[Little Gui's Livestream]
"Wahahahaha!!!"
"Family!"
"Looks like today is Little~ Gui's lucky day!"
"I heard you all got useless items from opening Sparkle's Wondrous Packs?"
"I just pulled a Sampo!"
"They say the probability of that is almost the same as getting a 5-star in a 10-pull?"
"Seems like today is the best day to pull for Sparkle!"
Guinaifen was beaming in front of the camera.
She then opened the warp interface.
[Character Event Wish: Sparkling Splendor]
[5-star Character: Sparkle]
"As you can see, I've worked hard to save up 100 pulls. Wishing for a 1+1 isn't too much to ask, right?"
...
"I love Little Gui's naive confidence!"
"1+1? I'd be over the moon just to get the character, and you're aiming for 1+1?"
"Anything is possible, never give up hope, even though I'm already at 96 pulls [crying]."
"Not even Little Gui could do it, let alone Sparkle herself, right?"
"If you actually manage to pull it, I'd even lick Sparkle's feet!"
"The abacus beads have flown all the way from Penacony to Luofu."
...
Guinaifen started off full of enthusiasm.
But after seven 10-pulls without a 5-star,
she began to panic.
"Pity pull incoming!"
"It's here!"
"Got it!"
"Had to hit pity, but Sparkle should come now, right? Wuwu~"
A cosmic train ticket with a trailing shadow appeared.
A golden light shone inside the carriage.
"Boom!"
5-star!
Abundance!
Let's see what you've got in store!
[Bailu]!
Seeing this, Little Gui felt as if the sky had fallen!
And the viewers in the livestream were quick to add insult to injury.
...
"Wahahahaha..."
"Wow, the drop rate is really high~"
"Who needs Harmony when you have the security of Abundance? Little Gui, you hit the jackpot!"
["Today is my lucky day."]
"No off-banner! This must be Sparkle in disguise!"
"Sparkle's not that great, by the way, how do you build Bailu?"
"80 pulls, Sparkle disguised as Yanqing to scare me [sunglasses]."
"Truly a Masked Fool, she tricked Little Gui out of her guaranteed pity in one go! [thumbs up]"
...
Guinaifen sighed.
Could it be...
that she'd have to spend money to guarantee Sparkle!?
No, no!
She needed to watch a video to calm down first!
Too many new characters have been released lately, she can't want them all!
Greed will only backfire!
This is Sparkle's warning to her!
She opened a video site.
Just about to look for a Sparkle character review.
Suddenly!
A new notification popped up, instantly catching Guinaifen's attention!
[The user you follow, Yu Ling, has posted a new video. Come check it out~]
[Curtain Call PV: Tatarlov Sends His Greetings]
Play immediately!
"Look, a performance has come to an end."
The video began.
Sparkle's playful voice echoed.
"A perfect ending~"
"But you're still craving more, aren't you?"
Guinaifen nodded like a pecking chicken!
"After all, there's still one person..."
"Who hasn't given their answer—"
On the screen.
Scenes from Penacony up to this moment appeared.
Firefly's voice echoed in response: "Why does life fall into slumber? I think... it's because we fear waking up from the dream."
"Because we are not yet ready to face death."
The figures of Kakavasha and Aventurine flashed by briefly.
Then.
Acheron appeared.
The Acheron of Izumo with twin horns, the usual purple-haired Acheron, and the white-haired Acheron all appeared in the scene.
"So you must understand why we want to be prepared."
Next.
The figures of others emerged one by one.
Sparkle spoke again: "Who is right?"
"Hmm... I don't know."
"On the grand stage of Penacony, everyone sees themselves as the protagonist."
"So I took action!"
Instantly, numerous real-time comments flooded the video.
...
"Penacony's grand stage, come if you dare to dream!"
"Thank you, Director Sparkle!"
"She still holds a grudge against Black Swan."
"Black Swan.jpg"
"The ending is indeed positive, happy, and sunny!"
"Praise the God of Elation!"
...
"So..."
"[Why does life fall into slumber], the answer isn't important at all."
Accompanied by a melodious background score.
Sparkle's voice seemed to resonate in everyone's ears.
"Why so serious?"
"In the end, isn't it all about being happy?"
"This performance is for you, dear audience. I wonder if you found a little Elation in it?"
Amidst a sky full of dazzling fireworks.
