The Journey Begins

When the Australian bushfires raged across the entire continent, New Zealand was spared due to its separation by the Tasman Sea. Coupled with its sparse population, the Honkai threat in this region wasn't as severe, allowing Fire Moth to maintain a relatively complete defense force throughout New Zealand.

At the forward base in New Zealand, Fu Hua was in her room organizing her equipment. She took a photo out of a box. A mere glance was all it took, but the photo seemed to possess an enchanting magic, drawing her in. She gazed at it, her thoughts drifting back to the distant past, over a year gone by, yet it felt as close as yesterday.

Somehow, she thought of fire, of roaring flames that seemed to be gradually consuming the photo in her hand. In the picture, everyone but herself had turned to dust carried away by the wind.

"Knock, knock, knock." A rhythmic knocking sound from outside her room pulled her out of the illusion she had woven.

Fu Hua glanced towards the door, then casually closed the box lid, placing the photo on the nightstand as she walked towards the door. She gently turned the doorknob, and a person dressed as a doctor appeared before her.

"Hello, Ms. Fu Hua," the doctor greeted her with a nod. "I'm Dr. Alex from the laboratory department." He showed his work ID to the person in front of him.

"Hello," Fu Hua replied briefly. "Is there something you need?"

"It's like this... ah, excuse me, may I ask you a question first? Did the organization brief you in detail about this mission?" the doctor asked.

Fu Hua shook her head. "They didn't provide much detail." She only knew she was being sent to Australia for a B-grade combat mission, and many others like her, the remnants of past battles, would accompany her.

"I see..." The doctor mused for a moment before speaking. "The organization will administer an experimental agent to you before the mission begins. I'm just here to collect your blood sample."

"Then let's begin," she said calmly.

"May I come in? Drawing blood in the hallway might not go as smoothly."

Fu Hua nodded, signaling her assent.

Without further ado, the doctor entered the room and placed his medical kit at his feet, taking out the necessary medical supplies for blood collection from the box. The doctor's gaze fell upon the photo on the nightstand. His focus adjusted, revealing a line of text on the blank space of the photo: "Fifth Squad Group Photo."

Three minutes later, "Please clench the ball in your hand."

The specialized automatic blood collection machine easily pierced her skin. After a few seconds, the entire blood drawing process was complete. The doctor affixed a label to the test tube containing the blood.

"Goodbye, Ms. Fu Hua. You'll have another blood draw later." After tidying up the medical supplies, the doctor bid her farewell. Fu Hua nodded and closed the door.

The doctor also visited several warriors who would be undertaking the mission with Fu Hua. Having control groups always made for better data.

A short while later, Fu Hua and a group of warriors were led into a mysterious room.

"Please have a seat," said Dr. Mei's adjutant. Behind her, displayed on the wall, were injection guns filled with a pale blue liquid and a dark, earthy-colored longsword.

The adjutant stroked the body of the longsword. "This is the Tenth Divine Key." She handed the Divine Keys to the warriors one by one. Even Fu Hua was somewhat taken aback. She ran her fingers over the sword's intricate patterns, her icy blue eyes revealing surprise. She hadn't expected to receive a Divine Key, not being a Fusion Warrior herself.

The adjutant adjusted her glasses. "The practical test of the Tenth Divine Key, without a doubt, is the significance of this mission."

"And these—" she pointed to the injection guns on the display rack.

"Are reagents distributed by headquarters. You don't need to know their function. They are harmless to you, even beneficial. You only need to focus on completing the mission."

The warriors nodded in unison. The pale blue reagent was injected into their bodies. Fu Hua's expression returned to its usual cool demeanor. She glanced at her companions, most of whom were secretly pleased.

Once the injections were complete, the adjutant quickly left the equipment room. Dr. Alex, seeing this, hurried in.

"Hello, ladies. We meet again. This time it's also for a blood draw, but please have a seat for a few minutes first."

The female warriors said nothing. The entire blood drawing process concluded swiftly.

Two hours later, Dr. Alex uploaded the analyzed blood sample data to The Base, while also discreetly copying a local file. Afterwards, the doctor removed his white coat and stepped out of the laboratory, heading towards his room. He took out his ID card from his pocket.

"Beep." He entered his room. Lying on the bed was someone who looked exactly like him. When the doctor looked again, his face had already changed. The real doctor was sound asleep. The fake doctor gently placed the ID card on the table.

"Doctor... Dr. Alex! Wake up!" Qin Su forcefully nudged the doctor's body.

"Mmm... Ah... What?" Alex seemed groggy, still disoriented from being woken up.

Qin Su pointed to the clock on the wall. Upon seeing the time, Dr. Alex's senses sharpened considerably. After all, the most terrifying thing in the world was waking up and realizing you were sleeping soundly on a workday morning.

"Oh! Good heavens, damn it!" Dr. Alex hurriedly grabbed a clean work uniform from the nearby closet.

"This is truly..." Alex then gave up struggling, rubbing his face in annoyance. He glanced at the sleeping pills on the nightstand.

"Damn Honkai is causing me insomnia all day, and even this—a household robot—is going against me!" He stood up and kicked the household robot, which was in standby mode, twice. The robot's program was set to activate its wake-up sequence half an hour before work, but for some reason today, it hadn't woken Alex.

Qin Su patted his shoulder. "You seem a bit overly anxious. You should rest well. Your superior has already approved your leave request."

Continuing to kick the robot twice, Alex's anger subsided somewhat. "It's useless. Do you think a vacation can alleviate my anxiety? In reality, when I'm on vacation, I have nothing to do and it makes me more anxious! But when I'm working, I always wish I could be resting!"

"Don't worry, you can use your vacation time to think about what to do."

Dr. Alex casually agreed, "I will."

"Well then, goodbye." Qin Su waved and closed the door as he left.

The overcast sky seemed to mirror Fu Hua's mood. The accelerating transport plane amplified the feeling of weightlessness in her body. Fu Hua stared down at her only group photo, lost in thought.

"Engine instrument indicates green light, air speed on both sides gradually increasing, 148 kilometers per hour, checking all instruments..." the transport plane's co-pilot nodded to the captain.

After a slight bump, the transport plane successfully took to the sky.