As Ryn and the others rode Kukulkan, continuously ascending towards the top of the Tower of Finality—the Tower of Finality itself.
As they passed by the walls of the Tower of Finality, the walls began to move, splitting off to produce batch after batch of Honkai Creatures... among them were countless dragon-type flying Honkai Beasts from Kukulkan's own clan.
But these normal-sized, only a few dozen meters long Kukulkans were nothing compared to the Feathered Serpent God, Kukulkan.
"Roar..." (Even though they're enemies, they're still my kin, more or less. Hold on tight, I'm going to accelerate and shake them off!)
Kukulkan roared and then began to accelerate continuously. The supersonic flight caused friction with the air, rapidly increasing the temperature around Kukulkan's body. This was followed by a sonic boom, and the resulting sonic boom cloud sent the distant Honkai Beasts flying, with the weaker ones being directly blown into a bloody mist.
"Waaaaah—! We're gonna die!!" "Help!"
The screams of Penglaiji Ryn and Seele were constantly transmitted through the communication device developed by Yiselian. The wind pressure forced tears and snot to flow uncontrollably from their faces, which then evaporated and disappeared in mid-air...
Although Theresa had deployed Judah, using its chains to tightly bind them, and Ryn had activated a field to protect them, preventing them from falling off or getting injured, the audio-visual experience of Kukulkan's supersonic flight still terrified them.
Yiselian: "Mere flight is noth...##@%#@..."
Sin Mal: "Seaweed-head! Hey! Dammit, this idiot is foaming at the mouth and has passed out..."
Himeko: "Disgraceful... We're still far from the top of the Tower of Finality! We haven't even left the atmosphere yet... How are you all wiped out already!!"
They had just broken Mach 3, and everyone was already at their limit... If they reached the first cosmic velocity needed to leave Earth, wouldn't they all just be instantly defeated?
Ryn helplessly pointed at the Tower of Finality and gave an order to Kukulkan.
"Kukulkan, ram into that tower for me. We'll go up from inside the tower..."
Kukulkan looked up at Ryn with pleading eyes.
"Roar..." (Can we not ram it? I can just open a hole and charge in...)
"......"
Seeing Ryn's face turn from black to green in an instant, remaining silent. Kukulkan's heart sank. Just as it was about to smash its head into the Tower of Finality to clear a path.
"You idiot... How could I mean to actually ram it!!"
Ryn held it back, then reached out and collapsed a black hole in the space not far from the Tower of Finality, blasting a hundred-meter-wide gap in the tower.
Then he had Kukulkan carry everyone into the Tower of Finality.
After entering the tower, everyone quickly jumped off Kukulkan's back and lined up against the wall, vomiting violently.
Ryn and Kukulkan, on the other hand, began to investigate the situation inside the Tower of Finality.
The entire tower's exterior walls were pure white, but the interior was a crisscrossing network of light blue, resembling biological tissue, with countless multi-colored light spots dotting the walls.
After vomiting for a while, the group regrouped and continued to advance towards the top of the tower.
After dealing with several waves of Honkai Creatures that emerged from the walls along the way, everyone had a rough understanding of the tower.
This was a "living tower." The crisscrossing paths and keratinous walls inside the tower were like the nervous system of a human body, constantly monitoring the information within the tower.
Ryn and the others were like parasites, constantly being attacked by immune cells called "Honkai Creatures." It was a race against time, a competition to see if they would be evolved and devoured by the tower, or if they would reach the top before the tower's devouring could be completed.
However, after Ryn took out the Lance of Finality, the situation was instantly reversed. The Tower of Finality was like a butler waiting for his master to return home, joyfully opening a path to the top for Ryn and the others, and even the Honkai Creatures stopped appearing to attack them.
"I was originally planning to use it for directions, but I didn't expect it to be able to lead the way for us."
Ryn chuckled and flicked the Lance of Finality in his hand. The spear also began to sway violently with Ryn's flicking. It seemed to have realized that it had become a traitorous guide, but there was nothing it could do... Kiana didn't summon it, and it couldn't escape from Ryn's grasp on its own.
"By the way... don't you guys think the path inside here looks like the endlessly ascending spiral corridor of the Tower of Babylon? This is too magnificent..."
Penglaiji Ryn suddenly blurted out as she was walking, even excitedly touching the walls of the corridor everywhere.
Ryn: "It's better to be careful. Although we have a rough understanding of this tower, there are still many unknown factors!"
As soon as Ryn finished speaking, Penglaiji Ryn froze in place.
She had just touched a ball of light, and then a voice suddenly appeared in her mind...
[Come quickly... I'm waiting for you here... From now on... we'll never be apart...]
"Penglaiji Ryn, what's wrong?"
"Did you guys... hear the voice coming from this ball of light...?"
Ryn followed her gaze and picked up a ball of light not far from him, but he heard nothing.
Bronya and the others also tried touching the ball of light, but they also heard nothing.
When Penglaiji Ryn reached out to touch it, that voice appeared in her mind again...
[Forget all the sorrow... let me protect your heart...]
"What's going on... Could this be another revelation that only the Savior can hear?"
Penglaiji Ryn reached out again to touch the other balls of light.
[Don't be afraid, please take my hand...]
[We will find eternal happiness here...]
[...]
Penglaiji Ryn wanted to figure out what was going on, and she touched more and more balls of light, until she became lost...
All the scenes disappeared from Penglaiji Ryn's eyes, and a sun-drenched meadow seemed to appear in her mind...
Similarly, that same scene appeared in Ryn's eyes...
Kiana and Mei, wearing school uniforms, lay quietly and intimately on the grass, the sunlight lazily shining on them.
"Mei... if there were no Honkai in this world, what would you do?"
"No Honkai... I'd probably be like any ordinary girl, learn something I like, get into the university I want, and then start my own family, and live a happy and peaceful life with my loved one. What about you, Kiana?"
"Me... as long as I'm with Mei, I'm already satisfied."
"Honestly... don't say such embarrassing things... For Kiana, there must be something more worth pursuing."