Ceasefire / The Contract... Was Not Concluded

Then, she spoke to the ice-cold Lin, her voice devoid of emotion:

"Human, you came here from 'the last time'? You really aren't human, are you?"

Ding-dong.

An indescribable "thing" grabbed Lin's trouser leg and slowly climbed up his body.

The girl, who was supposed to begin her killing spree three days later, stood right in front of Lin, curiously watching the incredibly weak black-haired man as if a cat were toying with a mouse.

The bottomless darkness slowly swallowed up the light.

Why is the Herrscher of Erosion here?

Did he not notice it the first three times? Did he miss it?

Also, was she talking about... a cycle? She can feel the cycle too?

"This strange 'rewind' has repeated three times. Do you know what's going on?"

"Hmm... never mind, you're going to die anyway, as long as we kill until this situation never happens again."

She raised her fair, seemingly harmless hand and aimed it at Lin's head.

Oops...

Oops...

Oops...

It wasn't death, but something even more uncontrollable and unpredictable that befell Lin, and at that moment he realized he had made a grave mistake.

"Bang!"

Everyone was startled by the loud noise and the shaking of the ground, and they all turned around to see what had happened.

A petite, silver-haired girl pointed her palm at a sunken, still-smoking patch of ground. She then glanced at a man panting as he struggled to his feet.

They dodged it.

The feeling of being on the verge of death was terrible. The Herrscher of Erosion's attack methods were unpredictable, and he could only barely dodge at the last moment before the crisis arrived.

Lin belatedly noticed a crack appear on his cheek, from which blood flowed. The pain from the pebbles entering the wound actually sharpened his senses, and his pupils rhythmically contracted and expanded.

"That's why I find it hard to understand." The Herrscher of Erosion glanced at her own hand, then turned her palm towards Lin again, like the muzzle of a cannon about to fire. "You're not like real humans, so why do you consider yourself one of them, even though..."

Lin's soul, pulling his body forward, instantly blocked the path of the passersby, mobilizing his Honkai Energy—

"Boom!"

"They are incredibly fragile."

Lin knelt before the group of severed limbs and dismembered bodies. His face was covered in blood as he gasped for breath and turned around. He saw the people he was protecting screaming in terror behind him. But everyone else around him hadn't even had time to react before they were smashed into a pile of minced meat.

"Hurry up..."

Lin gritted his teeth and growled at the people who were too scared to move, then turned around and pounced on the young, bloodthirsty god!

Chapter Forty-Four Ceasefire

What is the battle between humans and insects called?

Fierce battle? Crushing? Massacre?

No, there is no battle between humans and insects. When a human's unintentional foot falls like a world-destroying hammer, the insect dies without a complete corpse. Can this process be called a battle?

Lin had imagined just how terrifying the Herrscher, described in the data as a humanoid cataclysmic disaster, would be: destroying a city with a wave of her hand, leaking Honkai Energy and transforming all living things within a radius of hundreds of kilometers, drawing energy from Imaginary Space...

But when he actually faced the Herrscher, he discovered that their terror lay not in their destructive power.

"Sizzle—"

Lin ducked to avoid the invisible "blade," and the tall building behind him snapped in half with a "rip." The hundred-meter-high building collapsed like a pillar reaching to the sky. Pedestrians screamed and ran away, but only a small number of people who were relatively far away managed to dodge it by a hair's breadth. Most people were smashed into mincemeat on the spot by the falling debris.

Lin watched helplessly as those who hadn't even had a chance to scream died on the spot. His heart was pounding faster and faster, and his brain felt like it was on fire. Certain "familiar" feelings began to take over his mind, making his movements more and more refined, while his eyes became increasingly devoid of human calm.

The instigator of all this, the Herrscher of Erosion, paid no attention to the screams that were probably no different from the chirping of cicadas in summer to her. She simply observed Lin's strange movements and behavioral patterns with curiosity and focus, and then mercilessly unleashed blow after blow, shattering the entire city like building blocks.

