Chapter 39: You're still here, right?

Gurgle Gurgle——

It is the sound of bubbles floating up from the water.

Xiwang stared blankly at everything in front of him. Under the obstruction of the seawater, the whole world seemed to be covered with a unique filter, and the sea surface seemed to divide the world into two parts.

Above the sea surface, there is a constant flow of falling wreckage, ruins, and fragments of continental debris.

Beneath the sea surface, countless debris fell quietly to the bottom of the sea. There was no sound, only a few bubbles emerging, indicating that another thing was accepted by the ocean.

Xiwang was still awake. Even though he had lost half of his body, his consciousness was still there, but... his thoughts were stuck at that moment just now.

The moment when Hen pushed himself away and his body turned into ashes.

He did not resent Kevin, because it was the consensus of all fusion warriors that the [Herrscher] must be killed, and he also said that if there were special circumstances, the [Judgment of Shamash] could be activated according to the plan.

He just wanted to fulfill his promise and save Hen when he was in danger, just to prevent Griseo from losing her loved ones again.

But now…

"......"

With the help of the firelight shining down from the sea, Xiwang watched piece after piece of wreckage fall into the sea in silence.

Would it be better if Kevin didn't delay his attack? Would it be better if he didn't mention this to Hen? After all, judging by the situation, the effect of his "abnormal blood" was very impressive.

In that case, maybe Hen could be lucky enough to survive?

In that case, the Herrscher would not have had the chance to raise that "Black Sun" in the end, right?

If... if... if I could arrive earlier, would things have been perfect?

But it's no use saying all this now.

The situation is so bad... already, there is no way to change it.

Then let it not get any worse.

Xiwang struggled, moved his only arm, manipulated the sea water to push himself away from the bottom of the earth's fragments, and swam hard and quickly towards the sea surface.

At least, we can't let the Fire Moth sacrifice another fusion warrior.

At least, we can't let Elysia and Sakura be sad.

At least, I have to go see Griseo on Hen's behalf.

You have to live, for sure.

Gulu——

There were waves of swimming sounds coming from all around, and Xiwang instantly became alert. He knew that there were many Honkai beasts hiding in the sea. After the [land] was lost and this area belonged to the [ocean], countless Honkai beasts would flock in.

Xiwang was ready to fight to the death, even though he was now half-crippled, and even though the [Gabriel] gene in his body had become extremely active due to the abundant sea water, this was still his home ground.

Here it comes.

The moment the herd of Honkai beasts approached, Xiwang sensed that "school of fish" that was like a swarm of locusts... no, their number was even greater than that of locusts.

They crowded together, also manipulating the seawater, bringing with them countless companions and Honkai energy, and quickly submerged him.

But the strange thing is that when Xiwang attacked them, they did not fight back. Even when they passed by Xiwang, they would bypass him on their own, as if he, the "enemy," did not exist at all.

At this moment, a deep blue color different from the sea water came into his eyes.

Although it is also a liquid, it is so conspicuous in the sea water and shows its existence so clearly.

Xiwang knew that it was his own "blood."

Xiwang understood that he had mutated due to the overactive [Gabriel] gene, and he... had been regarded as a [kindred member] by those Honkai beasts.

Boom!!

A huge and dull sound came from above, and another piece of continental debris fell, covering all the light above Xiwang and slowly pressing towards Xiwang.

"......"

Xiwang swung his arms blankly, manipulating the sea water with difficulty to escape from under the fragment of the continent... His perception of his own body was becoming weaker and weaker.

Got to go up... Got to go back up there...

Xiwang persisted, but the sea that was obviously so close at hand seemed so far away at this moment. He was obviously swimming hard towards the surface and trying to move forward, but it seemed as if something in the sea bound him, slowly pulling him towards the deep sea, bit by bit.

Boom!

With a crisp and neat sound, a piece of debris fell straight down, just above Xiwang, knocking Xiwang down again and crushing his last bit of strength.

Gurgle Gurgle——

Tiny bubbles gradually floated out from the gap of the mouth and gradually floated upwards. Only after crossing a long distance, they could show their figures on the sea surface... But now, the sea surface has been covered by ice. They can only stay there silently, and finally be taken out by the Honkai beast that broke through the ice, and finally frozen in the ice sculpture.

