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

But Bronya's words made him understand the current situation.

Su Qing'an responded:

“I understand, Bronya.”

So he abandoned his plan to strike horizontally and instead drew his spear and slashed horizontally across the space ten meters above the central altar.

Fueled by continuously outputting Honkai energy, the armor's internal intelligent module calculation formulas and the Taixu Sword Qi provide auxiliary calibration, further enhanced by the excellent extensibility of gamma particles.

The Holy Lance expanded a thousandfold the moment it was swung out, directly and domineeringly annihilating the structure of the ever-flowing Honkai energy storm. Like a puppet show with its strings cut, the turbulent wind instantly stopped.

Gamma particles and residual Honkai energy returned to the armor, and the boy stood silently before the now-silent altar.

The true scene has now been revealed in the center of the altar, which was previously obscured by the intense wind.

It was a huge, transparent cocoon of light, within which lay an unimaginable level of Honkai energy.

In comparison, the storm that left them in such a sorry state was merely some of the aftershocks.

The most crucial point is that what is being nurtured inside the cocoon of light is not some terrifying, super-sized Emperor-class Honkai Beast, but a beautiful woman with long, flowing red hair and quiet, closed eyes. She is holding the Xuanyuan Sword, as if she has fallen into a sleep from which she may never wake up.

Himeko Murata.

Su Qing'an murmured in a daze:

"Sister Himeko..."

Bronya and Raiden Mei, who rushed over, also managed to witness this scene up close.

Kiana held Sato Yuno in her arms, her gaze fixed on Himeko inside the cocoon of light, clearly bewildered by the situation before her.

Theoretically speaking, regardless of what the Xuanyuan Sword did, rescuing Himeko from this strange cocoon of light is the most urgent task.

However, Su Qing'an was hesitant at this moment. He dispelled the amplification effect of [Thousand Stars], clearly troubled by the current situation.

The boy was also a recipient of an artificial stigmata, and he knew all too well what would happen if he were to fall into such an extremely high concentration of Honkai energy without any protection.

Himeko is now in a situation that goes beyond that; this cocoon of light is entirely formed from Honkai energy.

Logically speaking, this should have been an inevitable dead end.

However, the woman's body showed no signs of being corroded by Honkai energy, and Kenshin's perception confirmed that she was still alive.

Although it defies common sense, this may be the only good news right now.

This also prevented Su Qing'an from choosing to violently dismantle the light cocoon, because he couldn't guarantee that such a choice would affect Ji Zi's life.

Bronya said calmly:

"Let's observe for a while, Xiao Su."

"Although Bronya thinks this method is stupid, it is the only way that is currently confirmed not to harm Himeko-sensei."

Mei nodded solemnly in agreement. They pulled Su Qing'an back a few steps to ensure they wouldn't get into trouble should an unexpected situation arise.

Approaching the Xuanyuan Sword rashly without understanding its origins is an unwise thing to do.

However, before the group could make any effective decisions, the cocoon began to move.

"—!"

It was the sound of glass shattering and bricks being trampled. Fine cracks spread to all sides of the cocoon of light, and with an even more violent shattering sound, the cage was mostly broken.

The red-haired woman opened her eyes and walked out of her original cage expressionlessly. Her amber eyes were dull and lifeless, and her unfocused pupils proved that Himeko's mind had not yet recovered.

The bright red Valkyrie armor, however, was cracking little by little, like an ancient artifact weathered by the passage of time...

As the woman steadied herself, the intimate clothing that concealed her beautiful figure, along with the Valkyrie armor, shattered and melted into the void. Before the snow-white expanse could even come into view, blazing flames surged from the remnants of the cocoon of light behind her, engulfing Himeko's body.

The sound of firewood burning in the intense fire grew even louder in the somber atmosphere.

Having witnessed this scene unfold, Su Qing'an understood that Ji Zi's life was not in danger, but he also learned a fact.

A fact that he finds difficult to face and react to instantly.

The remains of the cocoon contained enough Honkai energy reserves to unleash hundreds of such storms, but at this moment, this Honkai energy was contained within the woman's smooth, pristine skin by astonishing control, obscuring all traces of spring.

It resembled an extremely thin evening gown, its main colors being a deep, dark black and a blood-red hue. The black fabric, as if torn apart, was tattered, revealing large areas of fair skin from the chest and thighs.

This is a dress with a sharp, beautiful look and a seductive allure. It shouldn't be considered clothing for formal occasions, but on a woman with striking red hair and a unique temperament, it doesn't look vulgar at all.

The warrior's cold, hard gaze overshadowed the vibrant colors of the exposed skin in his merciless eyes. The woman glanced indifferently at the group, her eyes cold and lifeless.

Everyone present understood that this was definitely not a simple or ordinary dress.

Regardless of its appearance, the sheer intensity of the Honkai energy reaction, which sent chills down one's spine, was all gathered together, and the amplification it could bring far exceeded the limits that the previous armor could reach.

Fusion core assembly, deep red.

Even if powered by warship-level energy, activating the Nexus system on board, and ultimately pushing the armor to its limits of overload, Su Qing'an had reason to believe that it was far less terrifying than the gown woven by the Xuanyuan Sword.

