Chapter 302

"Rei... you’re uneasy."

"What exactly happened? Can you tell me?"

Kumironi’s voice was filled with concern.

Kanzaki Rei turned his head to look at her. In his eyes, Kumironi saw something she had never seen before—

Confusion.

All this time, what she had sensed from him was always something resolute.

Serious. Focused. Relentless.

A man with an unshakable goal, and unwavering conviction.

This was the first time she had ever seen uncertainty in his gaze.

It stirred an inexplicable ache in her chest.

Rei didn’t know how to answer her question.

What happened...?

Even I don’t know. My thoughts are just... a mess.

His perception couldn’t reach that far. Its limit was just over ten thousand kilometers, while two minutes of flight spanned millions of kilometers.

Only by truly arriving could he see the final answer.

And yet, a sense of hesitation crept into his heart.

Maybe... this really is a trap.

Maybe that isn’t Earth ahead at all. Maybe it’s some special method—something deceiving his talent into sensing a false image.

Something... luring him over.

Should I... not go?

Maybe all of this is fake.

But...

I possess [God-Tier · Unsolvable Enigma]. No one should be able to target me. No one should be able to deliberately find me.

Unless...

Has my God-tier talent... failed?

Rei had doubted countless people and things before.

But the one thing he trusted absolutely—was his own talent.

Because if even that failed, then everything he relied on to stand in this world would collapse.

His voice turned faint, almost helpless.

"Kumironi... I don’t know what to do anymore."

"This might really be a trap."

"But it could also be something incredibly important to me. If I go, I might fall into danger... drag you into it too... and I might see something I never wanted to see."

"I feel like... I might lose something..."

Images of his parents surfaced in his mind once more.

Rei was a transmigrator—but he wasn’t some orphan with no past.

And since arriving in this world, not even a full year had passed.

Even accounting for distorted time flow and repeated simulations, the total time hadn’t exceeded a year.

But on Earth... he had lived twenty-eight full years.

Who could spend just one year away and forget an entire lifetime?

Not only would they not forget—

They would long for home even more.

"Kumironi... maybe... we should go back."

Rei came to a stop.

"The Secret Sea has undergone such a massive mutation. This place seems like the core of it... but from what I’ve seen, it’s not what I imagined. It probably isn’t what I’m looking for."

"The solar system should be somewhere else."

"It should be in the Astral Expanse... or maybe in some other plane called the universe. No matter what, it shouldn’t be here—in the Abyssal Sea..."

"Yeah... it definitely isn’t here!"

"This place is too dangerous. Let’s go somewhere safe first... or maybe we should just return to the Lunar Sea—back to Boundless Mountain."

"When the time comes, we’ll meet again at the World Tree of Origin."

"By then, I’ll definitely be much stronger. With my growth speed, I can do it... and then we’ll join forces and deal with whatever threats arise."

"As long as the disaster doesn’t hit us immediately, we’ll have time and space to grow. We’ll become the strongest in this world... and resolve everything."

Rei felt his words becoming disjointed, but he forced himself to keep them coherent—

To stay calm.

Within his sea of consciousness, Ansu observed silently.

The once-calm expanse had turned into a raging ocean, towering waves crashing into violent whirlpools.

Yet Kumironi simply looked at him quietly.

"Rei... you’re not calm right now."

"I’ve never seen you like this. In my eyes, you’ve always been far more composed than anyone your age."

"Even when facing powerful enemies, you’ve never panicked like this... right?"

She took a deep breath before replying.

"Normally, I would agree with you. We’d go back separately... act within our limits, and then deal with whatever dangers come in the future together."

"And honestly... I don’t want you to fall into danger because of me either."

Her tone shifted.

"But this time... it’s different."

"Rei... you’re running away, aren’t you?"

"...From the very beginning, you already knew it might be a trap."

"And yet, you still wanted to see it."

"I don’t know what it is... but I’m sure it’s something incredibly important to you."

"Iz and the others... they’re always taking risks too. Some things—even knowing they’re dangerous—you still have to do them."

"Because if you don’t... you’ll regret it for the rest of your life."

"Some truths—if you miss your chance once—you’ll never learn them again."

Kumironi shook her head with a bitter smile.

"Rei, your proposal might be the correct one. We can turn back right now..."

"But are you ready to live with that regret for the rest of your life?"

Regret... for a lifetime.

If I retreat now...

I might never see Earth again.

Earth was painfully small.

Smaller even than the continent of Misirush.

No—not even comparable to Atlantis City.

Destroying it would be effortless.

If I don’t go...

The confusion in Rei’s eyes gradually faded—

Replaced by ironclad resolve.

"Kumironi... thank you."

"I don’t think I’m ready to spend the rest of my life trapped in regret."

No matter what the outcome is—

I need to know the truth.

At that moment, Rei finally found his resolve.

At the very least, this was the one thing in his life worth staking everything on.

His speed exploded.

Even faster than before!

As he tore through the darkness, there was nothing but vast emptiness—

Yet his heartbeat thundered like war drums, shaking violently in his chest!

At last—

A faint outline...

Entered his perception.

A lone planet, slowly rotating in place.

It didn’t orbit anything.

And yet...

The landforms were familiar.

He could sense the icy rivers at the poles... the vast oceans stretching across its surface.

The image was still blurred. Rei wasn’t particularly knowledgeable about Earth’s geography.

But even that vague impression—

Was enough.

This wasn’t some other planet.

This was the one he had longed for day and night—

Earth.

His perception swept hastily across the entire planet.

He saw the Great Wall.

The Forbidden City.

The White House.

The Himalayas.

Mount Everest.

Mount Tai.

The Potala Palace...

His awareness skimmed across every corner of Earth in a frantic rush.

Every detail was vividly present—

And memory after memory surged into his mind.

This really was Earth...

Exactly the same as in his memories.

Not the ancient past.

Not the distant future.

But the very era he had lived in.

So his transmigration...

Really had been nothing more than a change in location!

Earth truly existed within this world!

Realizing this, Rei quickly focused his perception on a coastal city—

Qingdao.

Before his transmigration, he had been preparing to check in at an airport in Shanghai.

His destination had been Qingdao.

That was where his home was.

His emotions surged violently, boiling to their peak.

Beside him, Kumironi noticed—

Rei’s hand was trembling.

That first scan had lasted less than a second.

Now, focusing his mind, Rei carefully examined the city, searching—

For his home.

For his family.

What would I even do... after finding them?

How would I explain everything that’s happened?

To them, it would feel surreal, wouldn’t it?

Their child suddenly becoming younger... yet possessing world-destroying power.

No... now’s not the time to think about that.

The Secret Sea is far too dangerous. How do I get them out safely...?

At worst... there is a way.

But it would be cruel.

Countless thoughts collided in Rei’s mind.

In a single fleeting instant, he considered countless possibilities.

But when his perception settled over Qingdao—

Enveloping the entire city—

Rei froze.

Because he saw something...

That absolutely should not exist on Earth.

And in that instant—

His heart turned cold.