Judgment-class Honkai Beast.

On the same day, that evening.

Moth to Fire Australia Branch.

A brand-new Honkai Energy detector is connected to a large screen. Complex data is fully absorbed and accepted by the super-intelligent system. The intelligent module named Prometheus is revived here with the sudden appearance of strange fluctuations.

[At coordinates 33°55'S, 150°53'E, fluctuations are observed that are slightly different from those observed in the Honkai Energy environment.]

[A embryo suspected to Emperor-class has arrived; estimated birth time is three hours and twenty-three minutes.]

[Intelligent module filtering, low priority index, no need to notify all personnel, link with Dr. Mei for summary, and notify on-site personnel to conduct reconnaissance and elimination.]

[Above.]

Information is sent, and instructions are issued.

Prometheus's intelligent module fell silent again, but was forced to revive just five minutes later, suddenly entering a high-speed operating state.

[The Honkai Energy fluctuations are showing an exponential increase, ruling out the possibility of a potential Emperor-class embryo. The data continues to Fierce Wave upwards; based on statistical estimates, maintaining this rate for 31 minutes and 57 seconds will bring it close to Herrscher reaction.]

[The intelligent module has re-filtered the data, with an extremely high priority index.]

[All personnel at the Australian branch are immediately placed on Level 1 alert.]

The news of the Fifth Herrscher's recent death hadn't fully taken hold, but other crises had already drawn the attention of the higher-ups...

Sydney, on the southeastern coast of Australia.

As one of the few continental plates that remained largely unaffected during the Great Honkai, Sydney still has a population of nearly three million.

Clearly, compared to Honkai overwhelming despair and calamity of the Honkai, the El Niño phenomenon or the Southern El Niño that once ravaged this corner of the world can only be considered gentle. Droughts, forest fires, and storms in this era are like gifts from nature.

At this moment, some unexpected situations have arisen in this vast city that is barely maintaining peace.

If you take the 380 bus from Bondi Beach, you can reach Watson Bay, the strange place discovered by Prometheus.

It is located south of Sydney Harbour and at the tip of the South Point Peninsula. It is bordered by the Tasman Sea and the South Pacific Ocean to the east, and connected to Jackson Harbour to the west.

As can be seen on a geographical map, the promontory jutting out from Watson Bay is called South Cape, which faces North Cape across the bay from the estuary.

The steep cliffs of Manley at the North Point and the Hornsby Lighthouse perched atop the steep cliffs of the South Point of Watson Bay echo each other from their elevated vantage points, like two warriors guarding the gates of Sydney Harbour.

In the past, many tourists would have come to visit and take photos, as one could easily see the Sydney city center from the cliff.

At that time, the Sydney cityscape will be clearly visible. Under the blue sky and white clouds, the interplay of waves and reefs will always evoke many beautiful thoughts.

However, since the Great Honkai, few people have come to such a remote place from the city. After all, no one knows if they will be unlucky enough to encounter a terrifying Honkai Beast and die. Staying in the city guarded by the Moth to Fire soldiers and Mechanical Force is the safest way to live.

The strange events at this moment silently proved the correctness of this point. The Honkai Energy analyzer inside the Hornsby Lighthouse emitted a dazzling red light as it slowly rotated. The noisy and urgent alarm sounded even before Prometheus, and the sound of horns mixed with the sound of the waves spread all over the field.

The pristine white lighthouse gleamed with a deep red light, its presence strikingly prominent in this nearly deserted area.

The anomaly that triggered this dangerous alarm gradually revealed its origin amidst the seamless blue of the sea and sky.

--A massive, dark tectonic plate parted the vast sea with a heavy and terrifying force. Large amounts of silt and clods of earth surged up in this manner reminiscent of the Parting of the Red Sea, only to slide back down in the blink of an eye, creating huge waves that rushed in all directions.

If you stand on the cliff at the south corner of Watson Bay, you can see this magnificent, apocalyptic scene from below.

