Otherworldly Desert Dust

Wu Hen sat on the sofa, sipping ice water, and could not calm his heart for a long time after hearing what Li Feng had said.

Indeed, the Human Clan that they had encountered along the way shared many commonalities with the Nuwa Divine Race.

The sense of superiority ingrained in their bones was merely due to their earlier settlement in this territory and gaining knowledge of its laws and acquiring the evolutionary methods earlier than others. Apart from these, there was nothing more.

Li Feng was extremely bold.

He had just steadied his footing in Nuwa Divine Realm at Cang Chu Divine Realm and made such a bold conjecture, which made Wu Hen somewhat admire him.

In fact, similar doubts had already arisen in Wu Hen's heart.

"You've also been to Da Xuan's land. Just imagine, if our homeland developed to the technological level of Da Xuan, and all its people were no longer prey to other predators, could we still return to our original state?"

Wu Hen shook his head and said, "Da Xuan's technology still poses great hazards. I have seen how Evil Spirits are born, and I have witnessed an entire town descend into a hell on earth. Rapid technological developments have only increased the disorientation among Da Xuan's populace, who even wish they could return to the simplest and most stable agricultural life."

"The various monsters we've encountered along the way that defy common sense are none other than the mutations of Evil Spirits."

Li Feng stood up and walked to his desk. He then unfolded a holographic projection screen, and before Wu Hen's eyes appeared a massive array of different species. Many were ones Wu Hen had encountered, and many more he had not, but after collecting them all from the Nuwa Divine Race, Li Feng had organized them into a very large atlas, even making some rational classifications: there were mutant species, Evil Spirit species, ancient creatures, and demon beasts, including those that inherited the bloodline of Mythical Creatures.

From the lowest Firefly Level to the Heavenly Brilliance Level, even the relationship of their food chains had been listed out by the thousands.

Wu Hen finally understood what Li Feng was doing in this underground fortress all the time. Compared to those hypocritical scholars in Da Xuan, Li Feng was more like a true life scientist, perpetually exploring the bizarre and peculiar Otherworldly Equation and cracking various uncanny laws.

Although the organization and collection of these data could be handled by super-intelligent AI, it was clear that these records were infused with Li Feng's personal interpretations and bold conjectures.

Wu Hen stood up, as if he had walked into a gallery of life.

"Have you noticed?" Li Feng's finger swiped across the holographic image, "These seemingly bizarre alien lives actually have several sources."

Wu Hen nodded his head. The specimens displayed by Li Feng were very similar to those he had seen in the exhibition hall at Blood Lake Base.

Wu Hen then briefly described his experiences in the Wastelands to Li Feng.

Li Feng patiently waited for Wu Hen to finish, then burst into a sarcastic smile: "What the top echelons of Da Xuan do is no different from the people of Snow Mountain Holy Hall, right?"

"The Otherworldly Predators we first encountered when we fell were mostly mutations of Evil Spirits, typically possessing one or two particularly acute senses. They follow a kind of hunting game rule. When we first encountered Otherworldly Dust, we mistakenly thought this world was a Virtual Dimension we'd inadvertently opened, considering that the behaviors of its creatures seemed tailor-made for the stimulation and exploration of us humans ..."

"Just when we managed to figure out the tempers of these Evil Spirit predators, other predatory types began appearing in Otherworldly Dust—tricksters, disguises, traps, slaughterers. In the short term, we were unable to adapt to and deal with these Otherworldly Predators, shattering our original understanding of Otherworldly life, causing our most outstanding Spirit Awakeners to lose their lives..."

"As the Otherworldly Mist cleared, we discovered that besides Da Xuan, other civilizations existed here, and some of the new formidable species we encountered had shadows of these civilizations."

With a light wave of his hand, Li Feng reorganized the myriad directories of Otherworldly life into several major categories, which corresponded to the especially brilliant civilizations within Cang Chu Divine Realm—all of them being 'superior people' within this part of the Otherworldly."

"Are you saying that it is these major Human Clans within Cang Chu Divine Realm that caused our difficult and perilous journey?" Wu Hen asked.

But Li Feng shook his head. He bore no great resentment or animosity towards those so-called Upper-class Human Clans, he just stood analyzing rationally from a position that scrutinized everything: "They are not the real culprits; like us, they are nomadic races dazzled by the Alternate Universe. I've laid these out to keep emphasizing one point: Cang Chu Divine Realm is not our final destination."

Wu Hen did not respond immediately but continued to listen intently to Li Feng's analysis.

His insights were unique and genuinely considered from a global perspective.

