"Is that so? Hua's human collapse's second form was a success?"
Ryan was curled up in his swivel chair. He seemed very calm when he received this news, which made Sakura, who came to report the good news, very strange.
"You expected it?"
"Mm. Some people seem ordinary, but they are like a spring. The more pressure you put on them, the more they will bounce back when their stubbornness comes out." Ryan showed a smile and looked to be in a good mood. He then noticed that Sakura was wearing a scarf.
"Don't worry, the wound will heal soon." The fox-eared girl said first, with a hint of unwillingness on her face.
Just when the global cleanup plan began, Ryan also fought a battle with her. The result was undoubtedly a complete defeat, but the moment the man crushed her with a single slash from the front still made her feel unwilling.
The ultimate of the Authority of Fire. The fire was contained, but it was invincible. It grazed her throat and slammed into the ground, causing a small island of more than ten square kilometers to completely sink into the sea.
Besides the shock Ryan brought, Sakura also felt the pressure from Hua. This little sister, in her eyes, had unknowingly become a strong person who could stand on her own.
"Hua is indeed tough. On the verge of death, she actually unleashed her potential and crushed that Honkai Beast into pieces."
"This is all thanks to me. Without the restrictions I added, that wooden stick's reckless human collapse would have already killed her." Mobius elegantly took a sip from her coffee cup and glanced at Sakura with a meaningful look.
"I'll thank you on her behalf. Dividing the human collapse into three stages did indeed protect Hua." Sakura bowed slightly, her left hand on her sword.
The Chimera project was too dangerous. Unleashing a more powerful human collapse on top of an already existing one was something the human body couldn't handle. So Mobius added restrictions to give the body time to adapt.
"Oh, you're actually thanking me?"
"I've always been objective. If you did a good job, why shouldn't I thank you?"
Because of Hua, these two have actually become harmonious?
Ryan let out a sigh of relief. Sakura's personality was straightforward. He hoped this friendly relationship could last.
"Alright, let's not talk about Hua for now. The first stage of the hunt is almost over. I basically understand the information that Calis sent."
Ryan had Sakura sit down. As he had expected, no Herrschers appeared in this war. The information sent back from the various hunting teams was very interesting.
Battles broke out in all continents. Each Honkai Beast had several different characteristics. After Prometheus summarized all the battle footage, she sent it all to Mobius. In terms of understanding Honkai Beasts, she was more profound than Mei.
"Cough, cough. I have summarized the following characteristics and compared them with the Honkai Beasts from before."
Mobius cleared her throat, put down her crossed black-stockinged legs, and pressed the remote control. A beam of light shot out from the middle of the conference table, unfolding a holographic projection. Some data and 3D models rotated, as if re-creating the battlefield.
She paused for a few seconds before walking to the table and said unhurriedly: "First, each Honkai Beast has a different form and ability. Based on the samples I found in the database, I've concluded that they are likely to be reconstituted with a High-Ranking Honkai Beast as the core. In biology, this can be seen as a form of evolution."
"The energy source for this evolution has a聚合converging effect. Roughly one Honkai Beast is formed from a region. The intensity varies depending on the High-Ranking Honkai Beast's ability as the core and the number of Honkai Beasts in that region."
The data unfolded. Many red dots appeared on the world map. Ryan saw many 'old acquaintances,' as the Fire Moth had focused most of its energy on the Herrschers and didn't really care about these Honkai Beasts after collecting enough super-variant factors.
As long as they didn't act with the Herrschers, there was no need to specifically hunt them down.
"That's very possible. The 'Galil' that Hua encountered was once recorded. Its ability seems to be to manipulate the Honkai Beasts to act as a group, converging a huge amount of energy into one entity, which caused it to evolve. The method is not bad."
Ryan nodded slightly. When he remembered that these energy bodies were being utilized as waste, the method was far more than just 'not bad.'
"Second, this evolution clearly has signs of artificial manipulation. They are extremely sensitive to combat. Just like what the [Divination] and [Scarlet] teams encountered, they skillfully used ambushes and feints. In the past, this was only possible when a Herrscher was directly in control."
Ryan's approval made Mobius raise her chin even higher. Her tone became more confident as she switched to the next piece of data.
