Before anyone realized it, the dark green sludge of Sesha had already flooded the entirety of Nagazora City.
And then, she roared, she bellowed.
Right beneath Kiana and Elysia, it surged upward in a sudden, devouring onslaught.
Seemingly aiming to catch them off guard.
ROAR–!
"My, what a disobedient child!" Elysia reacted instantly.
But before she could do anything,
A sudden bolt of lightning, sharp as a whip, shot through the air, carving a path of eternal silence between Elysia, Kiana, and Sesha—as if divine retribution itself had descended.
Not only did it block Sesha's attack, it also completely shattered the arrow Elysia had drawn in retaliation.
"Step back!" The Third Herrscher finally made her move.
Without hesitation, she rebuked her companion Honkai Beast.
Her tone was authoritative, forceful, leaving no room for refusal.
"Whimper…" Sesha let out a mournful cry and shrank back.
In the next instant, lightning flashed! Tearing through the skies!
The Third Herrscher appeared before Kiana and Elysia.
She glanced at Elysia, but ultimately fixed her gaze on Kiana, staring at her for several seconds.
"Herrscher of Finality, it's not too late to return now."
"May I ask your name?" Kiana smiled.
The fact that she could communicate and had consciousness already met hers and Elysia's expectations.
But she seemed stubborn, a bit of a blockhead, firmly standing on the side of the Honkai—which was going to be troublesome.
The Third Herrscher fell silent for a moment.
"Herrscher of Heavenly Punishment," she replied.
Well then.
Perfect!
Just as expected…
She's a fully realized Herrscher right out of the gate.
And even has a two-word title.
Ridiculous!
Elysia's lips twitched.
She remembered Kiana telling her that in the current civilization, the Herrschers possessed humanity, which was why they needed to undergo metamorphosis to fully control their authority.
After metamorphosis, they usually advanced their titles.
For example, the Herrscher of Reason became the Herrscher of Truth.
And the Herrscher of Flamescion was different from—and stronger than—the Herrscher of Flame.
Heavenly Punishment meant divine retribution.
She didn't think she was any weaker than the Finality.
The only reason she was even talking to the Finality now was because of her special status. She was confident in her victory and wanted to win her over.
Just as Kiana and Elysia could sense the Honkai energy level of the Herrscher of Heavenly Punishment, she could sense theirs as well.
Origin?
Hah…
A measly 2000-plus HW, not even 3000.
And the Finality?
Barely even 1000 HW.
I've got over 11,000 HW! How do you even compare?!
Since we're all colleagues here, just bow your heads, and we can let this slide.
The Herrscher of Heavenly Punishment felt she had been overly cautious, having absorbed all the Honkai energy not just from Nagazora City, but from the entire Far East.
All the energy that should have caused a major eruption was now concentrated within her.
It had pushed her threshold to an unparalleled level.
And now, after all that, this is what she faced?
Origin? Finality?
Is this all you've got?
The Herrscher of Heavenly Punishment was deeply disappointed.
She looked at Kiana with disinterest, as if bestowing a favor.
"Can you take her?" Elysia leaned in and whispered to Kiana, right in front of the Herrscher of Heavenly Punishment.
"Easy win," Kiana nodded.
"She seems to look down on you," Elysia added.
Kiana smiled. "Just hidden power levels. She doesn't get it."
Besides, even if her output really was lower than the Third Herrscher's,
As long as the gap wasn't too wide, she had plenty of ways to deal with her.
To be fair, the Herrscher of Heavenly Punishment had truly given them a pleasant surprise.
She was conscious, capable of thought, and had her own quirks—just a bit dumb.
As for her standing on the side of the Honkai and doing its bidding, that was hardly an issue. It was just a difference in status.
They could take her back and have plenty of time to… reeducate her.
The real challenge would have been instilling humanity in her. If the Third Herrscher had been a mere puppet, like a doll, they would have had a much harder time.
As long as she could communicate, she could be persuaded.
And that was a job for Elysia.
Now that they understood the situation, it was simple: capture her and take her back. The rest could come later.
And so!
Kiana decided to throw honor out the window.
Zero-frame startup.
The Authority of Binding erupted in brilliance at that moment.
In an instant!
A domain of constraint abruptly appeared.
Enveloping Nagazora City like a pristine sanctuary.
All energy vanished without a trace.
All foreign matter dissipated like smoke!
It was like a miracle unfolding.
The once gloomy clouds completely disappeared, as if evaporated by sunlight, leaving behind clear blue skies and white clouds.
"You?!" The Herrscher of Heavenly Punishment was, of course, stunned.
She was furious, but it was useless.
In that moment, it was as if she had been cast down from divinity into mortality.
She plummeted downward.
Sesha's swamp completely dissipated, and even Sesha itself was buried in the ground.
Barely clinging to life.
Even with Kiana consciously controlling the output, as a being condensed from Honkai energy, Sesha's vitality took a sudden nosedive. In mere seconds, it seemed on the verge of collapse, growing weaker and weaker.
In the end, it was only hanging on by a thread—alive, but little more than that.
A fully realized Herrscher and a Judgment-class Honkai Beast—as arrogant as they were moments ago, they now looked utterly foolish.
Both were instantly reduced to lifeless fish.
Motionless.
Sesha was immobilized within the constraint field, but the Herrscher of Heavenly Punishment had fallen from high altitude, hitting the ground like a rubber ball.
She was completely knocked out.
Elysia stared, dumbfounded.
"It's… over already?"
"Yep, it is," Kiana smiled.
She had complete control over the constraint field, unlike the original Herrscher of Binding, whose power was rigid.
So she and Elysia were exempt from its effects.
The Authority of Binding was useless against them, but it was absolute poison to the Herrscher of Heavenly Punishment and Sesha.
Incidentally, the Honkai corruption around Nagazora City had been completely purged.
Now, there wasn't a place in the entire world cleaner than this.
Kiana stretched lazily.
With a wave of her hand, she opened a portal to imaginary space.
She swept the Herrscher of Heavenly Punishment into it.
Then dug Sesha out of the ground.
An imaginary hand gripped it, as easily as holding a tiny earthworm.
And tossed it into the imaginary space as well.
"You're going to have your hands full later, Ellie," Kiana said with a playful smile.
Elysia understood what she meant and grinned excitedly. "No problem~ Leave it to me!"
At the same time,
Back at the camp—or anywhere around the world, whether watching the livestream or observing via satellite—everyone was left speechless.
No other reason.
The phenomenon that had appeared over Nagazora City was simply too awe-inspiring.
It was like holy light piercing the heavens.
So sacred, it seemed as if paradise itself were descending.
As though hymns were being sung.
Religious folks dropped to their knees in worship on the spot.
Though they couldn't clearly see what had happened inside,
When Sesha was lifted into the air, its massive body was visible to everyone, clear against the sky.
After the initial shock, excitement inevitably followed.
If the Third Herrscher's Honkai Beast was captured like that… did that mean the Third Herrscher was done for too?
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
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