At sunset.
The sight of the human world before him gave Feng Qi a strong feeling of being home.
He had been traveling west from Star City for over thirty years.
Even though during his journey, he had returned to the human world now and then, those times were only in small gaps within the densely packed domain field zones, where there was no chance of any human presence.
He thought that after crossing the Black Sea domain field, he would face yet another new domain field waiting for him to explore, but to his surprise, he had actually returned to the human world.
The human world before him was completely different from before.
At the end of his sight, there was no domain field barrier connecting to the sky, only endless plains, covered in lush greenery.
Compared to the domain world, the spiritual energy content in the air here wasn't high, not even as much as the small domain field worlds created by weak tribes.
But here, Feng Qi felt something the domain world never gave him—his heart was stirred.
He took a deep breath of the human world's air, looked into the distance, and his eyes filled with anticipation.
What was the situation of humans outside? This answer had never been found in history books.
According to the history books, the human world had once been divided into five major regions.
The Eastern Region, Western Region, Central Region, Northern Region, and Southern Region. Among them, Star City, Future City, Old Day City, Victory City, and Winterfell City—the regions where these five major cities were located—made up the Eastern Region.
When the Cataclysm came, countless domain fields descended on the human world, completely cutting off the Eastern Region from the outside world.
Back then, the Eastern Region where the five major cities were located was also filled with domain fields that needed to be cleared, and they had no energy or ability to open a channel to connect with other human regions.
In the years that followed, the frequency of domain field appearances increased, creating dense zones in the west and north. Human combat power simply couldn't push through, making it impossible to establish contact with the outside.
Thus, the Eastern Region became an isolated area.
As for the situation of humans in other regions, scholars in the five major cities had put forward many theories.
But most scholars believed that the outside world had likely already fallen, and perhaps the Eastern Region was humanity's only surviving land.
This wasn't baseless speculation.
Looking at the geography, Old Day City to the east of the Eastern Region, and Victory City to the southeast, were backed by the sea, which reduced the pressure of external invasions significantly.
After all, domain expansion on land was much faster than in the sea.
As long as human forces in the Eastern Region held the northwest front of Winterfell's northern border, the foundation wouldn't easily collapse.
Even if the Winterfell frontlines failed, they could still retreat toward Old Day City, Victory City, or Star City.
Unless domain fields suddenly descended over the five major cities themselves, creating a catastrophic event.
So the defense line of the Eastern Region had better strategic depth compared to other regions of the human world.
In contrast, the Central Region, which had once been connected to the Eastern Region, was believed to be in the most difficult situation.
Scholars believed that the terrain of the Central Region doomed its people to be surrounded on all sides by domain fields.
Enemies everywhere, and the pressure could be imagined.
The situation in the other regions was thought to be similar.
This was one of the main reasons why scholars believed the outside world had already fallen.
To find out what had really happened to the outside world, the five major cities once launched a project called the Expedition Plan.
The starting point of this plan was good.
The goal was to form expedition teams to open a path to the outside world. If there were still humans out there, they could connect with the five major cities through this path and support each other to grow.
But from the moment this plan was born, it faced many challenges.
First, there was the matter of forming the battle teams.
As a team tasked with opening a path, their overall strength had to be strong.
But these teams were also the backbone of the frontlines. Sending them off to open a path meant that if they didn't find other humans, the investment and casualties would be a huge loss.
The Expedition Plan faced many obstacles after it started, but in the end, several battle teams were still sent out to open a way and seek new hope.
But none of these expedition teams ever returned.
Clearly, they had all fallen during their missions.
After several failed attempts to establish contact with the outside world, a lot of opposition arose.
Everyone believed that humans in the Eastern Region were already in a dangerous situation, and sending elite teams far away was just wasting manpower and resources. The Expedition Plan was eventually called off.
For over five hundred years after the Cataclysm, the debate over whether there were still humans in the outside world never stopped.
But there was never a clear answer.
Human scholars also thought about using technology to find out, but with humanity's current level of tech, it was hard to achieve.
Like launching satellites.
