Honkai Star Rail: I Became the World Tree — Chapter 79

Chapter 79: Brutal, Brutal, and Still Brutal

A concentrated barrage of elemental fire and piercing arrows rained down from the Mage and Archer Squads, slamming into the vanguard of the enemy. The combined assault successfully sheared the health bars of two Goblin Boar Riders down past the halfway mark, but the beasts barely flinched.

Snorting aggressively, the three Goblin Boar Riders continued their high-speed charge, their heavy hooves tearing up the dungeon floor.

Seeing the sheer momentum of the beasts, Herta’s expression tightened into a sharp scowl. “Stelle! March! Dan Heng! Stop them right there! Do not let them break our formation!”

Hearing the command, Stelle, March 7th, and Dan Heng immediately broke from the defensive line, weapons drawn as they rushed out to meet the charging cavalry head-on.

March 7th slid to a halt, drawing her bowstring back until it hummed with freezing energy. “Ice Arrow!”

A crystalline bolt of frost shot across the battlefield, striking the center Goblin Boar Rider dead on. In a heartbeat, thick layers of jagged ice bloomed outward, instantly freezing both the rider and its mount into a solid, immobile statue.

With the center neutralized, Stelle and Dan Heng split off to intercept the remaining two.

Her expression deadpan but serious, Stelle gripped the hilt of her Standard Longsword with both hands, planting her feet firmly as the massive boar barreled toward her.

“Uppercut!”

She swung the heavy blade upward in a brutal, rising arc. The kinetic force of the skill caught the Goblin Boar Rider right under the jaw, launching the heavy beast and its screaming rider entirely off the ground.

On the other flank, Dan Heng lacked hard crowd-control skills, but he made up for it with lethal precision. Gripping his Standard Spear in one hand, he calculated the trajectory of the charging beast and hurled the weapon like a javelin.

The spear tore through the air and impaled the goblin atop the boar, instantly depleting a massive twenty-five percent chunk of its health bar.

Heavily injured and shrieking in pain, the goblin lost its balance and tumbled hard onto the dirt. Before the creature could even attempt to scramble back to its feet, Dan Heng closed the distance in a blur of motion. He delivered a crushing kick to the goblin’s chest, pinning it down as he grabbed the shaft of his spear. With a casual, fluid twist of his wrist, he wrenched the blade free and dragged the tip across the goblin’s neck. A spray of crimson erupted before the monster shattered into digital light.

Stelle finished her fight just as quickly. As her target plummeted back down from the Uppercut, she pivoted on her heel and followed up with a devastating Oni Slash, cleaving the Goblin Boar Rider in two before it even hit the ground.

“Stelle! Dan Heng! Fall back!” Herta’s voice cut through the noise of the battlefield. “The main goblin force is about to collide with you!”

Glancing up, Stelle and Dan Heng saw a massive, surging tide of green skin and rusted iron rushing toward them. They immediately disengaged, sprinting back to the safety of the rear lines.

Seconds after they slipped back into formation, the main horde—led by three towering Goblin Warriors—crashed violently into the Herta Legion.

The impact was deafening. Seele, Welt, and Bronya anchored the front line, leading the Herta Legion in a desperate, grinding resistance. Casualties began to mount instantly on both sides.

A blur of violet and black, Seele darted through the chaos. The massive scythe in her hands swung in rapid, deadly arcs, continuously reaping the lives of the smaller goblins that tried to swarm her.

Meanwhile, the Herta Puppet Assassin Squad, which had been lying in wait in the shadows of the dungeon’s flanks, finally struck. Moving with terrifying mechanical synchronization, they lunged out from the sides, bypassing the fodder to aim directly for the Big Goblins.

Every single member of the Assassin Squad was Level 6. The level suppression made it incredibly easy for them to dismantle the Big Goblins, their daggers flashing as they quickly and efficiently harvested the brutes’ lives.

Back at the rear, Stelle and Dan Heng stood as the final line of defense. Their sole mission was to protect the fragile Archer and Mage Squads. Any stray goblin that managed to slip past Seele and the front line was immediately intercepted and executed by the duo.

As long as the ranged attackers could cast uninterrupted, this battle was still winnable.

But the field was locked in a brutal, grinding stalemate. The sheer volume of enemies was suffocating. There were easily over two hundred ordinary goblins swarming the cavern, and they simply couldn’t be killed fast enough.

Welt raised his cane, locking onto one of the massive Goblin Warriors. He fired a Dark Magic Bullet, the condensed gravity sphere slamming into the brute’s chest to successfully draw its aggro away from the fragile puppets. Nearby, Screwllum and Ruan Mei coordinated their attacks to lock down another Goblin Warrior.

As the minutes dragged on, the attrition grew severe. The numbers on both sides plummeted rapidly.

Eventually, only the three Goblin Warriors and a few dozen ordinary goblins remained standing. But the cost had been staggering. The Herta Legion’s Warrior Squad and Assassin Squad had been completely wiped out, their mechanical bodies shattered. Seele, Bronya, Natasha, and Ruan Mei had all sustained fatal damage, their bodies dissolving into light as the dungeon forcibly teleported them out to prevent true death.

