MDV 267-280 (Patreon)

Final update for this week will drop later.

Chapter 267: I... Can't Do Anything

"Ready? My favorite Guinea Pig~"

In the ruins of the Theater of Domination, inside a floating laboratory, a wise and elegant green-haired woman gently asked the young girl.

"No." However, the white-haired girl shook her head vigorously. "Snake, hungry, food."

"All you ever think about is food. Since I was either in a puppet body or a Soulium body before, I didn't prepare any food here. Only Honkai Beasts are available. Do you want some?"

"No, but it's okay, we can go out to eat," Lin Ling suggested. "And while we're at it, we can check on my wife Chongchomg, my wife Mei, my wife Fu Hua, my wife Wendy, my wife Ana... sigh, I wonder how they're doing?"

Seeing the white-haired girl rattle off a long list of women's names like a menu, even Mobius, the oldest and most senior of the thirteen MANTIS, couldn't help but shake her head helplessly.

"Always being swayed by emotions will prevent you from ever reaching the truth, you know. Let's go. Anyway, we're both MANTIS now, so we won't starve anytime soon. This is a rare opportunity; we should make the most of it. Don't be like my former assistant, who had the potential to achieve something no less than me but wasted it after being tricked by a man. Okay, enough of that. I'll count down from three. 3...1."

Mobius, disregarding all decorum, skipped 2 and immediately activated the 'time travel' device.

The next moment, everything in sight began to become bizarre and surreal...

After rounds of testing, Mobius confirmed that Lin Lingxin could perfectly maintain balance and stability in her Diabolic (Succubus) form for an extended period. She was eager to move on to the next step of her plan. She couldn't suppress her urge to mold this Guinea Pig into the ultimate perfect creature; only in this way could she succeed.

Mobius looked at the girl, who was on the table with her chin drooping from hunger, and secretly vowed.

This time, I will change this final outcome and find the true truth...

“Hi, how are you feeling?”

Suddenly, a familiar and friendly greeting from a pink-haired girl brought Mobius back to her senses.

“Hmm…”

Then, as Mobius narrowed her eyes to observe the girl before her—

“Hey, hey, Snake.”

Lin Ling appeared beside her unnoticed and nudged her with her elbow, saying with a hint of excitement, “Why do I feel like this Elysia can see us? Does this mean we’ve successfully traveled through time? Can I take her home?”

“Give up your fantasies, Guinea Pig.”

However, Mobius regained her senses. She once again ruthlessly shattered Lin Ling’s illusions.

“Haven’t I told you many times? These are just projections. If I remember correctly, the person that's currently should be with Elysia right now is…”

“Miss Elysia, I…”

Sure enough, a girl with long grey-blue hair, wearing full-body black armor but with a noticeably youthful face, spoke from behind Lin Ling.

“What’s wrong, Hua? Nervous? Hmm... speaking of which, this is the first Herrscher enemy you’ve faced since becoming MANTIS.”

It turned out that Elysia, Hua, and Lin Ling were speaking from across a different dimension.

“Sigh...” Lin Ling sighed and lost herself in thought. She tried to shake off her reverie and turned to Mobius.

“Let’s go, Snake. Go collect the data you need, then head back early.”

“Oh?” Mobius looked Lin Ling up and down with surprise, then teased, “I thought you were like Elysia and always unable to resist pretty girls. What’s with this sudden change of heart?”

“You said you hate Elysia the most, so how come you remember everything about her so clearly?”

Lin Ling immediately retorted. “You even remember exactly when she met whom? Are you stalking her? Could it be... you actually care about her?”

“Huh? How could I care about that girl?... Even if I did, it would only be as a research subject, like with you...” Mobius replied dissatisfiedly.

“Oh dear, are you blushing?”

“Stop talking nonsense. Let’s go.”

Then, the two arrived at a laboratory where countless screens continuously refreshed with displayed data.

"Wow! So many?"

Looking at the rows of computers that resembled an internet café, Lin Ling couldn't help but exclaim. The data here was far more than in Mobius's solo lab last time.

"Of course. Did you think I just took you on a random journey through time? The point in time we're in now is arguably the most powerful moment of the Previous Era. Humanity has just defeated the Tenth Herrscher and, for the first time ever, created a thousand Divine Keys. Simultaneously, my MANTIS surgery is fully mature, and a large number of MANTIS are being produced continuously. Everything is thriving. You could even say this is the most powerful and confident moment for Fire Moth and indeed for the entire Previous Era. At this time, people all over the world are absolutely convinced that humanity will definitely defeat Honkai. Unfortunately... never mind. I'm going to record the data. You go out and keep watch; they're probably coming again."

At first, Mobius's words carried a certain pride. After all, she was one of the creators of this most glorious era of the Previous Era. But toward the end, she seemed to remember something, fell silent, and turned to quietly record the data.

Mobius and Lin Ling's time travel wasn't random; they arrived at specific points in time within the Previous Era, such as the timeframes for Honkai Beast data analysis. This allowed Mobius to steal past information and then use Lin Ling's Herrscher of Reason power to replicate the corresponding Meta-Morph factors.

According to Mobius's memories, this point in time was similar to the present timeline. Humanity had just defeated the Tenth Herrscher of Legion, and there was a vast amount of Honkai Beast data available for their use, including many special types of Honkai Beasts that had become extinct in later generations.

However, due to the large number of MANTIS they had cultivated, the higher-ups of Fire Moth's ordinary humans harbored deep distrust toward these 'non-humans' containing Honkai genes. They established a monitoring room to secretly monitor the data within suspicious MANTIS in real time, preventing them from engaging in dangerous activities. This didn't escape Mobius's notice, but as a research fanatic, she needed all the MANTIS data. Instead of exposing them, she secretly stole it and even complained that the monitoring range wasn't large enough to obtain sufficient data.

However, Mobius never imagined that tens of thousands of years later, her small actions would prove so useful.

...

"Starburst Slash Thunderous Crescent Slash!"

After two consecutive slashes, the two imaginary creations behind the girl, "Husk - Extensialism" and "Husk - Mysticism," instantly exploded.

Then, the girl sheathed her sword and began muttering to herself in a very chuunibyou manner.

"Hmph, cut down some boring things again."

...

Everything fell silent.

Lin Ling turned to look at Mobius, only to see her scanning the various computer screens with a strange device and completely ignoring Lin Ling's exhausting efforts to protect her.

"Snake, how much longer?" Lin Ling asked. "I'm so bored."

"...Don't rush. Soon."

Lin Ling then complained, "Emmm, you said the same thing an hour ago, two hours ago, and three hours ago..."

"I can't do anything with you. Fine, just wander around by yourself. Anyway, your attack just now destroyed a large number of imaginary creations. I don't think they'll reappear anytime soon."

Lin Ling scratched her head.

"That's not good, is it? What if they sneak up on you while I'm gone?"

"Don't worry. I'll let you know in time. Besides, I've regained my immortality; even the Herrscher of Finality can't kill me."

"Hmm... speaking of which, I am indeed quite interested in the Previous Era. Since that's the case, I'll go out and take a look. Remember to call me immediately if you encounter any problems, and I'll teleport back to the group."

...

"So... where should we go first? Ahem, I wonder if Fire Moth has a women's bathhouse..."

Beep beep beep!

"Hmm? What's wrong?"

Just as Lin Ling was lost in thought, the alarm suddenly blared throughout the base.

"Alarm! The frontline forces have suffered a defeat against the Eleventh Herrscher. All members of Fire Moth are requested to prepare for the final battle, and the following personnel are requested to immediately proceed to the Supreme Operations Room..."

"The Eleventh Herrscher? Binding... come to think of it, it seems that something happened during the Herrscher of Binding incident in the Previous Era..." Lin Ling frowned, recalling some unpleasant memories as she looked around.

Visibly, all the members of the Fire Moth base became tense, anxious, and even panicked.

Everyone was nervously preparing for the final battle.

"Hahaha! What defeat? The MANTIS on the front lines are almost all dead! That new Herrscher is specifically designed to counter MANTIS! Once her barrier expands to this area, we're all doomed! Run? Where can you run to?"

But some seemed to have lost all hope and started spouting nonsense.

"Hmm, let's go check it out..."

Seeing the reactions of everyone in the base, Lin Ling finally decided to go to the battlefield.

Although it was just a projection from the past, the Theater of Domination was essentially a void space large enough to contain complete past information.

And with her current flight speed, even a projection of the entire Earth could quickly transport her to her desired location.

...

The Herrscher of Binding was said to be the most terrifying and dangerous Herrscher besides Finality and possesses the power to create a barrier with a radius of one hundred kilometers. Within this barrier, all Honkai energy is nullified, and even other forms of energy are weakened to varying degrees.

Therefore, neither Honkai weapons nor conventional weapons could attack the Herrscher of Binding located at the center of the barrier.

Ordinary humans would lose their bioelectricity and die instantly within the barrier. MANTIS implanted with Honkai Beast DNA would also perish within a minute.

Faced with such a Herrscher, the Previous Era had almost no chance of victory...

But in this moment of despair, Dr. Mei discovered a method—a method that might or might not be considered a solution, a cruel method: the Herrscher of Binding's abilities had a limit.

It's cruel because this limit required countless MANTIS to sacrifice their lives to fill it...

Like moths to a flame, one after another, the MANTIS willingly rushed into the binding field...

Later, even a top-tier MANTIS like Kalpas fell easily... despite the mental MANTIS Su Yuanyuan taking over his body and manipulating it to rush across the battlefield.

But even the combined efforts of these two extremely powerful mental and physical MANTIS could only buy time.

The MANTIS suffered heavy casualties.

But at this critical moment, Hua, for the first time, burned her memories and used the 1st power of Fenghuang Down against the Herrscher of Binding.

Immediately afterward, before Hua completely lost consciousness, she saw a cluster of purple crystal flowers gradually enveloping her.

And through the gaps in the petals, a flame flickered.

The ball of fire falling from the sky seemed capable of burning everything, annihilating the Herrscher of Binding and, with it, everyone else.

The earth was dyed red...

“Looking at their faces, Kevin, will your tears freeze?”

After the victory, Elysia, who deeply loved everyone, asked Kevin this question, and Kevin remained silent...

Meanwhile, seeing this, Lin Ling couldn't bear to watch any longer. She returned to Mobius's side as quickly as possible.

...

“Yo, Guinea Pig, you're back. Perfect timing. I've finished here and was just about to call you back.”

Mobius greeted Lin Ling warmly. “Luckily, I haven't had those annoying imaginary constructs bothering me.”

“Mobius.” But to Mobius's surprise, this unserious little fellow actually spoke her full name for the first time.

"What's wrong, Guinea Pig?" Mobius asked curiously. "Did something happen? Or did you see something?"

Lin Ling asked gravely, "Didn't you say that if you can observe, you can interfere; if you can interfere, you can manipulate; if you can control, you can dominate? Since we can see remnants of the past, there must be some way to truly change history!"

Lin Ling's journey, while not perfect, had indeed successfully reversed the tragic fates of Wendy, Himiko, Ana, and others. Therefore, she firmly believed that history could be changed.

That's why, after witnessing such a tragedy, she felt a deep sense of resentment.

"Is it just that we lack power? If we were powerful enough, we could definitely reverse all of this..." Before Mobius could answer, Lin Ling continued.

"What if you traveled back in time and killed your grandfather?" However, Mobius inexplicably brought up a topic seemingly unrelated to the current conversation.

Lin Ling knew that Mobius was referring to the 'grandfather paradox'.

Paradoxes have no answers because the same proposition or reasoning implies two opposing conclusions, both of which are self-consistent yet contradictory.

Like this grandfather paradox: if you really went back in time and killed your young grandfather, there would be no father. No father would exist, and without you, your grandfather wouldn't have been killed...

Mobius shook her head helplessly.

“So unfortunately, some things can't be changed simply through the strength of power. Even if you possessed the ability to travel through time, even if you possessed the power to destroy Finality, you still couldn't change what has become history. Because it's illogical; it violates the law of causality.”

“…”

Lin Ling lowered her head, lost in thought.

At this moment, Mobius, slightly taller than Lin Ling, patted her shoulder.

"Alright, Guinea Pig, stop daydreaming. We should go to the next point in time. All we can do is focus on the present; the past is set in stone, and you can't do anything about it..."

----

Chapter 268: Plot Exposed? Fight to the Bitter End? Where Did Lin Ling Go?

Back in the present, facing Durandal's questions, Otto smiled and explained:

“Of course, I need to perform very precise and targeted operations on the Imaginary Tree. You know I'm easily misunderstood—so I don't want to be disturbed by anyone during this time.”

“But—”

Durandal wanted to ask something further.

“Li Sushang, you're in charge of controlling the Dawn Observation Deck and the Schariac Bridge. Rita Rossweisse, you're in charge of Saintess Square, Alps Street, and Danny's Path. Of course, I'll provide you with the necessary support. Durandal, stay in the center for maneuvering. Orders delivered. Dismissed!”

But Otto ignored Durandal's probing questions. After solemnly issuing their orders, he cleanly and decisively cut off the communication again.

On one hand, he did need to hurry and complete a necessary step in his plan… but on the other hand, he was also waiting for an opportunity—an opportunity to perfect the plan and minimize the cost of implementation.

This was something that Schicksal's S-rank Valkyries currently had no way of knowing, nor could they know.

...

Meanwhile, after nearly an hour of intensive analysis, the data from the “Herrscher Collision Experiment” had been preliminarily processed.

However, the results were quite strange—

Although, as Einstein had predicted, the singularity in the “living core” was indeed ring-shaped… but...

“How could this be? This ring is too small! It's ten orders of magnitude smaller than the singularity at the core of Kiana and the others' bodies! Mophead, no matter how much leakage into extra dimensions occurs, it shouldn't produce such an exaggerated result! A difference of ten billion times!”

Looking at this outrageous experimental result, the twin-tailed doctor immediately turned her bewildered face toward her arch-rival and best friend, Dr. Einstein.

"Mophead, what do you think?”

Einstein rested her chin in her hand and looked troubled.

“Emmm… have you considered this possibility…”

Seeing Einstein still being cryptic, Tesla quickly urged, “Hmm? What possibility? Stop beating around the bush and just say it!”

“What I mean is—perhaps someone has artificially interfered with or exploited the Herrscher of Dominance's powers to the point that it can now only function in extra dimensions.” A hint of unease flickered in Einstein's eyes.

“Huh? According to Theresa, Otto personally handed this core to her, which means…”

Tesla suddenly realized something.

“Then! The only person who could have done this is…”

Tesla anxiously told the Anti-Entropy communications personnel in the lab:

“Quickly, notify Theresa and the others! Tell them that Otto has completely stolen the power of the Herrscher of Dominance! This is a huge problem!”

On Saturday, October 14, 2017, at 6:30 PM, the crew of the Hyperion truly realized for the first time the real crisis of their Schicksal voyage.

Meanwhile, a large number of golden figures appeared outside the Hyperion and completely surrounded it…

This blatant and unusual activity naturally did not escape the Hyperion's notice.

“Report!”

The radar operator reported:

“Suspicious activity has been continuously detected at the one o'clock position, presumably involving over a hundred unidentified life forms.”

The signals operator then reported something even more shocking:

“The bio-infrared data of all observed targets matches that of Overseer Otto Apocalypse of Schicksal!”

Tesla looked out of the Hyperion's porthole—good heavens, it was all Otto?! Without realizing it, they had been surrounded by Otto alone?!

Soon, following Tesla's warning, Theresa, Himeko, Kiana, and other key figures aboard the Hyperion gathered to discuss countermeasures.

Some suggested that, given the unclear situation, they should evacuate first to ensure everyone's safety and make further plans after the situation became clearer.

However, many more argued that, for both public and private reasons, Otto's reckless behavior could not be allowed to continue. Who knew what conspiracy he was plotting this time?

Ultimately, the majority opinion of the pro-war faction prevailed. After discussion, everyone decided to stay and fight Otto to the bitter end.

Engineer: “Report! All engines started. Please give instructions.”

Gunner: “Report! The Hyperion's main guns are fully charged. Please give instructions!”

Simultaneously, reports from two other young women came through the control room, and preparations for retreat and counterattack were completed.

“Radar and signal teams, continue monitoring the enemy's movements! Engine and gun teams, maintain your positions and stand by. Ensure the Hyperion is ready for combat at any time!” Himeko, captain of the Hyperion, immediately ordered her subordinates.

Then she asked Theresa:

“Theresa, what should we do next?”

Theresa didn't answer immediately but frowned deeply.

“So, Grandpa tricked us into coming here again? What's his intention in making us search for and study this useless core so openly?”

While Theresa was frantically trying to figure it out, Einstein reminded her:

“Lady Theresa, an unidentified external communication is attempting to contact the Hyperion.”

Theresa seemed to have expected this.

“Connect it. It should be him.”

Buzzing sound

Accompanied by crackling noise, the man's figure was projected onto the Hyperion's bridge.

“The agreement has been confirmed, and this notification will now be broadcast. All personnel deployed in Kolosten, whether Schicksal or not, are requested to remain in their positions until further notice. Any consequences arising from unauthorized departures will be borne by the individual.”

However, although the communication connected successfully, the man Theresa had anticipated acted somewhat strangely.

Einstein asked curiously.

“This is... a clone of Otto? So they can function like robots too?”

Seeing that the newcomer was a clone, Theresa was extremely displeased.

“Puppet! Don't waste everyone's time. I need to speak with the real Otto Apocalypse!”

“Illegal operation. Protocol nonexistent. All personnel deployed in Kolosten, whether Schicksal or not, are requested to remain in place until further notice. Any consequences arising from unauthorized departures will be borne by the individual.”

But this Otto simply repeated the same words.

Tesla scoffed dismissively.

“…Tsk, what's this? His underhanded tactics exposed, so he hides and gives us the cold shoulder?”

“This is his usual tactic when he intends to act unilaterally—using a shield to delay others while he forces things forward behind the scenes.” Fu Hua, however, was quite experienced in this.

Tesla spoke.

“Damn it! He just stole the power of the Herrscher of Dominance right under our noses! What the hell is that bastard planning to do?”

“I don't know. But to be safe, we must set off immediately and find him ourselves. Just as Fu Hua said, if we waste time here, we might be playing right into Grandpa's hands.”

Clap clap clap~

But just as everyone was unwilling to sit idly by and was about to drag Otto out to get to the bottom of things, the previously motionless robot Otto suddenly clapped his hands.

Then, in a teasing yet pleased tone, he said to Theresa:

“Ah, that's a really good analysis. My dear granddaughter Theresa, it seems you've grown a lot while you were away from me.”

