Chapter 494: with translation of chapter title

Child?

When Celesstin detonated her power armor, she instinctively closed her eyes; now she only feels warmth and comfort, and after hearing the "hallucination," she tries to open her eyes.

?

When her eyes opened, she found herself lying on the tranquil lake surface, but she did not sink into the water, and the sky was the orange-red of dusk.

Celesstin slowly sat up, and then discovered that her original power armor had, at some point, been changed into a clean white dress that had not been soaked by the lake water.

Where is this?

Could this be the Sea of Souls?

Filled with doubt, she looked around, but could only see an endless lake surface.

After a moment of daze, Celesstin propped her right hand on the lake surface to push herself up into a standing position, and as soon as she stood, she heard the "hallucination" again:

"Child, this is not the so-called Sea of Souls; theoretically, this should be an independent space I created."

?!!!

Upon hearing that, Celesstin quickly turned around and saw a figure over two meters tall, wearing a black Umbrella uniform with red-and-white umbrella buttons on the collar, a "giant".

"Chair... Chairman?!"

Upon seeing the giant's face clearly, Celesstin was utterly stunned, for the person was none other than the Human Sovereign she regarded as her father, to whom she had prayed but never received a response—

Sui Bian.

"Hehe, no need to be so formal, child." Sui Bian smiled, then walked slowly toward the astonished and disbelieving Celesstin, raised his left hand to tidy the girl's bangs, and continued:

"Fortunately, your persistence and determination have finally let me hear your prayers, and also made me aware of the situation on Tai Luo Ke Er, just how dire it has become."

"Chair... Father..."

Having been abandoned by her parents since childhood and raised in an Umbrella welfare institution by parents she had never met, Celesstin had long regarded Sui Bian as her true father; now, seeing him appear before her, she could no longer maintain her composed pretense and burst into tears, saying:

"So... so you heard everything..."

"Of course, I certainly heard them all." Sui Bian still wore a kind expression, and he did not forget to gently pat the pious girl's head with his left hand to comfort her mixed sorrow and joy.

And Celesstin was also enjoying the warmth she had fantasized about countless times, yet dared not believe it had truly come to her side.

After a while.

Celesstin thought of Tanya and her sisters still fighting, and all personnel on Tai Luo Ke Er, so she wiped her tears with the backs of her hands and said to Sui Bian:

"Father, please help Adams and her sisters, as well as the human compatriots on Tai Luo Ke Er."

"That's natural." Sui Bian withdrew his left hand, then placed his hands behind his back, and with a benevolent face said: "Since it is your faith that broke through the insect clan's Spiritual Energy barrier and conveyed your prayer to my ears,"

"Then..."

Saying this, Sui Bian paused, gazed at Celesstin, and with a slightly heavier tone said: "Helping Tanya Adams and your sisters, and saving Tai Luo Ke Er from peril, this responsibility is entrusted to you, child."

"Me...?" Celesstin felt some worry.

After all, compared to her, Sergeant Ran Ze and the reserve Astate responsible for Tai Luo Ke Er's safety are clearly more capable and qualified.

"Believe in yourself." Sui Bian smiled, "Don't forget, you are also my daughter, go."

"Yes... Father." Celesstin nodded in agreement.

At the same time, she felt the light in this space growing brighter, until her vision was nothing but a white expanse.

———————

…

112th Street.

"Boom! Boom!" The chief warrior's running caused tremors like an earthquake.

"Damn your grandpa! Ahhh! Die! Die for me!"

Tanya at the rear of the squad, eyes red, fired her dual guns, unleashing. 44 caliber pulse rounds at the chief warrior.

The launcher hung on her waist, apparently empty of all fuel tanks, forcing her to continue the attack with her secondary weapon.

The three sisters beside her, as well as the Third Battalion soldiers and Kriegers, likewise fired their weapons, spewing fire serpents in an attempt to shatter the chief warrior's biological barrier and block the approaching insect and snake beasts.

Looking down from above the street, one could easily see that Tanya and her group were now a tiny boat in the sea of insects, about to be swallowed and drowned.

Especially the presence of the chief warrior made breaking through the encirclement nearly impossible, for even attacks such as siege tanks and overloaded cold fusion could not pierce its biological barrier.

