Chapter 435: with translation of chapter title

"Tap-tap-tap!"

"Pfft! Slice!"

"Howl…howl…"

Within a few seconds, the laser gun's unique crisp gunshot, the sound of bodies being pierced and dismembered, and the reapers' hoarse wails echoed in the building's lower hall.

A few seconds later.

In the hall filled with thick, nauseating stench, the only one left standing was the rookie replacing his rifle's battery magazine.

Just now, the rookie used a melee technique that, compared to the Astate, was extremely slow in motion, yet had equally impressive shooting accuracy, slaughtering nearly a hundred reapers equipped with biological exoskeletons on site.

If this were twelve years ago, it would take an entire squad of auxiliary troops, relying on their powered armor with excellent protection and mobility, to achieve what the rookie does now.

However, the rookie's augmentation surgery is the 'take the essence, discard the dregs' Halo Sparta technique, granting him strength surpassing Halo Sparta Phase II without suffering its side effects.

If the rookie, stripped of his powered armor and laser weapons, were thrown alone into the 04 universe or a universe with comparable human technology, and faced a hostile civilization whose tech level fluctuates around that of the reapers, he could absolutely serve as the 'savior,' the 'sole individual,' fully exercising individual heroism to save humanity in distress.

Therefore, viewing it this way, the rookie's solo slaughter of a hundred reapers is merely his warm-up.

Leave this place.

Overseeing the entire building complex, the rookie and his two comrades, due to different drop points, initially had to act alone, but after they regrouped into a fairly standard fire team, they began a more efficient slaughter...

It was a crushing slaughter from start to finish.

The rookie and one comrade took the assault position, leading the team, while another comrade wielding a three-barrel rotary laser machine gun could suppress reaper concentrations while on the move.

In the blink of an eye, the three of them had already cut a swath through the entire building complex; now, having rushed out, they turned back to conduct a thorough sweep, intending to leave no reaper alive.

As for encountering helpless 'old, weak, sick, and disabled' hiding in corners, or 'juvenile' reapers still in the breeding chambers, the trio's choice never changes: kill them without hesitation!

As long as they join the legion, it means they are each veteran fighters with a hundred battles under their belt, possessing excellent adaptability and rich combat experience; despite the rookie's nickname being 'rookie,' it's merely a term he likes.

As for being soft-hearted?

When dealing with wounded, unconscious comrades and civilians under Umbrella and UEG who are besieged, the rookie and his comrades, while still prioritizing mission, combat, and victory, will, if circumstances permit, spare no effort to rescue them.

But what do the reaper civilization's 'old, young, women, and children' have to do with them?

Morality?

According to the data held by the battalion, the rookie and his comrades can learn that 04 Earth was invaded twenty years ago by a reaper vanguard fleet, and according to data from the 04 Earth network, approximately 1.5 billion humans died in that war.

All evidence shows that the reaper civilization is the party that actively started the war and slaughtered their counterparts in the parallel universe.

Therefore, why should the rookie and his comrades lecture a spacefaring 'hooligan' and 'bandit'-like race about human societal morality?

They could avoid cruel torture and instead choose to shoot those in the breeding chambers—juvenile reapers with big eyes, top-heavy—and that alone would already be enough 'morality'.

Leave this building complex.

Gazing into the vast interior of the mother ship, one can see red or orange‑red high‑energy beams flashing between the many building complexes, representing humanity of the main universe.

At the same time, this also represents nearly seven thousand auxiliary troops currently engaged in a 'mass slaughter' inside the mother ship……

Seven thousand!

The reapers can't even handle a single squad of auxiliaries that have undergone augmentation; now there are seven thousand of them, auxiliaries from two assault brigades—no amount of numbers can kill even one.

Moreover, the Blood Ravens' finest first company of Astate, too, follows their battalion commander Gabriel Angelos into the mother ship's interior…

What can the reapers fight with?

By rights, possessing a queen and a collective consciousness, like a hive society, the reapers should be classified by Umbrella as a xenos species—that is, the reaper civilization counts as a xenos civilization.

