I am a hero of the former civilization.

“You should know what the ‘Faith Faction’ is. Many of you may have received invitations, but the reason for refusing was not some mission, but simply to hedge your bets.”

"Only by standing on the side of the victor can you keep what you have, and even go further to obtain infinite lifespan. But this is not your fault. The current Herrschers are indeed very seductive. They know how to give and then reap."

"In other words, you are also victims, because the Herrschers will eventually reap what they sow; they have simply chosen an easier path."

Ryan's words weren't exactly sharp, but they were enough to cut to the heart, because warriors don't care about such things.

Immediately, someone retorted: "Dr. Ryan, we don't even know what a Herrscher is, so your assumption may not be true."

"Assumption? No, it is the truth, the undeniable truth."

"Where's the evidence?"

“By the time you find the evidence, it will be too late. Even I can’t turn the tide.” Ryan shifted his posture, no longer wanting to waste words with them. “Let’s end the interrogation here. Continuing is just a waste of time. I can only cooperate with you temporarily, and cooperation is no longer enough for me.”

No one spoke; they were all watching the man in the high-backed chair. They understood that the final verdict in this farce was approaching, and they were calculating how much they would have to sacrifice to satisfy the other party.

"The Fire Chasing Council will retain its power of decision-making, control over the Fire Chasing Moth, and your respective industries will be handed over to the new Chief of Staff. I have decided that I will serve as the Chief of Staff, and Dr. May will serve as the Chief of Staff."

Ryan's tone left no room for negotiation, completely undermining the concept of 'democracy', leaving the members of parliament utterly shocked.

This is hardly an exchange of benefits; it's clearly a case of swallowing everything whole, no different from taking advantage of someone completely.

Some people remained silent, clearly understanding the situation, while others were skeptical, feeling that Ryan shouldn't be so naive as to think that he could take advantage of them by holding them hostage.

"Dr. Ryan, aren't you being a bit too domineering?"

“That’s right, I’m that domineering, that’s the power of the victor.” Ryan nodded decisively.

"Ha, you really think that by detaining us, you can control tens of thousands of factories?"

“I know you are spokespeople for various interest groups, and I don’t have that many confidants to control each one around the world.”

"Then why did you make such a request?"

Ryan coldly swept his gaze over the group of important figures, his tone unhurried: "I know you're not convinced and are thinking of enduring it for now, turning your backs on me as soon as you leave, or sabotaging our cooperation. When it comes to playing tricks, no one in the world is better than you."

"But since I dare to propose it, I am sure I can do it."

The explanation and the conclusion were completely different, leaving everyone, including Mei, baffled. They wondered if this person had gone mad. Just then, light footsteps sounded from the back door. The councilors, who were already on edge, quickly turned around and saw two young girls.

Sakura, with her long fox ears, walked in front, holding a long sword. Her murderous aura made people back. Aponia, dressed in a nun's habit, followed closely behind, scanning the surroundings with a compassionate gaze.

The lawmakers were baffled. Was this some kind of intimidation tactic, or were they planning to use a honey trap?

Just as I was wondering, I suddenly heard an extremely gentle voice.

"Please sit down and keep quiet."

The voice was gentle, without Ryan's aggressive tone, but the councilors all stared in horror. They found that their hands and feet were not under their control, and they actually sat down. What was even more terrifying was that they had no resistance at all.

They did whatever the woman said, and they did it happily.

This is.....

Mei's eyes widened slightly. She suddenly understood why Ryan dared to place the bet and looked at the nun with some apprehension.

Aponia, devoid of joy or sorrow, swayed her slender waist as she stepped onto the frozen platform, standing beside Ryan like a maid. The man in the high-backed chair, however, still propped his head up, his eyes radiating an air of absolute confidence, a kingly arrogance.

"The Herrschers, they, and you, are nothing but my pawns." He pointed his index finger at the group of obediently seated councilors.

"So when did you develop the misconception that you could turn your back on someone afterward?"

Chapter 276 Am I... an Emperor?!

it is finally over.

Ryan looked at the silent conference room and saw the expressionless faces, and his heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down.

All those battles and fights were just for this one step: to get most of the councilors to listen to Aponia's request, completely turn the situation around, and from then on, never have to fight against their own people again.

"That's it? Is it really that simple?"

May glanced at the silent meeting room, where every tombstone indicated agreement, and all of Ryan's proposals were passed by a majority vote.

Actually, taking this step isn't difficult; few people would be willing to die if a knife was held to their throat. The difficulty lies in preventing the legislators from engaging in underhanded tactics afterward.

"Okay, that's it. They'll be very obedient from now on."

"Just the few requests she made?"

"Yes, just those few requests."

Mei's lips twitched. If it weren't for her trust in Ryan and the meticulousness of a scientist, she would have said on the spot that this was a joke.

"Hypnosis? Or consciousness alteration? There are now fusion warriors with mental abilities, so it won't be difficult to unravel it."

"Don't worry, no one can undo it, because this thing is not hypnosis at all, but a commandment. Apart from the Herrscher, no one can oppose Aponia's request."

Ryan explained that this was sufficient for May's intelligence.

Discipline? So all this time he'd been waiting for was this woman, but how could he be sure this nun possessed the power of 'Discipline'?

Mei felt unusually overwhelmed, her mind racing, and she ended up covering her head in frustration.

"Please, don't worry too much, Miss Mei. My abilities have been tested, and my stance is not in question."

A gentle voice sounded, and then Mei's pupils contracted sharply, as her wandering thoughts were instantly pulled back, as if she had been manipulated.

She sized up the nun with the perfect figure, her gaze becoming serious and wary.

"Ryan, do you know what she means?"

