"Bang—"
In the billowing smoke, a streak of azure sliced through the pitch black, piercing the smoke screen, and punching the Deadman's head. It was like a watermelon hitting a truck, immediately shattering into pieces.
Lin pulled a collapse bomb from his waist and threw it toward the Deadman horde. It detonated in the air. The collapse bomb, developed using the authority of the Herrscher of Void, swept away everything around it. After the white light faded, not even the corpses could be fully intact.
The collapse bomb was not actually an explosion, but rather similar to a phase-shifting device that transports objects within a certain range to another space, but it was simpler and cruder. It didn't select specific targets, nor did it have a return setting.
Because it cut the object from the spatial level, most matter could not withstand it. However, it was also extremely dangerous; if allies were within its range, there was only the possibility of friendly fire.
After clearing this area of Deadmen, Lin stopped in place, scanning the surroundings for any surviving Honkai Beasts.
The area he was responsible for was very small. To be precise, there was actually no single person responsible for an area. This clearing operation was a collective mobilization, with 121 soldiers participating in clearing the same area, which was unimaginable back when they would send at most two squads to execute a clearing mission.
Lin simply cleared the area faster than everyone else, resulting in a large empty area around him.
After confirming that there was no active Honkai energy reaction nearby, he walked toward Sakura coordinates.
This clearing mission was quite unusual. A small-scale Honkai outbreak occurred in a bustling metropolis. The 19th Branch sealed off the entire area three minutes after the outbreak and deployed soldiers and armed dolls to clear the Honkai Beasts and rescue survivors.
In fact, Honkai outbreaks have increasingly occurred in cities in recent years, especially small-to-medium-scale Honkai events and some elusive Honkai Beasts lurking within urban areas.
Coupled with the severely damaged Fire Moth shifting its focus from external control to internal reorganization, some ordinary people have begun to notice that something is wrong with this world.
Perhaps the day when the Honkai and the Fire Moth are revealed to the public will come sooner than expected.
"Are you finished?" Sakura also happened to sheath her blade. She offered a simple salute to the corpses, a basic form of mourning for these people who had been transformed into Deadmen by the Honkai.
"It actually happened right in the center of the city…" Sakura, who rarely participated in ordinary missions, sighed softly with emotion, then turned to glance at Lin, "Time to go back?"
Lin nodded lightly, "The cleanup will be handled by the Fifth Squad and the Fourteenth Squad."
"Alright…" Sakura quickly moved to Lin side, walking with him toward the transport plane. "Have you been carrying out some secret mission lately?"
"…No." Lin knew why Sakura was asking.
When he wasn't on missions over the past two days, he would leave the 19th Branch, go somewhere unknown, and then return a few hours later, without even taking equipment.
From this somewhat secretive behavior, it did look like he was carrying out a solo secret mission.
However, Lin always answered questions truthfully. He said, "I've been investigating some things in a city in Australia… and I met someone a little different."
That person, who also observed the city from a different perspective like him, had left an impression on him.
People hurried about, and the people in Australia mostly seemed like walking dead. Yet, that person actually took the time to observe and investigate. Although Lin could infer from her few words that she couldn't truly view others from the perspective of what people needed, and she herself was engaged in artistic work, Lin still gave her credit for being able to calm down and walk the city streets to observe the most ordinary people.
He also accidentally discovered that the person seemed to be visiting various cities. Whenever he went out to investigate the abnormal temperature rise phenomenon in Australia, he would occasionally see her walking on the city streets wearing a hat, a mask, and sunglasses.
Because such an outfit was rare in summer, he easily recognized her.
But this was just a minor interlude; Lin focus was mostly on the investigation.
Frankly, this temperature anomaly was very similar to the Fifth Honkai Eruption.
Everything still needed to be discussed with Mei…
"Wait a moment, Lin. The Honkai energy reaction in one area is rapidly rising." Just then, Himeko communication stopped Lin and Sakura, who were about to board the transport plane.
A rapid rise in Honkai energy reaction only meant two possibilities.
One was the occurrence of some unknown Honkai phenomenon, and the other was the birth of a high-level Honkai energy organism.
And now, it was clearly the latter.
"Based on the total amount of Honkai energy reaction, it should only be a mutated lesser Honkai Beast. The coordinates have been transmitted to you."
Most of the participants in this sweep were new recruits who had only undergone simulated training. It was already quite good that they could clear out Deadmen and ordinary Honkai Beasts in their first actual combat. Some specialized Honkai Beasts required experienced veterans like them to handle.
Since it was just a mutated lesser Honkai Beast, Lin and Sakura alone were enough. The other veterans must also be preoccupied, so the task was assigned to them.
"Let's go."
…
"Eden-xiaojie, where have you been again? Do you know how much work you add to me by constantly wandering around?" The manager sighed, rolling down the window in the driver's seat and talking to the red-haired woman. "What if someone recognizes you?"
"They won't. Why would they care about a singer right now?"
The woman called Eden shook her head, opened the car door, and sat down, speaking steadily.
"'A singer,' before you say that, look at your ranking on the global influence chart…"
"That doesn't change the fact that I'm just a singer." Eden looked out the car with worry. "When will something like this end…"
"See, you said it yourself, you're just a singer. Can't you just do what a singer should do and sing to cheer them up?" The manager wasn't unaware of Eden's feelings, but she clearly took things easier. "They have their duties, and you have yours. This world doesn't function properly just by your kindness alone; it functions when everyone does what they're supposed to do."
"…Perhaps."
"What do you mean, 'perhaps'…"
"Hoooo—"
Suddenly, a bloodcurdling howl overshadowed the city's noise, stopping their conversation.
"Roar!"
Soon after, the howl grew closer.