That's right, to the Herrscher of Erosion, this city is just a toy of building blocks, and she is just a child with incomplete understanding who didn't have any intentional malice but simply reached out and knocked down the blocks.

The man dodged and weaved among the fallen rubble, rapidly approaching the girl floating in the air. The girl swung a slash at him, but this time the man didn't dodge from a great distance; he simply turned slightly in mid-air.

"Um?"

The girl was surprised that her attack missed, brushing past the man. She knew that if she had missed by just a little bit, she would have hit him, but she just couldn't land on him.

Lin Yi wiped his right arm, and a sharp blade made of Honkai Energy, radiating light and heat, extended from his arm. He swung the blade down at the Herrscher of Erosion had no intention of dodging!

"Bass!"

Just like the fists and bullets before, the Collapsed Blade was inexplicably blocked in mid-air, but this time Lin confirmed one thing.

The Herrscher of Herrscher of Erosion is surrounded by a shield of Honkai Energy, which is extremely strong and cannot be penetrated by ordinary attacks.

"... human beings."

The Herrscher of Erosion tilted her head and stared at the man who was so close to her. She opened her mouth to say something, but Lin had no intention of listening to her at all.

Gathering, transmitting, changing... Lin constantly explored and refined the way he used Honkai Energy in a short period of time. It was as if these "formulas" were engraved in his body. He transformed Honkai Energy into a more lethal form. The original sharp blade collapsed, and only pure light and heat bombarded the Honkai Energy shield.

"Boom!"

The immense recoil and heat sent Lin flying, burning his skin as well, and his hands flew out, dripping with blood.

But the moment he flew out, he clearly saw a broken crack appear in front of the Herrscher of Erosion; the Honkai Energy shield had been damaged.

"..."

Instead of launching another attack, Lin landed on the roof of a building, staring intently at the god floating in the air, who was both innocent and childlike, yet also wicked and bloodthirsty.

He dug into the skinless fist, and drops of blood trickled down between his fingers.

The next second, he will...

"Humans, let's cease hostilities, shall we?"

The girl's ethereal voice, even from hundreds of meters away, ruthlessly penetrated his mind.

This made him pause in his charge, staring expressionlessly at the silver-haired girl who seemed to have no intention of continuing the fight.

But should I make him stop?

Lin glanced at the people scattered and fleeing at their feet, as if the end of the world had come.

The blood was glaringly bright.

A gruesome severed limb.

Corpses were everywhere.

Armistice...

Armistice?!

"Bang!"

Lin's figure vanished from the spot, and amidst the sonic boom that shattered eardrums, his fist left a long trail of blood. The next moment, he appeared in front of the girl.

"Does it matter if more people die if the fighting continues?"

"..."

A casual remark abruptly halted Lin's attack, preventing him from shattering both the shield and his own fist with a single punch.

He stood on the edge of the building, gazing at the Herrscher of Erosion.

Then he looked again at the blood, severed limbs, and corpses at his feet, and finally, he stopped deeply on the survivors trapped in the ruins, unable to move, only able to look at them in terror.

To them, Lin and the Herrscher of Erosion were perhaps two gods who had descended to the mortal realm, but the aftermath of the battle could easily wipe them out.

"You're really something. You'd crush those people without hesitation once they became my soldiers, but as long as they have a breath left, you hesitate for them." The Herrscher of Erosion had naturally seen all of Lin's reactions, and she glanced at the survivors as well. "So, you're planning to give up?"

"..."

Lin didn't intend to let her go, but was it really a good idea to continue fighting in the city now? With the other side having already stopped, wouldn't insisting on continuing the fight cause even greater casualties?

"Some different 'people' have arrived. Let's go first, let's go to... the place we were at before."

Just as Lin hesitated, some people with unusual equipment began to enter the area affected by the battle. Some of them quickly began to rescue the wounded and survivors, while the rest... were rapidly approaching Lin and the Herrscher of Erosion.

