I am a hero of the former civilization.

Are you afraid I'll get angry?

"Uh, a little." Hua was genuinely a bit scared. After all, Ryan had sent her out to protect her, so how could she risk it?

But just then, a loud laugh came through the rustling receiver.

“Hua, you can be quite adorable sometimes. Don’t take my opinions too seriously. You’re not my appendage, so—” Ryan stood in the pouring rain and shouted, “Stand tall and do it! Carry out your own ideas and create your own future!”

"Yes." The girl immediately stood up straight, as if a switch had been flipped, and before hanging up the phone, she softly replied, "Thank you, Ryan."

Without waiting for a reply, she stepped over the railing, clenched her fists, and looked at the assassins in the crowd.

The receiver went dead. Ryan, who had been standing in silence, paused for a moment, then smiled.

This guy actually called me by my first name, but that's fine too.

He vaguely remembered that Hua was originally just one of the survivors, trembling when she was found by the fire-chasing moths, having lost her friends, classmates and all her daily life, but this time it was different.

The girl became a guardian and bravely stood up. Although there was a chance that doing so would lead to her death at the hands of a Honkai Beast, Ryan was not worried.

Fate is fickle, and his arrival shattered the original trajectory. Kevin and Hua's fates are heading towards the unknown, with no one able to see the end and no one able to bring it back to its original course.

There's no point in running away; Ryan can't shield them from all the storms of life.

Then move forward, uphold your beliefs, and explore the unknown destiny.

“But I must be at the forefront of this path.” Ryan looked up at the sky. He didn’t know when the downpour had stopped. All around him was silence except for the sound of dripping water, a silence that was unsettling.

The clouds did not disperse; instead, they became even denser, giving the impression of a dark cloud looming over the city. Although it was afternoon, it felt like the dead of night, even darker than the dead of night.

The silence concealed terror. Amidst the ruins, Ryan thought of nothing but gazing silently at the sky.

Boom——

Without warning, a deafening roar shattered the deathly silence, echoing like the pounding of a war drum in the hearts of tens of millions of people across the sea, followed by a surge of pure fear from the depths of their souls.

Ryan was one of them, but he didn't scream or faint like ordinary people. He just tensed every muscle in his body, raised his head, and looked up at the sky.

A purple bolt of lightning streaked across the night, lingering in the air for a long time. In an instant, hundreds of thousands of people died on the spot or were turned into suicide soldiers. The Honkai energy detectors placed by the Fire-Chasing Moth throughout the city sounded sharp alarms, and chaos erupted on the 'Raven'.

Even Ryan himself felt his muscles tremble slightly from this immense power, instinctively conjuring up thoughts of escape, termination, and hiding, only to be replaced by an even stronger emotion a moment later.

That was the desire to reverse the timeline, even if it was futile, and these people would die at the hands of the Fourth Herrscher tomorrow. At least at this moment, Ryan wanted to change the course of fate, and only one thought remained in his mind:

The thunder finally arrived!

Chapter Fifty-Three: The Third Herrscher, the Herrscher of Thunder! Two in One!

Even after fighting against the Honkai for countless years and experiencing two Herrschers, the Firemoth and most scientists can still say:

I know nothing about Honkai Impact.

This destructive tide of civilization appeared suddenly, descending upon Changkong City with boundless malice. Even though many people had prepared themselves, when it suddenly appeared, everyone's mind went blank, and their hearts were filled with fear.

There's no way around it; this is the instinct of humankind when facing the apostles of God.

"The Third Herrscher has appeared, coordinates..."

"Energy detection shows 1000, 1500, 2000... The maximum collapse intensity at the center is 3000 HW!"

"Level 1 combat alert, highest level evacuation order issued, 200-kilometer combat zone demarcated."

"Notify the Northern Divine Continent and Far East branches, requesting them to provide full reinforcements!"

The Raven's organization is in complete chaos. The Herrscher appeared too quickly, and even if they proceed according to the established plan, they are inevitably at a loss.

The prediction came true, but the situation was not good. The troops were scattered throughout East Asia and needed time to regroup. The closest one was the fleet of the Southern Divine Continent branch. To send a branch to fight against a Herrscher was no different from sending people to their deaths.

In other words, during this period of inactivity, the Herrscher can move freely and destroy the ocean several times over, while everyone from officers to staff has forgotten about Ryan's existence.

