Inside the quiet lounge adjacent to the Interastral Peace Corporation embassy's reception room.
A faint trace of energy lingered in the air—the residual aftermath of the Magic Crest inscription process.
"Phew—"
Standing by the bed, Fuli let out a long breath. He walked into the en-suite bathroom to wash off the translucent liquid residue clinging to his fingertips.
On the spacious, luxurious king-sized bed, three beautiful girls lay fast asleep side-by-side.
Asta was curled up like a lazy kitten. Topaz's sleeping face was a mix of exhaustion and her usual heroic sharpness.
As for Robin, even in her slumber, a lingering trace of an indescribable afterglow—a blend of intense pain and some bizarre, thrilling release—remained etched onto her flawless features.
A thin blanket was draped over their bodies, just barely covering their exposed skin while perfectly outlining their breathtaking, full curves.
Inscribing the Enhancement Magic Crests had drained far more mental energy than Fuli had anticipated. After all, these were high-tier runes capable of providing stable buffs to Critical Class fighters, and he had been doing it one against three.
To ensure absolutely nothing went wrong, Fuli hadn't hesitated to activate his Setsuna Blade, Form of Analysis and Reason: Divine Mirror.
In that state, the microscopic particles floating in the air, the trajectories of energy surging through their bodies, the invisible network woven by gravity and microscopic spatial folds, the converging threads of cause and effect... A vast, ocean-like torrent of information flooded his consciousness, constructing an utterly transparent microscopic world in his mind.
Using this near-omniscient, all-seeing domain, Fuli precisely controlled the injection of every single strand of energy.
He ensured the Magic Crests merged flawlessly with their bodies, guaranteeing no hidden dangers would be left behind—especially in Asta's incredibly frail physique.
None of these girls had ordinary backgrounds. Even Topaz, the most "normal" combatant among them, was a powerful executive representing the Ten Stonehearts.
If anything had gone wrong, the ensuing headache—whether from their personal relationships that teetered just past the boundary of friendship, or the massive political networks standing behind them—would have been catastrophic.
He had no choice but to be two hundred percent careful.
Wait, you ask? If Divine Mirror was a powerful perception ability capable of reading even the Origin Strike: Star Shatter, wouldn't using it for tattoos mean he could see the girls from the inside out, completely exposing their most intimate physiological structures?
Please. The inscription process literally required him to use his fingertips to physically guide the energy flow through every major node in their bodies. He practically had to measure every single inch of their curves by hand.
When you've already gone that far, "seeing through them" was the most irrelevant detail of all.
As for whether the boy or the girls lost control during the process and engaged in a little "storyline" requiring tens of thousands of omitted words...
Well, at least in this current timeline, which had just been rewritten... no, they hadn't.
After finishing the job, Fuli didn't leave immediately. He sat by the edge of the bed, keeping his Divine Mirror active to ensure he could instantly intervene if anyone showed signs of an adverse reaction.
His caution proved justified.
During the most intense phase of the energy surge, Asta had suffered several uncontrollable muscle spasms. She had cried tears of pain, whimpering pitifully.
Fortunately, Fuli had immediately used the healing power of Setsuna Blade: Lunar Eclipse to soothe and comfort her, helping her safely pass the critical phase.
In comparison, Topaz and Robin's pain tolerance was significantly higher. Although the process was just as grueling and left them drenched in fragrant sweat, they managed to endure it without any major scares.
He waited until evening. After confirming that their breathing, heart rates, and energy fluctuations had completely stabilized and they had entered a deep, self-healing sleep, Fuli finally let out a genuine sigh of relief.
According to the records of the Chisel-Tooth Pack, this Magic Crest system could theoretically provide a massive power boost even to an S-Rank powerhouse. Hoolay was the prime example.
However, Magic Crests of that caliber were held by only a select few; getting his hands on them would be difficult.
Fuli rolled his stiff neck, deactivated Divine Mirror, and wiped the sweat from his forehead. He stood up and silently walked to the door, preparing to head over to his Great-Auntie's place for tonight's joint livestream.
But the moment he opened the door, he saw Anna standing there like a statue, her head bowed.
Her delicate hands were clenched into tight fists. Her long bangs draped down, casting a shadow over her face and hiding her expression in a deeply oppressive, gloomy aura.
