Inside the room.
Fu Hua was undergoing criticism from the two girls, Cangxuan and Dan Zhu.
"Jingwei, you're truly a once-in-a-millennium blockhead."
"You've been alone with the Commander for two months, and yet besides practicing swordsmanship, you did nothing else?!"
Dan Zhu sat on the sofa, looking like she hated iron for not becoming steel as she lectured Fu Hua.
From time to time, she reached out to pat little Cangxuan on the head.
"Clueless, clueless, tsk tsk…"
"A man and a woman alone together in a room, for so long too… if it were anyone else, tsk tsk…"
"?"
Fu Hua was utterly baffled by their words.
"He came to learn Taixuan Eminence from me, so I taught him. What else should I do?"
"Setsuna usually practices diligently. In just over sixty days, he grasped the divine essence of the Edge of Taixuan—truly rare in the world."
"With such comprehension and talent, if he continues to practice diligently in the future, his achievements in Taixuan Eminence will certainly far surpass mine…"
As she spoke, Fu Hua seriously pondered the problems that had arisen in her teaching.
"Mm, but he still lacks control over his power. Gathering vast amounts of Honkai energy into a sword certainly increases destructive power and range, but his mastery of control falls short…"
"…"
"You've been an immortal for too long. You've already extinguished your humanity."
Listening to Fu Hua speak endlessly about the profundities of Taixuan Eminence and Setsuna's cultivation problems, Cangxuan slapped her forehead, looking at the immortal with despair.
Fu Hua had guarded Shenzhou for over a thousand years, her temperament detached and indifferent.
Since her awakening until now, the number of friends she had made could be counted on one hand.
Cangxuan and Dan Zhu had full confidence in Fu Hua's combat strength, but when it came to her everyday life, they were deeply worried.
Otherwise, they wouldn't have come up with the idea of creating the Book of Fuxi, letting the little ancestor accompany Fu Hua.
"…Did I do something wrong?"
Fu Hua grew even more puzzled.
"I'm asking you—what do you think of the Commander?"
Cangxuan crossed her legs on the sofa, propped her chin, and looked over.
"Him?"
"He helped me remove Blade Mantra, solved the problem of the Herrscher of Sentience, and even paid a tremendous price to traverse time and space to help me reunite with you. I owe him a great debt."
Fu Hua answered.
"Other than that? Don't you have any other thoughts?"
Dan Zhu leaned in, asking eagerly.
"For example, what do you think of his looks? His character and ability? Does he fit your taste?"
"Are you interested in forming a Dao companion with him?!"
"???"
Fu Hua was full of question marks.
"Dan Zhu, why are you asking such things? Have you been reading too many of those nonsensical comics again?"
"You found out?!"
Dan Zhu quickly stuffed her tablet under her backside.
The Starsea Empire's entertainment industry was highly developed. Some works were imported from other worlds, others were created by shipgirls, Spirits, and lolis themselves.
She devoured all kinds of shoujo manga with delight, with romance being the most common theme.
"We're doing this for your own good."
Cangxuan spoke lazily.
"You blockhead, we've followed you for thousands of years, but we've never seen you so happy around the Commander. Hey—"
"Didn't you notice that when you were talking about teaching him Taixuan Eminence earlier, you kept smiling?!"
"And lately, whenever you're with us, all you talk about is the Commander! Commander this, Commander that! The first week, he learned this. The second week, he learned that. The first time he unleashed Taixuan Eminence, what it was like—you remember every single thing he said clearly, don't you?!"
The girl clutched her head in frustration.
Perhaps because Fu Hua had sealed her emotions for far too long, she couldn't even recognize her own feelings.
But as her closest friends, Cangxuan and Dan Zhu could see it as clear as day.
"I have hyperthymesia."
Fu Hua tried to argue.
"Then why do you talk to us about the Commander every single day?"
Dan Zhu pouted.
"And I think the Commander quite likes you too. He even said he'd take you stargazing. If it were me, I'd definitely have agreed."
As she spoke, the girl even started fantasizing.
"Ah, a man who crossed time and space to save me, and even wants to take me stargazing… how romantic. More romantic than the comics…"
"…"
Fu Hua hesitated slightly.
"But I don't know what he thinks… I feel like maybe between us it's just an ordinary cooperative relationship…"
Smack—
Cangxuan slapped her forehead.
"Fu Hua, I'm begging you, go talk to the Commander properly."
...
A few days later, under the starry sky.
Setsuna stood on the bridge of the Eternal Snowfall, practicing his sword techniques move by move.
After comprehending the divine essence, he had already mastered Taixuan Eminence in theory.
