Protecting the Doctor Is My Duty!

Who would have thought reality could be this absurdly surreal!

Gradually, Ling Xi started taking the initiative too. Things he usually did not dare do to Doctor now seemed possible, especially since Mobius often used her presence to suppress him. At this moment, I will... turn the tables on everything!

"How about it? Want to give it a try?"

Mobius smiled and calmly said, "Your first time being at the seaside should leave a deep impression, right...?"

"Uh... Doctor, how can you say something like that with such a straight face...?"

Ling Xi was somewhat speechless. He had finally managed to build up the mood, only for Mobius to ruin it all the moment she opened her mouth.

"Because... I got used to it long ago."

Mobius smiled faintly. "Isn't this an instinct humans are endowed with by their genes? And I'm a researcher in genetic engineering. Where do you think all those lab rats that never seem to run out come from? So..."

The corners of Mobius's lips curled up as she smiled. "To me, this is merely part of an experiment."

Ling Xi: "..." Was this really an experiment?

"By the way, what's your answer? To the question I just asked... are you willing to be with me?"

Mobius continued with a smile. "Although I've long since stopped caring about such things, it is still a human instinct, after all. So... I do want to try it too. And..."

Mobius gently caressed Ling Xi's face and smiled softly. "I quite like you. Those words... are true too!"

Ling Xi did not answer Mobius. Instead, he answered her with his actions, gently pulling her into an embrace before cautiously kissing her. Since the car was parked less than five meters behind them, Ling Xi was not worried in the slightest.

As for putting on an act and refusing first? Impossible. He had always planned to cling to Mobius's thigh until the end of the world. Now, though... he was simply taking things one step further. As long as he made Mobius one of his own, let alone a Hibernation Pod, even another base would not be a problem in the future.

As for responsibility...

Ever since Mobius learned that he possessed flame powers, Ling Xi had known that his plan to slack off would most likely be impossible to continue. So...

The optimal solution now was to make Mobius one of his own. Only then could he trust her without reservation and tell her more information. At the same time... it would also make Mobius trust him, because...

There was no better way to earn someone's trust than making them one of your own.

Besides, Doctor had just said this was... part of an experiment, so...

He definitely was not lusting after Doctor's body. He was merely sacrificing everything for Doctor's experiment!

Yep, he really was a great man!

Meanwhile, Mobius felt a trace of delight as well. This guy... had finally decided to take the initiative?

In any case, she was very happy. After all, Ling Xi was the only person who could understand her now, and liking someone...

Perhaps did not require any reason at all!

"Hmm?"

Suddenly, Mobius felt Ling Xi stop. She immediately looked at him in confusion.

"Doctor, I think... we have company."

Ling Xi wore a helpless expression as well. He had finally gotten to kiss the Doctor he liked, and he had not even fully gotten into the mood before he was interrupted for no reason at all.

"Company?"

A hint of confusion flashed across Mobius's face, but upon hearing Ling Xi's tone, she instantly understood.

Then, five figures appeared on both sides of the road. They were dressed in black, wore masks, and held various weapons in their hands.

"Ling Xi, don't make a move yet. I want to... know who they came for."

Mobius quietly tugged at her collar and softly reminded Ling Xi.

"Doctor, do we even need to ask that?"

Ling Xi was somewhat speechless. Was there really any need to ask? Other than the people in Mobius's laboratory, only Elysia knew about his strength. To everyone else, he was just an ordinary person. Who the hell would be bored enough to target an ordinary person like him?

"Uh... that's true."

Mobius rubbed her forehead and agreed with Ling Xi. Indeed, there was no need to ask that question. And...

Mobius could not help sighing. "I rejected them only this morning, yet they were already impatient enough to show up this afternoon. They really have... no patience at all."

The five people formed an encirclement around them, but they did not attack immediately. Instead, they politely said, "Good evening, Doctor Mobius!"

"Seeing you makes this evening obviously quite bad. What are you here for this time?"

Mobius had seen this sort of scene more than once, so naturally, she was not frightened by them. Besides... the person who had promised to protect her for life was right beside her. What did she have to fear?

"Doctor, you should know our objective!"

The leading man said, "Abandon your unrealistic ideas, cease your dangerous research, and... come with us obediently. We guarantee your safety!"

"Oh? And if I... refuse?"

Mobius narrowed her eyes and smiled at him. Sure enough, their target was exactly what she had expected. It could not have been more obvious.

"Then we can only forcibly invite Doctor to come with us. I believe..."

The leader's tone suddenly turned cold. "Someone wishes to have a thorough discussion with Doctor."

Although they were assassins, they clearly had not come to kill Mobius. Her status was far too important, and she had connections with most of the world's top corporations. If they truly made a move against her, the aftermath would be extremely troublesome!

Moreover, although Mobius's research had gone off the rails, no one could deny her capabilities. Even those who hated Mobius would not deny her talent!

Therefore, most higher-ups merely sought to suppress Mobius rather than assassinate her!

"Doctor, what should we do?"

Ling Xi asked Mobius, though he was not asking for himself. Rather... he was asking on their behalf!

"Mmm..."

Mobius thought for a moment, then looked at them and asked with apparent concern, "If I go with you, then... what will happen to my assistant?"

"Sorry, Doctor. Our orders are only to bring you back. As for anyone else..."

The leader coldly said, "Kid, from the moment you became the devil's lackey, you should have expected this day to come. So... don't blame us. Blame yourself for following the wrong person!"

"Hehe... oh my."

