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

The girl thought this, and then her tense nerves relaxed, and tears streamed down her face.

"Bronya judged that now was not the time to argue with that idiot Kiana, so she forgave her." Bronya stared intently at Raiden Mei, seemingly hinting at something.

"Alright, alright, Bronya is the best girl, such a good child." Mei stroked the girl's gray hair and smiled helplessly.

Although her face remained expressionless, Bronya was clearly happy to receive the touch.

"Mei! Don't fall for this little brat's tricks!" Wiping away her tears, Kiana turned around and glared at Bronya with her red eyes.

She now feels that Bronya is like the green tea she saw online before.

It's impossible to guard against, and it's really annoying.

But Kiana's angry expression vanished instantly, and a hand gently pressed against her head, stroking her fair white hair.

Then a hoarse voice reached the girl's ears.

"It's so noisy right after I woke up. I'm relieved to see that you're still so energetic, Kiana."

She turned around, and the boy looked at her with a smile.

Su Qing'an woke up.

"Manager! You're awake! No! When did you wake up?!" Kiana quickly wiped away her tears, at a loss for what to do. "I wasn't crying," she even blurted out in a panic.

"Hahaha, cough cough, I know Kiana has always been very strong." After coughing a few times, Su Qing'an looked at the girl's reddened eyes and said earnestly.

Kiana Kaslana is an optimistic and strong person, and he knows that all too well, but no one expects a strong person not to cry, and it is unreasonable to place that expectation on this child.

"Yes. I...I'm very strong." For a moment, she wanted to hug the boy, but Kiana restrained herself when she thought of his injuries.

"Sato, isn't he here?" After a moment of silence, the boy asked.

“Yuno…” Kiana was speechless, then finally answered, “There are only four of us survivors left in Changkong City.”

"Yes, not everyone has Honkai energy resistance, I've known that for a long time."

Is Sato Yuno really that important to him?

Actually, that's not necessarily true; they're just friends.

Although Su Qing'an has few friends, they are just friends.

There are reasons why he would risk his life so much, and why he would never regret escaping death even after encountering an Emperor-level Honkai Beast.

Because it was his promise, and he hated people who didn't keep their promises, even if that person was himself.

This tendency arose from being abandoned by one's parents in a previous world, and it became even more pronounced after absorbing the soul of this world.

It's like a piece of the soul is broken. The withdrawn and repulsive "Su Qing'an" who hates breaking promises and the decadent Su Qing'an who also hates breaking promises overlapped and became what they are now.

Su Qing'an noticed it, but he did not reject the change. To him, it was proof of the existence of "Su Qing'an" in this world.

It's as if both of them survived together.

This led to self-loathing and the grief of losing friends, forcing him to enter a state of tranquility.

But this is just a temporary fix; the so-called "stillness of mind" is merely a state of unity between body and mind, allowing one to exert their maximum potential.

The emotions haven't disappeared; they've just been suppressed.

It's like how, during Ganesha's pursuit, he was afraid but still managed to calmly control his body; in the end, it was the courage that ignited within him that dispelled his fear.

A calm and tranquil mind cannot suppress human nature.

"I'm just a little unwilling. In the end, I didn't even make it to Chiba Academy. Instead, I was chased by Honkai Beasts and ended up in a sorry state. If I hadn't been rescued, I probably wouldn't even be able to find my body now."

The boy muttered to himself, gazing at the white ceiling, his personal information panel appearing at will.

Name: Su Qing'an

Gender: Male

[Strength: 18.3 (11.8)]

[Min: 19.4 (12.7)]

[Body: 20.6 (9.7)]

[Soul Essence: 39.24]

Honkai Energy Resistance: 30 (Low/Maximum)

[Technique: Tai Xuan Style]

[Evaluation: Your combat abilities far surpass those of an ordinary human. Your Honkai energy resistance reaches the limit for a normal male human. Aside from the special nature of your soul, you possess Honkai energy resistance sufficient to survive normally in areas with high concentrations of Honkai energy.]

[A message: Your soul possesses a special quality; having undergone two near-death experiences, it has automatically ascended to four times the level of an ordinary person. Use this unique advantage to survive in this chaotic apocalypse.]

Apart from a slight improvement in his soul essence, his attributes remained unchanged. Looking at the numbers in parentheses, Su Qing'an understood that his physical condition was much better than it had been that day.

"So weak." The boy sighed, feeling lost. Was there any point in him becoming stronger now?

Having escaped Changkong City, and with the wicked god no longer making a move, now that I'm safe at St. Freya Academy, is it still necessary for me to become stronger?

Even the girl who saved him that day possessed an incredibly powerful martial art that was mixed with a violent burst of Honkai energy, which was why she could send Ganesha flying with a single punch.

In his view, even if a girl reaches the level of martial arts prowess, she would not be a match for an Emperor-class Honkai Beast without the aid of Honkai energy.

By utilizing Honkai energy, his swordsmanship and Honkai energy resistance have reached their limits.

