Cultivating in Honkai!

It took some time to clear out most of the zombies. The ones who fell amounted to one in ten people. If there are a hundred people, ten of them become undeads. That is resulted by their initial exposure to the honkai.

If I did not halt the honkai eruption with the magical [Two Phase Art], maybe 90% of this town would have already turned into bloodthirsty maniacs.

Considering Schicksal or Anti-Entropy… heck, even the military can arrive. We chose to leave immediately after we killed off the ones roaming in the streets. We haven't heard any screams too.

We did not choose to remain in the town. We treaded the path back to St. Petersburg. That ate up two hours.

Once we are around fifteen kilometers away from Pushkin, we are lucky to get picked up by a trailer truck.

Then… 

We went back to the hotel.

Woosh-!

I heard the shower run inside the bathroom. I let Kiana go first. I sat on the ground near the wall. My back rested on it.

I threw away my coat on our way back. The blood on my shoes dried and turned to black. It is camouflaged by its color. I did not have to worry much. Once we came inside the hotel room, I put it aside.

My pants are another matter. It is also bloody. I don't want to stain my bed (couch) for later.

My eyes looked at the sword case I carried earlier. Inside is the jian I used earlier. Blood did not stick to it. Its blade was made to let blood and other viscous liquids slide like nothing—a very helpful feature on the battlefield.

It is well-deserved to be a product of honkai tech.

"...We left a lot of traces earlier."

The battle earlier…

I did not stop Kiana. I am completely aware of her Kaslana Oath. It is the same oath that pushed her to do a lot of reckless things... but it is also the one responsible for making her the Tuna I know.

I did not restrict myself either. Schicksal might have influence here, but I refuse to believe that Anti-Entropy… Cocolia has none. She built her orphanage in Siberia, the epicenter of the second major honkai eruption.

It made me think that Anti-Entropy has some pull in Russia. Siegfried also asked his acquaintances to take care of Kiana. I don't have to worry much about exposure from Schicksal… if Kiana is not exposed yet.

It's either that… or the spiritual qi earlier. It will disappear, yes, but it will take some time. 

It's up to god's will at this point. We can't…

I can't live in fear.

Not again.

"That strange feeling from earlier…"

It felt like I was being watched. It is a strange thought, but hey, it's a cultivator's sixth sense.

Nothing happened when we left. If that is the case…

There's no use overthinking about today's incident.

It is 2012. Welt Yang is still active. I can recall that he got trapped inside the Sea of Quanta a year before the in-game chapters. I don't know, maybe his presence can deter Otto?

If some things do occur in advance, we can only prepare for it.

At the very least, I need a year and a half.

Foundation Establishment.

That is the time I will have hard power. From the feats I saw from the techniques… It is enough to handle that mess. Even if they do not have strong hacks, their physical strength alone surpasses many.

…

I stopped thinking for a while.

"Fu…"

The bloody smell from earlier…

I can still smell it. It's like a slaughterhouse, but worse. There are things that I can do. I solved the entire honkai eruption with a few casts of [Two Phase Art].

Simultaneously, there are things I cannot do. I can't save the ones who fell from honkai corruption… the zombies. I am not similar to Mei… 

I did something.

…

I think, my mind…

Yeah.

It's a mess. Maybe it's adrenaline that sorted it out. I did not feel tired…

Until now.

"Ha…"

A large yawn escaped from my mouth.

I want to sleep.

For a while…

*****

"Ah..?"

Kiana exited the bathroom with a new pair of hoodie and a fluffy pajama. What greeted her was Shi Tian sleeping on the floor. Although she was surprised with his ability to sleep anywhere, she woke him up.

"Um..?"

He opened his reddened eyes. 

Shi Tian was confused.

Shi Tian was bewildered.

Shi Tian realized it was not a dream.

Shi Tian fully woke up.

In front of him was Kiana. The ends of her hair were still wet. He saw her long-haired version again.

It struck his weak point (i.e., cute things).

"Ah… Right. Taking a bath. Thanks…"

He stood up in a daze and went straight to the bathroom.

Kiana did not know what to say next. For her, everything that happened today was a normal Monday.

She wandered around the world for two years. Heck, she even spent an entire year with Siegfried hunting down zombies and honkai beasts.

She did not encounter this reaction during her first kill. She did not shy away from all the blood and intestine splattered to the ground. Her subconscious gave her tolerance.

In her mind, saving the others was the sole focus. Hence, she can adapt quickly.

Kiana experienced this level of honkai eruption several times since her debut. The other times, she would see wandering zombies she can kill with a baseball bat.

Even…

The time when she stood up against that huge monster. She can remember it. That was the day Siegfried started being good to her. That was also the time when she got taught the Kaslana's gun-kata.

She was completely different from Shi Tian who was visibly shaken up. She faced minor honkai eruptions several times already. It was precisely these incidents that honed her current combat skills.

After a month of travelling together, Kiana had a sense of responsibility to take care of him. 

He usually acted mature on weekdays. Only now did she see him this bothered.

"What can I do…"

She did not take out her phone. She was focused on some thoughts while drying her hair.

When Shi Tian came out, he was surprised to see Kiana not glued to her phone. He was fully awake at this point. Their gazes soon met.

Shi Tian flashed a confused smile. Kiana responded with a startled look.

She thought of something.

"Do you want to sleep on the bed?"

"..?!"

*****

…

What.

What?

"Just tonight. Let's switch places."

Kiana asked me a random question. I have a vague feeling she's trying to do something, but I don't know what it is.

Seeing her sincere look…

"Sure."

The Tuna let out a victorious look. I chose not to dig deeper. Kiana sat on the bedside. I sat beside her.

"If there are officials that will ask us tomorrow… Can you ask your contact to arrange… I mean, ask for some details around? Like, what happened in Pushkin after?"

I said my main concerns. Aside from the usual studying, Kiana's intelligence is not that bad.

She understood what I wanted to say.

"If there's trouble, we can run away. It's not that hard." She said.

"Hm..?"

"I did it a few times."

"..."

As expected of Kiana.

"It's still better to settle things earlier. I don't know if your contact can free us from prison?" I immediately halted my words. "Nevermind. We are still underage…"

"Oh…"

She seemingly realized something. She looked at me up and down.

"Did you grow a few centimeters tall?"

"Yeah. Cultivation does it. Once we finish the early stage, I will grow taller."

The simplest explanation is that cultivation boosts puberty growth. There are unique cases, but most cultivators receive this effect.

"It's some sort of bonus. Maybe I'd look like a fourteen-year-old in the middle stage. It will stack further until I reach my most optimal state determined by the subconscious. The same goes to you."

"Optimal state?"

She fell silent. I can see her expression turning serious.

"Cultivation does it?"

"Yes."

With that, I managed to awaken Kiana's desire for cultivation.