Ruins Battlefield.
Feng Qi walked forward slowly, his view filled with shattered weapons and armor scattered across every corner.
Many of the weapons and equipment had already rusted and become brittle due to the erosion of time. The once indestructible gear now crumbled easily under his foot, producing crisp cracking sounds.
Before arriving, Wen Xiuqi had introduced him to this domain field.
This domain field once housed a small, not very powerful tribe, but now it had become a breeding ground for the growth of elves, turning the battlefield into a treasure hunting ground.
During the exploration of this domain field, An Mu City's soldiers had discovered many precious items.
Most of these were collected by the small tribe that was wiped out, and after the brief war ended, they were confiscated by An Mu City's soldiers.
There were also some items discovered by the soldiers during their exploration of the battlefield.
The three most valuable items were called "Tianhong," "Dark Night Pearl," and "Fate Dice."
Tianhong was a peculiar weapon combining the form of a sword and a knife. Time had left no trace on this weapon. It was the personal weapon of the leader of the small tribe that had come with the domain field.
This weapon had an extremely sharp attribute. When swung, a long rainbow followed, releasing brilliant light. It was named "Tianhong." During the war, this weapon caused considerable casualties among the human soldiers.
Weapon and equipment production had always been the weak point of the elf growth system.
The gradual decline of the industrial system was an inevitable result that the elf growth system would eventually face.
This exaggerated but incredibly deadly weapon amazed the soldiers of An Mu City, and it was now being studied within the city.
The second treasure was the Dark Night Pearl.
This treasure was a palm-sized transparent pearl, through which one could see swirling black mist within its crystal walls.
The function of this pearl was to completely hide the holder.
However, this hiding was not just simple invisibility. If it were merely about hiding one's figure, this item wouldn't even be considered a treasure.
After all, most living beings perceive their surroundings through sensory methods, and even if a person is hidden, their presence is still easy to detect.
The Dark Night Pearl could hide one's presence, sound, and simulate spatial fluctuations.
For example, if one wanted to approach a powerful lifeform silently, they would first need to hide their presence. Any leakage of their aura would be immediately detected.
Then, there is the sound. Even the slightest sound, like a heartbeat or footsteps, can be easily detected.
Lastly, it simulates spatial fluctuations.
This was the most formidable ability of the Dark Night Pearl.
Breathing, flying, or any action would cause slight disturbances in the surrounding space. The Dark Night Pearl could automatically simulate the environment and cancel out any effects caused by the actions.
The combination of these three abilities made the Dark Night Pearl a flawless tool for stealth.
This treasure was also taken from the small tribe that controlled the domain field. It took great effort to eliminate the hidden hunters with carpet bombings before the Dark Night Pearl fell into the hands of An Mu City's soldiers.
The third treasure was called the Fate Dice. It was an eight-sided dice engraved with eight strange patterns.
This treasure was discovered by An Mu City's soldiers during their exploration of the battlefield, found inside a broken suit of armor. When light passed through the dice, purple threads danced inside it. The function of the dice was that when thrown, the user would receive a boost of power.
What was strange was that the dice would always land on the same face no matter how many times the same person threw it in a day.
As for the principle behind this, it was still under investigation in An Mu City.
When Wen Xiuqi had mentioned the function of the Fate Dice, Feng Qi initially thought it was a miracle item. After all, only miracle items could defy rules or create their own rule systems.
With Wen Xiuqi's help, he had seen the Fate Dice and realized it was not a miracle item.
The explanation provided by the Magic Blade was that the Fate Dice was likely a replica created by some tribe attempting to imitate a miracle artifact, much like the Nightmare Bell.
It could not compare to a true miracle.
According to the information obtained from Wen Xiuqi, it was known that the small tribe controlling this domain field hadn't explored the battlefield much, and there might still be many treasures left behind.
Back to the present, Feng Qi raised his head and looked ahead. He could see many soldiers from An Mu City wandering across the battlefield.
They were much like him, all here for the purpose of treasure hunting.
Feng Qi was not overly hopeful about finding any treasures here; he was simply indulging in some curiosity.
He had a clear understanding of how bad his luck usually was.
After all the hardships he had faced to reach this point, he felt that his luck might have run out when he gained the ability to travel through time lines.
Comparing himself to Old Mist, the destined protagonist, who always seemed to encounter good fortune, Feng Qi felt like he was cursed.