To deal with the chief warrior, the only option for the whole force was to engage in close combat; therefore...

"Roar!"

The elite captain bellowed, affixed the commander-type plasma rifle to his back, took off the two sword hilts hanging from his waist, swung them left and right, unfolded the dual sword hilts emitting a faint blue light, then charged with the squad in the opposite direction and ordered:

"From now on, Lieutenant Akha (Iron Blood Company Commander) will temporarily take command; everyone, good luck!"

Speaking, the elite captain had already swept past the rear of the squad, brushing past Tanya who was reloading.

!!

Seeing that the captain, who usually seemed strict but actually cared for the trainee sisters, chose a suicidal assault, Tanya felt even more heartbroken.

But she did not act impulsively; she only silently blessed the captain in her heart and continued escorting the civilians inside the armored transport vehicle to evacuate.

In contrast, the elite captain...

"Whoosh~! Whoosh!" The whistling of the blades as they swung.

"Sizzle! Scrape!" The high-temperature blades easily cut through carapace and flesh.

One could see this seventy-year-old, a top-notch member of the elite clan, charging into the insect swarm like a whirlwind; moreover, the insect and snake beasts lacking biological barriers were utterly helpless against him in a short time.

"Howl!!"

Sensing the elite captain's challenge, the chief warrior, possessing a degree of self-awareness, angrily roared and immediately swung a long bone blade, aiming to smash the elite captain.

But the elite captain, who had been watching the chief warrior's movements, leapt left onto a nearby abandoned bus just as the bone blade was swung, dodging the attack.

"Pfft!!"

The bone blade, weighing several tons, shattered the road surface while simultaneously blasting countless insects into "bursting sauce".

Taking advantage of this opening, the Elite Captain leapt again, moving swiftly through the joints connecting the bone blades, rushing toward the Chief Warrior's head.

Just as the dual-blade energy sword was about to make close contact with the Chief Warrior, the latter opened its mouth, filled with sharp teeth and a foul stench.

Roar!!

Accompanying the roar, a mass of biological plasma emitting green light spewed from the Chief Warrior's mouth, striking the Elite Captain who was about to succeed.

Hum!!

The energy shield helped the captain barely block the attack.

Ow…~!

Yet the plasma's strong impact flung the captain airborne, and he finally crashed heavily to the ground.

The Elite Captain had no time to recover for even a few seconds; he immediately rolled to his feet, swung his dual-blade energy sword and cut down the several bug soldiers that had closed in, but seeing the Chief Warrior already only a few meters ahead, he knew his surprise attack had failed.

Just as he tried to raise his arms, attempting to block the Chief Warrior's next strike with his dual-blade energy sword…

Boom!!

A fierce Spiritual Shock interrupted the Chief Warrior's smashing motion, even lifting the hundred‑ton Chief Warrior into the air and slamming it into the building on the right side of the street.

As for those 'little fellows' like the bug soldiers and snake soldiers, the instant they were hit by the Spiritual Shock they were blown apart, reduced to flying ash, leaving not a trace.

In an instant, 112th Avenue became empty, and the swiftly advancing force no longer needed to clash or force a bloody breakthrough.

"One‑key clear screen" is nothing more than that.

And a burst of golden light, at the very moment the Spiritual Shock erupted, swiftly filled and enveloped 112th Avenue.

Huh…?

Standing dazed in place, the Elite Captain held his dual-blade energy sword in an "X" shape, utterly bewildered.

?!!!

Even Tanya and the others retreating were confused by the sudden situation; they halted, assumed defensive stances, and many soldiers quickly left the line to rush to their captain.

"Golden… Spiritual Energy…" Tanya stared at the blinding light's center, seeming to discern a figure, and murmured, "Is… Father?"

Roar!!

At that moment, the Chief Warrior's roar brought everyone back to reality.

"Ow! Everyone, focus fire on me! Take down this big guy!"

Likewise, the Elite Captain, having regained his composure, raised his hand and loudly commanded the Chief Warrior.

Yes!!

This time the troops' morale surged, and they no longer worried about ammunition, pouring rounds and shells at the Chief Warrior, who still refused to yield and wanted to keep pressing the attack.