But cultivating swordsmanship wasn't like refitting a ship, where equipping new gear was enough.
It required long-term training, constantly honing and tempering one's skill.
Thus, whenever he had free time, he came here to practice.
Buzz—
Honkai energy condensed in his hands, forming into the shape of a sword.
When the Soul essence reached its peak, all weapons under heaven became like swords in one's hands, with no need to cling to a physical blade.
"Flame of Ascension!"
With a low shout, Honkai energy condensed and transformed in the air.
Even space itself distorted, the world turning into black-and-white ink painting.
Only a golden greatsword remained in the sky.
The massive Honkai energy compressed tighter and tighter.
The sword shrank layer by layer until it was only a third of its original size, the power within already trembling on the edge of losing control.
Swish—
Setsuna swung his hand.
The golden greatsword crashed down, stirring radiant streams across the ground.
"Commander is amazing!!!"
Tohru and the shipgirls watching couldn't help but exclaim.
They were used to seeing him fire ship cannons and light spears—this was the first time they had seen him wield a sword.
At that moment, Setsuna was wearing an ancient-style robe resembling those of School of Taixuan, a gift from Fu Hua when they had trained together.
Against the backdrop of the starry sky, he looked tall and striking.
For a moment, everyone watching was a little dazed.
"Ah~ I'm used to seeing him as the fleet's Commander, but like this… Commander is really charming too…"
Taihou rested her chin in her hands, eyes sparkling with hearts.
"Ugh, that move… it reminds me of some not-so-good memories…"
Tohru recalled her reckless challenge against a god of Order.
"The power of that strike isn't far off from the one that 'god' used on me, is it?"
It was the same image of a giant sword descending from the heavens.
The dragon maiden felt she herself wouldn't be able to withstand that strike from the Commander.
"Not enough."
Setsuna looked at the shimmering ground and shook his head.
"The destructive range seems large enough, but the power still hasn't fully focused into a single point."
Swordsmanship was an art of condensing all energy into an attack directed at one target.
His star-annihilating version of Taixuan Eminence, fused with the Allspark, Wisdom Cubes, and all kinds of chaotic energies, had destructive force even greater than Fu Hua's.
But controlling so many energies at once was troublesome.
Ideally, he thought, compressing Honkai energy, the Allspark, and Cube energy together, unleashing them all in one point, would create the ultimate single-target strike.
Star-destroying methods were something the Eternal Snowfall already had in abundance.
What he wanted more was a light, precise method of attack for his first form.
"Oh… so Commander plans to use Taixuan Eminence in human form in the future?"
"That… actually sounds pretty cool…"
The shipgirls exchanged glances, feeling that a sword-wielding Commander was an entirely fresh sight.
He practiced until evening.
The shipgirls, dragon maiden, and others watching began to leave to rest or eat.
Setsuna was just about to call Angeloid to clean up the area when a familiar figure approached.
Fu Hua.
She still wore her cloud-ink robes, her expression slightly hesitant.
"Um… do you have time to chat with me?"
"Oh?"
Setsuna was a little surprised.
"It's rare for you to come talk to me, Hua. Sure, let's talk."
...
A few minutes later.
The two sat side by side outside the bridge of the Eternal Snowfall.
With the energy shield at work, solar wind and cosmic radiation were completely isolated.
Looking up, they saw a dazzling starry sky stretching endlessly.
"Go on, is the food on the station bad, or is the bed too hard, or maybe the internet too slow?"
Setsuna asked with a smile.
"No, none of that."
Fu Hua shook her head.
"The conditions you've provided are excellent. Both I and Griseo are very satisfied, with no shortcomings at all… No, I digress."
She sighed softly.
"Commander, I… just wanted someone to talk to."
"Mhm."
Seeing the immortal's serious expression, Setsuna put away his joking tone.
Fu Hua usually kept all her thoughts hidden in her heart. Her duty to guard humanity and Shenzhou had always pressed her to suppress her emotions.
For Fu Hua to seek him out for a conversation meant she trusted him deeply.
"I…"
Fu Hua paused, as though searching for where to begin.
In the end, she decided to start with her own past:
"Setsuna, before meeting you, I was Hua, one of the Thirteen Flame-Chasers, who fought against Honkai across fifty thousand years since the Previous Era."
"My mission was to carry out the Fire Moth plan, to resist Honkai. But after Chiyou appeared, we realized the Fire Moth plan could never succeed."
"Any attempt to spread advanced technology to humanity only invited greater Honkai disasters. Our salvation plan was doomed from the start."
"So—heh, 'Moth to Flame' was a fitting name, wasn't it?"
Her tone was calm as she recounted everything.
