I Am Honkai

Chapter 918: After the Cataclysm of Heaven and Earth Like an Illusory Dream

When the shadow from beyond the heavens drew near, a strange ripple spread out. The voice of a colossal god resounded across Teyvat, drowning out all whispers and mingled fear.

Heaven and earth changed color!

The Seven Nations seemed so insignificant. Ripples spread outward, and an almost tangible suffocating pressure surged downward like a raging flood. Violent winds swept across the land, their howling enough to chill the heart. The sky split open, as if all things between heaven and earth were wailing in unison. The true starry sky had never appeared so clearly before the eyes of Teyvat’s living beings as it did at this moment.

"Mm..."

In a daze, a deep voice filled with the sharp resonance of clashing steel pierced through time and space, echoing clearly by the ear. Strangely, though its words were incomprehensible, its meaning was understood. With a muffled groan, the one known as "Witch A," Ms. Alice, could not help but take half a step back, pressing a hand to her forehead as her lips trembled slightly, as if silently enduring immense discomfort.

Blood trickled from her nose and mouth, yet Alice seemed not to feel any pain. Instead, she focused intently on her thoughts.

Empire, Empress, Astartes, Legion, Second...

All were extremely crucial pieces of information.

And who was Senti? What was an instructor? A title, or a divine name?

What kind of existence was Kiana Kaslana? Had she set her sights on Teyvat? Was the Empire a divine nation from beyond the heavens?

The Divine Empress, the sovereign of gods—what kind of exalted and sacred being could bear such a title? Tribute... was Teyvat to be offered as a gift to this so-called extraterritorial Divine Empress?

A cascade of questions flooded Alice’s mind.

"Merely the residual will carried in that voice is already at the limit of what we can endure..." She revealed a bitter smile, that unparalleled scorching sensation and unfamiliar powerlessness weighing on her. "What a truly pessimistic reality."

"Mom!"

Seeing her mother cry out in pain and step back, blood flowing from her nose, Klee—already uncomfortable from the suffocating presence of the descending god—could no longer care about the "huge thing" in the sky. With teary eyes, she ran forward and hugged her mother’s leg, calling out in worry.

"Mom’s fine. Dodoco will protect Mom. Little Klee, be good—don’t think too much. Just treat it like thunder on a rainy day. Cover your ears, alright?"

Lowering her hand from her forehead and wiping away the blood from her nose and mouth, Alice steadied her mind. With her other hand, she gently stroked the golden strands of hair peeking out from beneath her daughter’s duckbill hat. At the same time, as if she had discovered something, she let out a small sigh of relief and turned to look at the others in the office, all of whom were tightly furrowing their brows, their faces revealing an indescribable pain. The so-called "Genshin"—those who possessed Visions.

’Those who possess Visions and have unlocked their constellations can perceive it more deeply...’

Half-closing her eyes, Alice took in everyone’s reactions within the Acting Grand Master’s office.

Compared to ordinary Knights of Favonius who had not awakened Visions, including Acting Grand Master Jean, the mage Lisa, the deaconess Barbara, and later arrivals such as Cavalry Captain Kaeya and the Spindrift Knight Eula—these Vision bearers all shared the same trembling gaze and strained expressions. It was clear they were perceiving and enduring far more.

Though none were as injured as she was, judging from their expressions, they had clearly received some information. The specifics, however, were unknown. As for little Klee, being too young to form such awareness, she was affected far less.

Meanwhile, the ordinary knights, servants of the headquarters, and priests were mostly pale from the visual and auditory shock alone.

Their faces showed only fear—nothing else... It seemed they had not comprehended the information contained within the voice of the outer god.

The stronger one was, the greater the pressure they endured—and the more information they could hear. Ordinary people, on the other hand, remained unaffected...

In that instant, Alice formed certain guesses and judgments.

"Whether intentional or not... it serves as a greeting... a warning... and also a deterrent."

Whether in presence or demeanor, the visiting colossal god was clearly not a benevolent deity. Its lofty indifference and its view of all beings as ants carried not even the slightest intent to communicate. That they could hear the divine voice at all was thanks to the outsiders who had first descended upon Fontaine.

But at the very least, the visitor was not a purely malevolent god. For now, it did not take pleasure in destruction, nor did it indiscriminately bring annihilation.

It was a pitiful and somewhat ignoble thought, but... there was still a path to survival.

"What exactly drew them here?"

