The sky was just beginning to brighten.
Huo Yuhao had stood alone amid the ruins all night.
Morning light spilled down, illuminating this land that had once been glorious. Collapsed buildings, charred remnants of walls—everything told the story of what had happened last night.
Rustling sounds came from the distance.
Survivors emerged from the ruins one after another. Some were students, some were servants, and some were teachers who had happened to be away on assignments and escaped disaster. All of them were wounded and bewildered as they stood at the edge of the ruins, staring at the mountain of corpses and sea of blood before them.
Someone sobbed quietly.
Someone knelt on the ground and did not rise for a long time.
Someone looked around as though searching for something.
At last, someone spoke.
"Where are the bodies? Where is Xuan Lao's body? The bodies of the elders... and those students..."
Everyone looked around.
There was nothing.
The place that had been covered in corpses last night was now completely empty.
Everyone turned to look at Huo Yuhao.
Huo Yuhao was silent for a moment before slowly speaking.
"I don't know."
His voice was calm, devoid of emotion.
Everyone froze.
Huo Yuhao continued, "I don't know what happened either. After last night's explosion, everything became like this."
No one asked any further questions.
Perhaps they did not know what to ask, or perhaps there was no point in asking. Those bodies, those dead people, had simply vanished. Along with last night's explosion, they had become an inexplicable mystery.
Silence blanketed the ruins.
After a long while, Huo Yuhao raised his hand.
A golden-red Dragon Core appeared in his palm.
Everyone felt that familiar power—it was Mu En's aura, the aura of the Sea God's Pavilion Master they had followed