Hua said: "I won't destroy Anti-Entropy... I don't trust it. It has gathered many highly risky individuals: Kiana, Bronya, Raiden i, and Seele. The first three have already beco Herrschers."
"Can you deny this? Aren't Theresa and Seele also highly potential Herrscher vessels? All of this is very likely part of Otto's plan."
"I refuse to beco Otto's pawn—no, that's beside the point."
"You accuse of being a Herrscher, but your evidence has no weight at all. You want to say I'm a threat, yet you can't provide a reasonable explanation."
"Let ask you this: Are you absolutely certain that you're right?"
"You say the voice in your head is Honkai's consciousness tempting you—doesn't that make you even more suspicious? You're an existence without a physical body. Your dium is a Herrscher core from the Previous Era."
"If one of us is a traitor on Honkai's side, clearly you're far more suitable than I am!"
Fu Hua stated with absolute certainty: "That is definitely not ."
Hua snorted lightly: "I can say the exact sa thing! What aning do such words have!"
She suddenly raised her voice, then said in a conciliatory tone: "Look—there are only the two of us here. I could destroy you without lifting a finger, but I haven't done so. Why?!"
"Because you're my friend! You're another . I like you! I won't kill you just because you offended —that's ironclad proof that I possess humanity, isn't it?"
She looked at Fu Hua expectantly, like a student craving praise from her teacher.
Fu Hua, however, said: "...This is rely proof that you don't know who you are. You kept around not because you like , but simply because you need soone else to affirm you, to support you."
Hua was about to explode from anger: "Ah!!!!!! Seriously!!!! There's just no communicating with you at all!"
The audience watching this scene was filled with frustration and disappointnt.
Everyone was posting in the official chat group.
"Aaaaaaaaah, she literally said she likes you—how can this blockhead not understand?"
"It's killing . Can't you just praise her a little? I don't believe she's a Herrscher at all."
"Exactly. Which Herrscher's appearance hasn't caused a massive catastrophe? Whether it was Joyce, i, or Kiana, they all triggered Great Honkai Eruptions. How does this Hua resemble a Herrscher in any way?"
"This Fu Hua is really... I'm about to die from anger. Hua understands our thoughts so well and says everything we want to hear. If she's a Herrscher, then we're all Herrschers."
"It's driving insane. Fu Hua has no idea how to comfort a child. Even if she is a Herrscher, just pamper her a bit—she could still help fight Honkai."
"It's unbelievable. She's way too rigid. Who cares if she's a Herrscher or not—as long as she's cute and wholeheartedly for humanity, she's a comrade."
"Exactly, exactly. I really like Hua. All this ti, she's been absolutely adorable!"
"..."
The group was flooded with anxious ssages.
Fire Moth Interstellar Entertainnt Company.
In the lounge.
Elysia was also extrely anxious: "How can this Fu Hua be like this? She hasn't learned a single thing from my skills at coaxing girls! Iron-clad straight woman! Blockhead! Can't she just go along with a girl, be a little gentler?"
The more she spoke, the more worked up she got.
She directly said to Fu Hua, who was watching the TV: "Starting today, besides filming, you're going to stick close to and learn properly. You're so cute—if you don't know how to coax girls, that just won't do!"
Upon hearing this, Fu Hua was secretly overjoyed.
Last week, she had envied i and Kiana for being close to Elysia, which was why she had considered following Mobius's suggestion to seduce Hessian.
Unexpectedly... Hessian casually wrote a script, causing her popularity to skyrocket, and now she could even stay by Elysia's side.
Her wish had actually co true just like that.
She nodded happily: "Okay. Ellie, you have to teach a lot."
Elysia said: "Don't worry. In a bit, I'll take you for so real practice. I t a super cute little kitty—I'll teach you how to coax her into joining our company."
"Great!" Fu Hua began looking forward to the TV broadcast ending.
Elysia was determined to teach Fu Hua how to coax girls.
anwhile, on the TV.
Hua's attention was also drawn to the battleship in the sky.
"That's... Kiana and Bronya!"
Fu Hua imdiately panicked: "Don't drag them into this."
Hua chuckled: "Who said anything about dragging them in? Relax. I just want them to help out a bit. The two of us are at an impasse—besides annoying each other, it's utterly aningless. A bystander sees most clearly. Who's right, who's the Fu Hua that should exist—of course, that's not for the two of us to decide."
"Now it's perfect—look!" Hua pointed at the sky: "The referee has arrived!"
The TV perspective switched.
Kiana and Bronya descended from the battleship.
"...We've arrived."
Bronya looked at Taixu Mountain: "This is...the place where the squad leader once lived?"
Kiana said: "To be precise, it's the place where, a very long ti ago, she lived when the people of Shenzhou called her the Phoenix Immortal."
"The squad leader once showed this place in a dream... It seems that was its appearance from a very long ti ago. Many things have changed."
