Carrying Hope and Dreams

In other words, Kiana had intercepted him in advance. Otherwise, who knew where he might have been making off with stuff for free.

Before long, outside Chiyu Academy in Chang Kong City, on Breakfast Street.

Kiana wanted to speak, then stopped; stopped, then wanted to speak. She looked at her deflated wallet with a hint of despair, tears seemingly about to fall.

My scholarship... the scholarship I scrounged from enrolling at Chiyu Academy!

How could one person eat so much?

Was this young lady going to have to take a job and save up living expenses again?

"Ah, I'm full, I'm full. Thank you, thank you!"

Fang Jie pressed his hands together and thanked her sincerely, from the bottom of his heart. It was not that he could not afford grass or trees; ordinary human food was simply more cost-effective, especially meat. After humans had evolved for so long, was that not reflected in the food chain?

"As long as you're full, then I... I..."

Kiana could not smile. She sighed and did not ask what this refugee gentleman had gone through. In any case, she could imagine it. Hilarious—like she had not gotten by the same way herself. When she had been wandering around, she had even needed to cook for herself.

"Then goodbye. I still need to go to school. If you hear anything about my stinky old dad in the future, please tell me. Here's my contact information."

Fang Jie's table manners dispelled some of Kiana's thoughts. She handed over a slip of paper. Seeing that, as expected, Fang Jie had no contact information to give her and still wore such a self-righteous expression, she could not help thinking—this guy seemed even worse off than she was.

Then he was probably a good person. Not because seeing you so miserable made me happy or anything—that would be a twisted hobby—but because it was a very simple deduction. Even with the strength she had nearly lost control of earlier, she had not crushed him.

Just how strong was Kiana? Put simply, at Schicksal, a qualified C-Rank Valkyrie could casually throw a stone hard enough to smash a one-meter-thick granite pillar! And even that would only qualify her as logistics personnel who could not go to the battlefield, fit only to sit at the kids' table. Yet Kiana not only possessed B-Rank strength, she was also a Kaslana!

Ordinary people? In front of her, they did not need to worry about what would happen if she attacked. They only needed to worry about what kind of fragments they would be torn into if they were caught in the aftermath of her battle.

Oh, no, Kiana usually fought Honkai Beasts. Ordinary people caught up in that did not need to think about anything at all. A touch of Honkai and they would be reduced to ashes. Only those with Honkai resistance who developed Honkai corrosion disease needed to consider more.

So for Fang Jie, who could actually withstand Kiana's strength, making money should have been easy. Yet he was still so... destitute. He surely had some principles he refused to compromise.

He was a good person. That was what Kiana believed.

Fang Jie, who had not yet gotten the chance to make off with anything for free, watched Kiana leave with effortless grace. Her wallet was empty, and her back looked so... Looking closely, though she was slim, the beauty of her figure was obvious, and her skin was excellent too.

She was really pretty.

Beyond that retreating figure, cheers could vaguely be heard rising and falling from Chiyu Academy's sports field. Figures full of youthful vitality bustled about, brimming with life as everything flourished.

"Heh, fight for all that is beautiful in the world. Tch, should I come up with some resounding slogan too? Love and peace? Or does staying alive count as victory?"

Fang Jie chuckled, shook his head, and stopped thinking about such pointless things.

The new world was not bad. Though it was still Honkai, though he did not even know whether it was Honkai Gakuen 2 or Honkai Impact 3rd, though...

Alright, it was a little terrible, but not bad.

.

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PS: Dear readers, new author, new book, please support me! (?o?o)??

Hope and Dreams

Chang Kong City was a highly urbanized city in the Far East where people lived fairly comfortable lives. In a sense, it could be considered the starting point of the Honkai world. No matter which Kiana it was, she had to carry a baseball bat and fight her way out of Chang Kong City.

After some tense and exciting deduction, Fang Jie had tentatively confirmed that the place he was currently in was probably not Second Honkai eruption, but Third Honkai eruption. Though he could not rule out it being a World Bubble, nor could he rule out Aha, his mood grew a little lighter as he strolled through this unfamiliar city.

"Mhm, mhm, it should be right. Kiana has twin braided pigtails, not twin Roman curls. Though that might not be the case next time."

Feeling both relieved and slightly troubled, Fang Jie stared at the light screen before him.

"Before his eyes" was merely a manner of speaking. Even if one stared directly into his eyes, they would not see its reflection, but Fang Jie could see it clearly.

The light screen resembled his phone's interface, though most of the apps had vanished, leaving only a handful of game icons. The one that had previously been running was Honkai: Star Rail, through which he had landed in Belobog. At that moment, March 7th's little face was still there as the mascot, but Kiana's face had appeared alongside hers.

So this is my superpower. Fang Jie thought silently. He did not activate the "Return Ticket"; he had had enough of the frozen wasteland. Instead, he began considering an extremely important question.

