The Australian Continent.
Several months had passed since the elimination of the Seventh Herrscher.
This ravaged land had become the domain of the few legion Honkai Beasts that survived the cataclysm.
Simultaneously, the Honkai energy dispersed by the great war, compounded by the radiation from nuclear weapons, had rendered this place uninhabitable for humans—much like the three cities destroyed at the hands of the Herrscher of Thunder. The entire Australian continent was utterly abandoned by humanity.
Along with... the hundreds, no, perhaps thousands of souls still clinging to life on this continent.
There was no doubt. These individuals held no value for rescue, or rather, the cost of saving them far outweighed any necessary sacrifice. According to analyses by specialized agencies, these thousands were highly likely to be entirely infected with Honkai Sickness.
However, regardless of the harsh environment, those still alive had found ways to survive in this wasteland. They needed only to adhere to two crucial points:
First, seek out the ruins of large shopping malls within the city wreckage. These locations often possessed deep underground warehouses. If they had only been brushed by the aftershocks, they might still contain precious food supplies. As for the Honkai erosion and radiation... they were already infected; such things were of no concern to them.
Second, seek the protection of the Saintess. The Saintess could bestow a "blessing" upon humans, a benediction that allowed them to be completely ignored by Honkai Beasts. Though the number of Honkai Beasts wasn't overwhelming, if even a single one discovered their presence, ordinary people had absolutely no chance of survival.
As for the identity of this Saintess...
"Alright." A small fist gently uncurled from a palm. A child looked at the woman before them with an expression of pure reverence.
Ange had once again completed her "mission"—bestowing her "blessing" upon the twenty-odd people in this small settlement. To date, Ange had performed this act... over 800 times.
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The sequence of events began with the appearance of the Great Rift.
After the incident at the newspaper office, Ange, having fled eastward all the way to Sydney, witnessed the sheer magnificence and grandeur of the Great Rift—this was the girl's first impression upon seeing the Sky Pillar—and the unprecedented power the Honkai energy tide brought her.
The Honkai energy tide. This phenomenon indiscriminately strengthened all Honkai-aligned forces within its range.
Those humans infected with Honkai Sickness... either directly transformed into Deadmen or simply exploded and perished.
However, Ange belonged to neither of these categories.
As a precursor to a Pseudo-Herrscher, the amount of Honkai energy she could accommodate was immense. Ever since Lu Xing had transformed her into this state, apart from her physical structure remaining indistinguishable from a human's, other aspects of her being had undergone tremendous changes.
This was especially true after the Herrscher of Flame incinerated Sydney.
Ange did not flee with the rescue teams and the less than 1% of Sydney's surviving population. Having just absorbed a massive amount of Honkai energy, when she looked at humans... it was like seeing delectable food; she felt an overwhelming urge to sink her teeth into their necks.
Educational programs had described this symptom: In the most severe stages of Honkai Sickness, humans who lacked the "qualification" to become Deadmen would, in their final moments, transform into such zombie-like figures.
Ange had witnessed the fate of patients who reached this state, in the execution grounds known as "special hospitals."
Ange, deeply aware of how terrifying the human species could be, ultimately failed to overcome her fear and chose to remain on this desolate land.
As for discovering her own unique nature, it occurred during an encounter with a Honkai Beast:
It was a Knight-class Honkai Beast. Its body was as grim and imposing as an undead knight from a dark fantasy tale; on its sharp lance, remnants of flesh and flecks of blood had not even been completely wiped clean.
Yet, when this creature, an incredibly bloody executioner in human eyes, slowly approached her, Ange felt no hostility.
The most incredible thing was the voice that resounded in her mind like a clap of thunder.
In that instant, Ange learned for the first time that Honkai Beasts could actually communicate.
"Who are you?"
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Thereafter, an ever-growing crowd of people gradually gathered around Ange.
The reason was simple: Honkai Beasts would not attack humans "protected" by Ange.
It wasn't that no one suspected Ange had made a deal with the "devil." This idea was even seemingly confirmed by an incident—one night, an objector burst into Ange's room attempting to "judge" her, only to have Ange cave his head in with a single punch.
Regardless, an ordinary human was utterly incapable of such a feat.
The skull, being the hardest part of the human body, was not so fragile as to be shattered by a delicate woman's fist.
But what did it matter? Whatever they followed, being alive was a gift bestowed by the "gods."
During this process, Ange acquired a new ability:
As her interactions deepened, she found she could gradually influence parts of their thoughts... As for her most fanatical "Devoted Guard," she could even alter their cognitive logic to a certain extent.
This ability was characteristic of neither Deadmen nor Honkai Beasts.
————
Time progressed to the present.
With the continuous use of her abilities, Ange grew progressively stronger.
In the regions she passed through, because all the Honkai energy was absorbed by Ange alone, the severity of Honkai Sickness in her followers lessened, with some even experiencing complete recovery.
This phenomenon caused the number of her believers to swell with each passing day.
Among the hundreds in her retinue, more than half were Ange's fanatical devotees.
Of course, Ange herself hadn't noticed.
Each time the crowd chanted her "name," the word "Ange" in her mind would slowly blossom like a fresh flower...
Or perhaps, it looked more like a peacock displaying its magnificent tail feathers.
What Ange also didn't know was that the Knight-class Honkai Beast that had once spared her, the one with whom she'd had an exchange so brief it consisted of only "three words,"
Was precisely that subordinate of Lu Xing, the one from his personal guard that had almost—no, had already—awakened its own consciousness:
[Variant · Emperor Guard · Magic Knight]
After the baptism of the Honkai tide and several months of tempering, the Magic Knight had finally reached the cap for the Knight-class: Lv.50.
As for the reason it had let Ange go, it was because their respective "faction alignments" were completely identical.
Ange carried Lu Xing's Honkai aura. The Magic Knight couldn't comprehend why a human would be a member of the legion, but since she belonged to the same faction, it refrained from taking any further action.
Humans carrying Ange's aura were, in the perception of other Honkai Beasts, also marked as members of the legion.
To this day, the Four Horsemen, who had been galloping across the wilderness—all of whom had miraculously survived—slowly reined in their advance.
The Emperor's aura, previously undetectable due to the vast distance, gradually became clear in their mental world.
"Legion Commander..." War, who rode at their head, felt its thoughts surge with increasing intensity.
"He has returned."