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

That's what she thought.

Yae Sakura was glowing, surrounded by cherry blossom petals, and her body began to become transparent. Theresa could not understand this scene. For a moment, the only thing she could say was that she was amazed by the beautiful scene before her.

But someone knows what she's doing.

【Yae Sakura! Are you insane? If you give her our core, we'll disappear!】

"She carries the Herrscher's poison; without this, it will be difficult for her to recover from her injuries."

“She’s different from me. She still has things she wants to protect.”

Having answered Hishimaru in her heart, Yae Sakura looked intently at Theresa's bright white hair and blue eyes. Her gaze was distant, as if she could see another person from a distant time through Theresa.

“You… what’s wrong with you…” Theresa noticed something was wrong; the witch’s body was like a drawing on a blank sheet of paper being gradually erased by an eraser.

But Yae Sakura just smiled and shook her head.

【Hiyokumaru, I'm tired after living for so long. Let me rest for a while.】

Yae Sakura's final answer left Higokumaru speechless.

Yes, it's been five hundred years.

Then, do as you please.

Idiot witch.

She tried to reach out and grab the priestess's hand, but her injuries slowed her movements by a fraction; her fingertips slipped through the air, and everything seemed like a dream.

The witch disappeared.

Particles of light surged into Theresa's body, the Herrscher's poison was cleared, and her injuries were almost completely healed. This should have been a good thing, but she felt a sense of emptiness and loss in her heart.

What exactly happened between Karen Kaslana and the priestess?

No one will ever know.

But that must be a poignant and untold story.

That era was buried in the dust of history, and the story of the nun and the witch came to an end five hundred years later.

63. The Beginning of the Stigmata (Part 1)

Far East Branch, St. Freya Academy.

Inside the underground research institute.

The transparent culture tank was filled with Honkai energy inhibitory liquid. The misty Honkai energy conducted a faint light in the liquid, illuminating the boy's face. His black hair was wet and clung to his handsome profile. His body floated in the center of the container. The white hospital gown he wore stretched out in the water and looked a little too big. A respirator was attached to the boy's mouth and nose.

Calm, steady breathing echoed rhythmically in the silent research institute.

a long time.

He opened his eyes, and the faint light and water reflected in them.

Where am I?

Sensing his body floating in the liquid, the boy suddenly felt a strange sense of security and warmth.

After a brief period of confusion, he understood the situation.

The contact between the liquid and his eyeballs didn't bother Su Qing'an too much; he got used to the brief glare.

Compared to these, physical condition is the most urgent issue.

The moment it broke through to the dustless realm, the Honkai energy cycle, which had exceeded its limit, introduced a large amount of Honkai energy. In addition, the breakthrough occurred within the Honkai energy concentration level of the pseudo-Herrscher's birth process, so the amount of Honkai energy introduced far exceeded the original expectations.

His own Honkai energy resistance was no longer sufficient, and barring any unforeseen circumstances, he wouldn't live for more than a month.

A familiar sensation surged within her body, a sign that she was being gradually eroded by Honkai energy. The slow pace was due to the coolness of the liquid she was soaking in, which suppressed the Honkai energy's activity.

Su Qing'an sighed; he had a habitual feeling about it.

despair.

Are you going to die again?

If I die this time, is it possible for me to be resurrected?

Even if I am resurrected, I will still fall to the Honkai in some battle in the future.

Two brief deaths were enough to exhaust Su Qing'an; he had once thought he wasn't very afraid of death.

But when he imagined everything repeating itself, familiar people turning into strangers, and all the tragedies continuing endlessly, he felt an unprecedented fear.

It was as if someone was mocking him, saying, "Su Qing'an, you can't do anything. No matter how hard you try, all you can do is try to salvage nothing. Your efforts are meaningless, and the life you risk is cheap and useless."

You can't change anything.

Such a future.

How annoying. The boy closed his eyes; he preferred the boundless darkness to the faint light.

"Now is not the time to continue sleeping, Su Qing'an." A clear voice broke the darkness.

The darkness before Su Qing'an's eyes was suddenly torn apart by a bright light, and the lights in the research institute were turned on.

After taking a shower, Theresa changed into a clean and tidy nun's habit, naturally because she didn't want to face her students looking disheveled.

The headmistress must maintain her authority.

Her white hair was still damp from the blow dry, with a strand lying flat against her cheek. Combined with the solemn black veil on her head and her old-fashioned tone, it was so cute it made you want to laugh.

But she quickly noticed the abnormality on her face, brushed a strand of hair aside with her small hand, and said seriously, "You should know about the problem with your body, right? It's probably because you've been too close to the pseudo-Herrscher. Your body is being eroded by Honkai energy. Given St. Freya's current resources and technology, you don't have many options left."

