As a weirdo, I like being a Kamen Rider

The ground was littered with the ashes of the opposition's high-ranking officials. These men, long accustomed to their positions, had long since lost their fighting instincts, possessing only the empty shells of Orpheus. They couldn't keep up with Orpheus's super-accelerated movements at all, and were completely and unilaterally suppressed, unable to mount even a decent counterattack.

On the other side, Sudo Kirihiko transformed into Burst Caesar and relentlessly entangled Murakami Kyoji. He fully activated the super-speed characteristic of Burst Mode, his body surging with orange light, repeatedly charging at extreme speed to close the distance, blocking movement, unleashing bursts of power at point-blank range, and unleashing a barrage of heavy punches and short-range photon impacts, his attacks swift and fierce.

But every time an attack is about to lock onto its target, Murakami Kyoji's figure transforms into a shower of rose petals, dodging through the gaps in the dense attacks, and instantly reshaping itself elsewhere.

His countless attempts to break through at high speed all failed.

The sudden appearance of more than a dozen figures landing on the ground broke the stalemate on the battlefield.

Murakami Kyoji's eyes sharpened, and flower petals surged forth from her body once more, engulfing the few remaining high-ranking opposition figures clinging to life in the arena. They retreated rapidly like a tide, forming a defensive line in front of the newly arrived Orphnoch team.

Seeing this, Hanagata stopped his super-accelerated charge and quickly retreated to Lin Chen's side with Kirihiko.

Chapter 220 Forceful Suppression and the Shrine Maiden

The withered yellow grass on the field was swept down and bounced up by the strong wind. The gray sky pressed heavily on the open field, and the two groups of people faced each other from a distance of several dozen meters.

Murakami Kyoji's face was ashen, filled with barely suppressed rage. He swept his gaze across the mess of dust and debris, his eyes fixed on Lin Chen, and he demanded sharply, "Lin Chen, and Hanagata! You really are traitors to Orphnoch!"

At the shareholders' meeting, a single disagreement led to the brutal slaughter of one's own kind? They merely disagreed with your potion-making scheme that rendered them powerless, yet you dared to order the massacre of dissidents!

Upon hearing this, the three members of Kitasaki, who had been forcibly pulled in by the dimensional barrier, were shocked and instantly understood the whole story of the changes at headquarters.

The three of them transformed into Orphnoch forms and stood in a line alongside Murakami Kyoji; behind them, a dozen or so Orphnochs also tensed up, their chilling killing intent pressing down on the opposite side with the wind.

Lin Chen remained calm, as if he hadn't heard the accusation of "traitor" at all. His gaze swept lightly over the group of people in the village: "It seems that you are the last obstacle on the road to the potion's implementation." He paused, his voice deep and clear, "Gentlemen, for the true future of Orphino, please die."

Upon hearing Lin Chen's words, Kirihiko, transformed into Explosive Caesar, and Hanagata, transformed into Goat Orphnoch, were about to step forward to attack again, but Lin Chen stopped them.

Hanagata frowned slightly: "President, there are quite a few of them..."

"No need." Lin Chen interrupted directly, glancing at the large group of people opposite him. "A bunch of rabble, I alone am enough."

These words completely ignited the anger of the opposing side. Murakami shouted sharply, "Arrogant! Everyone, attack together! I don't believe he can stop so many of us by himself!"

At Murakami's signal, more than a dozen Orphnochs moved simultaneously. Their roars shattered the silence of the wilderness, and their mutated claws, whip blades, and bone spikes gleamed coldly as they pounced on Lin Chen from all directions, clearly intending to wear him down with sheer numbers.

Seeing this, Lin Chen raised his hand and put on the Orga belt.

"Standby!"

Dark golden photon blood gushed from his waist and abdomen, rapidly spreading throughout his body via the tubes. The thick, black Earth Emperor armor was layered and interlocked, the bone spikes on his shoulders gleaming with a cold light. The moment his scarlet compound eyes lit up, a terrifying sense of oppression pressed down on him as if it were a tangible force.

The next second, Lin Chen's figure suddenly disappeared from the spot.

A dark golden afterimage weaved through the crowd, the wind from his punches carrying a sharp, piercing sound, each strike accompanied by the muffled thud of bones shattering.

