Honkai Impact 3rd: Chiyou's Survival Guide

"Hmm..." Xilin murmured. The warmth of Cecilia's palm seeped through her fingers, burning the tips of her ears red. At the same time, a strange feeling welled up from deep within her heart. Is this what mother feels like... Xilin remained silent as she quietly walked into the house with Cecilia. It had been a long time since her mother passed away from the Honkai Disease.

Chapter 66 Xilin's Daily Life (Part )

"Kiana, aren't you done changing yet? Your sister's back!" Gently holding Cecilia's hand, they stepped inside. Looking around, Cecilia couldn't help but urge Kiana to come out of the fitting room.

"Mom, don't be so anxious! This dress is hard to wear!" Kiana scolded, opening the door to the dressing room. Seeing Kiana wearing the dress she had carefully prepared, Cecilia's eyes lit up.

"Hmm... Mom, Celine, is this okay?" Kiana sauntered out of the dressing room and approached them, showing them her outfit. Her gorgeous blue and white gown shimmered in the light, resembling a fusion of glaciers and snowflakes. The blue hem undulated like waves, adorned with delicate white snowflakes. The headdress, seemingly carved from pure ice crystals, looked especially graceful on Kiana's head.

"So beautiful..." Looking at the dazzling Kiana in front of her, Xilin spoke subconsciously.

"Hehe, I just can't wait to see you wearing this dress!" Cecilia smiled embarrassedly and was very satisfied with Kiana's try-on.

"I'm so glad I can see you in this dress, Ich liebe dich (I love you), Kiana."

Gradually hugging Kiana, Cecilia smiled.

"Mom, I love you too!" Kiana said happily, kissing Cecilia's cheek. Sirin stood aside with her eyes downcast, her fingertips unconsciously twirling the hem of her skirt, her nails almost digging into the fabric. She felt a pang of sadness. Once upon a time, she had a mother who loved her as deeply as Cecilia doted on Kiana. Seeing Cecilia's subconscious love for Kiana, Sirin felt both envious and frustrated. She had clearly come in to ruin Cecilia's dream, but ended up ruining her own mood... Seeing how beautiful the dream Fuyou had concocted for Cecilia was, Sirin began to question her life. Looking at Cecilia and Kiana, who were still having a good time, Sirin couldn't help but question Fuyou in her heart. "Hey, what kind of dream are you creating? Just letting this human live the life she wanted so happily?" "What's wrong? Isn't this kind of carefree, peaceful, and happy dream good?" Seeing Xilin's dissatisfaction, Fu You was a little puzzled. Logically, except for those born with ambition, no one could resist this kind of dream. [...It's pretty good.] After thinking for a moment, Xilin felt that Fu You's words were not wrong.

"If there's no problem, then why are you still blaming me?" Hearing this, Fu You was even more confused. He couldn't figure out what was going on in this child's mind. "It's not... you, I..." Xilin was so anxious that she couldn't speak coherently, but in the end, she was speechless.

"Xilin...Xilin?" The feeling of touch on her head brought Xilin back to her senses suddenly.

"Are you feeling unwell? I've noticed you've been absent-minded and silent all day."

Looking at Xilin with concern, Cecilia spoke with some worry.

"No, I'm not feeling unwell..." Xilin shook her head and denied it flatly.

"I know why."

On the side, Kiana smiled evilly, put her arm around the shoulders of Xilin who lowered her head, and whispered.

"Because my mother made a dress for me, but Xilin didn't, so little Xilin... is jealous!" "You are talking nonsense! I am not jealous!" In an instant, Xilin was enraged, like a bloated pufferfish, staring at Kiana angrily.

"I just, just... I won't be jealous of you anyway!" After thinking for a long time and still couldn't find a reason, Xilin simply started to make trouble.

"Oh, it's okay, Xilin. As long as you call me big sister a few times, maybe I will lend you this dress for a few days?" Seeing Xilin's stubborn denial, Kiana tempted.

