Chapter 227 It Wakes Up

What exactly is consciousness?

This problem has deeply troubled mankind in the era before the collapse.

If from a materialist perspective, consciousness is regarded as a real "substance", then it can be considered that the signal changes in the human brain and the deformation of brain tissue are manifestations of consciousness.

But is consciousness really a tangible “matter”?

Ironically, even before humans have this answer, they have already gained the ability to harness it.

"Take three steps to the left..."

"Go seven steps forward and turn left..."

In the blood-red desert, Alicia and Sakura walked with their heads covered under Aponya's instructions.

Sakura held the scabbard of the scabbard in her left hand, warily sizing up possible enemies around her. She used her thumb on the blade to push the ice blade out of the scabbard slightly. The strange color from when she held the knife still remained on her fingertips and the tiger's mouth. Blood stains, it is obvious that the conscious space here is not safe.

Ellie, on the other hand, had empty hands. She stared intensely at the red sand at her feet, and suddenly asked: "Dear Aponya, how do I feel about this so-called consciousness space..."

Aponia had long expected her question, and chuckles poured into Ellie's ears from all directions, "It's the same as you thought, but slightly different. This place is indeed the same as what Mikael described in the report There are certain similarities between the imaginary number space and the quantum sea. Neither of them has the dimensions defined by humans in the real number world. For example, in the concrete world you see now, I guided you before... take three steps back and turn left. …This is all the embodiment of human thinking.

"But the difference is that, according to Mikael, the scenes in the imaginary number space and the quantum sea are completed by the individual's own imagination, and here, it is completed by..."

The moment Ellie and Sakura turned to the left, Aponya's voice stopped abruptly.

Sakura stopped warily, leaned over slightly, and held the handle of the knife with her right hand.

Alicia walked up to her and stood back to back with her.

"Dear Apponia? Apponia?"

She called out twice tentatively, but didn't get the slightest response.

"It's like the signal is interrupted... Alicia, how should we deal with it?"

"Without Aponya's guidance, we cannot act rashly. Let's remain vigilant for the time being."

Without the guidance of Aponya, a third party who controls the spiritual power, if they walk around here at will, their consciousness will most likely be lost.

However, the two of them stood in the red sand for a long time without any movement.

"Sakura, I have a guess."

"What?"

"Has Aponya already imprinted us into the space where the so-called [stigma] is located?"

"But if according to Mebius, the stigmata is also a way of existence for Seele, how could it be..."

How could he show hostility?

"Oh, who knows? According to my impression of dear Mebius, probably, maybe, maybe... the experiment she thought was foolproof was completely out of her control again, right?"

Sakura wanted to laugh, but she couldn't.

Without Aponya's presence, they could do nothing but sit here and wait for death.

And all life and death must be handed over to the unreliable stigmata... Even the stigmata is just their own guess.

"Alicia!"

The pressure behind her suddenly disappeared, and Sakura turned around suddenly, half of the skates had been withdrawn, but to her surprise, it was just Ellie sitting on the sand.

Lure the snake out of its hole - Ying Xin understood this, took out the two knives from her waist, held them in her arms, and sat down slowly.

"Don't move so stiffly, Sakura!"

"Ah...I'm sorry, I just don't know what to do at this time..."

Alicia suddenly caressed Sakura's cheek lightly and boldly, and said with half pity and half teasing: "Speaking of it, Sakura, according to the rules set by Mikael and Mei before, the anti-entropy is less than two There have been very few missions in the past ten months, but why are you always not at the base? Ling seems to be about the same age as Padu, right? Hey, you really didn't see that Hua, who is about the same age as them, is caring for them like a child. worry."

Sakura moved her knees, dumbfounded and kept an arm's distance from Alicia. She held two swords, one blue and one purple, in her arms (notes at the end of the article). She lowered her head and thought about how to answer. Alicia's question.

"That's right! Where did the knife from the Poison Chrysalis period go? You carry a soul steel weapon and a God's Key with you. I guess the mission you have to perform is more dangerous than when you were in the Poison Chrysalis?"

"That knife... I sealed it away. Just like the name Poison Chrysalis, it has long since become history. And the mission I performed..."

Sakura narrowed her eyes, stared at the sand in front of her, and said coldly: "It's not a very dangerous mission, it's just for Suzuwa... I'm just swinging the sword."

Suddenly, the special organ on the top of her head felt warm, and she raised her eyes to look at Alicia. When the latter looked at her, she showed an awkward yet polite smile, and then gently rubbed her slender ears. Then he reluctantly let go of his hand.

"Ahem! Mikael is too merciless. How can he let a girl travel around all year round? Not only will she bear risks, but her chaotic schedule will also affect her skin!"

