Honkai Impact 3rd: Starting with Handcrafted Black Tech to Save the Pre-Civilization - Chapter 28

But even a foolish method had its advantages. Faced with a maze like this, Ai Yue found it difficult to find any shortcuts to escape.

More awkwardly, Ai Yue's mental strength had been temporarily enhanced by "Aponia's Embrace." If he could not get out before the medicine wore off, he would not need to wait for the Eighth Herrscher to come back and settle the score with him—he could easily lose himself in the dreamscape.

"Wow, you really have given me a tough problem." Ai Yue rubbed his temples, but there was no trace of worry on his face. "Still, thinking this thing can trap me is a bit too optimistic, don't you think, bro?"

Ai Yue raised his left hand. A pistol instantly took shape, and he pressed it against his temple before pulling the trigger without hesitation.

Bang!

As the Honkai Beast before him collapsed and fell silent, Kevin finally lowered the weapon in his hands.

"Hen, how far have we advanced?"

He looked around at the area that had been temporarily cleared and turned toward the man not far away.

"A little over twenty kilometers." Hen glanced at the map and answered. "Do we need to take a break?"

After an hour of continuous, high-intensity combat, they had advanced only twenty kilometers. Kevin clearly could not accept that result, but after looking at his comrades, he eventually nodded. "Find a place to stop for a while."

A short while later, the five-member Fused Warrior squad gathered again. Elysia was the first to ask, "What is it? The city is still a long way away. We can't stop in a place like this."

"I know, but this won't work." Kevin shook his head, then looked at the two youngest members of the group. "Cosmo, Daisy, how are you holding up?"

Although the two of them had successfully survived the Fused Warrior surgery, they were still too young. Kevin was worried they would not be able to adapt to such high-intensity combat.

"I feel fine." Cosmo subconsciously rubbed his stomach. "I just feel hungry sometimes. When I focus on it, though, it seems more like an illusion."

"I'm fine too." Desdrobia said with a smile. A circle of sharp, palm-sized blades floated around her as if they were alive. "The new equipment Doctor Ai Yue provided is amazing. When I control them with telekinesis, I use almost half as much mental energy as usual."

The others nodded as well. Ai Yue had not merely prepared equipment to protect them from the Eighth Herrscher's abilities; he had also prepared specialized weapons for each of them. Desdrobia's telekinetic flying blades and Elysia's longbow, for example, each had unique effects.

Without the assistance of that equipment, they probably would not have made it this far.

"Since that's the case, I have a proposal." Only then did Kevin speak. "Continuing like this definitely won't work. Without the support of conventional troops, relying on us alone to clear out the Honkai Beasts will only exhaust us to death here. We have to force our way through."

Without mental protection, ordinary people who rashly approached this area would only fall unconscious. That was why the regular army could not launch an attack on the city and could only seal off the area with long-range firepower, preventing the Honkai disaster from spreading further.

"But what can we do on our own? The Eighth Herrscher hasn't appeared even now. Even if we wanted to decapitate her, we couldn't." Hen asked, "If we force our way through and end up surrounded by a sea of Honkai Beasts, getting back out will be difficult."

"We need to find a way to solve the problem preventing the regular army from participating." Kevin looked at Elysia. "Elysia, you said earlier that Aponia told you there was an intense mental-energy reaction inside the city, right?"

"Yes, but Aponia also said it wasn't the Eighth Herrscher." Elysia nodded. "Do you want to go in and deal with it?"

"Even if it isn't the Eighth Herrscher, it should be an Emperor-class Honkai Beast born alongside the Herrscher. Such Honkai Beasts usually possess abilities similar to a Herrscher's." Kevin nodded. "If we eliminate it, we can at least weaken the Eighth Herrscher's power. If we bring back its genetic samples, we might even be able to use them to break through the Eighth Herrscher's authority."

Chapter Fifty-Eight: The Tables Have Turned!

When Ai Yue woke from the dream, he was met by Hua's worried gaze.

"You're finally awake, Doctor Ai Yue." When she saw him open his eyes, Hua breathed a sigh of relief. "Miss Rachel woke up ten minutes ago. Did you encounter any danger in the dream?"

When Rachel woke up, Hua had assumed Ai Yue had done something in the dream. But when another five minutes passed and Ai Yue still had not awakened, she realized that something far more complicated must have happened in the dream.