"Third, the combat instinct can be seen as intelligence, but it is absolutely unrelated to human nature. I've already had Elysia do the relevant experiments, and there was no reaction at all. So when they find themselves at a disadvantage in a battle, even if they could still hold on, they will self-destruct without hesitation."
"In conclusion, this is a life form that is completely different from a Herrscher. It has no similarities with humans at all, whether biologically or psychologically."
A smattering of applause sounded. To study a living being, it was best to leave it to Mobius. With just some battle footage and leftover body parts, she could deduce a lot of useful information.
So this is the 'Beast,' the other path that the Cocoon of Finality could choose.
Ryan suddenly understood the people of Venus. There was no Seed Project there at all because the Honkai was more direct, simple, and violent. There was no need to bind destiny, no need for the rules of authority, and it was impossible for a Herrscher of Human to be born.
It was a brute force fight. It would create a Honkai Beast bigger than a planet and smash it down. If you couldn't block it, it would just blow up your planet.
Is the purpose more simple? It doesn't even give them a chance to use their intelligence.
Ryan scratched his face. Compared to these beasts with only combat instincts, Herrschers seemed cute. If he had only encountered these Honkai Beasts, the 'Trailblazers' path would not be very suitable. That would belong to the 'Devourer' domain.
They would self-destruct at the drop of a hat, leaving no time for 'understanding.' Sometimes, simple things are the most effective. It was already very impressive that Vita could lead the Venusian civilization to perish together with the Honkai.
"You really did guess it right. The Cocoon of Finality won't allow us to delay. Which do you think is easier to deal with, the Herrscher of Finality or a Doomsday-level Honkai Beast?" Mei immediately categorized it with a new level, staring at Ryan with a look full of anticipation.
How would I know? I know even less about Honkai Beasts than you do. That's a different series of Honkai content.
Ryan was a bit flustered by the question. He had already stopped being a 'prophet,' but the endless methods of the Honkai were still a headache. He could still use his experience to understand a Herrscher given a new authority, but he knew nothing about the 'Beast.'
"I think it's not up to us to choose, but in terms of familiarity, I choose the Herrscher. After all, all our preparations are for it."
"Then we have to hurry up and find those two rats. And have you thought about what if it's a Herrscher plus a Honkai Beast?" Mobius tilted her head, her expression full of meaning.
"That would be a problem." Ryan glared at her. She was a jinx. If it was both a Herrscher and a Beast, what's the point of playing anymore?
And this was actually possible. Who said it had to be one or the other? Searching through his memories, wasn't that just merging Kiana and Kevin into one?
"It seems we have to find a way."
"What about the Honkai limit hypothesis?"
"These Honkai Beasts have existed in the world for a long time, so they are clearly beyond the limit. It all depends on what effect it wants to achieve. But these 'Beasts' are always a huge hidden danger. The Cocoon of Finality's goal has changed."
"Changed to what?"
Mei asked knowingly, and then she saw Ryan turn his head. There was no fear in his eyes, only a kind of Herrscher-like rational coldness.
"To restart human civilization immediately, decisively, and without hesitation!"
This was no longer an exam. Or rather, the scope of the exam under Ryan's leadership was gradually exceeding the syllabus. He was rushing to the proctor to slap him in the face, and the proctor was using various methods to deal with this unruly student.
But none of them worked. This student was still getting closer and closer. His foot was almost on the podium.
If he were in its shoes, the Cocoon of Finality would probably use all its resources and all its methods, and this wasn't even the worst part.
One attempt to restart would be better than smashing the entire classroom, right?
The people on both sides of the conference table all had stern expressions. They watched Ryan take the remote control from Mobius's hand and display the battle details of each squadron.
"The mutated Honkai Beasts didn't fight with all their might. Besides the three teams of [Floating Life], [Salvation], and [Annihilation] who successfully hunted them, the others were only injured or forced to retreat."
Every battle was filmed by several high-speed cameras from different angles. With Prometheus's analysis, no detail could escape Ryan's eyes.
"You mean... the time isn't right?" Sakura caressed the hilt of her sword. As a top warrior of the Fire Moth, she had already realized that these Honkai Beasts were very difficult to kill.
"To be precise, these Honkai Beasts were originally lurking. If I hadn't specifically gone to the Herrscher's nest to cause trouble, and if Calis hadn't, for some reason, given us some information, they would never have been discovered. They might have been able to lurk until the Fourteenth Herrscher descended."