Theresa was immediately startled.

“?!”

“What, are you surprised by this ability to switch at will?” Otto asked rhetorically while demonstrating it, then looked at Dr. Tesla. “I think at least those two Anti-Entropy doctors over there shouldn't be surprised. After all~ we already met once sixty years ago, didn't we?”

“You bastard!”

Sure enough, Tesla cursed again.

“Hahahaha.”

But Otto, instead of being ashamed, laughed heartily and seemed proud.

“Don't be angry, Dr. Tesla. What I'm about to do will greatly benefit all of you.”

“Benefit?” Tesla scoffed. “Fine. I'd like to hear what kind of self-righteous fallacies you'll spout this time!”

“Self-righteousness? Indeed, in this matter, perhaps no one is more self-righteous than me. Ladies and gentlemen, let us celebrate the future of humanity. In return, I will sacrifice myself and gain humanity an extra five hundred years from the Imaginary Tree, giving you ample time to fight Honkai.”

“Huh?”

Even Tesla, one of the most brilliant minds, was utterly bewildered by Otto's explanation.

“Five hundred years?”

Theresa murmured the number Otto had mentioned, her expression slightly uneasy.

“Oh dear, it seems my lovely granddaughter has realized something,” Otto explained. “Indeed, to my self-righteous self, these ‘five hundred years’ are nothing more than a ‘byproduct.’ I remember saying not long ago, ‘I will soon embark on my final journey to the other side of the world to find that one and only being’—I will erase these five hundred years of history from the ‘branches of time,’ allowing the world itself to return to the state where Kallen Kaslana is still alive. Of course, none of you need to worry about your existence being erased in this process.”

Otto paused and swept his gaze over everyone present.

“All of you who have come to Kolosten today, regardless of your stance, I, Otto Apocalypse, will protect you from the torrent of time. And those of you who return to the past will surely be able to help the Saintess realize her ideals.”

…

After a moment of silence—

Tesla was the first to react and bluntly retorted:

“Hey, has the Overseer of Schicksal finally completely lost his mind? What nonsense are you spouting? Time reversal? Leaving aside how we could even attempt it technically, do you think we don't know how much energy that would theoretically require?”

“What if—”

Otto merely smiled mysteriously.

“—I've already made a deal with something called the ‘Will of Honkai’? What if the price I paid was time flowing on the Imaginary Tree—or rather, ‘now’ itself? Besides, what does it matter if you don't believe me? You just need to wait patiently for 12 hours on the Hyperion, and everything will become clear.”

“You're implying that you'll give us a chance to challenge you in the ‘final 12 hours.’”

“Oh? As expected of Dr. Einstein—truly remarkably calm. Very well, I'm willing to give you this opportunity. If you disagree with my approach, then you can come to my church and beat me to a pulp. Of course, in that case, my loyal subordinates will naturally intervene throughout this town to stop you. From my personal perspective, I still don't want you to fight each other.”

“So, you're provoking us while simultaneously hoping we remain silent. Why?” Einstein continued.

“Heh… it seems Dr. Einstein, you're hoping to find some loopholes in my words. That's not good—not good at all. You only need to know that if I succeed, the world will grant humanity an additional five hundred years to fight Honkai—and the price will be that all ‘mortals,’ except those present today, will ‘return to their unborn state’ during those five hundred years. As for this communication itself… you should understand it as an opportunity I'm giving you. An opportunity for ‘fair competition.’”

Tesla was furious.

“You! You're trying to murder the whole world!”

Theresa, however, looked Otto in the eye and solemnly declared.

“We will do as you wish and defeat you properly!”

“Very good. Good enough. That's quite good, my dear granddaughter. Your reaction is even better than I expected. So, like last year, be a doer when you get serious, Theresa~ I'll be waiting for you leisurely at St. 537 Church. Goodbye.”

“Wait a minute!”

Just as the villainous Otto finished his “pre-match trash talk” and was about to leave, a red-haired woman called out to him.

It was Himeko.

She demanded angrily.

“Where's my Lin Ling?! You just said that only this town could avoid being reversed and returned to nothingness, but we haven't found a single trace of her here! What have you done to her?”

“Don't worry, Miss Himeko. Your beloved student is in no danger whatsoever. Hmm, let me see... Oh~ Right now, she's having a great time in the playground I built just for her.”

...

————————————————————

 Chapter 269: This Is a Trap!?

Meanwhile, Lin Ling and Mobius were heading to the next coordinate point provided by Otto.

The two were doing something similar to, but not exactly the same as, the Sugars—they manipulated the Theater of Domination like piloting a rhinoceros beetle, stealthily circling the Imaginary Tree. Then, upon reaching their desired locations, Lin Ling used her Herrscher of the Void powers to "bite" a small opening in the "tree trunk," extracting the sap (numerical quantity) she wanted.

After repeating this process again and again, Lin Ling acquired almost all of the Honkai Beast genes from the thirteen MANTIS. At the same time—

"I don't want to die…"

"This time, I'll put my life into the chamber…"

"Just sleep well, and when you wake up again… you'll be 'free.'"

"Okay… okay, since only I can do it…"

"Just this once! The last time!"

"Whether I can do it… I can't guarantee it, but I'll do my best."

"When you come back, remember to praise me..."

...

Lin Ling witnessed their tragedy time and time again, but there was nothing she could do.

She clenched her fists, her nails almost digging into her flesh.

Could the tragedies of the past truly be unchangeable...? Or was Otto's method the only way?

But I...

"Speaking of which, do you know Guinea Pig?"

Perhaps feeling that Lin Ling was being a bit taciturn, or perhaps simply bored during this long journey through time, Mobius initiated a conversation.

"The reason that man named Otto was able to pinpoint the time I wanted in the boundless Tree of Imaginary Numbers is because he made some kind of deal with that Honkai God."

“Hmm… I think I’ve heard about it.”

Mobius’s words brought Lin Ling back to her senses. She turned and smiled at Mobius. “That Honkai god—or rather, the Will of Honkai—was actually created by you guys.”

“Heh, yeah~ I really didn’t expect Guinea Pig to know even this. This is a top secret of the Previous Era, inside information that even Otto didn’t know. It seems I underestimated you again.”

Mobius was slightly surprised. She had originally intended to show off a little, but unexpectedly, Lin Ling knew so much about it.

“Oh, Hua told you this?” Lin Ling was too lazy to explain and shifted the blame to Fu Hua.

Anyway, even if Mobius asked Fu Hua later, if she didn’t know, she would most likely claim to have amnesia.

Mobius couldn't help but sigh. "She even told you this. It seems you're really someone special to her. Sure enough, you two are already each other's closest people. Wow, I never thought that the newcomer back then, the previous generation Guinea Pig, would actually surpass me now. Looks like I'll have to step up my game."

"Hmm?" Lin Ling tilted her head and looked at the snake in confusion. "Push harder? What do you mean, push harder?"

"Hmm, of course—push harder and swallow this Guinea Pig of mine whole!"

Mobius, as usual, licked her lips at Lin Ling, then turned to look at the monitor. The coordinates still seemed quite far away.

"But I really didn't expect Number 17 to be able to trade with humans. It seems its role is much greater than we initially imagined. I wonder if we could make a trade with it and get some high-grade Honkai Beast genes for me."

"I advise you to give up on that idea." Lin Ling shook her head. "Actually, I've traded with them before by chance, and I got ripped off pretty badly..."

"Oh! You've traded with them too!?" Mobius immediately became interested. "How did you do it? What were the details? Tell me quickly!"

Under Mobius's questioning, Lin Ling recalled her silly, immature behavior when she was in Herrscher of the Stars form. Her toes involuntarily curled tightly, and then she shook her head violently like a rattle.

"Ah! No, no! Just thinking about it makes me feel so embarrassed! So ashamed!"

"Don't you dare not tell me!" Mobius's body suddenly seemed to soften, wrapping around Lin Ling's waist, her eyes filled with fervent curiosity.

"Quick, tell me!"

"Ah... where did you come from? White... no, Green Lady? Or perhaps Little Green? And what are you doing?"

Lin Ling looked closely and realized that Mobius's lower body had transformed into a snake-like form, coiling around her body in circles.

"You're not really going to eat me, are you?"

"Hehe, Guinea Pig, I can be Green Lady. Then... are you my Xu Xian?"

"!? What are you talking about, snake? That's so weird..."

Clang clang clang...

Kiki cool kaka~

Boom!

"What was that sound?"

Just as the two were playfully bickering, strange noises came from all directions, slightly irritating Mobius.

"Snake, are you... mistaken about something?" Lin Ling asked curiously. "What time were you planning to go to this time? Why haven't we arrived yet?"

"This time, my destination is the period when I was researching a Judgment-class Honkai Beast... but I remember that was during a brief period of peace between the two Herrschers, right? Why is it so noisy? Wait! What's going on?"

Suddenly, Mobius seemed to sense something was wrong and prepared to react.

Boom!

A sudden flash of bright light, followed by a huge explosion, threw Mobius and Lin Ling to the ground.

After regaining their footing, they discovered that the floating island laboratory beneath their feet had been half destroyed, as if cleaved in two by something incredibly sharp.

Looking outward from the cut surface, even the sky seemed to have been split open. Even more terrifying was the dense array of imaginary creations outside the opening.

"Holy crap? Did we just wreak havoc? Why are there so many 'Nihilism's'?" Even with Lin Ling's considerable strength, the sight of thousands of various imaginary creations still sent chills down her spine.

These imaginary monsters were unlike ordinary Honkai Beasts. Not only were they incredibly powerful, but they could also reverse time to some extent and regenerate from injuries, making them extremely difficult to deal with.

Moreover, the leader was an exceptionally large and clearly unusual individual. Judging from the giant sword in its hand, the earlier explosion was likely caused by it.

So many of them! Even if we could win, we'd be exhausted.

Therefore, Mobius suggested. "Our goal now is to acquire power. We don't need to fight them. Use your abilities to take us away."

"Okay." Lin Ling nodded, and a symbol resembling the Queen's eyes appeared in her own. She was about to activate the Herrscher of the Void's power to remove Mobius, herself, and the entire Theater of Domination from this place.

Suddenly, her body went limp. She stumbled and nearly collapsed, and the symbols in her eyes vanished.

"What is this?!"

Lin Ling was very familiar with this feeling; just a few months ago, the Herrscher of Dominance had used this same method to steal her Herrscher powers.

She immediately looked at Mobius in confusion.

"Snake, what are you doing? Why are you stealing my Herrscher of the Void powers at a time like this?"

"Huh?" Mobius was taken aback. "Why would I steal your powers at a time like this?"

"If it's not you, then could it be...? Oh no! This seems like a trap!" Lin Ling immediately realized. "Damn it, I told you shouldn't trust Green Otto too much!"

"What? Oh no, my control!" Mobius now also remembered something and hurriedly walked toward her own Herrscher of Dominance doll body. Because she had now switched to a human body, she had lost the direct control over the Theater of Domination that she had as a member of the Herrscher of Legion.

But in the end, she was now a step too late.

Within the Theater of Domination, a strange spatial shift, like a spinning kaleidoscope, separated Mobius from her nearby doll-like body.

Simultaneously, the previously floating architectural fragments rapidly coalesced, restored themselves, and transformed.

Finally, as if intentionally manipulated by someone, the Theater of Domination squeezed Lin Ling and Mobius out, exposing them directly to the imaginary army outside…

————————

EX Chapters: Just Rebellion Against Archbishop Schicksal

At 6:35 PM, five minutes before the Hyperion was scheduled to enter combat mode—

“Rita, have you reached your designated defensive position?”

“Yes, Lady Durandal. Also, the Archbishop just lent me the ‘Theater of Domination’ and asked me to use it properly.”

“…I’ll go to your side. There’s something… on my mind.”

The two girls exchanged a glance. They both understood each other’s thoughts, but some things weren’t suitable to discuss over the communication channel in the current situation.

“I understand, Lady Durandal.”

…

Some time later, Durandal found Rita.

“…Things are getting increasingly strange. First, the Overseer tried to create a so-called ‘new history’ out of thin air, putting us in charge and preventing potential interference from others. Then Nagamitsu, who controlled the key technology, disappeared without a trace, and the dedicated communication line went unanswered. What exactly happened in places we don't understand?”

“…” Rita thought for a moment. “Perhaps we can ask Lady Amber. She should know something about what the Overseer and Lady Nagamitsu have been doing lately.”

Durandal was somewhat worried. "I just don't know how much she'll be willing to tell us this time. After all, the Overseer clearly didn't want us to know too many details just now."

But Rita had a different opinion and insisted on contacting Amber.

"Anyway, let's try our best first, Lady Durandal. Even the Overseer's secretary might have her own thoughts, right?"

"..."

After a somewhat long wait, a calm and steady voice finally came from the communicator:

"Hello, Lady Rita... Oh? Lady Durandal is here too."

"Ah, um..." Perhaps because the two hadn't communicated much before, and considering her previous suspicion of Amber, Durandal's voice sounded somewhat awkward.

Rita, however, cut to the chase and continued skillfully, "It's like this, Lady Amber. The Overseer just issued orders to place a curfew around the area of St. 537 Church to prevent anyone else from entering, perhaps due to the urgency. The Overseer didn't explain the reasons in detail. This has left us a little unsure of how things are developing. So... does Lady Amber have any further information to share with us?"

"I understand. Indeed, the Overseer was more demanding than usual today, but regarding your most pressing concern—'developments'—" Amber calmly analyzed, "I believe Lady Nagamitsu is more qualified to speak on this than I am."

"Nagamitsu... she's lost contact," Durandal added.

"Lost contact? This..." Amber, who had remained as calm and composed as a robot, sounded surprised but quickly regained her composure and muttered to herself, "I see, things have come to this."

“‘This stage?’” Durandal sensed the deeper meaning in the other's words and pressed further. “So you do know something, Amber?”

“Yes.” Amber nodded slightly. “A little over an hour ago, Lady Nagamitsu specifically sought me out and left behind a special key belonging to the ‘Gesius’ system. She said… if she loses contact with us during the Archbishop's plan… then we can use this key to read the data she previously stored through the ‘space-time interlayer.’”

“…Does the Archbishop know about this?” Rita asked.

Amber thought for a moment. “It’s said that he does.”

“…I understand. Thank you, Lady Amber.”

Afterward, Amber sent what Nagamitsu had left to Durandal and Rita, then ended the communication.

Durandal's face showed a hint of worry as she looked at Rita. "Could it be that Nagamitsu... has encountered some danger?"

"It might not be 'danger,' I suppose. Although Lady Nagamitsu is indeed unconventional, in my opinion, she's actually very good at anticipating risks. If she always handles dangerous experiments with ease, then similarly, she wouldn't leave any leverage over the Overseer. Rather, judging from our conversation just now, perhaps our contact with Amber was entirely within her predictions."

"Nagamitsu... is she that capable? I always thought she was more like..." Durandal pondered for a moment, resting her chin on her hand. "...a bookworm or something?"

"Hmm."

For some reason, Rita's expression became somewhat strange.

"Rita, what's wrong?" Durandal asked, puzzled.

"Sorry..." Rita suppressed her earlier amusement. "It's just that this analogy, coming from Lady Durandal, has a subtly humorous quality. Anyway, let's read the data she specifically left for us first. Perhaps after reading it, we'll naturally understand the cause and effect of things."

"That makes sense..."

"Then, try entering the key Lady Amber gave us."

—

"Hi~ Did you miss me?" A projection of Nagamitsu, with long wine-red hair and dressed like a researcher in a white lab coat, appeared before them.

"Since you saw this recording... then I suppose you've already... been fired by Mr. Otto!"

"..." ×2

Rita and Durandal exchanged a glance, both speechless.

"Ahem." Nagamitsu's recording seemed to know their reaction and coughed awkwardly. "Because what I'm about to say is very serious, I'll lighten the mood a bit here. Mr. Otto has now imposed martial law around his church and has appointed you to maintain order. He does have a reason to do so... because he has decided to do so at the cost of almost everything in this world, in exchange for time flowing backward in some sense."

"What!?" If it were just Otto talking about going back to the past, Durandal would still have felt a sense of unreality. After all, that man often said strange things. But now that even Schicksal's top scientist was saying the same thing, it almost confirmed the possibility that it was true.

"Hmm..." Nagamitsu's expression turned serious.

"For Otto, what he wants to save might be 'the world' or 'someone,' but definitely not 'humanity' itself. Rather, Mr. Otto probably hates 'humanity' as a collective. Otherwise, he wouldn't have asked me to help him develop such a devastating plan. Once this plan is implemented... the entire Earth, except for the town of Klossen, will be reset to its state from more than five hundred years ago. The vast majority of people in our world will become the 'price' of reversing time."

---

Chapter 270: A Just Rebellion Against Archbishop Schicksal (Part 2)

“Hearing this, Bianka or Rita—you must be very puzzled as to why I would devise such a destructive plan for Mr. Otto.

The answer is actually surprisingly simple: in my view, scientific research should not be limited by human will. Or more precisely—we should not decide whether something should be born or exist based on the goodness or evil of the human heart. A swordsmith makes a sword sharp enough to kill, of course, but that doesn't mean the swordsmith is engaged in a murderous profession.”

Returning to our current situation… I hope you understand that ‘what has happened will happen again.’ Perhaps not now, but in the future, Mr. Otto will not be the only one capable of ‘resurrecting history.’ If you do not intend to wait and see but decide to stop him, then this challenge will eventually take on a different meaning for you at some point in the future.

“Alright, I’ve now slipped away to a safe enough place to take refuge—take care, my favorite Valkyries too Bye-bye”

The pre-recorded video ended there, leaving a heavy silence between the oppressive clouds, the stagnant earth, and the two girls staring at each other.

A philosopher once said that those in power are always mired in an ancient arrogance, believing they already know what is good and what is evil for humanity.

—But what if a certain ‘powerful person’ happens to believe that their good and evil ‘need no evaluation’?

After a long silence, Durandal finally made her decision. She looked into Rita's eyes, her gaze hardening.

“…Perhaps I need to speak with the Overseer, Rita. I mean, now.”

Rita did not object but softly asked, “Lady Durandal, you understand the potential consequences of doing this, don’t you?”

“I understand.” Durandal nodded. “That’s why, at this moment... there’s something I must entrust to you for safekeeping.”

In the next instant, a white light flashed and a beautiful linden tree appeared before the girls.

“I truly believe that, for now and for the foreseeable future, you are more suited than I am to shoulder the responsibility of protecting that world.”