The scariest part was that after meeting him, Old Mist, who was supposed to be protected by fate, had suffered several misfortunes. From a future ruler, he had been dragged down and experienced early death multiple times.
Because of this, Feng Qi never had any big expectations regarding luck.
The main reason he came here was more to satisfy his curiosity and to expand his understanding of the domain world.
The equipment beneath his feet had unknowingly been worn down by countless years. With each step, it cracked and crumbled, reminding him of when he first entered the future dream realm, where skeletons littered the ground.
Back then, it was similar to now—every step left a hole in the ground, and there was a certain zombie named Xiao Can who never abandoned any of the future lines, no matter what.
At this point, the noise behind him interrupted Feng Qi's thoughts.
Curious, he turned around and saw Xiao You wearing a broken helmet and tattered battle armor, holding a shattered long sword. Xiao You was performing a mock thrust into the air, murmuring:
"First move of the Demon Blade, Dump Truck Slam."
Seeing this, Taihang, ever the good sport, tilted his head back and gave a small whine. After swaying his body a few times, he collapsed to the ground, closing his eyes.
Xiao You, upon seeing this, proudly put a hand on his waist and pointed his broken sword at the fallen Taihang, saying:
"Stop playing dead, get up and accept your fate."
With that, Xiao You seriously raised the broken sword and shouted:
"Unlocking the Fourth Stage of the Demon Blade, aaaaaah, infinite power is surging into my body, the demon sleeping inside me seems to be waking up!"
Feng Qi stared in confusion as Xiao You summoned energy threads and began weaving them around his body.
Soon, Xiao You's body was enveloped by energy, resembling his appearance when he activated his Asura Evil Ghost form.
"So much power! I can't control myself, I want to destroy this world, kill all the enemies blocking my way, let me slaughter, Demon Blade!"
Watching Xiao You's exaggerated movements and how he posed with his broken sword, Feng Qi couldn't help but feel embarrassed.
Xiao You's over-the-top behavior made him cringe.
Then Xiao You began chasing Taihang, and Taihang, ever the willing participant, began to flee.
Feng Qi: ...
Silly Xiao You, that's seriously silly.
Under Feng Qi's watch, Xiao You transitioned from chasing Taihang to riding him, holding his broken sword and running across the wilderness, shouting:
"Kill! Charge!"
He had completely immersed himself in the mental fantasy of his simulated world.
It was like when he used to watch action-packed anime as a kid and imagined himself as the hero.
Feng Qi turned to look at Lei Ting, who was busy picking his nose, staring at Xiao You with a look of resignation.
Clearly, Lei Ting had no words for Xiao You.
On the other hand, Broken Armor kept his eyes fixed on the shattered equipment beneath him, occasionally squatting down to rummage through it, driven by an intense desire for any treasures that might be hidden.
Turning back, Feng Qi also began searching for treasures.
Though the chances of finding anything were slim, considering the battlefield beneath his feet had been controlled by many different powers over the years. The small tribe that had been wiped out was just one of many that had held control here.
It was like chewing on sugar cane—although it still left a sweet taste, the original flavor had long since vanished.
Unless he found an untouched piece, there was little hope of tasting its original sweetness.
After exploring a little further, Feng Qi kicked aside a thick, broken metal shield, then crouched down.
Reaching out, he grabbed a piece of corroded metal, about twice the size of a palm.
Upon closer inspection, he realized it looked like the tooth of some kind of creature.
This clearly belonged to a force that had battled with the domain field's ruling power. Aside from the rulers of the field, there were traces left by enemies who had fought with them.
Discarding the piece of metal with black scorch marks, Feng Qi continued to explore.
The battlefield ruins were filled with standard issue armor and weapons, piled thickly across the ground.
Seeing this, Feng Qi could imagine just how intense the battle must have been.
It could have been that countless figures fell from the sky, covering every corner of the battlefield. Or perhaps, in ground combat with enemy forces, they were swept away by overwhelming power, like leaves blown away in an autumn breeze, and countless figures fell.
From the state of the battlefield, he felt that this war had likely been one-sided.
Such situations were common in the domain world.
The wars in the domain world didn't follow the rules of competitive sports, where fairness and justice were key, nor were they divided into categories like lightweight, middleweight, and heavyweight classes based on strength limits.
