A Collective of Longing / Demon Tree

"For your own good, it's best not to pull out this scythe, or you'll be in trouble with massive bleeding." His scarlet eyes were calm, but his feet were roughly grinding the scythe head. He licked his lips, which looked like they were stained with blood. "Don't cause me any trouble. I don't want to treat humans."

"Otherwise, I'll turn you into Honkai zombie and use you to slaughter your comrades."

Lin's hands fell limply from the sickle.

"Hehe... and a communicator, right?"

The Sixth Herrscher pressed down on Lin's neck, squeezing his artery tightly, then pulled the communicator from his pocket that hadn't been turned on yet and threw it down from the treetop right in front of Lin.

"You always manage to use some clever tricks to counterattack in unexpected places. Besides, the Flame Chaser has experienced crises more than once or twice, and each time it has managed to 'just' get through the difficulties. So it's better to be more cautious." The Sixth Herrscher didn't care about Lin's gaze, grinned, and laughed heartily.

With the memories of the Soul, her understanding of the details of the Flame Chaser and Lin's situation far surpasses that of the previous Herrscher. She can even plan the battle in advance and further divide and weaken their forces.

Just like the previous Herrscher would fall into a brief state of weakness after launching a certain level of Honkai Energy attack, her Black Mist would also expose a similar problem in order to achieve the best destructive power. Therefore, she did not choose to give anyone a chance and used the safest method to solve the biggest problem.

Especially Lin, he's a true opportunist. Don't let his current half-dead appearance fool you; if he makes even the slightest mistake, he'll seize the opportunity to stab her into her Herrscher Core.

The Sixth Herrscher had two plans for sparing Lin's life instead of killing him outright.

"See Changkong City over there? Didn't the research by the Fire Moth say that Herrscher won't leave a certain area within 24 hours? What do you think would happen if I, Herrscher born within 24 hours, appeared in Changkong City, where no one knows what happened and no one has evacuated?"

"They'll probably revise their so-called research report again, hahaha... After all, they're just that ignorant and utterly despicable."

Chapter Ninety-Five: The Aggregate of Longing

"Hey, you're... Lin, right? Look at this."

Under the glaring lights, a barefoot man in a white coat stood picking at his messy hair with one hand and shaking a small bottle of starlight-like azure particles with the other.

I didn't see the bottle, and pointed to his bare feet on the cold floor.

"Barefoot? Never mind that, I was just half asleep and forgot to put on my shoes." He placed the bottle containing the firefly-like particles on the table and pushed it in front of me. "How is it? Isn't it pretty?"

"..."

"Hey, give me some response! This is the Titan energy you wanted, usable Honkai Energy converted by the converter."

The man patted my helmet helplessly; he didn't need to do that because I'd been watching him and the particles the whole time.

"This is the limit that humans can achieve right now. The converter is far from being Honkai Energy, but even this small amount can keep a laboratory lit for a whole day." The man stared at the Honkai Energy particles with some emotion in his eyes. "Honkai Energy... after being materialized, it looks so beautiful. It is a substance that can cause devastation to humans. This is probably why all the most beautiful mushrooms are poisonous."

"..."

"However, sometimes I think that the more concentrated the Honkai Energy, the more likely it is to give birth to Honkai creature intelligence close to that of humans. It's like saying that the danger of humans is actually greater than that of Honkai itself... Hehe, maybe I'm overthinking it."

I listened to the man's ramblings and stared at the Honkai Energy particles.

It is indeed beautiful, fragile and ethereal, as if it would vanish if you touched it.

"This is... a soul." I uttered a low voice, so cold it made the surrounding temperature drop.

"Hmm?" The man's eyes widened slightly, his expression one of surprise.

"In the places where Honkai Energy is most concentrated, the most people die. Their souls then become even more Honkai Energy, and their thoughts converge to form the consciousness of those Honkai creature, which is why they look like humans."

"... An interesting point." The man's expression showed interest. "So you're saying that it's always been humans fighting each other?"

"No... humanity has always been fighting against longing."

"The mental disorder caused by Honkai Energy is extremely rare, even among Honkai Sickness cases. You said you had brain modification surgery, that's what caused it, right?"

The Sixth Herrscher held Lin upside down and hovered him above Changkong City. This city, which had been destroyed by disaster and rebuilt after countless hardships, seemed to have returned to its former prosperity, brightly lit, like a dancer who had shed her disguise and was dancing in the candlelight.

The scythe was still stuck in Lin's stomach. Perhaps the Sixth Herrscher used her power to shrink the wound, so there was not much blood flowing out. Moreover, the scythe was also very precise in that it did not damage any vital organs.