"ah--"

Sakura silently clenched the Third God Key, and couldn't help but caress her cheek with her other hand.

She then didn't know who she was defending: "Those tasks were not assigned to me. He was originally going to do it himself... That kind of work must be done by someone, but I think that kind of task is more suitable for me than him, after all..."

At this point, she knew she was speechless, so she could only purse her lips and end the topic abruptly.

"So what you called the 'finishing' task before is actually..."

"Yes."

Aili wrinkled her nose, leaned back, and slowly lay down in the red sand.

Sakura's mission is not difficult to guess, not to mention that she herself has revealed so much - it is nothing more than continuing her previous mission in the poisonous pupa, wielding a knife against the scum among humans. This can also explain why the relationship between the Fire Moth and the United Government has almost reached a freezing point in the past year, but there has never been a lack of funds.

But it must be an extremely dangerous job. The United Government and dignitaries around the world are naturally looking for someone like her. They naturally know that this is the revenge of the Fire Moth for the riot that year, and it is the Sword of Damocles that the Fire Moth has usurped over their heads.

Only by seizing this sword can we have the chance to control the Fire Moth again. If we accidentally destroy it, the Fire Moth will have no place to appeal, just like those targets targeted by Sakura have no place to appeal.

This can also explain why when distributing the Third God Key, Mikael would forcefully designate the Third God Key, which theoretically could gain greater benefits when put into the battlefield, as Sakura's exclusive weapon, which directly made the "lottery system" designed by Vivi with great effort fail... In fact, it was all to make Sakura strong enough to face various dangers.

"It seems simple, crude and reckless behavior, but in fact it really cares about others. It's really Mikael's way of caring for people..."

Alicia turned over and blew a breath, blowing away the sand on her lips. So some of the emotions that had been pent up in her heart for the past few days also left her chest with this breath.

"Oh, I've been waiting for so long, why haven't you..."

"Ailishia, shut up!"

Ying stood up and used her thumb to push the ice blade out of the sheath again.

"Swish-swish-swish-"

The red sand on all sides began to stir--they were surrounded.

"Finally, finally!"

Aili stood up with her hands on her hips.

She even had the leisure to stretch and yawn, "Ah wow wow wow, I really don't know how Destobia and Kevin are doing. That copied Seele personality is better than this stigma with unknown problems, right?"

…………

"Hey! We've been separated for a year and a half, and almost a week, and now we finally meet again, and you're so defensive to me?"

"Seele" sat cross-legged on the gorgeous sofa, her arms resting on the armrests, her chin resting on her hands, looking at Kevin in front of her with a mocking smile.

"Although I really want to think of you as Xi'er, but... you have nothing to do with her, right?"

"Hey, your attitudes are really the same."

"You guys?"

Kevin tilted his head, not knowing where the word "you guys" came from.

On the surface, he kept dealing with "Xi'er", but in fact, he kept calling Desdobia in his heart, but it was obvious that all his efforts were like a drop in the ocean, and could not stir up a wave.

"Damn it! What's going on? Is it this strange Xi'er in front of me?"

"Tsk, can you stop looking at me like that?"

"Xi'er" spread her hands, "Does being unfamiliar necessarily mean hostility? Besides, judging by your appearance, you should be familiar with me, right?"

"From a psychological and sociological perspective, being unfamiliar does mean hostility - whether the ancestors of humans are social animals or scattered animals, rejecting strangers is the most instinctive behavior, because unfamiliarity means the unknown.

"As for humans, we have overcome our fear of sharp objects in the past 50,000 years, because we can forge armor to resist sharp objects and develop medical skills to heal injuries; we have overcome our fear of fire, because we have learned to use water to put out fires, and even control the power of fire; we have overcome our fear of the dark, because we realize that darkness is just an optical phenomenon, and we illuminate the night with our own hands..."

"Xi'er"'s mouth twitched slightly, and she suddenly interrupted Kevin: "What else did Mei say?"

"Ah? "

Kevin scratched his head and recited skillfully: "She also said, [Sorry, the last statement is a bit wrong, because no matter from the perspective of philosophy or science, there must be light in the darkness]... Wait! Why am I telling you this!"

"Xier" sighed at Kevin who realized it later, "How should I know? It's just that you recited a bunch of confusing things to me right at the beginning. No matter how you look at it, this kind of words seems to be something that only Mei can say, right? If you can say this kind of words, then Brother Michael..."

She suddenly paused and made a heavy "tsk" sound. She didn't know if the previous sentence had stimulated her. She looked a little irritated.

And Kevin became a little doubtful.

He had previously thought that the "Siel" that suddenly appeared in front of him and seemed to have cut off the connection between him and Destobia was the materialized product of the beast's "instinct" that Mebius said. , but based on the information obtained from the brief conversation just now, it seems that she does have memories belonging to Xi'er.