Durandal placed her hand on Rita’s shoulder, and a strange power flowed through their bodies. Moments later, Rita’s originally blue armor transformed into a golden hue resembling an immortal star anchor.

Durandal entrusted the World Bubble within her to Rita, for she was about to undertake something dangerous but necessary.

“I understand. In that case, Lady Bianka Atagina, I also have something I need to entrust to you for safekeeping.”

Rita, understanding what Durandal intended, did not refuse. However, while accepting the world within Durandal’s body, she also took out a pocket watch from her robes.

Looking at the pocket watch, a sense of nostalgia rose in Durandal’s heart.

“What is that?”

“This is another ‘Gnius’ we used five years ago when we fought side by side.” Rita handed the item to her. “Take this as a talisman.”

“Thank you, Rita.”

“You’re welcome, Lady Durandal. I will protect the world that you and Lady Lin Ling protected together.”

From this World Bubble, Rita could feel a strange connection with Lin Ling.

Then, the illusion of the Seed of Sumeru dissipated, and the scenery before the girls returned to reality. Everything seemed unchanged… yet much seemed to have changed.

The girls nodded to each other one last time in confirmation.

Then the blonde girl resolutely turned and left, lance in hand…

...

At this moment, inside Schicksal Church, Otto Apocalypse’s consciousness was immersed in a boundless void.

Inexplicably, scenes from five hundred years ago flashed before his eyes—scenes from his entire life—

“Useless.”

“So worthless.”

“How could the Apocalypse family have such a disgraceful existence as you?”

“Airplane, waaaaaah, my airplane!”

“Wow, amazing! Did you make this?”

“When you grow up, let’s save the world together!”

...

“How rare. You’re actually reminiscing about your childhood. Are you uneasy about your inevitable death?”

Even though there was nothing around, a voice tinged with sarcasm echoed through the church.

This man’s voice brought Otto back to his senses.

“Haha.” Otto’s laughter remained hearty as he spoke to the golden cube floating beside him. “You’re quite the joker. Didn’t I just tell Theresa and the others? I ‘voluntarily went to die’ and ‘died voluntarily.’ This is nothing more than a five-hundred-year-old end-of-the-world feast.”

“But in my opinion,” Void Archives seemed to see right through the most intelligent and dangerous man in the world, “you’re just using this method to mask your nervousness and fear.”

“Perhaps. I do get nervous. I do feel fear…” Otto admitted without hesitation. “After all, my life has been long enough. Seeing the finish line is naturally exhilarating.”

“…” Void Archives was silent for a moment before continuing, “Didn’t you ever hope for more?”

“Why not?” Otto countered with a noncommittal smile. “If it’s just ‘hope,’ then you must understand, Void Archives, that truly impossible things are destined to be impossible from the start.”

“If you’re interested in that, then why not accompany me on a journey through the depths of memory, old friend? Before we’re destined to clash with others, it should still be possible.”

Then, like two people taking an aimless stroll, they walked and talked until—

“The first person to come and settle scores with me is already close at hand.”

Otto looked in one direction, where a resolute golden figure approached.

“Welcome my dear friend, Schicksal’s foremost S-rank Valkyrie” Otto greeted the guest warmly, but his tone suddenly turned cold. “If it were an hour earlier, I would have greeted you the same way I did just now, Durandal.”

Durandal ignored Otto’s seemingly overly excited and performative demeanor and instead went straight to the point.

“Someone told me that in your upcoming plans, you might ‘destroy the present and then choose the past.’ What exactly does that mean?”

“Hmm, judging from what you quoted, it must have been Nagamitsu who told you. It’s alright—you have the right to know the truth. Simply put~ I once asked Nagamitsu to design several different world-reconstruction schemes, but the most expensive one was also the most stable and had the highest success rate.”

“Highest cost... what exactly do you mean?”

“If I just give you the conclusion, you might find it confusing, so let me take a moment to start from the beginning—

I’ve probably said this many times already: the flow of time is irreversible, rushing forward without ever turning back. It’s just that normal rivers get replenished by rain and snowmelt—

But if we dare to be even bolder and elevate our thinking to the realm of the Tree of Imaginary Numbers, then human time is merely data recorded on a magnetic tape. So-called ‘history’ is the portion already recorded on this tape. ‘The future’ is the unknown that will appear on this tape… and our ‘present’ is the sole probe on this tape.

The ‘present’ is special. It distinguishes between the past and the unknown, the possible and the impossible. It is the unique platform for survival possessed by every intelligent life form.

So let’s consider something—

If we maintain the special nature of this probe, the ‘present,’ and forcibly move it back to the tape belonging to the ‘past’… what would happen?”

“!” Durandal finally understood.

“Our present will be grafted onto the ‘past’?”

“That’s right. Just like those extraterrestrial intelligences you’ve dealt with—except they need holidays to go to other worlds, while we graft ourselves. Imagine—a disaster like the Second Honkai can be wiped clean, and modern humans like us, with our own experience, will help humanity grow anew. Although Honkai won’t disappear and we’ll still face the challenges that come as scheduled, the gains humanity will reap will far outweigh the losses. I think your Miss Lin Ling knows this best.”

“…So, how will you do that?” Durandal continued.

“First, a method to explore, contact, and even reach the Imaginary Tree; second, the supporting equipment and energy for the operation—specifically, the Second Divine Key ‘Cosmic Juggernaut’ and sufficient Honkai energy; third, suitable spacetime coordinates for the ‘grafting,’ that is, a stable region that can be locked using the ‘beacon’ of the Cosmic Juggernaut.”

“The method to ‘reach the Imaginary Tree’ and the means to obtain ‘sufficient Honkai energy’—what exactly are they?” Durandal pressed.

“They all come from ‘the Will of Honkai,’ Durandal.”

“That’s right—the will of Honkai. The source of the current Herrschers, the singularity of Honkai today. He is revered as a god and has existed for five hundred years in the history of Schicksal. But the so-called ‘god’ is not unattainable. As long as one walks the same path—the same point in the tomb… humanity can also contact the god and even reach an ‘agreement.’”

“An ‘agreement’? You mean a deal?”

“Frankly, I don’t like World Serpent’s ‘Stigmata Project,’ but now Schicksal has missed the best opportunity to stop it. Going back to the beginning is also creating an opportunity for ourselves to reshape the world’s situation. And that great one is happy to give birth to such a time-altering ‘drama.’

Honkai’s will has lowered the ‘door’ of the Imaginary Tree for me, and I will become His agent in the human world in this matter.

As for the price, Durandal, didn’t you already know?”

“Agent? Overseer, are you going to voluntarily become a Herrscher?!”

“From the perspective of ‘power,’ that’s one way to put it. However, contact with the Imaginary Tree would make me a being different from the Herrschers—perhaps even surpassing them.”

“While that would require me to pay the price—my ‘self-entity’—its power would be enough for me to reconstruct the ‘world.’”

Sensing something was amiss, Durandal asked one last question—the same one Otto had avoided answering before:

“What I want to hear isn’t this kind of abstract promise and reasoning. From the beginning until now, you’ve consistently avoided discussing the true cost of your plan. So… what is that cost?”

“‘Now’—everything right now.

I’ve already told Theresa that I will erase these five hundred years of history from the ‘branches of time,’ returning the world to the state it was in when Kallen Kaslana was still alive.

The price I pay is time flowing on the Tree of Imaginary Numbers—living and speaking ‘now’ itself.

This might be too abstract, so I’d like to answer your question from another angle.

Human civilization itself gives rise to Honkai—something every member of Schicksal should understand. But what if we look at this from the perspective of ‘Honkai’s will’?

For Him, perhaps the Herrschers are symbols of ultimate freedom, while our civilization is the shackle that imprisons Honkai and distorts it.

Yes, from this perspective, it’s not that Honkai is born from civilization but rather that ‘civilization is a special, solidified form of Honkai.’

So what I have to pay is the ‘Honkai’ naturally inherent in contemporary civilization as a whole.

I will mobilize all the potential energy hidden in reality and imaginary numbers—”

“If you do this, then what will become of our ‘now,’ the reality of this very moment?”

“Outside of Kolosten, they will vanish without a trace. Kolosten will become the sole epitaph of our annihilated era—”

Durandal’s eyes widened.

Whether it was her initial speculation or Nagamitsu’s analysis, she had always held onto a sliver of hope—perhaps a sliver of luck—that the Overseer might not have truly gone that far.

But now…

“You mean, outside of Kolosten?…” Durandal asked one last time, seeking confirmation.

“Outside of Kolosten, everything that has been born and destroyed in these past five hundred years will be utterly erased as though it had ‘never existed’ in the river of time.

This is the price of starting over.”

“This is insane! Overseer, you’re murdering almost everyone in this world!”

“But ‘humanity’ will still be ‘humanity.’”

“We’re not saving an empty concept! We’re saving countless living free wills!”

“You’re wrong, Durandal. I’m precisely trying to save a ‘living’ free will from this hollow concept of ‘humanity.’

You know her name—Kallen Kaslana…

And as for the person before you—” Otto narrowed his eyes.

“He craves wisdom merely for personal satisfaction. He worships beauty only to deny the existence of ugliness. He feels the world is full of superfluous people—to the point that the value of life has been squandered by them.”

“…”

Their opposing ideologies were ultimately irreconcilable, and in the end, master and disciple clashed.

Even after transforming himself into an immortal mechanical body, the inherently frail Otto was still no match for the exceptionally gifted and strongest Valkyrie, Durandal. Even with the Void Archives, he was quickly defeated.

Durandal placed the Black Abyss White Flower against Otto, who was kneeling on the ground.

“Tell me everything... while there’s still time.”

“I told you—you should ‘kill me.’ Heh...”

However, Otto, who should have been defenseless, suddenly laughed.

“Gnius+, activate!”

“What?!”

Suddenly, the upgraded Gnius+ used in the World Bubble grafting experiment activated uncontrollably, instantly transporting Durandal to a strange world...

 - -

Chapter 271: Accept My Last Meta-Morph Factor, Lin Ling

"Snakes, this is so annoying! We can't kill these guys, and we can't shake them off either. What are we going to do? Are we really going to be trapped here forever?"

Ever since Lin Ling and Mobius were forced into this imaginary space, they hadn't even had time to offer a "friendly condolence" to the culprit, Otto, before being instantly surrounded by a swarm of imaginary creations.

A fierce battle was about to erupt.

If they were outside at this moment, the aftershocks of the battle alone would probably have destroyed several cities.

After Lin Ling finally managed to eliminate all these troublesome imaginary creations, a strange golden light flashed, and the defeated monsters seemed to revert to their original state and attack again.

These creations from the Imaginary Tree possessed a certain degree of time-reversal ability. Since this was the Imaginary Tree's territory, they were full of energy and practically possessed infinite regenerative abilities.

Lin Ling had temporarily lost her powers as the Herrscher of the Void, and Mobius had lost control of the Theater of Domination. This meant that while they were not going to die in battle, they were trapped here—unable to leave and being endlessly worn down by the enemy...

"Knowing that after I regained MANTIS's body, I would definitely abandon my puppet form and then secretly seize control of the Theater of Domination, right? Then he deliberately gave us false coordinates to lure us here, waiting for an opportunity to seize Guinea Pig's Herrscher of the Void powers. That way, he could trap us here without interfering with his plans? Hmph, I never imagined there would be such cunning individuals among later generations. But~"

Unlike Lin Ling's frantic state, Mobius was completely unfazed. She simply rested her chin on her hand and excitedly gazed at the terrifying monster that would horrify ordinary people, her eyes seemingly shining.

Meanwhile, her hands were busy collecting fragments scattered throughout this void.

"Bringing us here might be your biggest mistake..."

"Boom!"

Meanwhile, after another powerful attack comparable to a silver bullet, Lin Ling temporarily paralyzed all the imaginary creations before her. She then ran to Mobius, who was inexplicably excited, grabbed her shoulders, and shook her vigorously.

"Snake, what are you doing? Wake up! Stop spacing out! You must have some way to get us out of here, right?"

"Guinea Pig~"

As if brought back to her senses by Lin Ling's words, Mobius looked at Lin Ling with a confident smile.

"You know, you have to use magic to defeat magic~"

"What?" Lin Ling didn't quite understand. She had thought the snake was thinking about how to escape while spacing out, but now she was saying things that left her completely bewildered.

"How stupid."

With that, black mud surged from Mobius's hand. She then plunged her finger into it, and the mud extended and instantly obliterated the head of a recently "reborn" Husk – Nihilism.

Then the black mud flowed back, returning to Mobius's hand.

"Look."

When Mobius opened her palm again, a huge dark sphere appeared. It seemed... to be the eye of the Husk – Nihilism.

Lin Ling looked at the dark eye, puzzled, and asked, "What does this mean?"

"Hmm~" Mobius smiled mysteriously, then made a gesture as if giving an injection.

"Huh?" Lin Ling immediately understood, but even after grasping the meaning, she still didn't quite understand.

"This isn't a Honkai Beast, is it? Do you mean you want to fuse its genes into my body? Will that even work?"

"An Imaginary Creation? Actually, in a sense, aren't Honkai Beasts and Herrschers also imaginary creations? Why bother going through all that trouble to find a powerful Honkai Beast? There's top-tier material delivered right to our doorstep!"

Mobius explained with a smile. "So, obediently stick your butt out here. Perfect timing—while you were fighting, I retrieved the Honkai Beast gene extraction equipment that was squeezed out of the Theater of Domination. With a little modification, it should be able to extract the genes of an imaginary creation."

"Ah... 'should'? What the heck? It sounds really unreliable." Lin Ling felt a little flustered.

"What are you afraid of? You now possess my Sesa genes, so theoretically even Finality couldn't kill you. Alright, enough talk."

Mobius had already placed the Nihilism factot in her hand into the gene extractor and begun manipulating it, excitedly explaining as she did so:

"Indeed, if the root is the Imaginary Tree, then Honkai Beasts and Imaginary Creatures share the same underlying logic. Therefore, with some methods, I can also extract their genes and create Meta-Morph factors. That way, Guinea Pig, you can possess the power of imaginary numbers."

"Is that so... Well, since we're going to do it, let's make a few more."

With that, Lin Ling went to get another Husk in the shape of a bull...

Besides that, there were various other strange and wonderful Imaginary Creatures, such as Existentialism, Mysticism , and Nihilism...

Finally, everything was about to be completed.

"Come, Guinea Pig, accept my last Meta-Morph factor."

Using the tattered equipment at hand, Mobius fused the strongest imaginary creation genes she could gather, creating a strange syringe that emitted a faint golden glow.

"With this injection, you will surpass MANTIS and reach the other side of the imaginary realm."

"So, as long as I fuse their genes, I can defeat these constantly resurrecting beings?"

"Ahem."

Mobius coughed lightly and did not answer directly.

"Hurry, they're about to revive. Once you get this injection, you'll possess the same type of power as them. You won't have to fear them anymore."

————————

Chapter 272: Durandal's Background / The Final Battle

Meanwhile, the crew of the Hyperion, after discussion, decided to split into two groups to attack St. 537 Church, where Otto was located.

Bronya, Seele, Rosalia, and Lilia formed one group.

Upon arriving at St. Mary's Square, they were surrounded by a barrier. The four passed through a crack but instead entered the supposedly vanished Theater of Domination. At the same time, Bronya became separated from the other three.

At this moment, a chestnut-haired girl emerged before the lone Bronya—Rita, whom Otto had arranged to intercept her there.

"No need for further words. Bronya won't be manipulated, nor will she waver in her resolve. Bronya will decide her own path... at least, she certainly won't be staying here on vacation. The secret assassin Dark Rose—no, Schicksal's S-rank Valkyrie Rita Rossweisse—if you want to stop Bronya, then get serious!"

"As expected of the unyielding Miss Bronya. Since you, as always, refuse to accept imposed solutions, then I'll have to teach you a lesson."

The two girls, each with their own convictions, agreed after some debate that a battle was inevitable and thus began a fierce fight.

Initially, Rita relied on her control of the Theater of Domination to seize the advantage and heavily suppress Bronya.

Seeing this, Bronya had no choice but to use her Herrscher of Reason ability to create a pseudo-Star of Eden to fight Rita, but unfortunately, she was still no match.

Then a sudden inspiration struck her: since a single simulated Star of Eden couldn't overpower her opponent, she would repeatedly use the Herrscher of Reason's power to rebuild the Star of Eden and hope to win through sheer numbers.

Finally, Bronya even unleashed the real Star of Eden during the battle, using a simulated black hole to destroy the already crumbling Theater of Domination.

Bronya and Rita then fell into the Sea of Quanta.

At this moment, Seele found Rosalia and Lilia and brought them out of the Theater of Domination before it collapsed. Seele then re-entered the Sea of Quanta to bring Bronya back to the town of Kolosten.

Meanwhile, Rita, seemingly plotting something, ultimately chose to remain in the Sea of Quanta and no longer fought the crew of the Hyperion.

Meanwhile, on the other side...

Kiana and Fu Hua's team encountered an old friend of Fu Hua's on the sunrise observation deck on their way to the church—Li Sushang, Fu Hua's nominal grand-disciple from her time as Jingwei.

Because Otto had done Li Sushang a favor, she agreed to help him with something—stopping anyone approaching the church.

Seeing this, Fu Hua intervened and stopped Li Sushang to buy Kiana time to proceed to St. 537 Church.

After a period of testing each other, Fu Hua tricked Li Sushang into using the Sword God technique on her.

The scheme succeeded, and Li Sushang decided to use Eminence against her grandmaster. However, Fu Hua could not use it; her sword heart had shattered, rendering her unable to perform it. Instead, she used fragments of the Seven Disciples of Taixu's personalities remaining in her mind to block it.

Fu Hua ultimately lost her duel with Li Sushang.

Meanwhile, Kiana successfully arrived at St. 537 Church alone. Just as she was about to enter the church, a black-and-white spear appeared from afar and blocked her path.

However, the person who appeared was not Durandal as Kiana had anticipated, but Otto, who had just exiled Durandal to the Imaginary Dimension.

Kiana and Otto, of course, had nothing to say. Kiana immediately launched an attack and, after a fierce battle, managed to trap Otto below. However, Otto suddenly released the Black Abyss White Flower, abandoned the fight, and entered the church alone. Simultaneously, a strange barrier descended and covered the entire church.

Kiana naturally wouldn't let Otto "escape" and immediately gave chase. However, the moment Kiana touched the barrier, she discovered that her Herrscher power was suppressed, causing her to revert to normal.

