Honkai's Thousand Laws, Abducting Kiana at the Start

A fight isn't won just by giving it your all. Unless you can completely overwhelm your opponent, you always have to be wary of them playing dirty.

Swift as a shadow, sharp as a sword, Raiden Mei compressed Su Jue's space to nothing amidst the flurry of sword strikes. With a sharp edge, her long sword suddenly slashed down.

"You lost."

"No." Their eyes met, their bodies inches apart. A mad smile curved Su Jue's lips beneath his half-mask. "You lost."

He twisted his katana to block Mei's sword strike, but as she truly brought it down, his expression changed drastically. Su Jue hadn't intended to block it head-on at all. Instead, he let go of the katana, making Mei's strike feel like it hit cotton.

The blade continued its downward arc, slicing into Thousand Calamities' shoulder. Amidst the flying blood, Su Jue's smile grew even more unhinged.

Bang—

A heavy punch landed squarely on Mei's abdomen. Then, before her previous momentum had fully dissipated, he followed up with a headbutt.

Mei, her head ringing, knelt on the ground. The katana in her hand flew several meters away, clattering against the floor. Although Su Jue's injuries looked more severe, the ultimate victory still belonged to him.

"Skill alone can't bridge the gap in combat, Herrscher..." Damn it, I almost copied Thousand Calamities' line.

"Despicable!" It took a long while for Mei to recover. Her pale violet eyes were filled with rage. At that moment, she wished she could tear this guy who resorted to dirty tricks to shreds.

"Hmm? You don't look convinced?"

Raiden Mei didn't speak, but her expression clearly showed her dissatisfaction. She had spent nearly every day and night for the past half-month training herself relentlessly, only to lose now due to carelessness. Naturally, she was unconvinced.

Crack—

With a slight flick of his toe, Su Jue caught the katana he had taken from Mei. With a flick of his wrist, he plunged the blade directly into the concrete floor in front of her. "If you're not convinced, I'll give you another chance. If you win, you can take the sword back. If you lose, you have to agree to one condition."

Raiden Mei was silent for two seconds before finally gripping the hilt. Taking a deep breath, she pulled the katana out. The familiar weapon was back in her hands, yet Mei felt a sense of humiliation, as it wasn't something she had reclaimed herself.

But now that the opportunity was before her again, she absolutely wouldn't let it slip away.

Su Jue, now unarmed, and Raiden Mei began their second duel. This time, it was the kind of fight that should have belonged to Thousand Calamities.

"Come! Show me your resolve!" Su Jue shouted wildly, showing no intention of defending and launching his attack directly.

His speed was incredible, even faster than when he was using the katana. Mei gripped her own sword and slashed out quickly, trying to force Su Jue to dodge. Only then could she leverage her weapon's advantage to gain the upper hand.

Unfortunately, she didn't know that injury only made Thousand Calamities more ferocious. As the blade fell, Su Jue merely used his palm to deflect some of the force. As long as it wasn't a fatal wound, he could accept it.

Clearly, Raiden Mei had never encountered such a suicidal fighting style. Trading blows like this put her at an extreme disadvantage. Thus, she could only try to create distance with all her might. But she also didn't know that the moment she considered evading, she would completely fall into Thousand Calamities' attack rhythm.

Bang—

Ch-chi—

Fists collided with bodies, blades met flesh, and after the final clash, only one person remained standing.

"Is this your resolve, Raiden Mei?"

Blown away by a punch, Mei gritted her teeth, trying to force herself to stand, but the pain throughout her body made her tremble uncontrollably.

The physical injuries were far less severe than the mental blow she had received. If she could have blamed Su Jue's dirty tricks before, now, with the advantage of her weapon, she had still been utterly defeated. What was the point of her desperate training then?

"I... I..."

"Wait!! We can talk about this." Su Jue suddenly startled and quickly interrupted Mei's mumbled words.

A faint, bitter smile appeared on her face as Mei looked up, staring directly at Su Jue. "I admit you won, but I will never let you humiliate me."

Humiliate my ass, I'm afraid you'll lose your password.

"Raiden Mei, I didn't bring you here to see you looking so weak. You haven't forgotten what the message said, have you?"

Prompted by Su Jue, Raiden Mei suddenly came back to her senses. She was here for Kiana this time. Su Jue's message had stated that Kiana was facing a life-or-death crisis.

