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

With just a change of expression, Nishikujo Sara's demeanor is completely transformed.

For a moment, she gave the impression of a female high school student majoring in literature, taking notes in the classroom.

Then Su Qing'an learned that as long as she controlled the flow and movement of her muscles at any time, and gave regular, natural reactions so that her expression did not appear stiff, she would have a perfect smile.

Women may be creatures born with a natural capacity for lying, Su Qing'an thought so because the students in her acting classes learned very quickly.

From then on, he was able to distinguish to some extent whether a person's smile was genuine or feigned.

Now, Su Qing'an uses this smile to add another layer of protection to his disguised identity, which helps him observe the villagers' most ordinary and everyday lives.

The most valuable observations can only be made when the other party is not on guard.

"Mr. Su, here are your eggs."

The woman warmly handed him the bag, which he politely accepted.

There were four extra eggs inside.

But Su Qing'an didn't expose him. He smiled, expressed his gratitude, and then said goodbye and left.

After careful observation, the boy noticed something amiss about the villagers.

A martial artist who is forging ahead on the path of martial arts will naturally have a deep understanding of the human body, and this is especially true for martial artists who have reached the pinnacle of their skills.

Su Qing'an's skill level was quite high; he could sense subtle but real differences between the villagers' bodies and those of ordinary people.

Regarding faith, Su Qing'an also tried to probe. He subtly suggested that some of the country's customs were ridiculous and ignorant. The other party would then normally agree, saying that someone like Mr. Su, who was educated in British higher education, would naturally find it difficult to understand some local customs.

However, the customs of our Kambara Village are different from those.

What followed was a clearly abnormal and emotionally charged fervor, not just superficial fanaticism, but a fanatical belief that permeated every word.

Whether they are women in their fifties, high school students in their teens, children as young as seven or eight, or mature middle-aged men, their IQs and levels of experience may vary, but the core attitudes they exhibit are completely consistent.

It was like an army that had been drilled thousands of times and whose will was extremely unified.

Even someone like Su Qing'an, who had experienced life and death, couldn't help but feel a chill when faced with such bizarre obsession after being tested time and time again.

Can the fanatical beliefs of Kambara Village really be explained by simple ignorance and inherited customs?

Both Sato Yuno and Su Qing'an felt uneasy about the upcoming festival day.

27. Fireworks, sparklers, starry sky.

As the sun set behind the mountains, the sky gradually darkened.

The town was still bustling and brightly lit.

The boy carried the bag through the bustling crowd, his smiling face masking a strange and complex mix of emotions.

The people of Kambara Village are holding a festival.

They were sincerely celebrating the day of sacrifice tomorrow.

A child is holding an adult's hand, while his other hand is waving a cotton candy around restlessly, showing great liveliness.

He asked if the gods would bless him to pass the exam after tomorrow's sacrificial day.

The woman smiled and rubbed his head, saying, "The gods don't care about these things; you still have to rely on your own efforts."

But the gods will bless you so you can grow up healthy.

The woman's smile was gentle and kind as she spoke. If one disregarded the fact that the so-called festival day was stained with the blood and souls of the Kambara clan, this would have been an ordinary and heartwarming interaction between mother and child.

Such incongruous scenes are almost everywhere; on the surface, they even appear to be very simple and kind.

And none of this was feigned; Su Qing'an, who had some experience with acting, could tell that the villagers' reactions were genuine.

After ruling out the possibility that all of them are master actors, thus creating a Truman Show-like world to keep him in the dark.

This sincerity only seemed more terrifying to Su Qing'an.

That's like a child laughing as they crush an ant, taking it seriously as a game—a naive understanding.

The villagers' attitude towards the Kanbara family was like a distorted form of goodwill, which manifested in reality as pure malice.

According to the villagers, the sacrificial day is a beautiful festival to allow the incarnation of the gods on earth to be reborn and to wash away the calamities that have befallen the village.

At this moment, the professional team that Shuichi Kambara hired from the fireworks company was preparing for the fireworks display in an open space.

Dozens of technicians arrived in Kambara Village yesterday, shortly after Kambara Shuichi arrived, to begin setting up the site.

They arranged the fireworks like building blocks.

By tonight's celebration, all that's left is for the explosives department personnel to handle the fuses, fill the gunpowder, and finally ignite the explosives.

These exquisite fireworks, 70% of which are handcrafted, are seen by the villagers as something Shuichi Kanbara prepared for the festival, a compromise with custom and living dolls.

