140. Why not Do Something Bigger?
"I'm looking for worlds in need of help."
Xiling's words were not a joke. Although he had agreed to help Otto fulfill his wish, he also had something he wanted to do: use the observation function of the Second Divine Key to find the leaves invaded by the Honkai in the Imaginary Tree.
The Cocoon of the Finality—the source of the Honkai.
It is the cause of the story, the creator of countless tragedies, even if its purpose is merely to embrace its own kind.
But not every civilization can withstand its embrace. Those who cannot bear it are reduced to dust in its embrace, the flame of civilization extinguished, the hymn of life reduced to a final echo.
Since it's to save the world, why not do something bigger?
To save all the worlds ravaged by the Honkai! Like leaves in a book, bubbles in the sea.
This is Xiling's purpose. Even if he can't do it now, what about later?
He won't give up even the slightest possibility—the possibility of saving those perishing worlds!
"This is my purpose, what I'm doing," Xiling's gaze swept over everyone, piercing the sky before them, as if he were already staring at the lush yet tragic branches of the Imaginary Tree, "to save those worlds on the verge of collapse, no matter how far apart they are, no matter how desperate they are."
Xiling informed everyone about his plans. Otto was feeling somewhat incredulous. This man, before him, was even more insane than he was. Save all? He found it incredibly difficult to save even one person, and this man was trying to save the civilizations of other worlds.
"Madman! This guy is absolutely insane!" The astonished voice of Void Archives echoed in Otto's mind.
"Yes, a madman," Otto silently echoed in his heart, a complex mix of emotions churning within him—disbelief, utter absurdity, for this ideal was beyond human capability; it was truly… insane.
Just as the echoes of this mad declaration had barely faded across the vast desert, the imaginary ripples in the distorted space above the sky suddenly boiled! The previously dormant imaginary creations began to stir restlessly. They seemed to have been waiting for some kind of trigger, and now, Xiling's declaration of salvation was like a spark thrown into boiling oil, igniting their ferocity!
The heavens tore open a deeper rift, and accompanied by the heavy thud of hooves that seemed to shatter space itself, a colossal, suffocatingly large, golden, four-legged figure slowly emerged. Its form roughly resembled a bull, but its entire body was covered in a strange, angular carapace that flowed with a liquid golden luster. Its massive horns twisted upwards, their tips gleaming with an ominous, eerie light.
Imaginary Tree Remnants—Mysticism.
Without a roar, it appeared, its massive head turning towards the four tiny figures below. In the next instant, this golden, destructive behemoth, like a primal savage trampling an ant colony, its enormous body, accompanied by a deafening roar, tearing through the air, leaped down from the top of the sky! A shadow that blotted out the sun instantly enveloped them, its target clear—to utterly crush Xiling, along with the entire sand dune, into dust!
A powerful wind pressed down, the shadow of death arriving in an instant!
"In short," a clear female voice rang out, and Lemuen stepped forward, her long pink hair fluttering in the violent air currents, "Let's deal with these guys first!"
She pressed her slender hand into the air— "[Mech Athena]!"
A massive magic circle, over a kilometer in diameter, instantly unfolded in the air, and Athena instantly materialized! Athena's shield, constructed of pure magic, forcefully withstood Mysticism's violent, mountain-like stomp!
At the moment of impact, Lemuen's figure swiftly merged into Athena.
Almost simultaneously with Lemuen's completion of the fusion, three Nihilism entities had silently crept to within ten meters of the group. At the same time, the imaginary rift in the sky burst open like a dam breaking, unleashing a torrential downpour of countless imaginary creations of various shapes and sizes, carrying destructive energy beams and physical impacts, hurtling towards the ground!
Durandal's eyes sharpened, the Black Abyss White Flower in hand, ready to meet the deadly sneak attack from behind and the storm of imaginary creations from above.
"Stand still." The Tarnished's wand lightly tapped the ground.
Like a drop of water falling into a calm lake, a magic circle suddenly expanded from the point of impact! Instantly enveloping the four of them.
