Shadow / The Second Consciousness

Kevin still has plenty of energy left.

He was able to maintain a high level of combat ability even in environments rich in Honkai Energy thanks to his Honkai Energy Adaptability and the fact that each attack did not consume extra stamina with the help of his equipment.

However, the tricky part of fighting Herrscher is not a protracted battle.

In fact, the battles against Herrscher usually end quickly, either the Herrscher is dealt with swiftly or the Herrscher is dealt with by the Herrscher.

However, the Sixth Herrscher is an exception, breaking records in many ways. It is evident that her Herrscher Core and remains will be the focus of research after the war, provided that... humanity can defeat her.

"..."

The Sixth Herrscher slightly raised her indifferent eyes, sensing the death of her familiar.

That porcupine might be weaker than the Emperor-class Honkai Beast that have appeared before, but given its ability to command Honkai creature and its near-human intelligence, it shouldn't have been defeated by humans in such a short time.

After Lin used his life to assassinate her, she felt that the course of the battle was beginning to slip out of her control.

Sure enough, getting involved with that Lin person always leads to unexpected events.

To prevent further trouble, she quickened her pace. Kevin was much more difficult to deal with than she had imagined. This body had no record of fighting Kevin in its memories, and the impressive battle records written in the data did not reveal just how strong this man was.

I thought Lin was the most threatening human, but Kevin's performance... without exaggeration, is stronger than Lin in every aspect. No matter how exaggerated Lin's performance is, he can only be described as the pinnacle of human strength, while Kevin has definitely surpassed the human level.

His neural reaction speed was even faster than hers as Herrscher, and that's why, even with the power of the Sixth Herrscher, who couldn't unleash her full power, she couldn't do anything to him for the time being.

We can't hold back any longer. The porcupines from the Fifth Branch have already been defeated. Once they have manpower to support Kevin, there will be even more unexpected events.

However, the Black Mist cannot be spread out all at once... It's still unclear how many times Kevin can use the Phase Transfer Device. Judging from his relaxed attitude, it shouldn't have reached the point where it would be a burden for him. We can only increase the pressure to force him to use it.

What the Sixth Herrscher was overthinking things, didn't realize was that Kevin wasn't as easy as it seemed.

Kevin's lack of fatigue after using Phase Shift was merely an act, making the Sixth Herrscher feel that he was in complete control. It was also his deliberate performance of easily brushing past the attack.

There was only one goal: to make the Sixth Herrscher increasingly focused on killing him, and to end the battle by any means necessary to end it as soon as possible.

In the midst of his thoughts, a vast expanse of Black Mist, so large it startled him, pushed towards him like a high wall. In desperation, he used his last Floating Cannon to attack the Sixth Herrscher from another angle, then fled rapidly backward.

And just barely dodged it again.

Kevin broke out in a cold sweat. The range of the Sixth Herrscher's Black Mist was still expanding, and it was now twice the size it had been at the beginning. Without Phase Shift, he couldn't even get close to her.

He fought and retreated, maintaining a harassing attack pattern that aroused the Sixth Herrscher's desire to attack, causing her to follow him and advance towards the Giant Tree outside the city.

Seeing that they were out of Changkong City's territory, Kevin secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Now you can go all out...

"Boom!"

Dark mist swirled around his arm armor, Kevin reacted instinctively in the instant before he could even think.

He removed his arm armor, leaving the Black Mist that was about to rise behind it, and then retreated.

Do you think I don't know what you're up to?

A cold, clear voice immediately put Kevin on high alert. The scythe cleaved through the Black Mist and swung towards Kevin's head.

"Bass!"

Kevin barely managed to tilt his head, the scythe grazing his cheek and slicing a deep gash in his chest armor, before grabbing the Phase Transfer Device he was about to use with his other hand.

"Bang!"

In the critical moment, a long-range penetrating sniper shot rushed towards the Sixth Herrscher's head. She glanced sideways and had no choice but to retreat to dodge, giving Kevin was about to be disintegrated by the Black Mist, time to escape.

The two separated by distance again. Kevin's chest heaved as he stared at the Sixth Herrscher with his hand raised.

"You want me to leave Changkong City, but I'm also waiting for the moment you slip up..." She leisurely put the Phase Transfer Device she had just acquired on her wrist. "This thing has changed hands several times, but it's back in my hands now. That idiot Lin, he died for nothing."

"Hehehe..." she laughed mercilessly.

Chapter 107 Shadow

The black scythe, like the Grim Reaper's weapon, grazed Lin's forehead. The deathly aura, like a flame igniting a haystack, instantly corroded a small area of his helmet.

