In the end, without any surprises, Klein returned to normal, but in doing so, she owed Mobius her life.
Thus, Klein was doomed to a life of endless 007 shifts. Oh, what a tragic tale.
...
"How many of the Herrscher of Domination's clones have been captured so far?"
"We've captured the 1,000th one. That means we've got them all."
Looking at the projection of all the captured Herrscher clones, Mei spoke in a calm, matter-of-fact tone.
This Herrscher could be considered the easiest to deal with in history.
Even the 1st Herrscher wasn't this straightforward to handle.
This Herrscher caused no real harm or chaos, making it a disgrace among Herrschers.
"...In that case, why don't we try to save them? Tch, we'll do it in our spare time. Don't overwork yourselves."
Thinking about the sheer number 1,000 Chang Yuan couldn't help but click his tongue.
They had to save them. If people outside found out they could have been saved but weren't, it would be disheartening.
But each extraction would take several hours.
So Chang Yuan decided to save them only when they had free time. Otherwise, the three of them would be worked to death.
Compared to those people, these three were far more important.
"Alright, I'll save them when I have time. Now, let's discuss the next Herrscher. With the enhancements, how terrifying will she be?"
As Mei spoke, the meeting room fell silent.
Everyone knew the Cocoon of Finality had enhanced the Herrschers, but no one knew exactly how.
However, one thing was certain: the Herrschers now had basic consciousness. They were no longer mindless destroyers.
They could analyze situations and choose the most advantageous way to fight.
Like the 9th Herrscher, who stayed high in the sky. If not for Vill-V's orbital cannons, that Herrscher would have been a nightmare to deal with.
"Hehehe, actually, I've already come up with a plan. Since we're approaching that Herrscher, I won't keep it a secret."
At this moment, Vill-V, the 'Expert,' flicked her magician's hat.
She stood up enthusiastically and began explaining her plan: "The Herrscher of Binding's barrier has limits. That's unchangeable. If it didn't, the Cocoon of Finality might as well send the Herrscher of the End to wipe us out.
So, we just need to reach the barrier's limit. The Binding Barrier isn't simple—it even restricts the Herrscher's own power.
During an experiment, I discovered that all Herrscher cores have a subtle connection. I call it resonance.
The resonance between two Herrscher cores far exceeds the power of two individual cores. It's a qualitative change, likely because all Herrscher cores are projections of the Herrscher of the End.
They share intricate connections. That's why the androids I created already possess their own intelligence. After special modifications,
they can establish a linked network. When nine Herrscher cores resonate together and unleash their full power, even if they can't permanently destroy the Binding Barrier, they can certainly breach it momentarily.
All we need to do is kill the Herrscher of Binding in that moment, and everything will be settled. So, what do you think? Am I a genius?"
"...Nice."
In the end, Chang Yuan gave a thumbs-up and said, "Nice."
There was no denying it—whoever invented Vill-V must have been a Vill-V themselves.
Her talent was truly unparalleled.
But in reality, Chang Yuan also played a part in this.
Because he had mentioned early on that all Herrschers were projections of the Herrscher of the End.
Since they shared the same origin, Vill-V had initially tried to see if she could use the Herrscher cores to recreate the original.
Although the results weren't as expected, she discovered something else—the resonance between Herrscher cores. One plus one was far greater than two.
So, with nine Herrscher cores unleashing their full power, even if the cores would be dormant for a while afterward,
it would be worth it to eliminate the most terrifying Herrscher aside from the Herrscher of the End.
Now, the only thing to consider was how to kill the Herrscher of Binding in that brief moment.
"By the way, if we put the Herrscher of Domination's cores into the original Divine Key frames, would that work?"
"Maybe. And some of the Herrscher of Domination's cores have spatial attributes. Although their power would be greatly reduced, it should be enough to kill the Herrscher of Binding in that moment."
After some thought, Vill-V, the 'Expert,' came to this conclusion.
"In that case, the plan is perfect. The Herrscher of Binding is as good as dead."
After hearing the entire plan, Chang Yuan couldn't help but admire himself.
Thankfully, he hadn't let his pride as a transmigrator with foreknowledge make him try to be the sole savior.
Otherwise, he wouldn't even know how he died.
"I'm still a bit curious. Are Prometheus and the others really okay? The Binding Barrier might damage their AI, preventing them from uploading to the terminal."
"..."
At this, Vill-V, the 'Expert,' fell silent.
With her intelligence, how could she not have considered this possibility?
But there was no other way. This was the plan with the least losses to kill the Herrscher of Binding.
Should they throw lives at it instead? How many would have to die? Millions? Tens of millions? Hundreds of millions? Or maybe 99% of the MANTIS warriors?
Rather than that, it was better to proceed with this plan.
Seeing Vill-V, the 'Expert,' fall silent, Chang Yuan knew she had agonized over this decision.
To Vill-V, Prometheus and the other creations were like her own children.
Now, as their creator, she was sending them to their deaths. How was that different from a mother sending her child to die?
"Meeting adjourned."
After saying this, Chang Yuan gave Vill-V, the 'Expert,' a deep look before leaving.
After the meeting, Vill-V, the 'Expert,' returned to her Spiral Workshop.
Prometheus and Skadi noticed that Vill-V seemed off, and with their high intelligence, they quickly deduced the reason.
"Doctor, we're not real people. You don't need to grieve for our eventual departure. We've already uploaded our consciousness. We'll still be with you afterward."