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The moment Zero One and her sisters regrouped with Wai Tian's group, there was a bit of a misconception, as they believed she was yet another strange machine they would have to fight.
However…
"W-Wait a bit! I am not an enemyyyyy!" Zero One's voice echoed from it. "It's me! Zero One!"
"And me too, by the way," Zero Two said.
"…" Zero Three remained in silence.
"HUH?!"
Wai Tian and the rest of the group gasped in disbelief.
They couldn't quite understand how these two girls somehow fused into this giant robot, but it certainly looked strong!
"So did you two merge together?!" Wai Tian asked.
"Wow, it looks strong!" Sara said. "Like those Saturday morning anime that feature big robots."
"I wish I could know that reference…" Yin Sheng sighed. "So it's really you two then?"
"And me."
Zero Three finally talked, her voice making everyone in front of her slightly alarmed. She was an enemy back then, and when they asked her to join them, she refused.
"C-Calm down!" Zero One's voice echoed. "My sister came back to help us; without her, I don't know if I would be alive right now. Her powerful robot had been upgraded, and once all three of us piloted it, this happened!"
"We're still getting used to this strength, but I am sure it'll be of use," Zero Two said. "Anyway! We don't get more time to talk! We have to hurry! Look! That's Anna and the Venerables! We're almost catching up with them!"
Zero Two's words quickly made everyone look into the distance; above the skies, Anna and the Venerables were only a few hundred kilometers from them.
"Right, let's hurry then!" Wai Tian nodded. "Is everyone okay? No need for healing?"
"We're fine!" Yin Sheng said. "We've been preserving as much energy as possible."
"Yeah, this is it, right?" Sara asked. "I sure hope I can go back home once we're done with this… I love this place, but I'm kind of missing some things from Earth…"
"Anna said this was a Trial for her," Zero One said. "Once she's done taking care of things with everyone else, it should be possible for her to go back, and you, her Familiar, to accompany her… I believe."
Although everyone knew what would happen, it wasn't as if they liked that. Anna had been part of their lives for the last months, becoming an irreplaceable friend. To think she would depart in just a few hours from now, if everything goes well, made them slightly regretful they didn't get to spend enough time with her.
"Let's go…" Wai Tian sighed. "Let's end this."
The group flew through the skies, reaching Anna's group within mere seconds, at the same time as they unleashed all kinds of techniques and attacks against incoming swarms of machines.
"Anna!"
Wai Tian called for Anna, who was focused on the thing in front of her, the Mechanical Tree.
Anna's Aura had grown tremendously strong; Wai Tian could tell already.
Above all, her powers were overflowing with cosmic energy, much more than before.
The other Venerables weren't all that different, completely different.
"What happened to everyone?"
The Heavenly Demon now exuded an aura of gray and white color mixed with some black; it seemed he had reached a new realm altogether, and his chaotic aura had become much calmer.
Meanwhile, the opposite had happened with the Heavenly Empress; her bright radiance wasn't completely pure anymore, tarnished by darkness and red blood color; there was a deep hatred and malice within her radiance.
And yet, Wai Tian and the rest still knew they were the same masters that taught them everyone… Despite their changes.
It didn't feel like they became different people; no, it felt more like they had let go of inhibitions and broken through the boundaries of their own strength.
They released what they'd been holding back, attaining a much higher level of power as a result…
They quickly realized that this meant they had to go through grueling sacrifices, primarily the sacrifice of their own morals and ideals.
"They changed…" Yin Sheng said.
"Yeah…" Wai Tian nodded.
"W-What happened to them?" Sara asked.
"I think they're focused on their mission…" Zero One said. "Let's continue with the plan; our primary mission is to take down the small fry!"
"Yeah!" Zero Two roared.
"Very well…" Zero Three said.
As Anna charged forward with the Venerables, Song, and Fang Shuan, eliminating any threat in front of them, several swarms of thousands of robots avoided them and attacked whatever was behind them.
To stop them from ever attacking the other two "traitorous" mechanical trees or the islands, Wai Tian and Zero One's group mission was to take them down, as many as they could.
"Oh, it's them!" Anna smiled, as she noticed at long last that her friends were right behind her. "I couldn't sense them because I was so focused…"
"It seems they've grown stronger themselves; suffering and battles to the death are two of the best masters for one's growth and evolution." The Heavenly Demon said.
