The next morning, Ming Yu woke up early. In a world like Honkai, there was no room for complacency, because the price of laziness could be one's life.
Ming Yu checked the food supply in the house, packed the items with long shelf lives that were easy to carry into a backpack, and used the remaining ingredients to make a hearty breakfast. As an excellent shut-in, Ming Yu's cooking skills weren't exceptional, but they were decent.
After finishing this "last supper," two paths lay before Ming Yu. The first was to find Kiana's group and hitch a ride with them to get into St. Freya High School via Himeko. The second was to find Yae Sakura, stick with her until she met Theresa, and then return to St. Freya with Theresa.
Regardless of the method, the ultimate goal was to enter St. Freya. This was the objective Ming Yu had set last night. In the Honkai world, surviving as an ordinary person might not be difficult, but death could come at any moment from a sudden Honkai Eruption.
To survive, one needed power, and joining an organization was a must. At this stage, the faction Ming Yu was most likely to come into contact with was Schicksal. Soon, the Far East Branch led by Theresa would be responsible for cleaning up this eruption. Without knowing if Schicksal would resort to carpet-bombing like in the Second Honkai Eruption, leaving Nagazora with Himeko or Theresa were the express options.
Moreover, Principal Theresa was a rare individual who was both powerful and gentle, full of humanity. As long as he could successfully enter St. Freya, Ming Yu would have a stable period to develop, at least until Otto's plans were set in motion.
Furthermore, as the Captain of the Hyperion, Ming Yu was very interested in St. Freya High School and the Hyperion itself.
As for the other possible faction—Anti-Entropy—the ones present now were likely Cocolia's subordinates. For someone who would even manipulate her own daughter, Ming Yu's first impression was one of insidious danger. Although she showed signs of remorse in The Deep, that didn't negate how dangerous she was.
If he fell into Cocolia's hands, as a rare male survivor of a Honkai Eruption, what kind of experiments would he be subjected to? Ming Yu had no interest in being a guinea pig.
He checked his current equipment.
Tachi: Seishuu Muramasa (1-star): An ancient samurai sword, said to have been forged by the Muramasa clan of Ise Province. It gained fame from the first generation and is a representative of Japanese samurai swords.
Stigmata: Shirlena (2-star) (10-day limit):
1. Swordsman: Melee physical damage increased by 10%.
2. Life Boost: Max HP in battle increased by 8%.
The weapon and stigmata were not outstanding, but they were better than nothing and very precious in the early stages. After all, every bit of strength was another sliver of hope for survival. Before he had a chance to see the beauty of this world, Ming Yu had no desire to die a meaningless death.
After packing his bag, briefly checking a map for his bearings, and taking his precious (and pathetic) one-star tachi, Ming Yu set off on his journey.
Destination: Senba Academy. Let's go!
Fortunately, his current location was not very far from Senba Academy, which saved the directionally-challenged Ming Yu from the crisis of getting lost.
Soon, Ming Yu faced the first challenge of his adventure: two Guard Honkai Zombies!
In the game, Guard Honkai Zombies were at the very bottom of the food chain, existing only as cannon fodder. As a level 82 expert who reigned supreme in the Abyss, who could punch the Judgment-class Dragon Benares and kick the SS-rank Herrscher of the Void, Ming Yu had never paid such small fry any mind.
But now, Ming Yu was no longer the Captain with countless Valkyries under his command. This wasn't a game, and he was currently just a scrub who had never even killed a chicken. Even a bottom-of-the-food-chain Guard Honkai Zombie was not something his current self could easily handle.
Taking a deep breath, Ming Yu tried hard to recall the abilities of the Guard Honkai Zombie. It seemed they only had a scythe swing and none of the annoying abilities of higher-level Honkai Zombies.
Watching the two Guard Honkai Zombies charge at him, Ming Yu tightened his grip on the Seishuu Muramasa. He was counting on this one-star tachi now. He desperately tried to recall the sword techniques of various characters, but his mind was a blank. The adrenaline rush eased his tension, and the faint warmth of the stigmata on his back was a great comfort.
Fortunately, the Honkai Zombies created by the infection weren't particularly gruesome. Aside from their pale faces and the intimidating scythes in their hands, their appearances were almost... delicate?
The Guard Honkai Zombies' attacks came one after another. Ming Yu steadied himself, cleared his mind of stray thoughts, and focused on dealing with the crisis at hand.
Ming Yu gripped the tachi and, with all his might, parried the first Guard Honkai Zombie's scythe. But the sharpness of the blade and his own strength exceeded his expectations. To his astonishment, the sharp tachi sliced through the first Guard Honkai Zombie's scythe, and the immense rebound force made his arm ache.
The second Guard Honkai Zombie's attack followed immediately. In his hurried dodge, the black scythe still managed to slash his left arm, and crimson blood gushed out.
Pained, Ming Yu tightened his right hand on the Seishuu Muramasa and fiercely stabbed at the second Guard Honkai Zombie's chest. The sharp blade sank into its body, and the powerful force even pushed the zombie back a few steps.
