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

Very strange.

It was as if if you hesitated for even a second, you would never see that person again; if you were even a moment too slow, the words hidden in your heart would never be uttered.

The emotions surging in my chest were regret, fear, and confusion.

The usually calm and composed Su Qing'an revealed a complicated expression, and then, seeing the girl's adorable expression of surprise with her eyes slightly wide open, he lost his composure and grabbed her shoulder.

Su Qing'an restrained herself from embracing her directly. Her fingertips touched the softness of her skin through the white Hanfu, and the warmth it conveyed made the usually calm girl feel a little lost.

Her pink lips twitched slightly, but in the end she chose to remain silent, pursing them closed.

A thin mist seemed to rise in his eyes, making his holy blue pupils appear even more moist and dreamy.

The girl's snow-white skin was tinged with a faint pink, but she only watched his face get closer and closer until their cheeks almost brushed against each other, and she still did not object to this overly intimate action.

And then, Su Qing'an's whispered words landed loudly in her ear:

"I like you, Hua."

"It has been like this for a very, very long time."

Fu Hua found it difficult to describe this wonderful and novel feeling.

In the few remaining memories, even among the countless imprints of the heart buried beneath Mount Taixu, there has never been such a fervent and intense emotion.

The immortal already knew about the boy's earnest confession.

She had already noticed it much earlier.

Knowing this, Fu Hua still asked the boy for his reason in front of Mount Taixu, so he must have already had the answer in his heart.

Why not say it yourself?

It wasn't because of so-called shyness or arrogance, nor for any other reason.

It was simply because she needed a reason, a reason to ask the immortals about the passage of ten thousand years.

Now that he's said it, everything seems to fall into place naturally.

It was like the last snowflake falling before an avalanche, casually releasing long-accumulated emotions. In that instant, all barriers and lifespans, all fates and entanglements, all reasons and excuses were completely submerged and swept away.

These are all distracting thoughts.

The immortal who once thought that this emotion was a distraction has unknowingly abandoned some of his outdated ideas.

She jokingly dismissed those things as distractions, as if that would allow her to face this emotion with equanimity.

At this moment, Fu Hua thoroughly examined the feelings between the two, which were plain and simple yet deeply touching.

Would you feel disgusted if you imagined being held in his arms?

【Won't.】

Do you feel uncomfortable if we hold hands?

【Won't.】

Would you feel sad if you couldn't see him anymore?

【meeting.】

Do you like him?

【…】

Even though she hasn't given a final promise yet, Fu Hua honestly believes that nothing can be dealt with without taking it seriously.

So, in a moment of distraction, she no longer felt panicked.

You see, if you encounter a natural force like an avalanche or a tsunami, how could an ordinary person think they would be safe and sound?

The ending was predetermined; you have nowhere to escape or avoid it.

Then we can only accept it, right?

As if finding an excuse for herself, the girl simply and decisively embraced the boy's body. Her slender white fingertips rested on the joints of his back, and the slight force she applied seemed incredibly alluring at that moment.

Before Su Qing'an could fully react, he realized that his hands were no longer suitable to be placed on the immortal's shoulders. After hesitating for a second, the young man respectfully placed his ten fingers on the other's slender waist. The touch of the fabric made him lose his mind and his face flushed.

The fairy's warm breath brushed against her neck and ears as she whispered softly:

"I know you've been plotting something for a long time."

Su Qing'an inhaled the pure and cool scent emanating from her, like plum blossoms pressed between the pages of a book, their fragrance faint and cool, seemingly timeless and enduring.

He responded:

When was it discovered?

The immortal's slender fingers slowly brushed across her back, as if counting the vertebrae, finally resting on the area behind her heart.

The girl carefully felt the subtle yet high-frequency vibrations, burying her face earnestly in her chest and listening to her heart pounding more and more lively like a drumbeat.

The other person's blood flow and breathing speed recklessly lowered all her guard, allowing her to gradually become fully aware of everything.

You like it that much?

Her lips curved into a soft smile as she murmured:

"I was probably at that auction when I was truly certain."

"You tried to hide it, but you didn't hide it well enough."

"It seems like I can't hide it anymore now that I'm on vacation."

"After all, no matter how mature you are, you're still quite young."