At those words, Mobius laughed. Then, stretching lazily, she looked at Ling Xi with a slightly languid expression and smiled. "Did you hear that, Ling Xi? They have no intention of letting you go either. So... do you regret staying by my side?"

"Heh... how could I?"

Ling Xi had already understood what Mobius meant. He immediately wrapped an arm around her slender waist, then gently kissed her cheek. "Meeting Doctor has been the greatest fortune of my life. As for regret..."

Ling Xi directly unfolded Dawnbreaker and activated Aslaug's power. Then, taking a deep breath, he looked coldly at them. "Assassins... no, clowns. The ones who should regret this are you!"

Protecting Doctor Is My Responsibility! ###

"Those are... flames?"

Seeing the flames on Ling Xi's blade, all five of them were startled and involuntarily thought of the video from two months ago...

"Could you be..."

The leading man immediately realized something. They had caught a big fish this time, except...

It was a shark!

"Retreat!"

Without any hesitation, the man turned and ran. The difference in their strength was absolute, the kind of gap that could not possibly be overcome. So...

Run... run now!

"Here..."

However, from the moment Ling Xi revealed his flame powers, from the moment they had effectively sentenced themselves to death, from the moment Mobius told him what to do, he had no intention of letting anyone leave!

Because he had already decided to stand by Mobius's side. Therefore, the future was destined to be anything but peaceful, and tonight...

"Burn to Ashes!"

"Boom!"

A gigantic flaming bird slashed forth, instantly reducing three assassins to ashes. One dodged in time, but still had an arm burned away. The other decisively leaped into the ocean below the cliff, seeking the slightest chance of survival!

"Spare me, I can give you—"

"Whoosh!"

The injured assassin hurriedly began begging for mercy, but all he received was a casual sword strike from Ling Xi!

"Ling Xi, it looks like one of them got away."

Mobius looked at the waves beneath the cliff. It was only around ten meters high, and under such circumstances, the chances of escape were quite high.

"He didn't..."

Ling Xi smiled calmly, then switched Stigma powers. Tesla, "Lightning Flash, Thousand Paths!"

Ling Xi swung his sword, unleashing dozens of bolts of lightning onto the surface of the sea...

"Crackle, crackle, crackle..."

Amid the continuous sounds of electricity surging through the water, the corpse of a black-clad man floated to the surface!

"Raikiri!"

However, Ling Xi was not the sort of villain who failed to finish his opponents off. He directly threw Dawnbreaker, piercing straight through the man's body...

"Come!"

Then, Ling Xi manipulated the electric current again, using electromagnetic attraction to pull Dawnbreaker back into his hand.

"Whew..."

Only then did Ling Xi let out a breath of relief. But it was not because he had defeated them. Rather...

It was because he had successfully shown off. After all, using electromagnetic force to retrieve Dawnbreaker had only been an experiment. If it had failed...

Then he would have had to jump down and retrieve his weapon himself.

Therefore, Ling Xi breathed a sigh of relief. Luckily, he had not failed to show off in front of Mobius!

"You ended the fight far too quickly. You didn't even give me a chance to observe properly."

Watching Ling Xi eliminate the five assassins so easily, Mobius could not help complaining. She had wanted to take the opportunity to carefully observe Ling Xi's powers, but... that was it?

"Hehe... for Doctor's safety, of course I had to give it my all!"

Ling Xi smiled, not forgetting to flirt with his Doctor a little. After all, his relationship with Mobius now should no longer be merely that of Doctor and assistant.

"Tch, with you here, could they possibly have hurt me?"

Mobius smiled as well. "Based on my judgment just now, there was one B-rank assassin and four C-rank assassins. None possessed any special abilities. And as assassins, they were more skilled at stealthy killings than direct combat. So... from the beginning, they never had any chance!"

"Special abilities?"

Ling Xi seemed to have heard something important and asked, "Doctor, what do you mean by special abilities? Could it be... some assassins have special powers?"

"Mm."

Mobius nodded slightly and smiled. "Poisoned Pupae members—assassins—are divided into five ranks from lowest to highest. D-rank is the lowest, while S-rank is the highest. The bottom three are ordinary humans, at most humans whose physical capabilities have reached their limits. But starting from A-rank..."

"They are humans who truly possess some special abilities. However..."

Mobius smiled helplessly. "Their powers are not actually very strong, nor are they some kind of so-called evolution. They are abilities that emerged after exposure to Honkai radiation."

"So they're this weak..."

Ling Xi could not help muttering. It seemed that the current combat strength of the Pre-Collapse Civilization was originally inferior to that of the Schicksal era. After all, twenty-first-century A-rank Valkyries were already capable of soloing Emperor-class Honkai Beasts.

Even B-rank Valkyries could defeat Honkai Emperors on their own, while the current Pre-Collapse Civilization...

Wait, there had been a B-rank assassin just now? Damn, he had not felt anything at all!

Of course, they were only weak for now. Once Doctor and Mei developed the Hypervariable Factor later on, powerful Fused Warriors would absolutely crush every Valkyrie in the future. Perhaps... only Dvalinn could barely put up a fight. As for the rest...

It would probably be a long shot.

"Don't call them weak. That's only because you're too strong."

Mobius rolled her eyes at Ling Xi. This guy was so strong, then he went around calling others weak. That was textbook bullying!

It was like a college student returning to elementary school, then disdainfully declaring that elementary-school questions were trash and demanding a set of middle-school questions!

Yeah, it was more or less that feeling!

As for why not ask for high-school questions... uh, because college students might genuinely not know how to solve those...