The weakest of species could easily encounter the strongest of races.
Such wars were akin to a dimensional downgrade attack—no matter how many strategies were employed, they were no match for the powerful warriors who could defeat them with a single swing.
There was no beginner's protection, no safe villages, and no leveling-up maps for growth.
This was the most brutal aspect.
In fact, humanity had once undergone a similar kind of dimensional downgrade attack.
When the first wave of domain invasions during the cataclysm hit, humanity was like those weak species with no beginner's protection. Against the domain forces, they had no means of resistance, and it was a one-sided massacre.
At that time, the population plummeted, and many cities fell. Humanity paid a painful price.
Humanity nearly became a nomadic force, even weaker than the nomadic forces that had cultivation backgrounds.
Looking at the battlefield before him, Feng Qi felt a great deal of emotion.
This was also one of the concerns he had once had.
Wars on the domain frontlines were sometimes like opening a blind box.
Every time a domain field was cleared, the next one was a mystery box of strength. Upon opening, it could reveal demons that were impossible to defeat.
The only saving grace was the suppression from the laws of the human world. Most domain creatures were bound by human laws, and before they integrated with those laws, even beings as powerful as the Lord of Mist would be restricted and unable to step out of the domain field freely.
Without this limitation, he could only imagine what kind of chaotic scene would unfold.
The scene 1,500 years later, when the world fully merged, had already shown how cruel the environment could be in such circumstances.
After searching for a while, Feng Qi still hadn't found anything valuable.
He decided to cross the domain field northward. If he didn't find anything, he would continue westward and keep moving, continuing his journey.
"Boss!"
Xiao You's shout reached his ears, and Feng Qi turned his head toward the source of the voice.
He saw Xiao You riding on Taihang, holding a broken sword. She wore a clearly oversized broken helmet on her head and a piece of shattered armor draped over her shoulders. She was charging toward him, shouting:
"Ha! Take this, Feng Qi, one strike!"
Xiao You rode Taihang and leapt toward him, then quickly hit the brakes. She raised the broken sword and aimed it at his chest for an imaginary thrust, her face full of expectation.
Feng Qi: ...
Feng Qi's expression remained blank as he felt extremely awkward but had no intention of going along with it.
Xiao You's face immediately fell. She hopped off Taihang, came up to him, and pulled out a glowing orange orb, holding it out to him:
"Boss, I found this glowing object; it might be a miracle item."
Feng Qi took the orange orb, carefully examined it, and found that it seemed to be the core of some kind of formation. Inside, there were numerous traces of formation connections. However, due to the corrosion of time, most of the structure had been destroyed, and it was now useless.
"Useless," Feng Qi shook his head.
Upon hearing this, Xiao You's expression dropped. Her body slumped like a deflated balloon.
"I thought I found a miracle item."
"Keep at it," Feng Qi patted Xiao You's helmet comfortingly.
"Alright, let's keep looking."
Xiao You suddenly regained her spirits, excitedly hopping back onto Taihang's back. She raised her magic blade toward a direction, then shouted:
"Kill!"
Taihang, ever cooperative, swung his head and howled, then took off running in the direction Xiao You pointed.
As Feng Qi continued his exploration northward, Xiao You occasionally appeared, holding up what she thought might be a treasure, always filled with eager expectations.
But most of what Xiao You found were either worthless or of very limited value.
Because the space inside her storage tool was limited, Feng Qi would not take these half-destroyed items, so he could only shake his head and indicate that they were useless.
Every time this happened, Xiao You would feel disappointed.
But after the disappointment, she would quickly bounce back, excited to continue searching.
It was clear that Xiao You treated this place like a treasure-hunting playground, enjoying herself immensely. During her explorations, she changed outfits several times.
She mixed and matched various sets of gear, creating some quite ridiculous-looking outfits.
But Xiao You was thoroughly invested in it and didn't think anything was wrong. She immersed herself fully in her role-playing fantasy.
What with the Dump Truck Slam, the unlocking of the Fifth Stage of the Demon Blade, and the awakening of the Evil Ghost.
She looked just like someone suffering from "chuunibyou" (middle school syndrome).
Watching Xiao You's antics, Feng Qi couldn't help but feel amused, sometimes laughing out loud at her ridiculousness.
After a long while, Feng Qi hadn't found any items worth collecting, but Broken Armor had a pleasant surprise.