Infinite Journey: Dark Souls

Information regarding equipment:

Equipment from the Intermittent World: The following is just speculation—Under normal circumstances, equipment from the Intermittent World cannot be brought back to the World of Fire. This is probably because when the Ashes go to and from the Intermittent World, they are really just a pile of ashes that are lit in those worlds. Once they burn out there, they will come back, so they cannot bring anything from there. My storage method is an extension of residual power, so I can bring items back.

P.S.: Happy Dragon Boat Festival, everyone!

Chapter Twenty-Three: When in doubt, praise the sun!

Xiao Yan returned to the vicinity of the first campfire in the World of Fire and Flame. She finally remembered that the guy who brought her a second death was the giant crystal lizard the blacksmith had mentioned. She was looking for crystals to strengthen her weapon, so now she could settle both old and new scores.

She arrived at the narrow crevice in the Ash Graveyard again, and cautiously stepped through the crevice into the small basin.

Sure enough, as soon as she stepped in, the giant lizard got up from the ground. This time, Xiao Yan didn't give it a chance to roll over and charged straight at it, starting a melee.

To be honest, the Crystal Lizard's method of creating crystals during attacks is quite threatening, and its thick layer of crystals makes it seem like hitting it doesn't do much damage, making it a formidable enemy for beginners. However, after engaging in that fast-paced, high-risk battle with the Ice Dog, she felt that this kind of turn-based combat, with its counter-attacks, had become slow and somewhat boring.

The Crystal Lizard's attack methods are nothing more than a few moves: tail whip, claw swing, and pounce. In addition, there is the roll that killed Xiaoyan once. It can be said that as long as you pay attention to the crystals generated during the attack, there is basically no difficulty. She didn't even use the ability to rewind time. She just fought it off with her swords one by one.

After stunning it and executing it by aiming at its head, Homura reaped her spoils.

From the corpse of the crystal lizard that had turned into light debris and dissipated, a large cluster of crystals fell out. The colorless crystals refracted sunlight and appeared to be a part of its body.

After placing the crystal inside the shield, she returned to the sacrificial site via the campfire.

"Lord Ash, how did things go?"

"Ah, thank goodness, I'm fine now..."

As she was greeting the Fire Keeper as usual, she suddenly noticed that something was off about the atmosphere. The ashes that had been scattered into several piles when she returned were now sitting around the steps of the sacrificial site, with more than a dozen pairs of eyes staring at her.

This is when you can see Xiaoyan's true skill in being expressionless. She endured all the stares and left the campfire without any expression. She walked to Zhi, who was waving her hand, and then casually stuck her longsword into the spot where Zhi was standing.

(Softly) Hey, have I become nothing more than your tool for venting your anger?

Looking at the long sword phantom that passed through her body, Zhi complained to Xiao Yan with twitching lips.

"(Softly) Sorry, my hand slipped."

But Xiaoyan showed no intention of drawing her longsword, and before Zhi could even fight for her right to the Ashes, the wolf grandmother, who had been standing by the campfire and interrupted by Xiaoyan's sudden appearance, continued to announce the information she had obtained.

"That's how it is. The world of the torch will no longer be as simple as it used to be, where you can continue to navigate it with the mindset of playing games—I'm talking about you, Kirito!"

Perhaps to show respect, she did not wear a helmet when she spoke by the campfire at the sacrificial site; her long brown hair was draped over her shoulders, complementing her equally brown wolf ears.

The boy with short black hair who was called out scratched his head a little embarrassedly, but didn't refute anything and continued to listen to Granny Wolf's next words.

"Even so, for us Ashbringers, as long as we can still be resurrected from the campfire, no matter how much the situation in the Firelink Shrine changes, at least you won't die. If all else fails, you can still stay in the Firelink Shrine like me. As for those who have a reason to go back to their own world..."

Granny Wolf's gaze suddenly sharpened. She swept her eyes over everyone present, paused for a moment on the faces of Teresa, Little Fire, and the others, and then continued speaking.

"...If we can't even overcome this little difficulty, how can we talk about going back to fulfill our wishes?"

"That's all I have to say. Just remember one thing: if you can't even withstand the flames, how can you be reborn from the ashes? This is the meaning of your coming here. Please cherish this hard-won path of sublimation."

After saying this, Granny Wolf put her helmet back on, walked to the side, leaned against the steps, and ignored everyone around her.

The sacrificial site fell silent for a moment, then the dozen or so people split into small groups and started making noise again.

"Hmm, that's really impressive information, although I didn't understand it at all."

The Sun Knight sitting next to the weaver suddenly spoke up. As he spoke, he stood up, stretched his arms out horizontally, and stood on tiptoe, making a strange gesture.

