Cultivating in Honkai!

Sirin did not respond to her words. Her face indicated she had accepted it without any arguments. Her attitude brought up countless questions in Sirin’s mind. The more she acted like this, the more befuddled Sirin felt.

She wasn’t like this at all!

Unfortunately, Sirin could no longer talk to her. The suppression of future projections is at an all-time high. It wasn’t just the world that was rejecting them; the present is doing the same. It tries to establish itself as an independent body. This reaction stemmed from the cultivators themselves, resulting from the instinctive reactions against paradoxical events. Crossing time means they are fighting both the world and immortal cultivation itself, more so when they are nothing but mere future projections.

Possibilities that haven't come to pass are ultimately transient.

Hum-!

Buzz-!

A wave of white light swept through the night sky. Darkness turned into a blank expanse filled with white. Black dots appeared all over the sky, each imposing a sense of palpitation towards Sirin. Her eyes widened in shock as she stared at her future counterpart.

“This is not the Dao I am practicing…”

She merely gave her an affirmative look. Her meek attitude made Sirin feel unsettled.

“Void is used as the universe’s blank canvas. Time whittles down all things to nothingness. Causality… binds everything together.”

Sirin had forsaken the Dao of Endless Void she cultivated along with Kiana. She unhesitantly crippled her own cultivation, reverting to the pinnacle of Void Refinement Realm.

Even so, she recovered her lost cultivation and comprehended the Dao she could call her own—

The Dao of Exalted Space-Time.

Facing its magnitude and sheer prowess, Sirin’s power gradually changed. Her own power began to change unconsciously, following Sirin’s footsteps. She understood what her future self wanted to pull off.

‘I will give you what you want..!’

*****

Dreams.

That was the only thing Sin Mal had while placed under house arrest. She frequently dreamed of pleasant things—of the life outside the confines of her room. She saw through the hearts of her step-parents. They were so unbearable to look at that she harbored immense hatred and disgust towards them. Sin Mal never knew about their plans to sell her off, but their dark hearts explained everything.

Ultimately, she learned of that plan and decided to burn the entire house—including those disgusting creatures—to death. Sin Mal’s machinations came to play as she got picked up by Cocolia. That beautiful piece of moonlight she saw that night was within her arm’s reach.

Unfortunately…

Sin Mal didn’t know much else of the world.

The environment she grew up in taught nothing but anger and disgust. She never knew anything else—affection, care, and so on. As much as she wanted to be by Bronya’s side, she simply didn’t know how. The best she came up with was to gain her attention in any way. However, Bronya simply found it childish and mentally taxing to deal with.

Sin Mal felt frustrated.

She was about to make stupid decisions when Shi Tian came into her life. He saw through her childishness and gave her much-needed advice.

‘Why did he..?’

Sin Mal was baffled at first. She didn’t have many interactions with Shi Tian. Facing his unreserved kindness, she felt confused. Shi Tian was the other person with a heart as pure as Bronya’s. However, she put him aside as she didn’t know him at all. The only time he made an impression was during Seele’s kidnapping, nothing else.

With confusion and doubts, Sin Mal began watching his every move since that day. She gradually sunk onto the quagmire known as Shi Tian. His unreserved kindness and concern, all without asking for anything else, won her over. The fact he was willing to die for everyone became the final straw in the camel’s back.

Hence, despite being challenged in terms of communication, Sin Mal expressed her affection in many ways. Her glazing in the history books was one, and so was the stunt she pulled off with Bronya.

‘My greatest insecurity… it would have been the worst had he reacted differently.’

Sin Mal knew it was a huge gamble, but it paid off. She now bore the title of Shi Tian’s wife. It was a title she wished she could hold onto forever.

These memories flashed in her mind before returning to reality. She was surrounded by burning rubble. The entire hallway was filled with broken ceiling, scorched wood, and shattered vases. Thick and suffocating black smog filled the house.

Her sight of this crumbling house overlapped with the one from her memories—of the house she personally set to flames.

‘A sudden spatial shift… and it is my memories.’

Sin Mal suspected the being they were about to face. She was flying in a low altitude on Mars along with others when she was sent to this space. The realism and accuracy of this place chilled her bones.

Suppressing the unease in her heart, she proceeded through the burning hallway. There were two places to go by—to the stairs and to her room. Sin Mal mulled over it for a good while before deciding to move forward. It didn’t take long before she reached the door to her room.

It was as plain as it could be. It didn’t have any decorations nor name cards. It lacked human warmth, instead turning into a cold cage.

The moment she pushed it open, she saw someone extremely identical to her sitting in the middle of her bed. Its soft white mattress was slightly wrinkled as she moved her feet closer towards herself. She hugged both her knees, her forehead touching them. The ends of her long purple hair lay sprawled atop the bed.

Sensing the power surrounding the ‘unconscious’ girl, Sin Mal frowned. Her vigilance remained as she attempted to probe her:

“Why did you immerse yourself in dreams?”

The number one precaution for the Dao of Unceasing Dreams was to never delude oneself inside dreams. Their sense of reality would blur. Their minds would become complacent, satisfied with the dreams they weaved themselves. They lose the drive to progress further into immortal cultivation and cause their Tao Hearts to crack.

It was self-destructive to do such a thing.

“Because I feel like living.”

“...”

Before Sin Mal could react, the future Sin Mal doubled down:

“I don’t want to live in a world without him.”

*****

Art Source: https://www.zerochan.net/3754556