The two walked upward along the mountain path.
The higher they went, the more Bronya grew doubtful: "Is what you're looking for really here? Searching for martial arts secrets in the mountains sounds like sothing that only happens in gas."(afdi)
"And the squad leader hasn't lived here for a very long ti, right? Even if she left treasures behind, they've probably been taken by soone else long ago."
Kiana said: "Maybe just like you said... But so of the treasures the squad leader left aren't visible to ordinary people."
Her eyes glead with light.
Both of them thought of the sa possibility—Fenghuang Down!
Sure enough!
By following the aura of Fenghuang Down, they could indeed detect its faint presence.
Kiana imdiately picked up the Fenghuang Down, closed her eyes, and, following the ntal technique Fu Hua had taught her, allowed the longing within the feather to flow into her sea of consciousness...
"It didn't work... I failed."
"It's probably sealed sohow. After the feather made contact with my consciousness, it bounced away..."
As she spoke, Honkai Beasts suddenly appeared around them.
Bronya pulled Kiana back and began fending off the Honkai Beasts.
But at that mont, a sword light flashed past, clearing out all the Honkai Beasts.
A long-haired woman in ancient attire appeared: "Are you two alright?"
"Ah... No..." Kiana was montarily speechless.
The mysterious woman's technique shocked her.
Though it was just an ordinary sword strike, its elegance overlapped almost perfectly with the squad leader in her mories.
She imdiately asked: "May I ask who you are...?"
"I am Lin Chaoyu, the caretaker of this Taixu Mountain, I suppose. The true qi here is abundant, and demonic beasts often cause trouble. The immortal has thus set up a barrier once more to prevent outsiders from wandering in by mistake."
"...Why have the two of you co here?"
Hearing this, Kiana hurriedly said: "The immortal you ntioned—is that the Phoenix? We know her. We're her friends."
Lin Chaoyu was stunned, sowhat surprised.
"...Friends."
She softly savored those two words, a faint smile appearing at the corners of her mouth: "In that case, please follow , both of you."
The two followed her upward into the mountain.
Along the way, they learned that the technique Lin Chaoyu used was precisely the Taixu Sword Qi taught by Fu Hua.
After reaching a spot midway up the mountain, Lin Chaoyu helped them break the seal on the Fenghuang Down, allowing them to view its mories.
The first piece of Fenghuang Down showed the beginning of Fu Hua—her father hospitalized after being attacked by a Dead Soldier, while she herself was about to attend a unfamiliar school. She felt lost and bewildered about everything in her future.
"This is...the squad leader's mory?" Kiana was sowhat surprised.
Bronya also said: "Bronya feels it's very unfamiliar..."
Kiana nodded: "Lost... When imrsing in this mory, I felt a suffocating sense of bewildernt, and fear. Like...like a butterfly caught in a storm, not knowing what would happen to it in the next second... Is this really our squad leader?"
"The squad leader...she's always so resolute, unwavering—she always makes the people around her feel at ease. But that girl just now..."
Bronya guessed: "Perhaps this is how she was before coming to St. Freya?"
Kiana denied it: "No. The squad leader had already lived a very long ti before entering St. Freya, but...why doesn't the tiline match? I don't know, I really don't know... Though she looks the sa, I've never seen a squad leader like this."
Lin Chaoyu interjected: "That is the Phoenix. What you just saw is the one true immortal Phoenix—it is the heart imprint she left behind. Master Phoenix is immortal, so her mories are like overflowing seawater, eroding the continent known as consciousness."
"To suppress the growth of mories and maintain clarity of consciousness, the immortal had no choice but to filter them... The portion separated out is the heart imprint you just witnessed."
"How was it? Did you find what you were looking for?"
"...No." Kiana shook her head.
Lin Chaoyu said: "There's no need to be discouraged. The immortal has resided on Taixu Mountain for a long ti. The heart imprints left on this mountain number in the thousands. The answer you seek is among them—this cannot be wrong."
"I'll rest once more. If you find any sealed feathers, bring them to , and I'll help break the seal for you."
"This mountain has undergone many changes. The curse power on so heart imprints has faded, and others are even damaged and incomplete. You may interpret them on your own."
Kiana and Bronya exchanged a glance.
Though they didn't know why the other was helping them, there was no other option now.
They began searching for the scattered Fenghuang Down.
Soon, they found another one. The mory in this Fenghuang Down was of Fu Hua during her school days, where she was almost always alone, unable to get close to others.
After viewing this Fenghuang Down.
Kiana took a deep breath: "...So that's how it was. That bewildernt and panic... She knew she had to integrate into a new environnt, yet she feared change."
Bronya said: "But she tried. She gathered her courage to approach others..."
"But..." Kiana felt sowhat sad: "No one responded to her... I understand this feeling—having no one to call a friend to rely on, only drifting outside one group after another, all alone..."
