A Nighttime Encounter with Dr. Mobius! / What Do You Do When Snake-Snake Gets Drunk? Of Course, Take Her Home!

"Whoosh!"

The Assault-class Honkai Beast was sliced cleanly in two.

Naturally, Ling Xi's actions drew the attention of the surrounding Honkai Beasts. They immediately abandoned their respective prey and swarmed toward him instead.

Seeing this, Ling Xi naturally did not stand there foolishly. He decisively charged into the herd of Honkai Beasts. If he stayed among the bystanders, he might hurt innocent people when attacking, so he needed an environment where he could fight freely.

As Ling Xi moved, the surrounding Honkai Beasts surged toward him as well. Even the Chariot-class Honkai Beast blocking the way ahead abandoned the other survivors and slowly made its way toward Ling Xi.

Without meaning to, Ling Xi had drawn almost all the firepower to himself, indirectly saving even more people.

However, seeing that they were temporarily safe, some people pulled out their phones and began recording videos as they retreated. Their initial panic was gone, and Ling Xi's appearance seemed to have given them confidence.

Meanwhile, Ling Xi continued charging toward the Temple-class Honkai Beast, constantly cutting down the Honkai Beasts attacking him. Before long, he found himself in the middle of the herd.

"He's surrounded!"

"What do we do now?"

Seeing Ling Xi trapped amid the Honkai Beasts, some of the distant onlookers grew nervous. It was not as though they were entirely worried about Ling Xi, but if he died, the Honkai Beasts would come after them again.

"Roar!"

At that moment, Ling Xi had already reached the Temple-class Honkai Beast. It raised its lance and thrust it at him!

"Whoosh..."

Ling Xi dodged aside, then gripped his sword in both hands and raised it above his head. Gathering all the power of his Stigmata, he declared, "Here, burn to ashes!"

"Boom!"

In an instant, a firebird descended from the sky, then transformed into a pillar of flame dozens of meters tall that shot upward. The released shockwave instantly annihilated the Temple-class Honkai Beast, while the gathered Honkai Beasts and Dishis around it were reduced to ash by the flames!

With that move, Ling Xi had directly wiped out half the Honkai Beasts!

However, after checking his remaining energy, he found that less than one-tenth remained...

Ling Xi: "..."

Wasn't the energy consumption for that move a little excessive?

Still, its power was worthy of that cost, but...

It was time to retreat. His energy was nearly depleted, and he had to leave. Otherwise, once it ran out, he would be done for...

"Doctor, are you here?"

In a Flame-Chasing Moths laboratory in Changkong City, a green-haired girl walked in.

"Klein? Didn't I tell you not to disturb me while I'm conducting experiments unless it's important?"

The green-haired woman called Doctor put down her work and turned to look at Klein. With a somewhat helpless smile, she said, "Klein, if it isn't something important, don't interrupt me. Especially... if it's about a meeting."

"Um..."

Klein scratched her forehead and said, "Doctor Mobius, what I want to discuss isn't a meeting. It's yesterday's Honkai incident in H City."

"The Honkai incident in H City?"

Mobius frowned, smiling with slight disinterest. "What does that have to do with me? It was only a minor Honkai outbreak. Not even a Herrscher was born, and the strongest Honkai Beast was merely Temple-class. It has very little research value."

"Doctor, you should finish watching this first."

Klein took out her phone and unfolded a holographic projection...

The video was extremely blurry. It had been recorded on a phone, and with the distance and all the shaking, its clarity could only be described as prehistoric. Calling it 360P would have been an exaggeration.

Still, despite the blurry footage, the general situation was visible. Among the fleeing crowd, a white-clad youth wielding a sword suddenly charged toward a Temple-class Honkai Beast. His blade ignited with crimson flames, and he cut down Honkai Beasts along the way...

"Hmm?"

At that point, Mobius became interested. What... was that power? Technology? No... it did not seem like it.

Of course, Mobius was only mildly interested at first, until...

A colossal pillar of fire shot into the sky, instantly turning the Temple-class Honkai Beast to ash. Then... the video ended.

"Klein, was this video... from yesterday?"

In an instant, Mobius could no longer remain calm. That power at the end, the power that had directly killed a Temple-class Honkai Beast, was definitely not something technology could produce. Although a plasma cannon could achieve similar results, but...