Under the influence of the Black Abyss White Flower, he grabbed the arm of the shadowy figure holding the scythe with his backhand, and then two steel-like vines pierced out from under his feet, piercing the shadowy figure's throat and chest.

Such a fatal wound might have decided the outcome for anyone else, but Lin knew very well that it was only a slightly serious injury for her, and that she could recover given time. So she did not let her guard down, but instead used one hand to grab Black Hawk's neck, and with the other hand raised Black Abyss White Flower to pierce her.

"Bang—"

A barely perceptible noise made Lin stop what he was doing. As if he had eyes in the back of his head, he immediately shielded the Black Abyss White Flower behind him. A tremendous force sent him flying, and he cried out in pain as his bones loosened.

Lin flew for over a hundred meters, almost spinning around, before finally landing. He didn't use the Black Abyss White Flower to create plants to slow himself down, in order to stay away from the "person" who ambushed him.

Upon seeing another familiar figure standing side-by-side with the shadowy figure, most of Lin's previous guesses were overturned, leaving only the thought of how to stop them.

A destructive aura, even more intense than the shadow, emanated from her body, wreathed in tangible flames.

The black and red figures began to walk towards Lin, who had stood up again.

They looked no different from those Honkai zombie who only let out strange roars.

But this is far from the end.

Where Lin could see, some restless shadows rose from the ground and transformed into figures he knew all too well.

Are there multiple Herrscher, numbering seven or more...?

As it turned out, Lin's concerns were correct. These enemies' target might be Mei. Their individual strength was probably less than one-tenth of that of a complete Herrscher of Thunder, but Lin saw a figure among them who had once been known as Honkai Energy killer.

Even though its range and nullification were far less than the terrifying range of a barrier with a radius of one hundred kilometers that they had encountered before, Black Abyss White Flower's abilities had been largely restricted after that figure appeared.

Even Mei would be caught off guard by this ability.

Perhaps because they had lost their first target, these figures huddled together, seemingly planning to find a new hunting target.

That goal is Lin, who possesses certain access to the Imaginary Tree.

No, perhaps they had multiple goals from the very beginning.

Lin scanned these "people," observing their positions, and quietly adjusted the distance between himself and them.

If his estimate is correct, the appearance of these "people" should be related to that experiment.

Mei happened to be one of the participants in that experiment.

"Boom!"

The crimson figure was the first to attack.

"Klein, can you hear me?"

"Hmm... I can hear you. You suddenly lost signal, and I can't communicate with you. Did something happen?"

After being forcibly removed from that area by Lin, Mei re-established contact with Klein. Her tone was somewhat hurried, as Lin's serious attitude suggested that this incident was probably not so simple.

Even with Mobius's plan, Lin only gave Mei a little help.

Mei could sense the solemnity beneath Lin's helmet.

In Mei's eyes, Lin was an extreme warrior who could fight her to a standstill, and even slightly outperform her, using only some outdated equipment from the Previous Civilization. Unlike the Flame-Chaser with different abilities, he was someone who fought with his own unique "power".

Mei respects warriors like them because her teacher, Rin, is similar to her. He doesn't have any particularly extraordinary abilities, but he is a tenacious and brave man.

But precisely because of this, such people often die young.

"That's the whole story. Klein, can you find the locations of Elysia and that Flame-Chaser named Aponia?"

"..."

Mei received no response from Klein. Just as she thought the communication had been lost again, Klein's usually lazy voice said with disbelief, "That is very likely... the Sixth Herrscher of the Previous Civilization, the Herrscher of Death."

"The Herrscher of Death?!"

The Herrscher of Death did not appear in Mei's civilization. Her powers were used by the Second Herrscher the Gem of Serenity. The Second Herrscher is also the only forbidden being in history to possess multiple Herrscher Authority.

Even Mei, the Third Herrscher, was only able to become the Herrscher of Thunder destroyed Changkong City after the Second Herrscher was implanted with the Gem of Conquest, one of the four Herrscher Core Gems that were implanted after the Second Herrscher disappeared.

However, this is also why the current civilization has not produced a true Herrscher of Death.

"Why would Herrscher of Death from Previous Civilization appear here?"

Judging from Klein's ability to recognize the Herrscher of Death, the Herrscher of Death from the Previous Civilization must have been quite recognizable, making it impossible for a new Herrscher of Death born in the current civilization to have entered the Imaginary Tree.

The Imaginary Tree is a space composed of memories, so Mei quickly guessed the true identity of the shadowy figure.

