As Lynelle's power continuously surged into the projected Black Abyss White Flower, restless strands of pink light began to gleam across the originally black-and-white spear.
But unlike before, this pink glow radiating from the Black Abyss White Flower carried an unmistakably dangerous aura.
"Whoosh—"
After pouring every last bit of the Corruption authority she could still control into the weapon, Lynelle released the bowstring, aiming at Grey Serpent, who was restrained by Wendy.
In almost an instant, the black-and-white arrow streaked with pink light pierced through the barrier Wendy had used to trap the Assaka, deeply embedding itself into the massive body of the Honkai beast.
And then…
As if the world had frozen for a moment, the Assaka—a Honkai beast of Emperor-class rank that had been full of vigor just seconds ago—suddenly halted all movement.
A tiny black dot appeared where the Black Abyss White Flower had struck.
Immediately, the black dot expanded rapidly, and a thick, deathly aura erupted outwards from within the Assaka's body, instantly disintegrating the colossal Honkai beast.
However, after destroying the Assaka, this power didn't seem fully spent. Thick black mist continued to spread swiftly outward, its momentum unchecked.
"Oh no!"
Wendy's eyelids twitched. Judging by the way that black mist was spreading… it looked like it might just give the two of them a bath as well.
"Lynelle, is there any way to clear this… Lynelle?"
When her call received no response, Wendy whirled around.
Only then did she notice that Lynelle had slumped softly against her, completely unconscious.
"Oh, this is bad…"
The corner of Wendy's mouth twitched.
Swirling gusts of cyan wind immediately surged toward the black mist. But, perhaps because this mist was fundamentally a product of Corruption authority, Wendy's own still-unstable authority couldn't withstand its erosive nature.
"Tch, do I have to take Lynelle and run for now? But there are still quite a few mechs she controlled earlier around here…"
Just then, however, Wendy felt Lynelle stirring, pushing herself up from her.
"Lynelle, are you okay?"
Wendy turned her head in pleasant surprise, her emerald eyes meeting Lynelle's—a pair of similarly green, vertical-slit pupils.
"Huh? Lynelle, why are your eyes…"
"Shh— Quiet. I'm very annoyed right now."
"Lynelle" placed a finger to her lips, signaling Wendy to keep it down.
"Tsk. How did she manage to mess up her body this badly in such a short time? Little pink mouse, you… Never mind, just take a nap. I'll see for myself."
Seeing Wendy's utterly bewildered expression, Mobius quickly matched her to one of the "close ones" Lynelle had mentioned.
After a brief hesitation, and feeling she wasn't particularly skilled at impersonating Lynelle, Mobius decisively chose to render Wendy unconscious.
"I'll read Wendy's memories later to see how my little pink mouse got herself into this state. As for now…"
Frowning slightly at the rapidly spreading black mist, Mobius casually raised a hand. A thick green fog spread out from the opposite direction, swiftly enveloping, dismantling, and finally dissipating the black mist.
"It seems my little pink mouse is quite capable. I thought I'd have a lot more mess to clean up… But these wreckages on the ground… Why do they look somewhat familiar?"
Controlling Lynelle's body, Mobius started to walk over for a closer look, but before she could even lift her leg, she stumbled and fell flat on the ground.
"Ugh, forgot this little pink mouse's body is still a complete wreck… Let's fix her up first."
--+--
A few minutes earlier, in the Elysian Realm.
"Oh my, my dear Mobius~"
Watching Mobius fidget restlessly, Elysia couldn't help but wear an amused smile.
"If you're really that worried about Lynelle, why not go check on her yourself?"
"Who's worried about that little pink mouse!"
Mobius instantly bristled, like a snake whose tail had been stepped on. "Can't I just be taking a stroll after a meal?"
"Yes, yes~"
Elysia turned her head away. If Mobius had kept quiet, she might have held it in, but the other's blatant denial made it impossible to suppress her laughter any longer.
"I wonder who it was that rushed over in a panic earlier, casually dropping hints about Lynelle seeming to have run into trouble lately, or pointedly mentioning how unstable Lynelle's core appears… Professor Mobius's post-meal strolls are truly eventful, aren't they~?"
