292. Breaking the Seal
"Why did Teacher Fu Hua suddenly decide to come out on a mission?" Yun Ling asked, puzzled.
"Because..." Faced with Yun Ling's question, Fu Hua seemed a little embarrassed, like a young girl.
Because this was a mission sent by Schicksal, and she was afraid Otto would harm Yun Ling, so she came along.
But how could Fu Hua so directly reveal her thoughts?
"Because I was worried about the risks of this mission, I specifically asked Lady Fu Hua to come and help me." Rita stepped in to help Fu Hua out.
"I see." Yun Ling nodded, feigning understanding.
Fu Hua gave Rita a grateful look and took a sip of the tea Rita had prepared.
"I thought Teacher Fu Hua came with me because she was worried about me, but it seems I was just being presumptuous." Yun Ling scratched his head dejectedly.
"Pfft!" Fu Hua couldn't help but spit it out, then coughed twice.
"Lady Fu Hua, are you alright?" Rita offered a handkerchief at the opportune moment.
"I'm fine, cough, Yun Ling, don't tease the teacher so casually," Fu Hua reminded her.
"Yes." Yun Ling nodded slightly, a playful expression creeping into his eyes.
At this moment, Fu Hua seemed to truly see the figure of the Sword God in Yun Ling.
If reincarnation truly exists, then this incarnation of Yun Ling must be the closest to that Sword God, right?
He answered her words verbally, but seemed to have his own hidden agenda.
This realization filled Fu Hua with unease and fear.
She feared that Yun Ling was the Sword God, and if that were the case, she wouldn't know how to face him.
In the form of Jingwei? Or in the form of A Hua? In the form of Hua? Or perhaps in the form of Fu Hua?
This was a question worth pondering, yet one without an answer.
But at the same time, she feared that Yun Ling wasn't the Sword God. If so, could her feelings truly reach this Yun Ling?
Reincarnation really does make a difference, doesn't it?
What that machine named Golem said might not be true; perhaps reincarnation was just a hoax.
But...what if?
What if he really was the Sword God, Yun Ling?
Would her hesitation cause her to miss out again?
For some reason, Fu Hua desperately needed to verify this truth, like a flame suddenly ignited within her.
A crimson feather slowly appeared in her palm, emitting a faint glow.
A look of reminiscence appeared in her eyes.
"You...can you give me an answer?"
...
"The concentration of Honkai energy around us has indeed increased significantly, reaching the minimum concentration required for the birth of a Herrscher."
Rita's eyes held a hint of melancholy. She had changed into her Phantom Iron Battlesuit, and the green maid outfit gave her a unique charm.
"Yun Ling, Lady Fu Hua, please be careful." Rita walked ahead, scouting the way for the two.
"There are so many bats around, and they seem to be extremely rare vampire bats. If what Miss Rita said is true, the Honkai energy concentration and food supply here shouldn't be enough to support normal bats surviving here. So, are these bats actually a different kind of Honkai Beast? A beast-type Honkai Beast?"
Yun Ling speculated reasonably.
"Yun Ling is indeed very knowledgeable. These bats are indeed some relatively weak Honkai Beasts, but although they are weak, their numbers are astonishing. Even a well-trained Valkyrie squad wouldn't dare to easily disturb this swarm of bats."
"Fortunately, it's midday now, and these bats are asleep, so there's no need to worry too much," Rita reassured them.
"Our current mission objective is to find the source of the abnormally high Honkai energy. So, finding the area with the highest Honkai energy concentration might be the key to the cause."
Rita emphasized the mission details, but received no response from Yun Ling and Fu Hua.
She immediately stopped and turned around. A mist had risen around them, and Yun Ling and Fu Hua had vanished without a trace in moments.
Rita frowned slightly, unsure what had happened, but she dared not make any noise, lest she disturb the bats.
At that moment, Yun Ling also realized he was separated from Rita and Fu Hua, but he didn't panic.
Is this place... a maze set up by Kongming?
Yun Ling seemed to remember something and took out a feather fan from the Theater of Domination.
This was the reward from the eighth simulation, a mysterious gift from the Kongming—a feather fan.
As he held the fan, a light guided Yun Ling.
Yun Ling slowly walked forward, following the light. Soon, a gigantic blood cocoon appeared before Yun Ling.
The cocoon was covered in densely packed magical runes, as if sealed by something.
"Is this a seal set by Kongming?"
Only Kongming knew this kind of magic; there shouldn't be anyone else.
"So what's sealed inside? Luna Kindred? If it's a seal, where is Kongming?" Yun Ling's doubts grew.
Through the bats and the experience of the eighth simulation, the only person Yun Ling could connect with was Luna Kindred, but how could Luna Kindred have become like this?
Suddenly, a feather fan flew from Yun Ling's hand and landed above the blood cocoon.
The magical runes on the blood cocoon began to decrease at a visible rate.
At the same time, the surrounding bats began to swarm, seemingly welcoming someone's rebirth.
The bats gradually approached the blood cocoon, enveloping it.
They used their sharp teeth to tear at the outer layer of the blood cocoon, slowly releasing what was inside.
Suddenly, a white figure sprang out from within, caught by Yun Ling with lightning speed.
"You really can't hold me after all!" a voice, tinged with madness, echoed from within the blood cocoon.
"Oh no..."
The white-haired loli clutched her chest, her gaze fixed on the vampire about to emerge from its cocoon, completely oblivious to Yun Ling behind her.
"Excuse me for interrupting. What's going on here?" Yun Ling, seeing Zhuge Kongming ignore him, angrily made his presence known.
The familiar voice instantly froze Kongming's expression, as did the suddenly silent vampire bats.
Kongming stiffly raised her neck, staring at the familiar face so close to her, wondering if she was dreaming.
"Ling..."
A barely audible voice sounded.
From within the figure heavily enveloped by bats, a woman with a lithe figure slowly emerged.
A look of disbelief crossed her face as she gently stepped forward and cupped Yun Ling's face in her hands.
Her crimson eyes held boundless longing and deep confusion.
"Are you Ling?"
...