After being separated from the Xuanyuan Sword, Himeko's body swayed as if it had lost all support and began to fall, but Ming Yu, who was prepared, quickly caught her.
Looking at the Valkyrie with her eyes tightly shut in his arms, Ming Yu sighed inwardly. His lips moved, and he spoke in a voice barely audible to himself, "I'm sorry."
Although Himeko being controlled by the Xuanyuan Sword had nothing to do with Ming Yu—he had even warned her—he had ultimately allowed it to happen.
Even if Ming Yu could find a thousand reasons to absolve himself, he couldn't hide his own selfishness. He was unwilling to expose more of himself.
"Major Himeko's condition is stable. There are no signs of Honkai Energy going out of control."
Handing Sakura Fubuki and Jizo Mitama to Ming Yu while taking the unconscious Himeko from his arms, Fu Hua performed a simple check on Himeko's body.
Though the battle hadn't been long, the Xuanyuan Sword had unleashed its power with no regard for Himeko, causing some damage to her body. Fortunately, the fight ended quickly enough that the injuries were not severe.
Speaking of which, if the Xuanyuan Sword hadn't sent out three Sword Souls at the very beginning to try and finish Fu Hua, causing its own control over the elements to plummet, Ming Yu wouldn't have been able to end the battle so quickly.
Whether it was lightning, flame, or frost, they were all tricky abilities to deal with in a fight.
In terms of pure strength, Himeko under the Xuanyuan Sword's control was undoubtedly stronger than both of them. Even Ming Yu, wielding Jizo Mitama, was a step behind in some respects.
After all, Ming Yu had to consider his own tolerance for the Divine Key, but the Xuanyuan Sword didn't have to care about Himeko. Ming Yu couldn't learn that Vermilion Knight style of fighting.
But in the end, the Xuanyuan Sword was just a sword. Its combat awareness was worlds apart from Himeko's. Possessing immense power but lacking the means to use it rationally, the Xuanyuan Sword's defeat was only natural.
"Mm. It should be... a problem with that Xuanyuan Sword."
With a grateful glance at Fu Hua, Ming Yu took the weapons she handed him and hesitantly voiced his speculation.
Normally, even if a user wasn't acknowledged by a Divine Key, it wouldn't go so far as to have the Divine Key control the user in return.
After all, although Soulium could sense a user's heart, it didn't possess a clear consciousness itself. Even a Divine Key powered by a Herrscher Core couldn't do such a thing.
Of course, certain special Divine Keys like the Void Archives were an exception.
For something like this to happen to the Xuanyuan Sword, an important artifact for sealing Chiyou, one couldn't help but question the stability of the seal.
Ultimately, five thousand years had passed since the sealing. No matter how strong a seal was, it would eventually loosen one day.
During this long period, how could Chiyou, who had been in Jiu You all this time, have done nothing? It wouldn't be surprising if the Xuanyuan Sword had been corroded by its immense Honkai Energy.
After all, even Ji Lin couldn't hold on. Why have such high expectations for an inanimate object?
Even if Himeko and the others hadn't taken the Xuanyuan Sword today, the collapse of the seal and Chiyou's escape would have only been a matter of time.
Glancing at the Xuanyuan Sword, its blade completely embedded in the stone wall, Fu Hua nodded slightly, showing her agreement with Ming Yu. She could sense that the Xuanyuan Sword had undergone some unknown change, which was likely related to this abnormal function of controlling its user.
"Bronya, could you please pull out that Xuanyuan Sword? But remember, do not try to use it!"
Ming Yu said hurriedly as he saw Bronya slowly approaching. Although he, the holder of the Key of Corruption, wasn't worried about a mutated Key of Domination, he didn't want anything to do with that Xuanyuan Sword. In any case, the sword wouldn't end up in his hands; it would eventually be handed over to the Far East Branch.
Hearing Ming Yu's words, Bronya was stunned for a moment but eventually nodded.
So, she had Project Bunny pull out the Xuanyuan Sword.
"I thought you'd be interested in the Xuanyuan Sword?"
Fu Hua glanced at Ming Yu, a rare hint of surprise in her calm eyes. After all, the biggest impression Ming Yu had left on her was his thirst for power. It was hard to imagine someone like him being completely unmoved by a Divine Key.
Facing Fu Hua's question, Ming Yu didn't answer, merely shrugging slightly as his gaze fell upon the unconscious Himeko.
Noticing Ming Yu's small gesture, Fu Hua understood his meaning but had no intention of interfering. This was a matter between Ming Yu and the Far East Branch; A-rank Valkyrie Fu Hua had no reason to intervene.
