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Chapter 604: Meeting an Old Acquaintance in a Foreign Land

"Who exactly is he...? What happened to Earth in these past thirty years...? What should I do next...?" A string of questions swirled in Qiu Yi's mind, vexing him deeply.

"Huh, where'd he go?! There was just a living, breathing person standing right here!" By the time he snapped out of his reverie, Bai Mo had vanished without a trace, seamlessly erasing any sign of his presence.

"Your Majesty, this is a forbidden palace, a vital stronghold. Without your permission, no outsider can possibly enter." The captain of the Imperial Guards, standing afar, answered loudly.

"How dare you mock this king?! You were clearly present just now, and you reported the Heavenly Man's arrival yourself! Why are you lying through your teeth!"

"How could I dare deceive the great king? I swear upon the Spirit of Nature, I truly did not see any Heavenly Man appear just now..."

"..."

Seeing his subordinate's resolute expression, as if they would burst into tears if he didn't believe them, Qiu Yi couldn't help but feel a twinge of doubt.

"Could it be that everything just now was an illusion? But in my memory, there is indeed a classic text called 'Shapeshifting Dao' that has appeared, which proves that something did happen. Or could it be... that person directly modified the memories of everyone around?"

Qiu Yi seemed to have arrived at a rather terrifying conclusion.

Something even more bone-chilling occurred: he realized his impression of the other person's appearance had become incredibly blurry. That shadow was like someone he had only briefly met months ago; he couldn't recall any of their facial features or contours.

And in his recent memory, the stone tablet Bai Mo had handed him had also vanished.

What was bizarre, however, was that the information about his family recorded on the stone tablet remained remarkably clear.

"The stone tablet said my son and parents both moved to the Moon... I remember that part very clearly, what the hell. Forget it, thinking about this only adds to my troubles. The most urgent task is to first promote the Shapeshifting Dao and then connect with the Moon."

Qiu Yi, whose thoughts had been influenced just like those around him, had no doubts whatsoever about the authenticity or effectiveness of the Shapeshifting Dao. He instinctively believed it would work and immediately put it to use.

...

"Your Majesty, traces of a Heavenly Man have been discovered northeast of the city!" Half a day later, another guard reported on the patrol outside the city.

"I shall pay a personal visit."

"Your Majesty?!"

With a glimmer of hope for returning home and eager to connect with the Moon, Qiu Yi no longer cared about much else. He cast aside all his guards and charged straight out alone.

"Boom!"

After a resounding crash, all that remained at the scene was a stretch of cracked ground and a few helplessly bewildered guards.

...

"A city!"

Freed from the "ghostly" shadow, Bai Mo's original team had enjoyed a fruitful journey and had, by a twist of fate, arrived at the outskirts of the city founded by Qiu Yi.

However, before they could rejoice, a shooting star streaked forth from the city, hurtling directly towards their position.

"Damn it, everyone, prepare for battle!!!" The team leader stared blankly at the sudden assault, completely unable to comprehend how they, who had been so cautious all along, had suddenly been exposed.

And not just exposed—the opponent immediately launched such a brutal attack.

"The enemy's power level is roughly between 4-9 and 5-1. They are stronger than any single one of us, but if we combine our forces, we still have a very good chance of winning!"

With a formidable enemy before them, a shot of "chicken blood" (a morale booster) was still necessary.

"Boom!" After another deafening roar, the king of the Four-Armed Centaurs descended to the ground in the most violent manner, his four hooves carving out four massive pits.

...

The two sides faced each other in silence, each waiting to strike after the other.

"Humans?" In the end, Qiu Yi couldn't help but speak first.

"How do you know we're called humans?! And why do you understand our language?!"

In their memories, the humans on the Moon had never had any contact with any race on Mars, yet this individual could speak fluent Chinese. It was truly perplexing.

"Because I am also human." Hearing the familiar voice, if the Martian centaurs didn't lack tear ducts, Qiu Yi probably would have burst into tears on the spot.

Only today did he finally understand what a truly blessed thing it was to meet an old acquaintance in a foreign land—especially after not seeing his own kind for decades.

Every day, his eyes had seen nothing but strange centaurs that completely defied his aesthetic sense. Living in a world full of aliens, and having to deal with them daily, was truly not a pleasant experience.

...

"You... are you really human?" This news utterly stunned the entire team.

"Could it be a sleeper agent sent from above, lurking on Mars?"

"Impossible. What kind of secret agent would be so arrogant, openly charging around everywhere?!"

"Or is he a disguised Martian ability user?"

"Let's observe the situation first."

"I am a transmigrator, someone who crossed over from Earth." Qiu Yi immediately revealed his background without any concealment. He needed this group to connect him with the Moon, so he had no choice but to tell the truth.

"We've seen plenty of transmigrators in novels, but this is our first time seeing a live one... Comrade, did you transmigrate your soul or your physical body?"

After hearing the words "transmigrator" and "Earth," the team members were largely convinced that the other party was not a Martian disguised as a spy.

Because Martians, even if they learned human languages by imitating landing forces, wouldn't possibly know terms like "transmigrator," which only exist in online fiction.

"I'm not sure."

"Can you tell me what happened to Earth, and how is Hua Guo doing now?"

"Hua Guo?" Everyone was momentarily stunned upon hearing that term. "Hua Guo" was already a historical designation, nearly thirty years old.

"What year did you transmigrate?"

"The year after the Spirit River Autumn."

"No wonder then..."

"Alright, who among you has a better grasp of Federation history? Tell this young transmigrator about it," the team leader said with a laugh.

On their monotonous exploration journey, it was rare to encounter such an interesting person, so the team leader was in quite a good mood.

"I'll do it. After all, I was once a Hua Guo native myself," a burly man with a green dragon tattooed on his back volunteered.

"Once?" Qiu Yi keenly picked up on that. "Hua Guo... fell?!"

"Earth itself is gone; how could Hua Guo possibly remain unscathed?"

"Then you all...? Didn't Earth's people head for the stars and seas? They even built planetary fortresses! How could Hua Guo possibly fall?!"

Qiu Yi had never even considered the possibility of humanity forming a Federation. The rifts between races, the differences in beliefs, and most importantly, the struggle over who would hold power after unification—these were all nearly insurmountable problems.

PS: A daily plug for "I Am A Legendary BOSS." The author has written five books since I've known them, and I'm still on this one. ORZ