Moreover, Rachel had told her that she had never seen Ai Yue in the dream. That meant Rachel's awakening had another cause.

Ai Yue did not answer. He breathed rapidly, glanced at Hua, and instinctively reached for the pistol at his waist, aiming it at his own temple.

Hua was horrified. She immediately lunged forward and grabbed his hand. "Ai Yue! What are you doing?"

"Doctor Ai Yue, your vital signs are abnormal." Prometheus immediately shifted and flowed, crawling along Ai Yue's arm from his right hand to his left and locking his movements in place. "Based on my analysis, do you believe you are still in a dream?"

A trace of change finally appeared in Ai Yue's eyes. He carefully studied Hua's expression, then closed his eyes and sensed something. At last, he relaxed and slumped into the chair. "I'm back?"

"Yes, you're back." Realizing that Ai Yue would not make another dangerous move, Hua finally released his hands and stopped restraining him. "Doctor Ai Yue, what happened?"

"Nothing." Ai Yue closed his eyes and waved a hand without speaking. "Let me calm down for a moment."

He had to admit that he had underestimated the Eighth Herrscher. Even though the Herrscher had only awakened recently, her control and manipulation of dreams had already surpassed human imagination.

The mental labyrinth that had trapped Ai Yue was not a simple prison created with an enormous amount of mental energy. It was a series of overlapping dreams, wrapping around him layer after layer like an onion.

Although Ai Yue had broken through the endless chain of dreams by taking a shortcut, the severe drain on his mind had caused his condition to deteriorate rapidly. After all, breaking through the situation quickly always came at a price. Experiencing death repeatedly had steadily weakened his ability to distinguish reality from dreams until only instinct remained.

Fortunately, the system had protected him. Otherwise, anyone else would have accidentally killed themselves.

But Ai Yue had had no choice. If he had not forced his way through using that method, even ten times as much time would not have been enough for him to escape.

After resting for a while and injecting himself with another dose of "Aponia's Embrace," Ai Yue gradually regained clear awareness. At the same time, everything he had experienced in the dream began resurfacing, and his face turned ashen.

Damn it, I was still too reckless. The result of relying on a safety net and torturing myself to death is... urgh...

"Are you all right, Doctor Ai Yue?" Seeing Ai Yue suddenly look as though he was about to vomit, Hua immediately stepped closer. "Take deep breaths. Empty your mind. Don't think about anything. It will make you feel better."

"It won't make me feel better at all. The problem is that I can't empty my mind right now." Ai Yue shook his head and finally managed to stand. "But I'm fine. This level isn't a big deal. Where's Rachel?"

"She should be with her mother." Hua answered. "Shall we go check on her?"

"Yeah. I hope the Eighth Herrscher didn't tamper with her." Ai Yue nodded. "Rose, have you released the summary of methods for avoiding unconsciousness?"

"It has already been disseminated online, but based on my analysis, the method will not be very effective." Prometheus replied. "By comparison, I recommend the second plan: directly control the network and set all the relevant keywords as blocked terms."

"You can't do that with your current performance. We'll discuss it after we return to the Moth to Fire." Ai Yue thought for a moment before asking, "How are Kevin and the others doing?"

"The Fused Warrior squad has broken into the central area where the Great Honkai erupted." Prometheus continued, "Judging from their movements, they appear to be planning a decapitation strike against the Emperor-class Honkai Beast accompanying the Herrscher."

"Keep monitoring them. If necessary, hack into the military's system and borrow their vehicles to get them out." Ai Yue nodded. "After we finish dealing with things here, we'll return to the Moth to Fire."

After his brief contact with the Eighth Herrscher, Ai Yue had developed a bold new idea.

In the living room, Rachel was still chatting with Sarah. When they saw Ai Yue and Hua emerge from the room, both women immediately stood and repeatedly thanked him.

Although neither of them knew what method Ai Yue had used, Rachel had indeed regained consciousness after he examined her. That alone was enough reason for them to thank him.

"It was nothing." Ai Yue called Rachel over and used the "Soul Guardian" to give her another simple examination. Only after confirming that there were no abnormalities in her mental state did he finish. "By the way, where is your husband?"

"He's asleep." Sarah's expression was somewhat complicated, but she still explained to Ai Yue, "He's actually a good man. He just gets a little irritable after drinking, but he isn't bad at heart."

