I've already said this isn't a life simulator!

And so, the four of you were taken to the Firemoth, and then... you were imprisoned and interrogated separately.

[Aponia and Padofelis were alright; as ordinary people, they didn't receive much "attention." Although the Firemoth considered them "accomplices," they weren't the main targets.]

Qianjie was taken away and imprisoned in a separate place called "The Deepest Place" for further interrogation.

As for you, you are the focus of the Fire-Chasing Moths' special "attention"... Unfortunately, most of their "methods" are ineffective against you, because any instruments that could potentially harm you begin to melt once they get within a certain range of you. Those responsible for carrying out these actions will feel a distinct burning pain on their bodies after demonstrating their intention to harm you.

[So the Firemoth decides to turn its "methods" to Aponia and Padofelis... Please don't misunderstand, it doesn't mean it intends to attack them, but rather to use them to pressure you and force you to admit your "guilt."]

As for the so-called "crimes" of the Moths of Flame... isn't it obvious? It's nothing more than you taking in Honkai patients, which in turn triggered the Honkai... They stubbornly believe that you had some special purpose in taking in patients, and that you must know some special "hidden information."

You watch them put on a show in front of you, listen to their suggestive words, and remain silent.

[You know, the Moths of Flame have already concluded that your actions are motivated by ulterior motives; you must know something, and changing what they've already believed... is extremely difficult.]

And getting them to admit they were wrong... is even harder.

Therefore, you didn't say much, but simply answered their inquiries one by one according to "His" will, and when they crossed the line, you gave them a slight... warning.

[In the end, even the fire-chasing moth got a little impatient and decided to use some "special methods"...and then "He" informed you, which you then pointed out.]

"I must remind you and those behind you," Xi Wang said in the interrogation room, glancing at the interrogators writhing on the floor from the burning sensation in their bodies. Then she turned to the one-way mirror and spoke to the person observing the interrogation on the other side.

"Your inner vision is too blatant, and excessively strong desires often lead to disaster. I hope you will take heed." — You said this.

[Perhaps your words brought them back to their senses, and the Fire Moths have begun to discuss how to arrange your affairs again... Of course, more importantly, those "leaders" who are still active outside... have started to move.]

After losing your suppression and confirming that the effectiveness of the "rules" was beginning to wane, those "leaders" quickly reverted to their original forms.

Greed, stupidity, and violence... coupled with increased vision and knowledge, and the power and influence they wield, make the chaos caused by these "leaders" all the more terrifying.

While dealing with them wasn't difficult for the Fire-Chasing Moth, the social unrest they caused was still a major headache for them.

Therefore, they had to adjust their original plans for you. They wanted to extract more "value" from you to compensate for the manpower and resources they had spent on eliminating the "leaders" and quelling social unrest... However, many people still wanted to "get rid of" you.

[Because your "abnormalities" are too bizarre and must be dealt with, and someone has to take the blame for the social unrest caused by those "leaders"... You are the perfect choice, enough to appease the people's emotions, not to mention that a collapse was caused by you. It can be said that you are the best "scapegoats".]

[Not only that, the higher-ups at Flame Chaser still refuse to believe that you took in patients simply because you are kind, even though they have received enough information from Aponia and Padofelis, they still refuse to admit it.]

"How could someone capable of utterly transforming the chaotic Twilight Street, even single-handedly pushing the entire Twilight Street gang to such an extent, do such a thing simply out of kindness? You must have some other reason!" — The higher-ups of the Firemoth firmly believed.

[Moreover, your actions undeniably led to the outbreak of Honkai—even if you were unaware that gathering a large number of patients would cause a Honkai outbreak, the fact remains that Honkai occurred as a result.]

Although the Moths are partly to blame for concealing the Honkai, they will not admit it; although they know in their hearts that you should be good, but due to various reasons, "good intentions led to bad outcomes," they will not admit it.

They would rather believe you are a hypocrite than admit they are wrong.

This is truly... disgusting.

Finally, one of the "senators" suggested that it would be better to push you into the "Fusion Warrior Project," since the failure rate of the "Fusion Warrior Surgery" was frighteningly high, and only the lucky ones could survive... This way, you would most likely die, and even if you were lucky enough to survive, as "Fusion Warriors," you would have powerful combat capabilities that could be used by the Fire Moths.

