In fact, after Rin revealed this shocking truth, everyone on the scene—except for Kalpas, who was still struggling wildly—had their eyes fixed on Leo and Hua.
After all, gossip is human nature. Even the Flame-Chasers, for all their warrior status, were no exception.
Especially Elysia. Even though she was still tied to a cross, a meaningful smile had already appeared on her face.
"Mm-hm, so that's how it is."
Facing her comrades' gazes, which were filled with mixed emotions, Hua felt extremely uncomfortable and could no longer maintain her combat stance.
At this point, no matter how stubborn Hua was, she wouldn't be foolish enough to think she alone could rescue Elysia, Su, Kevin, Kosma, and Kalpas from the Herrscher of Binding.
The power gap between them was too vast. Even setting aside all other factors, what she should be thinking about now...
Sigh. Escape... but where could we even escape to?
The Elysian Realm is only so big. If this man and Rin decide to hunt us down, with my and Aponia's power, we'd have no way to resist effectively.
Having come to this realization, Hua gave up even the thought of retreating.
If the enemy was truly hostile, then even if Hua found the other Flame-Chasers in the Elysian Realm, she would only become a 'guide', making it easier for the enemy to find them.
Compared to endangering her comrades who were still lying low, Hua felt that perhaps staying here was the better choice.
"Oh? You're not running?"
Looking at Hua, whose eyes were filled with sorrow, Rin continued with some curiosity.
"I thought, with your original self's secretive personality, you'd immediately leave the scene out of embarrassment after this was exposed."
"...She is not me. Her relationships naturally have nothing to do with me."
After saying this, Hua forced herself to calm down, stared intently at Leo, and said very seriously.
"Sir, I don't care what ambitions you have, nor do I know what kind of bond you formed with the real-world Hua. But I hope you can be clear on this point: do not confuse me with her."
"Of course."
Hearing Hua's cold words, Leo didn't feel much sadness.
Just as the Elysian Realm's Hua said, the memory and the original may share a source, but they are not the same existence.
The person he had feelings for was the Immortal Red Kite who had protected Shenzhou for countless years, not this MANTIS in the Elysian Realm.
But, Leo himself really hadn't expected...
Was the attitude between the two of us... really that obvious?
[Oh, it's not *that* bad.]
[At first, everyone just had their suspicions. But it was mainly because they remembered that when the Herrscher of Sentience awakened, her attitude towards you seemed... off.]
[Plus, when she said you stole a kiss from her, you didn't deny it, so...]
Sigh, Master Number Two, your big mouth really can't keep a secret.
[Of course, the average Schicksal member doesn't know what the Herrscher of Sentience specifically said at the time.]
Yeah, so why did even Mike find out?
[Did you forget? When you first met Mike, he saw right through you and noticed the sorrow in your eyes.]
[It's been a few months, but this System must emphasize again—the man's a pilot. Could he fly a plane if his eyesight was bad?]
...I really didn't expect to get hit by that boomerang.
[And besides, Mike was also forced to become a Herrscher of Domination during the previous turmoil. Unlike you, the master of the theater, the remaining Herrschers of Domination often use quantum entanglement to exchange information.]
[He personally has no intention of selling you out, but the problem is, nobody can guarantee they won't let something slip.]
I see.
So that's the culprit.
[Don't worry. Everyone thinks that for someone like you, starting a small harem or even getting together with your Master is no big deal.]
[In your current state, as long as you haven't gone insane, everyone's popping champagne.]
Give me a break. I'm not that fragile.
It's just that now...
Whatever. The fight's over. I think after that display of power, they should be ableto recognize reality and have a nice, friendly chat with me.
And seeing as you're popping up, no one else is probably coming to feed.
[Isn't that obvious? You've basically wiped out the strongest fighters among the Elysian Realm's Flame-Chasers in one go. Even if the remaining few have special abilities, they can't make a splash in front of you.]
[As for the other enemy... heh heh heh. Guess what it's thinking right now.]
Probably scared stiff by me.
[Sodayo. That's exactly how it is.]
[So don't expect it to show its face. That unlucky kid doesn't even dare to fight Rin for territory now. It's just trying to hide and survive until Finality arrives.]
Wow, a Herrscher that was such a ruthless go-getter in the original story... is now proactively turtling this hard...
Should I be happy about this?
[Why wouldn't you be?]
[Host, from the moment you decided to step into Schicksal, you chose to become strong. And the strong must naturally walk the path of the strong.]
[And now, look at your record! All the masters under heaven have become things for you to trample!]
[Every one of them fears you, respects you. Without a doubt, you are already the strongest in history! This System is proud of you!]
Oh, I really have to thank you for that... wait, why does that sound so familiar?
[Host, there is no need to think anymore. Raise your head, and with your hands, embrace it all! All of it...]
Even more familiar.
[Host... let the gods fear you... let the heavens dread you!]
[Why aren't you cooperating with a roar?]
Dammit! No wonder it sounded so familiar.
You're Bai Ciman! Your whole family is Bai Ciman!!!
[But everything this System said is true! You really do meet these conditions.]
Pah, pah, pah! Forget it! Plenty of people meet those conditions. You just had to pick those unlucky words.
I have no desire to lose my power, get hung up, and then be gawked at by a bunch of gay guys.
If anything, I'll be the one hanging others up!
"Everyone. I think you all understand one thing by now."