"...Even now, she's like that."
"Kiana..." Bronya asked: "Why did the squad leader leave these feathers? They're all very sad mories."
Kiana said as if guessing: "They're mories we didn't know about, as if...it wants us to understand the squad leader better."
"I never imagined the squad leader had a period like this."
Bronya also sighed: "Though if you think about it carefully, it makes sense, but it was still a bit shocking at the ti. The squad leader wasn't born that way."
Kiana scratched her head: "But subconsciously, I just assud she would...be more like she was at St. Freya."
A sudden silence enveloped the two.
After a long while.
Kiana broke the silence: "...Back then, the squad leader was also...sent to stay by our side on orders, right? Was that really her true self?"
"..."
Bronya couldn't answer either and could only say: "Idiot Kiana, when she cos back, just ask her directly!"
The two continued searching for Fenghuang Down.
However, the one they found next was sealed.
They had no choice but to seek Lin Chaoyu's help to break the seal.
And this mory was presented to them and all the audience.
In the mory.
Standing before Hua was Kevin.
He spoke: "I plans to transfer you to the Far East. Did you know?"
Hua said coldly: "No. I don't care."
Kevin said patiently: "It can't be helped. The intervals between Herrscher births are getting shorter, and our troops are severely insufficient."
"For strategic reasons, we'll be split up and sent to different cities. The MANTIS unit is being disbanded. This is the doctor's decision. Hua, I hope you understand."
Hua said: "I will obey."
"Hua..." Kevin's tone was unusually sad.
Hua said directly: "It makes no difference—here, the Far East, or Salt Lake City. It's all fighting Honkai. Honkai will always co. With us in those three cities, perhaps there won't be so many casualties, perhaps we won't have to sacrifice so many ordinary soldiers."
Kevin said: "You're still dwelling on it."
"Yes." Hua didn't deny it: "You always expect to understand Dr. I. What's the point? Whether I understand or not doesn't affect the big picture. Would Dr. I change her plan because I don't understand? Would she?"
"No... Just like how I didn't understand why we had to execute the Captain—did Dr. I spare her? No. She was my benefactor, your comrade..."
"At that ti, she could still recognize . She smiled and spoke to —her tone and voice were exactly her own. Would a Herrscher do that? Yet you still killed her."
Kevin said: "She had beco a Herrscher, Hua. You know that in your heart. I had no choice."
Hua said: "It was the doctor's order. I know. So I obey, but I don't understand. At least that right belongs to , Kevin. Don't tie the doctor and yourself together. You don't need to demand my understanding on her behalf. She doesn't need it either."
"More than , she should ask those warriors who died on the operating table, those twisted by the hyper-mutation factor, those who died wielding the Tenth Divine Key..."
"Whether they understand her."
"..."
The two continued walking in silence for a ti.
He didn't know how to speak, and she felt she had already said too much.
"I'll stay at headquarters."
Kevin spoke anyway.
Hua still said coldly: "Of course."
Kevin explained: "Hua, I'm not doing this for her. I ask for your understanding because you're my comrade. We should share the sa will."
"Human civilization is now on its last legs. Only three cities in the world still function normally. And Honkai's assaults are growing fiercer."
"The Eleventh Herrscher has only just died, and the Twelfth Herrscher has already been born. She's under our control for now, but no one knows what changes tomorrow might bring."
"We MANTIS are destined to fight forever. Failure is sothing we cannot afford—only victory, we must achieve victory."
"Hua, I hope you understand us—truly understand us. The fate of all humanity rests on our shoulders..."
The two reached a fork in the path. Kevin nodded to Hua: "I need to go find SAKURA—this way... Goodbye."
"Goodbye!"
Hua watched Kevin's figure disappear into the distance at the end of the path. She shook her head.
At the sa ti, the alarm sounded three tis in succession, aning a Herrscher had appeared.
"Fine. I will obey."
The mory ended there.
Bronya imdiately recognized the face: "...It's Kevin—Kevin Kaslana from World Serpent!"
Kiana nodded: "Yeah. The squad leader did say they knew each other."
Bronya frowned slightly: "But...the Eleventh Herrscher, the Tenth Divine Key, MANTIS... Everything they ntioned... If it's all true, then...this must be a mory from the Previous Era!"
Kiana was sowhat shocked: "Could it be...that not only as Shenzhou's guardian, but starting from the Previous Era, the squad leader has already been fighting Honkai?"
"The squad leader... She never told us about any of this. Why does she always bear it alone?"
Bronya guessed: "There's one more possibility, Kiana... These fragnts might be ones even she herself no longer rembers."
There were too many mysteries now.
The two decided to continue searching for Fenghuang Down.
And quite coincidentally, the next Fenghuang Down they found contained a mory that was precisely the continuation of this one.
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