Time flies, and three days passed in a flash.
The Instance fixedly produced about 16,000 [Imaginary Energy] daily. Coupled with the [Imaginary Energy] produced by the Honkai Erosion Points, this successfully helped Leo's [Honkai energy] reach 99 points, entering a bottleneck stage.
Of course, it wasn't just him. Apart from MEI who was still lacking [3 Levels], Kiana and the others were also level-capped.
And after Kiana and the others reached [Level 15], they also needed a [D-Rank License] and a certain amount of [Imaginary Energy] to promote.
But to be honest, since he hadn't explored the [Instance] more deeply in these three days, he naturally hadn't figured out what exactly a [D-Rank License] was.
However, he had a premonition that perhaps after defeating [Lord Shadow Ninja Zombie], he should be able to get the answer.
It's just... in Tongzi's eyes, am I not even D-Rank?
To be honest, this somewhat hurt his self-esteem.
After all, having reached 99 points of [Honkai energy], he was somewhat swollen with pride.
Moreover, his previous conjecture was correct. When MEI leveled up, her various [base attributes] also increased... For every [3 Levels] gained, each base attribute would increase by 1 point.
The reason Kiana didn't increase was simply because her [base attributes] were naturally too high, but her soul was tattered, so she had no way to retain [Strength].
Otherwise, if she were in a normal state, given her values, she could naturally make Leo's values skyrocket by a chunk.
However, even so, Leo's current panel was already quite terrifying:
[Player: Leo]
[Strength: 6+7 (MEI) +9 (Kiana) = 22]
[Constitution: 6+7 (MEI) +9 (Kiana) = 22]
[Energy: 9+12 (MEI) +9 (Kiana) = 30]
[Agility: 7+7 (MEI) +9 (Kiana) = 23]
[Honkai energy: 99]
[MEI · Bond: Max!]
[Kiana · Bond: Max!]
[Ability: Far East Ancient Martial Arts: Hokushin Ittō-ryū (First Glimpse of the Doorway: 427/500), Tiny Miracle (C-Rank)]
[Equipment: Homu Sword Sage Suit (D-Rank), Badge: Fast, Badge · Sanitation Model]
[—She says, you can go for it!]
Current him only felt his whole body was filled with [Strength]; it was time to have a big fight with [Lord Shadow Ninja Zombie].
However, before that, he quite steadily decided to wait until after twelve o'clock to finish [Level Up] the last [3 Levels] for MEI before entering the [Instance].
Although he might not necessarily lack this 1 point of attribute, having it is better than not having it. What if he really lacked it?
Anyway, he wasn't short on this bit of time!
Thus—
"Oubijubiju!"
On the TV, "Tom and Jerry" was playing. Tom was being played by Jerry as usual, thus emitting an extremely comical sound.
At the same time—
"MEI, didn't you want to become the [Herrscher of Thunder]?"
Looking at MEI who was tired to the point of absent-mindedness, the corners of Leo's mouth couldn't help hooking up into a trace of a pleasurable smile.
"With your current physical stamina and electrical resistance, it won't work at all!"
"So don't assume that just because your [Energy] is high enough, you will definitely be able to maintain your sanity after becoming a [Herrscher]. A [Herrscher] is not that easy to be!"
They were currently in the [Previous Era] phase, still lacking Elysia's intervention.
So although it wasn't completely impossible for a [Herrscher] of this era to maintain humanity, the difficulty was absolutely much harder than in Kiana's era.
However, there was evidence indicating that this era actually also had that trace of hope to birth a [Herrscher] who retained humanity.
Like the [Himeko] of this era; she actually had always been fighting against the [Herrscher]'s consciousness, only she didn't win the fight.
But if they knew this matter in advance this time, and desperately strengthened [Energy] for the [Himeko] of this era, then it might not be impossible to let her successfully control the [Strength] of the [Herrscher of Flames].
Leo knew this was hard, but he felt it was necessary to give it a try.
So MEI was naturally the most suitable candidate for the experiment.
Her [Energy] was naturally very high, and now with Leo helping to improve it, in the future, she would absolutely exceed everyone's imagination in the area of [Energy].
