In the underground laboratory in Florida, having finished her conversation with the sucker (crossed out)—Cocolia, Mobius stretched her body vigorously.
Casually sweeping her gaze over the pile of operating scientific instruments around her, she refocused on the holographic dynamic display of the Third Eruption in front of her. She muttered to herself with ease, "Compared to the turbulent winds and surging clouds on the other side of the Earth, it could still be considered calm here."
Swish—
The sound of the electronic door opening reached her ears. Mobius spun her chair around, assuming the classic Gendo Ikari pose, and hummed, "You've come."
"I've finished the handover with Senior Blanca, Doctor."
Klein, who walked in clutching a notebook, didn't play along with the reference. Instead, she looked up at the beauty before her:
Wavy, emerald-green hair shone like jade, cascading down to her waist and covering the woman's exquisite, curvaceous figure.
Her delicate face carried a unique, enchanting coldness, like a dark green rose entangled with thorns, while her fair cheeks were dyed with a faint blush of satisfaction.
Beneath the standard lab coat was a green blouse. Her full, ample chest hung heavily like mountain peaks, resting gently on the desk before her.
Hidden beneath that soft waist, which could be grasped with a single hand, was a tight, hip-hugging miniskirt. Extending from it were two straight, beautiful legs wrapped in over-the-knee stockings, crossed over one another. Her delicate feet were slipped into a pair of black high heels, swaying gently as she hummed.
"...?"
The more Klein looked, the more wrong it seemed. This appearance... no matter how she looked at it, the Doctor had clearly dressed up with great care.
Mobius teased, "Today is the big day you take over as my assistant, Klein. Isn't it normal to dress up a bit for the occasion?"
Under her smiling gaze, Klein's face couldn't help but redden.
Twirling a lock of tender green hair that fell by her ear, Mobius sighed softly, "Please don't sexually harass your own assistant, Doctor."
"Look, you said 'your own' assistant."
Mobius kept a straight face. "Since you are mine, I can treat you however I want, right?"
Klein kept a poker face. "Then, Doctor, please don't harass your new assistant so soon after Senior Blanca has left."
Hearing Blanca's name, the cynical smile on Mobius's lips faded slightly.
She sighed. "I know you have feelings about this."
"I don't have feelings," Klein said.
"I know you have an opinion about me transferring Blanca, who has been your mentor since university, away."
"I worked with Senior for several years."
"I know you think I chose you because of your special constitution, and that's why I arranged for Blanca, my previous assistant, to leave."
The Natural Stigmata—Golden Cicada of the Ninth Cycle. A top-tier stigmata of the Herrscher of Death lineage. It possesses vigorous vitality known to revive the dead and regenerate necromantic organisms. It has the effect of healing almost all injuries, curing poisons, replenishing life force, and prolonging life.
The legendary monk Xuanzang Sanzang was a wielder of this stigmata.
For a top-tier researcher like Mobius, Klein's constitution was enough to allow her to conduct all kinds of boundary-breaking research, surpassing even the Divine Key series in utility.
Klein blinked. "That, I don't think."
"Hmm... Hmm?"
Mobius, who had prepared a speech to bamboozle her, paused.
Klein hugged the notebook recording the assistant's duties tighter and said seriously, "The Doctor isn't that kind of person. I am more certain of this than anyone."
Under her striped shirt, the pair that ranked second only to Mobius suffered a crushing defeat by the notebook, awkwardly poking out from the sides.
Unfortunately, there were only two women in this laboratory, greatly discounting the viewing pleasure of this scene.
Mobius's eyelid twitched. "Then why did you come in with such a stiff face?"
Klein lifted her eyelids; the dark circles under them were quite obvious. "I drew too much live blood for experiments earlier. Even with blood-production agents, my body hasn't recovered yet."
As a member of the lab, she knew the current situation of the Life Faction.
Anti-Entropy was founded on "protesting Schicksal's inhumane research on the human body." For biological and human researchers like them, who didn't want to leave their homes to join Schicksal, their words carried little weight, and every step was difficult.
It was the sudden rise of Mobius who, while Leader Welt was absent in recent years, united the ostracized biological researchers. Through various means of vertical and horizontal alliances, she eventually built a massive interest group.
