Glug. Boom!
As though responding to Expert's explanation, the charred corpse specimen on the ground suddenly split open, spewing superheated boson gas.
The solidified high-temperature sol coating the corpse crumbled into powder, and Tenmon Soji rose once more like a demon returning from hell.
Had he merely been an ordinary martial artist, he naturally would not have frightened Liora or made Hua feel that something was amiss.
Tenmon Soji had finally shed his human skin and revealed his true form—
A pure-white humanoid creature with no facial features and smooth, streamlined contours.
It looked exactly like a human, only without any facial features. Its eye sockets were slightly sunken, and its entire body possessed a streamlined beauty.
It resembled a human, yet was utterly unlike one.
Unlike a Honkai Beast, its body was covered in golden-red patterns resembling stardust.
The stardust patterns pulsed and flickered as "Tenmon Soji" released a furious roar.
"Xipa!"
With that single cry, Vill-V was blasted dozens of meters away.
Another boson field, and this one was even purer.
Not even Expert's protective barrier could withstand the particles within the boson field.
This was no joke. It was an interstellar weapon even more advanced than the heavy particle cannons mounted on aerial battleships. The slightest contact would instantly reduce someone to particles.
Had Vill-V not ejected herself from the barrier in time, she probably would have turned into Seele as well.
Um... Why Seele?
Expert hurriedly sent evacuation instructions to Bronya and the other members of the Taixu Gang in the distance, then activated the stage's descent mechanism.
Naturally, this Forest of Mist constructed by Vill-V had more than one level. Its underground section extended a full five hundred meters deep!
Id: "Ugh... We're only in the middle stages of the Honkai, and we've barely reached the Fifth Herrscher. Why are the Sky People already joining the commotion?"
Conductor: "Whether it truly is one of the Sky People remains to be seen, but it is definitely troublesome. Tch. Heliopolis probably had a hand in this too. They've colluded with aliens. They're practically inviting wolves into the house."
Id: "Conductor, do you need me to lose my mind again?"
Vill-V was worried that Tenmon Soji would take advantage of the stage's descent to escape.
Conductor looked toward Occultist.
Occultist declared: Thy mind can no longer endure another calamity.
Fortunately, "Tenmon Soji" showed no intention of leaving.
After suddenly erupting into action, it simply stood there motionless.
Its mouth continued transmitting incomprehensible speech. "A%¥#T...@!@¥%!"
Vill-V glanced at the screen, which displayed: "Unrecognized language."
"Is it C—" Vill-V curled her lips. That made sense. Had it been recognizable, it would not be an extraterrestrial life-form.
What astonished Vill-V, however, was that the final portion of "Tenmon Soji's" speech was actually identified.
"Proto-Indo-European: Emissary of Peace, activate!"
Id: "So he's been playing Peacekeeper Elite..."
Once "Tenmon Soji" finished speaking, black light erupted from its entire body and swept indiscriminately in every direction.
Any soil touched by the black light vanished without a trace.
After narrowly dodging one of the beams and witnessing its power, Magician could not help sighing in amazement. "Good grief. Where are all these Terminators coming from?"
She hurriedly grabbed the mining robot beside her and issued an escape command.
"No Honkai energy has been detected. Bronya will use miniature drones to cover you."
Bronya's voice suddenly sounded through the earpiece, making Vill-V panic. "Don't! This is Magician's solo performance. It isn't an occasion Bronya should interfere with."
Bronya did not follow Vill-V's instructions. She naturally understood how dangerous the situation was, but that was precisely why she had to help Teacher Vill-V escape.
There was no possibility of Teacher Vill-V escaping in her current state.
Several high-speed miniature drones closed in on "Tenmon Soji," but "Tenmon Soji" opened its "mouth" and fired a beam that swept the drones out of the air.
"So it's one of Sea X King's Pacifistas."
What followed was an invisible boson-particle shock wave.
Bronya was shattered to pieces by the boson-particle shock wave, her remains scattering across the ground as fragments of mirror.
That had merely been Magician's mirror illusion. The real Bronya had already been transported away by Magician.
"I wish I could transport myself."
Magician once again used her agile movements to evade a stray beam, then scratched the back of her smoking head after her hat had been burned away. "Unfortunately, my figure doesn't seem to allow it... Expert, do you want to capture one to play with? Dr. Mobius would definitely be interested in its cells too."
Expert replied bluntly, "I would not object, provided you are capable of doing so."
"Ugh." Magician helplessly spread her hands and shook her head. Clearly, she had no solution.
Now that this "Emissary of Peace" had completely exposed its true form, it could no longer be handled through schemes or strategy.
It was a pure killing machine created by aliens. Only another killing machine could contend with it.
"Then do you have any other ideas? Let me make this clear. My 'Magic Hat' is gone, so I can't escape. I stored most of the weapons you built, including the Gundam Receiver and similar equipment, inside the 'Magic Hat.' The magic props I have left are only enough to keep that thing occupied for a little while."
"And this thing doesn't seem particularly intelligent. In fact, it's rather rigid. It was more convincing when it was pretending to be human..."
As she spoke, another torrent of light swallowed Vill-V.
A moment later, Vill-V appeared behind a rock not far away.
Magician sighed. "Preparing another 'Magic Hat' will take time, but it clearly has no intention of giving us a chance to catch our breath."
Even in such a critical situation, Conductor still had the leisure to tease her. "Can't the creator of all escape tricks invent a new one on the spot?"
Faced with Conductor's teasing, Magician replied helplessly, "Please. Every magic trick relies on meticulous planning. It's not as though I can use actual magic... Of course, that doesn't mean there isn't another way. It's just that, for the sake of drama, the alternatives require paying one tiny little price."
Conductor asked curiously, "What price?"
A nearly imperceptible trace of excitement flashed through Magician's eyes. "Hua or Bronya would take our place and face this predicament instead. Isn't that dramatic? If you all agree, I can give that performance a try. It would be absolutely thrilling!"
Conductor rejected the suggestion. "Absolutely not. Targeting Id is already the limit of what Id can tolerate. If you harm a Flame-Chaser or Bronya too, Id will die of anger."
Id: "What do you mean, targeting me is the limit of what I can tolerate?!"
"See?" Magician spread her hands with a regretful expression. "So solving this problem from here on out will depend on all of you putting your heads together."
Magician tapped her head, and in the next instant, another torrent engulfed Vill-V.
"Tenmon Soji" did not rely on sight to locate its enemies in the first place. Hiding behind a rock offered nothing more than psychological comfort.