Collapse, I'll Transform and Punch You Directly Chapter 6

In contrast to the phantoms, Bai Chen stood alone in the center of the plaza, a beacon in the darkness.

Without hesitation, the Honkai Beasts charged at Bai Chen like starving wolves, aiming to tear him to shreds!

"Come on! You abominations!"

Bai Chen charged headfirst at the nearest Honkai Beast, using Heavenly Fire to incinerate it instantly. The subsequent Honkai Beasts that swarmed him couldn't withstand even three shots.

Despite this, the sheer number of Honkai Beasts gradually surrounded Bai Chen.

Thanks to a month of training, Bai Chen could barely weave through the encirclement.

Before long, in a corner Bai Chen wasn't watching, a massive palm slammed directly towards his waist. By the time Bai Chen noticed, he could only hastily parry the surprise attack. The immense impact cracked his tiger's mouth, drawing blood, and he almost couldn't hold on.

But the Honkai Beasts didn't stop their assault. Another massive palm emerged from the surrounding beasts and struck the struggling Bai Chen directly.

Bai Chen's frail body was sent flying like a tattered rag, crashing onto the execution platform where Kallen had stood.

"Bai Chen!"

The three who couldn't participate due to lack of weapons rushed forward anxiously, willing to risk their lives to save Bai Chen from danger.

"Cough!"

Injured, Bai Chen weakly coughed up a mouthful of blood, mockingly thinking that at least he wasn't in the encirclement anymore.

"Don't come! Aren't you the shield of the Kaslana people? Then, without my weapon, I should be your shield! Look, my glorious victory!"

Bai Chen stopped the approaching crowd with a shout. He turned towards the Honkai Beasts with a cruel smile, merging his two Heavenly Fire pistols. During the mechanical assembly, they combined into a greatsword whose blade flowed like fire.

Noticing Bai Chen's actions, Kallen's expression immediately turned fearful. Knowing her father's fate, she reached out to Bai Chen, trying to stop him.

"No! Stop! You'll die if you use that power!"

Almost simultaneously, a purple light cluster, visible only to Bai Chen, appeared before Kallen.

Chapter 11: The Finale

Hearing Kallen's cry, Kiana and Bronya, who hadn't understood the situation, also showed looks of astonishment. After all, they didn't know the consequences of drawing Heavenly Fire.

Bronya, who understood this virtual space somewhat, knew that if one died in this special space, their physical body outside would likely never wake up.

Bai Chen looked at Kallen, who had run to his side, and gave her a confident smile.

"I won't die. Trust me! I have someone I must protect!"

Then, Bai Chen left Kallen with only his slender back and a thumbs-up. At this moment, he was the only light in this space, bringing a sliver of hope to a place that hadn't changed in a hundred years.

"Come on! You pathetic creatures, you are fortunate enough to witness the divine Heavenly Fire Judgement! For those who deserve to be protected, disappear! Heavenly Fire! Unleash!"

Raising Heavenly Fire Holy Judgment above his head as if pulling down the sky, he unleashed the divine fire that destroyed everything, instantly engulfing the more than twenty Honkai Beasts.

The raging flames simultaneously devoured and tore at Bai Chen's skin, his flowing blood instantly vaporizing without a trace.

"!!!"

Intense pain surged through every nerve in Bai Chen's body. He had never experienced such agony since his birth. Under this torment, Bai Chen even felt his hands melting and fusing with the sword hilt.

Trembling, he could barely hold the greatsword. Just as Bai Chen was about to break, he unconsciously recalled the scene of Kiana sending the bomb into the sky in the future.

"Haa!!"

As if forgetting his scorched body, Bai Chen's eyes lit up with purplish-pink light, and he let out a roar that was neither joy nor pain!

The terrifying flames suddenly intensified, as if responding to Bai Chen's will. The roaring fire dragons mercilessly consumed everything they touched!

Finally, under his last conscious effort, Bai Chen transformed the flames into towering pillars of fire, painting the sky an endless crimson!

When the flames dissipated, only a large area of ground, now resembling a lava pool, remained. Not a single trace of the Honkai Beasts could be seen.

Having used Heavenly Fire, Bai Chen stood like a human charcoal briquette, still maintaining the pose of swinging the greatsword.

