[Ding! Congratulations on successfully completing your fourth reincarnation.] [Please choose one of the following three skills to inherit: Netherworld Flame, Demonbane Sword, Flame Curse Mark.]
As always, there were three options.
He did not rush to choose. Instead, he took a deep breath and slowly tucked his emotions away.
He could not carry the feelings of his previous life into the next. That was something Xiu Yuan had to ensure.
His greatest goal was to stay focused and complete the nine reincarnations as quickly as possible. If he kept longing for the past, unable to emerge from its grief, he would only sink deeper and deeper.
There was no escaping the nine reincarnations. He could only finish them as quickly as possible. That was his decision.
He sat cross-legged and meditated for a long time. His mind finally settled, his eyes grew as calm as still water, and his expression became deep and inscrutable.
Only then did he examine the three skills.
Netherworld Flame: Forms five continuously rotating Netherworld Flames around the host, providing effective defense, attacks, and protection against enemies approaching at close range. Duration is based on mental energy.
Good. Xiu Yuan immediately ruled out the first option.
In his previous lives, apart from his life with Xiao, he had hardly ever fought seriously.
Of course, his life with Hu Tao did not count. Without that devastating finishing move, he could never have beaten four max-level Kairagi.
They would have absolutely slaughtered him.
But in his life with Xiao, after cutting loose and fighting with all his strength, he had finally understood.
He now knew exactly where his abilities stood.
Netherworld Flame was certainly useful. It could defend him and keep enemies from getting close, but its biggest drawback was its consumption of mental energy.
If it had relied on stamina to sustain it, Xiu Yuan would have considered choosing it.
But mental energy...
He would pass. He now bore Shenhe's lone calamity fate, and after killing tens of thousands of evil spirits in his life with Xiao, the karmic debt he carried would also erode his mind.
He therefore had to take particular care of his mental condition.
Second option, Demonbane Sword: Grants grandmaster-level swordsmanship upon selection. Infusing it with sinister energy increases its damage further (the increase depends on the amount of sinister energy infused).
Hmm...
Not bad.
This one is worth considering.
Third option, Flame Curse Mark: Releases a curse mark with a burning effect. The host deals an additional 300%-500% critical damage to marked enemies, while fire attacks deal an additional 1000%-2500% critical damage. The mark's duration is based on mental energy.
After reading the third option, Xiu Yuan chose the Demonbane Sword without a second thought.
The other two were both quite good, but Xiu Yuan was now extremely sensitive about mental energy. He never wanted to experience that kind of agony a second time in this life.
Or in his next life.
[You have selected: Demonbane Sword. Your next reincarnation will now begin.] [Successfully initiated!] [Mission: Help Eula gain the trust of Mondstadt's citizens.] [Teleporting you...]
The moment he arrived, a flood of memories that did not belong to him poured frantically into his mind.
"Ugh..."
"Give me a moment..."
This time, just as in his first life, his soul had transmigrated into another body.
In his second and third lives, his entire body had crossed over unchanged.
Soul transmigration meant that his soul had entered this body.
But this body's appearance was identical to Xiu Yuan's, and even its name was the same, except for an added surname.
An.
His name was now An Xiu Yuan, and he was Amber's grandfather.
Perhaps because of Xiu Yuan's arrival, this body's former owner-the actual grandfather of Amber-had died of a heart attack.
He did not know whether the system had caused it or whether that had always been the man's fate.
Xiu Yuan had no way of knowing.
He carefully reflected on those unfamiliar memories, only to discover that his predecessor's way of doing things was remarkably similar to his own.
He had also been a very gentle man.
Originally from Liyue, he had once been a mercenary commander responsible for protecting a caravan that traveled across the continent.
During one escort mission, the caravan had suffered a vicious attack from a pack of monsters. He alone had managed to escape and was subsequently saved by a physician from the Knights of Favonius.
Too ashamed to return home, he had resolutely joined the Knights of Favonius to repay the physician for saving his life.
Within the Knights of Favonius, he had single-handedly established the Reconnaissance Knights Squad, personally training its members and leading them on missions.
Later, he had settled down in Mondstadt, started a family, and had children.
As a child, Amber had been a little troublemaker, constantly getting into mischief. His predecessor had always quietly cleaned up after her, keeping the trouble to a minimum.
His predecessor's unspoken care had been the warmest breeze in Mondstadt, gently enveloping Amber.
She had understood and quietly accepted that forgiving love, so full of responsibility.
His way of doing things really was very similar to Xiu Yuan's.
Both of them quietly gave their all behind the scenes.
However...
Xiu Yuan knew that Amber's grandfather in the original story was bald.
Thankfully, the body he had entered was not the one from the original story. Otherwise, being bald would have taken some getting used to.
Judging by what he knew so far...
The identity the system had arranged for him was probably meant to make him Eula's teacher.
According to his memories, he had no memories of Eula yet. In other words, he was not her teacher at present.
Hmm...
Knowing how the system operates, I probably will be shortly.
Xiu Yuan did not dwell on it. Instead, he took out his new weapon, the Demonbane Sword.
"Maybe I was assigned this reincarnation because I chose this thing."
Xiu Yuan gazed at the pitch-black blade and murmured to himself.
His swordsmanship was now absurdly powerful. It was grandmaster-level, after all.
Knock, knock, knock...
At the sound of knocking, Xiu Yuan knew that Eula had come to see him.
The door slowly opened, revealing Eula with her short blue hair.
She wore a knight's outfit that combined practicality with elegance, with a strip of relatively thin fabric down the center of her black bodysuit.
A cropped white jacket edged with lace was secured to her body by a chest strap, and she wore black gloves with blue palms.
"Hello, I'm Eula Lawrence. May I ask if you are Mr. An Xiu Yuan?"
Eula's tone and manner put him completely at ease. Her etiquette was impeccable.
She had come to Xiu Yuan hoping to learn.
She had heard that a highly respected reconnaissance knight lived here, a broad-minded and cheerful man.
Anyone struggling with matters of character or mindset could come to him. He might offer a different perspective, and he had helped quite a few people resolve their inner troubles.
At that moment, Eula was at the most bewildering stage of her life.
Her heart was full of questions and thoughts. She did not know whom to confide in, nor did she understand what she should do in the future.
So, after hearing about Xiu Yuan, she had come to his door without hesitation.
"That's me. What can I do for you?" Xiu Yuan asked with a faint smile and a kindly expression.
"There is much I don't understand. I hoped I could ask for your guidance."
Since Xiu Yuan was such a highly respected man, and she had sincerely come seeking answers, she naturally treated him with the utmost courtesy.
I looked up a lot of information about Amber and Eula today, so the updates will be a little late. I'll post one chapter first and see whether I can post two more tonight. Mostly, there's just so much information about Eula (muttering quietly).
Before you continue