Genshin Impact, I, a mere mortal, cannot accompany you to the very end.

The giant serpent, writhing in pain, turned its eyes bloodshot and began to weep bloody tears, displaying a maddened state—it was originally a creature born from the resentment of a demon god, having absorbed four hundred years of filth, and in pain it completely lost its reason.

At this moment, its posture is more like that of an evil god than it was four hundred years ago.

What Kiyono didn't expect was that Inazuma was deeply corrupted by the great cataclysm five hundred years ago. The lingering spirit of the serpent had been dormant in Inazuma for hundreds of years, absorbing countless filth. Its strength was incomparable to that of an ordinary demon god's lingering spirit.

It has now gone completely mad, roaring so loudly that its fury echoes throughout the heavens and earth. Its serpentine body, as thick as a small mountain, writhes and shatters the thick ice. The earth-shattering chaos is still an understatement of the power of this demon god.

It lowered its head and opened its upper and lower jaws toward Kiyono.

From the depths of that gaping maw, screams echoed one after another, and countless hands reached out.

-

Let me recommend another book by a friend, also about Genshin Impact.

"In Naruto, I Start as Zhongli!"

Volume One: Chapter Sixteen My Heart Remains Unmoved, Pillar of the Nation for a Thousand Autumns

From the depths of that eerie maw, screams echoed one after another, and countless hands reached out.

Screams, cries, the mournful voices of the elderly, the weeping of women and children... countless heads emerged from the abyss, blood and tears streaming from their eyes, struggling to open their arms and reach out to grab at Qingye Leiming.

Lying on the snow, Kiyono Raimei frowned.

These are all filth.

Eight-Breath Island was originally an ancient battlefield, where countless souls wandered. Over the past few hundred years, the Great Serpent has absorbed countless wronged souls and filth to form such a massive scale.

The frenzied serpent continued to devour, its head raised, mouth agape like a bottomless pit, spreading filth and instantly changing the sky over Bayun Island.

But all that could be seen were thorns growing wildly and black mist swirling, winding mountains with strange camphor trees in disarray. The mountains would not shelter lonely souls, and the deep snow would not bury corpses. All that could be heard was the rustling of the cold wind and the weeping of ice and snow, and all that could be seen were demons, monsters, ghosts, and gods crying out!

Bones piled up into mountains and forests, flesh and blood flowed into rivers, the sea was covered with skeletons, and the eight rivers bloomed with blood flowers.

[Wake up]

Kiyono felt his vision blur and his mind become confused. He was only awakened by the reminder from the Human Reason System. Instead of seeing mountains of corpses and seas of blood, he saw a jaw that seemed to swallow the sky and was pressing down on him!

The ghost in his mouth was about to touch his cheek.

"Kiyono!" they cried, screamed, calling out Kiyono Raimei's name, tears of blood streaming from their resentful and jealous eyes—the most venomous gaze in the world. "Why are you still alive, Kiyono!"

call...

Lightning surged from the scabbard, heading towards the throat. The vast lightning shattered all the demons and monsters, sending limbs flying and finally turning to ashes and disappearing into the vast snow. Qingye's figure had once again pressed down on the giant snake's head!

This back-and-forth of offense and defense was extremely dangerous.

Kiyono felt a struggle to breathe, and her heart was pounding weakly.

He gritted his teeth, pressing down on the snake's head, ignoring its rolling and shaking. His feet seemed to be rooted to the ground, his mind clear and unmoved, no longer affected by the filthy illusions. He raised his right hand high to cut the snake.

Dark clouds rolled, lightning shattered, and countless bolts of lightning converged on the snake-slaying blade. Qingye slashed again, about to sever the snake's head and root, causing its blood to splatter on the spot.

Suddenly, he felt a sweet taste in his throat, and everything in his vision blurred. The knife missed its mark, grazing his throat as layers of metal scales shattered, tearing open a huge gash.

[The host cannot fight for extended periods.]

"I see." Kiyono Hebikiri plunged into the giant snake's body, a helpless smile on his face.

"I see..."

This is a very frustrating thing.

He was old, but the giant snake was aging much faster than him.

He's old and afraid of the cold. He has to stay in tents during marches and wear thick cloaks to keep warm. He coughs frequently, can no longer draw his sword, and his hair has turned white. He is not the same person he was hundreds of years ago.

So far in this battle, Kiyono has only landed two strikes, but those two strikes were the closest he came to victory. After those two strikes, victory would be out of his reach.

A duel between samurai is about deciding the outcome in an instant, and this is especially true for an old samurai.

The longer the time drags on, the weaker he becomes and the shorter his lifespan, while the giant serpent can absorb the filth and restore its strength.

The serpent's madness deepened. It had long since lost all reason and was now a complete beast. With a flick of its neck, its massive head, carrying immense kinetic energy, flung Qingye Leiming away. The latter crashed onto the snow, rolling helplessly and shattering countless rocks and ice along the way.

"mortal!!"

Your lifespan has been reduced by three days.

The giant serpent opened its massive jaws once more, and countless vengeful spirits gathered in its throat, burning into deep purple flames that erupted forth. This demonic fire swept away everything in its path and crushed towards Qingye Leiming.

