Honkai Impact 3rd: Starting with Handcrafted Black Tech to Save the Pre-Civilization, Chapter 29

This dreamscape was named "Spiderweb Dreamscape" by the Eighth Herrscher. It linked the consciousnesses of those who had fallen into the dream and wove them into a dream network capable of enveloping the entire world. Once the network took shape, it would spread outward from each node, infecting nearby people in their sleep and ultimately causing them to sink into the dream.

Most importantly, through this method, the Eighth Herrscher could search the memories of the sleepers and find clues about that mysterious organization. As long as she referred to the six degrees of separation theory, she would soon uncover their flaws, then use the dream to capture them all and eliminate every hidden threat.

In the Eighth Herrscher's estimation, the plan was practically perfect. By the time the number of comatose people online grew large enough to attract humanity's attention, her dream would probably have grown to cover the entire world. By then, even if they wanted to resist, it would already be too late.

But... but...

Her plan had only just begun. How could someone have precisely located those unconscious people, mastered the method of entering the dream, found her trail, and then even escaped smoothly from the layers of mental labyrinths surrounding them?

At the thought of the human who had appeared in her dream and spoken to her in a calm, indifferent tone, the Eighth Herrscher could not help shuddering.

She knew very well that although her plan seemed flawless, it had one crucial weakness: during the first stage, when the Spiderweb Dreamscape was spreading, the power she could use was extremely limited.

If someone discovered the anomaly during this stage and brought overwhelming power to nip everything in the bud, then no matter how terrifying the Spiderweb Dreamscape became afterward, it would be nothing more than a joke.

Yet humanity was such a foolish and short-sighted species. Faced with such a terrifying threat, they could not even unite. How could anyone realize something was wrong at the very beginning and launch a targeted attack?

Even if he could realize where the problem lay, how could he convince the others to deal with something so insignificant?

If all that could still be explained, then his escape from the mental labyrinth was utterly incomprehensible.

Recalling the scene she had witnessed in the replay of the dream fragment, the Eighth Herrscher felt as if her mind had stopped working. A human faced with layer upon layer of realistic dreams had not become lost in them or searched for an opening. Instead, he had escaped directly by killing himself. There was definitely something wrong with that man!

Once or twice would have been one thing, but how the hell could anyone kill themselves 128 times in a row? Wouldn't he go insane?

No one understood dreams better than the Eighth Herrscher. Within dreams, she could simulate anything. Although a conscious death could break one free, the real experience of death would also be deeply imprinted in the person's mind. Experiencing that feeling over a hundred times was something no human could endure. Even if they escaped the dream, they would ultimately become insane.

But would that person really go insane? No. Was that guy even still human?

The more the Eighth Herrscher thought about it, the more absurd it seemed. She even began to feel a strange emotion—one that absolutely should not have appeared when facing humans: fear.

She was the judge of civilization. How could she be afraid?

"Calm down. I need to calm down..." The Eighth Herrscher took several deep breaths and finally steadied her emotions. Then she smiled again. "There's no need to panic. So what if he hasn't gone mad? Won't he still obediently become my stepping stone?"

As she spoke, the girl unconsciously rubbed her fingers together. In her vision, a flickering strand of light rolled between her fingertips.

It was a specific mental fragment belonging to a certain person.

With this fragment, she could easily track the man's location. If he truly came from that mysterious organization opposing the Herrschers...

Then she could pay them a visit.

"The Eighth Herrscher may come knocking."

In the familiar meeting room, Ai Yue dropped a bombshell in front of a weary Dr. Mei.

"W-what did you say?" Dr. Mei froze, and even her yawn was cut short. "The Eighth Herrscher? Coming here? What exactly did you do?"

"Simply put, I went to talk to her. Unfortunately, we parted on bad terms." Ai Yue gave a brief explanation. "I stayed in the dream for quite a while. Since she specializes in this field, she may be able to track my location."

"You want to catch her in the trap?" Dr. Mei did not believe Ai Yue was foolish enough to invite trouble upon himself, so she roughly guessed his intentions. "Do we need Kevin and the others to come back?"

Sakura had already taken the first batch of mental-resistance medicine and soldiers to support Kevin and the others, bringing Kalpas along as well. As a result, only Mobius remained at Moth to Fire. If Ai Yue truly planned to deal with the Eighth Herrscher here, Mobius alone would certainly not be enough.

