Ling Xi: "???"
Ximianai?
"I..."
Held by Mobius, Ling Xi instantly felt like he had a home. It was just that this home seemed a little...
"Doctor, I..."
A minute later, Ling Xi seemed about to say something, but Mobius interrupted him. She forcefully held his head against her chest, making him thoroughly enjoy the benefits as she smiled. "Don't say anything. I'm not angry."
Ling Xi: "..."
"No, Doctor, I... mmph... I... I can't breathe... Haaah!"
Ling Xi suddenly lifted his head from Mobius's chest and began gulping in air. That had been close. Who would have thought that he, a powerful warrior with Stigmata who had slain Honkai Beasts, beaten up assassins, and once fought eighteen neighborhood gang bosses in a row, would end up...
Nearly suffocated to death by his own wife. Seriously... that had been close!
Mobius: "..."
"Hmph, serves you right..."
Mobius blushed slightly before pushing Ling Xi away. Since he disliked it, he should forget about getting another chance in the future.
Ling Xi: "..." He hadn't expected the Doctor's chest to be so terrifying...
"Cough, Doctor, regarding the Honkai incident in Changkong City, do you... have any plans?"
Ling Xi coughed lightly and changed the subject. This was no time to be affectionate with the Doctor; the Honkai issue in Changkong City still hadn't been resolved.
"Plans..."
Mobius thought for a moment before saying, "First, we can't drag you into this. If this matter becomes public, you'll definitely receive special attention. Therefore... I can only be the one to make it public. I'm still one of academia's foremost scholars, so I have some credibility. What do you think, Ling Xi?"
Mobius specifically asked for Ling Xi's opinion so he wouldn't think she was trying to take credit from him, although... this credit might be rather troublesome.
"Mm, I think so too."
Ling Xi did not object. Granted, Mobius's reputation was indeed poor, but her words still carried considerable weight. That was why certain people had sent assassins twice, yet neither time had they come to kill Mobius—they had come to "invite" her.
"However..."
Ling Xi apparently was not finished. Looking at Mobius, he said seriously, "I actually don't recommend that you make this public, Doctor."
"Huh? What did you... say?"
Hearing Ling Xi's words, Mobius was immediately shocked. She was genuinely startled, and the look in her eyes was filled with... disbelief!
Changkong City was a city with a population of over ten million. Honkai was about to erupt there, and once it did...
Judging by the intensity and energy level of a Honkai eruption, if an event with an energy level of 2000 hw erupted in the center of Changkong City, it would directly kill 90% of the population. Another 9% might turn into zombies or Dishi, leaving only one percent able to survive. And...
Of those who survived, the overwhelming majority would contract Honkai disease, a disease that... currently had no cure!
And Ling Xi's casually spoken sentence was equivalent to killing 9.99 million people in Changkong City!
That was why Mobius was truly frightened by his words. Even she would not dare to pronounce a death sentence upon ten million people.
"I said that I don't recommend making this public, Doctor!"
Ling Xi's expression was serious. "I told you this because I hoped you could lead our laboratory personnel safely out of Changkong City. At the same time, you can evacuate some people you consider important. As for everyone else... they should accept this fate!"
Hearing that, Mobius suddenly felt that Ling Xi was unfamiliar to her. In her impression, he was not that kind of person!
But Ling Xi must have had his reasons for saying this, though... the lives of ten million people could almost overturn any reason!
"Whew..."
After hesitating for a moment, Mobius finally asked Ling Xi, "Ling Xi, can you tell me... your reason?"
"The reason..."
Ling Xi considered it briefly before saying, "It's simple. Because if we don't do this, even more people may die in the end."
Mobius: "???"
Can't Save Them, Just Wait for Death, Farewell! ### "Ling Xi, explain yourself more clearly."
Seeing that Ling Xi did not seem to be joking at all, Mobius had no choice but to take this seriously.
"It's simple. The reason I told you that Honkai would occur in Changkong City wasn't because Honkai was certain to appear in Changkong City, but because..."
Ling Xi considered his words before seriously saying, "Because through some method, I learned that the Third Honkai Eruption would occur in Changkong City in the future. So, Honkai occurring in Changkong City is something that will happen in the future, not something that is certain to happen. In other words..."
Ling Xi explained as simply as he could. "We know the Changkong City Honkai eruption will happen, but it hasn't happened yet. Therefore, we can affect the future now. Do you understand, Doctor?"