In their view, no one would be foolish enough to alarm the Herrscher, or rather, Ryan had already done his best by blocking Mosaic, and with the advance evacuation warning, at least several million lives were saved.

As a hero, he has done enough.

The real 'typhoon' appeared on the big screen; the vortex cloud was dark red, with its center turning a deep purplish-red.

The powers they wield are still unknown, but the intensity of this Honkai energy alone far surpasses that of the Second Herrscher, thus proving the scholars' conjectures:

The Second Herrscher is not the end; every Herrscher will become even stronger.

Kalis's pupils contracted, fear mingling with excitement, like a top student facing a challenging problem posed by their teacher, filled with a desire to take on the challenge.

Suppressing his strong emotions, the man said as calmly as possible, "Hand over command of the operation to the Southern China branch. Raven, begin intelligence gathering."

"Understood. Launch the drone and capture the optical signal."

The Fire Moths have long since developed a scientific process, with different people in charge of combat and their task being to gather intelligence.

Having learned a bloody lesson, the Fire Moth knew that Honkai energy was just the foundation. The most powerful thing about the Herrschers was their powers, powers that overturned the rules of physics. For example, when they were fighting the Second Herrscher, they threw a few tactical nuclear missiles at them, but they were instantly teleported into the fleet and suffered heavy losses on the spot.

If it weren't for the appearance of a certain pink-clad girl, humanity would have been utterly defeated in that battle.

Secondly, it is necessary to find out who the Herrscher's vessel is, because Herrschers are all sublimated from humans. The research department has never given up on psychological warfare, hoping to influence a Herrscher to join the human camp.

Amidst intense electronic interference, a figure flashed on the screen, and the elites selected from intelligence agencies around the world immediately widened their eyes.

It was a young woman with a high nose bridge, thin lips, and pale skin. She was wearing a light dress and was standing barefoot in the middle of a large pit. Her long silver hair was dancing back and forth, making her look charming and pitiful.

But no one dared to underestimate her because of her appearance. The computer scanned her face, and then countless faces flashed by quickly, finally settling on a slightly cold and beautiful face. The file flashed by rapidly.

"The information confirms that her name is Chen, she lives at No. 232 Huaixi Road, Canghai City, and works as a caregiver at an orphanage. She has no criminal record. This is her relationship chart and medical records."

Using the power of the state to monitor a person can uncover all their secrets, even recording when they were hospitalized for a cold. However, the result left a group of intelligence officers in a difficult situation.

The Herrscher's vessel is still so inexplicable. Just like the previous two times, the chosen one is neither a villain nor a battle-hardened warrior, and has no connection with the Honkai whatsoever. At least the vessel of the Third Herrscher seems quite kind.

Helpful and kind-hearted, she should have lived an ordinary and simple life. How could she have become an apostle who would destroy humanity?

"Has he seen too many abandoned children and become filled with hatred for the world?"

“That’s possible. I suggest we contact her friends and family immediately and airlift her to the Herrscher to see if we can influence her.”

"Similar psychological warfare failed when it was used against the Second Herrscher; these people are very likely to die."

“That’s worth a try; this level of sacrifice is necessary.”

Discussions arose, but the Fire Moths did not give up their efforts to influence the Herrscher. As long as this magical life form changed its stance, it would be valuable as both a combatant and a research subject.

However, when Kalis saw this scene, he couldn't help but find it somewhat comical.

This is like a group of ants discussing how to capture an elephant; it's utterly ignorant and foolish.

He looked at the large screen on his left. Around the vortex of Honkai energy, a dense array of friendly forces were arriving from all over the world. There were more than five aircraft carrier icons alone, and fighter jets were being launched one by one.

Meanwhile, to the west, a particular sign is also quite eye-catching, now that it has reached Jiangzhou.

“Alice is almost here too. Did she leave ahead of time?” He wasn’t surprised. This didn’t violate any of the organization’s rules. The only problem was that there seemed to be some inconsistency in command.

The army will be commanded by the Southern Shenzhou branch. As for those two... let them be.

“Commander of the Joint Command,” Kalis said, turning slightly to his secretary behind him, “I believe a complete evacuation of Canghai City is no longer possible. I request permission to engage in combat within the city. Please ask him to persuade the Shenzhou government. Furthermore, if psychological persuasion, conventional weapons, and even Ryan and Alicia are all ineffective in stopping us—”

"I request permission to use a fusion bomb for a saturation attack!"

