Collapse, but Stand users

The dawn in the Crimson Canyon smelled of rust as the group prepared to destroy the nest of the poisonous pupa.

Toulong walked towards the cave entrance, where Qianjie was already standing, his bone blade gleaming coldly in the morning mist.

Mebius was adjusting her laptop, on which a 3D structural diagram of the mine was displayed, covered with dense red markers: "The first level is the guard room, the second level is the experimental area, and the core control room is at the deepest part."

Sakura gripped the short sword at her waist tightly; the character "Ling" engraved on the hilt was burning hot from her body heat.

She glanced back at the SUV and saw Ellie waving at her through the window, while Ling's pink hair swayed on the seat.

"Ready?" Möbius looked up at her.

Sakura took a deep breath, the rusty smell of the wind making her throat tighten: "Mmm."

Suddenly, Toulong raised his hand, and a phantom identical to him separated from his body. Its face was blurred like mist, but its gray eyes were as calm as his own. This was the embodiment of "miracle for you," the physical bearer of the law of calamity.

“It will follow you.” Toulong’s voice trembled slightly in the morning breeze. “Do not interfere unless necessary.”

"Revenge is more meaningful when done personally."

The illusory figure nodded slightly and silently disappeared into the shadows of the rock wall.

Qianjie stepped into the mine first, the soft sound of his bone blade slicing through the air like a venomous snake flicking its tongue.

Mebius followed closely behind, having converted her medical kit into a portable arsenal; the clanging of metal echoed through the empty cave entrance.

Sakura took one last look at the SUV, then turned and chased after it.

Meanwhile, Toru returned to the car and stayed by Airi and Rin's side to protect them.

......

On the iron gate at the entrance to the mine, the black emblem of "Poisonous Chrysalis" was pierced by a bullet, looking like a blind eye.

The first level of the mine was filled with a mixture of engine oil and sweat odor.

Six guards in black uniforms were playing cards around a table, with a bottle of vodka lying on the side, the amber liquid forming small streams on the ground.

The bone blade of the Thousand Calamities was faster than the sound of the wind. Before the guards could react, three heads had already rolled to the ground, and hot blood splattered on the card table, staining the Ace of Hearts a true crimson color.

The remaining three guards reached for the guns at their waists, but Sakura's short sword had already pierced the throat of the man on the far left.

"It's you, you traitor!" The scarred man in the middle recognized Sakura, his fear instantly turning into a ferocious expression. "Grab her! The boss said he wants to see her alive..."

His words were interrupted by Mebius's anesthetic needle, which precisely pierced his carotid artery. The green drug traveled along the vein, and Scarface's body instantly stiffened, like a frozen frog.

“No need for interrogation.” Mebius kicked away the gun beside him. “Their brains have long been controlled by chips; we won’t get anything useful out of them.”

She raised her hand and pressed it against the scanner on the rock wall. The red light of retinal recognition swept across her green eyes, and the heavy iron door made a dull thud as gears turned.

Sakura stared at the scarred man's eyes, which were gradually losing their luster, and suddenly remembered that stormy night three years ago.

That's the face that pinched Ling's chin and said, "This little one has a good physique"; those are the hands that tossed Old K's corpse into the yard like a dead dog. Her dagger rose again, but Möbius grabbed her wrist.

"It's useful to keep it; the control room password might be in his head."

Sakura's knuckles turned white, but she finally sheathed her sword.

Mebius had already located the chip interface on the back of Scarface's neck. His slender fingers pinched the probe, his movements more precise than a surgeon's: "The chip's encryption level is B+. It will take ten minutes to crack."

"Miracle for You" in the shadows slightly turned his body, his gray eyes sweeping over the surveillance camera in the corner of the mine.

The flashing red dots suddenly went out, as if an invisible hand had cut off the power.

The second experimental area was filled with the smell of formaldehyde.

The glass culture chambers were neatly arranged on both sides of the passage, with fragmented human organs floating inside. Some had claws like those of Honkai Beasts, while others were covered in scales, all soaking in a pale yellow nutrient solution, resembling deformed jellyfish.

“These are failures.” Mebius’s voice was as cold as ice as her laptop scanned the labels on the incubation chambers. “Numbers 734 to 911 are all children like Ling.”

"Moreover... it seems that someone from the Moth of Fire is behind this poisonous pupa. They seem to be of a high level, and some of the experimental results I recently obtained have been stolen."

"They secretly conduct human experiments, and then make me bear the infamy. What a clever scheme."

Sakura paused in front of a culture chamber labeled "Ling - Experimental Subject Candidate".

A blurry pink substance floated inside, and the shape of hair could be vaguely seen.

Her fingernails dug deeply into her palms, and the taste of blood filled her mouth.

She rarely loses her composure, unless it involves her sister.