Stelle stood amidst the wreckage, resting her hands on her knees as she gasped for air. She wiped a thick layer of sweat and grime from her forehead, glaring at the remaining goblins who were still putting up a desperate, frenzied struggle.

“It’s time to decide the winner!”

Forcing herself upright, Stelle hoisted her Standard Longsword and charged straight toward the Goblin Warrior currently trying to crush Screwllum. Dan Heng didn’t waste a word, spinning his spear as he sprinted over to relieve the pressure on Welt.

A few grueling minutes later, the final goblin fell.

Silence descended on the dungeon, broken only by the heavy breathing of the survivors.

March 7th immediately dropped her bow and plopped down onto the sandy ground, completely ignoring the dirt. “I’m exhausted… So tired. So tired! There were just way too many of them!”

Around them, the remaining Herta Puppets stood perfectly still, looking as fresh as they had at the start of the raid. They were mechanical bodies; as long as their energy cores were supplied, the concept of physical fatigue simply did not exist for them.

Stelle dragged her feet over and collapsed into the dirt next to March 7th. “Tsk, tsk. If they throw this many goblins at us just to promote to a D-rank Adventurers Guild, I don’t even want to know what the later exams look like.” She let out a long breath. “Given how crazy that was, I reckon Furina and the others won’t have it easy. The Gardes’ average level is way too low. There’s no way they can withstand a fierce onslaught from a horde that big.”

March 7th nodded emphatically, rubbing her sore arms. “Yeah, it’s going to be super hard for Furina’s team. It’ll probably take them a long time to clear this dungeon.”

Suddenly, a crisp, electronic chime echoed in the minds of everyone present.

[Congratulations on successfully completing the Adventurers Guild D-rank Promotion Challenge Dungeon!]

[The Star Adventure Group has been upgraded to a D-rank Adventurers Guild.]

[Guild capacity increased to 1,000 members. New positions unlocked: 3 Elders and 1 Deputy Leader.]

[Position permissions adjusted: The Deputy Leader now possesses the authority to invite members into the guild. Elders possess the permission to open the teleportation gate.]

[C-rank Adventurers Guild promotion quest has been released.]

[Promotion Condition 1: Accumulate 100,000 experience points.]

[Promotion Condition 2: Have at least 200 Level 5 adventurers in the guild.]

[Promotion Condition 3: Kill a Level 40 enemy.]

As the electronic voice faded, a pillar of blue light enveloped Stelle and the remaining survivors, teleporting them out of the dungeon and back to the Source Continent.

A short while earlier, at the Holy City Square.

Furina stood near the dungeon entrance, a creeping sense of terror rising in her chest as she watched the flashes of teleportation light. One by one, shattered Herta Puppets were being continuously ejected from the instance.

Most of these puppets were Level 6, with only a handful at Level 5. Yet these elite, tireless machines were being eliminated at a terrifyingly rapid pace.

When the familiar figures of Seele and Bronya materialized in the square, both looking battered and frustrated, Furina had to take a deep, steadying breath to hide her nerves.

“The fighting in there must be absolutely intense!” Furina said, her voice pitching up slightly. “Is it really that difficult?”

Beside her, Seele crossed her arms, looking thoroughly dejected. “Yeah, it was brutal. You have no idea. There were just too many of them. I was basically hacked to death in the sheer chaos of it all. Once the two sides clashed, we were completely surrounded by a sea of green. There was no end to them.”

Bronya nodded, her usual composed demeanor ruffled. “Indeed. And then there were the Goblin Warriors. I was caught off guard and decapitated by one of them. The battlefield was far too chaotic… with enemies swarming from every conceivable angle, it was impossible to watch my own back.”

Zhongli stood a few paces away, his arms folded and his golden eyes grave as he analyzed the situation. “It seems the promotion challenge for our Justice Adventure Team will have to be postponed for a while. With our current overall strength, there is a high probability we will not pass.”

Neuvillette, standing tall and stoic beside him, nodded in quiet agreement. “Yes. The Herta Legion is entirely composed of units Level 5 and above. In contrast, the vast majority of our Gardes are still Level 3, with only a select few having reached Level 4.”

The Chief Justice’s gaze swept over the ejected puppets. “, our equipment cannot compare to the Herta Legion’s armaments. Their Warrior Squad wears Standard Armor and carries Standard Longswords, yet they were the first to be eliminated. In barely a minute, ten well-equipped elites were completely overwhelmed. Given the current physical parameters of our Gardes, I fear we would not be able to withstand the initial goblin charge.”

Nahida looked up, her expression thoughtful. “The members of the Gardes are all human. Unlike the puppets, they experience fatigue, and more, fear. Once a battle line begins to collapse under that kind of pressure, it will severely affect their morale.”

Furina bit her lip, her dramatic bravado fading into serious determination. She turned to the quiet duelist standing dutifully by her side.

“Clorinde,” Furina ordered, her tone uncharacteristically firm. “Starting tomorrow, you no longer need to be responsible for my personal safety. Take the Gardes out into the field. I want you to lead them to level up and collect gold coins around the clock.”

She gestured toward the dungeon gate. “Bring the Gardes up to the current strength of the Herta Puppet Legion. As quickly as possible.”

Clorinde met Furina’s gaze, her expression unreadable, and gave a single, crisp nod in response.