Sparks flew ceaselessly across the deck as a massive volume of bullets erupted from every soldier, aimed precisely at Ming Yu in the air.
His expression changed slightly. Ming Yu instantly activated the Soul-Etcher's Honkai Energy shield. A faint white sphere immediately enveloped him completely, blocking the incoming metal bullets outside the shield.
Faced with such a high density of fire, Ming Yu didn't think the Anti-Entropy soldiers were all stormtroopers, nor did he believe he could precisely dodge every single bullet. Even if these bullets couldn't break through the armor's own defense, if he were hit in an area not covered by the armor, even Ming Yu would be in trouble.
The moment he activated the shield, Ming Yu immediately dropped towards the deck. He had said what needed to be said; was he supposed to stay in the air as a target?
Moreover, he hadn't had this suit of armor for long and was still somewhat clumsy at flying. Although the sky lacked terrain restrictions, Ming Yu still preferred the feeling of fighting with his feet on solid ground.
Braving the hail of bullets, Ming Yu landed heavily on the deck. As he deactivated the shield, he lifted his right leg slightly and kicked a soldier in the stomach, sending him into the sea.
Immediately after, Ming Yu held his black longsword in a reverse grip and jabbed the hilt into the chest of another soldier nearby. The immense force instantly sent him to follow his predecessor's fate.
Glancing around, Ming Yu memorized the general layout, quickly planned his attack route, and advanced towards the command room using the ship's machinery as cover.
For Ming Yu, the fastest way to end the battle was to find the enemy commander and have a high-level conversation, using physical means to persuade them to abandon the operation.
With a determined look, Ming Yu stomped his left foot hard on the deck, dodging countless bullets as his body surged a great distance along his planned route.
With the ship's structures providing obstruction, the soldiers' firearms were significantly limited. They not only had to be careful of friendly fire, but aiming at Ming Yu also became much more difficult.
In contrast, this complex terrain was perfect for Ming Yu to display his skills. Any soldier he encountered along the way was rendered combat-ineffective with either an elbow strike, a kick, or a swing of his sword hilt.
In short, though Anti-Entropy had numbers, not a single one could stand against him.
This was what it meant to break an army alone.
Although the combat skills of the Anti-Entropy soldiers were by no means poor, when faced with an opponent of Ming Yu's level, they could only appear so fragile. The fruits of their arduous training could not help them defeat the enemy before them. And their fate was decided by a single thought from Ming Yu.
From the moment Ming Yu set foot on this ship, his victory was already sealed. Even if he couldn't be called a true powerhouse at this moment, his opponents were nothing but cannon fodder.
And to deal with Schicksal's humanoid weapon, Anti-Entropy had only one method...
His advance came to a sudden halt. Ming Yu spun around, his right hand gripping Jizo Mitama, and swung it swiftly in front of him. The four incoming shells were instantly sliced in half, exploding into eight pieces. The resulting shockwave merely rustled the black hair at his temples.
Looking at the two blue-black mechs on the deck, and the four more arriving from the other four ships, a hint of solemnity entered Ming Yu's eyes.
Although most mechs were not very powerful, some models possessed considerable combat strength. After all, they were capable of insta-killing a Herrscher, even if that Herrscher was a disgrace.
And as a mere A-rank Valkyrie of Schicksal, Ming Yu had no reason to be careless against these mechs.
After a quick assessment, Ming Yu felt a slight sense of relief. Having been in the Far East Branch for so long, he had some knowledge of Anti-Entropy's mainstream mech models. But he didn't recognize any of the models among these six mechs, which allowed him to roughly judge their combat effectiveness.
After all, Anti-Entropy's sortie this time was a hasty one. Even if they had considered the possibility of someone boarding their ship, it was impossible for them to have mobilized sufficient forces in such a short time.
But the Anti-Entropy side, upon seeing the deployment of the mechs, all widened their eyes, unwilling to miss a single detail. Especially after seeing Ming Yu stop for the first time, they almost cheered out loud.
Before the mechs were deployed, they could find a suitable excuse for their failure, because their opponent was never meant to be a Schicksal humanoid weapon.
But upon seeing their own mechs, they were liberated from that sense of powerless despair, pinning their last hopes on these six machines.
Regardless of the models of these mechs, in the battles between Schicksal and Anti-Entropy, the performance of the mech units had always been good. Based on this impression, it was understandable for the soldiers to place their faith in the mechs.
Glancing at the positions of the other four mechs, Ming Yu lightly tapped his left foot on the deck, and the eight engines on his back instantly ignited. His body turned into a black bolt of lightning, rushing towards the two nearby mechs.
He who strikes first gains the advantage; he who strikes second is controlled by others. When he had the chance to strike first, Ming Yu had no reason to stand foolishly and wait for the enemy to get into formation.
Before the Anti-Entropy soldiers could even blink, they saw a mech suddenly fall backwards.
Looking closely, they discovered that a man in red armor was standing on the mech's shoulder, his black longsword firmly piercing through the mech's head and into its torso.
Even if mechs had defenses incomparable to human flesh, could be equipped with weapons humans couldn't wield, and could achieve combat effectiveness beyond human reach, what did all that amount to in front of the Soul-Etching Armor and the Divine Key, Jizo Mitama?
Cleanly pulling out Jizo Mitama, Ming Yu was slightly taken aback by the red liquid on the blade, and his originally sharp eyes couldn't help but dim.
Anti-Entropy did have unmanned mechs, but they also had plenty of pilots; the two were not mutually exclusive.
With a complicated look at the motionless mech on the ground, Ming Yu sighed softly and then quickly rushed towards the other mech.
Although this was the first time he had killed a normal human, and the first time Jizo Mitama had been stained with human blood, the reality of the battlefield left him no time for sentiment.
