Honkai Impact 3rd: Saving the Pre-Civilization by Hand-Crafting Black Tech

The clumsy method also has its advantages: facing such a maze, it's hard for Ai Yue to find any clever way to escape.

Even more embarrassing is that Ai Yue's mental power is currently temporarily enhanced by "Aponia's Embrace." If he can't leave before the potion's effect wears off, the Eighth Herrscher won't need to settle the score with him; he'll easily get lost in the dream himself.

"Ah, this is really giving me a tough time," Ai Yue rubbed his temples, but his face didn't show any distress. "However, thinking something like this can trap me is a bit too wishful thinking, my friend?"

Ai Yue raised his left hand, and a handgun instantly took shape. He pressed it against his temple and, without hesitation, pulled the trigger.

"Bang!"

As the Honkai Beast before him fell to the ground, lifeless, Kevin finally lowered his weapon.

"Hen, how far have we advanced?"

He looked at the surroundings, which had been temporarily cleared, and then at the man not far away.

"A little over twenty kilometers," Hen replied, glancing at the map. "Do we need to rest?"

Advancing only twenty kilometers after an hour of high-intensity combat was a result Kevin clearly couldn't accept. But he looked at his comrades and finally nodded, "Find a place to stop."

A moment later, the five-person Fused Warrior squad reassembled. Elysia was the first to ask, "What's wrong? We're still a long way from the city. We can't stop in a place like this."

"I know, but this isn't working," Kevin shook his head and looked at the two youngest members of the team. "Cosmo, and Desdrobia, how are you two?"

Although they had successfully survived the Fused Warrior surgery, they were still too young. Kevin worried they couldn't adapt to such high-intensity combat.

"I'm fine," Cosmo instinctively touched his stomach. "I just feel very hungry sometimes, but when I try to focus, it feels like an illusion."

"I'm fine too," Desdrobia said with a smile. A circle of sharp, palm-sized blades floated around her, as if alive. "The new equipment provided by Dr. Ai Yue is amazing. When I control them with my telekinesis, it consumes about half the mental energy compared to usual."

The others nodded upon hearing this. Ai Yue hadn't just prepared equipment to protect them from the Eighth Herrscher's abilities; he had also prepared specialized weapons for each of them. For example, Desdrobia's telekinetic flying blades and Elysia's longbow each had unique effects.

Without the aid of this equipment, they probably wouldn't have reached this point.

"In that case, I have a proposal," Kevin finally said. "Continuing to advance like this is impossible. Without the help of conventional forces, we'll just exhaust ourselves clearing out Honkai Beasts. We have to break through."

Ordinary people, without mental protection measures, would fall unconscious if they approached this area rashly. This was why the regular army couldn't launch an attack on the city, only using long-range firepower to blockade the area and prevent the Honkai disaster from spreading further.

"But what can we do on our own? The Eighth Herrscher hasn't appeared yet, so we can't even attempt a decapitation strike," Hen asked. "If we force our way through and get surrounded by a sea of Honkai Beasts, it will be very difficult to get out."

"We need to find a way to solve the problem of ordinary armies being unable to participate," Kevin looked at Elysia. "Elysia, you mentioned earlier that Aponia told you there was a strong mental energy reaction within 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's not the Eighth Herrscher, it should be an Emperor-class Honkai Beast that accompanies the Herrscher. Such Honkai Beasts usually possess abilities similar to Herrschers," Kevin nodded. "If we eliminate it, we can at least weaken the Eighth Herrscher's power. Bringing back its gene samples might be useful for breaking the Eighth Herrscher's authority."

Chapter 58: It's a Reversal!

When Ai Yue woke up from his dream, he was met with Hua's worried gaze.

"You're finally awake, Dr. Ai Yue," Hua said, relieved to see Ai Yue open his eyes. "Miss Rachel woke up ten minutes ago. Did you encounter any danger in the dream?"

When Rachel woke up, Hua thought Ai Yue had done something in his dream. But when five minutes passed and Ai Yue still hadn't woken up, she realized that whatever happened in the dream was definitely not that simple.