"That's memory..."

The Herrscher's memory.

"Someone has added the Herrscher's memories to the Imaginary Tree." Klein, as the maintainer of the Imaginary Tree, quickly realized something was wrong. "But the Herrscher's memories shouldn't be retrievalable, and the Herrscher of Death has retained some of her powers. This isn't something a simple memory could do..."

"Let's put the analysis aside for now, Klein. Can you still get me back to that area?"

"No, that area seems to be sealed off... It was Lin who sealed it off at first, but even after he lifted the seal, we still can't open the anchor point in that area."

Lin is in trouble.

This was the only possibility Mei could think of.

"No... We must find Alicia first." Before throwing her out, Lin specifically emphasized two people: Alicia and the fusion warrior Aponia, whom he hadn't met yet. In other words, he believed that the two of them could provide a solution.

Lin is a memory entity with certain permissions to monitor the Imaginary Tree. If even he finds an event troublesome, it can only be a crisis that affects the entire Elysian Realm.

For the sake of humanity in the present world, Mei has to find the truth about the Honkai in the Imaginary Tree. For the sake of humanity in the Imaginary Tree.

"I can't find out Elysia's location, but there is someone who can."

Mei paused for a moment, then subconsciously said—

"Pardo?"

Chapter 108 The Second Consciousness

The one who fired the penetrating bullet was Elysia, or more precisely, the Titan Elysia was riding. After explaining the battle plan to Kevin, she rushed to Changkong City to meet Kevin and saved Kevin at the last moment.

"That was close, Kevin."

Elysia set up her sniper rifle, opened the cockpit door, and fired a shot at the Sixth Herrscher's head without saying a word. The bullet was naturally blocked by the shield, but this action also attracted the attention of the Sixth Herrscher.

"Elysia ..." The Sixth Herrscher narrowed her eyes. Unlike Soul, she paid special attention to Elysia in her memories because Elysia had a mysterious aura that detached her from all events, so much so that she couldn't determine who Elysia was just by relying on her memories.

But when she shifted her gaze to Elysia, an inexplicable "synesthesia" emanated from the expressionless Elysia.

"You—" The Sixth Herrscher seemed to be wondering what to say, but she quickly dismissed the question. "Support? Unfortunately, you're too late."

The battle between the Sixth Herrscher and Lin and Kevin almost entirely revolved around the Phase Transfer Device. As a Herrscher with the memories of the Fire Moth soldiers, she knew the strategic value of this device, which allowed her to perform spatial jumps at will like the Second Herrscher, making up for her weakness of having no other means of combat besides destructive power.

Moreover, limiting the enemy's ability to strengthen themselves is the best strategic approach.

Now the tables have turned, and the device has finally returned to her hands, meaning she has regained control. With her power greatly enhanced, it is now incredibly easy for her to use the device to carry out massacres.

If she waits just half a day longer, she will have complete control of her powers and can spread the Black Mist to a radius of fifty kilometers without any side effects. At that point, she will be a walking natural disaster, and humanity will have no chance to stop her.

Before that, she wanted to eliminate any future troubles by uprooting the Fifth Branch and Changkong City, thus completing the first step in her plan to destroy the Far East.

However, to her surprise, after the shield was activated, a violent explosion occurred right in front of her, engulfing her in shards and flames.

"Elysia!" Kevin called out, then unleashed a barrage of attacks with all his weapons at the ball of flame.

However, without his reminder, after the Sixth Herrscher was engulfed by the explosion, she pulled the trigger without the slightest hesitation, firing the sniper bullet along with the Titan's beam into it.

"The grenade... was it stuck to me when I went to grab the Phase Transfer Device? I really can't let my guard down for a moment."

However, after the Sixth Herrscher's nonchalant voice appeared on the other end, they could only watch helplessly as she emerged from nothingness. Although she had some injuries from the explosion, her expression was exceptionally relaxed.

"However, you can struggle all you want, but don't bore me like that boring man did..." She raised her hand, covering her wounds and using her powers to heal them, and said to the two of them with a cold smile.

Having dodged a potentially fatal attack, the remaining wounds are nothing more than minor injuries that heal in an instant, as long as the Authority of Creation remains...

Huh...

The Sixth Herrscher stared in shock at the bloody wound on her hand after she moved it away, showing no signs of healing.

The Authority of Creation did not work?

What's going on?

But before she could react, Kevin and Elysia raised their guns and pulled the triggers on her.

This kind of attack won't do any damage as long as the shield is up; the only thing to watch out for is the penetrating bullets...