Heavy footsteps echoed from the end of the passage.

Three monsters, each nearly three meters tall, blocked the way. Their bodies were a composite of humans and Honkai Beasts, their arms were crocodile claws, their backs had bat wings, and they made strange hoarse noises from their throats.

“A fusion type β.” Möbius quickly retreated, pulling a modified electromagnetic gun from his medical kit. “The weak point is the chip interface in the neck!”

Qianjie's bone blade was the first to be drawn, a flash of silver light, and the leftmost monster's wing fell to the ground.

Green blood splattered on the glass chamber, and the organs floating inside suddenly began to writhe violently, as if in response to the death of their kind.

Sakura's short sword is designed for the bottom lane, precisely piercing the monster's knee joint.

These modified guards moved slowly, making her speed her best weapon.

The dagger in her hand was like a living silver snake, each swing bringing up a string of green blood droplets.

Mebius's electromagnetic gun emitted a crackling sound as blue arcs of electricity struck the monster's neck, and black smoke billowed from the chip interface.

The monster's movements were noticeably sluggish. Qianjie seized the opportunity, stabbing the bone blade into the interface and suddenly flicking it upwards—the entire head, along with the chip on its back, was completely stripped away.

The last monster crashed into the glass chamber in a frenzy, shattering the culture chamber and spilling pale yellow nutrient solution mixed with mangled organs all over the floor.

Sakura's dagger was stuck between its ribs and she couldn't pull it out; the monster's claws, carrying a foul stench, slammed towards her face.

The "miracle for you" in the shadows stirred.

It simply raised its hand and pressed it against the rock wall, and a loose rock suddenly fell, striking the monster's claws precisely.

With a crisp snap, the chip at the connection between the claw and the arm short-circuited and exploded, spraying green blood like a fountain.

Taking advantage of the moment, Sakura drew her short sword and stabbed the monster in the throat.

She looked out into the shadows, panting, and saw only flickering spots of light, like someone's eyes blinking.

"Don't get distracted." Möbius's voice brought her back to attention. "The core control room is just ahead."

The metal doors to the core control room were as thick as a bank vault.

Möbius entered the cracked password into the terminal, and the red warning light suddenly flashed wildly, while a piercing alarm echoed through the corridor: "Unauthorized intrusion! Activate emergency plan!"

A maniacal laugh erupted from inside the door; it was the voice of the Poison Chrysalis leader, distorted and shrill through the loudspeaker: "Sakura! My good employee! I didn't expect you to bring back a helper! And this infamous Möbius at that!"

Sakura clenched her fists tightly, her knuckles turning white: "Release those children!"

"Release them?" The leader's laughter grew even more maniacal. "They are my masterpiece! The key to the descent of the gods! You think that pink-haired little girl can purify Honkai energy? She is the perfect vessel!"

Airi's name pierced Sakura's heart like a needle. She suddenly remembered why Tou Ryu had stayed in the car—it turned out that the Poison Chrysalis had been watching Airi all along, through Möbius's data.

"Break it open!" Sakura's short sword struck the metal door, sparks flying.

The bone blade of Qianjie pierced the crack in the door, exerting force with a sharp, twisting metallic shriek that pierced the eardrums.

Möbius pulled a directional explosive from the medical kit and stuck it to the doorknob: "Detonate in three seconds, back up!"

The explosion sent shards of rock flying. A large hole was blasted open in the door, and through the smoke, the leader could be seen standing in front of the control panel, his finger hovering over a red button. Behind him, a glass cabinet was filled with purple crystals, like congealed blood.

"Trying to stop me? Too late!" The leader slammed his finger down on the button. "The entire mine is bombed! We're all going to hell together!"

The expected explosion did not occur. The control panel screen suddenly turned into garbled text, and the moment the red button popped out, black smoke billowed from the wiring all over the wall.

The leader pounded on the control panel in alarm: "What's going on? Why isn't it responding?!"

The "miracle for you" slowly emerged from the shadows. It didn't touch anything; it just stood there. The law of calamity automatically corrected all the "accidents"—the fuse of the explosive was chewed through by rats, the timer's battery ran out prematurely, and even the spare detonator in the leader's pocket short-circuited.

"Impossible... This is impossible!" The leader slumped to the ground, watching Sakura approach step by step, the green blood from the short sword dripping onto his leather shoes.

Sakura's knife didn't fall immediately. She looked at the monitor screen behind the control panel, which was still playing footage from various experimental pods—some children were crying, some had lost consciousness, and in the far corner, Old K's photo was pinned to the wall with a red X crossed out on his face.

“You say Old K is a traitor.” Sakura’s voice was soft, but icy. “But he would rather die than do human experiments. You say we are containers, but we are human beings first.”

The dagger finally fell, swiftly and cleanly.