Moreover, Rachel told her that she hadn't seen Ai Yue in her dream, which meant Rachel's awakening had another reason.

Ai Yue didn't speak. He was breathing rapidly. He just glanced at Hua before instinctively reaching for the pistol at his waist and aiming it at his temple.

Hua was shocked and immediately rushed forward, grabbing his hand. "Ai Yue! What are you doing?"

"Dr. Ai Yue, all your vital signs are currently abnormal," Prometheus flowed instantly, moving along Ai Yue's arm from his right hand to his left, locking his movement. "Based on my analysis, do you believe you are still in the dream?"

Ai Yue's gaze finally shifted slightly. He carefully observed Hua's expression, then closed his eyes to sense something. Finally, he relaxed, slumping back into the chair. "I'm back?"

"Yes, you're back." Realizing Ai Yue wouldn't make such a dangerous move again, Hua finally released her hands and retracted her restraining action. "Dr. Ai Yue, what exactly happened?"

"Nothing," Ai Yue closed his eyes, not speaking, just waving his hand. "Let me calm down for a bit."

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

The mental labyrinth that trapped Ai Yue wasn't a simple cage created by immense mental power, but layers upon layers, like an onion, wrapping him in a series of continuous dreams.

Although Ai Yue broke through the layers of interconnected dreams through a clever method, the intense mental exhaustion caused his condition to plummet. After all, quickly breaking through always came at a price. Experiencing death repeatedly meant his perception of reality and dreams continuously declined, until only instinct remained.

Fortunately, the System protected him. Otherwise, anyone else would have been killed by themselves by now.

But Ai Yue had no choice. If he hadn't forced his way through like this, he wouldn't have gotten out even with ten times the time.

After resting for a while and giving himself another injection of "Aponia's Embrace," Ai Yue's consciousness gradually returned to normal. At the same time, everything he had experienced in the dream resurfaced, making his face turn ashen.

Damn it, I was too reckless. Relying on the safety net and pushing myself to the limit led to this... gag...

"Are you alright, Dr. Ai Yue?" Seeing Ai Yue suddenly make a motion as if he was going to vomit, Hua immediately took two steps closer. "Take a deep breath, clear your mind, don't think about anything. It'll make you feel a bit better."

"It won't make me feel better at all. The problem is I can't clear my mind right now," Ai Yue shook his head, finally managing to stand up. "But it's okay, this level of problem isn't significant. Where's Rachel?"

"She should be with her mother," Hua said. "Should we go see her?"

"Yes, I hope the Eighth Herrscher didn't tamper with her," Ai Yue nodded. "Rose, have the summarized methods for avoiding unconsciousness been released?"

"They are already being disseminated online, but according to my analysis, these methods won't be very effective," Prometheus said. "Instead, I recommend using the second plan: directly control the network and set all keywords as blocked words."

"You can't do that with your current performance. We'll discuss it when we get back to Moth to Fire," Ai Yue pondered for a moment and then asked, "How are Kevin and the others doing?"

"The Fused Warrior squad has already penetrated the central area where the great Honkai outbreak occurred," Prometheus continued. "Based on their movements, it's speculated they plan to execute 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 pick them up," Ai Yue nodded. "After we finish things here, we'll head back to Moth to Fire."

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

In the living room, Rachel was still chatting with Sarah. Seeing Ai Yue and Hua emerge from the room, the two immediately stood up and repeatedly thanked Ai Yue.

Although they didn't know what method Ai Yue had used, Rachel had indeed regained her senses after his examination. Based on this alone, they had no reason not to thank Ai Yue.

"It's nothing," Ai Yue motioned for Rachel to come over and performed another simple examination on her using the "Soul Guardian," confirming there were no mental abnormalities before concluding. "By the way, where is your husband?"

"He's asleep," Sarah's expression was a little subtle, but she still explained to Ai Yue, "He's actually a good person, just a bit short-tempered when he drinks, but he's not bad at heart."

Ai Yue didn't speak, just glanced at Rachel. To his surprise, Rachel nodded in agreement, "That's true, Uncle Wright is just harsh with his words."

