The greatest contributor to Otto's source of intelligence was not the information Schicksal had gathered about the Previous Era, but rather the First Divine Key of the Previous Era within his own mind—Void Archives.
As the First Divine Key of the Previous Era, it possessed all the knowledge of that civilization. Yet it also had a peculiar terminal with self-awareness—and an aggressive one at that—which had constantly attempted to seize Otto's body.
Although Void Archives had never mentioned Vill-V's identity, it had been using extremely, extremely roundabout methods in an attempt to approach her.
Otto had naturally noticed that little scheme. No matter how well Void Archives concealed it, Otto had listened to its seductive whispers for five hundred years—how could he possibly fail to understand its true intentions?
Thus Otto feigned closeness with Vill-V, trying to coax information from it. However, Void Archives was equally cautious and refused to reveal anything at all.
But when Otto expressed his intention to give it to Vill-V, the joy, excitement, hesitation, and fear it felt could no longer be concealed in its words.
Heh. Emotions make the best intelligence, do they not?
Temptation, too, has its uses.
The moment Otto finished speaking, everyone looked at Planck and Vill-V with even greater astonishment.
The Previous Era—a time whose technology surpassed that of today. An age that had created countless marvels such as the Divine Keys and soulium. An era that had faced the Herrscher of Finality head-on. An era that had vanished into history.
And they had actually come from that legendary age.
"Ah, as expected, a genius and beautiful scientist like myself simply cannot hide her dazzling brilliance. That's right, I am the youngest master of Helixcraft, the inventor of Kevin's armaments, the Magic King of the Dusk Era, the world's number one idol, the one who gazes upon the stars! One of those titles is fake—care to guess which one?"
No one understood Vill-V's bizarre titles, nor did anyone present have any interest in solving riddles. But everyone clearly understood the weight she carried.
"My cancer can be cured! If it's technology from the Previous Era..." One elder of the Apocalypse family was overjoyed. He did not have long to live. The technology of this era could not cure his cancer—but the medical technology of the Previous Era could!
Another elder thought the same. "The Previous Era—if it's the Previous Era, then my eye disease and even my gonorrhea can be cured!"
It seemed some had already begun treating Vill-V as a wish-granting machine. In their eyes, the Previous Era was like a god—omnipotent.
After all, the relics excavated from ancient ruins were enough to inspire such thoughts. Some of that black technology even shattered the laws of physics.
Einstein, however, was focused on something else. "The decoding of the Dead Sea Scrolls... the lost technology... If someone from the Previous Era were to interpret it and construct the true Moonlight Throne, there would be no problem at all."
The Dead Sea Scrolls—ancient documents discovered among the ruins of the Previous Era in the wilderness of Qumran by the Dead Sea—recorded the design blueprints of the ultimate weapon used by the Previous Era to oppose the Herrscher of Finality: the Moonlight Throne.
Unfortunately, most of the document was missing. The remaining fragments could only be partially interpreted due to translation barriers. Even so, relying on that mere tip of the iceberg, Edison and the others had managed to construct the Honkai reactor—a cross-era energy device.
One could only imagine what earth-shattering changes obtaining the complete blueprints of the Moonlight Throne would bring to humanity's struggle against the Honkai.
Little did they know, the chief designer of the Moonlight Throne—the master of Helixcraft, Vill-V—stood right before them. Although she had yet to build it in this timeline, she was currently still in the Moon Ring stage.
Compared to the others, Hua—also a survivor of the Previous Era—remained very calm. After all, she had no related memories.
Ever since she had been killed by her seven disciples five hundred years ago, her memories of the Previous Era had been reduced to only a few fragments she considered absolutely crucial. Even those had been recalled only with Otto's help and Void Archives.
As for memories related to Vill-V, they were clearly not important. Hua had discarded them as fuel for the Taixuan Eminence.
Vill-V? I don't know her.
After the Second Honkai Eruption, Fu Hua would not even remember that she had once been a warrior of the Previous Era. She would remember only her mission to protect Shenzhou—until she encountered the Book of Cangxuan once more...
Vill-V had long prepared herself for the possibility that her identity might be exposed. The intelligence-gathering capabilities of the Current Era were no joke. And the Previous Era had never hidden Vill-V's true identity. If the Current Era kept digging through ruins, they were bound to uncover information about her sooner or later.
Besides, she had never intended to conceal it. Only Dr. Tesla had been thoroughly deceived.
Well, now both the Tesla of the Previous Era and the Tesla of the Current Era had been tricked by Vill-V.
Her mentor, Tesla of the Previous Era, would probably be very gratified.
Seeing that no one guessed which title was fake, Vill-V stood up and stepped directly onto the long table in her knee-high boots. "Then first, let me—the most popular idol of the Dusk Era, Vill-V—present to you a legendary magic trick long lost from the Previous Era... Wait, don't stop me! A serious meeting needs me to liven things up even more..."
Welt grabbed one of Vill-V's arms and shouted, "Stop it, Vill-V! Life isn't just about performances and magic! If you keep this up, the meeting won't be able to continue!"
Although everyone present was emotionally stirred, Welt—true to his role as Anti-Entropy's chief straight man—still had the courage to stop the uniquely positioned Vill-V.
"What's wrong with a joyful meeting? A gala is still a meeting! In the end, it's just an exchange of ideas between people. This is how the Previous Era held meetings!"
"Stop talking nonsense!"
"Hahaha." Seeing Vill-V being restrained by members of Anti-Entropy in such an absurd scene, Otto felt genuine amusement at their simplicity. It was precisely because such people existed that the world was full of delightful charm—worth cherishing.
Compared to them, those old fossils of the Apocalypse family appeared corrupt and greedy, caring only for their own interests.
Though such people were easy to manipulate and useful for handling certain gray matters, it was about time this batch stepped off the stage.
A glint flickered in Otto's eyes as he continued speaking to Vill-V and Planck. "Whether you come from the past or the future no longer matters. Because the present in which you exist is already nearing its end. Thank you for extending your hands in aid."
Vill-V paid no heed to Otto's insincere gratitude. She knew perfectly well that his words were meant to ensure they would hold nothing back—would reveal everything they possessed.
Unfortunately, neither Planck nor Vill-V had ever intended to hold back. They were already doing everything in their power to help this world overcome its crisis.
Yet there were always those who desired more—
"Otto, these two must remain in Schicksal!"