I am a hero of the former civilization.

She released her lips and gently raised her head: "You're very vigilant. No wonder you're my most precious assistant."

"Because I know you too well, Möbius, and of course you know me too. In every respect, we will not tolerate failure."

"You think you can suppress me?"

"Of course, at least now you rarely do anything reckless, and that's all thanks to me."

"Nonsense, excessive confidence is arrogance. You think you can teach me how to do things?"

They exchanged words, their eyes both cold and proud, silently staring at each other, each urging the other on in their hearts.

Say something, give me a way out, and I'll seize the opportunity and take the plunge.

The more they thought about it, the less they could speak, until the phone on the table rang, drawing their attention to it.

"Your phone number is... Sakura!?" Mebius's voice immediately became shrill, thinking to himself, don't these annoying people know anything about personal space and first come, first served?

“It’s almost noon. Sakura asked me to come for lunch. What, you want to come too?” Ryan walked over and was about to pick up the phone when he saw Mebius’s hand move faster, and he hung up the phone instantly.

"What are you doing!"

“This meal is on me, you don’t need to come.” Mebius crossed his arms, blocking the door, and seeing Ryan’s suspicious look at him as if he were poor, he lightly stomped his foot: “That money is in the funding account, I won’t take it out for living expenses.”

"So you're offering me air to eat??"

"I'll cook you whatever good food the cafeteria has. Anyway, the Fire Moths have been provided with living supplies, so it would be a waste not to use them."

Without waiting for a reply, Möbius pattered into the kitchen, then poked his head out again.

"This is in gratitude for your financial support; just wait with thanks!"

Once the green head disappeared, Ryan finally realized what had happened, his eyes filled with disbelief.

Mebius, you incompetent guy, you can cook?

Chapter 182 Is This Mental Torture?

Ryan had spent quite a bit of time with Möbius, and as much as she was accomplished in science, she was utterly incompetent in daily life.

She ate instant noodles all day long, drank only instant coffee, and I can still vividly recall the room filled with stockings. Her clothes were also very monotonous, and she always dressed the same way, showing no sensitivity to fashion.

Okay, I agree with the last point.

At least the fusion warriors have strong physical coordination, so they shouldn't cut their fingers. You should be able to rest assured.

Ryan spun halfway around in his chair, facing the kitchen, and immediately saw that Mebius was just being stubborn.

Not even wearing an apron, these clothes are going to take a lot of washing, clearly an amateur.

He watched the woman's back as she clumsily chopped vegetables, struggling to figure out where to light the fire, and forcibly suppressed the urge to help.

Since it's a return gift, there's no point in me personally participating; I can just observe quietly. It's a pity that taking photos will be noticed, otherwise I could laugh at her clumsy appearance for ten years.

Ryan chose to observe secretly, and as he watched, his gaze focused on her buttocks. This was not Ryan's intention; it was simply that Mebius's swaying was too eye-catching.

She took off her white coat, revealing a tight-fitting skirt that was stretched taut and swayed as Möbius walked around.

Only a blind man and a man named Tong could resist looking at this magnificent sight.

Her shape is full and her proportions are perfect. Her standard office lady attire surpasses all the teachers', which reminds me of a few classic works.

Ryan felt like he was back in the past, when he could only play with glue in front of a screen. He never imagined that now there would be a perfect OL (office lady) cooking for him just a few meters away. It would be a lie to say he wasn't a little tempted.

A lone man and a lone woman, like dry tinder and raging fire. If I were to admit defeat, sign some unequal treaties, and willingly become her lackey, Möbius probably wouldn't object...

Oh no, I almost fell into her trap!

As Ryan thought about it, he suddenly became alert and realized that she was doing it on purpose, and that it was all a pre-arranged scheme.

For example, when climbing onto the stove or getting something from the cabinet, why kneel down and deliberately stick your butt out?

For example, you're a dignified fusion warrior, and after cutting a few pieces of vegetables, you're twisting your waist and expanding your chest, trying to burst your shirt, right?

She was shy just now, but now she's seductive. She's using a contrast tactic, and she's so sure I'll fall for it?

Well, this tactic does have some merit.

Reason overwhelmed his desires, and he calmed down considerably. Stroking his chin, he analyzed Möbius's tactics.

On purpose, absolutely on purpose.

It would be incredibly foolish to see the problem and still fall for it, so Ryan chose to ignore it, opened his laptop, wrote a few hundred words, and for some reason felt agitated, his eyes constantly glancing towards the kitchen.

Damn it, this is pure mental torture.

He slammed the laptop shut, slowly got up, and walked towards the kitchen, thinking he had to find a way to expose Möbius's scheme. But as soon as he reached the kitchen—

thump.

With a muffled thud, blood splattered everywhere, and a fish head rolled on the ground as Mebius turned around, holding a bloodstained dagger.

"You want to teach me how to do things?"

Gulu.

Ryan swallowed hard, saw the blood on Mebius's fair face, and slowly backed away.

"No, I was just bored and wanted to chat with you."

"That's more like it." Mebius squatted down, picked up the fish head, rinsed it with water, looked at it in his hand, and then simply threw it into the boiling pot. "Just say what you want to say, don't bother me while I'm cooking."

