“We have already tried multiple methods, including explosives and spatial superpowers…” Koji Hattori looked at Jiang Jian Yue, who was at his same height, his eyes occasionally flickering toward the distance she was hovering above the ground.
“And digging tunnels,” a stranger with a superpower passed by, covered in mud, and added casually.
“We discovered that the area covered by the bowl is not simply trapped. It is as if the entire New National Stadium has been transferred to another space. Outside the bowl, there is nothing but rock and soil.”
Kaori Onishi followed behind, carrying a shovel and also covered in dirt.
Upon seeing Jiang Jian Yue, she stopped, stabbed the shovel into the ground, and sighed. “Operation failed, Commander.”
Her gaze also lingered on the “invisible height-boosting cushion” beneath Jiang Jian Yue.
“There are four hours left. If we cannot break through the bowl wall within four hours, sixty thousand audience members will wake up…” Koji Hattori’s tone was heavy with worry.
Jiang Jian Yue’s gaze swept over the Espers queuing for boxed lunches. Once she caught sight of the person she was looking for, she floated straight over.
Actually walking was far too beneath her.
A BOSS-level figure like her should never let her feet touch the ground.
“Nikolai!”
Nikolai had just received a boxed lunch and was about to find a place to eat when he heard someone call him. He turned around.
“Follow me.”
Jiang Jian Yue’s voice carried an unquestionable authority, even though she was facing an Emergent Body on the same level as Pluto.
Earlier, Nikolai had participated in the battle but had not used his Manifested Heart Weapon, and he had clearly been holding back.
Based on recent tracking of Nikolai, this man was clearly participating in the GSAC with the mindset of a tourist, which meant he was at least someone she could communicate with.
Nikolai’s nose twitched, and a look of realization flashed across his face. He spoke up, “Beautiful lady, you seem to already have a partner. You didn’t come looking for me for sex, did you?”
‘Is this guy out of his mind?’
Then again, was the scent really that strong?
Jiang Jian Yue’s face remained as calm as a deep pool. She answered in a steady voice, “I have some questions to ask you.”
After leading Nikolai away from the crowd, Jiang Jian Yue continued, “Tell me… about Emergent Bodies.”
She raised her hand and pointed toward the sky. “And Manifested Heart Weapons.”
A flicker of suspicion flashed in Nikolai’s eyes — how did this young girl know he was an Emergent Body?
There were very few Emergent Bodies to begin with. Even at the peak of the GPRI, they likely didn’t number more than five, and information on them was even scarcer.
“Lake Toya.”
As if to answer Nikolai’s confusion, Jiang Jian Yue spoke succinctly, “The 10003 Unit team… the others… I killed them.”
To maintain the persona, she had to exaggerate. In reality, Jiang Jian Yue hadn’t taken a single life; at most, she had provided an assist.
However, if the current Jiang Jian Yue faced those people from the 10003 Unit again, she could certainly clear them out without taking any damage.
“And you…” Jiang Jian Yue said, looking down at Nikolai.
She suddenly found that the anti-gravity system was incredibly useful, as it allowed her to always look down on others and maintain her majesty.
Nikolai realized the situation and nodded with a smile. “Then I truly must thank you. However…”
“I also know very little about Emergent Bodies.”
Nikolai paused before continuing, “Emergent Bodies can fly without relying on other abilities. You should have seen that from your little boyfriend and that… insect believer.”
“The rest is just Heartworm Energy, which can be used to recover one’s body and makes abilities easier to control.”
“As for Manifested Heart Weapons, I have never seen one other than my own before this. The rest… is all Greek Milk to me.”
Well, it seemed Nikolai wasn’t lying to her.
Furthermore, the fact that he hadn’t left yet likely meant his spatial axe couldn’t break the restrictions of this damn bowl either.
There were truly tiers of difference even between Manifested Heart Weapons.
“Thank you for the information.”
Jiang Jian Yue did not continue to disturb Nikolai’s meal. Instead, she gradually rose higher, arriving beneath the wall of the bowl.
“Meiguan, do you have a way?” Finally, Jiang Jian Yue began to seek help from Meiguan.
“I don’t know. I’m thinking about sex.”
“…” Jiang Jian Yue was speechless as she tentatively reached out to touch the wall.
Jiang Jian Yue hovered beneath the massive wall of the Manifested Heart Weapon.
With a hint of hesitation and determination at her fingertips, she lightly touched the surface, which was flowing with turbid gray gas and embedded with faces screaming in silent agony.
The moment she made contact —
Whoom!
There was no earth-shattering noise, yet it felt as if the entire sealed space trembled.
The Upside-down Heaven and Earth Bowl collapsed instantly like a popped soap bubble, transforming into a torrent of grayish-black liquid that surged toward the finger Jiang Jian Yue used to touch it!
This torrent was not physical, yet it carried a heavy will.
It ignored the defense of the combat suit, penetrating her skin directly and rushing into Jiang Jian Yue’s body with brute force.
“Ugh!”
Jiang Jian Yue let out a muffled groan, her body trembling violently as if struck by an invisible sledgehammer.
The powerful energy impact caused her to fall from her hovering state instantly, crashing heavily onto the arena floor and kicking up a cloud of dust.
She curled her body, her delicate brows furrowed as she endured the tearing sensation brought by the forced integration of this massive, eerie energy.
“Missy!”
