Ming Qi had just achieved his initial advancement, and his first stop was the City of the Gods.
Now, flying thousands of miles in an instant was commonplace for him, but he wasn't traveling very fast. He wanted to see what the world had become in the aftermath of the apocalypse. When he began his advancement atop the nameless mountain, the world hadn't yet completely collapsed. But now, the entire world was devastated, with dead bones strewn across the land. Silence shrouded the land, and the former vitality was gone.
Mountains collapsed, the earth cracked, rivers swirled, trees withered, and everywhere he passed looked like a dead place.
"Has the very essence of the world been completely destroyed?"
Thinking of this, Ming Qi stopped and landed on the ground, beginning to channel his divine power underground.
After ascending to the Martial God Realm, the Emperor's true energy underwent a complete transformation, transforming into a purer and more powerful divine force. Its concentration increased several times over. Therefore, this weak divine power was able to extend directly into the depths of the earth, undiminished by resistance.
As the divine power extended, after penetrating thousands of feet underground, although its power weakened slightly, it could still clearly perceive the situation within.
The origin of the world lies beneath the earth, a fact well known to all cultivators. Therefore, when Ming Qi's divine power came into contact with a violent and chaotic aura, he immediately knew that while the Tianhuang Earth was severely damaged, it was not completely destroyed. He could still vaguely sense the vitality within, but it seemed to be suppressed by some powerful force, unable to reach the outside world. This caused the entire Tianhuang World to resemble a completely dead world, with almost no trace of life on the surface.
Upon learning of this outcome, Ming Qi felt a wave of deep emotion. The future of the Tianhuang World seemed to be sealed. All living beings in the Tianhuang World would perish along with the rest of the world. This process would surely be extremely painful. If the origin of the Tianhuang world could be saved, the extinction of its inhabitants could be prevented. However, Ming Qi had no idea how to do so. The world's origin was shattered, and it couldn't be salvaged by a single individual.
And judging by the current situation, it seemed the gods of Tianhuang had no intention of rescuing it either.
After observing the state of the Tianhuang origin, Ming Qi didn't hold back, but rushed to the City of the Gods as fast as he could. He wanted to see how many people were still there.
Not long after, the City of the Gods was in sight.
Looking around, the once prosperous City of the Gods had become dilapidated. No one was seen around the streets, and the empty city seemed utterly silent.
However, Ming Qi was still keenly aware of the presence of others in the city, and there were many familiar auras. He had stayed in the City of the Gods for a few days before, and he had some memories of the people there.
To his surprise, he could sense Bai Bing was also there.
The City of the Gods was completely silent until Ming Qi entered the street, where several figures emerged from the Hall of the Gods.
Leading the group was none other than the priest Tai Long, followed by Commander Nie Meng and several high priests.
Tai Long and Nie Meng appeared only after sensing the presence of a powerful being. Ming Qi was not surprised by this. Logically, they should have sensed his approach long beforehand, but they didn't just wait until he reached the city.
This only suggests one thing: the people of the City of the Gods have lost hope. Even the most formidable enemy would not be surprised. Their continued presence is simply a matter of waiting for the end.
"Is it you?"
Seeing Ming Qi slowly approach, Tai Long was the first to speak, his expression filled with surprise.
He had seen Ming Qi before, during the final battle against the Heavenly Sin army. Back then, Ming Qi was only at the Martial Emperor level. But in the blink of an eye, he had quietly ascended to the Martial God realm, a single step away from godhood.
"Why are you still lingering here?"
Ming Qi keenly sensed that a large teleportation array connecting to another world had once been established here. Needless to say, some had already left to seek survival elsewhere. The question was why these people chose to stay.
"We're all exhausted and don't want to keep going back and forth." Nie Meng wasn't familiar with Ming Qi. He only knew that he had appeared in the final battle, presumably on the side of the Celestial Clan. But now, it seemed, he wasn't a Celestial Clan member.
"The gods of Tianhuang have abandoned this world. We are all abandoned, but survival is our instinct. Since you refuse to leave, you must still hold out hope for the gods."
Ming Qi's words were blunt. At first, he'd thought these people were completely hopeless, but now it seemed they weren't. Instead, they were placing their final hope in the gods of Tianhuang.
If the war of gods were victorious, Tianhuang would surely be revived.
After these words were spoken, both Tailong and Nie Meng fell silent. In truth, they couldn't even explain why they were so willing to stay here, but they weren't fools. It was just their subconscious hopes and expectations that no one wanted to express.
Seeing no one spoke, Ming Qi suddenly said, "Give up."
"Hmm?"
Tailong looked puzzled, unsure of what Ming Qi meant by "giving up."
"The gods of Tianhuang have already betrayed their original duties. If the war of gods fails, they will surely perish. But if the war of gods succeeds, they will inevitably abandon Tianhuang. After all, there are still many worlds in this sequence, and conquering them is far easier than repairing the shattered Tianhuang."
Ming Qi's statement was merely speculation, but it had a basis. His evidence came from the Northern God.
He had entered the Martial God Realm, a step away from godhood. After waking up, the North God told him some things, including some stories about the past of the Tianhuang gods. In reality, the so-called Tianhuang gods were not the original gods of Tianhuang; they were merely invaders.
"Your statement is absurd."
As the leader of the temple, Nie Meng held a deep-seated faith in the gods. It seemed almost impossible for him to believe that the Tianhuang gods would abandon Tianhuang.
"Believe it or not, we'll just have to wait and see."
Ming Qi didn't elaborate further; that was all he had to say. It was their decision not to leave, and the path they took was theirs.
Ming Qi ignored them and headed towards a large building nearby. When he reached the door, he saw Bai Bing and Su Su exit.
Seeing Ming Qi, Bai Bing was immediately surprised. This person, so close to her, was actually standing before her. "I thought you were dead."
Bai Bing looked at Ming Qi, annoyed.
Ming Qi smiled faintly, "I don't think it's easy to kill me."
Thinking for a moment, Ming Qi raised his right hand slightly, and two flames rose up. In a moment, he condensed two thumb-sized flame talismans and handed them over.
"I guess it will be hard for me to die from now on, and so will you."
"What is this?"
The two women reached out to take the talismans, curiously asking.
"This is the Nirvana Talisman. Carrying it with you can bring you back to life without any consequences. However, each person can only use it once in their lifetime."
Then Ming Qi glanced at Su Su and said, "This is just to repay the favor I did you. Is that enough?"