Subsequently, Theresa, Bronya, and the others arrived at St. 537 Church to meet Kiana. After confirming the situation, Theresa and the others determined that this was the power of the Herrscher of Binding. Kiana and the others retreated to a safe area to discuss countermeasures.

Finally, Einstein and the others decided to try using the Selene to shatter the barrier.

However, the Selene, which concentrated most of the Hyperion's energy, unleashed a full-force attack and successfully created a gap in the barrier but failed to completely tear it apart.

The damaged barrier rapidly repaired itself.

Seeing this, they deduced that to completely shatter the barrier, at least six Selenes and five times the capacity of the Hyperion Security Ships would be needed to unleash their power simultaneously.

Therefore, Bronya stepped forward and decided to use the Herrscher of Reason to deal with this troublesome barrier.

Finally, Bronya successfully constructed six Selenes using the Herrscher of Reason's power and unleashed their full power simultaneously, finally shattering the barrier. However, she lost consciousness due to excessive exertion, her soul teetering on the brink of dissipation.

Fortunately, Seele and [Seele] had some kind of connection with the Black Abyss White Flower. Together, they successfully used its power to save Bronya.

However, no sooner had one crisis subsided than another arose.

After the barrier shattered, countless gigantic gears appeared in the sky and descended from above.

Theresa recognized it—it was similar to Judah's Grace Field, the power of the Herrscher of Binding. If this barrier fully expanded, everyone present would be in danger.

Immediately, Theresa flew forward, disregarding her own safety, and used Judah's 0th power to unleash a Grace Field of the same scale. She successfully neutralized the binding force released by Otto in the sky and saved everyone present.

However, she was overexerted and suffered a backlash from the Grace Field, weakly falling from the sky.

But just then, as if on cue, a blonde girl returned from the void and used Theresa's fall from the purple sky as a springboard.

It was Durandal, whom Otto had exiled to the Imaginary Dimension.

It turned out that Durandal had not been randomly exiled to the Imaginary Dimension by Otto but purposefully banished to the Kaslana family's Stigmata Dimension.

There, Durandal underwent and passed a series of trials, awakened her Stigmata power and learned that she was the true Kiana.

Durandal then contacted Rita and Schrödinger and, after learning about the situation outside, began her return to the real world.

Upon returning to reality, Durandal encountered Theresa falling from the sky.

Durandal caught Theresa and used the 0th power of the Black Abyss White Flower to heal everyone present.

Meanwhile, in World Serpent, Mei learned of Kolosten's situation from Kevin and planned to go there, but Kevin stopped her and told her that he had other ways to help Kiana.

After some treatment, Bianka left the White Flower with Seele to continue treating others. Then, after learning from Nagamitsu about some of the experimental results of connecting to World Bubble, she and Kiana entered St. 537 Church together.

Mei also contacted Kiana through the Herrscher Core at this time, giving her the power of the Herrscher of Thunder to help her reforge the Flamebringer Greatsword.

Afterward, Kiana opened the portal to the Imaginary Space and entered it with Bianka.

Here, they finally met the culprit who had manipulated everything and played with everyone—Otto!

 - - -

Chapter 273: Beyond the Limits of Time

"Hmm... what is this...?"

When the girl snapped out of her daze, the previously empty space before her was now a scene of utter devastation—

The large group of imaginary creations that had entered a state of 'time reversal' and rebirth had been reduced to a vast expanse of floating debris resembling space junk, completely devoid of the miraculous restoration they had achieved through 'time reversal'.

"I remember... after Snake gave me an injection, and then I..."

Lin Ling recalled what had happened after Mobius injected her with imaginary genes—

Although she was injected with the strange liquid by  Mobius once again, this time it didn't make her noticeably stronger, nor did it cause her to grow any non-human parts. It was as if she had simply been injected with a useless saline solution, having absolutely no effect.

Until… Lin Ling suddenly realized that everything before her eyes had lost all its previously hidden details.

Looking at an Husk—Existentialist—she could see it from head to toe, from the outside in. Like a three-dimensional object projected onto a two-dimensional plane, every detail of its entire body was exposed before her eyes without the slightest distortion.

She could clearly see the internal structure and deep layers of the imaginary creation before her; even more so, she could perceive everything not only on a spatial level but also on a temporal level, seeing when it would revive and when it would perish again.

At this moment, Lin Ling felt that if she intervened at an extremely small point in time between life and death, she could truly interrupt the process of its demise…

Then, Lin Ling lost consciousness…

Regaining her senses from the deep memories, Lin Ling rubbed her slightly disheveled hair, then picked up a shard of monitor glass floating beside her to use as a mirror. She wanted to see her reflection.

Then, while rubbing her face, she examined the rest of her body, finally concluding.

"Sure enough, I don't seem to have changed at all. Was everything just an illusion? Snake, did something go wrong with your experiment?"

"..."

However, Lin Ling quickly realized something was amiss. Mobius, usually quite talkative, didn't answer her question this time.

The empty, desolate space was deathly silent...

She then realized that something terrible had happened during her transformation.

"Hey? Snake! Where are you? Come out! Where are you..." Lin Ling called out loudly to the missing Mobius. "Don't scare me! Didn't you say even Finality couldn't kill you? Come out now. I'll be your free experimental subject for a year. You can play with me however you want!"

"Stop chattering like a mouse. I just revived. Do you want to kill me again?"

Suddenly, a childish voice came from behind the girl, finally easing Lin Ling's tension, but she also sensed something was wrong.

She turned around and saw a green-haired little girl emerging from the debris.

"Great, Snake! You're not... um?... Why do you seem to have shrunk?"

Lin Ling then realized the source of the unease—why the snake's voice sounded off. It turned out that Mobius had reverted to the little girl form she had first encountered in the Elysian Realm.

Lin Ling hurriedly asked, "Was it because I failed to protect you while the drug was taking effect, allowing those imaginary creations to harm you?"

"No. I wasn't harmed by those imaginary creations but rather—" Mobius looked at Lin Ling with a resentful gaze. "...I was accidentally killed a hundred or so times by the leaked power of a certain Guinea Pig..."

"Ah, this." Lin Ling awkwardly scratched the back of her head. "I'm sorry... didn't you say my body had been modified so many times that I was immortal and wouldn't be harmed?"

"You weren't harmed. You only harmed me." Mobius looked down at her chest, a slight regret in her eyes. "Although this isn't bad, it's definitely better to be bigger. Well, never mind. Considering you let me witness such a wonderful experiment, I'll forgive you this time."

As she spoke, Mobius seemed to transform into a snake, coiling and rapidly moving to the corpses of the imaginary creations, observing their condition.

“Speaking of which, why didn’t those imaginary creations come back to life? I…” Lin Ling looked at her hands. “How... how did I do that?”

In that previous state, Lin Ling felt her brain had absorbed too many details at once. This massive amount of information almost overwhelmed her, so recalling it now felt unreal, like a 'delusion.' If the facts weren’t right in front of her, she would have thought none of it had happened, just a hallucinatory dream in her half-drunk state.

Mobius smiled mysteriously at Lin Ling. “It’s simple, because you surpassed Zeno’s tortoise.”

“Tortoise?” Lin Ling tilted her head in confusion, not understanding what Mobius meant.

Mobius then launched into a long explanation: "Guinea Pig, imagine there's a tortoise that can crawl one meter per second, and you run at ten meters per second. You race the tortoise, but the tortoise crawls 100 meters first before you start. Can you catch the tortoise?"

"Of course... I think so," Lin Ling thought for a moment. "Even a middle school student—no, an elementary school student—knows this. Common sense is enough to tell."

"Let me finish, Guinea Pig." Mobius shook her head. "Think about it carefully. After you run 100 meters, the tortoise has crawled 10 meters, so you have to start chasing it again. But after you run another 10 meters, the tortoise has crawled forward another meter, and so on. Time and distance can be infinitely divided. Therefore, logically speaking, no matter how hard you try, you can never truly catch the tortoise, because the tortoise will create countless starting points."

“Now that you mention it, it seems like I really can’t catch up… Oh, wait, I remember now. Isn’t this another paradox? Logically speaking, in the ‘Zeno’s Tortoise’ scenario, there would always be a tiny time gap between Zeno and the tortoise. In reality, that wouldn’t happen at all; I’d catch up with the tortoise very quickly. Alright.” Lin Ling urged, “Snake, stop keeping me in suspense! What kind of power did you give me this time?”

“Wrong, terribly wrong.” Mobius shook her head vigorously. “This problem isn’t a paradox at all; it’s simply a flawed inference put forward by the ancients out of ignorance and lack of understanding. You know, Guinea Pig, our world has limits. Within a distance of 1.616 × 10⁻³⁵ meters, everything is meaningless. Similarly, the same applies to time; within 10⁻⁴³ seconds, nothing changes. In other words, our world has resolution. Therefore, the tortoise won’t always be ahead; you can overtake it. Likewise, if you inflict fatal damage on these imaginary creations again within 10⁻⁴³ seconds after their death, you can completely sever the connection between ‘death and life,’ thus truly killing them.”

"This..."

Lin Ling stared blankly at Teacher Mobius, then scratched her head.

"Although I don't understand, I'm deeply shocked... Anyway, you mean I've gained some incredible power?"

"Power?"

Mobius shook her head again.

“Rather than power, I'm more inclined to believe that the imaginary gene temporarily connected you to the Imaginary Tree, thus elevating your life to a higher dimension.

And once you ascended from a three-dimensional being to a higher level of space, the entire three-dimensional world held no secrets before your eyes. That's why you could see the cross-section between the death and resurrection of those imaginary creations.

However, it seems that using this power is extremely energy-consuming. Thinking about it, it makes sense; cramming all the information of this world into your brain all at once would be unbearable for anyone.

Luckily, I already transformed you into a MANTIS, otherwise you would have been overwhelmed by the massive amount of data and turned into an idiot. Use it cautiously in the future, understand…”

“Oh…” After listening to Mobius's explanation, Lin Ling looked thoughtfully at her hands.

"Have I reached the limit of time… If I had such power, perhaps I could…”

---

Chapter 274: 'The Power of the False God'

After Kiana and Durandal stepped into the Church of St. 537,

an endless void, seemingly leading to the end of the world, appeared before them. Clearly, the small church couldn't possibly contain something of this scale; in other words, they were no longer on Earth.

From within this strange, imaginary space came Otto's voice, seemingly disdainful yet also filled with long-awaited anticipation:

"Heh. Bianka, Kiana, you've finally arrived. In the name of Apocalypse, I welcome you both to witness this moment of welcoming the Apocalypse. But are you truly ready?"

"..."

The two girls ignored the Overseer, whom they perceived as already insane.

Instead, they gripped their weapons tightly, vanquishing every monster that dared to stand in their way.

Then, they sprinted toward the end of the void, vowing to fight to the death to stop the man from destroying everything they cherished in this world.

“‘Domination’ has been exhausted, and ‘Binding’ has temporarily vanished, but they have bought me time and an undisturbed space. This allows me to transcend the Herrscher—to reach ‘God’!”

“My heroes, I am truly grateful to you. Neither then nor now have I ever wanted to lie to you, nor have I wanted to plunge you into despair. Of course, I wouldn't disregard your dignity and turn to take care of you. How to end the power of this imaginary number—that's for you to ponder. That shouldn't be much of an obstacle, should it?”

The man's incessant voice seemed to come from all directions, annoying the two girls and filling them with deep unease.

How could their formerly defeated opponent, a seemingly powerless ‘office worker,’ suddenly possess such immense power in such a short time?

“Please, Kiana.”

Durandal called out to the sky, riding Krishna through the void and cutting through obstacles, while Kiana used her Herrscher of the Void powers to clear a path and guide her.

“I see the ground!”

Finally, after traversing an immeasurable distance, a magnificent golden building appeared before Durandal, seemingly far more splendid than Schicksal headquarters, the Church of St. 537.

“Prepare for landing. Proceed to the next battle!”

Durandal spurred her horse forward, becoming the first to emerge from the void onto the ground.

Seeing that his guests were finally able to reach him, Otto calmly and gracefully walked to the center of the hall.

He respectfully bowed to the two young women with a perfectly standard aristocratic salute.

"Of course, as the host here, how could I not show you proper hospitality?”

Then, contrary to Otto's polite and respectful gesture…

Under Kiana and Durandal's watchful eyes,

his somewhat frail body suddenly surged with immense power, even manifesting as a tangible golden aura that erupted from his body.

Finally, supported by this power, Otto slowly rose into the sky.

A strange suit of armor, alternating between gold and black, completely enveloped his body, even transforming into a mask to conceal his face.

“Annihilation returns to this place, and a new star is born from it… This power belongs neither to mortals nor to the Herrschers; it is the primordial form of the Imaginary Authority, the embodiment of the truth of the vast world. Savor the power of this ‘false god’!”

At this moment, Otto no longer seemed mortal; every gesture exuded an aura of dominance, as if a true ‘god’ had descended.

“Too noisy!” Durandal frowned, using her newly acquired Celestial Power to rush toward the transformed Otto. She raised her lance, wanting to test whether this guy's power was truly as formidable as he boasted—like a ‘god.’

However, Otto simply waved his hand, and golden petals rained down, forming impenetrable steel shields in front of Durandal.

Even with her newfound power, Durandal couldn't break through them immediately.

Whether mocking or genuinely encouraging, seeing Durandal's struggle, Otto said, "Come on, my heroes! I've waited too long for this fall."

Seeing her companion falter, Kiana immediately retaliated, saying with obvious annoyance.

"So noisy! Can you please shut up?"

"Fine, fine," Otto's voice rang out helplessly. "Sometimes my acting does make me uncomfortable."

With Kiana's help, Durandal successfully broke through the shields, finally leaping high into the air. She thrust her spear forward with deadly force.

Successfully, the weapon struck the still-noisy Otto squarely in the face.

Boom!

A massive explosion followed. The two combined their power, finally knocking Otto, who had gained the power of a 'god,' from the sky.

Otto shielded his face with his hands, gliding before regaining his footing. However, judging from the shattered part of his mask, he didn't seem to be in good shape.

"Come on!" Otto suddenly spread his hands, and golden light instantly appeared from the void, converging on his body once more.

At the same time, a large number of golden feathers suddenly fell from the sky.

Otto's originally jet-black armor transformed into a sacred white, and a pair of eerie hands and two pairs of wings sprouted from his back, making him resemble a messenger of a god from mythology.

This power not only altered his appearance but also amplified his aura.

"This is the true power of authority! Above and below, I alone reign supreme!"

Space distorted violently before the girls' eyes. The void church resonated with Otto's power—

They disintegrated in ways incomprehensible to ordinary people, only to recombine into a completely different state…

Finally, the entire church vanished completely in the distortion, transforming into a fictitious space composed of various twisted and broken things that did not exist in reality.

Kiana exclaimed in surprise. "This is…?"

“It seems this is his true mental storm. Let's go, the final battle is about to begin.”

Durandal, riding Krishna, traversed the fragments of the void as if running through the air, attacking Otto in the sky while constantly pondering how to resolve everything:

“The authority of Imaginary Numbers… If the structure of the ‘Void’ itself is destroyed, will the authority also disappear?”

“You mean using the power of the Herrscher of the Void?… It seems Nagamitsu said something similar…”

Kiana recalled Nagamitsu's words:

The power of Imaginary Numbers is infinite, but this infinity becomes finite under the effect of ‘Imaginary Number Renormalization,’ and only the authority of the ‘Herrscher of the Void’ can achieve this change.

 Chapter 275: The Death of the False God/

Are You Also Going to Be an Enemy of the World?

"Having been baptized by the Tree of Imaginary Numbers, I am 'Infinite.'"

"How will you conquer Infinite?... Let me wait and see!"

"Heh, is this your way of conquering Infinity? You underestimate the power of a false god far too much."

"Stigmata, Herrschers—do you think you can surpass 'me' with these shadows of Imaginary Numbers? If you can, I'd be happy to oblige!"

In the sky, Otto, like a god descending, blatantly mocked the girls' weak power, but his words occasionally seemed to carry a subtle, almost 'aiding the enemy' warning. 

"Power that cannot be 'reconstructed' is absolutely infinite... With just the Herrscher of the Void, you can't do anything!"

...

"Hmph... Damn Otto! What did you do to Ling? Where is she now?!"

On the other side, during the battle, Kiana didn't forget to ask Otto about the whereabouts of the person she cared about.

Although the final battle had begun, neither they nor Theresa and the others outside could find Lin Ling's whereabouts. This made her worry that Lin Ling might have already fallen victim to the culprit behind all of this.

Faced with Kiana's questions, Otto answered without hesitation and seemed happy to respond.

"That little one is a bit different from you, a little troublesome," Otto's voice held a hint of helplessness. "So, to prevent her from interfering with my plans, I used the same method I used on Bianka to send her on a temporary trip elsewhere."

"What?" Durandal, having experienced the dangers of the Imaginary Dimension many times, was well aware of them.

There, a moment of carelessness could lead to memory loss, spiritual decay, and ultimately the complete loss of self. She was immediately shocked.

"You mean, you exiled her to the Imaginary Dimension!?"

"Hey, why are you looking at me with such hatred? You should be thanking me. The Imaginary Dimension is indeed dangerous, but it's another world, different from reality. So even if I were to return the world to five hundred years ago, she wouldn't perish in the flow of time. That's why I took away her Herrscher of the Void powers, allowing her to remain there safely for now," Otto explained.

"Silly children, I did this all for your own good."

"I understand. So... the only way to save Ling is to defeat you? Hah!!"

Suddenly, Durandal once again manipulated Krishna to leap high into the air. Fueled by the righteous cause of saving the world and the personal vendetta of reclaiming her lover, she unleashed astonishing power and launched another powerful god-slaying attack on Otto.

Meanwhile, Kiana, equally enraged, activated the power of the Herrscher of the Void and wielded her flaming greatsword. Flames and space formed a vortex-like restraint, trapping Otto within it.

Sizzle... Crack!

Finally, with the combined efforts of the girls, the godlike armor shattered. They had successfully destroyed Otto's second-stage armor.

Then, a weakened man plummeted from the sky to the ground...

"Heh... heh..."

However, Otto, weakened from the fall, rose again, still smiling disdainfully. He struggled to look at the sky and shook his head helplessly.

"Useless."

At the very center of the sky, a golden clover-shaped symbol continued to unleash powerful energy, blossoming into a radiating cross resembling a tombstone—or perhaps the crown of the ancient Egyptian sun god.

Under the protection of this power, even as Kiana and Durandal continued their overwhelming onslaught, Otto remained unscathed despite his injuries. In fact, his wounds and strength was regenerating rapidly as though time had reversed.

