Seeing that the first objective of her plan was about to be achieved, one might ask: under these circumstances, how could Illustrious not laugh heartily?
Hood, just go ahead and break through. The stronger you become, the more joy you will bring me.
The medicinal effects of the blue-rank moon spirit grass exploded directly within Hood's body. With the continuous medicinal power coupled with the support of her own strength, she incessantly battered against the barrier of a Four-Star Epic Ship Girl.
A cracking sound was heard as fissures spread across the barrier. The wall that had kept Hood at the level of a Three-Star Epic Ship Girl was finally shattered under the relentless assault of the blue-rank moon spirit grass and her own power.
The blue-rank epic core within her world of consciousness also began to transform, gradually changing into a purple-rank epic core.
With a booming sound, purple Ship Qi erupted within her body. A phantom of a purple giant dragon, radiating purple light, flew out from Hood's body. It stopped suddenly in mid-air, and then the purple giant dragon suspended in the sky let out a furious roar toward the heavens.
The roar resounded through the sky, causing the expressions of Azuma and the others present to change slightly. The aura and pressure emitted by the purple giant dragon made everyone feel uncomfortable.
Among those present, only Illustrious remained standing with an unchanged expression.
After the purple giant dragon finished its roar, it finally seemed satisfied and flew back into Hood's body.
Once the purple giant dragon returned to her body, Hood's aura became increasingly terrifying, reaching a depth that Azuma and the others could not fathom.
"Phew!" Hood slowly exhaled, clenching her fists tightly as she felt the incomparably powerful strength within her body.
Now, Hood could kill her pre-breakthrough self with a single punch; this was the power that belonged to her after breaking through.
Extending her right hand, a cluster of flames manifested in her palm, filled with intense heat. Hood was filled with joy. This was truly incredible; not only had she broken through to become a Four-Star Epic Ship Girl, but she had also comprehended an ability during the breakthrough, awakening a unique ability—Flames. Now, she was a Five-Star Epic Ship Girl.
Illustrious looked at the flames in Hood's hand with a bit of surprise. After all, comprehending an ability while breaking through to become a Four-Star Epic Ship Girl was a one-in-ten-thousand chance. This girl seemed to have some talent. Yes! Hood! Just like that. The more you are like this, the greater the pleasure you will bring me.
Looking at Illustrious on the aircraft carrier, Hood sneered, "How foolish. To actually give me the blue-rank moon spirit grass for free and then do nothing, watching me break through without bothering me. I don't know whether to call you stupid or naive."
"But because of that, I was able to break through to become a Five-Star Epic Ship Girl. To repay you, I'll send you to hell."
Hood raised her right hand, her entire body erupting with purple Ship Qi. Clusters of flames continuously condensed in mid-air, and in the blink of an eye, they merged into a red energy ball of fire that was nearly three zhang wide.
The scorching heat of the massive red energy fire ball and the sense of danger emanating from it made everyone present feel as if they were in a wave of fire.
"What should we do? That fire ball floating above the right hand of that Ship Girl Hood feels really powerful!" The aura of destruction emitted by the fire ball made Zuikaku feel endangered, and she spoke nervously.
"It's not that powerful! It's just a small fire ball. Though, this small fire ball could turn a Three-Star Epic Ship Girl to ash upon contact!" Illustrious said indifferently.
"What! Then aren't we about to die? Admiral, why are you still so calm!" Azuma said to Illustrious in a panic.
"Oh my god! I haven't even constructed a single Ship Girl yet. Am I going to die here today?" The intern Admiral Chen Xiaoqiang fell into despair. Had he known, he shouldn't have come to watch the commotion, only to end up in a death trap.
"You don't need to worry! Since I could give her the moon spirit grass for her breakthrough, I naturally have the ability to deal with Hood." Illustrious comforted them as she saw the people around her looking like they were about to die.
"What! You're just a Gold-Plated Ship Girl like me. What ability do you have to stop Hood's devastating blow!" Zuikaku expressed her disbelief directly.
Chen Xiaoqiang believed her even less and had already started writing his suicide note on the side.
"No! Admiral, I believe in you." Even if she were to die, she wanted to die by her Admiral's side, Azuma said as she threw herself into Illustrious's arms.
Sigh! At least her own Secretary Ship had confidence in her. But when you say that, could you please wipe away your tears? Do you really have that little faith in your Admiral's strength? Although I am currently just a Gold-Plated Ship Girl, Ship Girls aren't the only kind of power in this world.
On the other side, the massive fire ball was saturated with the aura of death. Although this move only contained thirty percent of a Five-Star Epic Ship Girl's power, it was enough to destroy a Three-Star Epic Ship Girl upon contact, leaving her with no power to resist. In Hood's eyes, it felt a bit like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut, but it was worth it to ensure that bastard Illustrious died without leaving even a speck of ash.
As for whether the other side would block this move, Hood didn't even consider it. After all, Illustrious herself and the Ship Girls around her were all nothing more than Gold-Plated Ship Girls.
With such an overwhelming advantage, how could she possibly lose? She just needed to attack directly!
Once the power of the fire ball reached the level of destruction she desired, Hood gave a low shout and violently swung her right hand, hurling it fiercely toward Illustrious, who was not far away on the opposite aircraft carrier.
"Flaming Purgatory!"
The massive red energy fire ball that had been floating above Hood's right hand charged straight toward Illustrious.
The terrifying power contained within the massive fire ball left pitch-black traces wherever it passed, appearing extremely prominent against the azure sky. From this, it was clear that in Hood's eyes, using this move to take Illustrious's life was no empty boast.
The appearance of Flaming Purgatory caused Lin Zhentian's Son's expression to change slightly, as if he had seen a ghost. He hurriedly hid behind Hood to avoid the shockwaves of the explosion. In his memory, this move was Hood's signature technique. When Hood was still a Three-Star Epic Ship Girl, she had used this very move to kill another Three-Star Epic Ship Girl, showing its immense power.
After gently pushing Azuma out of her arms, Illustrious took a step forward. She calmly gazed at the energy fire ball that was attacking in an instant through the air. A powerful aura suddenly erupted from her body, and an unknown, potent silver energy gas surged out from within her. This energy gas was not at all inferior to a Ship Girl's Ship Qi, and its intensity reached the level of a Three-Star Epic Ship Girl.
This powerful energy gas was called Prayer Qi; this was the power different from Ship Qi that Illustrious had mentioned.
This silver Prayer Qi was generated within the silver core in Illustrious's world of consciousness. The silver core was the heart of the silver sword. If the core were destroyed, Illustrious would lose her qualification as a Ruler, and the silver sword would lose its connection with her, eventually returning to the eisnor great diamond.
Illustrious believed that as long as she released the first layer of the silver sword's seal, she could definitely reach the strength of a Five-Star Epic Ship Girl.
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