"No need. I have other helpers." Ai Yue smiled. Then he suddenly heard a knock. "Looks like they're here."

Dr. Mei blinked and watched the meeting-room door open. Two familiar figures walked in from outside. "So? Has the Eighth Herrscher arrived?"

Vill-V, whom they had not seen in a long time, had arrived with Aponia, who should have remained in The Deepest Place.

Chapter Sixty-One: Damn It, She Isn't Just a Noob—She's a Cheater

"You..." Dr. Mei glanced at Vill-V and Aponia, then immediately realized. "You planned all of this?"

"Just a backup measure. I didn't expect it to come in handy so soon." Ai Yue spoke casually, then looked toward Vill-V. "Did you resolve the matter in The Deepest Place?"

"Of course. Otherwise, Aponia wouldn't have been able to come out." Vill-V smiled and sat down in the chair to Ai Yue's left. "Speaking of which, how long had you been preparing those blueprints? They don't look like something you made on short notice."

"I speak for the people of The Deepest Place in thanking you, Ai Yue." Aponia sat to Ai Yue's right and stared intently at him. "With that device, their suffering should be eased as well, right?"

"Wait, what are you talking about?" Dr. Mei felt increasingly confused. "Doctor Ai Yue, did you secretly plan something with them behind my back?"

She had long felt that putting Ai Yue and Vill-V together could not lead to anything good, but this trouble had arrived far too quickly!

"It's nothing. We just made a small upgrade to The Deepest Place." Vill-V gestured with her fingers as if depicting a tiny universe. "Following Ai Yue's blueprints, we installed a mental-soothing device. It can block outside mental interference while easing the psychological problems of the people inside."

Most of the members of The Deepest Place were not heinous criminals. Many were warriors who had developed mental disorders from pressure and other causes while fighting the Honkai. Since they could not integrate into ordinary society, while the higher-ups could not bear to discard such combat power, The Deepest Place had been established as a place for them to live.

"All plans concerning The Deepest Place need approval from above..." Dr. Mei said instinctively, then laughed at herself. "Forget it. They probably don't have the time to worry about this now."

At that, she looked toward Ai Yue again. "So, Doctor Ai Yue, what exactly is your plan?"

"First, the Eighth Herrscher is unlikely to come here in person. She'll use mental power to spy on this place, then create a dream to envelop us." Ai Yue explained, "But that also gives us a chance to track her in reverse."

Although Ai Yue had obtained a mental sample of the Eighth Herrscher from the dream, he was not a true psychic-type ability user and could not bring it into reality. Naturally, he could not use it for mental tracking.

Besides, the thing had already been used as experimental material.

So the urgent task was to find a way to lure the Eighth Herrscher into appearing a second time without entering the dream, then use the fluctuations in her mental power to locate her and lock onto her position in reverse.

That was why Ai Yue needed to bring Aponia out of The Deepest Place. As the strongest Mental Perception Fused Warrior at present, Aponia was unquestionably the best candidate to oppose the Eighth Herrscher. Even if the other side created a dream that trapped everyone, Aponia would certainly be the one who remained awake.

Moreover, only Aponia could bring the mental-location technology's effect to its fullest. Her mental power could extend to most places on Earth, whereas even with "Aponia's Embrace," Ai Yue could only cover a small area. The two were on completely different levels.

Thus, Ai Yue's plan was to have Aponia locate the Eighth Herrscher, then let Mobius use medicine to temporarily obtain the Second Herrscher's pseudo-Herrscher authority, cross the spatial distance directly, appear before the Eighth Herrscher, and kill her.

The plan looked brutally simple. But with careful thought, one would realize that completing it required the corresponding technology, and none of the methods involved were things humanity could currently accomplish.

In other words, only Ai Yue could use the system to devise such a simple and brutal plan.

"Are you confident?" Dr. Mei frowned. "If the Eighth Herrscher truly controls consciousness, how can we locate her in reverse?"

In Dr. Mei's view, the first step of Ai Yue's plan was filled with uncertainty. After all, competing with a Herrscher who toyed with consciousness in the field of mental power was an act of overestimating oneself.

