Stigmata Mode: Spear of Longinus

In the seconds before bursting into the scene, Su Qing'an chose to break his promise to Fu Hua.

Several months later, he finally revived the Artificial Stigmata, and at the same time, the full-power [Thousand Stars] began.

This dual reinforcement, appearing for the first time in the real world, created the domineering scene that the group witnessed.

When Su Qing'an actually took control of the armor, she discovered that it was completely different from the data assessment she had imagined. This was definitely not the normal amplification level of the Third Generation Valkyrie Armor.

Otto's statement that it was "a little better than a bulletproof vest, but not as good as a normal Valkyrie armor" was a complete and utter lie.

His comparison was clearly inferior to the more advanced, unknown armor.

The thousands of flames reflected in their eyes earlier were not a metaphor, but a visual effect of Gamma Particles and Honkai Energy being transformed externally. Unlike the propulsion equipment of ordinary armor, its speed limit and transformation degree are not on the same level.

If Su Qing'an could accurately observe her current situation, she would discover that the preface poems engraved on the watch case are essentially one of the subtle paths of Gamma Particles transmission.

Seemingly to cater to someone's unique aesthetic sense, the preface poems of these ancient texts were projected onto the outside world by Gamma Particles, forming an illusory ring that slowly rotated around the boy. Combined with the endless stream of fire, Satou Yunona was able to recognize Su Qing'an's presence by [Calming the Tempest].

As he stepped completely onto the center of the altar, the boy whispered:

"Full power, Stigmata mode, activated."

[Asyouwish, sir]

Su Qing'an himself didn't know what the so-called Stigmata Mode was for. It was an AI that suggested he activate this mode after he activated the Artificial Stigmata in order to cut through the storm.

Having already made up his mind, Su Qing'an accepted without hesitation. Since he dared to wear this armor, even though the amplification was far beyond his expectations, he had no reason not to believe Otto. On the contrary, perhaps this only proved that the man hoped to see a different ending.

After activating the Stigmata mode, the AI responded as follows:

[SpearofLonginusloading]

The Spear of Longinus, loading.

Su Qing'an had heard of this legend, the Spear of Longinus.

According to the Bible, this was a spear that once pierced Jesus.

As a weapon deemed intelligently capable of cleaving through the center of a storm, this name clearly demonstrates great sincerity.

The fire and Gamma Particles that were originally the driving force now dissipated around the armor, gathering together like droplets of water in an ocean.

Meanwhile, a portion of the massive Honkai Energy raging wildly within the Artificial Stigmata was inexplicably drawn away by a force field and entirely absorbed into this illusory gun shadow, forming its final flesh and blood.

The three miniature power reactors inside the armor continued to frantically absorb Honkai Energy from the outside world, while simultaneously filling the Holy Spear with Honkai Energy as its best fuel.

Used to cut through storms of this level?

The capabilities of this armor are far beyond what is shown here.

Su Qing'an began to suspect that Otto had replicated some of the God-Slaying Armor's abilities into it; the scale and quality of this armor had already exceeded his original expectations.

Just as the boy was about to draw his gun and strike, a voice suddenly interrupted the intelligent voice module and entered his ears.

"Xiao Su, in the center of the altar is Teacher Himeko! Not some other monster. She's trapped inside the Xuanyuan Sword, and we don't know her current situation."

It was Bronya; the versatile ability of the Heavy Cannon Rabbit allowed her to promptly inform Su Qing'an of this important information.

At such a rapid pace, Su Qing'an's first reaction was naturally not to consider everyone's situation, but to resolve the source of the crisis before carefully understanding the current situation. That's why he failed to discover Murata Himeko's disappearance and the true identity in the center of the storm.

But Bronya's words made him understand the current situation.

Su Qing'an responded:

"I understand, Bronya."

So he abandoned his plan to strike horizontally and instead drew his spear and slashed horizontally across the space ten meters above the central altar.

Fueled by continuously outputting Honkai Energy, the armor's internal intelligent module calculation formulas and the Void Sword Qi provide auxiliary calibration, further enhanced by the excellent extensibility of Gamma Particles.

The Holy Spear expanded a thousandfold the moment it was swung out, directly and domineeringly annihilating the structure of the ever-flowing Honkai Energy storm. Like a puppet show with its strings cut, the turbulent wind instantly ceased to flow.

