This is not a City of Atrophy, it's more like a City of Abundance.
Ryan stood on top of a spiraling tower, and from his angle, he could see a city that was huge.
The houses with white exterior walls radiated outwards in concentric circles, separated by wide avenues. Some elevated aqueducts were placed overhead, and the clear stream water reflected the sunlight. Because there were no city walls to block the view, Ryan could also see the endless fields and orchards outside the city.
A breeze swept by, raising golden waves of wheat, and red and large oranges hung on the branches, looking like dense gems.
He finally understood why this world bubble was so harmonious. Individuals might be divided into good and evil due to the gap between rich and poor, but since the city-states were equally rich, there was indeed no need for mutual plundering.
"What a great place, Dr. Mei would be very happy to know." Hua was full of admiration. Coming from Earth, she should be.
The world they lived in had been tormented by Honkai energy to the point of being unrecognizable. Large areas of land were polluted, and the Fire Moth had abandoned sixty percent of the land. The remaining population was squeezed into Mu and Shenzhou. Because of the shortage of materials, a rationing system had been implemented.
The security problems caused by hunger made the regular army exhausted, and the Honkai plague and epidemics were spreading. Compared to here, it was like a living hell.
"It's indeed very rich, but it's not scientific. Humans are like pigs in a farm, they only need to eat and sleep, and sleep and eat."
"Is that a bad thing?"
"It's good, but there's no such thing as a free lunch. Of course, this is not absolute. Just as there are countless planets in the starry sky, the world bubbles in the Sea of Quanta are not all the same."
Ryan shrugged, moved a high-backed velvet chair over, and was surrounded by books.
He wasn't here to enjoy life. The upper-class rulers definitely knew more than ordinary people, so he found out about this scholar's mansion.
When Ryan arrived in this world bubble, it was like a T-rex coming to a chicken coop. The natives had no ability to resist. Everything went very smoothly. The original owner was controlled by psychic power and obediently closed the door to visitors, while he occupied the magpie's nest.
"Hua, help me get the 'Brief History of Ancient Myths'."
"And the 'Governmental Annals' and the 'Mineral Exploration Atlas', copy all the pages I've folded."
Hua decisively became a little book attendant. And Mobius obviously didn't want to be ordered around by Ryan, so she ran to the outskirts of the city to study plant genes by herself, and the two of them didn't care about her.
The sunlight shone in from the window. Outside the balcony was a spectacular city view. Inside the room, there was only the sound of pages turning. Hua walked softly, not only not resisting, but also very happy.
I can finally be helpful!
This journey was not only completely different from her fantasy, but she was also very frustrated. How could a high school student chat with two doctors? She couldn't even understand some of the conversations between Ryan and Mobius.
She was not ashamed to ask, but she couldn't stand Mobius's eyes, so she had to pretend to be a mute the whole way.
"You just slack off when you have to do physical work, how shameless." Hua tried her best to maintain a serious expression, copied down the key points Ryan had marked, and couldn't help but smile at the corners of her mouth, secretly looking at the man in front of her.
A straight black double-breasted tailcoat, a tall gentleman's hat and a cane, and a pair of rimless glasses. At this moment, Ryan had no killing intent at all, he was as quiet as a university professor, full of the light of knowledge.
Senior brother is so handsome. Sometimes I can't figure out which one is the real him.
Hua's eyes gradually became dazed, and pictures kept flashing in her mind. For a moment, he was an invincible steel warrior in the South American jungle, and for another moment, he was back ten years ago, the passionate young man who stood up for her, and for another moment, he became the Commander in the auditorium, being saluted by hundreds of Fusion Warriors standing at attention...
This girl, she's dazed again. No wonder Mobius called her a wooden stake.
Ryan had long noticed the eyes next to him and found it a little funny. This was the legendary girl in love, but it also made sense.
Hua was completely different from Mobius. She didn't need that kind of pride, and she was too deeply influenced by him. After the battle in South America, she was a little more confident.
"Ahem, are you done copying the books?"
"Ah no, I just think this is not bad, I'm glad I followed." Hua didn't avoid the topic. She propped up her chin: "Do you feel a little annoyed recently?"
"Not at all. We're not in a combat state, so I'll let you two make a fuss. By the way, Mobius is used to talking like that, don't blame her."
"I know what kind of person she is." Hua's smile was a little forced, and a flame seemed to rise in her eyes, "But some things can't be compromised, I must fight to the end."
Her stubborn temper flared up again. Could this damn need to win be from me?
Ryan wasn't sure, but he knew that every Flame-Chaser had their own personality, even Hua. It was impossible to force them to change.
Otherwise, what would you think they were? Copycats, or NPCs waiting to be conquered in a dating game?