However, as an anomaly within Anti-Entropy, even though Mobius now sat in the position of Executor Candidate, once the Leader returned like lightning, everything they had built would crumble.
That was why Mobius placed trusted aides like Blanca in important positions to control the narrative, and why she allied with Cocolia, a fellow member of the new generation of the Reformist Faction, to balance the "Big Mecha Supremacy" faction led by Tesla within the organization.
'I actually think Dr. Tesla opposes us so fiercely because your methods are too radical, Dr. Mobius.'
Recalling Mobius's disastrous resume, which could be described as a crime against humanity, Klein complained quietly in her heart.
In the aspect of "not being human," the Doctor before her had never been human.
"Hmm? Klein? I feel like someone is slandering me. Is it my illusion?"
"It is your illusion."
Klein changed the subject at light speed, pointing to the real-time dynamic image of Nagazora City in front of them with confusion. "Doctor, what is this?"
"This."
Facing the confidant she had cultivated single-handedly, Mobius naturally explained the cause and effect to her.
After listening, Klein was silent for a moment.
"Doctor."
"Hmm?"
"In the aspect of not being human, you really are truly not human."
"Saying it to my face now, are we?! I haven't even held you accountable for scolding me in your heart just now!"
Feeling slandered, Mobius immediately threw a tantrum, holding her head and rolling around on the laboratory floor.
Gurulu~ Spinning around!
Klein watched with twitching eyelids. Blanca had told her that as an assistant, she had to take responsibility for the food, clothing, housing, and transportation of this useless Doctor.
Even if that white lab coat got dirty from rolling on the ground, she, the assistant, would be responsible for cleaning it afterward.
She sighed, trying to change the topic again. "Doctor, I don't know much about Godheads. Can you tell me what exactly it is and why it can activate the Gem of Conquest inside Raiden Mei?"
"Well..."
Mobius, who always answered her assistant's questions, attempted a carp kip-up. Suddenly, a CRACK was heard, and severe pain from her waist caused her expression to change drastically.
"Doctor?"
Klein lowered her eyes, pretending not to hear.
"N-No! No, nothing!"
Mobius sat back in her chair as if nothing had happened, trying hard to maintain her usual composure.
Klein sighed. She went to the bathroom to get hot water to wet a towel, then applied the hot towel to Mobius's waist.
"Don't do strenuous exercise when you're getting old."
"Isn't it because I haven't found a suitable Honkai Beast factor for fusion modification yet?"
Mobius lay on her workstation, groaning in comfort, her eyes fixed on the pitch-black giant python surrounding the Herrscher of Thunder in the dynamic image.
Klein knew her too well. One look and she knew her Doctor had set her sights on the genes of the Herrscher of Thunder's Companion Honkai Beast.
'The third Judgment-Class Honkai Beast in the history of the Current Era, following Chiyou and Benares—[Śeṣa]. It is indeed worthy of my Doctor.'
Such thoughts flashed through her mind as Klein continued to ask, "So, Godhead?"
"Even though I am in such a tragic state, I never forget the absorption of knowledge. Truly greedy, Klein."
"You don't have to say it, Doctor."
"I'll say it, I'll say it! I'll say it, okay?!"
Mobius mumbled, "You know the theory of psychokinesis, right? Many occult scholars believe that as more and more people believe in certain stories, false things will eventually become real due to the accumulation of human imagination."
" stripping away the primate arrogance hidden within, this theory actually has some truth to it."
She turned over, realized the hot towel fell off her waist, and rolled back. "Because 'thought power' is essentially a fuel called faith. Some anomalies are born into this world precisely because people believe in them."
"People worship gods, believe they truly exist, project their own concepts onto gods, imagine the gods' images, perfect the gods' authorities, and build shrines to worship these void things. The incense burns for thousands of years, and the tide of thought stretches like the sea."
Mobius closed her eyes and spoke in a tone almost like an aria, "Countless people's worship, countless years of gratitude... so tell me, on those shrines drifting with incense smoke, are there really pairs of eyes watching the sentient beings below?"
...
Rustling sounds echoed in the deep space 666 meters below the surface, like some anomaly lurking on the flip side of human society issuing a warning.