"How pathetic." The Sixth Herrscher released Lin's foot and watched him fall downwards with a mocking smile. "You walked the path chosen for you by the people who hurt you, and when you reached the end, all you saw was your own grave."

"On one hand, they would sacrifice themselves without hesitation for others, but on the other hand, they had to live a life of hardship in order to save more people."

"You don't care about anything you have, but you often watch the people around you die, and you always manage to survive by sheer luck."

"Those who didn't want to die died, and those who wanted to die lived. Humanity is indeed as contradictory and ridiculous as that man said."

As Lin fell, the Sixth Herrscher swooped down and grabbed his foot again. This violent action aggravated his wound, causing his consciousness to blur once more.

"Don't fall asleep. Watch closely as all of this is destroyed by my own hand."

Lin suddenly opened his eyes wide, drew his pistol, and fired several shots at the Sixth Herrscher's head.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

However, the Sixth Herrscher, who had been mocking Lin, emerged unharmed from behind the Black Mist. She deftly snatched the pistol from Lin's hand and skillfully removed the magazine, emptying the bullets one by one.

Finally, she put the empty pistol back into Lin's hand.

Smiling broadly.

"This is your current situation: a gun without bullets, whose only value is to make me laugh with your ridiculous behavior."

The Sixth Herrscher was incredibly excited. She wanted to see the changes in Lin's face: her disappointment in humanity, her fear of her, her deep regret for the past... she wanted to see anything.

To her disappointment, Lin remained as calm as ever from beginning to end. Not a single muscle in his body changed, and his eyes were so clear that she wondered if he was still thinking about how to deal with her.

The Phase Transfer Device was back in her hands, his threat was gone, and all she wanted to do was see this calm guy despair to make her happy.

"Forget it, I'm not that interested in watching a disabled person perform. The main event is coming up."

"Who will be targeting me..."

"Bang!"

The Black Mist appeared just in time to block the bullet aimed at her head. The Sixth Herrscher's leisurely expression vanished instantly, and she glanced indifferently at the four Titans flying from the direction they had come from.

The hatch of one of the Titans was wide open, and the person kneeling in the cockpit, sniping with a rifle, looked up from the scope and glanced at the familiar face of the Sixth Herrscher, and Lin, who looked like a broken rag doll in her hand.

Then Kevin fired a burst of shots without hesitation.

The four Titans fired simultaneously, unleashing their maximum firepower against the Sixth Herrscher. In an instant, dazzling beams of light and the roar of explosions filled the sky above Changkong City.

"Are there fireworks today?" Someone looked up in confusion, seeing the dazzling beams of light and explosions in the sky.

Immediately afterwards, the alarm pierced the night.

"Hmm? I'm getting more and more confused about you. Is my memory playing tricks on me, or are humans actually not as 'humane' as I thought?"

The Sixth Herrscher flew out of the void, carrying the completely unconscious Lin in her hand. She smiled and said to Kevin, "You can even shoot your friend without hesitation. So the lives of the people in this city are worth far more to you than he is? Heh heh heh... It's really disheartening."

Kevin, however, remained unmoved by her words and simply observed her, seemingly trying to find her weakness.

That look in her eyes made the Sixth Herrscher pause for a moment, and she thought of someone.

That person was in her hands at that moment.

Suddenly, Kevin disappeared from the cockpit.

A blurry figure appeared beside the Sixth Herrscher, his cold-blooded pupils reflecting the Sixth Herrscher's face, which hadn't yet managed to make an expression.

Spatial Fracture Device? But this speed—

"Bang, bang, bang, bang!"

Gunfire erupted.

Chapter Ninety-Six: The Demon Tree

"Is it alright to let Kevin fight the Sixth Herrscher alone?"

In response to Vill-V's question, Mei, who had been standing in front of the screen, calmly replied, "Kevin is about the same as Lin in terms of physical strength and reaction ability. Lin has fought against the Herrscher, so there is no reason why he would definitely lose."

"... You should know that Lin Nengying did not rely on his physical abilities."

"The Fifth Branch cannot be destroyed. Headquarters receives too little information and cannot provide real-time command. If the central brain is destroyed, it will lead to more casualties."

"So you're sending Kevin alone with four Titans to hold off the Sixth Herrscher? Just like Lin did before?"

"No, you can think of me as..." May pushed up her glasses, "...trusting Kevin."

"Hua, the rear."

Immer slashed at the Honkai Beast's neck, but his injuries hadn't healed and he was in poor condition, so the slash missed and the impact made his palm go numb.

Just as the Honkai Beast was about to attack Hua, who was focused on dealing with the Honkai zombie, Hua heard his warning and turned around to deliver a straight punch. With the help of his Powered Armor, Hua pierced the Honkai Beast's head, then turned around and kicked the Honkai zombie away with a side kick.

