Ning Xuan was still in a weakened state after the recent space jump, surrounded by these light screens with no way to escape.
"Dammit!"
Chen Xing suddenly clutched her forehead, and a circular light shield appeared around her, flickering on and off.
The light screens around Ning Xuan also dimmed as if malfunctioning, then began to flicker as well.
"So there's someone else sabotaging the altar? Is it your accomplice?"
Chen Xing's eyes were filled with doubt. She had originally thought that Ning Xuan was the only one secretly sabotaging her altar underground.
Ning Xuan responded with a mocking smile, ignoring her question. Taking advantage of the momentary pause in Chen Xing's attack caused by the altar's destruction, she unfolded her mechanical wings once more.
She had no intention of engaging in a prolonged fight with Chen Xing. Right now, she needed to quickly relay the information to her sister.
"Don't think you can escape."
With her power temporarily weakened, Chen Xing rose from her crimson throne, her right hand reaching beneath it.
A black-and-white cross-shaped longsword slowly emerged from under the throne and was grasped by Chen Xing.
The throne behind her gradually faded away, and her gaze locked onto Ning Xuan, who had already flown to the entrance of the passage. With a casual swing of her sword, she sent a massive black shockwave hurtling toward Ning Xuan.
The shockwave, faster than expected, almost reached Ning Xuan's back in an instant.
Ning Xuan's instincts kicked in, and with a burst of flame from her mechanical wings and prosthetic body, she abruptly changed direction in midair, narrowly dodging the shockwave.
Turning her head, she saw Chen Xing unhurriedly stepping on floating stone stairs in the air, carrying the cross-shaped longsword as she slowly approached.
As Chen Xing walked, Ning Xuan noticed the light screens around her reigniting, energy-filled orbs beginning to form within them.
However, their power was noticeably weaker than before.
Ning Xuan understood that the destruction of the altar had successfully weakened Chen Xing's strength.
But now, she had to face Chen Xing's wrath.
The light screens and the shockwaves from Chen Xing's sword strikes forced Ning Xuan into a desperate dance of evasion. The space below them echoed with the sounds of violent explosions.
The area where they stood had already been reduced to ruins.
Ning Xuan was also injured in several places. The left end of her mechanical wing had been severed, sparking with malfunctioning energy. Her shoulder had been grazed by a dark-gray beam from the light screen, leaving a scorched wound that exposed the transistors beneath.
She had disabled her pain receptors, and fortunately, her prosthetic body prevented her from being infected by the T-virus.
If her head, which hadn't been prosthetically enhanced, had been hit, the situation would have been far worse.
Ning Xuan clenched her teeth, her mind racing. Her body was still in a weakened state, and her movements and evasions were significantly affected.
But there was no time to delay any longer. Even weakened, Chen Xing was far beyond her capabilities.
She had no choice but to endure and attempt another space jump.
Though it would cause severe damage to her body, Ning Xuan felt it was necessary to escape and relay the information about Chen Xing's discovery of their sabotage of the altar, as well as the location of the zombie horde, to Ning Yu.
With this thought, Ning Xuan's eyes hardened with determination. Her mechanical wings trembled for a moment before retracting, causing her to plummet downward.
This also happened to help her dodge another incoming dark-gray energy beam.
Retracting her wings wasn't just for evasion—it was also to conserve energy.
All the prosthetic devices on her body dimmed, and twisted black energy began to swirl around her as the space jump was initiated once more.
"I've been waiting for you, you little fleeing insect."
Chen Xing suddenly flashed a sly smile. She leaped into one of the light screens beside her and emerged from the one closest to Ning Xuan.
Now, the two were face to face!
Without hesitation, Chen Xing thrust the black-and-white cross-shaped longsword forward.
It pierced straight through Ning Xuan's chest.
Though Ning Xuan had disabled her pain receptors, she was still shocked by Chen Xing's sudden attack. Black flames began to spread from the sword, burning and corroding her mechanical prosthetics.
"Where do you think you're..."
Before Chen Xing could finish her sentence, Ning Xuan's space jump activated, distorting the air around them.
This time, the spatial rift swallowed both of them.
"...going to run."
Chen Xing's remaining words echoed in another space. Her cross-shaped longsword was still impaled through Ning Xuan.
She frowned slightly, seemingly affected by the space jump, feeling a strange pressure.
Ning Xuan, on the other hand, was too weak to even speak. Two consecutive space jumps had completely drained her body.
Coupled with the fatal wound in her chest, all her mechanical visual aids had shut down due to low energy, leaving only her natural vision.
Even then, her vision was beginning to blur. The black flames spreading from her chest were thoroughly destroying her body.
Pain began to seep back into her chest as her pain receptors started to fail with the destruction of her prosthetics.
Her face was deathly pale, and beads of sweat formed on her forehead.
"Die."
Chen Xing gave her no further chances. She yanked the sword out and flung Ning Xuan against a nearby wall, creating a massive dent.
Ning Xuan's body fell like a withered leaf, collapsing to the ground.
Her prosthetic devices were severely malfunctioning, sparks and arcs of electricity crackling across her body. Scattered on the ground were transistors that had fallen from her.
Ning Xuan struggled, using her one remaining functional arm to try and push herself up, but she only managed to lift herself a few centimeters before collapsing again.
Chen Xing looked down at her with pity, walking over slowly and planting the cross-shaped longsword into the ground. She stared down at Ning Xuan with a cold gaze.
"How pitiful."
"Why... why did you... kill my sister...?"
Ning Xuan ignored Chen Xing's mockery, using her last moments to ask the question that had haunted her.
"You, you, my dear counterfeit, don't you have anything you want for yourself? Everything you do is for your sister, your sister."
"Your very existence is a lie. You probably don't even know that, but it's too late now."
Chen Xing raised her hand, aiming it at Ning Xuan's head. Energy began to rapidly gather.
Unbeknownst to Ning Xuan, two tubes had appeared at the back of her head, filled with a flowing blue liquid.
She managed a weak smile, lifting her head to meet Chen Xing's gaze without fear. Blue tears began to stream from her eyes.
"I... I will protect everything that belongs to my sister."