Murmuring silently, Alice gently rubbed her daughter’s head and turned her gaze toward the window—toward the direction indicated by the gaze of the starry colossus whose facial features were barely discernible—Fontaine.

"Mom, that... eye that looks like the sun—is it the enemy of the knights?"

Holding Dodoco, Klee stood on tiptoe beside her mother at the windowsill, gazing up at the sky with childlike wonder. "Will Lord Barbatos appear again?"

"He has already appeared..."

Though going there likely wouldn’t help much.

Based on her own experience, Alice had once challenged the Anemo Archon alongside her fellow members of the Hexenzirkel. Although the Archon had refused to fight and insisted on resolving the dispute with poetry, she was still among those who understood gods best.

"The Archons, the Traveler from beyond this world, the Abyss Order that ’defies the Heavenly Principles’... how will you respond? Unfortunately, I can no longer observe it now."

Her and her companions’ conclusion had been to wait and let things take their course. But expecting the Archons of Teyvat to heed the Hexenzirkel’s divinations and baseless conjectures was unrealistic.

After all, fate and divination exist to be broken.

...

The Jade Chamber of Liyue, the Shogunate of Inazuma, the Akademiya of Sumeru, the court of Snezhnaya, the dragon valleys of Natlan...

The Qixing, the adepti, the Tri-Commission, yokai and oni clans, the Six Darshans, the Eremites, the Fatui...

Across Teyvat, renowned organizations, leaders of nations and factions, and Vision bearers all, to varying degrees and almost simultaneously, grasped fragments of information from the divine voice.

Some were enraged. Some indignant. Some horrified. Some indifferent. Some silent. Some fervent. Some uncaring...

But one thing was shared among them all—the crushing weight of pressure.

They had no ability to interfere.

Not even the slightest.

...

Fontaine, Erinnyes Island.

"Divine transformation... I knew it—just as expected, perfectly suited to the tastes of those brawny Astartes!"

"Woohoo—! This is insanely cool, it’s killing me with excitement! I’ve decided—I’m going to study this!"

"I’ll call it... yes! I’ll call it Dharma Heaven and Earth!"

Completely unconcerned with what the natives of Teyvat thought—and with no intention of understanding them—after receiving a direct procedural inquiry from the Punisher Divine Unit of the Second Legion, Senti tilted her head back and exclaimed. Then, releasing the authority of consciousness, she connected her mind with that of the Astartes god and began to communicate.

The heavens dimmed, divine senses clashing like thunder. It brought great suffering to the living beings of Fontaine who directly faced the radiance above.

Death was unlikely—the Punisher Divine Unit had not come to destroy the world—but the sensation of weightlessness, motion sickness, and suffocation layered together made it undeniably unbearable.

"Ugh..."

Figures like Navia, Clorinde, Wriothesley, Lyney, and Lynette—Vision holders yet still mortal flesh, neither gods nor elemental dragon sovereigns—could no longer endure it. Their bodies swayed, clearly pushed to the brink of pain.

Everyone fell into despair.

Many people collapsed to their knees, filled with helplessness.

Before such a magnificent colossal god, how could mortal strength possibly contend with it? Even if the ancient gods and dragon sovereigns of Teyvat were to be resurrected, they might not be able to resist.

"Sigh..."

With a long sigh, the Geo Archon summoned a stone pillar from the earth’s core, raising a jade barrier to shield the entire battlefield within, attempting to isolate part of the oppressive pressure from the ’outer god.’

"The storm is about to break, and the winds already fill the tower... earlier than I expected. The ’universe’ and ’miniature of the world’ created by the Primordial One, Phanes, have completely shattered. Teyvat... is now exposed to the cosmos. We have no right to refuse."

Zhongli gazed upon everything with regret and solemnity.

The golden brilliance in his eyes dimmed, revealing that his condition was far from good.

Being ignored by Senti and the starry colossus in the heavens did not bother him.

What mattered was how to ensure Teyvat’s continued existence.

"Old man, do you have a solution?"

Rubbing his throbbing temples, no longer in the mood to play his lyre, the carefree Anemo Archon widened his eyes, his expression drifting as he muttered, "No wonder the Heavenly Principles haven’t reacted... the damage from Khaenri’ah... did she run away?"

"Even if the Heavenly Principles were to awaken, what then?"

Zhongli looked at his trembling hand. Merely the divine intent contained within that voice had already caused unfamiliar sluggishness and stagnation in the authority over Geo that he had wielded effortlessly for thousands of years.

