The Herrscher's power, the authority of fluidity, further strengthened Bai Yan's Swordplay.
The Wind Barrier concealed her figure, while the Wind Authority enhanced her power. This also happened to confirm Bai Yan's guess.
The authority of wind might be well suited to her.
The Herrscher of the Void was filled with fury, yet she could do nothing to Bai Yan. She only had the power to protect herself, not the ability to strike back.
She should have known. From the very beginning, she should have focused on widening the distance!
"As expected of a secondary personality. You can't even use Kiana's best brute-force martial arts!"
Bai Yan attacked while taunting her, determined to throw her mind into disarray.
"Bastard! If you hadn't obtained my Gem, could you possibly possess such power?!" the Herrscher of the Void snarled.
"What do you mean, yours? It's mine. Don't go blaming external factors all the time. Take a good look at yourself.
"Did you properly review the questions you got wrong? Did you train hard?
"And you want to become the strongest Valkyrie like this?"
The Herrscher of the Void flew into a rage, her aura abruptly surging.
She was about to make one final attempt!
Volume One: Chapter 56: Pufferfish, Oh Pufferfish
Seeing this, Bai Yan focused as well, ready at any moment to receive the Herrscher of the Void's counterattack.
The Herrscher of the Void burned with rage as Collapse Energy gathered around her with terrifying intensity.
Bai Yan swung her shortsword, her offensive growing ever fiercer as she sought to keep her opponent suppressed.
Those skilled in battle achieved no dazzling feats. Preventing the opponent from unleashing their ultimate move was more important than surviving it.
Feeling the mounting pressure, the Herrscher of the Void felt utterly stifled.
In her memories, when had this Bai Yan ever possessed such strength? Hadn't she always been crushed by Kiana's raw power?
She occasionally had a few petty tricks and schemes, but they often crumbled at the first touch before absolute power.
Nothing but cheap theatrics.
Yet Bai Yan's performance before her completely exceeded the Herrscher of the Void's expectations.
Even setting aside the boost from her authority, Bai Yan's swordsmanship itself was beyond her comprehension.
She could not understand it.
Why did a person merely swinging a sword through empty air make even her soul ache faintly?
It was an exquisitely graceful sword dance, yet it carried a killing intent that made her scalp tingle.
And from just now until this moment, the pressure on the Herrscher of the Void had only grown heavier. The sensation of defeat was drawing closer and closer.
Had Bai Yan been hiding her true ability all along?!
Had she known this day would come long ago?
But why?
If she had known all along, then why...
The Herrscher of the Void shook her head, took several deep breaths, and steadied herself again.
Ants would always be ants. Even if they gained power for a moment, they were merely larger ants.
Once she reclaimed her power, humans, civilization, even planets would be nothing more than toys to destroy for her own amusement!
The Herrscher of the Void controlled the Void Lance to fly alongside her as they charged toward Bai Yan together.
Bai Yan was somewhat startled at the sight. Why did this stance feel like a mutual-destruction attack?
In her memories, the Herrscher of the Void had been supremely arrogant. She almost disdained fighting others in a life-or-death frenzy, always preferring to crush them head-on with her authority and overwhelming firepower.
But now, she looked ready to fight Bai Yan to the death.
It was a trap!
Bai Yan made her judgment and rode a raging wind backward, her figure graceful and untouched.
The Void Lance arrived first, but Bai Yan smoothly linked two sword strikes and blocked it at just the right moment.
To the Herrscher of the Void, this scene looked as though Bai Yan utterly disdained her desperate struggle, sending her rage soaring further.
"Humans truly are foolish creatures!"
She suddenly stopped, raising one slender arm high.
Snap!
A crisp snap rang out, and the surrounding space seemed to freeze for an instant.
At that moment, Bai Yan understood her opponent's plan.
Time-Space Tremor!
A golden sphere abruptly appeared like a black hole, its low explosion warping everything within its range.
A smug smile appeared on the Herrscher of the Void's lips, as though she had already seen the dawn of victory.
Terrifying energy was about to explode beside her, making Bai Yan's scalp prickle.
It was her first time engaging in such an intense confrontation, and she lacked experience in breaking through an enemy's attack. She also understood that theory alone was useless.
But if she had a choice, who would want to gamble her life in a decisive battle?