"I think... I understand what you mean."
Although Ling Xi's explanation was somewhat convoluted, Mobius understood it. He had foreseen the future, but if the present was changed, the future might change as well. And with that in mind...
Mobius decisively asked, "Are you... planning to prevent the Honkai eruption in Changkong City?"
Ling Xi: "..."
If I could prevent Honkai, would I have needed to think about riding your coattails to get a Hibernation Pod spot in the first place?
Ling Xi shook his head. "If all we wanted was to prevent the Honkai eruption in Changkong City, that wouldn't be difficult. We would only need to evacuate the city's population. However..."
"That wouldn't prevent the Third Honkai Eruption from happening. It would merely make it erupt somewhere else, because Honkai eruptions are inevitable. So even if we stop the Honkai eruption in Changkong City, we can't stop one in an unknown city. Essentially, that is no different from Honkai erupting in Changkong City. If there is any difference..."
Ling Xi touched his chin. "It would probably be that we could evacuate important personnel and resources from Changkong City in advance, reducing our losses. If it erupted in an unknown city, we would suffer even greater losses."
Having said that, Ling Xi looked at Mobius again and smiled helplessly. "So, Doctor, what do you think we should choose?"
"This..."
At this moment, Mobius completely understood what Ling Xi meant. The Third Honkai Eruption would definitely happen. It was only that, according to the original course of events, it would occur in Changkong City. But if Changkong City's population were evacuated, then the Third Honkai Eruption would randomly occur in an unknown city...
No wonder Ling Xi had made that choice.
"Ling Xi..."
After a brief silence, Mobius asked again, "Can you tell me why the Third Honkai Eruption must happen?"
"Because... it is an inevitability of civilization's development."
Ling Xi said quietly, "If human civilization wishes to develop, it must confront Honkai. Even though we currently don't understand the principles behind Honkai eruptions, regarding the Honkai incident in Changkong City, we can make two assumptions!"
"Assumptions?"
"Yes, assumptions!"
Ling Xi raised one finger. "The first assumption: suppose the person who becomes a Herrscher is predetermined, and that person is currently in Changkong City. If we evacuate the people of Changkong City and take her away as well, then when she becomes a Herrscher, Honkai will erupt in whichever city she is in. And since we currently don't know who will become a Herrscher... evacuating Changkong City would be meaningless."
"Then we can use another method!"
Mobius said, "If the Herrscher is a predetermined candidate, then we can divide Changkong City's ten million people into ten groups, or even a hundred groups, and settle them separately in smaller cities. That way, even if Honkai erupts, we can greatly reduce the losses and casualties."
"I already said that's only an assumption. Besides..."
Ling Xi spread his hands helplessly and continued, "Doctor, do you know how much manpower and resources it would take to resettle ten million people? How would we convince ten million people to cooperate? Once they were resettled, how would we ensure they didn't cause trouble? And finally, the most crucial point..."
Ling Xi turned to look at Mobius and smiled. "What if, in the end, the Herrscher isn't born among these people at all, but appears in another city and causes a Honkai eruption there? Have you considered how much doubt and resentment you would face then, Doctor?"
"Huh? But didn't you say the Herrscher was someone from Changkong City?"
Mobius looked at Ling Xi in confusion. Didn't that contradict what he had just said?
"That's why I said it was an assumption..."
Ling Xi sighed. "Now for the second assumption: the Herrscher is not a predetermined candidate. Instead, when Honkai erupts in a city, it chooses the most suitable person there to become a Herrscher. In that case, even if everyone in Changkong City is evacuated, Honkai would still erupt in another city, and the Third Herrscher would be born as a result."
"And the Third Honkai Eruption would likely only occur in a large city on the scale of Changkong City, or one even larger. Therefore..."
Ling Xi held out his hands and smiled helplessly. "Unless we can evacuate every city in the world with a population of more than ten million, once the Third Honkai Eruption occurs, it will certainly take the lives of ten million people, perhaps even more."
In truth, Ling Xi could not determine whether Herrschers were born alongside Honkai, or whether Honkai appeared alongside Herrschers. Both situations had occurred in the game's story, so the question was like asking whether the chicken or the egg came first—there was no answer.
If it had been the Third Honkai Eruption of the Current Civilization, he might have been able to help stop it with his own strength, or take Mei out of Changkong City. After all, he knew the plot, so changing things would have been relatively easier.
