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

At that time, Sato Yuno will not live solely for revenge.

Perhaps, just as Su Qing'an said, this girl who wields the power of a pseudo-Herrscher will fight to protect the beauty of the world.

But before that day arrives, the girl and Su Qing'an are undoubtedly still immersed in the aftermath of Kanbaru Shuichi's death.

For the first time, they were fully committed to saving something and felt they had the power to do so.

But they still failed.

The pain born from this mixture of frustration and sorrow left scars on their hearts.

In the end, time will numb everything.

45. Long time no see, Hua.

2014 4 Month 21 Day.

The sun was shining brightly in the afternoon.

Su Qing'an, carrying his instrument case, arrived at the dormitory entrance, bathed in the sea breeze that tousled his hair.

He habitually turned his head to look at the ancient tree.

The branches and leaves fell forlornly to the ground, and dappled sunlight swayed under the shade of the tree, leaving the place empty and desolate.

There was no girl who used to come and practice boxing.

That's right, it's precisely because I can't see her at this time.

He opened the door and went into the room.

The ground was spotless, all the items in front of me were neatly arranged, and the sunlight shone through the air, making it incredibly clear.

There's an extra pair of shoes in the entryway.

People have come to visit.

Who could it be? Su Qing'an was momentarily confused.

Was it Kiana who came over to play games? Or did Himeko, who rarely has free time, come over to tidy up his room?

Or rather, is it her?

As he approached the bedroom, he could already hear the sounds of the game.

Upon opening the door, the boy was greeted by an unforgettable scene.

The girl gathered her gray hair with one hand and tied it with a hair tie. With her other hand, she held the game controller and pressed the buttons with the dexterity and speed of a butterfly flitting through flowers. On the game screen, the enemy's health bar was depleted.

The usually serious girl was seen behaving in a slightly frivolous manner, so when she noticed the person who had come, her hands momentarily froze, as if she were at a loss.

But she immediately released her clenched fingers, letting the ends of her dark hair fall to the ground. She regained her composure, turned to Su Qing'an with a faint smile, and said:

"Welcome back, Su Qing'an."

"Long time no see, Hua." Unaware of the girl's subtle movement at that moment, Su Qing'an replied.

Even though it had only been less than a week, the boy subconsciously told her it had been a long time.

Perhaps for him, this mission was a long journey, and the life that the boy burned out was indeed far more than five days.

But perhaps...

For him, a day without seeing Hua felt like an eternity.

"Why are you here?" He sat down next to her naturally, took another controller from the cabinet, and said.

“I heard from Principal Theresa that you would be back today. Didn’t you give me your phone before you left so I could check in for you in the game?”

"So I came to return your phone, and cleaning your room was just something I did on the side."

After calmly stating her reason, Fu Hua handed the phone to Su Qing'an and then picked up the controller.

The two opened the game and started chatting.

"Oh, thank you so much." Su Qing'an replied with a smile, though the gloom in her heart still lingered, but at this moment it seemed as if a glimmer of light had appeared within it.

“These are all trivial matters,” Fu Hua said earnestly.

This side of Fu Hua, for some reason, seemed quite adorable to him. Su Qing'an suddenly thought to himself.

"How did your first mission go?" she asked.

"...It's alright, but I still feel very weak." Recalling the white flowers in front of the tombstone, Su Qing'an was silent for a while before speaking.

"I heard from the headmaster that it's not a task someone your level should be given. You've already done very well by completing it." She hesitated for a moment before pressing the button, then said to him in a comforting tone.

"I know, I'm just unwilling to accept it."

"I know it's normal for accidents to happen during missions. In that situation, I had already done my best. I shouldn't feel sorry, guilty, or sad."

Su Qing'an's expression remained unchanged. He spoke as if he were telling someone else's story, his words devoid of emotion and without the slightest fluctuation.

But for some reason, the girl could understand that he was very sad.

However, his rare awkwardness and stubbornness prevented him from expressing all his emotions so directly.

But the boy was indeed earnestly revealing his true feelings to himself.

He continued:

"Hua, actually I'm still very scared. What if one day I encounter this situation again? Then the person I have to save won't be Mr. Kambara, or Ms. Yu, whom I don't even know very well, but someone I absolutely don't want to die."

"And if I still can't do it, or if I do it but am still just a little bit short."

"The thought of this terrifies me, more than the thought of dying."

The boy's face was expressionless, and the frequency of his hand movements remained unchanged, but the words he spoke in a light tone sounded heavy and oppressive in the sunlight.