It's important to know that Crimson Fusion Armor, linked to Hyperion and brought to its ultimate state, possesses strength surpassing even Emperor-level Honkai Beasts.

Even the Third Herrscher, Himeko could contend with her in this state.

But Su Qing'an made this judgment, which is enough to show just how much pressure Ji Zi is putting on him now.

If a comparison must be made, it would be comparable to the pressure that Jizo Mitama exerted on him at that time.

However, Su Qing'an no longer has Yae Rin as a natural stigmata, and even with the armor given by Otto to make up for the gap, there is still an insurmountable limit.

Himeko Murata raised the Xuanyuan Sword, which was shrouded in darkness, and slowly walked towards the group.

Su Qing'an gripped the sword in his hand tightly and said:

"Himeko-nee, can you hear me?"

no respond.

Raiden Mei said in a trembling voice:

"Himeko-sensei?"

no respond.

Bronya took a deep breath and said calmly:

"Xiao Su, Mei-nee, Himeko-sensei is currently in a very strange state."

She didn't say it explicitly, but whether it was Kiana who could tell from the voice in the earpiece, or Raiden Mei and Su Qing'an who were right next to her, they could all understand one thing.

Himeko Murata may have been turned into their enemy by the Xuanyuan Sword.

The boy said softly:

"Sister Himeko, is it alright for you to say that?"

Su Qing'an was met with the expected silence. The woman's footsteps on the ground were crisp and resolute. She seemed to be immersed in a void, or as if she had been completely corrupted by Honkai energy and turned into a suicide soldier.

The Xuanyuan Sword harbors the corrupted and distorted remnant soul of Ji Xuanyuan, who transformed Ji Zi into an incredibly bizarre state.

On one hand, her body had been eroded by Honkai energy, so it wouldn't be surprising if she had directly turned into a dead soldier. However, there was no trace of Honkai energy erosion on her surface.

Every inch of her skin was incredibly fair; rather than being corrupted by Honkai energy, it was more like she had been reborn from the ashes.

The minor scars on the body disappeared in the baptism of fire and the shaping of the cocoon of light, and even the physiological phenomena underwent certain changes.

If Sato Yuno were still conscious, perhaps she could understand that Himeko Murata at this moment, apart from lacking the pseudo-Herrscher core, is already remarkably similar to the pseudo-Herrscher in other aspects.

But all of this is fleeting, like a firework that blooms and fades quickly, a mere side effect of modifications made to ensure the women's fighting ability.

But in reality, such a wonderful thing will not happen. The woman's outward appearance remains intact, but her various organs, which were already on the verge of collapse due to the erosion caused by the artificial holy marks, are now completely heading towards their end.

Before long, Himeko Murata, whose organs had completely failed, would not be able to survive even if she did not become a suicide soldier.

While her mind was being overwhelmed by Ji Xuanyuan's ocean of emotions, she was also suffering from the damage of Honkai energy. Just like those Valkyries who lost their intelligence after becoming assassins, Himeko would soon fall into complete abyss from every corner.

Su Qing'an was unaware of these things, but the current situation had already filled him with genuine fear and dread.

None of the men present should have been so indecisive, yet the women before them were indispensable figures in their lives.

Kiana's voice came from beside him; it was Bronya who had helped Su Qing'an connect to the team's voice chat.

"Su Qing'an, Mei, Bronya, do you still remember the first lesson that Teacher Himeko taught us before we went to the battlefield?"

They couldn't possibly forget, but none of them answered immediately.

Kiana said:

"When you discover that a teammate is showing signs of becoming a suicide soldier and being completely corrupted by Honkai energy, you must kill her without hesitation. This is the moment that Teacher Himeko is talking about."

The girl smiled and continued:

"It's a pity, I've never been a very obedient student."

Bronya responded:

"If Himeko-sensei wakes up, Bronya will apologize to her."

Raiden Mei drew her scalpel and said:

"I'll turn a blind eye to Himeko-sensei's sneaky beer drinking."

Su Qing'an responded softly:

"Then let's struggle for a bit."

159. So-called destiny, the spear of Gungnir.

The woman stopped walking, as if she had grown tired of listening to the conversation. Her forward movement abruptly changed into a running posture. She dragged the black Xuanyuan sword, and with just a little force from her long legs, the ground beneath her feet cracked.

In almost an instant, the moving body tore through the air, and a sonic boom slowly appeared behind her, exploding with a deafening roar.

In the blink of an eye, the dark sword was already within reach.

Su Qing'an was the first to be hit, and among everyone present, only he was able to react in time and retaliate against this extremely pure slash.

【Thousand Stars】.

With the aid of burning artificial holy marks, Su Qing'an has the ability to activate [Thousand Stars] in an instant. Even if the opponent has already swung their sword within a third of a breath, the boy is still able to successfully activate [Thousand Stars] at full power before that.

Regardless of Himeko Murata's current state, Su Qing'an has no choice but to go all out to subdue her.

"—!"

[Calming the Waves] and the Xuanyuan Sword collided suddenly at such extreme speed.