Chapter 142: Tide, I Have Returned

[The Ninth Great Honkai Eruption broke out, and the Ninth Herrscher also descended on Mu Continent, the industrial center, scientific research center, and the Fire Moth base of mankind, in an arrogant and ruthless manner.]

[The moment the Ninth Herrscher appeared, it overturned the ground within a radius of nearly 200 miles with it as the center... in the physical sense.]

[You can see that the ground is like an ice cream, a piece of it was forcibly dug out, and then it was lifted into the air by an unknown force... and then fell heavily, or it was deliberately manipulated by it, like throwing a stone, smashing the building in the distance, using the heavy pressure of the land to collapse and crush the building, and together with the confused people inside, it was covered under the ruins.]

[Then... another piece of land is dug up, along with the ruins above and those who have survived by chance, and it floats into the sky... and then drops to the next target, and repeats this process.]

[Of course, there is also a simpler method... which is to "fold" the ground.]

[Well, just like closing an open book, one side of the ground is lifted up and covered to the other side... together with the people and buildings that are still on top, they are "closed" together and squeezed into a weird "book".]

[Or if they feel annoyed, they can just wave their hands, and a twisted and terrifying force will directly cover that area, and then all things on that land will be like being pressed by a hydraulic press, turning into a weird "pancake".]

[Ah... Of course, I'm referring to buildings here, and most of them will just turn into ruins, like thick, chocolate-covered cookies. As for humans and other creatures... they will probably be squeezed into a pool of blood mixed with debris.]

[What's worse is that the location where it appeared was too close to the base of the "Fire Moth". The disaster caused by the outbreak also covered the base, causing the location of the "Fire Moth" base to fall heavily from the air to the ground like a bungee jump. Many key buildings were destroyed and a large amount of research results were buried under the ruins.]

[As for the ordinary soldiers... Originally, they would have died. You know, even ordinary fusion warriors can hardly bear the damage of this sudden fall, especially since the "Ninth Herrscher" deliberately accelerated during the fall. That kind of impact force... can really smash a person into a "pancake".]

[But... now, they are not dead, they survived.]

[Just as the entire base was forcibly pulled into the sky by it, you resisted the pressure brought by the sudden rise and forced yourself to sing a syllable. The golden light flowed and turned into leaping notes, surrounding you, opening up an area for you, Eden, and Sakura, who were always held by your hands, to move around.]

[Then, you quickly adjusted your breath, and before the base fell, you sang a short song, using the wind to spread your power. The golden notes surrounded the entire base, building a "defense circle," barely preventing the base from being completely destroyed due to the fall.]

[Your actions also successfully saved ordinary people in the base from being smashed. Although many were injured by collapsed buildings, and some were buried under rubble, the losses weren't particularly great.]

[However, just as the fusion warriors were relieved and preparing to counterattack it, it... ran away.]

[Yes! The "Ninth Herrscher" showed its power by overturning the surrounding ground for hundreds of miles, destroying several cities, and nearly obliterating the "Fire Moth" base. Just when the fusion warriors were about to fight back, it fled!]

[This infuriated and frustrated the "Fire Moth," and they quickly split their forces. Some were assigned to clean up the nearly destroyed base, while others were sent to chase it.]

[This also interrupted the topic you were discussing... Elysia, Kevin, Aponia, and Kalpas were ordered to chase the "Ninth Herrscher." At this point, it didn't matter if Kalpas followed orders or not. The "Ninth Herrscher" must be killed as soon as possible to prevent it from destroying other bases in Mu Continent. Otherwise, the "Fire Moth's" plans would be scrapped.]

[Sakura and Eden led teams to manage the disaster-stricken cities, while you, Su, and Mobius were assigned to handle matters within the base.]

[There was nothing wrong with the arrangement. The people in the base desperately needed your "song" to stabilize the situation. This time, the base had been pulled into the "Great Eruption." The surrounding Honkai energy was terrifying, and without your timely "song," the survivors would have been either crushed or corroded into monsters.]

[Yet, the situation remained dire, especially for the injured who were exposed to the rich Honkai energy. Their condition worsened rapidly...]

[For the weakest among them, this was a near-death situation... such as Griseo.]

[You could still suppress the erosion with your "song," but the injuries from the collapsed buildings were beyond your power. You could only watch as Griseo and Blanca were pushed into the operating room, with Mobius performing the surgery herself.]

[Blanca was lucky. Thanks to Mobius' efforts, her condition was stable. Though her arm was broken and her legs were crushed, she survived. With "Fire Moth" technology, her limbs could be restored.]

[But Griseo's condition was worsening. Her breath grew fainter, and she was on the brink of death... At the last moment, Mobius decided, despite others' objections, to perform a fusion warrior operation on Griseo, relying on the fusion warriors' regenerative abilities to save her.]

