Don't panic. Judge her movements and prepare your positioning.
Yang Ming repeatedly reminded himself of this deep down.
Memories of being wiped out dozens of times began assaulting his mind.
He lowered his center of gravity and leveled his gaze with the blade, just like the opening stance he often used in the game.
Valkyrie dove fiercely.
Yang Ming turned all the pressure into a single shout.
He sprang forward, swinging the Lightsaber in his hand. Time seemed to slow, and Valkyrie's sharp movements became traceable. The muscles throughout Yang Ming's body were on the verge of erupting with tremendous power.
Buzz!
The two Lightsabers clashed head-on, trailing afterimages!
Almost within a second, Yang Ming leaned backward, bent both legs, and swiftly completed the motion of dissipating the force. His body retreated with the momentum, while the Lightsaber gripped in both hands slid downward and scraped directly toward Valkyrie's wrist, forcing her to abandon any follow-up attack.
The two colliding figures simultaneously moved backward—one leaping away, the other hovering—opening up the distance once again.
Silence. The entire Tail Compartment seemed to have had its pause button pressed.
Valkyrie was clearly stunned.
She wore an expression similar to a mechanical intelligence crashing. Fine creases appeared on her smooth forehead as she stared at Yang Ming's current sword grip.
It wasn't just Valkyrie who was dumbfounded. The soldiers still able to keep their eyes open, the Captain lying in a pool of blood, the crew hiding in the corners, and the researchers all watched the scene in disbelief.
The instant Yang Ming charged forward, everyone had assumed Third Mate Hanton had gone mad.
But Valkyrie had been stopped.
She had been stopped head-on by the unremarkable Third Mate aboard the ship, wielding a Lightsaber!
The faintly perverse smile at the corners of Valkyrie's mouth finally faded. She drew a light breath, then dove again.
Determination filled Yang Ming's eyes behind the Goggles. Gripping the sword with both hands, he stepped forward once more and unleashed a sweeping strike.
Buzz, buzz.
The sound of the Lightsaber scraping against the air inside the ship was incredibly sensual.
Another head-on collision, another retreat forced through technique.
Yang Ming's movements grew smoother, and the strength supplied by his muscles rose once again.
Valkyrie's body had yet to stabilize.
Yang Ming chose to lunge forward. The Lightsaber's afterimage was like a gigantic python swimming through the air.
Valkyrie brought her sword down in a vertical slash.
Yang Ming feinted to the left, drawing Valkyrie's attack off course. Then the force he had stored beneath his feet erupted, and his body rolled sideways to the left.
He brushed past Valkyrie's Lightsaber, while the blade in his hand lashed out like a whip and struck Valkyrie across the back!
Valkyrie stumbled two steps forward. The back of her bathing suit was torn, and a bloody mark appeared on her skin.
Even Yang Ming found it hard to believe. He lowered his head and glanced at the Lightsaber in his hand.
He was... this strong?
It was power and speed he had never possessed in the game.
"Captain Hanton, this..."
"Hanton!"
"Nicely done, Third Mate! Show her what you've got!"
Several soldiers suddenly roared from the side.
Yang Ming couldn't be bothered to respond. He kept his eyes fixed on Valkyrie, watching her slowly descend until only ten centimeters separated her toes from the floor.
Valkyrie had realized how serious the problem was.
—She didn't possess much combat skill at present.
Yang Ming had noticed it too. This Valkyrie was not the complete form from Lost Voice; she had only just broken free of control.
The two figures charged at each other again along the same line.
Yang Ming felt as if he had returned to that dilapidated, oppressive instance, facing the powerful Valkyrie and sinking into despair again and again.
But if the outer shell of despair was stripped away, what remained?
Positioning.
Yang Ming dodged left and right. Valkyrie's Lightsaber was always half a beat slower than his, always falling a few dozen centimeters short of touching him.
Predicting skills.
Each of Valkyrie's movements as she raised her hand differed slightly, allowing him to determine what sort of move she was about to use.
While dodging and repositioning, Yang Ming's Lightsaber always appeared at incredible angles, waiting for Valkyrie to run into it and leaving thin wounds on her highly resilient, smooth skin.
Valkyrie's expression had completed its transformation from deranged to shocked, then to aggrieved and furious.
She had actually been humiliated by a lower lifeform of her own!
Yang Ming's offensive grew increasingly fierce, and the wounds on Valkyrie's body rapidly multiplied.
Valkyrie let out a shrill howl. Red waves of light spread from her forehead once again.
But when she turned around, she discovered that Yang Ming was already several meters away. A pale-red shield of light had risen around him, like a reef before a wave, smashing the red light waves to pieces.
The corners of Yang Ming's mouth curved slightly.
This is already the second phase?
He put on a black fingerless glove with his left hand. The disk on the back of his hand rotated gently, and a round shield eighty centimeters in diameter appeared there.
