I am a hero of the former civilization.

Ryan lingered outside the city for a while, pondering what he should do.

Try to conceal your identity, find Velvi, then dig out the people behind her, and then the authorities will take care of the rest.

All I want to do is reorganize the research department of the Firemoth, implement the Fusion Warrior project as soon as possible, and stuff Velvet into it. As for how you divide the pie, that's none of my business.

Anyway, I'll have to spit it out sooner or later.

They jumped off the cliff and landed silently by the roadside, without needing to disguise themselves like in the movies, and simply walked into the city along the way.

The southern part of the Mu Continent is very barren, and the few surveillance cameras that were available all malfunctioned when Ryan passed by, their chips burning out as if they had short-circuited.

He had experienced Villeville's hacking skills firsthand. If the latter had been using the municipal network all along, then he had already alerted her. If not, he wasn't in a hurry. Montpellier wasn't a big city, and it would soon be turned upside down.

"They really know how to hide, running to this godforsaken place."

Ryan felt a sense of desolation as soon as he stepped into the small town. In fact, the Honkai was only one of humanity's problems; the infighting caused by poverty was far more common.

This place is a paradise for illegal immigrants and flour traders. After the third collapse attracted global attention, the local government became too lazy to even do the bare minimum.

The Fire-Chasing Moths won't protect such a worthless place. The flour flowing out of this area leaves people in a state of near-death, which is even more despicable. If a Honkai erupts, it would be like eliminating a scourge for humanity.

The frequency of Honkai outbreaks is now an order of magnitude higher than before, and the Fire Moths are simply overwhelmed. Each branch is prioritizing areas within their jurisdiction, and small towns like this, which would slowly rot even without Honkai, are naturally classified as E-rank.

The power vacuum allowed crime to run rampant, and then when even the most conscientious police officers died in the line of duty, the world became utterly lawless.

In that short distance into the city, he encountered two robberies: one a gang fight, and the other a flour transaction.

Gang members wearing gold chains squatted by the roadside, exchanging friendly greetings in a language full of Fs, while staring at young men walking by with wolf-like, fierce eyes, and then whispering among themselves.

Wearing a white shirt, casual pants, and frameless glasses, Ryan looked like he had stepped out of another world; he certainly shouldn't be on the streets of Montpellier so early in the morning.

A very unpleasant look.

Ryan felt that being too perceptive was also a problem. He could sense the robber's impulse, the woman's eagerness, and the conman's cunning. Not a single gaze was friendly.

But just as a human doesn't get angry at the gaze of an ant, he could only think of Alicia, the girl who was always full of love.

During her travels around the world, did she ever visit places like this, where order had vanished, the air was thick with the stench of desire and the wickedness of humanity, and there was not a single positive thing to be found?

Hey.

Ryan stopped in his tracks, looking down at the several naked people hanging below the overpass, both men and women, with signs on their chests that read:

"This is not a place for reporters."

"I did not pay the ransom on time."

"I shouldn't touch Boss Herson's goods."

The corpses swayed in the dawn light, decaying like the rusty railings. Coupled with the sporadic gunshots, Ryan felt that this place was even more wretched than the ruins of Canghai City.

"Young man, if I were you, I would find the fastest car and get out of here before we get targeted."

Ryan turned his head and saw an old man sitting on the steps, wearing a cowboy hat and holding a bottle of liquor.

Have the local police all disappeared?

"Haha, we didn't really care before. Back then, we were just doing things for money. We heard about some 'Honkai' on TV, and now we've closed our eyes completely. See that female reporter? She always thought she could find some truth, but the higher-ups don't care at all."

Ryan took a breath. The Third Honkai Impact had brought a huge impact to the entire world, but in this small town, the impact seemed small. He also knew that the world was full of scams and cults.

What doomsday ark, silver party hedonism, precisely correspond to every human instinct.

"Have you never thought about leaving?"

