I Am Honkai

Chapter 917: Dissonance: Grandeur and Insignificance

"Sister Hua..."

Time seemed to freeze at this moment, as all surrounding sounds and colors vanished without a trace.

In Griseo’s flickering gaze surged astonishment, longing, and uncontrollable joy.

Dust-covered memories and emotions flooded back. The dependable, taciturn Flame-Chaser operative who always wore a black inner suit with a gray coat overlapped instantly with the figure before her—draped in plain white, walking upon clouds, ethereal like an immortal.

"Hua... Sister, is it really you?"

"It is me."

Smiling gently, Fu Hua stepped through the air without leaving a trace, approaching Griseo. She extended her hand, speaking softly with guilt and apology, "You’ve worked hard, little Griseo. I’m sorry I came late. After the Ark lost contact, Kevin and the others thought you..."

In that moment, Griseo felt years of longing and warmth.

Though her temperament had changed drastically, and the energy she sensed from her was nearly indistinguishable from that of a Honkai Beast, the familiarity and warmth in the gray-haired, green-eyed woman’s gaze allowed Griseo to recognize her instantly.

Unable to hold back any longer, Griseo’s lips trembled, pressing together before curling upward. Tears welled in her eyes. "It really is you, Sister Hua!" The girl grasped Fu Hua’s outstretched hand.

Unlike their reunion in the original timeline—where, despite some twists, they fought side by side once more in a perfectly balanced warmth—this reunion brought far greater emotional upheaval for Griseo.

Countless times she had believed—indeed, had nearly reached—death. Especially when she had resolved to die, only to be intercepted mid-random hyperspace jump by those cosmic gods radiating supernova-like Honkai energy, effortlessly captured—she had truly thought it was all over.

She would die. Teyvat would be dragged into destruction. The final trace of the civilization that carried everyone’s hope—the "Fire Moth"—would be erased. The hope of overcoming the Honkai would be completely extinguished...

"What exactly... what exactly happened? That hyperdimensional hyperspace storm that swept across the Sea of Quanta and Imaginary Space... all observational equipment on the Ark failed. The Sea of Quanta, Imaginary Space... everything Aunt Mei and Grandma Mobius left behind was wiped clean. All connections... some disappeared completely. Griseo... Griseo thought everyone had died..."

"That storm..." Fu Hua sighed with emotion.

She knew quite a bit about it.

After the descent of "Finality"—Her Majesty Selene, once fully matured—she faced a situation where the Imaginary Space and Sea of Quanta were riddled with loopholes and foreign intrusions. It had become like a sieve, where anyone could enter, dump things, leave marks, or plant contingencies.

She chose a decisive solution.

A sweeping "subspace storm" was unleashed indiscriminately, annihilating and erasing all non-Imaginary and non-Quantum foreign matter.

Even the Imaginary and Quantum lifeforms residing there were either driven into reality as precursors to Honkai disasters or crushed into pure energy and reabsorbed into the "Sea" and "Tree." After being filtered multiple times, they were later re-manifested under a new will to prevent contamination.

Not only the various salvation plans left behind by Dr. Mei and Fire Moth, but also World Serpent from the transitional era, Schicksal and Anti-Entropy of the current era, and even the remnants of ancient alien civilizations within the solar system—all were completely purged.

Everything was wiped clean.

Even across astronomical interstellar distances, the effects were perceptible. It was no wonder Griseo believed everyone had perished.

"This matter... is a long story..."

Nearby, Kiana watched the two begin to talk, briefly sharing their experiences over the years. "Phew..." She lowered her outstretched hand, not minding being temporarily ignored.

With a gentle, almost maternal smile, she quietly observed the scene.

So... it was time to head back.

Kiana thought to herself.

With her hands behind her back, she glanced into the void. Through her authority over subspace, she observed the lingering hyperdimensional Imaginary fissures torn open by the movements of the Punisher Gods of the Imperial Astartes Second Legion.

The person had been retrieved. Durandal, along with her parents, had returned to the preserved wedding residence under Aunt Theresa’s hospitality. They should have already settled in. After a brief rest, it would be time to return to the Imperial Capital—the celebration...

Hmm... even the Punisher Gods unable to attend due to executing trial-world missions for the "Proposal for the Ascension of the Divine Legion" were still preparing tribute offerings, refining and selecting them so meticulously... uh, the gifts I prepared in the Governor’s sector seem a bit shabby...

"The Sacred Selene Empire... an era of coexistence with the Honkai, an order that submits to the Honkai..."

Her lips parted slightly as Griseo murmured. The shift—from fighting against the Honkai as a mission to coexisting with it, submitting to its master—was so drastic that she needed time to process it.

"Alright, Class Monitor. We can go over the details later."