Moreover, with the guidance of future [Herrschers] like Kiana and the others, she would understand even more how to get along with the [Honkai], as well as resist the [Honkai]'s erosion.
In short, as long as she succeeded, then Leo would have the confidence to let [Himeko], let Higokumaru... that is, the Rin of this era, let them successfully become [Herrschers].
Of course, it was impossible for Leo to let her conduct the experiment without any guarantee.
—[Raiden Mei] was Leo's greatest guarantee!
As long as [Raiden Mei] became the [Herrscher of Thunder] first, then if any accident occurred when she became the [Herrscher of Thunder], [Raiden Mei] could definitely strip away her authority.
So precisely because of such a guarantee, Leo was at ease with this plan.
However, having said a thousand words, one still needs to be strong oneself. MEI first had to reach a certain level of [Energy] under his cultivation.
Otherwise, everything now was just empty talk.
Just—
"Sigh..."
Looking at MEI who had lost focus in her eyes and fell down just like that, Leo shook his head helplessly.
"Don't blame me for being too cruel; this is the path you must walk."
After completing his self-consolation, he turned his gaze to "Tom and Jerry" on the TV.
The Tom at this moment habitually began to "Oubijubiju" again.
—Truly setting each other off, reflecting each other!
"Hypocrite!"
With arms crossed over her chest, Kiana looked at Leo grumpily.
Because her level was full, added to the nightly singing and dancing these few days, she was actually able to restrain her desires.
Mainly, she wanted to adjust to a good state. After all, tonight they were going to pioneer new territory.
So... wait until they came back tonight to talk about it!
"Heh~"
Chuckling lightly, Leo said, "It's not right for you to say that."
"Did I say anything wrong?"
"Moreover, you playing cartoons while people are doing serious business, that's what's not right, isn't it?"
"To be honest, several times I laughed so hard I almost couldn't get into the state."
One had to say, classics are classics. Even if he was leveling up here, his attention would be attracted from time to time.
If not for MEI hitting his chest with pink fists and begging him for mercy, he really might have forgotten the serious business.
One could only say, this fellow Kiana really knew how to annoy people... clearly she could have gone next door!
"I don't want to listen to the commotion on your side from next door!"
Deeply disgusted by that feeling of powerlessness, Kiana decided to run over here to cause tro—... watch cartoons!
It was just that she really didn't expect that even watching "Tom and Jerry", Leo could get into the state... truly a complete pervert!
"You... this fellow..."
Understanding that Kiana came to disgust him on purpose, Leo couldn't help changing his face, saying earnestly, "MEI still has class tomorrow, that's why I thought to let her rest earlier."
"Otherwise, by the time we come back tonight, who knows what time it will be."
Tonight they were going to pioneer; he had even made plans to ask for leave tomorrow.
But given MEI's serious attitude, she would definitely still want to go to school.
That was why he started the serious business as soon as twelve o'clock passed.
Just—
"Heh!"
Sneering, Kiana spoke bluntly, "MEI's current [Energy] is also non-human. Resting casually for a few hours is enough; where does she need to rest for so long?"
"This is just your excuse! Hypocrite!"
Finishing, she rolled her beautiful eyes at Leo.
"Tsk..."
To this, Leo really couldn't refute.
Curling his lips, he couldn't help saying, "Why can't you obediently turn back into a [Paramecium] for me?"
"Being so smart, you aren't cute anymore!"
"I don't want to be cute!"
While speaking, Kiana extended that slender, fair index finger to pull down her lower eyelid, and then made a grimace at Leo.
One had to say, the her at this moment was extremely cute!
"Alright."
Feeling that if he chatted with Kiana any longer, Leo wouldn't be able to suppress the 'anger' in his heart again.
"We should go."
While picking out tonight's equipment from the wardrobe, he said, "I still want to go to school tomorrow."
Although in another half a year he would ascend to university, those classmates were also quite interesting.
Especially a few boys who had asked about his relationship with MEI. After he explained that the two were a couple, the expressions of envy, jealousy, and hatred they revealed made him feel good for a long time.
Saying it like this was indeed a bit childish, but men are boys until death. If one can show off but doesn't, then he suspected that person was either secretly pretentious or had gone through rehab.
