Chapter 173: The Value of Sacrifice
〜Dragon Raja World〜
Shinjuku, Japan—
"One can only say they're truly mother and daughter; they're identical in both looks and temperament,"
Caesar remarked, collapsing onto the plush sofa behind him.
"Hmm… no, there's a difference in personality. Qingni is clearly softer… perhaps because she has such a dominant mother."
"Didn't you previously consider Yukong an unreasonable Mother?"
Chu Zi-hang asked coolly.
"Have you changed your mind now?"
"Yes, though I still find Madam Yukong somewhat stubborn… I recognize the reason for her stubbornness."
Caesar shook his head.
"If it were me, I'd make the same choice she did—but where I differ is: I don't believe I could truly stop that girl. No matter what, she's destined to become a Cloud Knight pilot."
"When someone truly wants to do something, they can't be stopped. From my perspective, Qingni isn't suited to die peacefully in a sickbed someday. She's like a flint… rather than fading into obscurity, she yearns for that single moment of brilliant ignition, doesn't she?"
"Is that a metaphor you learned in the poetry society at the academy?"
Chu Zihang said,
"Dying in battle isn't as grand or poetic as you imagine. As long as Qingni can accept the possibility of becoming a charred heap of flesh one day, I see no problem."
—
「 "The mind is mysterious... I've lived for more than two hundred years, forgotten nearly every conversation I've ever had... but I still remember us shooting the breeze that day — it's crystal clear."
"Because that was my last idle conversation with Caiyi."
The celestial curtain shifted again, the backdrop transforming from the Luofu to a battlefield shrouded in smoke and artillery fire.
The land, ploughed by war, turned up black gums, chewing on shattered star-skiffs, charred remains, and tattered clothing that no longer recognized its owners.
Yukong cradled a foxian woman, growing steadily colder.
"Caiyi… hold on, Caiyi! Open your eyes, Caiyi…"
"Cough, cough…" Caiyi's breath was faint, like a lute string about to snap, sounding its final notes. "Thank you, Yukong… I've lived a good life. But don't let Qingni walk this path, don't let her… become a Cloud Knight pilot…"
"That's your daughter! Tell her yourself! Reinforcements are coming, just hold on a little longer, Qingni is waiting for you!"
Yukong felt the blood in her veins turn to ice, her teeth chattering uncontrollably: "Guangyuan is already gone… She can't afford to lose you, too! Wake up!!! Caiyi! Caiyi! Caiyi... Caiyi..." 」
「 .....」
〜Genshin Impact World〜
"Perhaps these are just a few fleeting strokes in the long history of the Xianzhou, but for an ordinary Xianzhou native… sigh."
Inside a cafe outside the Sumeru Akademiya, Tighnari gazed at the roaring flames of war on the light screen, the scattered corpses, and… Yukong's heart-wrenching cries. The wars that had only existed in books seemed to spring to life in an instant.
Even across the distant screen, they could almost smell the sweet, metallic tang lingering in the air, like rotten fruit steeped in rust, making them involuntarily nauseous.
"Perhaps the Archon War a thousand years ago was much the same scene?"
Kaveh said, still shaken.
"No, it was likely far less brutal than the war Yukong and her comrades experienced. While the Archon War of old also implicated innocent people, it was, in essence, a battle between Archons… humans had no room to intervene,"
Alhaitham stated.
"But the Xianzhou's battles are primarily fought by people like Yukong. The casualties in such a situation…"
Alhaitham recalled Jing Yuan's words, "barely one in ten survive," and sighed with a solemn expression.
When war lifts its veil and reveals its true face to mortals, even the most common sights… are unbearable and unimaginable for those who have long lived in peace.
—
「 "That day, when I crawled out of the burning wreckage of the starskiff, what I saw was the sky of that bloodless, tearless planet, unadorned by atmosphere."
"It was the most beautiful sky I had ever seen, yet I felt only unbearable sorrow. I could only crawl on the ground like a damned ant, gazing at it helplessly."
"In my dreams, I died that day."
Yukong lifted her head, as if the ashes settled in her irises suddenly reignited, threatening to scorch a hole in Xianzhou's azure dome. Countless wails and shouts echoed in her ears, desperately dragging her back to the smoke-filled haze of thirty years ago.
"This is the first time I've heard you speak of these things… But, Mother, I'm no longer a naive child. Becoming a Cloud Knight pilot is a cruel path; I've long been prepared for this…"
"But I won't shrink back because of it. I'm not afraid of walking the same path as her… If sacrifice can bring happiness to the common folk of Xianzhou, then I am willing to embrace death!"
Qingni suddenly lifted her face, her resolute expression like a spark refusing to be extinguished.
But Yukong's face showed little relief.
"You are so much like Caiyi. That's why, the more excellent you became over the years, the more I feared. I know you've long been ready… but I've never been ready…"
"But do you know how we ultimately achieved victory in that battle that claimed Caiyi… that claimed hundreds of thousands of comrades?"
Qingni was no stranger to the Denizens of Abundance war. The moment Yukong asked, she immediately replied, "It was... The Reignbow Arbiter's divine arrow..."
"Yes," Yukong's eyes held an indescribable desolation. "The mighty blessing of the Reignbow Arbiter annihilated all abominations in a single strike! But we had to pay with the blood of hundreds of thousands of soldiers just to halt their advance!"
Yukong turned back, looking solemnly at Qingni: "If, to the General of the Cloud Knights, crushing those enemies is as simple as breathing… then what does our sacrifice even amount to?"
"Under the mighty power of the Star Gods, the sacrifices of ordinary creatures are but a joke... we are nothing... we mean nothing..." 」
「 .....」
〜Frieren: Beyond Journey's End World〜
"Oh? So that's Yukong's current perspective?"
Serie sighed softly.
"It seems this scar is beyond her repair. Well… It's not surprising that she holds such thoughts."
Sense looked up at Serie, a puzzled expression on his face.
"Serie-sama, do you disagree with Madam Yukong's view?"
"Heh, of course I disagree. But before I answer your question, I want to ask you something, Sense…"
A faint smile touched Serie's lips.
"In front of me, who can easily eradicate demons… do you feel your existence has value?"
"Of course,"
Sense replied without hesitation.
"While Serie-sama is incredibly powerful, it's impossible for you to be everywhere across the continent to eliminate every demon. It's better for us to undertake the task of eliminating ordinary demons."
"Exactly. If you compare me to a Star God, the commonality is… we are both suited to be ultimate weapons, only intervening when humanity faces an insurmountable foe. But the daily maintenance of peace still relies on the defensive lines forged by ordinary people."
"Therefore, Yukong and her comrades' sacrifices were not in vain; they were creating a buffer for the Star God's power."
Serie slowly shook her head.
"No one's sacrifice is without value. If not for the delay bought by hundreds of thousands of Xianzhou Cloud Knights… perhaps the Luofu would have already become a ruin before the Arrow of the Hunt arrived, wouldn't it?"
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