"Yes, I know," Su Qing'an replied, his voice carried throughout the research institute by the remaining functions of the respirator.

In an environment where you could hear a pin drop, his calm tone and nasal breathing were crystal clear.

"You always seem to have this tone and attitude, but this is a matter of life and death."

The girl frowned and said somewhat unhappily, "To Theresa, who teaches Valkyries to cherish their lives, the boy's indifferent demeanor, as if he had experienced death, makes it seem like he doesn't care about his own life."

“…Principal Theresa, I know.” The boy looked at Theresa’s annoyed expression because of her concern through the water and laughed.

Because of the respirator, she couldn't see the boy's upturned lips, but the softened look in his eyes made Theresa realize that he was indeed smiling.

“I’m scared too. Whether it was killing Shi for the first time, being chased by an Emperor-class Honkai Beast, or being corrupted by Honkai now, I’m scared. It’s not that I think nothing matters, Headmistress Theresa,” he said.

"But if you're just afraid, you can't do anything."

"And I believe in you, Principal Theresa."

Honestly, what a cunning claim.

Theresa felt somewhat helpless upon hearing Su Qing'an's words.

In that case, wouldn't I be the one being comforted?

“Artificial Stigmata,” Theresa uttered a term, “This is currently the only way St. Freya might be able to save you.”

The Stigmata are essentially the legacy of a previous civilization; they are the result of MEI transcribing his life's research into the human genetic material.

When these recessive genetic factors awaken in the next generation of humans, stigmata will appear on their bodies.

The effects of the Stigmata are very similar to those of the Herrscher Core, possessing a "battery-like" function that stores and utilizes Honkai energy.

Although its form is merely an unintelligible pattern resembling a tattoo, the stigma exists in a manner similar to an organ; it is not only the part exposed on the skin, but also includes parts that are directly or indirectly connected to other parts of the body.

Those who possess the Stigmata have extremely strong adaptability and resistance to Honkai energy.

The artificial stigmata mentioned by Theresa are artificial antibodies that the Destiny Organization has finally completed through a long period of research, which can be injected, and artificial stigmata made based on artificial antibodies.

However, due to the inability to extract samples from natural Stigmata, artificial Stigmata are incomplete. Not only are they inferior to natural Stigmata in performance, but they also severely shorten the user's lifespan.

The injection of artificial stigmata can be considered as a transplant of some kind of organ.

Valkyries who receive transplants face the risk of becoming undead or dying. According to Destiny, this may be because artificial stigmata cannot adequately protect other organs of the human body.

And the method that Theresa Apocalypse is talking about at this moment is such a product.

"The artificial stigma technology is not mature. Even though the artificial stigma technology has undergone multiple iterations so far, the chance of survival for the average person who receives an artificial stigma is less than 50%."

"But this applies to ordinary people. Among all the Valkyries at St. Freya Academy who are allowed to receive artificial stigma technology, the mortality rate is less than one in a thousand, and the failure rate is no more than twenty percent."

"Your situation is somewhere between an ordinary person and a Valkyrie. Because you are one of the few males who have undergone the experiment, I have no way of knowing how high your chances of success or failure are."

"But if you succeed, your physical fitness, resistance to Honkai energy, and adaptability will all be improved to varying degrees. With your original level, it won't be difficult to even reach the combat power of an A-rank Valkyrie."

"Of course, your lifespan will be shortened as a result, and even if you succeed, I'm not sure how long you can live."

“Want to… take a gamble?” Theresa said.

Actually, she was a little sad. To have her student face such a choice and a life-or-death challenge was an unpleasant and frustrating thing for Theresa.

On the other hand, she also found it difficult to explain to Himeko.

Theresa believes that Su Qing'an bears a great deal of responsibility for becoming like this.

Although Himeko had spoken to her, it was undoubtedly Himeko herself who judged Changkong City to be harmless and allowed Su Qing'an to go.

Therefore, it is only natural to bear some responsibility.

Whether it's guilt, sadness, or the weight on your shoulders.

Accident?

This was indeed an accident.

No one expected that a pseudo-Herrscher would appear in Changkong City a month later, and no one expected that Su Qing'an would run right into it.

It's like the only answer on an exam paper that you can't avoid; unless you take the wrong path, everything will lead to this result.

But does that mean you can shirk responsibility?

Theresa Apocalypse declined.

Yes, it's very easy this way. Nothing concerns her; she can simply stay safely at St. Freya Academy, attending meetings in the conference room, viewing the Valkyrie's life as a cold number, and gradually becoming numb to everything.

But then it wouldn't be Theresa.

Both Himeko Murata and Theresa Apocalypse are such stubborn idiots.

Whether they are naive or foolish, they are all persistently moving forward on their own paths.

Such a person is both pure and dazzling.