Awakening

The strange phenomenon in the sky had yet to fade.

The blood-red symbol still gleamed high overhead.

One-Eyed Dragon's soldiers gave up struggling and fell to their knees in prayer.

"May the gods protect us..."

"May the gods protect us..."

But the thick black mist still coiled around their necks, turning into wolf claws and tearing them apart.

Even those who tried to flee were quickly overtaken by the black mist.

They had no way to fight back.

This was no longer a war, but a one-sided slaughter.

Soon, the last soldier in purple armor fell too.

One-Eyed Dragon knelt on the ground like a madman, raising both hands high:

"The gods are real... the gods are real..."

"May the gods... protect us."

Those were his last words.

As soon as he finished speaking, his neck was torn apart.

His head flew into the sky, then crashed down.

Blood spurted from his headless body. It swayed twice before collapsing to the ground.

Soon, the entire purple-armored army was dead.

The whole wilderness was a blood-red sea of corpses.

At the center of that sea stood Lin Jie, his eyes blood-red.

He slowly lowered his hand and calmed down.

The red symbol in the sky, what everyone called "Divine Revelation," disappeared along with it.

The black mist dispersed, and everything returned to normal.

Lin Jie's eyes returned to their normal color as well.

He looked around, uncertain what had happened.

He lowered his head to look at the ring.

The purple ring on his hand was dull, without any glow.

In the distance, a soldier from the Realm of Life dropped to his knees with a thud and shouted:

"Savior!"

Lin Jie raised his head and looked over.

Everyone from the Realm of Life was unharmed.

Throughout the calamity just now, they had watched everything from the sidelines, their hearts in their throats.

Mud still clung to the kneeling soldier's face. With a look of devotion, he bowed to Lin Jie and cried out again:

"Savior!"

Soon, a second soldier knelt too.

His expression was exactly like the first soldier's.

Shock, emotion, devotion, and excitement mingled on his face.

He knocked his forehead hard against the ground, his voice trembling with excitement. "Savior!"

Before Lin Jie could react, there was a third, then a fourth...

The soldiers knelt one after another, shouting:

"Savior!"

Soon, every soldier was prostrate on the ground around Lin Jie, calling out over and over:

"Savior!"

Lin Jie stood where he was, unsure how to respond.

A burly man slowly stepped forward from the crowd.

It was Zhou Yun. He walked up to Lin Jie.

"General, what's..."

Zhou Yun said nothing. He slowly lowered himself onto one knee.

He clenched one hand into a fist and held it firmly against his chest.

Then he spoke:

"Savior."

"The vehicle was blown up, so we'll have to walk the rest of the way. Oh, right, that scene just now didn't scare you, did it?"

Zhou Yun walked beside him, chuckling as he spoke.

Lin Jie shook his head and walked on, holding his sister's hand.

"So what was that all about? Why did they call me their savior? What was that symbol in the sky?"

Zhou Yun said frankly:

"Because you are the savior."

"Just now, you activated what's known as a God Tier Mutation. Only the gods of this world can do that."

"Every time a God Tier Mutation is activated, that skull symbol appears in the sky. That's Divine Revelation."

"Whether Divine Revelation has appeared in the sky is also an important way to determine whether a god has manifested."

Gods? Were there really gods in this world?

Lin Jie was puzzled. "Setting aside these gods you're talking about, I'm quite certain I'm just an ordinary person."

Zhou Yun waved a hand. "You're no ordinary person."

He paused, his tone turning solemn. "You're a god."

"Our Oracle once said that a god would descend upon the Realm of the Dead within these two days."

"He is different from all the other gods. He is a god who belongs to humanity."

"Only he can lead us out of the Realm of the Dead."

Lin Jie raised his eyebrows in confusion. "So you just assumed that god was me?"

Zhou Yun smiled. "It's not an assumption. We're certain. Because what you did matched what the Oracle said exactly."

"As for the details, I can't say too much."

"Once we arrive, it would be more appropriate for the Oracle to tell you in person."

With that, Zhou Yun waved to those behind him:

"Brothers, we're almost home!"

The soldiers cheered.

Lin Jie felt a sudden pat on his shoulder.

"Hey, what was going on back there? Why were they calling you their savior?"

Behind him, Chen Li leaned forward to ask, with Xia Qu beside him.

Lin Jie let out a breath. "So you two are all right. I hadn't seen either of you anywhere."

Chen Li chuckled. "Things were too chaotic just now. Miss Xia and I hid among the refugees."

The so-called refugees were the newcomers the Realm of Life had rescued from the Administrator earlier.

Quite a few of those newcomers had been killed on the spot in One-Eyed Dragon's surprise attack.

Fortunately, Chen Li and Xia Qu were both safe and sound.

Xia Qu asked curiously, "We were hiding in the distance watching the whole time. We saw you activate such a cool Mutation. Even the color of the sky changed!"

"So what was that? How come we've never seen you use it before?"

Lin Jie shook his head. "I'm not sure either. Apparently, it's called a God Tier Mutation. I don't know what triggers it."

"We're here!"

Zhou Yun suddenly called out from up ahead.

Lin Jie looked ahead.

It was a small city built of stone.

Yellow-and-white flags had been planted outside the city walls and fluttered in the wind.

Each flag bore the image of a fist raised high.

At the very center of the front wall stood a large wooden gate, with several large words written above it:

Realm of Life.

Two soldiers stood guard on either side of the gate.

When they saw Zhou Yun, both raised their hands in salute.

Zhou Yun stepped forward and nodded in greeting:

"May the living endure forever."

The guards returned the salute. "May the living endure forever."

Then they opened the city gate.

Zhou Yun beckoned for everyone to enter.

"Zhou Yun, you're back!"

A short-haired girl called out as she approached the group.

She wore white armor, her face full of heroic spirit and her voice bright and clear.

"Wow, that lady is so cool!"

Xia Qu exclaimed softly beside him, stars in her eyes.

"Feng Qiu, you're just in time. Help me settle these refugees."

"I have something to discuss with the leader."

With that, he turned and called to the crowd, "Everyone, please follow this lady general! She'll help arrange suitable accommodation for you!"

The female general called Feng Qiu smiled and beckoned to the refugees, signaling for everyone to follow closely.

Lin Jie was just about to follow when Zhou Yun stopped him.

"Lin Jie, come with me. I'm taking you to see the leader."

Lin Jie asked uncertainly, "What about my sister? Where are they going?"

Zhou Yun said in a low voice, "Don't worry. We have small apartments specifically for housing refugees."

"Feng Qiu-oh, that's the female general-will take everyone to a safe place to stay."

"Once we've seen the leader, you can come back for your sister."

Lin Jie lowered his head and told Lin Zhi beside him:

"Go with Uncle Chen Li and Sister Xia Qu for now. I'll be back in a little while."

Lin Zhi replied sensibly, "Don't worry, big brother. I'm not a little kid anymore. I can look after myself. Go take care of your business first."

Chen Li readily agreed as well. "I'm a father myself. I know how to look after a child. Go on!"

Lin Jie nodded.

And so they parted there.

Lin Jie turned and followed Zhou Yun.

"Who's this leader you mentioned?"