This was the sole limitation of Divine Mirror: it only had a ten-meter radius.
Within ten steps, all is revealed. Beyond ten steps? What, do you not have eyes? Look yourself!
"Anna, good afternoon~"
Fuli always treated this literary girl—who could basically be considered half his disciple—with great warmth and affection.
Hearing his voice, Anna slowly raised her head. Her usually clear, lively pink eyes were completely dead, devoid of a single highlight.
Her lips curled into an unnatural, broken smile. Her waist-length chestnut hair hung limply as she let out a laugh—a sound that was an unsettling mix of childish innocence and eerie madness.
"Teacher Fufu... what color burlap sack do you prefer?"
Fuli: "...Huh?"
Just what kind of insane mental gymnastics did this child go through to come up with such a creatively unhinged question?
A little while later—
"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I misunderstood! I'm truly, deeply sorry!"
Having learned the truth from the boy, Anna bowed repeatedly, her face flushed crimson with embarrassment. Internally, she aggressively scolded herself: You know perfectly well that Teacher Fufu is a decent, upstanding man! Why did your mind immediately jump to the gutter?!
Ah yes, a "decent man" who, upon first meeting her, had fully intended to peek on her while she bathed. Very decent.
"It's completely normal to misunderstand," Fuli comforted her considerately.
Let alone Anna, even Asta herself had half-jokingly admitted beforehand that the process sounded like it could be easily misinterpreted.
That was exactly why Asta had locked down the reception room's permissions, barring all outsiders from entering.
The only thing she hadn't accounted for was that Anna, acting as the Schariac family's representative to the Schicksal Senate, possessed the exact same high-level security clearance.
And due to her painfully timid personality, she had just stood outside the door listening to the sounds, lacking even the courage to knock and ask what was going on.
"Sigh. I wonder what lucky guy is going to end up marrying our sweet little angel Anna in the future," Fuli couldn't help but sigh as he looked at the girl's flustered, desperately apologetic, and utterly docile expression.
With her absolute doormat of a personality, even if her future husband cheated on her, she'd probably just swallow her anger and serve tea to his pregnant mistress.
"T-Teacher Fufu?!"
Completely unaware of the vile, scumbag thoughts running through his head, the girl's cheeks flushed an even deeper shade of red. Mistaking his comment for a "direct confession," she clamped her legs together, utterly at a loss for what to do. Her fingers twisted her shirt hem frantically, looking like she was about to melt into a puddle.
"Anyway, since you're here, I'll leave the task of looking after the young miss and the others to you. No problem, right?"
Look! Look at this! This is the definition of a scumbag!
One second he's thinking about how she'd happily serve a mistress, and the very next second, he's literally putting it into practice!
"Leave it to me! I will absolutely complete this mission!"
The girl didn't disappoint. She straightened her posture and gave a highly serious salute. Her delicate brow was filled with a firm sense of duty and responsibility. There was absolutely zero trace of the apocalyptic Ice Herrscher in her demeanor.
However, right after agreeing, she turned bashful again. Her voice shrank to the size of a mosquito's buzz: "Um... it's just..."
"What is it?"
"That... Enhancement Magic Crest..."
Anna raised her eyes, which were now sparkling with hope, and asked carefully, "Later, could Teacher Fufu... give me one too?"
"Of course! No problem!" Fuli answered with exceptional enthusiasm. "But my technique is still a little rusty right now. Let me find a few more people to practice on first. Once I've perfected it, I promise I'll give you the most beautiful one of all."
"Mhm! It's a promise!"
"It's a promise."
The boy smiled and held out his pinky finger.
Anna happily extended her own slender pinky, hooking it around his and shaking it gently.
The entire scene gave off the distinct, undeniable vibe of a scumbag telling the innocent, devoted girl who loved him: "Let me go practice my technique with a few 'friends with benefits' first. I promise I'll give you the absolute best first time once I'm a pro!"
But of course, our Little Li's intentions were entirely pure and righteous!
Probably.
11:00 PM. Inside the luxurious residence the Luofu had arranged for the ultra-popular streamer, "Miss Pink Elf"—
"Thank you all for coming!"
Wrapping up the multi-hour joint livestream, Fuli pulled off his headset.
