I am a hero of the former civilization.

So Ryan decisively decided to open a side quest, letting Aponia show herself for several days in a row, and observing the enemy's reaction. However, the pope who went to Mu Continent pretended to be dead and did not launch any counterattack.

This is normal. If the Pope didn't have dementia, he would definitely ask the Law of Death. It wouldn't be hard to guess who was behind this. Any counterattack would be suicide. He could only hide in the shadows and grit his teeth to accumulate strength.

But the attitude of the Moths was ambiguous. Joshua's investigation report and invitation to punish them were submitted, but they disappeared without a trace, as if they had forgotten about the Southern Europe.

"Then Kevin's application to return to headquarters was rejected, and May and I couldn't get in touch with him either."

Ryan stood atop the clock tower, gazing at the small square not far away, where a beautiful nun was preaching.

Aponia was not impassioned; her voice was like a clear brook, and her eyes held compassion for the suffering of the world. She was willing to do good deeds at any cost.

Putting aside the 'precepts', Aponia was an excellent nun. Think about it, she could calm down someone as volatile as Thousand Calamities, so what are ordinary people compared to her?

Gazing at Aponia in the center of the spotlight, Ryan tapped his fingers lightly on the railing. After several days, some things that had been confusing had become clear.

The Fire Chasing Council has not yet been restored, and Grand Master Karius is the most powerful person. He can finally transform from an adjudicator into a chess player, and the moves he makes have made Ryan understand his thoughts.

This person's ambition is indeed great. He is fighting against the Honkai, but he wants to become the true king of mankind, leading mankind into a new era like a standard-bearer.

Therefore, he must eliminate the Fire Chasing Council, or at least take over most of its power.

"Using someone else to do the dirty work? Let both sides suffer heavy losses, use their power to negotiate with me, and then use the lives of the Faithists to reach a cooperation agreement; if I lose, then seize power from the parliament and use the pretext of purging the Faithists to carry out a purge."

Ryan laughed with a hint of sarcasm. The whole plan was definitely not as simple as it seemed; the hardest part was maintaining the balance.

But Ryan didn't think much from the perspective of the Grand Coordinator. This master manipulator underestimated the Faith Faction, thinking they could be eliminated at any time and were a bargaining chip in his hands.

Anyway, no matter who wins, you won't lose out, but you underestimate me too much.

Ryan admitted that Karius was very skilled in political maneuvering and could balance the power of all sides, but for Ryan, the less emphasis 'political maneuvering' would have in the future, the better.

"I only have the destruction in my eyes. I have no time to play power games with you. In chaotic times, harsh measures are necessary. Since we have decided to take action, we must leave no future troubles."

With things going on like this in the Holy City, everyone had no choice. The Faith faction couldn't stand by and watch Ryan cause trouble everywhere, and the Grand Coordinator also felt the time was ripe. The two conspired to gather the other councilors who were unaware of the situation.

Ryan didn't want to waste any more time with them, and for him, this was the only chance—a chance to clear all the obstacles in one fell swoop.

He watched as Aponia finished her sermon and slowly walked down the clock tower. Outside the door was a small alley where Padofelis and Thousand Calamities were already waiting.

Paddy carried her luggage, her eyes filled with reluctance. She had just terminated her apartment lease today and knew that Ryan was finally going to get moving. If she could, she hoped that these carefree days would never end.

Qianjie leaned against the wall, shaking his leg impatiently. When he saw Ryan come down, his eyes were filled with excitement.

"Are we finally setting off?"

"Hmm, what's wrong, Jie-ge? You seem very happy."

"Bullshit, we've wasted so much time here with you. Let's finish this quickly so we can keep our promise. And who is this 'Brother Jie'?"

"What, you really hate your life lately?"

"Hmm, a little bit, but never mind, it's none of your business."

Hey, hey, hey, don't look up at the sky! You're clearly enjoying yourself, aren't you? The next few days you'll be cooking and cleaning.

Ryan chuckled to himself, feeling a little regretful that Qianjie couldn't be teased, as he was the type to explode at the slightest provocation, the exact opposite of Mebius. He loved seeing Mebius's blood pressure explode and his helpless expression.

Hmm... I hope Mebius won't have picked up bad habits from Qianjie during this meeting.

He suddenly realized a major problem, but before he could think about it, Aponia walked into the alley.

“I have already said goodbye to Father Joshua.”

"What did he say?" Ryan asked, turning his head. Even though they had never met the fusion warrior, they both knew of each other's existence.

"He encouraged me to act boldly, for evil must be punished and justice must be served."

The last two sentences were redundant; Ryan already understood. He had been investigating Joshua's background file these past few days and found an interesting record:

Before joining the Firemoth, he was a priest in a monastery who adopted many orphans. Then one day, he returned home from preaching and all the children had disappeared. When they were found, they had been brutally murdered in human experiments.

To this day, it is still unknown who organized the human experiments, after all, Honkai energy is not something that only the Moth Chaser is researching.

From a normal person's perspective, Joshua should abhor human experimentation, so his stance is quite clear.

“This is a gift from Father Joshua. He said we’ll definitely need it.” Aponia took out an identification card, which allows entry to the Firemoth’s military base.

Ryan took it and nodded silently: "I'll remember this favor. Let's go find a plane first."

Before he could put his ID card in his pocket, a large hand had already pressed it down.

"I'll drive; I suddenly feel a bit itchy to drive."

"you?"

Ryan's eyes were filled with suspicion. He quickly remembered that Qianjie was not a barbarian, but an alien who had mastered advanced space technology. According to the information he provided, humanity would soon enter the space travel stage.

"Isn't it possible?"

