Mobius possessed a unique perspective on the beings known as Herrschers.
'Herrschers' were originally individuals 'chosen' from humanity, undergoing a metamorphosis to become special beings wielding immense power.
In her eyes, they were the key for humanity to evolve to a higher state of being, possessing immeasurable value.
Precisely because of this, she was deeply dissatisfied with the 'Divine Key' project, primarily proposed by Dr. Mei and developed under Vill-V's supervision.
She considered this crude exploitation of Herrscher abilities to be short-sighted and wasteful.
This highlighted the fundamental difference between them.
Mobius pursued evolution, transcending the present to grasp the infinite possibilities of the future.
Dr. Mei's objective, however, was quite the opposite. Her aim was simply to ensure humanity could safely survive the coming disaster, allowing human civilization to endure.
It's difficult to say who was right or wrong between the two.
After all, everyone understood that without long-term vision, the path forward would inevitably narrow.
Yet, with limited resources, difficult choices about priorities had to be made. In truth, both women were keenly aware of this reality.
The 'MANTIS Project', an extremely high-risk, radical initiative, was Mobius's proposed solution to the worsening war situation.
Dr. Mei, for her part, often turned a blind eye to Mobius's clandestine and taboo research. It was precisely because of this tacit acceptance that Mobius continued her research concerning Herrschers, even those who had lost their Cores...
You have to understand, the resistance Mobius faced when she first secretly began researching Herrscher corpses was immense—even Elysia expressed doubts about her actions...
But the Stigmata, derived from her in-depth research on these bodies, and the subsequent 'Stigmata Project,' were the perfect achievements to silence the critics.
After dedicating even more time than usual to her intensive research, Mobius had figured out most of the secrets surrounding Herrschers, except for the most crucial aspects: their 'Cores' and 'Authorities,' which she still couldn't directly research.
It was precisely because of this extensive knowledge that when Mobius heard Lin Wei's sudden proposal about 'withdrawal,' she burst into raucous, mocking laughter as if she'd just heard the funniest joke in the world—
'Herrschers? Ah hehe... Hahahahaha!'
Mobius's laughter was completely unrestrained. She trembled, rocking back and forth, making one wonder if she'd fall off her seat any second.
She laughed heartily for quite a while before gradually stopping, though her tone still dripped with thick, mocking amusement.
"You naive little lab rat," she sneered, "do you even have any idea what a 'Herrscher' truly is?"
"Create Herrschers? You think I don't want to? I've desperately wanted to, alright!"
"But the 'MANTISes related to Honkai Beast genes and the 'Herrschers' who are the source of Stigmata—these are two completely different fields of study, you know?"
"Otherwise, why do you think the artificially modulated 'Stigmata Genes' can perfectly integrate into the original human genome sequence, while the artificially modulated 'Meta-Morph Factors' cannot?"
Given Mobius's personality, if there truly were a way to insert 'Meta-Morph Factors' into the human genetic sequence, she would have damn well done it ages ago!
That's why she found Lin Wei's naivety and ignorance so amusing. Yet, at the same time, she found his wildly imaginative and bold idea intriguing, even feeling a subtle hint of favour towards him.
After all, geniuses despise mediocrity the most. Someone brimming with fantastical ideas could at least provide her with inspiration and entertainment.
In fact, if this were the Previous Era, and someone had proposed such a 'Create Herrschers' plan, Mobius would have eagerly adopted it.
But in this era, such a 'research project' wouldn't even get off the ground before being completely shut down at the source.
After all, as one of the ultimate outcomes from the end of that Previous Era, the Herrschers of this generation—their numbers, their Authorities, even the order of their awakening—were already set in stone.
They were like twelve trophies from that bygone era, entrusted to another of their creations to be managed and 'distributed' sequentially.
Under these circumstances, creating a new Herrscher? What kind of joke was that!
Take all the plans they sacrificed everything to implement successfully, and then personally introduce a game-breaking bug?
Did he even realize the unpredictable consequences that would arise if he actually succeeded?
