[Honkai: Star Rail] Jing Yuan Became My Cat

[Everyday interactions + Xianzhou plot, involving the Nineteenth Path (ancient mythology: Houtu: ■■)] [The romance is relatively slow-burn; the first twenty chapters focus on their childhood days]

(It's complete! Bonus chapters may appear whenever. Completion check-in: 2025.08.05.)

Jade Abacus locals: "Have you heard of Tianqing, the dragon girl of the Jade Abacus?"

A Xianzhou Luofu resident visiting the Jade Abacus: "Of course."

Jade Abacus local: "Ah, that was in the past. Do you know how she's doing now?"

The Luofu resident scratches their head. "How is she doing?"

Jade Abacus local: "Not only can she visit our reclusive General Yaoguang whenever she likes, she's even won over your General Jing Yuan!"

Xianzhou Luofu resident: "!!!"

*

The Jade Abacus Xianzhou is home to Tianqing, a dragon girl with an unconventional way of handling things. Her life has had wild ups and downs, going from having nothing to having everything.

She shines wherever she goes. She won over the people of the Jade Abacus, and also the Divine General of the distant Xianzhou Luofu, even getting him into the habit of Tianqing.

"So what is it the general likes about her, anyway?"

The Divine General returns to the Xianzhou Luofu after taking leave. Not only has he recovered from his injuries, but he's also added a marriage to his list of accomplishments before retiring in glory. The streets are soon abuzz with gossip.

Watching Tianqing rack her brains over the chess game he'd set up for her in the courtyard, Jing Yuan, who takes great delight in continuing to play the kitten in front of her, picks up his jade device and writes a passage with a serious expression:

She came to me through the world's clamor, inviting me to share in the delights of this mortal world. I couldn't help but smile and open my arms, embracing the happiness that had fallen from the sky.

[Reader's Guide]

1. I'll try to keep the characters in character. One-on-one romance, pairing with Jing Yuan.

To fit his scholar-general persona, most of the poems in this story are original, or adapted from the works of Su Shi. Please don't quote them elsewhere.

(It's not easy for an author from a business school to write poetry W▽O.)

2. The Jade Abacus is the main setting. They'll visit the Xianzhou Luofu in the middle, then travel to the other Xianzhou later on.

The story's cultural setting for the Jade Abacus is inferred based only on official lore. If anything seems familiar, I'll take that as a compliment.

3. The Pathstriders who appear are all part of the galactic factions mentioned in the Simulated Universe. They're not very common, but I found some of their Path philosophies interesting, so I decided to try writing about them.

[Permission granted to use the background image for the cover]

[Blurb screenshot taken on 2024-08-14]

Starting March 7, 2025, the story will switch to a paid version from Chapter 17 onward. A ten-thousand-character chapter will be posted on launch day, so please be careful not to purchase it twice.

Thanks again to everyone for your company and support!

Theme: Growing up means not turning away from who you once were, and becoming the person you want to be.