Whoosh.
The world spun, a dizzying turn.
After the distorted vision settled back to calm, Lu Xing found himself safely back in the Great Rift space... though the process had been far from pleasant. Unlike the portal personally opened by the Ice Emperor, this simplified "Return" ability not only required a "chant" of over ten seconds to activate, but the journey itself was nauseatingly disorienting.
If Lu Xing hadn't practiced various "Drill Maneuvers" back when he was merely Ranger-class, he might not have even managed to stay on his feet just now.
Hum.
A clear, resonant vibration rippled through the surroundings.
The Ice Emperor, in its gateway form, cast a look of concern towards Lu Xing... along with an inquiring thought.
Lu Xing's plan had failed.
However, the version initially presented to the Ice Emperor had appeared to be a resounding success—human deployments had indeed been thrown into disarray by Lu Xing's appearance, and a considerable number of their troops had even been completely annihilated in the ensuing skirmishes.
But...
None of this could conceal the death of the Cruiser-class in battle. Moreover, the lingering aura of that Emperor Guard still clung to Lu Xing.
Therefore.
The gateway and the humanoid figure.
A brief silence descended between the two Honkai Beast individuals.
Lu Xing made no attempt to hide much.
Instead, he recounted most of what had transpired during the battle—especially the part concerning the nuclear strike—to the Ice Emperor.
Two minutes later.
The silence was slowly broken as a Quillspike-class Honkai Beast drifted languidly towards the Great Rift.
"Extremely threatening."
"Must be eradicated."
The Ice Emperor's will echoed repeatedly within the space.
Its suspended wings, detaching once more from the Ice Emperor's main body, seemed poised to open a new portal to dispatch the Quillspike-class.
Lu Xing knew what the Ice Emperor was planning.
From the looks of it, it intended to send the Quillspike-class to eliminate the warship that had launched the nuclear weapon. This course of action seemed unwise. Although Lu Xing was unsure of the Quillspike-class's true strength, he doubted it surpassed that of the Cruiser-class, which had also been an Emperor Guard.
To venture forth so rashly...
"This is a suicide mission," Lu Xing voiced his objection to the Ice Emperor.
It was meaningless for him alone to cherish human life. Humans didn't cherish human lives, and they certainly didn't cherish the lives of Honkai Beasts...
So.
Lu Xing decided he would cherish the lives of Honkai Beasts for a change—at least that would bring some semblance of balance.
Lu Xing hadn't realized it, but after the battle he had just experienced, his way of thinking had once again quietly, imperceptibly shifted.
"No need for concern."
The Ice Emperor did not halt the process of opening the portal.
Nor did it directly refute Lu Xing. By dispatching the Quillspike-class on this mission, the Ice Emperor clearly possessed ample confidence in its capabilities.
Or perhaps...
"My path is not a lonely one."
Emperor Guard · Quillspike-class.
From the heart of a distorted void that could devour even light, the elegant, massive Quillspike-class drifted out, resembling a great jellyfish.
The next second—
Thump!!
The Quillspike-class's enormous body executed an acceleration that utterly defied the laws of nature.
In merely the blink of an eye, the destroyer "Bailey," positioned on the fleet's periphery and closest to the Quillspike-class, was ensnared by milky-white, translucent tentacles.
As deep purple Honkai energy surged forth uncontrollably, before anyone on the bridge could even react, the "Bailey" destroyer, without firing a single shot, was thoroughly corroded by the Honkai energy. Deep purple patterns spread across its entire hull, and sailors fleeing the compartments disintegrated into ash upon contact with the sea breeze, vanishing from the deck.
"Radford!"
"Radford!!"
"Acknowledged!"
"Fire all missiles!!"
The old commander was the first to snap out of his shock.
Undoubtedly.
The enemy was even more decisive than he had imagined. If anyone were to suggest that the Honkai Beast appearing before them had no connection to the fleet's previous attack, the old commander would absolutely refuse to believe it.
The "Bailey" was already lost.
A main warship of the navy, a large guided-missile destroyer with a displacement exceeding ten thousand tons, had been neutralized by the enemy in a single encounter.
The threat posed by this creature... was likely no weaker than the Cruiser-class!
At such close range, employing nuclear weapons was out of the question. The old commander's immediate reaction was a saturation attack. The missile silo hatches on the "Radford" flew open, and expensive ship-to-ship missiles launched in a frenzy, as if they cost nothing!
Swoosh! xN
Tail flames bathed the Radford's deck.
The missiles, soaring into the air, ignited their second stage, then swiveled their warheads and charged madly towards the Quillspike-class Honkai Beast that enveloped the Bailey!
Buzz!
Slender rays of light swept through the air.
Destructive power, compressed to its utmost limit, was contained within. Spines drifting from the Quillspike-class, like funnels, shot out these rays from their tips. An "energy net" was woven in the sky, and all missiles launched by the Radford were shot down in a mere second!
Without a single exception.
"Frigates!"
"Ready!"
"Harassing fire!"
The commands shouted from the bridge never ceased.
The "small-tonnage" frigates surrounding the Quillspike-class simultaneously commenced a saturation attack.
But before their 155mm guns could fire and their anti-ship missiles could launch, rays of light tearing through the sky had already gently swept across three of their hulls—
BOOM!!
The Quillspike-class's effective range wasn't particularly long.
However, "slicing" through these nearby frigates, which possessed virtually no armor to speak of, posed no problem for it.
"Georgia!"
"Acknowledged!"
"Main battery status?"
"Ready!"
"Fire!"
The frigates' attack had failed to pin down the Quillspike-class, but their steel hulls had bought precious time for the "Georgia's" main battery to calibrate. The remaining targeting data was provided by the wreckage of drones already blooming like fireworks in the sky—support from the amphibious assault ships.
Though not adept at long-range engagements, in terms of reaction speed and interception efficiency, the Hornet far surpassed its sister ship.
Whoosh!
Three twin-mounted main turrets simultaneously aimed at the Quillspike-class to starboard.
A sapphire halo flared within the gun barrels, and the overflowing strong magnetic field erupted in countless arcing bolts of electricity across the deck—this was clearly no prelude to a conventional gunpowder weapon firing, not even an electromagnetic cannon as understood by humanity!
Crackle!!
BOOM!!! x6
Overlapping roars!
A terrifying explosion erupted on the sea surface!
In an instant, the Quillspike-class's body was utterly shattered!
The energy shield it had raised was as flimsy as mourning silk, offering no defense whatsoever. The Quillspike-class, so imposing just moments ago, was instantly reduced to transparent chunks of flesh floating on the sea...
It wasn't dead yet.
Defense was not the Quillspike-class's forte; regeneration was. Its shattered body parts, like coalescing slime, continuously converged towards the center. Once they reassembled...
"Continue!"
Even if it was a prototype main battery, having been officially equipped on a warship, it certainly wasn't a mere showpiece capable of firing only once.
Just as the Georgia's main battery was reloading—
THUD!!
A muffled explosion sounded from beneath the waves.
While the entire fleet's attention was riveted on the Quillspike-class, the persistent sense of crisis that had been nagging the old commander finally erupted with full force:
The Columbia, ambushed underwater, had sunk!