Mobius Side Story: Before the Ascension

Zhu Yufeng lay quietly amidst a pile of instruments, watching Mobius collect various data. He remained silent, simply waiting for the results.

After a long time, Mobius finally stopped her actions. She leaned back in her chair, a little weary, and said, "Regarding your body, I have some news that can barely be considered good, and some bad news. Which do you want to hear first?"

Zhu Yufeng replied expressionlessly, "Whatever you prefer."

"Heh... Alright, I'll tell you the good news first then." Mobius looked at the data displayed on the instruments and said, "Your resistance to Honkai energy has reached Herrscher level. With this, perhaps even the Honkai energy radiation during the birth of Finality won't be able to kill you. Your current physical condition, aside from the absence of a Herrscher core, is already close to that of a Herrscher. Of course, your situation is different from the Twelfth Herrscher. If I had to use one term to explain it, you are at most a pseudo-Herrscher, or a Herrscher precursor."

Zhu Yufeng offered no opinion on this, merely asking, "Then what's the bad news?"

Mobius looked at Zhu Yufeng. Becoming close to a Herrscher wasn't really a big deal. With Zhu Yufeng's combat power, activating an artificial collapse would also result in a Honkai energy reaction that could reach or even exceed Herrscher levels. That's why she said this news could only barely be considered good news.

Theoretically, defeating a Herrscher is not difficult for any Fallen Angel.

What is a Herrscher? What do they represent? Or are they also just a form of Honkai manifestation? What is certain is that the capacity for Honkai energy containment and control that Herrschers possess is difficult for even Fusion Warriors to surpass. The Herrscher core can also be seen as the highly concentrated Honkai energy of the Herrscher itself, condensed into form. It is both their Honkai energy storage and the embodiment of their authority. Just as Kevin can unleash a nuclear explosion visible from the other side of the planet with the help of the Sky-Piercing Fire, Zhu Yufeng can smash out an entire Sahara Desert with the Black Abyss White Flower. To achieve all this, they must rely on Divine Keys, which are the Herrscher cores.

Mobius interrupted her thoughts and said, "Bad news? The bad news is your lifespan is no longer than a year, even if you are a Fusion Warrior now."

Even he, in the end, could not break through the limitations of the human body. Just as his body was completely incompatible with the authority of the Twelfth Herrscher, he was originally an ordinary person who had luckily survived the earliest Super-Mutation surgery. Afterward, he had almost forcibly fused with one Honkai Beast after another, and finally... through the characteristics of Vishnu, he had devoured all the Fallen Angels.

Acquiring power always comes with a price. Divine Shadows that delusionally attempt to steal the authority of gods and wear the crowns of the gods, in the end...

"At least I can still live until Finality arrives," Zhu Yufeng seemed unsurprised by this. He accepted it very calmly.

"Although I'm probably not in a position to say this, you really are becoming less and less like a human. You seem to be only one Herrscher core away from becoming a Herrscher," Mobius sighed softly. "Forcibly fusing with various Honkai Beasts has not only caused you physiological burning pain, but also affected your psychological state."

"Doesn't that also prove that I'm already approaching the final form of Project: Ascend to Divinity?" Zhu Yufeng said. "The condensation of a Herrscher core requires a large amount of Honkai energy, but clearly, even with the high concentration of Honkai energy pervading the Earth now, it cannot gather to catalyze the birth of a new Herrscher, unless..."

"The Finality Herrscher..." Mobius whispered. "Are you planning to seize Finality's authority?"

"Finality will inevitably be born, we both know that, don't we?" Zhu Yufeng stood up and said. "That will be our final battle, where we wager everything."

"When Finality is born, the massive amount of Honkai energy gathered on the moon can indeed catalyze the birth of a Herrscher, but..." Mobius frowned. "The problem now is, why do you possess such a physique? Kevin, who underwent the same Chimera Project, did not experience these changes you are undergoing. Moreover, I cannot guarantee that you will retain your self-awareness after becoming a Herrscher."

"Ling proved that Herrscher consciousness doesn't necessarily defeat self-awareness," Zhu Yufeng said. "At the moment of sealing the Twelfth Herrscher, Sakura and I found Ling. It wasn't us who sealed her, but her residual consciousness that defeated the Herrscher consciousness, creating an opportunity for us."

"One wrong step, and you could become an enemy of humanity," Mobius looked up at Zhu Yufeng's silver pupils. "Think about what they did to you. Think about why you've become this way... Do you still wish to protect humanity?"