Perhaps the chaotic-good, perpetually unrestrained Vill-V might find such an idea intriguing. But Mobius, the lawful-evil snake with a surprisingly high internal moral code, wouldn't even entertain the thought of touching such a concept.
But how could the ever-stubborn serpent so easily reveal her true thoughts?
Right now, the best course of action was simply to relentlessly mock the naive fool!
"Herrschers... well, I suppose I know a little something about them," Lin Wei retorted calmly. "After all, Rin and I are pretty good friends."
Lin Wei chuckled dismissively, unfazed.
"Besides," he continued, "from what I know, there are three active Herrschers out in the world right now. One older one is working as a teacher, highly respected for her diligence and virtue."
"The other two, born more recently, are students. One is an excellent student, the teacher's pet, you could say. The other spends all day sleeping in class, skipping lessons, failing exams... utterly hopeless even among the slackers. Drives the substitute teacher to drink her sorrows away every day..."
Lin Wei paused, feigning a look of amazement.
"Seems like Herrschers like that aren't too hard to understand," he remarked. "When they aren't recklessly using their powers, they're not all that different from regular humans."
Lin Wei's answer, which seemed completely beside the point, momentarily stunned Mobius. This was quickly followed by a wave of intense, inexplicable irritation.
The Herrschers of this era... they really are completely different from the ones in our time, Mobius thought darkly.
At the same time, a fervent desire welled up within her – a wish to go out and see the world outside, the new era that their real selves had fought tooth and nail to build.
"Isn't this, too, a form of infinity?"
Mobius mused, a touch of appreciation softening her thoughts.
But as a mere memory entity, she was confined to this cage called the Elysian Realm.
She could only hear snippets of information about the outside world from visitors like Lin Wei, never able to witness it herself. How could this not make her anxious, not fill her with frustration?
Lin Wei quietly observed the subtle shifts in Mobius's expression. He recalled hearing that Mobius had once undergone a significant "personality change" due to an outsider's words, becoming far more paranoid and dangerous.
So, it really wasn't because of her 'original self's death', he mused. It's more likely that those words struck a chord with her longing for the future, making her even more desperate to break free from the Elysian Realm's confines.
He had deliberately steered the conversation in this direction precisely to achieve a similar effect, and it seemed to be working quite well.
Lin Wei had known for a long time that Mobius was an exceptionally unique memory entity.
This "uniqueness" wasn't just because of her overtly rebellious spirit.
It was because while the other memory entities had naturally accepted the reality of simply being memories—more or less sinking into their past recollections, becoming shadows merely extending their former existence, and subtly rejecting information from the real world—only Mobius, from beginning to end, refused to be content with this state.
She desperately wanted to transcend her status as a "memory entity," return to reality, and become the true Mobius once more.
You have to understand, before Lin Wei showed up, even the most restless individual, Vill-V, had her existence narrowed down solely to researching all sorts of bizarre 'Anti-Kevin Armaments'.
When Elysia and the others believed their stories had already concluded, only Mobius resolutely intended to continue writing hers, never stopping, just like her lifelong pursuit of "infinity."
Compared to the routinely erratic Vill-V, this Mobius seemed like a much better potential collaborator—provided one could pique her interest and make an offer she found satisfactory.
Of course, the most crucial point was convincing her that he posed no threat to the Elysian Realm or her companions within it. Though she never voiced it, she actually cared deeply about every single person there.
Stubborn snakes will be stubborn snakes...
So, although Lin Wei desperately wanted to directly propose his terms—"You help me solve my problem, and I'll help you leave the Elysian Realm"—such a blunt approach was far more likely to arouse Mobius's suspicion and hostility than to successfully establish a mutually beneficial transaction.
The probable outcome? Getting himself ejected from the Realm and permanently blacklisted, becoming persona non grata.
It couldn't be helped. Assisting outsiders with troubles originating from the real world fundamentally wasn't part of the Flame-Chasers' duties. After all, their sole responsibility was to pass on their Signets.
