Fighting Dirty

"..."

Looking at the white-robed figure before her, Durandal was a little confused.

What the hell was this guy talking about?

She was asking who he was. What did the colors of their clothes have to do with anything?

"Welt. My name is Welt."

Knowing that the Kaslana family had never been known for their brains, Shi Hen skipped over the clothing and answered the girl's question.

Everyone was out there making a living. Who used their real name?

"Please don't joke around, sir."

Durandal spoke seriously, with a hint of anger in her eyes.

He had opened his mouth and immediately given the name of the Anti-Entropy Leader. He was obviously fooling her.

"I'm serious," Shi Hen said in a solemn tone. "What makes you think I'm not Welt?"

Even Welt himself had yet to object.

"Welt is the name of Anti-Entropy's leader, but you can't possibly be Anti-Entropy's leader."

Durandal explained.

"Young Valkyrie, have you ever seen the Anti-Entropy Leader?"

"No."

"Then how can you assume I'm not the Anti-Entropy Leader?"

"You can't be the First Herrscher."

"Have you seen the First Herrscher?"

"..."

"You've never even seen the First Herrscher, so how can you deny that I'm Welt!?"

Shi Hen spoke with righteous conviction.

"...I've seen him in the records."

After falling silent for a moment, Durandal still tried to reason with him.

"How do you know the records of your Schicksal are all true? You've never actually seen the First Herrscher either." Shi Hen continued questioning her. "I could even say your bishop is bald!"

"I've met Bishop Sir. He isn't bald."

Durandal retorted.

"Is that really the point? Besides, what if he wears a wig?" Shi Hen was deeply worried about the girl's ability to identify the important issue. "You can't prove I'm not Welt, so I am Welt!"

On this battleship, no one could deny that he was Welt!

"No, you can't possibly be Welt!"

Durandal still shook her head.

"You've never seen Welt, so how do you know—"

Bang!

Furious from embarrassment, the girl chose to settle the dispute in the way she was best at.

If she couldn't solve the problem, then she would solve the person causing it.

Doesn't Play Fair

Bang!

Catching the first energy round Durandal fired with one hand, Shi Hen immediately felt his palm grow scorching hot.

With a glance, he saw that the black glove on his hand had been burned through with a hole the size of a pigeon egg, revealing slightly reddened skin beneath.

As expected of a relic-grade weapon. A casual strike already carried power no less than a ship-mounted cannon.

Shi Hen gained a profound appreciation for the strength of Previous Civilization technology.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

While he was thinking, Durandal had already pulled the triggers several times in succession, weaving a golden barrage.

Feeling the heat emitted by several energy rounds at once, Shi Hen's gaze sharpened.

Unlike the trash in the underground world, this was an opponent truly worthy of his full strength.

Daring not to take her attack head-on, Shi Hen used a palm wrapped in Honkai Energy to deflect an energy round. His body slipped forward as he rapidly closed in on Durandal, driving a straight punch directly at her chest.

I was waiting for you to come closer.

Seeing Shi Hen approach, Durandal was not afraid but delighted. The instant she put away her twin guns, she threw a punch at the youth.

Compared to firearms, she was even better at this kind of close-quarters, fist-to-flesh combat.

Boom!

Their fists landed on each other at the same time, the two impacts merging into an even heavier muffled blast. Cracks immediately spread across the surrounding deck.

Even though the battleship's steel was extraordinarily strong, compared to the terrifying destructive power of these two, it was still as fragile as a child's toy.

Feeling the immense force transmitted through the girl's fist, Shi Hen involuntarily took half a step back. One shoulder also went slightly numb.

The monstrous strength passed down through the Kaslana family was indeed terrifying.

But what if it was like this?

The corners of Shi Hen's mouth curled slightly beneath his mask. A pale white glow lit up on the back of his right hand, and within it, a red pattern of intricate design could vaguely be seen.

In an instant, Shi Hen's control over Honkai Energy rose to another level.

Using Honkai Energy more precisely to stimulate his cells, Shi Hen threw another punch.

Meanwhile, after her body swayed slightly, Durandal attacked again. Her sky-blue eyes brimmed with confidence.

From that previous punch, she had already realized that she held the advantage in strength.

Next, she only needed to find a way to expand that advantage.

Boom!

Their fists collided. This time, however, the outcome was evenly matched.

Feeling the force in his fist, not the slightest bit weaker than her own, a trace of surprise rose in the Valkyrie's eyes.

His strength had actually increased?

"Young Valkyrie, your understanding of strength is still too shallow."

Seeing the girl's surprise, Shi Hen said with a smile.

The reason the Kaslana family possessed monstrous strength beyond ordinary people was fundamentally because their cells contained many organelles that had originally belonged to Honkai Beasts, making their cells far more powerful than those of normal humans.

