Volume 1, Chapter 38: New Armor

In the following days, Xia Chen's life remained largely unchanged.

His squad with Ana carried out several more Honkai missions without encountering significant difficulties. Or rather, given the current level of Honkai Events, very few situations could be considered truly challenging.

However, due to a shortage of personnel, neither Xia Chen nor Ana received any new teammates.

Without additional members, even though their titles were established, they couldn't leave Headquarters for the defense districts. The work in those areas was complex, requiring more than just two individuals.

Moreover, unlike typical A-rank Valkyries who might be deployed elsewhere, they likely wouldn't be reassigned anytime soon.

With Xia Chen confirmed to possess Stigmata, his potential needed reassessment. Releasing him now would undoubtedly be a waste of his exceptional talent.

Meanwhile, Ana had been frequently summoned by the Science Division for experiments related to the Schariac holy blood. Their attitude towards her seemed subtly different.

Xia Chen understood that after using the holy blood, Ana's value within Schicksal significantly increased.

After all, the last member of House Schariac capable of liberating holy blood was Cecilia herself.

During this period, Xia Chen restrained himself from simulating, even though it meant wasting three opportunities per week. He needed time to regain composure; otherwise, he felt he might eventually lose his sanity.

However, abstaining from simulations resulted in Red Sakura consuming all his Honkai Fragments, leaving none behind.

Two weeks later, Rita brought Xia Chen a new set of Valkyrie Armor.

"This is your custom-made armor, improved upon the Mark-III Valkyrie Armor foundation." She smiled and explained, "The researchers at the Saint Institute deemed redesigning the entire third-generation armor for adapting to Stigmata's power somewhat wasteful. Instead, they've just added this functionality. Once you become an S-rank Valkyrie, the research institute will have you test their latest armor designs. So, make do with this one for now."

"A new armor?" Xia Chen clearly grasped the key point and asked eagerly, "Vice-Captain, you mean..."

"That's right," she confirmed. "The fourth-generation Valkyrie Armors, also named after 'Moon,' have been developed. I spoke with Lady Nagamitsu; the high-firepower combat armor, Knight of Embers - Moon's Embers, has already completed its design phase, passed theoretical testing, and is now seeking suitable candidates."

"Additionally, the external-type Honkai Energy activated armor, Blood Knight - Moon's Radiance, along with the Herrscher-focused combat armor, True Red Knight - Moon Eclipse, have both finished production and undergone theoretical testing."

"The threshold for using Fourth-Gen Valkyrie Armor is S-rank. You'll reach it soon enough, keep up the good work."

Xia Chen nodded firmly. "Thank you."

He was well aware of the difference between the third and fourth generations of Valkyrie Armor.

If the Mark-III Valkyrie Armor perfectly assisted Valkyries in harnessing Honkai Energy for combat, then the Fourth-Gen Valkyrie Armor transformed them into monstrous warriors.

However, each fourth-generation armor requires substantial amounts of Honkai Energy to operate, necessitating exceptionally high Honkai Energy resistance from the Valkyries—S-rank being merely the minimum requirement.

However, while he was aware of Yue Huang and Moon Eclipse, he had never heard of Moon's Embers.

In the version he knew before his transmigration, only a few Herrschers remained unfeatured, and the standard Fourth-Gen Valkyrie Armor seemed outdated compared to newer iterations.

Now, Rita informed him that upon becoming an S-rank, he would qualify to wear the Fourth-Gen Valkyrie Armor, significantly enhancing his survivability.

"I'll strive for it."

"Thank you, Vice-Captain."

"Don't mention it," Rita shook her head and said, "Change into it, then follow me."

One cannot deny Schicksal's exceptionally high technological standards.

The newly assigned Mark-III Valkyrie Armor closely resembled his previous one but seamlessly integrated with the Stigmata's power, even amplifying it to some extent.

He wasn't sure how they achieved this, but after several trials with Rita, the result became evident—the temperature in the vast training room dropped dramatically.

This was the ability bestowed upon him by the Stigma.

Similar to the Herrscher of Ice's authority, he could lower the surrounding temperature and instantly freeze objects.

However, possibly due to his lack of familiarity, Xia Chen often affected a wide area but struggled to match the Herrscher of Ice's potency, which could freeze entire Coral Island effortlessly.

Despite this, it remained a terrifying capability.

"Innate Stigmata... truly fortunate indeed."

Even Rita couldn't help but express her admiration.

Her body, for unique reasons, perfectly adapted to artificial Stigmata, yet these lacked a crucial element compared to natural ones.

As a result, her potential was limited to what an ordinary person could achieve.

To say she wasn't envious would be a lie, but her mindset remained positive.

At least as Xia Chen grew stronger, he could shoulder some of Durandal's responsibilities.

Mastering the Stigma's power was not something achieved overnight; from a certain perspective, it could be even more complex than Honkai Energy.

Currently, for Xia Chen to fully harness this strength, there is only one viable path: communicating with the consciousness within the Stigma.

This principle is similar to how Seele addresses her 'other self.'

Without such communication, utilizing this power becomes exceedingly difficult and limited in effectiveness.

Xia Chen has attempted to engage with the Stigma's consciousness, but while emotions were conveyed, establishing meaningful dialogue proved elusive. He only knew that she would not deny his request for assistance.

However, like Seele, Xia Chen shares a similar mindset, preferring not to overly rely on the Stigma's consciousness.

During this period, aside from continuously adapting to the Stigma's power, he spent each day challenging various memory fragments in the Memory Battlefield.

Now, Low-rank Honkai Beasts were no match for him, but Imperial Rank Honkai Beasts still posed a formidable challenge. Each time in the Memory Battlefield, he found himself battered by these powerful creatures.

Unless Ana unleashed the full extent of the Stigma's power, overcoming them solely relied heavily on his own abilities. Of course, if he utilized the Stigma, these Imperial Rank Honkai Beasts would struggle against him instead.

As Xia Chen's scores in the Memory Battlefield steadily increased, it marked a remarkable rise in his combat capabilities.

Occasionally, when Durandal showed interest and sparred with him without their armors, Xia Chen managed to last for five minutes this time.

Surviving five minutes was already a remarkable feat. It indicated that Xia Chen could withstand a full round of attacks from Durandal, even though she remained formidable without her armor. Five minutes is ample time for her to unleash significant damage.

His eventual defeat stemmed solely from physical inadequacy and lack of experience. Nonetheless, it was still something to be proud of.

However, Xia Chen wasn't satisfied. He yearned to further enhance his abilities.

After completing his training, he returned to his room. Pulling the curtains shut, he lay down on the bed.

[Schicksal World Simulator activated.]