"Dazzling Ninja Art, Ninja Power!"
"I shall defend all that is beautiful things in this world!"
In that moment, the brilliance released by everyone's will was so dazzling that even the stars had to avert their light.
Within the radiant glow, countless streaks of different colors flickered faintly.
Behind them, Ouroboros, having devoured an immense amount of energy, quietly digested it. In its vertical pupils was the reflection of the dazzling spectacle before it.
Those eyes shimmered with the unique fluctuations of a sentient being.
Sensing the opportunity, in the very instant Dr. Primitive and the opposing side were locked in stalemate, it suddenly struck!
It bit down hard on Dr. Primitive's other half, the characteristic belonging to a lifeform of the Quantum Sea, and tore it off with brutal force!
Watching most of his body disappear, Dr. Primitive felt his mind strain under the exhaustion.
To observe this rare, potential-filled moment more clearly, he enlarged his form using the properties of his body within the Quantum Sea.
Losing a portion of his body would still affect him, but it was not too serious.
However, even losing just a little, in a moment where every second and every fragment mattered, everything had already been decided.
"Haa, Hah!"
This punch carried far, far too much within it. And so, this punch had a name...
"One-inch Punch, Full Power!!!"
"Bang!"
Visible to the naked eye, Dr. Primitive's quantum-shadow head shot off instantly, vanishing without a trace.
Immediately after, with his head gone, his body began to collapse, scattering into starlight, dissolving into the Quantum Sea as if he had never existed at all, arriving with great effort, yet leaving quietly...
Taking not even a wisp of cloud with him.
...
Standing within the "deep sea," they gazed over the Quantum Sea, now returning to rippling calm.
Everyone fell silent.
"That guy… is dead, right?"
"Probably… but who knows, he might pop up again in some corner. Still can't let our guard down."
"Either way, today's problem is resolved. One less major menace in the galaxy is a good thing."
"Mm…"
Dr. Primitive was not invincible.
But at least one thing was certain: after digesting this event's "results," it would be difficult to see Dr. Primitive reappear anywhere in the cosmos for a while.
The beings of the galaxy no longer needed to fear waking up as monkeys.
All would be rejoicing… or not!
"By the way, are you all familiar with that thing just now?" The Herrscher of Sentience blinked, looking around in confusion.
If Honkai beasts were that size, or even half that size, and if they appeared in numbers, the combined military strength of the Honkai world, in light or shadow, would not be enough.
The Ark Project might truly become civilization's final means of survival.
"If my guess is correct, that should be…"
A knight in silver armor, tall and imposing, approached slowly.
...
"Ouroboros."
Screwllum glanced sideways, calmly watching the satisfied expression on Herta's face.
"That was the final result of your work with Ruan Mei and Mobius, wasn't it?"
Herta let out a proud hum. "Well? How's the final performance?"
Screwllum nodded slightly. "Indeed extraordinary. If I'm not mistaken, you enhanced Ouroboros's immortality and greatly strengthened its energy-devouring traits."
Herta was unsurprised that he could see this, nodding. "It helps that Mobius already possessed immortality and an energy-devouring nature. You could say she merged with the Ouroboros factor to the greatest degree."
Entities with immortality weren't exactly rare in the galaxy.
Xianzhou people, with their heads cut off and limbs severed, so long as no special power interfered, they could naturally recover in limited time with simple stitching.
The Vidyadhara hatching rebirth cycle could also be considered a form of immortality.
And there were many other species as well.
In terms of the special ability of immortality alone, dozens of races meant it wasn't rare.
Herta initially considered applying the Ouroboros factor to these races to see what would happen.
But Ruan Mei's words stopped her.
"After obtaining the Ouroboros factor, I conducted a series of experiments. The results were… poor."
Even Herta had to admit, in the field of life sciences within, Ruan Mei's authority was immense.
Geniuses are prideful. But in the fields they acknowledge, geniuses can be surprisingly open-minded.
At least, when their achievements in life science surpass Ruan Mei's. Otherwise, Herta would only mirror Ruan Mei, resulting in a greater loss.
That topic passed quickly, and Herta asked: "Do you think Dr. Primitive is dead now?"
"Logically: by the standard's of 'seeing is believing,' I should believe Dr. Primitive is dead. But based on my limited experience, his life and death remain uncertain. Still, at least for now, the mountain pressing upon the galaxy has been lifted."
Screwllum pondered.
Not about Dr. Primitive, but about the civilizations across the stars whose crisis alert had just been released.
Human nature. This had always been Screwllum's field of research.
As an Intellitron and the ruler of Planet Screwllum, he had long been dedicated to studying human nature.
And now, there were results.
Exactly at this moment: for this operation, from every corner of the cosmos, across the galactic stars, everyone had gathered; even a Knight of Pure Beauty had popped up;.
Before coming, they had already prepared for death.
Screwllum very much wanted to understand this emotion.
He was a machine, within the logical computations of a machine, everything should be based on maximizing benefit.
But organic lifeforms are different. At any time, any place, under any circumstance, easy or difficult, joyful or sorrowful, they could make decisions that didn't match the situation at all.
Therefore, Screwllum greatly wished to understand this emotion.
Just like how the Knight of Pure Beauty always firmly believed that Idrila's beauty was unmatched, and walked the path she once walked, unwaveringly defending the glory of pure beauty.