But in reality, it was just something a father did to make his daughter happy.

After the ignition, the countdown to the fireworks' ascent began.

After directing the crowd, Shuichi Kanbara walked alone to Su Qing'an's side, silently smoking a cigar and looking up at the dark, boundless night sky.

"Mr. Kambara, aren't you going back to be with Miss Yu?" Su Qing'an asked.

For some reason, at a certain moment he felt that the way Kanbaru Shuichi smoked was strangely similar to that of Nishikujo Sara. It wasn't the action or the expression, but something else that overlapped.

Is it a sense of vicissitude and maturity?

It was that same heavy and sorrowful experience.

"Xiao Xi has Kitahara and Ms. Sato with her. As for me, I need to get these unrelated people out of Kambara Village later to avoid getting them involved in this battle. After all, I can't let them be in danger because of my willfulness."

Shuichi Kambara's words were exhaled along with the smoke in his throat. He looked at the fireworks blooming in the sky, the white mist obscuring his face, making it difficult for Su Qing'an to see his expression for a moment.

But she was probably smiling.

In Shuichi Kanbara's heart.

These thousands of fireworks were set off just for Yuu Kambara.

-----------

Kanhara ancestral home. patio.

As Kanbara Yu gazed at the night sky that had been ignited in an instant, her eyes shone brightly, reflecting the scene.

The girl was quite excited.

Only now did she understand what the surprise that Shuichi Kanbara had said he wanted to give her before he left last time was.

This fireworks display was just as grand and magnificent as the fireworks at the large celebration she remembered.

Moreover, it was her father who put it there for her.

Just thinking about this fills Shinbara Yu with a small sense of pride, like a child showing off their parents' accomplishments.

Kitahara Shin stood behind the girl, his solemn face softening upon seeing Kanbara Yuuko's understanding expression.

After spending ten years together, he was no longer fighting simply for Shuichi Kanbara.

Kanbara Yuu stared at the fireworks, somewhat dazed.

She remembered that a few years ago on her birthday, Shuichi Kanbara was too busy to come back and celebrate with her.

Although the girl wasn't angry, she was still a little disappointed and squatted in the corner of the bed, not going to bed early like before.

After rushing back, Shuichi Kanbara carefully knocked on the door and asked if she was asleep.

The girl immediately ran over happily and opened the door.

For her, seeing Shuichi Kanbara on this day was more important than any birthday gift.

And it has to be on this day; it doesn't count if it's past midnight.

This is a rare little obsession in a girl's heart.

The man awkwardly pulled out a few sparklers from his pocket, patted the girl's head, and apologized, saying that these were the only gifts he could offer.

After that, the father and daughter squatted in the courtyard and lit the sparklers.

Although she looked a little silly, Yuu Kambara was still very happy.

The sparkler seemed to burn for a very, very long time before it went out that day.

Because that day was very, very far away from the sacrificial day that was to come the next day.

Fireworks, one after another, sublimate into magnificent light and sparks.

After a short time, all the thousands of fireworks burned out.

More than ten hours of preparation were all for this short five-minute spectacle.

Five minutes is much longer than the burning time of a sparkler, and these fireworks are much prettier than sparklers.

But Kanbara Yu still felt it was a bit short, and she suddenly decided that the sparkler from that day was prettier.

Am I being too greedy? This is already quite good enough.

Looking at the night sky that had returned to darkness, Kanbara Yu felt a pang of sadness.

Then a hand was placed on her head; it was Yuno Sato.

She smiled and gently stroked the girl's head, saying:

"Cheer up, Xiaoxi."

"I will help you kill that living doll so it won't hurt you, it's a promise."

After all, I wore your Kyōyūzen robes, so I should take responsibility for it. Satō Yuno made excuses for herself.

It is unnecessary and unstable for Mingming to develop too much emotional connection with the client.

But both Su Qing'an and Sato Yuno clearly no longer have the same attitude towards normal missions.

Is this due to the unique personal charm of Shuichi and Yuu Kanbara, or simply their youthful spirit?

"Okay, this is for you." Sato Yuno said with a smile, putting her hands behind her back.

She used her power to create a cluster of blue baby's breath that emitted a gentle glow, and handed it to the somewhat disappointed Shinbara Yu.

"Hey, where did this come from?" The girl blankly accepted the somewhat dreamlike bouquet.

"Yuno-nee, that's amazing. Is this the legendary magic?" Kanbara Yuu looked at the starry sky with delight, then looked up at Sato Yuno with earnest admiration and said.