Yet the troops' concentrated fire was still ineffective against the seemingly tireless Chief Warrior, whose stamina and endurance appeared endless.

Huff~huff!

Just as the Chief Warrior tried to continue crushing with its biological barrier, everyone heard the sound of wings beating.

Turning toward the sound, even the Chief Warrior halted, its pale‑yellow‑glowing pupil‑less eyes fixed on the "person" beating pure white wings, who slowly flew up above the area.

What…? What is happening?

Is that Celesstin?!

But how did she grow wings?!

After making out that person's shape, the three surviving sisters gasped in awe.

"…" Tanya opened her mouth wide, not knowing what to say.

Because her friend, who had self‑destructed and died not long ago, was now unharmed and even sported a pair of pure white wings spanning over ten meters?!

Looking closely, Celesstin's dedicated power armor had vanished, leaving only her black combat uniform; meanwhile, her right hand gripped a weapon burning with golden flames, resembling an ancient Chinese saber.

Hearing the sisters' words, Celesstin lowered her head slightly to glance, then turned her gaze back to the Chief Warrior.

Roar…roar!!

Sensing the gaze, the Chief Warrior involuntarily stepped back; its loud roar, seemingly furious, was actually more like a biological instinct of fear, a loud outburst meant to bolster its own courage.

Whoosh~!

But before the Chief Warrior could swing its bone blades or spit biological plasma to attack, Celesstin became a blur and vanished.

When Celesstin reappeared, she had folded her wings, stood again on the street, and walked slowly toward Tanya and the others, who were still dazed.

As for the Chief Warrior?

"Boom~!!" — his entire body was engulfed in golden flames, and in less than a blink he was burned to ash, which blew away in the air,

"Little… Gu Ban?"

Finally regaining her composure, Tanya rushed up to Celesstin, looked her over, still unable to believe it, and asked, "You really are Gu Ban?!"

At the same time, the three surviving sisters, the Elite Captain, the Iron‑Blood Company Commander, and part of the 3rd Battalion soldiers gathered around, while the Kriegers standing far away dropped to one knee, seemingly saying silent prayers beneath their helmets.

"That's right, it's me." Celesstin said with a slightly reverberating tone, "My father rescued me from danger and granted me rebirth."

"It's Father?!"

"Great! With Chairman Sui's gaze upon us, we can be saved!"

Upon learning that the Master of Humanity himself had intervened, the atmosphere instantly livened and morale rose.

"Now is not the time for celebration." Celesstin looked toward the distance, "Many of our compatriots remain besieged, so our foremost goal now is to continue the evacuation mission."

Having said that, Celesstin spread her wings, leapt as she beat them, and flew above the entire formation, swinging her golden‑flamed saber forward.

Seeing this, everyone immediately returned to their posts, following the airborne Celesstin, ready to rescue more besieged friendly units and civilians.

And the Elite Captain, who had survived thanks to Celesstin's successful "resurrection," was in the process of sheathing his dual‑blade energy sword and gripping his commander‑type plasma rifle when…

"Huh? It seems I am actually the highest commander here." He then realized he ought to be the one issuing orders.

"Never mind, these girls don't seem to need his worry anymore."

Thinking that, the Elite Captain shook his head with a smile and then marched forward with the unit.

———————

…

At the same time.

Gazing over the entire metropolitan area from above, one can see that, aside from districts 01, 02, 04, 09, and 12, all districts' energy shields are either actively shut down or have been shattered by the orbital bombardment of the insectoid swarm.

Moreover, within the area of districts 01 through 12, even with the 'reborn' Celesstin, fierce battles are erupting, and hundreds of millions of humans are stranded outside the energy shields.

At this moment.

Inside the Tai Luo Ke Er Intelligence Department headquarters, located in the central district of District 01 and featuring an independent megastructure, Zax Redfield, accompanied by twelve auxiliary troops, continuously descends in an elevator.

Ding~!

With a chime, the elevator stops, and the holographic display above the gate reads: 'Intelligence Department/Biological Weapons Cold Storage/Access Requires Special Application.'

However, given the personal visit of the Intelligence Department head, the gate after completing the biological scan opens smoothly, allowing Zax and her party to reach the Biological Weapons Cold Storage smoothly.

(End of chapter)