She stopped thinking about whether she could do it or not. Kiana's safety was the most important thing.

"Do you know where Kiana is?" she quickly pressed.

"Of course. We're looking for you because of her."

Hearing Su Jue's words, Mei immediately focused on the key point. "You guys?"

"Yes, us. An organization formed by survivors saved by Miss Kiana. Some of us have encountered Honkai attacks, some have been persecuted by Schicksal, and some were simply abandoned by society and then saved by her."

"We have all received her kindness. We have gathered together to protect her from the shadows and have dedicated our lives to Miss Kiana." Su Jue introduced his organization with great conviction, even taking off his mask.

Mei looked at the completely unfamiliar young man before her, falling silent. She didn't immediately believe his words, but at least from Su Jue's demeanor, they didn't seem to have any ill intentions towards Kiana.

"Alright, what do you need me to do? But before that, I need to know Kiana's whereabouts."

Chapter 101: Honkai Bomb

The sky was gradually darkening. Kiana had already prepared herself to be hunted by World Serpent, but miraculously, there was no movement the entire day. This didn't bring her any peace; instead, a heavy sense of unease filled her heart. And she wasn't the only one feeling this apprehension. Even Fu Hua, who resided within Feather Dust, was feeling restless and sent a warning to Kiana.

"What's wrong?" A voice suddenly came from beside her. Kiana snapped back to attention, slightly easing the frown on her brow. She offered a strained smile to Su Jue, who was looking at her with confusion from the hospital bed.

"It's nothing, just a feeling of unease."

Sighing softly, Su Jue closed the book in his hands and shook his head at Kiana, advising, "Since you feel uneasy, then go investigate. You are a powerful warrior; you should trust your instincts."

"But what about you?" The unease in her heart made Kiana unable to stop worrying about Su Jue, who was confined to his sickbed. She could vaguely sense that this crisis might be unusual.

Recalling past experiences, she had felt a strong sense of unease before when she killed Griseo. However, back then, she hadn't thought much of it, which led to an irreparable sin.

Seeing Kiana's worried expression, Su Jue instead showed a look of relief and said softly, "I will take care of myself. I will absolutely not become a burden to you."

"That's not what I meant." Hearing Su Jue's words, Kiana thought she had hurt him and quickly tried to explain, but the book in Su Jue's hand covered her lips.

"Kiana, this is something I have to do. If you truly consider me a companion, then please respect my choice, and respect your own choice." His gray eyes sparkled under the light of the hospital bed, filled with determination. It reminded Kiana of the same look in the young man's eyes under the dim, hazy light that day.

He was never a loser who needed others to protect him. He always knew what he had to do and what he was doing.

The unease in her brows completely subsided, and Kiana once again recalled why she was drawn to this young man in the first place – wasn't it this tenacious will?

He was her companion, not a weakling hiding behind her needing protection.

"Okay." All her worries vanished. Kiana stood up and nodded solemnly at Su Jue, like a warrior about to embark on a campaign, bidding farewell to her family.

"Go, go find the truth, go save this world."

The distant sunset was about to set, dividing the world into light and shadow. As night approached, large masses of dark clouds had already gathered over Sky City, as if they too knew that a world-shattering disaster might occur tonight.

On the central signal tower of Sky City, steel frames had been added at some point, and a large, porous sphere that had been specially treated was mounted on it. After multiple modifications and adjustments, the induction frequency injection was fixed to the sphere. All it needed was for this engine sphere to explode. The resulting Honkai Energy would cover the entire Sky City with a special frequency, subjecting millions of residents to the Stigmata induction experiment in an instant.

"There are 4 hours left until the experiment begins." After confirming all preparations were complete, Jackal and Raven breathed a sigh of relief. Schicksal's army wouldn't arrive for at least another 10 hours, which was enough time for them to complete the experiment.

"Don't let your guard down. Schicksal's Valkyries are still roaming this city, not to mention the biggest variable, the Herrscher of Void." Compared to Jackal, Raven was much more cautious. More importantly, she had already reported to Gray Serpent, and there was no cadre named Crimson Snake in the organization. The red-haired woman who appeared before her that day always felt like she would reappear.

Pushing up the dog-head mask on her face, Jackal said dismissively, "Schicksal's signals have been completely cut off by us, and Gray Serpent is monitoring all network information in the city. How could they possibly know our plan? They're probably still hiding in some corner like rats, congratulating themselves for escaping our pursuit."

