Insight

Ji stood on the tip of the sword, looking down from above.

Xu Muchi drew her sword and retreated. Ji threw the two corpses in her hands, and a spear appeared in her hand, which she hurled fiercely.

Clang!

Blocking the incoming spear, Xu Muchi turned her gaze back to the crowd. As expected, the Herrscher had charged forward again.

So far, Elfa and Morr were holding each other back, unable to disengage. Those who had gone to attack the fortress and the floating battleship had already joined the fight to surround Ji.

Although Xu Ying had sustained many injuries, he was completely unaffected. Xu Muchi had been evading the Herrscher, and aside from slight fatigue, she hadn't been caught in the attack waves. Gu Yan, though he had lost half his life, was about to recover, with his combat ability essentially unimpaired.

However, the others were in a much worse state. Their abilities had minimal effect, making it difficult even to survive. Little fighting power remained, and the fallen were not even granted a complete corpse.

In contrast, the Herrscher, in their eyes, was at the end of her rope. Blood stained her entire body, and wounds covered her. While this didn't affect her strength, she was clearly pushing herself to the limit.

The cost was immense, but victory was within reach!

Gu Yan seized the opportunity while the Herrscher was attacking others, quickly adjusting his stance and paying close attention to her every move.

Just as the Herrscher was about to strike again, Gu Yan moved. He appeared behind the Herrscher and threw a punch.

Ji reacted swiftly, her left hand turning into a palm to block the punch. Just as she was about to exert force, she saw Gu Yan lift his leg and kick towards her side. She simply held her sword horizontally by her side; if Gu Yan didn't stop, his leg would be severed.

But Gu Yan ignored it, his force undiminished. As his lower leg was about to collide with the blade, he directly used an ability he had plundered:

Phasing!

If she couldn't deal with the Herrscher, couldn't she deal with a sword?

As his lower leg passed through the blade, it seemed to turn into a visible, intangible holographic projection. No collision occurred, and naturally, no damage was sustained. He kicked the Herrscher's shield.

Bang!

The shield shattered again, the breach even worse than before. The others, already experienced, immediately unleashed their abilities into the opening.

But Ji, of course, was prepared. She first grabbed Gu Yan's wrist and flung him aside, then blocked the subsequent attacks one by one. Even those she couldn't fully block couldn't heavily wound her.

Xu Ying attempted to repeat his previous move, but Ji focused her attention on him. Seeing him prepare to act, she drew her weapon and swung fiercely, severing Xu Ying's hands before slashing at his body, nearly cleaving his upper torso.

However, Ji's greatest threat had always been Xu Muchi. After she unleashed a slash, Xu Muchi's attack followed, a sharp and dense sword light forcing her back. Caught off guard, she fell into a disadvantage!

With hardly any time to rest, Gu Yan charged at the Herrscher again. Both possessed extremely high-level ancient martial arts, and with their coordination, they firmly suppressed Ji.

"It's over!"

Gu Yan struck the Herrscher's left shoulder with a palm, sending her staggering back. Xu Muchi immediately thrust her sword forward, piercing her chest.

"Cough, cough!"

The pain could no longer be endured. Ji curled up and squatted down, her body swaying as if she might fall at any moment.

Despite being so severely wounded, Gu Yan didn't let his guard down even slightly. He knew all too well how tenacious the Herrscher's vitality was.

"Not bad, passable." Ji's flippant demeanor changed. She lowered her head, speaking to someone unknown, leaving everyone confused. This "praise" tone was incredibly jarring, and at this moment, she didn't resemble the mad demoness she had been moments before.

Coupled with her pathetic state, the incongruity was even stronger.

"Hm?" Gu Yan raised an eyebrow, showing no outward reaction. But he knew Ji was referring to him. Why? He felt as if this Herrscher had some misunderstanding about him.

"Indeed... it should be over." Ji said with a hint of regret, shaking her head slightly. If this continued, she would become just as pathetic.

"Tsk..."

She had lowered the Honkai, abandoned her human identity, and slaughtered thirty percent of the world's elite forces. She was already beyond reproach as a God.

It was a pity that this rebellious younger brother was still not very obedient.

Ji's eyes met Gu Yan's. Gu Yan's gaze was filled with confusion, but Ji merely offered a faint smile.

He understood its meaning: We will meet again.

"What do you mean?" Gu Yan questioned. Before, his thoughts had been simple: stop the Honkai, stop the Herrscher. But Ji's actions seemed to cause him no harm, and she had held back repeatedly.

Their paths diverged, and they fought for their respective factions; this was normal. The Herrscher was an enemy of humanity, and Gu Yan was an enemy of the Herrscher, devoid of personal hatred.

Even if she had indirectly killed hundreds of millions of people.

There was no difference between the Honkai and the natural selection of the fittest in nature. The Herrscher's world-ending ambitions were no different from a beast's hunt; it was simply the world's cycle.

But what did Ji's words to Gu Yan imply?

We will eventually reunite? Are you having some sibling bonding moment here?

Or was this a threat? Gu Yan didn't know. He was confused, but it wouldn't change anything. He had no tragic past, no feelings of world-weariness. Perhaps the world was never beautiful, but he would stand on humanity's side and protect everything he held dear.

Ji didn't answer. Instead, she shifted her gaze to Morr, who was at a disadvantage and heavily wounded.

"Morr, come back."

Hearing her master's call, Morr gritted her teeth and took a punch from Elfa, using the momentum to retreat to Ji's side.

"Roar!"

She transformed into a giant dragon again, lowering her body to lift her heavily injured master. Concern flickered in her eyes, and her dragon wings affectionately nuzzled away the bloodstains on her, completely disregarding the killing intent from those around them.

Xu Muchi and Gu Yan slowly approached, attempting to launch a surprise attack at close range to end the Herrscher's life definitively.

"This power, I will not leave it to you."

Ji sat lightly on Morr's back, her calm demeanor completely unlike someone at the end of their rope, and even less like a bloodthirsty, tyrannical Herrscher. At this moment, she was just an elegant, pure maiden, a tragic soul on the verge of death.

A sapphire crystal appeared in her hand—the Herrscher Core of Reason—

The Insight Gem!

The appearance of the Insight Gem drew everyone's attention. The crystal wasn't particularly beautiful, nor was its shape very regular. Its sapphire glow was strikingly similar to the abilities Ji used, but otherwise, it seemed unremarkable.

However, Gu Yan certainly knew the importance of a Herrscher Core. A Herrscher Core was unique to Herrschers, essentially a singularity of the Imaginary Tree. It was the source of a Herrscher's inexhaustible energy and could even house a Herrscher's consciousness.

What was she planning to do with the core?

Based on her words and actions, it probably wasn't anything good!

Gu Yan had already charged forward, with Xu Muchi close behind. Both moved with incredible speed.

Ji clutched the Insight Gem tightly in her hand. Raging Honkai Energy surged like a flood, consuming everything around them. Others were forced back, and nearby creatures either died outright or transformed into Honkai beasts.

"Get lost!"

As Gu Yan neared the Herrscher Core, Morr roared in anger and swiped with his dragon claw. Gu Yan raised a hand to block, but Ji lunged forward with a whip kick, knocking him back.

"Run!"

It was too late. No matter what the Herrscher intended to do, it was impossible to stop her now!