As the oldest existing god of Teyvat—the God of Contracts and the God of War—he could understand most of the information exchanged between the outer gods.

Again and again, he heard terms like ’Divine Empress,’ ’Empire,’ ’Astartes Legion,’ ’Divine Unit,’ and ’Governor.’ From this alone, it could be roughly inferred that the foreign gods descending upon Teyvat were neither individuals nor a small faction.

In other words, even if they exhausted everything to repel this first wave, what awaited Teyvat would be an unending arrival of even greater and more terrifying forces.

"Fight, negotiate, or something else."

The Electro Archon from Inazuma was far more straightforward. Lightning crackled as she resisted the pressure. While remaining wary of Senti, the Raiden Shogun fixed her gaze on the oldest and most experienced god present.

The meaning was clear—give a definitive answer. As the seasoned elder, should they fight or not?

If they fought, then as one of the Seven Archons and the Shogun who protected Inazuma, she would stand alongside her comrades and fight to the death.

If not, that was also acceptable. Though she held firm convictions and viewed surrender or negotiation as a warrior’s shame, it did not mean she lacked reason or the ability to judge reality.

Being stronger than her was not a problem. To protect meant to raise one’s blade against the stronger. Even if the enemy was several times or ten times stronger, she would still strike without regret.

But what if the difference was ten thousand times? A hundred thousand times? A million times?

At this moment, the being overlooking Teyvat was more immense than the sum of everything within it. She knew that if that outer god truly wished it, the entirety of Teyvat could vanish in an instant, erased without effort or resistance.

"..."

Ignored by the senior gods, the youngest and least experienced among them—the Lesser Lord Kusanali—was affected the most. Her body was tense to the extreme, her delicate face devoid of color, her spirit drained. She glanced timidly at the pondering Geo Archon, then at the blond Traveler not far away, completely at a loss.

Pitiful and helpless.

Everything happening in Fontaine—from the arrival of new beings beyond the heavens, to the disaster-like invasion of Honkai Beasts reminiscent of Khaenri’ah, to the descent of outer gods, and now the manifestation of a starry colossus...

It was too fast. Far too fast.

The severity and escalation of events had exceeded her imagination. This was not something she—a young god still growing, called ’Lesser’ and ’Lucky’ by her people—could resolve.

"Hah, fight? You still want to fight? This Immortal is saving you. As for that Heavenly Principles—sleeping on Celestia—you can forget about it. I’ve made sure she’ll sleep a few more years."

Standing with one hand on her hip and stepping on the woman who seemed to be the Herrscher of the ’Sea,’ Senti turned her head lazily. To ordinary people, her voice was like rolling thunder and her presence like an overwhelming divine prison—but she herself appeared completely at ease as she looked toward the native powerhouses present.

The mature-looking young man, the kimono-clad woman holding a naginata, the lyre-playing bard, the teary-eyed mascot-like young girl...

With a light snort, Senti lifted her chin slightly and nodded toward the Punisher above the heavens.

"...That’s the situation. I came to pick up an old companion and, while I was at it, beat up some ’Sea’ Herrscher that crawled out from who knows where."

"As for this place—just incidental. Seems like we got lucky. There’s life and civilization here. And look—new elements, new power systems visible to the naked eye."

"They’re weak, but better than nothing. I’ll talk it over with the old antique and Kiana. We’ll incorporate it into our Valkyrie Corps... whatever type of world it is, we’ll make use of it."

Buzz—

"So be it. I understand the situation."

Solemn and majestic, the voice of the Punisher Divine Unit carried no emotion. Its gaze swept across everything—mountains and rivers, heaven and earth, within and beyond the domain—taking all of Teyvat into its sight. The ’fire’ from the west, the ’ice’ descending from the northern lands... any being harboring resistance appeared like mere mayflies in water, utterly insignificant.

After a brief pause, the Punisher withdrew its gaze. Its vast iron-gray divine body lowered slightly.

"Non-hostile world. Designation: Teyvat. World classification: to be preliminarily incorporated into colonial worlds. Affiliated with the Valkyrie Corps."

In just a few sentences, the fate of Teyvat was decided.

There was no intention whatsoever of seeking the consent of Teyvat’s inhabitants.

"Mm-hmm." Senti nodded.

Exactly. This world was quite good—rare, even. At the southeastern end of the continent, her consciousness had already spotted many immortal-like mountains and jade valleys rich with celestial charm.

She wanted them.

"Not planning to come down and rest for a bit? Maintaining such a divine form might frighten our... Teyvat citizens."

