Honkai: Dual Passage, Taking Xi Lian to Honkai 3rd

[Attempting to retrieve Cocoon of Finality: Retrieval failed.]

[Initiating emergency protocol No. 114514. Calibration complete: Location coordinates expanded: Portal to Earth can now be opened.]

[--Please enter the portal, Host.]

As the saying goes, heaven never closes every door.

"Is there any beginner's gift pack?"

[Available upon arrival in Nagazora City. Note: After opening the portal, energy will be depleted, making it impossible to claim.]

"Then let's go--"

--Wait!

His consciousness slammed on the brakes at the final second. Jiang Cheng suddenly realized a critical issue.

The reason that city—which appeared calm but actually converted even women with relatively high Honkai resistance into zombies—still had so many survivors was that even the most ordinary males of this era possessed chromosomes edited by Dr. MEI of the Previous Era, granting them Honkai resistance.

"Do I have Honkai resistance in my body?"

[No.]

--A death sentence.

He, a person with absolutely no Honkai resistance, was about to appear in Nagazora City—a place where even women could turn into zombies—without a beginner's gift pack.

If that wasn't landing in a death trap, what was?

It was pure suicide.

Moreover, the lack of Honkai resistance wasn't even the main point; Nagazora City was a place where the water was shallow but the turtles were many.

Because of Kiana's existence, it had a certain level of attention from Schicksal. The Third Honkai Eruption itself was the work of certain factions within Anti-Entropy, and Cocolia, as one of the masterminds, even had dealings with World Serpent, meaning the eyes of World Serpent would also be focused on Nagazora City.

This "beginner village," which seemed less than terrifying in difficulty, was actually the intersection point for the eyes of the entire world.

With his combat strength and his identity, which had neither cause nor effect, he would likely die the moment he stepped inside. There was no room for strategy, and his memories of the future held no value.

--No.

It couldn't be said that those things had no value; those memories were highly valuable and could directly point out a wealth of precious information.

The key problem was that what had no value...

Was him.

His strength was insufficient. If others were to investigate the source of his information, then all the value belonging to him—Jiang Cheng—would just be a pile of replicable memory data. Furthermore, because his strength was insufficient, many maps that required a certain level of power to enter would remain unconquerable, even if he had a strategy to copy.

"How many Valkyries can I cultivate at once? What is the definition of cultivation? Is it purely about developing strength? Or is it about making up for their life regrets?"

[No limit, as long as they are Valkyries. Both developing strength and making up for life regrets are acceptable.]

In that case, perhaps he could speed-run Mei using intelligence.

[Opening the portal will consume all of the system's energy. The time required for self-replenishment must be explored by the Host.]

"..."

"Can I change Xilian's name and have her roleplay as Elysia for Valkyrie cultivation?"

[Portal opened.]

--!

This was definitely a product of a cheap developer.

With nothing at all, sending him to the Honkai world naked was just asking for death.

--The sight of him gritting his teeth was captured without any concealment by eyes as clear as a spring.

"A-Cheng~?"

The soft voice rang in Jiang Cheng's ears for the third time, only this time, it carried a hint of seriousness.

"If there's anything bothering you, you must tell me, okay~? Keeping things to yourself is absolutely not allowed!"

It was difficult for him to see a serious side to Xilian, who was always laughing and gentle in her daily life.

At this moment, however, he saw the girl—who was leaning over like a spring willow swaying in the breeze—with a fair, rounded face that wore an expression of earnestness that stood in stark contrast to her usual self.

At such an excessively close distance, he could even faintly feel her long, curled eyelashes gently brushing against his face.

Jiang Cheng stared at the girl before him.

Her posture, which allowed for no questioning like a teacher, felt as if he were facing a terrifying low-pressure system.

Had there been no malice mixed in, this pressure alone would likely have been enough to make a normal person suffocate on the spot.

Strength...

Power...

If only he possessed Xilian's traits; not only could he trade on his appearance to secure Grey Snake's protection, but he could also rely on his own strength to try and snatch Raiden Mei for himself.

--Wait!

"Can only I enter through the portal?"

[You may carry objects with a total weight not exceeding three tons.]

"Once I enter, is it impossible to return?"

[Once activated, the relevant functions remain permanently available.]

