"What do you mean by that, sir?" Otto didn't pay much attention to Amber's sudden disappearance, but he was somewhat surprised by the reason behind Daniel Davis's actions.
"Not much—just wanted to show a bit of strength. Youlandel, are you interested in a sparring match?" Daniel Davis replied as he walked toward the other side. When he reached a spot about twenty meters away, he stopped, turned around, and faced Otto, Youlandel, and Rita.
Rita's Valkyrie armor was originally of the ice type—the kind befitting the owner of a refrigerator. After suddenly arriving in the Antarctic, she immediately suited up and was naturally unafraid of the cold. As for Otto and Youlandel, these two need no further explanation: one possesses a body of Soul Steel, and the other's strength has reached the level of a Fusion Warrior. Mere cold is nothing to them.
"Youlandel, let us witness the power of our guest from another world." As Youlandel's gaze shifted toward Otto, after a brief moment of silence, Otto smiled and nodded.
"Bishop, shouldn't we retreat a bit farther?" Watching Youlandel stride forward, Rita promptly spoke.
"Indeed," Otto smiled and nodded, then immediately said, "Amber, rally the satellites of Tianming and focus them on this area."
"Yes, Bishop."
With Tianming's technological prowess, even though he was in the Antarctic, contacting Amber was very easy. Earlier, Otto hadn't worried about Amber because he had already received word from her.
As they spoke, Otto and Rita immediately retreated about a hundred meters.
"Tianming's S-rank Valkyries—Bianka, Youlandel, and Atagina, please instruct us," Youlandel said, waving the Black Abyss White Flower in her hand, her face set in a stern expression.
"Ah, Traveler Daniel Davis, please instruct." Youlandel's formal address momentarily caught Daniel Davis off guard; then he casually thought of a title, and after introducing himself, a longsword appeared in his hand—not the Yan Luo Mirror Classic, but rather the sword he usually had his shadow clone train with. Having continuously practiced with Armament Haki, this sword now bore a trace of the Black Blade's semblance.
Boom.
After they exchanged identities, and following a brief standoff, their figures almost simultaneously vanished. The next moment, both reappeared exactly midway between where they had been standing, with Youlandel's Black Abyss White Flower clashing against Daniel Davis's sword. Soon, a deafening roar resounded across the glacier, and a powerful shockwave shattered the surrounding ice for several hundred meters.
This sudden turn of events left Rita and Otto in a rather disheveled state, but fortunately, Rita acted promptly—using a scythe to block the splintering ice—and swiftly retreated with Otto to a safer distance, away from the dueling zone.
"Truly worthy of being Youlandel. If she were to activate the sacred mark of the Kaslana family, she might well leap to a strength on par with Fu Hua in his prime—would that be the Phantom Spirit?"
After that collision, Youlandel's expression clearly grew excited. The next moment, two floating blue figures appeared to her left and right—one wielding a sword, the other a shield. This was the ability of the Shining Knight Moon Soul armor she was currently wearing.
In the very next moment, those two phantoms shot out rapidly from behind Youlandel, curving as they flew toward Daniel Davis. As they neared, Daniel Davis immediately felt the temperature around him drop further. The Moon Soul and Moon Spirit—belonging to a twin series of armors and both wielding cold-type attacks—found the Antarctic terrain to be especially advantageous.
Boom, boom.
However, as the two phantoms closed in on Daniel Davis, two streaks of cold light traced a path through the air, and the phantoms were instantly split in half; even a distant iceberg shattered as a result.
"Youlandel, watch out." After shattering the phantoms, Daniel Davis suddenly snorted coldly, raising his longsword high and delivering a massive slash toward Youlandel—a strike spanning several dozen meters. The enormous sword energy cleaved the glacier beneath them in two.
"Lady Youlandel!"
Seeing Daniel Davis unleash such a powerful attack, Rita—who had been watching from afar—could not help but exclaim. Originally, Rita had been very confident in Youlandel's abilities and did not think she would lose to Daniel Davis, but after witnessing his true strength, Rita began to worry about Youlandel.
In response to Daniel Davis's immensely powerful strike, Youlandel's expression remained unchanged. The Black Abyss White Flower in her hand began to emit a warm glow, and in the next moment, an enormous tree appeared out of thin air before her.
Though it was merely a tree, viewed from above it resembled a small forest. Leveraging the giant tree, Daniel Davis's slash only managed to destroy half of it before it was nullified into nothingness.