"Huh?" Hua was taken aback. "Then why did he let you live here?"

"Because my parents live upstairs, and there really wasn't any other room," Sarah said with an apologetic expression, stroking Rachel's hair. "Rachel had to make do."

Hua subconsciously looked at Ai Yue. A blended family was one thing, bringing along a burden was another, but he was willing to take care of the woman's parents?

Ai Yue shrugged, giving her a "See? I told you so" look.

Since there were no complicated family matters at Rachel's home that required outside intervention, the two didn't say much more. After parting ways with the mother and daughter, they returned to the plane.

Kalpas was still sitting in his seat as before, as if he hadn't moved at all.

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

She felt like this whole trip had been more leisurely than a vacation, which made Hua feel a little embarrassed.

"Let's go back to Moth to Fire first and adjust our subsequent plans," Ai Yue saw through Hua's thoughts and couldn't help but smile. "Don't worry, there will be plenty of opportunities for you to contribute later."

After speaking, he subconsciously looked out the window.

He wondered what stage the Fifth Science Department's affairs had reached.

Chapter 59: Am I Even Human?

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

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

By the time he returned to Moth to Fire, the Fifth Science Department hadn't even come up with a suitable mass production plan. Ai Yue had no choice but to have Hua take Prometheus's sub-unit to free Mei and Sakura from such tasks.

Before that, however, he first went to Mobius's laboratory.

"Back so soon?" Mobius showed no surprise as Ai Yue entered the laboratory. "Any gains?"

"Let's just say the gains were significant," Ai Yue glanced at her experimental bench. "How's your side coming along?"

"Based on the direction you gave, we've just made some progress," Mobius moved aside, making room. "Since you're back, come help."

"It seems you have no objections to my plan?" Ai Yue, not detecting any particular emotion in her words, felt relieved. "Then I can rest easy."

Ai Yue had truly maximized the concept of "utilization" in his plan for Mobius.

He needed Mobius to optimize the existing "Pseudo-Herrscher Gene · Hypervariable Factor" plan to a level where it could be temporarily deployed in actual combat. As for whether the side effects would lead to death, that was also easy to solve.

Just let Mobius use it – she wouldn't die anyway.

"Why would I have any objections?" Mobius tilted her chin up, looking at Ai Yue with confusion. "I thought you knew me well enough to arrange things this way."

"No, it's not about that part," Ai Yue waved his hand. He knew very well that Mobius didn't care about being used as an experimental subject. "The research project I was supposed to give you ended up being led by me. I feel a bit bad about that."

"Oh, that's true, I am a little unhappy about that," Mobius snorted, then sighed. "But there's nothing to be done. Who asked for this project to be yours in the first place? It's just returning it to its rightful owner now, so it's not a big deal."

Mobius had never expected to surpass Ai Yue based on the research direction he provided. Moreover, given the current special circumstances, she wouldn't cause any conflict with Ai Yue over such a matter.

After all, in the field of scientific research, might makes right. She had often pointed fingers at others based on her own talent in the past. Now, the tables had turned, and she was the one unlucky enough to be on the receiving end.

"Then let's get it done quickly," Ai Yue glanced at the progress of the System's research project. "Let's aim to resolve it within twenty hours."

"Looks like we won't be sleeping," Mobius expertly took out a syringe from a nearby drawer, injected it into her neck, and then called out to Klein, who was diligently recording data. "Klein, come take your medicine. We're pulling an all-nighter tonight!"

"Oh," Klein walked over, took the capsule and water from Mobius, swallowed them, and then returned to her post. Everything seemed so natural, as if this kind of thing happened in this place every day.

"After this is over, give her a long vacation," Ai Yue sighed, looking at the dark circles under Klein's eyes that she couldn't hide. "Even a workhorse shouldn't be treated like this."

"No, this is fine," Klein herself seemed indifferent. "I'm volunteering for overtime, really."

Her tone was sincere, but paired with her expressionless face, it felt like she was being sarcastic.

"Klein's situation is a bit special. She genuinely enjoys working," Mobius shook her head, then seemed to think of something and looked Ai Yue up and down. "However, perhaps after this, she will change."

