"Hmm? Dan Heng, welcome back." Seeing the black-haired youth push the door open, Yun Fan waved and greeted him.
"Yeah, I'm ba—" Dan Heng instinctively began to respond as he stepped inside, but the moment he saw the scene before him, he fell silent and took a cautious step back. Staring at Stelle and March 7th suspended in midair and the small whip in Yun Fan's hand, he carefully asked, "Did I come back at a bad time?"
In the end, Yun Fan didn't do anything too extreme to Stelle. He had only wanted to scare her a little, to teach her a lesson so she wouldn't dare to smash his door again in the future. Besides, forced affection isn't sweet—they still had a long time to spend together, and he wasn't about to risk ruining that over something trivial.
"I'll let you off this time. But if there's a next time, hmph…" Glancing at the clock on the wall and seeing that it was about time, and with Dan Heng now back, Yun Fan took the opportunity to release the two.
"Mhm, mhm!" The two trembled as they clung to each other, nodding repeatedly. In their eyes at that moment, Yun Fan—wielding a small whip with glowing red eyes—was no different from a demon.
After breakfast—well, it couldn't really be called "enjoying" breakfast, given how scarce resources were in the Underworld. Even the meals at the Goethe Hotel were barely passable.
Once everything was settled, the group gathered around the dining table as Yun Fan began outlining the day's mission.
"Today's operation is simple. March, Stelle, you'll come with me to the Mechanical Settlement. From what I know, there's a robot there that's survived since the Eternal Freeze. It should have records related to the Stellaron."
After speaking, Yun Fan turned his gaze to Lynx and Bronya. The moment his eyes landed on them, the two girls tensed up. It couldn't be helped—the scenes from this morning were etched into their minds like carvings, and they couldn't help but fear that Yun Fan might hang them up for "interrogation" if he got upset.
"This is your first time in the Underworld, right? What are your impressions?" Yun Fan propped his chin on his hands and asked for their thoughts.
Hearing this, Bronya fell into deep contemplation.
Though her arrival in the Underworld had been purely coincidental, in this short time, she had truly witnessed the vast disparity between the Overworld and the Underworld. Just taking the Goethe Hotel—the so-called best hotel in the Underworld—as an example, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that it couldn't even compare to a small inn in the Overworld. This alone spoke volumes about the severity of the wealth gap and the divide between the two regions.
"The Underworld… is very backward…" Bronya opened her mouth, but only managed to squeeze out that single sentence.
"Yes, backward and chaotic," Yun Fan sighed. "The people of the Underworld spend every day struggling just to survive. Staying alive is the greatest challenge they face."
"I'll change all of this. Once I succeed as the next Supreme Guardian, I will definitely change this!"
"Mhm, I can see your resolve," Yun Fan nodded in satisfaction. However, given that Cocolia had now gained his power, she could probably remain as Supreme Guardian for another few centuries without issue. As for Bronya… it seemed she wouldn't get her chance anytime soon.
"Then the two of you should take this opportunity to properly survey the Underworld. Dan Heng, I'll have to trouble you to act as their bodyguard."
———————————
Meanwhile, at the Mechanical Settlement…
Two factions stood on opposite sides, locked in a tense standoff. On one side was the faction of mechanical soldiers led by Svarog. On the other were the members of Wildfire, led by Seele and Natasha.
"Scanning… Seele, data match: Core member of Wildfire. Natasha, data match: Leader of Wildfire."
A red light flashed in Svarog's mechanical eye as his robotic voice issued a warning: "Members of Wildfire, state your purpose for entering the Mechanical Settlement. Otherwise, this unit will immediately initiate expulsion protocols."
"Tch!" Seele clicked her tongue in irritation at Svarog's warning, her brows furrowing. She had always harbored hostility toward this hulking metal block.
Svarog had sealed off the passage to the Overworld, preventing Underworld residents from traveling upward. In Seele's eyes, this was nothing short of cutting off their only lifeline. Was he trying to collaborate with those Overworld bastards to drive the Underworld's people to their deaths?
"Leader Natasha, there's no point talking to him. Let's just scrap him and interrogate him directly about the Stellaron!" With that, Seele summoned her scythe, its gleaming blade pointed straight at Svarog's armored head.
"Seele!" Natasha barked sharply, but it was already too late.
"Detected rise in target hostility… Threat level… Moderate… Issuing first warning."
"Detected high-risk sensitive term—'Stellaron.' Threat level rising… High… Preparing to execute annihilation protocol!"
"Prepare for battle!" Natasha shouted, then pulled out a massive cannon from under her skirt. Charging—firing, all in one smooth motion.
"Annihilation mode activated!"
Svarog's single eye glowed red as, with a bang, he caught Natasha's shell midair and crushed it, causing a small explosion like a firework.
"Command initiated—Hellfire Barrage!"
Boom! Boom! Boom!…
A volley of micro-missiles launched from Svarog's side, streaking toward the Wildfire members. Sacrificing some destructive power for speed, the missiles closed the distance in an instant—faster than lightning.
"Dodge!" Seele swung her scythe, her body becoming a blur as she darted through the air. In the next moment, flashes of blade light sliced through the missiles mid-flight, causing them to explode prematurely and kick up clouds of dust.
"Command executed—Full Salvo, Ground Saturation Bombardment!"
As Svarog's voice rang out, countless missiles shot into the sky before arcing back down in a relentless rain of destruction.