Endless waves twisted and turned into hundreds of overlapping vortexes—this unnatural scene was caused by the massive flow of Honkai Energy.

The waves then created a deafening roar, almost instantly drowning out the lighthouse's whistle. Deep breathing sounds emanated from between the large tectonic plates, and the massive commotion, like an underwater storm, forcefully swallowed all other sounds into the deeper abyss.

Assuming this is normal breathing that a living organism can produce, it can only be understood as some kind of mythical creature that has always existed in human imagination.

Unseen by anyone, this magnificent sight, carried by powerful ocean currents and whirlpools, swept towards the headland of Watson Bay!

The massive tectonic plate, stretching across the horizon, had not yet revealed its full form. It crashed into the cliff edge at the southern corner with tremendous force, causing a corner of the cliff to collapse. Tons of rocks fell into the whirlpool, only to be shattered into scattered pieces and sink into the seabed in an instant.

Meanwhile, the black plate, acting as the impactor, was ground into a larger gap, and the deafening roar that pierced eardrums was incessant under the impact, far surpassing that of a battering ram. Within thirty seconds, most of the plate, which served as the outer skin, was peeled off, replaced by a pale outer shell.

--It looks like the silicon-based material that Honkai Beast are used to, but if you observe it with special instruments, you can find that there are fine scales, down to the micrometer level, arranged on these seemingly smooth surfaces.

Emperor-class Honkai Beast?

No, the initially detected Honkai Energy level now appears to have been a false alarm.

The other party must possess the ability to conceal its Honkai Energy. Furthermore, the presence of this sediment indicates that the other party was previously in a distant underwater world, which explains the significant discrepancy between the initial data from the Honkai Energy detector and reality.

After revealing only the tip of the iceberg of this unknown-level Honkai Beast, it began to break free from the shackles that bound its body—thick, black rock layers—and its pale shell was gradually exposed to the sunlight, revealing its true form.

Satellites monitoring the scene in real time, through rigorous data analysis, produced alarming results.

The front of this pitch-black section, which almost rivals the entire cliff... is very likely just the head of this Honkai Beast.

It didn't take long for it to prove the accuracy of the superintelligence's judgment.

Dragon head.

Perhaps it's a bit strange and inappropriate to use this mythical creature that only exists in our imagination as a pronoun, but when the appearance of the Honkai Beast is suddenly revealed, this is the first impression that comes to mind.

Based on the proportions, those two organs, each ten meters in diameter, are roughly the eyes of the Honkai Beast.

Those beastly eyes seemed to have a layer of purple, semi-transparent film, with pitch-black pupils inside. At first glance, they resembled the space between rock layers and a living organism, where Seawater and rocks were easily deflected upon collision without causing the slightest ripple.

With a roar, it completely tore apart the restraints binding its head, its open maw swallowing Seawater and constantly crumbling rock layers. Purple Honkai Energy particles gathered into bundles within, and almost in the blink of an eye, hundreds of beams of light burst forth, breaking through the vortex and completely engulfing the obstacles.

The beast, now completely freed from its restraints, devoured the lighthouse at the southern corner of Watson Bay. The Hornsby Lighthouse, perched on the edge of the cliff, was swallowed by this Honkai Beast, whose size exceeded human imagination, and its stomach, of unknown structure, was extinguished.

Ten minutes later.

The Honkai Beast, now even larger, swallowed the edge of Watson Bay into its bottomless abyss. It let out a long, mournful roar, like a terrifying demon from the depths of hell, and continued to gnaw at the rock formations and buildings, relentlessly advancing towards the nearby residential area...

It's 8 PM now, and Mei's work hours are clearly not over yet, but the current situation forces her to pay attention to it.

The Australian branch of the Moth to Fire is now under Mei's control. Although she doesn't find it particularly interesting, she has no choice but to make some concessions in order to obtain more resources and rights to meet the needs of her experiments.

Given Mei's reputation and achievements, there was no need for further embellishment, so no formal ceremony was held to transfer power. However, real power was indeed handed over to her, and all soldiers and staff were overjoyed by her presence.