"Alright, alright, why are you being so fierce?" Ryan had no choice but to let go, then looked at the energetic Qian Jie, feeling that he had made a mistake.

......

Melbourne, Australia.

The night wind blew across the rooftop of the Sand Rabbit Biotechnology headquarters, making this 100-story giant building seem to stand tall in the clouds, its dim red lights flashing to alert passing aircraft.

There was a helicopter landing pad in the very center of the rooftop, and next to it, Mebius stood with one arm crossed over his chest and the other hand pressing down on his long hair, staring coldly into the distance.

About five or six meters away, a pink-haired, fox-eared girl leaned on a knife in one hand, staring at him warily.

Sakura arrived in the afternoon and was having a headache about how to receive Ryan, who had come from afar, but it turned out that Mebius had already finished the task.

The building's sprinkler system emitted white smoke, instantly affecting hundreds of people, including several fusion warriors. They sat like puppets, mechanically performing their tasks, oblivious to what was happening before their eyes.

This is terrifying. If Mebius wanted to kill them, he could do it in an instant.

"Don't be so nervous, I won't harm my comrades." The snake-like girl played with her long hair by her ear, silently adding in her mind: At least until a potion targeting high-level fusion warriors is developed, I won't do anything.

"I was just keeping watch around, I wasn't nervous." Sakura shook her head decisively, then asked curiously, "What kind of potion was that? How did you reassure your superiors?"

"Heh, a bunch of idiots, do you really think you can keep an eye on me by sending a few morons?" Möbius waved his hand and said smugly, "A kind of mental soothing poison gas, combined with physical hypnosis, means that surveillance will no longer exist when I leave New York."

"What about the high-ranking Fusion Warrior stationed in Melbourne? Will he also be affected?"

"You mean that cross-dresser? Last night when we had dinner together, I added something to his black tea. He's probably living the high life now and has no energy to care about me."

That's terrifying. They had secretly planned everything before we even arrived. Luckily, I didn't bring the bell with me.

Sakura breathed a sigh of relief, no longer wanting to pay attention to the smug Mebius, and looked up at the gloomy night sky, lost in thought.

I never imagined it would come to this...

When she joined the Firemoth, she thought she could become a savior under Ryan's command, but she later found that this was not the case at all. There were too many people who were holding her back, and too many people who hated the Fusion Warriors as much as they hated their own ears.

Humanity cannot unite as one to fully confront the challenge of the Honkai, especially since the Honkai has not yet unleashed its full power.

A surge of resentment welled up within her. As an assassin, Sakura didn't quite understand Dr. Mei's grand principles and preferred Ryan's methods, which involved using violence to sweep everything away.

'As his sword, I am prepared to be scorned.'

Sakura appeared indifferent and resolute. Looking at Mebius, she couldn't help but say, "I didn't expect that you would join us without hesitation."

"Huh? Why can't I join?" Mebius asked, puzzled.

"Because no matter the outcome, it won't affect you, you don't care about the survival of humanity, and in terms of goals, a desperate Ryan is more beneficial to you."

Her purple eyes appeared aloof, and Sakura was too lazy to hide anything from him.

This direct question made Mebius's eyes twitch, and he awkwardly crossed his arms: "That makes some sense. So, do you think I'm playing a trick?"

“No, you and I are both eager to help him.” Sakura took a breath and said solemnly:

"So Dr. Mebius, you do like Ryan, don't you?"

Chapter 261 Mebius is going to hold a grudge!

Ah? ?

Mebius was momentarily stunned, mentally calculating her score with Ryan, planning to settle it properly when they met later. She spoke somewhat perfunctorily to Sakura, merely killing time.

Then, as they were talking, he suddenly stopped breathing and looked up.

What is this guy saying? And he's being way too direct! Damn it, he has absolutely no ladylike manners.

She instinctively wanted to be defiant, but when she saw Sakura's eyes, she hesitated slightly before speaking, her eyes quickly scanning her surroundings, and then she straightened her chest.

"That's right, what do you want?"

For the first time ever, Mebius admitted it. Fortunately, it was Sakura standing there. Apart from feeling a little surprised, she didn't show any mockery or anything like that. She even seemed a little relieved.

"Indeed, this makes sense."

"What explanation makes sense?"

"It means your feelings have exceeded your ideals, and you will do things that are not in your best interest."

Sakura didn't mince words; her directness made Möbius's eyes widen. She was very unhappy with this statement, as if she had been insulted.

"Nonsense, do you think I'm like Alicia, all love-struck?"

“Miss Alicia loves everything, not at all what you think, and you really have impressed me.” Sakura smiled slightly, and casually tied her hair, which had been blowing wildly in the night wind, into a ponytail, making her look exceptionally capable.

"Look at him with new eyes" sounds a bit strange.

Mebius felt something was off, so he took out a rubber band and tied his long green hair into pigtails.

"Isn't it the same for you?"

“It’s different. My goal has always been to protect Bell, so I’ve been Ryan’s partner from the very beginning.”

"Don't make it sound like I'm being forced. To tell you the truth, Ryan also fits my concept of evolution. He's a valuable sample, so it's not just a matter of emotion."

"Dr. Möbius, is it meaningful for you to argue with me?"

"Interesting. I'm not love-struck; I'm a rational and intelligent being."

She really has a strong sense of pride. No wonder she hasn't made any progress with Ryan after so long. She deserves it.

Sakura gently shook her head. She said these things because she and Mebius had agreed to unite against external threats. According to the message Ryan sent back, he didn't come alone.

Who will be the outstanding woman this time? I'd really like to see her.

The girl stood as still as a sword, her pupils contracting as she looked up at the sky, a touch of pink appearing in her field of vision.

Someone's here, this feeling...