The golden hairpin lost its hold.
Released from beneath a noble coronet, the black silk of her hair cascaded down like a waterfall. The girl, not particularly tall, slowly opened her eyes—
"What is this?"
The bewilderment did not last long.
The next moment, the girl, whose vision had just returned, was instantly startled by the behemoth before her… or more accurately, by the behemoth's eyes, which were larger and brighter than the bonfires that rose during a tribal feast.
In an instant, the girl subconsciously gripped the longsword that had fallen to the ground. Though she hadn't yet figured out what had happened and her appearance was somewhat disheveled, she could still clearly feel the faint but unceasing "qi" within her body, as well as the weight of the weapon in her hand.
"What manner of demon are you!"
Her thoughts quickly returned to the scene just before she lost consciousness:
With the aid of a Lungwort Herb, she wielded the [Xuanyuan Sword] and, along with her partner [Jingwei], dove into the deep sea trench known as "Jiu You." There, with the help of two "gods," she engaged Chiyou in a final, decisive battle.
And in the end—
"Demon?"
"You seem to have misunderstood something."
A deafening voice echoed directly in her mind, and the "qi" she had just managed to gather was instantly scattered and dissipated by the terrifying pressure. As she had drawn her sword and retreated, the girl was also able to glimpse the full form of the massive creature—
A golden dragon, a thousand zhang in length.
"…"
Unlike the "white and purple" color scheme of the people of Jiu You, and unlike their corrosive, tyrannical aura, the presence projected by the dragon before her was boundlessly immense. Yet, upon closer inspection, one could discover a sense of reassuring righteousness and peace.
To have just called such a being a "demon"—
"I pray you forgive my offense."
The girl did not lower her longsword, but instead brought it up in a warrior's salute, her fist clasped over the hilt.
"I am of the Xuanyuan clan."
"I was locked in a desperate battle with Chiyou, the Lord of Jiu You…"
Ji Lin (Ji Xuanyuan) finally took the opportunity while speaking to survey her surroundings.
A single glance revealed the strangeness of the place: the dark waters beneath her feet felt like solid ground, and a brilliant river of stars stretched across the sky above.
This was no place she knew.
Although the land of Jiu You had a similar color palette, it would never possess such a magnificent and beautiful quality.
"Ji Lin."
The giant dragon spoke the girl's name directly.
"This place lies beneath Jiu You (the Sea Abyss), also known as the 'Netherworld' (the Quantum Sea), a place where the bodies and souls of all things decay."
"I am not a creature of this world."
"I was traveling the starry river and happened to pass by. Saving you was merely a matter of convenience."
---o---
"Not a creature of this world?"
Ji Lin first questioned this statement, then quickly understood its weight:
According to the two "gods," Fuxi (Cangxuan) and Nüwa (Danzhu), a truly great terror lay beneath Jiu You. If one were to fall into it, even the power of a "god" would not be enough to escape. This was the very reason Ji Lin had chosen to use herself as a seal to cast Chiyou into this place.
Incidentally, the two individuals revered in Shenzhou as the "God Who Perceives All Things" and the "God Who Creates All Things," Cangxuan and Danzhu, were in fact the predecessors from the Previous Era chosen to carry out "Project FIRESEED" alongside Hua—a plan to adapt the most important knowledge of the Previous Era into myths and legends, spreading them across Shenzhou via a quantum computer.
Although only three "gods" had "descended" upon the world (Cangxuan, Danzhu, and Hua), the "gods" in the "myriad heavens" who were even more powerful than them were still as numerous as the stars.
Ji Lin never doubted the words of the two gods.
After all, their power was far beyond what any of the tribes could compare to—the "divine artifact" in her hand, the Xuanyuan Sword, was the best proof of that.
And speaking of those two gods and "friends"—
"May I be so bold as to ask for your sacred name?"
"…You may call me 'Yinglong'."
The Monarch thought for a moment. If he gave his real name, she might not understand it. Given his current form, the title "Yinglong" seemed most appropriate.
"Lord Yinglong."
Ji Lin's hands, clasped in a salute, had not lowered from the very beginning.
"I wonder if you are an old acquaintance of the two lords, 'Fuxi' and 'Nüwa'?"
Ji Lin evidently assumed that beings on the level of "gods" would all know each other, so her question was not out of place.
"…"
"I know a little of them."
Lu Xing, who had been going along with Ji Lin's conversation, was certainly not going to interrupt her now. Those two treasures, Danzhu and Cangxuan, how could he not "know" them? One was the quiet, multitalented older sister who was skilled in both literary and martial arts (Cangxuan), and the other was the anime fanatic and master figure-crafter of a younger sister (Danzhu). Their images were still quite clear in his mind.
"I beg of you, please save them!"
---o---
"…"
"I see."
When gods interfere in the mortal world, the heavenly dao descends with punishment.
This was the explanation Danzhu and Cangxuan had given Ji Lin. Technology that far exceeded the developmental stage of the civilization had given birth to a Judgment-class Honkai Beast of Chiyou's caliber on the lands of Shenzhou, which was still in its tribal era.
To atone for their mistake, Danzhu and Cangxuan had accompanied Ji Lin to Jiu You to battle Chiyou. They simultaneously sacrificed themselves, transforming their power into a seal to restrain Chiyou's two Honkai cores, which was then cast into the Quantum Sea at Ji Lin's hand.
And that was why Ji Lin had appeared here.
It was also the reason she was pleading with the Monarch for help. Only a god could save a god, and the "Yinglong" who had appeared before Ji Lin's eyes perfectly matched the description Danzhu and Cangxuan had given of a "god more powerful than them."
The Monarch simply stared at Ji Lin for a long time.
This girl was neither tall nor majestic. To put it bluntly, she was just an ordinary person who had awakened a Stigma (and shouldered her destiny). The chief of the Youxiong clan, Shaodian, whose tribe had been annihilated by Honkai Beasts, was unable to wield the power of the Xuanyuan Sword and had his daughter Ji Lin flee with it. On the brink of exhaustion, she awakened her Stigma and activated the sword's power.
"I can."
Awakening a Stigma was nothing special.
But to be able to suppress a Judgment-class Honkai Beast like "Chiyou" with only a Stigma and a Key of Domination was exceptionally rare. Although it was nominally only Judgment-class, "Chiyou" was described as having "swallowed half of Shenzhou in one bite."
Even though its size and power were greatly diminished due to having its two cores sealed in succession, that did not lessen its fearsomeness.
"Growing continuously by devouring continents."
Such potential was something only a few Doomsday-class beasts were capable of.
"However—"
The Monarch's tone shifted.
"Everything has a price."
"Ji Lin, to save 'two' gods…"
"What do you believe can be used as a counterweight to bring the scales into balance?"
Saving two people was a trivial matter for the Monarch.
But it had nothing to do with the purpose of his trip. As a side quest, it was difficult to attract someone to complete it without a sufficient reward.
However, the Monarch's words did not frighten Ji Lin.
From the moment she opened her eyes until now, determination had never once faded from her gaze—
"All that I possess, I give to you!"