Sparkle's figure appeared.
She faced the camera, taking her final bow.
"If not..."
"Don't sleep too soundly tonight."
The video ended there.
And the comments.
Were almost uniformly filled with [Thank you, Director Sparkle]!
Guinaifen clicked open the comment section.
[Version 2.3 fixed the bug where some people didn't like Sparkle]
[Reply: Indeed, before 2.3, I really didn't like Sparkle, but now, long live Lady Sparkle!]
[Reply: Haha, I guessed Sparkle's role since version 2.0, beating 99% of Trailblazers~]
[Lady Sparkle pressed the button for a full 48 system hours just to give us a grand fireworks show. Quick, say thank you to Lady Sparkle!]
[Reply: Thank you, Lady Sparkle!]
[Reply: Director Sparkle's greatness needs no explanation.]
[2.0: Simple insults, ultimate enjoyment.
2.1: Blow Penacony sky-high.
2.2: Turns out you were asleep too.
2.3: Gold-tier support, the most honest person in Penacony, master of fireworks, Galaxy Hammer Hero, Sparkling Sparkle!]
[From this point on, The Hunt is no longer a narrow pursuit of revenge, and Elation is no longer a hellish joke.]
[This is the true essence of Elation—achieving one's own joy while also bringing joy to others, unlike some in reality who, with their twisted minds, derive happiness from others' suffering, completely disregarding their feelings.]
[We, the people of Xianzhou, have long understood this, which is why Aha is the Lord of Exalting Sanctum and not the Mocking Calamity [doge].]
Seeking flowers!
Guinaifen grew more and more confused as she read!
Though she still had a shred of rationality left, now all she wanted was to marry Sparkle!
In the end, she contributed another 2 x 648 to Yu Ling…
And finally obtained a 1+1 Sparkle.
"Alright, family!"
"Let's wrap up the ending of the 2.3 storyline!"
She opened the mission interface.
The introduction caught her eye.
[Finally, the Trailblaze journey in Penacony has come to a beautiful conclusion. It's time to embrace new adventures—but before that, the Astral Express Crew wants to bid a formal farewell to some people.]
[Giving the stories of the departed a proper ending is the best consolation. Go, they are all at Dreamflux Reef… right here.]
"It seems we're saying goodbye to the others. This time, it's truly the end."
She arrived at the designated location.
The first person she saw… was Acheron.
"Now, Penacony, as you wished, has welcomed the dawn after a long night. The road ahead may not be smooth, but people are ready to step toward freedom."
"Tiernan, you can go home now."
"And the future Nameless are ready to set off for their next destination."
The Astral Express Crew also arrived by the gravestone.
They bid farewell to Tiernan and Lazalina.
Next was the dog-shaped statue symbolizing Gallagher, and Micah.
Finally.
They came to the place where Mikhail rested.
March 7th, usually so lively, now seemed a bit subdued.
"…I can't help but think that whether it's Mr. Mikhail, Mr. Tiernan, or Ms. Lazalina, their lives were very long, and they must have experienced so many stories…"
"They were young once too, stumbling and bickering just like us. Companions, rivals, journeys, adventures, all the sad and happy memories… the days we're used to, they've lived through them too."
"But all those things… they're all in the past now."
[Our stories will one day be in the past too]
"Yeah, maybe that's what makes it so hard for me to let go…"
Himeko spoke up: "The galaxy is vast, life is small, and the steps of Trailblaze never cease. But on the scale of the universe, an ordinary person can only travel a short distance in their lifetime."
"Yet, it is this incredibly short path, interconnected, that binds countless worlds together. The universe may not remember those who laid the sleepers on the Silver Rail, but we will."
"As long as we remember, their stories (Trailblaze) are not over."
...
"Perhaps this is the significance of 'Honkai: Star Rail'..."
"I've realized! As long as 'Honkai: Star Rail' exists, our universe will never fall into [Nihility]!"
"Thankfully, 'Honkai: Star Rail' is a continuously updated game, and in the future, we will witness more heroic people and events..."
"Yes, just thinking about it makes me tremble with excitement!"
"What's with all this meaning? Right now, I just want to clock out and go home, and get a pair of speed shoes for my newly drawn Sparkle!"
"Where will the next stop take us?"
"Damn, I'm really looking forward to it. Can't the ending of this storyline give us a little hint?"