They passed through land shrouded in darkness.
They crossed rivers flowing with pitch-black liquid.
They flew over black hills like enormous graves.
After several grueling hours of travel, they arrived somewhere utterly different.
Before them lay a vast basin.
At its center stood two ruined yet still sacred structures.
One was a solemn, majestic temple made entirely of gold.
The other was a holy, noble palace built from white jade and glazed crystal.
Though the two buildings were vastly different in style, they now blended together perfectly.
They were protected by a barrier formed from golden Buddhist light and purple demonic energy.
The barrier looked as though it could collapse at any moment.
Yet it stubbornly kept the evil energy capable of corroding souls at bay.
It preserved the last patch of pure land within this dark world.
"This is...?"
Li Xiaoyu stared at the miraculous sight before him, his eyes filled with shock.
"This is humanity's final refuge."
Zeng Zihang looked at the two sacred structures, pride written across his resolute face.
"Hope Bastion."
"Hope Bastion?"
Li Xiaoyu softly murmured the name, his eyes full of complicated emotions.
"That's right."
Zeng Zihang looked at him and nodded heavily.
"After the Final War, we survivors came here under the leadership of the elders from Heavenly Sound Temple and the Holy Mother Sect."
"Using Heavenly Sound Temple's Mount Sumeru and the Holy Mother Sect's headquarters as our foundation."
"We spent hundreds of years to finally build this underground city, capable of resisting the erosion of demonic energy."
"It is our final home, and our final hope."
His words were filled with emotion.
Hearing this, Li Xiaoyu sighed inwardly.
"The final fragment of the Heavenly Emperor Seal..."
He looked at Zeng Zihang, anticipation flashing in his eyes.
"It's inside."
Zeng Zihang looked