Seeing Fu Hua begin to explain the basic situation of the Empire, Kiana interrupted to stop further delay.

"Let’s go. Should we head straight to the Imperial Capital and meet up with Durandal and the others via the hyperdimensional network, or take this... little Griseo home first?"

As she subconsciously mimicked Fu Hua’s way of addressing her as "little," Kiana’s gaze subtly flickered back and forth between Griseo and Fu Hua.

Hiss...

Kiana knew about the quasi-immortal constitution of super-enhanced soldiers. Combined with the stasis pods—the Fifth Divine Key: Key of Stagnation—over fifty thousand years had left no trace of aging on the Flame-Chasers’ faces.

But Griseo... in photos and records, she had always been a tiny child. Now she had grown into a young woman. That meant the super-enhancement process did not completely halt development—the subject would still mature until reaching genetic peak condition before stabilizing into a slow-aging state.

Which meant...

Ah. A look of pity and regret crossed her eyes.

"..."

It was subtle, but Fu Hua’s martial instincts picked it up instantly. A vein twitched on her forehead. Her eyes narrowed as she cast a sharp glance at Kiana, who had already turned her head away, a bright crescent smile forming.

"Is there a problem, Student Kiana?"

"Ahem, my apologies."

Coughing lightly, Kiana hurriedly cleared her thoughts.

"Let’s go, let’s go... time is tight. We need to meet up with Mei. And Senti too—honestly, I told her to find someone, and she ended up playing with the locals instead. Completely unreliable. We’d better check before she causes more..."

Just as Fu Hua extended her hand and Kiana retreated while hurriedly changing the subject, Griseo caught the words "locals" and "Senti," realizing something. She spoke urgently, "Sister Hua, I need to return to Teyvat first..."

"Oh?"

Her hand had already come to rest on Kiana’s shoulder, just about to exert force when Fu Hua heard this. Her expression turned serious, and she stopped, turning her head in thought. "...Is it about the natives? Very well. I’ll handle the casualties and damages with them..."

"Um, Class Monitor, if Griseo wants to go to that planet called Teyvat, it’s best to hurry. From what I can see, Teyvat is in the same direction those Punishers were heading..."

...

Teyvat.

Fontaine, Erinnyes Island.

Clang!

As if jolting awake from a sudden bout of sleep paralysis, the violent shaking forced Aether to tremble free from the suffocating pressure.

"Cough, cough..."

Supporting his frail body with his sword, the blond youth gritted his teeth. The oppressive aura from the sword-riding outer god who called herself "this Immortal" had come swiftly and vanished just as quickly, tearing his clothes and skin apart. Yet all his attention was now fixed elsewhere, unable to shift even slightly.

The battle had ceased. The Honkai Beasts all lay prostrate toward Senti’s direction. The Vision bearers—those "Genshin" with stronger overall capabilities—stared at her in shock. More precisely, they were staring at the moving horizon extending behind her.

"Aaah!"

Already forced to their knees by the pressure, the people of Fontaine cried out as their legs seemed to lose all strength, collapsing limply to the ground.

"Gulp... h-how is there more?!"

Floating behind the wobbling "Golden Meteor" boy, Paimon—treated by Senti as a mascot fairy—had fortunately avoided the torment of the "foreign god"’s pressure. With the best vantage point and condition, she clearly witnessed an even more horrifying scene.

The false sky above Teyvat—had completely shattered!

"Wah! Zhongli, Venti, Raiden Shogun, Nahida... y-you must have a way, right?" Looking hopefully at the reinforcements—familiar allies—Paimon’s voice trembled with a sob.

At the edge of the horizon, vast clouds were swept aside as an immense shadow slowly rose.

That shadow resembled a colossal celestial body, its size far surpassing anything known in Teyvat. Its surface was covered in deep cracks and interwoven with mysterious glowing veins, exuding an indescribable grandeur.

As it drew closer, beyond the shattered false sky of Teyvat, even the revealed star systems trembled. Whether the false sun or real stars, all dimmed in its presence. Planets became insignificant before it.

A burning orange-red light blanketed all of Teyvat.

They were two enormous "stars," gazing down upon Teyvat—burning, radiating unparalleled light and heat, surging, scorching, yet coldly observing.

They were eyes.

The eyes of an outer cosmic god.

Humanoid in form, its iron-gray body glowed faintly, towering and majestic. Heavy living energy armor covered its massive frame—like a pillar of heaven, like a celestial city—truly blotting out the sky without exaggeration.

All life across Teyvat could see it with their naked eyes.

There was no difference in viewing distance. At least for Teyvat, this was true. Whether in Fontaine at the center of the continent, in the far north of Snezhnaya, or across the ocean in Inazuma—it appeared the same.