For ordinary people, work might just be a way to earn money to sustain their lives. But for Klein, it was a haven that allowed her to escape reality.

Ai Yue couldn't understand what cryptic message she was trying to convey, so he simply ignored it and focused his attention on the research content.

Because the gene samples of the Second Herrscher were extremely precious, they diminished with every use. Therefore, even Mobius didn't dare to use them casually. The previous serum was something she had grudgingly made from her own stock after achieving a phased result, just to show off to Ai Yue.

However, such "phased results" had become as common as cabbage tonight, practically worthless.

Although Mobius believed she had surpassed Ai Yue in her research on this project, it wasn't until she truly saw how Ai Yue optimized the existing research content that she realized she had been too naive.

He seemed to have no need to understand the existing content thoroughly; a single glance was enough for him to grasp it all. The things Mobius had spent countless hours in the laboratory researching were full of flaws under Ai Yue's hands, as if there were improvements to be made everywhere.

Mobius had thought she had laid a solid foundation for this project and only needed to build upon it to perfect it. She never expected Ai Yue to completely overturn her original design, almost rebuilding a new foundation. And during this process, he didn't make any mistakes, and even his moments of hesitation were minimal.

It was as if all the knowledge was already in his head, and the current "research" was merely a matter of relocating it.

"Alright, this way, at least the user can maintain their sanity," Ai Yue finally stopped after about four hours. "However, to ensure the strength of the pseudo-authority, the user's eventual death is still unavoidable. But since it's you using it, it's not a big problem."

What do you mean, "since it's me using it"? Am I not human?!

Mobius had intended to glare, but she found that even she subconsciously agreed with Ai Yue's statement.

After all, she wouldn't die, it was just a slight regression in her physiological age, not a big problem.

"Mobius, do you see any other areas that need improvement?" Ai Yue finally looked at Mobius. "If not, we can start the trial production."

"I can't see anything." Mobius rolled her eyes and unceremoniously shoved Ai Yue out of his original spot. "Alright, I'll handle the rest. Mei is back, right? If you have something to discuss with her, go ahead."

Since a while ago, Ai Yue's phone had been receiving messages intermittently, and Mobius could easily guess what was happening.

"Then I'll leave this to you." Ai Yue didn't linger and walked straight out the door. "Tell me the results as soon as possible."

Although she had driven Ai Yue away, Mobius didn't start working immediately. Instead, she looked at the temporary formula Ai Yue had provided.

Exquisite, concise, yet full of wild imagination, completely unbound by basic academic thinking. If it were her, how long would it take to derive such a result?

"Why do I feel..." A hint of confusion flashed across Mobius's face. "The gap is getting bigger?"

Chapter 60: Something's Wrong, There's a Little Imposter

"Damn it, how did things turn out like this!"

In a corner of the Earth, the Eighth Herrscher was venting her anger furiously. Various objects in the room flew up into the air under her control, smashing heavily against the walls before turning into a pile of wreckage and being shoved into a corner.

The Eighth Herrscher considered herself very intelligent. Therefore, since her birth, she had always been meticulously planning, and things had proceeded smoothly.

She knew clearly that she was not the first Herrscher to be born, so she understood that every previous Herrscher's plan had ended in failure. Yet, even so, there were no widespread rumors about Herrschers in society, indicating that an organization specifically dealing with Herrschers was handling matters from the shadows.

Since her abilities were not suitable for direct combat, the Eighth Herrscher decided on her strategy the moment she was born.

She would conceal her existence and drag everyone into a dream from which they could not awaken. She would let unconsciousness spread among humans like a plague until no one in society remained awake. At that point, human civilization could be declared over.

To ensure the most perfect concealment possible, the Eighth Herrscher even used other people's identities to spread keywords for hypnosis online. This way, she could prevent humans from using IP addresses to track her down offline. Moreover, to maintain sufficient stealth, she did not opt for mass hypnosis. Instead, she randomly selected people from different walks of life in various corners of the world and pulled them into her dream. This way, even if the families of these individuals tried various means to rescue them, it would not attract too much attention within the overall network environment.