"How much longer until the next batch of Honkai Beast arrives!" Kosma looked as if he had been pulled out of a pool of blood. He tore off the arm of the Honkai zombie and asked Erwin.

"Three minutes! Three minutes left... Ah! Watch out!"

Unlike Kosma, Erwin didn't engage in large-scale battles. He carefully observed which direction the Honkai zombie and Honkai Beast might break through the defenses. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw one of the soldiers, exhausted, swing his sword but failed to retreat in time and was grabbed by the wrist by the Honkai zombie.

"Aaaaaaah!!"

Blood and splattered everywhere. The soldier only had time to let out a scream before being torn to pieces by countless pale limbs and fangs. His internal organs and severed limbs, along with thick blood, fell at Erwin's feet. His outstretched hand couldn't even reach the man...

"Don't just stand there!"

Kosma grabbed him by the back of the neck and pulled him back. The Honkai zombie's foul-smelling mouth grazed his shoulder. Kosma shot the Honkai zombie in the head and then threw Erwin behind him.

"Bang!"

Before he knew it, another soldier was smashed to pieces by a single punch from Chariot-class Honkai Beast. The sight of it smashing like a watermelon on the ground left Erwin hoarse and unable to scream.

A Titan seized the Honkai Beast, its gun piercing its core. But even after killing one, more Honkai Beast rushed forward, blocking the gun barrel with their bodies. Even with the Titan's efficiency, it was impossible to quickly kill all the Honkai Beast.

Bullets and energy will eventually run out, but these Honkai Beasts and Honkai zombie emerge like an endless nightmare from every possible place.

Can they really win?

Can I, a deserter, really fight these monsters?

"Erwin! Your name is Erwin, right?"

The loud shout snapped Kosma out of his daze. A figure half a head shorter than him, but incredibly sturdy, stood before him.

Kosma, panting heavily and with bloodshot eyes, blocked the Honkai zombie: "Cheer up! They are heroes! They did not desert, not on anyone's orders, but solely on their own will, sacrificing their lives to protect humanity!"

"You didn't run away now, did you? Even if you were scared, you're still standing here, not running away again!"

"So you're a hero too! Hold your head high and stand tall!"

Yes, this time, he has no way out.

Erwin thought of the "meteor" that charged headlong into the Fifth Herrscher without hesitation. He banished his weakness from his sight, gritted his teeth, picked up his weapon, and threw himself into the battle.

"Emperor-class Honkai Beast is approaching! Deploy the Titan unit, everyone retreat to the defensive line!"

Himiko, the battlefield commander, concealed the deep weariness in her eyes and shouted.

"Target detected. Begin attack."

From the cockpit, Hen could see the towering tree in the distance, rooted in the city, constantly absorbing the vitality of this land, almost like a demonic plant from mythology.

The moment they reached attack range, Hen communicated with Prometheus Unit 2 in the cockpit and issued the attack command.

Weapons, missiles, and beams poured out, leaving a dark wound on the Giant Tree in no time, significantly reducing its outward speed.

Seeing that the attack was effective, Hen increased the firepower even more, but before the second wave of attacks could begin, a dark shadow descended from the sky and entangled one of the Titans.

The Giant Tree came to life, its branches, with an inconceivable hardness far exceeding that of metal, gripping the Titan tightly. Faced with its grip, the Titan was like a toy. After the tree tightened its grip, countless sparks flew from the Titan's body, and it was instantly crushed to pieces.

"This power? No... is this the erosion of Honkai Energy?"

Hen initially thought it was the power of the Giant Tree, but given the material of Titan, it shouldn't be possible to shatter it with external force alone. After seeing the varying depths of the patterns on Titan's body, he confirmed that the Giant Tree had used Honkai Energy to erode Titan's alloy, reducing its hardness.

This tree contains even more Honkai Energy than Herrscher; it's no exaggeration to call it a plant-type Judgment-class Honkai Beast. Its Honkai Energy concentration alone is enough to corrode most matter, even Titans.

There was no room for Hen to catch his breath. More branches pierced out from the canopy. Hen himself did not pilot the Titan, so he could only let Prometheus Unit 2 control the Titan to evade. Only after they were out of the attack range did the speed at which those branches extended slow down.

Those parts that were attacked and turned black instantly healed themselves, radiating a breathtaking vitality.

The tree needs to be cut down all at once.

As Hen pondered a solution, he noticed something suddenly growing among the branches of the tree. He zoomed in on the scene using Titan's monitor and was surprised to see something unexpected.

"Bud?"

Yes, flower buds. Those new things growing among the branches and leaves are giant, pale yellow flower buds. Their appearance, ready to bloom, is both beautiful and full of a certain eeriness.

At this point, the roots of the Giant Tree reached the first refuge.