After Zhang Wei's explanation, the Flame-Chasers became very interested in the modern civilization outside, especially with someone like Otto involved. Five hundred years of stable rule was no ordinary feat. They had no idea whether he would be a friend or an enemy.
Hmm, it looked like all the Flame-Chasers had agreed. Now he was practically going to empty out the Elysian Realm. Zhang Wei wondered whether Kevin's original body would lose his mind when he found out. He looked toward the tiny Snake Snake, preparing to tease her a little.
"Mobius, do you want to leave? Then you'll have to call me something nice!"
Zhang Wei crouched down and smilingly rubbed Mobius's head, as though he were scrubbing a puppy's head.
"In your dreams. At worst, I just won't leave!" Mobius's little face darkened. No one had ever treated her like this before. Gritting her teeth, she spoke against her true feelings.
Wanting her to yield was nothing but wishful thinking. Her mouth was harder than Soulium.
"Fine, then I'll just take the other twelve Flame-Chasers. When the Erosion Herrscher comes in, Snake Snake, you can disappear along with the Elysian Realm!" Zhang Wei looked at Mobius teasingly, wanting to see what expression she would make next.
"Erosion Herrscher..." Mobius's expression stiffened as she slowly forced out those words, as though they were stuck in her throat.
If the Law Herrscher was the tragedy the Flame-Chasers least wanted to remember—the reason the Thirteen Flame-Chasers gained that name afterward, as all the other Fusion Warriors had died in the tragedy of Binding—
Then the Erosion Herrscher had been the final straw that crushed the Previous Civilization. It controlled nuclear missiles and destroyed the last remaining cities. Everyone had already known that humanity had lost, but they had still clung to a sliver of hope. The destruction of those final cities had undoubtedly declared the end of the Previous Civilization.
The Flame-Chasers all glanced at Sakura without drawing attention to it. After all, the Erosion Herrscher of the Previous Civilization had been Sakura's younger sister, Ling—a pitiful little girl.
"I'm fine. Besides, isn't it very possible that Ling is still alive?" Sakura shook her head with a smile, her long ears twitching to show that they needn't worry so much. She was the Flame-Chaser of Setsuna. She was not that fragile.
"So... Captain, are you saying that the Erosion Herrscher will enter the Elysian Realm in the future?" Elysia asked in surprise.
The other Flame-Chasers all frowned in unison. The information seemed far too explosive, but on careful thought, it was quite reasonable.
"Yes. If we hadn't appeared, the Erosion Herrscher would descend upon the Elysian Realm. A vast world made entirely of data would be fertile soil for the Erosion Herrscher. If we want to deal with her, there's only one way!" Zhang Wei said.
Though he did not say what that method was, everyone thought of it.
The destruction of the Elysian Realm in exchange for the Erosion Herrscher's death. As Flame-Chasers, they would undoubtedly make that choice without hesitation.
"In the future I originally saw, the Elysian Realm would indeed face destruction. But now, I'm not sure anymore," Aponia said slowly.
The Flame-Chasers nodded. Aponia could see the threads of fate—a truly overpowered ability. It seemed the Erosion Herrscher really would descend upon the Elysian Realm in the not-too-distant future.
"What? Boss, I want out! I don't want to stay here and wait to die!" Pardo shuddered, and the fur on her tail stood on end. Although she could do something as brave as opening the door, she was unquestionably the most cowardly and death-fearing among the Flame-Chasers. No exceptions. Even Griseo could not compare.
Now that she knew there was a way to avoid it, she would not stupidly wait here to die. It did not matter whether the outside was dangerous or not—Elysia and the others would be there anyway. But staying in the Elysian Realm as a Memory Body and facing the Erosion Herrscher? That was truly waiting to die.
"Snake Snake, do you still want to remain here by yourself?" Zhang Wei crossed his arms and looked at Mobius mockingly.
"No, Big Brother, please, give me a manifested body!"
Snakes could bend and stretch as needed. What was the point of staying here? So that when the Erosion Herrscher truly descended, she could research how to die with a little more dignity?
Forget it. It was just yielding a little. She would not lose anything.
"Mm, such a good girl. See? Don't make your mouth so hard!" Zhang Wei patted Snake Snake's head. Though Mobius was seething inside, she still had to keep a smile on her face. The Flame-Chasers who saw this could not help but laugh. Zhang Wei was the only person who could make Mobius suffer such a loss and force her to endure without exploding. Not even Elysia could manage it.
"Got it, Big Brother!" Mobius said through gritted teeth, smiling.
"Ah, suddenly leaving the Elysian Realm feels a little hard to bear." Elysia sighed softly. After living here for tens of thousands of years, she had formed deep feelings for it.
"Pink Fatty, if you can't bear to leave and want to stay here to meet the Erosion Herrscher, then stay here by yourself!" Mobius said gleefully.
Although the Erosion Herrscher had only manifested in the Previous Civilization as a virus invading networks and electronic facilities, the word "erosion" was deeply suggestive. Mobius also had samples of the erosion virus preserved in her laboratory. Over the years, she had not dared research it too recklessly, since this was a world made of data and she did not want to accidentally erase herself. Still, she had learned some things. This Herrscher before Finality was definitely not so simple. Who knew whether she could have even more severe effects on life itself?
Perhaps what she eroded was not merely something as superficial as networks. A virus that eroded human bodies, a virus that eroded Honkai Energy—the later a Herrscher appeared, the more troublesome she became. To emerge after the utterly broken Law Herrscher was enough to prove that the Erosion Herrscher also possessed an unsolvable power.
The Previous Civilization had been fortunate to seal her within the black box before the Erosion Herrscher could unleash her other authorities.
"No. If all of you leave, it'll be so boring!" Elysia decisively shook her head and pouted.
She was somewhat interested in meeting the Erosion Herrscher, but if she had to stay alone in a place with no one else for years, she would be bored and lonely enough to go mad.
There were still so many adorable young girls waiting for her outside. How could the Elysian Realm become a cage that trapped her? She absolutely did not want to stay here alone.
"We can leave the Elysian Realm here for now and have World Serpent maintain it. Perhaps we can use it as bait later, lure the Erosion Herrscher inside, then catch her like a turtle in a jar!" Zhang Wei revealed a confident smile. One hand adjusted his Captain's hat, while the other clenched through the air.
"That could work. The Elysian Realm is very enticing, especially to the Erosion Herrscher!" Expert Vill-V analyzed rationally.
First, they could see whether the Erosion Herrscher was worth recruiting. If she harbored malicious intent, they had Anti-Kevin Armament 666. At worst, they could simply blow up the Elysian Realm when the time came. If it could help modern civilization eliminate the Herrscher before Finality, then the Elysian Realm would have served a purpose far beyond its original one.
And if they missed it later, they could simply rebuild a world made of data. It would be putting everything to its best use.
Before you continue