"If someone could truly erase Nihility's influence completely, do you think it would still be so terrifying?"
Herta was at a loss for words. She couldn't tell if this woman was genuinely naive or just pretending—whether she was truly obsessed with reclaiming her homeland or simply trying to strike a big bargain.
"Nihility doesn't matter!"
Sirin shook her head. Having been born on Izumo, she knew all too well how dreadful Nihility was—but reclaiming Izumo wasn't about Nihility.
"The real threat we face is the Honkai. I want to make a deal with you using the relics we brought."
Nihility wasn't important—the Honkai was? That line of reasoning sounded just like Ruan Mei's.
Herta lowered her head, deep in thought. It seemed this "Honkai energy" truly wasn't something ordinary.
"Let's hear it."
"I'm not asking you to solve the problem of Nihility. Honkai energy has a terrifyingly strong corrosive nature. I want us to cooperate—you help us enhance our resistance to Honkai energy."
Reclaiming Izumo wasn't her true goal. Of course, if it could be recovered, that would be ideal.
But if not, she wouldn't be disappointed.
What she truly wanted was to solve the problem of Honkai's corruption—to, like Raiden Mei, see her homeland once more.
"Show me the item."
Herta neither agreed nor refused. She simply extended her hand toward Sirin, asking for the relic.
Sirin silently handed it over.
"If that request is too difficult, then take the relic as a gift. In exchange, I only ask that you introduce me to Miss Ruan Mei."
...
"What even is this thing?"
While traveling through space, Kiana encountered a bizarre cosmic creature—part beast, part tree—that had fired a shot at her from afar.
A biological weapon?
Staring down at the wreckage beneath her feet, Kiana fell into speechless confusion.
It looked monstrous—like some kind of giant beast—but its body also sprouted branches and leaves that belonged to plants.
And that wasn't even the strangest part. The thing had cannons growing out of it.
And they actually worked.
Kiana stared at it, half convinced her brain was about to overheat. What even was this abomination? A fusion of biology, flora, and machinery?
She remembered that Ruan Mei had shown no interest in creating such things. This seemed more like a purely weaponized organism.
"System? You alive? If so, get out here and identify this thing. You used to do that just fine back on Izumo!"
Since the creature had attacked first, Kiana hadn't held back in the slightest.
After her ship took damage, she promptly abandoned it, summoning Frost Edict Edge through her Stigmata and striking the monster with one clean blow.
A clean blow that proved fatal—at least, it should have.
Even cleaved in two and frozen solid by the blade's frost, the creature still refused to die until she hacked at it several more times.
[Carcass of the Abominations of Abundance]
[Recycling yields Honkai Cubes]
Ever since she left Izumo, her system seemed to have lost some of its intelligence—it now needed prompting even to analyze things.
Still...
"Abominations of Abundance?"
Kiana blinked in surprise at the readout. Now that she looked closely, it really did resemble one.
Since arriving in this universe, this was her first encounter with anything related to the Path of Abundance—and it wasn't even a Pathstrider, but an Abomination.
"A beast ship, maybe?"
Kiana frowned, glancing down at her communicator. The signal here was terrible—who knew how long a message would take to send?
Could she have run into Abundance followers?
Traveling alone through deep space really wasn't safe. You could run into just about anything out here.
To think she could bump into the Abominations of Abundance just by flying a normal route...
Wait—shouldn't she be the one they're worried about?
As she fretted over what she'd do if she ran into actual Abundance believers, Kiana suddenly realized she might be overthinking.
Whether it was Nihility or Honkai energy, neither was much better than Abundance.
So what was there to be afraid of?
It's not like she was a follower of Abundance.
"Let's recycle one and see."
[You have obtained 100 Honkai Cubes]
"...That's it?!"
Kiana's expression twisted into disbelief. She even wondered if the system was taking a cut—how could something that massive be worth so little?
It had been a long time since she'd seen such a tiny "mosquito leg"—but even the tiniest bit was still meat. At least it meant she now had another way to farm Honkai Cubes.
Still…
"Is what I'm recycling the power of the Paths?"
When she had recycled those blades and cores back on Izumo, Kiana hadn't been entirely sure. But now that even the remains of an Abomination could be recycled, it was starting to make sense.
She thought for a while.
No answer.
The system absorbed whatever power it could, and the massive corpse of the creature crumbled into ash before vanishing completely. Shaking her head, Kiana returned to her ship—the one that had taken a hit earlier.
She needed to find somewhere to get it repaired.
