Pre-Collapse Civilization, My Wife is a Snake Oh

Ling Xi: "???"

Xi Mian Nai?

"I..."

Embraced by Mobius, Ling Xi instantly felt a sense of home, though this home seemed a bit...

"Doctor, I..."

A minute later, Ling Xi seemed about to say something, but was interrupted by Mobius, who hugged his head forcefully, making him enjoy the moment. She smiled, "Don't say it, I'm not angry."

Ling Xi: "..."

"No, Doctor, I... muffled... I can't breathe... gasp!"

Ling Xi abruptly lifted his head from Mobius's chest and began to gasp for air. That was close. He never expected that he, a powerful warrior with Stigmata, who had fought Honkai Beasts and beaten up assassins, and who had once taken on eighteen tough guys simultaneously, would...

Almost be suffocated by his own wife. It was really... close!

Mobius: "..."

"Hmph, serves you right..."

Mobius blushed slightly and then pushed Ling Xi away. Since he disliked it, he wouldn't get to enjoy it anymore.

Ling Xi: "..." He didn't expect the Doctor's embrace to be so terrifyingly powerful...

"Ahem, Doctor, about the Honkai incident in Changkong City, do you... have any plans?"

Ling Xi coughed lightly, changing the subject. He didn't have time for affection with the Doctor now, as the Honkai problem in Changkong City hadn't been resolved yet.

"Plans..."

Mobius thought for a moment and said, "First, you cannot be involved in this. After all, if this matter is made public, you will definitely receive special attention. Therefore... only I can make it public. I am, after all, a top scholar in academia, and I have some credibility. Ling Xi, what do you think?"

Mobius specifically asked for Ling Xi's opinion to avoid him thinking she was stealing his credit, although... this credit might be a bit tricky.

"Yes, I think so too."

Ling Xi didn't object. While Mobius's reputation wasn't great, her words carried significant weight. This was why certain people sent assassins twice, not to kill Mobius, but to "invite" her.

"However..."

Ling Xi's words seemed unfinished. He looked at Mobius and said seriously, "I actually don't recommend you making this public, Doctor."

"Hmm? You... what did you say?"

Hearing Ling Xi's words, Mobius was immediately startled. She was truly shocked and looked at Ling Xi with great... astonishment!

Changkong City, a city with a population of tens of millions, was about to experience a Honkai outbreak. And once the Honkai broke out...

Based on the power and energy level of the Honkai outbreak, if an energy level of 2000 hw erupted in the center of Changkong City, it would directly kill 90% of the population. Then, 9% of the people might turn into zombies or dead soldiers, and only 1% would survive. Moreover...

Of those who survived, the vast majority would contract Honkai disease, and this disease... currently has no cure!

Ling Xi's casual remark was equivalent to sentencing nineteen million nine hundred thousand people in Changkong City to death!

Therefore, Mobius was genuinely shocked by Ling Xi's words. After all, directly announcing the death sentence for ten million people was something even she wouldn't dare to do.

"I said, I don't recommend you making this public, Doctor!"

Ling Xi's expression was very serious. "I told you about this, Doctor, because I hoped you could lead the people in our laboratory to safely evacuate Changkong City, and also evacuate some individuals you deem important. As for the rest... they should accept their fate!"

Hearing this, Mobius suddenly felt Ling Xi was a bit unfamiliar. In her impression, Ling Xi wasn't this kind of person!

But if Ling Xi said this, he must have his reasons. Although... the lives of ten million people could almost overturn any reason!

"Huuu..."

After hesitating for a moment, Mobius still chose to ask Ling Xi, "Ling Xi, can you tell me... your reason?"

"Reason..."

Ling Xi thought for a moment and said, "It's very simple. Because if we don't do this, then more people might die in the end."

Mobius: "???"

Chapter 68: Can't Save Them, Wait for Death, Goodbye!

"Ling Xi, you... explain clearly."

Seeing that Ling Xi was not joking at all, Mobius had to take him seriously.

"It's very simple. The reason I told you about the Honkai outbreak in Changkong City is not because the Honkai will definitely appear in Changkong City, but rather..."

Ling Xi thought for a moment and then said seriously, "It's because I learned through some method that Changkong City will experience the third Honkai outbreak in the future. Therefore, the Honkai outbreak in Changkong City is something that will happen in the future, not something that is bound to happen. In other words..."

