"Damn it!"
Seeing Selene emerge unscathed from the smoke and dust, the middle-aged man's mind immediately flashed—a Teigu user!?
"No, I have to abort the mission, or I won't make it out alive!" Quickly retracting his black "blade," the middle-aged man leaped several times, leaving the highest point of the mountain stronghold.
As he ran towards the entrance of the hidden escape tunnel he had prepared, the man couldn't understand how a small bandit hideout could have drawn the attention of an Imperial Armament user!
"Could it be that our plans have been discovered by the Empire?" He pushed aside the stone slab covering the tunnel entrance and was about to enter when suddenly...
"Did you really think you could escape?"
Before he could react, a hand covered in an intricately designed silver gauntlet appeared out of thin air before his eyes, glowing with a faint purple-red light. It clamped around his throat like an iron vise.
"You've got some nerve, shooting at me and then trying to run." Selene's expression was cold as she effortlessly lifted the man off the ground with one hand.
"Cough... Imperial dog... Cough, cough, you won't be able to keep jumping around for long..." Even in the face of this terrifyingly beautiful woman, the man showed no fear. For his lofty and dreamlike ideals, he had long since put life and death aside.
Before he could finish his curse, his perspective suddenly spun as he was slammed into the ground with a thunderous crash. He instantly lost all sensation in his body.
"Hmph, still talking tough?" Selene, losing interest in questioning him, exerted her strength. The air filled with the sound of rushing wind as she unleashed her terrifying power.
She hurled the man into the ground with the force of a sledgehammer.
Crack!
The ground met flesh and bone.
The sound of bones shattering echoed.
The once flat dirt surface cracked under Selene's immense strength.
The man's entire skeleton twisted and contorted under the impact, his chest caving in as his ribs shattered completely.
His once rugged, stern face collapsed inward under the force, his nose breaking and spraying a mixture of mucus and blood into the air like a grotesque mist of red and white flesh.
The force was so great that his body, even after being slammed into the ground, rebounded several feet into the air.
Selene's eyes narrowed as she shifted her weight, her right leg snapping out in a vicious roundhouse kick that struck the man's hip joint.
Snap!
Like a ball being kicked, the man's legs were instantly broken, and his body was sent crashing through the main hall of the mountain stronghold, smashing through the stone walls.
Debris and dust flew in all directions. As the smoke cleared, the central structure of the bandit hideout was revealed, covered in spiderweb-like cracks.
The entire building teetered, as if it could collapse at any moment.
And Selene had accomplished all this in just a few seconds.
"Ah... ah... ah..." Lying in the ruins, the man could only produce guttural gasps, his vocal cords destroyed by the impact. Blood gushed from his mouth as his face turned a deep red, veins bulging on his forehead.
With his corneas severely damaged, the man could only faintly make out the silver figure approaching. His entire body was numb, his consciousness fading.
In his delirium, he seemed to see the pink-haired girl he had adopted just a few months ago, back when he took on this mission.
"Mine... I'm sorry... It looks like I won't be able to keep my promise." I can't let myself be captured alive! There's only one thing left to do.
Boom!
The debris was crushed underfoot as a pair of silver-white boots, glowing with a hint of blue, stopped before his eyes.
The man, already gravely injured, couldn't even lift his head. But a glimmer of defiance remained in his eyes as he stared at the boots before him.
What a beautiful creation, he thought, despite the metallic shine giving it an ethereal lightness. But—this was the very symbol of the Empire's oppression!
Why, after seizing so much wealth and land, are you nobles never satisfied? Why do you continue to oppress us? If not for your persecution, my daughter! My lover! My family! They wouldn't have died!
Selene's mocking voice broke through his thoughts.
"Oh, you're still alive? What a tenacious cockroach."
"Given how much you seem to hate the Empire, let me guess... Who sent you, or which faction are you from? The Western Kingdom? Or perhaps the South..."
"Let's see... Revolution Army intelligence officer, Youliang?"
Upon hearing Selene's casual tone, Xu Youliang's face changed drastically. How did she know his identity?
"Ah... ah... ah..."
"To think that a simple bandit extermination could lure out such a big fish. You revolutionaries really have your tentacles spread wide, huh? This place must be one of your intelligence bases."
Could there be a traitor within the Revolution Army? Was this mission a trap?! No, the information in my head must not fall into the Empire's hands, or years of work in the capital will be lost!
Resolute in his decision, Youliang focused on the weapon beside him: the Chimera, "Dark Star Blade."
"I'm really sorry, Mine... I can't even keep Dark Star Blade safe for you. I'm such a failure as a teacher."
Youliang activated the self-destruct mechanism!
Even if I can't kill her, I must destroy all the intelligence in the underground chamber!
"Heh." Sensing Youliang's intentions, Selene chuckled. "Too bad, you won't get the chance."
Simulation—Repulsion!
Bang!
With a flick of her finger, Youliang's already battered body was slammed into the ground. Blood splattered everywhere as the last of his life force drained away.
His face twisted in agony, limbs shattered, and his eyes dulled, only his body occasionally twitching.
Using telekinesis, Selene lifted the Chimera, wiping off the blood on its blade. She expressionlessly remarked, "Death isn't the end."
Honkai Energy Injection!
Strong Nuclear Force Conversion!
Under the influence of the purple-red Honkai energy, the blood splattered across the ground began to react with the blood still in Youliang's body. Threads of blood began to form, binding him tightly.
A layer of blood mist flowed out, filling the ruins before solidifying into something resembling blood vessels. Soon, a massive, blood-red cocoon formed, several meters tall.
At the center of the cocoon, a deep, resonant heartbeat echoed, filling the entire structure with a crimson glow before slowly receding.
Through the connection with the Honkai energy, Selene effortlessly read Youliang's memories. "Interesting ideals... Two more hideouts around the capital, and a major figure from the Revolution Army is expected to inspect soon. Codename: Razor?"
Like any ruler, the Empire's stance on the Revolution Army was one of relentless extermination—better to kill a thousand innocents than let one enemy slip through. And the rewards for such exploits were the highest!
"Hahaha... It's like you're delivering merit points right to me."