I am a former Flame Chasers

Crack, crack.

The sound of glass breaking echoed, and light green nutrient liquid began spilling out across the floor.

It wasn't just in this laboratory; in all the rooms where the glass jars were placed, the same noises could be heard, as though hundreds of beasts were waking up.

Ryan's eyes widened as he stared, momentarily stunned. The report he had just read stated that these were unfinished products, suffering from some kind of "sleeping sickness" – no one could wake them up. The church had used various methods, but the number of failed subjects had been increasing.

So how did they wake up? Was it because of the Honkai energy? Hadn't the church run several experiments that used Honkai energy as a stimulant? What other methods had they employed?

Ryan let the green liquid seep over his leather shoes, his gaze flicking to the frozen corridor. As the realization struck, everything fell into place.

Authority? Did they wake up because of authority? Isn't this...

Bang!

The glass jar finally shattered, and more than a dozen monstrous figures surged forward in an instant. But in the next moment, ice spikes shot out, nailing them to the ceiling.

"This is related to the Herrscher. That Sample Zero is more powerful than I thought," Ryan muttered to himself, watching the monsters squirm on the ceiling. Their blood stained the ice spikes red, but they continued to thrash wildly, unable to stop.

Their muscles tore and bones snapped as their eyes filled with madness and hunger. They struggled to free themselves, trying to devour Ryan whole, leaving nothing behind.

Ryan raised his cane, swinging it like a sword. He severed several heads, but the headless bodies continued to charge forward, only to be frozen into ice sculptures.

What strong vitality and recovery abilities, but they're just stronger versions of dead soldiers. He glanced at one of the heads still trying to bite. Even after being decapitated, a neck was slowly regrowing.

The recovery speed is too fast... Ryan thought, watching as the ice spread and began to climb the monsters' bodies. Their growth slowed as the ice spread, and Ryan, an expert in biology, immediately recognized the cause.

This is a cellular process. These creatures' cells are multiplying at an alarming rate, just like... a virus?

Bang—

The explosion-proof glass in the laboratory was forced open, and more monsters burst through, screeching horribly as they entered.

They're not just attacking me, they're attacking anything!

Ryan swung his cane again, and a half-moon-shaped ice ring shot out, crushing the incoming monsters. The remaining limbs froze into a solid mass, trapped in place. Ryan stepped through the gap, peeking out to see several soldiers running and firing their weapons.

They were quickly brought to the ground, their screams echoing as the monsters began gnawing on them.

Cannibalism?

Ryan's eyebrows twitched when he saw the gruesome scene. This was expected. The rapid cell proliferation would consume a massive amount of energy. If there was no replenishment, the creatures would collapse on their own. But what happened next made him swear under his breath.

Damn.

The monsters that had rushed in were quickly turned into ice chips, but the soldiers left with only half their bodies were convulsing violently on the ground. Their bodies began to cover themselves in a layer of Honkai energy crystals, their heads swelling into octopus-like shapes.

Then, they stood up in strange postures, and the bodies that had been consumed began to regenerate quickly.

And it was contagious. Are you really playing Resident Evil with me?

Ryan suddenly remembered the Honkai energy crystals on the surface of their bodies. Isn't this a characteristic of Honkai patients? As a researcher, he quickly pieced together the clues.

The Church had used some characteristics of the Honkai disease. The core sample, Sample Zero, was defined by rapid cell proliferation, and these cells were also contagious.

They had been dormant, but Ryan's authority had awakened them. Cell proliferation... Herrscher authority—

"Herrscher of Death!" Ryan exclaimed.

He had finally found the answer. He was the only one who knew what authority the sixth Herrscher, who had never appeared, held. It was no exaggeration to say that the Herrscher of Death was the "God" of biology.

Looking at the origins of the Herrscher, it was clear that these uneducated people could do little on their own. At most, they could use it as a means of attack, but if the Herrscher provided the materials and the right group of "geniuses" to develop it, the results would be entirely different.

If Mobius and the Herrscher of Death joined forces, what they would develop would be ten thousand times more terrifying than this.

If the Herrscher didn't appear themselves, they could rely on these idiots to create a virus that could destroy civilization, right? In a sense, it was much more terrifying than the Herrscher of Ice. At least that Herrscher didn't have this kind of scalability.

Ryan's murderous intent flared. He realized that the new characteristics of the Herrscher were far more terrifying than he had originally anticipated. The combat power and destructive capabilities couldn't be compared.

I haven't even seen the face of these monsters yet. If they make it to the surface, the damage they could cause is unimaginable. The key is to kill them all. If I don't, the Herrscher will remain unharmed.

"No, some monsters have already escaped the laboratory."