In the video, that youth had released it himself. So... this was an unknown power!

"Yes, Doctor."

Klein explained, "The video was recorded yesterday, but it was uploaded online early this morning. According to current information on yesterday's Honkai incident, after that youth killed the Temple-class Honkai Beast, he disappeared from the battlefield. The Flame-Chasing Moths troops arrived afterward, killed the Chariot-class Honkai Beast and the remaining minor enemies, and settled the survivors. This video was recorded by one of those survivors."

"Then have they found that youth?"

Mobius did not care about the so-called survivors. She only cared about the youth in the video!

"No."

Klein shook her head slightly. "Although the Flame-Chasing Moths troops conducted a search, they found no clues. The key issue is that the footage is too blurry, and he had his back to the recorder the entire time. Even with technical restoration, they cannot obtain his facial data."

"Hmph, I knew those people couldn't get anything done. Their rescue was slow enough, and they couldn't even find one person."

Mobius took the opportunity to make her usual jab at the Flame-Chasing Moths troops.

Klein said nothing. After all, Mobius was telling the truth. The Flame-Chasing Moths had such a poor reputation among the public for a reason.

"Ah, what a pity. If I could find him, perhaps I could study that power."

Mobius licked her lips and said longingly, "Hmm... a new power. Perhaps it is the power that could lead humanity's evolution... All right, Klein, get back to work. And keep an eye out for news about that person. If there's anything, tell me immediately."

"Yes, Doctor."

Klein nodded, then left the room.

"Mmm..."

Mobius replayed the video. Once again, she confirmed that this was absolutely a new power, a power... capable of resisting Honkai.

"I'm really looking forward to meeting you, my... little lab rat."

Watching the figure in the video, Mobius's eyes shone with anticipation and curiosity. She truly... wanted to study that power!

Night Encounter with Doctor Mobius!

"Ugh, what a scam!"

It was night, nearly midnight, and Ling Xi was still walking alone through the city streets, pondering which city he should head to next.

He had been in this world for two months now, and he had basically figured out its situation. There was no doubt about it: he had come to the Honkai world. All sorts of strange incidents occurred, and Honkai Beasts occasionally popped up. This was the Honkai world!

He still remembered arriving in this world two months ago. He had landed right at the center of a Honkai outbreak and nearly died on the spot. Fortunately, he had promptly spoken the universal password of the Honkai world, awakening his cheat, Sirin. She had directly given him a five-star Stigmata. Although it was only a single piece, he had relied on its power to successfully kill the Honkai Beast!

Afterward, he hid among the surviving refugees and escaped with them. In the end, he was taken in by the Flame-Chasing Moths military. Ling Xi had thought he would be treated as an undocumented person, but who would have expected that he actually had legitimate identification in this world? He was a student at Senba Academy in Changkong City, with every procedure and record fully in place!

For a time, Ling Xi had even suspected that he had not physically crossed over but had undergone a soul transmigration, but...

That was not right. His body was exactly the same as before, even the scar on his arm from childhood. In the end, Ling Xi concluded that... he was still himself. He simply had a legal identity in this world!

So now, he was a student at Qianyu Academy, and an outstanding one at that. He even had school funding, enough to coast through graduation, but...

Ling Xi had still decided to leave this city. As for why, the reason was simple: this city was called Changkong City!

As a transmigrator who knew the Honkai plot, Ling Xi naturally knew that Changkong City was the site of the Third Honkai Eruption. Working in this place was no different from courting death. Although he possessed the power of a Stigmata and could resist Honkai corruption, even having some combat ability, but...

Even so, his current combat strength was not even equal to that of an A-rank Valkyrie. At most, he was B-rank. He could fight minor enemies, but against anything Temple-class or above, he basically had no choice but to run, let alone face a Herrscher.

Therefore, his best option was to find somewhere safe and hide.

Perhaps according to the usual trope, he should have stayed in Changkong City, waited for the Honkai outbreak, then gone looking for the three heroines and entered a harem storyline, but...

This was indeed Changkong City, and it was indeed the Honkai world. The world and location were both right, except he seemed to have arrived a tiny bit too early, because this was... the Pre-Collapse Civilization from fifty thousand years ago.

Yeah, just a tiny bit early...