"E! LY! SI! A!"
Snake's eyes seemed to spit fire. "Are you looking for a fight!"
"How could that be? I just think a Mobius who worries about Lynelle like this is also quite adorable~"
"I am NOT worried about her!"
"Sigh, so you're not worried at all?"
Elysia let out a "sorrowful" sigh. "Poor little Lynelle~ Maybe she's seriously injured right now, her heart still longing for her dear Dr. Mobius, never expecting that our…"
"Enough nonsense!"
Mobius stomped forward, fuming. "Hurry up and release your Origin Authority restrictions! Let me possess Lynelle over there! Don't think I don't know you left safeguards on my Corruption Virus… Stop wasting time!"
"Finally come around?"
Elysia giggled. "Don't worry, I actually started preparing for you before you even came in. The timing is perfect now~"
"By the way, a Mobius who's finally become honest because she's worried about Lynelle is also very… Oh my, leaving so soon?"
Looking at the now empty reception room, Elysia shook her head helplessly.
"Even though I've seen it many times, Mobius really cares deeply about Lynelle, doesn't she…"
--+--
Back to the present, near the Oceania Branch.
After a few minutes of self-adjustment, Mobius finally managed to use the Corruption Virus to suppress the rampaging Corruption Core within Lynelle's body and eliminate the interference from the Rod of the Underworld.
"Phew… That Elysia can be somewhat useful sometimes. If this Corruption Core hadn't been sealed by the Origin, reducing its authority by more than half, my Corruption Virus might not have stabilized her body so quickly."
Reopening her eyes, Mobius glanced at the unconscious Wendy nearby.
During the brief interval spent regulating Lynelle's body, she had also skimmed through Wendy's recent surface memories.
Somewhat to her surprise, the culprit who had reduced Lynelle to this state was actually an old acquaintance of hers.
How truly… coincidental.
A smile devoid of any warmth curled on Mobius's lips.
"Not having a ride is really inconvenient…"
Having not walked on her own for so long, Mobius took a moment to feel out Lynelle's body, then controlled it to walk toward the remains of the Grey Serpents.
"Let me see… How did Grey Serpent end up like this after all these years apart?"
Picking up one of the Grey Serpent bodies, her Corruption authority immediately invaded it, beginning to read its memory data.
A moment later, Mobius tossed the body aside with a look of disgust.
"Truly… disgusting."
"As expected, I never should have spared that Jackal's life back then. To call such a thing 'art'... Heh, the World Serpent is really scraping the bottom of the barrel."
However, just then, the sound of footsteps approached from behind Mobius.
"Lynelle?"
Grey Serpent 1904 spoke, sounding surprised.
"To think you were really in Oceania. That Raven… her luck is truly something."
"But in the end, you won, as expected. These radical faction members underestimated the Master's insight far too much… Don't worry, I bear you no hostility. Although I also belong to World Serpent, I'm different from those other Grey Serpents…"
Perhaps because this particular Grey Serpent usually enjoyed writing poetry and taking care of children, his speech tended to be a bit long-winded.
However, mid-sentence, Grey Serpent 1904 keenly detected something wrong.
According to prior intelligence, Lynelle didn't seem like someone hard to communicate with. Why hadn't she replied at all despite him saying so much?
"Heh, Grey Serpent…"
Then, "Lynelle's" mouth uttered a voice that sent a violent shudder through Grey Serpent's mechanical body.
"Open your snake eyes wide and look carefully. Who do you think I am?"
As the girl turned her head, eerie, serpentine vertical pupils shimmered with a faint green light in the darkness.
"?!"
"Y-You… You are…"
"What? Has fifty thousand years of evolution caused your tongue and eyes to degenerate?"
"Lynelle" snorted lightly. Under Grey Serpent's sweat-dripping gaze, she slowly turned around fully, the Infinity symbol on her chest glowing in sync with her eyes.
"Lady Mobius?!"
"Ah, it seems you're not beyond saving… If you couldn't even recognize me, I'd really have to question whether letting you evolve freely was the right choice."