The dynamic image monitoring the status of the Third Eruption cast long shadows that flickered uncertainly on Mobius's soul-stirring face.
Klein admitted that the atmosphere created by her Doctor was absolutely majestic and full of momentum.
But once she combined it with the disgraceful display of groaning in pain on the workstation, plus the fact that this person just took a Godhead and fed it to the Herrscher of Thunder like a snack, she couldn't muster a shred of reverence for these "gods."
Klein, who washed the towel clean and applied it again, continued to ask, "Is that how Godheads are born?"
Mobius, unhappy that she failed to scare her, grunted, "Officially registered as [Godhead Authority]. The personified crystallization of thought and imagination, an inevitable phenomenon in the development of supernatural civilizations, a certain manifestation of Honkai energy combined with human pan-consciousness."
After all, even in a magic-less physical universe, the faith gathered by countless people over thousands of years would occasionally allow unlucky individuals with high inspiration to contact some strange anomalies. The Honkai Universe is a bona fide high-magic setting; it would be strange if thousands of years of human thought power didn't spawn something.
However, the main reason was still the Honkai energy permeating the planet's atmosphere. The "Project Ember" implemented by the Pioneers caused the Honkai to appear in the Current Era five thousand years early. The ethereal human thought power found a home after combining with the Honkai energy spread across the planet's surface, creating this bizarre landscape of Godhead Authorities that the Previous Era did not have.
As for the Previous Era, its contact with the Honkai was too late and too hurried; there was simply no time to incubate these messy side details.
scrutinizing Theresa, who was gritting her teeth to suppress the Great Eruption on the dynamic image, Klein tilted her head in thought. "Among the reasons Schicksal sent Ms. Theresa to establish a branch in the Far East back then, it seems there was also the item '[Guarding Takamagahara]'."
"Quick reaction."
Mobius said lazily, "As a combination of the power of faith and Honkai energy, Godhead Authorities are essentially conceptual lifeforms composed of pure energy. For them, Theresa, who holds the Key of Binding, is the absolute nemesis. Anti-Entropy's final agreement to yield to Schicksal back then was also based on this point."
"Conceptual lifeforms?"
"Correct."
Mobius hummed quietly, "We all know that the current standards for Honkai-side power classification—E-rank, A-rank, Critical-Class, and S-rank—are based on the intensity of four landmark creatures."
Klein nodded. "Yes, for example, E-rank is a trained and fully armed adult physiological human male, and S-rank is a newly born Serial Herrscher with no additional value."
Apart from humans, as the enemy of civilization, Herrschers naturally occupied a spot as a landmark creature.
The standard for a Valkyrie to become S-rank follows the base attributes of a 1000HW Herrscher at the moment of birth (excluding Authority), thereby highlighting the absolute intensity of civilization's final trial.
"And the standard to become A-rank is to be able to harm a Godhead Authority—that is, the deities in the impression of mortals."
Mobius said, "As conceptual lifeforms, even newborn Godhead Authorities possess an extremely annoying passive talent. They are naturally able to ignore fire, explosions, germs, toxins, curses, physical attacks, magical damage... and any form of negative interference below A-rank."
To fight against a Godhead Authority, one must have at least A-rank strength?
The lower limit of attributes for the modern A-rank assessment was formulated based on the standard of being able to harm a Godhead Authority.
"As for why they are called gods."
Mobius's gaze grew hazy, and she murmured in a tone like a fleeting dream, "Imagine, in that backward, closed, and ignorant ancient environment, suddenly a being is born that cannot be cut by blades, burned by fire, or destroyed by lightning. A being that can charge through an army of millions seven times and control supernatural abilities like earth, water, fire, and wind. How could the ancients not worship such an existence as a god?"
Klein agreed deeply. relying solely on a Spirit Body to be absolutely invincible below A-rank—in that ancient environment, how many people could reach that level?
That's why Murata Himeko ordered Valkyries below A-rank combat power to retreat... Hmm?
"Wait! Doctor!"
As a qualified scientist, Klein immediately realized a terrifying possibility.
"Since Godhead Authorities existed in the past, why didn't they have an absolute, far-reaching impact on the real world?"