But rockets launched vertically didn't fly in a perfectly straight line the entire way.
The rocket would begin its programmed turn about ten seconds after vertical launch. The exact timing of this turn depended on different rockets, payloads, and launch locations.
But this programmed turn was something every rocket had to go through after takeoff. The first and second stages would only separate before exiting the atmosphere, then the second and third stages would separate after exiting, finally delivering the payload into its intended orbit. In other words, rockets spent most of their flight turning.
The domain field barrier connected with the sky, but just how high it was, humanity had never precisely measured.
However, one thing was certain.
Any rocket launched into the sky would crash into the domain field barrier.
So even though the Eastern Region had the technology to launch rockets, they couldn't send satellites into space.
What was more critical was that during the period when domain fields descended in large numbers, all satellites had already lost their signals.
Some lost contact after being enveloped by domain fields, while most were directly torn apart within them.
So for satellites to observe the world, there had to be significant technological advancements—specifically, the development of spirit energy-compatible tech that could handle domain fields.
But in the later stages, technology received fewer and fewer resources.
Especially after the human seed preservation escape plan to other planets was scrapped, rocket upgrades became even less important.
With the rise of cultivation studies being seen as the only way for humanity to overcome the domain fields, technology declined.
Many cities even started thinking about giving up on developing tech, believing their current level was enough.
Luckily, many scholars spoke out against this.
Eventually, after discussions among the five major cities, the result was that all tech research institutions would be relocated to a new city.
And so the youngest city was born—Future City, the City of Technology.
But Future City's development mainly served the other four cities, acting as a transportation hub among them. Its research focused on improving combat power and efficiency.
Launching spirit energy satellites was a costly venture with unknown returns, and in times of limited resources, no one would support such an effort.
Once Black Shadow took over the research institutes and controlled Star City, he wouldn't bother looking for other human settlements in the outside world.
So in terms of understanding the outside world, technology didn't help at all.
Whether there were still humans beyond remained a mystery.
At this moment, Feng Qi felt like he had just achieved a milestone in human history—taking a crucial step in exploring the outside world.
He had walked out of the dense domain field zones and truly entered a brand-new human world.
As for whether there were still humans here, he believed there probably were.
If there weren't any human defense lines, domain fields would've already swallowed this world. There wouldn't be such a huge empty area.
"Let's go!"
Looking at the sunset, filled with hope, Feng Qi grinned.
"Yay!" Xiao You raised her right fist and cheered excitedly.
She didn't know why Qi-ge was smiling so brightly.
But as long as Qi-ge was happy, she was happy too.
After cheering, Xiao You began flying circles around Feng Qi.
With the sunset and evening glow, everyone followed in Feng Qi's footsteps, moving forward.
The sun slowly vanished from sight. Without light pollution, the sky was especially bright, and the stars lit their path.
It was summertime, and the sound of cicadas and crickets filled the air.
The vitality of the human world hadn't faded. It still swayed on this now unfamiliar land. Even the breeze seemed to carry a hint of sweetness.
Feng Qi loved the human world deeply.
This was the land where his ancestors lived and passed down through generations. Taking back what was lost was the duty of his generation, and also his dream.
To fulfill that dream, the ancestors of humanity had never stopped fighting since the Cataclysm.
Old Wang, his parents, Wei Wei… they all had the same dream, and that dream had become a legacy.
The figures fighting through history passed the torch one after another, and he wouldn't stop until that dream was realized.
"La la la la~" Xiao You suddenly started humming.
Looking at her fluttering through the air, Feng Qi couldn't help but ask, curious, "Xiao You, why are you suddenly so happy?"
"Because Qi-ge looks really happy, so Xiao You is happy too."
"Childish."
Hearing Feng Qi's teasing, Xiao You scratched her head and giggled.
"Awoo~" Taihang howled loudly.
"Dumb dog, you're too loud," Lei Ting shouted.
"Awoo~" Taihang ignored him completely, nimbly dodging Lei Ting's sneak attack and kept howling at the sky.
