Boom—
Light fell from the sky and slammed into Ganesha with an incomparably heavy muffled crash, instantly interrupting the Honkai Beast's charge and forcing it to its knees.
Like a rabbit pinned down by a hunting falcon.
That thought involuntarily surfaced in Leona's mind.
The next instant, violent shockwaves spread outward. The surrounding Valkyries were immediately blown away, while clouds of dust surged up and concealed everything in a haze.
Yet even through the dust, Leona could clearly see that the one standing atop Ganesha was a human.
Or rather, a creature that looked human.
At the very least, she had never seen a human capable of reaching that kind of speed.
The hairs on her body stood on end as an overwhelming sense of danger rose from Leona's heart. It was even clearer than when she had fought Ganesha, making the Valkyrie's heart pound wildly.
Without much hesitation, Leona raised the Heavy Particle Cannon in her hands, already charged to its limit, and then...
Whoosh—
A blazing yellow beam burst from the cannon's muzzle, piercing through the dust like a sharp sword and shooting straight toward the unfamiliar figure.
Yet at the instant it touched the figure, the beam split to either side as though it possessed a mind of its own, striking the buildings and leaving two more patches of ruins nearby.
"Young Valkyrie, isn't it a little inappropriate to be so enthusiastic upon our first meeting?"
The dust dispersed, revealing a white-robed figure wearing a white mask. At that moment, he was pointing a finger forward.
Clearly, it was that seemingly casual finger that had split apart an A-rank Valkyrie's all-out attack.
Dance for Me
A short white hooded robe, along with an equally white metal mask, and that overwhelmingly terrifying strength.
There was no doubt that this was...
"One billion!"
The sword-wielding Valkyrie from the Third Squad cried out.
"..."
Shi Hen looked toward the Valkyrie who had spoken, white light flickering in his eyes beneath the mask.
So that was it. They wanted to use that eye-catching billion dollars as his new codename, thereby protecting Welt's name?
He had already seen through Anti-Entropy's entire plan.
"My apologies, Mr. Welt! My subordinate was thoughtless. I apologize to you on her behalf!"
Leona hurriedly lowered her head.
Although everyone knew this man was an impostor, once he truly stood before them, they had to address him as Welt.
If possible, she even wanted to call him Leader, so long as Shi Hen would forgive her subordinate's offense.
Seeing the Valkyrie's fear, Shi Hen merely shook his head lightly. "If apologies were useful..."
Rumble—
Struggling to stand, Ganesha shook off the stones on its body. One of its heads swayed back and forth, trying to figure out what had happened.
An Emperor-class Honkai Beast really was tenacious.
With a sigh in his heart, Shi Hen drew a crimson Greatsword from behind his back and said to Leona and the others, "Sorry, could you wait ten seconds first?
Don't worry. It'll be over soon."
He had casually taken the Greatsword from the transport ship's armory.
Although he was not skilled at fighting with weapons, a weapon was still useful in certain situations.
For example, when he had to control his strength and be careful not to kill his opponent.
Leona: "???"
Ten seconds?
What was this man talking about? Did he intend to deal with an Emperor-class Honkai Beast in ten seconds?
He had no intention of explaining. Or rather, Shi Hen chose to explain through his actions.
With a tap of his toes against Ganesha's back, Shi Hen leaped high into the air. The blade in his hand traced a full arc through the air before falling upon the giant white elephant's left foreleg.
What terrible swordsmanship...
Leona could not help thinking.
And his choice of target was awful too. Who directly attacked a Honkai Beast's gray shell?
Even the sword-wielding Valkyrie on their team knew to attack the joints connecting the Honkai Beast's limbs.
Yet as though to shatter Leona's understanding, the crimson blade sliced straight through one of the Honkai Beast's legs like a hot knife through butter, leaving behind a cut as smooth as a mirror.
The Valkyries: "..."
Was this really the Emperor-class Honkai Beast they had fought for so long just to barely break through its defenses?
Ignoring what the Valkyries were thinking, Shi Hen merely continued his attack.
His body paused in midair. White light flashed beneath his feet, and Shi Hen shot forward like an arrow loosed from its bow, his blade drawing a crimson afterimage through the air.
This time, his target was Ganesha's left hind leg.
The blade swept through it with the same complete lack of resistance. Having lost two legs, Ganesha's body tilted and collapsed sideways, its mouth letting out a deafening roar.
Yet unlike its usual cries, which were filled with brutality, the Emperor-class Honkai Beast now sounded like a mouse caught by a cat. Only dying unwillingness remained in its voice.
In almost the blink of an eye, all four of Ganesha's limbs had been severed, leaving only its barrel-shaped body sprawled on the ground, its four eyes filled with helplessness.
Flipping down in front of Ganesha, Shi Hen flourished his sword and shook the purple-black fluid from its blade. Looking at the Honkai Beast, he said unhurriedly, "Are you ready to welcome death?"
Wouldn't it have been better if you had just stayed down from the start? You had to interrupt me while I was showing off.
Now, you could only enter Jackal's laboratory in this position.
Whether it understood Shi Hen's words or not, Ganesha's four eyes stared at the human standing before it, and its massive mouth opened slightly.