She knew Mei, knew herself, and could tell by the language style that she was reciting Mei's words, as well as the last words she accidentally spat out... the name Mikael...

"Is she really Xi'er? But this character... is completely different! Rather than Xi'er, I feel more like the Sixth Herrscher..."

Kevin was a little at a loss. After all, when faced with this kind of situation in the past, he only had to obey Mei's instructions, swing the sword or not.

But this time, his connection with the outside world is completely cut off, and he has to rely on himself to think, judge, and decide... and be responsible for everything.

"Friend or foe..."

He took a deep breath and clenched his right hand slightly at his waist, showing the gesture of holding a sword. Although his hands seemed to be empty now, in the consciousness space, as long as he wanted to, the Shirter that was completely destroyed in reality could appear in his hand at any time.

But he suddenly let go of his hand.

"Okay, I want to believe that you are Xi'er - but... maybe, maybe, something went wrong?"

"Xie'er" raised her eyebrows slightly.

"Since you are Seele, I also want to believe that you have no malicious intentions - you should also know the purpose of our coming here - to save Mikael's consciousness. I won't talk nonsense, Seele, we need Your help is needed to point out to us where Mikael’s consciousness is in this body.”

"Xie'er" bit her lip, her eyes focused on Kevin's face blankly, and she didn't speak or move, which made Kevin a little confused and didn't know what she was thinking.

He thought he hadn't explained it clearly, so he slapped his head and explained: "Of course, your connection alone is not enough. Alicia and Sakura went to find... uh, another one. Existence, when the time comes, Aponya will sense the intersection of your connections, and can use this to find the relatively accurate location of Mikael's consciousness..."

His voice became smaller and smaller as he spoke, because "Xie'er" was looking at him with a look like "Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

She waved her hand in disgust, and the gorgeous sofa rotated on the spot, facing away from Kevin, but then turned back in an instant.

She kept nodding her head, saying words like "Okay, okay", and then said:

"Actually, it doesn't need to be so troublesome. My power alone is enough to directly point you to the exact location of Mikael's consciousness. I can even take you there now..."

"That's great, take me quickly...well, no, I have to..."

"Are you a fool!"

Xi'er interrupted him again. She tried her best to say in a calm tone: "I can help you, but... I need you to answer two questions."

"Uh...what's the problem?"

She closed her eyes silently and remained motionless, which made Kevin even wonder in his mind, did she just start thinking about the so-called "two questions" now?

"Kevin..."

She snorted, and her voice became silent, as if she had swallowed something back.

"Forget it, I'm giving you an advantage, let's reduce the two questions to one - Kevin, what do you think... what kind of person is Mikael?"

Seeing the girl's increasingly serious expression, Kevin couldn't help but feel troubled.

"Uh... you asked this question without a beginning or end... and..."

Moreover, when it comes to understanding Mikael, Kevin doesn’t think he is better than Seele...

"Lusuo, just say whatever comes to your mind!"

"That's it..."

Kevin held his chin and thought for a long time.

But he was not thinking about how to evaluate Mikael. After all, for him, this question could be answered without much thought.

What he was thinking about was Xi'er in front of him.

[She] is definitely not Xi'er, and she is not the target she is looking for on this trip - from a superficial character point of view, she has almost nothing in common with Xi'er. As for the so-called copied personality, if Kevin’s understanding is correct...

The results after CTRL+C and CTRL+V shouldn't be so different, right?

But the girl in front of him was by no means his enemy. She did not show any hostility. In a sense, she was still stupid...

That leaves only one possibility, at least in Kevin's thinking, there is only one possibility - "Could it be that this is the stigmata? But that's not right. In this case, wouldn't it be the other way around? Or is it? , Mebius’ research on stigmata is actually only to the extent of [imagination]?”

The more he thought about it, the more confused he became, and the muscles in Kevin's cheeks couldn't help but twitch twice.

He decided not to think about this question anymore. Anyway, according to the girl in front of him, as long as he answered this question, she would be willing to take them directly to Mikael...

"..."

Kevin opened his mouth, but no sound came out, and closed it again after just a few seconds.

Of course, there is no need to think too much when evaluating the seniors/comrades/comrades who have been with you for such a long time, but human beings are such contradictory creatures. When it comes time to speak, all kinds of words and sentences that describe it well come to mind. emerged, leaving people wondering what to choose.

In fact, it is not unsuitable for a girl to start talking casually, without any end, like a running account, and to piece together those fragmentary words and speak them out.

But Kevin knew that the answer she wanted to hear was by no means general.

So what does she really want to hear?

Kevin wanted to take a gamble and said seriously——

"He's a hero."

