"Did you think I hadn't noticed? You looked at me like an elder sizing up a junior."
"Save it. Worry about your own situation."
"But... you did get one thing right."
"There's really no need to stay bound by the shackles of the past. Since I'm a newly born individual, why should I imitate that old shadow?"
"Being myself is just fine."
Once she figured that out, Black Fu Hua's mood instantly brightened.
She strode forward, still voicing her opinions nonstop.
"Then it's settled-you're a remnant of the past. Was the old me perfect? Not necessarily, right?"
She casually waved a hand into empty space.
The clouds churned and converged rapidly.
In the blink of an eye, a familiar figure materialized before them.
Kevin.
Black Fu Hua's tone was cold, but her gaze never left the phantom beside her.
"That old friend... he's just a pathetic wretch trapped in the past."
"His fate was set the moment Dr. Mei breathed her last."
She glanced sideways at True Fu Hua, a mocking smile on her lips.
"You're far too much like him. Is it worth it?"
"For that woman who's long since turned to bones?"
As the scenes of memory shifted, everyone understood.
Black Fu Hua wasn't wrong.
The former guardian of Shenzhou had once harbored fervent hopes, too, chasing the light.
Until the Captain died under orders, and Honkai ravaged the world.
The new era arrived, and warmth faded away.
All that remained was the mechanical execution of missions and endless slaughter.
Kevin was like that, and so was she.
Time hadn't passed. It had merely frozen into ice.
Even though Cangxuan and Danzhu pushed and pulled with all their might, trying to restart those stalled gears.
In the end, it was all in vain.
True Fu Hua remained calm