Watching Xiao You and Taihang go back and forth, even Po Jia, who had been silent all along, showed a rare smile.
At some point, this team had become his home.
After losing everything, he found warmth again here.
He wanted to protect that warmth and never lose it again.
But first, he needed to become strong enough.
His desire for power had never faded. If anything, it had only grown stronger.
"A bunch of weirdos," Lei Ting muttered helplessly, but there was a hint of warmth in his eyes.
Madman, fool, blockhead, a brain-dead guy obsessed with destroying the world, and a dumb dog—this team was full of oddballs, yet they left a deep impression on him throughout their journey.
He had never left his tribe's territory before, and this trip had been his first taste of hardship, bitterness, and pain.
He couldn't imagine what would've happened to him, having lost his people, if not for these companions. Where would he have ended up?
Though he always talked down to them, deep inside, he had grown a strong sense of belonging to this team.
Everyone's mood had influenced him too.
At that moment, Lei Ting raised the horn hanging at his waist.
He cast a disdainful glance at Taihang, still howling like a ghost, then brought the horn to his lips and blew.
A deep, ancient melody rang out, drowning out the noise from Xiao You and Taihang.
This was the first time Feng Qi had seen Lei Ting blow his horn since the destruction of Lei Ting's tribe.
Lei Ting had once told him that this horn was a symbol of the Lei Ting tribe's kingship, much like the imperial jade seal of ancient humans—a sign of identity and power.
It was also used to command troops in battle.
But on certain festivals, Lei Ting would use this horn to spread joy to his people.
Every year, at a specific time, he would stand atop a high tower, looking over his city, blowing the horn to announce the arrival of the festival.
That was when he had once been full of pride and vigor.
During this journey, Lei Ting had never blown the horn.
Because no people followed his horn into battle anymore, and no one could understand the joy he felt when he blew it.
Right now, Lei Ting was clearly using this act to express his emotions.
Realizing that his mood had affected the team, Feng Qi couldn't help but smile.
"Qi-ge!"
Xiao You's voice rang out.
"What?"
"Nothing, just wanted to call you."
Looking at Xiao You fluttering around in front of him, a flood of past memories rushed through his mind.
Especially of Xiao You.
She had been the first to join the Blade Demon Squad.
She had faced many dangers and hardships with him when he had just started wielding the blade.
But her innocence and purity had never faded, like a little fairy untouched by the world, always bringing joy to him and everyone else.
He vividly remembered that time, stranded in an icy land with no food.
Both he and Xiao You were freezing like idiots.
She had shivered and looked at him, saying something he'd never forget:
"Qi-ge, do you need to eat me?"
When she said that, her eyes were pure and serious, not joking at all.
For her, sacrificing herself for him wasn't even a hard choice. She had already figured out her role.
So she often said shocking things that made him laugh and cry.
"I like it, being used by Qi-ge makes me happy."
That was what she boldly told Lei Ting during an argument, leaving him speechless for days.
He had just wanted to form a team he could use, but somehow the path had gone astray.
It wasn't the first time.
He'd once thought to use the Mist Lord to achieve his goals.
But things didn't go as planned.
What he got from the Mist Lord was genuine loyalty.
The Mist Lord had treated him like a brother, shared miracles with him, and even risked his life to rescue him from execution.
True sincerity had been met with true sincerity, and before he knew it, he was caught up in it.
Like the bond between him and the Mist Lord.
He couldn't execute his plans with complete detachment, and every sacrifice always came with ties he couldn't cut.
After flying for a while, Xiao You suddenly drooped like a deflated balloon and called out:
"Qi-ge, I'm hungry."
"We'll eat later."
"Okay, Qi-ge, I'll ask again in a bit."
"All you think about is food. Can't you have some bigger ambitions?" Lei Ting scoffed.
"Awoo!"
"Dumb dog, you dare bite me? You've gone too far! If I can't zap you dead, I lose…"
With all the noise, they walked further into the distance.
What lay ahead, Feng Qi didn't know.
But about the future and the unknown, he always held hope, ready to face whatever came with optimism.