Carmella left the waiting room in a daze.
It wasn't that they were uncooperative with the interview. On the contrary, the group was so enthusiastically cooperative that she thought she'd been trapped in an Infinite Tsukuyomi.
Especially that boy named Fuli. First, he grabbed his older cousin and blew her trumpet to high heaven, praising her as a peerless existence unmatched in the heavens and earth, claiming her participation in the tournament was basically a multidimensional smurfing session.
Still unsatisfied, he casually dragged Miyuki Asakura into the frame and began an endless, torrential monologue detailing all the young girl's overwhelming strengths.
In Fuli's eyes, there was absolutely nothing wrong with this. How was he supposed to know that the Deva Path currently only worked on Miyuki herself and him, a special exception?
That was a rule-breaking, strategic-class natural Stigmata on par with the First Zeroth Power of the Abyss Flower! Boosting Honkai energy recovery and granting hyper-regeneration were merely its most basic applications; its future potential was virtually limitless.
With a setup like that, how could she possibly lose? It's literally impossible, okay?!
As for the consequences of his actions...
I-I'm doomed!
Just half an hour later, Miyuki stared blankly at the news headline currently sitting at the absolute top of the trending charts on her terminal.
[SHOCKING! The Biggest Dark Horse of the Wardance Appears at St. Freya! In-Depth Analysis of Championship Seed: Miyuki Asakura!]
It looked as if every ounce of strength had been completely vacuumed from her body. She looked like she wanted to cry but had no tears left.
Fuli's astronomical popularity needed no explanation. Regardless of whether they were fans or haters, anything that came out of his mouth was guaranteed to attract a tidal wave of attention and discussion.
And the primary focus of all those eyes was now squarely on Miyuki Asakura.
Fu Hua?
She was a dignified A-rank Valkyrie. Defeating a simulated ancient hero whose stats were capped at B-rank was common sense, wasn't it? What was there to make a fuss about?
Everyone had to adapt to the meta and understand the patch notes.
Just like when AlphaGo appeared, every human player's Go style had to shift toward AI strategies to some extent; even if you were the world champion, you had to bow to the new era. It was the same in MOBA games—every patch spawned new gods. Some teams that dominated the mid-season invitational could barely scrape by into the top eight at the world championships.
Compared to the massive melting pot of modern combat, the matchmaking environment of the 'ancient server'—even if they left their names in history—was severely outdated. Aside from a very select few anomalies, their comprehensive combat strength naturally fell far short of modern powerhouses.
Because of this logic, and bolstered by Carmella's sensationalist article, gambling pools betting on whether Miyuki Asakura could take the championship sprouted like mushrooms after rain the moment the trending search dropped.
Many people, adopting a 'better to believe than miss out' mentality—or simply wanting to join the hype train—began throwing their chips behind this newly crowned dark horse.
The sheer weight of these sudden, massive expectations instantly plunged the terminally socially anxious 'Bocchi' into absolute despair. She slumped into a kneeling ORZ position in the corner of the room, turning into an ash-white, vaguely human-shaped statue.
Seeing the young girl seemingly about to vomit out her translucent soul, the notoriously dense Fuli finally realized something might be wrong.
He leaned close to his older cousin, lowering his voice until his lips were almost brushing against her jade-white ear, and muttered, "Did I hype her up a bit too much just now?"
Hua had grown somewhat accustomed to the boy's occasional intimate gestures over the past few months. She shook her head, her tone as calm and steadfast as ever:
"No."
Honestly, asking her was pointless. No matter what Fuli did—even if he literally punched a hole in the ozone layer—Fu Hua would probably just smile, praise him with a "Well struck, little cousin," and then try to figure out how to pull a Nuwa and patch the sky back up.
Moreover, the girl didn't think Miyuki Asakura had zero chance of winning. The young girl might always act timid and subservient, but Hua had witnessed her private efforts over the past few months.
Not only were her academic grades at St. Freya Academy top-notch, she had even learned a stance of the Edge of Taixu from Hua herself.
As long as she didn't run into an opponent that completely hard-countered her, if she performed normally, it wasn't impossible for her to—
"I'm back!"
A loud, vibrant voice shattered the depressed atmosphere in the waiting room. They didn't even need to look up to know it was Himeko returning.
"Just went to catch up with a few branch directors next door who also brought their students to compete. While I was at it, I snagged our matchup list for the first round."
Waving a freshly printed document in her hand, the mature beauty grinned. "Your luck is terrible, Little Miyuki. Your opponent is actually one of the High-Cloud Quintet."
Oh, it's over then. Fu Hua made her judgment instantly.
Yuno, however, still clung to a sliver of hope and pressed, "Don't keep us in suspense, Miss Himeko! There are five members of the Quintet; which one is it specifically?"
