No Passing

The news of the Kyshtym Town nuclear explosion spread through Fire Moth in just a few minutes, reaching even some well-informed civilians. Most people struggling to make ends meet, however, remained completely unaware.

A communication request from Mei appeared on Kevin's interface. He accepted, and Dr. Mei's face materialized on the screen.

"Mei, do you need me to investigate personally?" Kevin was ready for deployment, awaiting Dr. Mei's orders.

"No, an investigation team is already en route. Your focus remains on the Tenth Law-Ruler. But don't worry." Mei, on the screen, adjusted her glasses and instructed her adjutant to transmit a stack of data to Kevin.

"You can review the data I've sent you."

Kevin opened his personal computer on the desk and browsed through the files Mei had sent. He read them twice, his expression one of considerable surprise. "No casualties? How is that possible?"

"That is indeed the case. Before the nuclear explosion, the entire population of this town was relocated to other cities."

"And we received no news whatsoever. It's as if we were completely cut off from this town. The mayor, the police chief, the entire administrative system—not a single person sent us a message. Even the officials who allowed them into the city remained silent."

"Tens of thousands of people relocated, and our 'loyal' bureaucratic system did nothing. Fire Moth's administrative system needs a thorough cleansing."

"But for now, you only need to prepare for the Tenth Law-Ruler. The nuclear explosion will be handled by others."

"Understood."

Kevin nodded at her and then closed the communication interface.

Due to Fire Moth's high level of informatization and its primary enemy always being the Honkai, it did not prioritize counter-espionage. Even if a Law-Ruler appeared internally, they could be identified through Honkai energy detection. Various factors gave Qin Su the opportunity to deceive Fire Moth's senses in a short period.

Although the previously infiltrated T-800 had been exposed, leading Fire Moth to conduct a meticulous internal inspection and resulting in the disappearance of many staff members, Fire Moth's control diminished considerably in the remote Syktyvkar City. Furthermore, its internal structure was not monolithic. Humans are peculiar beings; even when facing disaster, they remain disunited.

Infiltrating Fire Moth, while seemingly simple, was not without its difficulties. Moreover, Qin Su had engaged in numerous confrontations with the base's super-AI, Prometheus, while preparing the documentation for the infiltration. Dr. Mei likely knew of the existence of another artificial intelligence, but they could not conceive of a rogue AI. At most, they would assume it was a mysterious organization with an AI.

The security door on his left opened, and his assistant walked into the control center from the white corridor. She handed Dr. Mei the analysis results and a Law-Ruler Core, reporting, "After various analytical methods, the gem recovered from the nuclear explosion site is a Tenth Law-Ruler Core."

Dr. Mei held the decontaminated Law-Ruler Core in her hand. Its shining red, rhomboid surface reflected her azure eyes as she frowned.

"Furthermore, this Law-Ruler Core was placed at a position directly below the blast epicenter, not too deep and not too shallow."

A moment of thought led to a conclusion: if the nuclear explosion had left no trace of the Law-Ruler, the shockwave would have surely blown the Law-Ruler Core away. Yet, it was placed precisely there, an act that was undoubtedly deliberate.

This Law-Ruler Core was Qin Su's personal message to Dr. Mei, carrying two mutually exclusive meanings: provocation and cooperation. Qin Su had no intention of provoking, but if Dr. Mei interpreted it as such, he could only say that Dr. Mei was thinking on the fifth level while he was only on the first.

By deliberately leaving this Law-Ruler Core for her, he intended to convey: "I bear no ill will towards Fire Moth."

To prevent Fire Moth from conducting a thorough investigation into the nuclear explosion, he had to bypass Fire Moth's current panicked, suspicious, and bewildered bureaucratic system and send a direct message to Dr. Mei, hoping she would consider it from a pragmatic diplomatic perspective.

The Kyshtym Town nuclear explosion would convey several pieces of information to her: First, an unknown force had acquired nuclear weapons. Second, the party seemed unwilling to initiate war with Fire Moth. Third, and most importantly, Fire Moth was unaware of the specifics of the other party's nuclear capabilities—was it one bomb? Ten? Or a world-ending reserve? After all, the number of nuclear weapons Fire Moth had lost over the years was enough to annihilate the remaining human race.

The nuclear dilemma, that ancient serpent, began to coil around humanity once more. Under the current circumstances, both sides could only pretend nothing had happened—Fire Moth was unaware of Qin Su's situation, and Qin Su wished to avoid Fire Moth's sharp edge.

Even if their mutual non-aggression could be considered a degree of cooperation.

Human civilization in the first era suffered heavy losses in the war against the Honkai, but each Law-Ruler's end was death. At this time, the Fusion Warrior legions were at full strength and power. It appeared humanity still had a fighting chance against the Herrscher of the End.

Even with just one Fusion Warrior, Qin Su would not be their match. His only means of self-protection at the moment was nuclear weapons—and they were insufficient to destroy the world.

He could only hope that the nuclear dilemma would instill a sense of apprehension in Fire Moth. In the time to come, Qin Su could not afford to provoke Fire Moth's fragile psychological defenses again.

Even if the Honkai destroyed current human civilization, humanity would not be wiped out. They could still leave seeds for revival and gather remaining forces for a final battle against the Herrscher of the End.

The relationship between the Honkai and civilization was akin to predators and prey in a food chain; the weaker civilization, the weaker the Honkai disaster. If a rebellious super-AI suddenly emerged... the Honkai would at least give humanity a chance to breathe, whereas he alone constituted a civilization. The confrontation between civilizations would offer no quarter; they would compete for living space until the other was destroyed.

Even if Qin Su declared his goodwill towards humanity, the dilemma would still linger for the other party: Was what he said true? Were his actions truly harmless to humanity? This could only be resolved unless Qin Su presented an overwhelming dominance over all of human civilization.

The Armed Doll project was halted due to the dolls developing self-preservation awareness. They had rendered invaluable service to humanity in previous Honkai wars, and for this reason alone, humanity, after sacrificing countless compatriots, had to cease the production of Armed Dolls. One could imagine how vigilant they were against rogue AIs.

Dr. Mei might genuinely wish to cooperate with Qin Su, but Fire Moth was not solely under her command. Even though Dr. Mei possessed immense prestige and near-absolute leadership, even the most powerful leaders had moments where their word was not final. Such a method of sacrificing the future for the present would undoubtedly stir waves of opposition.

In Qin Su's calculations, Fire Moth had very little information about him. They would not associate Qin Su with a "rebellious AI" at this stage. He would lie low for a considerable period. This nuclear explosion incident would undoubtedly make Fire Moth as jumpy as a startled bird, especially as the council's vigilance had reached an extremely intense level.