What other worlds will appear? Throwing Tears of Themis out, Zenless Zone Zero is manageable, Genshin Impact is fine too, but Honkai Gakuen 2... Why did I even keep that old thing on my phone?!

After all, during his month in Belobog, this light screen had contained only one icon. It was only after he held the Domain Anchor amid the snowfields and charged that interface, causing it to change, that he had indirectly gained a trace of the Path of Trailblaze's power.

The change referred to a loading bar. Once the bar filled, a second icon appeared. He clicked it, warped into a new world, and could travel back and forth.

At that moment, the new icon featuring Kiana as its mascot also had a progress bar sitting at zero. If it continued changing...

Without even considering what kind of energy this world might offer, merely recalling the games on his phone made Fang Jie feel that his future was boundless, that there was much to be done.

As a player who skipped dialogue in games but carefully studied videos online, he knew just how fucked-up—and how miraculous—these worlds were.

Silently closing this "superpower," Fang Jie did not intend to leave yet. He stared directly at the sun, which poured down boundless light, without flinching. Only after his eyes began to sting three minutes later did he lower his head.

This was the hardy constitution Fang Jie had gained beyond his superpower, from having absorbed a trace of the Path of Trailblaze's power. It had allowed him to endure a month in the icy wasteland with insufficient food and clothing. If the psychological torment had not become unbearable, he probably could have lasted even longer.

And that is probably only passive protection, a Visitor-level blessing. It is hard to imagine what kind of monsters actual Pathstriders are. Anyway, the Nameless on the Express could cry while drifting through a subspace storm.

A brief explanation: in the world of Honkai: Star Rail, countless worlds were collectively known as the galaxy. Within this galaxy existed beings known as Aeons. They created reality, erased stars, and each presided over a different Path.

Those who walked alongside them could receive their blessings, tread upon their Paths, draw power from those Paths, and even receive power directly from the Aeons.

The former were called Pathstriders, while the latter were called Emanators.

Fang Jie's current state was that he had perceived the existence of Path energy. While absorbing the Domain Anchor's energy from the icon, he had passively learned a portion of its power. However, he could not yet be called a Pathstrider, because he had not done much Trailblazing in Belobog.

I can Trailblaze now, but I can't sense the Path anymore.

Silently feeling the Path energy in his body, which was no longer increasing—no, no longer recovering—Fang Jie could only say that the environment did not agree with him.

Of course, he was not completely without sensations. At the very least, he keenly felt the thin but intensely malicious energy saturating the air. It was Honkai, the kind of energy that seemed capable of contaminating him the instant it touched him.

In this world, the sky, land, sea, and all things were suffused with energy invisible to the naked eye. This was Honkai energy, already integrated into the world's fundamental parameters, its harm reduced to a level where ordinary people could coexist with it.

But that was only one portion of Honkai energy. The vast majority of Honkai still wandered within Imaginary Space, isolated from reality, as excess entropy produced when the Imaginary was anchored into the Real.

Thus, once Honkai energy in reality gathered to a certain extent, it would draw out the Honkai energy in Imaginary Space and create disasters of varying levels. These included, but were not limited to, infecting beasts and humans, causing mutation or death, viruses and natural disasters, and even Great Eruptions that gave birth to Herrschers. They were collectively known as "Honkai phenomena."

Chang Kong City was currently in a phase where energy concentration was rising, and the Herrscher had long since taken her place. At this rate, the instant the Great Eruption descended, anyone without Honkai resistance would drop dead on the spot, not even getting the chance to become a monster.

And those with Honkai resistance? Congratulations, they could become monsters.

"This is really terrible."

Honkai energy was invisible and intangible, penetrating everywhere. The energy Fang Jie passively expended within his body was being used to resist this corrosion. At this rate, he did not even have a month left—only two and a half weeks. After all, there was no Domain Anchor here for him to absorb Path energy from, while Honkai energy's corrosion was plentiful and only grew worse.

If he did not consider the new world for now, he had two worlds between which he could maneuver. Even if both worlds had their own extraordinary dangers, he could still gain much from them.

Survival is the first priority. Then I need resources to develop. Suspicion will inevitably exist, but at least communication between us is not obstructed. Very good.

As he considered this, Fang Jie spotted a trash can by the roadside, and his spirits immediately lifted.

"Mhm, trash cans are not only guardians of our green lives, but also silently bear our waste, offering the Earth a measure of cleanliness."

He looked around. Though he felt a slight sense of guilt, he still could not resist the temptation. He kicked out, developing a new function for this silent guardian.

Eh, there was another one ahead!

Meanwhile, beside a high window that hurried passersby accustomed to looking down would instinctively overlook, a girl with spiral drill curls expressionlessly withdrew her gaze and contacted her mother.

"How is it, Bronya? Is that suspicious person an obstruction?"

On the other end of the communication system was Cocolia, questioning her adopted daughter. Though the plan had reached a critical stage, her tone toward her daughter remained gentle and calm.