But from the reapers' perspective in this situation, humanity—or rather, humanity of the main universe—seems more like the 'xenos'!

The reapers do have a collective consciousness, yet they retain a considerable degree of self; knowing they will die, they unhesitatingly carry out the queen's orders, launching futile, suicidal charges against the auxiliaries and Astate.

Moreover, while launching these charges, some individuals among the reapers begin to wonder why they are provoking humanity, which is like a hornet's nest.

Could the queen's orders be mistaken?

Once such thoughts begin to surface, the queen's position grows increasingly unstable; if she does not check them, a unique and powerful individual might replace her and lead them toward the 'correct' direction.

However, the Blood Ravens are preoccupied with managing the reapers' 'generational turnover'; their current queen also has no mind to stamp out rebel sparks, for at this very moment, facing the mother ship's central control tower……

Boom!!!

Pfft!

The sound of the power hammer hitting and smashing the reapers echoed across the plaza beneath the central control tower.

It turned out to be Gabriel, equipped with a dedicated Terminator suit, standing over 3.5 meters tall, wielding his dedicated power hammer, leading thirty Terminator veterans, each also over 3 meters tall with an average height of about 3.3 meters, carrying out the slaughter program without restraint.

Gabriel and the veterans, once in their Terminator gear, may look bulky and slow to move, but when they run they become a blur.

The reapers only recall seeing a massive black silhouette charging at them before death, after which their bodies are either crushed, hammered, split at the waist, or cleaved vertically—dead beyond any possibility of revival.

Facing such reaper foes, Gabriel and the veterans disdain wasting explosive rounds, instead using fists and melee weapons to wreak havoc—truly 'economical and cost‑effective,' saving ammo while indulging their lust for slaughtering xenos.

In just a moment, the reaper elite guarding the plaza were completely wiped out by Gabriel and his comrades.

In contrast, the queen protected by the loyal reaper elite and hidden above the central control tower had long since donned her biological exoskeleton, complete with a personal shield and a bulk many times greater than that of an ordinary reaper.

Want to run?

Sensing the queen preparing to use the central control tower's escape device, Gabriel raised his power hammer with his right hand, pointing the hammerhead toward the spire……

Crackle!!

A bolt of Spiritual Energy lightning emitting a faint red light shot forth with a wail from the hammerhead, striking the spire where the queen stood directly.

Boom!!

The explosion mixed with lightning instantly engulfed the entire spire, also 'roasted' and 'electro‑cooked' the queen hidden within.

Without the queen's leadership, from the mother ship down to the scuttling destroyers, carrier‑based craft, and infantry units, the reapers instantly lost combat ability, becoming helpless 'bugs' at anyone's mercy.

The entire battle lasted only thirteen minutes.

If it weren't for Gabriel wanting to get up close and slaughter some xenos trash, all that would be needed is him—or any Terminator‑clad veteran—activating a teleport device to storm the central control tower and decapitate the queen, easily dealing with this mother ship, 4,800 kilometers in diameter, which 04 humanity views as an extreme threat.

'Put another way,' the reapers' true purpose is actually for the Blood Ravens to use as a 'stress‑relief toy'.

Of course, the Blood Ravens didn't just indulge a craving to slaughter xenos trash; they also looted a stripped‑down 'homeworld' from the reapers.

According to legion regulations, as long as a brigade relies entirely on itself and the spoils seized and occupied by its attached UNSC fleet, all rights belong to that brigade.

Even if this mother ship is indeed somewhat 'dilapidated', having it is better than none; commissioning the local engineering department of Gusitewa to carry out a full refit, to deal with the various forces of the Zero-Four Universe, is more than sufficient.

In short, this battle was not a loss, and moreover, their Blood Raven Legion could possibly create a precedent where a single brigade conquers an universe, of course, provided other brigades and legions are not envious.

———————

…

Goo~goo~!

An unknown, large bird species cries out in the distant forest.

In the night sky glittering with stars, there are also two satellites, one large and one small, reflecting starlight, forming irregular circles.