"...Your suitability and resistance to Honkai energy make it difficult for you to become stronger. Your accumulation in martial arts is gradual and unlikely to bring about a qualitative change."

"Faced with collapse, even the martial arts that ordinary people have cultivated for decades are extremely fragile."

Fu Hua put down the controller, letting her game character's health drop freely. She looked at the boy and said:

“I understand your resentment, but that’s how the world is. You’ve already done a remarkable job. In terms of pure martial arts, I can’t surpass you as much as I did before.”

The girl's words were undoubtedly modest. Even if she had forgotten most of her skills, the unparalleled martial arts that were integrated into her body were definitely not a level that Su Qing'an could catch up with in a short time.

Even so, it proves that she truly recognized Su Qing'an's martial arts level, and it is no easy feat to receive such praise from the Divine Immortal.

"But that's exactly right, Su Qing'an."

"Normal methods of becoming stronger are no longer meaningful to you."

Fu Hua's gentleness made her speak very tactfully.

Having abandoned the illusory anti-Honkai armor, Su Qing'an could no longer become significantly stronger.

Su Qing'an took the controller that Fu Hua had put down and operated it with both hands at the same time, stopping the character's health from dropping.

"I know a martial art called Taixu Sword Qi," he confessed immediately.

“…I see. Then you must not have been practicing for very long.” Fu Hua said after a moment of silence.

"I found the Taixu Sword Qi among my father's belongings three months ago. After that, I cultivated my sword heart to the Still Water Realm. If it weren't for that, I probably wouldn't have survived that collapse."

Su Qing'an did not choose to reveal the special nature of the gods and the Taixu Sword Qi. Such a magical and strange event would not bring him any positive benefits if he talked about it.

He continued:

"Actually, when I went to Changkong City later, due to an accident, I broke through the Dustless Realm with my sword heart."

Upon hearing this, the girl's pupils trembled and shrank slightly. She understood what Su Qing'an meant by those words. If he was able to survive that collapse, it was entirely because of the blessing of the Taixu Sword Qi.

The boy's own Honkai energy adaptability and resistance were completely insufficient for him to break through to the Dustless Realm. Even if his mind reached that level, his physical body would still bind him, preventing him from ever stepping into that realm.

Because what lies ahead is an inescapable abyss.

"...You had a Stigmata transplanted, didn't you?" Fu Hua asked, her usually calm and detached words now tinged with emotion.

A tiny ripple stirs within the emptiness of the heart, but when the dead spring begins to flow, even the ripples stirred by the wind become exceptionally vivid.

This feeling has been repeated too many times in the void of the past, so many times that my heart has begun to unconsciously clench.

Even with her body shattered and her memories fragmented, the girl could still clearly perceive this sorrowful remembrance.

Comrades-in-arms, friends, colleagues...

At the same time, Fu Hua wondered what kind of existence this boy in front of her was.

"Yes, otherwise I wouldn't survive."

"The transplantation of artificial stigmata was much more painful than I imagined; it felt like I was killed again."

Su Qing'an awkwardly tried to make a joke to ease the other person's mood, but his words were still too clumsy. Just as he couldn't comfort Shen Yuanxi, he also couldn't pull the girl out of the lingering shadows of the past.

"There's nothing we can do about it." In the end, Fu Hua could only give this seemingly heartless answer.

Regardless of the past, I no longer have the energy to dwell on those things.

"It's already a blessing to be alive," Su Qing'an nodded in agreement.

After that, they stopped talking, and the game's background music became the only sound.

He knew that the current atmosphere wasn't suitable for continuing to play games; the game was just a tool to make it easier for two chatty people to have casual conversations.

But now they are silent, and even the slightest sound of the curtains fluttering in the wind is so clear.

The girl didn't say anything and walked out of the room.

Su Qing'an silently completed the game with his own hands, without letting Fu Hua's character lose any more health, nor did he ask her why she left.

"Knock, knock, knock." It was the sound of knocking on the door.

Su Qing'an turned around and saw the girl open the door. She stared at him with eyes as blue as the sea, her long, curled eyelashes tinged with gold by the sunlight. Then she said earnestly, "I forgot to ask, do you have any noodles in the kitchen?"

"Yes." He paused for a moment, then nodded.

"That's enough. Whatever you plan to do, eat first." After Fu Hua finished speaking, she closed the door.

Su Qing'an looked at the closed door and the word "victory" on the game interface, and a sudden upward curve appeared on the corner of her lips.

The boy couldn't help but laugh.

He thought he hadn't really lost yet.