"Alright, alright, you can fight, just pay attention to your methods."
"Huh, you're not speaking up for Mobius?" This time it was Hua's turn to be surprised.
"Why would I speak for her? And does Mobius need my help?" Ryan put the book on his lap, and said seriously and solemnly, "You are all equal. I have no right to demand anyone to do anything outside of combat."
War requires strict obedience to orders, but personal feelings cannot be forced. Ryan said this calmly, and then received a rocket-powered headbutt.
"What are you doing?" Ryan rubbed his chest and saw the girl leaning on the chair, her raised face full of brilliance.
"Nothing, I'm just a little happy. Senior brother, you really weren't blinded by Mobius."
Blinded? By that platypus?
Ryan wanted to laugh. He thought to himself, with Mobius's personality, even if she was stripped naked, warmed up, and softened all over, her mouth would still be tough. But he still had to say something good for her.
"Mobius actually has some concerns."
Who doesn't have concerns?
Hua muttered in her heart, and then saw Ryan's face so close, and realized that her posture was very indecent.
Her knees were on Ryan's thighs, and her butt was slightly raised. Fortunately, her chest was relatively flat and wouldn't sag due to gravity, but her smooth back was equally eye-catching.
Her face immediately turned red, and then she bit her lip slightly, making up her mind.
"Senior brother, I, I can..."
From Ryan's perspective, her young face was slightly red, and her small mouth was slightly open. She was indeed a treat for the eyes. Ryan took a light breath and leaned forward slightly.
He felt the girl's breath touching his skin, a tingling sensation. He also felt a clear heat, the girl's body was hot. At this moment, no more words were needed.
"Of course you can't."
Hua's body trembled, and she turned her head abruptly, seeing Mobius appear behind her at some point, holding a leather bag, and staring at her with a half-smile.
Her muscles instantly tensed, and her face seemed to be burning. She blurted out: "Why are you here?"
"Hmph, I came back from collecting samples in the suburbs. It's just as I expected." Mobius had a sense of satisfaction from getting her revenge. You know, since her last self-destruct, this girl had been staring at her.
Hehe, I got you this time, you little cheater.
"You... this." Hua forcibly calmed down, her mind was racing faster than ever before. Finally, she gritted her teeth, "Do you want an explanation?"
"No, I said it's within my expectations. But in a war, there's always give and take, right?" Mobius said unhurriedly, and glanced at Ryan from the corner of her eye, the meaning was clearly saying:
'You have me for experiments, aren't you satisfied?'
Ryan was a little embarrassed, and he didn't know if this counted as being caught. As an honest person, he admitted that he was tempted just now, but wasn't Mobius being stubborn? It was inevitable that it was not proper.
Of course, his emotional intelligence was normal. He knew that he couldn't get stuck on details at this moment. Seeing Hua extremely embarrassed, he thought to himself, 'This is bad,' and glared back mercilessly.
'That's enough, don't bully the honest person.'
As a smart person, Mobius obviously understood. She was a little unwilling, but she also knew that she couldn't ignite a war, at least not in this world bubble. The three of them had to be in the same boat.
"I just did some genetic analysis and found some interesting things. Do you two want to hear it?"
Hua's mind couldn't keep up, and she subconsciously answered: "Go on."
"Then can you get off Ryan first? Don't have your butt facing me." Mobius bit her teeth lightly, and also added in her mind with the eye of a biologist.
'This girl is a flat board, but her butt is quite perky.'
Hua quickly took a step back. No matter what, she was caught. Anyway, her face hadn't completely cooled down yet. Fortunately, Ryan squeezed her hand, which made her feel a little better.
'That's right, what am I afraid of? Mobius doesn't have a title, why does she look like she caught me?'
She immediately regretted it, but Hua was not Carroll after all, and she really didn't have the thick skin to sit back down. She just stood by sullenly, thinking that she would have to get back this humiliation with interest in the future.
'Tsk, so greedy.'
Mobius also noticed Ryan's small action, but she was in a great mood from getting her revenge, so she didn't cling to it, and was even more proud.
'Hehe, I've done it twice, and you two are still at zero. How can you fight me?'
"Let's talk about business, continue what you were saying." Ryan's head was hurting. He saw how arrogant Mobius was. Every time she got carried away, she would get unlucky, why didn't she learn?
"What's the rush? The soil here has a problem. I didn't notice it before, but after I did a genetic analysis, I found a strange kind of energy. If it was natural evolution, the probability would be negligibly small."
"What a coincidence, I also found something. I finally know why this place is called the City of Atrophy." Ryan picked up the information that Hua had just copied and waved it, his expression returning to seriousness.
"A few hundred years ago, this place was a barren wilderness with large rocks everywhere. Humans could only live in underground shelters. How could it become so rich in such a short time?"