Looking further east, one can see the shimmering waves, the clear blue-green calm sea surface, and, situated beside the coast, a vast, brightly lit city-state.

Draw closer.

Coming to the air above the city-state for a bird's-eye view, one can learn that the source of the 'bright lights' is old-fashioned candlelight, lanterns, and oil lamps; although the city-state's architectural style and residents' attire are rather backward, its nightlife is comparatively 'developed'.

At the center of the city-state stands a magnificent, luxurious palace; near the palace are flowers, gardens, and song-and-dance halls. Many nobles in fine attire, surrounded by numerous servants and guards, admire the flowers and moon, or tease the dancing girls and actors, or rely on their power to bully men and dominate women—'most gratifying'.

Observing the city-state's outskirts, one can see many flower streets and willow alleys, as well as various smuggling markets selling all kinds of rare exotic beasts; of course, even more vendors sell the 'merchandise' of slaves.

Although only a tiny fraction of those strolling the flower streets and markets are nobles, the 'ordinary' residents who can live in the city-state and afford property are actually far from the lowest stratum of the feudal system.

Looking further at the city-state's outskirts, there is hardly any nighttime entertainment; only farmers live in simple thatched huts or wooden board houses.

Moo~moo~!

In the fields, there also roams a docile creature that helps humans with farming, tireless and hardworking, resembling a water buffalo but larger by two rounds, leisurely grazing and calling, enjoying relaxation and recreation after a day's labor.

Simply put, being able to live as a city-state resident in such a backward world doesn't seem like a bad thing.

But…

"Hit! Hit me hard! Hahaha, you lowly trash still want money from me?!"

Only seen, in the streets of the city-state's bustling district, a barbaric princess wearing fine attire and gold-silver headgear is shouting in a unique local human dialect.

Infuriatingly, "she" has her right hand on her hip, left hand gesturing, directing servants to do evil, beating a motionless old man lying on the stone slab road, as if already dead.

The surrounding people dare not speak out in anger, only silently cursing in their hearts the sweet-looking, cute-faced princess whose speech and behavior are completely opposite to her appearance, truly treating human life as unimportant.

Just then.

"My heavens, he's so mighty!"

"Does the world really have such a stalwart person?"

"Quick! Quick, look at his hair!"

Hearing the commotion from the people behind "she", the princess also hears words like "tall" and "stalwart", instantly filling her curiosity and unable to resist turning around.

"She" had just finished turning when she saw a male "giant" with silver-white long hair, wearing attire completely unlike the locals, who had unknowingly slipped past the servants and stood before her.

At the same time, before "she" could cry out, while preparing to ask the price, wondering whether the "giant" could serve as her personal guard, or even as her personal "property"……

The "giant" then raised his right hand expressionlessly, not using much force, and slapped the head of the unreasonable, barbaric princess.

Bang!!

Only the crisp, explosive sound rang out, echoing throughout this bustling area.

One second ago, the princess had a lovely appearance, lustrous black hair, and an intact skull; the next second, her head was blown apart by the right hand of the silver-haired "giant".

"Plop!" Thick, foul-smelling bright red blood spattered everywhere.

"Splat!" Soft, milky-white brain tissue scattered onto the ground.

The body, missing its head, swayed left and right, then finally fell to the left like boneless waste meat flopping onto the ground.

"Whoosh..." Immediately, more blood gushed and surged from the neck wound like a spring, instantly staining the nearby tiles red.

"……"

The scene fell silent, not even a sparrow's chirp.

Everyone present, including the princess's servants, never expected that the silver-haired, handsome, sturdy "giant" before them would commit such a shocking act.

In fact, this "giant" is one of the offspring of Sui Bian's OriginalBody, having come alone to this coastal city-state to prepare to liberate the fellow countrymen's "perfect phoenix"— Fugerimu.

Fugerimu.

"Ah!! Run!!"

"Murder! Murder!"

"Ugh…! Ugh…!"

After regaining their senses, bystanders who were ordinary residents and slaves fled the scene shouting, while some with poorer psychological resilience were made to vomit by the sight of the princess's gruesome death.

(End of chapter)