[This was a risky method, but with your "song" present to stabilize the process, the chances of success were higher. Mobius optimized the procedure... It was a slim hope, but a hope nonetheless.]

[You did not hesitate. With Griseo's condition deteriorating, Mobius immediately began surgery while you sang to smooth the fusion process. Fortunately, everything went well. The surgery was successful.]

[After Griseo's vital signs began to stabilize, you and Mobius sighed with relief, but Mobius seemed conflicted and guilty. She personally went to Blanca to apologize.]

[After all, no matter what, she personally pushed Griseo onto the operating table. No matter what the reason was, even if it was "to save her life," this move was hard to accept. Mobius herself was unwilling to forgive herself... There was no way; the success rate of this operation was too low.]

[Especially this time, the situation reminded Mobius of the time when she performed surgery on you... In order to avoid the inevitable death, she had to choose another result of "extremely high mortality rate, but not zero" to obtain that extremely weak glimmer... This feeling is not pleasant.]

[However, Blanca did not complain about this. Instead, she comforted Mobius softly and expressed her gratitude to her and you... No matter what, you saved her daughter's life, allowing Griseo to survive and allowing her to still see her daughter... This is enough.]

[Since the casualties at the base have been dealt with, then the frontline must also be... No, that's not right. Compared to the stability and success here, the battle between the fusion warriors and the "Ninth Herrscher" is going very hard.]

[It almost always keeps itself in a high-altitude position, making it difficult for the fusion fighters to get close, and even using aircraft to get close is impossible. It seems to release a "gravitational field" with itself as the center. Any "flying" object will be forced back to the ground after entering this "gravitational field," and then crushed into pieces bit by bit.]

[Even if you want to use your peaceful "song" to limit its ability, you can't do it, because once it notices it, it will quickly cast its gaze over, and then use its own power to crush the device playing the "song" into pieces.]

[In addition, it is still carrying out its previous actions, destroying cities one after another on Mu Continent, destroying the bases of the "Fire Moth" one after another, and crushing the hope of mankind to defeat the Honkai bit by bit.]

[This crushing attitude made people feel desperate, and the cruel reality also woke the fusion warriors from their beautiful dreams... It turned out that they were not strong, and their previous victories were nothing but illusions. The "Herrscher" was the most difficult existence, and the victory in the "Eighth Herrscher Crusade" was just a temporary fluke.]

[But this is not a reason for them to stop here, they must fight and try their best to kill it, and only in this way can they "win."]

['Everything is for humanity, everything is for defeating the Honkai'—everyone believes this.]

[However, everyone's efforts could not save the situation. Even if they sacrificed their lives and shed blood, they could not get any closer to victory... If they stepped into its "gravitational field," the soldiers' movements would be hindered. Once they were targeted by it, their bodies would be crushed, or crushed into pieces in an instant, or thrown into the air and then fell heavily, their bodies shattered.]

[Sometimes, it would even get in the mood and deliberately give people a little hope, allowing the soldiers to get close to it. However, as the soldiers get closer, the pressure on its body becomes more and more terrifying, but it will not crush people to death directly, giving people the feeling that "I can still hold on, as long as I hold on for a while longer, I can touch it!"]

[Then... the soldiers would be forced to kneel or lie prone in front of it, with their heads and bodies pressed to the ground. Then, little by little, they could hear the sound of bones breaking, and could no longer speak. Then, they could not even breathe, and slowly... they were "crushed" and turned into an indescribable mass.]

[In the end, it seemed to be tired of playing, and began to exert its own strength, little by little... "lifting" the entire Mu Continent.]

[Yes, it is slowly tearing apart the entire Mu Continent. It seems that it intends to give Mu Continent an exciting experience like "throwing objects from a high altitude."]

[If Mu Continent fell directly, not to mention what would happen to Mu Continent itself, the tsunamis and earthquakes that would follow would have an unimaginable impact on the entire world.]

[At this moment, it is a matter of life and death.]

————————

Hmmm~

Nozomi's passionate singing echoed throughout the battlefield. Golden light flowed in the air, carrying golden notes, giving the warriors a boost of strength.

Among them, one could see some notes being dyed red, and eventually changing their appearance, turning into the shape of "flame," followed by a swift figure, quickly rushing forward, rushing in its direction, and then... being pressed to the ground by the huge pressure.

"Damn it…Damn it!!!"

Kalpas roared, stood up again and again, and fell down again and again. Countless notes gathered around him and turned into a burning "fire," burning in line with his anger.

But...it was all in vain.

Boom!

He fell down again, and his repeated standing up attracted its attention. The force that was enough to crush a person directly enveloped Kalpas and forced him to the ground. The golden notes kept jumping, trying to reduce the impact on Kalpas as much as possible.

