"They're finally here."
Looking at the five black dots in the distance, Ming Yu sighed softly.
Although he had known Anti-Entropy would make a move, he hadn't expected them to be so fast, nor so precise in finding him.
After all, mobilizing a military force was not a simple matter. Even the branch here had to make preparations in advance to be able to move out at this time in accordance with Ming Yu's orders.
And Anti-Entropy would have certainly received the news a step later than the branch, yet their speed was no less than that of the Guangzhou Branch, and they had even bypassed the Far East Branch's defenses.
Although the defenses deployed by the Far East Branch weren't that great—even ME Corp could operate openly in the Far East region, and Cocolia could leisurely orchestrate the Third Honkai Eruption in Nagazora.
With a complicated glance at the two warships of the branch, Ming Yu was now certain that there was a spy among them.
But soon, Ming Yu's gaze returned to Anti-Entropy's warships. Hunting for spies was not his concern; confronting the enemy head-on was his task. As long as he hadn't fallen, that spy would have to remain hidden.
"Enemy attack! Immediately adjust the ships' course and prepare for battle!"
After swiftly issuing the combat directive through the communication channel, Ming Yu's gaze towards the distant fleet grew even colder.
In terms of conventional forces, Anti-Entropy undoubtedly had the upper hand. In both quantity and quality, the Guangzhou Branch was at a clear disadvantage.
Even though the two branch ships were mainly focused on the Honkai Energy reactions in the ocean, it was impossible for them to be completely oblivious to the sea's surface. Yet Anti-Entropy was able to launch a preemptive attack, which was proof enough of the quality of their equipment.
If it were an ordinary, newly promoted A-rank Valkyrie, they would indeed have no good way to handle this situation and might even have trouble retreating.
Under normal circumstances, the armaments Schicksal equipped its Valkyries with were designed to deal with Honkai Beasts and Honkai Zombies, rarely targeting human forces. While this didn't mean Valkyries were helpless against human weaponry, they would be suppressed to some extent.
And after a defeat, given the relationship between Schicksal and Anti-Entropy, the fate of these Valkyries was predictable.
After handing over command of the troops to Wei Ying, Ming Yu snorted coldly and immediately flew towards Anti-Entropy's warships in his Soul-Etching armor. With its eight power engines at full throttle, the Soul-Etcher instantly turned into a red streak of light, shooting towards the distance. The extreme wind pressure it generated forced the seawater it passed over to dip down.
Ming Yu was well aware of his own command abilities. He only needed to be responsible for shouting 'attack' and 'retreat'; detailed combat instructions were not his forte. Everyone has their specialty, and that was the job of Wei Ying and the others.
The only thing he could and must do was to bridge the power gap between the branch and the Anti-Entropy warships.
After the first round of test shots, the Anti-Entropy fleet quickly readjusted its gun positions, pouring firepower onto the branch warships and Ming Yu. And among them, a full half of the cannons were aimed at the approaching Ming Yu.
It was clear that the Anti-Entropy commander also knew who the most threatening target was. Compared to the branch's second-rate warships, this flying humanoid weapon was undoubtedly more dangerous.
Moreover, as long as they could take out Ming Yu, the Far East Branch's operation this time would naturally be forced to a halt.
So, that left only one question: was Ming Yu the kind of target that could be taken out so easily?
Looking at the shells that almost filled his entire field of vision, Ming Yu sneered inwardly and controlled the Soul-Etcher to dip down, completely submerging himself in the seawater.
Although he was confident in the Soul-Etcher's defense—this expensive piece of armor wouldn't have cut corners on materials, so its defensive capabilities were bound to be satisfactory—he wasn't foolish enough to collide head-on with so many shells just to see which was tougher.
His vision suddenly darkened. While dodging the pursuing shells, Ming Yu used the cover of the seawater to rapidly approach his target.
With the cover of the sea, it became much more difficult for Anti-Entropy to aim at Ming Yu. After all, a small and fast target like him was hard to lock onto with detectors, and prediction without a line of sight was highly inaccurate.
Feeling the slight numbness as the seawater rushed past his face, Ming Yu could clearly sense that the density of the pursuing shells had decreased significantly, making it much easier for him to dodge and reducing the burden on his Sword Heart.
To this day, his application of Sword Heart could barely be considered proficient. Although he hadn't broken through to the second level, both its duration and precision had improved considerably. Maintaining it for half an hour in regular combat was no longer a problem.
As the shells gradually thinned out and then disappeared completely, Ming Yu finally reached the location of the Anti-Entropy warships.
Looking at the five ships right before him, a cold light flickered in the blood-red eyes hidden under his half-mask, like a cheetah poised to strike.
In an instant, numerous thoughts flashed through Ming Yu's mind, only to be quickly extinguished.
He held great respect for the Anti-Entropy led by Welt. But for this Anti-Entropy fleet that had suddenly attacked, he felt no mercy in his heart, and his position in Schicksal meant that these people would show him no mercy either.
Regardless of which faction of Anti-Entropy they belonged to, since they chose to appear on this battlefield, it meant they were prepared for war.
And the outcome of war was simply one of two things: to kill or be killed.
With his mind made up, Ming Yu raised the Jizo Mitama in his right hand, its tip aimed squarely at the largest warship. A faint black light surged from the tip of the sword, rapidly intensifying and enveloping both the blade and Ming Yu in a black, conical vortex.
Bang!
Ming Yu stomped his left foot hard in the water, and the eight engines on his back suddenly activated, propelling his body forward like an arrow. The black Honkai Energy vortex instantly gained a sharp edge.
The Anti-Entropy soldiers on the ship were scratching their heads over Ming Yu's disappearance, trying to guess where he might appear, when they were suddenly shocked by what was displayed on the Honkai Energy Detector.
According to the detector, the long-vanished Ming Yu was right below them!
And the next moment, the soldiers on the central warship felt a sudden jolt as a black vortex erupted through the deck and shot straight into the sky.
Hovering at a height of about ten meters above the deck, Ming Yu glanced at the hole he had pierced. A large amount of seawater was pouring into the ship through the breach, churning up a mass of white waves.
His cold gaze swept over the stunned soldiers on the deck, and his chilly voice echoed across the sea surface: "We are both forces fighting against the Honkai. If you retreat now, I can pretend I didn't see you!"
Even though he had made his decision, when it came to actually striking out at fellow humans, the Anti-Entropy soldiers, Ming Yu was still somewhat reluctant. Cutting down Honkai Beasts and humans would definitely feel different.
But the only response he received was the rat-a-tat-tat of gunfire and an endless stream of bullets.