The Scarlet Oath / The Final Divine Key

I'm afraid... that I might actually fall into some Sweet Dream.

"Don't you want to save her?!"

He roared, Herrscher of Erosion tone now tinged with exasperation.

In the previous cycle, He clearly instructed the boy to stop the sacrifice, and the boy did just that.

But why did the Shi Hen suddenly change their minds in this cycle?

Moreover, he's so heartless that he wants to kill the innocent girl he met in the previous life cycle!?

"Salvation?" Shi Hen couldn't help but scoff. "In this kind of illusory dream, is there really any salvation?"

Is it really considered salvation to simply have a dream, to avoid the despairing and painful reality within it?

The redemption he sought was never something so fragile and hypocritical!

With a burning gaze on the Miko, Shi Hen spoke slowly and deliberately, "Yae Sakura, I don't care what you want to pursue in this dream, but I hope you can remember a few things."

Yae Rin is dead, she died by your own sword.

Yae Village is gone too, and you did it yourself.

If you can't even face these realities, then you might as well stay forever lost in your dreams.

If... the person that the Saintess Maiden is willing to sacrifice herself to save is such a coward who only knows how to run away, then your life might as well end here.

At least this way, it won't bring shame upon Her Majesty the Saintess!

Chapter 114 The Crimson Vow

"You human brat, die!"

Unable to tolerate Shi Hen's words any longer, a huge Six-tailed White Fox with Shimenawa its body suddenly leaped out from the black mist, and one of its paws slammed down heavily towards the boy.

Since the script has completely Honkai, let's just use force to kill this human.

A murderous intent surged within him, and the palm strike was swift and powerful. Several sharp claws, like longswords, sealed off all parts of Shi Hen's body, determined to kill the boy with a single blow.

With a powerful push of his legs, Shi Hen retreated swiftly to avoid the palm strike, using a Silver-white Bat in his hand to block the white fox's pursuing claws.

Clang!

The baseball bat and the claws clashed with a loud metallic clang, and a tremendous force simultaneously sent the boy flying.

The current Shi Hen is merely a Schicksal Knight has regained some of his power, so naturally he cannot fight against a Herrscher in the Stigmata Space.

After rolling a few times on the ground to dissipate the force, Shi Hen half-knelt up, leaning on his baseball bat. He looked at the fox-eared Miko was standing there dumbfounded and doing nothing, and shouted, "Yae Sakura!"

Answer me, what exactly is the salvation you seek?!

"It's no use! She's already in darkness and can't hear you!"

Once I kill you, I can fully take over this body.

As it roared, the white fox stretched out its six tails, which shot towards the boy like sharp arrows, forcing Shi Hen.

"Heh! Herrscher, don't underestimate humans!" With a flick of his baseball bat, Shi Hen deflected a tail, sending him flying with the force of the blow, but he didn't stop talking. "The will of humans has never been such a fragile thing!"

Being able to contend with the Herrscher of Erosion for five hundred years demonstrates that Yae Sakura's willpower is unparalleled.

"Then I'll kill you first, and let her experience despair again!"

With a cold snort, the white fox's six long tails suddenly swung even more fiercely, sometimes thrusting, sometimes whipping, as agile as long dragons with their own lives.

Compared to the fox spirit that the Herrscher of Erosion personally controlled, the brown bear that Shi Hen encountered when he first entered the Stigmata Space was so weak that it wasn't even worthy of carrying his shoes.

"Want to kill me? You're still 50,000 years too early!"

Forced into a sorry state by the six tails, Shihen could only dodge and had no strength left to fight back, Shi Hen he still had a mocking smile on his face.

"Human brat!"

With a roar and howl, the white fox's fur stood on end, and its eyes gleamed red.

In an instant, the six long tails swung even more wildly, and the entire Yae Shrine was quickly reduced to ruins, and the boy's situation suddenly became more critical.

It seemed as if... if the white fox's attack were just a little stronger, the boy would die instantly.