Sword and shield attacking together!
Yang Ming sprinted forward. Valkyrie visibly hesitated.
"Weren't you going to eat me? Posa, is this how you eat me?"
The warrior began his elegant taunt.
Valkyrie was clearly enraged. She raised her Lightsaber and dove again.
Yang Ming, of course, hadn't forgotten the gap in their absolute strength.
He appeared to launch a powerful attack, but it was still a feint. The instant Valkyrie's Lightsaber cut through empty air, he wedged the light shield between them and slammed its edge into Valkyrie's well-developed yet soft chest.
Valkyrie's body immediately tilted. Yang Ming followed with a straight thrust of his Lightsaber, twisting his waist and shifting his position with force from his legs.
Before Valkyrie could stabilize herself, the Lightsaber struck her wrist. The shield that came in again shattered her balance.
Yang Ming had suppressed Valkyrie!
A faint ray flashed from the side. The Laser Gun opened fire on Valkyrie, but failed to leave any obvious wounds.
Still, something was better than nothing.
Behind his Goggles, Yang Ming's eyes grew increasingly calm. His movements became increasingly precise, and not a trace of his strength was wasted.
Perhaps he really could flip Valkyrie directly onto the floor.
It was time to end this.
Leaning on his cane, Geglov hurried down the route leading to the Tail Compartment.
There was barely any sound left in his Earpiece. The Empire's brave soldiers had been almost completely wiped out, and the Captain could no longer issue commands.
"Posa, where are you going, Posa?"
Geglov kept muttering.
But when he rounded the corner, rushed across the final stretch of passage, and reached the edge of the Tail Compartment, he suddenly froze.
Geglov's red artificial eye flickered faintly. His expression shifted repeatedly between dullness, astonishment, and disbelief, while his intact eye reflected the scene below:
The wrecked Tail Compartment, overturned mechs, and only a few soldiers still able to move;
The powerful Valkyrie was pinned to the floor by a light shield, while the Lightsaber she kept swinging tried to inflict fatal wounds, yet could only leave bloody marks across Valkyrie's smooth skin.
"Oh, Emperor Star above!"
"Hanton?"
Geglov stared at the figure suppressing Valkyrie, his voice trembling faintly.
This overturned Geglov's understanding of the power possessed by the two sides.
If this was true... if Hanton could still follow his commands, if...
Yang Ming suddenly looked up and cast a glance at Geglov.
That single glance led Geglov to a conclusion that even he found absurd.
This isn't Hanton.
Or rather, Hanton has also been controlled by the Ancient God's thoughts!
"Hanton, answer me! Hanton!"
Geglov shouted in his hoarse voice.
Suddenly, Valkyrie looked up at the professor. Already covered in wounds, she slammed her hands hard against the Tail Compartment's deck.
That move!
Yang Ming immediately pulled away, retreating as far from Valkyrie as possible. He reached into the Tactical Pack strapped to his chest and pulled out two Shock Grenades.
As expected, Valkyrie's entire body began to tremble. Bursts of red radiance surged back and forth, and wings of light gradually formed from red light on her back. Her body rose into the air once again.
Two black dots flew over and exploded simultaneously on either side of her.
Valkyrie threw back her head and shrieked. Her long hair fluttered wildly, while the wounds on her body healed at a speed visible to the naked eye.
She abruptly turned around and fixed Yang Ming with a deathly stare.
At this moment, Geglov no longer hesitated. With trembling hands, he pressed the tip of his cane three times. The sound of gears meshing came from within the cane as it disassembled itself, delivering a tiny Hourglass into Geglov's hand.
The Hourglass was wrapped in blue arcs of light. A single suspended particle floated at its center, while above and below it were two peanut-sized Pink Flesh Masses that seemed to writhe.
When Geglov gripped the Hourglass, the blue arcs of light faded on their own.
Valkyrie was about to charge Yang Ming, while Yang Ming had once again gripped his Lightsaber with both hands, preparing to use the warrior's special forward roll to maneuver around Valkyrie. Both of them stopped at the same time.
Red light appeared in both their eyes as they stared at the Hourglass in Geglov's hand.
Yang Ming craved those two clumps of cells intensely, but he suddenly realized what was happening.
Were those Organoids cultured from Ancient God Lifeform cells?
Yang Ming maintained his restraint, but Valkyrie charged forward without a care for anything else.
Geglov raised the Hourglass high and pressed his finger against a red button.
"Posa, you know what this is! Stop!"
Geglov shouted. His gaunt face, more than half of it consumed by machinery, carried a trace of madness and resolve.
Valkyrie actually stopped.
She stared at Geglov's raised left hand. The severity on her face quickly faded, restoring the pure and adorable look of a young girl. Then, with her clear, bright eyes, she gazed at Geglov.
