At this moment, humanity finally understood how prescient the Fire Moth was.
When that 'eraser' wiped away everything at a leisurely pace, the entire world trembled, and it was impossible to imagine what the result would be without the 'Wandering Humanity Plan.'
As the Herrscher of Binding's gentle steps passed, a city would become a dead zone in an instant. The air would stop flowing, the water would stagnate, and all living things, including Honkai Beasts, would become corpses with no wounds.
In terms of the speed of destruction, the previous ten Herrschers combined were no match for her.
Humanity might win, and civilization might be preserved, but if I were to die, it would be better for everyone to perish together.
As a result, the last voices of doubt disappeared without a trace. It was useless to reason; only by letting people see the terrifying scene with their own eyes would their thoughts become simple.
Whatever the talk about a favorable situation and humanity needing to counterattack, in front of this monster, the advantages accumulated in the early stages would instantly turn into an illusion.
It was impossible to stop or even delay her. Half of the European continent was wiped clean. Not to mention humans, even an insect would be bound to death in an instant.
This eraser that wiped out everything started from the center, swept across Western Europe, and then went to the British Isles. Those who were left behind didn't even have the luxury of regret; all their life was erased.
At the headquarters of the Fire Moth, the central command center was deathly silent. The big screen played a loop of images, showing the sea turning silver, which was the light reflected from countless dead fish. The roads were covered with corpses, both animal and human, densely extending to the north. Many people fell to the ground while fleeing, their faces still retaining the shock they had before they died.
The Herrscher of Binding was very 'gentle'; there would be no pain before death, because in just a split second, the biological electricity would disappear, and the nerves and heartbeats would be cut off together, making it the most humane way of killing.
"But the killing range is too huge; all living things in a city die in the blink of an eye."
Ryan walked out of the cockpit. He had just returned to the headquarters from Europe and had no intention of starting a war there, because there was no time to adjust when facing the Herrscher of Binding.
You can only withstand her with Honkai energy. If you can't, you die; there is no third way to go. Even if you hide in the Sea of Quanta, she would only need a few hours to kill everyone.
Ryan looked into the distance and saw that the direction of the Golden Courtyard was pitch black. He knew that most people had already evacuated. No one was in the mood to go home. He felt a little sad, but then he held his head high and walked down the gangway.
In the face of destruction, he had to appear to be confident. If he panicked, the entire Fire Moth would also panic.
As expected, Ryan's poker face reassured many people. The Herrscher was indeed terrifying, but the overall commander had already taken down several of them. Nothing could stop him.
'I wish I were as confident as you imagine.' Ryan hid a bitter smile. In fact, if the Herrscher had chased him directly, he would have been more relaxed. This 'dawdling' was what made people flustered.
"Where is Dr. Mei?"
"Reporting to Commander, Dr. Mei went to the factory. It seems she's going to test the new anti-Herrscher weapon."
Ryan nodded. Mei was very busy all day, so he wouldn't bother her. Besides, he also had many things to do, but Elysia was like a husky; she just disappeared the moment he let go.
"Take me to the central command center."
"Yes."
This underground city, known as humanity's final fortress, was now unworthy of its name. Most family members and irrelevant personnel had been evacuated, and the living quarters, which had been built at great expense, had become desolate.
Ryan walked down the road and could only see people in military uniforms, but he didn't blame anyone.
Times have changed. Who knew the Herrscher's attack power was so strong? Even twenty layers of thick steel plates could not provide a sense of security. Besides, these things were promoted by the Fire Moth councillors. They also wanted to bring their family members and survive after the end to become scavengers, so of course, they had to build complete living facilities.
However, Ryan also satisfied them. All the Fire Moth councillors 'volunteered' to stay at the headquarters and stand their last post for humanity, which was truly touching.
The corner of Ryan's mouth curved into an arc. With Aponia around, humanity would not be so restricted. It was a pity that those traitors were hiding too deeply; otherwise, he would have had a good talk with them.
The automatic door opened. The hundreds of people working in the huge command center all stopped what they were doing and turned their heads at the same time.
Whoosh!
Leather boots collided, and military salutes were perfectly in sync. Fortunately, Ryan was already used to this useless sense of ceremony. He just waved his hand, and these people continued to do their work. Only then did he look at the people on the second-floor command platform, especially some people who had no friendship with him.
Coleman, Zheng, and Werner all stood at attention and saluted. The Flame-Chasers of the Golden Courtyard were much more casual, either smiling in acknowledgment or continuing to space out. Someone like Pardo even yawned. If Ryan hadn't glared at her, she would have fallen asleep leaning on the control console.
Sakura and Hua went to participate in the artificial collapse experiment. Kevin and Kosma were on the other side of the Pacific Ocean protecting the shipping lanes. The rest of the elite were all here. Ryan looked around and focused more on Calis and Owl.
They don't feel dominated. I can trust them for now.
He had seen Calis with her messy purple hair before. As one of the test subjects of the Chimera Project, she had taken over the command of the [Symphony] team. He was meeting Owl, who had rejoined the team, for the first time. After observing them, he found that the two had a common feature.
