"N...i..."
Thoughts as chaotic as drifting catkins flooded Lu Xing's mind.
Neither high nor low, neither deep nor sharp, neither male nor female—it was just such an indistinct, almost mechanical voice, yet one from which a tenacious and unwilling intent could be discerned, gradually forming words in Lu Xing's mind:
"...You..."
It came from the Knight Captain, which had transformed into a "[Variant]" at the last moment and was on the verge of death.
His gaze shifted to the distance.
The puppet, raising its longsword high, its eyes that should have been dim and lifeless—Lu Xing saw in them, perhaps an illusion, a fleeting, star-like, brilliant, eerie glint.
Their eyes met for but a glance.
Their communication lasted only an instant.
Yet Lu Xing somehow, suddenly, understood the meaning in the other's eyes—even having become a Variant, that unwavering killing intent towards humans still surpassed everything else:
"...It's up to you."
"Swoosh!"
Without waiting for an answer, without allowing for refusal.
A deep cyan, cold wind howled between the blades, and the black longsword flew from its hand!
"Clang!"
The Knight Captain's attack was blocked.
The longsword, aimed directly at the Mistilteinn, was intercepted by the orange-red energy blades crossed before it.
But the blow, infused with its last vestiges of Honkai energy, still carried an exaggerated, immense force upon impact, sending the Mistilteinn flying far back!
The longsword snapped in two.
Without the support of its main body, the sword's blade, formed from ice and Honkai energy, was directly melted by the ultra-high temperature of the energy blades, losing nearly a third of its length.
The remaining part.
Like a pinwheel in a child's hand, it spun towards the sky; then, before its strength was exhausted, it was increasingly, slowly, bound by gravity towards the earth.
The Knight Captain's final attack.
Although it didn't break through the Mistilteinn's defenses, it firmly froze the opponent in place—the intense cold qi was less than a tenth of its peak, but it was more than enough to control the opponent for a second or two.
And this fleeting opportunity...
"Knight Captain."
The broken sword fell towards Lu Xing—
"Clack!"
Brilliant crystals spread across the longsword.
The broken, incomplete part became as radiant as amethyst.
The Honkai energy within Lu Xing was no longer sufficient to execute a complete [Honkai Lance Projection].
But!
Using the longsword thrown by the Knight Captain as a base, forming a brand new "Honkai Longsword Projection" was still achievable for him.
"Your final ripple..."
"Swoosh!!"
Returning along the same path!
The sharp sword edge sliced through the sky!
An attack of this level couldn't finish off the Mistilteinn, but... it could take the Knight Captain's fading life!
"Boom!!"
Its body disintegrated into crumbling fragments, its soul scattering with the brilliant light.
"...I'll take it!"
"BOOM!!!"
————
Storm, impact, cold wave.
In the space enveloped by dense fog, only a pair of eyes, flickering with an ethereal blue light, remained, gazing upon everything like an abyss.
In an instant—
Your level has increased to Lv.33.
Detected that the wielder has killed a [Leader] for the first time.
Achievement "I Am Legion" completed. You have unlocked the new affix [Leader].
Your Mission (Ranger-class - Finale: Kill a Honkai Beast form stronger than yourself, which the wielder desires to evolve into (Limited Races: Knight-class / Rotor-class / Ballista-class)) has been completed.
Your level has increased to Lv.36.
Evolution conditions met. Evolving into 'Leader Absolute Zero Knight Captain'.
Evolution commencing—
The system's prompts didn't end there. Lu Xing didn't hear the familiar phrase: "Finally, I wish you good health. Goodbye."
Detected a change in the wielder's form. Detected an anomaly in the wielder's evolution path (humanoid). Detected that the wielder's level exceeds Lv.30.
Achievement "In Human Form, Yet Not Human" completed.
Form Transformation Function has been enabled.
Note: After enabling this function, the wielder's form will be allowed to switch between acquired Honkai Beast forms. Transformation will consume corresponding time and Honkai energy based on the form. Non-primary forms will have their various attributes and abilities proportionally reduced.
The evolution took only an instant.
Yet the information flooding Lu Xing's mind was explosive—besides what he received from the system, there was also feedback from all parts of his body... feedback concerning "pain."
Compared to his initial Ranger-class form.
The current Lu Xing could be said to have undergone an earth-shattering transformation.
The six perfectly symmetrical wings, previously floating around the Great Universe, disintegrated and reconstructed under immense Honkai energy pressure—it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it was like having tendons pulled and bones carved out—forming Lu Xing's new limbs: two arms, two legs, and... twintails.
It sounded somewhat bizarre, but the part that became the "Knight-class twintails" was indeed transformed from his wings.
His three-segmented body continuously broke down and stretched.
Gradually, it took on a female form that conformed to conventional human aesthetics.
Although her figure was slender and curvaceous, these were all formed by the condensation of Honkai energy combined with surrounding silicon-based materials that had been decomposed, compressed, and reassembled. Even if not flat-chested, it was definitely countless times stronger than a steel plate, offering no tactile sensation whatsoever.
Dark ponytails, fair skin, black armor.
Faintly visible deep cyan demonic markings, and within the emotionless eyes, pitch-black pupils from which ethereal blue, mist-like particles drifted.
These weren't even the most exaggerated factors.
Unlike the "Jellyfish Hat" worn by various Knight-class Honkai Beasts, atop Lu Xing's evolved Knight Captain head were two horns, with a gradient from pure white to pale cyan, curving high upwards—similar to the characteristics of certain Deadmen—and a Honkai energy halo floating above his head.
————
Race: Leader Variant Absolute Zero Knight Captain (Knight-class Variant)
Level: 36
Abilities: Appraisal, Power Strike, Dash, Spinning Slash, Ballista, Hold Shield, Crystal Wall, Strike, Space-Time Rend (Phasing), Honkai Lance Projection
Equipment: Knight Lance
Attack: 84 (+6)
Speed: 78 (+5)
Constitution: 84 (+6)
Evaluation: Mule (?)
————
The rank of Leader Absolute Zero Knight Captain was similar to that of the Great Universe, capable of granting Knight-class units a 50% bonus to their attributes.
This was the key reason Lu Xing's stats had exploded to such an extent.
If it's difficult to understand, just think of it as something like Perfect Foundation Establishment or a Five Elements Nascent Soul from cultivation novels.
As for Lu Xing.
If he (?) were to describe his first sensation.
It wasn't the Honkai Crystal, which had drastically changed in volume and shape—when he was a Ranger-class, only one-third of it was Honkai Crystal; after becoming a Knight-class, it reached two-thirds, and would likely require one more evolution to be completely whole.
Nor was it the sense of incongruity from his body structure—Knight-class Honkai Beasts were different from Ranger-class; they weren't simple combinations of Honkai energy and a physical shell. A network similar to meridians or blood vessels, like those in the Floater-class he had previously killed, had appeared within Lu Xing's body.
Rather, it was the source of that "question mark" in the evaluation:
"..."
"Where's my horse???"
————