He glanced over at the main stream monitor. Murasame's VTuber avatar, the virtual idol "Hatsune Miku Bodhisattva," was energetically singing and dancing in front of tens of thousands of live viewers, actively harvesting their ethereal, yet very real, power of faith.
"It kind of feels like I'm participating in some postmodern ritual to manifest a fictional concept into reality."
He rubbed his slightly aching temples. After confirming there were no major issues, he turned to the "Great-Auntie" sitting next to him, who was happily sipping on a cup of milk tea. "So, have you thought about it? Want to join our #1 ranked Team Crychic?"
"Hmm~ As long as the outcome is good, doesn't that make it fine?"
Cyrene narrowed her beautiful large eyes, chewing on her straw as she flashed a satisfied, mischievous, cat-like smile. "Besides, I didn't hurt anyone~ But as for joining your team..."
She dragged out her words playfully, the tips of her pink hair swaying as she tilted her head. "Fuli, naturally, a girl could never refuse a date invitation from Little Li~♪"
"I must be pretty much of a playboy, then," Fuli gave her a side-eye. "Taking three distinctly different, beautiful girls on a date all at once."
"Well, obviously!" Cyrene swung her bare, pristine little feet. "But even if Little Li is like that, Great-Auntie still doesn't hate you~!"
She's teasing me! She's teasing me again!
Little Li was very annoyed. He glared at her!
"Hehe~"
The girl wasn't afraid of him in the slightest. Instead, as if suddenly remembering something important, she leaned over and snuggled up against him. "Since someone like Murasame can gather faith by playing a virtual idol on a livestream, do other divine entities do something similar to survive?"
"Normally, the faith gathered this way is so minuscule it's almost negligible. After all, even the most obsessed viewers usually just see the streamer as an entertainment idol. It's incredibly hard to generate true, religious faith or worship."
Fuli thought for a moment before answering, "Murasame found a loophole this time. She used a bait-and-switch tactic to graft the massive, pre-existing fame of the world's number one virtual idol onto herself."
"Substituting the plum for the peach..."
Cyrene murmured softly. She stared at the juicy peach she had just taken a bite out of, a thoughtful glint flashing in her eyes.
"What about other gods, then? How do they maintain their existence?" she pressed, seemingly deeply interested in the topic.
"In Shenzhou, newly born divine entities only have two paths," Fuli was always incredibly patient with his Great-Auntie. "They either accept amnesty, get formally integrated into the relevant government departments under the South Heaven Gate Project, and secure an 'iron rice bowl' state job... or they resist, get beaten to a pulp in three moves, and have their authorities and divine domains recycled for parts."
"As for other countries, it depends on the local situation."
He paused to take a bite of the juicy peach before continuing, "Even though it might be hard for you and me—having grown up in Shenzhou—to imagine, the reality is that even in supposedly 'developed' regions like the Far East or the Universe State, legal and illegal religions, and even straight-up cults, are endlessly popping up. Not to mention the vast, chaotic continents of the Americas and Africa. Feeding a handful of wild gods is no problem for them at all."
Back in the day, Fuli had once drawn a high-tier artifact from his system: the Famous Gun: Tetsuya's Abe-Striker. The reason it even existed was because a certain broad-minded former Prime Minister of the Far East had acted as the protective umbrella for a massive cult.
One shot as a warning, the second for the kill. A perfect display of 'courtesy before force,' practically embodying the ancient chivalry of the Spring and Autumn period. A true gentleman's weapon.
"On top of that, don't assume those ancient gods don't know how to adapt," the boy continued.
"Ever since the First Honkai Eruption in Berlin in 1955, countless world bubbles of varying sizes have floated up and connected to the Imaginary Tree's mainline world. If those gods can't do whatever they want in the real world because of organizations like Schicksal, what's stopping them from running off to those lawless world bubbles to act like tyrants?"
They could easily just find an empty world bubble deep in the ocean of reality, abduct a few people from the real world to breed, and within a generation, they'd have a devoted populace.
In fact, the faith generated in those closed environments was often far purer and more fanatical, since the people there were brainwashed from birth.
Fuli didn't explicitly spell out this dark reality to his Great-Auntie.
But how could Cyrene not figure it out?
