Honkai Star Rail: My Path Changes Every Day! — Chapter 206

Chapter 206: Pointing at Dan Heng: “Is This Rekka?”

Earlier today, while Rekka was off on one of his usual chaotic excursions, Miss Tingyun had stopped by with that signature, enigmatic smile of hers.

“The Luminary Wardance has been in preparation for many days, and the auspicious date has finally arrived,” she had announced gracefully. “Remembering your previous assistance to the Luofu…”

Shortly after, Jing Yuan had transmitted a holographic projection directly to the Astral Express. The General formally invited the entire crew to attend the grand tournament as VIP guests, offering his warmest regards and best wishes to March 7th, who was officially registered as a participant.

With a soft, electronic hum, the General’s holographic image dissipated into the air.

“Does the General have some sort of misunderstanding about me?” March muttered, her hands on her hips.

“Not at all,” Stelle replied, leaning against the parlor car’s plush seating. “A tech-based contestant is still a contestant. It’s just that when the time comes to stand on the podium, the one receiving the gold medal might end up being the sword in your hand.”

After all, the sword was the one doing the actual fighting, not March herself.

“Speaking of which,” Stelle said, scratching her head as she scanned the quiet carriage. “Has anyone actually seen Rekka since this morning?”

“He bolted out the door right after breakfast. I have no idea where he went,” March sighed.

“Hey, March, why don’t you show us your swordsmanship?” Stelle’s golden eyes suddenly lit up with interest. “I heard that for the past two days, you’ve actually been able to trade blows with genuine swordmasters.”

“It’s not that impressive. It’s mostly just the sword’s automated functionality doing the heavy lifting…” March hesitated, shifting her weight from foot to foot. “Do you really want me to show it off right now?”

“It’s fine! It’s good to show everyone the results of your hard work, Pom!”

Pom-Pom waddled over, stretching out a fluffy little paw to encourage the pink-haired archer.

“Th-then, I guess I’ll give you guys a quick demonstration.”

Feeling a bit awkward under everyone’s expectant gazes, March nodded and drew her dual swords. She took a deep breath and struck a starting stance.

Suddenly, a loud, synthesized voice blasted from the hilt of her weapon.

“Take him down, Pom!”

Pom-Pom froze, long ears twitching in sheer confusion.

“Did… did the Conductor just speak?” Stelle blinked.

“What?! That wasn’t me speaking, Pom!” Pom-Pom waved their arms frantically.

“No, it’s not Pom-Pom,” March groaned, her face flushing a bright shade of pink. “It’s a custom voice pack that Rekka installed on the sword’s operating system.”

She hurriedly adjusted her grip, trying to ignore the absurdity of her weapon. This very sword had taken March—someone who knew absolutely nothing about the way of the blade—and elevated her to a highly competent level in a matter of days. The weapon’s internal AI directly hijacked the user’s muscle memory, forcing the body to execute flawless techniques. By the end of the synchronization process, you didn’t even need to look at your opponent; you could fight purely on artificial instinct with your eyes closed.

Rekka had proudly declared that pushing this training to its absolute limit was called Ultra Instinct, though he admitted the sword’s current firmware hadn’t been updated to a version quite that overpowered yet.

It was a system that could efficiently fast-track a complete novice into a seasoned expert—a reality that was frankly quite cruel to the martial artists who had spent decades painstakingly polishing their craft.

The pros and cons were glaringly obvious. The advantages were terrifying: extreme speed, perfect strength calibration, easy mass production, and absolutely zero requirement for innate talent. If you had three working fingers, you could become a swordmaster. Just log in, sync up, and claim your title.

The disadvantage, however, was a hard ceiling. “Experts” trained through this method found it nearly impossible to surpass their programmed limits in actual life-or-death combat. They couldn’t adapt beyond the AI’s database or forge their own path. Therefore, it was a tool best suited for people with zero martial talent, artificially dragging their combat floor up to a respectable height.

“You’ve genuinely become an expert in the field of close-quarters combat, March.” Himeko smiled warmly, having watched the fluid, mechanical precision of March’s stance. “By the way, Welt and I will be leaving the Luofu for a short while.”

“Before we set off,” Himeko continued, “we plan to retrieve an ancient beast remain from the Ginnungagap. Ms. Ruan Mei of the Genius Society requested it, and it will serve as a fine exchange for a few favors down the line… So, during this time, the rest of you will have to stay here on the Luofu. We have some archaeological work to do, and I promise you, it’s the incredibly boring kind.”

“We could actually just stay on the Hyperion for the time being,” Stelle suggested, perking up. She realized she hadn’t visited the artificial intelligence cabbage on Rekka’s warship in quite a while. “By the way, where is Ai-chan?”

“Ai-chan is currently undergoing deep system maintenance. I don’t really know what she’s doing in there,” Rozaliya replied, shaking her head.

Liliya chimed in from the side. “She’s just making a bunch of sizzling and clicking sounds. It’s very suspicious.”