Even though he had drawn the attention of most of the Anti-Entropy soldiers, Wei Ying's situation was still not optimistic. For every minute he delayed, the danger to the branch members increased by a fraction.
The other mech had just raised its cannon when Ming Yu's right foot, clad in the Soul-Etching Armor, had already stomped heavily on its chest.
With a dull thud, the mech's chest caved in, and a pained groan could faintly be heard from within.
After dealing with the two on the deck, Ming Yu's figure didn't pause for a moment. He turned and flew towards the other four mechs that had taken to the air, his speed so fast that he left only a blurry afterimage in the eyes of the Anti-Entropy soldiers.
The pilot inside the mech could only see a red shadow pouncing towards him. He hastily fired a few shells forward, but then his vision went black, and he lost consciousness.
Kicking one mech back to its original ship, Ming Yu's body shot towards the remaining three like an arrow, without any pause.
The three mechs could only futilely fire a few shells into the air before being shot down one by one by Ming Yu. Whether they fell into the ocean or crashed onto the deck, their fate of being scrapped was the same.
Seeing the mech unit they had pinned their hopes on being wiped out in less than a minute, the people in the command room all stared wide-eyed, their gazes fixed on the proud red figure standing on the screen.
"Major, are we... going to keep fighting?"
one person said blankly, his voice trembling uncontrollably.
Although Ming Yu had not yet dealt a lethal blow to the ordinary soldiers, they couldn't guarantee he would continue to hold back. And the moment Ming Yu bared his fangs, there would only be one word before them: "death"!
"...Inform the entire army, all cannons are to aim at the enemy fleet. Don't stop firing even if the barrels explode! The rest of you... stall that monster!"
Closing his eyes in thought for a few seconds, the middle-aged man called the Major issued his orders.
This was a battle with no victory, but they had no right to retreat!
Thinking of that person's methods, the Major's lips trembled, and he swallowed the words of retreat.
Originally, he thought that with their firepower, dealing with one person would be the simplest and most effective way to complete the mission. But now it seemed that was undoubtedly the most foolish way.
That kind of monster was not something they could handle with just their numbers. And the opponent's only weak point was, conversely, the seemingly more solid fleet.
Having eliminated the mechs that posed a threat to him, Ming Yu quickly landed back on the deck. Stepping onto the solid ground again, Ming Yu couldn't help but let out a long breath.
This way, Anti-Entropy should have witnessed the huge disparity in strength between the two sides. After understanding this, the only path left for them was to retreat.
Thinking silently, Ming Yu once again began his advance towards the command room. At a time like this, it was necessary to apply enough pressure, so he had no intention of stopping.
But not long after, Ming Yu suddenly noticed that the resistance ahead had lessened significantly. Although his speed hadn't decreased much, he keenly observed that the number of soldiers defending ahead was less than expected.
Before he could ponder the reason, he understood why Anti-Entropy had done so.
Looking at the sudden increase in shells in the sky, Ming Yu's expression turned ugly for the first time.
"Good! You people are ruthless enough!"
His gaze fixed on the direction of the branch fleet, Ming Yu gritted his teeth and said hatefully.
With the branch's second-rate ships, they were completely unable to cope with Anti-Entropy's full-power bombardment. Even with a few B-rank Valkyries on board, their effectiveness was ultimately limited.
If Anti-Entropy could sink the branch's two ships, Ming Yu alone would indeed be unable to complete the mission of finding Jiu You.
Thinking of the Valkyries on the ships with whom he had only spent a few hours, and of Higokumaru who was anxiously awaiting his return, the anger in Ming Yu's heart surged uncontrollably.
Stomping his left foot hard on the deck, creating a dent, Ming Yu's body shot up into the sky like an arrow released from a bowstring.
Hovering at seventy meters in the air, Ming Yu looked down at the five warships below, their cannons firing incessantly, and at the Anti-Entropy soldiers who would occasionally raise their guns to shoot at him. His eyes were left with nothing but icy coldness.
"Divine Key Jizo Mitama, Second Rated Power: Mitama Demon Armor!"
Sheathing the black longsword at his waist, Ming Yu shouted in a low voice.
The next moment, a red light erupted from Ming Yu's eyes. The red patterns on the Soul-Etching Armor flowed with a halo of light. The originally streamlined design instantly became more ferocious due to slight protrusions on the armor, and the red half-mask was instantly replaced by a pitch-black demonic face mask.
Feeling the abundant power within his body, Ming Yu's left hand drew the other scarlet tachi from his waist. The moment the blade was unsheathed, it turned a fiery crimson.
Its name, Demonblade - Florid Sakura!
Holding the hilt of the demon blade with both hands, Ming Yu could feel a flame-like heat, just like the boiling anger and killing intent in his heart.
Under the influence of the demon blade, the originally black Honkai Energy aura on Ming Yu's body gained a crimson hue, making it look exceptionally demonic.
His gaze hardened. Ming Yu's body spun in the air, and with both hands, he swung the demon blade downwards, unleashing two intersecting slashes of sword qi.
The crimson sword qi expanded explosively the moment it left the blade, growing to a size of a hundred meters in an instant. The Honkai Energy at its edges danced continuously, like real flames.
Looking at the massive, seemingly solid crimson sword qi high in the sky, which descended unhurriedly yet gave one the feeling of the heavens collapsing, the Anti-Entropy soldiers all dropped their guns limply.
It was only at this moment that they truly understood who they were fighting against.
Finally, the crimson sword qi fell upon the five warships. Like a hot knife through butter, it tore through the steel warships without any resistance, and the sundered ship hulls tilted and slowly sank into the ocean.
This battle, which should never have happened, came to an end at this moment.