Things in This World That You Have No Choice but to Do.

The Moth to Fire Division.

Floor F6, underground research institute.

Mobius stared at the dense flow of data and analysis reports on the screen. Her expression was deep and unfathomable, making it difficult to discern any clear fluctuations or emotions. However, her snake-like eyes, with their gradually changing colors, revealed a great deal of information as they contracted and expanded.

The fact that Dr. Mei deliberately concealed information from Su Qing'an means that she understood that Su Qing'an would inevitably develop a great interest in this hidden aspect of humanity, and might even be unable to resist breaking through the boundaries and taboos secretly set for her after learning about it.

Only when he truly learned the secret did Mobius suddenly gain a profound understanding of Dr. Mei's choice.

Really.

Su Qing'an is undoubtedly someone who can evoke one's inner desires; his very existence represents the possibility of realizing one's vision.

So-called scientists always venture alone into uncharted, cutting-edge fields.

For such a person, merely stumbling upon a new theory that could potentially establish logical Karma or making a minor discovery would be enough to bring them joy, let alone the fact that the very end of the unknown road lies right before their eyes.

Calm and restrained, yet revealing an underlying madness and stubbornness.

She is a gluttonous snake who knows she will eventually devour herself completely, yet she will not stop her advance. Even when her forked tongue touches her tail, the emotion she feels at that moment is nothing more than her usual madness and desolation.

Mobius may not care about worldly ethics and morals, but she clearly cannot ignore the fact that the end of that forbidden door is right in front of her, allowing her to collect data, obtain intelligence, and manipulate it at will.

Her previous words to Su Qing'an revealed her pessimistic attitude towards humanity's fight against the Honkai.

Of course, from a universal perspective, using the term "extreme" might be a more appropriate description.

Mobius did not believe that traditional Anti-Honkai Potion and the gradual approach of the Stigmata Project could achieve the goal of saving humanity, or rather, she herself might not even care whether or not humanity could be saved.

Compared to her own life and social order, or even world peace and the survival of humanity, she had to admit that she cared more about research that conformed to her own aesthetic.

The process of evolution is not beautiful.

She truly understood this during the transplant process that transformed her into Fusion Warrior.

The ugliness of that process, known as "deformation," was far beyond anything anticipated or imagined; it was only a fraction of what actually happened.

But only by experiencing this ugly process can one truly understand... the beauty of life.

The girl's snake-like eyes, which emerged from that experiment, became unfathomable. Her smile was always radiant, like the serpent that tempted Adam and Eve to fall in the Eden and eat the forbidden fruit, possessing a bewitching demonic nature and a profound depth beneath the abyss.

--Perhaps this is the reason why Eden and Mobius have such a good relationship. (Probably)

Mobius's concept of "human beings" differs somewhat from the definition commonly given in the world.

Or rather, with the growing popularity of warriors, the very definition of humanity is being distorted.

Can a being capable of fighting against world-destroying monsters and possessing a near-eternal lifespan compared to humans truly be considered human?

Among the hundreds of millions of human beings who remain in the world, the vast majority probably cannot genuinely accept that such an existence is of the same species as themselves.

Even though they were pioneers who fought for humanity and paid a great price and made great sacrifices, they could not change the innate fear and resistance to natural disasters that exists in the bones of humankind.

Who can overcome the fear that arises naturally from their instincts?

Who can calmly face earthquakes and tsunamis, and firmly believe that the other person possesses the self-control and gentleness to protect themselves?

How ridiculous! Going to use love and courage?

Mobius certainly doesn't deny the existence of such people, but in the general world, ordinary people still make up the majority, and even if such people are willing and will strive to accept Fusion Warrior, they may not be able to do so.

In her view, the Fusion Warrior Project is a door that, once opened, is destined to cause injury and bloodshed to one side. It may not bring peace and happiness, but it is destined to bring pain and sorrow.

However, for civilization at this stage, its existence is indispensable.

The higher-ups want to find a way to control this contradiction, but the existence of this contradiction itself is an unalterable reality.

Even when external enemies cease to exist, war will not disappear.

What exactly is peace?

In a conflict between Honkai and civilization, can the permanent disappearance of either bring peace?

That's a judgment that only a child would make in a game of house.

Mobius had no intention of seeking the real answer; she only desired things that interested her.

It is precisely because Mei and the higher-ups themselves may not understand the answer that they adopt a laissez-faire attitude towards such extreme scientists.

No one knows what the future holds.

Therefore, we cannot deny the possibility that someone like Mobius could save the world.

If the world is already crazy enough, then perhaps responding with a crazy ideology is not such a bad answer.

This doctor's goal was to ignore worldly views and perspectives—to ascend to God.

Before Fuxi appeared, her idea was to reach another level by endless evolution, like an ouroboros, based on the framework of the Fusion Warrior Project.

Mobius's Gene Ability, after being naturally elevated and undergoing further evolution of her own targeted genes, can be said to have undergone a double transformation, and can now serve as a natural bridge to accelerate the rate of evolution.

