This Is Reality

The gravity came without warning. Hen and Cosmo were caught unprepared and fell to their knees on the spot. Thanks to Kevin's cheat-like physical abilities, and Huang Hao's long-term adaptation to gravity (don't forget that Angela had trained Huang Hao before), he wasn't affected much.

The surrounding buildings weren't so lucky. They collapsed outright.

Huang Hao watched this scene nervously and asked Kevin, "Have all the civilians here evacuated?"

Kevin also surveyed the surroundings and said bitterly, "We heard this was a continent, so... so."

Huang Hao realized something, and his heart sank. He roared furiously, "So what? Hurry up and tell me!"

Kevin said slowly, "We gathered the people... gathered them at sea. Calm down, and also..."

"I **am calm!" Huang Hao slammed a furious fist into Kevin's face.

Kevin was knocked back several steps by Huang Hao's punch, but he didn't say anything. He only looked at Huang Hao and let him vent his anger.

Hen and Cosmo rushed over and grabbed Huang Hao. "Calm down! The gravity is still weak right now. We still have a chance!"

Huang Hao heard them and muttered to himself, "A chance, a chance... That's right! There's still a chance!"

"Where? Hurry up and tell me!"

Hen pointed. "It's right beside us. Go that way."

Huang Hao looked in that direction and charged forward with the other three to rescue the civilians.

On the way, Huang Hao kept cursing. "How many times did I **tell you that there would be a Herrscher here, and that this would be an unprecedented crisis?! What's wrong with you people?! Kevin, aren't you the captain? How could you think it was a good idea to put them at sea?"

The others remained silent and said nothing, but their expressions were also extremely grim.

"Wait, have you noticed that it's getting heavier?" Cosmo suddenly asked.

Hen said, "Yes, and it's getting heavier and heavier."

Kevin realized something. "This direction leads to the civilians. The increasing gravity means someone is using it. A Honkai eruption just happened, which means the Herrscher is probably..."

Kevin didn't finish, but the others understood what he meant. None of them continued the thought aloud.

Before long, the four of them arrived at the place where the civilians were supposed to be staying.

However, there was nothing on the sea here. The four of them stood in the vast emptiness, surrounded by a deathly silence, while the smell of blood permeated the air.

Huang Hao shouted, "Where are they? I'm asking you, where are they?"

Hen checked the map in his hand and answered, "The location is correct. This is the place."

Huang Hao said, "Then where are the people? Don't tell me there isn't a single person anywhere on this continent!"

Everyone fell silent. Kevin was the first to break it. "Everyone... prepare for the worst."

This time, Huang Hao said nothing. He simply walked toward the seafloor.

Huang Hao said, "Sorry, I was impulsive just now. You all stay up here. I'll go down."

Kevin nodded. Hen and Cosmo also stood beside Kevin, seemingly agreeing with him.

After confirming that they agreed, Huang Hao went straight down.

Huang Hao entered the water and began sinking slowly. Everything around him was pitch-black, but as he descended, he felt something sticky.

Huang Hao reached the lowest point and looked around. It was pitch-black, and he couldn't see anything.

Huang Hao thought, I can't see my hand in front of my face, and everything is sticky too. I need to find a way to light up the surroundings.

Suddenly, Huang Hao remembered Angela. "Oh, right. With An'er here, what is there to fear?"

He asked Angela in his mind, "An'er, can you provide illumination on the seafloor?"

Angela immediately replied, "Father, just release the energy and turn it into a solid."

Huang Hao asked, "Energy? What energy?"

Angela said, "I've been studying it just now. I discovered that this flame is directly connected to the blood. As the Huaxia saying goes, it's something in your very bones."

Huang Hao asked, "Then why was it a flame at first?"

Angela paused. "Perhaps that was what was most deeply rooted in your memories at the time."

Huang Hao said, "I have more questions, but business comes first. We'll talk later."

After saying that, Huang Hao immediately severed the connection in his mind.

Angela stared speechlessly at the interrupted connection. "He calls me An'er when he needs something, then disappears when he doesn't. Honestly..."

On Huang Hao's side, he quickly condensed a night-light. "Great, I can finally see what's around me."

Huang Hao transmitted energy into his hand, transmitted energy into it again, and successfully illuminated the surroundings.

Huang Hao said, "I need to hurry and rescue..."

The moment he opened his eyes, Huang Hao was stunned by the scene around him.

Severed limbs were everywhere. Because of the gravity, the seafloor was filled with blood, turning it into a "red sea within the sea." Countless broken and discarded things lay scattered around, making it resemble hell.

Huang Hao was so shocked by what he saw that he couldn't speak. His head felt dizzy, and his limbs were weak. He nearly fell to his knees on the seafloor under the gravity.

"Why? Why? Why, why, why, why, why, why!"

Huang Hao was in immense pain inside. He wanted to scream, but seawater poured into his mouth, leaving him unable to make a sound.

Huang Hao's eyes were vacant as he slowly swam upward.

The three people onshore waited anxiously. When they saw Huang Hao come up, they immediately rushed over to ask about the situation.

Huang Hao was absent-minded as he answered their questions. He only kept muttering, "They're dead. They're all dead. They're all dead."

Everyone knew what had happened and felt terrible as well. They all fell silent.

Kevin broke the heavy silence once again. "This isn't the time for us to stand around in a daze. We need to find the Herrscher, report to headquarters, and search for the remaining people."

After he finished speaking, everyone nodded except Huang Hao, who continued standing there in a daze.

Kevin walked over but didn't touch Huang Hao, afraid the cold would injure him. "This isn't your fault. It's ours. If we'd all listened to you, everyone might not have died. Right now, we need to find the Herrscher and reduce the casualties."

When Huang Hao heard the word "Herrscher," he came back to his senses and said calmly, "Right. Find the Herrscher. Go face this damn reality."

"I once thought I could save everyone. Only now do I realize that I was being too idealistic. My grand plan probably can't be realized either."

Kevin asked, "What grand plan?"

Huang Hao said, "A plan to let everyone have another chance at life."

"After experiencing all this, I actually became calm all of a sudden. All right, it's time."

Kevin looked at Huang Hao and wondered whether seeing such massive casualties had driven him insane.

Huang Hao suddenly said, "I never expected there to be so many casualties this time, but it doesn't matter."

"I, Huang Hao, will personally bury this Herrscher."