"However, when I'm in a dilemma, the sun always gives me guidance. Praise the sun!"

"Oh, oh, oh, oh! That's the pose, praise the sun!"

However, his nonsensical actions actually won Zhi's approval. The two of them were now as fanatical as cultists, and the sacrificial site, which was originally very serious because of Granny Wolf's information, suddenly became ridiculous.

Seemingly unable to bear it any longer, the two men in knight's armor walked towards the campfire one after the other and left.

"Farewell, my comrades. I will spread the sun's radiance throughout this strange yet familiar world. And no matter when or where you are, whenever you encounter difficulties, I, the Knight of the Sun, will surely arrive. Praise... the sun!"

He walked towards the campfire with his arms outstretched. In that instant, Xiao Yan inexplicably felt that the promise he made would definitely be kept.

"Wow! That determination to reach out to everyone in need is so cool! I'll learn from you from now on. I don't have such a broad mind, and there's only one person I want to protect, but if we spread the sun's light, the world will be a better place!"

With dead fish eyes staring at the frenzied Zhi, Xiao Yan slowly drew her longsword from her phantom.

Chin—!

"I'm sorry, Your Highness, I was just lost in my own world. Please feel free to tell me your needs."

"I'm late. What did Granny Wolf announce?"

"Ah, this is related to the mutated ice dog we encountered. She said that due to some special reason, the world of the Fire is no longer an unchanging trial ground. Some enemies have started to move around. The most specific manifestation is that enemies that would normally only linger in the same place will appear in other places. Of course, there are also some deeper things, but Granny Wolf said that no one will die anyway, so she told us to explore it ourselves."

Zhi shrugged, returning to normal, and repeated the information from Granny Wolf.

"So, has the method of returning to one's own world changed?"

The intelligence itself was indeed as Sun Knight said—impressive but incomprehensible. What Xiaoyan cared about was whether the method to return to her own world still existed.

“I just asked Rudolph, and he said his power hasn’t changed. As long as we continue to provide strong souls, he can still send us back to our own world. However, he has added a condition that is not important: he hopes that his help can be exchanged for us to complete our mission in the World of the Flame, which is called the linking of the flame.”

At some point, Denise walked up to them, her signature smile still on her lips, but her unusually tired expression gave Xiaoyan a bad feeling.

"Teresa-senpai, after you... returned to your own world, were you alright?"

"Well, overall, it's not bad... I guess."

She sat down next to Xiaoyan and the others, as if she were confiding in them, or as if she were talking to herself.

“I saw the people I wanted to see again and completed some unfinished things, but sometimes I really feel that even if I am gone, the world will still keep going, more people will gather around that child, and that child will even walk his own path. My existence is superfluous and even adds unnecessary trouble for them... Now it seems that it may be a big problem.”

Xiaoyan and Zhidu both fell silent. It was clear that Teresa must have gone through something in her own world to change her so much. When they first met, she always touted herself as an ambitious Ash, but now she was more like that wolf grandmother, as if she had seen through something or made a decision.

"In short, returning to my own world will still be my top priority, and I will continue to strive for it. However, my goals are no longer limited to that. There are some things that only I can prevent in advance. So, Xiaoyan, I have a new piece of advice..."

She looked at Xiaoyan, her eyes churning with incredibly complex emotions, and spoke the next words slowly and deliberately.

"...That is, since you became ashes, you no longer belong to the original world."

She stroked her superior knight's armor, walked towards the campfire, and left.

Only Xiao Yan remained, lost in quiet contemplation.

"Xiaoyan... I think we don't need to dwell too much on the advice of our seniors. After all, those summaries of experience are based on the path she herself has taken. We don't need to follow the old path, and we certainly won't repeat the same mistakes. Just write them down and don't take them too seriously."

Zhi was afraid that Denise's words had somehow touched a nerve with Xiaoyan, so she awkwardly tried to comfort her.

"Hmm... I know, I will remember your advice, senior, but that won't shake my decision. No matter what Teresa encounters, I must go back and experience it myself before I can draw my own conclusions. Didn't Sister Holo also say that information is only for reference, and the real practice depends on oneself?"

"Let's not talk about that anymore. I got some crystals for enhancement, and I'm planning to have them checked by a blacksmith. Do you want to come along?"

"Of course, I also need to get my katana repaired while I'm at it."

————————————————————————————————————————

Homura Akemi's Intelligence Compilation Manual

Information about the world itself:

Something major seems to have happened in the world of the Flame, which may affect the progress of returning to our own world. We need to pay close attention.