"..." Taking a deep breath, Raven gave up trying to persuade this person. This was just her personality; she would let her be, as long as the plan went smoothly.

As they spoke, she had already opened her tactical panel. A bird's-eye view map of the entire Sky City was clearly marked, and around the signal tower, dense red dots were already spread out. These were all of World Serpent's remaining mecha units, hidden in a dormant state on top of buildings. Even if Rita and Kiana discovered the plan, they wouldn't be able to easily pass through the mecha defenses.

After the preparations were completed, it was time for them to retreat. The activation signal for the Stigmata Project would also affect them. However, World Serpent had better testing grounds for its cadres; this crude activation method was too dangerous.

Just then, Raven keenly felt a strange gaze fall upon her. She suddenly turned her head and only saw a flash of dark gray short hair.

"Who?" As she said this, Raven rushed out, but the eavesdropper was already fleeing frantically. She could only vaguely recognize the familiar combat suit as belonging to a member of the Blade of Immortality.

"Cleo, that jinx. I'm absolutely not letting her speak next time." Cursing inwardly, Raven quickly gave chase.

At this moment, Alvit, whose eavesdropping had been discovered, was disoriented and fleeing uncontrollably under Su Jue's control. Rita and the others naturally didn't know World Serpent's objective, but Su Jue had long since focused his attention on World Serpent. As the final step of his plan in this city, how could he not pay close attention?

Alvit's existence was to leak this message. After all, Kiana had not yet experienced being captured by Jackal, so she naturally didn't know about their plan to plant the bomb.

The more she chased, the more Raven felt something was wrong. How could an A-rank Valkyrie be running so fast? Just as Raven was about to lose patience and prepare to snipe with the Seven Thunders of Retribution, Alvit finally reached her destination.

"Vice-captain! World Serpent is preparing to install a bomb on the signal tower and use the entire city for an experiment."

Rita, with a frown, encountered Raven again. She felt like she had seen this scene before, but the current situation didn't allow her to think too much. She immediately activated her Moon Soul armor and engaged Raven in battle again.

Alvit, who had been fleeing desperately, stumbled her way near the hospital and bumped into Kiana, who had just come out.

"The Herr... Herrscher of Void, they're preparing to detonate the bomb, the plan..." Before she could finish speaking, she fainted.

Catching Alvit as she fell, Kiana frowned deeply. The information she received was limited, and she hadn't figured out the situation yet. Fortunately, Fu Hua was still living inside her. The two of them successfully found a voice recorder in Alvit's clothes, which recorded the conversation between Jackal and Raven.

"It's the Stigmata Project. World Serpent hasn't given up yet!"

Chapter 102: Explosion

The moment the term "Stigmata Project" appeared, Kiana's mind quickly recalled the information she had seen on the computer at Shencheng Pharmaceuticals.

Those inhumane experiments and insane plans, each one trampled on human dignity and life.

The memories buried in her heart began to cause sharp pains again. Griseo's tragic state was still vivid in her mind. Kiana clenched her fists, her breathing becoming rapid. Not only that, but another soul within her body was also gradually awakening because of these memories.

Humanity's sins never ceased, and the tragedy of the Tower of Babylon would never disappear; it would only repeat itself over and over again.

"Kiana, stay calm. Don't forget you still have a chance to make things right." Fu Hua keenly sensed the Herrscher of Void's consciousness showing signs of reawakening and gently reminded her.

Her chest heaved, and after several deep breaths, Kiana's emotions gradually calmed down. She clenched her fists, her voice stern, "I must stop them. There are still four hours before the experiment begins; I still have time."

Unfortunately, although Alvit brought the news of World Serpent's plan, she didn't record the location where they planned to detonate it. Kiana still needed to investigate further.

What was even worse was that the long-dormant Herrscher of Void had already begun to awaken. Kiana's ability to fight at full strength as before might lead to a loss of control.

Regardless, she had to act. Kiana didn't waste any time and immediately began investigating World Serpent's recent movements.

At the same time, on the signal tower, Jackal initiated the countdown for the Honkai Bomb.

It required a period of energy coupling to achieve the perfect activation effect, and this period was exactly 4 hours.

