In the evening, Luo Lin sat on her bed, using a ballpoint pen to jot down her thoughts on paper, documenting her ideas.
Firstly, passing the B-rank Valkyrie promotion exam was a must, and it needed to be completed as soon as possible. To reverse the tragedy of Captain Ragnar and the Valkyrie Assault Team, she had to participate with a corresponding identity.
Previously, Ragnar had expressed his confidence in her in front of the orphanage and the Intelligence Department's superiors. As long as the girl could pass the promotion exam, she could seize the opportunity to join the Valkyrie Assault Team and participate in the subsequent plot.
Currently, although there were quite a few A-rank Valkyries, there were still a large number of B-rank members in the Valkyrie Assault Team, giving Luo Lin plenty of opportunities to join.
Secondly, the main enemies in action were from K423, namely the Awakened Herrscher of the Void within Kiana's body.
Was the Herrscher of the Void strong? Very strong.
But for Siegfried, who wielded a Divine Key, the Herrscher of the Void was just a child. If he truly wanted to kill her, a combined attack with his twin guns would have ended everything, without the events that followed the Honkai Impact 3 game.
The problem lies here—both Siegfried and Ragnar chose to limit their power, suppress the Herrscher, and restore Kiana's consciousness.
This was difficult, but they ultimately succeeded, albeit at a great cost—Siegfried lost a shoulder, Ragnar fell in battle, and the Valkyrie Assault Team that participated in the mission was wiped out...
Therefore, Luo Lin needed means to restrain the Herrscher's actions and suppress its consciousness.
At present, Luo Lin knew of five methods:
The Serum that can counteract Honkai energy, Oath of Judah—the Key of Binding,—the Key of Sentience—Fenghuang Down, Fu Hua's signature skill, Edge of Taixuan, and the Scepter of Duat researched by Jackal, the World Serpent.
Each of these methods had its own advantages and corresponding drawbacks.
When the Himeko Murata confronted the Herrscher of the Void for the last time, she used the Serum. Luo Lin could be certain that this substance could suppress the Herrscher's consciousness and save Kiana, but she couldn't guarantee that she could inject the serum into the Herrscher's body or even get closer to her her undetected for that matter.
The price of the Serum in the system was relatively cheap, but it still made Luo Lin wince.
Luo Lin wouldn't count on obtaining the two Divine Keys, as one was in Theresa's possession and the other in Fu Hua's. It was impossible for either of them to lend the Keys to Luo Lin. Moreover, the astronomical price of the replica Divine Keys in the system was discouraging.
Fu Hua once used the Edge of Taixuan's ultimate move, Taixuan Eminence, to sever the mental link between Sirin and the 'Honkai God' during the Second Honkai Eruption. This item was relatively cheap in the system and guaranteed to be effective.
The only problem was that mastery of Edge of Taixuan required more than just the basics. Achieving proficiency depended on individual aptitude—Luo Lin didn't know her own aptitude in this regard.
If she wanted to forcefully attain the realm of Eminence in Edge of Taixuan through the system, the crystal cost would be astronomical.
With such crystals, she might as well just buy The Celestial - Azure Empyrean character card.
Now, the most reliable option seemed to be the Scepter of Duat created by Jackal. This relic left behind by the previous civilization could disrupt the connection between the Herrscher's core and the imaginary space, causing disorder in the Honkai energy within the Herrscher—this move wouldn't kill the Herrscher but could restrict its actions.
If the Herrscher continued to be weakened during this period, the effect of the restriction could be greatly extended. Jackal had originally planned this in the plot, capturing the Herrscher of Ice and handing her over to the World Serpent's master, Kevin.
She just didn't expect a traitor to emerge later, causing the entire plan to fail.
Luo Lin looked at the price of the Scepter of Duat. Although she couldn't afford it with the crystals in her pocket now, if she saved up for a while, she could definitely buy one before the incident occurred.
After some contemplation, the girl decided to pursue a three-pronged approach.
Prepare two doses of the Serum, save crystals to purchase the Scepter of Duat, and at the same time, let the system initiate her training in the Edge of Taixuan, then practice on her own to see how far she could progress.
"Alright, it's settled..."
Luo Lin nodded satisfactorily as she looked at her notebook filled with ideas, then closed her eyes on the bed, entering the system with determination.
After making her decision, the girl opened the store and first purchased the skill [Edge of Taixuan] for herself.
As the accumulated crystals quickly disappeared, Luo Lin's mind gradually filled with knowledge about Edge of Taixuan. Some strange and inexplicable syllables emerged from her mouth—this was the "Edge of Taixuan," also known as the ancient [SWARA] technology left behind by the previous era, which could calm one's mind and cultivate the "Blade Mantra."
As the chanting continued, Luo Lin's mind became clearer, and some forgotten things surged up in this miraculous state. The girl felt the Honkai energy flowing in her body and gradually gained control over it.
After about ten minutes, Luo Lin stopped chanting and let out a long breath.
The Blade Mantra was formed!
Although it was only the lowest level of entry-level Blade Mantra, it already surpassed countless others at their entry level. Luo Lin couldn't understand things like system cheating at all!
The realm I've achieved today, Luo Lin owed it all to her exceptional talent... System, allocate points!
Inspecting the new memories she had acquired, Luo Lin found that along with Edge of Taixuan, she also received a set of sword techniques. She eagerly wielded a single-handed sword to demonstrate some flashy moves—only to embarrassingly fall flat on her face!
"What's going on?"
Luo Lin, lying on the ground feeling bewildered, took a moment to ponder, and then she discovered the problem:
This set of sword techniques was meant to be used in conjunction with the Divine Keys—the Key of Domination. Edge of Taixuan could borrow Honkai energy from the environment as well as inside its user, and the Key of Domination acted as a relay, significantly increasing the amount of Honkai energy that could be borrowed.
The next step would be the familiar process of lifting bricks and flying them away. With the substantial Honkai energy support, the user of the Key of Domination could strengthen themselves, and with the help of the Key of Domination, convert the Honkai energy into natural forces such as lightning, fire, and frost to unleash powerful techniques.
Without the Key of Domination, Luo Lin couldn't use those techniques that consumed a lot of Honkai energy. The consequence of forcibly using them would be running out of Honkai energy halfway and falling flat on her face just like her.
By normal means, learning Edge of Taixuan could only be done by seeking out Fu Hua. Fu Hua would give a Key of Domination, the Xuanyuan Sword, to those learning entry-level Edge of Taixuan for use—when the Immortal Phoenix had the most inventory, she once possessed over a hundred Xuanyuan Swords.
Later, some of the Keys of Domination were given to those who were compatible, some were used to suppress the Honkai, and some were damaged in battle and couldn't be repaired... In short, Luo Lin also didn't know how many Xuanyuan Swords Fu Hua had now.
But she couldn't just go and ask for one directly...
Hey, Ms. Celestial, can you send me a Divine Key?
"Uh, this..."
Luo Lin awkwardly waved the straight sword.
Fortunately, after discarding the unusable techniques, the remaining techniques of Edge of Taixuan were still practical. With further study, she should be able to combine them with Kaslana's gunplay.
"Ah, forget it, let's continue diving into the abyss!"
Luo Lin entered the arena, looking at the refreshed enemies, and charged forward with a sword in one hand and a gun in the other.
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Voting on Patréon now for the Next two fics. Will last up before June.