"Those bastards... what do they think human lives are?!"
She waved her small fists in anger, before her expression turned somewhat crestfallen.
But she quickly cheered up. She hopped off her chair, grabbed Fuli's hand, and eagerly dragged him toward the training room.
"Little Li! Come practice magic with me!"
"Yes, yes."
Fuli indulged her affectionately, not caring that it was nearly midnight. He even considerately bent down slightly so the petite Great-Auntie wouldn't have to pull so hard.
Romain Rolland once said: There is only one true heroism in the world: to see the world as it is, and to love it.
Knowing the dark truths of the world, Fuli had no intention of playing the hero of justice. He was no longer the tragic do-gooder obsessed with the Kaslana spirit—unless the tragedy was happening right in front of him, to the people he cared about.
Cyrene clearly had her own ideas and plans, but she never forced others to walk her path. Instead, she chose to focus on elevating her own strength first.
Herrschers could just cry 'I can't do anything!' at critical moments to magically unlock their max-level admin passwords and go on a killing spree. Normal people, however, only had their everyday blood, sweat, and tears to rely on.
However—
Looking at Cyrene's petite back, which seemed to contain boundless energy, Fuli's brow furrowed unconsciously.
As his own power continued to grow, he had recently begun having fragmented, disjointed dreams.
At first, they were nothing more than chaotic flashes, indistinguishable from a child's messy scribbles. He would forget most of them the moment he woke up.
But surprisingly, ever since he witnessed Miyuki and Yuno perform the Fusion Dance to temporarily manifest the fleeting, divine form of the "Yaoshi the Abundance," the dreams had begun to sharpen.
In some dreams, his younger self was clinging to a warm, broad back, following a strange woman he vaguely called "Ra... Mom?" as they ran wildly all over Europe.
In other dreams, he was left all alone in an empty, freezing laboratory, watching his mom and dad—and their friends with bizarre, multi-colored hair—rushing around frantically.
Then, without any warning, an all-consuming disaster shattered the peace. An apocalyptic fire devoured everything in its path.
And then there was—
A ruined, shattered Nagazora City. Surrounded by countless hideous Honkai Beasts, huddled in the corner of a collapsed building.
"Little Li, listen to me."
A beautiful girl, as radiant as fluttering pink petals, held the heavily injured boy tightly in her arms. Tears dripped onto his cheeks.
She lowered her head, pressing a kiss against his forehead that carried the freezing finality of parting, and left a gentle whisper that sounded exactly like a curse: "Forget me... and live on..."
"Little Li? Little Li? Little Li!"
"Ah?"
Cyrene's lively voice yanked Fuli out of his chaotic thoughts and back to reality.
He shook his head, realizing that he had already been dragged to the entrance of the training room without noticing.
"Oh, we're here."
Looking around the incredibly spacious training facility, the boy clicked his tongue in admiration. "The Luofu really treats you well. Even your private training room is this high-end."
"Of course! I'm a super-popular mega-streamer now, you know~"
Cyrene placed her hands on her hips and puffed out her tiny chest. Her smug, triumphant expression was so adorable it made people want to pinch her cheeks.
"Mmph! Mmph!"
And so, Fuli did exactly that.
He could only conclude that the tiny Cyrene had her own petite, adorable charm, just as the teenage Elysia had her own radiant, dazzling charisma.
Both had their unique merits. He just wondered if there would ever be a day he could see both the "Large" and "Small" versions competing on the same stage.
"Alright! I'm going to start practicing now! Make sure you watch closely and cheer for your Great-Auntie, Little Li~♪"
After saying that, Cyrene slowly closed her eyes.
She focused her mind and calmed her breathing. A dreamy, nebula-like purple glow began to emanate from her petite body.
According to ancient texts, ascetic monks deep in the Himalayas who achieved the pinnacle of meditation could comprehend a mysterious power known as the Kalachakra—the Time Wheel.
At its core, it utilized immense energy to simulate and interfere with the localized flow of spacetime, slowing it down or speeding it up.
This magic originated from the "Axis of the Earth" buried beneath the Himalayas—a fragment of the Holy Lance of Finality, which contained the "Authority of Unchanging Time." It was a specialized art developed by local ascetics after prolonged exposure to the fragment's leaking power.