Setsuna listened quietly.
He could feel Fu Hua's lingering unwillingness, her regret over the Fire Moth plan's failure.
He gently placed an arm around her shoulder. She blinked in slight surprise, but did not refuse.
"After that, I wandered all of Shenzhou to guard it, slaying evil, resisting Honkai."
"Thousands of years smoothed away all my emotions. I watched friends pass away one by one. Even Cangxuan and Dan Zhu left me due to a moment of carelessness."
"To avoid forming unnecessary bonds, I stopped getting close to mortals."
"I thought I would go on like that for hundreds or thousands more years, until this civilization grew to match the Previous Era…"
As she spoke, Fu Hua's eyes grew slightly distant.
Setsuna chuckled inwardly.
Luckily, I came early. Otherwise, your troubles would've been endless.
"And then—I met you."
Fu Hua raised her head, her emerald eyes fixed on Setsuna.
"You… freed me from the Blade Mantra, showed me the unbelievable technology of the Starsea Empire."
"Before meeting you, I wasn't sure if this civilization could truly overcome Honkai. But now, I believe it's completely possible."
"More importantly… you reunited me with Cangxuan and Dan Zhu. Thank you."
Fu Hua spoke in a rush, entirely unlike her usual quiet and reserved self.
Through her long years wandering Shenzhou, Cangxuan, Dan Zhu, and Book of Fuxi had been her most precious emotional anchors.
She had never imagined that Setsuna would use something as absurd as time travel to bring them back, making up for the regret of ages past.
"So you came here just to thank me? No need for that."
Setsuna waved his hand.
He could tell she was happy with what had happened recently—she just never showed it on her face.
"No, you've done me a great kindness. I must repay you."
"Time travel… surely consumed a vast amount of resources? I'll find a way to compensate you in the future."
Fu Hua suggested earnestly.
"That cost over ten thousand warships, you know? Do you really understand how much those are worth?"
Fu Hua's seriousness amused Setsuna.
"Mm… perhaps I could go to other worlds, slay magical beasts as payment for you."
"As for here… I've walked Shenzhou for many years. I never cared for wealth, but if I sold some of the treasures of School of Taixuan, it might fetch some value."
Fu Hua actually began to think it over.
"Though insignificant, it could at least cover part of it. As for the rest, I'll find a way in the future…"
Pfft—
Setsuna nearly burst out laughing.
"Grinding magical beasts as payment? Do you want to be a Pal? We do have a world where monsters drop loot, but it's already full."
"No need, I don't want any repayment from you."
As he spoke, he gently pinched Fu Hua's cheek.
"You just need to keep being yourself. As for future hardships, I'll handle them for you, whether it's Honkai or Finality."
"Why?"
The immortal lifted her head and asked.
"Because I like you."
Setsuna met her gaze, speaking earnestly.
For an immortal like Fu Hua, who was utterly oblivious to worldly affections, the only option was a direct confession.
If it were with other shipgirls or Spirits, sharing a meal or going to an amusement park would probably be enough to win them over.
—Shipgirls would even strategize themselves into his arms.
Of course, Fu Hua's wooden nature was also one of her charms.
"!!!"
The girl in his arms froze for a moment, holding her breath.
Then she raised her head, staring at Setsuna in disbelief for a long time.
In the 54,000 years since Hua first walked Shenzhou in the Previous Era, this was the first time she had ever heard anyone say those words to her.
Her heart—tempered into formless serenity—suddenly felt as though it had been gripped tight.
"I thought I would go on alone… it was Cangxuan and Dan Zhu who told me to talk to you…"
Fu Hua whispered.
"In that case, I should thank them."
Setsuna pulled her closer, her slender body leaning fully against him.
"…"
"I'm not as lively and bright as the other girls around you. Sometimes, I even feel I'm dull…"
Fu Hua murmured softly.
"Just be yourself."
Setsuna gave her cheek another gentle pinch.
Since meeting him, the immortal's temperament had already changed greatly. At the very least, she was no longer a Honkai-obsessed zealot.
She could even bicker with Senti now and then.
In time, surely she would grow more accustomed to others.
"…"
The two of them stayed silent for a long while.
Just as Setsuna was about to ask what she was thinking, Fu Hua suddenly pulled away from his embrace and stood up.
She took a deep breath, then handed the Xuanyuan Sword to Setsuna.
"Let's duel once more with the sword. If you win, I'll agree to you."
"?"
Setsuna blinked.
What? To win her heart he had to literally defeat her?
Very much in line with the immortal's way of doing things.
"I will not lose!"
"Hm… saying that now should be fine, right?"
—
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