Of course afterwards, MEI, who learned about this matter from the girls' side, lectured him for a long time. Until he suddenly took the initiative and kabedon'd MEI against the wall, this lecture finally ended with MEI fleeing in disarray... making it seem like I'm someone who would mess around in school!
He felt deeply helpless about MEI's mistrust!
But he really didn't lie. After all, at least before he successfully [captured] [Chiba Academy], he wouldn't have a good impression of a place like school... He always felt monsters would pop out from the nooks and crannies!
...
[Instance: Chiba Academy · 3rd Floor]
Without needing Leo to utter a sound, Kiana very proficiently charged towards the [Zombies] on the second floor.
And Leo was even more decisive; he fell directly to the first floor through the hole Kiana punched through previously.
The entire process of going downstairs took him 1 second, successfully surpassing ninety-nine percent of the students in the school!
One could only say, the current him placed in the city was absolutely a little superman. He basically didn't put a height of this degree in his eyes.
Precisely because of this, Kiana evaluated him as—
"Even regarding values, you already have the strength of a [B-Rank]."
But here, he was still just a loli, not even reaching [D-Rank].
Therefore, from now on, he told Kiana not to compare with the strength on Kiana's side anymore; everything would be based on the strength here.
Current him, let's tentatively consider him a Half-Step [D-Rank]!
"Done."
At the same time Leo finished solving the first-floor [Zombies], Kiana also descended to the second floor.
One had to say, in these three days of leveling up, they already had considerable tacit understanding.
So even if Kiana didn't use [Divine Prayer] on Leo, their current [Moon Light Concentration] hadn't reached [25%].
[Divine Prayer · Clears negative effects suffered by self and surrounding teammates.]
And since their [Moon Light Concentration] hadn't reached [25%], their first stop tonight was naturally the canteen.
Although Leo really wanted to go fight a great battle with [Lord Shadow Ninja Zombie] first, he understood that finding [Bronya] was even more important.
Not to mention what kind of comfort finding [Bronya] would be to Kiana and [Raiden Mei], even if it was for better exploring the intelligence of this [Instance], he definitely had to prioritize finding [Bronya].
Thus—
"Proceed according to plan."
After exchanging a glance with Kiana, he held his [long sword] and advanced towards the canteen's back kitchen.
Kiana, on the other hand, hid in the dark, waiting for Leo to stir up a commotion so she could run to the second floor to collect intelligence.
When in the [Real World], the few of them had already discussed the plan well; now it just depended on the specific strength of the monsters here.
According to the intelligence given by [Bronya], within the canteen back kitchen, there was one Head Chef, two Cooks, and four Choppers, a total of seven "people".
Theoretically speaking, to supply the canteen of such a big school, this number of people was definitely not enough.
But since this place had already turned into a [Honkai Domain], Leo roughly guessed what the rest of the people had turned into.
Sure enough—
"Tongzi, where is the agreed-upon romance game?"
Holding the sword, looking at the humanoid monster in the back kitchen that grew four heads, eight hands, and eight feet, he couldn't help feeling nauseous.
Mainly, it wasn't just having extra human body parts; the components of those faces were also scattered all over the humanoid monster's body.
Under the effect of the Uncanny Valley, he naturally felt double discomfort, physiologically and psychologically.
Now, he only wanted to let this monster pass on to bliss a bit sooner!
Focusing his mind and calming his breath, he poured 30 points of [Honkai energy] into the [long sword], striving to kill this monster with one hit.
Thus—
"Slash!"
Following his explosive shout, his body turned into a thread of [purple thunder]. On the phantom of the [Homu Sword Sage Suit] behind him, [Badge: Fast] was emitting a dazzling light.
At the same time, [Badge · Sanitation Model] was also emitting an equal light.
[Badge: Sanitation Model]
[Description: Only by cleaning up one's surroundings will girls like you!]
[Effect: Small damage boost against filth-type enemies.]
[—Sweeping away dust and filth, the time is just right!]
Thus, in the next moment, he appeared behind that monster.
[Imaginary Energy +102]
Threads appeared on that monster's body. Its two hands pointed towards Leo, and the mouths on its body also wanted to say something, but it could do nothing.
By the time Leo handsomely sheathed his sword, it had already turned into ashes, fading away with the wind.
