"This little guy... is actually connected to Finality?"
Staring at the quartz clock and hourglass suspended at the entrance to the Simulated Universe, Herta blinked rapidly and murmured under her breath.
But very quickly, a fierce curiosity rose in her heart, accompanied by an unmistakable thrill.
Her beautiful crimson-violet eyes locked onto Jiang Ling, who was wrapped in that black-and-gold radiance, as though she were looking at some priceless treasure.
As both a Genius and an Emanator of Erudition, Herta had seen many things over the course of her long life.
She knew that the Stellaron Hunters had abandoned their original Paths to walk the path of Finality instead, and she had even crossed paths with figures like the Mourning Actors' Funeral Guests and the Omen Vanguards.
But for one reason or another, she had never truly had the chance to properly study this most mysterious Path in the universe.
And now...
A person connected to Finality was standing right in front of her, willingly letting himself be studied.
How could that not delight her?
At the thought that she might not only lift the veil on those memories, but also explore the most enigmatic of Paths, the corners of Herta's lips rose uncontrollably.
So she picked up her phone, opened the group chat titled Simulated Universe Project Team, and began contacting her fellow geniuses.
[Herta: Caught someone related to the Path of Finality. Research has already started. You coming or not?]
Almost the instant the message was sent, the other three partners responded.
[Ruan Mei: Freshly made plum blossom cakes. Would you like some?]
[Screwllum: Thank you for your sincere invitation and generous willingness to share, Lady Herta. I have already set out for the station and should arrive in approximately five system hours.]
[Stephen Lloyd: Congratulations to Herta—she can hold up the sky now.jpg]
...
At this very moment, however, Jiang Ling had no idea what was happening outside.
After that blinding flash of white light, his consciousness blanked out for a brief instant. By the time he came to himself...
the scene around him had already changed from Herta's office to a corridor in the Master Control Zone.
And the person standing before him was no longer Herta, one hand on her hip, but the somewhat nervous little rich girl Asta.
Looking at the pretty face of the girl in front of him, Jiang Ling blinked, momentarily puzzled.
So...
was he inside the Simulated Universe right now, or was he still standing in reality?
If this were the Simulated Universe, then the thing appearing in front of him ought to be monsters like Voidrangers or mara-struck fiends, shouldn't it?
Why was it a cute, secretly sharp-tongued little rich girl instead?
And almost the instant that question settled in his mind, the familiar light screen appeared before his eyes.
[Detected: input response from "Simulated Universe." Extraction content has been loaded automatically.]
[Target Persona: The Universe's Last Genius]
[Current Progress: Eve of the "Mirror" project / Before participation in the "Simulated Universe"]
Seeing the words appear on the screen, Jiang Ling's expression stiffened briefly, but soon relaxed again.
Sure, conducting Persona Extraction inside the Simulated Universe meant that Herta could watch the whole thing unfold in real time, observing each and every choice he made.
At first glance, that sounded pretty bad. After all, it meant he could no longer make choices as recklessly as before.
But looking at it from another angle...
perhaps it was not so terrible after all.
He could still make choices along the same lines as that old "old woman who loves pretending to be young" route.
With Herta's curiosity, she would definitely want to see how another possible version of herself would react. Naturally, she would not interrupt the extraction process over something like that.
Even if she kept some sort of little revenge ledger tucked away somewhere, by the time this round of Persona Extraction ended...
he might very well have gained the power to resist it.
And when that time came, whether Herta could actually do anything to him would be another matter entirely.
Thinking this, Jiang Ling slowly let out a breath, then looked up at the little rich girl in front of him and said apologetically,
"Sorry, Miss Asta. I zoned out for a moment just now. Where were we?"
"Zoned out...?"
Asta looked at him with some suspicion, but did not press the matter. Very soon, she smiled and handed him a staff badge for the station.
"It's really nothing especially important. Just some of the station's usual rules and regulations."
"The important thing is this—your ID badge for your stay on the station. Other than Lady Herta's office, there's nowhere on the station you're not allowed to go."
"Nowhere I'm not allowed to go..."
Looking at the badge in his hand, Jiang Ling narrowed his eyes slightly. Another Genius's figure surfaced in his mind.
He did not know whether, at this point in time, Ruan Mei was already researching the Starcrusher Swarm King, but no matter what, this meant he had one more avenue open to him. He might need her help later.
With that in mind, Jiang Ling nodded faintly. After exchanging a few polite words with Asta, the acting station master hurried off toward the platform to inspect cargo.
Watching Asta's retreating figure, Jiang Ling began considering what he should do next.
But if even something like this required him to rack his brains and think it through himself, then what was the point of having a cheat?
Almost the moment that thought occurred to him, the familiar options unfolded before his eyes.
[You have successfully gained Herta's trust and infiltrated Herta Space Station. What will you do next?]
[1. Contact Zhenzhu and tell her the plan has partially succeeded. Wait for further instructions.]
[2. Begin working according to the company's orders: research the mirror used to observe parallel universes while also trying to work your way into the Simulated Universe project team.]
[3. Appear to wander aimlessly through the station, but in truth search for an offline Herta puppet, capture her, drag her back to your room, and make extremely personal use of public property!]
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