The Abyss

Jiang Xiaofeng said to Aether, "You know, those two things inside me."

"Can you destroy them?"

Aether fell silent for a moment.

Jiang Xiaofeng continued, "Once they're destroyed, you can take the two ruined things away to study."

"I don't know whether they'll be useful to you, but that's the most useful thing I can offer."

Seeing that Aether was still deep in thought, Jiang Xiaofeng said, "You wouldn't want me bullying your sister, would you?"

Aether said, "I agree."

Jiang Xiaofeng nodded.

You just had to make me bring Lumine into this... Aren't you just asking for it...?

Dainsleif: "..."

Mr. Beheaded, please calm down.

Aether turned and opened a door. "Follow me."

Jiang Xiaofeng patted Dainsleif on the shoulder. "Nothing left for you to do here."

Jiang Xiaofeng checked that the Cursed Sword was in his backpack, then stepped through the doorway Aether had opened.

Dainsleif released the Hydro Herald in his grasp.

Jiang Xiaofeng suddenly poked his head back out. "I just remembered, you can't open a door straight into the Abyss, can you?"

"Ah, whatever. Wish me luck."

With those last words, Jiang Xiaofeng went through the door, and it closed completely.

Dainsleif fell silent.

Only after a long while did Dainsleif open a door and leave.

Meanwhile, in the Abyss.

Jiang Xiaofeng stared at the pitch-black Abyss. "..."

"Am I blind?"

Jiang Xiaofeng felt his face.

Aether's voice suddenly rang out. "How do you want me to do this?"

Jiang Xiaofeng reflexively shot back, "How do you want to do it?"

Aether appeared before him and tapped his hand.

Jiang Xiaofeng lowered the hand covering his face.

"Are you sure you want me to use my own method?"

Aether asked again to confirm.

Although Jiang Xiaofeng couldn't see, he still nodded.

Aether drew his sword and thrust it straight through Jiang Xiaofeng.

Crack...

The sound of shattering glass rang out.

Jiang Xiaofeng gripped the sword, feeling the collapse within his body.

"Detected... ted..."

"Distributing..."

"System shutting down soon... Host has obtained..."

"Obtained... Wrath of the Dead... Darkness Falls..."

"Good... luck..."

Jiang Xiaofeng silently listened to the voice in his head.

After a long moment, he spoke.

"Sure enough, you were up to no good."

Aether shook his head.

"I have to eliminate every destabilizing factor around Lumine!"

Jiang Xiaofeng asked, "What about that little Paimon, then?"

Aether said nothing. The black energy on his sword suddenly erupted, surging toward Jiang Xiaofeng.

"In keeping with our contract, I've destroyed that thing inside you. I don't intend to take the remains, either."

"But I must take your life!"

Jiang Xiaofeng closed his eyes, feeling the shattering within him. He chuckled twice, then suddenly raised his foot and kicked at Aether!

Jiang Xiaofeng pulled himself straight off Aether's sword.

"Haha, so that's how it works! I really have you to thank for destroying that sucker of a system first!"

Jiang Xiaofeng laughed loudly, paying no attention whatsoever to his wound as his entire body kept spinning in the Abyss.

He had finally grasped the connection between the world of Dead Cells and the world of Genshin Impact!

It had been hiding inside him all along!

Jiang Xiaofeng took out the Cursed Sword and swung it fiercely, driving Aether back with a scarlet slash of light.

Then the Cursed Sword stabbed downward beneath his feet, suspended in midair.

The entire Abyss began to shake!

Aether was startled. "What did you do?!"

Jiang Xiaofeng said nothing as the collapsing Abyss swallowed him.

In the final instant before he vanished, all Aether saw was Jiang Xiaofeng giving him the middle finger...

Aether: "..."

Aether stared at the spot where Jiang Xiaofeng had disappeared, his expression shifting uncertainly.

Finally, Aether turned and left without a word.

This operation was a total loss...

Jiang Xiaofeng kept sinking through the void.

Aether had broken the system, and the Cursed Sword had broken the Abyss.