The leader's screams were swallowed up by the echoes from the mine, like a cheap cassette tape that had been cut short.

Sakura turned and walked toward the cell where the children were being held, her keychain jingling in her hand.

Every time she opened a door, a pair of terrified eyes stared at her, like a deer encountering a hunter.

"Don't be afraid, we're here to take you out." Her voice was very gentle, like when she was coaxing Ling to sleep. "There's sunshine outside, there are glowing fish, and... no one will bully you anymore."

Toulong waited by the off-road vehicle until dusk before he saw the team appear at the mine entrance.

Qianjie carried two unconscious children on his back, while Mebius pushed a makeshift mining cart piled high with emergency supplies.

Sakura walked at the back, leading three timid children. The little girl with pink hair clung tightly to her clothes, as if grasping at a lifeline.

"Is everything resolved?" Toulong asked.

“Hmm.” Sakura’s voice was a little hoarse. “I destroyed the core data, and all the test subjects were rescued. The leader…” She paused, “and got what he deserved.”

Mebius leaned against the car door, his green eyes showing weariness, yet unable to hide a hint of relief: "Your ability has dealt with the explosives used to blast the mountain, and the mine structure is very stable."

She looked at Toulong, "Your abilities are more troublesome than I imagined."

Toulong didn't reply, but simply opened the trunk, took out spare blankets and water, and handed them to the children.

Ellie had started chatting with the pink-haired little girl, and something they said made the girl smile.

Ling sat on Ellie's lap, holding a cookie in her hand, and carefully fed it to the little boy next to her.

Qianjie leaned against the rock wall, his bone blade gleaming from being polished.

The afterglow of the setting sun pierced through the canyon, casting dappled light and shadow on him, like a silent oil painting.

"Where to next?" Sakura asked, holding a little boy who had just recovered from a fever in her arms. The child's breathing was as even as a kitten's.

Mebius opened his laptop and pulled up a map: "The Fire Moth has a shelter in the south, with doctors and clean beds."

She paused, then added, "It's the standard kind, without a lab bench."

Sakura's eyes lit up, like sparks that had been ignited.

Toulong started the off-road vehicle, and the roar of the engine echoed through the canyon.

The children squeezed into the back seat, initially a little reserved, but later, encouraged by Ellie, they began to sing softly.

Ling's voice was the loudest; her off-key nursery rhyme drifted out of the car window like a feather and landed on the red rock wall.

Sakura looked at the fleeting scenery outside the window and suddenly chuckled softly.

Qianjie glanced at her and handed her a bottle of water.

She took it and drank a sip; the sweet water flowed down her throat, washing away the last trace of the rusty taste.

Toulong watched all this through the rearview mirror, his gray eyes reflecting the golden light of the setting sun.

The phantom of "Miracle for You" quietly merged into his body, and the energy field of the Law of Calamity slowly receded, like the tide receding into the deep sea.

The wind was still blowing through the Crimson Canyon, but this time it no longer carried the smell of blood.

As the off-road vehicle passed the checkpoint, Sakura glanced back at the direction of the mine. The setting sun was painting the entrance a warm orange-red, like the light that was always on for them in Old K's courtyard.

"Ling," Sakura gently touched her younger sister's hair, "Next time, I'll take you to see the manta rays, okay?"

Ling nodded vigorously, her pink ponytail swinging like a little windmill: "I want to go with Sister Aili too!"

Ellie smiled and replied, "Pinky promise!"

Two pink little fingers hooked together, shimmering with a pink halo in the sunset.

......

"That useless thing, if he were to modify his own body to fight us, I'd say he has some backbone."

"And these fire-chasing moths, I think they need to be cleaned up too."

"Speaking of which, some of the Poison Chrysalis members are still out on missions. Sakura, those people are yours to handle. Recruit those you can, and kill those you can't."

"I'm going to build my own poisonous pupa."

After Möbius finished speaking, Sakura nodded, then glanced in the direction of the tent and asked.

"What do you plan to do with those children, Doctor?"

"This is not my responsibility; someone will take care of the Firemoths."

After a moment of silence, Mebius seemed to remember something and spoke to Toulong.

"There's a traitor within the Fire Moth organization. I won't go into details about you and me, but Ellie's information has probably been leaked."

Having learned his lesson, and with his companion by his side, Ellie rarely concealed her abilities.

"I'd better go myself and register with the Firemoth. It will save you a lot of trouble and I can also get supplies from the Firemoth."

It seems that Mebius has already acknowledged Toru and the others for saying such a thing.

Turlong then stopped refusing and agreed to Mebius's proposal.

Seeing that Toulong obediently agreed, Mebius also showed a satisfied expression.

"Then hang it under my Möbius First Research Laboratory. When I enter your information in the past, I can also give you a physical examination."

"That's not necessary."

"Tsk."