Knowing who it is isn't going to help her, Fuli retorted inwardly. Having been thoroughly "disciplined" by Jingliu night after night, to the point of almost adopting her habits, he knew exactly how monstrous they were.
"Unfortunately, it's the one whose tactical style is the absolute worst match for Little Miyuki: the genius pilot, Baiheng." Himeko leaned against the wall, crossing her arms. "And by the way, the randomly selected battlefield is a dense jungle environment, which happens to be her absolute specialty."
"The worst possible draw. It's completely over." Yuno gave up all hope and collapsed onto the sofa.
Foxians were born with senses and impossibly agile reflexes that vastly surpassed normal humans. They were innate masters of piloting and experts at long-range sniping.
Baiheng was the absolute pinnacle among them. Her archery skills had reached the absolute zenith—when she drew her carved bow like a full moon, no one could match her.
And Miyuki Asakura?
Just like her master, she was a standard close-combat brawler.
Unsurprisingly, the moment the matchup was announced to the public, Miyuki Asakura's odds of losing skyrocketed on the betting platforms, turning it into a guaranteed, zero-risk payout for betting against her.
Many gamblers who had impulsively bet on her earlier immediately began cursing. The discussion forums were instantly flooded with incredibly toxic, passive-aggressive, and highly aggressive comments.
The foul stench of cyberbullying seemed to seep right through the screen, making the already fragile 'Bocchi' tremble even violently. Before long, she had curled herself into a perfect Asakura-sphere with a radius of thirty centimeters.
A hand rested on her shoulder. "They're just a bunch of bitter, sharp-tongued gamblers. Don't pay any attention to them."
Himeko dropped her teasing demeanor, her voice full of encouragement.
The girl's body shuddered twice, but she didn't look up.
You couldn't say the comfort was completely useless, but it was basically entirely useless.
The observant Yuno, however, noticed something else. After returning from her trip, the uniquely styled bracelet on Himeko's wrist had vanished. Confused, she asked:
"Miss Himeko, where is your Void Bracelet?"
That item, much like the Time Fracture technology, was a precious gadget developed by Schicksal's 4th Laboratory by studying the remains of the 2nd Herrscher. When activated, it allowed the user to briefly enter Imaginary Space to evade attacks. Aside from conceptual, karmic, or space-time type attacks, absolutely nothing could harm the wearer.
Although the user would be forced out after a maximum of ten seconds and the cooldown was a full twenty-four hours, it was undeniably an ultimate trump card for turning the tables in a critical moment.
"Oh, this? Well, like I said, I was catching up with a few branch directors." Himeko explained casually. "As we were chatting, someone suggested we make a little prediction on whose student would go further. I think our Little Miyuki has a ton of potential, so I threw the bracelet into the pot."
Hearing this, Fuli couldn't help but look at her with a trace of pity.
"What a shame."
Such a fantastic life-saving item was practically being thrown into the ocean.
"A shame? What's a shame?" The older woman shot him a weird look. "If I really lose, can't I just back out of the bet?"
"What if the other branch directors lose and want to back out too?"
"Then they're way too shameless!" Himeko's eyes went wide with absolute shock, as if she had just heard something entirely incomprehensible.
Fuli: ?
Sis, isn't there something fundamentally wrong with your logic?
"Just kidding~" Himeko chuckled, seeing the boy's utterly baffled expression.
Then, her tone shifted into absolute seriousness, and a powerful wave of confidence radiated from her. "Besides, I don't believe for a second that the precious disciple I, Murata Himeko, have personally trained for half a year would lose to a mere projection on equal footing—even if that projection is a legendary hero whose name is etched in history!"
This unreserved trust and sheer bravado brought a sudden quiet to the waiting room.
The cold, mechanical voice of the PA system chimed in at the perfect moment: [Competitor Fu Hua of Schicksal St. Freya. Competitor Fu Hua of Schicksal St. Freya. Your match is about to begin. Please proceed immediately to the main gladiatorial arena in the center of the ship to prepare...]
"Looks like it's time for you to take the stage." Himeko looked over at the silently sitting Fu Hua, a dashing smile curving her lips. "Ready to stun the crowd, Hua?"
The young girl didn't say a word, simply standing up calmly. She took off the plain glasses—which were more for decoration than practical use—and walked steadily toward the door.
Fuli naturally followed right behind her.
The cousins left the waiting room, walking down the high corridor toward the arena sector.
Looking down from the edge of the walkway, the funnel-shaped grandstands—capable of holding tens of thousands of spectators—were already packed to the brim. Multiple massive, floating holographic screens broadcasted every detail of the central arena from various angles in real-time.
