"There is a type of material that strengthens neurons," Bronya said.
"High-tier skill material, huh..." Chen Tiannuo pondered for a moment. It might be usable to reinforce regular neurons for crafting components. "We can test it back at the lab."
Clapping his hands, Chen Tiannuo announced, "Good work, everyone. Let's rest a bit. Tonight, I'm treating you all to a feast at the food street."
"Yay! Captain Tenno is the best!" Kiana jumped up with joy.
"You're such a glutton," Chen Tiannuo teased with a smile.
"Bleh~" Kiana stuck out her tongue playfully.
Boom! A sudden noise came from above.
"Incoming! Everyone, scatter!" Chen Tiannuo shouted, instantly transferring his consciousness and summoning a Javelin, which he launched upward.
The Valkyries, upon hearing the noise, immediately leapt toward the sides of the street.
A group of zombies and a few Honkai beasts leaped down from the rooftop but were struck mid-air by Chen Tiannuo's javelin, crashing to the ground near him.
The Valkyries who had jumped to safety quickly rushed in and eliminated the fallen enemies.
"That's strange... Why were there Honkai beasts and zombies on the rooftop?" Chen Tiannuo asked, puzzled. He looked toward the girls and asked, "Did you check the rooftop?"
"Don't underestimate us! Of course we checked something that obvious!" Kiana retorted, displeased.
"Bronya also checked the rooftop. There were no signs of Honkai beasts," Bronya said, shaking her head.
"Same here," Mei nodded in agreement.
"I remember checking too. I didn't see anything up there." Chen Tiannuo recalled.
"Let's take a look. Maybe they were hiding," Mei suggested.
"Could be. I'll head up first—you all follow behind." Chen Tiannuo said, then did a spinning leap, wall-jumping swiftly to the rooftop.
Reaching the rooftop, he looked around—no Honkai beasts in sight—but in the distance, a few zombies were standing on another rooftop. Without hesitation, he leapt toward them.
...
"Mei, do you think Tiannuo might run into a bunch of Honkai beasts up there?" Kiana asked while climbing.
"Probably not. If there were that many, we would've noticed already. No way we'd be taken by surprise like that," Mei replied, following behind.
"Bronya agrees with Mei-nee."
"Tiannuo's movement was so cool! I wanna try it too," Kiana said, admiringly as she climbed the stairs.
"...?" Bronya glanced at the suddenly inspired Kiana but said nothing.
"Let him teach you later. For now, let's just get up there." Mei pushed open the rooftop door and stepped out.
...
Chen Tiannuo reached the rooftop and saw a hole in the center—finally understanding why none of them had seen the zombies earlier.
"Well then, let's clear them out first."
He pulled out his Latron and picked off the zombies one by one. "You're all squishy. Not even armored. Trying to block bullets? Get real—at least try a sword."
Looking down the central hole, he saw it led into a large shopping mall. There were likely many Honkai beasts and zombies still inside.
'Better wait for Kiana and the others first.'
He opened comms. "Bronya, I've sent you my coordinates. Meet me here."
"Understood. Bronya will proceed to your location." Bronya ended the call and shared the coordinates with the others. "We're regrouping with Captain Tenno. Move to this location."
"Yes!"
...
A few minutes later...
"Yawn~" Chen Tiannuo stretched and sighed as the Valkyries finally arrived. So slow... it's been almost five minutes.
In Warframe, no one ever took more than a minute to reach a rendezvous point. In comparison, this was painfully slow.
"There are still a lot of zombies inside this mall. I'll be counting on you to clear them out. Remember, it's tight quarters—watch your flanks and keep an exit route in mind. If you can't handle something, call for backup. If that doesn't work, then call me," Chen Tiannuo said seriously. He was deeply concerned about their safety.
This was real combat, not a simulation. Injuries were inevitable. Honkai beasts didn't vanish into data when killed, and there were no do-overs. This was something they had to experience. He could protect their lives—but getting injured wasn't his responsibility.
"Support squad, stay ready to receive the wounded." With his orders given, Chen Tiannuo stepped aside and began meditating.
...
"Sigh~ Mei, clearing zombies is so annoying!" Kiana whined.
"Come on, Kiana. Don't complain. Just two more floors and we're done," Mei said helplessly. "We're going out tonight, remember?"
"Yay!" Kiana was instantly re-energized.
They spotted several zombies near a stairwell. Kiana charged ahead and took them out using gun kata.
"How's that, Mei? Pretty awesome, right?" Kiana said proudly.
"Yes yes, Kiana is the best." Mei smiled dotingly.
"Hehe~"
...
Elsewhere, Bronya was also cleaning up zombies with ease.
'Tiannuo's building another Warframe again. I wonder what it'll look like. His designs are always... unique.'
Bronya questioned Chen Tiannuo's aesthetic tastes while fighting.
Meanwhile, Chen Tiannuo, meditating on the first floor, finally came up with a sleek new model for Excalibur. He decided to revamp its appearance—it looked too basic right now.
"Maybe I should have Bronya help with the color design. Her sense of style should be solid." He left it at that and figured the others were probably finished by now.
...
Chen Tiannuo swiftly inspected the areas the others had cleared—it didn't take long with his speed.
On the sixth floor, just as Kiana and the others finished off the last wave of zombies and were heading down to regroup...
"Kiana!" Chen Tiannuo called out.
"Eh? Captain Tenno, why'd you come up?"
"Just checking your progress. Figured I'd double-check the floors too."
"So? Pretty good job, right?" Kiana asked confidently.
"Not bad. But you missed a few in the emergency stairwell."
"Ah~" Kiana slumped, looking defeated.
"Be more careful next time, Kiana."
Chen Tiannuo checked the time and smiled. "Alright, let's go. Time to have some fun! Tomorrow's a day off!"
"Yay!"