"Professor," she said, her voice like the most beautiful music in the world. "You'll grant my wish, won't you?"
Yang Ming, left standing to one side, felt his Adam's apple tremble several times.
Just then, the corner of Yang Ming's eye suddenly caught the "green little aircraft" symbol that had appeared in the Landing Ship's cabin.
Joy surged through Yang Ming. Without the slightest hesitation, he turned and rushed over.
Praise the Ancient God!
Dr. Lina had finally activated the Landing Ship's operating system!
Valkyrie completely ignored Yang Ming, staring fixedly at the Hourglass in Geglov's hand.
Yang Ming continued observing as he ran. Geglov's voice came through the Earpiece.
"Posa, I can grant your wish, but you can't lose control. You must retain your reason. You will become the greatest existence in this Empire, an existence like a Deity, but you must remain rational. Prove your rationality to me, Posa."
"Give it to me, Professor."
"Impossible, Posa. I need to determine exactly what you are now—the monster, or my Posa!"
"You wouldn't really destroy me, Professor," Valkyrie's voice carried a touch of unreality, as if she were using Mind Control. "I'm your proudest masterpiece, the life's work of your entire existence. To you, I am irreplaceable."
"Don't come any closer! Listen to me! Posa!"
"Professor, give it to me, and I can make you my apostle—the closest apostle."
"Posa."
Geglov's voice suddenly grew calm.
Yang Ming had already reached the Boarding Passage. He turned his head and saw the following scene:
Valkyrie hovered in the air, holding her Lightsaber. Her long hair had arranged itself into twin ponytails, seemingly to evoke Geglov's memories.
She continued releasing mental interference.
The gaunt Geglov held the Hourglass high. His Mechanical Eye flickered red, while his other, normal eye was filled with reluctance and affection. He had not been affected by the mental interference.
No!
Geglov would definitely destroy those two Cellular Collectives!
And that Hourglass-like device definitely possessed enough power to destroy both Valkyrie and this Research Ship!
Yang Ming didn't know how he had reached this conclusion.
But from Geglov's expression, Yang Ming read one message:
Brother Ji wouldn't go soft this time!
That Hourglass holding the Cellular Collectives, with its unique structure, seemed to be...
Holy shit! An Antimatter Bomb!
Yang Ming's soul nearly left his body. He scrambled into the passage, flying forward through the microgravity environment toward the open hatch.
Dr. Lina sat in the copilot's seat, nervously watching Yang Ming rush over.
"Prepare for ejection!" Yang Ming shouted.
Suddenly.
"Hanton." The First Mate's figure appeared at the end of the passage and drifted over in extreme panic. "Wait for me! Oh, no! Please, Hanton! I order you to stop! Hanton!"
Dr. Lina hesitated for an instant, but there wasn't the slightest wavering in Yang Ming's eyes.
He swiftly removed the Tactical Pack, turned, and aimed it at the First Mate.
The First Mate looked somewhat dazed. "Hanton, what are you doing, Hanton! No, you can't do this! I'm your superior!"
"Hello, superior."
Yang Ming's muscles began storing power. He thrust the Pack forward with both hands, accelerating his body as it drifted ahead.
The First Mate was hit squarely by the backpack. His lunging body immediately pitched backward, and with nothing to push off against in zero gravity, he slid straight back into the Tail Compartment, crashing into the area with simulated gravity.
"Goodbye, boss."
Yang Ming straightened his collar and drifted into the landing craft, decisively pressing the button to close the hatch.
"Hanton, the First Mate!" Dr. Lina cried out, her voice trembling.
"Personal grudge."
Yang Ming said calmly.
Once the hatch had rumbled shut, he turned and pressed the now-illuminated launch button.
The hatch at the passageway rapidly sealed shut. Pale blue indicator lights appeared ahead, and a powerful electromagnetic field enveloped the craft.
Before Yang Ming could even sit down, a sudden burst of thrust slammed him against the rear hatch.
They had only just shot into space when a rapidly expanding flash appeared behind them.
The Antimatter Bomb had detonated!
Fortunately, the small landing craft had already traveled some distance, and it had been built for planetary landings and exploration. Its hull was sturdy, it was equipped with a micro shield, and it could take a serious beating.
Yang Ming was the one who suffered. He hadn't had time to fasten his seat belt, and he tumbled like a chestnut spinning inside a giant centrifuge, promptly knocking himself unconscious.
As he tumbled over and over, he also "saw" a scene:
Valkyrie suddenly lunged at Geglov, diving fiercely toward him. Her Lightsaber stabbed at his chest as her left hand reached for the Hourglass.
But Geglov merely sighed and pressed the red button all the way down. He let the Lightsaber pierce his chest, then clamped his right arm around Valkyrie.
"You're perfect, Posa."
Geglov murmured as if in a dream.
Before you continue