Seeing Otto withstand their attacks as if unaffected, they watched him walk step by step toward the center of this space, slowly rising again and preparing to merge with the power of authority once more.

"Hahaha~" he mocked mercilessly again. "As long as this space is still bathed in the blessings of the Imaginary Tree, my authority will continue to regenerate... You... cannot kill me!"

"As long as this space still exists?..."

Perhaps hearing Otto's prompting, Durandal and Kiana exchanged a glance.

"Kiana, now."

Then she violently swung her spear, hurling it and pinning Otto, who was about to merge with the authority again, firmly against the wall.

Kiana seized the opportunity and forcefully grasped Otto in the sky.

"Let your authority be buried with you!"

Then, at Kiana's gesture, a powerful spatial fluctuation erupted, tearing a rift in the space between Otto and the strange symbol...

With the explosion of the power of 'Void,' the power of the 'False God' vanished completely. This time, Kiana didn't attack Otto's physical body. Instead, taking advantage of his seemingly 'unintentional' vulnerability, she ripped apart the mental landscape Otto had constructed, completely dismantling this space.

Finally, this space rapidly disintegrated under Kiana's power as the Herrscher of the Void, and the girls returned to their starting point—St. 537 Church.

And the culprit behind it all, Otto Apocalypse, vanished without a trace along with the collapsing space...

"Finally..."

"Finally..."

Kiana and Durandal exchanged a smile and finally let out a sigh of relief.

"It's all over..."

"Well done, Bianka, Kiana."

But just then, a familiar yet unfamiliar voice of congratulations echoed from the void.

Familiar because it was the voice of the culprit, Otto; unfamiliar because, unlike the deliberately sarcastic tone from before, this voice was now as gentle as that of a longtime friend...

"Otto?!" Kiana gasped and gripped her weapon tightly again, thinking Otto hadn't quite died and had returned.

"Don't be alarmed, you two powerful warriors. You did indeed, in an instant, overcome the rules above the 'false god,' causing my spirit to become this 'wandering ghost.'"

The voice continued calmly:

"Soon, everything will settle according to your will... So before that, I congratulate you. Congratulations on overcoming 'Dominance' and 'Binding,' congratulations on stopping me from destroying your history and your people. And of course, congratulations to myself as well. Finally, I can bid farewell to my life without regrets."

"...Overseer, we stopped that insane plan you spoke of. Now, isn't it time to tell us your true purpose?" Durandal asked her final question after a moment of silence.

All along, the Overseer's words and actions had given her a considerable sense of unease, as if he had been deliberately hiding something from them. So, in this final opportunity, she wanted to ask clearly and understand what was really going on.

"Haha..." Otto laughed, a laugh that was difficult to tell whether it was bitter or relieved. "You're quite persistent, Bianka. What—even now, you still won't see me as just an enemy?"

Durandal gently shook her head.

"Of course I can't forgive what you did to me, but I also agree that I won't forget your guidance and nurturing. And even now, I still believe... deep down, you still believe in some way in what you taught us to believe."

"Ha... what a stubborn child. To be honest, from the very beginning today, I hoped that all of you would stand against me and see me as an utterly wicked person—while the former succeeded, the latter indeed failed. Ah~ should I feel annoyed or relieved?... In any case, you did defeat me, and in that instant, you also defeated 'Them' behind me. This is a remarkable success. Using those experiences, you will eventually defeat Honkai and bring lasting light to the world you cherish. And I will finally have the opportunity... to do something similar for the world I cherish. The precise and immense meaning is to return a lost torch to 'Her's' hands."

"Hers?"

"Could it be..."

The two girls exchanged another glance. Though incredulous, they seemed to have a general understanding of Otto's true intentions.

"Haha, it seems you've all guessed the answer... Before you shattered me, though I came infinitely close to 'god,' I was ultimately nothing more than a slave to the Tree of Imaginary Numbers. I was firmly bound to the intrinsic world, and although I possessed the power to reshape it, I had no freedom whatsoever. So from the very beginning, I made this bet—I bet that humanity could always create a momentary miracle, that the 'laws' of the Tree of Imaginary Numbers would be thrown into disarray and subjugated in that brief instant."

"Kiana Kaslana. The child I once called K423. In the past, the power of love allowed you to do this—now, I have proven that anger can do the same. I staked my last hope of resurrecting Kallen on this... and it proved that I won. Only the Herrscher of the Void could create such a miracle, freezing everything that was originally 'infinite' in an instant and 'reorganizing' the imaginary space. It allowed the seed of that world, the origin I carefully chose, to take root and sprout in new soil. This is something I could never have done when I held power but was merely striving."

After hearing Otto's words, Durandal finally understood everything completely.

"So... to reshape the world of five hundred years ago, you must transcend reality, become a part of the Imaginary Numbers, become a 'slave' of the Tree of Imaginary Numbers... and to change that world, to change that person's fate, you must exile yourself from it? Even if the result of doing so is... that you will die. Even your 'existence' will come to a complete end."

"Of course," Otto answered without hesitation. "Don't you think this is a happy ending for everyone? Like Prometheus stealing fire from the heavens, in that miraculous moment, I was able to bring the power beyond reality from the 'Tree of Imaginary Numbers' to the 'Prototype of the World.' It both created a turning point in history and freed me from the need to destroy the 'world' you love. Although the latter is not important to me, thank you... for allowing me to go to the miracle that belongs only to me and her in my final moments. I will eventually die with all my sins, and for those of you who still choose to move forward... the ladder to conquer Honkai has now revealed its first steps; the road is winding and almost impossible to traverse—but at its end, there is indeed light. As for Miss Lin Ling, don't worry, after I disappear, her power will return..."

The man's voice grew softer and softer until finally, it vanished completely from the girls' sight...

"..."

As Otto's aura completely vanished, familiar fluctuations of light returned to Kiana's mind.

This brought a renewed glow to Kiana's face, which had been devoid of a smile.

She excitedly exclaimed to Durandal, "It's Ling! I can feel it, she's back!"

"Huh?!..."

But what happened next completely surprised Kiana and Durandal.

They could clearly sense Lin Ling's presence beyond the spatial portal, but upon exiting, they only saw a little green-haired girl being...

"Quick! Catch up with her!"

Mobius's first words upon returning to reality were:

"That idiot actually wanted to fight the entire world single-handedly?! You guys go drag her back, or it'll be too late!"

"What!?"

One problem after another. Although they didn't understand what had happened, Durandal and Kiana immediately chased after her through the portal, trying to catch up with that white figure...

But ultimately, it seems they were still a step too late...

No matter what, they couldn't shorten the distance between them.

Finally, perhaps sensing the presence of the two behind her, the white-haired girl suddenly turned around and looked at them, a familiar mischievous smile appearing on her face.

"Sorry, my beloved beautiful girls. I wasn't capable before, but now, perhaps I can. So, please forgive me. I have some things I have to do. When I return, let's get married..."

With that, Lin Ling's aura, like Otto's demise, completely vanished before their eyes...

——————————————————————————————————

Chapter 276: This Kind of Fake Rescue Is Something I Will Never Admit!

"Yo, Otto-san, you've really taken a huge gamble. Didn't you think about what would happen to the world if you lost? Oh, don't ask. Anyway, the whole world isn't as important to you as a single hair on Miss Kallen's head."

In a realm of imaginary numbers, a mocking and sarcastic voice appeared on the path of the former Archbishop of Schicksal, causing the already weakened man to stop in his tracks.

"..."

Whether he didn't hear it or didn't recognize the mockery from the girl who had suddenly appeared before him, Otto forced a confident smile. His body still retained a semblance of his former charisma.

"Long time no see, Schicksal S-rank Valkyrie, Entropy Executor—oh no, I should say, a friend from another world, the so-called 'reality'."

"Oh? 'Another world'? 'Reality'?"

Hearing these familiar yet unfamiliar terms, Lin Ling asked curiously.

"I didn't expect you to know even this?"

"Although it was fake, I was, after all, a 'god' for a time. When I was adjusting the world's time using the Imaginary Tree, I had the privilege of witnessing some of Miss Lin Ling's past. Therefore, I know a little about Miss Lin Ling's true identity. It's truly unexpected..."

As he spoke, even this man who had once been a 'god' couldn't help but show a trace of emotion and sigh.

"Our world—everything we've experienced—is just a game to you, Miss Lin Ling?"

"Well, perhaps. But my 'reality' could also be some more 'real' world, a novel, or a game world, like a brain in a vat." Lin Ling shrugged, then her eyes narrowed. "But without a doubt, the world I'm in now is my 'reality,' and my 'everything' is not just 'a game'!"

"Hmm~" Hearing this, Otto showed a look of great satisfaction and agreement, clenching his fist in front of him. "That's right. People may not be able to choose their birth, but we can choose our reality and choose our own world!"

"Uh..."

Watching Otto's childish behavior, Lin Ling was silent for a moment before continuing.

"By the way, aren't you curious about your final fate?"

"Curious? No." Otto shook his head. "No one knows better than me what my final fate will be. From the beginning, I knew what my end would be like. But~ if we're really curious, I do want to know what the gamers in the so-called 'real' world think of me."

"Hmph!" Lin Ling snorted coldly. "For someone like you, the players would of course all want to kill you within three days and scatter your ashes!"

"Haha." Unexpectedly, Otto actually laughed upon hearing such a statement. "That's right, that's how it should be. Someone as sinful as me deserves to be treated this way."

"However..."

Lin Ling interrupted Otto's laughter, her face showing confusion. "While I can't understand it, there are indeed quite a few people who have been moved to tears by you. Well, in our words, they're your die-hard fans. Some even went so far as to criticize Kallen, thinking she wasn't good enough for you, and even wanted to ship you together."

"...Huh?" A rare look of deep confusion and bewilderment crossed Otto's face. He smiled.

"I can't believe someone as utterly wicked as me has fans. And someone like Kallen, a selfless saint who dedicated her life to humanity, is being criticized? I truly... can't understand... it seems..."

Otto looked at Lin Ling with pity.

"Perhaps your world is as hopeless as mine."

From the very beginning, Kallen was tormented and humiliated by her family and relatives. Then, in the end, the entire Schicksal clan drove her to her death.

Otto, this hateful yet pitiful man, never once truly felt love from humanity. If it weren't for the fact that the only girl who ever truly accepted him deeply loved humanity, he might not have cared if the Honkai wiped out humanity.

"Indeed." Lin Ling nodded in agreement. "Kallen was killed because of you, but after killing one person, you used the method of killing more people to give her a second life. It's like I broke your leg, then killed your friend and made a crutch from his bones to give to you—what's so touching about that? I completely can't understand it. As for Kallen being condemned, I can only say that 'good people' have always been held at gunpoint, while some utterly wicked villains are worshipped. Ugh, so annoying. This world should just be destroyed."

"Haha... hahahaha..." Whether it was self-mockery or mockery, Otto laughed heartily again.

Then, his expression suddenly turned serious.

"Alright, Miss Lin Ling. Although I don't know why you're here, I'm about to rescue a beautiful girl. If it's you, you wouldn't stop me, would you?"

Whether humans should be saved or whether humans deserved to be saved—Otto no longer cared about these things. He only knew that, judging from the girl's past behavior, if it was to save a beautiful girl, she certainly wouldn't stop him at this crucial moment.

And indeed, he was right.

The girl answered without hesitation, "Of course not! I love beautiful girls the most."

Otto secretly breathed a sigh of relief, then continued steering the somewhat erratic topic back.

"In that case, my time is running out. Please, Miss Lin Ling, make way for me. After I fulfill my life's wish, I will be at your mercy and will not resist."

Then, clutching his shoulder, he continued toward his final destination.

However, the girl looked disdainful.

"Of course you won't resist. After all, you're about to die completely and disappear into nothingness, vanishing from all of time and space."

"So, Miss Lin Ling even knows this? But now that you know my fate, there's even less need to stop me, right?"

"Huh? Who wants to stop you from going to your death?" Lin Ling shrugged, looking speechless. "I just have some questions I can't figure out, and I wanted to the smartest person in the world to enlighten me."

"Oh?" Otto couldn't think of any question Lin Ling could possibly have that would require chasing him all the way to the Imaginary Tree to ask him.

"Please ask. I'll answer everything I know."

"Then I'll ask, but let me make it clear first, Otto-san—don't be angry."

Then, under Otto's questioning gaze, Lin Ling began to recount Otto's most painful memory:

"Speaking of which, with Miss Kallen's strength, plus your secret help back then, she probably had many opportunities to escape from prison. Also, I heard that after seeing the Honkai Beast rampage, she easily broke free of her restraints and ran to save ordinary people. You see, she clearly had the ability to escape, didn't she?"

"..." Otto paused for a moment. "It's like this. Of course, I devised several escape plans for Kallen, but she refused them all. After witnessing the darkest and ugliest parts of Schicksal, she wanted to sacrifice her own life to awaken the people..."

"Hmm, that makes sense, but you didn't finish. Haha~"

A strange expression appeared on Lin Ling's face, as if she had thought of something.

"Miss Kallen's lover—of course, not you, Otto—that Far Eastern witch was sealed away by her own hands forever, with no chance of ever seeing her again. Perhaps this is one of the biggest reasons why Miss Kallen didn't want to live alone in this world."

After Lin Ling's words, Otto's expression turned somewhat unpleasant.

"Miss Lin Ling, what exactly are you trying to say?"

"Don't be angry, Green—oh no, Otto-san. You should know that even games don't cover everything in their story explanations. So, even I have details I don't know. For example, I don't know what happens after you save Kallen. Think about it—since Kallen willingly went to her death, then... after you saved her in your way... sigh~"

Lin Ling sighed and shook her head for a moment before continuing,

"Should the 'execution' continue? Will she still willingly sacrifice herself to awaken the people's resistance? Or, Mr. Otto, who loves the saintess the most, is what you really want just this—'Kallen doesn't die because of you'? As long as she doesn't die because of the Honkai Beast you released, what happens to Kallen afterward doesn't matter? Even if the hanging continues, you won't feel guilty, right?"

"No! You're wrong!" Otto interrupted Lin Ling loudly. "She thought she had found her own death, but that was far from the right time! I, however, will use my own death to prove to her what a magnificent closure to life truly is when it's voluntary—a truly willing death. Then, she will realize how brilliantly her humanity could shine in that seemingly stagnant future!"

"You mean—by sacrificing yourself for her, you'll move her and prevent her from committing suicide so easily?" Lin Ling pondered for a moment, then nodded reluctantly. "Well, although I don't understand it, if it were Kallen, perhaps she really would feel like she owed you a life and wouldn't choose to die voluntarily anymore."

"Heh." Perhaps because he had gained Lin Ling's approval, Otto chuckled. "Not 'perhaps,' but 'certainly.' I know her. I believe in her!"

"You choose to 'believe'? I never imagined someone like you would have such strong faith. But... actually, I also choose to believe. After all, I can't bear to see such a beautiful girl perish. But actually, I have a better way. You know, I've always carried your rival, Yae Sakura, with me. If Kallen knew that Yae Sakura was still alive, had safely broken the seal, and could see her again, I believe that Miss Kallen wouldn't choose to take her own life."

As if suddenly understanding something, a hint of joy appeared on Otto's face.

"I understand, Miss Lin Ling. You deliberately waited for me here because you wanted to go with me to save Kallen?"

Although bringing a rival to see the person you like is a bit strange, if it could increase the chances of your beloved being resurrected, why not?

"Yes, but..." To Otto's surprise, Lin Ling's answer was somewhat ambiguous. "Not entirely."

"?"

"Mr. Otto, I have one last question, and I hope you can answer it for me. After this, I will also go rescue Miss Kallen—in my own way."

Finally, even the girl's expression became serious.

Otto also suppressed his somewhat excited feelings.

"Miss Lin Ling, please ask."

"Tell me, if I were a penniless man—well, the kind who's about to starve to death—and before starving to death on the streets, I spent all my last savings on a lottery ticket but unfortunately didn't win... then, if a beautiful girl named Kiana who secretly loves me couldn't bear to see me lose and traveled back in time to change history by changing my lottery ticket to the winning numbers, do you think... I would still starve to death?"

"Hmm... that depends on two scenarios." After thinking for a moment, Otto asked, "Miss Lin Ling, have you ever heard of the 'grandfather paradox'?"

"Hmm, I've heard of it. If you go back in time and kill your grandfather when he was young, then your father couldn't have been born. Without a father, there would be no us. And if we didn't exist, how could we go back in time and kill our grandfather? So, I think changing history is impossible."

"No, Miss Lin Ling." Otto shook his head. "Reality is not like that. There's a parallel-world explanation for the grandfather paradox. Miss Kiana's act of going back in time and modifying the lottery caused a shift in the world line. Using the lottery purchase as a dividing point, a completely new world split off. In this world, you won the lottery and became a millionaire, living a life of luxury."

"Then, here's the question..." Hearing that Otto had solved the seemingly impossible grandfather paradox, Lin Ling wasn't happy. Instead, she frowned deeply and questioned again. "What about me in the original world?"

Otto had a general idea of what Lin Ling meant, but he still answered truthfully:

"In the original world, nothing would change. You still wouldn't have won the lottery. You would still be penniless, and you would eventually die of hunger and cold on the street..."

"Okay! So, in other words, the past changed—but not completely. The world where the original 'I' lived hasn't changed at all, right?! In that case, I want to ask! You created a world for Kallen or something, so what about the original Kallen of that world, and the original Kallen in the history of this world I live in?"

"She..."

Before Otto could reply, Lin Ling preemptively asked and answered herself:

"My world hasn't changed at all in five hundred years, right? Miss Kallen was still killed by the Honkai Beast in the end, right? So, my final question is, Mr. Otto—what exactly... did you save?!"

"No... it's not like that!" Otto clenched his fist. "To you, perhaps Kallen is just a figure whose fate is already sealed in history. But to me, I returned the world's history to the past—to the world where I once truly lived with Kallen. So, that is my reality. That is the real Kallen!"

"That's right! You're correct. She is indeed the real Kallen—but unfortunately... that's only to you. Your reality is not my reality. To me, you merely cloned Kallen, and in cloning Kallen, you cloned a world. The real Kallen is still dead; her tragic life remains unchanged. Can this kind of resurrection truly be called resurrection? Can this kind of salvation truly be called salvation? I absolutely refuse to accept it!"

---

Chapter 277: The Past Cannot Be Changed, But!

“Impossible, Miss Lin Ling…”

Otto shook his head with a wry smile.

