Setsuna had Fu Hua undergo another detailed examination.
From the DNA level, they studied the Judgment-level Honkai Beast she had fused with.
At the same time, the massive beast in the breeding grounds—larger than a small starship—was also brought out.
Compared to when he had first subdued it, Setsuna felt Chiyou had grown a little bigger.
It looked like a giant rat, its surface covered with hardened armor formed from Honkai energy. Now completely under the control of his authority of erosion, it lacked the usual violent aura of Honkai Beasts.
When it saw Setsuna, it obediently lowered its head to the ground in submission.
Whatever he commanded, it did.
After watching it for a while, he even felt it had a strange cuteness to it.
"Maybe keeping this thing as a pet would be pretty stylish?"
Setsuna thought raising something that could fight Honkai Beasts wasn't a bad idea. It could also provide DNA for future MANTIS surgeries.
Cangxuan, Dan Zhu, and the Life Sciences lolis brought all kinds of equipment. Piloting a small shuttle, they thoroughly examined Chiyou from head to toe.
They even extracted some of its tissue for comparative analysis in the lab.
Two days later—
Cangxuan reported her conclusion to Setsuna with a face full of disbelief:
"Commander, to put it simply—it's still a juvenile, not fully developed."
"We discovered that Chiyou's body has changed slightly since it was captured."
"Compared with its first checkup at the Honkai-1 space station, its Honkai energy has increased by 0.003%. Its body size has grown by 0.002208%."
"In addition, its other data points are also rising slowly but steadily."
Since capturing Chiyou, the Research Division had conducted regular examinations.
Comparing the reports over time revealed a subtle clue.
The changes weren't large, but for such a colossal creature, they were far beyond the margin of error.
"A juvenile? It's still growing?"
Setsuna was stunned.
"Yes. At first we also thought Chiyou was a Judgment-level Honkai Beast. But based on the current evidence, I believe we underestimated it."
Cangxuan and Dan Zhu spoke seriously.
"It's a newly-born juvenile, still in the growth stage."
"Judgment-class is only its starting point, not its limit."
"…Huh?"
Fu Hua looked up at the massive creature in disbelief.
From its size alone, it was already countless times larger than ordinary Emperor-class Honkai Beasts. Normal people were like ants before it.
"And that's only its juvenile form?"
"That's right."
Cangxuan nodded.
"Chiyou's base physique is far larger than other Honkai Beasts."
"After being born in ancient times, it instinctively devoured everything it could to absorb energy, converting it into Honkai energy for its growth."
"But it hadn't had much time to grow before the Commander knocked it down."
"…"
"So we caught a baby?"
Setsuna looked at it with a strange expression.
At first, since it was named Chiyou, he expected it to have some special ability. But aside from its appetite, he hadn't noticed anything.
Now it seemed the problem wasn't that it was weak—it was just still a child.
"Hmm, Honkai Beasts with growth potential are rarely recorded. In most cases, their level is fixed from the moment they're born."
"We were misled by Chiyou. Without long-term observation, we never would have realized."
Dan Zhu thought aloud.
"Then what level can it grow to?"
Fu Hua asked.
Chiyou had already been born at Judgment-class. According to Previous Era classifications, the next rank up was only Vipralopa-class.
"I'm not sure."
Dan Zhu brushed her hair back and shrugged.
"Reaching Vipralopa-class is certain. Beyond that… I've never seen it."
"Planet-class? Like Jyahnar?!"
Setsuna suddenly grew interested in Chiyou.
Planet-class Honkai Beasts were far stronger than ordinary Herrschers. Even if it seemed underwhelming for now, he could raise it slowly.
"What?"
Cangxuan and Dan Zhu had never heard of the concept of Planet-class Honkai Beasts, nor did they know who Jyahnar a was, but they still nodded in agreement.
"Its power will inevitably surpass Vipralopa-class. Calling it Planet-class… isn't a problem."
Then, they turned to Fu Hua.
"This also explains why, after the Meta-Morph surgery, even though you fused with Chiyou's DNA, your strength didn't grow much."
"This thing is still a juvenile. You need to give it time and opportunities to grow."
"…"
Fu Hua frowned, thinking it over.
"Like Vishnu?"
She remembered that growth-type Honkai Beast. When it was born, it was only at a lower level, but it could keep evolving by devouring.
"Something like that. But I think Chiyou's ceiling is higher. After all, it was born at Judgment-class…"
"Since you fused with its juvenile DNA, you should also be able to grow stronger by absorbing Honkai energy like it does."
"In theory, the more Honkai energy you absorb, the faster your growth. So, yes, you need to reconsider your training."
Dan Zhu answered Fu Hua's doubts in a few words—and painted her a big picture.
"…"
"Re-train, huh… that's fine."
Fu Hua pondered.