An armadillo with a thick shell swung its claw at the back of his head. Lin Chen turned his head to the side, swung his right arm, and his elbow slammed into the center of the armadillo's breastplate. The rock-hard exoskeleton caved in instantly, and the massive body flew backward like a kite with a broken string, bursting into blue flames in mid-air before landing as nothing but a handful of sand.

Two Orphnochs from the other side attacked from the left and right, their claws aimed straight for the throat and waist.

Lin Chen neither dodged nor evaded, but crossed his arms to take the blows head-on. His sharp claws only sparked as they grazed the dark gold armor. He then grabbed the wrists of both men with his other hand, and with a slight exertion, the sound of bones cracking rang out crisply. Before they could even scream, he flung his hands away, and the two figures collided violently. The immense impact caused both bodies to instantly disintegrate into a cloud of gray smoke.

Within ten seconds, most of the dozen or so Orphnochs that had charged forward were dead. The remaining few stood frozen in place, staring at the sand and dust scattered by the wind, their eyes filled with fear, and none dared to take another step forward.

"What a piece of trash!"

Seeing this, Kitasaki couldn't help but speak up, immediately transforming into a dragon-man and leaping out. He pushed his speed to the limit, his claws wrapped in purple lightning slashing straight at Lin Chen's face. Behind him, Takuma Itsuki lashed out with a centipede whip, its body winding like a venomous snake towards Lin Chen's legs. Kageyama Saeko circled around from behind with her sword, the three of them still cooperating perfectly.

Lin Chen glanced up and then slightly shifted his stance.

Kitasaki's lightning claws were already upon him. Lin Chen raised his arm to block, the claws colliding with his arm armor, sparks flying and purple lightning scattering along the armor plates. Before Kitasaki could change his attack, Lin Chen's fist slammed into his abdomen. The immense force penetrated his internal organs, Kitasaki groaned, his body arching like a shrimp, flying backward and collapsing a half-person-high embankment.

Kageyama Saeko's rapier pierced Lin Chen's nape. Without turning his head, Lin Chen grabbed her wrist with his other hand, twisted it slightly, and the rapier clattered to the ground. He then used his elbow to push back, slamming it heavily into Saeko's shoulder armor, causing her to stagger back several steps.

Kitazaki crawled out of the earthen mound, supporting himself with his claw blades. He switched back to his demon form, and his claws simultaneously gathered dazzling silver light. The two lightning cannons merged into one, carrying a world-destroying momentum as they blasted towards Lin Chen.

Lin Chen drew the Earth Emperor Sword from his waist, charging it with his photon blood. The golden photon blade collided violently with the lightning cannon. In a deafening roar, the lightning shattered inch by inch, the aftershocks exploding in all directions, flattening the surrounding weeds. Bei Qi was thrown back by the shockwave and crashed heavily to the ground.

Murakami Kyoji never expected Lin Chen to be so powerful. Her figure blurred and transformed into a shower of rose petals, scattering around Lin Chen. Explosions rang out as they approached him.

Even after the explosion, Lin Chen remained standing. He suddenly raised his hand, and an invisible force field exploded outwards from him. The next second, he flashed and instantly appeared at the center of the gathered petals, throwing a punch straight out.

"puff--"

Murakami Kyoji's form was forced to solidify as he took a solid punch to the chest. He staggered backward, his face pale, his eyes filled with disbelief. His opponent had actually seen through his state at a glance.

Amidst the chaos, Murakami stood with his last remaining strength, supported by Kitasaki, Saeko, and Takuma. All the opposition's trump cards were utterly ineffective against overwhelming power.

Lin Chen slowly walked up to the four people.

Goodbye, everyone!

He typed the ultimate command on his Orga phone:

"Exceed Charge!"

Dark golden photon blood surged wildly along the sword, and the blade, which was originally less than a meter long, suddenly grew to tens of meters long, stretching across the wilderness. The light was so bright that people couldn't open their eyes, and the air around the blade was scorched and distorted.

Lin Chen gripped his sword with both hands, his gaze calmly sweeping over the four pale-faced men.

With a flick of his wrist, a light blade tens of meters long swept horizontally towards Murakami and the three clovers with earth-shattering force.

Wherever the blade of light passed, the weeds instantly turned to ash, a deep furrow was plowed into the ground, and a strong wind whipped up sand and dust into the sky. The shadow of death loomed over them, and the four men's pupils shrank, but they no longer had the strength to dodge.

A dark golden blade of light, tens of meters long, swept across the land with a scorching heatwave. Where it passed, the wild grass instantly turned to charred ash, and the hard soil was plowed into deep, scorched trenches several meters wide. A powerful wind whipped up dust, and the shadow of death loomed over the four villagers. Their pupils constricted, their muscles tensed, but they were too exhausted to even raise their arms to block. They could only watch helplessly as the blade hurtled towards them.

Just as the light blade was about to engulf the four, a soft yet dazzling golden light suddenly appeared. No one saw when she appeared; the blonde woman was already standing quietly in front of them. Fragments of white-gold light floated around her, her long hair moved without wind in the surging air waves, and with a light wave of her hand, specks of golden light scattered out like fireflies.

The moment the golden light touched them, it transformed into a thin membrane of light that enveloped Murakami Kyoji, Kitasaki, Kageyama Saeko, and Takuma Itsuki. Before the four could even utter a cry of surprise, their figures faded into the golden light along with the golden-haired figure, leaving only scattered golden stardust, motionless amidst the whistling blades of light.

"boom--!!"

The giant light blade slammed down on the ground, causing the earth to tremble violently. Debris and scorched earth flew everywhere, leaving only a terrifying ravine spanning dozens of meters. The spot where the four people had just stood was now empty.

Lin Chen maintained his sword-wielding posture, a rare look of astonishment flashing in his amber compound eyes.

He stopped his sword strike, and the blade of the Earth Emperor Sword slowly returned to its normal length. His brows furrowed tightly beneath his dark gold armor.

From the start of the war until now, everything has been under his control. However, the golden light appeared without any warning, and even his spiritual perception failed to detect its presence beforehand. The fact that the opponent was able to calmly rescue four people despite his deadly attack was far beyond his expectations.

"How could this be... Lady Shrine Maiden?!"

Suddenly, a startled cry came from behind. The goat Orphnoch's form rapidly faded, and he stood there with disheveled white hair, staring blankly in the direction where the golden light had dissipated, his face full of disbelief, even his voice trembling almost imperceptibly.

Upon hearing this, Lin Chen turned around, his Earth Emperor armor retracted, and he returned to his appearance in a suit.

"Mr. Hanagata, what's going on?" His gaze swept across the empty wilderness, finally settling on Hanagata's face, his tone carrying an unavoidable seriousness, "That woman just now, is she the mysterious shrine maiden you've been mentioning?"

He paused, his voice turning colder: "Now, tell me, who exactly is this witch? The potion is about to be rolled out, and I don't want any unknown entities in my plans!"

Soft jazz music still played softly in Bar Clover, the bar glasses were neatly arranged, and all was quiet.

A soft golden light suddenly exploded in mid-air, and the dazzling golden light enveloped the entire booth. Murakami, Kitasaki, Takuma, and Saeko Kageyama appeared out of thin air.

The group was tense, their faces still showing the terror of facing a deadly blade dozens of meters away, and their limbs trembled slightly.

They looked around the familiar bar in a daze, exchanged glances, their eyes filled with confusion and bewilderment. Neither of them could explain why they had been in a deadly situation one second and had been teleported here the next.

A clear, cool female voice rang out from behind the group: "We have finally met, everyone."

The four turned around abruptly and saw a golden-haired figure dressed in white, surrounded by a soft light, standing quietly with white light flowing around him. After a moment, the light enveloping his body slowly receded, revealing his complete face clearly.

Murakami, Takuma, and Kitasaki were all shocked. The three of them took turns looking back and forth between the mysterious woman and Saeko Kageyama beside them, and the two faces were exactly the same.

Saeko Kageyama was equally shocked and took half a step forward: "Who are you? The figure I saw in the mirror back then was not just my imagination at all."

The blonde woman's gentle gaze fell upon her, and she spoke softly, each word clear: "That was not an illusion. I am Saeko Kageyama, you from the future."