When Ryan said this, his cheeks involuntarily tensed up. The Earth had actually fallen. All of the Fire Moth's attention was on the Herrschers. At this time, setting up a secret weapon would be too sinister.
"This wasn't a temporary idea. The one covering them should be the Herrscher of Destiny. Under a series of coincidences, it was impossible for us to have noticed that a crisis was quietly appearing. Fortunately, our luck was good. The vessel for the Herrscher of Destiny just happened to be Calis, and he's also half a chess player, with his own interests."
Sakura's mouth opened silently. She shook her head and looked at the others, seeing that they all had a look of 'I see now' on their faces. Her cheeks twitched involuntarily.
It was a chain reaction, and the script was seamless. There was no logical loophole at all. Think about it. With the Honkai's current 'gloomy' state, the Fourteenth Herrscher would definitely be terrifyingly strong. If a global Honkai Beast aggregation appeared at that time, they would probably be crushed in an instant.
Is it really just luck?
Sakura looked at the man with a serious expression. From an onlooker's perspective, similar things had happened many times. Her intuition told her that this was fundamentally different from Pardo's luck.
Gradually, she felt that Ryan, who was sitting at the head, was like a black hole, fiercely destroying the lines of fate.
Is it a coincidence, or is it inevitable?!
...
Just thinking about many things is useless. Only by actually going and investigating can one find more clues. This is when intelligence becomes useful.
Boldly hypothesize, and carefully verify. The discussion went on until late at night. They finally understood the whole course of events.
Due to various reasons, a hidden secret weapon was exposed prematurely, which made Mobius and the others break out in a cold sweat. If they had been so inexplicably fooled, who knows what would have happened at the last moment.
This was more serious than Ryan's initial hypothesis. He suddenly discovered that even if the Herrscher of Finality couldn't descend, the Honkai had the ability to create another Finality.
Fortunately, his decisive actions disrupted the Honkai's deployment, proving once again that to deal with the Cocoon of Finality, it was not enough to just develop in isolation.
"A global hunt. No matter what it wants to do, since I've discovered it in advance, there's no reason to be soft-hearted."
After figuring out what the other party wanted to do, Ryan didn't hesitate for a moment. He took the Hyperion and rushed to Shenzhou. Even if he had to dig three feet deep, he would dig out these Honkai Beasts.
Now was not the time to consider the Honkai's patience. The Herrscher of Finality was an option, not a necessity.
The night wind blew on his face. The man standing on the front deck was in high spirits. In fact, he didn't attribute it to luck. At least, luck had no value for summarizing.
Besides the coincidence of Calis, everything else was due to his resolute actions and meticulous observation. Of course, it was also due to his cautious nature, where he liked to grab onto any hint of trouble.
A confident smile appeared on his face, followed by a hint of anxiety.
I can't delay anymore. This time, it's the hidden 'Beast.' Who knows what will be next? I can't predict the actions of the Cocoon of Finality in advance.
When your attention is focused on Elysia and the Herrscher of Finality, the Honkai has already quietly laid a trap and might stab you at any time.
A slight mistake could lead to a complete loss. Playing a chess game with a being far superior to humans, even with the help of Mei and others, Ryan felt a bit tired. His mind, full of thoughts, felt like it was about to explode.
"You're overthinking again. Do you really not trust my judgment?" With the tap-tap-tapping of her high heels, Mobius walked over against the night wind and threw a can of coffee at him. "And why do you guys always like to come to the deck? Is it that appealing to feel the wind at an altitude of twenty thousand meters? Are you learning from that kid Kosma?"
Wait a minute, if anyone is learning from anyone, it's Kosma learning from me.
There were too many questions at once. Ryan, who had casually caught the coffee, didn't know how to answer. What was even more amazing was that as his blood pressure rose, the thoughts in his mind suddenly disappeared without a trace.
"What are you staring at me for? It'll get cold if you don't drink it." Mobius came to the railing and put her chest on it.
"You guys are really similar. You always interrupt people's thoughts."
"Similar to whom?"
"Elysia. You both have the same low-blood-pressure treatment method."
"Shut up! Who is similar to her!" Mobius rolled her eyes at him and held down her hair that was being blown by the wind. "Forget it. Anyway, I won against her once, so I won't hold your random analogy against you."
How did you win against Elysia just once???