The power of the space tremor was enough to heavily injure her, perhaps even send her into the abyss of death.
She still had two chances to save herself, but she did not want to use another one so soon.
So she gathered the power granted by the Gem of Desire with all her strength, crudely forcing her authority to its absolute limit.
A sonic boom suddenly erupted. It was the result of energy being compressed to an extreme.
The distortion of space immediately slowed, like adding too much flour to water in a blender, the thick substance hindering the machine's rotation.
For the first time, their authorities directly clashed. It was like arm-wrestling from afar, a contest of nothing but pure brute force.
"Overestimating yourself!"
The Herrscher of the Void noticed this, her gaze sharpening as she extended her hand once more.
Snap!
A second space tremor was unleashed, and Bai Yan's pressure suddenly increased.
"This is bad!"
Though the Herrscher of the Void was not strong at the moment, both her compatibility with the core and her familiarity with her authority surpassed Bai Yan's.
In a contest of authority, Bai Yan was at a disadvantage.
But she had no choice. She could only press on and increase her own output of authority as well.
Snap! Snap! Snap!
Strange sparks even flickered through the air, and space itself seemed to grow restless.
Bronya on the ground also saw how dire the situation was and swiftly began operating Heavy Cannon Rabbit.
"Big Sister Xiao Yan..."
She understood Kiana's condition at a glance.
"Big Sister Mei is a Herrscher, Kiana is a Herrscher, and now it seems Big Sister Xiao Yan is too..."
Why were there so many Herrschers?
Bronya had no time to think about that question. Right now, she only wanted to support Bai Yan in battle.
Only by winning this fight would they have a future in which to consider that question.
"Kiana's current state is very wrong. Even Big Sister Mei was not like this."
The Herrscher of Thunder's personality might have been wild, but she had never shown any inclination to destroy the world.
Compared to the Herrscher of the Void, who wanted to kill the moment she appeared, the Herrscher of Thunder's personality was practically a well-behaved child.
Bronya's hands did not stop moving. Heavy Cannon Rabbit quickly switched attack modes, and its energy cannon was ready.
Aim.
Fire!
The next instant, a beam of light tore through the night sky.
The Herrscher of the Void immediately split her attention to defend.
"Damn it, I forgot about that one!"
This battle had never been one-on-one!
How could a fight forced upon them possibly follow rules? This was not a competition!
The light cannon was swallowed by a Gate of the Void before being deflected away.
Yet in that brief opening, Bai Yan seized the opportunity.
She accelerated with all her strength, abandoning her defenses for the moment and desperately closing in on the Herrscher of the Void.
All her power went into acceleration, buying her terrifying speed.
In the blink of an eye, Bai Yan closed in before the Herrscher of the Void.
The latter immediately moved to block.
Bai Yan struck.
One Sword Startling Swan!
Sight, hearing, and touch were completely stripped away. At that moment, the Herrscher of the Void fell into confusion.
Her hand opened and closed slightly, then opened and closed again. Her brain received no signal.
She could not even feel the existence of her hand!
There was only absolute silence all around her.
Unlike the tranquil early morning, this silence held no white noise at all. It only awakened the instinctive vigilance of living creatures.
When insects no longer chirped, whispers fell silent, and even the breeze and flowing water gave no echo, fear would slowly creep toward you from the depths of your Genes.
Absolute silence was the instant when predators hunted best.
The Herrscher of the Void desperately inhaled, discovering that she could still smell the faint fragrance of flowers and grass!
Yes, she still existed. She still existed in this world.
Her body and soul had not yet separated!
She tried hard to breathe deeply, like a drowning person in the deep sea finally clutching an oxygen tank.
But she quickly discovered that the fragrance of flowers and grass had turned into the scent of earth.
Lick.
It seemed a little earthy?
Another lick. Was it really dirt?
Gradually, she found that she was no longer confused. Her vision returned, and faint white noise reached her ears once more.
Pain!
Pain suddenly shot through her left shoulder and both legs.
"Ugh, aaah!"
The sudden agony that came from nowhere made her cry out involuntarily.
She discovered that she was facing the ground, the soil by her mouth damp, with dirt still in her mouth.
Bai Yan stepped on her back and held her sword against her neck as she spoke with a hint of teasing.
"Eating dirt isn't something good children do."
Before you continue