A fair hand gently caressed a full human heart... Bronya keenly felt that stab of pain. She looked at Edelweiss. "Aren't you coming at me, Xiao Ai?"
"You still have strength left, Bronya." Edelweiss landed lightly, graceful as a startled swan.
By this point in the battle, she had truly acknowledged her. Her question to Bronya now was more of a lesson. "Let me see it—your full strength."
"Phew... I thought we'd have to stall for more time."
Bronya let out a long breath. If she were alone... the pressure would still be immense.
But since Edelweiss was not attacking, they had time to chat a little. "Xiao Ai, I heard you like sweets. How about we exchange notes sometime?"
Mm... sweets?
Edelweiss's expression shifted slightly. Her talent was extraordinary; she had reached the pinnacle in a very short time and had even crossed into the realm of the Demon with ease.
But in truth, Edelweiss liked sweets and had spent a long time secretly learning how to make them. She had even started practicing swordsmanship solely to lose weight!
"Bronya likes sweets too?"
"More or less. But I started learning a long time ago. What do you think it was for, Xiao Ai~?"
—Of course it was for you!
That was an overwhelmingly direct hit, nearly piercing through Edelweiss's defenses. A faint blush appeared on her delicate face. "Enough. Aren't you ready yet, Bronya?"
"More or less."
Seeing Edelweiss change the subject, Bronya tactfully did not pursue it. White Night's figure appeared beside her. "You'd better be careful, Xiao Ai~"
The two of them lowered their centers of gravity slightly in perfect synchronization, their left hands held together as they brushed across their sword blades.
At the same time, their Magic Power burned even more fiercely, and the pale-blue glow around them surged. An incomparably sharp sensation slowly rose.
Winged Sword, imitation One Blade Arrogance, Life Chronicle... at their core, they were all enhancement-type techniques.
Under layer upon layer of buffs, sword techniques that should have belonged to a martial arts world had been elevated to heights they should never have reached.
"..."
There was not a single sound. Or rather, overwhelming power had "killed" the vibrations of the medium, cutting off the transmission of sound.
—Vertical and Horizontal Alliance!
Black and white Sword Qi raged like roaming dragons. Heaven and earth seemed to turn monochrome, leaving only those terrifying flashes of sword light.
Was this a victory?
Amid a silent explosion, White Night and Bronya were blown away, looking somewhat battered.
Sword Qi raged, plowing a savage trench through the ground as if some giant beast had gnawed through it. Yet...
Everything became meaningless before that figure—the pure-white Valkyrie, Edelweiss!
If they had caught her off guard, they might have achieved results. But they had deliberately warned her beforehand... Sensing the threat of Vertical and Horizontal Alliance, she had entered the realm of the Demon.
Though it had only been for an instant. Taking Edelweiss as the center, the Sword Qi split in two. The trench it carved became much shallower as the force spread outward in both directions.
"Cough, cough... Is this Winged Sword?"
White Night propped himself up and coughed out a mouthful of blood. Bronya was more seriously injured; faint Magic Power glimmered around her as she prepared to dismiss this manifestation.
Um...
But Bronya suddenly stopped.
At that moment, a somewhat crazy thought surfaced in her heart: Had she truly given it everything? Wasn't there still that move—One-Hit Rakshasa?
It cost some life force, but for White Night and Bronya, that had never been a problem. Still... did they really have to use it? She had only confessed not long ago.
Risking their lives for one slash... was that really worth it? If it was about leaving a deeper impression, Vertical and Horizontal Alliance should already have been enough, right? Forget it, forget it. This would do for now...
"White Night, aren't you going to make a move?"
A light, airy voice rang out. Edelweiss saw something in White Night's eyes and asked at that moment.
"Click~"
A weight was added to one side of the scales. In White Night's heart, the urge to strike gradually rose, little by little overwhelming his reason. "...Are you sure, Xiao Ai?"
"Is the cost high?"
Edelweiss caught something in his altered tone. "If that's the case..."
"No."
Supported by Life Chronicle's powerful recovery, White Night slowly rose while leaning on his sword. The smile on his lips gradually turned wild. "In truth, that barely counts as a price."
Dying and coming back to life day after day, doing endless sit-ups—what was one measly life worth? Besides...
—Before Yin-Yang, had White Night really lived peacefully without ever doing anything dangerous?
Impossible.
Hitori no Shita was fine; he had been picked up by the Old Celestial Master when he was young. But in the Qin Shi World... heh, as someone on Great Qin's side, White Night had faced countless assassination attempts!
Now that his life was insured, was he supposed to become even more timid? He would look down on himself.
With a fierce flick of his blade, White Night swept his left foot in an arc, held the sword horizontally before him, and slowly lowered his stance.
His sword fingers, wrapped in the glow of Magic Power, slowly brushed across the blade. "Xiao Ai, this is actually my first time using this move."
"I don't know how far I can take it..."
Little by little, White Night's skin and tendons tore open, crimson blood streaming down. "But one thing is certain—it will be terrifying. So be careful, Xiao Ai."
"..."
Edelweiss could feel it: this was a resolve to fight to the death! White Night had compressed all his power and gathered it into this single strike. She absolutely could not take it lightly!