Having failed multiple times, Jackal had learned her lesson. Besides the countdown, the Honkai Bomb would also detonate rapidly upon contact with high concentrations of Honkai Energy. This was to prevent the Herrscher of Void from tampering with the bomb during this time.

If Kiana used her spatial abilities, it would inevitably cause Honkai fluctuations, and the Honkai Bomb would detonate directly. Although it wouldn't achieve the perfect awakening effect, it was at least better than failing.

"Let's begin."

As Jackal's words fell, violent explosions suddenly occurred in various parts of Sky City's center.

Kiana, who was walking through the streets, suddenly stopped. The sound of strong winds roared from above, and advertising billboards affected by the explosion broke and tilted towards the street.

People on the road who were more alert immediately noticed the falling frames and began to run in all directions.

But the city was densely populated, and in the ensuing chaos, many people fell. As the advertising frames were about to land, causing a tragedy, Kiana leaped up. Leaving a deep footprint on the ground, she soared into the air. The heavy metal frame immediately deformed under her support. It was impossible to catch it directly. In desperation, Kiana twisted her body and smashed the advertising frame towards a nearby wall, using friction to slow down.

Creaking sounds echoed continuously as the steel-welded frame began to misalign and break, but Kiana had achieved her goal. Noticing that the people on the ground had scattered, she released her hands. To the stunned gazes of a crowd of onlookers, Kiana rolled successfully to dissipate the force and landed safely.

Behind her, the heavy advertising frame finally landed, kicking up dust.

"You all should evacuate quickly. It's very unsafe around here." Facing the stares of the people, Kiana's expression was a bit unnatural. She was afraid someone would recognize her identity, recognize her as the Herrscher who caused the world's collapse.

After confirming there were no immediate issues, she quickly departed, leaving only her retreating figure for the survivors who had just escaped the clutches of death.

"It's Magical Girl Kiana! Mom, that's Kiana!" While most adults didn't recognize Kiana, some children had already identified her. The legend of the Magical Girl had spread through children's social circles, replacing the status of the Warrior of Light and becoming the goal that children aspired to.

Such explosions continued one after another. To stall for time from the authorities and Schicksal, World Serpent completely disregarded the safety of ordinary people, which undoubtedly greatly delayed Kiana's investigation.

"Pay attention to controlling the Honkai Energy, just like I taught you."

Facing the erosion of the Herrscher of Void once again, Fu Hua had previously chosen to have Kiana restrain her power and leave those people to their fate. But this time, she actively taught Kiana what she should do. Even as the Honkai erosion grew worse, she still adhered to their agreement and didn't say a single extra word.

These two different attitudes also led to a different relationship between them. With Fu Hua's understanding of Taixu Sword Qi, Kiana successfully differentiated and guided the excess Honkai Energy, thereby greatly slowing down the progress of the erosion.

The crisis of the Honkai Bomb was imminent, but Kiana couldn't bring herself to abandon these citizens. Making the same mistake once was enough; she didn't want to see anyone else suffer the pain of losing loved ones again.

As more and more citizens were saved by Kiana, coupled with the fact that the white-haired girl had saved many people in the past month, legends of the Magical Girl began to spread widely across the internet of Sky City.

A certain account named Kiana even perfectly followed her, recording Kiana saving people from various strange angles and posting the footage on social media.

Using explosions to drag ordinary people into disaster.

It had to be said that while World Serpent's tactic was despicable, it was indeed effective. Kiana, who was constantly on the run, had unknowingly wasted two hours.

"Kiana, the Taixu Sword Qi's benefit to your body is reaching its limit."

After confirming that no explosions had occurred, Kiana landed on the rooftop to rest briefly.

Her breathing was rapid, and her stamina had been greatly depleted from the continuous movement. Honkai cracks, which hadn't appeared for a long time, resurfaced. Fortunately, her experiences during this period had significantly strengthened her will, making it not so easy for the Herrscher of Void's consciousness to break through.

"But I can't stop yet. There are still people in this world waiting for me to save them." After a short rest, she leaped high from the edge of the building, jumping towards another building like a bird.

However, as she was in mid-air, a patrol mech, hidden and lurking on the rooftop, had already locked onto her.

Whoosh—

Several grenades, trailing long fiery tails, were launched towards Kiana. Her expression changed, and she immediately used her abilities to create a platform in the air for leverage.