"Ah, fascinating. Truly fascinating."
In Vemur Labs, North Africa, Otto leaned back in his chair, watching the footage transmitted from Nagazora City with a hint of a smile.
"Nagazora has truly become a boiling pot of chaos. Even observing from this god's-eye view, I'm getting dizzy tracking all the moving pieces…"
"Who will be the first team to reach the verification site? Judging by the current progress, it should be Dr. Tesla and Raiden Mei, shouldn't it? That's rather unfortunate news."
"With that incompletely awakened Herrscher of Thunder's power, winning against Li Sushang will likely be… just a tad difficult."
"Still, it's quite amusing. Why is it that Miss Raiden Mei, whose strength isn't actually weak—paired with that Anti-Entropy modified Striker Fulminata she should at least brush against S-rank—manages to encounter opponents stronger than her every single time?"
"One must admit, that's a peculiar talent in its own right."
However, Otto, still immersed in his internal commentary, failed to notice a crucial detail.
On his maximized Nagazora monitoring screen, the progress bar for Fu Hua's physical recovery had quietly begun to tick upward.
98%… 99%… 100%…
Yet, as if possessing a will of its own, the number didn't stop at one hundred percent.
After flickering a few times, it suddenly jumped to 101%.
Comparing the current body scan of the gray-haired girl floating in the cultivation pod with her previous data, one would notice a subtle, yet stubborn change: her chest had swelled slightly.
It was as if she was making a point of differentiating herself from her former self.
Unfortunately, perhaps limited by her body's latent potential, no matter how fiercely that number seemed to yearn to climb higher, the girl's somewhat regretfully modest bosom appeared to have reached its limit.
After several struggles, the figure ultimately failed to break through any further.
Nevertheless, this breach of conventional limits successfully captured the attention of Otto, who had been engrossed in Nagazora's dramatic spectacle.
"Hmm? Why did an error prompt just pop up… Wait, what is this?"
Staring at the screen reporting Fu Hua's physical recovery far exceeding expectations—even surpassing 100%—Otto fell into deep thought.
"What's going on with my old friend… Can one experience a second growth spurt after dying once? But little Theresa has had her share of near-fatal injuries before, and I never saw her grow even a bit…"
"Wait, that's not right." Otto's gaze suddenly sharpened.
"I shouldn't have used the Mimic Fenghuang Down to awaken my old friend's consciousness yet… Why are her mental fluctuations so intense?"
"This doesn't resemble the reactions of someone in an unconscious state."
"Could it be…"
Otto shifted his focus to Fu Hua within the pod.
While he possessed some understanding of her resurrection mechanism—based on the Void Archives' database and his own observations over five centuries—such an anomaly demanded caution.
"Old friend… are you already awake?"
Otto gently tapped the glass of the cultivation pod.
No response.
"Strange…" Otto furrowed his brow slightly.
He had considered the possibility that Fu Hua might be awake but feigning sleep.
However, knowing his old friend as he did, it seemed unlikely she would do something so… well, in modern terms, so out of character.
"Never mind. Void Archives, Mimic Fenghuang Down."
After pondering, the ever-prudent Otto decided to probe with the feather.
Instantly, a golden feather materialized in his hand. He picked it up, slowly channeled Honkai Energy into it, and pressed it against the pod.
Normally, the mimic feather would enter Fu Hua's body, scan her mental state, and relay the information back to Otto. But…
Just as Otto brought the feather close to the pod, he watched in astonishment as it began to darken at an alarming rate.
Otto's eyes widened. His Soulium body, sensing danger ahead of his conscious mind, instinctively tried to recoil.
Unfortunately, this current body wasn't the combat-specialized model he had used during his fight with Lynelle. Before Otto could retreat, a hand shot through the cultivation pod and seized him by the collar.
"Indeed… It's been a long time, Otto…"
The slowly opening eyes of "Fu Hua" revealed a manic grin.
"During all those days in a coma, I spent every single moment thinking about having a nice, long chat with an old friend like you…"
"Wait, you're not— Ack!"
Dazed by the mental backlash rebounding from the Mimic Fenghuang Down, Otto barely regained his senses.
Before he could finish his sentence, a fist that looked deceptively slender and delicate slammed into his face.
And immediately left a very physical, fist-shaped dent in his Soulium cheek.
"Enough talk. Die!"
--+--
Several minutes later, outside the Vemur Labs now blaring with alarms, a particularly spirited-looking gray-haired girl leaned against a tree branch, gazing down at the chaotic base below.
"Ha, 'The Overseer is attacked, lock down the entire area'… What fools. Someone who can take on Otto one-on-one and win wouldn't be contained by these ordinary Valkyries."
"Whatever. I'm in a good mood today, I won't bother with them… Otherwise, I'd make sure they experienced firsthand the composure and gravitas of an older generation… well, a five-hundred-generations-older Valkyrie."
Little Senti tossed an apple she had pilfered from Otto's office, took a bite, and a look of contentment spread across her face.
"Not bad, not bad at all. I just went through some old memories, and good heavens, what on earth was I eating back in Shenzhou?"
"Just thinking about it is enough to drive one mad… Clearly, the world has many delicious things to offer."
Finishing the fruit in a few quick bites, she clapped her hands together and looked into the distance.
"Honestly, having just woken up, I wasn't really keen on dealing with any messes… But after checking that guy Otto's computer, it seems he's stirred up quite a storm in Nagazora too."
"To make sure Kiana and the others don't run into any trouble, I'd better go take a look. I can also ask them about this 'Lynelle unexpectedly went missing' thing Otto logged."
"My memory's a bit fuzzy, but I seem to recall Lynelle telling me she's Mobius's daughter… which, roughly speaking, makes her my junior."
"There are so few of us left from the Previous Era; I can't let anything happen to her…"
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.