“I know what you’re thinking, but… let alone changing the fate of someone as historically influential as Kallen, even accidentally stepping on a flower or touching a speck of dust—even the act of us, ‘future people,’ arriving in the ‘past’ itself would, like the butterfly effect, cause the Tree of Imaginary Numbers to split into new branches, giving birth to entirely new worlds. Some impossible things are simply not…”

“Huh~ When did I say I wanted to change the past?”

But just as Otto was about to utter that sad conclusion with a helpless and pained expression, the girl suddenly interrupted him impatiently.

“Hehe~”

Then, this time, it was the others’ turn to give Otto a confident and mysterious smile. Lin Ling laughed.

“‘The past cannot be changed’ is an ironclad law that is absolutely unbreakable from a logical and causal perspective. Of course, I know that, but…”

Then, the girl told this hateful yet pitiful and even somewhat respectable man before her, her thoughts.

…

“What!?”

After hearing Lin Ling’s explanation, Otto’s eyes went from confusion to shock, and finally, to uncontrollable elation!

—If everything she said was true, then perhaps there was still a glimmer of hope to resurrect the real Kallen…

“Miss Lin Ling!” Otto, dragging his injured body, looked excitedly at the girl before him. “Can you really do this? No, perhaps I should ask, are you really willing to do this?!”

“Saving a beautiful girl, why not?”

Lin Ling asked Otto matter-of-factly, but she immediately shook her head. “Unfortunately, my strength alone is not enough. Some things can only be accomplished by reaching an agreement with that being, by a mortal wielding the power of a ‘god.’ So, Otto, let’s cooperate! I need your power!”

“…”

However, facing Lin Ling’s impassioned and confident demeanor, Otto remained silent.

After careful consideration, he had calmed down from his initial euphoria upon hearing Lin Ling's plan. He looked up at Lin Ling, his eyes sharp as an eagle’s.

“Miss Lin Ling, your plan is fraught with too many uncertainties and risks. What if you fail?”

Anything, any situation—no matter how perfect or meticulously planned—always carries the possibility of failure, and Otto absolutely could not tolerate failure in this matter. Therefore, he needed a guarantee.

The next moment, he heard Lin Ling’s still confident—even arrogant—reply.

“I will not fail! At worst, I’ll try again. If once doesn’t work, I’ll try twice. If twice doesn’t work, I’ll try three times, until I succeed! After all, we have the ability to travel through time. And to put it another way, even if I ultimately fail, you can completely ignore me and continue with the original plan. That way, it won’t affect your original plan in the slightest, will it?”

“…Since that’s the case,” Otto finally extended his right hand to the girl before him. “I agree to cooperate! And I swear to you in the name of Otto Apocalypse: this time, I will absolutely not betray you. I will offer you my last remaining strength!”

“Huh? Don’t give me that! Your name is worthless. Haven’t you already tricked enough people?”

The girl looked at Otto’s outstretched hand with disdain but immediately changed her tone.

“However, since it’s for that woman, there’s no doubt that this time he definitely won’t betray me. So I’ll reluctantly agree. Alright~ let’s skip the formalities. Since we’re cooperating, let’s deal with these annoying guys first…”

As she spoke, Lin Ling reached out and grasped at the air, and a magnificent battle blade appeared.

At the same time, a flash of light appeared around her body. A pair of asymmetrical horns sprouted from her head, and angelic wings and demonic membranes unfolded behind her, transforming her into a chimera.

Otto also summoned the Void Archives, transforming them into the Shamash Greatsword, ready for battle.

Before their eyes, a multitude of imaginary creations descended from the void.

This was a self-defense mechanism of the Tree of Imaginary Numbers. In a sense, they were like “immune cells,” designed to completely eliminate Lin Ling and Otto—these two “viruses” who dared to invade the Tree of Imaginary Numbers and attempt to manipulate time.

Then, within the Tree of Imaginary Numbers, imperceptible to ordinary people, a “war against time” erupted instantly…

Thus, a girl possessing the pinnacle of human technological achievement—the power of a Stigmata, a Herrscher, and a MANTIS—and a “false god” who stole power from the “gods” and betrayed them surged against the current of time with unstoppable momentum…

On October 14, 2017, Otto lured the crew of the Hyperion to Kolosten to carry out his final plan…

On October 13, 2017, Otto announced his resignation as Archbishop of Schicksal through various media outlets…

In 2016, Otto injected a large amount of Honkai energy into K-423, awakening the Second Herrscher…

In 2007, Otto used Kiana’s genes to create the clone K-423 and transplanted the Herrscher of the Void’s core into K-423. That same year, Kiana discovered the plans related to K-423 and, together with her father Siegfried, attempted to save the clone K-423 but unfortunately suffered a brain injury during the operation and fell off a cliff. Otto healed the injured Kiana, but Kiana lost her memory and named herself Bianka Ataegina…

In 2000, the Second Eruption occurred. Otto released a Honkai energy fission bomb, killing the Second Herrscher Sirin and Cecilia, the strongest Valkyrie of Schicksal at the time…

In 1955, the Schicksal Archbishop possessed Reanna’s body and murdered a Finn (Welt Yang’s father), then launched a Honkai fission bomb at New York. The First Herrscher, Joyce, and Reanna sacrificed themselves to save seven million New Yorkers. Following this, the North American branch of Schicksal declared its defection and became the independent Anti-Entropy organization…

In 1855, Otto began using the Void Archives to modify Reanna, Schicksal’s strongest Valkyrie at the time…

In 1497, Fu Hua and Li Sushang clashed and were both severely wounded. Otto placed Li Sushang in a hibernation pod…

In 1491, Otto won the Schicksal civil war and became its ruler. He exonerated Kallen and posthumously canonized her as a saint…

In 1477, Kallen was sentenced to hang. On the day of her execution, Otto released a large number of Honkai Beasts to save her. Kallen, in order to help the people attacked by these Honkai Beasts, refused to leave and ultimately died in battle…

Finally, the sinful “false god” returned to the beginning of everything, the source of all tragedy—the death of Saint Kallen.

…

Looking at the saintess who seemed so close, Otto unconsciously reached out his hand but immediately withdrew it. If he touched the “real world” from within the Tree of Imaginary Numbers, he would transform from an observer into an intruder, causing a shift in the world line and stimulating the Tree of Imaginary Numbers to branch.

Therefore, he couldn’t do that.

So Otto looked at the girl beside him and asked one last time, “Are you ready? Miss Lin Ling, this is all I can do.”

Lin Ling turned and gave an OK sign.

“Don’t worry, Otto. As long as I enter a state of quantum fluctuation invisibility, even if I travel to the past, as long as I don’t dispel the quantum form, I won’t interfere with reality and won’t have any impact on the world.”

According to quantum mechanics, in any corner of the universe and at any location, the law of conservation of energy can be broken completely randomly, spontaneously, and briefly, creating pairs of virtual particles from nothing. Therefore, if they appear out of thin air and then suddenly disappear like quantum fluctuations, it won’t interfere with the operation of the world.

“Alright.” Otto nodded. “Now it’s up to you. Best of luck…”

Sure enough, after Lin Ling entered this world using the “quantum” form she obtained from Seele, Otto within the Tree of Imaginary Numbers didn’t observe any new branches appearing. The girl’s achievement had fooled the world.

But simply entering and doing nothing wasn’t enough. The crucial part was yet to come.

Lin Ling, transformed into a quantum ghost, slowly flew to Kallen, who was protecting the people and fighting the Honkai Beast.

She slowly closed her eyes, then suddenly opened them.

“Imaginary Form—Dimensional Ascension! Herrscher of Sentience power activated at maximum rated power!…”

…

“Damn it! I miscalculated!”

Unfortunately, Lin Ling failed…

When Lin Ling annihilated into quantum fluctuations and returned to the Tree of Imaginary Numbers, she spoke apologetically to Otto.

“I’m sorry. I failed just now. I acted a little too early, so… what’s your name again? Let’s try again. This time I’m sure I can save Kallen!”

“Okay.” Otto didn’t say much. He knew how difficult this final step was and how much Lin Ling had sacrificed.

Then, he manipulated time again, taking Lin Ling back to a few seconds earlier—to the moment before Kallen was about to be killed by the Honkai Beast. Everything was as usual…

But this time, it seemed something went wrong again.

“Ah. Sorry.” Lin Ling returned to the Tree of Imaginary Numbers and, upon seeing Otto, awkwardly scratched her head.

"I failed just now. I was a little late, so um… what’s your name again? Let’s try again. This time I’ll definitely revive… ah? Who am I supposed to revive? Oh, I know, it’s that white-haired girl, right…”

Another failure…

Failure after failure…

Until…

“Excuse me, what’s your name again? What am I supposed to do? My mind is completely blank. I just know I have to do something very important.”

Lin Ling, now back in the Tree of Imaginary Numbers, seemed to have forgotten even what she was supposed to do.

“…Never mind. It seems your method has ultimately failed. We might be able to try again and again, but it seems your brain can’t withstand the repeated strain. This time, let’s use my method; my time is running out.”

Otto shook his head. Although his body still retained a portion of the stolen pseudo-god’s power, allowing him to perform things unimaginable to ordinary humans, such as time travel, after betraying “God,” he had lost God’s support and “infinite” power and was already at his limit. He could feel himself fading away from the world at any moment, but for his last shred of conviction, he had held on until now.

However, he couldn’t hold on indefinitely. Since Lin Ling’s method had failed, then he had to…

“No!” But the girl immediately rejected his suggestion.

“Although I can’t remember anything, I do remember one thing: according to the dichotomy, I’m almost at that point in time, although I seem to have forgotten what that point in time is.”

Otto was silent for a moment.

“I don’t know how far you’ve progressed, but if you fail this time too, perhaps you’ll regress to a blank slate, like an infant. For a person, that’s tantamount to death. Are you sure you want to try again?”

“Of course!” the girl replied without hesitation.

“Since that’s the case!”

Seeing the girl’s resolute expression, Otto seemed to see another version of himself.

“Alright, Miss Lin Ling, I’ll tell you one last time: you need to transcend the limits of time. At the right moment—the instant that white-haired girl dies—transfer her consciousness into the Stigmata data space within your body.”

“Emmmm…” The girl scratched her head in confusion after hearing Otto’s words. “Although what you’re saying is a bit far-fetched, a voice inside me seems to tell me to believe you. Okay then, to save that great and innocent girl, I’ll risk it!”

“This is your only chance! Miss Lin Ling, accept my final authority! This time you must succeed… Kallen’s fate is in your hands…”

…

First of all, quantum fluctuations are omnipresent, completely random, and appear out of thin air. They can briefly break the laws of the Tree of Imaginary Numbers. By using quantum power hostile to the Tree of Imaginary Numbers, one can descend into the world in quantum form without having any impact on it.

Secondly, time has its limits. This is undeniable. Whether it’s Schicksal, Anti-Entropy, or the World Serpent from the Previous Era, countless experiments have already proven this. That is, anything that happens within 10^-43 seconds of Planck time will not alter present time.

Therefore, Lin Ling’s plan is to descend into the past in quantum cloaking form and then, within 10^-43 seconds before Kallen truly dies and her consciousness completely dissipates, transfer her consciousness into the Stigmata space within her own body so the world won’t react.

Then, she will use Otto’s pseudo-god authority to send herself and Kallen back to the present timeline of their original world.

In this way, although nothing in the past will change—but in the future, there will be a soul named Kallen!

While the past cannot be changed, the future can!

However, there is a problem.

Using the powers of a Herrscher always comes at a price, especially the Herrscher of Sentience’s power. She could only achieve power comparable to the 0th rated power of Fenghuang Down—transferring a person’s consciousness—by burning her own memories.

Furthermore, during this process, she had to activate her imaginary state, ascending to a higher dimension to perform the aforementioned actions within the limits of time.

Meanwhile, the exact moment of a person’s complete death is difficult to observe externally. Therefore, although Lin Ling could repeatedly fail and try again, using the binary method to eliminate half of the incorrect answers each time and approach the final success point, Planck time was simply too short. Even with the binary method, too many experiments were needed, and her memories were almost completely depleted with each attempt.

Fortunately, perseverance pays off.

After giving it her all…

Finally—

“…Where is this?”

Within the space of the Yae Sakura Stigmata on Lin Ling’s back, in a cherry blossom grove, a white-haired girl with a side ponytail slowly awakened...

---

EX Chapters: Where should the story begin...?

Kallen's story begins with her origins.

In this world, Schicksal is an ancient organization created by humanity to fight against the Honkai. It is primarily supported by three families: the Apocalypse family, representing "Overseers"; the Schariac family, representing "Saints"; and the Kaslana family, representing "Knights."

Kallen is from the Kaslana family, the eldest daughter of Francis, the 29th head of the Kaslana family. She is exceptionally talented, upright, straightforward, and righteous, yet also gentle, strong, and occasionally adorably naive.

In her youth, she met Otto, who was also young and not yet Overseer of Schicksal. Otto was the youngest son of the Apocalypse family.

As a child, he was frail and sickly, timid, and had no right to inheritance. Therefore, he was essentially an outsider in the family, neither expected nor valued and even bullied. Otto's only joy was creating gadgets from his ingenious ideas.

However, in the martial and chivalrous era of the 15th century, Otto's inventions were often smashed by his domineering older brother and met with merciless ridicule. Only Kallen treated him with equality and gentleness, acknowledging his worth.

Therefore, Kallen was Otto's only friend.

Later, due to the weighing of pros and cons by their respective families, Otto and Kallen were arranged to become engaged. Kallen seemed indifferent to this.

To her, Otto was merely a friend or rather a younger brother who needed care, and she never developed any romantic feelings for him.

But Otto, as he grew up, developed a strong and even twisted infatuation with Kallen, the only person who truly accepted him.

Later, due to the "savior" nature inherited from the Kaslana family bloodline, coupled with Kallen's exceptional talent, innate resistance to Honkai corruption, superior aptitude, and superhuman strength, she passed the test at the age of 16 and became the captain of Schicksal's anti-Honkai force—the Valkyrie Squad—becoming Schicksal's strongest Valkyrie at the time. Kallen then fought tirelessly on the front lines against the Honkai and sealed away over 1,000 Honkai beasts, greatly enhancing Schicksal's combat power. Otto praised her as "the greatest Valkyrie in history."

To recognize her achievements, Schicksal bestowed upon her the exclusive weapon, "Divine Key: The Oath of Judah."

By this time, Schicksal had almost completely dominated the western world and wielded immense power and influence. Therefore, Schicksal's ruling class gradually became dissatisfied with merely ruling the western part of the continent. To satisfy their ever-expanding ambitions and gain more benefits, they decided to launch an expedition eastward.

Kallen, as Schicksal's strongest Valkyrie at the time, naturally participated in Schicksal's expedition against the Ming Empire in Shenzhou. However, during the Battle of the Kipchak Empire, the Schicksal Valkyrie army and its 100,000-strong force were repelled by a single mysterious immortal from Shenzhou—Jingwei. Even Kallen, Schicksal's strongest Valkyrie, was no match for the immortal.

After being defeated, the immortal recognized Kallen's weapon, the "Divine Key," and left her with a profound message:

"The weapon you wield exists to protect humanity. Those who haven't awakened to the meaning of 'protection' cannot unleash its true power. User of the 'Key,' think carefully… what is it that you truly wish to protect?" — Fu Hua

From that moment on, Kallen no longer existed merely as a simple warrior. She began to reflect on her own actions and Schicksal's actions, pondering the true meaning of justice and salvation.

Meanwhile, Schicksal withdrew its troops from Europe after its defeat at the Battle of the Kipchak and issued indulgences to levy exorbitant taxes on the common people while brutally suppressing any resistance in an effort to compensate for the heavy losses of the war.

Having witnessed the miserable lives of the common people, Kallen inadvertently encountered a "reactionary" speech by Shakespeare. Inspired by a speaker resembling Shakespeare, she conceived a Robin Hood-like idea and, with Otto's help, disguised herself as a phantom thief and infiltrated the mansion of Schicksal official Victor to steal valuables.

However, her disguise was useless and her true identity was immediately recognized. To deceive the public, Kallen cleverly recited lines from Shakespeare's plays and distributed the stolen goods to the people.

Later, while investigating the phantom thief's case with Eleanor, she felt guilty and defended the thief, resulting in a fierce conflict with Eleanor, who firmly believed in Schicksal's justice and was also infatuated with Otto.

Meanwhile, Schicksal was simultaneously fighting the Honkai by sealing away Honkai beasts and developing anti-Honkai drugs while also secretly conducting research on the utilization of Honkai energy, including inhumane experiments.

During her phantom thief activities, Kallen accidentally witnessed a kidnapping and followed the clues to Victor's mansion, where she learned in the basement that Schicksal was conducting forbidden experiments involving human Honkai energy.

Kallen was subsequently defeated and arrested by Eleanor, who arrived after hearing the news. Otto argued that "humanity as a whole" was more important and tried to persuade Kallen not to stop the experiment because of the insignificant objections of a few individuals. He even spoke disrespectfully to Kallen's father, who had sacrificed himself to save Otto.

Kallen's response was to slap Otto hard.

From then on, the two began to diverge because of their differing ideals, beliefs, and values.

Despite this, Otto secretly released Kallen. Having learned of Schicksal's dark side, Kallen was deeply disappointed with the organization and clarified her own goals. She decided to return to Schicksal headquarters to retrieve the Honkai Energy Box and stop the experiment from continuing.

At headquarters, she confronted Eleanor directly and ultimately defeated her with Otto's help. With Otto's tacit approval, she successfully escaped the organization with the box.

After escaping Europe, Kallen originally planned to go to the Ming Dynasty in Shenzhou to find the magical immortal who could help her seal the Honkai energy in the box. However, when she arrived at the legendary immortal's abode, she found that Mount Taixu, where the immortal had lived, had been destroyed and the immortal had disappeared.

Later, she was forced to flee from Schicksal and sustained serious injuries along the way. She finally escaped to Yae Village in the Far East, where she was rescued by the local shrine maiden, Yae Sakura.

Yae Sakura was born in Yae Village in Shinano Province, Japan. Her family possessed shrine maiden blood and could communicate with spirits (actually the Honkai).

However, despite being a shrine maiden, in the patriarchal society of the time, her actions were always controlled by her family. Faced with immense power and ignorant villagers, Yae Sakura wanted to rebel but was powerless to change her fate.

Sakura had a younger sister named Yae Rin, who was frail and sickly from childhood. In the seventh year of the Bunsho era, the village suffered a prolonged drought. The villagers believed that the sacrifice in the previous ritual had not been a virgin and requested that a priestess's bloodline be used as the sacrifice for another ritual. Yae Rin was chosen, and Yae Sakura was chosen to preside over the ritual.

