"Kill-kill those two girls! Take their Teigu! Only then will we have a chance against those Teigu users!" A group of Revolutionary Army soldiers had gathered at some point and actually surrounded them.
"Foreign tribes!" Akame muttered coldly. So these Revolutionary Army soldiers had colluded with the foreign tribes!
"Divine-Prohibition!" Akame murmured. All the Revolutionary Army soldiers and foreign tribesmen felt as though a mountain pressed down on them, leaving them unable to move.
"Heaven Opening!" The phantom of a thousand-zhang greatsword slowly descended from the clouds, the sword intent gathered upon it spreading to every Revolutionary Army soldier and foreign tribesman suppressed by Divine Prohibition.
The armor on one foreign tribesman blazed with light, actually breaking free of a sliver of Divine Prohibition's suppression, only for an even stronger suppressive force to follow.
"Shingu?" Akame looked curiously at the armor.
She pointed a finger, and the immense power of Divine Prohibition bore down on the armor. Unable to withstand the burden, it shattered outright.
"System, is this a Shingu?"
[In response to the host, no. This is a product of Western alchemy!]
"Alchemy? Has this Revolutionary Army colluded with the Western Empire?" Lin Ran vaguely felt that he might have inadvertently hooked a big fish. He had originally planned to subjugate the Western Empire only after the Divine Dragon Empire had fully stabilized, but now it seemed he might be able to move a little earlier.
As he pondered, a disturbance came from Zi Xing's direction. The aura of that Super Danger Beast was rising at an unusual speed.
"Zi Xing is in danger. That Danger Beast is about to make a desperate final attack!" The moment Lin Ran finished speaking, Akame appeared in front of Zi Xing. The greatsword in the sky abruptly pressed down, killing every Revolutionary Army soldier and foreign tribesman.
With one slash, a hundred-zhang sword beam tore through the Danger Beast's body, interrupting the ultimate move it was still charging.
"Once Sheele gets here too, take her on a trip to the Western Empire. Help her kill some Super Danger Beasts along the way to improve her strength."
Akame nodded in agreement.
"You said that armor just now was a product of Western alchemy?" Akame asked in surprise.
"Yes. We can consider obtaining their alchemy. If armor like that could be mass-produced, it would be enough to equip an invincible army and safeguard the empire's lasting prosperity."
After resting for a while, Zi Xing followed Akame as she roamed among the northern tribes, killing quite a few Revolutionary Army soldiers and foreign tribesmen who had committed evil along the way.
Lin Ran suddenly remembered the Great Wall of Steel from his previous life. If it were combined with alchemy, could they build a bulwark? Yet it did not seem particularly practical. If they encountered an exceptionally powerful enemy, that enemy might be able to destroy it single-handedly.
For three days, Akame hunted constantly among the northern tribes. Of course, her prey were the foreign tribesmen and Revolutionary Army soldiers.
Only after Sheele arrived did the three head west. Their destination this time: the Western Empire!
They crossed mountains and rivers, stopping and starting along the way. Sheele dealt with all the Danger Beasts they encountered, and her physical abilities soared. Lin Ran felt this most directly, because in the tent at night, Akame listened with a flushed face to his and Sheele's panting.
Sheele covered her mouth, but sounds still escaped occasionally.
"Be gentler!" Sheele gave Lin Ran a reproachful push.
"As you command!" Lin Ran chuckled and continued diligently plowing. Sheele's mature, older-woman body had more allure than Akame's, and he worked even harder.
"Big sister, what are Brother Divine Abyss and Sister Sheele doing?"
"They're practicing! Your Sister Sheele will sleep with you tomorrow. I need to practice with your brother too!"
"It's all right. Zi Xing can sleep alone. You and Sister Sheele can both go practice with Brother," Zi Xing said innocently.
"That won't do. I'm afraid your Brother Divine Abyss wouldn't be able to take it," Akame said, her face flushed.
"That's true. Practicing is hard work."
As the three hours drew to a close, Lin Ran returned inside Divine Abyss, hovering silently in the air and watching over the three girls in the two tents.
When the sky began to brighten, the three well-rested girls crawled out of their tents. Lin Ran put the tents into his storage space and continued west with Akame.
The jeering laughter of foreign tribesmen and children's cries came from ahead. Akame and Divine Abyss vanished instantly. A moment later, Akame stood in front of a brother and sister abducted by the foreign tribesmen.
Lin Ran looked them over and found whip marks all over the older brother's body, while the younger sister's clothes were merely a little disheveled. It seemed the brother had protected his sister well. One could also say these foreign tribesmen intended to whip the brother to death before dealing with his sister.
"Oh? What the hell? Where did this beauty suddenly come from?"
Akame threw a punch. Its overwhelming force smashed the five foreign tribesmen before her into a heap of minced flesh.
"So strong!" The older brother stared blankly at Akame.
"Would you like to serve the Divine Dragon Empire?" Akame turned and looked at the pair.
"The Divine Dragon Empire?"
"The former empire. It's been overthrown now."
"As long as I can protect my sister, I'll do anything you ask!"
"All right. Take this token and go to the Guardian Temple. There are opportunities to grow stronger there. Remember what you said, and never forget your original resolve."
Akame handed the brother a token and pointed him in the right direction. After waiting for Sheele and Zi Xing to catch up, the three continued west.
"These foreign tribesmen don't regard the people of the eastern lands as their own kind at all. They're more like a pack of wild beasts. On this trip, we may well have to unleash a slaughter."
"If they persist in their folly, then we'll slaughter every last one of them! I will never allow them to invade the Divine Dragon Empire again!"
"Yes. Sometimes, slaughter really is the best way to solve a problem."
The farther west they traveled, the more barren the land became and the more chaotic its order grew. Without Teigu users, this place was practically a paradise for Danger Beasts. They were not everywhere, but one would spring out from time to time.
Lin Ran discovered that these foreign tribesmen reproduced prolifically. Along their journey, they encountered few adults; children made up the majority. They were bloodthirsty by nature, daring to rush up and bite even Danger Beasts.
"Hmm-these foreign tribesmen probably aren't the same kind as the ones who invaded our north. These people are like savages, bloodthirsty and lawless."
"It's probably the Western Empire's doing. They may have recruited some of the foreign tribesmen to charge into battle for them, constantly wearing down the empire's military strength."
Lin Ran told Akame about his idea of building a Great Wall of Steel, and her eyes lit up. It really was a good idea. If it worked as Divine Abyss described, this Great Wall of Steel would be like an impassable fortified barrier, keeping the foreign tribes outside. As for the Danger Beasts, they would only need to station Teigu users there.
A group of foreign tribesmen charged at them with howls. Sheele swung her sword, and blood sprayed out. The other foreign tribesmen stared fearfully at the longsword in her hand, slowly retreating as they howled.
"Yuan Li!" Akame murmured. All the surrounding foreign tribesmen crashed to the ground, no trace of life remaining. This was Divine Abyss's fifth ultimate technique, which directly stripped a person of life, though it had little effect on opponents of the same level.
"Oh my, Akame is amazing!" Sheele gazed in wonder at the corpses beside her and tightened her grip on her sword. She had to work hard to grow stronger too, or she would not even be able to endure doing that!
"Sheele, why is your face red?"
"It's nothing, nothing!" Sheele hurriedly shook her head. What nonsense am I thinking about!