The being before him was not something the mere Cocoon of Finality could compare to.
He was the result of humanity itself, the strongest civilizational warrior Kevin had ever encountered.
"Kevin, this won't do. As a warrior of the Previous Era, the reason you could so steadfastly execute Dr. MEI's past plans was that you believed those plans could at least allow human civilization to continue."
"But to oppose me will inevitably lead to the annihilation of this entire civilization. You cannot make a decision of that magnitude. Without Dr. MEI, even with the key left behind by the Will of the Honkai, you cannot change the course of civilization."
"You cannot change that part of yourself that fears 'true destruction'."
The plans left behind by the Previous Era were actually quite complete. Although some exceeded their productive capacity at the time, most were optimized to the greatest extent possible.
The majority of these plans preserved the possibility of humanity's revival.
But Noldrei truly dared to fight down to the last 'man'.
Kevin, because he himself did not possess this power of life's reproduction, did not dare to flip the table and fight Noldrei to the bitter end.
"Kevin, have you decided how you will fight?"
If Kevin had figured it out, he wouldn't be hesitating here.
He couldn't just fight Noldrei until the last human on Earth was dead, and then figure out a way to use the Cocoon of Finality to create new humans and slowly let them propagate, could he?
If he did that, Earth's civilization would be well and truly finished.
He shook his head, his silence his answer.
When a warrior's sword hand hesitates, that warrior has already placed victory in the hands of another.
The Will of the Honkai may have found the flaws and cruel foundations of the new civilization, but it still hadn't found a way to defeat and replace that civilization's place in the human mind.
Why would it, a mere spokesman for the Cocoon of Finality, bother trying to figure out how to defeat proliferationalism on humanity's behalf? If it weren't for the sake of defeating Noldrei, it probably wouldn't have even left Kevin with that scrap of an idea.
Noldrei had already squeezed more than enough out of the Honkai. He'd even managed to bind the entire ideology of the old era to the Honkai Herrschers. But in the end, weren't they all broken and turned by Noldrei, one by one?
So what damn use was it?
Kevin didn't have many choices. He wasn't fighting Noldrei to destroy Earth's civilization; he was opposing Noldrei to preserve its operation.
But right now, neither Dr. Tesla nor Mobius had been able to fully analyze Noldrei's lifeform. The possibility of defeating him was a distant thought; it was far more likely they'd destroy Earth's civilization first.
When it came to flipping the table, Kevin had truly lost to Noldrei.
Noldrei had displayed the cunning and cruelty befitting a ruler. He fully understood and used his power without the slightest hesitation.
"I agree to a compromise."
Kevin had lost. A MANTIS who supposedly didn't care for human life had lost to the other's ruthlessness.
Noldrei did not look down on Kevin for compromising.
As if their confrontation had never happened, he switched gears and began asking about the Cocoon of Finality.
"Kevin, now that you've obtained the power of Finality, are you able to control the Honkai ICHOR factor on Earth?"
Kevin's brow furrowed, understanding what Noldrei was getting at.
After controlling the authority of Finality, he did indeed have the ability to retract the Honkai factor, and he could also perform abnormal modifications on the human body.
Just like how the Second Herrscher, Sirin, despite having barely attended school, could use her Herrscher Core to create companions from her own memories.
Kevin could certainly use the power of Finality to create pseudo-humanoid Honkai Beasts, and even graft the Honkai ICHOR factor from these pseudo-humanoids onto an ordinary human.
But this required the person to have an adaptability to Honkai Energy—that is, their own genes had to be able to withstand the erosion of the Honkai ICHOR factor.
"The Honkai ICHOR factor? That's possible. But are you thinking of genetically modifying all humans? I don't believe that's necessary. The MANTIS genes aren't necessarily adaptable to all humans."
"I can inject people with the Honkai ICHOR factor, but without the proper knowledge, that injection is basically just pumping Honkai Energy directly into the body."
"It's like I can recognize that something is a gene, but I don't know what that gene does. It's entirely up to its own needs to grow, like a plant. I only know that I have authority over these factors, so they won't harm me."
"As for others, that's a different story..."
Kevin clearly explained the scope of Finality's power.
He, too, acted as if their confrontation had never happened, shifting his attention to Noldrei's questions.
Noldrei asked curiously, "So, does that mean that you, having mastered the power of Finality, can in fact control the Honkai ICHOR factor in other people's bodies?"
Kevin immediately denied this idea.
"No, it's not like that. When Honkai Energy accumulates to a certain point, an Imaginary Singularity will appear, eventually solidifying into a Core and creating a Herrscher."
"Once a Herrscher exists, I can no longer control the Honkai Energy that has separated from me. I can only make it so the Honkai Beasts they create no longer obey them."
"This is what you'd call a delegation of authority. The existence of an Imaginary Singularity is the key to constituting that authority."
"With the power of Finality, we can indeed begin further research into Imaginary Energy. Breaking through the Imaginary Tide surrounding the solar system will no longer be a problem."
All the problems that had plagued human civilization were resolved the moment the Cocoon of Finality surrendered its authority.
'No wonder Kevin chose to oppose me after that.'
Noldrei understood Kevin's position in his heart. He also knew that once Kiana sat on that throne, she too would have to consider the contradictions hidden within the civilization he had guided.
Kevin thought for a moment, then spoke the truth. "I will inform them of our conversation through a Stigma memory."
"It matters not. A small thing like this is nothing to me."
Noldrei's magnanimity didn't surprise Kevin. After all, that was just how the guy was.
"What kind of judgment do you think the humans of the future will pass on you, after they learn your history?"
"Especially after they learn you handed over the power of Finality to someone else without a second thought."
Kevin really wanted to know what was going on inside Noldrei's head.
The guy had been wearing the face of a young Kevin this whole time, but his actions were nothing like the simple-mindedness of the Kaslanas throughout history.
He used a framework of power to threaten the Will of the Honkai externally, and used the collective civilization to threaten internal opposition.
What a bastard. Truly the most venomous emperor of a ruler in all of existence.