"Like this... it should be able to attract the monster upstairs down, right?"
According to what [Bronya] said, there was also a Canteen Supervisor upstairs.
That was an old lady, but because she fused with quite a few people, her entire volume was extremely massive.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Sure enough, Leo could hear that an iron tower seemed to be moving upstairs.
Anyway... let's end the battle quickly!
Looking at the three monsters surrounding him, he revealed a solemn expression.
Although he killed one monster instantly with one slash just now, he had spent 30 points of [Honkai energy]... he did that to attract the monster upstairs.
And now, he couldn't be that extravagant.
Swish!
Three monsters who discovered the strange noise here charged towards Leo. The monster at the very front raised a kitchen knife in its hand and chopped down towards Leo.
This monster was identical to the previous one, but the one falling at the very back had obviously different places... its mouths were all concentrated on its stomach, forming a monstrous maw.
With its mouth open, one could even see the internal organs inside its body; it looked quite terrifying.
Clang!
Taking a moment to glance at the last monster, Leo's body didn't stop moving.
The [long sword] was drawn again. In a Iaido stance, while blocking the kitchen knife of the first monster, he followed the momentum to slice the opponent's hand directly off.
"Ahhhhhhh!!!"
Intense pain caused this monster whose hand was severed to scream out, even causing it to use its body to block the two monsters behind it.
There was no helping it; the canteen back kitchen was only so big. With their Urgot-like body types, they should be blocked.
And precisely because of this, only one could attack Leo first.
And seeing this—
"Slash!"
Issuing another explosive shout, Leo, seizing the gap to charge power, directly beheaded the monster screaming from the severed hand. It could be said to be taking its life while it was sick!
However, this monster had four heads. He only chopped off one of them; it didn't affect this monster's continued existence.
At the same time, the two monsters behind finally climbed directly over the first monster's body and arrived in front of Leo.
Clang!
Facing the kitchen knife slashing over again, this time Leo blocked while retreating.
Because he heard the iron tower upstairs was about to come down. If he stayed in the back kitchen any longer, he would be attacked from front and back in a moment.
So, he had to run out of the canteen to do his best to buy time for Kiana.
And when he retreated out of the back kitchen and arrived at the canteen's main gate, the monster on the second floor finally revealed its true face.
One saw that it was a muscular, robust existence like a [Tyrant] from "Resident Evil".
The only difference was that its head was an old lady.
On that face, old as tree bark, there was currently fury—
[Which class's student are you? Why intrude into the back kitchen randomly? You even hurt the staff!]
While speaking, she strode quickly towards Leo.
And—
"I am Third Year, High... #!"
Seeing that he actually opened his mouth to answer, Leo immediately realized something was wrong and hurriedly wanted to leave the canteen quickly.
But what made him even more uncomfortable was that his legs were like they were filled with lead, unable to move at all.
—Is it that one can only move after answering the corresponding question, or is it that...
No! Too late!
Thoughts flashed through his mind; he immediately realized he didn't have time to run anymore.
Thus—
Bang!
Facing the collision of the [Tyrant Old Lady], he only felt like he was hit by a cannonball, his whole person flying directly out of the canteen.
One had to know, this was with him taking out the [long sword] and placing it horizontally in front of him to block.
If not for this [long sword], he suspected he would have appeared directly at the resurrection point.
And before being hit, he saw with his own eyes that this old lady smashed the "Urgot" closest to him directly into pieces.
[Imaginary Energy +98]
So... where did this great fortune come from?
But before he could get up, that iron tower-like footstep sound rang out again, obviously not stopping until it killed him.
However, he didn't know if it was because he had already withstood one attack, or because he had already left the canteen.
In short, he found he could move again. He hurriedly suppressed the fresh blood in his throat and ran towards the direction of the [School building].
Now he wanted to see if changing spaces could eliminate the monster's aggro.
If it really could, then he would perform a repeated side-step to buy time for Kiana.
However—
"No... still chasing?"
Seeing the [Tyrant Old Lady] still chasing him even after he entered the playground due to [Moon Light Concentration] reaching [50%], he couldn't help feeling his teeth ache.
But what surprised him was that with his appearance, those [Zombie] squads didn't prioritize targeting him, but instead... aren't they on the same side?