"Little Su? That's what Bronya calls you, right? Do you mind me calling you that?"

The immortal's murmurs drifted down with the setting sun into the veiled night, ethereal and tinged with fragmented laughter.

Su Qing'an said softly:

"Either is fine, if it's you."

Fu Hua released her hand, ending their brief yet long embrace, as if that was enough to dispel all the boredom of the long years.

Her face, without any makeup, looked as if it had been painted with the finest rouge, making the blue sea in her eyes seem to reflect a blazing starry river.

The immortal looked at the boy's face and said:

"Let's be more formal for now, it's better to call you Su Qing'an."

She smiled:

"Su Qing'an, do you want to go to the temple fair?"

So he nodded and agreed, but tacitly avoided mentioning the original question.

Because... the immortal has already given himself the answer.

……

……

Theresa's team diligently filmed from a distance using drones and other equipment.

Their motto was that the camera would never miss a single intimate moment between the two.

Thus, this embrace, which occurred between dusk and night, was captured in countless clear and detailed photos. The team then edited and selected the photos before handing them over to Theresa, the sponsor.

In order to win more prize money and make a fortune, fifty professional photographers have already infiltrated various locations within the temple fair with their equipment.

The two had already visited the previous temple fairs, so they should have lost much of their sense of novelty.

But as night falls, the scene transforms dramatically. Large, antique-style lights, seen from above, appear to connect like undulating ocean currents, their vibrant spectrum adorning the dark night with a magnificent veil.

Amidst the bustling crowds, Su Qing'an and Fu Hua strolled through this unusually long temple fair. They carefully observed the small shops and street scenes they had never seen before, and found that their feelings were different from when they visited before.

The ambiguity and mystery were shattered by the boy's words and the immortal's tacit approval, and the core of the matter naturally underwent a tremendous change.

From an outward perspective, even if the flow of people causes the two people to unconsciously get close to each other, they will not consciously keep their distance immediately.

The boy's movements as he took her slender, pale hand were initially unnaturally stiff, but after a while, he slowly and earnestly gathered it, carefully enveloping and holding it tightly. The force with which he held her fingers was so light, as if he were protecting a fragile treasure.

The warm touch slowly spread through her palm to her whole body, as if trying to make her feel hot and feverish. The immortal looked at the flickering, hazy lights in the distance, but her thoughts were constantly swirling within the small space of the boy's hand.

Even she would feel uncomfortable in such a situation.

Fu Hua glanced at the takoyaki stall by the roadside and muttered to herself:

"Su Qing'an, your hands are so hot."

The boy pursed his lips:

"The Transparent Martial Arts Realm allowed me to control my body temperature a long time ago, and the Still Water Realm and Sword Heart Technique were enough to make me extremely calm, but I can't do it now."

"Because your hand is in my hand."

"I like Hua, so there's nothing I can do about it."

The immortal couldn't help but laugh.

There was no loneliness or sorrow, only pure joy.

She looked at Su Qing'an's ears, which were already flushed red despite her serious expression, and the curve of her lips turned up even more beautifully.

Even when he feels ashamed, he will speak his true feelings honestly, which is perhaps one of the things that makes him endearing.

Fu Hua silently tightened her grip on his hand, gazing at the countless stars in the night sky as she whispered:

"I'm not afraid of the heat."

As they wandered aimlessly, the number of people around them dwindled until they finally arrived at a rare spot not covered by lights. This was a riverside street, but even without the illumination of lights, the surrounding scenery remained clearly visible.

As an ancient town crisscrossed by rivers, the festival showcases the breathtaking scenery unique to this area, with countless tributaries branching off from the river.

Countless lanterns float on the surface of the river, drifting away in their own directions with the wind and the tranquil flow of the water, as if carrying the aspirations of midsummer.

The immortal and the boy looked at the scene together, and for a moment it seemed as if their pupils reflected the real lights of thousands of homes, shining brightly.

After a long silence, the girl opened her lips:

“From ancient times, the people of China have expressed their joys and sorrows and aspirations for all things in this way.”

"Although this custom did not exist a thousand years ago, so it cannot be considered to have existed from ancient times to the present, if it remains unchanged and preserved for another thousand years, then it must be close to being a true tradition."

Su Qing'an simply asked: