South Asian subcontinent, Kerala, Padmanabhaswamy Temple.
Legend has it that this temple was built in the 16th century, commissioned by the king of the princely state of Travancore, who ruled this region at the time.
For centuries, local rumors claimed that the Travancore king buried vast amounts of his wealth within the thick brick walls and underground chambers of the Padmanabhaswamy Temple.
Why is the temple adorned with an abundance of serpent-shaped reliefs and painted motifs? Is it due to the traditional reverence for serpents on the South Asian subcontinent? (In Christian culture, the serpent symbolizes evil, but in Hindu belief, it is sacred and holy.) Perhaps that is part of the reason.
Most people only know that the temple contains treasures worth countless fortunes, measured in tons. What they fail to notice is this—
Why did the king of Travancore choose to build it here in the first place? Why bury so many tons of gold and jewels within it?
Because beneath this place, there truly sleeps a "serpent."
Deep underground, within a dim and ethereal space of light and shadow, a pitch-black silhouette lay coiled over the control hub of a shelter, exuding a silent pressure outward.
It was clearly not a natural being.
Or rather... a MANTIS.
Luminous eyes opened within the darkness. In the woman's lingering, reminiscent gaze, reflected the images projected by a holographic display.
"Fifty thousand years... and this is the result."
As a region inhabited by the upper castes, the area surrounding the temple—this unnamed tributary compared to the main current of the Ganges—was undoubtedly far clearer and cleaner, rippling with shimmering waves at a glance.
Golden light from the slanting sun descended like a long serpent from the horizon, draping the land in a veil of evening glow.
Narrow leaves—of an unknown species—grew in lush clusters, planted along the riverbanks beside the temple, along the steps, and throughout the courtyards and green fields.
Although greenery had once again sprouted from soil that had been burned barren fifty thousand years ago, the woman's gaze was clearly not upon the scenery.
She was observing the humans of the Current Era.
Unfortunately, the results were unsatisfactory... or more accurately, they failed to meet her comrades' predictions. As for herself, she had long since held the most pessimistic view.
In the Previous Era, we failed. Even on the brink of extinction, humanity still fought among itself. What makes anyone believe the next era would be better?
It might even be worse.
"A polarized social hierarchy. Mountains of garbage. Crowded, foul living environments. Numb, lifeless—even ignorant civilians..."
"Look, Mei, Kevin, Elysia... the Project S.A.V.E you placed your hopes in—has achieved only this much."
"A society of steel and concrete, compressing living space to its limits. Humans packed like ants into narrow compartments. One does not even need to think to understand what this represents. Civilization? Nothing has changed at all."
Sharp emerald finger guards scraped across the display, producing a soft rasping sound as the images shifted continuously, fragmentary scenes turning into light and shadow reflected in her gradient-colored pupils.
Her eyes were peculiar—rare green-to-pink gradient vertical pupils, unfathomably deep and impossible to read.
If one were to meet her gaze, only a single word would likely come to mind.
Serpent.
Her identity required no explanation.
One of the Thirteen Flame-Chasers of MOTH, ranked tenth—[Infinity], Mobius.
The greatest scientist of the Previous Civilization second only to Dr. Mei, especially in the field of life sciences.
"No. You already knew. Just like your excellent instincts told you. You simply refused to admit the true reason humanity cannot defeat Honkai."
As though fifty thousand years of slumber had left her stifled, Mobius muttered to herself incessantly. Her expression shifted between indifference and mockery, unreadable as to what truly stirred within her heart.
"What is the root of tragedy? Honkai? Finality? Is it really? No. None of it. The true root lies in humanity's inherent flaws."
"As long as human civilization cannot unite with one will, gather all strength together, and stand as one, it will never defeat Finality. The absence of even a single individual makes it impossible!"
The strength of Honkai grows alongside civilization, always surpassing the total sum of that civilization by a margin.
Civilization suffers internal strife. People die. Opinions diverge. Allies share the same bed but dream different dreams. Traitors emerge.
Honkai does not care. It factors all of it into the calculation.
After years of research alongside Dr. Mei, Mobius had long suspected this.
At that thought, her serpent pupils narrowed slightly. She snorted softly and said coldly, "But how could it be otherwise? Even a small family harbors conflict, let alone billions of humans."
Mobius understood clearly.
As long as humanity retains its dark, base nature, such a civilization will be like a goldfish—biting again and again at bait coated in lethal poison.
Because humans are greedy.
Human desire is never satisfied...
Mobius gave a malicious smile.
"This? You call this progress? You're not even as good as we were."
"Those fools fought among themselves and scrambled for power, yet they still maintained a certain standard... but these people? They are difficult to even look at."
Mobius' tone dripped with disgust.
It was obvious.
She was profoundly dissatisfied—almost repulsed—by the state of development in the Current Era civilization within her region.
First impressions matter.
Had she awakened in Europe, the Far East, or North America, her initial judgment might have been far more favorable.
But in the South Asian subcontinent...
Aside from a small portion of lavish, pristine districts, most areas... well. Better left unsaid.
Filthy.
"Judging by humanity's current performance, no matter how I calculate it, expecting every single person to cast aside distractions and work together with absolute unity? Impossible! The moment Finality shows even a hint of restraint—" she snapped her fingers, "—boom. Humanity will slaughter itself."
Even without Honkai, new Pandora's boxes would be opened. New disasters would descend upon this world again and again, ravaging human civilization in endless cycles until destruction.
"And clearly, Finality achieved that. Using humanity's own armies to conquer humanity. Clever."
Her fingers passed through the holographic projection, pausing over the Auxilia, the Servitor Army soldiers—especially the Astartes.
"There is no doubt about the fluctuations of Honkai energy. They are enhanced warriors as well... but somehow, they seem more human than MANTISes."
Her emerald finger guards interlocked as she leaned against the console, asking herself the question. Then she lifted her head and stated with certainty:
"As I thought... evolution is humanity's only path forward. Standing still means extinction."
And at that moment—
"Doctor, please be wary of the Imperial Army under the Herrscher of Finality, especially the Legion Commanders of the Astartes Legions. According to our estimates, each of them is no weaker than Kevin Kaslana."
The hoarse voice pulled Mobius from her deep contemplation. She lifted her head slightly, looking toward the other side of the projection screen.
A black hooded sweatshirt. A bone-white monocular mask.
Gray Serpent.
"Oh?"
Mobius gazed at her "little lab rat" with faint curiosity.
"Are you certain? Not the Herrscher of Finality herself, nor the pseudo-Herrschers under her command—but these oversized officers? They're called Astartes?"
Her relationship with Kevin had never been particularly close—merely nodding acquaintances. In her mind, he had always been Mei's tagalong, a stubborn, one-track brute.
But she did not deny his strength.
Kevin, bearer of the Signet of Deliverance.
Even with the Moonlight Throne—designed specifically to weaken Honkai—supporting him, the fact that he could force the Herrscher of Finality into a twelve-hour shutdown with a full-powered strike was a feat Mobius admitted she could not replicate.
"Yes, Doctor. The Astartes Legions. Each Legion differs in heraldry and combat doctrine. I have engaged more than ten distinct Legions so far. The highest designation encountered was 'XIX.' There are at least nineteen Legions—nineteen Legion Commanders."
"Such a high production success rate..."
A faint tremor passed through Mobius' expression.
"Did Kevin use Judgment of Shamash?"
"He did."
As he spoke, Gray Serpent uploaded the final shared data from his destroyed body into Mobius' control core.
In an instant, the projection fragmented into more than a dozen smaller screens.
Within them, heavily armored giants in various color schemes crushed all resistance under the leadership of their officers—and in some cases, their Legion Commanders.
But what drew Mobius' attention most was Kevin Kaslana, besieged by two colossal figures.
Their battle reduced cities to dust.
Evaporated oceans.
Made the earth itself wail.
At that point, Mobius was certain.
Whether it was the blue-armored giant wielding an enlarged Judgment of Shamash, or the iron-gray titan of a man beside him—she would likely lose in direct combat against either of them.
After all, the ability she had fused with was not one of apocalyptic devastation.
Her strength lay elsewhere.
In something far stranger.
In immortality.
Long ago, upon discovering her regenerative capability, Mobius had deliberately sought to test the limits of "death," repeatedly provoking Kalpas into killing her.
Truly the mindset of a mad scientist.
Upon death, she could revive through "shedding," like a serpent sloughing its skin.
The price was enormous energy expenditure—and rejuvenation.
By the time she walked out of the training chamber after successive deaths, she had regressed from a mature woman into the body of a child.
"That is quite the pressure," Mobius remarked, watching Kevin being overwhelmed.
"Upload all remaining intelligence."
"The condition of the Current Era civilization is atrocious."
Humanity had not been annihilated as in the Previous Era. Most cities and industrial capacity remained intact.
Yet Mobius felt no relief.
At that moment, she almost wished the Herrscher of Finality had chosen total annihilation as before.
An enemy that thinks is far more dangerous than one driven solely by destruction.
What she feared was not that Finality would simply scour the surface—but that she would dig three feet deep, raze roots and foundations alike.
"Evolution... Humanity can evolve. Honkai can evolve. Naturally, the Herrscher of Finality can evolve as well."
She clicked her tongue.
What a ridiculous game.
"Doctor, all plans have failed. My suggestion is to wait—"
Suddenly, the shelter's detection systems shrieked.
"Strong Honkai energy fluctuation detected!"
"Severe spatial distortion detected!"
Mobius' expression shifted instantly.
"Who is it?!"
"Oh my~ The sleeping beauty has finally awakened. If not for Gray Serpent, locating your true body would have required quite the effort."
All of the Flame-Chasers' hibernation pods originated from a weapon that had once eradicated entire species—the Fifth Divine Key: Suspended Key · The Great Hibernation.
To personally atone for her mistakes, its creator, Vill-V, dismantled the weapon and repurposed it into multiple life-preserving hibernation chambers.
Swords into plowshares.
That was how the Flame-Chasers avoided detection by the Herrscher of Finality and slept unchanged for fifty thousand years.
Zzzzt—!
From a kaleidoscopic spatial gate stepped Selene.
Her armored gauntlet plunged into the shelter's control core. Azure data streams flooded the entire facility in an instant.
She surveyed the dim environment before locking her gaze onto Mobius.
"Isn't that right... little sleeping beauty?"
Exactly as in the memory construct within Elysian Realm.
Mobius possessed the body of a young girl. Long green hair, slightly wavy, adorned with a trident-shaped ornament. A somewhat revealing dress of black and white accented with fluorescent green.
"Herrscher of Reason..." Mobius murmured, brows furrowing.
From Selene's bearing and mannerisms, she glimpsed a shadow of Elysia.
Not in appearance—but in that maddening, playful malice.
Selene's gaze felt as though she were appraising a doll.
But Mobius adjusted quickly.
Who was she?
Elysia had schemed against her countless times, trying to force her into a pink frilled dress—yet never once succeeded.
Heads could fall. Blood could flow.
But she would never concede in a battle of words.
"Heehee~ Dear big sister from the outside, don't put it so bluntly... As a shy maiden blossoming like a flower, Mobius can be embarrassed too, you know."
The green-haired loli smiled brightly, waving her hand. She closed one eye in a wink, her vertical serpent pupil fixed on Selene as she flicked her tongue like a true snake.
"But really, big sister, barging into someone's cozy nest without notice—how rude. I was quite frightened. Couldn't you have announced yourself first?"
"Tch..."
Selene's expression did not change.
From this green-haired loli, she sensed a powerful dissonance.
There was none of that frail, push-over sweetness.
It was more like Theresa—ancient in years yet eternally pretending to be young.
Except Theresa was genuinely natural.
This one was deliberate.
"Hm."
"Still imitating Elysia's speaking style. Just like me—poor acting."
A faint smile curved Selene's lips as her expression gradually turned cold.
"As expected... I still prefer physical negotiations."
When the snake's skin itches—what should be done?
Naturally—