Honkai Diary: Start With Picking Up A White-Haired Treasure

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"Welt has embarked on a long journey. Do you have any new plans?"

"That's none of your concern. What about the promised Soulium? Hurry up and deliver it," Zeke grumbled lazily from behind his desk, sporting dark circles under his eyes, as he addressed Otto through the virtual screen.

Otto stroked his chin thoughtfully. "You seem quite anxious, and this state of exhaustion... Could there be some project you're hiding from me?"

"The Honkai Beast gene fusion technology. I'm just adjusting my condition; it'll be fine soon." Zeke waved dismissively, appearing unconcerned.

However, Otto remained silent for a moment.

"So, you've been amassing Honkai Beast genetic materials from me for this purpose? And Soulium too... I see, you want established nanomachine technology as insurance. Existing technologies can be provided to you promptly, and the first batch of Soulium will arrive within two days. However, I advise against it. You're a genius, not a warrior; why put yourself at such risk? If your concern is sudden danger, I can share my resurrection technology with you."

"No thanks. How many times have you resurrected over these five hundred years? Can you truly be certain that each awakening from a replica is still the original 'you'?" Zeke replied languidly, then lifted his head slightly, shifted position, and continued slouching on the table, showing no intention of standing up.

Otto fell silent.

This was delving into philosophical territory.

With the same body and memories, yet constantly regenerating through transferring one's consciousness—whether he remained fundamentally the same person became an unprovable proposition.

Otto only knew that reviving Kallen was his unwavering goal. As long as he always remembered this objective, everything else could be disregarded.

"Are you genuinely confident?"

Otto bypassed the futile debate about proving "I am myself" and asked, frowning. He genuinely cared for Zeke's safety.

If not for Zeke's objections, Otto would have considered deploying elite forces to fortify Cocolia's Orphanage into an impenetrable fortress, just to prevent any mishaps before the completion of his Information Origin Theory.

Zeke lifted his head, slightly agitated, and said, "You're quite bothersome. Dr. Einstein's incessant chatter is already irritating enough; please give me some peace. I know my limits."

"I believe on this matter, Dr. Einstein and I stand together."

"Just deliver the Soulium promptly. I still need one final piece of the puzzle, and once it's complete, I'll begin the transformation—since Dr. Mei can create Fusion fighters, so can I," Zeke responded with growing impatience.

Otto couldn't discern if this confidence was genuine or if the agitation stemmed from uncertainty about the success rate.

In any case, he remained deeply concerned.

Sighing, Otto said, "Creating a Fusion fighter has never been the issue. The real challenge lies in achieving successful fusion and ensuring its quality. Factors such as base body integrity, selection of Honkai Beast gene segments, timing, luck, and even the psychological state of the experimental subject—all these uncontrollable variables layer upon each other, making the replication of Fusion fighters impossible. I've tried for nearly two centuries now without satisfactory results... Hence, my continued unease."

"Why should I care? This endeavor must proceed."

In that instant, Zeke's impatience and lethargy vanished. Sitting upright, he coldly regarded Otto's holographic image.

Otto opened his mouth, shook his head with a wry smile, and said:

"As I've always said, you truly resemble me, especially in your confidence and stubbornness. Very well, I'll personally escort the Soulium over. Until my arrival, refrain from any rash actions."

"Fine by me. Just so happens there's been some stir caused by a little gray snake lately; I haven't bothered to deal with it. Could you check on it while coming here?"

"Gray Serpent... The World Serpent?" Otto raised an eyebrow.

Despite investing vast resources and utilizing cutting-edge technology to create his intelligence network, each successive update of Zeke's Hive System rendered it increasingly ineffective against him.

Thus, Otto knew about Welt leaving because Welt had ventured beyond the orphanage, allowing external eyes to catch glimpses of his movements. However, he remained unaware of the situation near the orphanage, including Raven's capture.

Otto nodded, seemingly unconcerned about matters involving the World Serpent, and replied:

"All right, see you later then."

"Yep, goodbye."

Zeke lazily waved his hand, dismissing the virtual screen. Although still slumped at the table, a thoughtful expression reappeared in his eyes.

'Otto plans to come personally?'

'Even though he can't truly kill me, isn't he concerned I might detain this body? Not killing him doesn't mean I can't trap him indefinitely, right?'

'He must have contingencies. Even I can envision numerous escape routes; how much more so for him. Vera is still there too... Well, it's not yet time for open conflict. We'll adapt as necessary.'

'Hmph, need to keep an eye on that little fool...'

Zeke felt his eyelids growing heavy, thoughts gradually slowing down. He pinched himself to stay alert.

It had been nine days since his last sleep. If not for his body being somewhat altered by Honkai Energy, a sudden collapse would've been expected, wouldn't it?

As Otto mentioned, deducing the genetic fusion technology behind MANTIS fighters wasn't particularly challenging. At least, with access to the Void Archives, extensive research on Kaslana bloodline, and undoubtedly leveraging Fu Hua's knowledge for further study, Otto had surely managed to reverse-engineer it.

Using his broad understanding of plot developments, Zeke found direction in his research. With additional contributions from Kiana and Siegfried, unbeknownst to them, he could also replicate the technological path through reverse engineering.

However, the success rate of creating MANTIS fighters has little to do with the gene fusion technology itself.

The true determinants of success were factors like favorable timing, advantageous circumstances, and harmonious relationships—a realm often bordering on metaphysical.

With his superior knowledge, Zeke utilized himself as the experimental subject to successfully quantify most uncertain variables, crafting a tailored Fusion experiment suited for him.

Among these requirements were mental state, endocrine system balance, muscle fatigue level, degree of cell division suppression, neuronal activity intensity, and many more. A significant portion of these conditions could be achieved by simply not sleeping.

This was the reason behind his steadfast refusal to rest.

Sometimes, the methods employed by top-tier scientists can be remarkably straightforward yet monotonous.

"Bang!"

A small foot kicked open the bedroom door.

It was Kiana, entering with a glass of milk.

"Good evening, Zeke."

Kiana blinked her large, expressive eyes, clearly aiming to charm him.

Zeke lifted his head, eyes glazed like dead fish, and asked hesitantly: "...Did you cause trouble again? Or is there something else you want?"

Having deeply understood Kiana's carefree nature, Zeke knew well that unsolicited kindness invariably concealed ulterior motives.

Two X's appeared on Kiana's forehead as she maintained a stiff smile, her expression barely genuine.

"Seeing you look rather worn out, I just brought you some warm milk. Don't mistake kindness for something sinister!"

"Hmm, thoughtful of you. You can leave it here and make a graceful exit now."

"Drink it first before saying anything else."

"Alright..."

Zeke picked up the glass, sniffed it briefly, but didn't bring it to his lips.

Kiana, puzzled, asked, "Why aren't you drinking?"

Zeke responded with suspicion, "Is there a sleeping pill in it?"

A momentary silence fell between them.

After a brief pause, Kiana leaped onto the table, using both hands to push the milk towards Zeke's mouth.

"Come on, drink it quickly!"

"Icarus!"

"Clank! Clank! Clank!"

One minute later, Kiana found herself bound like a caterpillar by iron chains, wriggling uneasily on the table.

Zeke took out a tissue and wiped away the milk from the corner of his lips—he hadn't swallowed any, but given their strength disparity, a researcher clearly couldn't match Kiana's monstrous physical prowess, resulting in inevitable splashes during their struggle.

"Thump!"

Kiana controlled her body to bounce once on the table, positioning herself face-to-face with Zeke—why she could move so adeptly while bound is, I believe, self-explanatory.