High Honkai mutability. If Sakura's fox ears were considered an embellishment, then these two were truly harmed by the fusion surgery.
The female warrior with the number CM005 had ice-blue hair and a beautiful face, but two curved spiral horns grew on the top of her head. There was a blue lizard-like tail on her back, and when she smiled, her teeth were as sharp as a shark's. She wore gloves, hiding her four claw-like fingers.
No wonder she hid herself. She looked more like a 'beast.' She must have been strongly rejected before. This was a matter of luck. Some of the first batch of MANTIS were very unlucky.
Their gazes met, and they just nodded. Ryan had no interest in making new friends. The Herrscher of Binding was right in front of him. He might turn his head, and the person would be gone.
But he didn't want to give a speech or hold a meeting. After a brief greeting, he focused all his attention on the front line.
The Herrscher of Binding had no intention of hiding her tracks. She was just swaggering and clearing out Europe. There was a countdown on the big screen, which was Prometheus's estimated contact time.
Other than that, the whole world was calm. Even the attacks on the shipping lanes stopped.
"It seems... Honkai wants to have a final battle with us." A serious voice came. Without turning his head, Ryan knew it was Zheng, who had a mechanical hand.
He remained silent, just listening quietly to the warriors' arguments.
"They are quietly moving their troops, right? But I always feel there's something wrong. The target is too easy to judge."
"Lieutenant Colonel Coleman, please don't overcomplicate things. Speculation needs evidence."
"I also think there's something wrong." Joshua bowed slightly and pointed at the screen. "The Herrscher of Binding is a bit too arrogant. She doesn't put us in her eyes at all. If she really wants a final battle, why doesn't she cross the sea immediately? She should know very well that we will never hand over this fortress."
"That's why I said they are quietly moving their troops, preparing for a final battle!"
"Mr. Zheng, do you think it takes three days to move troops?"
"Maybe this is also an emergency for the Herrschers."
The debate was unpleasant. Ryan, who had his back to them, found another characteristic: the Flame-Chasers of the Golden Courtyard did not participate. But after thinking about it, he was relieved.
Most of the veterans of the Fire Moth were from the military, or at least had been with the organization for many years. The Flame-Chasers were invited to join by him in the past three years, and they included doctors, nuns, singers, and other various occupations. And with him and Mei there, there was really no chance for them to show their intelligence. Even Kevin was just being pushed.
Oh, except for one person.
Just when Ludicyna was sweating and at a loss, a certain person who had his legs on the table and a book on his face 'woke up.'
"Why are you wasting so much time talking? Let's go out and fight. The one who lives wins!"
The debate stopped abruptly. Everyone looked at Kalpas. The latter was unhappy because he couldn't control the artificial collapse. Seeing these looks, he simply twisted his neck and made a 'cracking' sound.
"Oh, so you want to fight me? Come on!!"
Everyone's gaze turned to the back in front of them, as if waiting for Ryan to come out and deal with this madman. And with Kalpas's disruption, Ryan could no longer remain silent.
"Alright, we can't determine the Herrscher's main attack direction yet, Lieutenant Colonel. I understand what you mean." Ryan turned his face and said indifferently, "Kevin and the others cannot come back yet, and I think the Herrscher's goal has changed."
"Commander, with all due respect, if it's a final battle, every bit of strength is very important. The Sea Abyss City is too far from the headquarters. Even with Dr. Vil-V's shuttle, it would take three hours. It doesn't make sense to leave such a huge force hanging out there."
The speaker was Calis. Her pale face had little expression, and she seemed very calm.
"You think we should concentrate our forces and take the initiative to attack?"
"Yes, that's what I think."
"Me too."
"I agree with Mr. Calis's opinion."
Several high-level MANTIS stood at attention, while the majority of the Golden Courtyard members did not speak. They were all waiting for Ryan's judgment.
This kind of thinking is very normal. The Herrscher of Binding is unprecedentedly powerful, and her authority characteristics dictate that the more people there are, the more useful they are. It would be best to go all-in with the entire family to break that domain.
But the problem is that it's two Herrschers merged into one.
Ryan was not swayed. His full-speed brain had already simulated dozens of plans. The worst result would be biting the bait. The Herrscher of Binding would cut off their retreat, leaving the remaining hundreds of millions of people nowhere to escape.
"But what if we miss?" Eden spoke as if she had a telepathic connection. There were some things Ryan couldn't say.
"The Herrscher of Binding is right there. How can we miss?" the ice-blue-haired woman said. Her shark-like sharp teeth were a bit frightening, and there was a hint of contempt in her eyes. "Miss Eden, you're great at being a celebrity, but planning a battle is not your area of expertise."
This was a bit of a personal attack, but Eden did not retort. She just smiled gently and looked at Ryan. Everyone else followed her gaze.
Since that coup, there had been no dissenting voices within the Fire Moth. Everyone could debate, but where the fate of humanity was heading—
It was all decided by this man.