......
After a detailed exploration of the ruins to ensure nothing was missed, Fu Hua chose to report the mission status to Theresa.
Upon learning of Himeko and the others' situation, Theresa didn't hesitate for long and quickly gave Fu Hua the order to retreat.
On the way out of the ruins, Ming Yu walked at the very front of the team, holding Jizo Mitama in one hand. Fu Hua supported Himeko in the middle, while Bronya commanded Project Bunny to carry the Xuanyuan Sword at the rear.
There were not many Honkai Beasts in the ruins where the seal was located, which allowed Ming Yu and the others to leave without any hindrance.
Besides, even if they encountered Honkai Beasts, Ming Yu alone was enough to handle them. There was no need for even Fu Hua to act.
But as soon as they stepped out of the ruins' gate, Ming Yu and the others heard an extremely unpleasant shout.
"Haha~ You trash Valkyries, you didn't expect me to be this fast, did you! Now you can't escape! But, I should thank you for helping me find the Xuanyuan Sword!"
"And you, Bronya, you traitor. This time, should I kill you too?"
With a contemptuous tone, the girl with half-pink, half-purple short hair that covered her ears laughed maniacally, revealing a mouthful of shark-like teeth.
Behind her, about fifty mechs raised their cannons, all of them Anti-Entropy's main battle mechs. There were even three Godfathers, their yellow paint job standing out among the blue and brown Titans.
"This situation is really not looking good~"
His right hand holding Jizo Mitama low, Ming Yu couldn't help but take a step back, his left hand pressing on the hilt of Sakura Fubuki.
Although he and Fu Hua were uninjured in the previous battle with Himeko, the stamina consumption was inevitable.
Even when the team was at full strength, facing so many mechs was quite a headache, let alone now with Himeko unconscious.
Seeing Ming Yu's action, Xing acted as if she had just noticed him, pointing a finger at Ming Yu and laughing loudly, "Right, and you, you bastard. You really screwed us over last time. But this time, do you think you can make it back alive?!"
Ming Yu had clearly been searching for the location of Jiu You, but he had insisted on calling it a raid on Jiu You, forcing Anti-Entropy to reveal its presence prematurely and even lose some of its forces.
And the main culprit behind all this was undoubtedly the Ming Yu before her!
Hearing Xing's words, Ming Yu's brow furrowed slightly, but he said nothing. Since a fight was inevitable, there was no need for him to waste effort on trash talk.
Seeing Ming Yu's lack of response, Bronya stepped forward and said softly, "The Bronya will negotiate with Xing alone. Perhaps she can be persuaded to show mercy."
Ming Yu agreed to Bronya's proposal after a moment's thought, without even consulting Fu Hua. He didn't have much hope for it; after all, Chiyou had not yet awakened, so the two sides had no common enemy, making the probability of cooperation low. Plus, this Xing clearly held great malice towards him.
But right now, he really needed some time.
As Bronya stepped forward, Xing's attention shifted to her, and she no longer cared about Ming Yu.
Glancing at the arguing Xing and Bronya, Fu Hua's gaze fell on Ming Yu's Jizo Mitama as she said faintly, "How much longer?"
Looking down at the black longsword shimmering with inky light, Ming Yu didn't speak, but the left hand resting on Sakura Fubuki silently held up three fingers.
As time passed, the negotiations between Xing and Bronya came to an end.
"I can spare you for now, but you must lay down all your weapons!"
Xing shook her head firmly and suddenly shouted.
Evidently, the negotiation had failed.
Hearing Xing's words, a mocking smile appeared on Ming Yu's lips. Surrendering without a fight? He had no trust in this Xing.
"Bronya, haven't you breached the enemy mechs' operating systems yet!"
Hearing Ming Yu's contemptuous words, Xing's face instantly turned ugly, as if she had thought of something.
Suddenly hearing Ming Yu's voice, Bronya, who was still thinking of what to say, couldn't help but be stunned. She almost wanted to ask Ming Yu why he would provoke the other party at this time.
But in the next moment, a strange black light flashed in the eyes of all the mechs. The cannons originally aimed at Ming Yu and the others instantly pointed at Xing. Even the Godfather mechs formed a triangle, tightly surrounding Xing and assuming a combat stance.
If Xing had known the battle record of the Previous Era's Herrscher of Corruption and recognized the Jizo Mitama in Ming Yu's hand, she would have understood what a foolish thing it was to play with mechs in front of the Key of Corruption.