"Undeniably, they have strong adaptability. For thousands of years, they have rooted themselves in the bizarre and peculiar Otherworldly, establishing their own brilliant civilizations, but their evolutionary processes have generated a lot of problems. Dark Energy breeds Evil Spirits, Holy Sect nurtures Barbaric Land Erosion. They themselves have built high and sacred walls, dumping the uncontrollable monsters produced during the evolutionary process to the outskirts of Cang Chu Divine Realm, and one day, they too will be devoured by these monsters they have bred," Li Feng said.

"You mean to say, Cang Chu Divine Realm itself is on shaky ground," Wu Hen said.

"We've gone from the periphery into the Cang Chu Divine Realm, and we understand what the periphery is like better than they do," Li Feng said.

Wu Hen nodded. The chaos and disorder of the periphery actually brought a stronger sense of suffocation.

"It's also interesting, the Cang Chu Divine Realm has been peaceful for ten thousand years, but not when we arrived. It's as if an invisible Black Hand is creating difficulties for us. Could it be that we are also going through the eighty-one hardships?" Wu Hen said self-mockingly.

"The Cang Chu Divine Realm has always been on the brink of collapse, nearly every hundred years, nearly sixty percent of the Human Clan in the entire realm disappears. They cannot die a natural death. The lower you go, closer to these disappearing sixty percent, the higher their evolutionary level is. This only lowers the probability of disappearing and does not mean they are completely free from this pattern..." Li Feng said.

"This death rate is no different from our exploration of the unknown in the Otherworldly Dimension," Wu Hen commented.

Indeed, it's not that the Cang Chu Divine Realm has been flourishing for ten thousand years; it's the survivor's bias. What we see are the descendants of those with strong adaptability. Those of the Human Clan who perished over the millennia are now piled up like mountains, buried underground.

This is similar to the theory in today's society that "everyone thinks their ancestors were wealthy."

Those whose ancestors were not wealthy have been erased from the genealogy, buried in the long river of history.

Similarly, the people of the Human Clan in the Cang Chu Divine Realm we see today, even the most mediocre upon investigation, may be found to be descendants of divine beings, their veins flowing with the glorious blood of Heavenly People.

The Cang Chu Divine Realm is essentially a huge filter, sifting every hundred years, eliminating those human groups who evolve slowly, have low cognition, and poor adaptability.

"We have gone through several exceedingly difficult periods, and the entire world is in a thriving period of accelerated evolution. While everyone still has this passion to move towards higher-dimensions, we must leap over this Dragon Gate, which the entire Cang Chu Divine Realm can't seem to cross," Li Feng said.

"You're right, our Divine Realm is still young, it's the age to be adventurous... That's why the Star Mark is very important; it can guide our direction of advancement?" Wu Hen also nodded.

"Star Mark?" Li Feng raised his eyebrows, looking at Wu Hen with some surprise.

"What, you don't know about the Star Mark Plan? Such an important matter should be personally directed by you, right? This involves chasing gods of different levels within this Cang Chu Divine Realm, and even hunting them. This is a real test of our homeland's strength." Wu Hen showed a hint of confusion.

"But I clearly cautioned you, as well as others who would interact with you, not to involve you in these matters of the homeland. You have your mission; the Star Mark will be handled by others," Li Feng stood there, a flicker of confusion and doubt shining in his eyes.

Li Feng's look was complicated; Wu Hen even caught a trace of doubt towards him in his pupils.

Wu Hen also immediately realized something, he furrowed his brow and asked Li Feng seriously, "Do you mean, someone deliberately leaked the Star Mark Plan that should have been kept confidential from me?"

"Yes, you should not have known about the Star Mark Plan, at least not this soon," Li Feng said seriously.

"My perception has reached a very high realm, and almost all matters within our homeland can hardly be concealed from me just as long as I wish to know about them," Wu Hen said.

"That's why I hide in this bunker and try to minimize contact with you highly evolved individuals," Li Feng said.

"..." Wu Hen did not know what to say for a moment.

Li Feng's bunker was indeed special, one of the few areas where Wu Hen's perception could not penetrate. This meant that whatever Li Feng was secretly researching or planning here was beyond Wu Hen's reach.

"The Star Mark Plan is not what I heard it was?" Wu Hen calmed his slightly agitated emotions.

"If a plan is truly very important, especially one that relates to the survival of all mankind, why wouldn't I discuss it openly with you? If I do not share it with you, naturally it means that the plan still needs further deliberation," Li Feng said.

"Is someone trying to lure me into a trap?" Wu Hen realized something.

"Why would you be lured into it?"

"Mingyi."

"Do you trust her, or do you trust me?" Li Feng questioned.