Ironclad Group Chat: Red and Black Lists Engraved with Heroic Epics

——【Next up: "The Songstress of the Collapsed World"】

[Fireworks: A songstress? Are you referring to the Qi Xiang Choir? But isn't Sunday a man?]

[Walter: Honkai Impact?!]

Upon seeing this line of text, Walter's mind raced, and the first person that popped into his head was a fellow villager with a very... distinctive voice.

[Star: Hmm~~ Could it be that the Japanese secretly have a penchant for cross-dressing as women?]

[Robin: Brother, you...]

[Sunday: Is it possible that this isn't about me at all?]

Although the situation looked very promising, Sunday still painfully rubbed his forehead because the robin was also showing signs of misunderstanding.

The thoughts of these amusing people and strange, nameless strangers... Will my beautiful dream be distorted because of this?

Oh no, they've even swayed my thinking!

"The songstress of the collapsed world... the robin, are you the one whose beautiful dream has been shattered?"

……

The title was initially puzzling, but thankfully the scene was serious enough.

In the gray world, Huang Quan, with his white hair, had blood-red markings on his arms, and gripped a long sword tightly in his hand.

Before her, the pitch-black "Great Sun" remained unchanged, no matter how her dreams changed.

Huang Quan said softly, "This is one of the myriad manifestations of the Sleeping Formless Ones (Void IX), but it is also the exit for the conscious to bid farewell to [Void]."

"Therefore, let's say our final goodbyes here."

[Black Tower: I'm still more interested in where this thing came from. It can't possibly exist in every place where dreams can happen, right?]

Following the guidance, the star rushed towards the underworld and the pitch-black sun, hoping to once again step onto the battlefield with Sunday.

Facing IX directly, even if it's just a symbolic representation, puts her under pressure.

Fortunately, the phantoms that appeared one after another along the way dispelled her concerns and convinced her that this was the right direction.

"You must distinguish between reality and imagination... okay, little gray hair?" Hanabi put down her playful tone, and her earnest advice flashed by.

A soft voice drifted over from the black swan: "Life is a winding labyrinth—we have nothing but memories."

"May your schemes never be exposed," Sand Gold also sent his blessings.

The robin silently prayed: "Taiyi's dream... is too cruel to him, to everyone."

Gallagher raised his glass to her: "To the imperfect tomorrow!"

The fireflies prompted her, "Do you remember the question on the invitation—Why does life fall asleep?"

After walking for a while, Xing finally caught up with that blood-red and pale figure.

Huang Quan's eyes held a sigh: "Yes, why does life fall asleep... We still do not know the answer to this question, but we must already wake up from this dream."

"Or perhaps, this is the answer itself."

"Leave here, go back to where you came from. And then... let Pinocchio wake up from his dream."

"Human weaknesses make them stop, but when they truly can't move forward, humanity will always try to save itself. And now... Pinocchio has enough heroes to lead them forward."

"It is precisely because of this selfish instinct that people will fight with all their might even when they know they are making a futile resistance. No matter how absurd, it is still a form of resistance."

"Then, Star... you shall guide the way for all, not as a savior, but as an unnamed guest among mortals."

"In that case, you will surely be able to meet under the sun."

Huang Quan opened his crimson eyes: "The rain... is starting to get heavier. Before we part, allow me to ask a few final questions."

[Star: Just asking.]

[Hanabi: Oh wow, you've got guts. The last one—no, the next one who dared to ask Little Gray a question—has already crashed from anger.]

[March 7th: If a few words could make the Void of the Underworld crash with anger, then Xing has truly done a great deed; even the Burning Wind would have to give up its seat for her.]

A long, drawn-out melody, a blend of gentle and tense rhythms, plays in the background.

Huang Quan slowly spoke: "In the beautiful dreams you've had so far, you've established unbreakable connections with many people and many things."

"Would you be afraid to sever this connection with your own hands?"

Everyone was surprised to find that this question was highlighted in red.

[Star: Wait, didn't you ask me that?]

Xing's eyes darted around, and a memory suddenly became incredibly clear from her long-forgotten mind.

On the way to Pinocchio, Huang Quan asked her this question!

"What's going on?"

[March 7th: Severing it with my own hands... What does that mean? It sounds a bit creepy. Is this saying the battle with Sunday will be a life-or-death struggle?]

[Himeko: No, that doesn't seem right. In that case, the word "many" wouldn't be necessary. Severing ties...does it mean that all the beautiful past is no longer acknowledged, and we become complete strangers from now on?]

[Illusory Image: The key word is "personally"! Does this mean the raccoon is going to ruthlessly sever ties with the past and become completely unrecognizable to everyone? Sniff...it smells like a sweet knife! And it feels like a slow-motion knife, taking a considerable amount of time to activate!]

[Star: I...you should say something nice! And Huang Quan, Sister Huang, what do you mean by that? Explain yourself!]

Even though she had given it a lot of thought during the previous leap, Xu Zhao's words still gave her a fright and made her take it even more seriously.

After all, she had no idea about the fireflies beforehand, so she couldn't help but worry now.

"Please, stop having this happen all the time!"

[Huang Quan: I need to think carefully about why I asked that question back then.]

[Star: I...!]

When asked the question, Xing's gaze remained firm, and her answer was as before: "I am not afraid."

Huang Quan closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, her expression was solemn, mixed with reluctance: "If there were a vast dream, so realistic that it was indistinguishable from reality. There would be no separation of life and death there, and everyone could reap the happiness and fulfillment they deserved, and live happily ever after."

"Would you be willing to live there?"

Xing shook her head without hesitation: "No matter what, I don't want to live in a dream."

[March 7th: I feel like this question has a deeper meaning, but I just can't figure it out.]

[Robin: Yellow Springs, live happily ever after... That's right! With Miss Yellow Springs' identity as a clue, I finally understand the outcome this beautiful dream will lead to... Joy, anger, sorrow, grief, fear, and shock—all emotions will be reduced to just one: joy. No matter what people do, there is only one joy. Drowning in such a long ocean of "satisfaction," how is it any different from falling into nothingness?]

[Black Tower: Is this "shadow" of IX the cause that lured the dream to shatter, or the "effect" that led to its destruction?]

[Qingque: Oh my god...]