Yae Sakura was naturally unwilling to see her sister sacrificed and secretly planned to escape with Rin. In Sakura's plan, the two would find a doctor to cure Rin's illness and then go see the cherry blossoms together and spend happy days.

However, on the day of the sacrifice, just as the offering was about to begin, Yae Sakura dropped her sword and pulled Rin to run away, only to be shocked to find that Rin could no longer run—her Achilles tendons had been severed by their father and she could no longer stand. At that moment, the head of the Yae family grabbed Sakura's hand and forced her to raise the sword and complete the sacrifice.

Immediately, torrential rain began to fall. The villagers were overjoyed, but Sakura felt utterly powerless. Despair and disgust for the world welled up within her, creating a void in her heart that Honkai exploited and marking the beginning of the tragedy.

Four years after Rin's death, Yae Sakura had grown into a young woman, honed her swordsmanship, and become the village's shrine maiden and true head priestess. Though still gentle and kind, the shadow of Rin's death lingered in her heart.

Just then, Sakura encountered Kallen Kaslana, who had drifted ashore by the village river.

Finding the severely injured girl, Sakura took Kallen home and performed a series of fanservice acts, including feeding her medicine mouth-to-mouth and giving her a body massage to heal her injuries. She also returned the box containing Honkai energy and fed her large rice balls and other dishes. All these heartfelt actions dispelled Kallen's wariness.

Kallen stayed in Yae Village to recuperate.

Later, Sakura was asked by the villagers to fight a Honkai beast, but she was no match for it and was trapped by a broken sword with her life in danger. Just then, Kallen heard that Sakura was fighting the Honkai beast and immediately rushed to rescue her, releasing her demon bow to defeat it.

Afterwards, Kallen swore an oath to Sakura to protect her and her villagers.

Gradually, Kallen and Sakura, these two girls who had saved each other's lives, developed feelings for each other through mutual redemption and eventually fell in love while living a peaceful and carefree life in Yae Village.

However, joyous times are always fleeting. Behind the seemingly peaceful Yae Village lay a dark reality.

According to village custom, whenever there was a drought, a girl was sacrificed to the fox god to pray for rain. The ritual was conducted by the shrine of Yae Sakura's family. Several years earlier, Yae Sakura's younger sister, Yae Rin, had been chosen as the sacrifice. Although Yae Sakura tried to resist, she could only watch her sister die.

From then on, Yae Sakura harbored a deep hatred for the village.

Therefore, when Yae Sakura came into contact with the box brought by Kallen, her hatred was manipulated by the demon within the box, and Honkai took advantage of her vulnerability, controlling and corrupting her into a pseudo-Herrscher.

One day, Kallen heard that a ritual was about to begin again and that more innocent girls would perish. She rushed to stop it, only to discover that Sakura was the executioner. A fight broke out between them.

Later, a fox demon appeared and devoured the sacrifice and her mother. Kallen witnessed the god the villagers spoke of and also saw its manipulator. With her powerful will, Kallen broke free from the manipulator's control and attacked. However, the manipulator removed the mask and black robes, revealing Sakura, manipulated by the Honkai and transformed into a pseudo-Herrscher. Sakura declared her intention to destroy what Kallen was protecting and then rode away on the fox demon.

Kallen received the weapon "Oath of Judah" from Otto and returned to the temple to fight Yae Sakura. Kallen used the Oath of Judah to bind Hellmaru and engaged in close combat with Sakura, the pseudo-Herrscher of Nature, gaining the upper hand and temporarily repelling her.

However, the Honkai exploited Kallen's feelings for Sakura, stabbing her and continuing to try to penetrate the void in Kallen's heart with words.

After failing, as Hellmaru prepared to deliver the final blow, Sakura used her own will to cut herself with the sword, forcing out Honkai. She collapsed into Kallen's arms and apologized. Enraged, Honkai devoured Sakura, completely merging with her and attacking Kallen.

With her last hope, Kallen, severely wounded, raised the Oath of Judah to fight to the death.

The outcome of this battle is unknown, but it can be inferred that Kallen and the fox spirit were both severely injured. Kallen was subsequently recovered by the Schicksal organization, while Sakura, along with the Herrscher of Corruption from the Previous Era, fell into slumber within the imaginary space until Honkai erupted again five hundred years later.

At the deliberation meeting organized by Schicksal, Kallen expressed her deep love for Yae Sakura.

The council members, believing Kallen to be insane, decided to hang her. Otto, upon receiving this news, released the Honkai Beast imprisoned underground within Schicksal and attempted to storm the execution site and rescue Kallen in the chaos so they could elope. However, Kallen refused to escape. Amid the chaos, she chose to fight the Honkai Beast to protect civilians. Ultimately, the weakened Kallen was killed by the Honkai Beast while protecting innocent civilians.

Later, Otto became the Archbishop of Schicksal. During his more than 500 years as Archbishop, he never forgot Kallen. He created confidential files for Kallen in Schicksal's database and produced the game "Kallen Fantasy," featuring Kallen as the protagonist and the Eastern fox spirit as the antagonist. He also secretly conducted experiments to create clones of Kallen, resulting in Theresa, whom he adopted as his granddaughter.

During the Second Eruption, Otto encouraged the Second Herrscher, Sirin, to seek help from God (the Aill of Honkai). Subsequently, Fu Hua burned her memories and unleashed the "Sword God" to sever the connection between Sirin and the Honkai God, giving Otto the opportunity to finally confront God directly.

He had intended to test God, but God overwhelmed his mind with boundless knowledge. No longer doubting God's power, Otto prayed for a way to resurrect Kallen. But God smiled and then plunged a blade into Otto, releasing Sirin from his hypnosis.

Returning to reality from the dream, Otto suffered a backlash from the massive influx of knowledge and his thoughts and consciousness became chaotic.

Ten years later, he seemed to finally grasp God's revelation—only through self-sacrifice could salvation be achieved.

Now, through the combined efforts of himself and the mysterious girl Lin Ling, their five-hundred-year-old wish has finally been fulfilled.

And now, traveling through time, he and another girl have saved Kallen.

---

 Chapter 278 Otto Is Sent Away Surrounded by Girls on Both Sides

“That’s the story. I traveled to the far, far future, experienced many extraordinary adventures, and finally had the opportunity to tell you the truth about the world…”

The wind moved through still time and carried cherry blossoms that would never wither, falling from the sky at a speed of five centimeters per second…

The man recounted everything that had happened over the past five hundred years to the newly awakened girl.

“Although the past cannot be changed, we can still decide the future…”

“…Sigh…"

After hearing the tales of the future, the girl sighed softly, gently shook her head, and turned away without saying anything more to the man.

Perhaps feeling ignored or perhaps sensing resentment, the man smiled bitterly and turned back. Then he bowed deeply to the other girl, expressing his heartfelt gratitude.

“Thank you, Miss Lin Ling…”

He didn’t care how Kallen treated him because, in his heart, as long as Kallen was back, that was enough…

“Huh?...” The girl tilted her head, her face full of confusion, seemingly completely misunderstanding what the man was saying.

"Who are you? Who am I? Where am I? Where am I going?”

“You should go home, the true hero who saved the saintess.”

Otto handed Lin Ling a golden cube. “I used my last strength to engrave the coordinates of this world into the Void Archives. As long as you follow the beacon, you will definitely be able to return to reality…”

“Is this for me?” The girl scratched her head, seemingly embarrassed to accept the seemingly valuable gold ingot.

"This... this isn’t right, we’re not related…”

“I’m leaving soon, so there’s no use for it. Rather than discarding it in this imaginary space, it’s better to let it return to reality and continue to fulfill its true value. If you really don’t want it, you can take it back to the future and give it to my granddaughter…”

“Since you’ve put it that way, I’ll accept it…” The girl pondered for a moment and then took it.

Just as Lin Ling was about to examine the cube more closely, she suddenly remembered something.

“Speaking of which, you look quite young. I didn’t expect you to already have a granddaughter. Oh, right, you said you’re leaving? Where are you going?”

“Me? Heh.” Otto chuckled softly and slowly closed his eyes.

Before him, it seemed that he could see through the illusory cherry blossom forest, revealing an endless, boundless, infinitely branching imaginary tree.

“It’s time to end my sinful life here.”

Having said that, as if to verify the truth of his words, his body gradually became ethereal and emitted specks of starlight.

Five hundred years of a long-cherished wish had finally been fulfilled. The man named Otto Apocalypse no longer had a reason to exist and was about to erase all traces of his existence at the very source of these laws…

“Wait a minute…”

However, in this dying moment, a familiar voice seemed to call out to him from behind.

“Kallen!”

Otto instantly opened his eyes, turned sharply, and looked at the girl who had called out to him.

“Again…”

“Whoa! What the hell!?”

Just as Kallen seemed about to say something to Otto, Lin Ling’s exclamation drew her attention.

Immediately, Kallen and another pink-haired girl beside her rushed over to help the flustered Lin Ling up and asked in unison with concern.

“Miss Lin Ling, are you alright?!”

It turned out that because Lin Ling had lost most of her memory, she had been startled by the suddenly deforming golden cube while fiddling with the Void Archives and nearly fell.

“I’m fine, I’m fine.” Caught between a nun with Western mystical features and a witch with Eastern mystical features, the girl seemed a little shy. She quickly explained, “It’s just that this thing suddenly started wriggling. It scared me…”

With that, Lin Ling disdainfully tossed the Void Archives to the ground.

After calming the girl down, Kallen turned her gaze to the man who was dissipating.

“…”

Otto remained silent.

Kallen sighed softly again…

No matter how many sins he had committed or what had happened, the past was the past…

She finally offered her unfortunate friend, who had gone astray, her final farewell.

“Goodbye, great inventor…”

Before Otto could say anything, Lin Ling, sandwiched between two girls with mysterious characteristics rooted in Eastern and Western religions, felt a strange thought arise within her—

Even if she couldn’t remember and had lost almost all her memories, there was an impulse within her, something she desperately wanted to do in front of that man.

“Go in peace.”

The girl placed her hands on the waists of the two girls beside her, glanced at Otto, and then looked tenderly at the white-haired girl beside her.

“I will take good care of her…”

“...”

At first, upon witnessing this scene, Otto’s expression was somewhat strange.

After all, not only his fiancée but even his rival…

But slowly, he laughed…

“Hehe, haha, hahahaha…”

His chuckle turned into hearty laughter, and finally, with a relieved smile, he vanished completely…

Leaving only a final farewell echoing in the air—

“If it’s Miss Lin Ling, then I’m relieved. Goodbye, Kallen. The future is yours to write…”

…

Thus, after witnessing the blond man completely disappear, the three stood silently in place, overwhelmed with inexplicable emotions and unsure of what to say.

Until…

“Hey, beautiful lady~ I don’t mind, but how long are you going to hold me like this? Sakura’s watching…”

Kallen’s teasing voice brought the girl back to her dazed state.

“Eh!? Ah, sorry, sorry…”

The girl quickly withdrew her hand and awkwardly slumped to the side, looking around furtively.

“Um… well? I’m sorry. I don’t know why I suddenly wanted to do that…”

“It’s alright, Miss Lin Ling.”

At this moment, Yae Sakura, with fox ears, stepped forward again and grasped Lin Ling’s hands.

“Now, you not only saved me but also Kallen… I truly… have no way to repay you. From now on, Miss Lin Ling, please feel free to ask me for anything you need!”

“Ahaha? Is that so…” The girl tried to pull her hands away shyly, but the other girl seemed a little too strong, so she couldn’t succeed.

Then she asked with great confusion.

“By the way, who is this ‘Lin Ling’ you’ve been talking about?”

“How silly.”

At this moment, another girl with fox ears, who looked slightly younger than the pink-haired “bunny-eared” girl, appeared and patted Lin Ling’s shoulder.

“Of course it’s you. Let’s go, great hero. It’s time to go home. Hehe, I really want to see what interesting things will happen when you go back like this~”

“But…” Lin Ling scratched her head awkwardly. “How are we going to get back? I have absolutely no idea what to do.”

“Don’t worry.”

At this moment, the golden cube that Lin Ling had just disdainfully tossed to the ground suddenly spoke.

Then, as if catering to her wishes, it transformed into a slender, mature blonde woman.

“Leave the rest to me. As long as Miss Lin Ling uses the power of the Herrscher of the Void as I instruct, I will definitely bring you back to reality.”

…

After several days of continuous rain, sunlight finally pierced through the thick clouds, casting beams of light across the town of Krosten.

The traces of the battle had been completely washed away by the rain.

The ancient town returned to its tranquility, seemingly unchanged yet undeniably different from before.

“Phew… the meeting is finally over.”

The newly appointed Archbishop of Schicksal, still a child, walked out of the boring meeting room and stretched in the sunlight.

“Hmm, I’ve been a bit too busy lately. Before I knew it, so many days had passed. Schicksal headquarters is still running smoothly, and everyone is at their posts as before… just a little busier. The events of the past few days have been a series of hazy illusions, making everything feel unreal.”

The signatures on old documents, the old study in the old headquarters, the paintings on the wall… every time Theresa saw them, she felt an indescribable emotion—neither sadness nor regret…

It was as if there was always a strange thread in her heart, occasionally tugged unexpectedly.

She didn’t know why, but she always had a vague feeling: perhaps in a while, that person would appear somewhere else, release another video, and casually create another big news story.

“Hmm... what am I thinking? Grandpa really is... oh no, I should have turned right at the last intersection. Now I’m going to have to take a long detour.”

Suddenly, Theresa realized she had taken the wrong turn and quickly slapped her forehead.

“I’d better go find Dr. Tesla and ask if she’s found that little guy.”

“Lady Theresa.”

Suddenly, a voice called out to Theresa, who had wandered off in her thoughts.

Theresa turned around and saw Amber.

“Amber? Is there something you need?” Theresa asked.

Amber bowed politely to Theresa.

“Lady Theresa, how did today’s meeting go?”

“Yes,” Theresa replied with a smile. “The routine issues have been resolved. Don’t worry, it was just routine procedures, nothing unusual. But speaking of which, Amber, what are you doing here? I thought you’d be spending the whole day in the old study organizing documents.”

“I’ve finished that work.”

“Haha… As expected of Amber. As efficient as ever. Anyway, thank you very much for these past few days. Without your help, I probably wouldn’t have been able to familiarize myself with the documents Grandpa left behind in such a short time.”

“Lady Theresa, you’re too kind. It’s all I should do.”

“By the way, you came to see me? Did something happen?” Theresa asked.

“Yes, Lady Theresa. I waited here specifically to avoid disturbing you during your previous meeting.”

“…Hmm?” Seeing Amber’s serious expression, Theresa became earnest.

“Could it be that there’s news about that little one?”

“Yes, Lady Theresa. Lady Durandal and Miss Kiana finally found Miss Lin Ling’s trail during their daily search in the Imaginary Space. They successfully brought her back. But…”

Theresa raised an eyebrow.

“But what!?”

“I’m sorry, Lady Theresa, Miss Lin Ling…”

“Theresa!”

However, just as Amber was about to tell Theresa about the emergency, a frail red-haired older sister appeared in a hurry.

“You’re here? I’ve been looking everywhere for you. Come with me!”

With that, before Theresa could ask any more questions, Himiko picked Theresa up and hurried toward the city center.

“Wait, Himiko!”

Now that Theresa was the Archbishop of Schicksal, being carried like a child by her subordinates still made her a little shy, and she quickly struggled to get down.

“What happened?”

“Don’t ask. Just come and see for yourself!”

…

Finally, when Theresa arrived at the ruins of Saint 537 in the center of the town of Krosten, she discovered that Durandal, Rita, Li Sushang, all the S-rank Valkyries of Schicksal, and all the Herrschers except for Mei, who was currently in the World Serpent—including Rin, Sora, Kaze, Hyouka, and Shinobu—were already there, forming a circle.

“What happened? What happened?”

Theresa quickly pushed through the crowd to the center, and then she saw a scene that shocked her greatly.

Amid the excited crowd of girls, a girl with a confused and even fearful expression was trembling.

Kiana, the most agitated of all, angrily grabbed the girl’s shoulders and shouted.

“You big liar! Don’t play dumb with me! You promised to marry me when you came back?!”

“What!? Married!?”

---

Chapter 279 A Scumbag Woman Pretends to Have Amnesia and Tries to Escape Her Marriage; the Girls Foil Her Scheme and Take Turns Punishing Her (bu)

"Excuse me, miss, I... I don't even know you..."

The girl desperately tried to back away in fear, but no matter what she did, she couldn't break free from the unfamiliar girl's iron-like grip.

What she couldn't bear even more was the burning intensity in Kiana's eyes, as if they were about to melt her. She turned her flushed face away and weakly whispered.

"And... we... aren't we both girls? Marriage... it seems... it's against the rules, isn't it?..."

"W-What did you say?!"

Hearing such "heartless words," Kiana staggered back several steps, her face full of disbelief.

"Say it again! You don't recognize me?! You don't recognize me?! How could you not recognize me?!"

"Something's not right..."

The others present also sensed that something was wrong—

Was this blushing, shy, and uneasy girl really the same woman they knew? The one with lewd thoughts, the womanizing maniac, the womanizer who couldn't resist pretty girls, and the super womanizer who fell in love with every girl she met?

And she had actually said something like "marriage between girls is against the rules"?

Was this still the Lin Ling they knew?

A maid with short, flowing hair stepped forward first, her gentle smile tinged with a hint of threat.

"Lady Lin Ling, true love knows no gender. As long as you truly like someone, what does it matter if you're both girls? Isn't that what you said before? Or... are you perhaps toying with the hearts of young girls again? If so, you'll be severely punished~"

The girl repeatedly shook her head. How could she possibly toy with the hearts of young girls?

"I... I didn't..."

"Ling, are you deliberately teasing Kiana? That idiot will take it seriously, you know." The rational Bronya also stepped forward, somewhat displeased. "She's so upset because of you right now."

"I didn't..."

Wendy asked worriedly, "Ling, have you also been corrupted by the Honkai? Don't worry, just release the power within you. If you don't mind, you can unleash it on me. This time, I'll bear your wrath..."

"Huh?" Although she didn't quite understand what the green-haired girl meant, it sounded like she was being asked to beat someone up to vent her anger. The girl repeatedly shook her head.

"This... this isn't right..."

"Tiawen..."

Then Ana, the Herrscher of Ice, stepped forward and stood in front of Lin Ling, looking into her eyes.