"I've lived here for sixty years, I'm used to it. Besides, housing prices in those big cities have skyrocketed, and places like that 'Moth Chasing the Flame' office are practically priceless." The old man gulped down two mouthfuls of wine and continued, slightly drunk:

"Don't be fooled by Montpellier's current state of decline. The business of contraband is booming. Demand is soaring all over the continent. Everyone has to die eventually. What's the difference between dying in a shootout and at the hands of monsters? Like me, my happiest moment is falling asleep drunk and never waking up again."

The old man spoke a lot, but his words contained a simple truth that allowed Ryan to see what people at the bottom of society were thinking.

Heroes are always a minority; most people drift with the tide. If he had no destiny, he would be one of them, probably partying like crazy right now, hoping to die from kidney deficiency.

Ryan glanced at the corpse under the overpass again. He was unlucky; unlike his predecessors who transmigrated and spent their days in intimate moments with female heroes, he had to witness the most authentic side of the world and the human struggles that were beyond the reach of even statistics.

That's interesting. No wonder the Herrscher spouts so many fallacies. In a place like this, saying things like "humanity is doomed" isn't unreasonable. But—

Turning evil upon seeing evil and whitewashing oneself upon seeing light—what kind of immature character is that?

As the footsteps drew closer, the old man, already drunk, heard the 'click' of a cocking gun and the stench of body odor filled his nostrils.

"Why think so much? Let's get to work."

Ryan seemed not to feel anything, and simply slowly raised his right hand.

"Hands behind your head, turn around, move a muscle, and I'll fucking kill you." The black man grinned and raised his gun, thinking to himself that he was in luck today, having found a fat sheep so early in the morning.

But the fat sheep seemed not to hear, and like a ghost in a movie, it suddenly disappeared from sight, leaving two muffled thuds in its ears.

Bang - Bang -

The slightly warm liquid splashed onto the black man's face. He instinctively turned his head and saw his two brothers lying stiffly on the ground, their heads missing. Behind them, on the graffiti-covered wall, it looked like two large tomatoes had been thrown at them, with a sticky, red and white liquid slowly sliding down.

The black man was still holding the gun, his facial muscles twitching uncontrollably as he stared blankly to the side. The black-haired youth was shaking off the bloodstains from his fist, his white shirt spotless.

"You peed."

Ryan glanced at the dirty jeans, gently took the pistol from him, and smiled warmly.

"I'm looking for someone. Could you please show me the way to your boss?"

Chapter 75 Sorry, I have a bit of OCD

The scorching sunlight streamed through the glass, casting dappled shadows onto the large desk, revealing the numerous gun holes on the glass.

The ceiling fan creaked and groaned, and the lavishly decorated office was filled with a strong stench of blood. Dozens of corpses were laid out from the front door to the 'flour' processing plant, and then extended down the stairs to this office.

Like a naughty child causing trouble, there was sticky tomato sauce everywhere.

Ryan swirled a glass of iced cola, unaffected by the horrific scene. He was a man of action, and his plan was to gather intelligence from local gangsters. He was also reasonable; if he dared to join the underworld, he'd choose the most common method—

They wiped them all out.

Strange, monster.

Herson sat in the chair, his tattooed face twitching wildly. This person had come to him without warning, and he hadn't even seen the other party make a move.

Dozens of henchmen started firing at each other like madmen. His last bodyguard committed suicide right in front of him. Then this college student-looking guy walked in, ignored the gun in his hand, and opened the refrigerator to drink Coke.

"Hmm, all dead. This is indeed the most efficient way, and it also avoids leaving any clues behind." Ryan took a sip of water, feeling cooler. His mental control could interrupt Herrschers, making it even easier to manipulate ordinary people.

"Who sent you? What do you want? If you want to kill me, I'll pay double. If you want flour, go to the back and get it yourself."

The burly man remained calm, even lowering the muzzle of his gun. He wasn't stupid; if others could get here so mysteriously, they weren't afraid of the broken gun in his hand.