But this time... he could no longer get up. The slowly increasing pressure made him unable to move at all, not even his head. His entire face was pressed into the ground. If he continued, even if his body was not crushed, he would fall into a coma due to suffocation and die.

Boom——

The dull sound echoed in the world.

"It's over..."

The soldiers who were fighting hard and trying to think of a solution turned pale... The ground beneath their feet was completely torn apart, and the land was about to "fly" up... Some people even vaguely heard the sound of seawater backflowing.

[Hahahaha!!! Okay! Feel it for a bit! The feeling of having your foothold taken away! It must be fun, right?! Hahaha...ah...if you can still survive! Maybe you can even play with the guys in the sea for a while! Hahahaha!!!]

Its unbridled voice came from the horizon, full of sneer and ridicule.

In a flash, it completely liberated its power, and the "gravitational field" surrounding its body spread instantly. On the one hand, it forced the warriors to the ground, and on the other hand, it slowly controlled Mu Continent to rise into the air.

It also did not intend to kill the warriors directly. It wanted them to watch with their own eyes how this continent, which carried the hope of mankind, was turned into debris and brought disaster to the world.

"..."

Elysia pursed her lips, and her original thoughts and hesitation gradually turned into determination... Even if everyone knew her [true identity], she must do it this time... Hmm?

Suddenly, someone noticed that Nozomi's singing stopped, and... under such terrible pressure, he still stood there, as if the pressure had no effect on him.

This is not right... This is very wrong, because after Nozomi became a fusion warrior, most of his strength belonged to his "song," and there was not much physical enhancement. In terms of physical fitness, he was still one of the weaker ones among the fusion warriors, but why now...

Crash——

In their ears, they heard the sound of seawater backflowing.

Tick-tock——

A drop of cold rain fell from the sky at some point.

"…It's okay. It's okay."

Nozomi whispered to himself, comforting in a low voice.

"I'm a [human], so... it's okay..."

As if to encourage himself, Nozomi murmured a few words in a low voice.

Tick-tock——

The rain sent a tone of inquiry and concern, asking if he needed help.

The damp smell of seawater came with the wind, asking him if he needed "strength."

"Hiss… huh…"

He quickly adjusted his breathing and his thoughts became firm.

"Eden... Sakura, I might have to trouble you a little later."

His gaze lingered on Eden and Sakura for a moment, imprinting their figures in his mind, hoping that this would help steady his thoughts, and then... he lowered his eyelids slightly to feel the falling rain.

Tick-tock——

Their anxious cries became difficult to hear, and only the sound of rain falling and waves surging came into their minds.

Tick-tock——

Their worried gazes became difficult to perceive as if they were separated from the outside world by something, and everything outside seemed hazy.

'It's like... the world under the sea and the world above the sea, gently separated by the blue sea surface.'

'They were outside, and I... was sinking.'

The rain is celebrating, the waves are jubilant, and the wind is filled with the smell of seawater...it is the ocean expressing joy.

The child that the Ocean loves has finally returned home.

The scent of lilies lingers at the tip of the nose along with a damp breath. The "memories" that were once buried at the bottom gradually float up, and are combed out by the rain one by one, corresponding to the images in the "fragments" one by one.

Tick-tock——

The raindrops fell gently, washing away the dark colors on his hair one by one, turning it into pure white like waves.

Tick-tock——

There was the sound of falling raindrops. An inexplicable sense of threat enveloped the entire battlefield. Everyone present, including it, Felt their hearts tighten for no reason, and the hairs on their bodies stood on end... It was a feeling like being stared at by a 'predator,' a feeling of being marked as 'prey.'"

"Hiss… huh…"

After adjusting his breathing again, Nozomi slowly opened his eyes.

However, at this moment, his eyes did not carry the usual gentleness and joy, only... calmness like water. The atmosphere surrounding him was no longer cheerful but became dangerous.

"..."

Kalpas, who was forced to the ground, trembled slightly and tried to struggle to stand up, but in the end... he was still motionless.

Tick-tock——

The rain was still falling, and soon a shallow pool of water formed on the ground. It was azure blue and very beautiful.

The damp smell gradually permeates the surroundings, and even the "gravitational field" around it cannot block it... "Water" will penetrate it, and "wind" will blow by quietly.

The azure [fish] began to emerge, swimming freely in the air and attacking it in various ways. For a moment, everyone could not tell whether it was the sky or the ocean.

"The tide..."

He whispered softly, and the azure water quietly emerged, flowing around him along with the green wind.

Faintly, a wavelength similar to that of the Herrscher came from him.

"I have returned."

The falling rain stopped for a moment, and then... gathered into a stream, gathered into waves, and rushed towards it.