[Check Out My P4treon For +50 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!! And get chapters before publishing them here for free on my p4treon][https://p4treon.com/roaverse]
===
Herta's reaction was even stronger than 'Ruan Mei' had imagined.
Hmm, it was normal, though.
Herta stared intently at 'Ruan Mei,' exuding an aura as if she wanted to see right through her, flesh and bone.
Even the original Ruan Mei, standing to the side, curiously perked up her ears to listen in secret.
"Genius Society #4, Polka Kakamond. She wants to kill anyone who has the potential to break through the Knowledge Singularity."
"Why? And how does she manage to do it so imperceptibly?"
Herta frowned. She didn't deny 'Ruan Mei's' words; rather, she was questioning the method.
"I don't know the exact details. From what I recall, it seems to be based on the idea that if the universe becomes omniscient, it can avoid heading toward Finality?"
'Ruan Mei' tilted her head, trying to recall. Since this was text from a side story, she had mostly skimmed through it back then, so her impression wasn't that deep.
"Tsk."
Herta clicked her tongue, her emotions unreadable.
"As for how she does it, she has an ability called the 'Omniscient Domain'..."
"Understood."
There was no need to finish. Upon hearing the words 'Omniscient Domain,' Herta immediately realized where all those "accidents" she had encountered came from.
Beside her, the original Ruan Mei nodded thoughtfully. One could only wonder what she was thinking.
Herta, meanwhile, made a silent mental note in her little ledger against Polka Kakamond. She decided to carefully brainstorm how to deal with that woman's sneak attacks.
As for 'Ruan Mei,' she glanced at her own panel:
[Character Impersonation System]
[Name: Baiming (Ruan Mei)]
[Lifespan: 100 Years (Paused) + 20 Days (Character Impersonation)]
[Available Transformation Characters: Great Herta (Recharge: 90.6%), Acheron (Recharge: 58.8%), Star-shatterer (Recharge: 17.3%), Ruan Mei (Impersonating)]
[Available Draw Count: 0 (80.2%)]
Great Herta's recharge was getting closer and closer. The gacha progress bar below had also surpassed eighty percent.
To be honest, after the hard work of the past few days, 'Ruan Mei' hadn't paid much attention to the collection of Emotional Value. The progress bar was roughly consistent with previous projections—there were slight fluctuations, but it generally met expectations.
After the brief chat, Herta erupted with unimaginable passion. After all, she was that kind of person; when she saw an obstacle in her path, she would only use her super-intelligence to kick it aside.
With Herta's assistance, 'Ruan Mei' and the original Ruan Mei attempted to construct a sufficiently self-consistent logic within the Light Lifeform's body. They aimed to achieve the Path balance they desired and used it as a guide to induce the specific changes in Imaginary Energy they were looking for.
However, if an individual possessed self-awareness, they would almost always lean toward a specific direction, making it impossible to accurately reach the state 'Ruan Mei' wanted.
Therefore...
In the end, 'Ruan Mei' turned her focus back to the original cluster of Light Life. All subsequent Light Lifeforms were split from this single being that possessed only instinct. It could practically be called the source of all Light Life.
Thus, the experiment began.
The three geniuses once again entered a state of neglecting sleep and food. 'Ruan Mei' constantly tested ratios and adjusted parameters, trying time and again to find that perfect balance.
Simultaneously, throughout these repeated experiments, 'Ruan Mei' continuously questioned her own heart. What exactly was the 'Light of Hope' she desired?
If it were merely "an eye for an eye," then the Galaxy Rangers were already that. If it were pure protection, then Preservation was already there. No matter the trait, an Aeon had already reached the summit.
Yet, there was always something missing from the concept of "Hope."
A ray of light that tears through the darkness—what it brings is definitely more than just a simple "eye for an eye." It is also definitely more than just pure protection. It also needs to give people in despair the courage to stand back up. It needs to guide people at the end of their revenge to live again with a heart full of hope.
The arrival of Light doesn't mean that problems and troubles will necessarily dissolve. It is definitely not some convenient trouble-remover, nor should it be a god. Rather, it is something that can guide people in despair to reignite hope and possess the courage to face their problems.
After this constant soul-searching, 'Ruan Mei' gradually entered an indescribable state of focus.
This state quickly drew the attention of Herta and the original Ruan Mei.
"Is she... catching the spark?"
Herta raised an eyebrow. The 'Ruan Mei' before her at this moment gave her a very familiar feeling. It was very similar to the atmosphere whenever she herself grasped an inspiration, as if she were about to cross that boundary.
"It seems so."
A flicker of envy flashed in Ruan Mei's eyes. In the field of biology, it wasn't her, but this impersonator who had stepped into the zone first. This made the original's mood quite complex.
Meanwhile, on the panel that Baiming hadn't noticed, the progress bar jumped up another notch:
[Character Impersonation System]
[Name: Baiming (Ruan Mei)]
[Lifespan: 100 Years (Paused) + 20 Days (Character Impersonation)]
[Available Transformation Characters: Great Herta (Recharge: 94.6%), Acheron (Recharge: 63.2%), Star-shatterer (Recharge: 21.3%), Ruan Mei (Impersonating)]
[Available Draw Count: 0 (91.2%)]
Of course, 'Ruan Mei,' being in the zone, couldn't see this for the moment.
Herta stared at 'Ruan Mei' for a while, then turned her head to stare at Ruan Mei's face with a grin, trying to see something in her expression.
"Oho~ Ruan Mei, what are you feeling right now?"
She didn't believe Ruan Mei had no thoughts while witnessing this. Anyway, if Baiming were currently impersonating Herta and caught that spark right in front of her, Herta was certain she wouldn't be able to stay calm. To have the original be outdone by an imposter? That would be a total upheaval of the natural order!
Ruan Mei smiled, pursing her lips. But she said nothing. She withdrew her attention and threw herself back into the experiment.
"Hmph, boring."
Herta curled her lip. Ruan Mei's personality really wasn't interesting at all. At least Baiming could banter a bit with her.
But despite her thoughts, the experiment had to continue. Since 'Ruan Mei' had entered the zone, they would naturally give her full cooperation. At the same time, they had to stay on guard against Polka Kakamond, who might come to cause trouble.
Though... the original Ruan Mei had never encountered an assassination attempt, which suggested that research in biology likely had a hard time reaching Polka's criteria for intervention. Still, Herta couldn't be absolutely sure. She just silently increased her vigilance.
This state lasted for more than ten more days. Then, at a certain moment, the detection equipment standing nearby suddenly let out a series of beeps.
The three 'Ruan Meis' were startled and simultaneously looked up at the readings. Then, the three of them looked at each other, seeing the joy in each other's eyes:
"A new qualitative change!!"
===
Note: This story is currently available up to chapter 70 on my Patreon, go check it out.
exclusive 18+ character images, and early chapters, please visit my Patreon. Thanks for your support!
https://p4treon.com/roaverse
if you want more updates == supports with power stones
Every 20 Power Stones==Bonus Chapter
every three 5-star reviews == Bonus Chapter
Please support my friend's fanfic, it's just as good as, or even better than, this one. It's called Starting as a Herrscher: Unrivaled Hack and Slash