I don't know when they'll recover, but that's none of my business.

Jiang Xiaofeng felt his body growing colder and emptier, and gave a comfortable shiver.

Throughout the process, Jiang Xiaofeng's flesh gradually disintegrated, and invisible, glasslike fragments scattered out of it.

Those were the system inside Jiang Xiaofeng. Following Aether's destruction and the disintegration of Jiang Xiaofeng's flesh, the system, on the verge of being completely ruined, separated from his body on its own.

Although his flesh had disintegrated, his flame-shaped head remained unchanged for the moment.

Just before his flesh disintegrated, Jiang Xiaofeng raised his hand and tossed the still-glowing Hydro Vision into his head to devour it.

An endless stream of Hydro began gathering within his own power.

"I should've done this ages ago..."

Jiang Xiaofeng gradually sank.

At the same time, Jiang Xiaofeng began burning his head, attempting to devour the Abyss's power.

After repeated attempts, Jiang Xiaofeng gave up.

"Forget it. There's nothing about the Abyss's power that appeals to me anyway..."

Jiang Xiaofeng felt the power of time.

And that "Waypoint" deep within his mind.

"I'd better get ready to head to the world of Dead Cells."

"It's just a shame about that system. It really didn't seem to mean any harm..."

Jiang Xiaofeng made a shell out of Geo so his flame-shaped head could rest with its "feet on solid ground."

Then Jiang Xiaofeng recalled the Cursed Sword.

The power the Cursed Sword gave him felt stronger.

Jiang Xiaofeng pondered silently.

Just where did the Cursed Sword come from?

Why could it devour every "negative" status?

Or perhaps I should ask, where did the system come from?

Before long, Jiang Xiaofeng stopped thinking.

Then he gradually extinguished his flames, returning to his original mossy head, and attached himself to the Cursed Sword.

"Let's go take a look at our 'homeland.'"

The shadows of Jiang Xiaofeng and the Cursed Sword flickered in the Abyss.

They vanished straight out of the ice-cold Abyss.

Meanwhile, elsewhere...

The shattered system was also gradually disappearing.

The system, which had already fallen silent, suddenly lit up.

"Abyss detected... Disappearance of Waypoint detected... Generating..."

"System destruction imminent... Please... fend for yourself..."

"Generating... assistance..."

After those final words rang out, the system went completely silent.

At the same time, the system's fragments gradually changed shape, merging with the energy spilling out of them to form a white half-skull mask.

The system's remaining power captured a wisp of aura from the Abyss and merged it into the "shell."

The shell shuddered and turned into a tiny humanoid.

The little figure looked around. Although his surroundings felt incredibly familiar, he subconsciously felt that this wasn't where he should stay.

Then he took a strange, gleaming short sword with patterns on it from behind his back, sliced open the Abyss out of thin air, and headed toward the bright place before him.

He didn't know what he should do.

Everything he did was instinctive.

Though he clearly felt that he hated the light, he couldn't resist wanting to approach it.

He had only faint remnants of memories.

In his memories, he had been killing nonstop?

But why?

The little fellow stood on a cliff, looking at the enormous city dotted with windmills on the other side.

"..."

The little fellow left the cliff.

He approached a strange person, wanting to talk to him.

But this masked fellow only knew to raise a club and strike him.

Even though he has power similar to mine inside him...

The tiny thing, only half the Hilichurl's height, easily drew his nail and beheaded the attacking Hilichurl before him with a single strike.

Mora popped out of the Hilichurl's body.

The little fellow picked up several Mora and left.

If Jiang Xiaofeng had still been there, the sight of this little fellow would definitely have left him gaping in astonishment.

Then he would have recited to the little fellow those famous words that were as good as a famous quote, even if they weren't one.

No mind to think.

No will to bend.

No voice to cry suffering.

Born of "God" and the "Hand of Void."

You shall seal the "Blinding Light" that spreads the plague in everyone's dreams.

You are the Vessel.

You are the Hollow Knight.

(Mischief exclusive to The Beheaded)