During WWII, the Nazis had found the Lance fragment and taken it away. Later, during the Arc City incident, Fuli had claimed it as a trophy after defeating a powerful enemy. In a way, they had quite a history with it.
When Fuli reunited with Cyrene during the Wardance, he noticed changes in her body.
After examining her, he discovered she had been secretly practicing the advanced version of the Kalachakra: the Radiant Star Drive. The practice had left her with lingering physical side effects.
Because of this, he had strictly warned her that she was only allowed to practice this specific technique when he was present, so he could instantly intervene if anything went wrong.
Cyrene had clearly remembered this.
She took every single word Little Li said to heart.
That was why she had dragged him here tonight.
"Draw back the curtains of memory—"
The girl raised her hands. An intricate, complex clock face faintly materialized around her as she softly chanted the spell's incantation. "—and stir the ripples of the past!"
The next second, the flow of time around them began to reverse.
Even Fuli, a Critical Class powerhouse, couldn't help but be forced backward.
This was the absolute, overbearing nature of time-based abilities. The effect possessed a conceptual, rule-level absolute priority. Even if the caster was weak, they could still exert a noticeable influence on opponents far stronger than themselves.
For instance, when used by the B-Rank Cyrene, it could easily severely cripple a standard Critical Class fighter.
Naturally, Fuli wasn't a standard Critical Class fighter.
But he didn't resist. He mostly just didn't want to crush his Great-Auntie's confidence and enthusiasm.
"Yay! I did it!"
Sure enough, seeing Little Li genuinely affected by her spell, the girl instantly beamed with joy. She tilted her delicate chin up high, her face practically screaming, 'Quick, tell me how amazing I am!'
And then... she got cocky.
Cyrene's mastery over the basic Kalachakra was already bordering on the divine. Accelerating, pausing, and rewinding time was as easy as breathing for her. Some of her classmates had even secretly nicknamed her the "Amalgamation of JoJo Final Bosses" or the "Demigod of Time."
The real hurdle for her was the next stage: the Radiant Star Drive—the ultimate technique of creating and controlling pseudo-celestial bodies to manipulate time on a massive scale.
Thus, driven by the excitement of her initial success, she attempted to channel an even greater force.
Massive amounts of Honkai energy began to violently converge. A gorgeous yet highly dangerous phantom of a starry sky expanded across the training room's ceiling. Pseudo suns, moons, and stars began to emit a terrifying, heart-palpitating light.
Fuli had been watching with interest at first, but soon, the feedback from his Divine Mirror caused his expression to change drastically.
"The localized spacetime structure is over-expanding! Stop it right now!"
"I-I can't stop it! The energy is out of control!"
Cyrene cried out, her face pale. The Honkai energy inside her body was being violently siphoned dry by the pseudo-celestial bodies.
"Stay calm! I've got this!"
Fuli drew Endless Night Moon without a second thought. He unleashed his Setsuna Blade, Form of Conquest and Lightning: Obscured Moon.
This specific sword art didn't just unleash a powerful EMP designed to fry mechanical constructs; the high-frequency vibration of the blade's ring could also violently disrupt energy flows, forcibly severing the link between a caster and their spell.
Zing—!
A clear, resounding sword chime swept through the room like a physical sonic wave.
Although Moon-Viewing Sake was technically a lower-tier technique compared to the SA-Rank Radiant Star Drive, Fuli's overwhelming raw power bridged the gap, violently warping and shattering the spell's base structure.
The moment the spell was severed, the pseudo-celestial bodies lost their energy supply and violently imploded.
Countless fragments of stars shattered into a chaotic storm of pure energy, engulfing the room in smoke and dust.
"Cyrene!"
Ignoring everything else, Fuli immediately charged toward the girl's position based on his perception.
But when the omniscient domain of his Divine Mirror locked onto his Great-Auntie's location and "saw" clearly through the dust... the panic and worry on his face instantly shattered.
It was replaced by an expression of utterly bizarre bewilderment.
Because...
"Mimi?"
A tiny, delicate voice—laced with clear confusion and a hint of fear—whimpered softly from the center of the dissipating smoke.
As the dust cleared, a minuscule, toddler-sized pink figure gradually revealed itself.