Inside the Chimera Project testing facility.
Because there were simply too many variables in this experiment—and many factors that couldn't be quantified, such as the participants' mental willpower—no one knew exactly when the two inside the cultivation pods would awaken.
Elysia, Sakura, Aponia, Kalpas, Su, and Kosma had already gathered, keeping watch over Elias' pod… and incidentally, Kevin's as well.
Then, ten hours into the experiment—
Crack! Snap!
Kevin's cultivation pod began to splinter, and a terrifying, violent aura burst forth from within.
Boom—!
The soulium-forged chamber shattered completely.
From the wreckage emerged a figure beyond human description, exuding an overwhelming, dreadful pressure.
"Raaahhhh—!"
Kevin clutched his head and roared.
When he stepped out of the smoking, burning pod, everyone's eyes widened in shock.
"Th-that's Kevin?!"
"How terrifying!"
"Mm… and kind of embarrassing too."
"Be careful! His condition's not right!"
The Kevin who emerged from the cultivation pod had undergone a radical transformation. Horns grew from his head, his ears had turned sharp, and a single pair of black membranous wings extended from his back. A dark-blue draconic tail swayed behind him, his body covered with countless black barbs and spines.
The features of countless Honkai Beasts had manifested at once, transforming him into an existence far beyond the limits of humanity.
He looked like a fallen demon from the abyss—or perhaps, a dark king destined to destroy the world. But whatever he was, everyone present could feel it—the pure, absolute force radiating from his being.
The beasts of Brahma, fused as one—
This was… the Diabolic Kevin!
"Kevin! Can you hear us?!"
"Raaahhhh!"
He answered with a roar. The reborn Diabolic Kevin had yet to gain control over his explosively growing power. Dozens of Honkai Beast abilities erupted from him at once, radiating outward as if to annihilate everything around.
"Stop him! Elias is still undergoing fusion!"
Dr. Mei shouted in panic. She immediately regretted placing the two pods so close together—she hadn't accounted for what would happen if one of them lost control.
"Understood!"
Everyone sprang into action at once. The Flame-Chasers attacked in unison, unleashing their full strength—none dared to hold back against the terrifying aura Kevin was exuding.
But the Diabolic Kevin, sensing the incoming assaults, merely raised his single demonic wing like a shield before him.
BOOM—!
Every attack struck the wing head-on—and not one had any effect.
Neither crystalline arrows, nor blades of ice, nor Kalpas' burning flames, nor even the War King's fists could penetrate his defense.
That seemingly thin, even perforated wing membrane had become an indestructible shield.
"What?! Not even a scratch?!"
"So this is the Chimera's power? That's insane!"
"This isn't the time to gawk—suppress him, quickly!"
"Right! We can't let him interfere with Elias!"
Easier said than done. The power emanating from Kevin now far surpassed even that of a Herrscher. The fusion of thousands upon thousands of Honkai Beast genes had given birth to something beyond comprehension.
Even Mobius and Dr. Mei had no idea where Kevin's limits lay—and this was while he was unconscious.
Within mere seconds, the gathered Flame-Chasers realized they could do nothing to stop him. Their bodies, all modified by super-mutation factors, trembled instinctively—their cells seemed to fear the overwhelming dominance of the Diabolic Kevin.
"Ugh…"
Kevin's brow furrowed as he let out a subconscious growl. He fired an uncontrolled blast in one direction—
Sakura's instincts kicked in. She leapt aside just in time.
BOOM—!
In the very next second, the spot where Sakura had just been standing was reduced to rubble. The entire testing chamber, constructed of soulium, had been pierced through by a single casual strike from the Diabolic Kevin.
Everyone broke into a cold sweat.
That was soulium! A material capable of nearly nullifying Honkai energy—used even in the crafting of Divine Keys—and it had just been destroyed as if it were paper?
Moments later, several more attacks were unleashed.
The others quickly dodged, not daring to block them head-on.
Just as they were debating whether to risk a coordinated counterattack, another blast from Diabolic Kevin shot directly toward Elias' cultivation pod.
"Eli!!"
Elysia moved purely on instinct. Her crystalline flower shield appeared in the path of the incoming strike.
Yet, those shields—strong enough to repel even Emperor-class Honkai Beasts—shattered instantly like fragile glass. They bought only a single second.
"No—!"
As the attack was about to strike the white-haired boy's pod, despair filled everyone's eyes. Sakura's pupils widened in horror; she prepared to rush forward and block the blow with her own body.
But someone moved faster.
Bang!
The devastating attack was intercepted effortlessly.
"Sorry, everyone…"
Kevin had stopped his own attack. His voice carried a note of shame.
He looked down at his hands—now encased in layers of dark Honkai exoskeleton—still feeling the faint echo of the destructive force he had unleashed.
To Kevin, that power was trivial.