The illusion could not deceive Ryan and Mobius, because all the strangeness of this world bubble had a core point—
This is not scientific.
Using a scientific eye to analyze the world, peeling back the layers of phenomena, and trying to describe the unknown with the most scientific language.
This is what Earth's humans pursued. The Honkai, which was like a god, had been stripped of its mysterious facade after such an analysis, so there was no emotional barrier to fighting it.
"You mean... this world bubble is man-made?" Hua also understood. She licked her lips and pointed at the spectacular city outside: "Is all this prosperity an illusion?"
"It's real, and it's also fake. This world bubble is like a skinny livestock that has suddenly been fed."
"Who fed it?"
"Their object of prayer. The Sea of Quanta itself cannot be a great philanthropist, and it's even more impossible for it to nourish countless world bubbles. On the contrary, the reason they can exist is the Imaginary Tree."
Ryan tried to explain it in simple terms. In essence, the Sea of Quanta was the enemy of the world bubble, and it could be decomposed at any time. The world bubble had to absorb the energy of the Imaginary Tree to maintain balance.
Hua was stunned. She pointed to the books all over the place: "But the records don't say who fed it. If he did such a good thing, he would definitely be revered by all."
"We can only say that the one who fed them is not interested in reverence, it's possible that they automatically respond to the prayers of living beings like a machine."
"An all-purpose wish-making machine?"
Why did you suddenly bring up the Holy Grail?
Ryan immediately turned his head, met Hua's eyes, and then waved his hand.
Never mind, if it's the first case, the principle is similar. The behavior of living beings praying for abundance is like a spiritual wave, and after receiving it, they give feedback. Then this thing is very powerful, it has already surpassed the imagination of human technology.
"But there's another possibility, this response is out of malice." Mobius couldn't help but interrupt the two of them's 'flirting', and tapped the book on the ground, "According to the information you found, this abundance didn't come to the world in an instant, it had a spreading process. As more and more people prayed, it eventually filled the entire world bubble, but nothing can escape the law of conservation of energy."
She pushed up her glasses and walked in the sea of books, her tone slow: "So where does this energy come from, and who is absorbing it?"
This question hit a chord with Ryan. He just happened to see the latest research on how world bubbles exist for a long time when he was looking at the materials a while ago.
There are now two theories. One is that the world bubble is large enough to maintain its own dynamic balance. The other is that the world bubble is small enough to connect to the Imaginary Tree and get energy to fight against the sea's decomposition.
But whether they are big or small, world bubbles will absorb energy from the outside to maintain their own existence, otherwise they will dissolve in the Sea of Quanta.
"The world bubble itself will absorb energy, and this energy comes from the Imaginary Tree, maybe with some characteristics of the sea." Ryan answered decisively and looked at the samples he brought back, "No wonder the Honkai energy here is so thin, it's all being absorbed by the land to nourish the world bubble."
"So someone can modify the rules of the world bubble and respond to living beings?" Hua was a little confused. This was on a fantasy level for her.
"It's possible, and doing so will only do harm and no good. The endless absorption of this energy will lead this world bubble to its demise. Why do I suddenly have a sense of deja vu?" Ryan looked at Mobius and read the answer in each other's eyes.
Isn't this Honkai?
Controlling a rule, using the world bubble as a farm, and constantly accumulating energy, the living beings inside are completely unaware and are still praying for abundance. So what should be done with this energy in the end?
"It seems that this world bubble is even more dangerous than we thought. The Sea of Quanta also has powerful beings that can cross world bubbles." Ryan made a conclusion, his brows furrowed. This was very detrimental to the 'Wandering Humanity' plan.
Out of the tiger's mouth, and into the wolf's den?
"At least the Sea of Quanta is big enough. As long as we don't touch this world bubble, we'll be fine. The plan has reached the final few steps, and there's no way to give up." Mobius spread her hands, her eyes rolling twice, "For you, this might be an opportunity."
If a being can do this, they have obviously mastered the rules of the Sea of Quanta. So can he touch the rules from them and open up a new path?
Ryan was a little eager to try, but caution ultimately prevailed. As the opposite of the tree, the Sea of Quanta was definitely useful against Honkai, but he wasn't arrogant enough to mess around in someone else's territory.
"No, and don't go to that central palace. We'll go north immediately. We'll leave as soon as we deal with the Herrschers, and we have to do it quickly."
"Are you scared?" Mobius looked at him with a sidelong glance.
"The dead can't explore. Is it worth it to risk it all for this possibility? Isn't that picking up sesame seeds and throwing away watermelons?"
