Otherworldly Desert Dust

...

Opening his eyes, Wu Hen's face revealed a hint of disappointment.

He had intended to wander the outside world as an Awakener.

But for some reason, the awakening had failed.

Wu Hen felt this to be somewhat strange; logically, at the wanderlust stage of Nuwa God End, the people in their homeland should be continuously interacting with Otherworldly Dust, and not being able to awaken outside was akin to a worker bee unable to go out and forage for nectar.

Although the resources gathered here could barely maintain the stability of Nuwa God End, this sensation of neither starving nor being satiated was not the other shore that those searching for the Human Holy Realm desired.

Moreover, among the humans, there were a group of Pioneers who had lost contact with Nuwa God End for a long time.

They couldn't leave Red Port, making it very difficult to reunite with the Pioneers, and he couldn't see Mingyi…

Staying cooped up indoors made Wu Hen inexplicably irritable.

So, Wu Hen called up old classmates Yang Qin, Wang Rui, Luo Yuying, Tian Jia Bao, and a few others to have a barbecue by a lake outside Lun Mountain City.

After the Spiritual Energy was introduced to the homeland, the mountains and the land slowly healed and grew back; landscapes that had been damaged would turn into new ecosystems in a relatively short period of time.

The place where Wu Hen and his classmates barbecued was indeed the lake where they had killed the Silver Winged Mantis, and the scenery here was truly beautiful.

"Actually, isn't this quite good? Everyone won't unknowingly fall into unknown dangers. Apart from the Longevity Sect's influence, aren't we all back to the time before the disaster?" Class beauty Luo Yuying expressed her opinion.

"No, it's not good at all. After we emerged from the Divine Python Earth Vein, our homeland was transforming. Spiritual Energy was reviving, and even without venturing out, we could obtain some Spiritual Factors…" Wang Rui immediately shook his head in disagreement.

"Indeed, it was during that phase that our human group gave birth to a lot of Spirit Awakeners. It seemed like everyone was evolving, becoming stronger, but after being stranded in Red Port, the spiritual charm of the mountains and the land has been slowly depleting. This is clearly related to the poor Spiritual Energy in Red Port, and to some extent, Red Port does not nourish the spirit or the people," Yang Qin added.

"To be honest, suddenly being unable to become an Awakener and go outside to collect Yuan You, I'm not quite used to it. It feels like I've been locked up," Wang Rui expressed.

"Although it's more peaceful, overall we are in decline." Wu Hen nodded in agreement, feeling the global changes.

"It's alright, actually. I'd rather go back to the past when everyone went to school, went to work, and there were no superpowers," Luo Yuying said.

The vast majority of people shared Luo Yuying's opinion. They didn't wish for superpowers, much less evolution, or if the collective dream spun by Nuwa God End for them hadn't been shattered, they would rather continue living in this peaceful manner—at least within the homeland, humans were always at the top of the food chain, and the otherworldly had too many unknowns.

"Your wish will definitely come true. As long as we reach the Human Holy Realm, everyone can choose the lifestyle they want," Wang Rui was a staunch follower of the Old Faction.

"But can't this place be the Human Holy Realm? Red Port has order, there's no otherworldly contamination, and if the Spiritual Energy declines, so be it. Our world did not have Spiritual Energy before, nor superpowers…" Luo Yuying still stuck to her principles.

"Luo Yuying isn't wrong. If a place can give us stability, allow us to return to the original tranquility, it wouldn't be bad to call that place the Human Holy Realm," Wu Hen chimed in.

"See, even Wu Hen thinks so," Luo Yuying's face immediately brightened with a smile.

"However, Red Port definitely doesn't fit the bill. Don't forget, just forty kilometers away on the White Mountain of Lun Mountain City, there's a Wormhole. That in itself is contamination. And the most important issue is, why do the rulers of Red Port provide such a sanctuary for the Human Clan? Unless we can be sure that their belief is peaceful coexistence, and that they aim to create a tranquil land for the Human Clan..."

"Unfortunately, they haven't shown this kind of belief; instead, they allow various clan forces to slaughter each other within Red Port, competing for the limited resources."

"Moreover, why did our Pioneers leave? If this place were truly suitable for settling down, the Pioneers wouldn't have lost contact with us. They are the navigators of the human race. When the otherworldly arrived, they were the ones who notified all of humanity that our world was collapsing."

"They are still seeking a path, which indicates that Red Port is not a land of goodness."

"If it were truly peaceful, and if it could ensure stability for hundreds of years, it wouldn't matter whether Red Port is the Human Holy Realm or not. The problem is, we still know nothing about Red Port. We are always under someone else's roof, and there are too powerful Marquises here, whose temperaments are unpredictable, whose beliefs are ominous, and our interactions with them are almost non-existent. Our survival purely depends on their mood."

Having stayed in Red Port for a long time, Wu Hen didn't feel that there was any so-called tranquility.

In fact, after deeper contact, Wu Hen felt an indescribable weirdness.

What are the rules here?

Why does this Red Port exist?

Why does it take in these wandering human clans?