If the damage was bad, she wasn't even sure the ship would last long enough for her to find a mechanic.
Abominations of Abundance appearing in this star system...
If there was one, there were bound to be more. Hopefully, they hadn't already ravaged the other worlds in the system.
With that thought in mind, Kiana continued along her route for a while longer—until she was forced to stop.
Not because of a sudden malfunction.
But because…
Something exploded in the distance—like fireworks.
From the cockpit, Kiana could see faint flashes of light flickering far away. They were distant enough that the details were unclear, but one thing was certain:
It was a battle—a war in space between two forces.
Those dazzling "fireworks" were explosions.
As Kiana paused, torn between steering clear or flying closer to take a look, her ship received a bright, urgent transmission.
[This is the Xianzhou Yaoqing. We are currently hunting the Sakin Chadu's abominations. The battlefield is dangerous—please reroute your course immediately!]
"The Xianzhou Alliance?"
Reading the message, Kiana raised an eyebrow in surprise.
Before she crossed into this world, the game had just updated to Penacony—though the Xianzhou Yaoqing hadn't been released yet.
So the mighty Xianzhou was hunting Abominations now.
Should she go take a look?
At first, she'd hesitated because she didn't want trouble. Now, she hesitated because she was curious.
But space wars weren't the kind of "show" one could casually spectate. Getting too close might lead to being caught in the crossfire—or even stranded for who knew how long.
By her estimate, she'd reach Ruan Mei in about half a month. If she went chasing excitement now, there was no telling how long she'd be delayed.
And who knew how long a battle like this would last? If it dragged on for months, the others would surely be worried sick.
After a few moments of deliberation, Kiana made the painful decision to turn back. The Xianzhou's war against the Abominations had nothing to do with her—and she doubted they wanted outsiders getting involved anyway.
But just as she turned her ship around, it was struck again—several times, in fact. The shields barely held, and warning lights flared red across every display.
Through the still-flickering screen, she caught sight of her attacker—a beast ship, firing at her from a considerable distance.
"What the hell?!"
Were these Abominations brain-damaged or something? Ignoring their enemies on the battlefield, only to fire at her—someone trying to leave?
Kiana's expression was grim.
The ship probably wouldn't last much longer.
She had just been thinking it was best to avoid unnecessary trouble—and immediately after making that decision, she was attacked by followers of Abundance.
Her ship was now as good as scrap.
Taking a deep breath, she muttered through gritted teeth, "I might not be able to deal with Nihility, but I can sure as hell deal with you."
All the frustration that had built up in her heart, finally finding a target after this unjust attack, erupted. With a dark look, Kiana summoned Yae Sakura's Frost Edict Edge through the power of her Stigmata.
She hadn't gone looking for trouble.
But trouble had come to her.
After being attacked twice in a row by those rabid Abundance fanatics, Kiana decided she'd had enough.
If she helped the Xianzhou, it might even spread her name.
As long as her reputation grew large enough, as long as her name reached far enough, Mei and the others would surely hear of her.
Yes—if her name echoed throughout the universe, there'd be no fear of losing touch with those she sought.
She gripped her blade's hilt, switching to a set of insignia suited for battle-forged growth.
The ship, stripped of its defensive systems, was fragile. Under heavy fire, it exploded—just like those distant "fireworks" lighting up the stars.
Those fireworks were the wrecks of warships.
On the edge of the battlefield, the Abundance zealots aboard their beast ships grinned savagely, watching the spectacle. There was no trace of tension from their ongoing clash with the Xianzhou Yaoqing.
After all, they had set a trap for the Xianzhou. The supposedly invincible Yaoqing fleet had taken a blow at their hands—surely this was a triumph worth celebrating.
They were already daydreaming about parading their victory before other tribes when their thoughts were cut short—forever.
Because, at the moment Kiana's ship exploded—
A blade of ice, vast enough to cleave a planet, burst forth from the blaze, carrying with it an overwhelming surge of power that obliterated the entire beast ship.
Even the notoriously resilient Abominations of Abundance, famed for their vitality and regenerative abilities, were annihilated in an instant—shredded by a single strike.
For the power behind that strike came from the most dreaded source of all: Nihility itself.
The massive frost-laden slash extended for tens of thousands of miles. Even the main battlefield far in the distance—where the fiercest fighting raged—detected the terrifying energy signature.
The Xianzhou Yaoqing's Verdant Knights, which had been observing the battle and looking for a chance to counterattack, had only just been mourning the loss of a bystander when the situation suddenly flipped.