He never had another chance to defeat the giant serpent.

But Kiyono has no intention of giving up.

This may be the last battle of Kiyono Raimei's life.

Your lifespan has been reduced by two days.

Even if it looks terrible, he will struggle to the very end.

Having reached his physical limit, Qingye struggled to his feet, sheathed his sword, lowered his body, and dodged into the surrounding forest. He stepped onto the rime ice, and the next second, that patch of ground was burned to ashes.

Kiyono approached the giant serpent in an arc along the forest, like a curved blade, but every blade of the blade was scorched and burned away by the demon god's flames. The flames licked Kiyono's footprints, relentlessly pursuing him like a bone-deep affliction.

[Your lifespan has been reduced by one day]

It hurts so much, and I'm so tired.

My consciousness is fading away.

He fought battles his whole life, and he had countless soldiers under his command. The Pillar of the Nation Army—what a prestigious title! He couldn't let that title down.

Imagine those days guarding the frontier—how carefree they were! In our youthful exuberance, we rode horses and went hunting in the deep winter forests with our fellow soldiers, returning only when the birds had fallen asleep at dusk. He still remembered the names of every lieutenant; they had won countless glorious battles together, and they had drunk heavily and sung loudly together.

But his brothers grew old one by one, and the elders of the Pillar of State Army passed away one after another. Human life is so short. Gradually, he was the only one left in the once glorious Pillar of State Army.

Then he will be the last Pillar of State!

Therefore, he could not escape, he could not give up. If he, the last man, gave up, then the Pillar State Army would be completely wiped out. This was the responsibility of the survivors, the tradition of the Pillar State Army: the living must bury the dead and continue the fight.

Kiyono is the last one left, and he will also end this unfinished war, and end the fate that has entangled Inazuma for four hundred years.

Only in this way, after he dies and loses everything as Kiyono Raimei, will the reborn him not have any regrets.

Kiyono's speed slowed down; his legs had lost all feeling. The flames gradually caught up with him, and the giant serpent was right in front of him, but he could no longer get close.

He liked to laugh because he knew that as long as the pillar of the state remained in power, the morale of the army would not waver.

He is still laughing now, laughing freely and joyfully.

It was a strange feeling; despite facing death, he suddenly felt that this was what it meant to be alive.

Wasting the rest of one's life on a sickbed, barely surviving by a small clay stove, and finally becoming so old that one can no longer take care of one's own bodily functions... that shouldn't be called living, that's just not yet dead.

Orobas is very powerful; it hasn't been seen in four hundred years.

Even though he had given up, he was still a samurai worthy of respect.

Only such a grand ending is worthy of his death; this is true living, understanding life through death!

Flames wrapped around Kiyono's ankles, climbing up her ankles, blurring her vision.

Hitoshi once asked Kiyono if he was satisfied with his life, and at the time he replied, "What is there to be satisfied or not satisfied with?" Now, however, he can answer:

Yes, I'm very satisfied.

'I have fought that glorious battle. I tried to create a beautiful spring, but I failed. I fought alone to the very end, and I am content.' Kiyono Raimei has no regrets in this life.

Except for the last thing, I couldn't make her a bowl of milk dumplings.

I've made fried tofu before, but I haven't had time to make milk dumplings.

There will be no more chances; he will forget them, and they will be strangers from now on.

The life of an ordinary person is truly helpless.

He thought to himself that he was about to be engulfed by the flames, but suddenly, the flames left.

Kiyono saw that the giant snake suddenly let out a miserable cry, and it spat out blood, which was mixed with hundreds of arrows.

"The eternal way is vast, the resounding spirit is eternal."

"My heart remains unmoved, my loyalty will endure for a thousand autumns."

Kiyono turned around in astonishment. He saw Mishima Saito... and he also saw—

A vast army.

Behind him stood a vast army.

Broken armor, fluttering banners, embroidered with thunder and snakes.

Those were the souls of thousands of departed souls, the spirits of thousands of martyrs, and the soldiers who, tainted by filth, lingered and wandered in the human world, their gazes fixed upon him with sincere sincerity, waiting patiently.

They await his commands, just as they did four hundred years ago.

Their voices merged together, like thunder, echoing for a long time above Bayun Island; there was no vow in the world more resounding than this:

"The eternal way is vast, the resounding spirit is eternal."

"My heart remains unmoved, my loyalty will endure for a thousand autumns."

Their eyes were filled with tears.

"The eternal way is vast, the resounding spirit is eternal."

"My heart remains unmoved, my loyalty will endure for a thousand years!!"

Volume 1: Chapter Seventeen - Drawing the Sword!

Most of the ice had melted away, revealing reddish rock layers, with embers still flowing through the crisscrossing gullies.

Much of the snow evaporated, dissipating into thick vapor in the air, rising and surging forth as if from a source, shrouding the still-burning forest. Hundreds of millions of leaves creaked and groaned.

Further away, looking down, warships appeared on the shore amidst the misty snow, and there was more than one.

The massive mast, adorned with banners, roared fiercely in the cold wind.

These ships, too, were burned to death, remnants of past glory. Now they reappear in this time, as the soldiers leave the wandering battlefield, ending their centuries-long journey—they set foot ashore once more.