"Oh, don't worry about that." Vill-V patted Ai Yue's shoulder with a smile. "Ai Yue may speak arrogantly, but he only says such things when he's confident. If this plan had less than a ninety-percent success rate, he wouldn't use it."

Although Dr. Mei was also a top scientist, she was usually too busy to spend much time with Ai Yue. Her understanding of him was therefore far inferior to Vill-V's and Mobius's, and her impression of him still remained at the stage of considering him merely "humanlike."

But in Vill-V's and Mobius's eyes, Ai Yue had long since transcended the category of humanity and risen to some indescribable level.

"Actually, I was only informing you." In response to Dr. Mei's confusion, Ai Yue shrugged. He glanced down at his phone, then showed a strange expression. "Even if you reject the plan now, it's already too late—she's here."

Dr. Mei froze. Only then did her phone react. The girl answered the call, and a somewhat panicked voice came from the other end. "D-Dr. Mei! Everyone suddenly collapsed for no apparent reason! I..."

The voice did not finish. It suddenly fell silent, leaving only the sound of someone collapsing coming through the receiver. Clearly, the caller had not escaped the sudden unconsciousness either.

Aponia closed her eyes and slowly spoke. "I can 'see' her. She's coming this way—"

The next second, she opened her eyes. "She's here."

Almost at the same time, Ai Yue smiled. "Good. Let her come."

He spread out his hand, and a device resembling a headset appeared in his palm.

"Put this on, Aponia." Ai Yue tossed it to her. "You'll understand how to use it."

The instant Aponia put it on, a black humanoid figure slowly emerged in the center of the meeting room.

It was not a real body, but a projection the Eighth Herrscher had left in the minds of several people using her authority.

When humans saw this figure, it meant they had already been captured by her.

"We meet again, human." The Herrscher swept her gaze across the meeting room before finally looking at Ai Yue. Obvious mockery hung on her face. "Thanks to your guidance, I was able to find this place."

"Yes. After all, once you give a dog a bone, it's difficult for it not to follow you." Ai Yue returned her mockery in kind. "A dog is still a dog. It doesn't have enough intelligence to consider whether this is a trap, does it?"

"You!" The Eighth Herrscher trembled with anger. "What a slick tongue. When I torment you properly in the dream, I hope you can still say such things!"

"You won't get the chance." Aponia opened her eyes again. Beneath her calm expression hid a surging emotion. "I've found you."

It was merely a casual sentence, yet the Eighth Herrscher's expression changed instantly.

Her true body could feel a powerful mental force suddenly locking onto her for no apparent reason.

How was this possible?

Chapter Sixty-Two: Where Are My Teammates? Someone Come Help Me!

Mental perception and positioning were not unfamiliar techniques to the Eighth Herrscher.

They were one of the applications of the authority she possessed. It was precisely by relying on this technique that she had locked onto Ai Yue's location from such a great distance and successfully found Moth to Fire's headquarters.

But she had never imagined that humans could use such a method against her.

When the Eighth Herrscher realized she had been locked onto, the feeling that surfaced in her heart was not disdainful contempt at someone using her own spell against her, but deep fear.

Herrscher authority was a divine gift, a miracle belonging to the gods. How could it possibly be stolen and imitated by a mere human?

And when had he stolen it? They had only come into contact in the dream for less than thirty seconds. Could he really have succeeded from that alone?

Countless thoughts flashed through the Eighth Herrscher's mind, ultimately leaving behind only one sentence.

What the hell was going on?!

Yet matters had already reached this point, and she clearly had no time to give her reaction. After a brief moment of thought, the Eighth Herrscher finally made what she believed was the correct choice—

In Moth to Fire's meeting room, the girl's body, wrapped in black mist, exploded in an instant. The entire room was immediately covered by tremendous mental energy. The energy formed a vortex that sought to drag everyone into the abyss of dreams.

Dr. Mei and Vill-V fell unconscious almost instantly. Ai Yue and Aponia fared somewhat better, but they were still affected. The once-clear real world became blurred and distorted, greatly impairing their senses and their ability to observe and judge the outside world.

After sacrificing part of her consciousness to hold back Moth to Fire's advance as much as possible, the Eighth Herrscher's true body opened her eyes as well. A mental command centered on her spread in all directions, calling for her soldiers.

