"Take it, then." Yu Luo gave a bitter smile. At least the system was willing to help, and his heart finally settled. "I can even give up my life. What price could I possibly not afford to pay?"
At the same time, a desire for power surged within Yu Luo. Just as the system had said, as long as he transformed, there would be no Honkai Beast or zombie he could not handle. Even when facing the Third Herrscher for the first time, even if he could not win, he could still run away.
Perhaps things had gone too smoothly for him. Yu Luo had actually become somewhat complacent about his current strength, until the Third Herrscher, who had completely taken over Mei Raiden's body, dealt him a crushing blow and made him truly realize just how weak he was.
"Link Start!" Along with the system's excited, cringe-inducing voice, Yu Luo found that he had lost control of his body. He could only sit within his mind, like he was watching a movie, sharing everything his body saw and heard.
The moment the system took control of Yu Luo's body, it canceled Arash's transformation. The armor on his body and the bow in his hand dissolved into particles, revealing his battered, scar-covered body.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Severe internal injuries, every muscle torn, nearly a third of your blood lost, three or four broken ribs." The system marveled at Yu Luo's condition. "Fine. As part of the deal, I'll repair some of your fatal injuries. A body like this can't beat up the power-leveler on the other side."
The system closed its eyes, and an invisible ripple enveloped Yu Luo's entire body. Yu Luo immediately felt all the pain vanish, replaced by an unprecedented lightness and strength. He could feel explosive power within his body, enough to probably collapse an entire building with one punch.
"This is?!" Yu Luo raised his head and asked the system controlling his body. The system curled its lip. "I converted your body into materialized mana. Just understand that your body is now the same as a Heroic Spirit's."
"Don't ask why I didn't offer this service earlier. First, it isn't within my sales scope. Second, I'm just a system. I can't directly give you power; that violates System Law!"
Yu Luo rolled his eyes. There were too many things wrong with this so-called System Law for him to even know where to begin criticizing it. Meanwhile, the Third Herrscher floated in midair, her thunder wings beating as she looked at "Yu Luo," who had withdrawn from his transformed state, and sneered, "What, have you recognized the gap between us and decided to give up?"
"Yu Luo" controlled his body, now converted into materialized mana, and floated into the air. His face carried eager excitement. With a flick of his right hand, a golden card appeared between his fingers. He showed its back to the Third Herrscher and said flippantly, "Come on, round two starts now. Watch closely and see how a real big shot plays!" His final sentence was directed at Yu Luo in his mind.
"Oh?" The Third Herrscher looked at "Yu Luo" with interest, her gaze constantly sweeping over him as if she wanted to see through him completely. "Interesting. Is this your trump card?"
"Yu Luo" smiled, raised the golden Heroic Spirit Card in his hand, and struck an extremely cringe-inducing pose. Inside his mind, Yu Luo slapped a hand over his face. He could not bear to watch.
"Henshin!"
A golden pillar of light pierced the heavens and earth like a raging torrent, matching the Thunder Pillar the Third Herrscher had created earlier in sheer presence. The entire Changkong City could see it clearly.
"What's going on?! Has another Herrscher appeared?!"
On the Hyperion, a small child hurried into the command room and asked the adjutant beside her, "Has Himeko still not sent back any news?!"
Though faced with a child, the adjutant treated her as though she were his superior and answered respectfully, "Principal Theresa, the electromagnetic field outside is too strong. Our surveillance and communication systems have completely failed. We have no way of learning what is happening outside."
"Open the door. I'm going to the bridge to see what's happening." Theresa gave the order calmly, but the adjutant hesitated. "The situation outside is too dangerous, Principal, you..."
"I order you, in my capacity as an S-rank Valkyrie and director of the Far East Branch, to open the ship's door!" A powerful aura erupted from Theresa's child-sized body. The adjutant could only swallow the rest of his words and obediently open the door leading to the bridge.
The moment Theresa stepped out of the ship, the sight before her stunned her beyond words. "This is..."
High in the air, a man and a woman faced each other. The woman was the Third Herrscher they had already observed from the battleship, while the man floating in the air was what truly shocked Theresa.
"He seems to be someone with a Stigmata." Himeko leaned on her greatsword and dragged herself before Theresa, her injuries about as severe as Yu Luo's had been. She explained the current situation. "Although men theoretically cannot possess Stigmata, he has indeed displayed power similar to one—and more than one at that."
Theresa looked at the man confronting the Third Herrscher. He had short silver hair, a black bodysuit, and a red cape fluttering wildly in the gale. He held a black and a white shortsword in his hands, and his presence was in no way inferior to the Third Herrscher's.
"This is what you're relying on? Let me see what you're made of!" The Third Herrscher looked at the cold-faced "Yu Luo." Lightning from the void gathered in her palms, and with a wave of her hands, she unleashed a Thunder Pillar that tore through the sky with crashing thunder and struck directly at "Yu Luo."
"Yu Luo's" expression did not change. The black and white swords in his hands flashed, and the Thunder Pillar that could have effortlessly knocked Yu Luo out of his transformed state was casually cut apart, turning into scattered sparks that dissipated into the void.
"Not bad. Then what about this?!" The Third Herrscher sneered and once again gathered lightning from the void, condensing it behind her thunder wings into terrifying spheres of lightning.
"Too slow!"
"Yu Luo" spoke coldly. He kicked off the empty air beneath his feet, leaving a red afterimage across the sky. In the blink of an eye, he appeared beside the Third Herrscher and swung the black and white swords in his hands in a vicious slash at the thunder wings behind her.
"How could..." The Third Herrscher still saw the crimson trail in her eyes and could not react in time, but her body sensed the danger and moved on its own. She kicked hard at "Yu Luo's" wrist. The inhuman force knocked him off balance, and her thunder wings beat repeatedly as she directly detonated several spherical lightning bolts that had not yet fully formed.
"Boom, boom, boom, boom..." The explosions did not cease. Dense electric serpents filled the air, completely burying "Yu Luo" within them. Taking advantage of the opportunity, the Third Herrscher quickly pulled away and stared solemnly at his position.
"Rho Aias!" As "Yu Luo's" voice fell, a semi-illusory barrier with seven petals appeared before him. It was the divine shield Athena had given Perseus in legend, each petal possessing the defensive power of an ancient city wall.
Countless electric serpents coiled around it, yet they could not even break a single petal of the divine shield and could only dissipate helplessly into the void. The semi-illusory barrier vanished as well, revealing "Yu Luo" within. He stared coldly at the Third Herrscher, who had retreated, and sneered. "You think pulling away will help?"
His hands dropped to his sides, and the black and white swords disappeared. A greatbow suddenly appeared in his empty hands. "Yu Luo" calmly drew the bow and aimed at the distant Third Herrscher.
"Damn it!" A bad premonition suddenly rose in the Third Herrscher's heart. Her thunder wings beat fiercely as she lowered her altitude and darted between Changkong City's towering buildings, attempting to disrupt "Yu Luo's" line of sight.
"Trace on!"
"Yu Luo" pulled back the bowstring with his right hand, drawing the greatbow into a full moon. Lightning flashed across the string, and a bizarre crimson sword appeared upon it. "Yu Luo" closed his eyes, activating the B+-rank Hawk Eye. A bird's-eye view of the entire city appeared in his mind, and the Third Herrscher weaving through the skyscrapers naturally entered his sight.
"Go!" With a cold shout, "Yu Luo" released the bowstring. Hrunting shot straight toward the fleeing Third Herrscher with a howling gale. "Crash..." Like a meteor from the horizon, Hrunting tore through building after building with unstoppable force, closing in on the Third Herrscher's back.
Before you continue