Honkai Impact: I, The Herrscher of Ice, Am Loved By Players-Chapter 173: Please Don’t Jealously Compete Over Me!

Please support me on Patreon, where you can read a bunch of extra Chapters, not just for this novel, but for all the novels I'm working on. I upload at least 2 times daily for most novels - There are at least twice as many available Chapters on Patreon, compared to here on Webnovel.

Additionally, there are also free extra Chapters available for Free Members, so head on over:

Patreon.com/ThatGreatStuff

******

"Mobius's relics... You should understand, she wasn't one to leave room for retreat." Kevin's eyes flickered momentarily before he spoke slowly.

"Yes, I understand. Snakes never yield to death, and with her Infinite Inscription, she always moves forward as a means of retreat, showing little attachment to anything else." Bai Zhi nodded in agreement, but somehow, she still held onto a sliver of hope. Regardless of whether Kalpas could be revived, his genes alone were valuable. If Otto's technology was used to clone replicants based on his extraterrestrial physiology, wouldn't that create beings even more formidable than super-soldiers?

It might sound somewhat cruel, but how should one put it? For an entity like the Lord of Finality, this isn't considered significant. Moreover, it wouldn't inherently harm anyone's interests.

Even if clones were created, they would likely be granted power.

Of course, these thoughts were just musings for Ana; she wasn't a biology expert after all. Ultimately, what she truly cared about was Kalpas himself and Elysia's mention of Calamities.

If it proved unfeasible, there would be no real loss for her; it would simply mean gaining a deeper understanding of the Heroic Spirits.

As for her future self... Ana actually had other means to escape, though none were guaranteed success; she would need to gradually explore and discover them herself.

After all, the path she now treads has no predecessors' experiences to draw from.

"Gray Serpent, do you have any leads?" Ana turned to address Gray Serpent beside her.

Being one of Mobius's creations, Gray Serpent's understanding of the Infinite surpassed even Kevin's. In fact, the original Lord of World Serpents should have been Mobius himself.

Therefore, if Kevin was unaware, there was a possibility that Gray Serpent might know something.

"My lord, before the previous civilization vanished, I preserved some remnants. However, I am uncertain if they contain what my lord seeks," Gray Serpent hesitated briefly before respectfully responding.

Updat𝒆d fr𝑜m freewebnøvel.com.

"No harm in checking. Let's go take a look first." Bai Zhi waved her hand nonchalantly. To her, it was a win-win situation: if successful, she gains immensely; if not, there's little loss. With nothing else pressing at the moment, it was the perfect opportunity to investigate further.

"Then please follow me, my lord!" Gray Serpent bowed courteously and led the way ahead. Ana stood up, ready to accompany them, but before leaving, she glanced back at Kevin once more.

"Kevin, would you like to come along?"

"I'm not interested in her research."

His response remained cold and distant, indicating that Kevin indeed had no interest in Mobius's studies—a sentiment quite understandable. After all, Kevin was not primarily focused on scientific research, and much of Mobius's work delved into bold and even taboo subjects.

"Alright then, see you later. You might want to get prepared! At least, changing your clothes would be a good start!" Bai Zhi chuckled lightly, whistling as she spoke.

"??????"

Kevin frowned slightly, watching Bai Zhi with confusion, unsure what she meant by her words. However, Bai Zhi did not clarify further, turning instead to follow Gray Serpent away.

Naturally, Cang Luan stayed close by Bai Zhi's side without leaving her for a moment. Consequently, the once bustling temple now emptied, leaving only Kevin behind.

Alone, Kevin sat on the throne, gazing after Bai Zhi's departing figure before closing his eyes.

Regardless of what Ana intended to do, he would support her fully. Thus, there was no need for him to ponder; all he needed to do was wait...

As Gray Serpent pushed open the ancient door, dust billowed forth. Instinctively, Cang Luan stepped in front of Bai Zhi, using his Authority to shield her from the debris.

With the bright lights illuminating, what came into view was a vast laboratory.

Bai Zhi entered first, scanning her surroundings meticulously, then subtly glanced at Gray Serpent.

"It seems Gray Serpent's description was too conservative; this... is unmistakably Infinite's laboratory," Bai Zhi silently observed within herself.