Su Qing'an no longer dared to cultivate the Sword Heart Technique, because most of his heart lake had solidified, with only a few streams flowing quietly.

The lake of the heart freezes into a spotless expanse of ice.

Now that he's in a safe place, he'll be lucky if he stays in Shenzhou in the future, and he won't need to fight the Honkai Beasts for a while.

Given his background, there was no reason for him to risk becoming a suicide soldier and break through to the Dustless Realm.

"Kiana, let me rest for a bit. I feel a little tired."

The bewildered boy closed his eyes and murmured to the silent girl.

"Hmm... then Su Qing'an, you should get some rest and not think too much."

Perhaps understanding that he needed time to process his complex emotions, Kiana hesitated for a moment before nodding and saying...

After everyone left, the once lively ward returned to its quiet state.

What should I do?

Overwhelmed with emotion, Su Qing'an deliberately retreated from her tranquil state and immersed herself in the turbulent lake of her heart, slowly sinking down.

45. Conversation and Decision

The red-haired woman looked at the boy's face through the window.

At least the little guy has made a friend, she couldn't help but feel a little relieved.

But then the woman sighed inwardly.

That's a really serious injury.

In a life-or-death escape where even the slightest mistake could mean death, he must have experienced the terror and despair of collapse for the first time in his otherwise ordinary life.

Himeko was speechless when she saw Fu Hua's thoughtful report in the communicator.

The child's stubbornness in swinging his fist even after breaking the sword before he died was exactly the same as his usual demeanor. Could this be considered a kind of consistency between his appearance and his inner self?

No, he must have been scared too, terrified, and it was common for him to cry in embarrassment at any moment. But even knowing he was about to die, he must have been very unwilling, so unwilling that it overwhelmed his fear, so unwilling that it fueled his ruthlessness, so unwilling that he would never stop fighting back even in death.

Fu Hua seemed to have learned something from the headmaster, so her report included details of the boy's recent activities.

After defeating more than a dozen dojos, did he learn martial arts from Chen Junxuan, a martial arts master from China?

In a short period of time, the boy's martial arts skills had become extraordinary.

This might be his reliance in killing the assassins.

Fu Hua's final assessment was that Su Qing'an possessed unparalleled martial arts talent, achieving a level that ordinary people might not be able to reach even after fifty years of arduous training, but he accomplished it in just a few weeks.

In addition, considering his performance when he first faced the Honkai Beasts, and judging from the shattered blade of his sword, he must have killed at least double-digit numbers of assassins and Honkai Beasts before escaping from the jaws of an Emperor-level Honkai Beast.

If she were a woman, judging from her initial battle record, she could definitely become a Valkyrie no less powerful than Major Himeko.

But he is male, and tests showed that his Honkai energy resistance was only enough to prevent him from being infected by Honkai. Even if it were a little lower, it would be normal for him to become a suicide soldier in the Honkai.

Such Honkai energy resistance is nothing short of miraculous. Excluding special cases like Kaslana, Su Qing'an is already very lucky.

Major Himeko, the logistics unit of St. Freya Academy might be a good fit for him. Perhaps it would be better to send him back to Tiangong City in Shenzhou, where Canghai City is not exposed to this kind of world.

I understand, Fu Hua.

But would someone who has seen the real world really be willing to jump back into the cage?

After realizing the falseness of peace, would he still be willing to entrust his fate to the protection of others?

Perhaps it would have been better to let him stay in China.

Pushing open the door and sitting in front of the hospital bed, Himeko Murata couldn't help but gently brush the scabs on the boy's cheek with her fingertips.

She's just as good-looking as she was when she was a child, but her personality is a bit of a disappointment.

"Himeko... Sister?" Opening her eyes and seeing the dazzling red hair, Su Qing'an realized that she was in St. Freya Academy and understood the true identity of the gentle older sister in her memory.

I should have thought of that earlier.

"Little one, it's been a long time." The red-haired woman gently stroked his head and smiled.

"Yes. I haven't seen you since I was 13." Su Qing'an turned her head away; the sky outside the window was blue and calm.

"Himeko-nee, is this the Honkai?" the boy suddenly asked.

"...This is Honkai, a calamity aimed at destroying civilization. A tragedy of war of death, Honkai brought all of this down."

"And the place I am, St. Freya Academy, exists to cultivate warriors and Valkyries who can fight against the Honkai," Himeko Murata replied with a heavy heart.

"Valkyrie... huh?" Su Qing'an smiled, her feelings strangely complicated.

"You should have realized it by now. At the very beginning of the Honkai outbreak, even if there were survivors, they would only be women."

"Of the more than 2.3 million people in Changkong City, you are the only male left who survived."

"Men generally cannot survive Honkai due to their low Honkai resistance; you are one of the few exceptions."

As Himeko Murata recounted all this, she looked at the boy's bitter smile and understood his immense sorrow as if she were sharing his pain.