Mobius walked slowly toward Grey Serpent. Grey Serpent 1904 instinctively wanted to step back, but he forcefully suppressed this deeply ingrained fear.
Because Mobius hadn't given him permission to move, he didn't dare.
"Lady Mobius, how… how did you come to be here? Which version of you is the current…"
"Silence."
Mobius extended her hand. Emerald-green Corruption Virus invaded Grey Serpent's body without any resistance. "Don't interrupt my work."
"I need… to first verify if the information I obtained from your companion's wreckage is correct."
"Besides… Which Mobius I am, does it really change anything? Or are you suggesting… that a particular one isn't truly Mobius?"
"No! That's not what I meant, Lady Mobius…"
Grey Serpent was so terrified he nearly knelt on the spot. But to his horror, he found he could no longer control his own body.
"Don't look at me with such surprise. Who do you think taught Lynelle her Corruption authority?"
Mobius withdrew her finger and let out a displeased hum. "It seems your memories aren't lying… How tedious."
"Lady Mobius, are you referring to…"
"Your claim of being part of the so-called 'moderate faction.' In that case… I have no reason to deal with you. What a pity. I was holding back quite a bit of anger."
"Lady Mobius, if you wish to find the mastermind behind this incident… Although the Grey Serpents who proposed this course of action are all dead, the other instigator, Jackal, is still alive. If you require it…"
"Bring her here. Within half an hour."
Mobius waved a hand dismissively. "My time is limited. I won't waste more than a minute on such trash."
"Understood, Lady Mobius. I have already dispatched other Grey Serpents to search for…"
"Her location is already in your mind. Find it yourself."
Watching the Grey Serpent stand there nervously, not daring to utter a word, Mobius sighed.
"You didn't do it, so why are you so tense? What, guilty conscience?"
"No, Lady Mobius, I don't…"
"Considering you honestly gave up Jackal earlier… I'll permit you one question. Of course, I reserve the right not to answer."
"Thank you, Lady Mobius."
Grey Serpent bowed deeply, then cautiously asked, "Why… are you appearing in Miss Lynelle's body? To my knowledge, she previously only carried the stigmata of Cecilia and Elysia…"
"Tch, you really haven't improved at speaking…"
The corner of Mobius's mouth twitched.
"If Elysia's Stigmata can appear on Lynelle, why can't my Signet? Is it so hard to understand that I'm borrowing my own daughter's body?"
"Not hard at all, not hard at all… Huh?"
Grey Serpent's voice froze. He suddenly realized there was a word in that last sentence he genuinely found difficult to comprehend.
"L-Lady Mobius, you… you just said…"
"Heh, problems with your ears now, too, not just your tongue and eyes? Honestly, maybe you should just go back for a rebuild."
Mobius let out a cold laugh.
"I said, Lynelle is my daughter. Is there any part of that you didn't understand?"
"Is she… your adopted daughter?"
"Would I do something so pointless?"
Hiss—
Grey Serpent instinctively drew a sharp breath. Though he was a robot, incapable of sweating, he truly felt a chill running down his soul.
He was now immensely grateful he had cut ties with those other Grey Serpents in time.
If they had known Lynelle was Mobius's daughter… even if they had cloned themselves twice their courage, they wouldn't have dared lay a hand on her.
After all, the biological daughter of Mobius… the weight of that identity was such that she could be welcomed directly back to the World Serpent and invited to become its Master without question.
Never forget why the World Serpent, an organization from the Previous Era, was named "World Serpent" in the first place.
"Stop using your pathetic brain cells to speculate about Lynelle's origins. Focus on executing your Project Stigma, but keep Lynelle out of it."
Mobius didn't even need to use her Corruption power to know what was going through Grey Serpent's head.
Considering Lynelle's striking resemblance to Elysia, and to prevent damage to her own reputation, Mobius promptly cut short his train of thought.
"Having personally revised it over a dozen times, I know better than anyone what the Stigma Project truly is. Lynelle's path shouldn't be bound by such a pitiful scheme."
"If this little pink mouse hadn't nearly died this time… I wouldn't even bother paying her any mind."
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.