She swallowed hard. "If modern times can be explained by the rapid development of technology, what about ancient times? What about those deities in myths who could establish heavens and Buddha-lands? In that savage era, with their nearly invincible strength, they could completely change the direction of the world and become feudal kings ruling the surface until today, right?"
"It's not just you. This has always been a point of confusion for those who know of the existence of Godheads, and even for the governments of various countries."
Mobius shrugged. "Perhaps somewhere we don't know, there are still some powerful 'Pioneers' escorting the development of human civilization."
"Strong enough to defeat the Asuras, Gods, and Buddhas who tried to establish divine kingdoms on earth time and again?"
"Even killing them until they became nothing but ethereal myths and legends in the eyes of the world."
For example, that Celestial Immortal (Hua), the Mother of Buddhas Mahamayuri (Su) who taught the World-Honored One Tathagata, or the Savior (Kevin Kaslana) holding the sword of flame, bringing equal destruction to all.
Mobius sat up and checked her waist.
Finding it didn't hurt as much, she lazily sat up straight. "What I gave to Cocolia earlier was the Godhead Crystal dropped by the Heavenly Emperor Indra after his death in Vedic mythology. This Godhead, which shares the same lightning attribute and possesses spatial properties, was naturally devoured by the Gem of Conquest—separated from the Herrscher of the Void's core—as soon as it entered Raiden Mei's body, making up for its congenital deficiency as a 'Gem' rather than a 'Core'."
Tapping the table rhythmically with her index finger, she spoke slowly, "Then, activating those twelve nodes to guide over 2500 HW units of Honkai energy acts as the firing pin to ignite the completed Gem of Conquest. It's like using a nuclear bomb to detonate a hydrogen bomb, inducing a chain reaction between the Reality Side and the Imaginary Side to cause a collapse. Breaking the barrier between the two sides allows the scale of the Great Eruption to ferment further. Thus, a Herrscher of Thunder with intensity no less than the Third Herrscher of the Previous Era is born."
The Herrscher of Thunder Mobius wanted to observe wasn't the castrated version created solely by the Gem of Conquest, barely at Critical-Class. That kind of trash, not even S-rank, couldn't even create a Companion Honkai Beast.
"The Heavenly Emperor's Godhead Will acts in reverse to influence Raiden Mei, causing her to go berserk."
Klein muttered to herself, "This King of the Heavens, who holds an extremely high status in the Vedas, having revived from death, will surely cause a huge uproar in the Far East."
"Which mythical 'King' can tolerate a despicable, lowly servant drawing a sword against them?"
Mobius said meaningfully.
...
Dark clouds rolled, and pale thunder crashed down.
It was a pillar of light piercing heaven and earth, a divine strike of certain destruction.
With her back to the thunderclouds obscuring the entire sky of Honshu Island, the Herrscher of Thunder sat atop the dome, silent and speechless.
Reflecting the King's supreme mandate, tens of thousands of Honkai Beasts descended from the boundless void.
"ROAR!!!"
"ROAR!!!"
"ROAR!!!"
They roared formless madness, spreading their limbs and galloping wildly in all directions.
"JUDAH!!!"
Accompanying the girl's high-pitched summons, the chain blades extending from the black-gold cross gathered and condensed behind her into a pair of shining, irregular wings.
The orthodox cross representing divine punishment was undisguisedly ferocious. Silver chains shot into the sky, intersecting with the thousand thunders. They crisscrossed the gradually tearing firmament, like mottled freeze-frames sliced apart by swords and halberds!
The wings transforming into the hands of God also unfolded layer by layer behind her. Like a peacock spreading its tail, countless sharp thorns ejected outward, wrapping around the rushing Honkai beast horde as if possessing their own consciousness.
Fourteen years later, facing the newly descended Final Trial of Civilization, Theresa, with her S-rank combat power fully unlocked, once again displayed the strength she should have.
In tacit cooperation with Judah, she actually managed to contain and block the scattering Honkai beast tide and the heavenly strikes rained down by the Herrscher of Thunder simultaneously, all by herself!
Zzzzt—
Overflowing electric arcs scattered, the sizzling sound resembling a dragon-snake lurking in the shadows.