Is it Schicksal?

The organization that fights against the Honkai in this World Bubble is also the organization that created Theresa and Kallen.

For some reason, Lin felt something was off about Schicksal. He should have stayed put and held off the Herrscher of Erosion while waiting for the Schicksal members who were likely there to Herrscher of Erosion to arrive. Instead, he took a deep breath and nodded to the Herrscher of Erosion.

The two figures disappeared into the air, and the Schicksal combat members who were moving at maximum speed still missed their target.

The squad leader reported in the communications, "Report, the Herrscher of Erosion and the unknown life form have lost their signals. Please issue further instructions."

"Hmm... then there's no need to continue the pursuit. Let's control the casualties first and try our best to help the surrounding residents." A man's voice paused playfully for a moment, then said casually.

"Yes."

Chapter Forty-Five: Contract... Not Established

The water park, which should have been bustling with activity, was now completely silent and deserted.

After all, a "disaster" comparable to an earthquake has occurred in the city. Once the evacuation alarm sounds, no one with a sound mind would still intend to play and have fun at the water park.

The two, one tall and one short, silently walked into the water park, which was completely different from the bustling place it had been not long ago.

Upon arriving at this much cooler amusement park than outside, the girl's eyes were constantly scanning her surroundings. She pointed to her lips and asked Lin, "I remember the red, sweet thing you gave me before was here, right? Get me another one."

"... rock candy apples?"

"Is that what it's called?" The Herrscher of Erosion pondered for a moment, then shook her head indifferently. "Never mind, it doesn't matter what it's called. I want to eat another one."

"There is none left."

The Herrscher of Erosion's eyes widened slightly. "Gone? Wasn't it right here before? Or is the fruit-bearing tree gone?"

"That was done by a person. If the person isn't here, then it's gone." Lin Bing coldly stared at her, secretly gathering her strength, ready to deal with any sudden attack from this Herrscher.

"Oh... I see."

She wasn't too disappointed; perhaps she was just a little regretful that she couldn't eat that memorable candy again.

"What exactly do you want to do?"

Lin questioned the inhuman girl in front of him directly Theresa. She had the same appearance as Theresa, but she had a completely different mind. She looked like an innocent and cute girl, but not long ago, she casually crushed hundreds of people.

And her? Not even blood would get on her delicate, boneless hands.

This was the first time that someone had made Lin feel genuine disgust from the bottom of his heart.

The Herrscher of Erosion skipped along with her hands behind her back, saying, "Hmm... I think we could make a contract too."

"..."

What is she saying?

Lin couldn't understand the meaning behind the silver-haired girl's words for a moment, and he probably didn't want his brain to comprehend such an absurd reality.

"It's the 'contract' you mentioned to that strange-smelling guy who attacked me last time." The girl gestured, then pointed at Lin and then at herself. "If we make a contract together, you should be willing to become my familiar, right?"

Lin understood what she meant, and Lin's answer was also very simple.

"Impossible."

He replied calmly, then gazed at the girl who showed neither surprise nor distress.

"But you clearly shouted 'Theresa, we will not forget each other' at the end, right?" The Herrscher of Erosion's face, devoid of any human emotion, showed no sign of muscle twitching. She pointed to her face and said, "Since I look exactly like her, then I should also be 'Theresa,' and in the end, we are the ones who have not forgotten each other."

Lin Lengdi was like a block of ice.

After listening to the Herrscher's long speech, he spoke slowly but forcefully:

"You are not Theresa, you are a Herrscher."

The Herrscher pondered for a moment upon hearing this, and after a long pause, nodded:

"Oh? Really? Okay then. Let's try another way."

The silver-haired girl walked in the sunlight, but there was no sense of brightness in her eyes; she left a shadow wherever she went.

She turned and walked back to Lin, raising her hand, which made Lin take a step back with extreme vigilance.

She held up one finger and announced to the city outside the water park—