Consequently, truly interacting with them, especially on matters beyond the Realm, was an inherently difficult task.
Previously, within the Elysian Realm, Lin Wei had been desireless, content to go with the flow. To some extent, this mindset resonated well with these Flame-Chasers. Coupled with the fact that he had 'studied up' beforehand, their interactions had been relatively smooth.
Even so, the Flame-Chasers Lin Wei truly got along well with here were only Elysia, Hua, and Vill-V.
Because of these complex realities, even with Elysia's understanding and help, and Vill-V's perhaps intentional or unintentional assists, he still had to find ways to carefully navigate the situation, attempting to establish common ground and a tacit understanding with Mobius.
"Hmph, Herrschers? They're just humans who happened to gain some special powers, that's all. Nothing remarkable."
Mobius struggled to suppress the strange irritation bubbling within her, speaking in a deliberately calm tone.
"As for that little follower of yours? Whether she gets such an opportunity... well, we'll probably have to put her on my operating table, carefully cut her open, and take a look inside. Only then will we know the answer—"
She was always like this—able to flash a cruel smile while uttering utterly chilling words in an unnervingly calm voice, making it sound as casual as taking a sip of water. No wonder people often misunderstood the 'Snake'.
"Oh? I thought you'd classify her under the 'MANTIS' category. After all, the power she possesses originally comes from Honkai Beast abilities," Lin Wei replied, clearly unfazed by her posturing threats, instead pushing the conversation forward smoothly.
"I assumed she was essentially a natural MANTIS. But judging by your attitude, Doctor, it seems she's quite different from MANTISes in the traditional sense?"
To be a good setup man, a little bit of playing dumb is necessary, Lin Wei thought. Otherwise, how do you give the other person room to shine?
"MANTIS? Ha! Compared to us, your little follower fits that title far better."
Mobius chuckled, seemingly amused by Lin Wei's ignorance.
"After all," she explained, "compared to concoctions made from gene fragments extracted from dead Honkai Beasts, being parasitized by a living Honkai Beast—having your bodies, genes, and even consciousness highly merged, gradually becoming a true Honkai Beast in human form... don't you think that is genuine 'fusion'?"
"Oh, is that how it is?" Lin Wei raised an eyebrow.
"You figured out that much just by glancing at her once?"
"Little lab rat, did you really think something so obvious required complex instruments to verify?" Mobius looked down at Lin Wei haughtily, clearly relishing the intellectual beatdown. "Don't forget, the very existence of the 'MANTIS' is merely one of my many research accomplishments."
"So," Mobius continued, leaning back slightly, "after talking my ear off like this, are you perhaps hoping I'll help you... tame this disobedient little creature?"
After their lengthy chat, she found herself actually starting to like this Lin Wei fellow, even if her way of expressing it was... peculiar.
"'Tame'? That word sounds a bit odd, but the meaning should be close enough."
Wasn't this the whole point of his rambling? Lin Wei readily admitted it.
"Strictly speaking," he clarified, "it's not about making her a 'Honkai Beast in human form,' but rather 'a person who can control Honkai Beast power.' Just like those 'people who can control Herrscher power,' able to use their abilities constructively and return to a normal life."
"Hmph, what kind of worthless bunch are the Herrschers of this era?" Mobius grumbled, clearly displeased.
"Tch, how boring. So that's what you meant by 'an existence similar to a Herrscher'?"
"Uh-huh~"
Lin Wei nonchalantly admitted it, then immediately felt a pang of regret.
Damn it, I'm picking up bad habits from a certain someone... he thought wryly.
"While it sounds rather dull," Mobius began, "I must admit, she certainly is a rare little specimen~ Definitely worth a thorough study. However..."
Mobius paused, a deeply ambiguous smile spreading across her face. Her voice took on a serpentine quality as she leaned closer.
"...To ask me to exert such considerable effort," she purred, "what exactly are you prepared to offer in return, hmm? My dear little lab rat?"