Jiang Cheng straightened his back, shifting from lying flat and passively accepting the girl's weight to facing her head-on.

He stared directly at Xilian, who was mere inches away.

"What if... I had to leave for some reason?"

"Eh? That kind of thing—"

A flash of brief bewilderment crossed the face of the girl, who was as cute as a fairy, as if she had heard something utterly absurd. Immediately after, she showed a fierce rejection, like a kitten that had just had its tail stepped on. She even crossed her arms over her chest in an exaggerated X.

"Refused! Absolutely! Absolutely refused! That, in particular, is absolutely out of the question! Jiang Cheng, you must never have such thoughts, not even a little bit!"

The usually understanding Xilian was iron-willed at this moment, leaving no room for negotiation.

"Eh? Wh... why?" Jiang Cheng was startled by her intense reaction and hurriedly pressed for an answer, but all he could see were those eyes, serious to an incredible degree—

Xilian's soft, beautiful face was pulled taut. Her slender, jade-like finger stood up abruptly like a teacher's pointer. Her pink bangs cast a shadow over her cheeks that was almost solemn, and her expression was as grave as a homeroom teacher in the midst of a midlife crisis, lecturing from the podium—and ready to have an emotional outburst at any moment.

"Jiang—Cheng! Do you even need to ask why?!"

"If you waste your precious time on others, if you don't let me take care of you, then... then..."

Xilian took a deep breath, looking at him earnestly, enunciating every word with heavy impact.

"—Jiang Cheng, you would definitely die!"

...Am I some rare tropical fish that will turn belly-up if I'm out of the water for a minute?!

Jiang Cheng really wanted to retort loudly.

But his reason—or rather, the cruel reality—reminded him immediately: if he weren't currently relying entirely on Xilian to feed and shelter him, could a life-incapable person from modern society actually survive in Ancient Greece?

It seemed he really couldn't.

That settled it.

He silently swallowed the retort that had reached his lips and chose to shut up obediently.

In the end, Jiang Cheng could only listen as Xilian puffed out her slender chest, patted it, and issued a promise that allowed for no dissent.

"So, I will absolutely never spend the time meant for taking care of you on anyone else! And you, absolutely, absolutely must not have such thoughts either."

"If you really want to make it up to me, just play with me more."

Xilian's face was suddenly so close that every lash was distinct. Her sweet, melodic voice rose as softly as the wind, as if it would shatter and dissolve into the breeze at any moment.

Or perhaps it had already scattered, luring him into falling into that sweet, illusory kingdom.

"A little world that belongs only to the two of us is quite suitable for us to play in together, isn't it?"

It was too heavy.

She should have been a girl as light and brilliant as a flower.

Yet, at this moment, what Jiang Cheng felt was an irresistible, heavy gravity that seemed capable of crushing him flat.

But precisely because of that, he had the confidence and courage to say what came next.

"—Xilian."

He instantly adopted an overly serious posture, causing the girl, who had just been intimidatingly stern, to look confused before immediately sitting up straight.

"Jiang Cheng, I'm here!"

"Next, I am going to tell you the truth about the world."

3. Xilian, I have a way

"So..."

"A crisis is about to descend, and Jiang Cheng, you know all of this, yet you are powerless to change it."

Xilian's delicate, fair hands twisted together uneasily in front of her small chest. She bit her cherry-pink lower lip, pressing so hard that the tip turned a faint red.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know anything, yet I kept demanding that you be happy every day. Someone like me... I really am terrible, aren't I?"

"—How could you be! And that's not the point."

Jiang Cheng reached out, cupping Xilian's soft face in his hands, his fingertips carefully smoothing away the furrow between her brows.

Before the tears could even gather, they were melted away by the warmth he transmitted to her without reservation.

"The point is, I can take you somewhere else now. In that place, we can gain greater strength at an incredible speed. Are you... willing to come with me?"

"Is there even any need to ask such a thing~?"

Xilian tilted her face upward, her swan-like neck exposed before him without a hint of defense, the line of her jaw so graceful it seemed almost fragile.

Her bright, lovely face flooded his vision.

Then, right before Jiang Cheng's eyes—she gave a playful wink, her long, curled lashes fluttering down as she offered a charming, electrifying wink.

"...Let's go."

He said aloud, and whispered softly in his heart as well.

Open portal.

"--Bring Xilian along."