Strangely, no matter how much the White Fox intensified its efforts, Shi Hen always managed to narrowly avoid the potentially fatal attacks and continue to fight and entangle with the Herrscher.

"Is this all your attacks are capable of? I still prefer... the way you call me 'big brother'..."

As he dodged the white fox's attacks with agile footwork, Shi Hen panted heavily while uttering sarcastic remarks.

Yae Rin's appearance is quite cute, so why did they have to change it to this big fox?

Even if claws and tails are needed, can't kemonomimi (animal-eared girls) do the same thing?

"Human! You're dead!"

Seeing the boy still stubborn even as death approached, the Herrscher of Erosion was completely enraged. Wisps of black mist surged from all parts of the Stigmata Space, condensing into a huge Purple Core in the sky.

Although the Herrscher Core, which is its true form, is still sealed by means left over from the Previous Civilization, the current Herrscher of Erosion still has the power to condense a similar energy core.

As the Purple Core appeared, the white fox was instantly enveloped in a purple halo, and its already enormous size swelled even further.

The speed of the long tail's swing suddenly increased several times, Shi Hen's body was hit by the long tail like a tennis ball and slammed into the ruins of the shrine.

At the same time, nine huge fireballs rapidly formed around the Purple Core high in the sky, as if nine suns had suddenly appeared in the sky.

The flames blazed fiercely, and the temperature in the air rose rapidly. Even the ruins of the shrine suddenly sprouted several more flames.

Yae Shrine is a wooden building, so it naturally cannot withstand high temperatures.

In an instant, the entire Stigmata Space seemed to be engulfed in a sea of fire.

This was merely the prelude to the Herrscher of Erosion's attack.

Die, humans!

The white fox roared to the sky, and nine fireballs crashed down on the boy's location like falling meteorites.

Boom boom boom—

Nine loud explosions followed one after another, and the ruins were instantly engulfed in flames. The aftershocks from the impact alone covered half of the divine community's domain.

Swept away by the aftershocks and witnessing the boy being engulfed by flames, Yae Sakura finally snapped out of her self-reproach and looked at the sea of fire before her, unable to help but scream, "Hen!"

Tears streamed down her cheeks, and despair once again covered the Miko's face.

Once again... she killed the person who wanted to save her.

Just like she did to Kallen five hundred years ago.

The image of Kallen lying in a pool of blood flashed through her mind, overlapping with the scene of Shi Hen being swallowed by a sea of fire before her eyes, and Yae Sakura's heart slowly sank into an abyss.

"Yes, that's right, that's it." Watching the Miko's face slowly lose its luster, the white fox couldn't help but grin. "Look, Yae Sakura, you've caused someone else's death once again."

What meaning could your remaining life, barely clinging to life, possibly have?

"Give up, surrender your body to me, let me destroy all the sins in the world, destroy those damned humans!"

As she spoke, the Herrscher of Erosion controlled the billowing black mist to engulf and cover the Miko's skin inch by inch.

As the sea of fire grew ever stronger before her, Yae Sakura sensed the Herrscher of Erosion's actions, but she remained stunned and offered no resistance.

Yes, continuing to struggle will only hurt those around us, so it's better to stop here.

Let this life come to an end here.

Call out!

Just Setsuna the black mist was about to completely engulf the Miko, a golden spear suddenly shot out, forcing the darkness that had reached Yae Sakura's neck to retreat and disperse.

"I'm sorry, Herrscher, but I can't agree with what you're saying." The raging sea of fire parted from within, revealing the figure of a black-haired youth carrying a cross as tall as himself. It was as if even the flames were submitting to him and dared not offend him. "Whether Miss Sakura's life has value is not for you to decide."

As he spoke, Shi Hen dragged the incredibly heavy cross toward the Miko, leaving a deep scratch in his wake.

"Human, what have you done!?"

Unable to resist taking a step back, the white fox let out a roar filled with rage.

"As you can see, I am merely following in the footsteps of the Saintess Maiden."

