"March! Your jinx came true!" Stelle summoned her bat, muttering while complaining.
--------------------------------------
The suddenly charging monsters made the audience widen their eyes.
A Borisin werewolf.
They swarmed out of the alley, madly attacking the nearby pedestrians.
Fortunately, the Cloud Knights were nearby, and Yanqing also entered the battlefield almost immediately.
"No way?"
"The Denizens of Abundance invaded again?"
As soon as March 7th finished saying this, she quickly covered her own mouth.
"Shut up!" Stelle and Dan Heng said almost in unison.
Just as the Express Crew was about to help the Cloud Knights, the battle had already ended.
These werewolves looked fierce, but in reality had no power.
Under the Cloud Knights' formation and Yanqing's swordsmanship, they were quickly defeated.
However, because there were too many of them, a large encirclement still formed.
"Not good!"
Yanqing let out a low shout, and the flying swords behind him shot toward the distant werewolves.
But this one was obviously much more cunning, dodging left and right, narrowly avoiding the flying swords.
It looked like it was about to escape.
A delicate but sharp voice suddenly sounded from the sky.
Before the person even arrived, an iron sword taller than a man crashed down.
At the same time, the camera shifted upward.
A barefoot girl was grabbing Yanqing's two flying swords, flinging them downward.
The two flying swords and the massive iron sword fell almost together.
With a thunderous crash, the escaping werewolf was smashed into pieces.
Only then did the barefoot girl descend from the sky, landing on the sword hilt of the massive blade, holding Yanqing's swords while looking him up and down.
The audience had been wondering where these monsters had come from.
But the moment Yunli appeared, her fluid and exhilarating fight instantly excited everyone.
...
: Where did this little girl come from, so fierce?
: New character get!
: No, with such a small body, wielding such a huge weapon, is that really okay?
: Rather than a sword, it's more like a slab of stone big enough to crush someone?
: A slab of stone? That reminds me of an old friend…
...
The sense of contrast made Yunli leave a deep impression the moment she appeared.
But before fans could get to know this little girl, she took Yanqing's sword and left like the wind.
"Wait, my sword…" Yanqing was dumbfounded, staring blankly in the direction she left.
A bizarre encounter.
Even the Express Crew had no idea what was going on.
But for now, the urgent matter was to check the scene.
Thanks to the timely rescue, except for some injuries, no one had died.
After handling the situation, new commotion came from the docks.
It turned out the IPC's cargo had been seized by the Xianzhou, leading to disputes.
But the Xianzhou side also had a solid reason.
The monsters had come from the docks, so until the cause was clarified, all cargo had to stay there.
It could only be said, this trip, just like before, had its leisure disrupted.
For the audience too. They thought it would be a relaxing slice-of-life episode, but right at the start, a bunch of mysterious monsters appeared.
And they couldn't guess what would happen next.
So they could only watch on nervously, yet expectantly.
...
: Of course, since it's the main story. If it were just easygoing daily life, it would feel off."
: But judging from the cover, it seems someone incredible is coming, and apparently from the Xianzhou side.
: I only have one wish! No more deaths!
: Rather than deaths, I think the Xianzhou arc feels much more pompous.
"Like Jarilo-VI or Penacony, the theme was still adventure and salvation, showing the clashes between different factions and forces. But none of them go as deep as the Xianzhou arc.
: Yes, for example, Jing Yuan, he compromises, weighs priorities, thinks deeply. Everything is for the greater good.
[T/N: No idea what this person is talking about OwO]
: So maybe the next developments will connect to that.
...
Just as the audience speculated about the direction of the Xianzhou story, Yanqing had already brought the Nameless to where Jing Yuan was.
In the scene, besides Jing Yuan, there was also a short old man.
And the girl who had snatched the sword was there too!
The audience paused their chatter, watching closely.
"Greetings, General Huaiyan!"
As soon as Yanqing spoke, the viewers' eyes went wide.
General? General Huaiyan?
This old man was another general of the Xianzhou Alliance!
Once upon a time, everyone passionately discussed the Seven Arbiter Generals of the Luofu, speculating about their personalities and appearances.