Wu Hen also hoped that the rulers here were a group of good people.

But the fate of all humanity couldn't rely on the goodness of others.

If possible, it was better to leave as soon as possible. As time passed, the homeland would become increasingly barren, and after a difficult ordeal, humanity had finally shown signs of rising in the Otherworldly Dust. They couldn't just settle back into backward civilization because of this temporary comfort.

"Lord Wu Hen, you had better come here right away," at that moment, a message came through the Virtual Iris.

This message was directly transmitted from within Red Port, requiring a certain amount of Yuan You Energy to send.

Had an urgent situation arisen?

But Wu Hen was close to achieving his Fourth Rank Physique. He did not plan to roam around before his Physique broke through, especially since his brow had turned black months ago. Who knew how long this premonition of bloodshed would last? It's always better to be safe.

"Chief Li is also there, Lord Wu Hen, you must come." At this moment, Shen Wenhai sent another message.

Li Feng shook himself to go as well?

Then there's no helping it.

Something big must have happened.

"Classmates, I need to step out for a while, you guys continue the discussion, as successors of this world, your philosophies are also very important," Wu Hen said as he stood up.

"Are you going to Red Port? Then why don't you just go to the tent and lie down, are you afraid of what we might do to you?" Luo Yuying said.

"I'm not used to sleeping outside," Wu Hen replied with a smile and waved goodbye.

...

Waking up from the Nuwa God End's Pure Land, Wu Hen saw that the dragon-like 'migrating' crowd had clearly thinned.

It seems that over the year, many had changed their minds and stayed within the homes they knew well.

Li Feng had said that human division was normal and that such situations would continue to happen one after another in the future. Perhaps a branch of Nuwa would migrate to a peaceful land while those searching for the Human Holy Realm would perish on the way...

Wu Hen did not linger there.

He flew towards Red Port, to the location designated by Shen Wenhai and Li Feng.

Both top human researchers were not strong in combat, but they usually had the strongest of humans taking turns to guard them, even when venturing to a nearby small island.

The small island was close to where Wu Hen and Wang Rui had once fished, surrounded by a Dark Domain, with only the Red Plane undulating like an ocean as far as the eye could see.

A majestic Mechanical Beast stood on the island, its entire body white with silver markings.

Approaching, Wu Hen realized it was a white tiger beast, a combatant second only to one other among the Twelve Zodiac Beasts!

The white tiger beast's body was covered in rare Star Silver, reminiscent of the mythical Si Xuan, and even if it was purely technologically forged, it exuded an extremely powerful beastly pressure.

"How is it? This is one of the Twelve Zodiac Beasts—Tiger!" Shen Wenhai's lips curled into a smile, proud of the Mechanical Beast he had helped design.

"It's very strong, it has the strength of Second-class Heavenly Brilliance, right?" Wu Hen said.

"Hehe!" Shen Wenhai laughed, not explicitly confirming, but implicitly acknowledging.

The Tiger was naturally protecting Li Feng.

It was Wu Hen's first time seeing Li Feng out; he stood at the edge of the sea cliff with a deep and heavy silhouette, clearly troubled by something.

Approaching, Wu Hen noticed Li Feng's gaze was continuously fixed on a pile of wreckage below the cliff.

The wreckage was broken and some of it was unrecognizable.

"Do you recognize this?" Li Feng held a very special piece of metal in his hand, snow-white but with a warm luster like gold.

"White Spirit Gold??" Wu Hen said, surprised.

Months ago, when Chang Huan of the Hao Clan's Ark bid him farewell, they had given him a piece of White Spirit Ore.

Wu Hen fed it to Little Yi as a snack.

Afterward, he discovered that the White Spirit Gold could attract thunder elements. After absorbing the piece of White Spirit Gold, Wu Hen became more efficient at Thunder Crossing with his sword!

"Yes, White Spirit Ore is found on islands outside of Red Port, and only the technology of the Hao Clan's ark can refine it. They transformed the ark's propulsion wings into this White Spirit Gold material, absorbing the energy from the Red Tide to convert it into kinetic energy for their ark, allowing them to escape from Red Port," Chief Li said.

Wu Hen opened his mouth in astonishment, not expecting the Hao Clan's Ark to be so ingenious, utilizing the energy of the Red Tide to leave Red Port! Find more to read at My Virtual Library Empire

"They must have reached a new realm by now, right?" Wu Hen said.

Chief Li, however, shook his head.

He pointed down at the chaotic wreckage below with a heavy tone and said, "They perished. The entire ark was shattered, with debris scattered across many islands..."

"Perished??", Wu Hen's face was filled with shock.

Although the Hao Clan's Ark was not a large population force, there were still millions on board, and they also had strong individuals beyond Second-class Heavenly Brilliance within their ranks. Even if they were attacked by the entire force of the Red Port Human Clan, they could have withstood with their impregnable ark!

How could a life ark, technologically superior to humanity by a whole tier, be destroyed like this?

Had they not escaped Red Port?

Or did they encounter something in this distant Dark Domain?