Silently, she stepped into the realm of the Demon. The Platinum Sword gleamed with a cold light.
An even more terrifying sense of pressure arose. White Night understood that Edelweiss was ready. But... she was truly strong. Could she still erupt with even greater power?
"Then, Xiao Ai, be careful."
A flash of sword light surpassed the limit. In White Night's eyes, the entire world lost its color at that moment.
With only the strength for one strike remaining, White Night almost instinctively used the sword technique he knew best and trusted most.
A majestic Sword Qi shaped like a roaming dragon raged through heaven and earth, diving toward Edelweiss and annihilating everything through absolute "force."
—Hundred Paces Flying Sword!
A silent blast erupted, and a terrifying shockwave swept over them.
"Mm... Are you sure that wasn't a missile?"
Bronya appeared at the edge of the battlefield. Heavy Rabbit manifested, raising an alloy shield that blocked the oncoming shockwave, while her spiral silver hair flew wildly in the gale.
◆ In terms of durability, Yin-Yang was based on the Carefree Token and acknowledged by the world.
Therefore, the Spirit Armor formed from the Yin-Yang fish was truly "indestructible." Excluding attacks on the level of the world itself, its durability was genuinely unbreakable!
After a long while, the battlefield finally settled.
A wave of agonizing pain came through. Tch, she had clearly severed the connection. Was it simply too intense?
Bronya unconsciously wrapped her arms around herself, revealing a woman's frailty for the first time. "Mm... it hurts..."
"Honestly... that guy White Night... is he still alive?" She raised her head with some difficulty and looked toward the smoke-filled battlefield.
A dark-blue mechanical arm reached over and supported Bronya's slightly curled body.
Heavy Rabbit floated closer toward the center of the battlefield. Sword marks seemingly etched into heaven and earth flickered, throwing sparks from Heavy Rabbit's armor.
"Why haven't you dismissed your manifestation yet?"
Leaning against the mechanical arm, Bronya did not connect with White Night—otherwise, the pain would double.
"Yo, hiss..."
White Night had just tried to raise a hand when a burst of pain tugged at him, making Bronya suffer as well. He twitched the corner of his mouth and gave up. "You're here, Bronya."
Um... After Bronya passed through the endless sword marks, she was finally able to see the situation clearly. She could not help falling silent. "Did White Night... win?"
"Win? Probably not."
White Night lay on the ground. Life Chronicle was repairing him with all its strength, but it could not keep up.
At that instant, unparalleled speed, absolute power, violent Magic Power... all kinds of factors had combined, driving the destructive force to its peak!
Edelweiss had also entered the realm of the Demon and unleashed the true Winged Sword.
—The destructive power of that strike had far exceeded the limit an Inherent Gear could withstand.
It was obvious that this clash would end with the destruction of one Spirit Armor.
Logically, Edelweiss should have defeated White Night. She was already accustomed to shattering other people's Inherent Gear.
But this one time, White Night's Spirit Armor was fucking sturdy! When their blades collided, Edelweiss felt as though she had struck a world—perhaps even more than one.
No matter how powerful she was, how could she compare to a world? Without the slightest surprise, the Platinum Sword shattered.
A stabbing pain pierced straight into her soul. Even Edelweiss inevitably lost consciousness.
"Can an egg beat a rock?"
It seemed like he had won, but White Night was not happy. "Seriously... doesn't that make it look like I set her up?"
"Mm, Bronya roughly understands. Then..." Bronya nodded, her silver-pink eyes fixed on White Night.
"Alright, alright, I get it."
A glow of Magic Power flashed. White Night silently dismissed his manifestation, and his body gradually disappeared.
In some unknown space—um... let's call it the "Void." A body appeared there: White Night, deep in slumber.
At that moment, power welled up from the Void and slowly repaired White Night's injuries.
Dragon!
Once White Night was no longer manifested, the pain in Bronya's body immediately eased considerably.
"This time, we really got hurt badly."
As she spoke, Bronya leaped down from Heavy Rabbit's mechanical arm and gauged how long the recovery would take.
Um...
"So it had already reached this extent?" White Night's voice suddenly sounded beside her.
—He had manifested again.
With a helpless smile on his face, White Night spread his arms. The pain made him twitch the corner of his mouth. "It'll actually take three days. If I hadn't checked, I wouldn't have known it was this serious."
"Rather, since it has reached this point, why is White Night still alive?"
"Maybe Life Chronicle is just that effective?"
As he spoke, White Night habitually tried to shrug, only for a stabbing pain to strike him.
"...White Night should go read the progress bar."
"I think so too."
Having reached an agreement, Bronya stirred her thoughts. Heavy Rabbit's mechanical, savage cannon muzzle aimed at White Night. "Then, White Night, see you in one day."
"Heavy Rabbit, fire—!"
Endless light burst from the cannon muzzle, instantly swallowing White Night, who had lowered his guard completely.
"So, what should we do now?"
Looking at the unconscious Edelweiss nearby, Bronya could not help feeling troubled. After all...
—This was Winged Sword Edelweiss!
If news of her injuries got out, it would cause an enormous uproar and might even attract people with ulterior motives. "In that case..."
Had this battlefield covered in sword marks instead become a shelter? She needed to request some assistance.
Before you continue