Stelle immediately turned her expectant, puppy-dog eyes back toward the two senior Trailblazers. “I want to go play with the ancient beast fossils.”

“Hey, hey, hey! Stelle, I’m participating in the Luminary Wardance, remember?!” March gave her a deadpan glare. “You at least have to sit in the audience and cheer for me! I need the moral support!”

Defeated, Stelle collapsed onto the parlor car’s sofa, her eyes going completely lifeless as she stared at the ceiling.

My ancient beast fossils… my precious ancient beast fossils…

“Sister Himeko,” Stelle murmured weakly, still entirely fixated on the prize. “If you see any interesting ancient beast fossils out there, you absolutely must bring some back for me.”

“Alright, alright~” Himeko chuckled softly. “I’ll remember. Go have fun at the tournament.”

A short while later, the remaining Express crew disembarked and made their way toward the Seat of Divine Foresight to meet with Jing Yuan. As they approached the grand entrance, they spotted a striking, dashing Foxian woman with pure white hair standing near the gates.

“I have a strong suspicion that this person is very likely a General,” Stelle concluded, rubbing her chin thoughtfully.

“How so?” March asked.

“Because I heard Rekka say that you can judge these things based on a very specific pattern.” Stelle stood tall, clasping her hands behind her back like a seasoned detective.

“What pattern?”

“The Generals of the Xianzhou generally have white hair. Rekka said that if you see someone with pure white hair walking around the Xianzhou, you need to observe them carefully. If they are casually entering and exiting highly restricted, important places like this, then even if they aren’t a General, their identity is definitely not simple.”

“Using hair color as a strict selection criterion is way too strange,” Liliya retorted, rolling her eyes. “It’s a military alliance, not an idol agency picking center stage.”

“Is it strange? I don’t think it’s that strange.”

A new voice chimed in. The white-haired Foxian woman had somehow appeared directly behind them, touching her chin as if deep in thought.

March jumped. Since when?! So fast!

“I think what you said is quite accurate~ There are indeed many white-haired Generals on the Xianzhou.” The Foxian woman nodded sagely, completely unbothered by her own sudden intrusion.

Stelle turned to look at the others, triumphantly placing her hands on her hips. “Look! I told you the pattern Rekka mentioned was accurate! He’s deeply studied the complex social nuances of the Xianzhou Alliance.”

The Foxian woman smiled, her gaze sweeping over the group. “So, you must be the Trailblazers from the Astral Express, correct? I am Feixiao, and I am indeed the General of the Yaoqing.”

Her footsteps, her breathing, even the way the airflow bends around her… Dan Heng thought silently, his sharp eyes analyzing the woman. She was a master of the highest caliber.

“I heard Jing Yuan mention that there is a certain Trailblazer on the Astral Express whose actions are… extremely unexpected. Could it be…”

Feixiao’s sharp gaze locked directly onto Dan Heng.

“This must be the Trailblazer named Rekka, right?”

“That’s not him. He is Dan Heng.”

Jing Yuan’s calm voice drifted over as the Luofu General stepped out from the ornate doorway of the Seat of Divine Foresight.

Dan Heng froze.

A muscle feathered in his jaw. Do I really look that much like Rekka?

Dan Heng felt his soul take a critical hit.

Realizing her mistake, Feixiao didn’t look embarrassed in the slightest, though she offered a polite apology. “Ah, I mistook you for someone else, my apologies. I heard from Jing Yuan that the Trailblazer named Rekka acts in completely unexpected ways, so I subconsciously assumed—”

She paused, looking Dan Heng up and down with a critical eye.

Dan Heng stared back, his expression entirely flat.

Do I look like the kind of person who is mentally unstable and likes to stir up catastrophic trouble for fun? He felt deeply, personally insulted.

“So, he’s not here today?” Feixiao asked, tilting her head.

“He ran off first thing in the morning. I don’t know where he went,” March said, spreading her hands helplessly. “Knowing him, maybe he turned into something weird again.”

“Turned into?” Feixiao raised an eyebrow.

“Uh… it’s a bit complicated to explain, so let’s just not.”

“Not here… well, that’s a bit troublesome.”

An elderly, authoritative voice echoed from behind Jing Yuan as Huaiyan, the General of the Zhuming, slowly walked out to join them.

Feixiao had come to the Luofu this time specifically to find Rekka. She had been dispatched by the Alliance to thoroughly inquire about the exact ins and outs of the Ambrosial Arbor disaster.

The problem was, the legendary Ambrosial Arbor had already been casually fed to Little Blue Light by Rekka, permanently transforming the ancient divine tree into two glowing branches resting on top of Little Blue Light’s head…

Ushering everyone inside, the three Generals took their places within the Seat of Divine Foresight and prepared to discuss matters of utmost importance.

“Uh, do we need to excuse ourselves?” March asked weakly, feeling the heavy, intimidating aura of three Xianzhou Generals in one room.

“No need to excuse yourselves. You are all important witnesses,” Feixiao said, shaking her head. Her expression turned serious. “Regarding the Ambrosial Arbor, we need to know the specific situation.”