Mei, who was about to take off and pursue the Hyperion, suddenly stopped and turned to look at Ryn and Penglaiji Ryn, who had suddenly appeared behind her.
Himeko, who should have been disintegrated back into atoms by her lightning, leaving not even a corpse, was now being held in Ryn's arms.
Beside them, Penglaiji Ryn was using a black and white lance to heal Himeko.
That was a pseudo-Abyss Flower casually created by Ryn. Since his Authority had no effect on the beings of this world, he just used the materials of this world to create a pseudo-Divine Key without a Herrscher Core.
The Authority of Life and Death is not something a mere Divine Key can replicate; even the real Abyss Flower can only reproduce a fraction of its abilities.
But it was enough. Ryn provided the operational logic for the pseudo-Abyss Flower, and then with Penglaiji Ryn wielding it, they could replicate its "Creation" ability.
After confirming that Himeko's life had been snatched back from the jaws of death, Ryn summoned Stars and slashed at Raiden Mei.
"You didn't even want to leave Himeko a complete body. Your heart is truly cruel, Raiden Mei!"
Mei materialized a tachi and clashed with Ryn, but the tachi was instantly shattered the moment it touched Ryn's greatsword. Mei could only repeatedly materialize new tachi to block his relentless attacks.
After materializing several swords, Mei finally managed to deflect most of the force from Ryn's blow and barely parried it.
This was the difference between a greatsword and other weapons: immense, heavy power, one force to break all techniques. No matter how fast or strong Mei's swordsmanship was, against a single downward slash, she could only dodge or pay a huge price to block it head-on.
"The essence of this world is an ephemeral afterimage, trapping these spirits here, constantly giving them hope only to snatch it away again...
I'm not being cruel. I'm just ending this tiresome cycle and giving them release."
Mei parried Ryn's attack and transformed into a bolt of lightning, striking toward Penglaiji Ryn.
*BANG BANG—*
Bronya and Theresa, who were slower than Ryn and his counterpart, also arrived on the scene with the help of Judah. Bronya fired several shots, interrupting Raiden Mei's attack.
Mei's figure reappeared. She looked coldly at Penglaiji Ryn:
"Penglaiji Ryn... you are the root of everything. Without you, this fleeting pain would not have continued to this day. If it weren't for you, this ridiculously boring dream would never have appeared."
"What is a dream? And what is reality? Everyone has their own will, their own goals... Is this a dream? This is reality! The reality where we exist!"
Ryn threw Stars, pinning Mei to the ground, then created a hundred-meter boulder with Honkai energy and hurled it at her.
*SWOOSH—*
Mei transformed into a flash of lightning and shot toward the sky, piercing straight through the boulder. The sky then filled with dark clouds, lightning flashing and thunder roaring. Wielding bolts of thunder, Mei dove down again.
"Raiden Mei..."
Penglaiji Ryn handed Himeko to Theresa behind her, took out her Phased Weapon Array dual blades with a determined look, and charged toward Mei.
"I am... the savior... I will not let you harm anyone else!"
"Penglaiji Ryn! Come back!"
Theresa shouted, trying to stop Penglaiji Ryn from charging forward. She was no match for Mei; rushing in was pure suicide.
But what Theresa didn't expect was... Penglaiji Ryn, together with Ryn, got into a chaotic battle with Mei.
Penglaiji Ryn, with her memories restored, was the master of this world. The world would invisibly strengthen and aid her powers.
Combined with Ryn's suppression and weakening of Mei, as well as the enhancement of Penglaiji Ryn's weapons, Penglaiji Ryn could now go head-to-head with Raiden Mei for a while.
Under the perfectly coordinated mixed doubles assault from Ryn and Penglaiji Ryn, Mei's already disadvantaged position became even worse.
Pushed to her limit, Raiden Mei unleashed a thunderstorm, knocking Ryn and Penglaiji Ryn back over a hundred meters. After a dazzling flash of lightning, a hundred-meter-tall giant samurai in lightning armor, holding two swords, appeared before everyone.
"She transformed?"
"Perfect Form · Susanoo · Herrscher of Thunder Version?"
Mei didn't respond to their questions, simply wielding Ame no Habakiri in her left hand and Futsunomitama in her right, she slashed rapidly towards the group.
(Part of the Herrscher of Thunder's skills are named after famous swords from Inazuma, so in this setting, Mei possesses these blades.)
Even though the swords were hundreds of meters long, the speed at which Mei swung them didn't diminish at all. In an instant, she unleashed hundreds of sword waves, each a thousand meters long.
Ryn unleashed his own sword waves to clash with Mei's, blocking all the attacks, then shouted to Penglaiji Ryn.
"Penglaiji Ryn! Interested in piloting a Gundam?"
"Ah?"
"It's just a giant physical form materialized by relying on Honkai energy and Authority. I can do that too."
After speaking, Ryn clapped his hands together.
At the same time, the earth began to tremble. A giant rock hand enveloped Ryn and Penglaiji Ryn, closing into a fist, and then a rock-armored giant, about the same size as Mei's Susanoo, burst out from underground.
(Like the transformation from Shin Ultraman~)
Inside the cockpit, feeling just like someone transforming into Ultraman on TV, the joy in Penglaiji Ryn's eyes was completely unconcealable.
"The power of the earth gathers at this moment! O saviors blessed by the world! Let us..."
"*Ahem*... As much as I'd like to cheer a few times myself, let's just keep it simple and get to it!!"
Penglaiji Ryn was halfway through her celebration when Ryn coughed twice, telling her not to get too excited. Then, the two looked seriously at Raiden Mei in the distance and charged.
When your strength is sufficient, a greatsword is your best choice. But when your strength becomes immeasurable, a weapon becomes a burden. Just throw a punch!
The rock-armored giant, controlled by Ryn and Penglaiji Ryn, ignored Mei's lightning Susanoo's attacks, took them head-on, and punched her in the face, causing her massive head to explode into scattered lightning.
But the loss of its head didn't matter. The Xingtian-esque lightning Susanoo crossed its hands and swung its swords in a cross-slash at the rock-armored giant's waist.
Ryn controlled the rock-armored giant's hands to block the twin sword attack and restrain the lightning Susanoo.
Penglaiji Ryn controlled the giant's legs to use the opponent's force against it, delivering a powerful two-footed kick to the lightning Susanoo's chest.
The lightning Susanoo's arms were torn off by the rock-armored giant's move, and its torso was sent flying several kilometers away.
Damaged to this extent, Mei could no longer maintain the Susanoo's form. She dispelled it, and her figure reappeared, but now she was several kilometers away from the rock-armored giant.
Unexpected, isn't it! Ryn, this is my escape route!