[Heavenly Dao's Blessing detected. Does the host wish to accept?]
"What does that mean? If I accept this thing, won't it bind me to this Heavenly Dao like one of those contracts?"
[The host is overthinking. Accepting Heavenly Dao's Blessing will not establish a connection between the host and the Heavenly Dao.]
"All right, then I'll accept!"
Lin Ran accepted Heavenly Dao's Blessing, felt a rush of comfort wash through his body, and that was it.
Akame vaguely sensed something too, but she couldn't put it into words and could only look toward the puppet army not far away.
At that moment, the strange energy within the puppets surged into the sky all at once. Lin Ran noticed it as well.
"Could the source of that strange energy have decided these puppets are useless and be taking back their energy?"
Their minds were linked. Akame unleashed boundless power, and the next instant, thousands of enormous black-and-gold swords condensed into existence. These black swords were formed primarily from devouring power. When they pierced the purple tide of energy, the energy around their blades was devoured completely.
The thousands of enormous swords seemed to have found a delicious feast, circling endlessly within the tide of energy and absorbing it with abandon.
Once the puppets lost their energy, they fell to the ground one after another, all signs of life gone. By the time the entire tide of energy had been absorbed, all the Teigu users were staring blankly at that figure.
"We won! We won! Mmph, mmph-" Tatsumi was the first to cheer, only for Leone to press him between her magnificent breasts and rub him against them. Tatsumi made muffled noises, expressing that happiness had come too suddenly.
When all the people of the Divine Dragon Empire learned that the Guardian Temple's Teigu users had annihilated the entire invading army from the Western Empire, the whole nation celebrated! At that moment, the Guardian Temple's supreme status was quietly cemented.
Three days later, Lin Ran stepped out of a room in Night Raid's base, carrying Sheele, whose strength had increased tremendously.
Lin Ran had completed his mission in this world and was about to enter the final stage: traveling around the world. That's right, before leaving, Lin Ran planned to take the girls around the world and get to the bottom of what it held. What if some great villain was hiding in a corner somewhere? How could he leave with peace of mind then?
For a while afterward, Lin Ran taught Zi Xing during the day and Sheele and Akame at night. Through Lin Ran's efforts, the two finally agreed to attend lessons together.
More than two months later, Lin Ran decided to set out. Spending every night at the base in revelry was getting to be more than he could handle!
Their goal this time was to explore unknown lands and see whether civilizations had arisen in places they had never reached.
Stopping here and there along the way, the group advanced at a leisurely pace. Their days were quite carefree until a vast ocean blocked their path.
The seawater in this world was pale red. On a whim, Lin Ran made a bamboo raft, called the three girls over, and began a life of drifting at sea.
They hadn't drifted far before a Danger Beast leaped out of the water from below, its blue scales reflecting a cold gleam. As more and more Danger Beasts leaped out of the water, Lin Ran grew puzzled. What's this supposed to mean? If you're going to fight, fight. If not, get lost! Are you trying to slap us to death with the splashing waves?
"Are they calling their friends?" Sheele asked with an adorably vacant look.
"What would they call their friends for? The few of us wouldn't even fill the gaps between their teeth. The more friends they call, the less meat there'll be to go around!"
More than half an hour later, the surrounding waters were packed with these Danger Beasts. With a nod from Lin Ran, Akame gripped Divine Abyss. A streak of sword light plunged straight down into the seabed. With that single strike, the surface of the sea immediately turned somewhat green. These Danger Beasts had green blood.
Akame's strike became the spark that set off the Danger Beasts' attack. Exerting their strength in unison, they actually raised waves dozens of zhang high.
Now that battle had begun, Akame no longer held back. A thousand enormous golden-red swords fell from the clouds, bringing calamity upon the Danger Beasts in the surrounding waters. Many had only come to watch the excitement, and now look what had happened-they wouldn't be going back!
"Come on! Let's experience flying on swords!"
Lin Ran leaped up, and an enormous sword appeared beneath his feet. Akame and Zi Xing followed his example. Only Sheele remained on the bamboo raft, looking at the three of them helplessly.
Lin Ran felt helpless. This adorably ditzy girl really was endearingly silly. He jumped back onto the bamboo raft, wrapped an arm around her slender waist, and leaped onto the enormous sword. With a thought, he sent it shooting forward.
Akame hugged Lin Ran tightly, her little head buried against his chest, refusing to look out at all.
"Are you afraid of heights?"
"No, it's just my first time being this high up. I'm a little scared."
"I see. It's all right, it's very safe. Look at the sea below. Isn't it beautiful?"
Lin Ran didn't make fun of her, but gently kissed her instead. Coaxed by Lin Ran, Sheele looked around, and before long, a smile appeared on her pretty face.
"We're speeding up!" Lin Ran suddenly exerted his power, and the enormous sword became a streak of red light, tearing through the fierce winds as it sped forward.
After more than three hours of sword flight, several enormous, isolated islands came into view. Lin Ran lowered his altitude and discovered that there were actually wild men living on the island!
These wild men also spotted Lin Ran and the three girls in the air, jumping up and down below like monkeys. This wild man attracted the attention of more wild men, who swung between the enormous trees on vines like apes.
After circling the island without finding anything unusual, Lin Ran and the three girls gradually vanished from the wild men's sight.
Toward evening, the blood-red setting sun had already disappeared behind the mountain peaks when Lin Ran and the three girls finally spotted land.
After finding a flat spot to rest for the night, Lin Ran and Sheele went deep into the woods and hunted down a large rabbit as tall as a person.
With a chuckle, Lin Ran stuffed it with seasonings, bought some foil from System, and buried the rabbit.
Akame and the other two watched Lin Ran work with curiosity written across their faces. What kind of cooking method was this? It was their first time seeing it.
"Will it still be edible like that?"
"Of course! It'll be delicious!"
After waiting for more than an hour, Lin Ran figured it was about ready. He pushed aside the charcoal fire, opened the foil, and gave everyone a portion of rabbit meat.
Crisp, fragrant, and delicious, with the added heat of the seasonings-it was ridiculously tasty! The three girls ate until grease covered their mouths. Lin Ran had barely eaten any before they polished off the entire enormous rabbit.
That night, Lin Ran slept with Akame, while Sheele was responsible for holding Zi Xing as she slept. Although the two girls had already tacitly agreed to the three of them sleeping together back at the base, Zi Xing was here now. Lin Ran felt it wouldn't be right for the three of them to sleep together while Zi Xing slept alone. What kind of behavior would that be?
Lying in Lin Ran's arms, Akame looked at him in confusion. What's going on? Why aren't we doing that sort of thing today?
"Let me rest for a couple of days!" Lin Ran held her slender waist and kissed her for a while. Akame nodded, buried her head against his neck, and fell asleep.
After Lin Ran had also fallen sound asleep, several ghostlike figures slowly drifted over. As they drew close, Divine Abyss, floating and shifting in the air, suddenly blazed with golden-red light. Keen sword qi surged out, cutting down every approaching figure.
Lin Ran crawled out of the tent and looked toward the surviving figures in the distance, discovering that they were actually a kind of fish monster. Their bodies were covered in black scales; aside from their eerily glowing eyes, they truly blended perfectly into the night.