Only those who possess the power of a Herrscher can alleviate the process of their own Honkai energy erosion.
Li Zihan confirmed this point after returning to Chaldeas and... having certain things happen with Ana and Rita.
A Herrscher in an incomplete state will instinctively crave Honkai energy, actively drawing it from the outside world, whereas a normal person can only endure it passively. The latter can absorb very little, while the former will actively siphon his Honkai energy, which can, to a certain extent, lessen the burden on him, a walking Honkai source.
The Artificial Herrscher Project would have to be moved up.
The boy, who existed in a quantum state between "critically ill" and "perfectly fine," recalled the pretty faces of the girls around him and decided to initiate the project ahead of schedule.
Among the girls connected to him, almost all were Herrscher adaptors. The moment they encountered a Great Eruption, they would transform. Combined with the power of Fenghuang Down and Jizo Mitama, which he had already absorbed, it would be easy to ensure they retained control of their bodies with their human personalities.
And then—it would be perfectly reasonable for him, whose body was highly eroded from the overuse of Herrscher authority, to ask them to help him share the burden of his excess Honkai energy, wouldn't it?
The boy's eyes lit up, having seemingly found an excellent excuse to get close and cuddly with the girls.
His original plan was to first use the Emiya family's magecraft to maintain his condition, then use the power of erosion to invade the Herrscher Cores and completely stabilize them, minimizing the chance of an eruption and the damage to himself.
But—wasn't this a much better plan?
The boy, who had assimilated the Emiya family's time magecraft that bordered on a "miracle" and combined it with the knowledge of the Law of Order, allowing him to freely adjust his own time, thought with great seriousness.
After all, as long as one was injured to a point that they couldn't bear it alone, they could propose things that would normally earn them a slap, couldn't they? For example, a double bleep—, or sharing a big bed together.
The boy's face was wreathed in smiles, feeling that he could now continue to implant Herrscher Cores to increase the level of erosion in his body, bringing himself even closer to a near-death state.
He was now certain: he had amnesia.
The Honkai energy had already eroded his brain, causing him to lose a vast amount of his memories regarding magecraft and the Divine Keys.
He had forgotten how to deploy the Emiya family's Reality Marble.
He had also forgotten how to unleash the Oath of Judah to forcibly halt the process of Honkai energy erosion.
And he had no idea how to simulate the authority of the Herrscher of Death to resist the erosion with high-speed regeneration.
Right now, he was just an "illiterate" whose power level was somewhere between Kallen-class and Theresa-class.
Li Zihan was certain of this.
Therefore, the most important task now was to gather the personnel of Chaldeas and carry out the third batch of the Artificial Herrscher experiment ahead of schedule. So thought the boy, who had originally planned to extract the "door" from Chen Tianwu's body, complete his own Herrscher transformation, and then initiate the third batch.
This change in plans was for the sake of strengthening the combat power of the human faction.
Li Zihan was certain that his last-minute modification of the plan was for this reason. It was absolutely not for his own, less-than-noble desires.
With this in mind, he casually pulled out his phone, preparing to contact them personally.
And then—a message from another person came through, interrupting his thoughts.
"The time has come to fulfill our pact."
The message was from the one with the ID "Serpent."
The boy, who had alliances with all three of the Honkai world's major powers, narrowed his eyes. A certain ancestor, who had been offline for a very long time collecting humanity's gene pool for the new Fire-Moth and Ark Projects, was finally back online.
The boy, who would clearly rather stay behind and complete his "Honkai Chaldea Paradise Plan" than go to another world with Kevin and Su to rebuild civilization, pouted. However, he had no intention of going back on his word.
"The Artificial Herrscher experiment is nearing its end. When it is complete, I will find a suitable landing spot for the Fire-Moth Project."
With this thought, he casually sent back that reply.
The system had so many bugs; a little poking around was all it took to make it apologize repeatedly, granting him a corresponding number of world-traversing locations and permissions. He already had three traversal locations saved up, which was just enough for himself, Kevin, and Su. For every new bug he could find, he could take another girl with him.
Li Zihan thought back to the buggy functions of the system that most readers had probably already forgotten.
But, speaking of which, what kind of world would be best for rebuilding civilization? A wasteland, a magical world, or just a simple slice-of-life world?
Li Zihan pondered.
Honestly, finding a suitable land to rebuild civilization was quite troublesome.
First, the resources couldn't be too scarce. If resources were pitifully low, you couldn't build a damn thing.
Second, the power level couldn't be too broken. In worldviews like Dies Irae, Tenchi Muyo!, A Certain Magical Index, or even the Little Garden, you were just cannon fodder without the power to bust a planet with a single hit.
Third, the world's rulers needed to have a brain and be able to weigh pros and cons. This was very important. At the very least, it was important for the native inhabitants. Ancestor Kevin was no longer the sunny boy from 50,000 years ago. If he were to be angered now, there was a high probability he would just unleash his Earth-Splitting Sword or an Ice Age.
What a pain. Li Zihan sighed.
[That, if you wish to find a suitable colonization zone, you may need to conduct multiple traversals.]
After a long absence, the voice of a certain useless system piped up.
[This system's transport function is random, not targeted.]
[The only guarantee is that it will not transport you to a world where the average power level is far higher than the host's.]
Same old formula, same old taste.
Sensing the system's description of its own capabilities, Li Zihan couldn't help but roll his eyes internally. This thing was as lame as ever.
"Then we'll just have to make a few more trips." The boy, who clearly didn't mind taking the girls on a few more tours, said with a shrug.
After saying this, he paid no more attention to the heartless traversal machine. He cheerfully took out his phone and opened his contacts.
Before he took Kevin and his group to rebuild the Fire-Moth Project, he first had to resolve the Artificial Herrscher Project, didn't he?
With this thought, the boy casually extended his arm, which was inscribed with the Emiya family's Magic Crest.
Time began to reverse around his body.
His body, where the Honkai energy erosion had been alleviated, once again began to worsen.
One couldn't exactly look as vigorous as a dragon and fierce as a tiger when carrying out that plan, could they?