"Zero One… What happened to that girl?" The Heavenly Empress asked.
"She…!" Anna's eyes widened for a bit. "Oh wow! It seems all three sisters are inside that huge robot. It looks awesome."
"So it seems…" The Heavenly Demon nodded, his eyes finally opening. He had them closed this entire time. "It's finally time, Anna. Are you ready?"
"I've never been so ready!" Anna nodded.
In front of them, the huge mechanical Tree was finally within reach; in just a couple of seconds, they would be able to finally smash it into smithereens.
Their plan was simple; they were going to break it open and get Song out of it, unsealing him and battling him.
While the Heavenly Demon and the Heavenly Empress keep him busy, Anna, Ying Sheng, and Song would quickly aim to extract his soul out of his body.
Although his body was completely lost, having become a monstrous combination of flesh and machine, the soul remained.
Although the soul itself was slowly being consumed by the demonic powers of the Demon King Seed, the Song born from the Records of the World could still hear the real Song's voice.
It meant there was still a part of him that was fighting to not become a monster completely. The plan would include not extracting the whole soul but cutting away the "healthy part" of it that had yet to be infected.
Whatever was already infected was no longer Song, but only an abyssal, cursed, and demonic soul that only had memories of destruction and calamity, a Demon King's only thoughts.
Once Song's soul was secured, he would merge with the Record's Song, restoring his body and also his powers, and seemingly reviving through that method!
However, although on paper it seemed like something doable…
It was a completely different thing once they finally faced the monster.
"We're almost there…!"
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Thousands of machines exploded into pieces as they died; the Heavenly Empress swung her hand as a gigantic storm of darkness and light engulfed everything, embodying both the Hope of people and their Suffering.
"Anna! How are the Primordial Beasts doing? Any news?"
CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!
The Heavenly Demon used his long white staff, piercing holes through hundreds of machines with each swing, blowing them up into pieces through his newly awakened White Void Powers, which embodied the Hollowness he felt within him.
"Y-Yeah! They managed to break into the caves and are currently growing larger and consuming the crystals!" Anna said. "But it looks like they'll be a bit late… but expect their arrival at any moment!"
"Good!" The Heavenly Empress nodded. "Song, are you ready? Stay with Anna and Fang Shuan, alright dear?"
"Yes, mother!" Nodded Song, becoming much more serious. "I'll not waste my energy needlessly as you said."
"Good boy," The Heavenly Empress smiled, nodding. "Then here we are… My love, are you ready?"
She glanced at the Heavenly Demon as the red-eyed crow smiled.
"Yes, I am ready."
The two rushed forward first, their Auras combining together and unifying into a gigantic phoenix made of black and golden flames.
"CRYAAAAAH!"
With a mighty roar, the massive phoenix reached the Mechanical Tree! Anna noticed dozens of force field barriers, which she quickly decided to take care of.
"That's not going to protect you anymore…"
She swung her swords from all that distance, as her entire aura erupted, as her attacks converged into a single slicing wave of white color.
"{Myriad Blade Arts}: {Horizon Cleave}"
SLAAASH!
The attack slashed through the dozens of forcefield barriers, shattering them into millions of glass-like pieces.
Crack, crack…!
CRASH!
The Heavenly Demon and the Heavenly Empress were able to not waste time or energy by forcing their way through.
"NOW!"
With all their might, they hit the Mechanical Tree directly.
BOOOMMM!!!
A gigantic explosion, looking even bigger than a nuclear bomb, erupted, blowing through the entire Mechanical Tree and splitting it in half.
RUMBLE!
As the upper part of the tree collapsed into the seas behind it, the lower part revealed its interior; a gigantic, humanoid being was resting there.
The explosion, however, quickly awakened it, as a massive titan of over five hundred meters in height started to crawl out of the tree's interior…
"GRAAAAAHHHH!"
The Fifth Demon King, The Weapon of Destruction.
-----
Can't wait to see what's next? You can join my Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/pancakeswitch
And gain access to all these Advanced Chapters:
206 Advanced Chapters of
The Protagonist's Sister Is Actually The Strongest
85 Advanced Chapters of
The Heavenly Martial Empress Returns
19 Advanced Chapters of
Fantasy Story Online: The Crippled Vampire Prince Walks The Heavenly Demon Path