"That could be considered a form of Wood Release, I suppose."
The Black Abyss White Flower is a Divine Key possessing both creation-restoration and decay-disintegration properties; if its wielder so desired, it could instantly conjure a forest—much like Wood Release.
"You're very strong; it seems I have no choice but to use my full strength as well."
As Youlandel spoke, the blue Moon Soul armor on her began to dissipate, but in the very next moment, under a burst of golden light, a set of golden armor appeared on her—her strongest armor, the Star Armor.
At the same time, the Black Abyss White Flower in her hand disassembled into two long spears—one black and one white: Black Abyss and White Flower, one for offense and one for defense, also endowed with restorative capabilities.
"I was just about to see what you can do."
With the Star Armor and the Divine Key activated, Youlandel's strength was entirely different from before, forcing Daniel Davis to take her seriously.
The two then engaged in an intense battle; in no time, the entire Antarctic glacier began to tremble from the force of their combat, compelling Otto and Rita to retreat even further.
"I didn't expect Lady Youlandel to enter this state." The power of Youlandel's Star Armor had only been used once before—when she wanted to test its capabilities—and had not been employed since, because there was no one worthy of pushing her into that state.
"It seems that Youlandel cannot defeat him." For Otto, it would be best if Youlandel emerged victorious, as that would place the initiative in his hands; capturing Daniel Davis alive would be even better.
"Those who have the World Bubble within them are truly exceptional—their endurance is unparalleled. It seems this bout can end here." After hours of combat, noticing that Youlandel showed no sign of fatigue, Daniel Davis considered calling a truce. In this fight, neither side had used their full strength.
The Star Armor and the Divine Key were not her ultimate measures; the Holy Sword Youlandel was. In fact, the very name Youlandel is derived from the Holy Sword Youlandel—a holy sword imbued with seven different ability gems.
One must admit that the former civilization was formidable—they could even craft such a weapon. If the Divine Key was created through the core of a Regulator, then no one knows how the Holy Sword Youlandel was forged—clearly, it was not a Divine Key.
But unfortunately, after this sword was forged, before it could display its ability to counter the Honkai, the former civilization perished. Thus, the Holy Sword Youlandel, finding itself bored, powered down, emerged in this era, later drifting into the Sea of Quantum, and finally entering the World Bubble created by the Pre-Collapse civilization's Firemoth, where it encountered Bianka at that time.
"Let's call it a day, and head back." After Daniel Davis decided he no longer wished to fight, Youlandel also ceased her assault, and the group returned to the Tianming headquarters.
"Lady Youlandel, are you alright?" Once back at headquarters, Rita immediately approached Youlandel with a concerned expression.
"I'm fine. It's been a long time since I fought with such exhilaration." The long-missed full-force battle had excited Youlandel; apart from the encounter in the World Bubble, the last time she had a truly thrilling fight was against Kevin's armed automaton.
If it weren't for Kevin's armed automaton losing its power—and being uncontrollable, which could have caused enormous destruction—Youlandel truly wished she could use it as a sparring partner.
"I'm glad you're alright." Seeing Youlandel so animated, Rita's gaze toward Daniel Davis immediately shifted; it was the first time she had seen Youlandel behave in such a manner.
"Let's have a proper discussion, Bishop Otto."
"No problem."
This time, Otto had Amber, Youlandel, and Rita leave the room, leaving only him and Daniel Davis as both parties prepared to engage in further negotiations.
"It seems you must have already informed Theresa, Walter, and the others about the situation, so they've united forces. I'm very curious—since you're on their side, why are you still telling me all this?"
"It's simple—although I don't approve of you, if possible, I too wish for Kalian's revival; having someone like her alive would make the world a better place, wouldn't it?" After all, the more people striving for a brighter world, the better.
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"I agree with what you say, but unfortunately, that doesn't persuade me—after all, you can't guarantee Kalian's revival." For Otto, only a concrete method of revival could sway him.
"I know, so I only hope that you delay taking action for a few years. During these years, you can continue with your original plan, but you're not allowed to lay a hand on anyone at Saint Freya Academy. Your plan only requires the Void Regulator, and these years will give Kiana the perfect opportunity to master its power." Daniel Davis paused briefly before continuing.