Looking at the [Zombie] squads who were hammered by the [Tyrant Old Lady] but didn't retreat in the slightest, a bold idea couldn't help popping up in his mind.
[Lord Shadow Ninja Zombie], look what baby I brought you!
Thinking of this, he couldn't help humming lightly.
Tentatively, he was still influenced by the strange moonlight, having already started thinking about things unrelated to battle.
Only this time, he felt he was right!
At the same time—
[Instance: Chiba Academy · Canteen]
"Followed and left?"
Seeing only one "Urgot" with a big mouth on its stomach return on the second floor, Kiana couldn't help furrowing her delicate eyebrows.
However, she understood now wasn't the time to worry about Leo. It was more important for her to prioritize digging out the intelligence of the second floor.
Admittedly, [Bronya] had figured out the distribution of monsters here for them.
But specific intelligence, [Bronya] couldn't dig out.
Because she wasn't allowed by that [Tyrant Old Lady] to enter the office, and the back kitchen side had directly no intelligence.
So—
"Hmph hmph! Take it all!"
Without looking at the specific content, Kiana began to rummage through chests and cupboards, collecting any paper documents with written records into her bosom.
When everything ended, she knocked on the walls on all four sides again, wanting to determine if there was still a secret room here.
"Eh?"
Jumping onto the table, she realized there seemed to be a secret chamber in the ceiling above her head. Thus she used a full-strength strike, successfully breaking the ceiling; a small [Treasure Chest] appeared in front of her.
Without hesitating, she opened the [Treasure Chest] and saw a purple irregular crystal hidden inside!
—[Tiny Honkai Fragment]!
Looking at this, she was naturally incomparably happy.
After all, with this thing, she could temporarily increase combat power.
Even against the previous [Tyrant Old Lady], she had the confidence to take her down.
"Really lucky!"
Storing the [Honkai fragment] as well, she hurriedly left the office, wanting to go support Leo.
After all, having the [Honkai fragment], she was completely qualified to be Leo's carry.
It was just that she had just stepped out the door when she met a familiar figure head-on.
"Ki... Kiana!?"
Looking at Kiana walking out of the second-floor office, [Bronya] had a face full of disbelief.
"Why are you in this place?"
"Hehe!"
Seeing [Bronya] again, Kiana couldn't help laughing, "Just as I said, I have a reliable helper."
"It was he who helped me lure away the monsters here, allowing me to infiltrate."
Saying that, she took out the [Honkai fragment] and said, "Moreover, with this, I can also help him defeat the strong enemy!"
And after finishing showing off, she walked quickly towards [Bronya], wanting to take the other party along to support Leo.
However—
"Kiana... are you really Kiana?"
Facing Kiana's approach, [Bronya] instinctively retreated, then looked at Kiana with a face full of vigilance.
"Hmm?"
Slightly stunned, Kiana didn't blindly approach [Bronya] anymore, because she keenly sensed a sense of dissonance from the other party.
Only for a moment, she also couldn't say clearly what this sense of dissonance was.
Until—
"Also..."
Seeing Kiana finally stop approaching her, [Bronya] then stood firm again, saying with a serious face, "What were you talking about just now?"
"Why do you look like you have met [Bronya] before?"
"[Bronya]... has never seen you here before!"
[Instance: Chiba Academy · Kendo Hall]
Not exceeding Leo's expectations, the [Tyrant Old Lady] followed him all the way here. At the same time—
Swish!
Swish!
Swish!
The [Shadow Ninja Zombie] holding dual blades slashed at the [Tyrant Old Lady] again and again, but it was like scratching an itch.
Because those terrifying blade scars cut open by her healed again in just an instant.
It could be said that [Lord Shadow Ninja Zombie], who slashed Leo into pieces here and there, had absolutely no way to deal with this old lady.
Of course similarly, because the [Shadow Ninja Zombie] had the ability [Blur], she could counter the [Tyrant Old Lady] who only knew physical attacks very well.
[Blur: State of being unable to be selected.]
It could be said this was a mechanic insidious to the extreme.
When in the game, players needed to wait for the monster with the [Blur] BUFF to launch an attack before they could seize the opportunity to attack.
Otherwise, any attack was ineffective... what Gwen?
