Maria gently placed both hands over her slightly swollen abdomen, which looked almost like she was pregnant, and murmured to herself, "Why would Honkai energy make my stomach bigger?"
Her voice was filled with confusion.
Seeing this, the Queen of Insects softly explained, "The Honkai energy you absorbed came from the Cocoon of Finality. It's different from the Honkai energy we usually come into contact with and use.
"Your body is rejecting this kind of Honkai energy.
"I considered releasing the Honkai energy, but I wasn't sure what your purpose was in absorbing it, so I didn't act. For now, I've simply concentrated and sealed it inside your abdomen."
As she spoke, the Queen of Insects raised her hand, her pale finger pointing toward Maria's stomach.
After a moment of thought, Maria lifted her gaze and asked, "Then do you have a way to solve the problem of my body rejecting Honkai energy?"
The Queen of Insects answered honestly, her expression candid. "That's simple. But in this world, the conditions don't allow it."
This world prohibited the use of Honkai energy to prevent superpower users from undergoing extreme evolution through it and giving rise to individuals with world-destroying or planet-shattering strength.
The entire world was essentially an examination ground, meant to cultivate clones.
If individuals with excessively high danger levels appeared, it would be easy for them to blow up the planet.
Although the planet could be repaired, having a bunch of superpower users capable of destroying planets blowing them up every day would still be troublesome.
It was better to cultivate superpower clones first, then transfer them to other worlds to absorb Honkai energy there.
Of course, the Honkai energy from the Cocoon of Finality that Maria brought with her was not as idealistic as the Honkai energy of the Will of Ruler.
Its intensity was controllable.
"I see..." A trace of disappointment flashed in Maria's eyes.
"However..." The Queen of Insects suddenly changed her tone and turned her gaze toward Kiana. "You can ask her."
Following the Queen of Insects' line of sight, Maria looked at Kiana. "You have a solution?"
"Of course. Just look at who I am." Kiana placed her hands confidently on her hips, chin slightly raised, her face full of pride. "I'm a genius—the destined protagonist, Kiana Kaslana!"
A genius? You?
Maria couldn't help muttering inwardly. She recalled the Kiana at Chiba Academy—carefree, reckless, and not particularly sharp. She couldn't help but cast a doubtful look at her.
"Hey! What's with that look?!" Kiana noticed Maria's suspicion and pouted in protest, clearly dissatisfied.
The Queen of Insects stepped forward and gently patted Maria's shoulder. "She has extremely good luck. Whatever she does tends to succeed easily.
Although after leaving her own world, her 100 percent success rate has dropped somewhat, the probability of success is still very high."
"Luck?" Maria had heard about Kiana's extraordinary fortune. At Chiba Academy, whenever people played games, drew cards, or entered lotteries, they loved asking Kiana to draw for them.
She studied Kiana more carefully. When they first met, her first impression hadn't been of stupidity, but rather of cunning and a slightly wicked charm—like a villainous woman.
"You're saying that relying on her luck can solve the problem of my body rejecting Honkai energy?" Maria asked, half-believing.
"Experiments always come with probabilities of success and failure. She has good luck. Even if she blindly fumbles around, her success rate might be higher than my meticulous research," the Queen of Insects said helplessly, shrugging. "Did you know that in some worlds, amateur researchers have produced results more impressive than the top scientific institutions of various nations?"
That sounded utterly ridiculous.
Maria's lips twitched.
But she had no other options. At worst, if it failed, she could just return and revive. Gritting her teeth, she decided to gamble on Kiana's luck.
"I think you don't need to worry at all. With a name as saintly as yours, you've got God watching over you. There's no way you'll fail," Kiana said seriously.
"Fine. I'll trust you this once." Maria took a deep breath and nodded.
"Don't worry. I definitely won't disappoint you!" Kiana patted her chest and vowed confidently.
"Do you need my help?" the Queen of Insects asked.
"Yes!" Kiana replied without hesitation.
Thus, in the somewhat cluttered underground laboratory, Kiana and the Queen of Insects began rummaging through every usable material and piece of equipment.
"To solve the Honkai energy rejection problem, fusion modification is one method," the Queen of Insects said as she searched.
"But where are we going to find powerful Honkai genes for her to fuse with? Use the genes of those trash Honkai Beasts that were casually spawned with Honkai energy?" Kiana frowned and raised her question.
The Queen of Insects quickly shook her head. "That won't work. The genetic issues in her body are severe. Her rejection of this kind of Honkai energy is far beyond normal."
As she spoke, she placed a hand over her chest. "Use the genes from this body of mine. Before creating this body, I performed genetic editing. The cells in this body possess extremely strong adaptive evolution capabilities. You know Shin-chan?"
"Shin-chan? Shin Godzilla? You used her genetic template?"
"To be precise, I imitated it—a modified new version after several revisions."
"Alright. You handle the arrangements. I'll do the work."
Kiana nodded and began conducting the experiment according to the plan provided by the Queen of Insects.
...
At the same time.
On a solitary island filled entirely with superpower users, Shigure Kira and Susannah, who had likewise chosen the human side, along with Rin and the superpower student residents of the island, were facing a military encirclement.
After superpower users and ordinary humans had completely torn off their disguises in the outside world, the military stopped pretending as well.
The army immediately launched an assault on the island.
Inside a cave.
Everyone was hiding there to avoid the bombardment from the naval fleet at sea.
Because of a superpower user named Yeto Heichikichi, who possessed the ability to foresee the future through psychography, they had learned in advance of the military's bombing operation.
They had entered the cave ahead of time, narrowly avoiding the fleet's attack.
Susannah listened as the explosions outside gradually ceased. "Senior Shigure Kira, it seems like the attack has stopped."
Rin added, "Next, the military might send troops to land on the island. Should we fight?"
Shigure Kira replied, "Let's assess the situation. If possible, try not to kill anyone. The outside world is already in chaos."
Among the crowd, Nana Hiiragi watched Shigure Kira, who had become the leader, and contemplated how to use her to eliminate the superpower users here.
These three were completely different from the surrounding superpower users.
Shigure Kira, Susannah, and Rin all exuded a distinct aura.
After observing for some time, Nana Hiiragi was certain her judgment was correct. These three were definitely trained combat personnel.
They stood out strikingly among the group of superpower students.
Her phone screen suddenly lit up, and an unfamiliar female voice transmitted through it. "Hello, is anyone on the island? I'm Iselin."