them was wearing only a thin sweater. Just looking at her made him feel the cold biting into his bones. The other was even more outrageous: her entire body was covered in ice and snow.
It was not the kind of snow one picked up on a snowy day. It was more as though she were wearing a layer of ice. Even the sound of cracking could be heard as she walked.
Had this person grown out of the snow?
The two of them must have nearly frozen to death!
"Please, come in!"
But they did not seem particularly cold. Instead, they looked around the place.
"One double room."
The woman in the black sweater handed her passport to the young man at the front desk.
"Would you two like some hot water?" the clerk asked tentatively. Since the guests seemed fine, he finally relaxed.
"Mm."
He made a note of it and opened the identification document—
Name: Gu Ji.
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