The scene went cold for two or three seconds, and Xi'er suddenly sneered: "Kevin, do you know what you are talking about? Do you really understand the meaning of a hero?"

"certainly!"

Speaking of this, Kevin skillfully said: "The so-called hero is to solve the problem when it arises and to bear the pain when it strikes. Apart from this, there is no other way. All heroes are It’s an accident, and it can’t be an act of initiative…”

"That's enough! What else did Mei tell you?"

"Well! She also said... uh... you..."

Familiar questions, familiar embarrassment, familiar scratching of the head.

The girl stared at the red sand under her feet and whispered: "He can't even protect his own sister. What kind of hero is he..."

"..."

"He was still selfishly confused and evading when you needed him most. What kind of hero is he..."

"..."

"Isn't this what you said? He can neither solve problems when they arise nor shoulder the pain when it strikes. What kind of hero is he?"

Kevin looked at the girl in front of him who was gradually becoming hysterical. While feeling pity, he was also a little grateful - it seemed that he had made the right bet.

"Maybe...everyone has different evaluations of heroes. For you, maybe...but for us, he solved the second, third, fourth, and sixth Honkai Impact. He is a hero for saving the names of many people including mine.

"As for the second point, I can't make any comment. I can only say that it is he who has always expected a best-of-both-worlds ending that makes him suffer from both evils. But at least for me, I am grateful to him , He saved me, Mei, and Alicia from having to face this kind of decision in person. From our perspective, he did bear some pain for us. "

The girl's mood calmed down a little.

"...Do you know? He was not the one who killed the Sixth Herrscher. He could only watch helplessly as his sister used her last bit of consciousness to save thousands of people and...killed herself."

"So... that's why I admire him even more, isn't it? At least I dare not say that if it were me who suffered all this, I would be able to get over my sorrow and defeat the Seventh Herrscher in just a few days... I both He doesn’t have that kind of strength, nor does he have the determination to not hesitate even if he allows himself to become something inhuman!”

"Maybe, it's just that there are some stories you don't know."

The girl's mood completely stabilized, "It's really ironic to say that he thinks he is so bad, but you keep saying good things about him."

"Just seeking truth from facts."

"Maybe, okay, I will convey this to him. Now that you have answered my question, just follow me and I will take you to see him."

Kevin was overjoyed, but he immediately reminded: "Um...can you restore the mental connection that was cut off before? We are not just trying to find Mikael's consciousness, we also need to be responsible for the stigmata." The side..."

"It's so annoying! Over there with the stigmata, I..."

Xi'er curled her lips and then froze on the spot.

"Wait, what did you say I cut off just now?"

"Huh? The spiritual connection is not yours..."

"...Kevin!"

Familiar voices flooded into Kevin's ears from all directions.

"Aponia! Where's Destobia? Aren't you in charge of Alicia and Sakura's side?"

"Let's not talk about it for now, Kevin, we must speed up. Because the contact that was suddenly disconnected just now is just because our mental invasion has broken the balance in a practical sense, yes - it woke up."

"Moo——"

Note: There are only tachi weapons in the game. According to this setting, whether it is the ice sword, the cold hell ice sky or the seven thunders of purification, they should be tachi instead of katana. However, according to Mei and Sakura's fighting methods and sword skills, there are three more In fact, it can be easily concluded that Yae Sakura's sword-wielding method is that the weapons they use are katana rather than tachi.

The arc of the sword will be larger, and the blade and handle will be longer. The arc of the sword and the seven thunders of purification and the cold hell ice sky are consistent with the blade length. Moreover, in the three Yae Sakura modules, the weapons are all worn with the blade facing up, which is obviously the way to wear a sword. Only the knife modeled by Huo Hachi seems to have the blade facing downward, but it is not a sword. That length is closer to the wakizashi.

It can only be said that this should be a bug in the early weapon modules of Beng San. Regarding Tai Dao and Da Dao, there is a clear distinction in Genshin Impact.

For example, many people say that it is true that Yume Isshin has something to do with Kirigiri being the real shadow. This is actually **. Although Yume Isshin is not a big enough contrast, the length of the blade and handle is longer, and Kirigiri is obviously slimmer. The same is true for the settings. Yume Isshin is a tachi and Kirigiri is a katana. Judging from the katana skills of the Kamisato siblings and Manyo, the weapons they use should also be katana.

As for the weapons worn directly by the warriors, it is easier to distinguish them. They hang horizontally on the waist, with the blade pointing downward. The longer one is the tachi, which is the guy walking around at the door of Kamisato Yashiki.

The blade is pointed upwards and the blade is inserted diagonally downwards at the waist.

This is not something you can do based on your preference, as the two have different hanging methods.