Her limits had already been reached long ago, back when she walked Shenzhou. For thousands of years after, nothing had changed.
Now, with her limits broken, she could once again seek new ways to grow stronger.
The immortal found this even more interesting than she had imagined.
To temper herself and see how far she could climb.
...
Under Setsuna's orders—
The lunar research base began a Chiyou-raising program.
The large number of low-level Honkai Beasts converted by Setsuna were all fed to Chiyou.
Those small fry were just taking up space anyway. Better to use them to help Chiyou grow faster.
Normally, Honkai Beast juveniles grew extremely slowly.
But with massive feedings, Chiyou absorbed a huge amount of Honkai energy in a short time. Its size alone grew by 10–20%.
The caretakers clicked their tongues in amazement.
"This guy… just its juvenile form is this huge. Once it's fully grown, won't it be as big as a continent?"
Cangxuan sighed as she directed the Angeloids in feeding it.
Not long ago, she had been fighting this creature for her life.
Now, with the Commander here, she had become a scientist and part-time Honkai Beast keeper.
Life was strange indeed.
Some of the sharper little lolis began thinking—if raising one pet was possible, why not more?
They applied for several scout fleets to search deeper into space.
"Commander, we want to see if we can find things like Ether Dragons or space amoebas!"
"The universe is so big—there might be space creatures out there!"
"…"
"I doubt it, but if it makes you happy, go ahead."
Setsuna approved casually.
"And how do you even know about those? Did Grey teach you?!"
...
Meanwhile—
Fu Hua began her own training after learning the situation.
"Absorb Honkai energy… absorb Honkai energy…"
Naturally, she couldn't devour Honkai Beasts like Chiyou.
But every day after teaching her disciples, she would spend some time training alone.
Sure enough, she discovered she had inherited part of juvenile Chiyou's ability.
Not only training, even eating meals helped her grow stronger.
The gains were tiny, but real—she was indeed converting external energy into Honkai energy within herself.
"So if I keep absorbing energy like Chiyou, I'll become stronger over time…"
The immortal thought it over seriously.
"It really is a bit like Vishnu. Now I'm curious—how strong will an adult Chiyou be?"
If it truly surpassed Vipralopa-class, her strength would exceed even that of the Thirteen Flame-Chasers.
"That's simple."
Setsuna waved his hand.
"Take any supplements or potions we've brought from other worlds—whatever you want."
"If you need energy, just cook up some of those monsters over there."
"Besides diligent training, I have an even easier way to replenish Honkai energy."
"What is it?"
The immortal looked at Setsuna curiously.
"In the past I've supplied mana to Heroic Spirits, and spiritual power to Spirits. Honkai energy should work the same way, right?"
Setsuna felt proud of his ability to harmonize the powers of different worlds.
"Anyway, I'm a Herrscher. No one here has more Honkai energy than me."
"Come, I'll give you a recharge."
"Ah???"
...
One week later, at dawn—
"The so-called Taixuan Eminence is achieved when one masters the fifth essence—the Essence of Divinity—reaching the state where divine power shapes the sword, and sword energy follows the heart."
"At that point, the sword fills all of space. The sword is space itself—everywhere, unstoppable."
"The essence of divinity is essentially the shaping and extension of Honkai energy. The prerequisite is the ability to manipulate vast amounts of Honkai energy."
At the peak of Sky Summit on Mount Taixuan, Fu Hua once again began instructing her disciples.
After their transformation into MANTIS, their progress was astonishing, like a thousand miles in a single day.
Genetic ascension had granted them powerful comprehension and reflexes, and becoming MANTIS further enhanced their physiques.
Theoretically, given the same Honkai Beast fusion, the Starsea Empire's MANTIS were slightly stronger than those of the Previous Era. The only drawback was their relative lack of combat experience.
"As far as I know, those who have mastered the Essence of Divinity are limited to the Herrscher of Sentience who inherited my memories, the fifth disciple with natural stigmata, Cheng Lingshuang, and the Commander."
"But since you are MANTIS who already control Honkai energy, mastering the Essence of Divinity should not be difficult."
Fu Hua demonstrated her ultimate art move by move.
Whether it was the Butterfly sisters, Night Raid, or Gudako, all studied diligently.
They had seen the Commander unleash the star-annihilating version of the Taixuan Eminence. Even if they couldn't reach such absurd levels, achieving something on par with the immortal would suffice.
"To wield this sword, your heart must be as calm as still water. Ritsuka Fujimaru, you are too full of distractions. Go back and temper your sword-heart."
Fu Hua tapped Gudako on the shoulder with her sword hilt.
"Ugh…"
"I just think too much, that's all…"
Humanity's Evil didn't dare talk back and obediently accepted.
"Mm. Kanae, Kanao, Shinobu—you've done well."