"I'm negotiating with you simply because I don't want the Valkyries fighting the Honkai to be wasted in an internal conflict. In fact, even if we were to go to war right now, Bishop Otto, you wouldn't have much chance of winning. By the way, let me inform you that Fu Hua's injuries have completely healed; even if you were to call forth Tianming's third S-rank Valkyrie, she still wouldn't stand a chance against him."
Tianming's third S-rank Valkyrie, Li Susang, though powerful, was contending with Fu Hua when his sword heart was shattered; now, Fu Hua's sword heart is in the process of recovery.
For Daniel Davis, his greatest fear was Otto's scorched-earth tactics—for instance, employing the Honkai Fission Bomb, a massive weapon. He wasn't afraid of it himself, but Saint Freya Academy housed quite a few ordinary Valkyries.
"Moreover, Youlandel's true identity is unknown to others, but I am fully aware of it. I haven't told Siegfei about it; otherwise, he would have probably stormed Tianming headquarters by now. What would you do then—have Youlandel deal with him?"
The current Kiana is indeed quite pitiful—being merely a clone of the real Kiana—but strictly speaking, in some ways, Youlandel's plight is even more pitiable. At such a young age, she was severely injured, lost her memory, her parents, and even the name her mother had chosen for her.
For the present Youlandel, even if she were aware of her origins, she wouldn't reclaim her name; one must say, Siegfei was quite foolish to have given her name to the current Kiana.
Although Youlandel no longer cared about the memories of her childhood, if given the opportunity, Daniel Davis still wished to help her recover them.
"Also, what do you think will happen once Kalian is revived and learns about your actions? Perhaps you don't mind, but she certainly won't be indifferent. Even if it means reducing some guilt during Kalian's revival, waiting a few more years shouldn't be a problem, right?"
"Kalian, agreed."
Sure enough, Kalian was Otto's specialty; after Daniel Davis mentioned Kalian, Otto immediately consented to a temporary ceasefire between the two sides.
"I'm very curious—what is it that you're doing all this for?" Once the agreement was reached, Otto was no longer so conflicted. Of course, this was also related to Daniel Davis's previous battle with Youlandel; if he hadn't possessed such formidable strength, Otto's stance now would likely have been different.
Similarly, if he didn't possess such strength, he wouldn't have confronted Otto directly—instead, he would have hidden his abilities and schemed gradually, just as he did in his weaker days.
"For the sake of a peaceful and beautiful world. Of course, I'm not without conditions, Bishop Otto. Once Kalian is revived, I want your Vault of the Void."
"No problem." For Otto, as long as Kalian is revived, the Vault of the Void is nothing; didn't you see how Apocalypse spoke of it—eventually throwing the Vault of the Void to the ground, only for it to cause trouble later in the Honkai Book?
"This is the Black Abyss White Flower."
After reaching an agreement with Otto, Daniel Davis did not leave; instead, he remained at Tianming, taking the opportunity to borrow the Black Abyss White Flower from Youlandel for a closer look. Youlandel didn't seem to mind at all—she was even somewhat surprised that Daniel Davis was able to touch the Black Abyss White Flower.
Unlike other Divine Keys—such as the Sacred Judgment of Heavenly Fire, which can be used by anyone with Honkai energy and whose efficacy depends on individual strength—the Black Abyss White Flower is not for the unworthy; once touched, it will corrode the body, even if the person is an A-rank Valkyrie.
Taking this opportunity, Daniel Davis asked Youlandel how to use the Black Abyss White Flower. Naturally, Youlandel did not hold back. Strictly speaking, the number of times Youlandel had used the Black Abyss White Flower in battle was extremely limited, as there were no enemies that required her to unleash the Divine Key in combat—at most, it was used to unleash the White Flower to save lives.
For Youlandel, the primary reason for choosing the Black Abyss White Flower as her weapon was its remarkable durability; unlike other long spears, it wouldn't require replacement after only a short period of use.
"Rita, are you jealous?"
While Daniel Davis and Youlandel were discussing the Black Abyss White Flower, the two also took the opportunity to spar a bit; however, since they were at Tianming headquarters, neither side unleashed too much force. Rita seemed rather displeased with the two being together, frequently seizing opportunities to interfere, but Youlandel was unable to do anything about it—the two appeared to be indulging in mutual affection.
"Otto is really formidable—modifying the Vacuous Sword Qi for training the Valkyries, huh?"
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