“As expected, fools and cowards can’t be leaders. You fit the role perfectly.” Ryan nodded in satisfaction. His mental power could influence thoughts, but it couldn’t search memories. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have gone to all this trouble. He simply put down the water glass.

“I’ve come to Montpellier to find someone. You’re from one of the biggest gangs in the city, so you should have some leads.”

Looking for someone?

Herson's facial muscles twitched even more violently, and he muttered, "Human trafficking and smuggling are not my business; those are Sylvie's main businesses."

"Oh, you don't know I'm going to find him again. Answer my questions first, there's no rush to do it one by one." Ryan didn't care to begin with, and simply slammed a wanted poster on the table. "Have you seen this person before?"

is her?

The man immediately recognized Velvi, then frowned and examined her closely before gently shaking his head: "I don't know, I didn't... wait..."

Before he could finish speaking, he felt his hand move on its own. He took a pistol out of the drawer, loaded it, chambered a round, and then slowly pointed it at his head.

This behavior is more terrifying than torture; no one can withstand it.

"I've never seen it before, but someone showed me a picture a few days ago!"

Oh? They beat me to it.

Ryan raised an eyebrow slightly, as expected, and continued, "Who is it?"

"I don't know. He was covered in optical camouflage and wearing a black mask. He suddenly appeared in my room and asked me to collect some clues."

"Take it out and see."

Herson found his hands wouldn't obey him and took a document out of the drawer. Ryan pinched his chin and read it carefully, only to find that it was a list.

As a declining industrial town, Montpellier has many abandoned factories or car graveyards. These scrap metals are usually just garbage, but in the hands of some 'green skin' (a derogatory term for a worker), they can be turned into strange and wonderful things.

'Vilvie is truly fearless; instead of hiding quietly, she dares to cause trouble everywhere.'

Ryan rubbed his forehead, knowing it was his fault again. Without him, there would have been no assassination attempt, and Wilvie wouldn't have had any dirt on the Firemoth's higher-ups; she would just be a happy wanted criminal.

These conflicts are beyond what Alicia's reputation can handle; optical camouflage and black masks...

'The poisonous pupa, it has intricate connections with the fire-chasing moth, and can be considered to have taken my place.'

Ryan thought of his colleagues, who were extremely powerful, some of whom were 'superpowered' like Kevin and Aponia. Their relationship with the Firemoth was very complicated at the time, but later it became a subordinate supervisory organization that specifically put serious criminals into it and was responsible for hunting down traitors.

Fortunately, it's after the Third Herrscher now, otherwise it would be quite troublesome.

"Thank you, this information is very useful." Ryan smiled, stood up, picked up the water glass on the table, and drank it all in one gulp. "And thank you for your hospitality."

"No, you're welcome."

Herson forced a smile, and then saw the young man quietly turn around, walk through the corpses scattered all over the place, leave the office, and politely close the door behind him.

Phew, this monster.

The burly man breathed a sigh of relief. He had heard some stories from the information brokers, which he had previously taken as jokes, but now he knew they were all true.

Dozens of ruthless gangsters couldn't stop one person, and most importantly, this person never lifted a finger from beginning to end. Humans were like puppets being controlled, killing each other.

He wanted to have a drink to calm down, but then his eyes widened, and his hand, which was reaching for the glass, wouldn't obey him. He slowly raised his pistol, and then slowly opened his mouth, an indescribable fear appearing on his face.

boom--

Gunshots echoed, and Ryan, who had just stepped out the door, turned back to look.

"Sorry, I have a bit of OCD, I have to clean up anything dirty."

Eliminating evil completely is the goal. Ryan can both joke around with Mebius and often leave no survivors in the killing. As he walked, he looked down at the intelligence and marked it on his phone.

'Seven suspected locations, but considering Velvi's unpredictable nature, we can narrow it down to three. But even after all this commotion, Velvi hasn't sent any of her little gadgets to contact us...'

Ryan never considered any enemy a fool, and with that thought in mind, he slowly raised his head.

"Were we beaten to it?"