Chapter 64: The Wrath of a Princess: Lain’s Aid and Akiko’s Shock

“You’re unwilling, then? There’s nothing for it, I suppose. Lain, emerge.”

Having clearly offered them an opportunity, Liu Xingluo felt no blame if they refused it. Her initial intention was merely to dispatch that one individual, yet she knew the other two would not passively watch their comrade be attacked. They would inevitably intervene, leading to a three-on-one assault.

While she harbored no doubts about her eventual victory, facing a three-pronged assault would undoubtedly prove troublesome. Thus, Liu Xingluo summoned Lain, reasoning that a capable ally should never be left idle. The potential implications of openly calling Lain forth from the shadows before such a crowd were not her immediate concern; her sole focus remained on subduing the individual before her.

“I have come at your summons. What are your commands, Your Royal Highness?”

“Do not touch the one in the middle; I shall deal with that one personally. As for the remaining two, help me take them down. Just ensure their lives are spared; you may handle the rest as you see fit. And once you’ve dispatched those two, do not interfere with my situation, understood?”

Her finger directly aimed at the central figure, Liu Xingluo made it clear that this one, and only this one, she would personally subdue. The remaining two, she entrusted to Lain.

Her words had been articulated with such precision that even Lain, with his notoriously distinct thought processes, surely comprehended.

“Understood. I wish you success.”

With a clear grasp of Liu Xingluo’s intentions and a confirmation of his designated targets, Lain swiftly drew the implement from his waist, poised for battle.

“Hey, hey, hey, this isn’t a comic convention, you know. That cosplay of a gentleman is quite convincing, but you don’t actually think we’re afraid of you, do you?”

Lain’s sudden materialization from the shadows had, admittedly, given them a momentary fright. Yet, they swiftly regained their composure, dismissing it as nothing more than a display of the opponent’s superhuman ability. The mere act of freely phasing in and out of shadows posed no significant threat to their trio. Even if one of them engaged Liu Xingluo, the remaining two would still be more than sufficient to handle the ‘cosplay gentleman.’ Their strategic advantage, they believed, remained unassailable!

“Fools, you don’t even know who stands before you. It seems God’s initial decision to eradicate you was indeed correct.”

“Lain, don’t tell them things you shouldn’t. Finish them quickly.”

“As you command.”

Having no desire to prolong the engagement, Liu Xingluo urged Lain to swiftly eliminate the two, thus securing the conditions for her anticipated one-on-one duel with the last opponent.

“Are you two going to chatter over there all day? Don’t treat us like NPCs (TL Note: “Renji” or “human-machine” is slang for AI-controlled characters in games), hey!”

Perceiving their trio, himself included, to be utterly dismissed, the fire-wielding Superhuman finally lost his patience. With a surge of power, he conjured a massive fireball and launched it directly at them.

Yet, such meager flames were, of course, utterly inconsequential to Lain. Compared to the inferno wielded by Ganghuo, the Third Princess, these were nothing more than a tepid flicker. Without even deeming it necessary to cleave them apart, Lain plunged directly into the fiery core of the projectile.

“Ha, I thought you were more capable. Weren’t you still swallowed by my flames?”

Witnessing Lain vanish within the fiery embrace of the fireball, the Superhuman immediately swelled with self-satisfaction. The projectile he had just unleashed carried immense destructive force; even a fellow Superhuman, if caught within its inferno, would undoubtedly emerge either dead or grievously wounded.

His triumph, however, proved fleeting, as Lain, having already ripped through the heart of his scorching orb, now stood directly before him.

“Your flames are insignificant. Allow me to show you what true fire is.”

Pressing his hand onto the man’s head, Lain injected his azure flames into his body.

In the ensuing second, a bloodcurdling scream tore from his throat. The azure flames Lain had infused into his very being relentlessly devoured every muscle, every bone, and even the most minute cells throughout his body. He thrashed in excruciating agony, desperately attempting to quell the inferno consuming him. Yet, Lain’s flames were no mundane fire; they would persist, unextinguished, until their target was utterly reduced to cinders. Though Liu Xingluo’s directive on this occasion was to preserve his life, inflicting a thorough immolation without causing death was a task Lain accomplished with chilling ease.

“Huizi! You bastard! Quickly put out that fire!”

Witnessing their comrade subjected to such horrific torment, the remaining two instantly shifted their attention to Lain. They surmised that by neutralizing him, the peculiar flames ravaging Huizi’s body would surely dissipate.

“Where are you looking? I told you, you are mine to deal with. Not only did you refuse to apologize to my sister earlier, but you also insulted me. You didn’t think you could just walk away so easily, did you?”

As the individual moved to confront Lain, Liu Xingluo advanced, seizing his shoulder with a firm grip before yanking him forcefully toward herself.

“You bastard, fine, I’ll fight you! I refuse to believe I’ll lose to you. Once I take care of you, that guy over there should stop as well.”

From their preceding exchange, it was clear that Lain served as Liu Xingluo’s subordinate. Adhering to the adage of “capture the leader to capture the bandits,” the man reasoned that by subduing Liu Xingluo, Lain’s resolve would undoubtedly crumble, effectively killing two birds with one stone.

“The prerequisite is that you can actually defeat me.”

Liu Xingluo, too, harbored no expectation of defeat. Even inhabiting a mere human form, rather than that of the Seventh Princess, she remained convinced of her invincibility. For she was consumed by an intense, searing rage. And in such profound fury, even an ordinary human, devoid of any superhuman abilities, was said to possess the capacity to punch through fifty meters of solid steel.

“Then let’s put it to the test! Take this!”

Directly targeting Liu Xingluo, he extended his open palm. In the next instant, several powerful bolts of electricity erupted from his hand, surging relentlessly towards her.

Unbeknownst to her, the adversary commanded electricity, and with the currents moving at an astonishing velocity, Liu Xingluo found herself utterly unable to evade the attack, taking the full brunt of the electric discharge.

“Hahaha, how about that? You talked so tough, but weren’t you still easily struck by me?”

Seeing his attack hit her, Akiko immediately grew arrogant. Once an opponent was hit, even a Superhuman would have their body paralyzed by the electricity, rendering them unable to counterattack. And if he increased the output, the opponent would be electrocuted to death by the currents surging throughout their body.

Though such an immediate escalation was certainly an option, Akiko, having already secured his advantage, found himself in no rush to claim Liu Xingluo’s life. Instead, he intended to gradually intensify the electrical current, relishing her grotesque contortions as he slowly tormented her. His ultimate desire was to shock her into involuntary urination, forcing her to soil herself right before his very eyes.

However, Liu Xingluo was no ordinary Superhuman.

As the electricity surged through her, the expected sensation of pain utterly failed to materialize within Liu Xingluo. More astonishingly, she felt a relentless wellspring of power rising within her, as if her body were effortlessly absorbing the very electrical currents meant to incapacitate her.

Even Liu Xingluo herself remained oblivious to the precise mechanics of this phenomenon, yet one undeniable truth emerged: the adversary’s assaults were utterly incapable of harming her, and that knowledge alone sufficed.

All that remained was to administer a thorough, painful beating, ensuring he would weep as he knelt to offer a tearful apology to her sister.