......

The war has finally begun.

Ryan looked up at the dense contrails in the sky, the trails left by missiles and fighter jets, which looked extremely spectacular.

The high command's objective has been achieved. Even if the Third Herrscher does nothing, this saturation bombardment alone can turn several city blocks into ruins, with losses reaching astronomical figures.

Rumbling--

Like countless muffled thunderclaps, even from more than ten kilometers away, Ryan could see a series of fireballs, but the arcs of electricity that rose like a curtain acted as a huge protective shield, keeping these attacks out.

It was utterly useless; thousands of tons of TNT didn't even scratch the surface. The individual strength had surpassed human imagination. Then Ryan saw hundreds of white figures leap into the sky, instantly extending the intense heat to the dark, oppressive firmament.

The clouds were torn apart by countless contrails, and air-to-air missiles left behind dense plumes of flame. Every now and then, a fireball would explode, and burning debris would fall to the ground.

What Ryan saw was not a one-on-one duel in the arena, but a war, with Honkai Beasts darting through the air, even giving off a faint sense of tactical maneuvering.

The ballista-class Honkai Beasts launched their assault-class weapons into the sky. Don't be fooled by how easily Ryan killed these 'mosquitoes,' these millstone-sized monsters were incredibly agile. Any canards or vector engines were cumbersome in their presence.

It evaded an air-to-air missile with a turn exceeding 20G, rammed through the fighter jet in front of it, then suddenly decelerated, turned around and chased the pursuing fighter jet, smashed the cockpit directly to pieces in the pilot's ghost-like expression, and was finally blown to pieces by a missile.

It died silently, and then the two fighter jets, worth hundreds of millions of euros, turned into burning scrap metal, falling from the sky like fragments of meteors.

Like a meteor shower, fragments of Honkai Beasts and wreckage of fighter jets streaked across the sky, reflected in Ryan's eyes, and surprisingly, he felt a sense of beauty.

"So this is how the Flame Moth dealt with the Herrschers before they had fusion warriors." Ryan witnessed this war firsthand, and to be honest, it was filled with sorrow and helplessness.

Essentially, it involves using human lives to fill the gaps, consuming the Herrscher's companion beast, and then using even more human lives to test the Herrscher's power. Every step is fraught with bloodshed.

But there's no other way. Herrschers won't just stand there and be targets. Besides, authority is more important than Honkai energy. If we use nuclear bombs for everything, what if they throw them back at us like the Second Herrscher did?

Ryan withdrew his gaze, no longer looking at these fearless sacrifices, and opened the box, revealing the silver armor inside.

"Luckily, I guessed right."

........

Boom boom boom...

The sky was boiling as fighter jets and Honkai Beasts clashed, missiles and machine guns intertwined in the air.

Humans used tactics to lure and intercept, while the Honkai Beasts relied entirely on instinct, recklessly turning humans into fireballs. The exchange ratio was about one to two, seemingly giving the Moths of Fire the advantage, but in reality, they suffered heavy losses and were left with nothing but tears.

There are countless lower-level Honkai Beasts, but manufacturing a fighter jet requires thousands of man-hours, not to mention the enormous investment required to train a pilot.

Fifty or one hundred were shot down?

Ryan stood atop an office building on the edge of the city, his mind already blank. All he saw was a hymn to human courage: many people, instead of parachuting, piloted their fiery fighter jets toward the purple light curtain, only to be instantly transformed into fireballs by electric arcs upon contact.

Just like a moth drawn to a flame, it turns to ashes the moment it comes into contact with the fire.

"Strong electromagnetic pulses can decompose objects at the atomic level by eliminating electromagnetic interactions between microscopic particles."

Ryan's eye twitched. This was the scientific explanation, but for a Herrscher, it was an instinct. The so-called Herrscher of Thunder did not unleash lightning; in essence, she manipulated electromagnetic forces.

This is one of the four fundamental forces, and it is terrifying in the eyes of Ryan, the scientist. So he took out the information terminal, which is the command system equipped by the Fire Moth squad leader. He found the carrier data of the Third Herrscher in the information bar.

"Luckily, she's just an orphanage caregiver. If it were a big shot in electromagnetics, it would be a real headache."

The same power and output will have different effects in different people. Chen is controlling this power entirely by instinct, knowing how but not why. If it were an electromagnetism PhD, it would be troublesome.

Even if it's just instinct, it's terrifying enough.