In space, there was no need to restrain one's strength—no worry of damaging the environment or shattering a planet.
She could unleash everything.
And that feeling of unrestrained power—it was indescribably exhilarating.
Like a white comet, Kiana charged straight into the most perilous zone, a spearhead of pure destruction. Wherever she passed, the Abominations were erased—leaving not even ash behind.
"What a powerful energy reaction."
The strategist responsible for logistics and battlefield analysis aboard the Xianzhou Yaoqing gazed at the readings on his screen, pondering the identity and motives of this sudden, comet-like intruder.
"Can we establish contact with that person's communicator?"
"Unlikely. We haven't detected any communication device on her."
So, she was likely an independent wanderer—someone not following the Interastral Peace Corporation's bulletins, unaware that the Xianzhou Yaoqing was currently hunting remnants of the Borisins.
She must have seen their warning message just moments ago, realized there was a battle here, and tried to turn back.
But now…
Those Borisin remnants had just provoked the wrong person.
"She's probably an ally, not an enemy," the strategist concluded. "Track her trajectory and clear the units along her path."
He planned to make bold use of this mysterious individual—someone who, by all appearances, wielded the power of an Emanator.
The Borisin remnants were cunning, and this trap had been designed specifically to target the Verdant Knights.
But these fools had never faced the Arbiter-General before.
And anyone who hadn't fought the Arbiter-General… couldn't possibly understand the power they were dealing with.
Ambush or not—
As long as the Arbiter-General stood, the Yaoqing Hunt against the Abominations would remain unstoppable!
Of course, war was never a one-person stage. Still, their true weakness had been slowing the Arbiter-General down—but the IPC's reinforcements were already en route.
A war of attrition? They weren't the least bit afraid.
"Send a report of this incident to Lord Jiaoqiu."
Just like the Swarm, the Abominations of Abundance were disgusting and notoriously difficult to eradicate—but in Kiana's hands, they were no different from any ordinary foe.
Channeling the power of the Path of Nihility to slaughter them, Kiana found that using Nihility's strength against these creatures was surprisingly effective.
Her speed was unmatched.
Wherever she passed, the path was cleared—and when she finally reached the heart of the battlefield, she witnessed firsthand the horror of interstellar war.
They were everywhere—countless as locusts.
Warships, beast ships…
Every second, new "fireworks" bloomed—explosions flashing through the void. Though surrounded by the silence of space, the entire region reeked of war.
The most striking sight of all was a planet engulfed in flames. Patches of green still glimmered across its surface, but vast regions glowed red from spreading infernos.
Anyone capable of surviving in open space without assistance was no mere passerby.
But the bloodthirsty Borisins didn't care about that. To them, anything before their eyes was an enemy to be torn apart.
The moment she arrived, several wolf-like beasts bared their fangs and charged at her position.
As cannon fodder, they lacked both skill and power—fighting only by primal instinct.
Her blade flashed once.
Heads rolled.
Both Nihility and Honkai were forces of extreme, volatile nature—once tainted by either, there was no escape.
Fighting Abominations felt different from fighting Kami. Though both were a form of mindless mowing down, back on Izumo, most of the Kami she fought had already been corroded by Honkai energy.
These creatures regenerated with incredible speed—but once struck by the power of the Paths, their regeneration was crippled instantly.
She remembered the system's warning: outside Izumo, she was not to use Honkai energy.
No battles fought with Honkai.
That left her with only Nihility's power. She didn't know how she had come to walk that Path, but the endless flow of strength within her must have been linked to the balance Izumo once maintained.
The Stigmata on her back grew warm.
But immersed in battle, Kiana barely noticed.
Enemies poured in without end.
As she fought, she felt her blood boil with exhilaration—a sensation she had never known back on Izumo.
Battle—unceasing battle.
Slaughter, destruction—never stop!
The Stigmata itself was born of the Honkai, and now she was channeling a fusion of Nihility and Honkai together.
The two incompatible forces within her—Honkai and Nihility—grew increasingly restless, each provoking the other. The Honkai energy surged violently, forcing Nihility to stir in defense.
At some point, her eyes had turned to brilliant gold.
On the deck of a beast ship, Kiana seized a Borisin mid-leap, crushing his throat with one hand before hurling his corpse into a pack of wolfmen.
A wild grin crossed her face. "Too weak—far too weak! You call this strength? Pathetic!"
Her fists struck harder than any weapon, tearing the massive beast ship apart in a single blow.
"Remember this—" she declared, her voice echoing across the chaos. "The one who grants you death... is named Kiana!"