Precisely because of this, if one met a monster with low attack desire, then there would be torture.
But now, the [Shadow Ninja Zombie]'s desire to attack was intense, but her kendo level was also unusually high; she could actually see through all of the [Tyrant Old Lady]'s attacks.
When the opponent attacked, she either parried and deflected or directly used [Blur] to become unselectable.
It was just that she also couldn't cause any damage to the [Tyrant Old Lady], otherwise the battle might have ended long ago.
Looking at it this way, [Lord Shadow Ninja Zombie] is still stronger.
Touching his chin, Leo was just short of taking out melon seeds and drinks to watch the show from the side.
To be honest, he really didn't expect that in this [Honkai Domain], compared to him, this outsider, the people on these two sides fought even more enthusiastically.
At the same time, a bold conjecture couldn't help generating in his brain.
Since the teleportation zones were decided by [Moon Light Concentration], could it be understood that the influence of [Moon Light Concentration] erosion these monsters received was also different?
The [Tyrant Old Lady] was from a concentration below [25%], so she could still retain human characteristics.
Even the "Urgot" in the back kitchen had shadows of men in them, and even among the previous [Zombies], Leo hadn't seen male [Zombies]!
So... were they artificial products?
Or rather, were they humanity's final self-salvation?
So, they were left in the [25%] zone?
After all, reaching [50%], that would be [Zombies]!
The more he thought, the more Leo felt his idea was correct.
It was just... then what was the situation with the [75%] zone?
Thinking of this, he couldn't help becoming curious.
Especially since he already knew through [Bronya] that the Administration Building didn't exist in the [25%] zone at least, so the probability of the Administration Building appearing in [75%] was very high.
—Wait until after exploring here and the [25%] zone, then I can challenge that side!
With a plan in his heart, he decided to take action to break the current deadlock.
After all, judging from the current situation, these two were like eternal rivals in a stalemate; it was fundamentally impossible to end.
So... I'm making my move!
[Instance: Chiba Academy · Canteen Second Floor]
"So that's how it is..."
Through Kiana's explanation, [Bronya] finally revealed a sudden realization expression.
"No wonder [Bronya] feels this place is full of déjà vu."
"So, [Bronya] has actually looped for three days?"
"Mm!"
Nodding vigorously, Kiana said, "This is a [Honkai Domain] that constantly loops, with only one day."
"Don't try to understand things like [Honkai Domain] for now."
"In short, quickly give me a code signal that makes you believe unconditionally as soon as I say it!"
To be honest, she was very anxious right now.
Although she successfully explained the sequence of events clearly to [Bronya] and also harvested some new intelligence from [Bronya].
But she was actually more concerned about the battle situation on Leo's side right now!
Additionally... why hadn't that old lady returned yet?
In her view, Leo shouldn't be able to hold out for so long!
Although Leo's strength was indeed already very strong, that [Tyrant Old Lady] was absolutely not an enemy Leo could handle alone.
But now, she and [Bronya] had already withdrawn from the canteen, yet she still hadn't seen the figure of the [Tyrant Old Lady].
In addition, she didn't sense the abnormality of [Reset] around her.
So she found it hard to imagine how Leo exactly held out for so long.
Therefore, in order to simplify the process when meeting [Bronya] again, she inevitably had to obtain a code signal.
"Uh..."
Understanding what Kiana was anxious about, [Bronya] thought slightly and spoke bluntly:
"Then let it be... 'Seele Banzai'!"
Finishing, although her face remained expressionless, her pretty face still couldn't help turning red.
"Tsk... I should have known better than to ask."
Hearing this answer, Kiana couldn't help shaking her head, saying, "Actually, I should have thought of it long ago."
"W-What are you saying?"
Hearing Kiana say this, [Bronya] couldn't help being a bit flustered.
"Forget it, now isn't the time to tease you. Follow me; it's just the right time to let you meet this helper of mine!"
Knowing [Bronya] would still take a while to return, she decided to let [Bronya] meet Leo right now.
Although [Bronya]'s memory would [Reset], somewhat of a déjà vu would remain.
And she believed Leo definitely had a way to leave a very deep impression on [Bronya]!
—You must hold on for this Miss! Idiot!
________________________________________
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