PS: Yunxi: 744486102 You saw an empty PS

Chapter Twenty-Four: The Simple and Honest Street

"Oh, you brought the crystal so quickly? Very good. First, pour your power into this crystal... not too much, just enough to change its color."

After exchanging information, the two went to the blacksmith. Zhi handed the katana to his blacksmith and then watched with great interest as Xiaoyan enhanced the weapon.

Following the blacksmith's description, Xiaoyan poured her magic into the crystal. Soon, when her magic was almost exhausted, the entire crystal began to emit a shimmering purple light.

She handed the crystal along with the P220 pistol to the blacksmith.

"Hmm... It's a very magical property. Even I, a blacksmith, am looking forward to seeing what kind of weapon I can enhance it with."

After saying that, he crushed the crystal with a hammer, mixed it with the pistol shaft, and put it into the furnace. In an instant, the originally ordinary furnace turned into a purple flame. After the pistol turned red-hot, he took it out, attached the remaining crystal, quenched it, and continued forging.

After repeating this process several times and undergoing another quenching, the gun body, originally made of fine steel, now had a crystalline luster. The blacksmith picked it up, examined it for a moment, and then returned it to Xiao Yan.

"It's done. It seems your abilities are a good match for this weapon. The enhancement went very smoothly. I just tested it, and it seems to be 'fixed' now. That is to say, it can completely avoid wear and tear and will always maintain its current state. Unless it is hit by a force that exceeds your ability limit, it will never malfunction. Most importantly, the bullets it fires will be made of your magic power, so you don't have to worry about the number of bullets and can use it with peace of mind."

Xiaoyan breathed a sigh of relief. What she had been worried about was the ammunition issue. You see, Xiaoyan used to have almost unlimited ammunition. If she couldn't use her best weapon due to ammunition limitations, she would still feel a little regretful.

She eagerly took the pistol and began to rub it in her hands.

"I understand, thank you, Mr. Blacksmith."

"Hehe, it's only right. As a blacksmith, it's a good thing to see all kinds of amazing weapons. By the way, this weapon still has potential. When you acquire more abilities, you can find some more crystals. I can try to 'solidify' your new abilities on it as well."

"I've got it. I'll trouble you again next time."

She gave a slight bow, then called over Zhi, who had repaired the katana, and began her new journey.

————————————————————————————————————————

At the bonfire at the gates of Lothric, the two of them lit the bonfire that had remained unlit since they defeated the Ice Hound, after being sent to the Interval World.

"What a blunder! Because we didn't light this campfire, we can't teleport directly to the Undead Settlement."

Xiaoyan paid no attention to Zhi's complaints; she was simply engrossed in fiddling with her gun.

"Hey, it's amazing that you can keep a straight face even in this mood—alright, the campfire is lit, we can officially start exploring the simple and honest Undead Street."

"I've been wanting to ask this before: since the people are so kind and honest, can we reduce a lot of unnecessary battles?"

"Hmph, you'll find out soon enough."

After a while, at the campfire below the high walls of Lothric, Little Flame got a good taste of the so-called simple and honest folk customs of the Undead Settlement.

"Tsk...these guys' behavior really lives up to the description of 'simple and honest people'."

They were teleported by the campfire to the ruins beneath the high walls of Lothric. There should have been a bridge here leading to the city gate where they had fought the Ice Hounds, but now the bridge was broken, and on this side of the bridge was the Undead settlement.

Concealed beneath the wreckage, they observed the horrifying scene on the broken bridge from afar—due to the severed road, it seemed that many people dressed in robes and carrying tortoise shells were trapped here. They had probably traveled from afar to reach Lothric, but now they had all fallen before the broken bridge, their fate unknown.

Meanwhile, beneath the gate leading to the Undead Settlement in the distance, a steady stream of villagers came and went, carrying cleavers, pitchforks, sledgehammers, sickles, and other farming tools. They followed carts pulled by burly executioners to the broken bridge, where they cruelly overturned the turtle-shelled people who were prostrating themselves on the bridge like pilgrims, pried open the shells on their backs, and raised their cleavers to cut their corpses into pieces.

Occasionally, skeletal dogs would run by, and they would throw down some scraps for the dogs to gnaw on, while large chunks of bloody bones were loaded onto carts and continued to be pulled back to the Undead settlement by those burly executioners.

The entire process was silent yet efficient. Under the villagers' bloody knives, the surface of the broken bridge was already covered in blood. As the vehicles carrying the corpses rolled over, the bloody ruts stretched all the way towards the center of the village.

"Actually, when we describe the people as simple and honest, we don't mean this kind of scene... Never mind, this must be what Granny Wolf's intelligence said before. There are many more people than when I first came, and they even have a clear purpose for their actions. What does this mean?"