"Bai Chen!!!"

Bai Chen's current state was beyond Kiana and Bronya's imagination. If they had known the consequences of using Heavenly Fire, they would never have agreed to let Bai Chen go alone.

Kallen walked to Bai Chen's side in disbelief and gently laid his charred body down in her arms.

Once again, another person sacrificed themselves using Heavenly Fire Holy Judgment to protect others. Even though she was called a saintess by everyone, she felt powerless and regretful at this moment.

Kallen gritted her teeth, shedding tears of unwillingness. This child looked only fourteen years old, and he had a bright future.

"Bai Chen! Don't die! Hold on, and we can get out of here!"

Kiana, having learned about the special nature of this virtual space from Bronya, also ran to Bai Chen's side, looking heartbroken at the friend who was more than three years younger than her and with whom she had spent over a month.

"We still have so many games to play, and we have to catch up on exams... No, we promised that once I become an A-rank Valkyrie, we'd all go find my dad!"

Kiana's tears fell uncontrollably as she trembled and reached out to grasp Bai Chen's unrecognizable hands, as if she could bring him back.

Meanwhile, Bronya was frantically hacking into the Schicksal database, trying to find a cure for Bai Chen. However, Bronya also knew that burns of this extent were beyond recovery.

As everyone was lost in the sorrow of Bai Chen's impending death, Kiana suddenly noticed that Bai Chen's charcoal-like hands seemed to twitch slightly.

With surprise, Kiana instinctively tightened her grip on Bai Chen's hands and asked, "Bai Chen, are you conscious?"

"Uh... I'm conscious. If you keep bothering me like this, I'll wake up from the pain anyway."

Bai Chen, who had originally closed his eyes, reopened them. His first thought was of Kallen, cradling him in her arms, soft and secure. Then, he looked at the tear-streaked faces around him and let out a helpless laugh.

"There's no need for this, everyone. Just trust me, I won't die."

Kiana quickly wiped the tears from her eyes, her voice a mix of worry and anger. "Who knew you'd go this far! Do you even look any different from a dead person right now!"

Hearing Kiana's scolding, Bai Chen just chuckled foolishly and didn't retort. He then turned his head slightly. "I'm sorry, everyone. Thank you, Bronya. Thank you, Kallen. And thank you, Kiana. You protected me once again."

With that, Bai Chen took out a purple card. The back of it was imprinted with the Valkyrie symbol.

[Chivalric Drive: Valkyrie Guardian]

The moment Heavenly Fire was drawn, Bai Chen simultaneously used a skill from Kiana's Divine Prayer battlesuit. This skill would put the user into a Chrono Break state while continuously healing their body.

It was thanks to this skill that he managed to keep his life under the scorching Heavenly Fire. However, it was also thanks to this skill that the experience of being burned was prolonged several times over.

"It's thanks to your power that I could survive."

Bai Chen placed the card, face up, in front of Kiana. It depicted her appearance when she unleashed her ultimate attack during Divine Prayer.

"Hmph, interesting fellow."

In a shadowed corner, unnoticed by anyone, Otto watched the group on the gallows with a smile that held an unreadable meaning. Strangely, the Otto standing there was wearing completely different attire from the Otto from moments before.

Then, Otto walked back into the alley, disappearing into the shadows.

"No, I should be thanking you all."

Kallen smiled like sunshine and spoke to everyone.

"You're willing to risk your lives for us, mere virtual characters."

"!"

Except for Bai Chen, the other two showed expressions of surprise.

Kiana looked into Kallen's eyes with disbelief. "You've known we were virtual characters all along?"

"Since when? I've been repeating the same death over and over, unable to escape no matter what, until you all appeared."

Kallen looked up at the clouds in the sky as if accepting reality, lost in reminiscence.

"Hmm, the real Kallen probably died a long time ago, didn't she?"

Chapter Twelve: Return

"In reality, how long has it been since the real Kallen died?"

"It's been over five hundred years."

Unable to move, Bai Chen lay in Kallen's arms and answered her question.

"Five hundred years?"

Kallen looked up at the clouds in the sky again, unsure how many memories were flashing through her mind at that moment.

