The whole nation: You're put to survive on a desolate planet, you'll be running an alien b

The descent did not last long.

Just when Li Haotian thought they would plummet to the Earth's core and be swallowed by the energy torrent behind them, capable of melting everything, a gentle yet irresistible force suddenly supported them from below. The momentum of their descent abruptly slowed, as if they had fallen from a towering waterfall into a bottomless pool of still water. The feeling of weightlessness vanished instantly, replaced by a strange pressure that enveloped the entire space.

Li Haotian tensed his body, adjusting his posture in mid-air with an almost instinctive protective stance, firmly shielding Lin Mo in his arms. When his feet landed, his knees bent slightly, dissipating most of the final impact, and he landed silently, like a cheetah in the dark.

He straightened up and looked around warily.

They were in an extremely small, circular room. More like an empty, ancient well than a room. The walls were covered with countless, enormous energy conduits. These conduits were not metal, but a translucent crystal, within which flowed a viscous, molten blue light, pulsating slowly but powerfully like the veins of a colossal beast. A low, mournful hum filled the space, as if countless souls were playing a sorrowful elegy.

At the very center of the room lies the source of all this—a "heart" suspended in mid-air, composed of pure energy.

It was about half a person's height, with an irregular crystalline shape, its surface covered with countless fine, ever-changing cracks. Like a real heart, it contracted and expanded continuously at a slow, heavy frequency. With each beat, the energy conduits on the surrounding walls brightened a little, and the mournful buzzing sound rose a syllable. Li Haotian could clearly feel that with each beat, a spiritual storm mixed with endless pain, wails, anger, and despair swept out, cleansing his soul.

This is the "singularity," the heart of that antenna that covers the entire globe, and the root of all suffering.

Just as Li Haotian was on high alert, trying to analyze the weaknesses of this energy core, the entrance to the passage behind him suddenly closed in a blinding flash of light. There was no explosion, no loud noise; the air merely distorted silently for a moment before transforming into a thick, opaque energy barrier, sealing off the only escape route perfectly.

There is no way out.

Li Haotian's heart sank, but the coldness and determination in his eyes remained unwavering. He had come all this way; his purpose was to destroy this place. He lowered his head, intending to comfort Lin Mo, who was still trembling slightly in his arms, when an unexpected scene unfolded.

Just as Li Haotian was on high alert, Lin Mo in his arms suddenly jerked free!

The force with which she broke free was completely different from her previous weakness and fear; it was a resolute and clear-headed force unlike anything he had ever felt before. Caught off guard, Li Haotian was suddenly pulled away from her embrace and took two steps back before regaining his footing.

He looked at Lin Mo in astonishment.

The girl stood there, still frail, her face streaked with tears, but her eyes, which had been shrouded in confusion and fear, were now as clear as a still, cold pool. That misty fragility had vanished, replaced by a deep, ancient sorrow that seemed to overflow.

Her gaze was no longer focused on Li Haotian, but went over his shoulder and looked straight at the beating energy heart in the center of the room.

"Lin Mo? You..." Li Haotian tentatively asked, a strong sense of unease rising in his heart.

Lin Mo did not answer him. She simply raised her hand slowly, extending her slender fingers and pointing towards the "singularity." Her lips moved slightly, her voice so soft it was almost drowned out by the deep hum, yet it clearly reached Li Haotian's ears.

"It's crying..." Her voice trembled slightly, no longer from fear, but from a deep, empathetic compassion. "I heard it... so many people, so many voices... all crying."

Li Haotian's pupils suddenly contracted.

He whirled around, looking again at the energy core. In his perception, it contained only pure, destructive negative spiritual energy, enough to drive anyone mad—a chaotic, malicious swamp of noise. But in Lin Mo's words, it was a "crying sound"?

Could this massive energy flow, so close to the core, have... burned away the interference the "mother" had imposed on her, allowing her to regain something of her own?

"Li Haotian..." Lin Mo finally shifted her gaze from the core to his face. Her eyes were filled with extreme sorrow, as if they carried the grief of the entire world. "Thank you... for bringing me here."

She took a step forward, her bare feet making no sound on the cold metal floor.

"This is the end," she said softly, her tone carrying an unprecedented sense of relief. "And also... this is where I must do something."

Li Haotian's heart sank suddenly, a premonition more terrifying than facing a thousand troops gripped him. He looked at the girl before him; the clear sorrow on her face made him more uneasy than any of her previous confused expressions.

"What are you going to do?" His voice became dry and hoarse.

Lin Mo didn't answer directly. She simply smiled, a smile both poignant and resolute, like the final bloom of a night-blooming cereus in the darkness. She turned and walked, step by step, resolutely towards the beating energy heart in the center of the room, a heart imprisoning countless cries of agony.

Every step felt like it was treading on Li Haotian's heart.