No! That was a dragon-snake!
It was the Herrscher of Thunder's Companion Honkai Beast, the Constant One who possessed the alias of the Naga King Ananta—**[Śeṣa]**!
A pitch-black giant python, so large its ends could not be seen, had emerged from the shadows at some point. Its terrifying body, massive enough to fill the ravines between mountains, shuttled through the high-energy atmosphere filled with electric charges.
It launched itself at a super-high speed difficult for even a Critical-Class to track with the naked eye. Dark green thunder and venom brewed in the ferocious snake mouth that could easily swallow a whale whole. Its vertical pupils held undisguised malice and deep chill; it intended to seize the opportunity to launch a sneak attack on the insignificant human hindering its great master!
Just as Theresa was about to take a heavy hit, a beam of light suddenly descended from the sky.
BOOM—!!!
It was the Hyperion!
Unnoticed, the aerial battleship carrying the St. Freya group had arrived at the outskirts of Nagazora City and parked at the edge of the cloudy horizon.
The meticulously applied top-tier anti-EMP coating and the anti-electromagnetic pulse jammers onboard allowed it to withstand the thunderstorms and EMPs occurring constantly in the natural environment, delivering a soul-striking shot at this critical moment!
But the effect ended there.
Different from Serial Herrschers who possess the potential to grow into S-rank Breakers or even further, the growth potential of their Companion Judgment-Class Honkai Beasts isn't high, unless they receive a pseudo-core bestowed by their master like Benares did, relying on external objects for enhancement.
Because from the very beginning, the purpose of their creation was to protect their master, guarding the newly born Herrscher through their most dangerous infancy period.
Therefore, even though it was just born, Śeṣa's combat power was considered upper-middle tier among S-ranks.
BOOM!!!
The torrent from the Hyperion's main cannon, descending from the sky, ruthlessly bombarded its massive head, which was as wide as five train locomotives side-by-side. The continuous fire coverage forcibly blasted the creeping beast into the earth beneath its feet.
However, this super-heavy firepower, enough to severely injure a hundred-meter-class Honkai Beast, only made it let out a cry of pain, like someone suddenly hit in the waist with a massage gun.
In gaming terms: We failed to penetrate the enemy's armor.
But this little bit of time was enough for Theresa to react.
"JUDAH!!!"
The winding chains, like silver dragon scales leaping over the Dragon Gate, bloomed, stretched, and expanded. Whistling through the air, they wrapped around three-tenths of Śeṣa's body, whose head had been blasted underground.
"Hiss—"
The earth churned, Divine Grace was mighty!
Śeṣa, pulling its head out, immediately issued an unhappy hiss. The First Rated Power of the Oath of Judah would nullify all Honkai energy reactions touched by the chains. The only problem was that the nullification of the Rated Power had its upper limit.
Two years later, the Herrscher of the Void, revived within K423, would easily break free and counter-kill. Could Śeṣa, whose strength was similar to hers, do the same?
The answer is no.
The Herrscher of the Void was, after all, humanoid. Counting the stubborn ahoge on her head, she was only a little over 1.7 meters tall; the number of Judah chains that could cover her was limited. Śeṣa was different. Its magnificent body allowed the chains to effect an extremely exaggerated area. Even if the effect of the First Rated Power was partially blocked by thick snake scales, the encroachment from outside to inside still made it extremely uncomfortable.
So, It began to break free.
So, It witnessed the power of an S-rank for the first time in Its life.
One side was a pitch-black monster whose length was calculated in miles; the other was a petite girl less than 1.5 meters tall.
The contest of strength between the two should have been without suspense, until Theresa grabbed the chains extending from Judah.
Clenching her teeth, her face ferocious, her feet sinking into the earth, her hands marked red by the strain.
"HAAAHHHH!!!"
The result of the contest was a stalemate.
In a corner far from the battlefield, Susannah watched this scene in a daze.
Herrschers are the rules of this world.
But no one ever said that existence under the rules cannot fight back against the rules. Even a programmer cannot guarantee that the program they wrote has no BUGs.
And these resistance programs, these BUGs that rival the heavens, are the S-ranks!