He spoke softly, Shi Hen looked up and gave a tired but bright smile.

He was not the master of this Stigmata Space, nor did he possess the authority of Herrscher of Erosion.

Therefore, only when the Herrscher of Erosion unleashes his full power can he find and draw out the power left behind by Kallen.

Ignoring the snarling white fox, Shi Hen slammed the golden cross heavily in front of the Miko, raising his chin slightly as he looked down at the fox-eared girl before him. "Yae Sakura, if you don't want the Saintess's sacrifice to be in vain, then come forward and take this oath."

Prove to me that you deserve to be saved!

Chapter 115 The Last Divine Key

"Your Excellency Knight..."

Looking at the black-haired youth in front of her, who was covered in wounds but still seemed completely unconcerned, Yae Sakura felt as if she had been transported back five hundred years.

At that time, there was also a White-haired Girl, despite being covered in wounds, stubbornly wanted to save her.

Five hundred years ago, she was so engrossed in her own sorrow and pain that she was unable to respond to the girl's expectations.

But this time, she will never let the same thing happen again.

Reaching out, she tore off the remaining black mist from her body. The Miko's expression gradually hardened as she reached out and grabbed at the Golden Cross before her.

"You wretched brat!"

The white fox roared, and the energy core in the air instantly ignited, turning into a huge fireball that crashed straight into the ground.

Five hundred years ago, He was sealed away once by Kallen with the Judas's Oath, so He naturally knew how powerful this force was.

Even when it was in the hands of that human boy, it was still unafraid, because the other party was unable to truly control this power.

But Yae Sakura... this power from the Key of Binding was originally a gift left by Kallen to the Miko.

Once Yae Sakura masters this power, coupled with her status as the master of the Stigmata Space, there will be no possibility of corrupting her.

Therefore, even if it means burning everything, He must stop the other side!

Its core burned as it crashed to the ground, like a purple sun, carrying an irresistible force.

Although it is fewer in number than the nine fireballs from before, this core contains all the Honkai Energy the Herrscher of Erosion can currently mobilize, and its full power is enough to destroy half of the Stigmata Space.

"Excuse me, Herrscher, could you give us a few more seconds?"

Shi Hen slightly raised his hand, and a white plum blossom with five petals appeared in the air diagonally above him. In an instant, it bloomed and acted as a shield, firmly protecting the two of them.

Interrupting someone's transformation is very impolite.

Boom!

As the core crashed, countless cracks instantly appeared on the Abyss Flower, and wisps of purple flame seeped in from the cracks, followed by a terrifyingly high temperature.

But at the same time, Yae Sakura also embraced the vow given to her by Kallen.

The golden cross instantly turned into a cherry blossom-pink color, and the panel on the main body opened to both sides, from which one Crimson Katana after another sprang and flew, forming a sword array that tore towards the purple sun.

The Abyss Flower barrier shattered just in time, but before the sun could truly erupt, the scarlet sword formation had already arrived.

As the blades danced, the blazing Purple Core instantly extinguished and shrank like morning dew under the sun, vanishing into nothingness in the blink of an eye.

When Yae Sakura is in utter despair, the entire Stigmata Space, along with the Miko's body, will belong to the Herrscher of Erosion.

In other words, if hope is rekindled in the girl's heart, she will also have the ability to fight against the Herrscher of Erosion.

"Kallen Kaslana!"

The white fox roared to the sky, its voice filled with malice.

When He first broke free from the seal, His opponent risked their life to stop Him.

But now, five hundred years have passed, and the Nun, being human, should have long since died without a trace, yet the remaining power of the other party is still able to suppress Him.

Despite harboring deep resentment towards the Nun, the white fox, having lost even its energy core, had no choice but to use its own body to withstand the relentless crimson sword formation.

Its six tails swayed incessantly, resembling a long dragon soaring through the air, but Crimson Katana, as if guided by eyes, pierced the fox's tails with perfect accuracy, silencing it instantly.