The sea was still churning.
Carnival Island had been evaporated by their battle.
The Homelander was floating on his back on the water; if it weren't for the rise and fall of his chest, he would have been no different from dead.
That iconic battle suit was now stained with blood, and the cloak was nowhere to be seen.
Chen Mo landed beside him, his shoes sinking into the sea, creating ripples that spread outwards. Instead of making a move, he crouched down and poked Homelander's shoulder with his finger.
The Homelander's body swayed slightly on the water's surface.
"Tsk, the outside is burnt, and it's still bleeding inside. Crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, Homelander."
He tilted his head to look at the sunken patch on Homelander's chest and commented seriously, "The cooking was actually a bit overdone, but the raw materials were good, don't you think?"
Homelander's eyelids twitched. He raised his eyes, staring intently at Chen Mo, and squeezed out broken gasps from his throat.
"I... I am God."
"Mmm."
Chen Mo nodded, then poked his shoulder again with his finger. "God, can you turn over now? I'm afraid you'll get too salty from soaking in seawater."
Homelander's lips twitched. He propped himself up, wanting to fly again.
But just as he managed to lift himself up a little, his body suddenly sank back down to the surface of the sea, and he swallowed a mouthful of water.
Chen Mo raised an eyebrow.
"What, even gods can't fly anymore?"
The Homelander gritted his teeth, and the muscles in his face twitched.
"You won't get away with humiliating me!"
The terrifying power brought by V1 was rapidly receding from his body. The excessive exertion he had used in his duel with Chen Mo had strained his blood vessels, causing them to collapse one by one. The wound on his chest had barely healed when new wounds appeared elsewhere.
The Homelander lowered his head, looked at the sky, and suddenly laughed.
"I, I am, I am God."
Chen Mo squatted down beside him and nodded.
"Uh-huh."
"I am the only God in this world!"
"Okay, okay."
"They should all kneel before me," Homelander's voice suddenly rose, then faltered due to his injuries, "They should all love me, cough, ha, they should all be looking at me!"
Chen Mo glanced at him.
Homelander wasn't talking to him at all; he was just staring at the torn sky, his gaze growing increasingly unfocused.
But they were all lying to me.
After saying those words, his chest tightened, and a choked sound came from his throat.
"Dude?" Chen Mo reached out and patted his shoulder lightly. "Why are you suddenly getting all emotional when it comes to paying the bill?"
The Homelander's pupils contracted slightly, and he muttered to himself.
They say I'm a hero.
"They say I'm the most special one."
They say the world would end without me.
With each word he spoke, his breathing became more erratic, and the water droplets in his eyes were indistinguishable between seawater and tears.
But they're all afraid of me.
Chen Mo was silent for two seconds.
"Huh? Isn't this normal? Look at yourself in the mirror. Do you think you're a good person to communicate with? Hmm? Is our Homelander a good boy?"
Homelander didn't refute. He slowly turned his head, looked at Chen Mo, and his lips twitched.
"Why?"
"Why what?"
"Why is everyone lying to me?" Homelander's voice suddenly became very soft, "Why does no one love me?"
As soon as he finished speaking, he coughed violently.
The first cough was just a muffled cough, but the second cough brought up a mouthful of blood mixed with small, dark red chunks of flesh.
Chen Mo looked at him and suddenly lost the interest to continue mocking him.
"Well, at least Madelyn still loves you, right?" Chen Mo squatted down beside her, his tone casual as if he were talking about lunch. "At least she's more genuine than the others."
The Homelander's breath caught in his throat for a moment.
His previously unfocused gaze briefly sharpened upon hearing the name.
" Madelyn..."
"Yes." Chen Mo nodded, "It's that woman who really flattered you."
Homelander stared at him, a bitter smile spreading across his face.
"I know."
Chen Mo raised an eyebrow.
"What do you know?"
"She's afraid of me."
The voice of the Homelander is very low.
"My heart races every time she gets close to me. Her breathing becomes lighter when she says she loves me. Her fingers stiffen for a moment when she touches my face."