Buzz—
Red light surged out as massive amounts of Honkai Energy turned into beams that shot from Ganesha's mouth, determined to grind this human who had inflicted such great harm upon it into dust.
But the next second, the light split apart.
A crimson blade suddenly shot forth, forcibly tearing open the torrent of red Honkai Energy and piercing Ganesha's throat with unstoppable force, nailing the Honkai Beast firmly to the ground.
The red light abruptly stopped.
His body leaped high once more. Shi Hen spun three times in the air before driving a fist charged to the limit heavily into Ganesha's spine.
Boom—
It was as though a steamroller weighing several tons had crashed down from the sky. An incomparably heavy boom shook the area, and even the ground within dozens of meters sank inward.
As for Ganesha, cracks now covered the gray shell across its entire back, as though it would fall away at the slightest touch.
Brushing the dust from the corner of his clothes, Shi Hen sat atop the now-silent Emperor-class Honkai Beast as though he had done something insignificant. His eyes, flickering with white light, looked toward the stunned Valkyries. "Now, we can continue with our business."
At that moment, exactly ten seconds had passed since he had made his request.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Welt, I'm sorry..."
The sword-wielding Valkyrie instantly collapsed onto the ground, so anxious that she was nearly in tears.
Only then did she realize how great a disaster her careless remark had caused.
This man who dared impersonate the Anti-Entropy Leader truly possessed that level of strength!
"Mr. Welt, I failed to discipline my subordinate properly. I am willing to accept any punishment on her behalf!"
Standing in front of the sword-wielding Valkyrie, Leona lowered her head and spoke sincerely.
"Oh? Really?"
Shi Hen studied the coffee-brown-haired Valkyrie before him with interest and asked in an incredibly frivolous tone.
"Captain Leona..."
The sword-wielding Valkyrie raised her head, staring blankly and helplessly at the captain protecting her.
"Leona!"
"Major Leona!"
The other Valkyries could not help crying out as well.
Compared to a B-rank Valkyrie who could only be considered competent, an A-rank Valkyrie like Leona, who could be called an ace even within the entire Far East Branch, was undoubtedly far more important.
Yet at the same time, they could all understand her desire to protect her companion.
For a moment, everyone's feelings became exceptionally complicated. They looked at the sword-wielding Valkyrie, then at Leona, while some cast veiled and resentful glances at Shi Hen.
However, after what had happened to the sword-wielding Valkyrie, no one dared provoke him openly anymore.
Before they understood Shi Hen's precise intentions, they still held onto a sliver of hope that perhaps there was room to salvage everything.
"Yes, I am willing to accept your punishment, in any form..."
Setting down the Heavy Particle Cannon, whose energy had long since been exhausted, Leona felt the various gazes behind her and lowered her head obediently.
"Since that's the case..." As he spoke, Shi Hen stroked his chin as though seriously considering something. "I heard that the Valkyries of the Far East Branch are skilled at singing and dancing. Then dance for me.
If you can't satisfy me, you understand the consequences..."
"..."
Leona abruptly raised her head, her pupils widening instinctively.
The other Valkyries' expressions instantly became strange as well.
"Oh, right. I have some companions who want to come over. Could I ask you people from Schicksal to be kind enough not to stop them?"
Shi Hen said politely.
With the firepower of Jackal's transport ship, breaking through Schicksal's cordon would still be somewhat difficult.
Prophet Jackal
When Raven and the others arrived, they were greeted by this scene.
The white-robed youth sat atop the barrel-like torso of a giant white elephant. Around the elephant lay four thick limbs, which had undoubtedly once belonged to it, only to have been forcibly severed by someone's sword.
In front of the youth stood a fairly pretty woman with coffee-brown hair tied into a ponytail, who was... performing some kind of ritual dance?
Seeing the woman hopping about while making strange gestures with her hands, Raven immediately became vigilant.
She knew that some small tribes in this world had inherited secret arts that allowed them to use ritual dances for psychological suggestion, thereby unleashing strength several times greater than their own.
Without a doubt, this Valkyrie before her carried such an inheritance.
As for the group of Valkyries beside her, who wanted to watch but were too embarrassed to do so and were fidgeting around without knowing what to do, Raven automatically ignored them.
"Is... is that enough already?"
Upon seeing Raven and the others arrive, Leona stopped moving as well. With an indignant expression, she glared at the youth atop Ganesha's back, her watery eyes filled with grief and humiliation.
Ten minutes... She had spent a whole ten minutes doing that embarrassing dance!
Heaven knew how she had endured those ten minutes. The young woman was so mortified and angry that she wanted to ram her head into Ganesha and end her miserable life.
What was more, the members of the Third Squad and the Valkyries from the other two squads had witnessed it all. The shame made Leona want to faint on the spot so she would not have to face any of this.
The chastity she had carefully protected for more than twenty years was gone just like that...
"Fine."
Shi Hen waved his hand.
Those ten minutes had been incredibly difficult for him too. He had been forced to watch something so painful to the eyes.
This Valkyrie was clearly quite pretty, but once she started dancing...
Blech~
Before you continue