Chapter 221 The Golden Fruit!

In a traditional Japanese garden deep in the mountains, only a warm yellow floor lamp illuminated the room, and the wine cooled. Hanagata sat at a low table, his brows furrowed with a heavy sense of melancholy, and slowly recounted the past to Lin Chen and Sudo Kirihiko.

"When I was young, I was obsessed with expanding the Orpheus race. I was extremely ambitious and spent all my time buried in the research institute, frantically researching transformation technology, hoping to make the Orpheus surpass humans. That night, I was the only one left in the laboratory when that blonde witch appeared out of nowhere in front of me."

Lin Chen sat up slightly and listened quietly, while Sudo Kirihiko also waited intently for what was to come.

"As soon as she opened her mouth, she directly pointed out the fate that all of us Orphnochs would eventually turn to sand. At that time, I just thought it was absurd and believed it was a trap set by the enemy. I didn't believe her words at all."

Hanagata picked up the cold wine and took a sip, his fingertips lightly tapping the wooden table: "To verify its authenticity, I searched through ancient books and the death records of the higher-ranking Orpheus. The premature aging and bodily deterioration recorded in the ancient books matched perfectly with the fate she spoke of. In the years that followed, all the disasters she predicted came true, and I had no choice but to believe that what she said was true."

"It was also with her help that Smart Brain grew bigger and bigger."

"Over the years, she has only appeared occasionally, leaving behind fragmented prophecies. I have asked her about her origins countless times, but she has never spoken of them."

I asked her why she was helping me like this, and she only said it was for the future of the Orphnochs. Then she told me a prophecy: the Destroyer of the Orphnochs would descend from another world and eventually devour all the Orphnochs…”

...

Hanagata recounted the story for a long time, which also helped Lin Chen understand the general origins of the shrine maiden.

As for the general meaning of the prophecy, it can be understood that a person very similar to oneself will come into this world and become a strategist-like figure, bringing Smart Brain the technology to stably transform humans into Orphnochs.

Then, with his help, the Orphnochs soon began to appear in large numbers, and the number of humans dwindled until only a few scattered survivors remained. The Orphnochs then became the rulers of this world.

However, the fate of desertification haunted the entire tribe. In order to resolve this, despite knowing that the king's awakening required consuming a large number of Orphnochs, they still began to awaken the king.

Meanwhile, Kageyama Saeko from the future is also telling Murakami and the others about her experiences in the future.

After Wang awakened, problems suddenly arose.

Temporary small fissures began to appear intermittently throughout Tokyo. These fissures were less than two meters wide and would close on their own within minutes of appearing, so they didn't pay much attention to them at first.

But those fissures are not just simple switches; some special plant spores have been released into this world.

The scattered spores landed in the soil and cracks in walls, quickly taking root and growing into low shrubs that bore fruits resembling dragon fruit. Some Orphnochs were very curious about this amazing thing, and after eating the fruit, they would become stronger and stronger, so all the Orphnochs began to flock to it.

But there's no such thing as a free lunch. Some Orpheus became powerful after eating those fruits, but their bodies also became deformed. Since they were already monstrous to begin with, they weren't taken seriously.

Before long, large permanent cracks began to appear in streets, residential areas, bridges, commercial areas, underground pipelines and other areas.

Giant vines spread wildly outward from the cracks, their vitality completely overwhelming native plants on Earth. Grasses, flowers, and trees wither and rot rapidly, and the soil and groundwater are polluted by the special toxins released by those plants.

Vines stretched along building walls and roads, entwining buildings and vehicles, covering large areas of the city with woodland. Despite this, the fruit grew in abundance. Tokyo became a sacred place for the Orphnochs.

This situation gradually spread beyond Tokyo and began to extend to other parts of the world.

Dimensional rifts have appeared in cities, wilderness areas, and around oceans around the world, and vegetation has spread to all parts of the world.

Those Orphnochs who consumed large quantities of the fruit also began to experience serious problems; their sanity completely disappeared, and they transformed into a very peculiar monster.

It developed a plant-like exoskeleton on its body and possessed the ability to assimilate other Orphnochs into its own kind.

If these are the only issues, it's not a big problem.