Battle for Penacony! The Most Thrilling Episode!

No matter how much chaos the prisoners caused here, it would no longer be their concern.

That would be a problem for the next management team to deal with.

However— they overlooked one person.

Someone who had been outside all this time, doing nothing but smuggling.

"Hmph! (The time has come!)"

Outside the prison, Hanunuee gathered with a large group of warriors.

Weapons in hand, they fixed their gaze on the prison, still brightly lit in the dead of night...

--------------------------------------

On one side, a brightly lit prison filled with sirens blaring and riots raging.

On the other, in the darkness of the night, Hanunue stands imposing, watching over the prison, with his fellow prisoner brothers behind him.

In the shot.

The two sides—one left, one right, one low, one high.

The opposition between oppression and freedom has never been so vividly displayed in the world of Honkai: Star Rail.

This scene delivered a tremendous shock to the audience watching.

Film and television have many classic frames filled with deep meaning.

Hanunue's image will undoubtedly become one of them.

And the audience finally understands why Hanunue waited six months before taking action.

Because what he wanted was for every prisoner to ignite the fire of rebellion in their hearts, to forge an unshakable will.

On the screen, under Hanunue's arrangements, some infiltrated the prison and established contact with prisoners in various sections.

Six months ago, if Hanunue had made contact, perhaps only 30% of the prisoners would have been swayed.

But now, the answer he received was—"All of them!"

Inside the prison, Hanunue's call was met with unanimous response!

"It's Hanunue! Let's follow Hanunue and drive out those IPC lapdogs!"

"Everything on this prison planet was built by our own labor! This is our land!"

At first, these voices were weak.

Only whispered within individual cells.

But gradually, they merged into a powerful roar.

At this moment, all the anger converged into one.

All the past oppression and injustice flooded their minds.

For the audience, this injustice needs no explanation—it had already been deeply felt in the preceding minutes.

...

: Revolt! Resist!

: If the capitalists refuse to treat us as humans, then let them taste true iron-fisted justice!

: Damn it, these corporate dogs are so short-sighted and selfish! Capitalists are all the same!

: They aren't even real capitalists—just their aspiring lapdogs! And those are even more disgusting!

: Damn it! Under Hanunue's lead, let's tear them apart!

: Go, my hard-working brothers!

: Everyone, fight to death!

...

90% of the audience are ordinary people.

Naturally, they deeply empathize with these oppressed prisoners.

Everyone watches the screen with excitement, waiting for Hanunue's decisive strike.

On-screen, as dissatisfaction and riots within the prison reach their peak, Hanunue finally made his move!

He distributes all the weapons and supplies accumulated over six months.

And even before this breakout, Hanunue had already identified and nurtured talent.

Those individuals, carrying his ideals, infiltrated different sections of the prison.

Before long, they had linked all the prisoners together.

Meanwhile, the prison guards remained oblivious.

To them, this was just another routine riot.

As a large number of guards prepared to suppress it as usual…

What greeted them was an enraged counterattack by armed prisoners!

In an instant, the scene spiraled completely out of control!

Like a tidal wave, prisoners surged forward, charging toward the gates of every section.

Not just one area—but all of them!

This was a meticulously planned full-scale assault!

The camera zooms out.

Until the entire prison appears in a bird's-eye view on the screen.

The brightly lit prison, under the rebellion and struggle of the prisoners, begins to show small patches of darkness.

Amidst explosions, raging flames, and earth-shaking battle cries, these dark patches gradually merge into one.

It looks… like two opposing factions on a war map, locked in fierce conflict.

The camera zooms in.

In one section of the prison, the guards have already built a strong defensive line.

Various-grade weapons are brought into play.

"Aaaaahhh!" A guard, gripping an advanced weapon, his eyes bloodshot, frantically holds down the trigger.

Before him, prisoners charging at the defense line are falling one by one.

Against high-caliber weapons, carbon-based bodies are nothing but fragile flesh.

Blood blossoms in bursts.

Xia Wen does not shy away from showing the brutality of death to the audience.

In mere moments, the area before the prison gate is littered with corpses.

"Retreat!" Under the command of an intellitron, the prisoners temporarily withdraw.

Only now, the guards, their fingers numb from pressing the triggers, drenched in cold sweat, stare ahead with bloodshot eyes.

The stench of corpses and the thick scent of blood invade their noses.

Yet, not a single one dares to leave their post.

They are tense, fearful—but also more furious than ever before!

This is no longer just a simple rebellion.

When this riot ends, not only will the prison's name be erased, but so too will their futures as IPC employees.

On the other side, the temporarily withdrawn prisoners, clench their jaws, their eyes brimming with tears and fury.

Many of the fallen were their friends.

Even those with no personal ties—watching fellow prisoners, who shared the same fate, slaughtered so cruelly by the IPC—it was impossible not to feel sorrow and rage.

Sensing the atmosphere growing heavy.

The intellitron leader, who had followed Hanunue for six months, raised its arm and shouted:

"Do not be afraid."

"Those IPC dogs think this will make us stop fighting."

"But this will only make us stronger!"

"Victory will be ours! Freedom will be ours!"

"Give me liberty, or give me death!"

With this rallying cry! The once-disheartened prisoners lift their heads, responding with furious roars of defiance.

"Liberty or death!"

"Liberty or death!"

It is not terrifying when an individual has such thoughts.

But when a group has such thoughts, it becomes an ocean of ideology, sweeping up everyone who still hesitates or fears into this fervent atmosphere.

And indeed, this is what happened.

If they did not achieve victory this time, what awaited them would be an even harsher fate.