"This question is meaningless," Zhu Yufeng said, crossing his arms. "I've come this far. I won't fall until I defeat Finality, because... I won't let the sacrifices of Lilith and the others, as well as all your efforts so far, become a joke."

Mobius was taken aback.

"Perhaps humanity is indeed as you say. They are not that wonderful. They may always harbor ill will towards me, but what does that have to do with what I'm doing?" Zhu Yufeng continued.

"But they hurt you, they almost killed you!" Mobius's voice suddenly rose a few decibels. "And you think that doesn't matter?!"

"But I still have you all!" Zhu Yufeng said decisively. "Dr. Mobius, not to mention you, did Kevin ever harm me? Did Elysia harbor ill will towards me? Haven't you helped me?"

Mobius's body stiffened.

"The dice have been cast," Zhu Yufeng turned to look at the screens in the lab. "At this point, after all we've been through, all the sacrifices, because of their betrayal, I'm just going to give up? I want to defeat Finality, what does that have to do with humanity?"

"Heh!" Mobius let out a cold laugh. "You truly are a selfless good person..."

"Selfless? No, I'm a selfish person, a very, very selfish person." Zhu Yufeng closed his eyes and said in a low voice, "If I give up everything like this, that would be the greatest betrayal to Lilith and the others! Their sacrifices would become meaningless, and all the pain I've endured to get here would just be a joke."

Silence.

A long silence.

Neither of them spoke, and only the sound of the instruments running filled the laboratory.

After a long while, Mobius finally said, "Finality's Honkai energy level far exceeds all Herrschers that have appeared so far. Although you are a qualified Herrscher precursor, ... even I cannot guarantee that you can truly withstand the Honkai energy eruption when Finality is born. The Honkai energy resistance your body possesses is, after all, artificially created. I cannot guarantee that during the final Honkai eruption, the unprecedented level of Honkai energy won't reactivate the Super-Mutation factors within you."

"But we... have no other choice," Zhu Yufeng said.

"There is. There's another path," Mobius said very softly. "Before Finality is born, I can cooperate with Vill-V to create a device that condenses Honkai energy. Theoretically, as long as the Honkai energy reaches a certain threshold, a Herrscher will be born. We can create a device and slowly inject Honkai energy into it, and you just need to absorb this Honkai energy."

"How slow is 'slow'?" Zhu Yufeng frowned. "We still need to factor in the design and production. We don't have that much time."

"It's slow compared to the birth of other Herrschers," Mobius said, looking at Zhu Yufeng. "As you know, almost all Herrschers are born with large-scale Honkai eruptions. We can't instantly gather the massive amount of Honkai energy required for a Herrscher's birth, but we can collect the Honkai energy that is everywhere now."

"But what if it fails?" Zhu Yufeng asked again. "Doctor, you also said that the birth of a Herrscher stems from the instantaneous, massive accumulation of Honkai energy. By absorbing Honkai energy like this, will it really turn out as predicted in our plan?"

"No, the essence of a Herrscher's birth is the absorption and condensation of Honkai energy to form a corresponding Herrscher core," Mobius said, then lowered her voice to a barely audible whisper, "Except for her birth, the reason is still unclear..."

"Except for what?" Zhu Yufeng asked, a little confused.

"That cannot be used as a reference. In any case, we have to at least try, don't we?" Mobius said.

"Indeed, there is very little we can do now," Zhu Yufeng sighed.

"I'll contact Vill-V immediately. Until then, you can just wait for news."

"Please do, Doctor," Zhu Yufeng nodded and was about to leave the laboratory. Just as he was about to step out the door, Mobius's voice rang out behind him, "After everything is over, what are you going to do?"

"Find a place to bury myself, if I'm still alive. If I'm dead... just toss me on the moon, it's all the same."

"...Before you bury yourself, I forbid you from leaving so casually. If you truly become a Herrscher, you are not allowed to leave until I obtain your experimental data!"

"...As you wish."

The laboratory door closed. Mobius looked at the closed door, lowered her gaze, and murmured to herself, "I won't let you die... there must be another way..."

At the same time as humans become Herrschers, some of their ailments disappear. Although it's unknown if Zhu Yufeng's current physical condition can be cured by becoming a Herrscher, it's still a glimmer of hope, isn't it?

"Your reasoning sounds selfish, but for us, for people like me who have watched you come this far, how is this selfish? In your eyes, have you ever considered yourself, Yu Feng?"

He was indeed selfish enough, not caring about others' opinions, only wanting to protect the meaning of the path he had walked. He was also selfless enough, because he never cared about the burden he carried.