Gamma Particles and residual Honkai Energy returned to the armor, and the boy stood before the now silent altar, falling into silence.

The true scene has now been revealed in the center of the altar, which was previously obscured by the intense wind.

It was a gigantic, transparent cocoon of light, within which lay an unimaginable level of Honkai Energy.

In comparison, the storm that left these people in such a sorry state was merely some of the aftershocks.

The most crucial point is that what is being nurtured inside the cocoon of light is not some terrifying, super-sized Emperor-class Honkai Beast, but a beautiful woman with long, flowing red hair and quiet, closed eyes. She is holding the Xuanyuan Sword, as if she has fallen into a sleep from which she may never Awakened.

Murata Himeko.

Su Qing'an murmured in a daze:

"Himeko..."

Bronya and Raiden Mei, who rushed over, also managed to witness this scene up close.

Kiana held Satou Yunona in her arms, her gaze fixed on Himeko inside the cocoon of light, clearly bewildered by the situation before her.

Theoretically speaking, regardless of what the Xuanyuan Sword actually did, rescuing Himeko from this strange cocoon of light is the most urgent task.

However, Su Qing'an seemed hesitant at this moment. He dispelled the amplification effect of [Thousand Stars], clearly troubled by the current situation.

The boy was also a recipient of Artificial Stigmata, and he knew all too well what would happen if he were to fall into such an extremely high concentration of Honkai Energy without any protection.

Himeko's current situation is more than just that; this cocoon of light is entirely condensed from Honkai Energy.

Logically speaking, this should have been an inevitable dead end.

However, the woman's body showed no signs of being Honkai Energy, and Kenshin's perception confirmed that she was still alive.

Although it defies common sense, this may be the only good news right now.

This also prevented Su Qing'an from choosing to violently dismantle the light cocoon, because he couldn't guarantee that such a choice would affect Himeko's life.

Bronya said calmly:

"Let's observe for a while, Xiao Su."

"Although Bronya thinks this method is stupid, it's the only way we're sure won't hurt Himeko- sensei."

Mei nodded solemnly in agreement. They pulled Su Qing'an back a few steps to ensure they wouldn't be in trouble should an unexpected situation arise.

Approaching the Xuanyuan Sword rashly without understanding its origins is an unwise move.

However, before the group could make any effective decisions, the cocoon began to move.

"--!"

It was the sound of glass shattering and bricks being trampled. Fine cracks spread to all sides of the cocoon of light, accompanied by an even more violent shattering sound, and the cage was mostly broken.

The red-haired woman opened her eyes and walked out of her original cage expressionlessly. Her Amber eyes were dull and lifeless, and her unfocused pupils proved that Himeko's mind had not yet recovered.

The bright red Valkyrie armor, like an ancient artifact weathered by time, was slowly cracking...

As the woman steadied herself, the intimate clothing that concealed her beautiful figure, along with her Valkyrie armor, shattered and melted into the void. Before the snow-white expanse could even come into view, blazing flames erupted from the remnants of the cocoon of light behind her, engulfing Himeko's body.

The sound of firewood burning intensely grew louder in the somber atmosphere.

Having witnessed this scene unfold, Su Qing'an understood that Himeko's life was not in danger, but he also learned a fact.

A fact that he found difficult to confront and react to instantly.

The remains of the cocoon contained enough Honkai Energy reserves to unleash hundreds of such storms, but at this moment, this Honkai Energy was contained within the woman's smooth, pristine skin by astonishing control, obscuring all traces of spring.

It resembled an extremely thin evening gown, its main colors being a deep, dark black and a blood-red hue. The black fabric, as if torn apart, was tattered, revealing large areas of fair skin from the chest and thighs.

This is a dress with strong beauty and full of seductive desire. This dress should not be suitable for formal occasions, but it can be worn on a woman with gorgeous red hair and unique temperament, but it does not look kitsch at all.

The warrior's cold, hard gaze overshadowed the vibrant colors of the exposed skin in the woman's indifferent glances at the group, her eyes cold and lifeless.

Everyone present understood that this was definitely not a simple, ordinary dress.

Regardless of its appearance, the Honkai Energy, so powerful it sends chills down your spine, combined with the amplification it could deliver, far exceeded the limits that previous armors could achieve.