[At the same time, this "senator" emphasized that Honkai is occurring more and more frequently, and the damage caused by the "Herrschers" is increasing. The Flame Chaser should focus its resources and attention on combating Honkai... This proposal received the support of a group of researchers led by Dr. Mei.]

Finally, even Möbius voted in favor... because she learned of your "abnormality" and became very interested in you. She wanted to study you and perform surgery on you herself.

[Therefore, after careful consideration, the Firemoth approved the proposal and arranged the "Fusion Warrior Surgery" for you, Aponia, and Padofelis.]

[Midway through, you also met the "senator" who made the proposal, and the moment you saw his face, you knew who he was—Wright.]

[I never expected that he would actually do it. After leaving the church, he actually became a member of parliament... It seems he really is a hardworking and good kid.]

[Wright clearly recognized you and offered a slight apology... Securing the "Fusion Warrior Surgery" for you was the most direct way he could think of to prevent you from being executed by the Firemoths... He was sorry that he couldn't save you and could only let you escape from a "certain death sentence" to pursue a slim "hope of survival."]

You didn't complain about anything, but were grateful for his help, while reminding him not to talk to you too much, as this would make the other members of the Firemoth group question his stance.

Wright understood, exchanged a few casual words with you, and then left... Perhaps you will never see each other again.

[So, a few days later, you were brought into Möbius's laboratory by the Firemoth... She seemed quite excited, as if she had been waiting for you for a long time.]

She asked you curiously if "He" really existed, and you naturally gave her an affirmative answer.

For some reason, she seemed both excited and disappointed.

[She immediately began experimenting on the "abnormalities" in you, and you cooperated with her... This surprised her somewhat. She had thought you would be like others, or even more resistant to her, after all, outsiders called her a "demon," and someone with such a title should be hated by a "clergyman" like you.]

[And you responded to her truthfully—you cooperated so readily because of "His" will, because "He" had said that she was trying to reach "His" steps, which was not something to be ashamed of, and even though she yearned for it so much, she still had her own bottom line in her heart, which was exceptionally rare, therefore, "He" deserves praise.]

This answer momentarily surprised Möbius, but she quickly became even more excited, even fanatical... It's unclear whether it was because of "His" words or because she obtained some rather unique data from you.

[Perhaps because the data she obtained from you confirmed some of her suspicions, Möbius became obsessed with studying you for several days, even forgetting that you still had "surgery" to be performed... In the end, if it weren't for the warning from the Fire-Chasing Moth, Möbius probably wouldn't have remembered it at all.]

Even so, Mebius still used her power to delay your "surgery" again and again, and the "surgeries" of Aponia and Padofelis were also postponed. It wasn't until the Firemoth sent another warning and temporarily froze Mebius's laboratory funds that she began to prepare for your "surgery".

As for the Honkai Beast you want to fuse with, Mebius has also chosen a suitable one for you, or rather, based on recent experiments, the Honkai Beast with the highest "compatibility" with you—"Michael".

[This code name might be confusing... but it's actually the Honkai Beast in the Twilight City Honkai that you lightly touched and then burned to death by flames.]

Yes, it's that Honkai Beast that controlled fire but was killed by it.

Before the surgery began, Möbius expressed her regret, saying that the time she had to study you was far too short... but she believed you would survive, didn't she?

And you simply nodded, without responding... because this was "His" will and arrangement, and you had no complaints.

And then... as expected (or rather, not exactly as the Firemoth expected), you... survived and became a "Fusion Warrior," designated CM-005.

Not only that, even Aponia and Padofelis... they survived and became "Fusion Warriors".

This unexpected situation surprised the Fire-Chasing Moths, who suddenly realized how naive their original ideas had been... because they simply had no means to control you.

They never expected you all to survive the "surgery," let alone that you all would... Now... they can't control you anymore. They couldn't even control Aponia and Padofelis, let alone you.

The situation seems to be turning somewhat unfavorable for the Fire-Chasing Moth.

Chapter Sixteen: I will watch your figure until the [Endgame] arrives (4752)

What are these...?

As Aponia looked at everything before her, this question involuntarily surfaced in her mind.