A few days later.

Another dawn arrived. Zhu Yufeng looked up from his book, casually placed a bookmark, and returned the book to the shelf. He then opened the door, preparing to ask Mobius about the research progress on the Honkai energy gathering device. Completing a new device in just a few days would be difficult for ordinary people, but Mobius had told him that for her, it would only take a few days.

Was it because she had half of Vill-V's abilities? What kind of epoch-making monster was the complete Vill-V?

"Hm? What's this..." Zhu Yufeng noticed an invitation on his door, held in place by a cluster of crystal flowers that seemed to have grown directly from the door. The style was unmistakably Elysia's.

Zhu Yufeng reached out and took the invitation. The crystal flowers that had been holding it disappeared as soon as he removed the invitation, as if they had never been there.

The floral patterns on the invitation were exquisite, showing that Elysia had put considerable effort into it. Speaking of which, why would Elysia leave an invitation for him?

In the game, she did write invitations, but in the end, none of them were sent out.

Zhu Yufeng thought this, then walked back into his room and sat at the desk, gently opening the invitation.

He stared at the contents of the invitation for a long time, not snapping out of it even when Mei announced the appearance of the Thirteenth Herrscher within the Fire Moth.

After reading the contents several times, Zhu Yufeng resealed the invitation and walked out of his room.

He first went to find Eden. Eden was just about to depart for Elysia's current location. After asking her if she had received an invitation and receiving a negative answer, he went to find others.

Aponia, Qianjie, Sakura, Hua, Vill-V, Kosma, Griseo, Pardo, Su...

None of them had received any invitations.

"Only Mobius and Kevin are left..." Zhu Yufeng looked down at the invitation in his hand. "But I imagine they probably didn't receive one either... Elysia, Elysia... why would you think I would hunt you down just because you're a Herrscher?"

"What if she just wanted to see you?"

A strange thought popped into his mind, and he immediately dismissed it. If she just wanted to see him, why give it to him when even Eden didn't receive one? Wasn't she afraid Eden wouldn't go?

"Didn't she not send out invitations to give the other Schicksal a choice? By giving the invitation to you, doesn't it mean she'd rather not give you a choice just to see you?"

Zhu Yufeng: "..."

He should have moved on from Elysia by now, right? Why did he keep thinking about it that way? It was as if another personality had split off...

Besides, even if he went to see Elysia, what would he do? What would he say?

He had decided to fight the Honkai because of her, and joined the Fusion Warrior project for her, but in the end, she still made that unavoidable choice... Moreover, the deaths of Lilith and the others were like a deep chasm, separating him and Elysia.

He didn't hate Elysia, because if she hadn't done that, she wouldn't be Elysia, but he couldn't pretend not to care about it.

And after spending so much time together, even if he had tried his best to avoid seeing her during this time, did she not trust him because of that? To make him hunt her down...

His mind finally fell silent. Kevin's voice came from ahead: "Feng, you're here. Are you preparing to go to where Elysia is now?"

"No, there's no need..." Zhu Yufeng handed the invitation to Kevin. "Give this back to her. If she asks, tell her: 'Those who attended did so because they believed in Elysia, and those who were absent refused to hunt her because they believed in Elysia.' Just say that..."

Kevin paused, then took the invitation and said, "...I will convey your message accurately."

"Please do," Zhu Yufeng nodded, then headed towards Mobius's laboratory.

Kevin looked down at the invitation. It looked as if it hadn't been opened, but he believed Zhu Yufeng had definitely read it. He remembered what Mobius had said a few days ago. What exactly had Elysia written in the invitation?

Never mind, he was only responsible for returning it, not for reading it.

Zhu Yufeng arrived at Mobius's laboratory. Vill-V was not there as she had already gone to keep her appointment. Mobius was adjusting the device she and Vill-V had jointly created with the armed puppet, Klein.

Seeing him arrive, Mobius seemed a bit surprised: "Yufeng? I thought you went to find Elysia."

"There's nothing good to see. If we met, I wouldn't know what to say. It would probably be more awkward than Kevin," Zhu Yufeng said expressionlessly. "So, Doctor, is the device complete?"

"It is complete, but to start the final step, we'll probably have to wait for Vill-V to return," Mobius said. "Are you really not going? That might be the last time you get to see Elysia."

"I know, but... my relationship with her isn't that close... there's no need," Zhu Yufeng said.

"As you wish," Mobius shrugged. "Before the final step begins, let me adjust your physical condition one last time."

"Okay."