Ryan was a bit confused. He casually looked at Mobius. She was still in her white coat with a black miniskirt. Her voluptuous chest was resting on the railing, full of intellectual and mature charm.
Hmm, wait. She seems to look a bit more mature?
Mobius had become a girl in her early twenties after dying a few times before.
"Hehehe, you finally noticed, didn't you?" Mobius showed a smug smile, as if she had come all this way just for this. "It's hard to become younger, but it's very easy to become more mature. I specially developed a cell-aging potion... Ouch!"
Slap.
With a crisp sound, a ripple of flesh rose. Mobius immediately covered her butt, almost jumping out of the battleship. She gritted her teeth and looked back.
"W-what did you hit me for?"
"You have very important research work to do, but you're wasting time on such a meaningless thing. Shouldn't I hit you?" Ryan rubbed his fingers, savoring the feeling from just now. With his intelligence, he instantly knew that Vil-V had sold him out.
After another thought, he was a bit moved. This could also be seen as a woman beautifying herself for someone she loves. He took a step forward and gently hugged the angry Mobius.
"You're crazy. Don't hug me."
"Alright, my dear Aunt Mobius." Ryan used a little force, making the struggling, curvaceous body in his arms move less and less. In the end, there was only a token resistance.
Mobius buried her head in Ryan's chest, greedily taking a big breath: "You hit me just now, and now you're hugging me. Do you need me to prescribe you some mental health medication?"
"When did I hit you?"
"Just now!"
"That was a reward for you for figuring out the essence of the mutated Honkai Beast so quickly. You're welcome. This is what I should do as the commander-in-chief." Ryan said shamelessly and, by the way, moved his hand down.
Slap, slap, slap.
The slight crisp sounds were quickly lost in the night wind. But Mobius in his arms didn't resist. She just clamped her long legs together and gently swayed her body like a female snake that had just finished hibernating. Her cold skin was gradually warming up.
Her taste really is as strange as her personality. It's making my inner sadist burn.
Ryan licked his lips, a bit undecided. Just as he was thinking about whether to control himself a bit, he heard a soft voice, like mud, speak next to his ear.
"Just now, Prometheus is inputting data into the artificial body. In twenty minutes, the Hyperion will only have command and navigation capabilities left..."
Her green bangs were blocking her face. He could only see her slightly red face through her hair, and her snake eyes were filled with desire. It was a blatant desire that even her stubbornness couldn't stop.
The sun must have risen from the west. This level of stubbornness can be ignored, right?
Ryan was stunned for a moment. He wanted to ask, 'Have you finally given up?' but his emotional intelligence was off the charts at the critical moment, and he swallowed the words.
Now is not the time to be conflicted. Silence is better than sound.
...
"Where did Dr. Mobius go? She's not here for such an important artificial life experiment?"
In the research area in the middle of the ship, Mei stood with her hands in her pockets, looking at Klein with a puzzled expression. Next to her was a huge glass jar. A female body was floating in the bubbling green liquid.
She was about eleven or twelve years old, with short gray hair. Her blood-red pupils emitted a faint light. Her skin was fair and delicate, and she looked as exquisite as a doll.
A large number of cables were connected around her. An incalculable amount of data was being entered. This was equivalent to copying the central database.
"Uh, the experiment is finished. Dr. Mobius can come later." Klein was momentarily speechless. She quickly walked to the operating table: "Please look. This is the verification machine. It has confirmed that a life form between human and machine is possible. In other words, an artificial life form. It uses some of the data from the armed puppet project..."
Klein was rambling on. The armed puppet project was not successful because the relevant resources were transferred to Vil-V to complete the 'Genesis' research. Mobius was just utilizing waste and chose some sub-projects.
Why is she so unreliable? Doesn't she know how important Prometheus is?
Mei was a bit annoyed. She subconsciously looked up and saw a human body lying on the operating table, with a large number of mechanical limbs and biometrics. But it didn't look very detailed.
She's learned to save resources. Not bad.
Mei's mood instantly improved. She walked over and observed it carefully. As a scientist who had achieved success in all fields, she could see the truth at a glance.
"It's very rough. It has some reference value. Can it be awakened?"
"Because it can only invade firewalls below Level III, and the personality system also has flaws, the doctor locked the system and plans to throw it into the warehouse."