As he said this, he coughed again, and blood trickled down the corner of his mouth.
She said she didn't know where my son was. She thought I didn't know she was lying to me.
Chen Mo did not respond.
Homelander's exceptional hearing was indeed enough for him to discern a great deal.
He just didn't want to admit it before.
Or rather, he preferred to be fooled by those gentle words, telling himself that someone in the world loved him.
She said I'm important.
The Homelander looked at the sky, their eyes blank.
She said she would always be there. But when she said those words, she was also afraid of me.
Chen Mo was silent for a moment, then raised his hand and scratched his chin.
"That also shows she's quite capable." He thought for a moment, then added, "At least she's willing to spend time deceiving you, and she's quite hardworking."
The Homelander didn't laugh; he just looked at Chen Mo.
There was no hatred, no fear, only confusion.
Why don't you need it?
Chen Mo was stunned.
"I don't need anything?"
"You don't need anyone to love you," Homelander's voice was hoarse. "You don't need to beg them to look at you, you don't need to stand in front of the camera, you don't need to smile, you don't need to say those stupid things."
Chen Mo glanced down at him.
"I don't care, Homelander. Whether you like it or fear it, it's all just a tool. Use a tool if it's convenient, throw it away if it's not. There's no need to tie yourself to it."
The Homelander closed his eyes again and nodded.
"Great, really great."
"Actually, your final reflection was quite insightful," Chen Mo said. "If you had been this clear-headed earlier, you wouldn't have ended up like this."
The corner of the Homelander's mouth twitched.
He wanted to curse, but in the end he only managed to exhale another mouthful of blood.
Eat me up.
Chen Mo paused.
The Homelander looked at him; the red light in his eyes had vanished.
"Don't let Vought find my body."
He swallowed hard, swallowing the blood in his throat, and made his first plea.
They'll make me into a souvenir.
Chen Mo's lips twitched.
"You have a pretty accurate understanding of your own company."
"Eat me," Homelander repeated, "Don't let them touch me again."
Chen Mo looked at him.
The sea was still rising and falling, and the abyss left by Carnival Island in the distance was constantly swallowing seawater, making a dull rumble. A hint of gray appeared on the horizon; dawn was approaching.
The Homelander lay in blood, no longer resembling the perfect national heroes they had been on screen.
He's not some crazy person who's always talking about wanting to be a god.
More like an ordinary person who, after messing everything up, finally ran out of energy to continue lying.
Chen Mo sighed softly.
"I thought you were going to beg for mercy. To be honest, you're much stronger than your counterpart in the other world."
The Homelander's eyes twitched.
"Another one... what?"
"It's nothing." Chen Mo stood up and stretched his wrists. "Just a little praise, don't get too touched."
The Homelander want to ask more questions.
But he had no strength left.
Only low breaths came from his throat, his chest rose and fell more and more slowly, but his eyes were still fixed on Chen Mo.
Chen Mo approached the Homelander, dark red and fleshy lines spread from his arm, like layers covering his fingertips, turning into a sharp blade.
He looked down at his Homelander.
"Alright, the chef will try his best to meet the customer's reasonable request."
Homelander didn't speak again; he closed his eyes.
In that instant, Chen Mo couldn't even tell if he had resigned himself to his fate or was simply exhausted.
The blade extended downwards, its tip hovering above the chest of the Homelander.
That is, at this time.
Suddenly, a low, whistling sound came from the distant sky.
Buzzing.
Chen Mo stopped moving and turned his head to look in the direction from which the sound came.
Deep in the sea fog, a helicopter is flying close to the surface of the sea, its rotors churning the air and tearing large swaths of white fog apart and swirling them around.
Chen Mo narrowed his eyes.
"Who would dare to come at a time like this?"
He glanced down at Homelander, who was barely breathing, then looked at the approaching helicopter and couldn't help but smile.
"No way."
"Are there really people rushing to collect God's corpse?"