....
"..." Looking at the empty place, all the 'visitors' who had come to provide support, or to fish in troubled waters, were stunned.
"Did we… come to the right place?"
The IPC fleet commander who had led the ships here had a blank expression. He even rubbed his eyes vigorously.
After confirming that there was nothing wrong with his own two eyes, the people from the IPC felt their faces stiffen.
"Dr. Primitive's base shows no signs of life whatsoever. Neither Dr. Primitive himself nor the Galaxy Rangers, Memokeepers, or the others who came earlier, there are only small traces of previous activity."
This result was naturally not what the IPC wanted.
But considering Dr. Primitive's savagery and his infamous reputation across the universe, the IPC was still fairly understanding.
Even though they dispatched a fleet and gained nothing.
But on the bright side, aside from some energy expenditure and a tiny bit of field-duty credit points, the IPC suffered no losses at all. Truly, it was neither profit nor harm.
The energy spent wasn't even a thousandth of the company's daily interest.
Just then, the fleet commander reporting the situation blinked suddenly, and reflexively rubbed his eyes.
The next second…
"...I have a situation to report."
"Speak."
"They all just came back… and there are three Stellaron Hunters with them."
"Oh… huh???"
....
"Feeling the ground under my feet again is really nice." Stretching lazily, the Herrscher of Sentience chuckled.
Strength rises from the ground. This is basic knowledge every skilled martial artist knows.
Even though the Herrscher of Sentience could adjust her angle and power mid-air, this grounded feeling was irreplaceable.
"We are back… could it be because of that Unknown Ninja?" Astonished, Rappa jumped lightly on the spot.
No discomfort at all.
Just moments ago, they were still troubled over how to return. Not long after, they heard sudden laughter at their ears, and then whoosh, they were back.
So smooth it was unbelievable.
"Maybe some great being nearby was watching over us. Even though they didn't show themselves and made it feel mysterious, isn't that pretty nice too?"
Boothill laughed, his mood significantly improved.
Not just him, everyone present was happy about Dr. Primitive's "death."
Even though they didn't actually know whether Dr. Primitive was truly dead.
But during his absence, the galaxy would enjoy a brief period of relative peace.
Across the universe, true large-scale troublemakers were few.
The Antimatter Legion, the Swarm Disaster…
Most worlds that had joined the interstellar network actually lived quite stably. Most war-torn worlds suffered conflict due to their own internal issues.
So it was easy to imagine, without one more troublemaker, the galaxy would visibly calm down.
"Such a beautiful world… The glory of pure beauty will surely spread to countless planets."
The Knight of Pure Beauty smiled, his posture relaxing.
Hearing Argenti's voice, the Herrscher of Sentience suddenly slapped her forehead and asked curiously, "Right, I forgot to ask earlier, how did you suddenly appear? I didn't see you before."
The Herrscher of Sentience could understand everything else that had happened.
Even Ouroboros being involved, maybe that Ouroboros was the descendant of the previous Ouroboros.
A beast of that scale disappearing and reappearing in the Quantum Sea was still… plausible.
But how did this Knight of Pure Beauty suddenly pop out?
Argenti slowly turned, looking at the Herrscher of Sentience. Facing the others' curious gazes, he said loudly:
"Upon learning that a threat to pure beauty had emerged in the galaxy, I piloted the One and Only here to assist. Perhaps I was too eager, for I arrived first."
"In that world, I fought Dr. Primitive's subordinates for several days and nights, and in a moment of carelessness, I was lured by Dr. Primitive into a deserted corner."
"Perhaps to him, I was insignificant. Thus, I was fortunate enough to remain in that empty world until today."
"I was searching for an exit when the pure beauty within your hearts drew me in and freed me. For that, I offer my gratitude."
With that, Argenti bowed slightly in thanks.
"You're… really fast, huh."
Scratching her cheek, the Herrscher of Sentience didn't even know where to begin complaining.
Charging too fast into the enemy's lair, only for reinforcements to fail to keep up, classic consequences.
"Sir Argenti truly has a passionate heart. If I didn't have other matters to attend to, I'd love to have a long conversation with you."
Sunday, who had disguised himself again, looked at Argenti with a polite expression.
"Everyone, I still have some things to handle. Please excuse me."
Noticing the IPC fleet approaching rapidly, Sunday offered a brief farewell and turned to leave.
"Hey man, we finally met, don't rush off! How about this, since I'm free anyway, let's grab a drink. I know a bar not far from here, the taste is absolutely amazing. Let me show you the joy of a cowboy's life!"
Boothill followed him with a grin.
He wasn't afraid of the IPC's people, but after a big battle, he had no interest in playing hide and seek with those people. After strenuous exercise, one should enjoy a hearty, heavenly drink.
That's just how life is! Watching Boothill's back as he chatted with Sunday, the Herrscher of Sentience blinked.
She already knew Boothill's identity from their earlier conversation aboard the starship.
But life is full of meetings and partings. With Boothill's nature, there was nothing to worry about, he'd definitely come back safe and sound.
Nodding to herself, the Herrscher of Sentience smiled contentedly.
Decision happily made!
....
Trailing a long tail of light behind it, a green figure silently appeared in a desolate scenery…