Ryan was very firm. It was enough to know that this world bubble had problems. Even if he fought against the Herrschers, he had to have at least one advantage in time, place, and people, not to mention in this completely unfamiliar world bubble.
They left immediately, not even putting the books back. Ryan only took a piece of the owner's clothing, and at the same time, he was glad for his cautious way of life.
From the very beginning, he had not dealt with any natives. Since praying has a response, does that mean that touching that person's nerves will cause their gaze to be cast on them?
The three of them got on their warhorses and rode out of the mansion area. As soon as they passed the third ring, they ran into a group of constables wearing wide-brimmed hats and green capes. The latter seemed to be looking for something and were scattered everywhere, asking the residents.
The moment the leaders looked over, Ryan immediately turned his horse into a nearby alley, then grabbed Hua and Mobius off their horses, kicked the warhorses away, and leaped onto the roof.
"Hey, are you crazy?" Mobius shook her head to break free. Ryan was holding her like a small chicken, "You're dressed like a gentleman, why are you so rough..."
"Shut up."
Ryan glared at her, and the cursing doctor instinctively shut her mouth. Hua quietly moved closer.
"Senior brother, are these people looking for us?"
"I don't know, but I had a bad feeling just now, so we'll hide first." Ryan lowered his voice and put his finger on Hua's lips, "I know we haven't left any traces on this journey, and I'm a professional at avoiding being tracked, but have you ever thought, if our hypothesis is correct, would a being that can raise a world bubble not have any precautions, even if he isn't here?"
Having gone through Honkai and Herrschers, they were all people who had seen the world. Of course, they knew that for some higher-ups, installing a monitoring system or arranging an agent was the lowest level. The truly powerful ones are those who control all worlds invisibly and are themselves omniscient and omnipotent.
'If they're really that powerful, controlling fate is a basic operation. Without Elysia's sacrifice, no matter how hard you struggle, the result will be the same. Let me see, are you also that powerful?'
Ryan lay on the low wall and saw a food stall owner pointing in the direction of the second ring. The constables immediately thanked him and rushed over, and Ryan's scalp tingled, and he shrank back.
Are they really coming for us? This violates logic a little.
You know, he had tried his best to avoid contact with the natives of this world bubble. The only time was when he captured a few constables, but he used his ability to modify their memories. All clues pointed in the wrong direction.
And when he was on the road, he tried his best to blend into the crowd, and he didn't buy any goods even in the most bustling markets.
"Wait a minute, how did that stall owner know about our existence?" Ryan said to himself, and subconsciously turned his head, and saw Mobius's face completely red.
"Listen to me, I happened to pass by on the road when I came back, but that bastard was having a big promotion, and he threw this sugar-roasted chestnuts directly onto the street, and it just happened to fall into my arms, really!"
Hua had a 'you're kidding me' expression. Before she could question him, Ryan patted her on the shoulder.
"It's real. This is a very strange theory, like stepping into a swamp. No matter how careful you are, you will be covered in mud. Have you two heard of 'causality'?"
The two of them shook their heads together, looking confused.
"The deeper you get involved with this world bubble, the more causality you'll get. When it reaches a certain critical point, the being who bestows abundance will cast its gaze on you. Isn't this the most advanced monitoring system?"
"It's more than just advanced. If this theory holds, it has already exceeded the limits of science." Mobius's eyes lit up. A powerful monitoring system can be bypassed, but only by making the world itself a part of it can it be foolproof.
"It seems that this world bubble is getting more and more interesting. No wonder we've been so unlucky on this journey. We've encountered very rare bandits, and there have been many accidents on the road. It turns out that 'causality' has already entangled us without us knowing it."
Interesting? This is obviously terrifying.
Ryan didn't quite understand Mobius's thought process. Looking back now, there were indeed problems. For example, he had encountered broken merchant carriages more than once, or people falling into the water asking for help, or thugs harassing girls.
He had stopped Hua from doing justice and ignored all of them. He couldn't help but admire his own foresight.
If he had acted even once, he would have sunk deeper and deeper into this world bubble. The chain reaction of touching this thing called fate.
Even if he acted like a 'passerby' to the extreme, the only clue he left still brought trouble to his doorstep.
Dong—
The bell rang. This time it was not a prayer, but large groups of constables riding from all directions. They had obviously discovered the 'robbers' who had robbed the well-known scholar's mansion.
Mobius and Hua exchanged glances, thinking to themselves that it was a good thing they ran fast, otherwise they would have to start a massacre. Whether they fought or fled, they would leave more traces in the world bubble.
"Wait a minute, we're here analyzing things, but those two Herrschers don't know this, they're still messing around everywhere." Hua suddenly remembered something, and saw Ryan's face turn pale, and he patted the low wall.
'F*ck, I forgot about those two illiterates!'