Cultivating in Honkai!

Arranging the farming space is just the first episode.

"Are you sure it will be fine?"

"That's a fully working fourth grade formation. It can sustain damage well."

Formation plates can be used from the get-go, but it becomes stronger if it was properly arranged. The eight flags can be used to form a self-sustaining shield that blocks Golden Core level attacks.

Arranging it that way allows lower-leveled cultivators to fully use formations.

With that, we flew from the garden's opposite side. The spar I promised must be fulfilled.

Kiana is more than fifty meters away from me.

My spiritual consciousness soon clashed with hers. It contended like two domains pushing each other back.

Knowing she couldn't beat me, she immediately retracted it to a smaller radius.

The advantage of my strong mental cultivation showed. Kiana is only within the early stage of Purple Mansion Realm. Resolving Sirin's resentment might have a lot to do with it.

I thought they were two wills in a single soul, but they are not.

It is best to view them as two souls that are so similar they could be mistaken for one another. When they seamlessly fused, it formed the situation of Sirin and Kiana.

Removing the "Sirin" soul and sealing it inside the Herrscher Core allowed Kiana to be in control of the physical body.

Zoom-!

Her figure flashed. Several afterimages were left behind her. She did not choose to close our distance; just circling around me.

Buzz-!

A suppressive force came out of nowhere. Honkai energy flared up from within my surroundings.

It tried its best to push my body down, but to no avail.

My [Encompassing Eyes] is active since the beginning. [Cloud Seeking Steps] did not have any uniqueness; its afterimages are easy to be seen through. It is akin to an add-on.

Without [Great Accomplishment], it will remain that way.

Fuzz-!

A circle of frost came from beneath my feet. The Herrscher Core acted like a faucet. The stronger one's physical body, the stronger the water flow becomes.

At my current level, I am far beyond most Herrschers. All thanks to my Late Purple Mansion physical body.

Shatter-!

Two lines of void emerged and slashed at the incoming frost. Kiana dealt with the attack I gave her.

Hum-!

A net with small openings came from all sides, thoroughly destroying my AoE attack.

Just then, my next move is finished.

Countless motes of gold-brown light gathered in front of me. It turned into a miniature mountain.

The [Mountain Raising Art] showed its might.

Rumble-!

Kiana was forced to remain still. The "weight" of that mountain is not a physical phenomenon; it burdens both the soul and mind.

In short, a soul and mental attack hybrid.

Sou-!

A black javelin shot straight to the mountain. It fought back for a few seconds before perishing along the javelin.

In the face of a Herrscher's authority, Purple Mansion Realm does not suffice. Spiritual qi consumption alone is a problem.

Still, I carried on to my next attack.

A decisive one.

Tap.

My position shifted. I am now an arm's length away from Kiana. Her back is completely exposed—literally and figuratively.

Buzz-!

A world of gray tainted our surroundings. The flow of time slowed down. Even my current physical body could not withstand its effects.

Swoosh-!

Swoosh-!

Two ropes made of blank void attempted to entrap me.

Unfortunately, Kiana is too naive.

I have a sword.

Cling-!

The chiming of bells resounded. A white light followed suit. The [Sword Light Refraction] and [True Form] elevated this mental attack to the next level.

These intangible 'things' shook her mind greatly.

Just like Sirin's experience, her Global Time Fracture is forcibly broken.

Fuzz-!

It was my turn to create an ice hoop that tied her up.

My hand patted her bare shoulder.

"I win."

"Hn..!"

Kiana was freed from her constraints. She gave me a helpless look.

"You neglected some courses I mentioned in the video." I scolded her. "Mental defense is crucial during actual fights."

"But… I didn't have much time."

"...You can study it later."

With this spar over, I took the time to appreciate her current attire. Her double-braids are fully undone. Her blue eyes remained the same. Her shoulders and back are completely exposed.

The notable change is her 'skirt'. It is lower than what I could remember. Only a portion of her thighs remained exposed, with her black "stockings" covering the rest.

All I can say is…

The game's far less stimulating than this.

I have full control over my mind. Messy thoughts and the likes can be easily expelled. I can be in a perpetual state of clearheadedness.

I chose not to indulge in that selfless state.

Except for some really bad thoughts, I left the rest untouched.

Just then, I recalled her battlesuits that marked in my mind. The ones that made her look really beautiful.

"I have some outfits in mind. Can you try it on?"

The Tuna's eyes lit up.

"Does it look good?"

"Yes."

"Show it to me!"

*****

Thank you, Mihoyo.

I still had these lingering thoughts after letting Kiana try the outfits out. Both of us enjoyed that process. It took us three hours before we left the imaginary space.

Kiana with the Flamescion battlesuit…

I forgot to breathe when I saw that.

Her New Year's battlesuit also suited her very well.

Finally, the Finality battlesuit.

Although she lacked the aura of the Herrscher of Finality, it was replaced by her cultivator aura.

She is jaw-droppingly beautiful.

My mind is still disturbed by this event. I can't help but notice this irregularity. I have been with Kiana for seven months. I never got to see her in this way. Not until now.

To solve this, I separated with her for a while. Kiana went off to see her father in the Far East.

I am left contemplating life on the orphanage's rooftop.

The hard roof does not matter when I sit down. My physical body is far beyond most of the people in this world. Things like this won't matter.

…

I am glad to have given out immortal cultivation.

An average human lifespan is seventy years. Su and the other Flamechasers can live for five thousand years due to their emperor-class honkai beast genes.

A Purple Mansion Realm can live for three thousand years. It can go as far as five thousand years if their physical cultivation is up to par.

Thinking of the future without her… them…

Well, I can think of the future now.

My current strength grants more confidence to get through the honkai. There are a lot of ways to play things out.

For example, fighting with Kevin.

I can summon my high-level mental power. No matter what happens to me, I can get past his "final trial" and contact the Cocoon of Finality. I can pass on the position of Finality to Kiana.

I can also circumvent Kevin and use Promy's backdoor for myself. Then, open a way up to the Cocoon and deal with Honkai once and for all. I have Su's help and my high-level mental power.

Of course, these are the riskier plans. There are a lot of safer ones. Ensuring Kiana's safety, replicating the canon events to have the Herrschers of Origin and Truth, and so on.

"Fu…"

My mind wandered between idle and serious thoughts. A burning motivation welled up inside me.

I want to protect this future with others.

Just then, I was disturbed by the arrival of someone.

I looked back and saw Seele wearing a long-sleeved sweater. It is paired with a knee-length skirt.

"Oh. Uhm… I didn't expect you to be here."

I used my sword cultivation to sheathe my aura. Only Sin Mal can penetrate this sheathe using her talent.

"Bronya's teaching them?"

"Yes." She nodded as she replied. "I have some free time so… I came up."

Seele stopped talking. I realized it was her lack of topics to talk about.

"You can sit here if you want."

"Oh. Thank you…"

She did not hesitate to do so. Both of her hands are placed on the back of her thighs, holding her skirt from falling.

I did not look at her further.

"It's our first time talking properly. I am sure there are a lot of things we can't say in the chat…"