After the tragedy of the Binding, the Fire Moth organization had realized the possibility of their failure and began preparations for survival. However, everything unfolded too abruptly. Before being sealed, the Herrscher of Corruption activated all human nuclear weapons, destroying the remaining large cities, leaving humanity with no chance of recovery.

This laboratory likely emerged under similar circumstances. Due to its underground location, it has been preserved until now, much like the Golden Courtyard's Elysian Realm.

It appears that Mobius indeed made preparations to endure and continue fighting.

However, ultimately, she chose to abandon her physical form and embrace true infinity. Perhaps now, she has achieved genuine infinity, but it differs significantly from her state as the Lord of Finality.

And perhaps, the original Mobius may never return.

"The items here... have they been untouched by anyone else?" Bai Zhi scanned the surroundings, searching for possible hidden compartments, while questioning Gray Serpent who accompanied her closely.

"Not at all, my lord. This is the doctor's laboratory; how could the mediocre individuals of this era dare to disturb such a sacred place?!"

"In that case, would you consider Jackal among those mediocres?"

Bai Zhi opened a container, sniffed it, and frowned. After five millennia, many things here had lost their value. Unlike the Elysian Realm, continuously maintained by Klein, this place had deteriorated over time.

"Not quite a mediocrity, but compared to the doctor, she falls far short. Her vision is still too limited."

"Hmm, a fair assessment."

Bai Zhi nodded internally; she felt that Jackal was somewhat overly arrogant. Despite standing on the shoulders of giants, his creations likely wouldn't impress the true Mobius.

It could only be said that while she possessed Mobius's temperament, she lacked Mobius's genius. Consequently, it wasn't surprising that in the original storyline, the World Serpent ultimately discarded her as nothing more than a disposable tool.

Moreover, she herself seemed unaware of being merely a pawn.

"Ah, how troublesome! Nuwa!" Bai Zhi exclaimed, summoning an ELF - none other than Scroll of Nuwa.

For a significant portion of the story, Nuwa appeared absent, but in reality, she continued to play a role, albeit after being tossed by Ana into a laboratory in Austria.

However, Nuwa proved utterly unreliable, slacking off all day in the lab. Despite becoming an ELF, she showed no sense of responsibility and instead behaved much like Qingque from neighboring labs.

"What do you want? I was having such a good sleep," Nuwa grumbled, rubbing her sleepy eyes with reluctance.

As Gray Serpent noticed Nuwa's appearance nearby, his crimson mechanical eyes glowed red.

"Ah, isn't this Miss Nuwa? How did you end up looking like this?"

"Huh? Are you Gray Serpent? You're still alive?" Nuwa was taken aback upon hearing Gray Serpent's voice and responded with surprise.

Bai Zhi wasn't at all surprised by their acquaintance. In the past, Fuxi and Nuwa were assistants in Dr. Mobius's laboratory; they later chose to leave due to ideological differences.

In reality, their departure occurred quite late. One could only say that at that time, Fuxi and Nuwa had not yet fully grasped the situation, unaware that Mobius' research was already preparing for the worst-case scenario.

During extraordinary times, extraordinary measures become necessary. The question of cruelty becomes secondary when humanity itself is on the brink of extinction—why worry about such things then?

It's akin to being near starvation in the wilderness and encountering a protected animal; killing it to survive would be considered justifiable under emergency circumstances as a means of self-preservation.

"All right, all right, I didn't summon you here for reminiscing."

"Nuwa, could you help me with something? Please locate where the doctor's important collections are hidden. I believe you would know, considering that Mobius likely didn't keep secrets from you and Fuxi."

It must be noted that although Mei Mobius appeared somewhat mad, many of those perceptions were superficial judgments. Towards her researchers in the laboratory, she was genuinely caring. This applied not only to the sisters Fuxi and Nuwa but also to Klein, Blanca, and Griseo.

Mobius only displayed her harshness and cold demeanor when matters involved academia or research, primarily towards outsiders as a form of self-protection.

"Looking for the doctor's collections? No problem. You should know, back in the lab, whenever we had free time, Fuxi and I enjoyed browsing through the doctor's treasured items," Nuwa said with a light laugh, swiftly searching the area. In this situation, her flying ELF body proved incredibly convenient.