The chaotic roar of countless voices merged into a massive shockwave of sound that shot straight into the clouds. It was a good thing it was currently the golden autumn of September; if it had been the dead of summer, the atmosphere would have been unimaginably stifling.
Fuli suddenly remembered a crucial question: "Oh right, cousin, who is your opponent this time?"
He had been so focused on worrying about Miyuki Asakura that he'd almost forgotten to ask.
Hearing this, a highly complex emotion flashed across Fu Hua's face. "Xiao Yun."
The boy's pupils shrank drastically, and he gave her a genuine thumbs-up. "As expected of my cousin! Even your random opponent draw is absolutely top-tier!"
Yes, their Hua was just that 'lucky'.
Who was Xiao Yun?
In 554 BCE, a female swordswoman dressed in red descended from the mountains wielding a simple iron sword. She challenged the world and rarely met her match.
She wore red, her surname was Xiao, and her single-character given name was Yun.
Over three years, her footprints covered the entirety of the Shenzhou continent, and the number of monsters and wicked bandits that fell to her blade were countless.
Until she fought a bitter battle against the demonic beast Qiongqi in the Northern Wastes, staining the land with blood for hundreds of miles.
Xiao Yun was, in the end, merely mortal. After fighting fiercely for three days and nights, she collapsed from exhaustion.
Afterward, the Qiongqi was defeated by the Celestial Phoenix, who arrived just in time.
Up to this point, it seemed like just the story of an admirable, yet not entirely unreachable, ancient heroine.
But in 549 BCE, Xiao Yun—who had miraculously survived on the brink of death—ascended Mount Taixu. A dozen years later, she left Taixu, never to wear red again.
She traveled the world carrying a sword named Ruoshui, teaching humanity both swordsmanship and Daoist arts.
Setting aside the swordsmanship she passed down, the name of that Daoist text she taught was the Dao De Jing.
Taishang, Li Er, Laozi, Daozu...
The later generations of Shenzhou used countless names to revere this thinker, philosopher, writer, and historian. Her derived image, Taishang Laojun, was known to every household in Shenzhou, standing among the Three Purities.
Fighting against such an opponent, who cared if her stats were capped?
The moment the Ruoshui sword was drawn and the Taiji formation unfolded, the entanglement of Yin and Yang energies would likely scatter her opponent's ashes until there was absolutely nothing left!
However, for Fu Hua, the trickiest part of this battle wasn't figuring out how to win, but rather how to handle the inevitable reunion.
After all, she was the Celestial Phoenix from that story.
And yet, she had completely forgotten every single thing about Xiao Yun...
Soon, the two of them passed through the competitor's tunnel and arrived at the prep area on the edge of the battlefield.
Compared to the boiling chaos of the grandstands, this area was much quieter, with only a few staff members hurrying about in tense, orderly fashion.
Aside from them, there was another unexpected figure standing there.
Emerald green, wavy hair cascaded down to her waist, draping over her exquisitely curvy, alluring figure. Her delicate face bore a uniquely seductive, cold beauty—like a dark green rose wrapped in thorns.
Mobius was currently tilting her head, speaking softly to a tournament staff member beside her.
Catching sight of the figures appearing at the tunnel exit out of the corner of her eye—especially the handsome boy whose face immediately screamed 'Oh shit' as he tried to backpedal—she instantly launched herself forward, sprinting at him with the speed of an Olympic runner.
"It's my baby Li! I'm gonna devour him!"
"Evil spirit, begone! Demon, get out of here!"
Fuli reacted instantly, pressing a single hand against the beauty's forehead to keep her from getting any closer.
However, it was completely useless.
Not only did her plump, heavy frontal armor press heavily against his chest like twin mountains, bringing a suffocating sense of pressure; her jade legs, clad in black tights, quietly wrapped around his waist. Her toes hooked tightly behind his back, looking exactly like a nymph trying to drag Hylas into the depths of the water.
"Hoooly shiittt! This feels amazing!"
Meanwhile, instead of getting angry at having her face pushed away, Mobius let out a continuous stream of satisfied hums. A triumphant flush even bloomed on her pale cheeks from the sheer physical contact, clearly successfully siphoning the precious inspiration granted by the Grand Time-Robbing Gift directly from the boy.
"Uh..."
Hua watched, her mouth twitching.
She had previously learned a bit about the Previous Era's Mobius—the top scientist who controlled the taboos of life and possessed a bizarre, unfathomable personality—from the shared memories of Prometheus and Dr. MEI.
Even knowing that the woman in front of her was highly likely her counterpart in this current era, the contrast was staggering. One was a bizarre, seductive scientist, while the other was outwardly cold but secretly a massive simp.