Ling Xi explained as simply as possible, "We know that the Honkai will occur in Changkong City, but it hasn't happened yet. So, we can influence the future now. Do you understand now, Doctor?"

"I think... I understand what you mean."

Although Ling Xi's explanation was a bit convoluted, Mobius understood. It essentially meant that he had foreseen the future, but if the present were changed, the future might also change. Thinking of this...

Mobius decisively asked, "Are you... planning to stop the Honkai outbreak in Changkong City?"

Ling Xi: "..."

If I could stop the Honkai, why would I be trying to cling to you for a spot in the cryo-sleep pod?

Ling Xi shook his head and said, "If it's just about stopping the Honkai in Changkong City, it's not difficult. We just need to evacuate the city's population, but..."

"This won't prevent the third Honkai from happening; it will just cause the third Honkai to erupt somewhere else. Since the outbreak of Honkai is inevitable, even if we stop the Honkai in Changkong City, we can't stop the Honkai in an unknown city. In essence, there's no fundamental difference compared to the Honkai erupting in Changkong City. If there is a difference..."

Ling Xi rubbed his chin and said, "It's probably that we can evacuate important personnel and supplies from Changkong City in advance, thereby reducing losses. Whereas if it erupts in an unknown city, we will suffer greater losses."

Having said this, Ling Xi looked at Mobius again and smiled helplessly, "So, Doctor, what do you think we should do?"

"This..."

At this moment, Mobius completely understood Ling Xi's meaning. The third Honkai was bound to happen. However, according to the original trajectory, the third Honkai would occur in Changkong City. But if the people of Changkong City were evacuated, the third Honkai would randomly erupt in an unknown city...

It was no wonder Ling Xi made such a choice.

"Ling Xi..."

After a brief silence, Mobius asked again, "Can you tell me why the third Honkai is bound to happen?"

"Because... it's a necessity for civilization's development."

Ling Xi said quietly, "For human civilization to develop, it must face the Honkai. Although we don't currently understand the principle behind Honkai outbreaks, we can make two assumptions regarding the Honkai in Changkong City!"

"Assumptions?"

"Yes, assumptions!"

Ling Xi raised his index finger and said, "First assumption: If the person who becomes a Herrscher is a fixed individual, and this person is currently in Changkong City, then if we evacuate the people of Changkong City and take her with them, the Honkai will erupt in the city where she is when she becomes a Herrscher. We don't know who will become a Herrscher right now, so... evacuating Changkong City is meaningless."

"Then we can try a different approach!"

Mobius said, "If the Herrscher is a fixed individual, then we can completely divide the tens of millions of people in Changkong City into ten groups, or a hundred groups, and then settle them in smaller cities respectively. This way, even if the Honkai erupts, the losses and casualties can be greatly reduced."

"I already said, these are just assumptions, and..."

Ling Xi spread his hands helplessly, then continued, "Doctor, do you know how much manpower and resources it would take to resettle ten million people? What about convincing ten million people to cooperate? And how to ensure that ten million people don't cause trouble after being resettled? Lastly, and most crucially..."

Ling Xi turned to look at Mobius and smiled, "What if, in the end, the Herrscher doesn't emerge from these people, but appears in another city and causes the Honkai? How much doubt and resentment will you face from so many people then, Doctor? Have you considered all of this?"

"Huh? But didn't you say the Herrscher is someone from Changkong City?"

Mobius looked at Ling Xi with some confusion. Wasn't this contradictory to what Ling Xi just said?

"That's why I said these are assumptions..."

Ling Xi sighed, "Now let's proceed with the second assumption: the Herrscher is not a designated person, but rather, in the city where the Honkai erupts, the most suitable person is chosen to become the Herrscher. In this scenario, even if all the people of Changkong City are evacuated, the Honkai will still erupt in other cities, and the Third Herrscher will be born because of it."

"And the third Honkai should only erupt in large cities of Changkong City's scale, or even larger. So..."

Ling Xi spread his hands and smiled helplessly, "Unless we can evacuate all cities worldwide with a population of tens of millions or more, then when the third Honkai erupts, it will definitely claim the lives of tens of millions, or even more."

In reality, Ling Xi couldn't determine whether the Herrscher accompanied the Honkai, or if the Honkai appeared with the Herrscher. After all, in the game's storyline, both situations occurred. So this question was like the chicken and egg dilemma – unsolvable.

If it were the third Honkai of the current civilization, he might be able to help prevent it with his own strength, or take Mei out of Changkong City. After all, he knew the plot, so changing it would be relatively easier.

