Since leaving the System, Jiang Mumu had already collected a considerable amount of Emotional Value!
After all, not everyone could complete the new storyline the moment it updated. As long as players were still playing in the Player World, Emotional Value would continue to generate steadily.
Composing herself, Jiang Mumu sat down at the computer desk she had created.
She still needed to explore the World to gather Primogems. Qingxu would soon be entering the gacha pool, and as her older sister, how could she not pull for a Six-Plus-Five copy?
Currently, Jiang Mumu was the only one in the System Space. She hadn't recalled Rola and Qingge's consciousnesses but had instead placed them inside Lumine's Sword.
While Unrelenting Will was incredibly powerful, the sword's material itself wasn't particularly extraordinary. Jiang Mumu had quietly modified it to make it more comfortable for her consciousness to reside within.
Moreover, Yuna would be joining them soon. Jiang Mumu wondered if she should install a few computers inside so the four of them could play online games together!
-
Inazuma.
After returning from Tsurumi Island, Itto and Kuki Shinobu each retreated to their homes, refusing to step outside.
Lumine took Paimon on a journey to Mondstadt, Liyue, and Sumeru, hoping to lift the gloomy little one's spirits. They even visited the Aisa Bathhouse in Inazuma, asking Yumemizuki Mizuki to adjust the little one.
Three days later, at the Tenshukaku.
When Lumine and Paimon arrived, they found Itto and Kuki Shinobu already there. The trio reunited and proceeded into the Tenshukaku.
The guarding soldiers, recognizing Lumine, didn't stop them.
"Lady Guuji!" Paimon exclaimed, thinking Yae Miko hadn't arrived yet, but to her surprise, the fox-eared woman was already there, waiting with Ei by the entrance as if expecting them.
"Everyone's here, Ei," Yae Miko said. "We can begin now."
All eyes turned to Ei, each heart filled with intense anticipation and nervous tension.
Ei retrieved the Jade Ring and released the soul trapped within.
Yuna's soul materialized within the Tenshukaku, now far more solid and defined than the nearly invisible form she had taken in the cave on Mt. Kanna.
"Little Yuna..." Kuki Shinobu murmured cautiously, afraid to startle her.
The Raiden Shogun had warned that she couldn't guarantee Yuna's memories would return. Shinobu desperately wanted to know if her condition had improved.
Yuna remained silent under everyone's gaze, her head still bowed.
Seeing this, their hearts sank.
Has Yuna's consciousness not returned at all?
"Yuna, do you recognize me? Do you remember... your sister?" Kuki Shinobu stepped closer and asked again.
"Sis...ter..." Yuna finally lifted her head slowly, her vacant eyes fixed on the woman claiming to be her sister.
"Sister..."
"Yes, it's me. Yuna, do you remember me? Do you remember them too?" Kuki Shinobu's voice trembled with excitement.
"Sister, I remember. And... Boss, Lady Guuji, Sister Ei, Lumine, Paimon..."
The string of names seemed to trigger something unpleasant in Yuna's mind. Her vacant gaze shifted, but not to clarity—instead, to terror and fear.
"Sister... I... I feel so awful, so much pain... I... sob..."
Before she could finish speaking, Yuna collapsed into a crouch, clutching her head and desperately trying to curl into a fetal position.
"Yuna!"
Kuki Shinobu watched helplessly, her heart aching. She couldn't touch her sister, didn't know how to comfort her, and realized Yuna was too distraught to listen to her words.
Just as Kuki Shinobu felt helpless, so did Itto and Lumine. All eyes turned to Ei.
Ei gently shook her head. With Yuna's soul shattered to this extent, there was nothing she could do.
As for the Jade Ring...
Yuna's soul had already been inside for three days, and any further stay would yield negligible results.
"I'm sorry," Ei said, her voice tinged with helplessness as she faced the group's expectant gazes.
Silence fell over Tenshukaku, the atmosphere growing heavy with tension, broken only by Yuna's soft whimpers as she huddled on the floor.
Just then, Lumine sensed a sudden surge of overwhelming sharpness from Unrelenting Will. Her heart leapt with hope as she drew the blade.
Lumine knew that whenever Unrelenting Will exhibited such anomalies, it meant the sword possessed the ability to help!
Seeing Lumine unsheathe the longsword, Itto and Kuki Shinobu looked puzzled, but Ei, Yae Miko, and Paimon's eyes lit up with anticipation.
A faint crimson-amber glow emanated from the blade. Dual streams of energy, red and yellow, flowed from the tip and into Yuna's huddled form.
Yuna's crying quickly subsided. She lowered her hands from her head and slowly lifted her gaze.
As the energy gradually seeped into her, a flicker of clarity returned to her vacant eyes.
Except for Paimon, everyone present was no ordinary person, and they all witnessed the subtle shift in Yuna's expression.
"Yuna!" Kuki Shinobu cried out, her voice trembling with barely restrained excitement.
"Second... Sister."
Yuna rose to her feet, staring blankly at her Second Sister. As a spirit, she had no tears to shed, or else her face would have been streaming with them.
Yuna hurried forward, arms outstretched, yearning for a hug from her Second Sister.
Being much younger than her Big Sister, Yuna had often sought comfort from her Second Sister when she was scolded or spanked for being mischievous as a child. Now, feeling wronged once more, she longed to be embraced by her Second Sister again.
But she was now a spirit. How could she ever fulfill this wish?
Yuna passed right through her Second Sister's body, nearly stumbling. After regaining her balance, she stared in shock at her own hands.
Yes, I'm already dead. Now, she wouldn't even have the chance to enjoy a hug from her sister.
A bitter grief washed over the crowd, their hearts aching with sorrow.
After a moment of stunned silence, Yuna composed herself, a rueful smile flickering across her face.
"Ah... how truly regrettable."
She took a deep breath, straightened her posture, and forced herself to swallow her negative emotions.
"Second Sister, what happened to that black-robed figure?"
Itto leaped forward, shouting, "The Raiden Shogun severely wounded it! I, the great Boss Itto, finished it off with my Claymore, smashing it to bits! It died in agony!"
In truth, the black-robed figure had already been dead when Itto arrived; he had merely been desecrating its corpse!
Even if it was just a little, if it made Yuna even slightly happier, what harm could there be in stretching the truth?
Sure enough, hearing about the black-robed figure's fate, Yuna let out a heavy sigh of relief.
Even now, the mere thought of that creature still filled her heart with endless fear and dread.
Fortunately, thanks to the combined energy of two Pure Souls, she managed to maintain her composure.
Itto's voice successfully drew Yuna's attention. Staring at his dramatic transformation, she couldn't help but be surprised.
"Boss, why are your horns so pointy now?"
It wasn't just the horns; he seemed taller too, radiating an even more imposing aura.
"Huh? Why are you crying?"
Standing before Yuna, Itto sniffled repeatedly, the corners of his eyes red, looking as if he were about to burst into tears at any moment.
The Boss crying? That's a rare sight!
When was the last time this happened?
Oh... it was when Sister Kujou Sara beat him up and made him cry. Come to think of it, he's actually quite a crybaby...
What Yuna didn't know was that after her death, Itto had cried almost every day.
Especially when he was hungry...