In the distance, Koji Hattori and the others cried out in alarm and rushed over.
The sky suddenly brightened.
The bowl that had blocked the sunlight vanished, and the afternoon sun of Tokyo once again bathed the New National Stadium.
Signals for the sealed area were instantly restored. The noisy sirens of the outside world and the roar of nearby hovering helicopters could be faintly heard.
However, the attention of everyone inside was focused on Jiang Jian Yue.
After a few seconds, her body’s trembling gradually subsided.
Jiang Jian Yue slowly raised her head.
Those iconic blood-red eyes remained, but the gaze within them had undergone a world-shaking change.
The cold, sharp, and slightly detached arrogance had vanished without a trace.
In its place was a kind of… compassion and tenderness that seemed capable of embracing all the suffering in the world.
The corners of her mouth even pulled into an almost holy smile.
“Missy…?” A warning bell rang in Koji Hattori’s heart.
This smile was too unfamiliar.
“Mr. Hattori…”
Jiang Jian Yue’s voice rang out, as gentle as a spring breeze brushing through willow branches. “I am fine. I am truly sorry for making everyone worry.”
“Missy… You, you can speak fluently…” Koji Hattori was even more shocked by the speed of her speech.
She stood up and looked around.
Her eyes were filled with deep sympathy and… self-blame?
“Mr. Hattori.”
Her voice was soft and pleasant, carrying an unprecedented level of patience. “Everyone has worked hard. You have sacrificed so much to protect these people.”
Koji Hattori was stunned.
This tone… this attitude… it was as if she were a different person!
‘Who is it! Who is inside Missy’s body!’
‘Actually, whoever it is, please don’t leave her yet.’
Jiang Jian Yue ignored his astonishment and turned her gaze toward the remains of Pluto.
The nauseating sludge of flesh and blood seemed to take on a “tragic” color in her eyes at this moment.
“As for the remains of this… Saint.”
She sighed softly, her tone full of pity. “She was also a poor soul blinded by Heartworms and twisted faith.”
“We should not desecrate her remains any further. Please… collect her properly and find a quiet place to bury her.”
Kaori Onishi’s expression turned strange, and she muttered, “Such… such a saintly Senior Jiang… Is Senior Jiang possessed by a ghost?”
She turned to look at Yayoi Yamanoi. “Heyo, quickly see if you can make the ghost leave Senior Jiang’s body.”
“I can’t do that!”
Meiguan’s voice laughed wildly and without restraint in Jiang Jian Yue’s mind. “Holy crap, hahaha! You’ve gone totally OOC! But it’s pretty good. At least your stutter is cured.”
Jiang Jian Yue’s body stiffened slightly. That boundless sense of compassion and forgiveness developed a crack, and her suppressed true nature seemed to tremble.
‘A side effect?’
It was similar to the side effect of touching a corpse… yet different. It wasn’t negative emotions running wild.
Instead, it was… positive emotions.
At this moment, Jiang Jian Yue felt that even if someone were to betray her, she could forgive them.
“I…”
She opened her mouth, her voice trembling. “I…”
She seemed to want to say something, to break free from this “saintly” shackle that had been forced upon her.
But the torrent of positive emotions originating from the Manifested Heart Weapon surged again, gently drowning the “self” that was trying to struggle.
The sharp clarity that had just surfaced quickly receded, and holy compassion once again took the lead.
Jiang Jian Yue gave a perfect, yet empty, smile to everyone watching the scene with suspicion.
It was as if that moment of struggle had never happened.
“Everything will be fine.”
Her voice returned to that unsettling tenderness.
“As long as we have love and peace in our hearts. Now, let us go and help those ordinary people first.”
She turned and floated lightly toward the spectator stands. Her silhouette, bathed in the returning sunlight, seemed to be shrouded in an unreal, holy glow.
Koji Hattori stood frozen in place for a long time before coming to his senses. “That is definitely not Missy. What on earth happened?”
……
Outside the New National Stadium, Morita Aoya faced the muzzles of the Self-Defense Force.
After noticing that the bowl towering over the stadium had vanished, he finally agreed to cooperate with the investigation.
The Self-Defense Force had been deployed into Tokyo under the pretext that “DRG intended to conduct some unknown secret experiment at the GSAC.”
Morita Aoya knew that the Curtain Cluster was definitely behind this, fanning the flames.
However, Morita Aoya knew for a fact that the bowl was absolutely not their doing!
An innocent man has nothing to fear. As long as he kept an eye on these people and ensured they didn’t try any “planted evidence” tricks, it would be fine.
He was currently more worried about Missy’s safety.
Following the Self-Defense Force into the New National Stadium, Morita Aoya soon saw Jiang Jian Yue hovering in the air.
After explaining to the Self-Defense Force why the audience looked as if time had been stopped, Morita Aoya finally broke away and approached Jiang Jian Yue.
“Missy!”
“Hmm? Morita, do you need something?”
Jiang Jian Yue snapped out of a daze and descended from the air, her feet touching the ground.
Morita Aoya felt that the Missy before him was a bit strange, though he couldn’t put his finger on why.
So, he reported in a low voice, “I have temporarily stabilized the situation, but the Curtain Cluster shows signs of wanting to drop all pretenses. Missy, what should we do?”
“The Curtain Cluster… conflict is not good. Since they dislike us, then we shall simply withdraw from Japan.”
“Huh?”
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