The magic circle rapidly rose and spun, transforming into a spherical barrier that completely isolated them from the outside world.
Nihilism's greatsword, countless imaginary creations raining down, beams of energy… all the attacks rippled across the barrier's surface, yet failed to budge it in the slightest.
"Is this the power of other worlds? Methods I've never witnessed before," Otto thought, glancing at the Tarnished.
Just then, the Tarnished took out the Holy Grail.
An indescribable torrent of terrifying magical power was instantly unleashed! Without any aiming, four azure comet-shaped pillars of light, each over ten meters in diameter and composed purely of destructive energy, suddenly rose from the ground in the four cardinal directions outside the spherical barrier!
Comet Azle!
The pillars of light were not static; like living whips of destruction, they automatically locked onto all enemies approaching the barrier—wherever the light touched, silent annihilation occurred—whether it was a hard shell, a twisted energy body, or the scorching sand below… all matter was instantly disintegrated and utterly reduced to nothingness under the crushing light!
However, a bizarre, physics-defying fluctuation swept across the battlefield. Just as the comet's beam of light had annihilated all enemies, and the light hadn't completely dissipated, time... seemed to be violently pulled back a frame by an invisible hand!
The Tarnished keenly sensed the anomaly. Outside the barrier, those imaginary creations obliterated by Comet Azle—including the Nihilism that had just vanished, even the sand shattered by the energy shockwave—were re-formed, reshaped, and revitalized from nothingness, like a videotape being played in reverse! Completely unharmed, as if the cataclysmic attack had never happened!
"What's going on?" the Tarnished asked in surprise.
"Is it unkillable?"
Meanwhile...
Inside Athena's cockpit, Lemuen piloted Athena, unleashing devastating firepower that sent the ferocious golden behemoth—Mysticism—back into a staggering retreat. Each blast from the main cannon created a terrifying hole in its body, but the wounds were instantly repaired and reshaped by the flowing golden imaginary energy almost the instant the fire subsided!
"This is troublesome," Lemuen murmured, activating her Eye of the Stars. The stars were reflected in her vision, and her gaze was locked onto Mysticism.
The Eye of the Stars clearly analyzed the enemy's weaknesses, but she couldn't fulfill the conditions required to destroy it.
"But it only means it can't eliminate you!!"
Athena's wings suddenly unfurled, and the crown atop her head began to radiate dazzling light. Just as Mysticism regrouped, gathering its strength for another charge, Athena moved, instantly appearing before Mysticism's head!
Mysticism's body was instantly blasted away!
The next second!
"Pierce through!" Athena's cannon converged, unleashing a beam of light compressed to its absolute limit, slamming into the face of Mysticism!
The golden body was continuously disintegrated and destroyed in the white light, while imaginary energy surged forth frantically, attempting to reshape itself… Destruction and regeneration unfolded in a brutal and rapid cycle on Mysticism's body!
Mysticism was blasted off the ground by this relentless beam of light, its massive body flying irresistibly towards the vast expanse of space!
Ground battlefield.
Almost the instant Mysticism was blasted away, three writhing black shadows of Nihilism, created by time reversal, had just coalesced—
Durandal's figure flashed at supersonic speed, the tip of her spear precisely annihilating the core of Nihilism, the three black shadows silently dissipating!
In the sky, the rain of Imaginary Creations, like a locust plague, surged again, along with the Tarnished Comet Azle! In the blink of an eye, the noisy sky returned to deathly silence, leaving only the faint glow of residual energy. The deafening roar of battle finally ceased.
Having done all this, the Tarnished clapped his hands.
"Easy peasy, but what's next?" The Tarnished looked up at the shattered sky above, feeling somewhat troubled.
However, his words received no response. He habitually turned his head, his gaze falling on the spot where Xiling had stood—
"Tsk." A short, sharp click of the tongue was sounded.
"He didn't even say a word before he was gone."
At this moment, Xiling's eyes were closed, his will relentlessly advancing within the imaginary space.
From the moment his companions arrived, he had been fully immersed in the battle.