Ai Yue said nothing. He only glanced at Rachel, who unexpectedly nodded as well. "That's true. Uncle Wright is just harsh with his words."

"Huh?" Hua froze. "Then why did he let you stay here?"

"Because my parents live upstairs too, and there isn't really another room." An apologetic expression appeared on Sarah's face as she stroked Rachel's hair. "We had no choice but to inconvenience Rachel."

Hua subconsciously looked at Ai Yue. Not only was it a blended family, and not only did it come with a stepchild, but he was even willing to take care of the woman's parents?

Ai Yue shrugged and gave her a look that said, See? What did I tell you?

Since there were no complicated family matters in Rachel's household requiring outside intervention, the two naturally said no more. After bidding the mother and daughter farewell, they returned to the aircraft.

Kalpas was still sitting in his seat exactly as before, as though he had never moved.

"What should we do next?" Hua asked impatiently. "Is there anything I can do?"

She felt that this whole outing had been even more relaxing than a vacation, which made her feel a little embarrassed.

"First, we'll return to the Moth to Fire and adjust our plans for what comes next." Ai Yue saw through Hua's thoughts and smiled. "Don't worry. There will be plenty of opportunities for you to contribute later."

After saying that, he subconsciously looked out the window.

He had no idea how far things had progressed at the Fifth Science Department.

Chapter Fifty-Nine: Am I Even Human?

As it turned out, Ai Yue's efficiency was simply too high.

From locating the unconscious people, to contacting the Eighth Herrscher through their dreams, to obtaining the key item and returning to the Moth to Fire, the entire process took less than eight hours.

By the time he returned to the Moth to Fire, the Fifth Science Department had not even produced a suitable mass-production plan. As a result, Ai Yue had to send Hua over with a sub-unit of Prometheus, freeing Mei and Sakura from the matter.

Before that, he went to Mobius's laboratory.

"You're back already?" Mobius showed no surprise when she saw Ai Yue enter the laboratory. "What did you get?"

"I can only say that I gained a lot." Ai Yue glanced at her workbench. "How are things on your end?"

"Following the direction you gave me, I just made a little progress." Mobius moved aside and made room. "Since you're back, come help."

"Looks like you don't have any objections to my plan?" Ai Yue detected no unusual emotion in her voice and immediately relaxed. "Then I feel better."

With his plan for Mobius, Ai Yue had thoroughly brought the word "exploitation" into play.

He needed Mobius to optimize the existing "Pseudo-Herrscher Gene · Hypervariable Factor" formula and bring it to a level where it could temporarily be used in actual combat. As for whether the side effects would kill the user, that problem was easy enough to solve.

Mobius could use it. After all, she could not die.

"Why would I object?" Mobius raised her chin and looked at Ai Yue in confusion. "I thought you already understood me well enough to know that I made this arrangement precisely because I'm this kind of person."

"No, not that part." Ai Yue waved a hand. He knew, of course, that Mobius did not care about being used as an experimental subject. "You originally said you would let me research the project for you, but in the end, it became me taking the lead. I feel a little bad about that."

"Oh, that really is a little annoying." Mobius gave a soft snort, then sighed. "But there's nothing I can do. The project was yours to begin with. Now it's just returned to its rightful owner, so it isn't a big deal."

Mobius had never expected to surpass Ai Yue by following the research direction he provided. Besides, this was a special situation, so she naturally would not truly fall out with him over it.

After all, in the field of research, the stronger party was always in the right. She herself had often relied on her talent to boss other people around. Now the tables had simply turned, and she was the unlucky one.

"Then let's finish it quickly." Ai Yue glanced at the system's research progress. "Let's try to solve it within twenty hours."

"Looks like we won't be sleeping." Mobius skillfully took a syringe from a nearby drawer and jabbed it into her neck. She then called to Klein, who was focused on recording data on the other side. "Klein, come take your medicine. We're pulling an all-nighter tonight!"

"Oh." Klein came over, took the capsules and water from Mobius, swallowed them, and returned to her post. Everything seemed completely natural, as if this happened in that place every day.

"After this is over, give her a long vacation." Seeing the dark circles beneath Klein's eyes that she could not suppress no matter what, Ai Yue sighed. "You can't work an ox like this either."

"No, this is fine." Klein herself seemed completely unconcerned. "I volunteer to work overtime. Really."

Her tone was utterly sincere, but paired with that expressionless face, it somehow sounded sarcastic.