But now that a new general appeared, it was a shock.
After all, in people's minds, generals were tall, mighty, imposing figures.
Yet this little old man looked… ordinary.
At that moment, Jing Yuan introduced:
"This is the Xianzhou Zhuming's Arbiter General, referred to as "Flaming Heart"."
"Elder Yan is not only a general of the Luofu, but also a master-forger of the Artisanship Commission. Beyond warfare, he excels in countless crafts. Such a rare figure, he is unique among the generals."
Huaiyan appeared very humble, without any airs of a general, smiling as he said: "These are all just empty titles. This old man has already retired several times, but now that the situation has changed, the marshal has summoned me once more, so I have no choice but to take up the post again."
After that. During the conversation, Huaiyan and the nameless became acquainted.
The old man's words were watertight, showering the three nameless with praise, completely like a harmless old grandfather.
Jing Yuan also took the chance to quietly introduce his own merits.
Especially when it was mentioned that Yanqing was to act as the Luofu representative and act as the ringmaster during the festival.
Huaiyan admired this even more, repeatedly praising.
This made Yunli, who had been silently observing at the side, almost unable to hold back from speaking.
"Oh, it's you." Yunli spread her hands.
"It's you?"
Only then did Yanqing realize, after coming in, he had been so busy with introductions that he hadn't noticed Yunli had been sitting in the corner all along.
"You two actually know each other?" Huaiyan and Jing Yuan were both greatly surprised.
But this saved them the trouble of introductions.
What was supposed to be a meeting about to end suddenly became interesting because of the two of them.
Yanqing first calmly explained how Yunli had helped him, including the incident where he had lost his treasured sword.
Who knew Yunli would just cross her arms, expressionless, and say: "Flying sword? Oh, I was wondering why a short sword appeared in my pack out of nowhere, it turns out it was yours."
"Exactly. Since fate has us meet again, I hope you can…" Yanqing began to ask for his sword back, but was abruptly cut off.
"I'm afraid that won't do."
"Won't do?"
"If you want your sword back, then according to Zhuming's way, you'll have to fight me for it. A lost sword must be taken back openly with one's own hands."
"?" The usually well-mannered Yanqing was dumbfounded. Even with his self-restraint, he couldn't help it anymore.
Yunli, however, spoke as if it were only natural: "That little sword was flying in the air, meant to strike down that fleeing Borisin. Unfortunately, the sword master's heart was unsettled, causing it to miss it's mark. If not for my help guiding it to the target, that Borisin would have long since escaped."
"Miss Yunli, you took my sword without a word, and now you refuse to return it as if nothing happened?"
Yanqing could no longer endure it, his voice grew cold.
"Luofu sword masters are nothing but so-so." Yunli still spoke with a blank expression.
"What did you say?" Yanqing felt the flames rising.
Not only refusing to return the sword, but even daring to say that Luofu had no capable people?
"If you can openly and honorably take the sword back from my hand, I will admit defeat. But you didn't, and now you expect me to hand it back casually in front of everyone."
"To speak frankly, you show no respect at all for the weapon that saved us and killed the enemy. You're unworthy of it."
Yunli's words were arrogant and domineering.
"Miss, to take without asking is theft!"
"If you want a one-on-one, fine, it's just you and me, right here and now!" Yanqing's pride as a swordsman made him immediately accept the challenge.
The spectators were stunned.
No one had expected, that this cute little girl could be so aggressive.
...
: Wait, sis, who even are you? This is Luofu, you think you can just do whatever you want?
: Hiss… I recall this Yunli girl only looked at Yanqing's sword for a while before leaving, how is it now 'her's'?
: Yunli: I picked it up, it's mine now.
: Yanqing's manners are just too good… this kid doesn't seem very polite at all.
: If it were me, I'd already be flaming! Damn, this is straight up picking a fight!
: But seriously, wasn't that sword originally Yanqing's? Why does he have to 'win it back'? What kind of logic is this?