Is it okay to just throw the fish head into plain water and boil it without removing the fishy smell? And why are you putting curry powder in it?

Ryan was a little confused by the routine, so he took the apron that had been issued to him off the wall and threw it over.

"Put these on first, otherwise they'll be hard to wash if they get dirty."

"Anyway, Klein will wash it, so I guess I have to be considerate of others." Mebius slowly put on his clothes, tied his long green hair into a ponytail, and then turned around.

"How does it look?"

With just a change of hairstyle and an apron, Mebius gave off a completely different vibe, exuding a kind of 'virtuous' quality, just like a housewife.

Of course, it would be even better if you didn't handle the kitchen knife like you were performing surgery.

"Suddenly, I felt a sense of warmth and family, as if I had returned to a comfortable haven after a busy day," Ryan replied seriously, "there's no need to deceive myself."

Family? Warmth?

Mebius paused for a moment, then shook his head slightly: "I can't understand that feeling, and it even sounds a bit offensive."

"You weren't born from a rock, so you haven't even felt it for a moment?" Ryan asked casually, though he didn't like asking about other people's past experiences.

“Of course I have parents, if that ugly thing can be called a father,” Möbius said indifferently, as if he were telling someone else’s story.

She possessed thought and independence from birth, and was even able to speak. Möbius's mother died early, and her father, a pharmacist, was not defeated by life until he contracted a terminal illness, which caused a drastic change in his personality due to the side effects of medication.

Living on medication every day, just getting by and waiting to die, would only make an ordinary young girl feel tired and distressed, but Möbius was different; she realized the fragility of life.

"The side effects of these drugs ruthlessly hijack their nerves, even distort their cognition, and easily destroy all of a person's emotions and personality, turning him into another person."

"From that moment on, I realized how fragile and ridiculous humans are, and I will never become like him."

Mebius's expression was very cold, which made Ryan frown. He finally understood why she was so obsessed with evolution.

"What you crave is not evolution itself, but the sense of security that evolution brings?"

“Well, as my horizons broadened, I realized that the illness was nothing compared to what’s truly terrifying in this world. It’s like a race in the dark; once you stop, you’re swallowed up.” Möbius gave his signature smirk.

That statement is indeed true: every psychopath has a painful childhood.

Ryan remained silent, then asked in return, "So you don't hate him?"

"Why hate? All I have left is pity, even though that pity only fuels that ridiculous pride." She touched her cheek, as if she could still feel the lingering pain of the slap. "So, Ryan, why do you pursue power?"

"At first, I just wanted to survive." Ryan leaned against the door frame, feeling that he was a lot like Mebius, both of whom were born with thoughts and thus appeared precocious.

"Having come into this world with such difficulty, it would be truly unwilling to give up without a fight."

"Yeah, it's vulgar, but the core idea is the same as mine—it's a survival instinct. And then what happened?"

What is vulgarity? This is purity.

Ryan didn't correct him, and continued, "Later I responded to another instinct, a stronger one."

"what?"

“Exploring the unknown, turning the impossible into the possible—that’s not just about living, but about having a real sense of life.” Ryan clenched his fist, feeling the power within his body. “I respond to my instincts, and my instincts reward me with even greater power. I then use that power to turn even more impossible things into reality!”

Sounds like...idealism?

Möbius pondered for a moment, feeling that this instinct was somewhat similar to, yet completely different from, his own desire for immortality and evolution, and he couldn't find the right words to describe it.

"It's not just about exploration, nor is it about salvation; killing is merely a byproduct..."

"I can tolerate the unknown, but not the unknowable; I can accept destruction, but not the inevitable; I can feel fear, but I must take a step forward." Ryan interrupted Mebius's soliloquy, looking at the contracting snake eyes, and gave his answer.

"This is my way of survival, my way of pioneering."

......

The mountains blocked out the sunlight, and the deep valley was pitch black, except for a dim purple light that illuminated the silver iron gate on the rock wall.

A detector-like object sat by the door, emitting a soft 'beep' in the breeze, its electronic light flashing scarlet numbers.

Da da da.

As footsteps sounded, a gentleman in a double-breasted tuxedo arrived at the door, lightly adjusted his top hat, glanced at the silver iron door with his azure eyes, and then turned his gaze to the instruments.

700HW?

After observing for two seconds, he stepped forward with some doubt, placed his palm on the surface of the door, and in an instant, the thick white ice of the door melted away. Then he flicked his finger.

Ding--

The door, several meters thick and made of several composite materials, shattered with a crash, revealing a large hole just big enough for one person to pass through. The Herrscher of Ice glanced to the side; the detector was frantically jumping up and down in numbers, while the trees beside the door were rapidly withering away.

"As expected, when it comes to products of human civilization, only they truly understand how to conceal them."

He glanced at the filling inside the door, stepped inside, and scanned the space with his eyes, finding it to be a huge void.

The mountain range had been almost hollowed out, with steel tracks extending deep into the mountains. A train lay overturned at the entrance, and dozens of humans lay dead around it.

They weren't dead yet; they were strangling themselves with their hands, their bodies convulsing, their bulging eyes bloodshot, and large amounts of white foam coming out of their mouths.

More painful than death.