The massive whiplash made it difficult for the usually aloof Celestial Phoenix to adapt.
[Honestly, there's no need to adapt,] Dr. MEI chuckled, whispering to her old friend through the Fenghuang Down connection. [Ms. Mobius's... special attitude is entirely reserved for your cute little cousin. To everyone else, she is still that incredibly dangerous Infinite Snake.]
What kind of 'Collector's Edition: I Only Have Eyes For You' nonsense is this?!
Fu Hua's feelings were incredibly complicated, but she still stepped forward and pried the two completely glued-together people apart.
"Don't go too far!"
The moment he was freed, Fuli—his face now sporting several seductive lipstick marks—immediately hid behind his older cousin.
He poked his head out, sticking his tongue out at Mobius triumphantly. "My cousin's got my back, you know? If you really piss her off, one Eminence punch will flatten you into two little pancakes!"
He looked exactly like a little boy who had finally found a parent to back him up and was suddenly overflowing with confidence.
And in a way, it was true. Since he was eight years old, this was probably the very first time an elder was actually willing to stand up for him.
Unexpectedly, the Snake just smirked. "Don't worry. Even if I really get smashed into a meat patty, I have plenty of ways to come back from the dead."
Like, for instance, molting and reviving, exactly like you~
After the London Fog incident, there was no way Mobius was going to pass up the opportunity to conduct a deep investigation into Fuli—the special material that exerted such an inexplicable attraction on her.
She vividly remembered the scene of their first meeting in London.
Originally, she had only planned to lightly peck him on the cheek. Yet, as if possessed, she had kissed the boy right on the lips, right in front of Raiden Mei.
Sure, a part of that was her scheming to slip a sample of her active biological tissue into his body so she could permanently freeload off his Grand Time-Robbing Gift aura.
But on a much deeper level, it was a primal, biological craving—an instinctual desire to combine with superior genetics, a fierce urge to breed powerful offspring.
To put it bluntly, she had practically dropped her womb right then and there.
After a series of meticulous investigations and analyses following the incident, to this day, Mobius could state with absolute certainty:
There was genuinely a Shesa factor inside Fuli's body, identical in origin to her own!
Add in Raiden Makabaka's bizarre True Name as the Herrscher of Thunder, along with the various anomalies surrounding Raiden Mei, and the truth of certain matters was practically jumping off the page.
Of course, Mobius wasn't stupid.
She would only vaguely hint that she had "backup plans," and would absolutely never be foolish enough to directly spell out, "I can also shed my skin and revive," lest she trigger the boy's sensitive nerves.
A person had to know when to play dumb, especially when the situation wasn't entirely under their control.
And so, having soaked up enough inspiration, she handed a metallic badge stamped with the symbol of the Infinite Serpent to Fu Hua. "Take this. Consider it a little insurance policy."
The girl took it, her green eyes narrowing.
Pinching the needle-like collection device that popped out of the badge between her fingers, she frowned. "What is this?"
"A save state," Mobius said matter-of-factly.
The Status Restoration Tech—a piece of black tech she had personally pioneered.
First, the badge had to perform a comprehensive scan and record the wearer's initial state.
After that, no matter what kind of trauma the wearer suffered in battle—even if their bodily tissues were obliterated or they had the monumental bad luck of being ground into a complete meat paste—as long as the complete data of the destroyed tissue could be collected afterward, pressing the restore button on the badge would instantly return the wearer to the perfect state recorded in the 'save file'.
"With this little gadget around, it'll save the medical teams on standby a lot of trouble, won't it?" Mobius yawned lazily, as if she were just discussing something utterly mundane. "Anti-Entropy is one of the behind-the-scenes sponsors for this Wardance, after all. As the executive representative, I have to contribute something to this grand event."
"I see..."
Having been exposed to the various black techs of the Honkaiverse—especially with a certain 'Doctor of Hyper-electricity' sitting at home—Fuli was already thoroughly desensitized to this sort of thing.
"Do you want it? This technology?" Mobius leaned in close again, purposely lowering her voice, her fingertips tracing a seductive path along his collarbone.
"The one I have at home will rub out something better eventually."
Swatting her wicked little hand away, the boy remained completely unmoved.
"Tch!"
It would have been better if Fuli hadn't brought it up. Just the thought of that junior, Raiden Mei, having the luxurious privilege of enjoying his 24/7 passive developmental buffs made the Snake so jealous she wanted to chew on her handkerchief.
Couldn't she be just a little more generous and share her precious boyfriend with everyone else?! How can a person be so incredibly selfish?!
If it were me... as long as my baby Li didn't escape my grasp, whatever woman he wanted, I'd kidnap her and bring her back for him to play with!
I'd even supply the toys for free!