If this were the Current Era, then with Otto that bastard, Ancestor Kevin, and the Anti-Entropy duo working hard, perhaps the world could really survive. After all, the Herrschers of the Current Era were generally underwhelming. As long as one held on, there was hope. That had been Ling Xi's initial plan too: join Schicksal and contribute his share. Unfortunately...

This was the Pre-Collapse Civilization. The Herrschers here casually burned down entire continents or swallowed one whole with a Black Hole, and then there was the Finality that destroyed the world!

Damn it, what kind of bullshit was this?!

If he had transmigrated into the Current Era of the Honkai world, he might have survived if he got lucky, and perhaps even found a Valkyrie to marry. But if it was the Pre-Collapse Civilization, then all that could be said was: there was no hope. Just wait for death. Goodbye!

After all, Ling Xi, who knew the plot, was well aware of the Pre-Collapse Civilization's ending. After Finality appeared, aside from the few people who entered cryosleep pods and several Flame-Chasing Moths carrying out their respective plans, human civilization... was completely wiped out!

That was why Ling Xi had just sighed. Surviving in the Pre-Collapse Civilization was far too difficult...

"Ah..."

Thinking of this, Ling Xi sighed again. Although he did not know exactly when this was, the Third Honkai Eruption should not have happened yet, since Changkong City was still standing. So...

Although he did not fully understand the Pre-Collapse Civilization's timeline, Finality should at least be another ten years or so away. But that did not mean he could peacefully live through those ten years. In truth, a few years from now, humanity's life would no longer be called living, but... surviving!

Forget it, forget it. No point thinking so much. He would leave Changkong City for now. This place was no longer safe.

"If you don't want to get hurt, come with us obediently. Doctor, you're a smart person. You should know what to do!"

Suddenly, Ling Xi heard someone speaking ahead, and... it gave him a strangely familiar feeling.

Without thinking much, Ling Xi decided to go over and take a look. If he encountered some enjoyable cliché, he would not mind meddling a little!

After turning a corner, Ling Xi saw three people clad in black, their heads covered by black hoods, blocking a woman in a white shirt inside an alley. The three stood apart, completely cutting off her escape routes.

"So, please come with us."

The leading man said coldly, "Doctor, don't force us to use violence."

"So... you were the ones who lured Klein away, weren't you?"

The woman in the white shirt had green hair and looked somewhat drunk, though her mind remained fairly clear. Looking at the three people before her, she said with a faint smile, "I didn't think they would really do something like this. Do you know what the consequences will be?"

Mobius carefully examined the three people before her. She did not care who they were, but she could roughly guess who had sent them.

She had thought academic competition would remain academic, but she had not expected the other side to start breaking the rules of the game.

"Move!"

Seeing that Mobius had no intention of surrendering, they clearly did not want to waste any more time and immediately signaled their companions to act.

"Mm..."

Mobius's emerald eyes flickered slightly as she seemed to consider how to deal with the enemies before her.

"Oho, looks like there's a mission!"

At that moment, a familiar interface suddenly appeared before Ling Xi's eyes, and Sirin laughed as she issued a mission.

Unexpected event. Faced with the situation before you, what will you choose?

A: Save her and take good care of her until she sobers up! Mission reward: One Supply Card!

B: Pretend nothing happened and go home to sleep! Mission reward: None!

C: Shout at the three of them, "Let go of that girl! Come at me instead!" Mission reward: I Love a Shiba Inu!

Ling Xi: "..." Wait, he could understand the first two choices, but what the hell was that last one?

Ling Xi directly ignored the third option and decisively stepped forward. "Hey, you three. Trying to forcibly take someone away on the street is a little too much, isn't it?"

As for the earlier options, Ling Xi naturally chose the first one without hesitation. Smiling faintly, he said, "Or should I say, is this worthy of Changkong City? I didn't expect to actually run into a scene straight out of a movie."

"Hmm..."

At Ling Xi's sudden appearance, the three men's expressions changed slightly. The leading man immediately said, "Just knock him out..."

"Whoosh!"

The moment he finished speaking, one of the black-clad men drew a Katana and slashed at Ling Xi.

"..."

Ling Xi was instantly startled and hurriedly sidestepped. Damn it, did people in the Honkai world draw swords the moment they disagreed?

Besides, hadn't they said to knock him out? What was with drawing a sword right away?