"A third-rate curse with a fourth-rate technique, trying to show off fifth-rate hand-to-hand skills."
Watching Sukuna retreat into the body, Dark Amber offered her critique.
Sukuna, who could observe the outside, instantly saw red. But he'd already made his grand exit.
As a being who understood strength, he knew the weak had no right to speak. In his currently incomplete state, any retort would just sound like the frantic yapping of a beaten dog.
It was better to pretend he hadn't heard it.
But one thing he had to admit: compared to this girl's baffling, unpredictable technique, his own did lack something in its fundamental mechanics.
Damn it all! To be looked down upon to this extent by such a minor character!
Dark Amber couldn't be bothered to keep mocking someone playing dead. With the matter resolved, she handed control back to Amber.
Amber, worried that Yuji might permanently die if she was too slow, hurried over. She quickly swapped to the Core of the Herrscher of Death.
'You really don't need to be in such a rush,' Dark Amber said, unhurried.
'The Herrscher of Death might not be able to resurrect people in the Honkai world, but in most other worlds, bringing someone back to life is quite simple. After all, most worldviews acknowledge the existence of souls.'
'Huh…?' Amber was confused. 'But… I can't see any souls…'
'You can't see them simply because you lack the concept,' Dark Amber explained, shrugging mentally.
'We lived in the Type-Moon world for so long, we became very familiar with the shape and existence of souls. You didn't think we lived for thousands of years without learning anything, did you? Well, I only lived for a few decades.'
During those five thousand years after Amber fell into a slumber, they hadn't just holed up in the mountains doing nothing.
They had continuously refined their cultivation and martial arts, often encountering strange fortunes and sudden enlightenments.
Compared to when they were first summoned, the three of them were now far beyond their former selves.
It was a pity Dark Amber had no physical form.
Though Fu Hua had relented and taught her the Taixu Sword Intent, it was limited to mental and spiritual cultivation. Even that alone was enough for her to overcome most beings.
What was even more outrageous were Fu Hua and the Herrscher of Sentience. Their level had long surpassed anything seen in their original story.
Dark Amber couldn't see through their true strength, but by her estimate, even if they weren't Emanators, they were incredibly close, or perhaps had already become ones.
'Oh… uh…' Amber honestly hadn't thought about any of this.
Mainly because she had no real concept of that much time. A few thousand years? Even a few hundred was an astronomical number she couldn't grasp.
Having lived less than twenty years herself, a few decades and a few millennia felt equally abstract. But setting aside impressions and thinking rationally, she could begin to grasp the vastness of that number.
'So, you don't need to worry about life and death in most worlds. With the Core of the Herrscher of Death, as long as the soul remains, there's no one you can't bring back,' Dark Amber stated.
'...I understand.'
This was good news for Amber. She nodded, her hands not slowing as she channeled the power of Creation into the prone form of Yuji Itadori.
This was creation on a genetic level, effortlessly reviving the dead and regenerating flesh and bone.
A pity it could only create, not modify… Wait, no. It was called creation, but what was created was ultimately decided by the user, right?
With sufficient knowledge, couldn't one rewrite DNA at will? Turning male to female, big to small, should be easy.
But alas, Amber could only instinctively perform crude, brute-force reassembly and repair based on the target's own genetic blueprint.
'So much for the power being based on "whatever I think"! You still have to study!'
Dark Amber sighed mentally. 'The authorities in other worlds might work on "whatever I think," but the powers in Honkai Impact 3rd generally require some knowledge… Well, for basic use, you could call it "whatever I think." But if you want to get fancy, you need to use your brain.'
Amber was deeply dissatisfied. She got angry, and then… that was it.
The fury of an academic underachiever could only go so far. 'I can achieve things under anger I normally can't… except for science and math problems.'
If only the Herrscher core had an AI that could automatically turn my thoughts into reality!
As the power of Creation flowed, Yuji's eyes gradually fluttered open. He looked dazed for a moment, then immediately sat up. "Seele…chan? Why are you here? And that cursed spirit… and Sukuna?"
"The incident is resolved, Itadori-senpai," Amber said, quickly reassuring him seeing his confusion and tension. "There's no need to worry. Everything is safe now."
"Ah… I see…" Yuji scratched his head, a bit slow on the uptake.
He had lost consciousness when he was on the verge of death, his heart filled with negative emotions.
Waking up so abruptly, it was natural to be a little emotionally overwhelmed. After taking a moment to catch his breath, he finally calmed down.
"By the way, why are you here, Seele-chan?"
He looked around. With the domain dissolved, the detention center had returned to normal. They were now in the corridor.
Though 'normal' was relative—the fight between Sukuna and Amber had still caused significant damage, with visible rubble and collapsed walls not far away.
"Because my other self said everyone might be in danger, Seele rushed back immediately," Amber explained.
"Eh?! But what about your Special Grade qualification exam, Seele-chan!?" Yuji exclaimed in surprise.
"Itadori-senpai, you should worry about yourself more than Seele!" Amber was touched, but she needed to emphasize the seriousness of the situation.
"If Seele hadn't returned in time this time, you really would have died."
"Even Sukuna couldn't beat that cursed spirit?" The straightforward Yuji assumed it was a simple matter of combat power—both were Special Grade, so it was normal for Sukuna to lose.
Hearing this, Amber didn't react much, but Sukuna, observing from within, felt his blood pressure spike.
How dare that trash, who could have been annihilated in an instant, be lumped in the same category as him? And 'even Sukuna couldn't beat it'?
"Sukuna is the King of Curses. Aside from my other self, there probably isn't a curse that can defeat him," Amber clarified Sukuna's dangerous nature before explaining what had actually happened.
Hearing about the danger he had been in and that he had almost harmed the junior he cared for, Yuji Itadori's previously relaxed expression turned serious.
He pressed his lips together, truly confronting the evil essence of Sukuna for the first time.
"I understand. I'm sorry for making you worry, Seele." Yuji wasn't the type to ignore advice. Knowing he had walked right up to death's door and would have died if his junior hadn't awakened a healing technique, he expressed his gratitude sincerely.
"By the way, where are Fushiguro and the others? And your exam, Seele?"
Even taking this seriously didn't mean he'd ignore his friends' situations.
"Fushiguro-senpai and Kugisaki-senpai sustained some injuries, but they aren't serious," Amber reported.
"Seele came here first because she was afraid something might happen to you, Itadori-senpai. Now that you're alright, Seele will go heal Fushiguro-senpai and Kugisaki-senpai. As for the exam, because that cursed spirit happened to be weak against my technique, it's already over."
"Okay, I'm fine. Let's go down together. And also…" Yuji gave a grateful and congratulatory smile.
"Congratulations on passing the exam, Seele-chan."
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T/N: Yuji may as well not have existed for a majority of the story, but hes still a w mans
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T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.