A year has passed since the sixth major eruption. It was a devastating loss for Fire MOTH. They let the sixth "Herrscher" escape. They hadn't found her until now.
Instead of being relieved, it sparked fear.
It indicated that Herrschers are not as mindless as before. They can hide, infiltrate, and strike in the most unexpected way. Fire MOTH's full alert lasted for an entire year.
Inevitably, it tired down their manpower. They did not produce results either. Fire MOTH's morale is at an all-time low, with some even considering lifting the full alert status.
Fortunately, it paid off today.
"Four Herrschers."
MEI's eyes dimmed momentarily. Traces of fatigue could be seen on her pupils. Strangely enough, she did not bear any eye bags.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Her fingertips tapped the corner of the glass screen rhythmically. Her mind worked fast as she thought of its cause.
Ten months ago, the world experienced a 'huge' change. It was people growing stronger at first, but it escalated to the point that honkai corruption went out on its own.
It wasn't an isolated case; hundreds of millions experienced it.
Ordinary humans began to gain an athlete's strength after repeated training. Top athletes broke their previous limits one after another. This forced Fire MOTH to reveal the honkai's existence ahead of time.
The unknown energy's effects was even more drastic for Fire MOTH. Most of their soldiers are exposed to honkai energy, thus the frequent cases of honkai corruption. Once their honkai corruption healed, their bodies received a huge increase of physical capabilities.
MEI's eyes lit up.
'Does it have something to do with it?'
Her finger paused. Her thumb began squeezing the corner of the glass table tightly.
'Kevin mentioned a mysterious visitor. Are they all connected?'
Finally, she recalled Aponia's words:
'It is meaningless to proceed further.' MEI thought. 'We need to get down to this.'
Beep-!
Before she could think further, a shocking news came from the frontline:
The sixth Herrscher has returned.
*****
Veliona flew with scattered thoughts. Her skirt clung tightly to her hip. She wore the Stygian Nymph battlesuit. The tight fitting black dress has a flower-like motif near its edges, which is complemented by a pair of red stockings. A broken chain hung closely on her neck.
'One year. One year…'
Her thoughts turned extremely complex over the span of a year. Seele's situation weighed heavily on her mind. She felt extremely helpless. She could not do anything to support Seele. She was left to "suffer" alone for a hundred fifty years.
Seele had far exceeded the lifespan of an ordinary human, repeatedly living the same days. Veliona saw how she re-lived the days up until the Black Sun's descent.
Ultimately, she is another Seele. She can empathize more than Shi Tian. She knows a lot more about Seele's changes—on her absurd hundred-year-long attachment with Shi Tian.
He practically served as her guide over and over again, becoming the one Seele trusts the most. Her previous conviction a year ago seemed very shallow compared to what Seele has now.
It is precisely due to this attachment that Veliona viewed him even more differently. The thought of wanting to go past Seele first popped up on her mind a dozen times. Things became extremely clear once she faced her Golden Core Tribulation.
'To be loved…'
"Fu…"
Veliona heaved a deep breath.
She already has an answer in her heart. She will wait for Seele and…
Love him together.
Sou-!
Rustle-!
She crashed onto the city's crossroads. The extremely strong force brought by her flight dispersed, allowing her feet to land softly on the ground. The dispersed force turned into a concentrated spiritual qi that reached the third grade.
The sight of bright purple lights intertwining with the light blue mist felt very mystical. The people around her had the leisure to stare dazedly on the skies.
Nobody turned into a zombie. At best, they fell unconscious. Their bodies began to absorb the surrounding spiritual qi.
'Third grade. It's in every city. The wastelands spiked in the fourth grade…'
Veliona kept these things in mind, intending to report them back to Shi Tian later. Her spiritual consciousness scanned a range of ten thousand kilometers before locking onto two other Herrschers.
Sou-!
Her figure flashed. She instantly arrived in front of this Bubble World's eighth Herrscher, the Herrscher of Sentience. Its host, a girl in middle school, was reflected on her pupils.
'Her soul fragment is broken down further. A strange force instilled a thought in her…'
A huge black scythe appeared on her grasp.
Sou-!
The eighth Herrscher could not react. Veliona did not spend a second from her appearance to her attack. Ordinary humans and Herrschers alike could not react to it.
The black scythe's blade passed through the girl's physical body. A purple and white soul fragment was dragged out of it.
"Hngh..!"
She used both her hands to pull the said fragment away.
However…
The strength that could shatter mountains failed to drag it out. It remained stuck—connected—to the girl's body. The soul fragment's level far exceeded what a Golden Core Realm could handle.
"No. This won't work."
Her spells are similar to Seele's. She can use it to save or kill someone. Dragging souls away is a trivial matter for her. If she faces something she could not drag away, she could only target their physical body.
Fortunately, her attack succeeded. The Herrscher of Sentience was immobilized the moment Veliona arrived. Her body and mind lagged far behind the level of her soul, or rather, the pollution contained within her soul.
In the end, she only took ten minutes to settle the four Herrschers. Nobody became a casualty of the major honkai eruption due to the existence of spirit veins.
Once the Herrschers disappeared, the surrounding honkai energy became out of control. This, in turn, led to them being converted by the [Two Phase Art] in each city. These four cities rose to the ranks of fourth grade spirit veins, bringing intangible benefits to its citizens.
In this manner, the realm crushing battle ended swiftly.
*****
A Golden Core True Lord settled four major eruptions in minutes…
Well, it is what it is.
Immortal cultivation's potential finally showed itself. A year ago, I wanted to test its impact on the Earth as a whole. After all, this is a Bubble World. I can implement a lot of things I could not in real life.
Unfortunately, the denizens of this world all have fragmented souls. They do not have the qualities of an immortal cultivator. If not, my final supernatural seed, the Dao of Enlightenment, would have turned into a [Dharma Law] at minimum.
"There's something strange in their souls."
The four Herrschers' bodies floated in front of us. Veliona used her scythe to drag one of their souls out.
{Trait: Soul fragment with a hint of external mental will. Estimated level: [Peak Nascent Soul].}
The truth revealed itself to my eyes. Throughout the past year, my knowledge base increased to more than forty-five thousand top-level techniques, recipes, and blueprints. It greatly improved the deduction ability of my [Encompassing Eyes]. The prototype of this appraisal skill turned up extremely well with such a knowledge base.
I can even determine cultivation progress in percentage—a testament of how unfathomably deep my previous appraisal skill had become.
"It's a good call to bring it here. You can't deal with it at all."
"I guessed it. So, can you deal with it?"
She rolled her eyes as she asked.
"Yes."
This kind of mental will…
It's time to upgrade our cultivation hacks.