The second attack began, the prison guards clearly did not expect that these prisoners would have such a strong will to fight.

But this time, having learned from the last lesson and completely abandoned their illusions, the prisoners began to utilize all their advantages.

They had already occupied 80% of this prison sector, gaining significant room for maneuver.

Their intellitron leader had long since erased the binding restrictions from his chip during his time with Hanunue.

Once this leader took control of the prison's lighting system and shut the gates, cutting off the guards' escape route, this place became a desperate battle.

Under the combined psychological and physical assault, even with superior weaponry, the guards could not stop the tide of people and ultimately collapsed.

But when they tried to escape, they found the doors behind them firmly shut.

"We... we surrender!" Facing the prisoners closing in from all directions, the guards fell to their knees in despair.

"We can give you credits, supplies, and even guide you!"

"We're useful!"

However, what greeted them was only silence.

Then, someone let out a furious roar and charged forward.

The rest followed like madmen, and hundreds of prison guards were swallowed by the sea of people.

Madness, violence, bloodshed.

What had once happened to the prisoners was now happening to the guards.

Some laughed maniacally while swinging steel rods with reckless abandon at the guards.

Some, bare-handed, pinned guards down, mercilessly pummeling them.

As for the IPC employee who had controlled the restricted weapons and slaughtered the prisoners, he had already been dragged from the crowd, crying and begging for mercy.

What awaited him was an even crueler punishment.

"No... this isn't right!"

"This isn't right."

The intellitron leader watched the riot, his thoughts in turmoil.

A group of prisoners stood with him, watching the scene before them.

Some out of indifference, some because they saw no need to participate.

Another group had no interest in violence at all, only focused on scavenging valuables from the IPC employees.

"Why is it that the people who were united before..."

"After gaining freedom... Suddenly seem to have split into different factions?"

The intellitron leader pondered.

He felt it was the right time to report this situation to Hanunue.

But for now, he only watched in silence, standing with those who shared his stance—those who represented Hanunue's side.

And amidst this silence, good news arrived from the other prison sectors as well.

Under Hanunue's organization, in just one night, they had taken over the entire prison.

At this moment, the events of just ten minutes had shaken the audience, both visually and emotionally.

…

: Damn... I even went back to check the title to make sure it was 'Dreams of the Past,' but this scene is way too violent and bloody! Hard to believe such a place gave birth to someone like Clockie.

: This time, 'Mryiad Celestia Trailer,' feels different, completely unlike before—it's disturbingly real...

: F***, too violent, especially the way the prisoners brutally treated the guards at the end.

: No choice, those IPC dogs never treated people as human anyway!

: Exactly! 'Honkai Star Rail' never shies away from anything—this kind of resistance is straight-up revolution! And violence is an indispensable part of it!

: That final scene of victory—greed, violence, and restraint, all in one frame. It shows a collective entity, yet their expressions reveal something deeper. Could this be foreshadowing future developments?

: Forget that, I just want to know how the IPC will respond and what Hanunue's next move will be.

: Am I the only one who thinks it's a bit too gruesome? I know the corporations are evil, but seeing them treated like this still makes me uneasy.

: You bleeding-heart saint, go meditate under the Giant Buddha or volunteer for a 996 corporate job yourself.

: Bruh, is this really the time for mercy? Violence is part of resistance, and it's also the foundation of a new order. This is necessary.

: Instead of worrying about the IPC, you should focus more on Hanunue's next actions—that's what really matters.

…

The discussion in the comment section grew heated.

Because of the appearance of a "saint," many mocked them sarcastically.

But the vast majority of viewers expressed understanding.

This was the first time such a debate had appeared in a 'Honkai Star Rail' comment section.

The people in the screening room couldn't help but glance at Xia Wen.

But upon seeing their confident demeanor, they relaxed.

In reality, the comment section's reaction was exactly as Xia Wen had expected.

After all, what "Dreams of the Past" wants to express is not history itself, but rather the idea of "resistance" through history, or the "liberation" buried beneath this resistance.

As well as a failed, revolution.

To present these ideas, it is necessary to depict the cruelty of struggle and the diversity of the collective.

Not everyone can be like the express crew.

The foreshadowing has already been laid.

At this moment, the quarrels in the bullet comments are gradually coming to an end.

The audience is eagerly expecting Hanunue to lead the prisoners of the detention zone, to recreate Penacony, and to move towards a happy life.

But things do not go as hoped.

As Hanunue gains control over most of the detention zone and, after a period of struggle, is about to seize control of the entire prison— A golden meteor descends from the sky.

At that moment, whether it was the IPC's side or Hanunue's side.

Everyone's gaze was drawn to it.

They watched as the meteor tore through the atmosphere and crashed heavily onto the planet.

In the next second, everyone's vision blurred for a moment.

The meteor's impact did not bring a shockwave, but instead triggered a mysterious memory-based disturbance.

A chaotic synesthetic dreamscape instantly enveloped the entire planet.

Including the people in the prison—without exception, they all fell into the dream.

When everyone regained their senses, they found that everything familiar before them had been completely inverted by the dream.

The corridors took on an entirely different appearance, and their comrades who had fought alongside them were nowhere to be found.

This development caught the audience completely off guard.

But upon seeing this dreamscape, they finally confirmed that everything happening here was indeed part of Penacony's history.

Just as everyone eagerly anticipated the next part of the story— the screen suddenly shifted.

A very familiar train carriage appeared before the audience.

Inside the carriage, Pompom raised her head, looking at a tall figure wearing a hat.

"... Passenger Granholm! Do you have any ideas about why the Astral Express is unable to move forward?"