With a playful smile, Senti clasped her hands behind her back and snapped her fingers. Her teasing and expectant gaze swept across the special lifeforms led by Zhongli and the water-element beings led by Neuvillette. Seeing their silence, the Herrscher of Sentience’s smile grew even more unrestrained.

"On duty."

The Punisher remained utterly emotionless. "Bathe in the divine radiance of Our Empress. They will grow accustomed to the Empire’s grandeur and depth."

"I followed the traces of a whale pod to this place. I will take a few items."

The Punisher extended a hand that covered the heavens. Neuvillette stared at it tensely, his entire body bristling with alarm.

"As you wish."

Facing the overwhelming shadow, Senti replied casually, "Just don’t bump the planet with that huge body of yours." As she spoke, she deliberately used her authority of consciousness to link with several of the native gods who seemed to be in charge—hinting for them to recognize the situation and submit. If she was in a good mood, she might even protect them.

"It will not happen. I am merely taking some local products."

Boom—

The moment the Punisher finished speaking, a strange, thunderous sound erupted. As the rumbling spread, the entire world of Teyvat seemed to freeze. In the blink of an eye, in but a single instant, it shook all existence.

"Not good..." Neuvillette suddenly sensed it—the seal he had placed deep within the Fortress of Meropide to suppress the Primordial Seawater had been broken!

The gaze and perception shifted from the sky down to the earth. Fontaine’s waters—the sense of a storm about to break—suddenly calmed. The unrest of the Primordial Seawater in Poisson vanished, and Fontaine’s seas became unprecedentedly tranquil.

The Primordial Seawater... the thing within it was afraid?

In the next instant, Erinnyes Island—no, Fontaine itself, along with the central continental plate nearby—began to shake violently!

Crack!!

When people snapped out of their shock, the world was shaking, everything trembling—Fontaine had split apart.

A massive chasm hundreds of kilometers long tore across Fontaine’s sea. The island was lifted wholesale, boundless seawater cascading like bifurcated waterfalls. The continent was cleaved cleanly down the middle—smooth to an extreme degree, as if cut in a single instant by an incomparably sharp blade.

The Opera Epiclese collapsed.

"Woooo—"

At last, the tremors ceased. From beneath the fissure in the earth came a mournful whale cry, like a bell tolling or a trembling resonance.

Splash!

A colossal surge of water erupted.

A massive fish of cool hues—blue, white, and violet—leapt from the sea.

A single horn grew from its head. Its body was long and streamlined, its lines smooth. Its head and tail formed sharp angles. Its skin shimmered in pale blue and brilliant purple, dotted with countless specks and flowing lines like moving water, gleaming brilliantly—making it all the more elusive and breathtaking as it broke the surface.

But now it raised its head and wailed, its cry filled with boundless terror.

"That is..." Half-kneeling with his sword planted for support, Aether widened his eyes in disbelief and looked up.

That great fish... it seemed familiar...

In the blink of an eye—crackle!—purple lightning flashed. A dark violet figure raced across the giant whale, entering Aether’s sight.

"Pathetic mortals!"

The hoarse voice in combat mode made Aether blurt out, "Tartaglia?!" He remembered now—when he had been imprisoned in the Fortress of Meropide, he had dreamed of Tartaglia being swallowed by a giant whale.

Clinging to Aether, Paimon cried out in shock, "Wah—why is ’Childe’ on that whale?!"

Before her words finished, "Urgh—!" In his Foul Legacy state, Tartaglia suddenly froze mid-throw, as if time itself had stopped, locked in place in midair.

"A tribute offered to Her Majesty the Divine Empress should not have flaws."

Abrupt and sharp—clang!—sparks scattered. Tartaglia’s Foul Legacy form, pushed to its limit, disintegrated like melting snow in early spring. In the instant the temporal restraint lifted, his body was smashed to the ground like a swatted insect, motionless, life or death unknown.

The All-Devouring Narwhal wailed as the outer god remained unmoving. A surge of force wrapped around it and carried it straight into the heavens.

Rush!

From the depths of Fontaine surged the pink-blue seawater—the Primordial Seawater that made the people of Fontaine blanch at the sight. It churned and leapt within the continental fissure, splashing endlessly, turbulent yet not spilling a single drop, flowing upward without end!

The reverse-flowing Primordial Seawater formed a vast white ribbon, streaming upward like a celestial river. Mist swirled and rose like smoke, roaring thunderously.

