With a flash, the Herrscher of the Void teleported right in front of Chang Yuan.
After continuously dodging, Chang Yuan now found himself directly opposite Elysia.
Chang Yuan faced Elysia, with the Herrscher of the Void behind him.
"Now's the time!"
Even without Chang Yuan's words, Elysia knew what he meant.
Drawing her bow, she fired an arrow in less than a second.
Trusting Elysia completely, Chang Yuan stood his ground, allowing the Herrscher of the Void to attempt to strike him.
Whoosh—!
For any living being, the eyes are the most vulnerable spot, even for a Herrscher.
The arrow pierced through the Herrscher's brain. Even if it didn't fully penetrate, for Herrschers other than the Herrscher of Death, this was a fatal blow.
This outcome was due to the Herrscher of the Void underestimating the chemistry between Chang Yuan and Elysia.
The hand that had been about to pierce Chang Yuan's chest froze in mid-air.
As the Herrscher of the Void collapsed, Elysia rushed to Chang Yuan's side.
However, instead of a worried hug, Chang Yuan was met with a punch to the chest from Elysia.
The force of the punch nearly knocked him back a couple of steps.
"Yuan! Do you know how dangerous that was? You're just a slightly stronger ordinary person. What if you hadn't reacted in time?"
When Chang Yuan first taunted the Herrscher of the Void, Elysia didn't understand his plan.
But as Chang Yuan continued to dodge and maneuver toward her, Elysia realized what he was trying to do.
Even so, the risk was enormous. She didn't dare interfere, fearing that her actions might cause Chang Yuan to make a mistake.
In the end, she could only wait for the opportunity Chang Yuan created.
Fortunately, everything turned out well.
But even with the satisfactory outcome, Elysia was still deeply unhappy with Chang Yuan's reckless actions.
Gambling with his own life was something she couldn't bear to lose.
"Ouch, Elysia, I think the injuries from the fight hurt less than this punch from you."
Stopping in his tracks, Chang Yuan rubbed his chest, grimacing in pain.
In reality, he didn't feel much pain, which only confirmed that the Honkai corruption within him had progressed further.
My dear Vill-V! Where are you? Come save me!
At this point, Vill-V was his only hope.
After all, she was a genius among geniuses, her talents rivaling even Dr. Mei's, and in some ways surpassing her.
With the hints he had given her years ago, she should have been able to develop at least one anti-Honkai corruption serum by now.
Just then, a figure leaped down from a high building, slowing her descent with a simple flight pack strapped to her back.
"Hi, did you miss me?"
"!!!"
"Vill-V! Did you finish the anti-Honkai corruption serum? Save me!"
Seeing Vill-V arrive, Chang Yuan's eyes lit up with hope, as if a savior had descended.
And his "Big V Teacher" didn't disappoint. She reached into her backpack and pulled out a syringe filled with a deep blue liquid.
"Here, the anti-Honkai corruption serum. Once injected, you'll gain resistance to Honkai energy. As long as the Honkai concentration doesn't exceed 1200 HW, you'll be fine.
If it does, just get away quickly, and you'll be okay. If you stay too long, you'll need to rest in a low-Honkai area for a few months to let it dissipate naturally."
Seeing the syringe in Vill-V's hand, Chang Yuan trusted it completely.
Grabbing the syringe, he immediately injected it into his arm.
After the injection, the oppressive feeling he had been experiencing vanished, replaced by a sense of relief.
He rolled up his sleeve and watched as the dark purple lines on his skin slowly faded away.
"Phew, I made it. I made it. Vill-V, you're amazing. I owe you my life."
Feeling the Honkai corruption completely disappear, Chang Yuan let out a long sigh of relief.
The fear he had been living with was finally gone.
With Honkai resistance, he could now harness more Honkai energy, allowing him to grow stronger.
Though he probably wouldn't become overwhelmingly powerful, he estimated he could reach the level of an A-rank Valkyrie in the future.
Before the advent of the MANTIS soldiers, this would place him just below Elysia in terms of strength.
Of course, not all MANTIS soldiers were equally powerful. It depended on the level of the Honkai beast genes they fused with.
If it was just a Charger-class Honkai beast, the soldier would only be around C-rank Valkyrie level, maybe even lower.
Only those who fused with Emperor-class or higher Honkai beast genes could match or surpass S-rank Valkyries.
However, Elysia stepped forward with a serious expression and grabbed Chang Yuan's arm.
"Chang Yuan, those purple lines earlier were from Honkai corruption, weren't they? Why didn't you tell me? Why did you come to a place with such high Honkai concentration? You could have died, you know."
The fact that Elysia, who rarely used Chang Yuan's full name after growing up, did so now showed how angry she was.
Her anger wasn't because Chang Yuan had kept it from her but because he hadn't valued his own life.
If Vill-V hadn't arrived in time, she couldn't imagine what would have happened to Chang Yuan. He might have died or turned into a zombie, forcing her to kill him herself.
Neither outcome was something she wanted to see.
"I... I'm sorry."
Chang Yuan had wanted to explain, fearing that his presence might have caused a butterfly effect that could harm Elysia.
But seeing the anger on Elysia's face, he chose to apologize instead.
"Don't let it happen again. If I find out you've done something like this a second time, I won't take you with me no matter what I do."
"...Okay, it won't happen again."
Seeing Chang Yuan's promise, Elysia's anger subsided slightly.
Once Elysia calmed down, Chang Yuan immediately pointed at the Herrscher of the Void and said to Vill-V, "Vill-V, hurry and take the Herrscher core. If Fire Moth gets here, you won't be able to take it."