But regarding the Third Honkai Eruption of the Pre-Collapse Civilization, he only knew that it would erupt in Changkong City. As for whether it centered on the Herrscher or Honkai, and who the Third Herrscher was, he knew nothing at all.
That was why Ling Xi did not want Mobius to make this matter public. After all, what if Changkong City was evacuated, only for Honkai to erupt in another city? It would definitely cause even greater losses.
If it erupted in Changkong City, perhaps the Flame-Chasing Moths could deploy forces in advance and eliminate the Third Herrscher within the city as soon as she appeared, preventing Honkai from spreading further. But if it erupted in an unknown city, who knew how much damage it would cause?
Mobius could not possibly fail to understand that logic.
Finally, there was the issue of the butterfly effect. What if evacuating Changkong City resulted in Mei and Kevin failing to join the Flame-Chasing Moths? Or... what if they simply became Herrschers instead? Then the Pre-Collapse Civilization could basically declare GG. Can't save them, just wait for death, farewell!
"Whew..."
After listening to Ling Xi's explanation, Mobius took a deep breath. Setting everything else aside, those two so-called assumptions... were truly despairing.
Damn, I Became a Tool? ### "Ling Xi."
A moment later, Mobius deliberately smiled at Ling Xi. "You wouldn't deceive me about something like this, would you?"
"I said that if I ever deceive you again, I'll be your dog, Doctor."
Ling Xi smiled as well. He did not want to be so serious either. Living in the era of the Pre-Collapse Civilization would be oppressive enough in the future.
"Then, I'm the only one who knows this information right now?"
Mobius asked another key question.
"Yes. At present, only you and I know, Doctor."
Ling Xi nodded with certainty and added, "However, in at most half a year, I think everyone in the world will know."
Mobius: "..." Of course. In half a year, Honkai would have erupted. How could they not know?
"Can you tell me why you know these things?"
After hesitating for a moment, Mobius finally asked the question she most wanted answered. How exactly did Ling Xi know what would happen in the future? Moreover... several Honkai incidents she had encountered recently seemed to be directly or indirectly connected to Ling Xi.
So it was difficult not to think in the direction of conspiracy theories.
"This..."
Ling Xi thought for a moment before answering, "If I have to put it this way, I can only say that a bald man with Wei in his name told me. As for who that bald man is, Doctor, don't ask. He isn't from this world. I think... I probably won't see him again in the future."
Naturally, Ling Xi could not tell Mobius about transmigration. Explaining it would only raise more questions, so... Ling Xi directly brought out that man!
"Someone from beyond this world..."
Mobius's eyes immediately lit up. More new information. Sure enough, there were other worlds beyond this one.
"Ling Xi, will you come with me to the Mu Continent symposium in a few days?"
A moment later, Mobius stopped dwelling on Ling Xi's matter and began preparing for the symposium. It would gather nearly all the world's foremost scientists, making it especially important to her.
"Of course. Even if you hadn't mentioned it, I would have gone."
Ling Xi definitely had to go. Whether as Mobius's husband or as the Doctor's assistant, he needed to be there.
"Hehe, that's what I thought too!"
Mobius shrugged, then laughed ruefully. "Unfortunately, I had already prepared the manuscript I planned to use at the symposium, but you threw things into disorder, so I have to prepare it again. Some parts of the previous manuscript need to be revised."
"Doctor... um..."
Ling Xi seemed to want to say something. Clearly, he was worried about something.
"Don't worry, don't worry. I know what should and shouldn't be said."
Mobius suddenly grabbed Ling Xi's arm and gave it a light tug, directly wrapping her arm around his neck. Smiling, she said, "Besides, only the two of us can know about our conversation just now. Not even... Klein can be told. And of course, you can't tell that junior schoolmate of yours either, understand?"
Mobius knew that this matter had enormous implications. Once it leaked, even the slightest bit of information would cause considerable unrest and turmoil. Therefore, it had to be kept strictly confidential. Before they were absolutely prepared, not a single piece of information could be leaked.
"Mm, of course I understand."
How could Ling Xi fail to understand the reasons Mobius understood? And if Mobius were not his wife now, he might not even have told her about this.
After all, Ling Xi was also worried that after hearing it, Mobius would want to save people. But with their current strength, were he and Mobius truly qualified to save those people?
Perhaps they could choose to do so, choose to save those people regardless of everything else. But what consequences would it bring? The two assumptions from earlier had already explained that perfectly.
Before you continue