"I am a personality constructed from Kallen's memories. In Kallen's memories, before she died, she sealed away the person she loved most. Yae Sakura... Even after five hundred years as a Herrscher, she must still be alive."

"If the seal is broken, how lonely must she be facing a world five hundred years later? Bai Chen, if you have the chance, could you deliver a message to Yae Sakura for me?"

Facing Kallen's earnest plea, Bai Chen gave an answer that surprised everyone.

"I refuse."

"Bai Chen, you..."

Kiana frowned. The atmosphere was already at this point, and he refused.

Bai Chen then reached out his hand towards Kallen. A purple light cluster, visible only to Bai Chen, appeared there.

The moment he touched the purple light cluster, Bai Chen's injuries healed at a speed visible to their astonished eyes. Perhaps because they were in a data space, even his clothes were restored to their original state.

Now able to move, Bai Chen stood up and then presented Kallen with a pink card bearing her portrait.

"If you want to say something, you should say it yourself!"

Kallen, who had been somewhat dejected, had her eyes light up again upon hearing Bai Chen's words. Looking at Bai Chen, silhouetted against the light, a seed of hope was rekindled in her heart.

As she subconsciously touched Bai Chen's card, Kallen instantly vanished from her spot. Almost simultaneously, the surrounding data space began to collapse.

"This area is starting to collapse. Initiating logout procedure."

Then, without giving anyone a chance to explain, everyone's consciousness returned to the real world at the same time.

Bai Chen woke up in his bed. Looking around, he recalled putting on his helmet at his desk. It seemed that while his consciousness was in the data space, someone had moved him to his bed.

Before Bai Chen could get out of bed, he heard the sound of hurried footsteps approaching his door from outside. Then, with a "bang," a pair of slender, white-stockinged feet kicked open the door.

Kiana, having kicked open the door, eagerly leaped onto Bai Chen's bed. She grabbed his shoulders, which were still unresponsive, and stared into his eyes.

"Bai Chen! Kallen-nee-san just disappeared at the end. Is it related to your abilities?"

Kiana's words were rapid, filled with barely suppressed excitement. She seemed to have guessed what had happened.

Bai Chen, with no intention of hiding anything, chuckled lightly. He drew out the last card Kallen had touched and then waved it in the air a few times. It transformed into a stream of light and merged into Bai Chen's body.

Bai Chen's body was immediately surrounded by several phantoms. Then, his body grew taller, transforming into Kallen's appearance. However, he wasn't wearing the nun's attire from the virtual world, but rather a modern, high-tech Valkyrie armor.

[Chivalric Load: Divine Attire: Imayoh]

When Kallen touched the card, all her information was absorbed into Bai Chen's body. With Bai Chen's permission, she could even take control of his movements.

"Come, Miss Kallen, let's see the world 500 years later."

Bai Chen closed his eyes and sank his consciousness inward. When he opened them again, his demeanor had become gentle. His azure eyes flowed with the compassion and resolve of a saint. At this moment, the true Kallen was in control of his body.

"Hm?"

Far away at Schicksal headquarters, Otto suddenly felt an itch on his scalp. Despite having a Soul Steel body, he didn't possess a tactile sensory system. Why would he suddenly have such a feeling?

He had just discovered that some data in the database had vanished without a trace, and he couldn't recover it. What had those three children done? It seemed necessary to contact an old friend.

"Kiana? Mei?"

Having just gained control, Kallen looked around in confusion. She didn't recognize the armor she was wearing at all. The surroundings looked like someone's room, but the style was vastly different from the rooms she knew. The only familiar sight was Miss Kiana, who was grabbing her shoulder.

"Sister Kallen?"

Even though Kiana was mentally prepared, she was incredibly shocked. She was shocked that Bai Chen could accomplish something like this.

"This is great!"

Kiana excitedly hugged Kallen, who hadn't figured out what was going on. If they could stay together forever, who would want to be separated? It was too cruel to leave Kallen alone in that cyclical virtual world.

"Bai Chen, you're truly amazing!"

After hearing Kiana's praise, a small circular robot appeared beside Kallen. It was the auxiliary robot that came with the Imayoh armor, affectionately nicknamed "Little K."

"Wow, it's not often I get to hear you praise me. Come on, praise me more."

Bai Chen's voice came from within Little K.