Having successfully dealt with one zombie, Ming Yu didn't relax in the slightest. He hadn't forgotten there was still another one.
Quickly pulling out the tachi, Ming Yu turned to the other Guard Honkai Zombie.
The Guard Honkai Zombie let out a low growl and swung the remaining half of its scythe at Ming Yu.
Ming Yu once again swung his blade to parry it. The force of his one-handed swing was only enough to barely deflect the scythe. He followed up with another thrust into the Guard Honkai Zombie's chest.
"Ding, congratulations Host for successfully killing Guard Honkai Zombie x2. Obtained ten Honkai Energy Points."
Ming Yu had no time to check the system's message. The noise from the fight had been a bit loud and might attract other monsters. Plus, he was injured. Getting surrounded would be disastrous.
Hurriedly clutching the wound on his left arm, Ming Yu fled the scene in a sorry state.
—
In a quiet, somewhat dim house, Ming Yu finally evaded all the Honkai Zombies.
"Huff, huff," Ming Yu looked at the ten-centimeter-long gash on his left arm and laughed self-deprecatingly. "What a mess." An inauspicious start. To think two Guard Honkai Zombies could leave him in such a state.
After this battle, Ming Yu had a clearer understanding of his abilities. His physical fitness, enhanced by the system and the stigmata, had already surpassed that of ordinary Guard Honkai Zombies; he could even overpower them. However, his combat experience was extremely poor, which wasn't surprising since he was essentially still an ordinary person. At the same time, the sharpness of the one-star tachi had exceeded his imagination. As expected of a star-rated item, it was very effective against ordinary Honkai Zombies.
In just half an hour, his wound had stopped bleeding and had even started to scab over. Was this the result of his enhanced body?
It was strange. Ming Yu, who had never even killed a chicken before, felt no great emotion after killing two Honkai Zombies. In fact, he was even a little excited. This was probably because of the system. But since something like transmigration had happened, this wasn't too surprising. At least it was a good thing, allowing him to adapt to this world better.
During a Honkai Eruption, most people were just infected and turned into zombies. Only those with a certain degree of Honkai resistance became Honkai Zombies. Encountering two Guard Honkai Zombies was Ming Yu hitting the jackpot, in a way. But at least he had made it through, shaken but alive.
Realistically, Senba Academy was one of the more dangerous places in Nagazora at the moment. Both the Third Herrscher and the later Pseudo-Herrscher were born there. The high concentration of Honkai Energy also spawned stronger Honkai Zombies and Honkai Beasts.
But Ming Yu didn't know where Kiana's group or Yae Sakura would appear. Senba Academy was his only lead for now. So, no matter how dangerous it was, Ming Yu had to go.
After resting for a few hours, replenishing his energy, his wound had healed, though it still ached faintly. Ming Yu set out on his journey once more.
To avoid getting lost, Ming Yu had to stop frequently to confirm his position. Combined with the interference from zombies and Honkai Zombies along the way, his progress was not fast.
The slow-reacting zombies didn't pose much of a problem. With his superior physical attributes and the sharpness of the one-star tachi, Ming Yu could dispatch them quickly.
But the Honkai Zombies remained a threat he couldn't underestimate. The number and strength of Honkai Zombies increased along the way. He could barely handle two Guard Honkai Zombies; if there were three, he had to retreat. He could easily deal with Ranger Honkai Zombies thanks to his agility. But a higher-level Praetorian Honkai Zombie was already enough to make him flustered, and it took trading three wounds of his own to finally take it down.
By the time night fell, Ming Yu had found a temporary shelter.
Looking at his body covered in wounds, Ming Yu sighed. If his body hadn't been enhanced with greatly increased recovery abilities, he probably would have bled to death by now.
He tallied his day's gains. He had eliminated three Guard Honkai Zombies, two Ranger Honkai Zombies, and one Praetorian Honkai Zombie, plus twenty-two zombies, for a total of fifty-seven Honkai Energy Points. Each zombie gave him one point, while the Praetorian was worth a full ten. But when he saw that it would take two hundred points to upgrade the Seishuu Muramasa to two stars, Ming Yu felt he would be stuck with a one-star weapon for quite some time.
When fighting the Praetorian Honkai Zombie, the one-star weapon was already struggling. A full-force strike could only leave a small nick in the Praetorian's scythe, unlike with the Guard Honkai Zombie, where he could slice it in half.
Thinking about weapon enhancement, an idea struck Ming Yu. He asked the system, "System, can I strengthen my own body?"
"Host need not worry. The Host's body will gradually grow stronger through combat and does not require enhancement."
Ming Yu sighed. True, if his body could be endlessly enhanced, wouldn't he be able to become a physical god later on? He shook his head, dismissing the unrealistic thought. At least his body could still become stronger. Kicking Benares around later on should be possible.
After treating himself to a relatively hearty dinner and a comfortable hot shower to relieve the day's fatigue, Ming Yu fell into a deep sleep.
Soon, we'll meet, right? Kiana, or Yae Sakura.