Severe collapses had occurred both in front of and behind the subway train. Perhaps the fortunate Cat Goddess had favored them, for the section where the train sat had miraculously remained intact.
Not only that, the collapse behind them had perfectly blocked the backflow of seawater, as if fate itself were declaring this place a sanctuary.
Climbing up along the maintenance ladder, they found that the thunder had ceased not long ago. Yet violent crashes still echoed from the exit, and the wind blowing inward carried the sharp scent of electricity and the stench of burning.
Kevin was the first to climb out of the opening. What he saw was Ido locked in combat with a five-meter-tall bull-shaped Honkai Beast.
It was called a bull only because of the enormous horns on its head, like those of a water buffalo. It had no legs. Instead, it floated in midair, a pair of jet nozzles behind it seemingly propelling its movement.
The massive beast swung its gigantic horns, attempting to seize Ido. Reacting instantly, Ido leapt upward, evading the attack and launching a counterstrike midair.
Her spear techniques were bold and unrestrained. She drove the long spear down from above with brutal force, smashing the five-meter monstrosity into the ground. Then a blazing flash ignited along the spear's tip. Crimson flames erupted forth, piercing straight through the bull-shaped Honkai Beast's core from front to back.
Only then did the others realize that the surrounding ground was already littered with the corpses of various Honkai Beasts.
The mercenary captain Mike stared, dumbfounded. "Pure spear technique... can it really reach this level?"
After their previous encounters, everyone knew how tough the hides of these Honkai Beasts were. Even ordinary rifle bullets struggled to penetrate them. Yet before Ido's spear, they were cut down as easily as melons and vegetables.
Mike rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "And this spear style feels somewhat familiar. It seems like a Siberian style..."
"No. I don't know spear techniques." Ido flicked her blood-soaked spear, resting it on her shoulder. "All clear. Let's go."
Mei stepped forward, curiosity evident. "How did you do that?"
Judging from the destructive power Ido had displayed, she had clearly surpassed the limits of the human body. Mike had once been a U.S. special forces soldier. Neither he nor Kevin could accomplish something like that.
Yet ten-year-old Ido, with that small frame, had achieved something so exaggerated. This was not something mere training could explain. There had to be some hidden secret behind it.
If I could do something like that, I wouldn't have dragged Kevin down in that situation just now.
Ido raised her hand decisively. "You can't do it... This is a curse from the Honkai. It's not power."
Under everyone's puzzled gazes, Ido loosened part of the bandage wrapped around her arm. Strands of black markings flickering with crimson-violet light were revealed to their eyes.
She quickly rewrapped the bandage and explained, "This is called Honkai Sickness. If you're injured by a Honkai Beast, there's a chance you'll become like this.
"Of course, it's even more likely you'll turn into one of those wandering undead."
After the Second Honkai Eruption, the Siberian snowfields had become a land of death. Upon that dead land, MOTH established the Second Honkai Research Institute to study the various manifestations of Honkai in the region.
And Ido, unfortunately, had been one of the experimental subjects.
"It was Boss who rescued Ido from MOTH's hands and gave Ido a method to slow the erosion of the Honkai."
"This bandage can convert the 'radiant energy' of Honkai Sickness into 'thermal energy' at any time and transfer it to my spear for release."
Mike shuddered in retrospect. "No wonder you wouldn't let me touch your spear back then. If I had, my hands probably would've been cooked."
"So your power comes from Honkai Sickness?" Kevin pressed.
Ido shook her head. "Not exactly. Ido is somewhat special. People who normally get Honkai Sickness are already lying in bed waiting to die. How could they keep fighting Honkai Beasts?
"Is it your will that allows you to control Honkai energy?"
Ido looked up at Kevin, rose on her toes, and pressed down on his white hair. "Kid, being obsessed with obtaining power comes at a brutal price. There's no such thing as a free lunch."
"That's not an obstacle willpower can overcome. No human will can move Honkai energy."
"Even after going through MOTH's experiments, Ido isn't particularly strong-willed. There were plenty more resolute than Ido. Most of them turned into undead!"
"Then it's constitution..." Kevin tried to probe further, only to be cut off.
"I told you it's not." Ido interrupted. "Ido is just an ordinary person with slightly stronger Honkai resistance."
"If one day you become Ido's enemy, Ido will tell you the reason!"
"As a conversation between [Warriors]."
...
Their current position was not far from Sapphire City Airport. The airport itself had a subway station. All they needed to do was pass through the East Sea Scenic Promenade and then circle around the Sapphire City Baseball Stadium to arrive.
However, that baseball stadium had already become a paradise for monsters. Two Chariot-class Honkai Beasts and several shuttle-type Honkai Beasts resembling gigantic trumpet flowers were roaming nearby.
The situation was like walking a tightrope. One misstep and they would plunge into the abyss beyond redemption. Everyone was already mentally exhausted, limbs weak, and nearly out of ammunition.
Yet the end of their escape from the Honkai Eruption was right before their eyes. As long as they reached the airport, they would receive rescue from MOTH's Fifth Squad.
Unfortunately, just as they discovered the shuttle-type Honkai Beasts, a Seraph-class Honkai Beast that had emerged from nowhere launched a surprise attack, shattering the silence. The commotion alerted the shuttle-type Honkai Beasts circling in the air, exposing their location.
"Damn it!"
If it were only the shuttle-type and Seraph-class Honkai Beasts, they might barely manage.
But what drove them to despair was that the chain reaction drew the attention of the Chariot-class Honkai Beasts as well. The suffocating, massive black-red eye within the clouds rolled with a wet gurgle and turned toward them.
Like the gaze of death itself.