Decisively cutting off the banter with the System, Leo spoke to the group while simultaneously creating more chains around Kalpas's body to bind him tightly, gagging him in the process.
"You are not my match. Or rather..."
"—If I wanted to 'solve' you, you would have no way to resist me."
After side-eyeing the now completely immobilized Kalpas, Kevin, who had been secretly trying to build up his power, instantly became more cautious.
Kalpas's desire to escape was fine in itself, but struggling so openly when you can't beat the enemy is basically just telling them, 'I refuse to submit.'
Forget Leo; if even Kevin encountered an enemy he didn't plan to kill immediately but who kept causing trouble, he would also freeze their body in ice without a second thought to quiet them down.
And now, Kevin, temporarily unable to break free of the chains, could only continue to gather his power while speaking to Leo.
"Expecting you to unbind us... is probably impossible."
"I admit my defeat. Right now, I'm just curious..."
"—What is the situation like outside? And by whose guidance did you come to this Elysian Realm?"
"Ah, the situation outside... how to put it."
Leo thought for a moment, then announced the real situation to everyone.
"Aside from the Second Eruption, where some idiot traitor's actions caused the Herrscher of the Void to kill an extra few tens of millions of people by dropping meteors, the rest of the Herrschers—including me as the Herrscher of Domination and Herrscher of Binding, as well as Thunder, Death, Sentience, Wind, Ice, Flame, and Star—not only didn't cause much damage, but for various reasons, all regained their personal feelings and became allies of humanity."
Hearing Leo's words, Kevin was silent for three seconds, then said to Leo with a blank expression.
"Sir, that joke isn't funny."
"Mm, it's normal for you to think that, but..."
Walking up to Kevin, Leo activated his Phantasmagoria.
Only this time, he didn't use the Phantasmagoria to rewrite their cognitions. Instead, he used it just as its name implied: to project the images from his memory, showing his duels and conversations with the other Herrschers, in front of everyone.
Of course, Herrschers he didn't personally handle, like Himeko and Chen Tianwu, naturally didn't appear in the footage.
But seeing Leo defeat Thunder and Death, then easily defeat Wind, kill Domination, and suppress Ice, everyone was speechless.
If anyone else had shown them these images, they would 100% have thought they were bragging.
But now, everyone present—except for Hua and Sakura, who had been spared dueto their relationship with Leo and Rin—the remaining five "Elysian Realm Calabash Brothers" had all experienced Leo's power firsthand.
He really *could* do these things. These images... could they actually be real???
And what was with this situation? In this new era, subduing a Herrscher only required beating them up and giving them an injection???
The Elysian Realm's Elysia watched the Herrschers in the footage get jabbed with the HSN serum, falling into deep thought.
This... that...
Having Herrschers fight for humanity is exactly what I hoped for, but...
But...
The fact that you can solve the problem so simply and brutally... really surprises me.
"As for who guided me to the Elysian Realm... Although I know you're not the original..."
"Calling me over here, and then running over to ask me who brought me... that's a bit ridiculous."
Leo's words didn't explicitly name who brought him to the Elysian Realm.
But anyone who wasn't an idiot could understand what he meant.
At this moment, Kevin instantly understood what Hua had just felt.
Kevin, being watched by everyone with all sorts of subtle gazes, felt incredibly awkward.
He was so shocked he even stopped gathering his energy.
"Sir... what do you mean by that?"
"Seriously? We've already gotten this far. Do you really need to play dumb?"
Leo looked at Kevin, who was pretending to be confused, and said irritably.
"It was Kevin Kaslana who told me to come to the Elysian Realm. Do you understand now?"
After dropping that bombshell, Leo said to Rin, annoyed.
"Rin, halftime's over. Back to work."
"Let's try to drag out Corruption today. After we're done, I'm going home to hold a developer conference!!!"
"...Ah, are you serious?"
Hearing Leo's words, Rin let go of Sakura and said with great interest.
"Should I hack the computers outside and tell Kiana, Mei, and Yuna to get dressed up first?"
[Oho! A counter-move!]
Damn it, is this really the Higyokumaru from the original story who just flew around Yae Sakura???
How much has her brain been enhanced?! (╯‵□′)╯︵┻━┻
[Could it be... that someone is just too easy to read in this regard?]
[You just can't let go! That's why this woman has you wrapped around her finger!]
[Don't be a coward! Hug her right now! Do her right in front of Sakura! Show her who's boss in this family—after that, she'll definitely never dare to mess with you again!!!]
Dammit! 'Do' the sister in front of her sister... how can you even say that?
[Duh. This System isn't human, so naturally, I don't need human morals.]
Forget that. From what you were saying earlier, I can determine...
Corruption is right here in the Elysian Realm, correct?
[Who knows? This System still thinks—]
Think my ass! Doing *that* in front of five people on crosses... you really think I'm that shameless, heartless, and depraved, huh?
[This is training! As Schicksal's Archbishop, shouldn't you be shameless, heartless, and depraved?]
[Look at Otto! He committed sins his whole life, but because he was shameless, heartless, and depraved, so many people inside and outside the story ignore his atrocities and praise him like crazy!]
[You just have too much psychological baggage. That's what's causing all these huge problems with your mentality.]
Give me a break. I'm just putting a little pressure on myself. Why should I slide all the way to the other extreme?
The developer conference was a joke, but after I drag out Corruption this time...
—At least until Finality arrives, I can rest for a few days before dealing with other things, right?
.....