"It cannot yet be determined. The target has shown no intention of approaching Raiden Mei and has only made contact with Kiana Kaslana. Also, he knows Siegfried Kaslana." Bronya did not report her speculation that the other party might be transmitting some kind of information by abusing trash cans. It was not important.

That was indeed the case. Upon hearing the report concerning Kiana—no, rather, concerning Siegfried—the other end of the communication did not respond immediately, pausing for a moment.

No one within Anti-Entropy would overlook S-Rank Valkyrie Siegfried. Or rather, few people in this world did not care about "S-Rank."

Bronya also waited quietly while Cocolia pondered.

During this period, in order to save her friend Seele Vollerei, who had vanished because of the X-10 experiment, Bronya had come to Chang Kong City with her mother Cocolia.

As Cocolia's plan continued, she had successfully seized ME Corp, the world's most valuable intelligent electronics company with its technological secrets, from Raiden Ryoma, her Anti-Entropy colleague. What followed was action against Raiden Ryoma's daughter, Raiden Mei, the true target. They would induce her into becoming the Herrscher of Thunder, then retrieve her.

In other words, they would artificially trigger a Great Eruption—the Third Great Eruption.

As a radical within Anti-Entropy, Cocolia could create the Herrscher of Thunder through an experiment in a city under the influence of her already estranged conservative colleagues, obtain valuable data and spoils, and pay only the price of one Chang Kong City. Did anyone expect her to hesitate?

Surely they could not let a city burn at the Americas headquarters. Though she would not have minded.

Besides, it was only a Great Eruption. What was there to fear? During the Second Great Eruption, Siberia had already fallen at the outset, after which meteor showers had rained from the sky. That had been her home and homeland, as well as the place where she rose to power.

A radical leader who had risen amid war and disaster should display her resolve in the Far East, then pressure Anti-Entropy's Americas headquarters. It would help her crush those weak and incompetent conservatives and climb to a higher position, allowing her to truly fight the Honkai with greater strength.

Besides, this had been Raiden Ryoma's choice too. When Cocolia learned that the long-missing Sovereign had received his plea for help and generously implanted the Gem of Conquest into Raiden Mei to suppress her overly powerful natural stigmata...

You were definitely creating the Herrscher of Thunder, right?

Hand her over!

Bronya did not particularly care about this... The only reason she had gotten involved was because, according to Cocolia, if things went smoothly, they might be able to find a way to save Seele.

During this process, they could not overlook anyone who might interfere with Raiden Mei's interpersonal relationships. Everything had to remain within the plan.

But Kiana.

Looking at the photograph of the white-haired girl grinning foolishly, Cocolia could not help recalling the Valkyrie who had saved her during the Second Great Eruption.

—Cecilia Schariac.

She was also Kiana Kaslana's mother.

In the end, Cocolia instructed her adopted daughter, "No need to concern yourself with him. I will arrange for others to follow up on the investigation. Bronya, continue monitoring Raiden Mei."

"Yes, Mother." Bronya understood. That meant she was not required to act.

In one of Chang Kong City's numerous dark alleys, a group of smoke-wreathed, colorfully dressed people squatted about, appearing to have nothing better to do.

At that moment, a black-haired youth entered the alley, seemingly intending to pass through it...

He looked completely unremarkable, dressed in tattered clothes, yet he did not seem embarrassed by it at all. Instead, he looked spirited and confident, even somewhat... arrogant.

That was right. He radiated the sort of arrogant air that made people want to kick even a stray dog on the roadside.

He stood out.

"Hey, you! Stop right there!"

He was immediately surrounded. The colorfully dressed people were bored, so how could they pass up such entertainment? Especially someone so conspicuous. The moment one of them spoke, the others immediately joined in.

"That's right, stop right there, kid! Do you know what kind of place this is, barging in here?"

"We're asking you! Say something!"

If they disagreed, what came next would probably be the familiar stress-relief segment everyone loved to see.

Then they heard it.

"How much strength should I use?"

The seemingly troubled words came with a clenched fist. It was not as large as a casserole pot, but it loosened again, stirring the air with a whoosh.

The trash cans had protected everyone, allowing Fang Jie to get a sense of the scale of his current strength.

So his palm traced an extremely smooth arc and struck one man squarely in the face. With a "smack," the man toppled over stiffly.

"Thud!"

The impact with the ground dealt a second round of damage.

Reality was not a game. Hitting someone in the face with a little too much force would not make a giant critical-hit marker appear. At best, they would faint and collapse; at worst, they would die.

The surroundings fell silent for an instant, but the smacking sounds did not stop. They rang out one after another.

Realizing he had not judged his strength properly, Fang Jie thought that these people's bodies could not possibly compare to trash cans. He had nearly killed someone.

Yet Fang Jie did not feel the slightest discomfort. Without hesitation, he restrained his strength further, giving each person a slap and extinguishing the terror that had not yet fully appeared on their twisted faces.

Plain and unadorned.

Strong and powerful.