But in truth, only two beings in existence could have withstood that "trivial" attack—Kevin himself, and the white-haired boy still inside the pod.
"Stay away from Elias, you idiot!"
Dr. Mei hurled her high heel at him in fury. Unfortunately, her throw missed completely due to the sheer force of her anger.
She was currently equipped with the Key of Blankness and held the Seven Thunders of Retribution in sniper form. If Kevin hadn't regained consciousness in time, Mei would've already fired a full-powered electromagnetic disintegration round at him.
(Mei: 'Consider it a test—to see whether the Chimera can survive a direct hit from the Seven Thunders' ultimate shot!' Hmph!)
Kevin: "..."
Realizing how close he had come to causing a disaster, Kevin awkwardly stepped aside, keeping a safe distance from the pods.
Mei and Mobius immediately began examining Elias' pod, sighing in deep relief after confirming there was no damage. Only then did everyone turn their focus back to Kevin.
"How do you feel?"
"Uh… pretty good, actually…"
Kevin scratched his head, conjuring an ice mirror to inspect his demonic form. Both he and Kosma, watching from the side, muttered the same word in awe.
(Cool.)
Mobius, practically trembling with excitement, rushed forward with her instruments.
"Move, move—let me check! Every Honkai Beast ability has been successfully extracted! His base Honkai energy output is reading at 200,000 HW—that's higher than the combined total of every Herrscher we've ever recorded! His physical durability has also skyrocketed—even soulium needles can't pierce his skin! Excellent! The Chimera Project is a complete success!"
Without hesitation, the serpent woman tried to draw blood with a soulium syringe for detailed analysis—but the needle bent instantly against Kevin's body.
Even at this early stage, his Honkai energy far exceeded expectations. And this was only the beginning—the Chimera's defining feature was its capacity for continuous evolution.
Kevin's potential had been raised to a level beyond comprehension. None of them could imagine just how powerful he might become in the future.
Even if every Herrscher that had ever existed were summoned to face him at once, Kevin could probably defeat them all without breaking a sweat—perhaps even annihilate them in an instant.
After all—
The [Diabolic Kevin] was that terrifying.
The [Chimera] was that overpowered.
A fusion of two eras' Honkai Beasts, born as the ultimate being beneath Finality itself.
Yet, as Kevin stood there, feeling the immense power surging through his veins, his expression was one of pure confusion and disbelief.
"I… I actually succeeded? I thought I'd failed… but… I really succeeded?"
"Hm? Kevin, what do you mean by that?"
Mobius frowned. From everyone's perspective, Kevin had clearly achieved perfect Chimera fusion—wielding the power of all Honkai Beasts and an immense, unparalleled energy output.
Yet judging by his expression, it seemed Kevin himself thought he had failed.
"I… I can't quite describe it," he said slowly. "While I was inside the pod, I could feel my whole body transforming. But when the [Chimera Genome] fully fused with me… I suddenly saw tens of thousands of Honkai Beasts rushing at me."
There was a flicker of fear in Kevin's eyes as he spoke.
If it had been just a few dozen—or even a few hundred—Honkai Beasts, he wouldn't have flinched. Even without the Judgment of Shamash, his sheer talent would've been enough to handle them.
But that had been more than fifty thousand Honkai Beasts—ranging from mosquito-sized Chariot-class creatures to colossal, Vipralopa-level monsters—all charging at him at once.
He had resisted for a full minute… and then he fell to his knees.
The last thing he remembered was being overwhelmed, swallowed by the endless tide of beasts. When he came to, he had already turned into what he was now—and nearly caused a disaster.
"Oh, that's perfectly normal. Nothing to worry about," Mobius said matter-of-factly, nodding with an almost serene expression.
Even Mei beside her looked unsurprised.
"Eh? That's normal?" Kevin blinked, completely confused. He had genuinely thought he'd been seconds away from dying.
"Of course. Some of you experienced something similar during your Meta-Morph procedures, remember? The meta-morph factors occasionally carry remnants of Honkai Beast consciousness. If one fails to suppress them, the body is overtaken by the beast's mind instead."
"Though it's rare, anyone who survives that struggle becomes much stronger."
"To maximize the Chimera's potential," Mobius explained with a dangerous little smile, "Mei and I preemptively activated all 53,871 Honkai Beast meta-factors before the fusion—ensuring that every single consciousness remained intact. It improved the genome's overall quality by several tiers. Otherwise, you'd be two or three power levels weaker right now."
The Diabolic Kevin's eye twitched violently.
(Seriously? Mobius, Mei… you two are insane. Elias, my dear brother, how the hell did you manage to tame these two terrifying women? That's beyond godlike!)
"Wait—hold on. But I never actually defeated those Honkai Beast consciousnesses. By your logic, Mobius, shouldn't my body be under their control right now?"