If the difference between seeing something at one hundred meters and one thousand meters is immense, then when the scale reaches hundreds of millions of kilometers, a discrepancy of a few thousand kilometers becomes negligible aside from slight angular variation.

...

Mondstadt.

The City of Freedom, the City of Song—renowned among bards and artists—fell into unprecedented panic.

"Quick! Close the city gates!"

"Shut all doors and windows! Stay alert!"

"Do not panic—that’s an illusion! The Anemo Archon protects Mondstadt. We will be safe!"

Knights of the Knights of Favonius rushed through the city in full gear, shouting orders.

At the Knights Headquarters, inside the Grand Master’s office—Bang! The valiant woman known as the "Dandelion Knight" slammed both hands onto the desk. A white porcelain cup of strong coffee toppled over. Her weary gray-purple eyes and slightly disheveled blonde ponytail reflected her current turmoil.

"Jean, the situation is extremely dire. This is thousands—no, tens of thousands—of times worse than the catastrophe of Khaenri’ah five hundred years ago and the war against the dragon Durin... we must prepare for the worst."

The "Witch of Purple Rose," wearing a wide-brimmed violet hat, spread open an ancient tome in her hands. Her emerald eyes shimmered as she stared out the window at the sky—unease, confusion, and fear of the unknown filling her expression.

"I understand... Lisa, is everyone in position?"

"Mostly," Lisa replied calmly. "Though I doubt it will matter. Priests of the Church are calming the populace, the Adventurers’ Guild is assisting, Kaeya’s cavalry, Eula’s guerrilla unit, and the logistics team have all returned to the city and are on standby. Amber has gone to Dragonspine to recall Albedo..."

"What about Diluc Ragnvindr?"

"Rest assured, I sent Razor to notify him. But I suspect he won’t need it..."

Creaaak! Before the person arrived, the voice came first: "Big sister, big sister! Come quickly, come quickly—look who’s back!"

The office door was flung open. A petite girl wearing a white priest’s hat, with blonde twin tails and dressed in the black-and-blue ceremonial attire of the Church of Favonius rushed in excitedly.

"Barbara..."

Jean had just been about to scold her for not knocking, but instead rubbed her forehead tiredly. The tense situation left her with no energy for trivial matters. "Could it be that Grand Master Varka and the others have returned?" she asked with a hint of hope.

Barbara shook her head.

"Acting Grand Master Jean, Acting Grand Master Jean—it’s Klee’s mom! She’s back!" A small red figure popped out from behind Barbara. Beneath a feathered red beret decorated with clover patterns, the adorable girl in red stood proudly with hands on her hips.

Tap tap—

Following that, light footsteps approached. "Miss Gunnhildr, thank you for taking care of Klee all these years."

A graceful red figure came into view.

"Ms. Alice." Jean’s face filled with surprise.

But on second thought, it made sense. Alice—legendary adventurer of Teyvat, senior member of the Hexenzirkel, former guardian of old Mondstadt, and a great traveler said to roam countless worlds—had her daughter Klee here. It was only natural she would return to protect her in such a crisis.

"Do you have a way to solve this..."

"Unfortunately, I do not."

Alice shook her head bluntly. She understood Jean’s meaning, but there was simply no solution.

"Not just me. The Hexenzirkel cannot. The adepti of Liyue cannot. The Dragon Sovereigns cannot. Surtalogi beyond the continent cannot. The Seven cannot. The Four Shades cannot. Even if the Heavenly Principles were to return—it would still be impossible."

Jean fell silent. "..."

"Is there really no way at all?" Lisa stepped forward, pouring tea for her senior on the path of magic.

With a member of the Hexenzirkel present, even without a concrete solution, her tense nerves eased slightly.

"There is," Alice said, taking a sip of tea as she looked at the faces that had unknowingly gathered in the office, all filled with desperate hope.

"What is it?" Jean asked.

"Wait."

Alice turned to look at the sky outside, now completely covered by the divine form.

"The descent of an outer god may not necessarily be a bad thing. No one can say for sure. Perhaps we’ll all die in the next second, or perhaps nothing will happen at all. At least that long-winded Babylos fellow’s divination is unquestioned in Teyvat."

"Though she nearly killed herself trying to divine an outer god and still got no clear answer, she did manage one result—Teyvat is not destroyed. Well, not yet. Her divination only covers a limited timeframe."

The Grand Master’s office fell into complete silence.

At that moment, a deep and magnetic voice, like rolling thunder, echoed across all of Teyvat.

"I am a Punisher of the Imperial Astartes Second Legion, Trial Divine Unit. Instructor Fu Shi. Since you are here, are you representing the Valkyrie Corps, selecting tribute for Her Majesty the Divine Empress alongside Governor Kiana Kaslana?"

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