But for the third Honkai of the Pre-Collapse Civilization, he only knew it would erupt in Changkong City. As for whether the Herrscher was the primary factor or the Honkai was, or who the Third Herrscher was, he knew nothing.

This was also why Ling Xi didn't let Mobius publicize this matter. After all, what if Changkong City was evacuated, and the Honkai erupted in another city? It would definitely cause greater losses.

If it erupted in Changkong City, perhaps the Flame-Chasing Moths could deploy their forces in advance and eliminate the Third Herrscher when she appeared in Changkong City, preventing the further spread of the Honkai. But if it erupted in an unknown city, who knew how much damage it would cause.

Mobius couldn't possibly not understand this logic.

Finally, there was the issue of the butterfly effect. What if Changkong City was evacuated, and as a result, Mei and Kevin failed to join the Flame-Chasing Moths, or... what if they themselves became Herrschers? Then the Pre-Collapse Civilization could basically declare GG, unsavable, just wait for death, goodbye!

"Whoosh..."

After listening to Ling Xi's words, Mobius took a deep breath. Putting aside other things, these two so-called assumptions... were truly despair-inducing.

Chapter 69: Oops, I've become a tool?

"Ling Xi."

After a moment, Mobius looked at Ling Xi with a deliberate smile, "You wouldn't lie to me about something like this, would you?"

"I said, if I lie to you again, Doctor, I'll be your dog."

Ling Xi also smiled. He didn't want to be so serious, after all, living in the era of the Pre-Collapse Civilization was already oppressive enough.

"Then, am I the only one who knows this news right now?"

Mobius asked another crucial question.

"Yes, right now, only you and I know."

Ling Xi nodded affirmatively and added, "However, in about half a year at most, I think everyone in the world will know."

Mobius: "..." Nonsense, the Honkai will erupt in half a year, how could they not know?

"Can you tell me why you know all this?"

After hesitating for a moment, Mobius finally asked the question she wanted to ask the most: how did Ling Xi know about future events? And... several Honkai incidents she had encountered recently seemed to be directly or indirectly related to Ling Xi.

So, it was hard not to lean towards conspiracy theories.

"This..."

Ling Xi thought for a moment and replied, "If I have to say, I can only say that a bald man with 'Great' in his name told me. As for who that bald man is, Doctor, please don't ask. He doesn't exist in this world, and I don't think I'll ever see him again."

Ling Xi naturally couldn't tell Mobius about time travel, as explaining it would only lead to more problems. So... Ling Xi directly invoked that man!

"Someone from outside the world..."

Mobius's eyes suddenly lit up. More new information. So, there were indeed other worlds beyond this one.

"Ling Xi, will you accompany me to the Mu Continent seminar in a few days?"

A moment later, Mobius stopped dwelling on Ling Xi's matters and began preparing for the seminar. This was a gathering of almost all the top scientists in the world, making it particularly important for her.

"Of course. Even if you hadn't said anything, Doctor, I would have gone."

Ling Xi definitely had to go. Whether it was as Mobius's husband or as the Doctor's assistant, he had to be there.

"Heh heh, I thought the same thing!"

Mobius shrugged, then chuckled, "It's a shame. I had already prepared the paper I was going to present at the seminar, but with you disrupting things like this, I have to prepare it all over again. Some parts of the previous draft need to be revised."

"Doctor... that..."

Ling Xi seemed to want to say something, clearly worried about something.

"Don't worry, don't worry. I know what I can say and what I can't."

Mobius suddenly grabbed Ling Xi's arm, pulled him gently, wrapped her arm around his neck, and laughed, "And our recent conversation stays between us, okay? Not even... Klein can know. Of course, your junior classmate can't know either. Understand?"

Mobius knew that this matter involved a great deal. If even a tiny bit of information leaked, it would cause considerable upheaval and turmoil. Therefore, this matter had to be kept strictly confidential. No information could be revealed until absolute preparations were made.

"Yes, of course, I understand."

If Mobius understood the reasons, how could Ling Xi not? Moreover, if Mobius wasn't his wife now, he might not have even told her about this.

After all, Ling Xi was also worried that Mobius might want to save people after he told her. But with their current strength, were they really qualified to save those people?

Perhaps they could choose to do so, to save those people at all costs. But what would be the consequences? The two previous hypotheses had already perfectly illustrated that.