Penglaiji Ryn, who had fallen unconscious due to the rampaging power within her, had now calmed the energy and reawakened.
Yiselian and Ryn walked into Penglaiji Ryn's room.
"Time is tight, so I'll explain briefly..."
"What are you going to say? What happened before?"
Penglaiji Ryn was a bit confused. Her memory stopped at the moment Kiana appeared, after which she had passed out.
"Penglaiji Ryn, in order to save Kiana and Mei, you forcibly fused the Second Herrscher's core with yourself...
The world we are in now is an illusory dreamscape, a fabrication created by the entanglement of several Stigmata within your own.
This near-destroyed Nagazora City is the cage that binds you, and this barely surviving human civilization doesn't actually exist.
At this very moment, your physical body in the real world is on the brink of death, critically endangered by the erosion of the Herrscher Core. My mission is to pull you back from the edge.
Based on my observations of this world, your consciousness has merged with it. This world itself is a reflection of your body, which is to say, your Stigmata Space.
This place is both an illusion and reality. Remember that death spot in the sky? When the Honkai within you reawakened, the death spot was reactivated at the same time.
This means that when the death spot erupts, when this world is consumed and destroyed by the Honkai, your life will also come to its true end..."
"Wait, wait, let me process this first. That's a lot of information..."
Penglaiji Ryn interrupted Yiselian. Her mind was still a bit foggy. The gradually returning memories, the events with Kiana and Mei, and now what Yiselian was saying—it was all a bit much for her to take in at once.
However, seeing Ryn standing beside her, looking completely at ease, Penglaiji Ryn felt a strange sense of calm. If her brother wasn't worried, why should she be.
"Brother Ryn, aren't you shocked by this?"
"Shocked by what? I already knew this was a Stigmata Space. I have one myself, you know. But I am a little shocked, I didn't expect your Stigmata Space to be so complex..."
When he was swallowed by Janna, Ryn could already feel it. His Stigmata Space had connected to the Stigmata Terminal, which meant the Stigmata Terminal was hidden inside Janna...
"But it's a bit different from mine... My world allows for the existence of a Stigmata Consciousness, which is how Stigmata Kiana was born... But this world you're in, this Stigmata Space, is more like a soul space... The individuals here are just materializations of a soul's existence. They are not true souls, but they can be used to influence the real souls..."
Yiselian's face darkened slightly. What was Ryn talking about? Couldn't he use more professional, academic terms? Never mind, that's not important. Let's deal with Penglaiji Ryn's situation first, then discuss the matter of Stigmata Spaces and soul worlds!
"Ryn, what you're saying is confusing, but we don't have time for that now. Since you roughly understand the situation, I'll explain my plan."
"Uh... actually, I still don't get what either of you are saying... I need to..."
Penglaiji Ryn was cut off by Yiselian before she could finish.
"Sorry, sorry, I know this is all very confusing... but we're running out of time. Please hear out my plan first.
As I said before, this world is a microcosm of your body. All changes here are directly linked to your physical condition.
In the logic of this world, when the Great Honkai Eruption occurs again and destroys everything, the manifestation in your body will be complete erosion by Honkai energy, ultimately leading to death.
So the only way now is to stop the spread of Honkai energy within you, which means stopping the death spot from absorbing enough Honkai energy."
Ryn: "That's a bit difficult... The scattered Honkai energy in the air now has an owner. Even as a Herrscher, it's become difficult for me to control it. If I use my own Honkai energy, it might increase the total amount in this world, complicating things further."
Yiselian: "Guh... It's not that complicated. Our goal is actually very simple. Because all the Honkai energy in Penglaiji Ryn's body comes from the absorbed Second Herrscher's core. In the real world, the Herrscher Core has already fused with Penglaiji Ryn's body and cannot be removed.
But here, everything has been materialized. I believe the Second Herrscher's core must be somewhere in this world too."
Yiselian took out her tablet, which contained a lot of data recorded by the previous Yiselian. It was a pity that two identical individuals couldn't exist in one world, leaving only one Yiselian. Otherwise, she would have loved to have a good chat with her counterpart...
Yiselian: "During the period Mei drained Nagazora City of its Honkai energy, creating a Honkai energy vacuum, the recovery of Honkai energy shouldn't have been regular. However, certain areas showed higher-than-average readings. So I think something there must be emitting Honkai energy. Perhaps the Herrscher Core is there."
Penglaiji Ryn cracked her knuckles and jumped out of bed.
"Yiselian, you've said so much, and I have a ton of questions for you! But... anyway, for now, we just need to find that core, right?"
"Yes... for now, if we can find and destroy that core, that should be enough. We'll have to improvise for what comes after..."
"Should we bring Bronya and the others? Or just the three of us?"
"Just the three of us. Himeko is still unconscious, and the people of Fire Moth are in a state of panic. They need Bronya...
I also found an assistant... she's not very reliable, but her combat power should be fine... She's waiting for us not far from the Hyperion.
Let's set off quickly. Sin must be getting impatient waiting outside... Then, I'll first investigate whether that anomalous region contains the Herrscher Core."
"Hold on. If it's just about finding the Second Herrscher's core... there's no need to investigate. I think I know where she is."
Ryn closed his eyes and sensed a location not far from Nagazora City.
Previously, Ryn had thought that since this world already had two Herrschers, Kiana and Mei, having one more was normal. So he hadn't paid much attention to that other Herrscher who was constantly and openly releasing energy.
But now, it seemed that being was a big problem... According to Yiselian's information, that Herrscher must be the Second Herrscher!
Ryn could sense that there were several truly existing people in this world: the semi-conscious Kiana, the world's master Penglaiji Ryn, the passing Ryn himself, and...
Second Herrscher - Sirin