It was a network of light, like silk threads, that drew distinct marks on the heads of everyone... sometimes intersecting and tangling, then scattering in different directions, stretching to their respective ends, or abruptly ending somewhere.

Without exception, these threads all have only one ending... that is, to dissipate or to break.

What are these...?

Her pupils were filled with doubt, and under an indescribable feeling of constraint, she reached out to the [threads] surrounding her—however, she couldn't touch anything.

She could only look at these threads, but could do nothing about it.

Suddenly, as if someone had gently guided her, she instantly grasped the revelation that allowed her to see everything that fate had left for all living beings.

Whether it was regrettable or perfect; whether it was fortunate or unfortunate; whether it was cruel or beautiful... everything was reflected in her pupils.

I see.

Her eyelids were slightly lowered, revealing a devout expression.

She already knew that this was the gift He had given her, which proved that she also had the responsibilities He had entrusted to her.

However, He did not continue to guide her, as if He simply showed her the fate of everyone in the world... as if He came only for this purpose.

She was puzzled, but no matter how much she prayed, He no longer responded.

Go find him, thought the favored priest, Aponia.

As fellow people favored by "He", Xiwang was undoubtedly more favored, but Aponia felt no jealousy, because she knew what Xiwang had done and what he had sacrificed to change the "chaotic place" of Twilight Street... Therefore, she could only admire and pity him.

However, she would not deliberately mention it, much less express pity to him... that would be a desecration of his enlightenment and a rejection of everything he had done.

She only regretted that she couldn't do anything for him, and she could only sigh that she couldn't help him.

But at this moment... perhaps... she could walk alongside him too—Aponia thought subconsciously, looking at everything unfolding before her.

The fate of everyone unfolded before her, and the future, which should have been unknown, became so clear... Hmm?

Aponia suddenly stopped in her tracks because she "saw" her future, standing silently before Dawn.

why?

Aponia looked puzzled.

As companions on the same path, as fellow recipients of His favor, they could talk about almost anything, let alone this matter concerning Him.

She was puzzled, so she quickened her pace slightly.

Along the way, she met many people, saw the "threads" on their bodies, and "saw" their future.

I saw them worry because of the battle, I saw them rejoice because of the victory, I saw them have headaches and worries about daily trivialities, and I saw them feel happy and joyful because of some small things.

She witnessed all aspects of life.

She felt joy for everyone's future and offered blessings and care for the plight of others.

But soon, her heart would turn from joy to surprise, then to tension and anxiety, and finally to... fear.

Because they will all die, mostly due to a calamity called Honkai, but also quite a few due to... human-caused disasters.

But more importantly, they all died without exception. None of them had a future called "old age," and very few even had "middle age." They all passed away in their most beautiful "youth."

Their fate was laid bare before Aponia, allowing her to witness the death of each and every one of them.

God...why are you like this?

Aponia was puzzled, her eyes filled with panic as she looked at the crowd. She subconsciously quickened her pace, trying to "see" a better future in the passersby, even if it was just one.

Anyone will do, as long as she can see him, someone who can live in peace, someone who won't be harmed by the Honkai, someone who won't be killed by humanity itself...

But in the end, none of that happened; instead, she witnessed even more and worse things.

She can "see" people in the future telling each other lies, sweeping away all their original goodness; she can "see" people doubting each other, losing all the trust they once had.

God...why is this happening?

Aponia couldn't understand why people's end was so tragic. Under His guidance, people should have a happy ending because He loves people and is benevolent. But... why is it like this?

She quickened her pace, and more and more people passed by and she met, but the fate of everyone remained unchanged. This made Aponia increasingly panicked, and even brought a touch of despair to her heart.

She did not doubt everything she "saw," because it was a gift from "He"... but it was precisely because of this that she became more and more fearful and desperate.

"Sister Nia?!"

Suddenly, a familiar voice rang out. Aponia snapped out of her daze and found that Padofelis, who now had beast ears and a beast tail, was looking at her with some surprise. Then, she showed a relieved expression and quickly hid behind her.

"Perfect timing, Sister Nia, please help me..."

"Padoo, don't be so shy~ In exchange, I can let you touch my ears too~?"