The swirling wind carried the chaos from the surface. The monsters were feeding on humans, spreading and multiplying like an uncontrollable, deadly virus.

Ryan didn't rush to intercept them. After all, once he took action, the Southern European branch would certainly respond, sending in their elite troops. These monsters would run into them.

Leave the surface to the Fire Moth. I'll handle the underground. Damn, I'm wearing the guise of the Herrscher of Ice now.

Ryan felt a sense of irony and walked deeper into the laboratory with a cold expression. These monsters weren't particularly strong aside from their infectious nature. At least to him, they were nothing more than minions.

The rampaging collapse turned the corridor into a meat grinder, shredding dozens of monsters into finger-sized pieces. Ryan stepped on the twitching remains, his face growing more somber.

Not only are they contagious, but they can evolve. I've seen several of these monsters grow over three meters tall. If I give them a few more months to evolve, they'll be no match for me.

"But for ordinary soldiers and civilians, it's a nightmare. It's impossible for human civilization to only rely on a few strong people."

Using his wind power and freezing abilities, it took only half an hour for Ryan to reach the central control room. He tapped his cane against the heavy alloy door.

The steel froze quickly, and with just a light tap, a large hole was formed. Ryan entered, holding a frozen monster in one hand.

Inside, he saw a man in a red robe. Only high-ranking members of the Crusaders wore that kind of robe. The expression on the man's face was very telling—some fear, but mostly confusion and anger. From just his expression, Ryan already understood.

"Do you feel betrayed by the Herrscher? You followed Him and made great strides, but now you've been cast aside?"

From Astu's perspective, it probably felt like he was being exploited, but as soon as he opened his mouth, he found he couldn't speak anymore. His eyes filled with terror.

Ryan wasn't interested in listening to excuses. Realizing this man was just an ordinary person, he immediately destroyed his consciousness with a mental shock and sent him a "gift."

As the ice melted, the monster's octopus-like head appeared, frantically chewing the air. It then devoured a piece of flesh.

"Ahh—"

The screams echoed in the room as the monster chewed on the bishop's leg. Since the body was frozen, the chewing was painfully slow.

Ryan turned on the central computer, his fingers quickly typing on the keyboard. The flashing data reflected in his eyes.

"I'm asking you, are you the Fire Moth? Where did you meet the Herrscher?"

"I'm just completing the task assigned by His Majesty. I haven't met the Herrscher, nor have I seen any Fire Moth!" Astu's answer was muffled by his screams. He was nearly fainting from the pain, but his mind was controlled, forcing him to speak.

"So, he's a confidant. No wonder. If he were a core figure, he wouldn't have been so easily fooled by me." Ryan continued, his voice unbothered, as he searched for more information. The core secret about how to "take away" the Herrscher's power was what he needed.

"Your master is very lucky. He avoided this. By the way, where did he go?"

"New... York!"

"Ah, no wonder. He must have set a trap for me to fall into. I didn't expect my luck to improve after meeting Pardo." Ryan shrugged, his eyes scanning the core information, and he roughly understood the situation.

As expected, these bastards had come into contact with the Herrscher of Death and received its "blessing." They secretly summoned experts to begin their research.

The Crusaders had explored using Honkai energy before, and with precious materials, they made progress. But their goal wasn't to create killing weapons.

If they couldn't become fusion warriors, replicating the Herrscher's authority was their only way to gain control over cells, to achieve immortality.

Ryan had once spoken to the Takeuchi brothers in Neon, and he knew the "believers" had no true faith. Most of them just wanted power, to achieve immortality. The Herrscher of Death's authority was the perfect "magic" for them.

Ryan looked at the broken body still twitching with disgust. The Herrscher was nothing like the devils of fantasy novels. They didn't want to rule the world or earn minions. They were willing to sacrifice themselves for the end.

These idiots, however, dared to use their power and intellect to create a terrible virus for the Herrscher. If Ryan hadn't accidentally stumbled upon it, this could have broken out globally, and even Mobius wouldn't have been able to clean up the mess.

By the time she developed a vaccine, most humans would have already died.

Roar!

The mutated bishop lunged at Ryan, but with a flash of arc energy, he was turned to ash in an instant.

Ryan waved his hand, obliterating the last monster. He grabbed the USB drive from the server and snapped his fingers, destroying it with a voltage overload.

The data was copied, and the roars above grew louder. It was clear that the Fire Moth had secured the underground.

Ryan glanced at the completely destroyed database, took a deep breath, and muttered to himself.

It took so much time. This is the first time I've dealt directly with the "Faith Faction" and seen their so-called "great achievements." The goal is simple.

At all costs, I will uproot you within a month!