"Klein's situation is rather special. She really does enjoy working." Mobius shook her head, then seemed to remember something and looked Ai Yue up and down. "Still, perhaps that will change after this is over."

For ordinary people, work might simply be a way to earn money and maintain their lives. For Klein, however, it was a refuge that allowed her to escape reality.

Ai Yue did not understand what riddle she was speaking in, so he simply ignored it and focused directly on the research.

Because the Second Herrscher's genetic samples were extremely precious—every bit used meant one bit less—even Mobius did not dare use them casually. The previous dose of medicine had been made from her own stock only because she had achieved a milestone and wanted to show off to Ai Yue.

Yet that "milestone achievement" had become as worthless as common cabbage that very night.

Although Mobius believed that her research into the project had surpassed Ai Yue's, it was only when she truly saw how he optimized the existing research that she realized she had still been thinking too simply.

He seemed not to need any detailed understanding of the existing material. A single glance was enough for him to grasp it completely. The things Mobius had spent countless hours researching in the laboratory were riddled with flaws in Ai Yue's hands, as if there were places to improve everywhere.

Mobius had thought she had built a solid foundation for the project and only needed to continue constructing on it to perfect it. She had not expected Ai Yue to overturn nearly all of her original design and build an entirely new foundation. Throughout the process, he made no apparent mistakes, and he rarely even hesitated while thinking.

It was as if all the knowledge already existed in his mind, and "research" merely meant moving it somewhere else.

"All right. This should at least allow the user to retain their sanity." After about four hours, Ai Yue finally stopped. "To preserve the strength of the pseudo-authority, though, we still can't avoid the user dying in the end. But since you're the one using it, it shouldn't be a problem."

What do you mean, since I'm the one using it? Am I not human?

Mobius had wanted to glare at him, but she discovered that even her subconscious agreed with Ai Yue's statement.

I can't die anyway. At most, my physiological age will regress a little. It isn't a serious problem.

"Mobius, take another look and see if anything else needs improving." Only then did Ai Yue turn toward her. "If not, we can start making it."

"There's nothing I can see." Mobius rolled her eyes and deliberately bumped into him, shoving Ai Yue out of his original position. "All right, leave the rest to me. Mei has returned, hasn't she? If you have something to discuss with her, go ahead."

Ai Yue's phone had been receiving messages intermittently from earlier, so Mobius easily guessed what had happened.

"Then I'll leave this place to you." Ai Yue did not linger and headed straight for the door. "Tell me as soon as you have results."

Although she had driven Ai Yue away, Mobius did not immediately begin working. Instead, she stared absently at the temporary formula he had provided.

It was ingenious and concise, yet filled with wildly imaginative ideas. It was completely free from the constraints of conventional academic thinking. If she had come up with this herself, how long would it have taken her to derive it?

"Why does it feel..." A trace of confusion crossed Mobius's face. "Like the gap between us is getting wider?"

Chapter Sixty: Wait, There's a Cheater

"Damn it! How did things end up like this?"

In some corner of Earth, the Eighth Herrscher vented her fury in exasperation. Under her control, various objects in the room rose into the air, slammed heavily into the walls, and finally turned into piles of junk that were heaped in the corner.

The Eighth Herrscher considered herself a very intelligent person. Thus, ever since her birth, she had always planned everything carefully, and events had proceeded smoothly.

She knew clearly that she was not the first Herrscher to be born, so she also understood that the plans of every previous Herrscher had ended in failure. Yet despite that, news of the Herrschers had not spread everywhere throughout society. Clearly, an organization dedicated to dealing with Herrschers was handling such matters from the shadows.

Since her abilities were unsuitable for direct combat, the Eighth Herrscher had decided on her strategy immediately after being born.

She would conceal her existence while dragging everyone into an unending dream from which they could never awaken. She would let unconsciousness spread among humanity like a plague until no one in the entire society remained awake. At that point, human civilization could be declared finished.

To conceal herself as perfectly as possible, the Eighth Herrscher had even used other people's identities when spreading hypnotic keywords online. That way, humanity could not trace the IP addresses and expose her identity in the real world. To remain hidden enough, she had not chosen large-scale hypnosis, but instead randomly selected different kinds of people from all over the world and pulled them into dreams. That way, even if their families tried every possible method to save them, they would not attract too much attention in the wider online environment.