Fusion Core • Crimson.

Even if powered by warship-level energy, activating the Nexus System on board, and ultimately pushing the armor to its limits of overload, Su Qing'an had reason to believe that it was far less terrifying than the gown woven by the Xuanyuan Sword.

It's important to know that the Fusion Armor Crimson, linked to the Hyperion and brought to its ultimate state, possesses strength surpassing even that of Emperor-class Honkai Beast.

Even the Third Herrscher, Himeko could contend with her in this state.

But Su Qing'an made this judgment, which is enough to show just how much pressure Himeko is putting on him right now.

If a comparison must be made, it would be comparable to the pressure that the Jizo Mitama exerted on him at that time.

However, Su Qing'an no longer has Yae Rin as a natural Stigmata, and even with the armor given by Otto to make up for the gap, there is still an insurmountable limit.

Murata Himeko raised the Xuanyuan Sword, which was shrouded in darkness, and slowly walked towards the group.

Su Qing'an gripped the sword in his hand tightly and said:

"Himeko, can you hear me?"

There was no response.

Raiden Mei said in a trembling voice:

"Himeko- sensei?"

There was no response.

Bronya took a deep breath and said calmly:

"Xiao Su, Mei Himeko, Teacher Himeko is currently in a very strange state."

She didn't say it explicitly, but whether it was Kiana judging from the voice in the earpiece, or Raiden Mei and Su Qing'an who were right next to her, they could all understand one thing.

Murata Himeko may have been turned into their enemy by the Xuanyuan Sword.

The boy said softly:

"Himeko, is that alright with you?"

Su Qing'an was met with the expected silence. The woman's footsteps on the ground were crisp and resolute. She seemed to be immersed in a void, or as if she had been completely corrupted by Honkai Energy and turned into Zombie.

The Xuanyuan Sword harbors the corrupted and distorted remnant soul of Ji Xuanyuan, who transformed Himeko into an incredibly bizarre state.

On one hand, her body had already been Honkai Energy, so it wouldn't be surprising if she had directly turned into Zombie. However, there was no trace of Honkai Energy erosion on her surface.

Every inch of her skin was incredibly fair; rather than being Honkai Energy, it was more like she had been reborn from the ashes.

The minor scars on the body disappeared in the baptism of fire and the shaping of the cocoon of light, and even the physiological phenomena underwent certain changes.

Assuming Satou Yunona is still conscious, perhaps she could understand that Murata Himeko at this moment, apart from lacking the Pseudo-Herrscher Core, is remarkably similar to the Pseudo-Herrscher in other aspects.

But all of this is fleeting, like a firework that blooms and fades quickly, a mere side effect of modifications made to ensure the women's fighting ability.

But in reality, things won't turn out so well. The woman's outward appearance remains intact, but her organs, already Artificial Stigmata Erosion, are now on their way to ruin.

Before long, Murata Himeko organs had completely failed, would not be able to survive even if she did not become Zombie.

While her mind was being overwhelmed by Ji Xuanyuan's sea of emotions, she was also suffering from the damage of Honkai Energy. Just like those Valkyrie who lost their intelligence after becoming Zombie, Himeko would soon be completely lost in the Abyss from every corner.

Su Qing'an was unaware of these things, but the current situation had already filled him with genuine fear and dread.

None of the men present should have been so indecisive, yet the women before them were indispensable figures in their lives.

Kiana's voice came from beside him; it was Bronya who had helped Su Qing'an connect to the team's voice chat.

"Su Qing'an, Mei, Bronya, do you still remember the first lesson Teacher Himeko taught us before we went to war?"

They couldn't possibly forget, but none of them answered immediately.

Kiana said:

"When you discover that a teammate is showing signs of becoming Zombie and being completely corrupted by Honkai Energy, you must kill her without hesitation. This is the moment that Teacher Himeko is talking about."

The girl smiled and continued:

"It's a pity, I've never been a very obedient student."

Bronya responded:

"If Himeko- sensei wakes up, Bronya will apologize to her."

Raiden Mei drew her scalpel and said:

"I'll turn a blind eye to Himeko secretly drinking beer."

Su Qing'an responded softly:

"Then let's struggle for a bit."