"Are you still blaming me for abandoning you? Is that why you pretended not to know me? I'm sorry... it's all my fault... as long as you're happy, as long as you're willing to acknowledge me, I'll do anything you want..."

"Anything I want?"

The girl repeated Ana's words as if lost in thought, then gently shook her head and held Ana's somewhat cold hands.

"Although I don't know what happened, but... I think..."

For some reason, seeing the girl before her so heartbroken made Lin Ling feel a pang in her heart. Almost unconsciously, she gently stroked Ana's cheek and said with utmost tenderness:

"Silly girl, no matter what happened, I will never blame you..."

Instantly, Ana's eyes welled up with tears.

"As expected, you haven't forgotten anything. You haven't changed at all. You're still my Tianwen, right..."

"Ah, ah, ah? Why are you crying? I'm so sorry."

Seeing that the other girl had suddenly become emotional, Lin Ling awkwardly scratched her head.

"I didn't pay attention in class before, so I don't understand astronomy very well..."

"Hey!"

Another girl dressed in what appeared to be ancient clothing stepped forward, grabbed Lin Ling's collar, and asked fiercely.

"Ling, you're not saying you've forgotten even me, are you?"

Startled by the rough action, Lin Ling quickly shrank back and asked fearfully:

"Miss, who are you...?"

"What!?"

Hearing that she was actually being asked who she was, the girl in ancient clothing raised an eyebrow and her fist.

"I'll beat you up!"

Lin Ling shuddered in fright and quickly closed her eyes while covering her face.

"N-don't hit me..."

"Alright, Senti, stop scaring her."

Fortunately, another girl who looked very similar to the irritable one, almost like a twin, reached out and stopped the fist.

"I think Lin Ling really seems a bit off. Let's take her to the infirmary for a check-up."

Lin Ling quickly gave the mature and composed girl a grateful look.

"Thank you, um... this..."

Her gaze swept across the "twins." She hesitated, but when her eyes settled on a certain part of their bodies, she seemed to reach a conclusion.

"Ah, sorry, I almost mistook you two for each other. Little brother, thank you for saving me."

"Huh?!"

Instantly, Lin Ling was surprised to find that the girl who had just been kind and protective suddenly became furious.

Then she released her grip on Senti's fist and spoke angrily.

"Senti, continue! I'm seriously starting to suspect this girl is just pretending to be stupid!"

"That's more like it! Come on, old timer! Let's teach this girl a lesson!"

"Ah! What?! No way!"

And so, the scene descended into chaos...

"Wait a minute! Beautiful ladies."

Suddenly, a chibi-style Durandal, like a doll, appeared carrying a megaphone.

"I know why this girl is pretending to be stupid! She's definitely trying to run away from her wedding! But hehe! I have evidence of her crime, and with this, she can't deny it!"

Little Du's words immediately drew everyone's attention and caused them to temporarily stop.

Lin Ling tilted her head in surprise.

"Escaped... marriage? And there's evidence of my crimes?!"

"That's right. Didn't expect that, Ling? When you gave me your phone last time, I secretly copied all your data! Don't try to deny it..."

With that, Little Du pressed a switch on the loudspeaker.

"Buzz buzz buzz..."

After a burst of static, Lin Ling's voice blared out:

"Durandal, do you agree to my marriage to Mr. Siegfried's daughter...?"

"Ah?!"

Hearing her own voice, Lin Ling froze.

"W-w-was this me? This isn't right! Am I really proposing to someone?!"

Then Durandal's voice came through.

"True love cannot be stopped. So what if you're a wanted criminal? I fully support your marriage to Mr. Siegfried's daughter..."

"Hehe, the evidence is irrefutable. Ling, you can't deny it now, can you?"

After playing the recording, Little Du chuckled smugly.

"Oh, and do you know who Siegfried's daughter is... mmm!"

"Wait, wait a minute!"

Suddenly, Durandal herself stepped forward and covered Little Du's mouth. She had sensed something was wrong from the beginning and quickly prevented Little Du from revealing something she didn't want disclosed.

"I understand!"

Perhaps after hearing the recording, Kiana recovered from her shock and walked up to Lin Ling again.

"Hmph~ Although I don't know why you needed to ask Durandal's opinion before proposing to me, I understand now, Ling! Are you pretending to have amnesia because you've gotten involved with too many girls and can't decide who to marry? Fine. Let me help you remember all the terrible things you've done to us!"

Lin Ling was startled.

"Wait! What are you doing, miss?"

"What am I doing? Hmph... doing what you did to me!"

A sudden amber light flashed in Kiana's eyes, and one of her irises turned amber.

Then, amid the surprised and envious gazes of the other girls, she pushed this farce to its climax—

She pressed Lin Ling's head toward herself.

"Ugh! Ugh!..."

"Miss Kiana, what are you doing?!"

"Ah, I understand! I saw it on Korean TV—strong stimulation can awaken the memories of someone with amnesia. In that case, let me try too..."

"Did it work? If not, let me try. I also want to contribute to Ling's recovery..."

"You guys are too cunning... Back then, I was clearly the one who did 'that' with Ling first... Even if you're going to use this method, you should let me..."

"Alright, alright! Shut up! It's my turn next!"

...

"Huh? What are you all doing? How could you suddenly do something so shameless in public?!"

Li Sushang shyly covered her eyes, but through the gaps between her fingers, her eyes were full of triumphant satisfaction and excitement, as if she had finally gotten revenge.

After seeing the scoundrel who had teased and harassed her all this time being attacked by a group of girls, she smugly exclaimed:

"Hmph~ You little devil, you've finally met your match?! What goes around comes around!"

On the other side, the usually composed Durandal didn't join the commotion. But while watching everyone happily "playing" with Lin Ling, she felt a trace of envy.

"No, what am I thinking?"

Durandal shook her head and cleared her thoughts.

The recording Little Du had played reminded her of Siegfried and her experience in the Imaginary Space—

A few days ago, during her battle with Otto, she had accidentally been banished there.

There she encountered a man who had lost his memory and almost lost his sense of self, becoming something like Homu—

Siegfried.

"Speaking of which..." Durandal muttered, "The Imaginary Space can indeed cause people to lose their memories and even slowly lose their sense of self. Could Ling really..."

"What?!"

Theresa, standing beside Durandal, heard her words and was startled.

"Durandal, are you saying Ling might really have lost her memory in the Imaginary Space?!"

"Mm."

Durandal nodded seriously.

"Anything can happen in the Imaginary Space. I almost got lost there last time. Thankfully, I had the help of my fa... um, a gentleman..."

"Is it that serious?"

Even Theresa couldn't ignore it anymore.

She interrupted the students' commotion and picked up the white-haired girl who seemed short of breath.

"Alright, alright! Everyone calm down... Ling might really have amnesia. You can't act like this. Let's take her to the infirmary and have her brain checked."

So the girls stopped punishing the "pretending to be stupid" Lin Ling and took her for an examination.

And the examiner was, of course, Mobius—the greatest scientist of the Previous Era from fifty thousand years ago.

...

After a thorough examination, Mobius turned to the group of girls whose faces were filled with anticipation and worry.

"Um... about Guinea Pig, I have bad news and good news. Which do you want to hear first...?"

"The bad news... I guess..."

"No, the good news!"

The girls murmured among themselves.

"You snake, stop beating around the bush at a time like this!" Senti, standing behind Fu Hua with only her head peeking over Fu Hua's shoulder, urged impatiently. "Otherwise, I'll smash this lab to pieces! It's annoying to look at!"

"Hmm~"

Mobius squinted.

"Hua, keep an eye on your Senti. Otherwise I might not be able to resist"

"Alright, Mobius."

Fu Hua stepped forward.

"Tell me about Lin Ling's situation first."

"Okay~ The good news is that I've made contact with the three girls in Miss Lin Ling's Stigmata space and learned what happened. This little one is really something. With the help of Otto, she actually managed to rescue Saintess Kallen from five hundred years ago and bring her into reality."

"What?!"

Theresa was so shocked she nearly jumped.

"Ling rescued Kallen?! Is that true?!"

"Of course it's true. If you don't believe me, I can let you speak with that saintess right away."

"Wait!" Durandal reminded her. "Ms. Mobius, you haven't told us the bad news yet!"

"Hehe, the bad news is related to this. Let the saintess tell you herself."

Mobius pressed a button, and a projection appeared before them—

The saintess known throughout Schicksal for five hundred years—

Kallen Kaslana.

"I'm very sorry, girls of five hundred years in the future, but I have unfortunate news to tell you. This beautiful lady, in order to save me... burned away almost all of her memories..."

Then Kallen told them everything she knew.

...

Finally, everyone learned the whole story.

They looked at each other in silence.

"You idiot... why did you risk doing something so foolish again... Are our precious memories really going to end like this..."

Perhaps sensing their thoughts, Mobius suddenly smiled mysteriously.

"Don't worry, my heartbroken girls. Give Guinea Pig—oh, that is, your Ling—to me. Only I can help her regain her lost memories and recover the past you all cherish!"

————————

Chapter 280: I Was Here First, So Why Did Things Turn Out Like This?

"Okay, the consciousness transfer has been successful. That completes the process."

As Dr. Mobius pressed the final button, the petri dish filled with nutrient solution in the laboratory quickly drained.

Then the hatch slowly opened, and a completely naked girl stepped out of the transparent glass chamber...

Upon closer inspection, one could see that the girl's face bore a striking resemblance to Theresa, the newly appointed Archbishop of Schicksal. It seems the young Archbishop would grow up to look just like her. (That is, if she could still grow.)

"Hmm~ Looks pretty good."

Mobius stroked her delicate chin, admiring another masterpiece of her handiwork, then spoke to the girl who was curiously touching and examining herself.

"Alright, Miss Kallen, try moving around in your new body and see how it feels."

"Hmm..."

The girl stopped touching herself, nodded, and followed Dr. Mobius's gesture to a prepared full-length mirror. She carefully observed her body and slowly turned around.

"How should I put it?" After observing and experiencing it firsthand, the girl pressed a finger to her cheek and said thoughtfully, "It doesn't feel particularly different. If I had to say, it seems no different from my previous body."

"Oh, no difference?"

Mobius nodded in satisfaction.

"Of course, because we're using your original body."

It turned out that five hundred years ago, after Kallen was pierced through the abdomen by the Honkai beast, bled to death, and finally lost all heartbeat and breathing, the man who refused to give up tried every possible method. He even used the restorative power of the Black Abyss White Flower to repair Kallen's body to its original state and preserve it under the highest level of security ever since.

Unfortunately, even the most perfect body becomes an empty shell after losing consciousness...

But all of that changed because of the sacrifice of one girl.

With Lin Ling's help, the true soul of the saintess from five hundred years ago finally returned to this body, allowing Saintess Kallen to return in her complete form.

"Is this... my original body?"

Although five hundred years had passed since the saintess's death for everyone else, from Kallen's perspective, it felt as though she had only just died. Everything remained vivid in her memory.

Kallen gently placed her hand over her lower abdomen. It was warm and smooth without even a scar.

A wave of emotions washed over her.

"So... it's all over now. It's been five hundred years..."

While Kallen was lost in thought, another blushing white-haired girl handed her a set of nun's clothes with her hands clasped together.

"Um... Sister Kallen, you should put on some clothes first..."

Lin Ling's reminder made the reborn Kallen realize her current state—

completely naked.

"You're right. It's not good to stay naked all the time. Lin Ling is so thoughtful."

Kallen took the clothes Lin Ling offered and changed without hesitation in front of her.

"Thank you."

"Hehe."

Embarrassed by the compliment, Lin Ling scratched her head sheepishly and lowered her gaze.

"It's what I should do."

Just as first impressions can leave a powerful effect, like newly hatched chicks becoming deeply attached to the first being they see—

after Lin Ling burned her memories to transfer Kallen's consciousness, Kallen became the first person the now blank and memoryless Lin Ling came into contact with.

As a result, Lin Ling now felt an almost instinctive closeness toward Kallen.

And Kallen naturally felt boundless gratitude and affection toward Lin Ling, who sacrificed almost everything to save her.

Furthermore, during the time when the Imaginary Tree returned to reality, the two spent every day together and were nearly inseparable. Their relationship deepened until they formed a bond stronger than sisters.

However, in Lin Ling's eyes, this intimacy remained only sisterly after she lost her previous memories and attachments.

At least, before being pressured into marriage and forcibly kissed by a group of girls yesterday, she had never thought in that direction.

But now, after experiencing things she had never experienced before, Lin Ling inexplicably felt her heart race and her face flush after seeing her beloved older sister's body.

She found herself unable to look directly at Kallen.

"Oh?"

Kallen noticed Lin Ling's unusual reaction.

"Little one, why are you blushing? Are you shy already? I heard you were surrounded by a bunch of cute girls yesterday..."

Immediately, Lin Ling recalled yesterday's "terrifying memory" and hurriedly denied it:

"Ah, no, no, no, it's not like that, Sister Kallen. I... oh no... they suddenly... well, I have absolutely no idea what happened..."

"Hmm? Why are you so flustered?"

Now dressed in her nun's habit, Kallen gently ruffled Lin Ling's hair.

"I'm not jealous. Or... could it be that after having so many darlings, you actually have feelings for me? No, that's too greedy..."

"Ugh, really, Sister Kallen."

Lin Ling's face turned red all the way to her neck. She pushed Kallen's hand away and pouted.

"If you tease me again, I'm going to tell Sister Sakura..."

"Haha, it's alright. Go ahead and tell her Sakura might... um... no, she definitely won't mind"

Lin Ling tilted her head.

"Huh? Won't mind what?"

"Ahem, nothing. By the way."

Kallen suddenly remembered something.

"Speaking of Sakura, is her body... still there?"

"I'm sorry, Miss Kallen~"

Mobius helplessly spread her hands.

"You should know that Miss Sakura's body was devoured by her Herrscher sister and fused together. Then, a few years ago, in order to save Miss Theresa, some things happened that caused Miss Sakura and Rin to completely lose their bodies, leaving only their consciousness in the Holy Mark Space. So even if I wanted to clone bodies for them, I couldn't. For now, they can only stay temporarily inside Lin Ling's body."

"I see..."

Hearing that Sakura might not be able to meet her again in reality, Kallen silently lowered her head.

Even without seeing her expression, one could sense her sadness.

"Don't worry, Kallen."

At that moment, a familiar voice came from Lin Ling.

Kallen looked up abruptly and saw that the originally white-haired girl now had long pink hair like cherry blossoms and a pair of long fox ears.

More importantly—

the way she looked at her was exactly the same as Sakura's.

Kallen gently lifted a strand of soft pink hair and softly asked:

"Sakura... is that you?"

"Yes, it's me."

The fox-eared Lin Ling nodded gently.

"Miss Lin Ling suddenly returned to the Holy Mark Space and insisted that I come out to see you. She even said that if necessary, I could use her body whenever I wanted. Then, before I could say anything, she handed control of her body to me. I truly can't do anything about her."

"Hehe."

Kallen smiled and gently stroked the girl's face.

"That idiot... if this continues, won't we never be able to repay the gratitude we owe her?"

"Yes."

Fox Lin Ling also held Kallen's hand.

"We truly have no way to repay Miss Lin Ling's kindness. However, I heard from Miss Mobius that Ling and I may be able to help her recover her memories. From now on, I will do my best to help her recover her past."

Kallen nodded solemnly.

"Mhm. Good luck, Sakura..."

"Gurgle~"

Suddenly, a strange sound came from Kallen's stomach.

"Huh?"

Kallen covered her stomach awkwardly.

"Really, why is it making noise at a time like this?"

Mobius frowned and checked the monitoring data on the screen before relaxing.

"I thought my technique had malfunctioned. Don't worry, it's nothing serious. Your body hasn't eaten for five hundred years, so your stomach is empty. That's why you feel hungry now that you're moving around."

"Hehe."

Sakura chuckled.

"Go eat something, Kallen. If I get the chance, I'll make rice balls for you again. That's all for now. It's inconvenient for me to occupy Lin Ling's body for too long, so I'll be leaving."

Kallen nodded.

"Okay. I'll come find you in the Holy Mark Space when I have time."

Then the fox ears and pink hair gradually faded and returned to pure white.

As soon as Lin Ling regained control, she saw Kallen gazing at her affectionately while stroking her cheek.

"Huh!? Sister Kallen, what are you doing?"

"What's wrong, little Lin Ling?"

Kallen smiled.

"Isn't this what you wanted? But honestly, you don't need to use Sakura as an excuse. If you want to be affectionate with your older sister, just say so."

...

"Damn it, damn it! What are you doing? What are you planning to do with my Ling's body? What kind of strange scene is this?! I... I was here first!?"

While the two white-haired girls playfully bickered, another white-haired girl with a streak of red highlights stood in the shadows biting a handkerchief.

"My idol, the saintess, has been resurrected! My beloved has returned to my side! Two happy things overlapped, and together they should have brought even greater happiness. I should have received a dreamlike, blissful time... But why... why did it turn out like this...? Why did it turn out like this?"

This girl was Kiana.

The one Lin Ling had abandoned.

The intimacy between the two reminded her of something from not long ago—

"Ling! You're here!"

At breakfast, Kiana felt conflicted and had little appetite. She hurriedly finished half a jin of Chongqing noodles—Lin Ling's former favorite—and went outside for fresh air.

Then she suddenly saw a white figure and excitedly ran over.

However—

"Eek!!"

The girl merely trembled and quickly ran away.

And it wasn't just once.

Ever since that day, whenever Lin Ling saw Kiana, she blushed and ran.

This left Kiana angry and heartbroken.

Their precious memories were gone.

Worse, because she had forced herself on Lin Ling in anger that day, Lin Ling now was somewhat afraid of her and avoided her.

"Damn it, this can't continue!"

Kiana clenched her fists.

"If this continues, my Lin Ling will be stolen! No. I have to help her recover her memories as soon as possible! And then forcibly..."

So after Lin Ling and Kallen left the lab to go eat—

Kiana immediately ran to Mobius.

"Dr. Mobius! When are you going to help Lin Ling recover her memories?"

"Oh, another one."

Mobius sighed.

"Tsk tsk tsk, that Guinea Pig is truly a sinful woman Memories aren't easy to restore. I need some time to prepare. But Miss Kiana, if you're willing to help, perhaps the progress can be accelerated."

Kiana immediately agreed.

"Okay! Dr. Mobius, I'll do anything to help Ling recover her memories!"

"Hehe~ My dear new Guinea Pig."

Watching the girl before her who seemed willing to give everything for her beloved, Mobius excitedly licked her lips.

"You said it yourself..."

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