While ascending to a higher status will undoubtedly bring many inconveniences, it has saved her a considerable amount of time at this stage. This is the core reason why Mei did not interfere when the authorities were going along with it.

However, given the current unforeseen circumstances, even from an efficiency-first perspective, Mei is unsure whether this deal is a profit or a loss.

The Honkai Energy level of the unknown Honkai Beast stopped at a level far below that of the Herrscher at 2 minutes and 13 seconds, but after it devoured part of Watson Bay, the original Honkai Energy level changed.

That's a significant increase... almost equivalent to half a head of Emperor-class Honkai Energy reserves.

It is suspected that it possesses the ability to convert matter into Honkai Energy by consuming it. This makes it understandable that it can continuously devour matter that exceeds its own volume. If it digests and converts matter into Honkai Energy in some way, then it is also understandable that it can consume it indefinitely.

Things involving Honkai can almost always distort the laws of physics to some extent.

In Mei's eyes, this was already a common occurrence. Normal scientific thinking could not lead humanity to victory, so she would instantly accept any mystery she faced and find a solution.

Using data transmitted from the Honkai Energy Detector she had recently developed during the brief moment it was swallowed into the opponent's stomach, the girl devised a plan to kill him within a minute.

Between the nearly 1,000-meter-long shell of the unknown Honkai Beast are three areas with highly concentrated Honkai Energy. Based on previous judgments, these are probably the base stations that store and supply Honkai Energy converted from matter.

Using human organs as an analogy, perhaps the heart would be a more appropriate description.

Mei suspected that three hearts were not the limit for the creature. If it continued to devour more matter, it might create new hearts to store Honkai Energy.

If such an ability truly exists, perhaps the current Honkai Beast classification system is insufficient to describe it.

She gazed at the spectacular sight of the sea almost completely empty.

--A massive Honkai Beast, its pale skin tinged with purple patterns, stood here, its wings, formed by the fusion of crystal and flesh, extending from the spine of a mountain range. Its sky-covering shell was comparable to a heavyweight warship of today. It devoured the tectonic plates in front of it, and this magnificent scene, which seemed to engulf everything, was like a judgment handed down to humanity by a high god.

Mei muttered to herself:

"A trial? Using 'trial' to describe this level would be quite appropriate."

[Establish a data archive and supplement the category above Emperor-class – Judgment.]

As she heard the intelligent statement, she whispered:

"Theoretically, destroying all three of its hearts simultaneously would kill it."

"Prometheus, send the dispatched troops to probe and calculate the difficulty of melting through that layer of skin as quickly as possible. Time is of the essence."

[Dr. Mei, the missile was successfully launched three seconds ago.]

Mei stared at the Honkai Beast, which appeared to be composed of biomolecules with a silicon skeleton, and fell silent.

The dense missiles pierced and tore through the enemy's outer shell the instant they bombarded it, revealing a nearly transparent structure composed of interwoven, glass-fiber-like threads linked by the writhing of muscle groups. The three hearts within its body supplied a large amount of Honkai Energy with each breath, and at a visible rate, these mysterious structures wove together a completely new, pale outer shell.

[The analysis results are in. Aside from the warship under construction, which might breach the enemy's defenses after it rolls out, there are currently no weapons capable of destroying the enemy's outer shell and its three cores in the short term without affecting residential areas.]

Even without Prometheus's further explanation, Mei knew perfectly well what the most convenient and reliable way to kill the opponent was...

Even though her emotions had become increasingly indifferent over the past six months through restraint, she still disliked this method.

As a pure intelligence, Prometheus lacks emotions. It can understand Mei's thoughts through the intelligence module, but it also understands that someone needs to propose this solution at this moment. Otherwise, after suffering repeated defeats and allowing the enemy to devour the continent and plunder a large number of residents, the cost-effectiveness will only be worse.