"Don't even think about it!" Sirin flatly rejected Kiana's request. She was the Second Herrscher, an apostle of the gods. How could she possibly call someone "Sister" over a dress? Besides, she had her own gorgeous Herrscher attire, so she had no interest in Kiana's clothes. Even though Kiana's dress was made by Cecilia herself... At this thought, Sirin immediately drooped.

"Kiana, as an older sister, you should give in to your younger sister."

Seeing that Xilin couldn't win the argument with Qiana, Cecilia smiled gently and stopped the farce.

"I know, I know..." Cecilia spoke, and Kiana curled her lips and stopped teasing Xilin.

"Our little angel Xilin won't be angry, right?" Looking at the angry Xilin, Cecilia continued to comfort her.

"Today is my sister's birthday, can we give it to her?" "Humph, I won't!" Xilin turned her head away, obviously not wanting to pay attention to Cecilia.

"Mom promises that when Xilin grows up, I will make you a dress as gorgeous as hers. How about that?" Cecilia promised, softly coaxing the sulking Xilin.

"...It has to be more gorgeous than hers!" Xilin relented, glaring at Kiana fiercely, clearly still furious. Although she knew it was just a dream and Cecilia's promise was nothing but castles in the air, Xilin still held on to a glimmer of hope.

"Well, it's even more gorgeous than that one."

As if comforting a child, Cecilia immediately agreed.

"That's more than enough! No regrets!" Hearing this, Xilin raised her head, gazing defiantly at Kiana like a final victor. Kiana simply smiled, saying nothing. Slowly approaching Xilin, Cecilia bent down, and with an irresistible tenderness, she gently embraced Xilin in her arms. Like a young animal, long wandering, suddenly caressed, Cecilia's warmth sent a shudder through Xilin's body. Her muscles tensed, her entire body frozen in place. Such warmth, such joy... An indescribable feeling washed over Xilin, and she paused. She hadn't known when she'd stopped resisting Cecilia's advances. Xilin's head unconsciously rested gently against Cecilia's shoulder. As if all her strength had been drained from her, she gradually relaxed, no longer struggling.

"Xilin, Mommy loves you too."

Looking affectionately at Xilin's suddenly widened eyes, Cecilia slowly spoke and gently kissed Xilin's forehead.

"Ich liebe dich."

"Eh...eh?" Suddenly, she felt an electric current running through her body, and her mind went blank. Was she... loved? If this wasn't a dream, would this woman still say the same words, would she still be so kind to her? Mother, love—these two words had been gone from her for so long, so long that her mother's face had become a blur in her memory. And ever since her companions all died tragically in the experiments in the Tower of Babylon, and her tears had dried completely, she hadn't experienced human love again. For a moment, her thoughts were completely tangled.

Chapter 67: Xilin's Daily Life (Part )

Faced with Cecilia's sincere and passionate love, Xilin completely lost it. Only after Cecilia released Xilin did Xilin panic and run away, covering her burning face. It took a long time for the blush on Xilin's face to slowly fade.

"Cecilia, here we come!" Theresa shouted, following Siegfried into the house with a huge rabbit doll on her back.

"Kiana, I have prepared a gift for you. Do you want to guess what it is?" Theresa smiled mysteriously and stood in front of Kiana.

"I guess it's the Homunculus doll!" Kiana shouted with starry eyes, looking at Theresa's back.

"Strange... I clearly hid it..." Theresa handed the doll to Kiana, completely confused as to how she had managed to hit the nail on the head. Of course, Theresa didn't consider her petite figure as a factor in not being able to hide such a large doll.

"By the way, Dad, where is your gift?" Holding the Homunculus doll tightly, Kiana looked at Siegfried.

"Shh, it's already under your bed..." Siegfried looked around nervously and spoke nervously, but was interrupted by Cecilia who appeared behind him at some point.

"Honey, you bought a game console for Kiana. Have you forgotten her grades last semester?" Although Cecilia was smiling, Siegfried and Kiana felt a chill at the same time.

"Mom..." Kiana clasped her hands together and looked at Cecilia pitifully.

"...I really can't do anything about you. You can only play for one hour a day!" Seeing her daughter in such a state, Cecilia had no choice but to give in.

