Regarding the question of whether one thousand lives are enough to beat Honkai Impact 3rd.

The fox demon remained motionless, much quieter than before; its previously habitually violent attacks and irrational roars had completely subsided.

That death finally made it realize that engaging in close combat with the nun was definitely not a wise decision.

The fox spirit's eyes reflected the nun's disheveled escape, and it seemed to have no intention of pursuing her personally.

But Theresa knew that Higokumaru's attack had already begun.

The ground beneath the girl's feet and around her was melted by the scorching flames, leaving streaks of lava-like marks. If it weren't for the soul steel chains wrapped around her feet, which insulated most of the heat, her mobility would have been completely ruined.

Honkai energy is still gathering?!

"Oops!"

Theresa slammed the golden cross onto the ground, solidifying the ends of the cross with solid and liquid lava. She then gracefully stepped onto the top of the cross, her natural movements exuding a fluid beauty.

The girl held a spear in each hand, focusing intently on sensing the restless Honkai energy beneath the earth's crust. The Soul Steel wrapped around her body flowed into Judah at her will.

Theresa made a remarkably decisive decision at a critical moment, abandoning all defenses against the environment and focusing instead on dealing with the current crisis.

Judah's power had already begun to weaken, and his half-baked defense could not withstand this attack. Compared to a clean defeat and death, being burned all over his body was the gentlest price to pay.

Her pale and beautiful face was solemn as she held her twin long spears and gazed at the distant fox demon, still without fear.

A gentle breeze blew by, and the girl's crimson skirt swayed slightly.

In the next instant, the Honkai energy erupted completely.

Pillars of fire rose up, engulfing the entire area around the girl; this was an attack that spared no effort.

But this was only the prelude to the fox demon's attack. Streams of fire, shaped like magatama, swirled in mid-air. An invisible gravitational force drew the shattered rocks on the ground into the fire, shaping them into a giant magatama-shaped meteorite...

76. Defeat and destruction.

The fox spirit noticed that the nun had become weaker, but even so, it did not intend to underestimate her.

It had already been defeated by that saint once, and now it was facing this nun with a similar appearance.

This girl's name is Theresa Apocalypse.

Higokumaru will not lose again.

Judah unfolded to the side, and dozens of spears of light shot out, only to be shattered by the flames in the blink of an eye. The original Theresa might have been able to tear through the pillar of fire with just the spears of light, but now she was completely unable to continue.

This was something she had anticipated.

The soul steel then sculpted into a golden, solid chain, which connected the nun's twin pistols to the chain she leaped out of.

The malleability of Soul Steel allowed Theresa to wield the chains with her spear at the narrow top of the cross.

The nuns are dancing.

This scene resembles a ribbon dance originating from Northern Europe, and the chains in the nun's hands are ribbons.

The ribbon spun and separated the flames from the high temperature, but the flames still spread and rushed towards them.

The nun's dance did not stop; her swaying skirt and youthful curves cast long shadows in the firelight.

This beautiful posture at this moment resembles a priestess performing a Kagura dance to worship the gods, but the girl offering the dance is filled with the determination to kill the gods.

The more beautiful her dance, the stronger her inner killing intent and determination.

Finally, the chains that served as ribbons were consumed by the remaining high temperature, and the eruption of the pillar of fire came to an end.

The nuns' dance came to a close.

But as the only spectator on stage, Higokumaru's return gift for this dance immediately followed.

Magatama.

In ancient Japan, the magatama symbolized authority because it was originally something possessed by the gods.

At that moment, the gods threw out this symbol of power and authority.

A fiery meteorite shaped like a comma.

The meteorite was so large that the nun's petite frame was less than a tenth of it.

This is only natural, as this magatama is a combination of several meteorites that were previously suspended together, and its size is so large that even its creator, Himeko, could not ignore it.

Such a domineering and forceful attack left Theresa no room for tactical tricks or clever maneuvers.

With her power constantly dwindling, dealing with the fire pillars alone was exhausting enough for her, let alone facing this magatama.

The immense light and heat traveled from afar, scorching the eyes and the skin.

With its domineering and imposing presence, the magnificent magatama falls like the inevitable cycle of birth, aging, sickness, and death in life.

