Honkai: Oh No, I’ve Become the Herrscher of Corruption?! - Chapter 133

July 3, 2012, Far East, Nagazora City, Enoxia’s Home

“To summarize, the Herrscher of Flame has appeared in Iceland, while the Emperor-class Honkai Beast, Ganesha, has emerged in India. Schicksal has already initiated countermeasures.”

“Enox, you’re not planning to help this time?”

Hearing this, Enoxia gave a helpless smile:

“It seems there was a misunderstanding about me 12 years ago in Siberia. We are Herrschers—in Schicksal’s definition, we are apostles who carry out the will of the Honkai. Humanity can’t rely on Herrschers to defeat Herrschers every single time.”

“Resisting the Honkai is Schicksal and Anti-Entropy’s duty, never the obligation of a Herrscher. For one thing, neither Schicksal nor Anti-Entropy are encountering a Herrscher for the first time—they have their own protocols. If Herrschers like us, whose allegiances are unclear, interfere recklessly, we’d only disrupt their existing strategies and make an already chaotic situation worse.”

“For another, if we exert too much effort fighting another Herrscher, forget whether Otto would betray us—the public’s trust in Schicksal and Anti-Entropy would take a massive hit. Only when they defeat a Herrscher largely on their own can people truly believe they’re capable of leading humanity against the Honkai.”

“Most importantly, I’ve looked into it. This Herrscher is just a single-core Flame Herrscher, and the Emperor-class Honkai Beast isn’t stronger than Parvati. Even though Schicksal was heavily damaged in the Second Honkai War, Fu Hua is still around. A mere single-core Herrscher—especially not the Herrscher of Binding—is no match for her.”

Just as Enoxia predicted, when Cheng Lixue arrived in northwestern Norway on the morning of July 3, Fu Hua appeared beside her at some point.

“Master.”

Seeing Fu Hua, the weight in Cheng Lixue’s chest instantly lifted.

“Lixue, as Otto said, you’re the field commander this time, not me. I’ll only step in when absolutely necessary. Don’t let my presence disrupt your focus.”

Hearing this, Cheng Lixue immediately composed herself and walked over to the Valkyrie who had arrived earlier—the one in charge of coordinating Schicksal’s forces in Northern Europe—with a stern expression.

“What’s the situation?”

Recognizing Cheng Lixue, the Valkyrie straightened up.

“Lady Cheng Lixue, satellite data shows the Herrscher remains in Reykjavik, Iceland, with no signs of crossing the sea. However, in the past 24 hours, the flames have spread from Reykjavik to engulf the entire island.”

“What about conditions inside Iceland?”

The Valkyrie understood her meaning and shook her head grimly.

“We can confirm other Honkai Beasts are present on the island. But when the Herrscher appeared… Iceland’s population of nearly 400,000… it’s likely all have perished. With the entire island engulfed in flames and no orders from HQ, none of our units have dared to enter yet. Whether there are survivors… we don’t know.”

Cheng Lixue fell into thought. From the Herrscher of Reason to the Herrscher of the Void and then the Herrscher of Corruption, each had displayed intelligence no lesser than that of humans. She had to account for this.

This Herrscher of Flame, given her large-scale destruction of Iceland, was clearly hostile. Now entrenched on the island, her plans were unknown.

To understand the Herrscher’s true intentions, someone would have to brave the flames. As a Valkyrie, Cheng Lixue feared no danger—but the memories of battling a Herrscher 12 years ago remained vivid.

She worried that even if Valkyries risked their lives, it might all be for nothing.

“Lixue, let me go first.”

The moment Fu Hua spoke, all eyes turned to her.

“Lady Cheng Lixue, this is…?”

Cheng Lixue hesitated briefly, then spoke after Fu Hua nodded.

“This is Fu Hua, my master. Well… The Overseer has always assigned her to covert missions, so many don’t know her. But her strength… far surpasses mine.”

“Far surpasses you? Then that means—”

The Valkyrie understood—Cheng Lixue wouldn’t lie at such a critical moment.

Cheng Lixue raised a finger.

“You know what it implies. If the Overseer hasn’t made it public, there must be a reason.”

The Valkyrie nodded, though concern flickered across her face.

“But sending Lady Fu Hua alone… isn’t that too—?”

Of course, Cheng Lixue was more worried about Fu Hua’s safety than anyone. If Cecilia were still here, she would’ve gone with her. But among Schicksal’s currently deployable Valkyries—herself included—anyone accompanying Fu Hua would only become a burden.

With no better alternative, Cheng Lixue had no choice but to let Fu Hua face the danger alone.

July 4, 2012, 10:00 AM

A plane soared over Iceland. Fu Hua opened the hatch and leapt out.

As her parachute descended, what greeted her was a scorched wasteland. The ruins of buildings still smoldered faintly.

“Not letting ordinary people in was definitely the right call.”

She took out a thermometer—the ambient temperature exceeded 70°C, with ground temperatures surpassing 100°C. And this was dozens of kilometers away from the Herrscher.

Soon, the heat around her intensified. A figure with fiery red hair appeared before her. Though her appearance bore no resemblance to Yae Sakura, the sight still dredged up Fu Hua’s most searing memories.

The Herrscher of Flame stared wide-eyed as Fu Hua stood unfazed in the blistering heat.

“Impossible… Why… you—”

After a brief panic, she steadied herself.

“You… came to stop me, didn’t you? Why why why—”

Though her words seemed directed at Fu Hua, she gave no chance for a reply. After a frenzied mutter, she raised her thumb and index finger—a searing beam shot toward Fu Hua, piercing straight through her body.

And then… the Herrscher of Flame realized Fu Hua remained unharmed, standing perfectly still, tilting her head slightly as if the attack had been nothing.

This Fu Hua was no longer the one from the “Eliminate All Evil” era. Even now, she was still considering whether negotiation was possible.

Feeling insulted, the Herrscher of Flame raised her right hand in fury, pointing skyward. A growing fireball materialized above, and within a minute, it was as if a second sun were descending.

“Die!”

With a downward flick of her finger, the fireball accelerated, crashing toward Fu Hua.

Under the scorching heat of thousands of degrees, even concrete began to melt.

With a “boom,” the fireball exploded—but something felt off to the Herrscher.

[Fist of Taixuan · Skybreaker]

A fist suddenly shot through the flames, growing larger in the Herrscher’s vision.

“Bang.”

The Herrscher of Flame was sent flying, her head slamming into the ground.