: Everyone calm down, maybe it's not that outrageous. Could be part of Yunli's stubborn principles… let's see what happens later…
: Can't believe I just thought Yunli's personality contrast was charming and liked her, but her attitude is so disappointing!
...
For the first time, the audience encountered a character in Honkai: Star Rail with a strange personality like Yunli's.
"Enough, Yanqing!" Jing Yuan spoke up, putting an end to the impending clash.
But Yunli nodded slightly and said faintly: "Mm, that's more like it. You'd better be careful, I'm not as easy to deal with as that werewolf."
Huaiyan scolded from the side: "You shut up too, hurry up and apologize to younger brother Yanqing!"
The two generals shook their heads helplessly, then used some formal words to apologize to the nameless, found a couple of excuses, and let Yunli and the Nameless go off to do their own things.
Only then did this unusual meeting finally end.
When Stelle left the Palace of Astrum, she saw Yunli by the roadside.
Out of curiosity (and recklessness), she approached, pressing into a situation that was bound to end badly.
The audience originally thought Stelle would get a cold face this time.
But after he greeted her, Stelle unexpectedly received a friendly response.
"Hello, are you one of the contestants from the Luminary Wardance?" Yunli came back from her thoughts and answered Stelle with kindness.
"Hiss…" Stelle scratched his head, hesitated a little, then asked: "So… the question is, why did you… steal?"
"Steal?" Yunli was stunned for a moment, then said: "I don't think this is stealing. If you say it's robbing, I'll admit it, but how could you lump me together with petty thieves?"
This self-righteous remark left the audience speechless. But Stelle didn't care, and complained: "But you really are stealing."
"Sigh…"
"Let me put it this way. As a swordswoman, when I saw that swordsman called Yanqing, I realized he was always burdened with heavy thoughts. As a swordmaster, such a mindset is absolutely unacceptable. But that's his own business."
Yunli crossed her arms. Although her figure was petite, only 1.5m tall, her presence seemed as if it were 8m high!
"But he cannot treat his sword this way. That sword now fears its master, yet Yanqing has no idea. He claims to cherish his sword as his life, yet he doesn't even know what state his treasured blade is in… In the end, he doesn't truly see the sword as his partner, but merely as a tool."
Faced with Yunli's blunt explanation, Stelle blinked and admitted honestly: "I don't get it, I use a baseball bat…"
"..." Yunli rubbed her forehead helplessly and said: "Anyway, you only need to know this, unless he personally comes to say words like 'please, hello, thank you, sorry,' I have no intention of returning it to him."
In fact, right after the first battle ended, when Yanqing tried to call out to Yunli, he had already said thank you.
But the audience also realized that the words Yunli spoke of just now, most likely were not meant for herself, but for that sword.
Compared to Yanqing, Yunli now appeared more like a true sword fanatic.
After explaining this to Stelle, Yunli also went on to talk a bit about the customs of the Xianzhou Zhuming.
Things like fighting joyfully, treating swords as partners, and so on. The audience suddenly understood.
Damn… So it was entirely a matter of different customs!
...
: What's going on here, I really feel relieved after hearing this.
: From this perspective, Yunli is actually quite earnest. Aside from being overly obsessed with swords, she's fine.
: She's also polite and patient with Stelle.
: It's just, she's a swordswoman of Zhuming, while Yanqing is a swordsman of Luofu… their customs are different!
: Suddenly my mindset shifted to just watching children quarrel.
: The two generals earlier probably felt the same, so they just casually found an excuse to dismiss the crowd.
: But Yunli's words aren't without reason. Right from the start today, Yanqing was obviously overly mature. At such a young age, he already carried the thoughts of an adult, for a teenager, that may not be a good thing.
: Right! Compared to before, he's lost some of that youthful spirit!
: Who knows whether that's a good or bad thing.
...
At Stelle's questioning, the misunderstanding the audience had toward Yunli was finally cleared up.
On screen, at this moment, after the nameless, Yunli, and Yanqing all left the Palace of Astrum, the two generals looked at each other.
The lighthearted atmosphere just now gradually turned heavy.
It was time to talk serious business!