It was so absolute, without any surprises.

Time is an eternal and invincible enemy for most of humanity.

This meteorite is an obstacle that Theresa absolutely cannot overcome.

The girl's physical strength was completely exhausted. At this point, her strength had returned to the state she was in when she first arrived in the Holy Mark Space. The familiar yet unfamiliar weakness was trying to shake her heart.

Her snow-white skin and beautiful face gradually withered under the scorching heat. That dance was like the last bloom of the girl's life, followed by her decay.

The rise and fall of an empire is a natural law.

The girl looked at the crimson that filled her entire field of vision and smiled helplessly.

She understood that she was no match for Hiyomaru.

She simply couldn't afford to lose.

Therefore, the struggle cannot be stopped.

Theresa stepped down from the cross, leaning against Judas, feeling the slow, burning pain of her skin in the light, and murmured to herself:

"Accompany me in my whims one more time, Judas."

"Perhaps, this is the end."

The girl poured all the Honkai energy she could control into the cross at once, and with the transformation of the Divine Key, all the Soul Steel within Judah also receded and returned.

As the magatama fell, golden light burst forth.

The condensation of Soul Steel and Honkai Energy formed a cocoon of light the size of a person, completely enveloping the girl.

With a tremendous roar, the magatama and the cocoon of light shattered simultaneously.

In that instant, countless streams of fire and shimmering light illuminated the night sky, and the earth shattered.

All that met Hiyomaru's eyes was desolation.

The shrine was built on the mountaintop, but now all the steps leading from the mountainside to the shrine have been destroyed, and a wide and extremely deep ravine has covered its original appearance.

Flames are its fangs, and endless streams of fire transform into a new path leading to the shrine in the night.

Destruction, this is destruction.

The fox spirit looked at the light feathers and ashes drifting in the air, its heart filled with a slightly satisfied destructive urge.

The nun is dead.

It won.

A blissful, almost manic satisfaction tickled its nerve endings, making it almost unable to resist bursting into laughter.

Humans are so fragile; their weak bodies cannot withstand blazing flames and freezing cold, nor can they defend against sharp blades and spears. Even a few malicious words can easily destroy a person.

Humans who dare to harbor thoughts of killing gods and act on them will inevitably face their doom.

There will never be another human who can defeat himself like that saint.

Karen Kaslana is a unique and unexpected surprise.

But Theresa Apocalypse is not.

So even if she tried her best, and even managed to kill herself once, she would only become a corpse now.

Yes, corpses.

However, Higokumaru did not find the nun's remains.

Did she turn to ashes? Perhaps the ashes floating in the sky were part of the nun's body. Given the destructive power of that meteorite, it would be normal for the nun to not leave behind any remains.

It would be strange if the remaining strength could have left behind a corpse.

The fox spirit controlled 80% of the Sacred Mark Space, but the shrine area was still under Yae Sakura's control, so it failed to discover the nun buried under the flowing fire immediately.

Theresa did not die.

But her condition was not much different from death. Judah's oath shattered in that instant, and it was those fragments that burned out the last bit of strength to barely save the nun's life.

The result was that Theresa lost her last trump card that left her with room to struggle—Judas.

The nun's bones were mostly shattered, her clothes were torn to shreds, and her once fair skin was covered with half-burnt bruises and slowly seeping blood.

Her beautiful face was also destroyed by burns and the bruised, mangled flesh.

How ugly! If Theresa could see herself like this now, she would definitely make fun of herself like this.

But in fact, even without looking, she could understand how pathetic she was. It was just that, ironically, she couldn't even bring herself to say something like self-deprecating.

They lack the strength to speak, perhaps because their respiratory tract or throat has been burned and damaged. All that remains in their consciousness are mumbled words and incomprehensible images.

Now, all the girl can do is drag this dying body along and pray for a miracle.

And just as the end of the world arrives, when thought gradually disappears and ceases.

A beam of light descended.

77. Hymn of God's Grace.

Yae Sakura woke up.

The feeling of being drained and plundered tore at her soul, and of course she couldn't remain unresponsive.

The priestess stood silently in the desolate world.

This is the world of mental images.

When I woke up, all I saw was this desolate scene of flames burning and everything being consumed by fire.