However, she could not break free from the constraints and limits of this field, even with the help of [Snake Molt]. After witnessing the existence of Fuxi, she understood that there was now a real entity and an end point to the form and path for achieving her goals.

However, even among Idealistic Lifeform, Fuxi's existence is at the top level. The [thoughts] she possesses not only reach the level of the permanent abode of the Manas consciousness, infinitely close to the level of the Alaya-Vijnana, but their quantity is also countless.

Her essence is close to that of a god.

Even if Su Qing'an reaches the same level, he will not be a match for Fuxi.

Because the other party's existence is the gathering of the souls of All living beings to reach such a state, it means that her billions of Dao [thoughts], each separated, are complete near-divine realms, and the superposition of her main body is a level that even the creation of heaven and earth cannot restrain.

Even if Mobius were right in front of her, he couldn't conduct any meaningful research on such an existence. Analyzing the data and determining when she would awaken was already the limit of current technology.

And it was precisely at this moment, when Mobius was curious about this form of life and believed that it contained unparalleled beauty, yet felt troubled by his inability to touch it, that Su Qing'an appeared.

A being who needed her help, and who was Idealistic Lifeform she could barely reach.

Perhaps this is the highest form of happiness.

Mobius had to force herself to calm down. She abandoned the data she had just obtained and began to look around at the boy's cool and handsome profile.

Finally, my gaze lingered between those eyes, a space between illusion and reality—the light radiating from them was beautiful and dazzling, and if I looked closely, I could feel a warmth and tenderness that penetrated deep into my soul.

This is a characteristic derived from the Soul Lifeform, where the nature of one's [thoughts] can be naturally transmitted to the surroundings in every gesture.

If Su Qing'an were a tyrannical ruler who reigned supreme, Mobius would not have perceived such gentle things.

The girl circled him, marveling at his feat. Considering Su Qing'an's past actions, she vaguely guessed the key to the matter and said:

"Your mental fluctuations and emotional expressions can form a substantial index, representing your strong personal characteristics and imprint, but it is merely a passive force field."

"So, if you wanted, you could emotionally distort and control beings with weak willpower and soul strength below yours, right?"

Su Qing'an nodded in response:

"That would be true if I wanted to."

She held the tablet and asked:

"Could you tell me specifically what the limit of this ability is?"

Su Qing'an answered seriously:

"Fusion Warrior haven't gone through the [transformation] stage, as well as those whose souls aren't special or who are naturally powerful, are all within the range of being influenced by emotions or subjected to soul oppression. If these people deliberately use their will to crush others, it's possible to achieve a crude correction of their consciousness, or even an illusion, or directly lead to spiritual death."

Mobius recorded these abilities and said softly:

"What about the range? Have you calculated it?"

Su Qing'an said:

"I'm not entirely sure. I only entered a complete Soul State today, but it's about smaller than Fuxi's [Purification] domain. If I don't move, the limit centered on myself is probably three times the size of the city of Yakarta."

"But at this distance, I think it's only suitable for collective pressure, not for detailed manipulation of a large number of people."

Mobius was in a good mood, and she said:

"According to this theory, beings with soul strength below yours will also be affected to some extent, but depending on the difference in strength, they may not be First Kill."

"Mr. Su, you are now not far from being a god as defined by the universal standard."

Looking into those gleaming serpentine eyes, Prometheus felt that letting these two meet was a catastrophic decision.

But given that he does indeed need their help now, the AI can only watch helplessly as they chat happily—meaning Mobius unilaterally very pleased.

The petite girl leaned closer to the boy, her snake-like eyes blinking, their color softening as if trying to lower his guard, revealing an appropriate innocence befitting her appearance. She asked in a low, curious tone:

"Mr. Su, how did you manage to do that?"

"By simply subconsciously imitating, without undergoing any experimentation or transformation, you naturally transformed your life essence into Idealistic Lifeform, a complete Soul State, in such a short time. Are you truly a carbon-based life form?"

Su Qing'an remained silent, knowing full well just how strange the situation was.

Assuming the problem isn't with the modified version of the Void Sword Qi, then it must be due to a problem with the user.

The boy always thought he was normal, unlike the protagonist in the traditional sense. He had achieved what he had achieved mainly through his own awareness and will, but whether the so-called complete Soul State was a gift that came with the process was still unknown.

In his own view, it was more like the forbidden fruit plucked from the Eden and offered to the lips, possessing an eeriness and horror.

"This is not what I wanted, Doctor Mobius."

"My purpose in coming here is to ask you to help me integrate the newly discovered End-of-Law class genes into the gene-directing program designed for me by Dr. Mei, and to accelerate the fusion rate of the Chiyou Gene, so as to achieve a balance between the two and prevent the process of being completely transformed into Idealistic Lifeform."

"To achieve this, I must do it while I still retain some of my human essence. Otherwise, I will be unable to acquire any power related to the Fusion Warrior, and there will be no way to increase my bargaining power against Fuxi."