Therefore, it suggested:

[Based on the data Mr. Su collected during his battle with the Fifth Herrscher, even in his current state, killing Judgment-class Honkai Beast would not be difficult for him.]

"The Artificial Stigmata inside him is gone," the girl sighed softly.

Prometheus said:

[Mr. Su's statement that his soul power could continue to function and survive even after the Artificial Stigmata disappeared, based on the decrease in Honkai adaptability and the temporary weakening of his physical strength, suggests that Mr. Su's current peak combat power is only 94.71% of his original strength.]

[Compared to this data, with only three hearts for Judgment-class Honkai Beast, Mr. Su's probability of dying in battle is 7%, with four hearts it's 18%, and with five hearts it's 39%.]

[Currently, the severely injured Fifth Herrscher has consumed most of the Honkai Fission Honkai Fission Bomb inventory. Based on the evolution of the official upper echelons' personality models, there is a 12% chance that a decision will be made before the Judgment-class Honkai Beast undergoes its first evolution, and a 29% chance that they will wait and see, hoping that Mr. Su will intervene to reduce the consumption of Honkai Fission Bomb. Combining these factors, there is a 71% probability that Mr. Su will participate in the battle.]

In conclusion, it is recommended that a decision be made immediately.

Mei whispered:

"They're not as stupid as you think, Prometheus."

She watched the monster, bathed in gunfire, as it forcibly moved forward and devoured itself, and said indifferently:

"But there's not enough time."

"Connect the communication and transmit all the data to Su Qing'an."

"If he refuses, pass the call to higher-ups, and I'll come up with another alternative."

Su Qing'an stood at the church near Watson Bay. Nearby residents had been gradually arranged to take emergency evacuation. The numerous drills over the past six months had resulted in the personnel's competence being barely maintained at the level of being able to obey orders.

The Honkai Energy fluctuations in the distance were almost constantly approaching, and he sensed a faint familiarity with the Honkai Beast in the distance.

Based on the information provided by Mei, the boy suspected that the other party was actually Judgment-class being created by the massive Honkai Energy that occurred when the Herrscher of Ice was born.

Such exaggerated abilities and physical form can also explain why it has only now appeared before humanity. Compared to Herrscher directly possess highly efficient condensed materials like Herrscher Core, this Judgment-class Honkai Beast can only create a bulky body and multiple stacked organs to bear that level of Honkai Energy.

The numerical parameters calculated by Prometheus did not take into account the Soul Essence and physical strength required for [Udu-dust • Little Feather].

If we compare Udu-dust to Ultraman's transformation device, then its many previous performances undoubtedly prove that it has a limit to its durability.

Furthermore, the fact that the [Stigmata]'s power fluctuates due to the overdraft caused by the use of [Udu-dust •Critical] is not within the opponent's information database means that Su Qing'an's chances of winning are far lower than what Prometheus estimated.

But I had no choice but to come.

Fortunately, there was a half-day buffer period between the Herrscher of Ice and the Judgment-class Honkai Beast; otherwise, the odds of winning would probably be less than fifty-fifty. For Su Qing'an was unable to enter [Udu-dust • Critical] and had lost his Artificial Stigmata, defeating Judgment-class Honkai Beast would be tantamount to making things difficult for himself.

From the eaves of the church, one can see the silhouette stretching like mountains at the horizon.

The Judgment-class Honkai Beast, which appeared both familiar and strange, momentarily stunned Su Qing'an.

He murmured:

"Judgment-class Honkai Beast, Chi You."

"So this isn't the first time it's happened."

This was the being who, by simply transmitting Honkai Energy to Ji Xuanyuan through his heart, had rendered him almost helpless.

Now it appears before our eyes in its newly born but intact form, but the difference in power levels is no longer as vast as before.

A white-haired, red-eyed youth stepped into the void, the ink-black light dripping from his fingertips converging like a beautiful radiance...

Watson Bay, Australia, 10:17 PM.

Judgment-class Honkai Beast, Chi You.

Death confirmed.