"At this rate, within half a year you should be able to use the Taixuan Eminence smoothly. As for its power… that will depend on your training."
The immortal nodded with satisfaction at the Butterfly sisters.
They had arrived at the capital earlier than most, and were the first to come into contact with extraordinary powers—quickly realizing their own shortcomings.
Thus, they were especially humble, willing to train diligently day after day.
"Thank you, Master!"
Kanae bowed respectfully after her practice.
They trained from dawn until sunset.
During a break, while others were resting—
She quietly approached Fu Hua and whispered:
"Tonight the Commander asked us to accompany him. Master, will you come too?"
"?!"
The immortal was utterly stunned.
"What are you saying?!"
"Oh come on, the Commander said you're too serious sometimes, and that everyone should bond more."
"It's not good for you to always keep to yourself. Here, you're our master. But aboard the Eternal Snowfall, we're sisters."
"???"
The immortal was shocked by Kanae's logic of 'master by day, sisters by night.'
Unable to resist her persuasion, she reluctantly agreed.
"This is just… to replenish Honkai energy. Replenishing Honkai energy…"
Fu Hua tried to convince herself with a straight face.
...
"Commander, stay with us a little longer~"
Azure Lane Harbor, in the Commander's quarters.
Every time Setsuna came here, he had the feeling of Oh no, I'm surrounded by shipgirls.
With favorability scores sky-high across the board, he could practically enter any shipgirl dormitory freely.
In fact, the moment he appeared here, his office would often be mobbed.
"You've been so busy with the MANTIS and those companions from the Honkai world lately, you hardly visit anymore."
"You owe us some quality time—you'd better make it up to us."
Taihou leaned against his back, whispering softly in his ear.
"Didn't I just come down from the Eternal Snowfall the other day…"
"Not enough~"
Taihou's voice was a mix of yandere and seduction.
"You love my body the most, don't you? Neither Fu Hua nor Kanae and the others can compare to me. After all, I can do things they never could…"
"…"
Setsuna admitted that some playstyles required a certain "foundation" to pull off.
Nagato couldn't, Origami couldn't, even Fu Hua couldn't—only carriers or battleship-class shipgirls could.
"Shoo, shoo, you're glued to the Commander every day."
Formidable pushed Taihou aside.
"Commander, if you're free tonight, would you like to come to the Royal Navy port? I'd like to share some tea and music with you. I just bought a few limited edition CDs…"
"What's the point of all that frill?"
Akagi slipped into his arms, her large fox tail brushing up and down against Setsuna as she issued a direct invitation:
"Commander, won't you come to my bedroom tonight? Or even into my ship body—it's fine. Kaga can join too if you like."
"???"
The dumbfounded dragon maid was shocked.
"Hey?! Where did you come from?! You're not even an oath-bound ship yet?!"
"After tonight, won't I be?"
Akagi's passion burned.
"Huh?!"
"Victorious, quick, help me get her out! Indomitable, stop sleeping—our Commander is being stolen!!!"
"Ohhhhhh—!!!"
Setsuna suddenly realized that from now on, the Eternal Snowfall might as well turn into an open buffet.
No need to restrict it to oath-bound shipgirls—anyone who wanted to could simply step up.
Heaven. This was heaven.
...
After paying a certain price to leave the harbor—
Setsuna felt his body just a bit worn out.
Considering he still had to deal with others later that night, he took a short rest at the administrative center while also planning future developments.
"Mm. Keep raising Chiyou on the moon. Feed it more Honkai Beasts and try to grow it up sooner."
"As for Fu Hua… she'll be able to get much stronger. That's good too."
The results of the first MANTIS experiments, along with the unexpected discovery about Chiyou, left Setsuna very satisfied—one could even call it a pleasant surprise.
That juvenile, if raised properly, would one day become a Planet-class Honkai Beast. Not only would it be overwhelmingly powerful, but its DNA could also be used to create MANTIS, boosting their overall strength by another tier.
As for Fu Hua, the immortal who by chance fused with juvenile Chiyou, it was foreseeable that her power would also rise quickly.
Given her diligence in training, coupled with the Starsea Empire's support, Setsuna felt that it was only a matter of time before she could punch Kevin and kick Finality aside.
The only downside was that while Chiyou grew bigger through devouring, Fu Hua seemed to inherit only the strength growth—her figure remained the same as ever.
Sad.jpg.
After finishing the loose ends of the experiment and resting for a few days—
Setsuna looked at his space-piercing skill, long off cooldown, and naturally turned his gaze to other worlds.
"Alright, gather up."
"Let's go find some idiot goddess, a magical girl, or maybe grab a cooking-strip chef to improve the menu?"
"Oh, and there's Unit-01 and Strelizia too, right? Tsk, looks like we'll be busy again."
—
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