Mobius's eyes curved into crescent moons as she asked:

"Is this also a [Nian] ability? Or is it what you call instinct? Is it these things that make you believe that as long as you successfully awaken as Fusion Warrior and fully orient and sublimate the three End-of-Law class genes, you can maintain a balance between the physical body and the Soul Lifeform?"

Su Qing'an nodded silently in agreement.

She smiled, her serpentine eyes, so close to his, growing even more profound, revealing the boy's innermost thoughts:

"Actually, you care a lot about whether you can maintain your human identity in this way, right?"

"Does your definition of humanity not fall under the constraints of Fusion Warrior, but instead fall under the constraints of Soul Lifeform? That truly makes one underestimate you."

"Mr. Su, you should be clear about one thing, shouldn't you?"

"Even if you achieve your ultimate goal, as Fusion Warrior with unprecedentedly luxurious genetic material and complete orientation, if you can maintain a balance with your Soul Lifeform, it actually means that you are already further away from the concept of [humanity] that you originally defined yourself as."

Su Qing'an had to admit that every word Mobius said was true; the best outcome was simply to distance themselves further from humanity itself.

He said softly:

"Yes, I certainly don't want to stray too far from the conventional definition of [humanity], but I won't cling to it forever."

"As you said, I can accept viewing Fusion Warrior as human, and I can also view Soul Lifeform that retain their own identity as human."

"But there is one prerequisite: maintaining one's individuality."

Mobius paused for a moment, but quickly grasped the key point.

Since Su Qing'an believes he is qualified to confront Fuxi head-on, in addition to enlightenment, there is also the element of equality, and this element of equality is far from sufficient beyond the existence of Soul Lifeform form.

She whispered the answer:

"Mr. Su, you can help [Nian] reach a deeper level, right?"

Su Qing'an explained:

"I don't know if Dr. Mei has shared with you my analysis of Fuxi and the information about her Ascended State, but in short, I can reach the same level as her in a short period of time and have the qualifications to interfere with her during that time."

"But the price is myself."

Mobius vaguely understood the core reason why Su Qing'an had come to find him.

The concept of the Ascended State is the unity of heaven and man, and the interaction with all things.

This means that Su Qing'an, as Soul Lifeform, needs to enter Ascended State through her own [thoughts], and in this stage, she needs to carry countless amounts of information.

Even if his Soul Essence extraordinary, how long he can withstand the trials of the turbulent waves remains an unknown.

And [thought] is precisely the core and essence of everything possessed by an Idealistic Lifeform.

If Su Qing'an's [thought] is lost and dissipates during the process of Ascended State, then his soul will also be completely annihilated.

To put it simply and reasonably, this is quite different from the case of the Immortal Chi Yuan, whose memories, personality, and emotions are at most worn down, but can be made up for later by using Udu-dust to cheat and slowly recover over a longer period of time.

Due to the unique nature of Idealistic Lifeform, the Ascended State is, for Su Qing'an, a suicide skill that will inevitably lead to death within minutes.

The young doctor completely understood the intricacies of the situation.

In short, he now needs to rely on forces other than his Soul Lifeform to help him maintain his sense of self for a longer period of time at this stage.

In Su Qing'an's view, the only hope at present is probably to elevate the power of the Fusion Warrior system to a higher level and to target the ability to indirectly or directly lock [Nian] permanently.

This is, of course, the ideal situation, but the reality may not be so perfect.

But it's better than doing nothing.

Mobius glanced at the boy's face, her expression becoming subtle, and asked with a smile:

"Aren't you afraid of dying?"

"Having become Idealistic Lifeform, you possess an endless lifespan that countless All living beings yearn for but cannot attain; this very existence has transcended the selection process of Honkai."

"Everyone in this world has a reason to fight the Honkai for their own survival, but you don't."

"But once you enter the Ascended State, everything will be in vain."

"Because you have absolutely no idea whether you'll have the right to escape once you enter that realm. Humans still have a physical body as a medium and a constraint, but you might very well be permanently trapped in that illusion and grandeur until you die."

"Whether you win or lose, no matter where humanity's future leads, it will all be irrelevant to you."

Su Qing'an looked into those eyes and said softly:

"Doctor Mobius, Fuxi may not choose to be an enemy of humanity, and Mei may find a way to deal with her before she awakens."

Mobius remained noncommittal.

Perhaps.

She certainly believed that Mei was a genius among geniuses, but when it came to that level, whether human wisdom could reach that level in a short time was completely unknown.

As for whether Fuxi would become an enemy of humankind.

Ha, in her eyes, does the species called humankind even exist in this world?

Truly pure humans have long since died out.

Su Qing'an's near-death experience within the [purification] domain was enough to make one give up all hope.

The boy lowered his eyes, looking at the scientist whom everyone called mad, and said quietly and calmly in a soft voice:

There are always things in this world more terrifying than death.

"Moreover, this is my Karma, and the price I must pay for it."