It's no exaggeration to say that this nun's destructive power is even greater than that of a Herrscher. A single sentence from her is enough to change the future. Such a dangerous being should be locked away in the deepest recesses of the earth and only released occasionally.

"Of course I know. Don't worry, I made an agreement with Aponia. She won't use the power of the Commandments without my permission, because this power is uncontrollable. It might become a trump card, or it might become the source of destruction."

Ryan is serious, and he won't use Aponia lightly; a single word could cause a disaster.

Is she really that obedient?

May glanced at Aponia again, somewhat disbelieving, yet forced to believe, because with her help, Ryan had pulled off an impossible comeback.

All operations were conducted within the framework of the rules. Even without the Herrschers and the Faith faction taking the blame, Ryan never acted as a traitor.

He carried out the parliament's orders, overcame numerous difficulties to finally accept the questioning, and incidentally uncovered a massive conspiracy. By all accounts, he was meritorious and blameless. As for the resulting killings and destruction, they could all be considered misunderstandings.

Everyone is carrying out orders. If there is any mistake, it must be the Fire Chasing Council that is at fault. They issued contradictory orders, so what does it have to do with the executors?

Of course, the Fire Chasing Council also recognized its mistake, decided to reform the Fire Chasing Moth, and unanimously approved the new appointments.

The outcome was quite strange, and there were inevitably various tests afterwards. However, with the 'commandments' in place, no one could deny the result, because the councilors had indeed entrusted Ryan with enormous responsibility and power at their request.

"You really orchestrated a massive conspiracy. Everyone will be suspicious, but no one can overturn the decision. And you predicted all along that Kevin and his team wouldn't be able to defeat those Herrschers?"

"It would be best if we could take it down, but it's not a loss if we can't. We have a common enemy, so even if we have some doubts, we have no choice but to grit our teeth and unite," Ryan replied slowly. The outcome was already predetermined, and he was just going with the flow.

"It's a pity those people ran too fast and couldn't do it perfectly."

“Nothing in this world is perfect. They’re not stupid, but things have become simpler.” Mei took a breath and showed a relieved expression: “The earth will be divided into two simple factions. No one can hedge their bets or drag others down in the dark anymore.”

"On one side are Herrschers, Honkai Beasts, and human traitors; on the other side are the Moths of Flame. Humanity is more divided than before, yet more united."

Her words startled Sakura and Aponia. The latter had only been following orders and hadn't thought much about it. Only after hearing her say this did they realize the significance of what they had done.

The world has gone from chaos to clarity, which is more beneficial than harmful, because now everyone is no longer afraid of being attacked from behind and can focus all their efforts on dealing with the Honkai.

It's either a friend or an enemy; I dare not say more, but at least it saves a lot of brain cells.

Ryan had a strange expression on his face because the thing sounded very familiar.

Dark Fusion Warrior, Herrscher, traitor to humanity? And then humanity became more united after this, fighting against the Honkai under my leadership?

He glanced at the ice-blue high-backed chair and felt that it had turned into a golden toilet. He immediately felt very unlucky and quickly stood up.

"Why are you suddenly so nervous? Are you feeling immense pressure? In a sense, you've become the flag bearer and emperor of humanity," Mei said, unintentionally adding insult to injury.

Human emperor, emperor?

Ryan immediately moved further away from the 'throne' and frowned, saying, "I don't want to deal with that nonsense. You can do it from now on. Anyway, you're better at it than I am."

"Hey, you've only just taken office and you're already quitting?"

“I’m just lending my name here. I’m not really good at this kind of thing anyway. Besides, you really like working, so now you’ll have endless things to do. Just doing research is really limiting your talents.”

Ryan moved even faster. He must have been bored to take over Karius's job. Even without the power struggle, the allocation of resources alone was enough to make anyone go bald.

"and many more......"

I'll wait for you, you idiot.

He wanted to ask Mei what ability she had awakened, but when it came time to divide the spoils, only a fool would stay.

“I have a lot to do, I need to focus my energy on the battle. Sakura, Aponia, you two stay here. Mei, pass on the orders to the teams. I’ll go and try to see if I can catch the Herrscher.”

He spoke very quickly, and before the others could react, he disappeared into the silent hall.

Mei couldn't catch up quickly enough, so she had to lower her raised hand and look at Ying, who was trying not to laugh: "Did I fall into his trap?"

“Dr. Mei, an organization is not just about fighting. No one is more suitable than you to take control of the overall situation. Besides, weren’t you already preparing to take over the Moth of Fire?” Sakura advised in a low voice. She knew that Ryan was not simply lazy. Knowing how to use people is the most valuable quality of a leader.

“Not being attached to power is certainly a unique quality, but why not just make me the overall commander?” Mei snorted softly.

"Because he is the only one who can unite everyone, you are sometimes too rational."

May glanced at Aponia, seemingly agreeing with her statement. If she were to make the decision, her first order would be to lock the nun in the deepest place.

Pure rationality is never wrong, but it's not necessarily a good thing, because other people have feelings and don't want to be just numbers.

Have you noticed?

"Ok?"

“Ryan is a combination of me and Alicia, not as unconventional, but not cruel either.”

Sakura pondered for a moment, then nodded gently.

"Yes, pure emotion can make one soft-hearted, and pure rationality can be terrifying. That's why I followed him."

......

The sky and sea were set ablaze, the evaporated seawater turned into steam, which rolled back into the sky, and then a dense downpour began.

The temperature was terrifyingly high, but somewhere on the sea, a large patch of ice had frozen over, forming a wall across the surface. Behind the wall, Kevin was slightly bent over, panting heavily.

The Herrscher of Flame is powerful, but still no match for them. However, with the Herrscher of Death added to the mix, the difficulty increases exponentially. Even though Kevin was hit solidly by her punch, she recovered instantly, causing Kevin to be stabbed.