The fire on the sea surface became dimmer and dimmer, and what he could see became less and less, and the darkness in the sea gradually occupied his sight.

Finally, only the early morning sunlight refracted a faint glow through the sea surface, but... this faint light soon disappeared.

I couldn't see anything, I couldn't grasp anything, all I could see was darkness, and all around me was the sea water, which gently seemed to be embracing me, like a mother's embrace, and the gentle movements carried an irresistible meaning.

The gentle sea water loves every child.

The loving sea embraces every child.

Facing the child who had returned from afar, facing the child who had endured countless dryness on land, facing the child who had been ravaged by fire, it hugged him in its arms with heartache.

Don't be afraid, this is your "home."

Xiwang had already lost the ability to control water at this moment, and his perception of his body also became blurred.

No... No... I have to go back...

He forced his eyelids up to maintain his sight, and thought hard to maintain his consciousness.

To survive...

But Xiwang's spirit finally reached its limit, and he fainted while falling continuously.

Gulu——

The last tiny bubble squeezed out of the crack of his mouth and floated silently upwards, lonely and helpless.

In the pitch-black deep sea, the dark lines on his body flowed quietly, as if what happened before had no effect on them... No, they were still affected. One of the "lines" left its original trajectory and drifted upwards little by little along his arm, like a floating bubble.

Slowly, the "pattern" that deviated from its trajectory began to disappear quietly, as if being burned by flames, turning into ashes bit by bit, and finally blending into the seawater and disappearing quietly.

A bunch of pure white lilies fell quietly and silently into his hands.

As if worried, someone held his already weak hand and gently and tenderly helped him close his five fingers so that he could accept the bouquet of lilies.

Silently, the lilies bloomed with a faint glow, and then quietly dissipated, turning into dots of blue, driving the surrounding sea water, turning it into a deep blue liquid, and then silently merging into his body.

The gentle sea water quietly gathered and turned into a deep blue liquid, slowly seeping into his body, giving him "nutrients" without reservation, and his burnt half-body was gradually "growing and reshaping," and finally returning to normal, without any trace on his body, as if he had never been injured.

Until this moment, the sea water, which was worried about the child, seemed to let go of its worry and loosened its restraint on his body. It just held him quietly and let him sleep peacefully.

......

.........

And at the bottom of the dark sea, a huge aquatic Honkai beast was swimming slowly, looking for its "prey." The black and white on its body were distinct, and there was a conspicuous white patch on each side of its head, which made people feel like they were its eyes... But these were useless in the dark deep sea.

Suddenly, it was attracted by a ray of light that did not belong to the seabed. Even though it was very faint, it was not something that would appear on the seabed.

It swam closer, and soon, it touched a small figure.

It was a little confused for a moment, because the "thing" in front of it... seemed to be its "companion," but in its cognition, he should not appear here, and should not appear in this identity.

It gently touched the little guy with its mouth, but found that he did not respond. After swimming around him a few times, it was sure that he was still alive.

"Hmm——"

It made a whistle-like sound and gently moved its tail fin, revealing a hint of worry.

Then it controlled the sea water, gently tied him to its body, and swam away with him.

......

.........

Snap——

Wielding a blade as thin as ice, it caused gusts of wind and snow, freezing the sea water and creating a piece of ice surface that people could stand on.

After beheading the Honkai beast that broke through the ice and letting its remaining body fall on the ice, the girl with cherry-colored animal ears habitually shook the knife and then put it back into the sheath.

"Hurry up, pack up your things, it's going to sink!"

Behind her, countless Fire Moth members were busy on the ice, trying to rescue the remaining data and debris as much as possible.

The destruction and sinking of Mu Continent dealt a heavy blow to humanity. If industrial capacity could be restored elsewhere, it would be difficult to save the original scientific research results. Too much data sank into the sea, and even more data was directly swallowed and torn apart by the "Black Sun." People could only barely piece together everything that had happened from the remaining fragments.

Since then, the entire human society has been shrouded in a haze... But even so, they must take action to try not to make the consequences worse.

But all that was a little far away for Sakura, and it was not something she should think about.

"......"

Elysia looked at the frozen ice surface and listened to the sound of waves in the distance, unable to speak for a long time.

The long and slender ears on her head wanted to droop several times according to her mood, but she forced herself to stop, and habitually stretched them straight. Her long cherry-colored hair swayed gently in the cold wind, bringing with it bursts of light floral fragrance.