Since war was unavoidable, she naturally would not sit and wait for death. Amid the endless flood of Honkai Beasts, the Eighth Herrscher was about to launch her final offensive.

But...

The Eighth Herrscher frowned in confusion.

Why had her strongest subordinate not responded to her summons?

"What's going on?"

Looking at the Honkai Beasts suddenly retreating around them, Cosmo frowned. "Do Honkai Beasts run away too?"

"Could it be because the Emperor-class Honkai Beast died?" Desdrobia stood nearby and glanced at the huge bird-shaped Honkai Beast lying dead not far away. "Without an Emperor-class Honkai Beast or a Herrscher directing them, did they flee?"

After a fierce battle, the Fused Warrior squad had finally killed the Emperor-class Honkai Beast born alongside the Herrscher this time—a bird-shaped Honkai Beast with a gorgeous, peacock-like appearance.

Because they lacked fire support, Kevin and the others had struggled against the giant bird. It flew in the air, making it difficult for Kevin, Hen, and Cosmo to hit. Its movements were also extremely agile, making Elysia's and Desdrobia's ranged attacks ineffective. As a result, the beheading operation turned into a battle of attrition and quickly reached a stalemate.

If the creature had not grown tired and revealed an opening, allowing Elysia to shoot through its neck with an arrow before Desdrobia cut its wing with a telekinetic blade, it would have crashed to the ground, and the battle might still not have ended.

"Honkai Beasts don't run away. They have neither intelligence nor emotions, and morale isn't a factor for them." Hen walked over. "From the first time I fought Honkai Beasts until now, I've never seen them scatter just because their leader died."

"This isn't a retreat. It's a transfer." Elysia, who had been overlooking the battlefield from high ground, also returned to the ground. "Their route is traceable. They aren't fleeing in all directions. They've been summoned."

"Summoned?" Cosmo froze, then reacted. "The Emperor-class Honkai Beast is dead, so there's only one being left that could have summoned them."

"I don't know exactly what happened, but the Herrscher should be gathering them." Kevin walked over after dealing with the Emperor-class Honkai Beast's corpse. "Rest for five minutes. Then Cosmo and Desdrobia will stay behind to coordinate with the reinforcements. The rest of you come with me."

"Vice Captain, we can keep fighting!" Cosmo grew anxious when he heard that the next battle would proceed without him. "The three of you can't possibly face the Herrscher alone!"

"But Daisy is already exhausted. She's used up too much energy and can barely stand," Elysia said as she came over and supported the swaying blonde girl. "Do you want to leave her here alone?"

"I can actually keep fighting..." Desdrobia said softly, though she clearly lacked confidence. "Besides, as a Mental Perception Fused Warrior, I should be useful."

Cosmo said nothing this time. Instead, he shifted his gaze to Desdrobia.

"Follow the order." As the captain, Hen had the final say. "Don't worry about us. If Doctor Ai Yue's speculation is correct, the Eighth Herrscher's combat ability clearly isn't impressive. We may be able to deal with her without much trouble."

Cosmo nodded and stopped arguing. He returned to Desdrobia's side, took her from Elysia, and helped her to a safe corner to rest.

The blonde girl seemed to relax completely. In the end, she leaned against the young man's shoulder and fell asleep.

"Looks like I'm a little late."

Just as the group was resting, a voice suddenly reached Kevin and the others' ears.

Kevin instinctively tightened his grip on his weapon but did not attack. He simply turned and watched the fox-eared girl emerge from the shadows.

"It isn't over yet." Kevin shook his head. "You arrived at a good time. You can still take part in the next battle."

Kevin did not ask why Sakura had abandoned Dr. Mei and come here. Given her personality, she would never leave her post without Dr. Mei's permission.

"Good." Sakura nodded, then disappeared into the shadows again. "The reinforcements are already on their way. I came ahead of them. They'll probably need about thirty minutes."

"Thirty minutes?" Kevin glanced at the time. "Then we should be able to finish everything before they arrive."

What Kevin did not know was that while the Fused Warrior squad rested, Ai Yue and Aponia had already found Mobius.

"You really came at the perfect time."

Looking at the two people entering through the door, Mobius raised the pale-purple medicine in her hand and shook it. "I just finished making it. It's still warm."