In fact, Ana had previously considered giving Nuwa a Soulium body similar to Otto's, but Nuwa declined. Perhaps, in her own view, Nuwa believed she had already died, leaving behind just an ELF.

However, at times, she willingly identified herself as Nuwa, illustrating how humans can be contradictory beings. Well, now Nuwa doesn't even count as a living being anymore, nor is she human.

With Nuwa's assistance, the search operation became significantly easier.

Soon, Nuwa located a hidden door and opened it, revealing a storage room before them.

"My lord, allow me to lead ahead and protect you."

Cang Luan stepped forward, positioning herself in front of Ana. Until now, she had played no significant role, feeling overshadowed by others' contributions. This was unacceptable.

As the lord's most trusted and dependable retainer, she could not let outsiders outshine her.

"Alright, I'll leave it to you," Bai Zhi responded warmly. Although she wanted to mention that Mobius's laboratory, aside from their group, would unlikely be infiltrated by anyone else, thus posing minimal danger, seeing Cang Luan's determined expression, she agreed nonetheless.

Well, as the lord, it's essential to consider the feelings of one's retainers; if this made Cang Luan happy, there was no harm in indulging her.

And just as Bai Zhi anticipated, the room turned out to be an ordinary storage area. Shelves held various rare Honkai materials, including peculiar Honkai plants, samples of Honkai Beasts, and some unique tissue sections.

Despite being stored for fifty thousand years, most items were remarkably well-preserved, except for those kept alive, which caused Bai Zhi some concern.

Soon, Bai Zhi located a peculiar box and forcefully opened it using her Authority. Inside, she found a culture jar containing a startling sight: a heart.

Despite being five millennia old, the heart appeared fresh—as if that description wasn't quite accurate, for it was still beating.

Without a doubt, this was Bai Zhi's objective and the key to Kalpas' Metamorphosis Surgery—Kalpas' own heart.

"So that's what was inside," Nuwa murmured curiously, leaning closer to examine it briefly before looking somewhat disappointed.

"Ah, this is no ordinary item. It's the heart of one of The Thirteen Flame-Chasers, Kalpas," Bai Zhi explained with a chuckle.

"Huh?" Nuwa was taken aback; she knew it was a heart, but never would she have guessed it belonged to Kalpas, one of the Heroic Spirits.

"My lord, do you mean... you intend to..." Gray Serpent's voice grew increasingly excited as he instantly grasped Bai Zhi's intention—to resurrect Kalpas.

The return of a Fallen Hero would significantly bolster the World Serpent's combat power. Although currently, the World Serpent cared little about rivals like Schicksal or Anti-Entropy, strengthening their organization was always beneficial to Gray Serpent.

"It's just an idea for now, don't take it too seriously. Even with a viable heart, there's no guarantee that Kalpas' consciousness would match this original vessel," Bai Zhi said mildly, gazing at the culture jar in her hands.

Reviving Kalpas could be significantly easier than reviving Kallen, but some factors cannot be measured so simply.

For Otto, regardless of the method used, he could never truly bring back the Kallen he desired.

Of course, Otto's perspective was quite rigid and uncompromising.

In contrast, Ana could theoretically extract Kalpas' memory fragments from the Elysian Realm and inject them into a newly cultivated body.

But would that truly be Kalpas? From Mobius's viewpoint, yes, but according to Otto, it might not be considered genuine.

The crux lies in whether Kalpas's soul or part of his consciousness resides within this heart.

Bai Zhi believed it likely did, but she couldn't confirm it yet. Therefore, she needed to consult a specialist.

Hmm, do you think that specialist is Otto? No, no, no. Have you forgotten what was mentioned earlier? The true specialist Bai Zhi intends to seek out is none other than Dr. Mei herself.

This was also why she had Kevin prepare himself beforehand.

When meeting the girl one loves, shouldn't one dress up accordingly? Moreover, with her intervention, regardless of whether it's the world bubble or the intrinsic world, Honkai's disturbances have fundamentally come to an end. Their wishes can now be fulfilled.

Therefore, it's time to pursue what rightfully belongs to them.

Concerned that Kevin might feel shy? No worries, after all, she's here to support him!