She tightly grasped the blade at her waist and took several steps, wanting to leave and look for that breath on the sea, but in the end, she did not leave. The hand holding the blade hung on the handle as if it had lost strength, and the breath emanating from her whole body became fragile in an instant, like cherry blossoms about to wither in the cold wind.

Snap——

The Honkai beast hiding under the ice seized the moment when her breath weakened, smashed the ice surface, and attacked her.

But what greeted it was only a fleeting icy blue.

Boom.

Sakura wordlessly repeated the movements of shaking the sword and sheathing it, letting the remains of the Honkai beast fall on the ice, waiting for others to come forward to seal it and take it away, silently performing her duties.

After a while, the soldiers in the rear informed her that the surrounding wreckage had been salvaged and it was time for them to leave.

"Good."

Sakura nodded and watched them board the aircraft. She looked away only when the aircraft was obscured by the clouds - she did not leave with the team.

She slowly drew out her sword. The wind and snow froze the sea surface, and she walked on the ice, killing the Honkai beasts that kept breaking through the ice, while moving towards the next designated location.

Even though she was alone now, the calm expression on her face never changed, and the animal ears on her head never moved.

When she arrived at the next place, she repeated the task process of "killing the Honkai beast, protecting the personnel, and waiting for the salvage to be completed," and kept repeating this until everything was over, until the Fire Moth informed her that it was time to go back.

Is it over already?

It was not until then that Sakura realized in a daze that she had been on the sea for seven consecutive days.

For seven days, she fought non-stop, maintained the ice surface non-stop, and repeated the task of "guarding the salvage personnel" non-stop. Except for eating, she had little rest.

However, none of them could sense any familiar presence in the sea, and other companions did not send any corresponding news.

"......"

Sakura stood on the ice for a long time without moving. Even though the soldiers on the aircraft behind her urged her again and again, she seemed not to hear them. She even took a step forward stiffly, as if she was going to continue to the next mission location.

"Sakura."

Elysia grabbed Sakura and forcibly stopped her movements.

"It's time to go back, neh?"

Seeing Sakura turn around and look at her, Elysia spoke softly.

"...Ah, is it over? Elysia."

Sakura seemed to have come back to her senses at this moment and spoke with a hint of apology.

"Sorry, I got distracted."

She turned around and took the initiative to walk towards the aircraft with slow steps, as if she was lingering on and waiting for something.

But until she boarded the aircraft until the aircraft flew into the sky and leaped into the clouds, the expected "miracle" did not happen.

"......"

Sakura slowly withdrew her gaze from the sea and did not look at the ice surface that had been broken into pieces by the Honkai beast.

After returning to the base, Sakura stopped when she met Kevin who had also returned.

"......"

She looked at Kevin, waiting for his answer.

Kevin, on the other hand, shook his head slightly in silence, with deep fatigue in his drooping eyes - like Sakura, he had persisted on the sea for seven consecutive days, but also gained nothing.

And next, Kevin will have to face the accountability of Fire Moth.

His spine was no longer straight, and he no longer had the temperament of a warrior... It was as if something was pressing down on him, heavy.

"......"

Sakura just nodded silently in response and took another step toward home.

But her steps seemed even heavier and more tired.

Standing at the door of her house, she adjusted her expression slightly and smiled, but it looked a little stiff because she was too tired. She patted her face again to make her expression look more natural and then pushed the door open and entered.

She first washed herself, then prepared dinner absentmindedly, and had dinner with Rin in silence. Late at night, she sent Rin to her own room on the grounds that "it's time for a big girl to sleep alone."

Click.

She walked into her room and closed the door. Now she was finally alone.

The animal ears on her head lost their support at this moment and drooped weakly, and her hands also hung limply at her sides.

She moved her feet bit by bit, walked to her bed with difficulty, and then fell on the bed weakly.

She tilted her head slightly, used the soft pillow to wipe away the tears that inevitably overflowed from her eyes, slowly raised her hand, gently pressed the cherry blossom pendant that she had never taken off, rubbed it lightly with her fingertips, and hesitated for a long time without opening it.

Rin was still next door, and she was afraid that she would cry out loud.

"You're still here, right?"

She whispered softly.

The accumulated weariness surged up and overwhelmed her