"Heh~ Let's just say we cheated a little," she replied, smirking. "We couldn't really expect you to fight all fifty thousand of them on your own. And besides, the solution was simple."
With a flourish, the serpent woman produced a lotus-shaped Divine Key.
The Eighth Divine Key—Fenghuang Down.
"I used Fenghuang Down's power to protect your consciousness and prevent the beasts' wills from consuming it. It also created a mental barrier within your mind, isolating their awareness from your own."
Kevin exhaled, rubbing his temple. "That's… actually brilliant. Damn, you scientists really don't mess around. Maybe you're not all fighters, but you sure don't lose in sheer cunning."
This experiment, which on paper seemed full of uncontrollable variables, had in fact been meticulously prepared by Mei and Mobius.
And Kevin knew full well—it was only because of Elias. If it hadn't been for him, the two geniuses might have done the job seriously, but not this seriously. He was definitely benefitting from Elias' special treatment.
"Eli Gate…" Kevin muttered under his breath.
Still, even with Fenghuang Down's protection, Kevin had lost control for a full twenty-three seconds under the influence of the Honkai Beast consciousnesses. There was no such thing as absolute safety.
"Alright," Mei said, crossing her arms. "Take some time to familiarize yourself with your new power. But keep it under control—don't make a mess, and don't disturb Elias. He's at a critical stage in his fusion."
"...Got it. I'll stand guard here. Once Elias completes his Chimera fusion, then I'll think about what comes next."
Kevin shook his head and said calmly, "With me standing guard here, not even a Herrscher could disturb that white-haired boy."
"Whatever, do as you like," Mobius replied without turning her head. Her eyes never left Elias for even a second—she refused to risk missing the slightest anomaly.
The others, too, couldn't help feeling a sense of anticipation.
Kevin's strength had increased to such an absurd degree after becoming a Chimera that saying it had multiplied a hundredfold didn't seem exaggerated.
So what about Elias—whose power had always defied logic even before this? Once he became a Chimera, just how strong would he be?
Mobius and Mei both licked their lips unconsciously, their eyes gleaming.
The Diabolic Kevin had already surpassed their expectations—but that mutt hardly mattered. What truly mattered was their beloved boy. They wanted to see how far Chimera-Elias could go—how far beyond imagination he would rise.
As for failure…
Not a single person present even considered that possibility. After all, if even Kevin—of all people—could succeed, then Elias failing would be nothing short of a cosmic injustice.
"Hey, when Eli becomes a Chimera, will he end up looking like Kevin does now? Hisss~"
Elysia glanced at the Diabolic Kevin.
In her mind, she automatically overlaid that outfit onto the white-haired boy's figure—and the next second, Miss Pink Elf felt her nose grow hot, as if something was about to gush out.
After all, in Elias' previous life, the Diabolic Kevin had another nickname—the Incubus.
His lower body was wrapped in strips of black cloth—tight but hardly pants—and his upper body was covered by a few thin white bands that barely counted as clothing. Add in the horns, the wings, and the tail… and yes, calling him an Incubus wasn't inaccurate.
It was undeniably imposing—but also, well… lewdly imposing.
Gulp! xN
Every girl present simultaneously imagined Elias in that same outfit. They swallowed hard, faces flushed, their hearts racing.
The Incubus Kevin? That was just perverse.
But the Incubus Elias…?
(All the girls: I'd allow it!!)
With sparkling eyes, Elysia and the others turned toward Elias' cultivation pod, already fantasizing about what they'd see—and, perhaps, about what they might do later that night.
However, what none of them expected was that Elias' Chimera fusion process would take several times longer than Kevin's.
Twelve hours…
Twenty-four hours…
Forty-eight hours…
By the time the third day arrived, the white-haired boy's pod still hadn't shown the slightest external change—only that it continued to draw in Honkai energy without pause.
The pre-prepared high-density liquid Honkai supply had already been completely consumed. To sustain the process, Kevin poured all 200,000 HW of his own Honkai energy into a converter Vill-V had hastily built, buying enough time for the next shipment to arrive.
Even those who had been utterly confident began to grow uneasy after so long.
"What's going on? The [Chimera Genome] has already fully merged with Elias' body—so why hasn't he awakened yet? Why is he still absorbing Honkai energy?" Mobius demanded, anxiety sharpening her voice.
"I don't know," Mei admitted, her tone strained. "Elias' condition has completely exceeded even our highest projections. But… that might not be a bad thing. At the very least, his vitals are still perfectly stable."
She downed another can of stimulant, her panda eyes betraying days without rest. Despite her exhaustion, she didn't dare close her eyes for even a second.
"Elias has already absorbed more than 3.5 times the Honkai energy Kevin did. I don't know how much longer this will last—but if he completes the fusion successfully…" Mei's tired lips curled into a trembling smile. "Then his power will surely surpass anything we've ever imagined."