"Great! I love my mom the most!" Upon hearing this, Kiana's face suddenly changed and she burst into laughter. Even Xilin, who was standing beside her, was amazed at Kiana's amazing acting skills.

"By the way, Xilin, you have been clamoring to give your sister a surprise. What gift have you prepared?" Turning to look at Xilin, Cecilia asked curiously.

"A gift, a gift is..." Kiana's expectant gaze shot towards her. Xilin jerked her head aside, her neck stiffly twisted to the side, a faint blush instantly etched on the tips of her ears. How could she know what the gift was? Although she hadn't prepared anything, seeing the curious looks on everyone's faces, Xilin couldn't tell the truth.

"The gift is the complete series of Homunculus comics. It's already in Kiana's bedroom."

At the critical moment, Fu You's heavenly voice rang out from Xilin's mind.

"...The gift is the complete series of Homunculus comics! They've been placed in your bedroom a long time ago!" Pretending to be calm, Xilin waved her hand modestly.

"The complete series of Homunculus comic books?!" Upon hearing this, Theresa could no longer sit still and stood up.

"Uh..." Seeing Theresa's excitement, Xilin was stunned for a moment. Those comic books... were they so appealing? "Thank you, Xilin!" Hearing this, Kiana couldn't contain her excitement and rushed upstairs. "By the way, how did you know this girl liked those comic books?" Xilin was curious as she watched Kiana's reaction.

"...I said I was just guessing, do you believe me?" Fu You said weakly. He couldn't say that he and Cecilia knew each other before, could he? [Then your guess is quite accurate...] Looking at Kiana running down the stairs excitedly, Xilin didn't doubt it.

"Celin, come and have some cake!" Cecilia gently handed her a piece of birthday cake. She took it and took a small bite. "I remember my mother took me to eat this once before, when she was still alive..." Cecilia thought as she savored the sweet cake.

"This tastes... so delicious..." Uncontrollably, tears streamed down Xilin's face. The taste of this cake was exactly the same as the one her mother had bought her back then... Xilin had no idea that the taste of the cake in her dream was a simulation created by Fu You based on her subconscious.

Late at night, after saying goodbye to Cecilia's family, Theresa left the villa, and Kiana and Xilin also returned to their respective rooms. Lying on the bed, Xilin stared at the ceiling, thoughts constantly drifting through her mind. Family, happiness, affection...all of these are things Xilin has been longing for but cannot get. She clearly wanted to ruin Cecilia's dream, why did it turn out like this? Forget it, let's go to sleep first. Unable to figure it out, Xilin shook her head, closed her eyes, and covered herself with the quilt. It was very obvious that Xilin had forgotten that this was just a dream. The next moment, everything in front of her eyes became blurred, and the whole world shattered in front of Xilin's eyes. After a moment of trance, Xilin returned to reality and saw Fu You standing beside her.

"What's going on? Where's my home?" Seeing everything around her disappear, Xilin panicked and turned around anxiously.

"Your...home?" Fu You paused, looking at Xilin in confusion.

"I, I mean, why did you suddenly pull me out of the dream? I haven't had enough fun yet..." Xilin, who had just woken up from a dream, realized that she had said the wrong thing and immediately changed her words, but her uneasiness was almost written on her face.

"Half a day has passed, Xilin... Do you still want to spend the night in a dream?" Fu You held his forehead helplessly and began to explain, but after looking at Xilin, he was still a little puzzled.

"Didn't we agree to go in and experience the dream? Why do you look like you are about to fall into it?" Looking at Xilin, who had never acted so anxious, Fu You instinctively felt that something was wrong.

"...Can I stay here for another day? No, half a day will be enough!" Without answering Fu You's question, Xilin looked at the dream reluctantly, still unwilling to leave that paradise-like place.

"The offensive launched by Bella is about to reach the headquarters of Destiny. Now is not the time to indulge in dreams."

Fu You shook his head and cruelly rejected Xilin's request.

"But I really want to feel it, feel... my mother's warmth..." With a slight cry in her voice, Xilin lowered her head. The warmth from Cecilia in her dream made her linger. She had not felt what family love was like for a long time.