With such unusual traits at the cellular level, the Kaslanas naturally possessed strength far beyond ordinary people.

Yet through precise manipulation of Honkai Energy, Shi Hen had improved his cells' efficiency in utilizing Honkai Energy, allowing them to unleash even greater power by another method.

Just like Tactical Mechs and Valkyries, steel and machinery were naturally stronger than flesh and blood. Yet through more efficient utilization of Honkai Energy, Valkyries could display power far surpassing that of mechs.

"Don't get too smug!"

Durandal shouted coldly, hurling her fist at the youth with all her strength.

She had never been the kind of person whose resolve would be shaken by a little adversity.

The battle had only just begun. Victory and defeat were still uncertain.

In the bridge, the Valkyries of the Blade of Immortality Squad were completely stunned as they watched the increasingly fierce battle between the two.

Through the cameras deployed across the battleship, they could not even see the two clearly. They could only make out two extremely blurred shadows and hear thunderous booms one after another.

Wherever the shadows passed, the deck made of high-strength alloy cracked apart. The entire battleship occasionally shook as well, as though this colossal creation, built from the efforts of countless people and hailed as the steel fortress of a new era, was trembling in fear.

They had no doubt that if Durandal had not held him back, this unfamiliar enemy really could have torn the battleship apart with his bare hands.

"Leave this to Lady Durandal. Everyone else, act according to the fourth combat plan. Don't let the Honkai Beasts enter the city."

In the deathly silence, Rita spoke.

Within the Blade of Immortality Squad, Durandal and Rita were not the only ones capable of fighting.

Under normal circumstances, a Valkyrie squad consisted of around fifty people. After excluding those responsible for logistical support, they could still form three or four three-person teams, the smallest combat unit.

Against the nearly thousand Honkai Beasts that had appeared in this incident, that level of combat power was somewhat insufficient, but they still had the Hover Battleship's fire support.

Furthermore, the regular troops stationed on Sicily were already on their way. They only needed to delay the Honkai Beasts' advance for the time being.

"Yes!"

Upon receiving the order, the Valkyries immediately sprang into action, their movements crisp and decisive without the slightest hesitation.

To be selected for the Blade of Immortality Squad, they were already elites among elites.

The battleship's deployment hatches opened, and Valkyrie after Valkyrie leaped out, heading for battlefields across the area under the fire support of drones.

For the honor of the Blade of Immortality, they would stop the Honkai outside Raymond City!

"Lady Durandal..."

High in the bridge, Rita watched the battle on the deck through the porthole. A trace of worry inevitably appeared on her alluring face.

Since the operation in the Quantum Sea ended, she had not seen an enemy capable of forcing Durandal into such a hard battle for a long time.

Moreover, as the vice-captain of the Blade of Immortality and the Valkyrie on the battleship closest to Durandal in strength, she could see far more in this battle than the others.

This unfamiliar man in white robes truly possessed power that could almost shatter common sense!

There was something strange about this man!

After exchanging another blow with Shi Hen, Durandal's expression grew increasingly grave.

With a shift in her footing, the Valkyrie raised her leg, turned, and unleashed a roundhouse kick.

On the other side, Shi Hen likewise raised his leg, turned, and threw a roundhouse kick.

Boom!

Their long legs collided violently in midair, erupting with a thunderclap-like roar. The surrounding deck even sank slightly.

"You're copying my moves!"

Durandal gritted her teeth and shouted.

"This is replication. Please don't use such a low-grade term as 'copying.'" Shi Hen corrected her. "Understanding and reproducing—that is the authority unique to me, the Herrscher of Reason."

Durandal: "..."

At a time like this, he still had the nerve to claim he was Welt? Did he think she had never read the intelligence on the Herrscher of Reason?

"Your talent is very high, far greater than mine."

Durandal spoke in a deep voice.

In their battle just now, she had used Kaslana Gun-Fu, a fighting technique she had trained in for a full year before achieving even modest proficiency.

Yet... in merely ten minutes, he had reached the same level as her.

She had never seen anything so utterly unreasonable.

Kaslana Gun-Fu was not merely about fists and kicks. More importantly, it was about mobilizing the Honkai Energy within one's body.

If one only copied the outward form, the result would be nothing but an empty display that would collapse at the lightest push.

Yet merely through fighting her, Shi Hen had completely mastered this combat technique. Even his circulation of Honkai Energy was identical to hers in every detail.

This kind of talent, this kind of ability, made even her feel as though her entire worldview had been shattered.

"This is the authority of the Herrscher of Reason."

Shi Hen continued maintaining his persona.

He understood, he reproduced. Wasn't that precisely the ability of the Herrscher of Reason?