Witnessing this, every person in Fontaine felt their scalp go numb.

The Primordial Seawater—the natural nemesis that could dissolve them—was being harvested!

Elsewhere, unwilling roars erupted. Wolf-like ominous beasts, blood-stained golden king-beasts, abyssal creatures exuding viscous corruption... all were forcibly taken.

The range expanded—from south to north—encompassing everything. Elemental slimes, hilichurl tribes, whopperflowers, pyro regisvines, electro regisvines, cryo regisvines, geovishaps, bathysmal vishaps, crystalflies, fungi, sandworms, consecrated beasts, primordial sea creatures... all non-human species were seized without exception.

They struggled, screamed, unleashing their strongest attacks in resistance.

Yet beneath this inescapable net, all such actions were laughable—like mayflies trying to shake the heavens.

All living beings trembled in terror. The scene was utterly horrifying.

Watching this, Senti merely shrugged.

When those above have preferences, those below will follow.

That rather beautiful All-Devouring Narwhal would either become an ornamental creature in the imperial aquatic gardens of the capital, or end up in the royal kitchens as a novel delicacy on the Empress’ banquet table.

At last, when the final trace of overflowing Primordial Seawater flowed upward, the spiraling ’material haze’ cleared. Silence fell. The world seemed to exhale.

Clink!

A metallic scraping sound drew Senti’s attention. A thick crimson-violet imaginary chain was dragged out from Teyvat’s inner seas. A white-haired, red-eyed woman, covered in blood, her body curled, was hauled out and slammed heavily onto the ground—already shattered terrain crushed further into dust by the terrifying force.

"Instructor Senti, one of your people. Convey my regards to former Chief Instructor Fu Hua..."

Like discarded gravel sifted from drained water, the Punisher’s voice remained emotionless as it gradually faded. The colossal hand that covered the heavens withdrew, and the iron-gray body of the starry god slowly moved away from Teyvat.

"Much appreciated." Senti glanced over briefly, then lost interest.

In the vast depths of space, visible fractures in spacetime spread like ripples. Amid the tremors sweeping across Teyvat, one colossal god after another emerged. Those who saw them felt their hearts freeze.

There are more?!!

No one could see much more. In the instant before the gods vanished, only the countless star-like lights shimmering within that iron-gray metallic glow remained most striking. Within the palm of one of those gods, inside a flattened confinement field like a grinding disc, flickered lights nearly identical to the All-Devouring Narwhal.

Soon after, the shadow over Teyvat withdrew. Those collapsed on the ground felt the chilling pressure recede like a retreating tide.

They’re... leaving?

Just like that?

Even Zhongli found it difficult to comprehend.

You... what did you come for? There was no judgment to end the world, no declaration of war, no divine grace bestowed to gather faith...

"Is... that it?" Aether, Paimon, Neuvillette, and the others—cold to the bone—looked at each other.

"..."

"..."

"Isn’t it good that it’s over?" Senti broke the silence. "Don’t tell me you’re all masochists? I can provide services for free." Her tone brimmed with interest.

"No, no! We’re good—though we don’t know what happened, thank you." Realizing Senti was relatively easy to talk to—unlike that terrifying outer god—Paimon waved her hands repeatedly.

"Interesting. You’re thanking me without even knowing why." Senti stroked her chin, then smiled. Taking a step forward, she flashed over and grabbed Paimon under the arms, lifting her high. "Decided—you, little mascot, are mine now."

"Wah! That’s dangerous—hey?! No, no! Paimon is Aether’s best partner, she can’t go with you—"

"Hahaha! That’s not up to you!"

Just as Senti, playing the villain, was about to forcibly separate them—

"Senti." A flash of light appeared.

Tearing open physical space, a dark rift formed. Stepping out, Fu Hua covered her face upon seeing the scene, a helpless smile tugging at her lips.

"What’s going on? Senti, bullying people again?"

Laughing and chatting, Kiana stepped out of the subspace portal alongside Raiden Mei and Griseo. She glanced around at the devastated surroundings—the slowly healing fissures in the earth left behind by some power. "The Second Legion..." she began, about to ask—

"Sustainer of Heavenly Principles—!"

A sudden furious shout, without any warning, made Kiana flinch.

"Huh?" Following the voice, Kiana looked over and saw a blond young man being held back by others, glaring at her viciously. In those golden eyes burned hatred and rage, as if they wanted to set her ablaze.

—

—

2 Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon:

Patreon.com/DaoOfHeaven