"Tell me, if she still loves me after waking up, can I live the life in my dream with her?" Xilin raised her head innocently, looked at Fu You, and asked hopefully.

"..." Seeing this, Fu You fell silent. After thinking it over again and again, he decided to break Xilin's fantasy.

"Ever since you dropped the meteorite that caused countless casualties on Earth, ever since you allowed your followers to destroy cities, ever since you waged an all-out war against Destiny and Anti-Entropy..." "There's no place for you among humans anymore. Even if Cecilia truly loves you, you can't live the peaceful and beautiful life you dream of."

After a pause, Fu You looked at Xilin seriously.

"You must know that you are now the focus of the whole world, and all forces will focus on you."

After thinking about it, Fu You added another sentence.

"What's more, you've always revealed your true identity. Those human organizations already have full intelligence on you and are eager to eliminate you. You have no way out."

At that time, Xilin firmly believed that all human beings deserved to die, but she did not expect that after dropping the meteorite, although she felt proud, she also completely put herself in opposition to human beings.

"I..." After hearing Fu You's words, Xilin was suddenly speechless. She stood there blankly, unable to respond.

Chapter 68 Appeasement

"Okay, you're right."

With a hint of resignation and compromise, after a long silence, Xilin gave up her impulsive idea. Her dream was shattered by reality, and Xilin realized that she could no longer live an ordinary and happy life as she had dreamed.

"It's all fate and anti-entropy's fault... it's all those annoying ants' fault..." A cold light flashed in Xilin's eyes, and she slowly clenched her fists, her joints turning slightly white due to the force.

"I will continue to let the collapse spread... As for those filthy humans like Tianming and Anti-Entropy, none of them will survive!" Xilin roared in a deep voice, her eyes sharpened again, and it seemed that she had given up her unrealistic fantasies.

"What happened in the dream...let it go!" Xilin said hatefully, trying hard to suppress her emotions.

"It's okay, Celine."

Looking at Xilin, who appeared fierce and tried to disguise herself with sharp words, but actually seemed extremely lonely and pitiful, Fu You understood the feeling of being alone. Patting Xilin's head, Fu You gently comforted her.

"Yes, you have indeed lost your place among humans, but you still have us."

Facing Xilin's stunned gaze, Fu You spoke slowly.

"Me, Bella, Aurora, Agata, Galina... We all love you, don't we? Just like Cecilia in the dream loves you and Kiana."

"Who... who cares about this?" Upon hearing this, Xilin, who had a ferocious look on her face just now, became panicked again.

"I'm not a child anymore. Even if you say that, I won't be amused by you."

Xilin's cold eyes seemed to be casually scanning the distance, but her slightly trembling eyelashes betrayed her tense nerves. As she glanced away indifferently, the tips of Xilin's ears felt slightly hot.

"I'm a messenger of God. Things like family and happiness are things that mortals pursue... I don't care."

Despite saying this, Xilin's tone softened noticeably. Seeing this, Fu You breathed a sigh of relief. While the child was still stubborn, at least she wasn't hiding away, feeling dejected. If he had known Xilin would be so easily deceived, he shouldn't have let her experience Cecilia's dream. It felt like Xilin's malice towards humans had only intensified, and Fu You felt ashamed.

"By the way, you said before that Bella was going to attack the Destiny headquarters?" Xilin looked at Fu You, remembering something. She remembered that he had pulled her out of the dream because of this.

"That's right. Bella sent back news that her Honkai beasts have swept across half of Europe, and the main force will soon reach the Destiny headquarters."

Fu You nodded. He didn't expect Bella's attack to be so swift.

"Bella reported that they encountered no Heavenly Mandate troops along the way. The Honkai Beast torrent crushed many cities without encountering any serious resistance."

At this point, Fu You frowned slightly. He hadn't anticipated that Tianming hadn't sent troops to resist the Honkai Beast torrent. For a moment, Fu You was puzzled: Could it be that Tianming simply didn't care about the lives of ordinary humans?