"What a waste of resources. Find a way to activate it. It can at least be a helper." Mei's mood was like a roller coaster. Mobius was still a spendthrift woman. When would she learn to be thrifty?
One experiment was not worth her time. After a short interlude, she turned her attention to the body in the glass jar.
This was the highest crystallization of human technology. It was the artificial life that she, Mobius, and Vil-V had spent a lot of time and countless resources to create. It was related to at least five key projects.
If she succeeded, Prometheus would be the best manager for humanity to rebuild civilization. If she failed, she would be even more important, directly related to the destiny of the next era.
Based on the Honkai Will theory proposed by Ryan, Mei conducted a more in-depth study. Since the Cocoon of Finality's greatest strength was its specific targeting and flexibility, why not use another consciousness to dominate or interfere with it?
Even if it only became a robot that followed a program step by step, the difficulty would be much smaller.
She looked at the countdown on the wall. There were five minutes left to input all the data. At this time, the door of the lab opened. Mei subconsciously looked back.
"Mobius... Why are you guys here?"
It was Eden and Sakura who came in. They weren't surprised to see Mei. Eden bowed gracefully: "I also wanted to witness the birth of a new life. Perhaps this is the first newborn of the Earth in the new era, or perhaps the last life born in the old era. It's such a meaningful event, of course I had to come and see it."
Eden is still so romantic.
Mei was dazed for a moment. As a scientist, she only cared about data. The meaning behind it was worthless, but she didn't deny Eden's romance.
"Now that you mention it, it does have some meaning. Sakura, are you also here to witness a new life?"
"I don't have Eden's artistic sense. It's just that Su just sent back some information, and neither of you was there." Sakura looked around and showed a confused expression: "Why isn't Dr. Mobius here? This is her project."
Mobius and Ryan? Oh, that's a bit interesting.
"Who knows where those two went? Don't worry, the data input is complete. Prometheus will be able to take over the ship's control system soon. She can find them in a second. You can report to me if you have anything."
Sakura always felt that Dr. Mei's smile was a bit evil. Her intuition also told her that something was not right. But as a rule-abiding person, she chose to follow the order.
Just as she was reporting, the lights on the ceiling of the lab suddenly went out. Sakura subconsciously closed her mouth. A second later, the lights came back on, and the sounds of various instruments starting up became noisy.
Under everyone's gaze, the green liquid in the glass jar was quickly drained. The thick cables were also pulled out, and the girl in the jar landed on the ground.
She was still conscious, but the light in her Scarlet eyes was even more obvious, filled with 'curiosity.' She took a good look at the real world, then raised her hands, closed her index fingers, and then opened them, feeling the physiological reaction called 'touch.'
A huge amount of data swept through her brain. The Honkai energy was like invisible tentacles connecting to space, and she regained control of the central database. Her consciousness then went to another server at the bottom of the Sea Abyss City and finally spread out.
Honkai energy is data. Wherever there is data, she exists. Prometheus was originally an energy computer created by Mei. Now, she just had a body that could move in the real world.
She took a step while being watched. She casually grabbed a white coat and put it on. After arriving in front of Mei, she learned the posture from the database and performed a textbook-like curtsy.
"Hello, Dr. Mei."
"Mm. How do you feel, Prometheus?" Mei asked faintly. She had already known the result, so she wasn't as amazed as Sakura or as excited as Eden.
"The feeling of reality is very strange, and there is an emotion called 'disappointment'." Prometheus's tone gradually slowed down, simulating the voice of disappointment.
"Do you find reality boring?"
"No, because I didn't see my father and mother when I was born. This is a biological instinct."
She's very complete. She even has such a subtle emotion naturally.
Mei's eyes lit up. She was afraid that she had created a Herrscher-like being with her own hands, which was why she had spent so much time teaching Prometheus.
As for who the father and mother were, it was very simple. Mobius created this body, so she was the mother in a sense. She had been monitoring the Fire Moth for so long, so the father, of course, referred to Ryan.
A machine wouldn't be stubborn. It was already very impressive that she could understand ethics.
"Is that why you chose the appearance of a little girl?" Eden interjected. If she was too mature, it would be a bit strange to say words like 'father' and 'mother.'
Prometheus turned her head and looked at this elegant and kind woman. In one millisecond, countless data points flashed through her mind.
"No, it's because my father told me he's a lolicon, so I specifically chose this appearance."