Honkai Impact 3rd: The Girl Who Chases the Flame

"You're a very likable kid, but you need to think about your own future. Whatever you do, you should always aim for a stable and secure path."

"Remember this, if all else fails... just ask someone else to protect me."

"That's a really awful thing to say. What if no one takes care of you, you brat?"

"How could that be? Am I not cute enough, teacher?"

"Yes, yes, but what if one day you have to protect someone else?"

"Anyway, I, Danzhu, am just a worthless person, so I don't care what happens to me."

Upon hearing this, the homeroom teacher sighed again.

"Teacher, I was just joking with you... Uh, did I go too far? I apologize! Teacher, I know you meant well."

"I know you're not a bad person. Danzhu, when the time comes, it's not necessarily a bad thing to hide and avoid the situation."

The homeroom teacher shook his head helplessly.

"Forget it, why am I talking to you about this? You're a student, when have you ever needed this kind of advice?"

"Who knows, we might need it someday?"

"No, please don't! Teacher, I don't want to attend your funeral."

.........

Danzhu, 24 years old

"Cang Xuan, good people really don't live long."

"In this era, no one lives long."

Danzhu and Cangxuan looked at the tombstone in front of them, and unusually, neither of them smiled or joked.

Are you sad, Cang Xuan?

"It's so sad. This is my favorite teacher, isn't she? After all, you know my personality isn't exactly likable either."

"Me too, I caused him a lot of trouble."

Danzhu scratched his head.

"But life goes on, and more and more people are dying... Teacher, we can't visit you often, please forgive us."

"..."

Cang Xuan remained silent, raising his head to look at the overcast sky.

"It's going to rain soon, let's go back."

"...Okay, let's go back."

Danzhu knew that Cangxuan was right.

In this apocalypse, no one lives long.

They still have to attend the next funeral.

.........

"..."

As Danzhu fell to the ground, she remembered many, many things. It seems the saying that people think about their lives before they die is not a lie.

With her already blurred vision, she could barely make out Chi You, who had stopped moving.

"Why...why...you clearly saw me kill only members of the Nine Nether Clan! Danzhu! Danzhu! What did I do wrong? What did I do wrong?! Humans, what do humans want me to do?!"

Chi You was bound by red chains and let out a mad roar.

"One person's mistake does not mean that an entire ethnic group is wrong."

Danzhu lay on the ground with her head tilted back.

"Just because one person is wrong doesn't mean that all of humanity is wrong."

It is understandable that Chi You killed the elder of the Nine Nether Clan.

However, its indiscriminate killing of innocent people is outrageous.

Therefore, it is a grave mistake to involve the surrounding mountains and affect the livelihoods of other tribes.

“Chi You… I understood when I saw you… You are not some evil beast, but Chi You…”

Danzhu gently closed her eyes.

"Everything you've done is...manipulated by that will. You and the Nine Nether Clan have long since unknowingly become puppets of the collapsing..."

"But I don't want you to die!"

Chi You struggled desperately to get closer to her. He had just gone mad and couldn't see who was in front of him. By the time the chains restored his consciousness, Dan Zhu had already fallen to the ground.

"I just didn't want you to die! I only saved a few people from the Nine Nether Clan! I just..."

I just want to be friends with you all.

But I didn't know it would be like this.

“You did nothing wrong… Chi You.”

Danzhu managed to turn over, reached out, and placed his hand on Chi You's massive, drooping head.

“But this world is too complicated… You are too young to understand. I don’t blame you, and neither does Cangxuan, otherwise she wouldn’t have kept it from you.”

"I don't understand. I don't understand what Cangxuan is saying or what you are saying."

Chi You simply shook his head.

"Will you die? Danzhu, will you die too? Like Cangxuan?"

"Everyone will die..."

Danzhu smiled; there was still blood on her forehead, but she didn't seem to be in any pain.

"Chi You... you will understand... In fact, there is nothing in this world that can make people unhappy. As long as you live on, you will eventually remember the happy things."

"That's just how I am..."

"..."

Chi You didn't hear the rest of the sentence.

Did Danzhu not finish speaking? Or was it because another voice drowned out her words?

"Chi You! I will kill you!!!"

In the distance, Ji Lin, wielding his sword, resembled a raging lion, his face contorted in fury.

"It's all your fault..."

Chi You, bound by his chains, roared at the woman.

"It's all your fault!!!"

Chapter Twenty-Four: Master Loves You

Legend has it that during the ancient war, the giant beast Chi You fought against Ji Lin and the Lianshan clan at Zhuolu. The Lianshan chieftain was seriously injured, and the imperial daughter Ji Lin sacrificed herself to seal the demon, imprisoning the giant beast in the abyss.

At that time, the True Man Chiyuan saved the world and annihilated all the demons summoned by Chiyou. By the time he arrived, the Emperor's Tomb had already been completed.

The Lianshan clan united two major tribes into one, and called the deceased emperor's daughter their ancestor, thus continuing the civilization of China.

Legend has it that after this battle, the Lianshan clan never left the Emperor's Tomb.

It is also said that after this battle, the two saints, Cangxuan and Danzhu, returned to the ranks of immortals and never again concerned themselves with the mortal world.

……

This happened more than four thousand years ago.

But history always repeats itself; what we thought we had forgotten, we will eventually move forward again.

Time flies, but the True Man Chi Yuan still exists in this world.

……

南海

Nine Netherworld Ruins

"So that's how Cangxuan and Senior Sister Danzhu went... No wonder you never mentioned it to me."

Mei Zijin and Chi Yuan Zhenren stood alone in front of the abyss, with their disciples, grand-disciples, and Otto standing behind them.

"...If I were here, this wouldn't have happened."

Master Chiyuan sighed.

“You did nothing wrong. Besides, even if that weren’t the case… they wouldn’t live to see the day they meet me.”

Mei Zijin didn't seem to care much.

"Senior Sister Cangxuan may seem carefree and lazy, but she has lived a very tiring life."

"I know."

Master Chi Yuan nodded seriously.

"Cang Xuan has many worries, but he always glosses over them."

"Senior Sister Danzhu is a free spirit, but sometimes she may not be as happy as she appears. In the end, it's all for our sake."

Mei Zijin added.

"Yes, Danzhu... did it for us."

Master Chi Yuan nodded again.

“You were indeed wrong, but Hua, your mistake wasn’t failing to protect them, but rather forgetting how they lived thousands of years after their deaths.”

Mei Zijin turned around.

"……Yes."

Master Chi Yuan nodded.